Chapter 3: Room Mate
A/N: Next chapter. Please review for me, it would be fantastically fantastic if you would. It makes me so sad when my story has no review. :(
Dawn trudged back to her quarters, weary to the bone after her bout with Dilandau. Every muscle in her body seemed to be screaming at her to lie down on something soft, which she had no problem with doing since she intended to do just that. She trained hard; it wasn't that she wasn't strong enough. It was partially due to the fact that she hadn't really been fighting that hard during her months in the army. It had all been against friends. And when it came to a real battle, none of her fights ever lasted over three minutes.
She pushed through the door and slowly climbed to the top bunk, silently apologizing to her protesting muscles. There was no way in hell she would let
Gatti get the top. The bed wasn't the most comfortable she'd slept on, but it felt like heaven on earth. She closed her eyes and closed out her surroundings.
Her mind was tired too, presenting itself with maddening thoughts that were swift destroying her common sense. She had just come up against her worst enemy, the man who had killed her family. She had been given opportunity this day to kill him, not by their duel, but by his words confirming her place here. It was a new beginning, one that she was more than ready to start.
Dawn jumped as she heard the door open and bolted up, hitting her head on the low ceiling.
Gatti laughed as she let out a string of curses, his mirth granting him a seething glare from his room mate. It was going to be very interesting finally having someone else with him in the room, and quite entertaining if this moment was anything to go by. Though hopefully Dominic wouldn't end up hitting his head like that all the time; it would do quite a bit of damage in the long run.
After a moment the throbbing in her head stopped, and Dawn gave Gatti a weary smile. Gatti. What a pretty name, she thought, looking him over as he stripped off his armor.
"Um... thank you?" Dawn blinked at him in surprise, until she realized she had voiced her thoughts aloud. For being a boy, I'm sure using some funny adjectives, she scolded herself, determined to master her disobedient mouth. He began removing the rest of his things, peeling the snug undershirt off and flinging it on the bed.
Gatti looked up at Dominic, startled by the look on the boy's face. Had this boy not lived with a room mate ever before? He had only taken off his shirt and Dominic's face had turned beet red. Of course, if his previous suspicion were right... He shook his head. He was being an idiot again. He was not a she. No way in hell. Dilandau would have seen straight through it.
Dawn was aware of the heat flooding her cheeks, and tried to suppress the feelings that had just invaded her senses. She had seen men change before; she had lived in the army barracks after all. But never one that had been so... beautifully formed. She shook off the thoughts, reminding herself that he thought she was a boy, "Dominic" as she had so wittingly named herself.
He is quite good-looking, she realized as he finished taking off clothes. He had left his boxers on, much to her relief; she wasn't sure how she would have dealt with a gorgeous naked boy in the same room with her. Actually, she didn't have any doubt as to how she deal with the gorgeous naked boy in the same room with her... but he isn't naked and that isn't an option, she reminded herself sternly. Nonetheless, her eyes drank in the hard lines of his abs and chest and the muscles in his calves that she could see ripple as he stretched.
"What, do you sleep in your armor or something?" Gatti asked, sarcasm practically dripping from his voice. All Dominic had done was sit there, staring at him. It was kind of unnerving. Maybe Dominic was a he, just a not very straight he...
"Um, no." Dawn winced at the sound of her voice. It sounded so small and squeaky, not like her at all. She slowly unbuckled her armor, removing the smallest pieces first. It wasn't as if she were wearing something revealing underneath. It was the undershirt and shorts she had put on that morning. The only problem being that it was a very see-through undershirt. He might see her bindings. She wasn't exactly a small woman in the chest area though she wasn't exactly breaking any records, and it caused her a rather significant amount of pain to bind them every morning. She pulled off her armor and let it drop unceremoniously to the floor.
Gatti gave her a look and picked it up, draping it over the back of the chair. Would he ever understand Dominic? This boy didn't seem like he should have been named Dominic. He was too... beautiful. As in boyish beautiful. Not feminine beautiful, though now that he thought about it...
Dawn slipped under the covers, pulling off her shirt and ripping viscously at the bindings on her chest. She smiled as they finally came off; it felt so good to be free and painless. She left the shirt off, figuring that as long as Gatti didn't try to wake her up too enthusiastically, she'd be fine. She'd probably wake up before him anyway. She closed her eyes after her long day, gently rubbing her sore arms, and let sleep envelope her.
Dawn ran back to the village as fast as she could, knowing she had to save her family. The forest had burned around her, but maybe they hadn't reached the city yet. Her lungs burned from their task, but she knew that she had to keep running. She stumbled, catching her foot on a tree root as she cleared the last few trees of the forest. Her knee stung, but she rose and kept running. She decided to count the steps, knowing that would take her mind off of the soreness in her legs. She had just finished a training session this morning with her sword, and she was aching all over. 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10... She gave up as she rounded the last corner into the city.
