A/N: Finally, the duel scene. Before you read this, I want to say something: just because I make a character do or think something, it doesn't mean that's how I think or feel, or that I would do the same thing as them. I'm trying to write the characters as close as I can to their original personalities, and that means sometimes they'll do things you or I won't agree with. I'll try to leave personal opinions or thoughts out of this story as much as I can. With this in mind, read out.

The Stray Girl and the Incompetent Mage

Chapter 4: Unbowed

...

Vestri Court is located in the west part of the Academy, between the Wind and Fire Elemental towers. Due to its position, sunshine is scarce even at this time of the day, and so people don't usually come around here. Now, however, there is a big crowd of students gathered there, who have all heard about a duel taking place.

"It's a duel! The opponents are Guiche and Louis' familiar!"

I have a name you know? Sachiko thinks with a frown. She is no longer struggling to get free. There's no point now, when they're already in Vestri Court. Guiche is already there. He smells his rose, arrogantly showing himself calm as Sachiko and Louis approach him, the latter still dragging her like a rag doll.

"So you came. I commend you for not running away" he looks down at Louis' hand holding her; "or maybe not?"

Louis stops in front of him. He releases Sachiko and crosses his arms. "She is going to apologize, Guiche, so stop this foolishness at once."

"Oh, is she?" he smiles, putting down his rose; "Well, since she seems to have the decency to at least try it, I guess I can let her. Of course, she'll have to kneel and beg for forgiveness."

Louis' face gets red from indignation; "you as-!"

Sachiko steps forward before he can start yelling.

"As if; bring everything you have playboy."

"Umpf, as you wish" he pushes Louis behind him. Before he can move a muscle to stop what's happening, two of Guiche's friends hold his arms, preventing him from intervening.

"Don't try to stop them, this is Guiche's duel."

"That's right, even if she's your familiar, that doesn't matter right now."

"Stop joking!"

Sachiko narrows her eyes in thought. She'd be lying if she says she's confident, the anger from before diminishing and letting her look at the situation more calmly. She actually picked a fight with a guy. What is going on with her? But I can't back away now; I'll have to apologize to him and I don't want to. Besides, he's super arrogant. The more I look at him, the more I want to beat him up.

She has never gotten into a fight in her life, less with a guy, but she has confidence in her strength, the mark of her palm shining a bright red against Guiche's cheek as proof of it. He's tall, but he's also lanky and doesn't look too strong. Maybe he's one of those lazy aristocrats who have never done anything manual in his life. If I play my cards right, I think I can win… it was not impossible for a girl to win against a guy. She had heard some stories. Better to get this over with quickly. Just remember the classes of self-defense you took in eighth grade. As for the rest of it… let's just hope for the best.

"Alright! Let's do it fair and square! Only fists, shoulders down!" she says in a loud voice. If they're going to fight better to establish some rules beforehand.

Guiche raises an eyebrow, a sickening smile pulling at his lips. "You won't really think I will lower myself to a commoner's level? I am a mage, therefore, I fight using magic. Surely you don't have any complaints?"

"Huh?" Guiche waves his rose. A single petal dances in the air. When it lands on the ground, there's a bright light. Once it dies down, a statue stands there where the petal landed. It's a female warrior completely made of metal, its armor gleaming under the pale sunlight. "What the heck is this thing?!"

"I forgot to mention it. My runic name is Bronze, Guiche the Bronze. Accordingly, my bronze golem Valkyrie shall be your opponent."

"This is cheating!"

"Cheating?" he lets out a dry laugh, and looks at her as if she's some insignificant ant. "You accepted this duel knowing very well you would fight against a noble. You had your chance to ask for forgiveness, and you didn't take it!" he waves the rose. Before Sachiko knows what's happening, the golem has already strike her in the stomach. She falls to her knees, unable to breath.

She breathes quickly, hugging herself and looking at Guiche with hatred. "H-How should I have known…?"

"That's enough!" Sachiko doesn't know how Louis managed to get free, but in one second he is kneeling next to her, helping her up. "Guiche stop this at once! You know dueling is strictly forbidden in the academy's grounds!"

"Actually, what is forbidden is dueling between nobles. No one said anything about duels with commoners" he explains in a bored tone. Louis growls.

