knock knock knock
" Princess Konoka? Are you there? I'm looking for Setsuna. She didn't show up this morning. "
" Ah Emiko-san! Please come in, I need your help! " the princess shouted at the door.
The bodyguard entered in a hurry, thinking that something dangerous happened. But she stopped at the view of a raven girl who seemed to have fainted from a nosebleed.
She sighed.
' I knew this would happened. ' and she walked slowly to the couple's side.
" I'm home! Ahh, stupid inchou, always bothering me with that stupid Negi- Ah! What's wrong with Setsuna-san? " Asuna approached the bed to take a better look at her fainted best-friend.
" I don't know, we were talking and then she suddenly had a nosebleed before passing out. " Konoka tried her best to wake her but she couldn't.
" What were you talking about? " the blue-eyes girl asked, getting a hint of the problem.
The brown-hair girl blushed madly at the question. It wasn't something she wanted to talk about with them. She dropped her eyes on her lover, avoiding to answer.
Being her bestfriend who knew everything about her, Asuna recognized the 'blushing that makes me shy to answer' behaviour. She smiled with malice.
" I think I know what they were discussing...and that may be the reason of Setsuna-san current state. " Konoka shot her roomate an angry glare, telling her to shut up right away.
" Oh...then... " Emiko understood what the red-hair girl meant, and winked at her.
" Can you tell me? Because I don't understand how a strong warrior could faint from a simple discussion. " she eyed her friend.
Konoka was waving her arms to her roomate to tell her to stop talking any further, but the latter just closed her eyes to ignore the signals.
" Well...first you have to know that they spent the night together, because Konoka wasn't home when I awoke this morning. "
" Umu. " Emiko nodded seriously.
" Asuna, sheesh please! " Konoka whispered to her with all her blushing face.
" And if you have seen the sign in the corridor- "
" Eh? What sign? " Konoka interjected.
" Ah...that sign? Yes I did, but I didn't quiet catch something. Who is the 'Knight' and the 'Princess' ? " Emiko asked with a fake curiousity.
" What are you two talking about! What that sign was saying! ". Konoka yelled with a face reddened with exasperation.
The two girls looked at each other. Then turned at the girl sitting on the couch.
" It is improper for me to say. Please take a look by yourself. " they both said and bowed at her.
" Heh...? " Konoka blinked.
" Alright, then there is just one thing to do in this kind of situation. " Emiko cleared her throat.
And slapped her friend dying from a nosebleed on the bed hard. Her two friends jumped in surprise with dazed eyes.
" Emergency?! Is Kono-chan safe?! " the samurai girl stood on guard in 0,01 second.
Emiko smirked while the two others girls were still stunned by her crazy move.
' Hmm...There's no danger...Ah! Blood? ' Setsuna thought as she saw blood stains on the pillow.
She suddenly felt the pain from the slap on her face, and rubbed it with her left hand.
She frowned as her mind was now clear.
" Who slapped me? " her lover and her bestfriend giggled as they backed away a little.
The swordwoman then saw her job's partner pointed her finger to Asuna.
" Ah! No! It wasn't me! " the red-hair girl waved her hands to defend herself.
" Secchan, how do you feel? Is your head still hurting? " the bodyguard turned to the voice.
She blushed hard before answering.
" I-I'm fine...now... " she quickly looked away from her princess.
" You can't even handle a hangover? You need more training in drinking son. " Emiko crossed her arms.
" Whose fault do you think it is! " Setsuna yelled at her with her mouth still covered with blood.
" S-son? " Asuna said to herself as she watched them.
" Hahahaa look at your face! Iiyaah...Setsuna is a real hentai- " she got hit on the head before she could finish her sentence.
Konoka took her lover's face to wash it.
" Stay still Secchan, it's a bit dried. " the kendo girl closed her eyes with a slight blush.
Emiko complained with fake tears in Asuna's lap who sweatdropped at the behaviour. " Awww...How did she end up this way? She hit me so hard I almost bleed. How did you raise that girl Asuna-san? She hit her own Onee-sama... "
Setsuna twiched.
Emiko continued and whispered to her friend who begged her to stop acting this way. " Ne, she's such a pervert actually. Tell me, do you hear some weird sounds at night when she sleeps over here? "
The samurai was about to draw her sword.
