AN: After a long wait I finally updated this story. About time really. I don't know what took me so long since it only took me a day to write this all out. Now a lot of people have been guessing that Jail is the person who killed the Guild Master…..well, I have no comment. I can't answer that question! It gives things away! But what I can tell you is that everyone gets a bit of NanoFate fluff this chapter. I know you've all wanted some of that. Now I'd like to thank the following people for being awesome and leaving me a review:
Trumm12345, mauie0810, priest1drago, Master of all Perverts, orangesora, yukiyuuki, Yo-kun, ZonaRose, eries326, AyahDiamon, bardiche, Mayvarik, Fate T. Harlaown, Aka Chibi-chan, fatetestarossa19, Sammie0chan89, GrygrFlzr, Hyuuga-Sword, Hero of Anime, Kinki, Lance58, Spikesagitta, Parme-san, Honulicious, and Tsuchiyasa
You guys are great! I hope you enjoy this chapter.
Safe and Sound
Fate was flying through the air with grace and speed that she could only attribute to birds. A part of her wondered how she was able to pull off such a stunt, but another told her she'd been doing it all her life. Why question it? Pink beams rained from the sky as her own yellow ones flew towards her opponent. Fate knew she couldn't keep this kind of assault for much longer. The longer the fight was dragged out, the higher her chance of losing would become. There was only one choice to end this fight: she had to use her strongest attack.
But why?
What reason did she have to be so desperate to win against this girl? Fate shook her head. She shouldn't be thinking about such useless thoughts. She needed to win. She bound her opponent before gathering all her power. Her muscles protested against all the magic that concentrated around her. Fate though, held on and unleashed her magic in a show of power and precision. Her yellow beam collided with her rival. She was unable to see if the auburn haired girl she fought was still standing due to the cloud of dust that formed around the girl who'd taken her attack head on. As it began to clear however, she realized it hadn't been enough. She took whatever little magic she had left from her last attack and threw it at her opponent just as the other girl shot a beam of pink at her. Fate's attack however, was ineffective as it was swallowed by the incoming attack. Fate got a sinking feeling in her stomach. She didn't have a chance to dodge when the beam of pink collided into the shield she threw up at the last second.
She was going to endure this attack. If the other girl could take her attack at full power then she could handle this as well. The seconds passed by painfully slow. For a split second, Fate though her shield would give out on her, but somehow she was able to hang on. Her victory though, was short lived.
"See if you can take this variation on my Divine Buster…."
[Starlight Breaker]
Everything in Fate went cold. This girl had just used what seemed like her strongest attack, but now she revealed that not only did she have something much more powerful, but that she still had the magic to use it. Shaking the fear away, she was about to prepare her counter attack but found that she couldn't move.
"A bind?!"
"This is my ultimate strength…." Fate turned to look at the girl who addressed her. "It's everything I've got! Starlight Breaker!"
She felt nothing as she was knocked from the sky and into the ocean. She'd lost. Failed. She failed her mother. How could she face her after this? As she kept sinking deeper and deeper into the ocean, she wondered if this was it for her.
As if answering her question, she felt her body being lifted from the ocean. Her eyes fluttered open to see who it was that saved her.
"Are you alright, Fate-chan?"
"Nanoha?"
"Fate-chan!"
"Nanoha-chan, you really shouldn't yell in here."
"Ah, I'm sorry. I'm just so happy…."
Fate groaned from all the loud voices. Where was she? The last thing she remembered was talking to Linith before gas filled the room.
"Give her a chance to gain her bearings before you jump her."
Fate recognized the voice of Hayate. Had they been the ones that found them? No that was unlikely. She couldn't see her mother or Shiro allowing the girls to help them in their search. That would have been dangerous and stupid on their part and Fate knew that her mother and Shiro were neither of those.
"I wasn't going to jump her…."
"Right…."
The blonde's eyes slowly fluttered open. The ceiling was unfamiliar to her but the familiar smell of anesthetics clued her in on where she possibly was.
"Am I….in the nurse's office?"
"Yes, Lindy-san found you and Alicia-chan passed out in the schools gazebo and you were brought here." Nanoha supplied helpfully.
"Where is Alicia?"
"She's here as well." Nanoha moved slightly out of Fate's line of vision to give the blonde a better look at the bed that sat beside hers.
