Disclaimer: I do not own either Gunslinger Girl or Maria-sama ga Miteru and I have no intention of profiting from this story.
Bloodstained Rose – A Gunslinger Girl/Maria-sama ga Miteru Crossover
Chapter 2 – Objective Sighted
Triela slowly let her head settle on the desk of her new seat in the new classroom of her new school. Certainly far more newness than she would have voluntarily chosen to deal with. It had been a long day filled with tense moments and barely avoided mistakes. Neither Triela nor Hilshire were familiar with how Japanese schools were run. Or Catholic schools for that matter. Or all-girls schools. It had been like running through a minefield. There were no such things as missteps, simply because every step was equally dangerous. No amount of briefing could have prepared her for the stresses of this mission.
Somehow, they had made it through the day without any major screw-ups. Certainly, she had received some strange looks and had undoubtedly made a few faux-pas, but most of them probably would be ignored simply due to her status as a transfer student. Well, her status as a foreign transfer student might excuse everything short of public nudity. Maybe even beyond that. Or at least she had gotten that sort of impression from some of the students around her. Hilshire wasn't so sure, so she wasn't willing to take any chances.
Still, it had been a relatively successful initial insertion. She had yet to make contact with her objective, but there was still time left in the day. Japanese schools had time after class for student club activities. She didn't know whether or not Ogasawara was in a club, but she did know that she was some sort of school officer. Or something. Whatever it meant to be 'Rosa Chinesis'. She didn't know if they met at the same times as the rest of the clubs, where they met, or if they really met at all, but it certainly wouldn't hurt to ask around.
And judging by the local rumour mill, it might not be hard to get the information that she needed. She'd already heard three or four versions of the events that had transpired this morning with the other girl…this Yumi Fukuzawa who was the 'petite soeur' of her objective. She didn't quite understand what made the girl so important and what connected her to Ogasawara, or why the rumours had taken off with such fervor. From what she could tell, she was apparently either some long lost relative, a troublesome former underclassman, or…well… a former lover. She had had to restrain a blush when she had heard that last one, but those were what she had heard. She was certain even wilder ones were spreading where she couldn't hear. She wasn't sure she wanted to know those ones.
"What exactly is your relation to Yumi-sama?" an imperious voice demanded from her side, interrupting her thoughts.
Raising her head slightly, Triela peered at the girl, absent-mindedly fingering the spot where she would have normally kept a hidden knife. The girl was short and wore her brown hair in a rather bizarre pair of twisty pig tails. The amount of hair styling the girl had to go through each morning to achieve that look had to approach a ridiculous level. However, given that many of the students attending the school were at least well off, if not considerably wealthy, it wasn't really that surprising that someone attending had the time and money to waste like that.
She considered ignoring the girl or simply rudely dismissing her, but that seemed to be a bad idea. As soon as the girl had asked the question, a hush had fallen over the classroom, and every student's eyes had come to rest on the both of them. Even the teacher was paying attention, despite her attempts to disguise it. Dodging the question would undoubtedly be a major social blunder, and create even more rumours. Answering the girl's question would hopefully give her a chance to step out of the limelight. Being this well-known would undoubtedly be harmful to her mission.
She stood up, looked the girl in the eye, and addressed the entire class in a strong and clear voice, "I have no relation to Fukuzawa Yumi. What happened this morning was a chance encounter. I would appreciate it if you all wouldn't circulate rumours about me. Thank you."
As soon as she finished her announcement, the girls began muttering and whispering amongst themselves. She hoped they would spread the word. The girl in front of her looked satisfied with her answer. Even more so, she seemed…relieved. Triela was curious, did this girl have a connection to this Yumi girl, and thus to her objective? The girl could be her ticket to finding her location.
"Since you asked a question, can I ask one as well?" she asked, as politely as she could bring herself to be to a person who had already been rather rude.
