~*Mother, Must I?*~
By Lalita
~*Disclaimer*~
Megami Kouhosei is completely the property of people and companies and such other than myself.
~*Summary*~
Gareas Elidd, the Black Knight, is ordered by King Azuma to wed in three weeks' time. With the aid of his friends ( and a little unknown help from his mother ), he embarks on a quest to find the perfect bride- but she may be closer than he thinks…
~*Author Notes*~
Well, here's chapter two! Thanks to my two reviewers... *sniffles* Despite lack of reviews, I have continued! Please read and REVIEW! Keyword there- REVIEW! I'll even spell it out for you people! *cheers* GIVE ME A R-E-V-I-E-W! REVIEW!!! Yes, I know I'm desperate...
Oh, and by the way, for anyone who cares, I've taken down " In the Dark " for EXTREME revisions… If I'm lucky, it should be back up by next week, at most. I've also taken down " I Never Knew You " permanently- or at least until I get the motivation to work on it again.
And, in answer to Alena S. Aniqor's question: No, there won't be any Hiead/Ikhny… Not in this story. There will be in the next fic I plan to write… This fic is Gareas/Leena, Rio/Phil, slight Azuma/Rill, one sided Ernest/Gareas, and one sided Tune/Ernest. ^_____^ Oh, and Nanashi, thanks for the candy! Lol *glomps you* Don't worry… I'm going to write an AU Hiead/Ikhny fic… But I cannot reveal the plot! lol
~*Chapter Two*~
Gareas was in a very foul mood indeed. So foul, in fact, that several passing servants asked if he needed any assistance, and if he would like to see the physician. He supposed the way his teeth were bared such as a rapid dog and his heavy breathing would lead simpletons to think he was ill, but that did not excuse their obvious stares, nor did it pardon the chortles he heard behind his back.
Oh, aye, the Black Knight's infamous temper had sparked, and it was not likely to find surcease any time soon.
He had pretty much given up any hope of locating his mother, which annoyed him to no end. He hated defeat, especially when the one doing the winning was Lady Margaret. No doubt she would walk around for days, subtly crowing her victory over him. Gareas heard his teeth grind and gnash, felt the veins in his wrists tighten considerably. Just because it had been several minutes since he had last caught sight of her did not mean that she wasn't close by. He wanted answers, and he wanted them now.
So intent was he upon his thoughts, Gareas did not really pay attention to where his strides were leading him, and, consequently, soon bumped into someone. " Watch where you're going," he growled, unwilling to admit that the collision had been entirely his fault. " That's what you have eyes for, you know."
The lanky, thin man before him with sandy, mussed hair and a jelly tart in his hand chuckled amiably. Gareas blinked in recognition as a pair of chocolate eyes met his. It was impossible! Ludicrous, even! This man could not possibly be... " Rioroutte?"
Rioroutte Vilgyna bowed so ridiculously low that his nose almost touched the ground. Still chortling, he rose and said, in a voice full of mock reverence, " At your service, my lord."
Gareas's mind was reeling. He was utterly thrown off balance. Here was Rioroutte, alias Rio, and old childhood friend from his past- and one that he had not expected to meet again. At a time, they had been as close as brothers, Rioroutte having once serving as his squire, but the lack of contact since the war had ended and the simple fact that there was no apparent need to continue the friendship further had separated them. " Rio?" he said wonderingly, looking baffled.
" I'm pained to see that you treat me so rudely, sir," Rioroutte said, feigning indignation. " Is this any way to greet an old friend?"
Gareas was further befuddled by Rioroutte addressing him as " sir," and could not find it in himself to muster a decent reply.
Rioroutte's lopsided grin widened. " What's wrong with you, Garu?" he asked jovially, adopting a more friendly, familiar tone. " I don't think I've ever seen you at a loss for words. Not since that one lass in that small town. What was it called?" he rambled on, oblivious to Gareas's increasing annoyance. " Whatever it was called, I'm not likely to forget that. You made a spectacle, dropping your sword and gaping at her like a fish, although she did have a nice pair of-"
" Rioroutte," Gareas said warning.
Rioroutte's grin faltered. " Ever so sorry, sir," he said, in tones of complete amusement. " It seems I have forgotten that you have a very sensitive ego when it comes to mistakes. Quiet odd an odd trait for the Black Knight, if I might add."