Fate rolled onto her side and caught a glimpse of her sister in the next bed. A sigh of relief left her lips. They were both alright. They survived the ordeal without any one getting hurt. She just wished their reputations hadn't suffered even more because of this incident. In fact, it wouldn't surprise her if the students feared them even more. It would be a miracle if they were allowed to stay in the school after all this.
"Are you feeling okay Fate-chan?"
The blonde glanced at the auburn haired girl. The dream she'd had flashed in her mind. Why had Nanoha been in her dream and why had they been fighting? As these questions ran through her mind, she continued to stare at Nanoha more intensely causing the girl to begin to fidget in her seat. Who knew Fate's stare was so powerful?
"I-Is there something wrong?"
Fate snapped out of her thoughts. She hadn't even realized she'd zoned out. That issue really had to be addressed. She couldn't keep getting distracted by Nanoha like that. The fact that she was so easily distracted by the girl bothered her. She'd been trained to the point that outside influences like people wouldn't distract her from her duties. Losing your focus at any time in the life she once lived could mean the difference between life and death. She'd only been out of the assassin life for a short time, but she was finding that her rigorous training was quickly begin compromised. She still didn't know how she felt about her new vulnerabilities. It was something she'd have to ponder later. Right now, she had to get ready for what was about to come.
"I'm fine."
"Are you sure? I can call Shamal-sensei if you need something."
Fate shook her head. She figured it was more important to inform Nanoha what was about to happen so that she wouldn't freak out too badly.
"I need to tell you something." She looked at Hayate. "You should listen as well."
Both girls nodded for Fate to continue.
"Once Alicia wakes up, we will more than likely be taken in custody."
"What!" Nanoha exclaimed. Fate took note that Hayate didn't seem all that shocked. She wouldn't be surprised if Hayate knew of the protocol that was in place for retired assassins who were visited by the Guild. She wouldn't be surprised if the brunette knew what Lindy actually did for the government either. She wasn't the Prime Minister's granddaughter for nothing.
"Why would they take you away! You haven't done anything wrong!" Nanoha threw herself on Fate, wrapping her arms around the blonde girl's stomach. "It's not fair! Because of you, we all got out of there okay so why?"
Not sure what to do in this kind of situation, she turned to Hayate for some sort of help. The brunette smiled and did a patting motion, hoping Fate would get the message. Tentatively, the blonde reached out and placed her hand on Nanoha's head. She had no idea why, but there was a sudden fluttering in her chest. Slowly, she patted Nanoha's head, hoping that it was giving her some sort of comfort.
"I know it sounds bad, but this is standard protocol for any ex-assassins who are contacted by the Guild. Nothing bad will happen. They just want to ask us some questions."
Nanoha lifted her face to look into Fate's eyes. Fate felt bad that she caused the girl to cry, although she wasn't sure why she felt bad about it.
"Really?"
Fate nodded, but she wasn't sure herself what would happen once Riot Force 6 took her and Alicia into custody. Depending on how much they liked the answers they gave, they may not be allowed to return to their "normal" lives. This may be the last time she'd get to see Nanoha. That though alone caused her feel a new emotion: sadness. How was Nanoha able to do these kinds of things to her? Her thoughts were cut short when Alicia began to stir in her bed.
Alicia sat up groggily looking around the room. Her eyes landed on her sister and the odd position she was in.
"We're in the infirmary." She stated simply.
Fate nudged Nanoha so that the auburn haired girl would allow her to sit up. Nanoha complied with Fate's silent request.
"Yes. We should be prepared to be taken."
"Ah, yes. They'll want to know about our little meeting."
Fate nodded. Alicia stretched causing some bones to pop.
"Should we tell anyone you're awake?" Hayate asked her.
Alicia hadn't noticed the brunette was by her bedside. She wondered why. She'd thought, seeing as she was Nanoha's friend that she'd be sitting beside her instead of at her bedside. Hayate only smiled at her as Alicia finished popping her back.
"Are you that eager to be rid of me?"
"Maybe it's you whose eager to get away from me." Hayate responded playfully.
It'd become a bit of a habit that she and Alicia would banter back and forth like this. Hayate wasn't at all surprised that the older blonde caught on to how banter worked and had all but mastered the trade. Granted though, she didn't banter with just anyone. It seemed like it was something that was reserved for her alone. It made her feel special. Who wouldn't feel like that with this girl? After all, she paid almost no one else any attention if they weren't her sister.
