Out Of Mind

It had been two weeks since Elizabeth had returned to the castle, and the Seven Deadly Sins were no closer to finding their missing member than they were to finding the missing Coffin. Mama Hawk moved them every day from one place to the next, and the Boar Hat had opened in town after town to allow them to gather any information. So far, they had come up completely empty.

"Hey Captain," Ban said. He was sitting in one of the stools in the main room of the Boar Hat, balancing back on one of the legs. "Are we opening tonight or not?"

Meliodas looked over from where he had been absentmindedly rearranging glasses behind the bar. "What?"

"It's gonna be sunset in about an hour," Ban replied. "Are we opening?"

"Oh. I didn't realize it was that late." He frowned. "I guess it wouldn't hurt for us to take a night off."

"Perfect!" Ban jumped off the stool and leaned his long body over the counter of the bar, pulling out a bottle of alcohol. He popped off the cork and took a long drink. Wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, he looked over at Meliodas. The Dragon Sin had gone back to rearranging the glasses again, and Ban shook his head and chuckled. Helping himself to the good stuff would have gotten him a punch a week ago.

"You all right there, Captain?" he asked, taking another long drink.

"Yup," he answered. "Just couldn't get to sleep last night."

Ban snorted. Meliodas looked like he hadn't slept in days, and he had a pretty good guess why not. "Figured as much. You look like crap."

"I know what you're doing," Meliodas replied without looking over. "And you are paying for that drink."

Ban laughed and replaced the now half-empty bottle. "Come on, since we have the night off, let's go have some fun."

Meliodas' mouth twitched. "What kind of fun?"

"We haven't fought anything in a month. Don't want to be getting soft." He turned and took the stairs two at a time, yelling, "Let's go King! Captain says we gotta train!" He banged through the door of the bedroom they shared, startling King into almost flipping off of his hammock. "Come ooooon," Ban sang, hovering over him.

"What do you want now?" King complained, straightening himself up on the hammock. Ban grabbed his giant pillow and tossed it out the window, and King cried, "Hey! Don't touch that!"

"Hey Gowther! Let's go!" Ban shouted, pounding his fist on the ceiling of the bedroom. Then he grabbed King by the collar of his jacket and jumped out the window, easily landing on the grass outside.

King pulled himself out of Ban's grasp. "What is wrong with you?" he groaned. Chastiefol floated over and he hopped on.

"Not me, Captain's orders. Ain't that right?"

Meliodas was walking out of the front door, followed by Gowther. "Sure, I guess it wouldn't hurt to have a bit of practice."

"Are we playing a game?" Gowther asked.

"We can," Meliodas replied. He paused to think for a moment. "One point for each blow you land. First one to… five wins."

"Let's do teams," Ban suggested. "Me and the Captain, and then the freaks."

Before anyone could answer, Hawk came trotting outside. "I heard you say it's time for training? The Knight of Scraps Removal is ready for action!"

"Sorry, Master," Ban teased, bending down to Hawk's level. "We're playing teams, and you don't have a partner."

Hawk shouted angrily, but then a voice said from above, "I'll be his partner." They all looked up to see Merlin standing on the lookout balcony, perched against the railing. "After all, we boars must stick together." She snapped her fingers and appeared on the ground in an instant.

"We'll draw lots, that's the only way it's fair," Meliodas decided. He scooped up a few twigs from the ground, and everyone pulled one out. They compared the different sized sticks together to form their matches. "First up will be me and Gowther, looks like," he said. The others sat on the side, except for King, who watched from his pillow.

Meliodas did an extravagant stretching exercise, making the others laugh. Gowther watched curiously. "Is this a delayed attack?"

"Nope," Meliodas grinned, and then sprinted forward. He moved so quickly that an ordinary person would not have been able to see him, but the other Sins tracked his movements as he threw a series of lightning-fast punches. However, Gowther managed to dodge each of them, and hopped away. The Goat Sin turned and kicked at Meliodas. The captain grabbed his leg and tried to flip him over, but Gowther pushed against him and sprinted over his head.

The others cheered. "I can do that," Hawk announced.

The two continued their back-and-forth, each dodging the other expertly. Meliodas jumped from foot to foot, grinning. "Ready to give up?" he laughed.

"Give up?" Gowther asked. "Do you mean it as surrender, or do you mean it as to inform you of my next strategy?"

"Uh, either." He spun and threw a punch, which Gowther blocked. Meliodas pushed his weight forward and managed to knock him off balance. He took advantage of the momentary distraction and elbowed him in the chest. Gowther fell backwards and Meliodas stepped over him. He leaned down and tapped him on the forehead.

"My point!" he said, and the others clapped. "Who's next?"

"Sir Hawk and Sir King," Merlin answered.

"What?!" King cried as Ban roared, "Finally, an opponent that's your equal, King! Go get him!"

Hawk excitedly trotted out on the grass as Meliodas and Gowther joined them on the side. "King doesn't seem happy about this arrangement," Gowther observed.

"Can you blame me?" King yelled. "I'm not fighting a pig!"

