Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha characters.. But the swing is still mine!!!!

I would like to thank my beta (of sort hehehe) Indian-Twilight. I didn't exactly follow everything you wanted me to do (T_T). . Punish me later. hahaha

Indian, Momoko's hair is brown.

Fate awoke to the sounds of birds chirping and the splashing of water from the nearby lake. The smell of freshly cooked pancakes, butter and maple syrup wafted through the air, inviting her to go downstairs to where the smell was coming from. She sat up and removed the blanket off her body, glancing outside her window only to find kids laughing while swimming in the lake. She wanted to join them and befriend them, maybe laugh along with them too. She quickly got off her bed and went to the bathroom to take a quick shower. After 10 minutes, she was on her way downstairs where she found her brother eating pancakes on the dining table. He must have heard Fate coming down the stairs because he looked up at her and smiled.

The Rubber Tire Swing by the Lake

"Morning," her brother greeted as he took two more pancakes and dumped them into an empty plate. "Hurry up and eat while the pancakes are hot."

"Morning."

The blond took a seat next to her brother where the plate of pancakes was placed. She sliced some butter and poured a generous amount of syrup on it. She loves maple syrup. Lindy, who happened to hear her daughter, walked out of the kitchen with a new batch of pancakes and gave her daughter a peck on the cheeks while setting down the plateful of pancakes on the table.

"Good morning sweetie, had a good night sleep?" She asked, sitting in front of them and getting her share of pancakes.

"Yah, slept like a log," Fate answered back, stuffing her mouth with food.

"Good, we will be visiting my old friend today. I hope you're up for it," she said cheerfully.

"I guess so but I wanted to go swimming at the lake after if that's okay with you."

"Of course, the house is actually just a few yards away from ours so you could just bring your things with you and change there," she said as she ate her last piece and downed it with orange juice. "Or you could just swim with the clothes you are wearing now, just like what I used to do when I was your age."

The little blond chuckled while Chrono snorted. "Grandma didn't scold you for doing that?" He asked.

"What? No, it's how it's done here. It's not like swimming in a pool where swimsuits are required. Here anything will do. Kids swim for fun, not to attract unwanted attention."

The two siblings looked at each other before giving each other high fives. "That is so cool!" They shouted in unison.

"And not only that," Lindy continued, "Have you seen the tree behind our house?"

The two kids nodded.

"There is a rope there that we used to swing ourselves to the lake but I don't know if it's still there."

"You mean the big lone tree right by the bank?" Fate asked.

"Yes that one."

" I think the rope is gone but there's a rubber tire swing," she said. She was sure about it as she saw it just last night.

"Well anyways, go clean up. I promised my friend that we would be arriving there in about an hour or so."

The two stuffed their last pancakes and drank their juice while placing the plates on the sink. After all the utensils used were placed on the sink, Chrono went to his room to change while Fate, who already took a bath and had fresh clothes on, sat back on the table. She was content with watching her mother clean the dishes.

"Momoko said that she has a daughter around your age," Lindy started as she wiped the plates dry. "I'm hoping that the two of you would get along."

"I hope so too," Fate replied honestly.

--

After an hour, they were all standing outside the door to their mother's friend's house. Chrono opted to wear blue shorts and a simple white t-shirt since he would be swimming afterwards anyway. Fate wore the same except she had on brown shorts and a moss green shirt.

Lindy appeared to be nervous yet she was excited at the same time. She was actually going to see her best friend whom she had never seen for years. Of course, they talked over the phone several times but it still was different from actually seeing each other. Her hands shook a little as she reached for the doorbell.

"Mom, relax," Chrono said as he tried to calm his mother, even just a little. He couldn't ignore the fact that he and his younger sister were no better.

"I'm trying but this is too much excitement!" She exclaimed.

They waited for a few seconds before someone from inside answered. "Just a moment." Shuffling and screeching of chairs could be heard from inside before the door slowly opened. Lindy and the gang held their breaths.

The door fully opened, revealing a beautiful kind looking woman with long brown hair by the doorway. She was around the same age as Lindy and guessing from her appearance, she looked just as nervous as the rest of them.

"M-Momoko?" Lindy stammered. Oh how Fate wished she brought her camera with her to capture her mom's astonished facial expression. It was priceless.

The other woman smiled as her eyes widened in recognition. "Lindy!"

Not long after the surprised greetings were exchanged, the two enveloped each other in a fierce hug, one that would compensate for two decades of separation.

"Oh my God, I missed you so much!" The woman known as Momoko said after breaking their hug. "How's everything going? We have a lot to catch up to," She continued as she ushered the family in.

Fate and Chrono sat on one of the couches in the living room while their mother sat on one of the cushion chairs beside her best friend talking animatedly.

"I left Letty in charge of everything. I badly needed this vacation," their mother said to her best friend.

"Well that's good," Momoko replied before focusing her attention on the two kids sitting in front of them. "So are these the little rascals that you were talking so much about?"

She smiled warmly at the two. Immediately, Fate knew that she would have no problem being close with Momoko. The woman practically had kindness written all over her face.

Lindy looked at her kids. "Well don't be rude and introduce yourselves," she said, reprimanding them slightly.

The two hastily stood up and the boy introduced himself first. Bowing to the woman in front of him, he said, "C-Chrono Harlaown." He then nudged his sister.