"Touché." Alicia smirked. "However, it would be best to let everyone know we're awake."
"Agreed." Fate said as she also stretched her muscles. "The sooner we get this over with the sooner we can come back."
Nanoha looked worriedly at the blonde. She really didn't want to call on anyone, but it would do her no good to delay the inevitable.
"Alright. I'll let Shamal-sensei know you guys have woken up."
Fate smiled. "Thank you for understanding."
Nanoha was sure that her heart was about to burst from her chest. Fate actually smiled at her. Her. It was truly a beautiful smile. Fate should definitely do it more often. It didn't take long after Nanoha had called Shamal that Lindy and some other men in suits came into the room. Much to her and Hayate's displeasure, they were not allowed to stay in the room while the twins were being addressed. They were forced to wait outside until the door was opened. Lindy walked out first with a furious look on her face. Behind her followed on of the two men in black then walked out Alicia in handcuffs. Fate followed closely behind her. The other man in black was the last to leave the room. Nanoha wanted to go to the blonde. She wanted to hug her and let her know it would be okay, but Hayate held her arm.
"We don't want to cause a scene do we?"
She hated to admit it, but it was true. She wouldn't be doing the twins any good if she tried to interfere. The only thing she and Hayate could do was watch as the twins were lead down the hallway and out of the school. Nanoha's hands clenched. It wasn't fair at all. The things that happened had been completely out of their control. They hadn't asked to be contacted by the guild. They certainly hadn't asked for their entire school to be plunged into chaos. They'd been trying to just live day by day like normal teenagers. Granted they still weren't very normal, but they were getting there. Slowly, but surely, they were starting to seem less like emotionless assassins and more like teenage girls.
Hayate took one of Nanoha's hands into hers.
"It's going to be okay Nanoha. You'll see."
"I hope so Hayate." Nanoha looked out towards the window. The suns bright rays made the day seem a lot more cheerful than it should be.
"Come back soon."
-SafeandSound-
Alicia sat, in what she considered a very familiar setting. It was a dark room with only a hanging light illuminating the space she was in. The chair she sat in was the only furniture in the room. Her hands were still bound as were her feet. She shifted in her seat a bit causing the chains to rattle. She was far too use to being in places like this. It was both a good and bad thing. Good because it meant she was familiar with the interrogation process which meant she was prepared for whatever they would throw at her. Bad because it meant she'd been in an interrogation room far more than should be deemed good. It couldn't be helped though. It was one of the things they'd been subjected to constantly during their imprisonment.
It was rare that assassins were actually captured while they were still in service to the Guild. Riot Force 6 hadn't had any luck getting information out of the ones they did manage to capture and finding assassins that were retired was difficult. The ones that they had been lucky enough to capture never talked and after the first few actually killed themselves in order to keep the Guilds secrets, the government stopped trying to torture answers out of them. Not only was it counterproductive, but they were losing valuable connects to the Guild. This was one of the many reasons that Fate, Alicia, and even Precia had been treated as mere prisoners. Very highly guarded prisoners, but it was better than being subjected to torture. Then again, they probably also had Lindy to thank for their good treatment. She highly doubted the government would call off torturing if there was a slight chance it would work once.
Sighing, she wondered how long this would take. It was odd, but she missed her home. She missed Lindy and, as much as she hated to admit it, she missed going to school. That last one caught her by surprise. Alicia never thought she'd actually miss going to that place. Lately though, it wasn't so bad. When she'd first realized that school wasn't a terrible place to be it'd shocked her. She and Fate never thought much of the people around them mainly because they treated them like they were lower than garbage, therefore, she and her twin didn't see a reason to give those around them the time of day. Better to ignore their existences than give them the satisfaction of thinking they were actually hurting them somehow. It was a ridiculous notion that anything they did would actually affect them. The kids they went to school with were merely that, children. They had no idea how the real world worked and who'd had everything handed to them on a silver platter. They knew nothing outside their own little bubbles. Alicia and Fate wanted nothing to do with people like that. There was no point to associating with those kinds of people when there was no benefit to gain from that kind of relationship.