"I'm a Knight just like you!" Hawk squealed. "Now, are you scared of me?"

King gritted his teeth in frustration and floated over. "Go easy on him, please," Meliodas called to King, but Hawk answered, "Don't worry, Meliodas, I will!"

"This is going to end badly," Meliodas muttered as he crouched down next to Merlin.

"Oh, I don't know," Merlin said with a smile. "I think Sir Hawk may surprise us yet."

Meliodas didn't have a chance to ask her what she meant because the fight began. Hawk growled (as much as a pig can growl, anyway), and took off towards the fairy. King floated up and over, yawning. "Just give up, Hawk. You can't catch me and I don't want to hurt you."

"Hey, King," Ban called, "no weapons."

"What?" King said, turning his head. At that moment, his pillow shot out from under him and sailed towards Ban, who caught it with ease. "Hey! Give it back."

"No weapons," Ban said again, sitting on the pillow.

"Fine," King said through gritted teeth, floating back to the ground. He turned back to Hawk and pushed up his sleeves. "Come on, piggy. Let's get this over with."

Hawk took off in a long arc, finally barreling towards King. The Sin crouched down, ready to catch him and pin him. However, there was a sudden shift in the air, and before King could react, Hawk was on him in an instant. The boar bowled the Sin over and sat on his chest, cheering, "My point!"

Ban laughed and hooted, running over to the victor. Meliodas clapped, grinning, and muttered, "Merlin, that wasn't very nice."

Merlin smiled innocently. "I don't know what you are talking about."

Ban scooped up the pig and swung him around. "That was great, Master! I knew you could do it."

King sat up, wheezing. "He felt like a million pounds. Who did that?"

"Now, King, don't be a sore loser." King glared at Meliodas and stomped back to where the rest sat, pulling Chastiefol back to his chest and floating a few feet away from everyone else.

"Guess it's you and me, Merlin," Ban said with a smile. He stretched his neck. "I've been waiting for this for a looooong time."

"Have you?" Merlin asked. She walked towards him with arms folded.

Ban nodded. "We've never had it out, you and me. You tricked me when we were at Edinburgh, don't you remember?"

"I'm surprised you do, as drunk as you were then."

Ban laughed. "Don't hold back. I want to see for myself what you can do."

Merlin opened her mouth to say something, but then snapped her head to the side. She peered into the trees around them and said, "Someone's coming."

In an instant they were all up, tuned into the same energy. "Split up," Meliodas said, and they were all off in five different directions.

Ban strode quickly through the trees, chuckling as he heard Hawk shouting behind them, "Hey! Where'd everybody go?" The energy felt very, very familiar, and he cut to the left as he tried to hone in to who it could be. He suddenly stopped and reached out his right hand. Moments later, he caught a slim arm and pulled the newcomer up against him. "Gotcha, you little—" Peering down, he hooted in surprise. "Janko! Is that you?"

"B-Ban!" she yelped in surprise. "How did you—where—where did you come from?" She pulled back, trying to gain her footing, but Ban did not let go of her arm.

"What are you doing here?" he asked. "Spying on us or something?"

"I heard something going on over here, but I had no idea—hey!" she yelped as Ban swung her over his shoulder. She shouted and squirmed in his grip, but he easily carried her back to the Boar Hat, calling out to the others that he had caught someone.

"Let me down!" she screamed. The others returned just as he did, and he dropped the thrashing girl on the ground. "There you go, Jerry," he sang.

"It's Jericho," she said, irritated. She scrambled to her feet and looked around at the group, suddenly nervous. "I didn't know it was you all. I heard a commotion and wanted to check it out."

"What are you doing all the way out here?" Meliodas asked.

"On a scouting mission." Jericho put her hands on her hips and raised her chin up, trying to not look as intimidated as she felt. "Gilthunder sent me to gather information on the Marakian army, and find out what kind of reinforcements they may have."

Meliodas frowned. "Why would Gilthunder care about the Marakians?"

Jericho looked around at them in confusion. "Didn't you know? They marched on the capital city two days ago."

There was a shocked silence as the Sins looked at one another. Ban couldn't help but smirk a little. Even Merlin was surprised. Meliodas turned and walked a few paces away from the group as King broke the silence. "Diane! Do you know if she's all right?"

"I don't, not for sure," Jericho answered. "When I left—"

"Captain!" King cried, cutting her off. "We need to go to Liones!" He spun towards Merlin. "You need to get us there, now!"

Merlin raised a hand. "Hang on, King. We can't go barreling in there without knowing—"

"I don't care," he shouted. "If you won't go with me, then I'm going myself!"

"It's all right," Meliodas called. He had his back facing them, his head bowed as if he was looking at something. After a moment, he put his hand in his pocked and turned around. "Diane and Elizabeth are safe."

"You can't know that!" shouted King.

"Yes, I do," he answered firmly.

Gowther tilted his head. "How exactly?"

Meliodas ignored him. "Jericho, how many Marakians were there?"

"Umm, I'd say less than a thousand," she answered, swallowing nervously. "Between eight and nine hundred. But I didn't find any evidence of more soldiers on their way. I think that's all that the prince had to bring."