The girl appeared slightly startled, and the relieved look vanished from her face, replaced by one of mild suspicion. "Yes. Of course, it would only be polite."
"I'm looking for the student council; could you tell me where they meet?" Triela asked.
If anything, the girl began to get more suspicious, "Why do you need to visit the student council? I thought you had no relation to Yumi-sama?"
Triela decided for the moment to play the idiot. It would hopefully lessen the girl's suspicion, "Oh, Yumi-sama is on the student council? Well, that isn't any of my business. I have other issues to talk about with them."
The girl didn't take the hint. "Then what are those issues??"
Triela sighed, and brushed her hair from in front of her face, "It is tradition from where I come from for a new student to introduce themselves to the ruling student body and apologize for any problems caused by their sudden transfer. It would be a terrible insult if I didn't introduce myself." She had come up with this excuse on her own and Hilshire had approved it. It wasn't likely that any of these students had been to Italy, anyway. And even less likely that they had anything to do with the school system, anyway. So it was a relatively safe lie.
"That isn't the tradition here, so I don't really see why you need to do it. They will not be insulted." The girl sternly replied, finally beginning to really draw Triela's irritation.
"Tradition should be upheld, no matter what the cause is, don't you think? Plus, it would make me more comfortable. I've changed schools pretty often, and I only feel like a student for my school if I've properly introduced myself," Was Triela's own reply. She was quite willing to get all tearful about it, if the girl continued to block her. It was quite obvious, to Triela, at least, that the girl did know where the meeting place was. She was just unwilling to tell. Triela missed the missions where she could simply
pound the informant's face into the ground until they gave you the answers you needed. Those missions were simpler. And less frustrating. Much less frustrating.
Strangely enough, this answer seemed to give the girl pause when the others had failed. She seemed to consider something for a moment, and then nodded slowly. Then she once again spoke in her imperious, arrogant voice, "Very well, then. I will escort you myself to the Rose Mansion,' she smiled, seemingly pleased with something, "After all, I have my own connections with the Yamayurikai. Please, come this way."
"For something called the 'Rose Mansion,' it's not terribly impressive," Triela couldn't stop herself from commenting. The two-story building they were standing in front of was…small to say the least. Most definitely not a mansion. It looked quite old and a bit rickety, though had obviously been lovingly maintained. But that was really all that it had going for it.
The girl frown at her, "How dare you insult the home of Rosa Gigantea, Rosa Foetida, and Rosa Chinesis!" the girl lost a little of her steam, "…but I do have to admit, it really is not terribly imposing."
"And while we're on the subject, why do you call you student officers Rosa…names? And Yamayurikai? I will be the first one to admit that my command of your language isn't great, but that certainly doesn't mean student council. Isn't it too confusing?"
"It is tradition," she raised an eyebrow, "do you have anything against that?" Triela wisely kept her mouth shut, "The three officers that make up the Yamayurikai, represent the most capable, the most beautiful, and the most admired of all girls at Lillian. Why shouldn't we compare the most beautiful of flowers to those who emulate them the most? And the Yamayurikai, our Mountain Lily Council, references the white lily of the Virgin Mary, the patron of our school and the person all girls aspire to be like."
Triela didn't have a counter to that argument so she thanked the girl, offered her a very unsteady curtsy, and set-off for the building.
"Matsudaira Toko," the girl said from behind her.
Triela turned and gave the girl a questioning look. The girl looked a bit uncertain, but for some reason there was determination in her eyes.
"Triela is your name, correct? I am Matsudaira Toko. Please, remember my name." With that final remark, the girl turned without another look and walked off, leaving a somewhat puzzled Triela. The girl was borderline impolite one minute, and then introduced herself the next. The people at Lillian were strange and unpredictable. This would make the mission that much more difficult. What kind of place had the SWA sent her into?