"That's because no one thought something like this could ever happen!"

"Louis, don't tell me this commoner has touched your heart?"

Sachiko hears Louis sucking in air. She swears his blush is because of more than just anger.

"No! Don't be ridiculous! I just won't put up with my familiar getting beaten in front of my eyes!"

"You can go somewhere else then."

"Are you doing this on purpose?!"

"You two…" Sachiko finally speaks. They look at her as she gets away from Louis; "don't ignore me. I'm the one fighting here, no? I've just barely started…"

"Haven't you understood yet? A commoner can never beat a mage!"

"This is my fight, don't meddle."

"You're my familiar. I have the right to meddle in anything that concerns you!"

"Since when do you care?"

Louis' face contorts in anger. He grabs one of her arms and starts to drag her to the other side of the courtyard. "The fact I didn't expect you to be my familiar doesn't mean I'll be ok seeing you die in front of my eyes; and for something as stupid as this! So stop being so headstrong and just apologize already!"

"No!" she shouts. She tries to get free, but he's stronger than her. "Someone, he's trying to make me leave!"

Her cries are heard and in no time a few guys hold back Louis.

"You idiot!"

"Still willing to fight? It seems I'm being too soft on you" Guiche says with a pale smile. Sachiko snorts, her fighting spirit starting to wake up.

"That was nothing. Your little statue is too weak."

Guiche's smile disappears. The Valkyrie attacks again.

Like a vice cycle, it happens over and over. Guiche's golem strikes Sachiko, she stands up, and every time it happens, there's a new bruise on her body, more blood staining her clothes, and she's a little wobblier than the last time. After a while, no one is cheering. They're just looking at the duel attentively. Guiche clicks his tongue.

"Ready to give up?" he has his rose in the air. The Valkyrie is still. Sachiko, lying on the ground, is holding herself up with her arms. She coughs, and when her eyes fall to the ground she sees small drops of blood on the grass. She dries her bloody mouth with a sleeve and stands up.

The Valkyrie strikes her right arm. Sachiko lets out a cry of pain, falling to her knees.

"Sachiko!" it's Louis' voice, but she hears it like under a veil. With her left hand she touches her right arm, assessing the damage. She winces and retreats her hand immediately. As I thought, it's broken. She's in a state where she's barely aware of her surroundings anymore. I wonder… is this how I'm going to die? In this unknown world, beaten up by some arrogant brat's doll?

She looks at Guiche from her lying position. He's waiting for her to stand up. His expression is indefinable, but she thinks she's not too crazy to believe there's a bit of discomfort in his face. If he feels bad about this, why does he continue? Well, I wouldn't want him to give up now, not after everything he put me through. At the very least, I want to…

Louis' words resound in her mind. No matter what he feels now, if he has to kill me, he will. No one cares here where I am from, or what my name is. Louis said so. For them, is this justice?

"Sachiko!" Louis is at her side again. She doesn't know how much time she's been lying, unmoving.

She opens her eyes. She didn't notice they were closed. The first thing she sees is Louis' face framed by a backdrop of blue sky. There are tears in his eyes.

Her chest hurts for the continued blows, but she manages to croak out; "are you crying?"

"I am not!" contrary to his words, he dries his eyes with the sleeve of his shirt. "Who would cry in a moment like this? Are you happy now? You've done enough. You are like no other commoner I've ever seen, now please, stop fighting!"

Sachiko sees his lips moving. She hears him talking, but she doesn't understand the words. She opens her mouth, she doesn't even know what for, but Louis shakes his head before she can get a word out.

"Don't talk" he shushes her. It looks like he's containing his tears with everything he has. "If there's anything you want to say, do it later, when we get you out of here. For now, we…"

"Are you two done?" Guiche asks with impatience. Louis ignores him.

"Come on, I'll take you to the infirmary."

"But the duel…"

"Who cares about the duel?!" he yells. Sachiko would have flinched if she wasn't so wear out. "Sachiko, this is not funny anymore! Don't you realize at this pace you're going to die?!"

Sachiko's breath is heavy and difficult, her head hurts and her arm is beginning to throb in pain, but she notices something that makes her smile despite everything. "You've… finally called me by my name…"

Louis looks at her as if she's crazy, and maybe she is, because she gathers strength from somewhere unknown and sits up. At this point, it's no longer about teaching Guiche a lesson, it's merely about what she thinks is right. Is stubbornness, and it is folly, but then, she has nothing else to cling to in this world.

