Disclaimer: I Do Not own Noir. Noir Belongs to Ryoe Tsukimura & Beetrain, ect. ( I DO own the cool sunglasses that Mireille wears in this episode. Actually, I stole them from her, but Shh! Please DON'T Tell her! I guess stealing from an assassin isn't such a good idea... but...at least I didn't try to steal Kirika's ID card, right?) A/n- (The author doesn't advocate stealing- especially from assassins!) This story is told in Mireille's POV.
A Bouquet Of Memories
Chapter 4 – The Black Thread of Fate – ep.7
Somewhere in the Middle East-
Kirika and I had a mission to assassinate an Revolutionary leader named Varjun. Unfortunately, it didn't go well. Kirika was able to take out the man, but she was shot and injured in return. Now we were riding through the desert as fast as I could drive.
Kirika kept gasping in pain, as she gently held her right side where she had been shot. The blood was seeping through her olive green tank top, and her army fatigue pants were stained with blood. She was sitting on top of a blanket that I hoped would keep the bloodstains from ruining the seats of the Jeep. That wasn't important though. We had much bigger problems right now. I turned to look at Kirika in concern.
"We're going to have to walk once we pass the river. Just how do you think you're going to make it like that? If we don't cross the Aramera by four, our chopper's going to leave without us." I remind her.
Kirika slowly opens her eyes and gasps in surprise.
"Being a pro is more than just bringing down your target. Making a clean getaway is the mark of a professional. You know that as well as I do..." I inform her. Then I hear the warning signal that reminds me that I am almost out of gas. I look down at the gas level and see we are indeed low. (Great...Just what I needed..and I just lectured Kirika on being a pro.) I think to myself.
The sun was so bright in this mountainous desert. I was glad I was wearing my black sunglasses. I was also comfortable in my Khaki jacket and shorts. I wore a red tank top underneath my jacket, and wore my tall black boots. Everything should have went smoothly today, but it hadn't. Seemed like everything was getting more difficult lately...
As I drove, I hit a small bump in the road. This caused Kirika to whimper in pain, her eyes squeezed tight.
"Are you...?" I begin to ask. I wondered if she was okay.
She weakly shook her head. "No, I'm fine." she told me softly.
I look at her in concern. I have never seen her hurt like this. She always has seemed so invincible to me. To see her in pain is something I'm not used to. I decide to shake the worry from my mind.
"Still, on the bright side, If you would have been killed...At least I would be free of you." I tell her in a mock playful voice.
I see Kirika open her eyes and look up sadly. "That's true." she said softly.
I look away from her and stare out at the road ahead somberly.
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We finally make it back to the place we were staying at for this mission. I gently help Kirika up the stairs to our room. She can barely stand, let alone walk. She pauses to tell me something as we get to the top.
"Mireille...my ID card..." she begins weakly.
"Huh?" I ask in response.
"I left it behind...my ID...when I got shot.." She tells me softly.
"WHAT?" I ask, as I look over at her in shock. This is not good. Not good at all.
"I know it was stupid...but I couldn't throw it away, even though I know it isn't even real...It wasn't the real me or anything...right?" She tells me, sounding so distraught over the loss of the ID card.
I didn't know what to think. I couldn't believe that she felt so strongly about the fake ID card. I guess it was all she had though. But this discussion would have to wait.
"Just be quiet. Now is not the time for this." I tell her firmly but gently, as I guide her to our room.
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I am in the bathroom filling a bowl with water to clean up the bloodstains. Kirika has been bandaged and wrapped and is resting on the bed. I look up at my reflection in the dirty and streaked mirror. I stare at myself, wondering how I am going to get us out of this mess. A thought comes to me and I look down sadly.
(I might still be able to make it...IF I go it alone.)I think to myself. Kirika is injured too badly for us to make our chopper. I never had this happen to me before. Just like my Uncle Claude taught me...partners were always a liability. It was always easier to do the job by yourself. Alone. Sadly, there was only one option I had...