Once again, she set off for the building, completely missing the fact that she had been observed the entire time by a number of students. Her conversations with Toko had been memorized and were already being repeated to other students with subtle twists. The fact that Triela had visited the Rose Mansion would only feed the rumours that she had hoped to squash. By the next day, it would be widely
known that Toko Matsudaira had declared a new rivalry with the transfer student and that the race to become Rosa Chinesis en Bouton's petite soeur had begun to heat up.
Triela, however, knew none of this. The only thing she knew was that no one had responded when she had knocked on the door of the so-called mansion. However, she found that the door was unlocked. She debated for a moment on whether or not it would be okay to simply enter, but eventual came to the conclusion that since it was school property it would be alright for a student to enter. If it wasn't, well, her mission was far more important than any school rules.
The inside of the building was even more unimpressive than the outside. The furnishing were just as old as the building itself and had obviously seen a great deal of wear, despite obvious attempts to keep them in good repair. A bit of recon revealed a set of storage rooms and a bathroom on the first floor, which meant that the meeting rooms for the student council had to be on the second floor. After all, she doubted that the 'most beautiful, most capable' girls in Lillian would meet in a storage room. It would probably be considered too inelegant or something similarly bizarre.
She carefully went up the stairs to the second floor, almost unconsciously attempting to create as little noise as possible. There was only one room at the top of the stairs, which meant that if her objective was anywhere, it would be in here. If she wasn't, it would still be a good opportunity to explore an area where she spent her time. The girl's classroom was also on her list, as was any other places on campus she frequented. How she was going to find those places out was something that she was still working on.
She approached the door carefully, attempting to see if she could hear any persons present in the room. However, either there was no one in there, or they were engaged in some form of quiet work. Shrugging, Triela knocked on the door and waited to see if there was an answer. There hadn't been any so far, so she really wasn't expecting one.
"Come in," said a cool, collected voice said from the other side of the door.
Triela jumped a little, but quickly composed herself and opened the door. The room on the other side wasn't impressive, like the rest of the mansion, but it looked…comfortable. It certainly had a nice view of the surrounding campus from its large windows. There was even a small kitchenette on one side of the room, and a large table in the middle of the room. And sitting at the table was her target, Sachiko Ogasawara.
She restrained herself from stopping and simply examining the girl. It would be both impolite and suspicious, but she did manage a relatively quick look. The picture she had been given had not really done the girl justice, though Triela really wasn't that capable of judging things like that. She was certainly beautiful. In a cold, ice princess sort of way.
When Ogarawara looked up to see who had entered, a brief look of surprise crossed her face, before changing to a pleasant welcoming expression. "Oh, a visitor? We do not get many visitors to our mansion. What brings you here? May I help you in any way?"
Triela smiled at the girl, and gave her best curtsy. That is, she managed to perform one without falling over. "My name is Trie…Hartmann Triela, and I am a new student here. I thought it would be polite to introduce myself to the school's student council."
"Oh, really?" Was the reply. Triela felt rather than saw Ogasawara's gaze fall upon her. The gaze had turned from friendly to evaluative in less than a second. It was a look that Triela was somewhat familiar with. It was the wary gaze of someone who isn't sure whether the person is friend or foe. It wasn't a look that Triela had expected to come across in this carefree school, and certainly not from her target. Though that was perhaps a bit of mistake. Ogasawara came from a family of cutthroat businessmen. Knowing how to look at and evaluate someone would be a valuable skill.
She smoothed her skirts in a motion she hoped that seemed calm and practiced, rather than a move to buy herself some time to compose herself, "Yes, it's tradition from where I come from to introduce oneself to the student council as an-"
The sound of several people arguing and stomping up the stairs interrupted her. Both she and Ogasawara turned in surprise towards the door. It was the most noise Triela had heard all day. It sounded like a small invading army was charging and screaming up the stairwell. It was definitely strange considering that all day she had barely heard anyone speak above whisper-level and walk faster than a snail.