Gareas could not help but crack a smile, though he quickly masked it. " What're you doing here?" he asked gruffly, in an offhand sort of way.
" Actually," Rioroutte said, " I was just leaving. Bloody cook threw me out of the kitchens, he did. Said I wouldn't find any work here, because I ate what I was to serve! What a bloody liar! Just a few nibbles here and there, and the short-tempered git loses me another job! Well, he can find someone else to be his unofficial taste-tester!"
Gareas laughed. He, for one, had no trouble believing the cook's accusations. Rioroutte's appetite always had been ravenous, a habit ill suited to the grueling, hungry days spent on campaign.
" What're you doing here, yourself?" Rioroutte asked curiously. " The Gareas I knew never got much enjoyment out of places such as this."
" I assure you, I'm the same," Gareas said. In truth, he did enjoy the life at court, just not the scandal and lack of privacy that went with it.
Rioroutte peered at him, assessing him. " Pretty lady caught your eye?" he asked, winking conspiratorially. " I won't tell your mum, I promise."
" No," Gareas answered honestly. In truth, Rioroutte's innocent question couldn't have been more off base. At the moment, all Gareas wanted to do was stay within fifty feet from every female he encountered.
" No? Well then... Let's see." Gareas, who could sense some ridiculous words coming from Rioroutte in the next moments, braced himself. He was not to be disappointed. " Going to rescue a fair maiden? Depose of the king? Or..." Rioroutte paused, then said dramatically, " are you on a sacred quest to steal food from the kitchens? The Royal Cook is the best, I can vouch for that."
Gareas chuckled. It was always the same with Rioroutte. The man had a one track mind, focused solely on food. " Actually," he said, grimacing, " I'm here on orders from the king."
Rioroutte sighed. " And is that supposed to surprise me?" he asked, clearly unfazed.
Gareas glared. " No, but this should," he snarled. " I've been ordered to wed in only three weeks' time, else he shall pick a bride for me."
Rioroutte's jaw dropped. " Oh," he said weakly, unable to think of more. " I- I don't know what to tell you, mate."
Gareas groaned. " You could start by telling me how sorry you am for me," he suggested miserably, yet Rioroutte only laughed, which served to severely irk him. " You don't have to sound so happy about it," he growled, crossing his arms.
Rioroutte wiped tears of mirth from his eyes. " S-Sorry, mate... But it's just so bloody hard to imagine you gettin' ordered to get hitched!" Rioroutte was practically shaking with the effort of suppressing his unseemly laughter.
Gareas scowled more so, if that was possible. " I'm glad to see you're enjoying yourself at my expense," he said sarcastically.
Rioroutte threw a companionable arm around Gareas's shoulders. Still chortling, he said, " Well then, let's get to it!"
" Get to what?" Gareas asked moodily. He crossed his arms and unknowingly adopted the look of a sulking child.
Rioroutte was undeterred. " Why, to find you a bride, of course!" he said cheerfully, as if the task was an enjoyable one. Gareas had no choice but to be dragged along by his friend. Rioroutte looked around suspiciously, then flattened himself against the wall and indicated for Gareas to do the same.
Gareas smirked at Rioroutte's discomfort. " What's wrong with you? Why're you acting like a sneaky villain on the run?"
Rioroutte's eyes widened considerably. He held up a hand to his lips in a vain attempt to shush Gareas. When Gareas did not comply, he jerked his head towards the end of the hall, where several foot soldiers were packed in a tight group, apparently in the act of searching for someone. Comprehension dawned on Gareas. The man they were searching for must have been Rioroutte.
Knowing full well that in a few seconds the soldiers would be upon them, Gareas hastily shoved Rioroutte behind a suit of armor and hissed, " Stay down." He immediately straightened when the leader of the search party headed his way. He leaned against the wall, trying to block any view of Rioroutte and look casual at the same time.
He succeeded, at first. The soldier, adorned in the traditional knight's attire, saluted him while assessing him with his eyes. " Good day to you, sir," he hailed him.
Gareas barely contained a snort of contempt. The man speaking to him was burly and short, yet he had the high pitched voice of a woman, with several flecks of gray standing out starkly in his otherwise black hair. He struggled to remain impassive. " Good day," he said cooly.
The man nodded and tried to look behind the coat of armor inconspicuously. " I trust you have not seen a vagrant running amok?"
