I swear this is going to become a beatrice propaganda fic. But as of right now, i hope i can actually get garf's personality down decently since i'm not as familiar with him as i want. I'll try to keep cour 2 spoilers to a minimum, but there's definitely still some. If you're wondering why I made Beatrice so helpful so far, it's because I think that once the problem is directly confronting her, she'd feel at least slightly more compelled to do something. It's much easier to ignore people dying violently if you can't see it, after all.

Also, instead of line breaks in the middle of chapters, I'll use asterisms now (⁂). I sometimes forget to add them in when transferring chapters to this site and this ensures that it won't be a problem. Plus, the word has an astronomy-related definition too (bonus rezero points) and they just look cool


This was probably one of the most eventful days in Garfiel's life, even more than when Frederica chucked him skull-first into a tree for the first time and knocked him out cold. It was the first of many bouts of roughhousing, but it didn't stop everyone from flying into a panic the first few knockouts.

Somewhat ironically, the current situation was also caused by a blackout-inducing injury, albeit far worse and also not his.

Garfiel wasn't a very cooperative guy. He'd raised one hell of a storm when he'd initially been volunteered for the job. Unfortunately, while there might have been others capable of healing, he was the only one whose demihuman blood was thin enough that he could approach the barrier without exiting as a corpse.

"But I'm the shield of the Sanctuary! I can't leave!"

"Ha, you say that so haughtily, but it simply belies someone too scared to leave their own house."

As expected of the woman he fell for, Ram ripped straight into the core of the issue.

Garfiel shook his head. It was no time to be reminiscing. It had only been ten minutes at most since the Forbidden Library randomly dropped him somewhere in the mansion, and he was dashing through the halls trying to find that little girl; there's no way she could properly fend off an attacker if the assassin was as strong as the man of the hour claimed.

"Would you really let someone die, no matter how irritating, when you're fully capable of helping? Do you want to have a death on your hands? How cowardly, Garf."

Still, her words kept echoing through his head and he clenched his fists. He wasn't done being pissed off for being forced out, but he might as well test himself a bit on a powerful outsider's strength. After all, he did need to let out some steam.

The tinny sound of ringing metal and something crystalline shattering bounced off his eardrums. There was fighting in a nearby hall. Veering into a sharp left, he dashed down the hall toward the noise of battle, though calling it a proper battle would've been generous. That great spirit was flinging off occasional attacks to hold the assassin at bay, but it was obvious she wouldn't hold on for much longer. It wasn't due to lack of combat prowess, though. Rather, it was an inability to fight at her full strength.

A strangled cry clawed its way out Garfiel's throat. "Frederica!?"

Any animosity he'd outwardly show at her presence died away immediately. Though he hasn't seen her beast form for even longer than her stay away from the Sanctuary, there would never come a day where he wouldn't recognize it. Her long, glossy coat, contrasting his rougher, shorter fur, was now soaked in red from lying in a puddle of growing blood.

The girl right beside her was holding a hand over his sister's stomach, quickly flicking her eyes back and forth between the assassin and too-slowly shrinking wound.

"Oh? How lovely, has another kitten come to join us?" said the woman with a gentle lilt. It was a waste of such a nice voice on an axe crazy killer, who crushed another purple crystal with her kukri the instant she finished her sentence.

It was immediately clear what the situation currently was.

A sour Ferdin must be cackling at his lack of preparation, he thought as he launched himself into the fray. He cursed whatever made him leave his shields back home.

As soon as Beatrice glimpsed Garfiel, she let out a minute sigh of relief. Caught between his quickly dying sister and a murderer intent on offing them both, she must've had her hands full.

"Oh, you're finally here, I suppose? Listen if you want your sister to live, in fact."

He dodged the assassin's knife by a hair and landed a solid kick on her side, smashing her into the wall. "I hate your tone, but I'll hear you out. What d'ya want?"