A moment later, a group of girls burst through the door, arguing and yelling, and running around. At least they did until they noticed Ogasawara sitting at the table looking irritated. It was almost amusing to watch them fall silent one by one as each noticed the girl at a different time. Surprisingly, the last one to fall silent was Toko, the girl who had guided her to the building.
It was a strange assemblage of girls. She recognized three of them. One was Toko. There was also another girl that she recognized from her class, one of the tallest Japanese women that Triela had seen. The third was someone she definitely remembered, Yumi Fukuzawa. There were three others. One was a rather pale girl with braided pigtails who seemed to be trying to fend off the others. One was a short-haired girl with a camera strapped to her neck and something in her hand that Fukuzawa had been trying to get at. The last was an older looking ponytailed girl rapidly writing in a small notepad. All of them looked were doing their best not to look at Ogasawara.
"And what, pray tell, is the cause of this…this ruckus? Tsutako-san! Is it you? What compromising position have you managed to capture Yumi in this time?" Ogasawara's voice cracked like a whip.
Fukuzawa made a noise that sounded something like a mouse getting stepped on. The girl with the camera did her best not to look too guilty, but only very slowly creeped forward, betraying her obvious nervousness. Her voice, however, was confident. "Well, you know I've been collecting photos of the Red Rose family for my exhibit at the school fair coming up, right?"
Ogasawara raised an eyebrow, "I believe I have some recollection of that. You have asked permission of me to show several pictures with my image on them. What of it?" Ogasawara had asked the question, but Triela could see her eyes trace over all those who had burst through the door and guessed that Ogasawara had some clue of what the picture might contain.
"Well, I just happened to be in the right place this morning to add another picture to my display. Yumi-chan, however, seems to be a bit embarrassed by it." With a flourish, the girl Ogasawara had called Tsutako presented what Triela assumed to be a photo to Ogasawara, "I call it 'Another Contender Steps into the Ring.' Looks familiar, doesn't it, Sachiko-sama?" she said the last statement fondly, though Triela certainly didn't know why.
Ogasawara looked a little doubtful, and then glanced at the picture. Triela was surprised to see the girl start and almost fall out of her chair. She was even more surprised when the girl turned to stare at her. Her gaze remained there for a long moment, and then she turned to look at Fukuzawa, who seemed to be trying to hide behind several of the other girls. Or maybe even just sink into the floor in embarrassment. Her face was certainly red enough.
Then to the surprise of all, including Triela, Ogasawara began to laugh. She laughed for a long time, and tears began to come out of her eyes, ruining her make-up and leaving long steaks down her face. She didn't seem to mind, and just wiped them away. The rest of the room watched, almost in awe. Triela definitely got the feeling that this sort of thing was rare.
When the girl finally regained control of herself, she smiled at Tsutako, "Indeed, it does bring back good memories. Go ahead and show it. That is if Miss…Hartmann, was it? If she is fine with it. Maybe it will teach my petite soeur a lesson."
Surprisingly enough, both Toko and the tall girl from her class glared at each other, and then at Triela herself. "…Umm…What? Why do you need my permission to show a photo?"
Tsutako gave Triela a strange look, "Why would we need your permission? Because it has you in it, of course!"
Ogasawara reached out to hand her the photo, and Triela snatched it with more force than was necessarily. She was not here to get her…picture...taken…Though once she looked at it, she had to admit it was an excellent picture. There she was with Yumi Fukuzawa leaning over her, retying her ribbon in front of the statue of the Virgin Mary with their hair whipping artfully in the light breeze. Her own face was obvious the centerpiece of the picture; it somehow combined reluctance and surprise in a way that made both of them seem closer than they really were. She still didn't know why Sachiko had found it so funny, though. Or why it had the strange name…what was it? "Another Contender Steps into the Ring?" What did that have to do with the picture at all?
"I have no problem with the picture being shown. It isn't that big of a deal." She finally said.