Guiche sighs. "Are you really going to continue?"

"I'm just catching my breath…"

"I won't allow you to continue!" Louis pulls her against him. She leans without resistance, as her body barely holds any strength of its own; "Guiche! It's enough already! Aren't you satisfied?"

"I can still fight!"

"You can't even hold yourself up!"

"Well…" Guiche flicks his rose. Another petal flies in their direction. The moment it touches the ground near Sachiko, it transforms into a sword. "I must admit I don't feel like continuing this any longer, but if she's so desperate to keep fighting, the least she needs is a weapon. This is the least you commoners will need if you want to take revenge upon us nobles."

Sachiko stares at the sword. Unconsciously, she reaches for it. Louis holds her tighter. "What have I told you? If you grab that sword, it's over! Guiche will no longer hesitate! He'll just kill you!"

"It's my life only worth that much?"

"You don't even have the right of a commoner. You're a simple familiar. So yes, this is as much as your life is worth for a noble like him!"

"I see…" she lowers her head. Louis lets out a sigh of relief; "you know…"

"Huh?"

"This really irritates me…"

"It irritates you?" Louis asks as if he can't believe she's saying this.

"Yes. I mean, I already accepted I'm trapped in this world, without a way to go back. I must act as a servant in this place, washing your clothes and cleaning… I can do that. I have no problem with that. It's not like I have much of a choice. But… why should I stand for this? Why should I let everyone treat me like they please, just because I can't do magic? Just because I'm a familiar, it means my life is worthless compared to yours? That's something I cannot stand…"

"Sachiko, what are you…?"

"That's why, even if I have no choice, even if everyone treats me like I'm nothing, I will stand it. The only thing I won't stand…" she raises her head. Before Louis can stop her, she's reaching for the sword with her left hand; "is anyone trying to make me bow against my will!"

Her hand clutches around the hilt. She feels a rush of energy spreading throughout her body. Suddenly, her mind is clearer, her body feels lighter. She stands up and steps forward, leaving Louis behind.

This… just one second ago, she was in so much agony she could barely form a coherent thought. Now, however, she feels as if she's floating, like she's as light as a feather. Everything looks as if it's happening at slow motion. What did just happen? She looks down at the sword, and gasps upon seeing her hand; or more specifically, the runes on her left hand, glowing brightly. Is this because of them? Is this happening because I took the sword? The blade feels familiar in her hand, almost as if it is an extension of her arm. But I've never before held a sword…

"I can't believe it" Guiche says with incredulity. He growls, preparing to wave his rose again. "You're completely out of your mind! Since you asked for it, I won't hold back anymore!"

The Valkyrie prepares to strike her, but this time, her movements look much more clumsy and mechanical. Huh? This thing is so slow. Have I really been kicked around by this thing?

She slices it in half when it's about to reach her. The two halves struck the ground with a loud clang. For a moment the whole courtyard is left in the most complete silence.

Sachiko doesn't waste more time. She spins the hilt in her palm and prepares to attack Guiche. Seeing her approaching, Guiche waves his rose desperately. Six more petals fly down. That makes for the totality of Guiche's valkyries. They surround Sachiko, but they're not fast enough. She cuts them down two at a time before reaching Guiche. She kicks him on the chest and straddles him. The sword is raised high above his neck. Sachiko looks down at him with cold eyes.

"Want to continue?" she asks bitterly. Guiche shakes his head.

"I-I yield…" he whispers in fear. Sachiko smirks, before lowering the sword. Guiche closes his eyes, but hears a thud beside his head. When he opens them, the sword is incrusted in the ground next to him. Sachiko stands up and begins to walk away.

The crowd takes a few seconds to burst out in cheers.

"Did you see that? The commoner won!"

"She actually managed to defeat Guiche! She's amazing!"

"That's one cool familiar for sure!"

She can barely hear their cheers. She's feeling tired again. Her body gives in, and she thinks she hears someone calling her name.