I walk into the room where Kirika lay and I point my gun at her. There was no other way. If I didn't do this I might be captured or killed. I would just fulfill the promise early, that's all. I didn't want to do it...but I felt I had no choice if I wanted to survive.
Kirika slowly opens her eyes and looks at me. She looks sad. She looks like she expected this too.
"Go on, Mireille. Do it. Thanks for putting up with me until today." she tells me, softly. Then she closes her eyes.
I stare at her as I keep my gun on her. I begin to hear the watch melody in my mind. Then I am standing back in my past, reliving the pain of finding the bodies of my murdered family. I can feel my resolve wavering...
"Now, Hurry." Kirika whispers to me in almost a pleading tone. I try to firm up my resolve and I watch Kirika take a deep breath. I look at her intently. (JUST DO IT) I think... I pull the trigger and the gun goes off.
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I am standing there holding my teddy bear. I feel my eyes go wide at the sight of my father, brother, and my sweet mother all lying dead around me. Their blood was everywhere, and the pocket watch was open playing that damn melody that has always haunted me. I needed to find out who did this to me. Who took my family from me? I knew I couldn't lose my key. And that was Kirika...
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Kirika looks up at me with a combination of relief and confusion. I had aimed at the pillow, and I missed her purposely.
I look at her, nonchalantly. "Did you really think I'd let you take the easy way out? Not that I couldn't care less about you, or who you really are. But you're the key to finding the Soldats. SO until I find out who they are, I'm not going to let you die. But once I found them out...I Will Kill you." I remind her.
She just looks at me, then closes her eyes and smiles faintly. "I'd forgotten." she tells me, softly.
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I go into town to get some supplies and to set up for our extraction out of this damn country. I use the phone to call to arrange for our plane, but receive no answer. I hang up and turn away. I see the store owner is waiting for me with my purchases packed in a brown paper bag. I give him a charming little laugh, as I walk over and take the bag from him.
As I'm walking back to our room, I see a couple of military trucks full of men go by. It must be the members of the Revolutionary group whose leader Kirika killed. I hurry and duck behind a corner. I see more trucks go by. Suddenly I realize they are all heading the same way as our room. I have a terrible feeling that's where they are going.
(KIRIKA!) I think. I drop the bag of supplies and take off running. I am able to see the vehicles and men up ahead. I jump across a few rooftops so I can try to make it back to the room before they get there.
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I sit on the top of a roof. The men have already parked and pulled up to our room. I see a bunch of men coming out. A weak Kirika is being pulled by her arms by two men. The others surround her with their guns pointed on her. She looks so small and her head is hanging down. She isn't even trying to fight. She is too injured. One of the men throw her roughly into the back of the truck.
"GET IN THERE, YOU!" he yells, as she hits the back of the truck hard. She looks unconscious. I hate to see her like this. Now she will probably be killed...My key...
I look down at the men in anger. I hate them, I hate them for this.
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I sit on the rooftop wondering what to do. It is getting near dusk, and I know I need to decide whether to try to save my partner..or let her die. There is a good chance I will be killed if I try to rescue her. I look down at the pocket watch in my hands. I open it and let the melody play...
I remember my father, brother, and mother all dead. Their bodies all still and bloody. My mothers face was so pale yet beautiful in death. I would never hear her kind voice again, or have my father hold me. My brother Antoine, and I would never play together again. I remember the overwhelming shock I felt at the scene. I could not believe this was true. It had to be a dream. Why did it have to be real?
Who did this? Who were the Soldats? Did they have a part in my family's deaths?
"A pilgrimage to your past and mine." I heard Kirika's soft words from our first meeting in my head. I needed her, and she was looking for answers too. We were both pieces of this puzzle. I had told her I wouldn't let her die until we found out about the Soldats. We were connected somehow...
I snapped the watch closed with a loud click. I had made my mind up. I WAS going to rescue her. I had to.