"Why would they attack with such a small force?" Merlin asked.

"That's a good question," Meliodas said. "They must have found out about the losses the Holy Knights sustained and saw it as an opportunity."

"Who cares why," King complained. "We should go back. We need to be sure." He moved to stand directly in front of the captain. "Do you forget, the princess is there too?"

"I already told you, they're fine," he answered. "But we should head back that way, in case we're needed. It wouldn't hurt to check in on the king, and we can keep an eye out for Escanor on the way." He rubbed his hands together. "All right then! Let's get Mama Hawk moving!"

The Sins started back towards the Boar Hat, and Meliodas looked over his shoulder. "Are you coming, Jericho?"

"Me?" she said in surprise. "You want me to come with you?"

"Sure!" he said as he jumped up the steps. "I've been needing a new waitress."

.o0o.

"I am not wearing this." It was the next evening, and Jericho stood in the main room, holding up a hanger with a tiny blouse and short skirt hanging from it.

"You have to," Meliodas said. "It's the tavern uniform. If you want to be a waitress—"

"I don't want to be a waitress," Jericho seethed.

"All the other jobs are taken," Ban teased. "Just because you're a Holy Knight, it doesn't mean you get to skip out on work, Jelly-mold."

Jericho huffed in frustration as Meliodas came around the bar, pushing her over towards the steps and telling her to go and get ready. Gowther leaned over and said to Ban, "That is actually inaccurate. Jericho is no longer a Holy Knight."

"Is that so?" Ban raised his eyebrows. "How do you know that?"

"Her power level has decreased dramatically since the last time we encountered her," Gowther explained. "She now only has the level of an apprentice."

"Huh. Captain, did you know that?"

Meliodas shrugged as he walked back around the bar. "I figured as much. All that power she had only appeared after she took the demon blood." He reached into his pocket and pulled something out. After staring at his palm for a moment, he slipped it back inside.

"What ya got here, Captain?" Ban sang, reaching his index finger out. Before he could use Snatch, Meliodas had grabbed his wrist and pinned it on the bar. "None of your business," he said evenly.

Ban yanked his hand away with a laugh. He stood and headed back to the storage room, and almost bumped into Gowther, who had followed him inside. "What do you want?"

"I have a question about your interaction with the captain," Gowther said. Ban groaned as he lifted a crate of vegetables. "If the captain has something he needs in his pocket, why would you try to take it?"

"Because it would be funny," Ban said, moving another crate to the side. "Would you get out of my way?"

"Do others find it funny to steal things from their friends? Or is it only because you are the Sin of Greed?"

"Seriously, get out of the way." He shouldered Gowther to the side, carrying supplies back out to the bar. Jericho was just coming down the steps, blushing furiously in the tavern uniform. "This is humiliating," she muttered, shooting Ban a dark look when he laughed.

.o0o.

Hours later, the last of the customers stumbled out, and Meliodas locked the door. Jericho sat in an exhausted heap at the bar. "You guys do this every night?" she moaned.

"Ah, you'll get used to it," Meliodas said. He looked up as Merlin entered the room. "There you are. Anything new?"

Merlin leaned up against the wall, watching the others clean up. "I've been studying Aldan all evening. Liones seems fine. The army has pulled back, except for a small group outside the city walls."

"You can see all that?" Jericho said, amazed.

"Did you see Diane or Elizabeth?" King asked.

"Not specifically," she answered. "But it seems peaceful enough."

"So what did you see?" Meliodas asked.

"I'm not sure. There is something in the castle, an energy source that I can't pinpoint. It's not like anything I've ever felt before. When I reach out towards it, it… changes."

"What do you mean, it changes?" Jericho asked.

"Hmm," Meliodas murmured, stacking dirty glasses.

King clenched his fists. "There's a threat in the city, and all you can say is 'Hmm'?".

Meliodas didn't answer, but continued to Merlin, "Do you think it has anything to do with what's going on with the king?"

"What's wrong with the king?" Jericho asked, watching King as he angrily flew out of the room.

"It's possible," Merlin said.

Meliodas nodded. "I guess it's a good thing we're heading back there then. Off to bed everyone!" He removed his apron and headed up the stairs, and Merlin and Gowther followed behind.

Ban sat in a stool next to Jericho, picking up a half-full glass of ale and drinking it down. "They didn't answer any questions at all!" she fumed in frustration.

Ban laughed. "Yeah, get used to that." He finished off the glass and headed up to his own room. King was curled up in his hammock, facing the window. Ban kicked off his boots and fell back in his bed, stretching out. "You need to grow a spine," he yawned. "We'd know if there was something up with Diane. Don't be such a coward."

King huffed. "I'm not a coward."

Ban yawned again and decided against arguing. He hoped they reached the capital quickly. He was more than tired of King and Meliodas moping around without their women and would be glad when they were all back together. Besides, if anyone had the right to be miserable over a girl, it was him. He had no patience for the others, who would actually get to see theirs again.

Damn, he thought as he fell asleep. I still haven't even had the chance to fight Merlin.