Louis catches her before she can hit the ground. "You… I can't believe you actually made it" his voice is full of amazement and reverence. It soon changes, his face becoming a mask of anger. "Even though I told you to stop, but you had to continue until you reached this state. Why do you do things on your own? You're nothing more but a familiar…"

"Louis…" he stiffens. He softly deposits Sachiko on the ground, before turning around and walking up to Guiche. "That girl… just what is she? All of my valkyries were-"

Louis doesn't let him finish. With a blow to the face, he sends Guiche sprawling to the ground. He's trembling terribly. "Never" he pronounces slowly, his face showing a very dangerous expression; "do something like that again, or next time, not only Sachiko, but me too, will make sure you don't live enough to regret it."

With that, he turns around towards Sachiko, leaving an astounded crowd behind. He plans on carrying Sachiko to his bedroom, but someone gets ahead of him.

"I hope you don't mind" Kirche says. She has put a levitation spell on Sachiko. Louis narrows his eyes. "Regardless of what we think of each other, I don't think we should move her body too much. I'll take her to the infirmary."

"My room" he interrupts, heading to the main tower, where the boys' dormitories are located. "I can take care of her there, and she won't have to move more than necessary."

"As you wish" and like that, the two of them disappear inside the tower.

The morning light wakes Sachiko up. Her body is covered in bandages.

I… almost died she thinks, surprisingly being able to remember everything that took place perfectly. I dueled with that Guiche guy and I almost died, but then…

Then she pulled out some miraculous victory. She still can't quite believe what she did.

I wonder if I can move. Where is Louis? And… why am I in his bed? She recognizes the bedroom. She tries moving her fingers and finds she can. Slowly, she raises her arm, examines it, and puts it down again. It takes her another second to realize that's her right arm, the one that was supposedly broken. How can this be possible? Is it magic?

The door opens in that moment. She turns her head, and sees Shiro entering with a tray of food. She can also see Louis, sitting at the table, his head resting on his arms. There are big purple bags under his eyes and he's sound asleep.

Sachiko gives Shiro a shy smile when he notices she's awake. "Miss Sachiko! Thank the Founder!" he places the tray next to Louis' head and approaches her. "How long have you been awake?"

"Just a few seconds" her voice is cracking, so she clears her throat. She blushes. "How long have I been asleep?" she asks as she tries to sit up. Shiro helps her. The bed sheet that was covering her chest slips down, and she hurries to cover herself when she sees there are only bandages covering her breasts. Shiro doesn't seem to notice or care, and he answers:

"Three days and nights straight" Sachiko's eyes pop open.

"B-But… how can that…?"

"You got us really worried. We were scared you might never wake up."

"We?"

"Ah, from the staff, of course" he hastily explains. Sachiko nods, looking at her arm again. "Well, now that you're awake, you should eat something" he retrieves the tray from the table and passes it to her. "The food was meant for Mr. Vallière, but after he took care of you all this time, I'm sure he would want you to eat first."

Sachiko is accepting the tray when she stops and looks at Shiro with a blink of the eyes. "Louis, he… took care of me?"

"Yes" he says, tilting his head as if he's surprised she's surprised. "He didn't sleep one bit in these three days. I offered to take care of you, as did other servants, but he refused our help. He changed your bandages and wiped off the sweat from your forehead."

"He changed my bandages?!"

"Not the ones from the chest, so you don't have to worry" Shiro laughs at her expression and Sachiko pouts. "That was the only moment he would let me help."

Her jaw goes slack. Shiro's laugh gets louder. "You're an idiot!" she yells, and if she could, she would hit him. Shiro shakes his head, drying a tear from his eye.

"Sorry, but you should have seen your face" Sachiko puffs her cheeks, and Shiro shakes his head to clear his mind. "No, he asked Siesta and Katherine to help with that."

"I assume Siesta and Katherine are maids, right?"

"You assume right."

"So…" she looks at her arm again. Shiro immediately understands what is it that she wants to ask.

"Ah, Mr. Vallière got a teacher to cast a spell of healing on you. Your injuries were quite serious."

"Spell of healing?"

"Yes. It's magic to help treat injuries or illness. You didn't know?"

"No…"

Shiro looks at her with a frown. Sachiko becomes nervous, but luckily, he continues. "Also, Mr. Vallière paid for the reagent that was required for the spell, so don't be concerned about it."