Dawn froze. The city was gone, nothing but burning buildings and flaming wreckage in its place. Fanelia was a living torch, burning in its death throes. Slowly she walked into her once great city, picking her way among the fallen bodies, blanching at the sight of them. There was so much blood. Limbs were strewn everywhere, severed throats still gushed blood, hands groped at her, their owner's mouths begging for release. She stopped by a building and collapsed in dry heaves, sobbing. She had to find her family.
Dawn walked like a machine, her feet taking her slowly to her destination, until she reached her house. It was ash; everything was on the ground, ash-covered and blistered from the heat, a grim sample of what the burning had been like. And among the fallen timbers of her house lay three figures.
Dawn didn't even go over to them, for even from here she could see they had been burned to death, their skin crisp and black and breaking as bones peaked through. She sank to her knees, her eyes dry. She could cry for the people she did not know, but for them, for her family, somehow no tears came to her eyes. They were her family. They had raised her, loved her, no matter how annoying they could be at times. None of them had deserved such early deaths, especially not her little sister.
It had been him. That man who had laughed as he burned the forest, she was certain of it. Only he would be heartless enough to do this to her family. She could still hear his laugh, echoing through her brain to torture the fragile recesses of her mind.
"I will kill you." she whispered to the remnants of her home, "I will hunt you down to the ends of the earth and I will rejoice as my blade takes your life." Now she was breaking down, keening wails splitting the silence as tears streamed down her face. "You bastard! You killed them, you killed them all! No!"
"NO!" Gatti snapped awake, the shout he had heard beating away the sleepiness. What the hell had that been? Sobs reached his ears, heartbreaking sounds of sadness through the dark. He sat up and silently slid out of bed, looking around to see where the sounds came from.
He could vaguely see the outline of Dominic, still lying down in his bed, but he was moving. And crying, sobbing like his heart had been wrenched out of his chest. Slowly Gatti climbed up onto the boy's bed, striking a match so he could see. The new trainee had his eyes shut tight, but tears leaked through nonetheless. He was moving, like he was struggling under invisible bonds. Or shaking with heart wrenching sobs. Gatti thought. Gently he shook him, trying to urge him out of whatever nightmare he was experiencing. But Dominic wouldn't wake. He shook harder, persistently, and grey eyes snapped open.
Dawn bolted up, slamming her forehead into Gatti's. She groaned and fell back on the pillows, clutching the now-bruised portion of her head. He had woken her up, she guessed, for that was the only other reason she could think of that he was in her bed. In her bed? her mind repeated dimly, uncomprehending. "Shit." she cursed softly, panicking in the face of him discovering her identity. Swiftly she pulled the covers up to her chin and sat up.
"Are you okay?" Gatti whispered, ignoring the pain in his forehead. Dominic had a really hard skull. He wasn't responding, just pulling the covers farther up, and Gatti spoke again. "Dominic?"
"Call me Dom." was the grumpy reply. Gatti opened his mouth to say something more, but he was rudely cut off by, "I'm fine. It was just a nightmare." He nodded and went back to his bed, leaving Dawn to shut her eyes tightly and sigh. God, how I wish it were.
Dawn woke up the next morning and peered over the edge of the bed to make sure Gatti was still sleeping. She pulled out fresh binding, the only thing she had brought with her other than a brush, and began the most uncomfortable process of binding her chest. When she was through, she pulled on her undershirt and climbed out of bed.
Silently she pulled her sword out of its sheath and began her morning practice. She went through her usual routine, and remembering something that her teacher had always said. Close your eyes and you will never make a false move. Only during practice of course, for if you close your eyes during battle you are as good as dead. Her moves were sharper this way, more precise as her blade sliced through the air, and she relished the feeling of her bare feet on the cold floor, the feel of her magnificent hilt in her palms, and the hiss of steel against air.
Gatti's eyes fluttered open earlier than usual, his ears caught by the familiar sound of steel. It was Dom, practicing early with his beautiful sword. He kept his eyes half-closed so that the boy wouldn't stop, for it was fascinating to watch. Dom had his eyes closed, relying only on his muscles for the moves and precision. But Gatti had a sinking suspicion that Dom had forgotten about the lack of space as the sharp blade inched closer and closer to his bed. He eased his own sword out of its sheath, just in case it was needed.
Dawn didn't notice the sound of a sword being drawn as she continued her routine, swinging her sword around in a complex attack. She let out a small shriek as the clang of steel invaded the silence, and her eyes snapped open to see Gatti barely holding her sharp sword off his bare throat.
"Oh shit! I'm sorry! Are you okay? I didn't slice off an arm or anything did I?" Dawn was panicking, trying to make sure this incredibly gorgeous boy wasn't injured in any major way without actually touching him.
"No, my arms and limbs in general are still intact," Gatti said, laughing at how worried Dom had gotten. Hadn't he killed someone before? Sure, with a friend, it was different, but the extreme panick attack? That was just... girly.