The rest of the girls turned to stare at her almost as one, and Triela briefly had the feeling that she had just made a very serious mistake. However, before she could ask any questions, Tsutako plucked the picture from her fingers and Ogasawara spoke up once again, "You were interrupted before, yes? You said you came to introduce yourself to the Yamayurikai?"
Quickly reordering her thoughts, Triela quickly answered, remembering the statement she had created beforehand, "Ah, yes. It is a tradition from where I come from for a transfer student to introduce herself to the student council and to offer her services for a time as an apology for any troubles caused by her sudden transfer. That is why I am here."
Ogasawara quirked an eyebrow at her, for some reason seeming to doubt Triela's statement. Both Toko and the other girl from her class were glaring at her, and even the other girls were looking at her doubtfully. Triela was confused. She was aware that her statement did sound a little hokey, but they were all looking at her as if she were plotting something. What, she had no clue. This school was becoming stranger and stranger.
Ogasawara spared a glance at Fukuzawa who seemed to cower a little, then shrugged and smiled. "Well, I suppose it will be…interesting. And, of course, we always welcome any help. We accept your offer, Miss Hartmann."
Triela didn't let the smile she felt show on her face. Objective complete. Secure a position near Ogasawara. Stage 2 begin. Learn as much about the target as possible. Yes, it would be interesting…
"How'd it go?" asked Hilshire from a chair in the small living room of the apartment they were renting.
Triela sighed, and threw herself on the couch. "What do you expect? It was rough. I'm not trained for this kind of thing. I have a feeling I still don't have the language down just yet, either."
Hilshire shrugged, "If it helps, neither do I. It's been years since I've spoken Japanese. This job would be much more suited to someone from Intelligence or Section 1, but neither of them have young enough agents for this project. But here we are. We have to make the best of it."
"I know that!" she snapped back, covering her eyes in hopes of reducing her headache. Being on guard all day was hard, even on her.
They sat in silence for a moment, before Hilshire spoke up again, "So what's your initial impression of the target?"
Triela considered the remark for a moment, trying to sort through all of the details that she had taken in, "Well…she's been well…trained, I suppose. She's knows how to look at a person, you know? Sense motive, read character and all that. It'll be a challenge. All of them are halfway suspicious of me for some reason already, but hopefully, after a few days, whatever fears they have will be put to rest."
Hilshire nodded, "Make sure you are careful. We only get one chance at this. What do you think of her personally?"
That was a harder question, and Triela spent several long minutes considering it, "…Very polite girl, and very much in control of herself. Maybe to an unhealthy degree. Seems to have a good number of friends, but she seemed a bit distant even then. Yumi, her 'petite soeur', whatever context little sister means here, is probably the one closest to her. She doesn't really seem to be the innocent-killing, terrorist-supporting type, if that's what you're asking. She reminds me a bit of me, I suppose."
Hilshire nodded and smiled. "Good. That means you'll be able to get close to her. Now, what details can you give me for my insertion tomorrow?"
Triela took a deep breath. It was going to be a long night.
And here's the second chapter! A good bit longer than I planned (Originally it was supposed to be 3000 words max). Still everything that needed to be done in this chapter was accomplished so I feel pretty good. First chapter of something in a while that I really felt that. I just wish I could have fit some more
Hilshire dialogue in amongst things that were happening, but I really couldn't figure out a good way to seamlessly blend his comments in without giving up some of the pace I wanted to set. So he got a scene in the end.
And speaking of dialogue, Triela gave me fits this chapter. I think I finally got it where I wanted it. Normally she's so direct and to the point in her word choices, but I was trying to figure out how to fit that in with how people at Lillian talk. Bleh, hopefully in another chapter or two, I'll have a settled style for her. Thankfully the Lillian girls are in general much easier.
Next chapter, Hilshire's insertion, and Triela finds out exactly what kind of hole she has dug herself into. Though it won't be for a while. Beginnings is my next scheduled project, either that or some F/SN shorts.
See ya later!
(Edit: Forgot the line breaks)