"F-Fate Harlaown, t-thank you for having us over," the blond stammered.

"Fate?" Momoko repeated whilst giving Lindy an amused look. "So you really did name your daughter Fate after all this years."

Of all the things that Fate hadn't seen in her life, one wasn't her mother blushing. She was definitely cursing herself internally for not bringing her camera. She would find out the reason for her mother's reaction later because right now, seeing her mom blush even deeper was her top priority.

"Oh, by the way Momoko," Lindy said as she tried to change the topic. She knew that Momoko would bring it up later, when the kids were not around. "You said you have two girls and a boy, where are they?"

"Oh," the brown haired woman gasped, obviously embarrassed with her rudeness. "I'm so sorry, I've somehow forgotten since I was too wrapped up in excitement." Momoko moved sideways on her chair to face the kitchen and called out, "Kids! Darling! The guests are here!"

"They are here?! Oh my god, I haven't even finished cooking yet!" A man answered. Judging from his deep voice, he must have been the husband.

Two teenagers walked out of the kitchen. One was a girl wearing a pink apron while the other was a boy holding up a ladle.

"Mom, you could have told us that they are here!" The girl exclaimed.

Momoko just chuckled. "I just did, didn't I?"

Fate and Chrono bolted up from their seats and introduced their selves while profusely bowing. The two teenagers returned their greeting.

"Miyuki Takamachi," the girl introduced herself as she took her apron off. The boy seemed to be a little calmer and bowed slowly while introducing himself.

"Kyoya Takamachi, nice to meet you."

"Where is Nanoha?" Momoko asked. She was surprised that her youngest wasn't around.

"Oh she is by the lake, swimming with Yuuno and the gang," she answered.

Momoko eyed the Harlaown siblings. "You kids wanna' go swimming at the lake?"

The two visibly lightened up at the suggestion. "Yes!" They answered enthusiastically.

--

Miyuki accompanied the two to the lake while Lindy stayed at the house to continue her conversation with Momoko from where it left off.

"So how do you like it here so far?" Miyuki asked, breaking the silence.

Chrono looked at his sister, expecting her to answer but he noticed that she was lost in thought.

"We just arrived here yesterday afternoon so we haven't really gone out much but so far we are enjoying ourselves," the young man answered.

Fate was quiet all the way to the lake. She was admiring the crystal clear waters and the fishes that could be seen through it. She had never seen water this pure before. All she had seen was pool water filtered with chlorine and salty sea water at crowded beaches. The scene before her was quiet and calm and even though it was hot, it was still airy fresh. She loved it this way.

As they neared the lake, Fate could hear the laughter of the kids she saw from her window this morning. Her eyes brighten up upon seeing the tree and the swing she saw last night. She wanted to ride it and feel whatever the girl from last night was feeling while riding it.

Miyuki walked ahead of them to call out her younger sister and her friends.

"Nanoha, guys, I want you to meet someone."

The laughter died down. Fate could practically hear her heartbeat in her ears. One glance towards her brother told her that he felt the same as her. Nervous as hell. The kids scrambled out of the water, eager to meet this someone Miyuki was talking about. Not long after, Fate and Chrono had five pairs of eyes curiously staring at them.

"Eto, guys this is Fate and Chrono. They are the ones staying at that house over there," Miyuki announced while pointing towards said house.

"Hi!" The five greeted in unison.

"H-Hi," the two responded back shyly. Somehow they felt like new inventions on display with those stares they were getting but the heavens must have been on their side since Miyuki clapped, taking all the attention back to her.

"Don't stare at them like that. Why don't you guys introduce yourselves to them while I go back to the house to help dad and Kyoya with the food?" She asked.

"Okay," they answered, yet again in unison.

"'Kay. Then I'll just call you when food is ready." She was starting to walk back when she stopped and called back, "Be good okay! They're new so I want you to help them enjoy their stay here!"

"Hai!"

After getting her desired reply, Miyuki continued back to their house.

They stared at each other after Miyuki left. Neither one moving nor making any attempts to, that is until a short haired brunette broke the silence.

"Hi, my name is Hayate," the rather cheerful girl said as she approached the two, stretching her hand out.

Fate and Chrono, who seemed to have frozen in their places, took the offered hand and shook it. Now that the awkwardness was broken, the others followed suit.

"Yo! Yuuno here," a long blond haired boy greeted.

"Hi, I'm Suzuka," a purple haired girl said next. Then she motioned to the blond girl beside her, "And this is Arisa." Said girl gave a friendly nod.

"The little girl over there is Vita-chan," Hayate added as she pointed at the girl behind Yuuno who seemed more embarrassed than the two of them.

"And," Hayate scanned around them, looking for someone. Her eyes brighten as she spotted whoever she was looking for. "Nanoha!"

The girl in question was just getting out of the water. "Nanoha, come here. We have visitors!"

Fate just stared at the girl before her. Something about the girl seemed familiar to her.

"Oh, hi, my name is Nanoha," the brunette greeted. Her blue eyes stared deep into Fate's burgundy ones. Fate managed to blush at the intensity of the gaze. Chrono was smirking internally at his sister's reaction.

"Um, nice meeting you all, my name is Chrono," he said, nudging his sister as an indicator.

"Uh, sorry, I-I'm Fate," the blond said, her introduction aimed more at Nanoha than the others.

'Fate, such a nice name.'

--

yey! done.