Beatrice quickly listed her conditions as if she rehearsed them beforehand. "Elsa, I believe that is her name, must be rendered unable to neither attack nor follow us for at least five seconds. Then, we need to carry the maid into the Forbidden Library. I have a spell that should speed up the last part, but you'll have to help too."

"Fine," he huffed. Turning to the curvaceous figure rising from the ground, he experimentally tossed a few glass shards at her face. As expected, she simply darted to the side with a faintly entranced smile.

Garfiel sent a disgusted glare at her. It was lucky that lady seemed to be playing around, as annoying as that sounded, since it gave him a slight advantage while he wasn't at full strength. Aside from what she was currently attempting to do, she also gave off a revolting aura that was impossible to ignore.

Just… how many people did she have to kill to raise it to that level? He didn't want to know.

With a wariness he'd never felt before felt on this level, he stepped forward and flew right at Elsa.

Petra knew that taking a job at the nearest mansion wasn't the safest route she could've gone with, but the opportunity for decent pay and work experience so close to home was too nice of a lure to pass up. Maybe this also had to do with being closer to Subaru as well, but this was absolutely just a small part of the equation.

Maybe.

Anyways, it was great at first! The Roswaal mansion was far enough that it was novel, and familiar enough that she felt somewhat at ease. She even roughly knew the layout from the time Subaru invited the local village kids to play tag once!

Miss Frederica seemed a bit disgruntled at that revelation, though. Petra could still remember her chiding his lax behavior and disregard for proper conduct.

Work was tiring. Petra thought she was at least semi-decent at household chores (and she was! She swears!), but the sheer amount of work to be done on a huge mansion, and a somewhat trashed one at that, would make anyone's head spin.

Apparently, the current main maid, Ram, was at fault for that. Quite strange how a person who managed the place alone for ages would suddenly start making so many mistakes, but Miss Frederica said not to worry about it as a barely disguised, vaguely concerned expression crossed her face.

Today was going to be a fairly average day of practice and work. There was no sign that anything terrible or even unusual would strike.

While it could be somewhat lonely with only her mentor, that proud smile she wore with every one of Petra's accomplishments was an easy distraction. In fact, it was right after Miss Frederica praised her for cleaning the rug to near spotlessness that an unnatural stillness seized the elder maid. She quickly kneeled down to Petra's eye level with a scary gleam in her eye.

No, it wasn't that her face was scary, per se, it was what her scrunched brow and serious demeanor implied.

"Petra, I'm going to be very clear about this," she whispered in a rushed tone. "There's someone within this residence that absolutely should not be here. Someone who feels very dangerous, you understand?"

Feeling nervous tremors in her tiny hands, she nodded her head.

"Good girl. Take the secret passage I told you about and escape. Take care to be as quiet and swift as possible and I'll attempt to neutralize the threat. I'll rejoin you in Arlam village later."

And with that, she dashed out of the room. Petra could've sworn she saw what looked like a tail peeking from under her dress as black fabric whirled around the corner, but now was not the time to wonder.

The soft carpet did wonders covering the sound of her rapid footfalls. The click of her uniform's slippers would be more audible on hardwood and tile, so she was quite grateful for this fortune amidst misfortune. Silently, she thanked it in her head and promised to clean it even better than the rug she washed earlier.

However, halfway to her destination, she halted in her tracks.

"Petra, I'm counting on you to watch over Rem, okay?"

She stood in a cloud of indecision for a few precious seconds. Shaking herself, she began making her way toward that sleeping lady's room. If it were Subaru, he wouldn't hesitate, like the time he lept into danger at the knowledge of someone in trouble and saved everyone's lives.

Plus, Subaru really cared about her. She wanted to be jealous, but the expression she'd spotted on him disparaged the urge before it even began. Though rather undecipherable in complexity due to the context she lacked about Rem, it was obvious that he was in pain, so therefore if Subaru cares about her, then she should try to help too.

This was what spun around in her head like a mantra as she hurriedly descended the steps. It was also what distracted her from thoughts of what she's actually do once she got to Rem. Unluckily, she never got to have that unpleasant revelation hit her.