Yet, she and Fate had allowed Nanoha and Hayate into their little world, but why? What did she have to gain from this supposed friendship they'd established? Alicia had admitted to herself that Hayate was one of the smartest people she'd met. She was observant, cunning, and fearless. It wouldn't surprise her if one day Hayate attainted the title of Prime Minister just like her adoptive grandfather. Yet not many people gave her credit for what she was actually capable of. Perhaps it was jealously that blinded everyone. She'd done research on the girl after they'd first met and she could see why their peers sometimes looked at her like she didn't belong with the rest of them.
Hayate had lost her parents when she was five. Her oldest cousin, Signum who'd also suffered the loss of her own parents a year before that was left with the task of raising not only Hayate, but her own sister Vita. Then, Hayate was adopted by Gil Graham. It caused a major stir in the political world. Many thought he did it in order to gain a more favorable light in the eyes of his constituents. Alicia wasn't sure herself of the reason why he chose Hayate specifically, but whatever the case was, Gil Graham eventually won the seat of Prime Minister. Hayate did not live with him, but instead had her own home in which she lived with her little family. Alicia tried to find out more information on those that bared the last name of Yagami, but she found that it was difficult to find anything further on them. Not surprising since their information would be classified now that they were related to someone so important. All she knew for sure was that Signum and Vita were her cousins by blood. She didn't doubt that Shamal was actually married into the family, but Reinforce and Zafira were a complete mystery to her. She didn't think they were actually blood relatives, but perhaps adopted into the family as well. Why? She didn't know.
Alicia shook her head. Why was she suddenly so interested in Hayate life? It was certainly uncharacteristic of her to take so much interest in someone to this extent.
Her thoughts were cut short when the door opened revealing shadowy figures. Alicia inwardly smirked. This was day 4 of their interrogations. Their questions hadn't changed. What did you talk about? How did they get into the school? Who were the assassins that broke in?
Obviously she couldn't tell them everything that happened. She told them the bare minimum of details about the conversation she had with Linith. She did not reveal who it was she spoke to. Only that she and Fate were being warned by the Guild, threatened even. That was it. She said nothing more about what happened in that room much to the frustrations of those interrogating her.
Alicia mentally sighed, wondering if she would ever be allowed to return home or if the higher powers would decide to keep her a prisoner like they'd wanted to from the very beginning.
-SafeandSound-
Nanoha looked forlornly at the seat in front of her. It'd been days since Fate and Alicia were taken away. She'd asked her father every day whether there was any new news on them but every time he'd shake his head. Nanoha didn't know what to think. Had that been the last time she'd see Fate? It was far too sad to think of it that way. Instead, she'd tell herself every day that Fate and Alicia would be back the next day. There was always a possibility they'd be back the next day. She had to stay positive. If she lost hope then perhaps she'd never see Fate again. Kicking her bad thoughts out of her mind, she concentrated on the lesson at hand.
They were half way through their first class of the day. For once, Nanoha had been paying attention to what Signum was saying. Up to this point, Hayate had been giving her notes she'd taken and explaining anything she didn't understand. The brunette never scolded her for not paying attention and merely smiled every time Nanoha would thank her for being such a big help. Hayate would always wave her off. It really wasn't that big of a deal. She was just glad that Nanoha had the good sense to not neglect her studies.
Nanoha sighed as she watched Signum write another formula on the board. She tried her best to pay attention, but her eyes began to wander around the classroom. Things had changed since that fateful day. It was hardly noticeable at first. Nanoha began to hear whispers about the twin's alleged arrest immediately after they'd been taken away. Most of the things she heard did not surprise her, but that didn't mean she wasn't angry about it. The great majority of the student body thought that the twins deserved to be arrested and hoped that they never came back. Others thought that this was all part of some evil plan orchestrated by them. It was all ridiculous in Nanoha's opinion. Nothing that had happened was the twins fault. They'd been caught off guard just as they all had, but she knew it was nearly impossible to change everyone's minds.
Then the day before, she noticed something strange. She and Hayate walked into their classroom and stopped dead in their tracks. The desks that their classmates had moved to be further away from the twins were back in their normal spots. Arisa, who sat to Fate's left, looked at them before blushing and turning away. Nanoha smiled for the first time since the twins had been taken away. She'd walked over to Arisa and thanked her but the blonde only stuttered and glared.
"I-I didn't do it because I like them! I just think it's stupid that we though moving the desks further away would make a difference!" she then looked to the rest of her classmates who'd been looking at her oddly. "And it's stupid to think they did anything wrong when they were the ones to put themselves in danger for us!"