"…Reagent?"

"It's, how do you say it, an object necessary to cast a spell."

"Something like a catalyst?"

"Um, yes, something like that…"

He looks at her with the same frown. He must be wondering why is it that she doesn't know such basic terminology, so she speaks before he can ask her anything.

"D-Did that reagent cost a lot?"

"Well, it's certainly not something a commoner could afford…"

She asked the question to change subjects, but she can't help but feel bad after hearing Shiro, even after he told her not to worry about it. She casts a look at Louis. He looks very tired. Shiro said he took care of her the entire three days. If that's how it is, then he must be exhausted. He can be nice when he wants to, right? She looks down at her arm. On the other hand, this is real magic, isn't it? To be able to heal a broken arm in only three days, this is something to be proud of.

"There's also something else…" Shiro interrupts her line of thought. She looks at him, but is surprised when she sees a light blush on his face. He's glancing a little to the side. "I wanted to apologize for not being there with you. I… when Mr. Vallière dragged you to Vestri Court, I didn't try to stop him, or you. I did nothing and…"

"Shiro, you don't need to apologize for that" Sachiko says with gentle eyes. Shiro shakes his head.

"I feel like I have to. I left you alone even after I said you could count on me or anyone from the staff to help you. But when everyone heard you were going to have a duel with a noble, they…"

"They were scared?"

"…Yes" his shoulders sag. Sachiko doesn't think he should beat himself up so badly. After being in a fight with a noble herself, she can clearly see why anyone would be scared of them and provoking their anger. I'm still alive only by a miracle, really. She looks at the runes in her left hand. When I grabbed the sword, they glowed, but now they're not. Did I win thanks to them?

"You know" Shiro speaks again, taking Sachiko away from her thoughts. "What you did there, with Mr. Gramont, it was really impressive."

Sachiko blushes. She has just been thinking that. "N-Not really, I mean…"

"It is impressive" he insists. He holds her hands in his, and Sachiko's face becomes so red someone could fry an egg on it. "For the people here, who are always lowering their heads to the nobles, who live in fear of one of them getting angry, what you did, beat up a noble, it's more than impressive; it's encouraging. You have given them the courage they lacked all this time. Just by standing for your own and remaining firm on your position, you've done a really wonderful thing."

Sachiko cannot feel her head anymore. There's too much heat in it. Not only is Shiro holding her hands and looking at her with such passionate eyes, he's also complimenting her more than anyone else in her life has ever done so. "Y-You're exaggerating…" he shakes his head, but before he can continue she asks something, mostly because she doesn't think she'll be able to stand more of his compliments without fainting. "Why are you saying 'they'? Don't you include yourself between those scared of the nobles?"

She regrets the question when his smile disappears. He doesn't release her hands though, and that might be sign that she didn't screw up so badly, like she has the tendency to do. "It's not that… I'm not scared. No, well, I am not, to be honest. What I feel is more like…"

He never finishes. Louis stirs in that moment. He groans softly, sits up and stretches like a cat. When he opens his eyes the first thing he sees is Sachiko and Shiro holding hands.

Without knowing why, Sachiko takes her hands away from Shiro's immediately.

Louis raises an eyebrow. "You're awake…" he stands up, slowly walking up to them. Sachiko swallows, her face getting a little pale. She doesn't know why, but he's making her nervous.

"I-I am…" why does she feel as if she has done something bad? She was only holding hands with Shiro, so she doesn't understand why Louis looks so bothered… unless… No, that's ridiculous. This is Louis and he only sees me as a familiar.

"Are you feeling better?"

"Y-Yes… thank you…" Though it's true he took care of me these past three days. Maybe… maybe he wants to congratulate me? Has he changed his mind about me?

That doesn't happen; instead, Louis grabs the tray, pushes it on Shiro's arms, and picks up Sachiko from one of her arms. "If you're better now; get off my bed!" he throws her to the floor. Sachiko lets out a groan of protest.

"Hey! I'm still an injured person!" she stands up. Her body objects, but it's nothing she cannot take. Louis sits on the bed and crosses his arms.

"If you're well enough to complain then you're well enough for anything else" he then points at a corner with his chin; "that's the laundry that's piled up while you were asleep. Once you're done with that, clean up the room. Hop to it!"