Gareas cocked his head to the side, feigning slight interest. It wasn't hard. He was sure he would be humored by another version of Rioroutte's tale. " What sort of vagrant? he asked, sounding bored, as if this man was only consuming half his thoughts.
The soldier coughed. " Tall, fair-haired, and lanky," he paused, but only for a moment as he went on with his description. It sounded like he had said it many times before. " Believed to be in the possession of many jelly tarts-"
Gareas could not hold in a guffaw of laughter. The soldier looked at him with sharp eyes. " Something amusing, sir?" he snapped, with a bit more impudence and annoyance than was allowed for a man in his position.
Gareas waved a hand dismissively. " I have not seen such a man," he declared. " On your way, soldier."
The soldier bowed haughtily and proceeded to walk down the hall, the rest of his group trailing behind him. All of a sudden, just when Gareas had thought that they had gotten clean away, a fat, pudgy little man in a scarlet tunic that draped along the floor behind him turned and shouted, drawing the attention of the entire hall, " The thief! He's there, right there!"
Instantly, Gareas cursed and started to run after the fleeing Rioroutte, fingers itching to strangle the swine who had dared to squeal like a pig and foul Rioroutte's escape. The soldiers were thundering behind him, and Gareas heard the man he had spoken to gasp and wheeze a hasty thank you to the nosy man and pursue them.
Inwardly, Gareas was seething. He so desperately wanted to draw his sword and take on the lot of them. It certainly would ease his frustration since that morning. First, the order from the king. Then, his mother, followed shortly by the shock of meeting up with Rioroutte. It was enough to rise any man's ire, and Gareas was known to be quick to anger and slow to cool down. He certainly wasn't known for a cool, level head, and now he wished more than anything to live up to his reputation. Unfortunately, it wouldn't do well to attack some of the king's own guards, especially as he was in such a precarious position already.
Gareas blinked. Rioroutte was gone. He swore loudly and drew the disapproving stare of a group of ladies, elegantly attired, sweeping down the hall, chattering annoyingly like birds. One woman, a girl with long, luxurious blonde hair that fell in waves to her waist, raised her delicately arched eyebrows and hid her smile behind a lacy handkerchief. The others ignored him and wrinkled their noses as if he were an unpleasant pile of dung beneath their noses.
But Gareas did not care. He was too busy looking this way and that for a hiding place. No doubt he had raised the soldiers' suspicions; hell, he was probably in as bad as fix as Rioroutte now! Gareas could have slapped himself on the spot. It was what he deserved, for acting so damn guilty, when he took off running.
The soldier halted him by restraining his arms. The leader smiled toothlessly at him. " Look here like we got an accomplice," he drawled, running his tongue over his dry, cracked lips.
Gareas cringed as the smell of putrid, rotten gums reached his nose when the soldier leaned near him. " I was attempting to chase after him, if you hadn't noticed," he growled, jerking away from the two soldiers holding him in place.
" So you say."
" Are you suggesting that I am not innocent?" Gareas said, his voice lowering threateningly.
The man threw up his hands in defense. " All's I saying is you acting suspicious," he noted, still leering.
Gareas's temper broke. He swung an angry fist at the man, who, unprepared, stumbled and fell with the force of the blow. " If you'll excuse me," Gareas said heatedly, while the man struggled to his feet, face beet red, " but I believe I shall be on my way. I wish you luck in apprehending the real villain, who has so cleverly gotten away by now, as you were wasting your time with me."
The soldier looked about to say more, but another, younger man looked apologetically at Gareas and held the rude captain in place. The old soldier was forced to content himself with glaring at Gareas's retreating back, and Gareas took a small measure of satisfaction in the fact that he had thwarted the Castle Guards. He walked sullenly down the hallway, taking care to remain out of sight of any more lingering officials whilst searching for Rioroutte. He also tried to remain inconspicious; for example, he stumbled and fell while looking into nooks and crannies one would have to bend over to see properly.
Eventually, he saw Rioroutte, out in plain sight and eating a cream filled tart. Annoyance surged through Gareas. He had spent the better part of his time covering up for Rioroutte, but it seemed that he was almost determined to get caught and put Gareas's efforts to naught. Gareas strode angrily towards Rioroutte, who greeted him with a smile. " Good day, sir," he said, nonchalantly biting into the tart.