"I've finally found the small maid, but where is the large one now? Shouldn't you be clinging to her at a time like this?"

it was only a few doors away that deathly sweet tone made her legs lock in place. She let out a fearful noise as tears beaded at the corners of her eyes. Before a terror-garbled response could escape her mouth, though, a roar shook the hallway.

"Don't you dare touch her!"

Petra had never felt so relieved in her life, aside from the time she woke up and found herself already rescued from the forest. She took it as her cue to dart into Rem's room before Frederica could start lecturing her for not listening to instructions.

She heard a crash. Rolling Rem in her blanket, she pulled her onto the floor beside the bed, wincing as her head hit the floor near audibly. Now hidden from direct sight, it should hopefully keep her safe in case that lady looked in. While that scary lady probably knew she came in here, only she would be targeted.

A period of silence. Then, the sound of what seemed like brittle, shattering gemstones rang through the air. Silence, people's voices, silence again, and then some more shattering noises that interspersed the quiet that followed.

She moved from sitting on the bed to pressing an ear to the door. That was when the shout of "Frederica!" filtered through the door. The tone of voice gave her a thrill of worry.

It was as though full combat resumed with that cry, and she heard and felt something solid hit the wall several rooms over.

Petra was vibrating in place with nothing but muffled sounds to guide her picture of the current situation and she couldn't stand it. Slowly, she cracked open the door and took a peek from the sliver of the outside visible.

A large mass of fur seemed to be lying on the floor. That shade of yellow was awfully familiar.

Could it really be Miss Frederica? Then the tail she thought she'd spotted wasn't imagined at all! Thank goodness, she wasn't old enough to be seeing things that weren't there.

And speaking of yellow, there was also another blonde sitting right in front of Miss Frederica.

Even though the girl's back was turned to her, the elaborate, frilly, floor length dress was quite eye catching. There was little chance that it wasn't the girl wasn't the elusive librarian Subaru had talked about. It wasn't that she believed he was lying, but she almost would've thought Beatrice didn't exist had it not been for the elder maid's confirmation of it. A recluse, she'd described when Petra had asked.

Her twintails whipped around as another crash resounded, quickly turning her head to get a better view of the fight. At the same time, startled by the loud noise, Petra accidentally leaned forward too much and almost fell over.

That did not escape the notice of the spirit.

Said girl motioned her over without turning her eyes away from combat. "If you can walk, come over here," she urged in an assertive voice.

Petra quickly complied, though she recoiled harshly once she noticed all the blood on the floor, her face turning pallid. Oddly enough, she noted that the spirit's clothing seemed completely clean.

"At least you can follow instructions, it seems," Beatrice said. "Listen. The assassin is being held off by the boy over there, but only barely, I suppose. I even have to occasionally assist and deflect a few projectiles she throws my way. My concentration is also being split by healing a fatal wound on this maid. She should be dead by now, but her beast form grants her more vitality. This is where you come in."

"What can I do in this sort of situation?"

"Simple, carry Frederica through that door. It's a job for two hands, and I can spare neither."

"Huh?"

"I haven't finished talking. I'll cast a spell that makes her so light, even a baby could pick her up."

Petra sighed in relief, grabbing Miss Frederica's tail. It was the only part small enough that she could properly hold. Taking that as a sign she was ready, Beatrice took a breath.

"Murak."

Wow, Beatrice wasn't joking when she said light. She swiftly tugged the maid to the door and opened it with all the speed she could muster. The spirit moved alongside her, still alert, with one hand hovering over the healing wound and the other poised for knee-jerk defense. Petra was grateful for the latter after seeing a purple crystal intercept yet another projectile.

All in all, it was surprisingly quick and simple as promised.

"Garfiel! We're done!" shouted Beatrice.

The boy in question was littered with deep cuts and some rather nasty gashes. A ghastly sight for a child to witness, but he spat out an "It's about time!" and planted a solid punch that sent her skidding back.