Even now she couldn't help but smile at the memory. Arisa could actually be a very kind person. After that, she'd begun hearing little whispers here and there about how brave it was of them to give themselves up not knowing if they'd come back alive. The majority still blamed the blondes, but Nanoha found that the minority that'd begun to see the twins in a different light were a lot more vocal about their opinions that those who didn't. She hadn't realized she'd been a major voice in this group until Carim and Suzuka pointed it out.
That was another good thing that came out of this. Fate and Alicia had earned the respect of Carim and Suzuka, both who were from very prominent families and who vouched for the twins. This included Verossa who happened to be Carim's half-brother. Nanoha was happy to see that Fate and Alicia had such strong supporters. They'd need it in order to remain in the school since she doubted a lot of the parents were happy with the break in that occurred.
"Thus if you take y and…." Signum's lecture was suddenly cut short when the door to the classroom opened.
Nanoha's eyes widened at the two people who walked through.
"Sorry for interrupting class." Fate addressed Signum.
"And sorry for being late." Alicia added.
Whatever Signum was going to say was interrupted by the sudden cheers that erupted from her class. Fate and Alicia flinched at the sudden sound and looked at the cheering faces of their classmates. They had that deer in the headlights look, unsure of how to react to the situation. They never expected their classmates to actually be happy with their return. If anything, they expected to be welcomed with distrust and contempt. Not this. Not all this cheering and happy greetings like they were friends. Signum smiled slightly at the girl's confused faces. In a way, they really were still innocent despite the way they'd grown up. She walked up behind the two girls and placed a hand on their shoulders.
"Everyone is happy to see you are alright." She whispered to them.
This only served to further confuse the twins. Signum chuckled.
"A lot has changed since you've been gone. Now, why don't you take you're seats? We still have class to get through."
Nodding, the blondes passed by their classmates who continued to smile and welcome them back as they walked to their seats. Fate sat down and began to take out her things, but something told her she needed to say something to the person sitting behind her. Fate turned in her seat and looked at Nanoha. The auburn haired girl was clearly happy and doing her best to hold back her tears. Still, Fate knew she couldn't just sit and ignore her like she'd done so many times before.
"I'm back." She said gently.
Nanoha's smile widened. "Welcome back."
Fate turned back and listened to the remainder of the lesson. The classroom seemed to have a much happier atmosphere than it had been the last few days. Soon it was lunch time for all of them. While they packed up their things, the door suddenly slammed open.
"We heard the trouble makers were back." A purple haired girl panted as she walked through.
"Suzuka-chan?" Arisa questioned.
"Ah, Arisa, I'd almost forgotten you were in this class too." Suzuka smiled. "Carim and I came to visit our new friends after we'd heard they were finally back."
"Friends?" Fate and Alicia both questioned each other. They didn't remember ever agreeing to be friends with the two girls.
"Of course we're friends." Carim sat herself on top of Alicia's desk. "I don't hold any ill will towards you for everything that happened. As a matter of fact, I thought it was incredibly brave of you to sacrifice yourselves for all of us."
"Yes, not many would have the courage to do what you did." Suzuka added.
"That's right!" Hayate chimed in. "You guys are bonafide heroes!"
Alicia had no time to react as Hayate jumped over her desk and hugged the blonde from behind. Just as quickly as it'd come, the warmth of Hayate's body left hers. She couldn't, for the life of her, figure out why she missed that warmth. Fate looked to Nanoha, who'd been strangely silent this whole time. This was far from the girl's normal behavior. What was wrong?
"Let's celebrate with a feast!" Hayate enthusiastically tugged Alicia out of her seat. "Let's go everyone!"
Carim giggled at Hayate's enthusiasm and jumped off Alicia's desk in order to follow the pair.
"Will you be joining us Arisa-chan?" Suzuka asked the blonde who'd remained behind from the rest of her classmates.
"I don't…."
"Oh come on," Suzuka grabbed her hand and also tugged her out of the classroom. "Quit being so shy."
"I'm not shy!" Arisa yelled as she was pulled through the door way.