"It seems my presence is no longer required here" Shiro says before Sachiko can answer back. "Now, with your permission, I'll take my leave."

"Please, and thank you for your hard work" Louis says, looking at him for a second. Shiro bows and leaves. Louis looks at Sachiko again. "Now, about you…"

"What?" she asks sourly. She stands up and looks for her t-shirt. She finds it carefully folded in one of the chairs. She's a little surprised, but as she takes it and pulls it over her head, she hears Louis growling.

"You are really stupid" Sachiko frowns. She turns to look at him. He's completely pissed, which makes Sachiko involuntarily take a step back. "What were you thinking, accepting a duel so carelessly like that?"

"Are you seriously going to lecture me now?"

"Of course I am!" he shouts, shutting her up for good. "Do you have any idea how stupid of you that was? First of all you insult a noble. Even if Guiche isn't that powerful, he's still quite adept in his domain. He was seriously going to kill you! And you know the worst part? If he would have done that, he would have been in his right!"

At that, Sachiko can't remain silent. She frowns, giving one step forward; "In his right?! He picks a fight with me, uses his bronze dolls to attack me repeatedly without giving me a chance to defend myself, and you say he would have been in his right?! If he wanted a real duel with me, he should have fought himself!"

"That's not how it works!" Louis speaks louder. He sounds exasperated more than angry now. "He's a mage; of course he fights using magic."

"Well, I'm supposed to be a commoner; he should have stepped down to have a fair fight with me."

"Why? Everybody knows that when a noble duels, they use magic."

"I didn't know! I am not from this world, remember?!"

"But no one else knows that!" he stands up, his fists balled to his sides and his eyes wide. He's not angry, she realizes, he's just irritated by this point. "If no one knows you're from a different world, how would they suspect you don't know something so basic? Moreover, in any moment during the duel you could have yield, and Guiche would have been expected to stop! But did you do that? No! You kept fighting, even though you didn't stand a chance, even though you were about to die! For what though? Do you think anyone learned something out of this? Do you think your death would have made a difference? I have no idea how in the world you managed to win, but only because things turned in your favor it doesn't mean you're free from guilt! Because of your foolishness, you ended up giving people a lot of trouble. The servants, the teachers, and me! Never…" he's shaking, and he has to take a deep breath before continuing; "never do something like that again!"

Silence engulfs the room when he's finished. Sachiko has been left speechless. Although she still thinks it's a little unfair he's blaming her for everything, the last part sticks with her like glue. By troubling, does he mean worrying? Well, Shiro said the staff was wondering if I would wake up, and that they've been helping Louis with me while I was unconscious. He also said he got a teacher to cast a spell of healing on me, and he spent a lot of money on a reagent for me. He also spent three days without sleeping because of me…

She looks down, feeling dejected. She didn't think she would trouble people to this extent. Although she feels she has done the right thing by not letting Guiche walk over her, she feels guilty she has made everyone worried about her. She hears a little sigh.

"As long as you understand, it's alright" Louis approaches her. Sachiko shyly raises her head. To her surprise and confusion, his eyes seem to twinkle with something akin to mischief. "You are not going to do something like that anymore, are you?" he asks softly. Sachiko thinks for a moment. Would she? Yes, yes I would. She will never bow down to anyone against her will, but to spare her more of Louis' reprimanding, she nods. "Good, then don't make that expression. Just don't forget; you are my familiar. Is that clear?" and pats her head.

The meaning behind that last phrase isn't clear to her, but Sachiko thinks he's referring about these past three days. He's her master, and he'll take care of her. She thinks that's what he means. She gives a tentative smile. She remembers what Shiro told her a few days ago, that she should try getting along with Louis. Thinking this, her smile grows, becoming more genuine.

A/N: I can't believe it took me so long to reach this part, ugh...

One of the things I always wondered whenever I watched this scene was: why is nobody helping Saito? Because let's admit it, more than a duel it was a slaughter. Then I tried to see things the way the students would have seen it, and what Louis says is more or less the conclusion I came up with. Crappy as it is.

Changed the rating because this chapter is kinda violent. It'll give me free-way to add stronger things in the future too, though I very much doubt the story will reach M rating. But who knows.