Smiling creepily, the assassin straightened her posture from her slightly hunched form and drawled, "That hurt quite nicely, would you like to try it again?"

But Garfiel had already redirected his main objective. He made a mad dash to the open door, taking the advantage of the quick lull in battle. However, to Petra's horror, it wasn't just small spikes that the woman could throw.

Before he could completely withdraw into the library, a glossy black knife lodged itself deeply into his left arm. Both Petra and Garfiel had to choke down a cry, but he managed to think clearly enough to slam the door shut behind him. Terrifyingly enough, he swiftly tore the kukri out with only a grunt of pain, and blood practically began gushing out.

The metal kukri rang as it spun to a stop unevenly on the floor, drawing a semicircle of red on the once clean ground.

"Do you have a death wish, In fact?" snapped Beatrice.

"Course not. I'll just heal faster without something in the way," he said while Petra moved in to wrap her handkerchief around the wound.

"Kid, I don't need it. I have a divine blessing that makes me heal real quick."

Petra reluctantly backed off. Now that she stopped for a breather, she could practically sob with relief at the sight of the unfamiliar library; a temporary sanctuary from the dangers outside. With that, she began to take in her new surroundings. The smell of paper, books as far as she could see, a table with a tea set, and Subaru struggling to prop himself up on the nearest bookshelf. Thankfully, he seemed to be out of critical condition, but watching him force himself sit upright hurt to watch.

"Mister Subaru! Please lay back down, everything'll be okay now!"

The boy slumped forward a bit. "No. There's still more I have to do. We're not out of the woods yet."

"Out of the woods? But we were never in it in the first place, weren't we?"

"Just ignore that. Anyway, I have to talk to Beatrice."

Petra frowned at him. "You seem like you're in a big rush. Also, isn't Beatrice busy right now healing Miss Frederica?"

"Being underestimated again, I suppose," interrupted a long-suffering voice. "Now that I can direct all my effort into the maid, I've stabilized her. She'll be fine as long as she doesn't move too much, in fact."

Relief made his shoulder sag a bit. But then, he tensed again.

"Has... everyone been gathered here?" he asked, painfully weak, almost as if he was scared of hoping.

"No. The blue-haired maid isn't here, I suppose."

"I have to get her."

"And why should I let you do that?"

Beatrice stared unrelentingly into Subaru's tired, brown eyes, and he stared into her pink, butterfly shaped pupils. Suddenly, his eyebrows rose.

"Butterfly…?"

"Have you somehow not noticed before? If so, then you're more dull than I could've ever thought, I suppose."

"Could it be that you're contracted to Echidna?"

"You figured it out, in fact?"

He paused, thinking. "Is that who you called 'mother'?"

"Did Roswaal tell you that? How annoying."

"And was she the one who gave you that black book you're clinging so badly onto?"

Beatrice, temporarily nonplussed by his question, narrowed her eyes. "He... really did tell you everything, I suppose?"

Though directly addressed, Subaru began muttering to himself. "So you really did that, huh, Echidna? My opinion of you just dropped further after that stunt you pulled earlier."

"Why are you talking as if you know her?" she questioned in disbelief. "And even worse yet, seem to be insulting her? As much as I will tolerate your disingenuousness, this isn't something I will let slide, in fact!"

"I do know her."

"Lies. Mother died centuries ago."

Subaru let out a strangled laugh. "You of all people should know how crafty she can be. Out of anyone in this world, who do you think's most able to get away not dying normally?"

"...What are you trying to say, I suppose?"

"Echidna's body might be dead, but her soul's still here. If you help me, I'll tell you how you can meet her."


Ehh. sorry about the cliffhanger Honestly, Petra seems to be one of the most polarizing rezero side characters i've seen. Some people love her, some people hate her. Personally, I'm in the middle, though it's kinda funny to see her bullying Otto in the chibi shorts, as sad as that sounds. sorry otto, i love you but you're too easy to mess with