With them out of the room, Fate looked around her. Somehow, they'd been left alone. Setting her eyes on the girl once again, she watched her carefully from her seat. Nanoha was staring at her desk, her hands gripped tightly in front of her. Being highly unfamiliar with this kind of situation, all Fate could do was sit there awkwardly. What was she supposed to do? She really couldn't just stay sitting there in complete silence. The silence didn't suit her. Not one bit. Fate tried to recall what her mother had done for her when they'd first moved in with her. She and Alicia were very withdrawn and unwilling to talk about anything. But Lindy was a very patient woman. Nodding to herself, she decided on a course of action. She just hoped she didn't mess it up somehow.
Fate got up from her seat and went to stand beside Nanoha. The auburn haired girl still didn't move despite Fate's actions. This definitely didn't feel right. Nanoha would normally be ecstatic that Fate was even paying any sort of attention to her. She hadn't known Nanoha for very long but this was all so wrong and she couldn't help but feel it was her fault, like she'd somehow caused the girl to act this way. She was sure she could add guilt to the new list of feeling she was quickly acquiring.
"Nanoha?"
The auburn haired girls head shot up to look at her. The surprise was evident not only on her face but on Fate's as well. She hadn't meant to call her by her name. She had been about to address her as she usually did, but somehow, she instead called to her so intimately. Suddenly, she remembered she had done so as well when she'd first woken up. After having that dream, she'd woken up and her name was the first thing that fell from her lips. Not her sisters, not Lindy's, but her. Nanoha.
Why?
"Nanoha."
This time, Nanoha did not remain in her seat. She jumped up and threw her arms around Fate. The blonde stood rigid as Nanoha sobbed into her shirt. What exactly had happened? Did she do something wrong? She'd only said her name and she was already crying. Fate had a feeling she was terrible at this whole…comforting thing.
"Fate-chan….Fate-chan…." Nanoha sobbed.
Something about the way Nanoha said her name tugged at her heartstrings. She sounded so….desperate. Again, Fate couldn't help but ask why? What was it that Nanoha was so desperate to reach? Realizing she wasn't doing any good just by standing there like a statue, Fate slowly wrapped one arm around Nanoha's waist while the other patted her head in an unsure manner.
"Why do you cry?"
Nanoha pulled away slightly to look into Fate's eyes. It was odd, Fate thought, the act of crying. Lindy had once told her that tears were not just to show ones sadness; they were also to show how happy someone was. So what kind of tears were these? The hand that had been patting Nanoha's head moved to gently cup the girls face. She watched in fascination as Nanoha's cheeks began to turn a lovely shade of pink. Her thumb moved almost lazily across her cheek wiping away the tears that stained it.
"Why do you cry?" she asked again. "Was I the cause?"
"N-no! Y-yes, I mean….it kind of is and isn't."
Fate could do nothing but stare in confusion. If possible, Nanoha felt her cheeks become even hotter under Fate's stare.
"I was just….so happy to see you."
"Happy?"
Nanoha nodded and laid her head against Fate's shoulder.
"I thought I'd never see you again. I thought that that day had been the last time I'd get to see you, to talk to you, to…..I didn't know what I'd do if I never saw you again."
Fate absorbed these words. So it had been her to cause these tears.
"Is it true, that you've known who I was since before we met?"
With all the commotion that the visit from the Assassin's Guild had caused, she hadn't had a chance to ask Nanoha about the dreams. The last one for sure had been strange.
"Yes. I've been having dreams about you since I was nine, but they haven't been just of you. Hayate, Arisa, Suzuka…and a lot of other people appeared in these dreams."
"What do they mean?"
Fate felt Nanoha shake her head.
"I don't know. Maybe they aren't meant to be anything, maybe they are of a past life. I wish I knew for sure, but all I know is that I've been waiting to meet you for a very long time."
Someone that actually wanted to meet her…..it was one of the oddest things she'd ever heard. Who'd actually want to meet someone like her? In her short existence, all she'd done was cause death, yet this person whom she'd never met wanted nothing more than to be close to her.
"Why?"
"Nyahaha! You probably wouldn't believe me…."
"You won't know unless you try."
Nanoha stayed silent for a moment before answering.
"Ever since I saw you in my dreams…..I knew you were special to me somehow. I didn't understand how until I met you."
For some reason, Fate felt her heart beat pick up. Something about this entire situation was oddly familiar yet incredibly strange at the same time. Nanoha pulled away and cupped Fate's face with her hands. What was happening exactly?
"How am I special to you?" Fate noted that her voice had become just a bit huskier than it normally was.
"Like this." Nanoha whispered.
Their lips touched and Fate felt the world around her go dark.