Gareas rolled his eyes. " What are you doing, you fool?" he hissed, taking Rioroutte by the scruff of his color and pushing him through a doorway that led to a small, deserted corridor. " Do you want to get caught?"
Rioroutte shook him off. " Course not," he said. " But you were takin' so damn long to find me, I figured I'd have to find you myself."
Gareas ignored his remark and paced down the length of the hallway, exiting out through the wide archway at the end. Instantly, he was enveloped by the cloying scent of flowers and damp earth. To some, the smell was heavenly, but not to Gareas. He eyed the clusters of marigolds and rosebushes with extreme distaste. Gardens had never been to his liking, and the grand ones to be found at the palace made him wonder why anyone would waste so much time planting and sustaining them.
Rioroutte emerged beside him and breathed in deeply. " Lovely, isn't it?" he asked idly, apparently taking a sense of peace from his surroundings.
But as Gareas was about to reply, a faint, strangely familiar female voice drifted to his ears. He shushed Rioroutte and headed off in the direction he was sure the noise had come from. If he wasn't mistaken, it had to be his mother.
Further and further along they went, Rioroutte looking partly amused as he watched his friend crane his neck this way and that, much in the fashion a nosy neighbor would lean in closer to hear bits of a whispered conversation. However, the voices soon became louder and louder until they rounded a bend and came into plain view of Lady Elidd and her companion, a woman with silvery hair pulled into a severe knot at the back of her head but a pleasant smile.
" Mother!" Gareas boomed, and she jumped up from her place on the bench, hand held to her heart. Gareas thought she was acting rather guiltily, as if he had interrupted a conversation he was not meant to hear.
Rioroutte bowed hastily. " Lady Elidd," he mumbled. " How nice to see you again."
But he went ignored. Lady Margaret was glaring at her son in intense disapproval. " Really, my son," she chided, " do you wish to be the death of me?"
" Nay." Gareas leaned back against the garden wall. " Rioroutte and I-" he pointed towards Rioroutte "- were just out for a stroll."
Lady Margaret looked suspicious but did not press. After a few moments of awkward silence, she laughed daintily and said, " Oh, what has become of me? It appears I have forgotten my manners. Eleanor, this is my son, Gareas, and his acquaintance, Rioroutte Vilgyna. Gareas, this is Lady Fujimura."
Lady Eleanor Fujimura curtsied, while Rioroutte and Gareas bowed once again. " It's a pleasure," Gareas said, flashing his best smile at her. Beside him, Rioroutte poorly disguised a snort of laughter by having a sudden coughing fit.
" Charmed, I'm sure," she said, glancing at Lady Margaret out of the corner of her eye. She could see where her friend thought their children to be the perfect match. Her son certainly was impressive. He was just as tall, dark, and handsome as she had heard. Goodness knew her daughter could do well with a man such as he.
" Well, Gareas, since Eleanor and I were just finishing up, perhaps you could wait so kindly for me outside?" Lady Margaret said sweetly, with a pointed look at the door.
Gareas bowed once again. " Certainly, mother," he said, matching her polite tone.
Rioroutte and Gareas exited the gardens, but not before Gareas heard Lady Fujimura say, " Tomorrow, then?" and his mother agree.
" Suppose I should go, and leave you to deal with your mum?" Rioroutte asked, smirking.
Gareas shrugged. " So long as you agree to accompany me here tomorrow."
" Why?" Rioroutte asked, cocking his head curiously to the side. " Going to spy on your mother?"
Gareas winked and said heartily, " Nay. Just find out what she has underfoot."
Rioroutte nodded and seconds later, Lady Margaret approached, looking slightly ruffled. " Good day," she said to Rioroutte, then narrowed her eyes and said to Gareas, " I wish to be escorted to my chambers, son."
Gareas winced, certain that the rebukes his mother would pile upon him as they made their way back to the other side of the palace would be thoroughly unpleasant. He bid Rioroutte goodbye and prepared himself for his mother's sharp tongue, but, to his surprise, she said nothing, merely walking along beside him in stony silence.
Gareas was thankful, although, at the same time, disappointed. After all, Lady Margaret might have let slip some of the plans he was positive she was scheming. " Oh well," he thought, grinning wickedly. " There's always tomorrow..."