Dawn glared at him venemously as he continued to laugh at her. It wasn't unnatural or anything to worry about your new roommate. A roommate that she's rather not skewer on her extravagant sword. Or maybe it was a guy thing to almost kill your new friend and not have any reaction. God, men were weird.
It was odd, here in the Vione. Life wasn't as unusual as Dawn had thought it would be. She made it through her training without being smacked by Dilandau which was quite a record for new trainees, and ate a healthy amount of food. In truth it was no different than when she had trained in the army of Asturia, though admittedly much more rigorous.
That night, after making absolutely sure Gatti was asleep, Dawn crept out of their room and made her way silently down the long hallway. She needed a shower desperately, and just because she was female and couldn't shower when all the other slayers did, that did not mean that she would go without getting clean.
She wore only a large night shirt, which she had found stuffed in a closet full of spare clothes, and her long legs stuck out almost immodestly from underneath it. It would certainly be most embarrassing for any of the men to come down here and find out how... unmanly her legs were. Not to mention the rest of her.
She made it to the showers without encountering anybody and eased open the door, sliding in and turning on the light. There was a row of showers with curtains separating them at one end of the room, and Dawn was struck by how interesting it would be if she did shower with her fellow Dragonslayers. Bet they would like that, she thought dryly, knowing exactly what would be going through the minds of horny, teenaged guys in the presence of a wet, naked woman.
The hot water on her skin was heaven as she turned the knob on the nearest shower. She had chosen this one because it was the nearest to a hiding place if anybody decided to... interrupt her. The water beat down on her back as she turned around, rinsing off the grit and sweat that had developed on her soft skin in the last day.
Training was officially torture. Though she would never admit it, even to herself, it was pretty much hell. In a twisted and rather masochistic way she enjoyed pushing herself to the limit and beyond, the pain that wracked every muscle in her body afterwards, and the screaming of her brain to stop. But in a not so twisted way, it just sucked.
Dawn got out of the shower slowly, her body lethargic because of the hot water. It was amazing they had so much hot water up here. She wasn't sure how long she had been in the shower, but it had to have been a while. She was getting sleepy, and her eyelids drooped as she pulled the towel around her waist and tucked one of the ends in, securing it in place.
She nearly screamed as the door opened to the room and someone entered.
It took all her willpower not to turn around to see who it was, for she was only wearing the towel slung loosely around her hips. She would have pulled it up if not for the fact that it was sadly lacking in material. How do they exist with such tiny towels? She thought furiously as her mind desperately searched for ways to get her out of this.
"Hey Dom, what are you doing in here so late?" Gatti asked, thoroughly confused as to why he was here. He had followed a while after hearing him leave the room, but decided not to ask him about it until he had finished showering. What the hell was Dom doing showering at one in the morning?
Dawn kept her back turned to him and let out a string of curses under her breath. She tossed ideas through her head and then replied with the most simple and inconspicuous one: "Showering."
"Well I can see that, but what the hell are you doing showering at this time of night?"
"What time of night?"
"One in the morning. It's late.
"You call this late? Why, this is when the birds start singing in my world!"
"Then your world is extremely twisted. Come on, pull some clothes on and come back. And next time, just shower with the rest of us."
Dawn nearly screamed in frustration at his suggestion. There was no way in hell she was going to ruin all she had worked for the past few months just because of this— this— annoying boy. "That's okay. I prefer to shower at this time, and it's not like it woke anybody else except for you. Speaking of which, that's a good question. What the hell are you doing here?"
Gatti shot a glare at his roommate's back, not answering immediately. Quite a shapely back. he thought, looking at it more closely. Very feminine though, with that soft looking skin and narrowing at the waist... He brutally snapped himself back into the present and cursed himself again. He is not a girl! Get over it!
"I woke up because I heard you leave but I waited until you had finished showering because I figured it would be polite! And seriously, an hour? Who are you?" He hadn't meant to add the last part, but it had come out, so he was basically screwed. Dom still hadn't turned to face him.
Dawn fervently wished he would leave, praying to all the gods that would listen that he just get bored with this and go back to bed. But apparently none of them felt like being merciful and he just stood there; she could feel his eyes boring into her back. He moved a little to her right, and she moved so her back was still to him.
Gatti frowned and moved again, trying to get Dom to look at him. He could at least yell at him face to face. But again his roommate moved so his back was facing him directly.
"Gatti, just go back to our room and I'll be there in a little while, okay?" Dawn said, defeat heavy in her voice. "But I won't stop showering at this hour." she added, still defiant even when she was clad only in a towel at one in the morning.
"Fine! I'm going! Have fun being insane!" Gatti turned and left, shutting the door with a little more force than was necessary.
Dawn rolled her eyes at his annoying behavior. She threw her towel at the door after he had left and mumble into the empty room, "Roommates."
A/N: So how do you like it? This chapter was a little more fluff and a little less substance, but it is quite possible and probably that more substance will come soon.