-SafeandSound-
Lindy sat in her office rubbing her forehead from the headache that was forming. She'd fought a hard battle against her superiors that'd wanted to keep Fate and Alicia locked up. For a while there, she thought she was going to lose the war, but then the most unexpected call came. She'd been told that the Prime Minister himself called her superior and told him to release Fate and Alicia. At first she wondered if Hayate had anything to do with it, but she was quickly proven wrong with the report she finished reading. It seemed that her daughters had made some very powerful friends. Having Shiro Takamachi on their side was already good, but thanks to this incident, she'd also found out that the Tsukimura's and the Gracia-Acous families were throwing their support behind them. They along with Shiro had called up the Gil Graham and told him exactly what was going on. She'd been incredibly shocked that they all had direct lines to the Prime Minister, not only that but they seemed to actually know him. It was a lot to take in.
"Ma'am?" someone knocked at her door.
Lindy pulled herself from her thoughts. "Come in."
Vice walked through the door looking just as tired as she was. It'd been a long week for them so far.
"What is it Vice-kun?"
"Precia wants to talk to you again."
Lindy felt her head throb in protest. Now was not the time for her to be dealing with the ramblings of a possibly crazy assassin. Still, if she turned down the offer to speak with her, Precia might stop talking to her. She couldn't let that happened. It may seem like all these random conversations she'd been having with her were useless, but Lindy had a feeling that the woman was trying to tell her something. Something big, but for whatever reason, she chose to go about it in a roundabout way. She wished she knew why.
"Should I tell her no ma'am?" Vice noted the tired look in Lindy's face. She'd gotten very little sleep in the time the twins were detained. It'd been hard on her since she'd been removed from the entire process as other officers, handpicked by their superior, took over the twins case. Luckily though, the case had been returned to their custody. It definitely gave Lindy more peace of mind knowing she was in charge of her girls again.
"No. Set up the meeting room as usual."
"Yes, ma'am."
Lindy sighed and pulled out some pills from her desk drawer. If she needed to talk to Precia, it would certainly help if she didn't have a headache incapacitating her. With a final sigh, she stood up from her desk and made the walk to the interrogation room. It'd become quite a familiar path. She stood in front of the door and waited for the go ahead to enter.
"You can go in ma'am." She heard Vice's voice over the radio.
She stepped inside the dimly lit room and took her normal seat. Precia smiled at her. Had she not been a crazy assassin, she'd maybe call her smile pretty. Maybe.
"Lindy. My you look rather tired."
"It's been a tough work week."
Precia's smiled widened.
"I can imagine. I take it the Guild decided to finally talk to my girls?"
Lindy's eyebrows furrowed. How was it possible for her to know that? No one spoke to her about anything that happened on the outside.
"Why would you think that?"
Precia chuckled. "Lindy, I thought we were going to be honest with each other from now on. I know what goes on beyond these walls. I have eyes and ears everywhere."
That was unnerving to say the least. Precia chuckled again at Lindy's expression.
"Oh I don't mean to scare you. I knew this would happen eventually. It doesn't take a genius to figure that out. The Guild doesn't just allow us to roam free."
"Then why haven't they tried to contact you?"
"Well obviously they wouldn't try to storm Riot Force 6's secret base needlessly even if they knew where it was located. They know I'm no threat in my condition. Now should I somehow be freed, then I can expect a visit. Just like everyone else gets."
"You seem to know a lot about what's been going on."
"Knowledge is a very powerful thing to have. I've made sure I have plenty."
"You don't say."
"Yes, but I'm not the only who thinks this way."
"I'm sure a lot of people think that way."
"Indeed, but some of those people are not out to use this knowledge for good. Many use it for their own needs, not caring whether it harms anyone."
"Which category do you fall under?"
Precia smirked. "Wouldn't you like to know?"
Lindy said nothing.
"Maybe one day I'll tell you which way I swing." She added with a wink.
Lindy couldn't help the twitch in her eyes. She'd had very little sleep, a headache that decided to pay her another visit, and now Precia was flirting with her again. There was only so much she could take in one day.
"As fun as this is, I should get to the reason why I called you here today." She waited a moment before continuing. "Have you ever heard of Jail Scaglietti?"
AN: And that's the end of the chapter folks. I hope you enjoyed it. I know it was long overdue. So please review. I always appreciate those. Until next time!