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I see the two armed guards talking and laughing to each other. I shoot a couple of rounds near them, and they fall to the ground in shock. I am able to sneak past them as they wonder who just shot at them.
I leave my sunglasses on as I walk into their command center. I hide my gun behind my back. As the men turn to look at me, I give them a big smile.
"HI..." I tell them in a seductive tone. Then I drop my smile and begin to shoot.
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I am walking down the hallway to find Kirika. I see a large man with dark curly hair. I crouch down and ready my gun. I see his body tense up as he senses my presence. He whips around to shoot me, but I am faster. I get off a shot and he falls to the ground. I look at him as I release the clip of my gun.
I notice he is wearing glasses. Well...he won't need them much longer. I walk over to the wounded and gasping man and put in a new clip.
"Let me tell you something. Noir is a name for two." I inform him, as I look down at him.
"N.noir?" he whispers.
I aim my gun at him. "That's right, an assassin unit made of two." I tell him, coldly.
Then I pull the trigger.
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I find the room where Kirika is being held. I walk in to find her on the floor and she is repeating a strange chant. There are 3 men surrounding her. One has a gold earring and a stocking hat on. He is bending over Kirika. Suddenly Kirika rolls to her knees and makes a hard sudden jab with her ID card right under the mans chin. He falls back motionless.
I hurry and take out the other two men who are standing by. They fall to the floor dead. The man who Kirika just stabbed with the ID card is dead. His gold earring falls off. I wonder what she did that killed him like that. She must have hit in just the right spot to be able to kill him.
Kirika is holding her side and looking down at her ID card. I see that she is bruised and cut. Those bastards must have beat her. I look at her sadly.
"In the end, a lie is always a lie. I thought I knew that from the beginning." Kirika tells me softly.
I look at her gently. I never knew she would think like this. She wants so much to remember her identity. Even a fake name to her is better than no name.
She looks up at me with a sad look.
"Mireille." she whispers.
"Huh?" I whisper back gently . Her eyes so pleading...
"Who am I?" she asks, desperately.
I just look at her somberly. (I wish I knew... for your sake and mine.) I think.
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We are sitting out in the dark desert, waiting for our rendezvous with the plane I had been able to arrange to get us out of the country.
I stand up and set off the flare so it will know our position.
The flare lights up the black sky. Kirika and I both watch the light intently.
I think about the ties between us.
"The thread that binds you and I is the color black, of this I'm sure. Blacker than pitch, blacker than night, blacker than the darkness itself." I tell her softly.
We both stare up at the light from the flare and watch it fall back to earth.
We are connected, but in ways I am afraid are dark...She's all I have though..she's my only key.
We are bound together by this puzzle I am trying to solve.
Chapter 5 – Intoccabile Acts 1 -Ep.8
Author ramblings- Hope this was enjoyable. These seem to be getting harder to tell:) I researched this one on the Internet cause I had a few questions over it. I still am not sure how the heck Kirika killed that man who wore the earring and the hat. I described what I thought she did in the story. As always, Please let me know if you think I got a key element of story wrong, or missed it entirely. Also if you have any hints I missed. The rest of this story will be in Kirika's view(Memory Fails Me) which should be done in a few days. I wanted to have these two stories come out close together since this is a shared viewpoint episode. We'll see how well that goes, don't want to bore you twice:) These long notes should do that job:)
This series is done mainly so I could learn about Noir in great detail. And it is a little harder than I thought..But I am going to keep on going. I may interpret the characters a bit differently than you might...but everyone has their own view. But If I am completely off base on a characterization let me know. I'm here to learn.
Now I was thinking of doing a Chloe view- but only if there is interest in reading it. I think everyone knows she is not a character I like, but I want to challenge myself and see if I can write her with an unbiased view. I admit I understand her the least, even though I have been researching old Noir threads about her. If you do want to see me try a Chloe POV- it would be episode 10- The True Noir, let me know. You can send me a message, review or email. Thanks!