" Secchan! Don't move your head! " her princess ordered her.
So she closed her eyes again, and bore all the ridiculous questions she heard.
Konoka kissed her girlfriend's cheek after she was done washing.
" Thank you Kono-chan. "
" Alright, are you done? I need to borrow Setsuna for the day. Dean's orders. " Emiko regained her usual feature.
" Got it, I'm coming. " Setsuna stood up to follow her.
" Um, is it important? When will you be back? " Konoka asked her second bodyguard.
" Hm? At dinner time I think. " Emiko replied as she waved her friends good-bye while walking at the exit.
Setsuna understood her lover's question. Before passing out, she didn't answer to the main question of the day. So she went back to her side to kiss on the cheek before whispering in her ear.
" I remember last night...it was, more than perfect. " she withdrew her blushing face and smiled before walking out the room.
Asuna looked at her roomate and wondered what her bestfriend said that made her now so happy to smile so widely.
The two raven girls walked in silence in the corridor of the dorms.
" Where are we going? " the smaller girl asked.
" First, how is your headache? You drank very much last night, I'm kinda surprise to not see you throwing up everywhere. " the taller one giggled.
" What about you? You drank more than me but you seem you didn't. Are you some kind of alcohol addict? " the half demon replied as she closed her eyes.
Emiko laughed at the accusation. She turned back to her.
" A demon never gets hangover. Only weak humans do, with their weak body. " the blue-eyes girl answered back with a smirk.
" That explains why you can still stand on your feet now. "
Setsuna opened her eyes and stopped.
" What are you so pride of? " the swordwoman asked with a low voice.
Emiko also stopped to watch behind her. She smiled to her dear friend.
" Of you of course. You showed me you have guts. That's all I was talking about. So don't be so depressed. " she moved her hand to pat her favourite head but she noticed her little girl was looking away.
" Listen carefully Setsuna. Don't be ashamed of your origin. You're a hanyou, a fruit of a love between a demon and a human. You should be proud to be the symbol of peace. You're strong and full of warmth. " she patted more her sweet angel's hair.
" And what's more, you don't have demon's wings but angel's one. Don't care about what people think about it. It's pure, it's beautiful. You are lucky. " she lowered her hand to raise Setsuna's chin so she could see her blue eyes.
" There is no reason to hold yourself back from loving you. It is too sad to see you always looking down on yourself. Got it sweet angel? "
' The words '
Emiko grinned at her.
' Expressed by someone who can feel exactly what you're feeling '
Shining eyes were reflected in those beautiful ocean blue eyes.
' Are just so...heartwarming '
Setsuna smiled shyly.
' It makes me want...to try harder. '
Emiko flicked her forehead.
" Ouch... " the smaller girl whispered.
" Let's go then. " the taller raven girl said before resuming her walk.
' You give me strength to believe in me. '
Setsuna tried to regain her composure as she walked behind her partner.
" I wish I have time to discuss about your wild sex last night- "
Setsuna missed her step to bump her head against the wall.
" I really wish... "
" I do not wish! "
" Anyway, we have serious stuff to do, we'll talk about your wild sex- "
" -Enough with those words! " Setsuna yelled like a tomato about to splash.
" We're going to the lady vampire's house. We need a secure private place to discuss. " Emiko kept walking as she saw some girls staring at her.
" Alright... " Setsuna nodded as she saw a blond-hair girl staring at their direction.
' Ah, right, yesterday night she was pulled away by Princess Megumi... ' Setsuna thought as she walked near the blond-hair girl who looked into her eyes, and blushed hardly.
' I wonder how did it go, since their last talk... ' she turned her eyes to stare at her demon friend's back.
They could hear the small group whispering to each other. " Waouh...they've got so beautiful eyes! And they look so pretty! Wah! Minami-chan! Why are you blushing so much! " the blond hair girl hid her face in her hands. " I'm not! "
" Hey, how was your yesterday night? " Setsuna asked innocently with a blush she got from what she heard.
Emiko froze and felt Setsuna bumped into her from behind.
" W-what's wrong? Suddenly stopping like this... " Setsuna said as she rubbed her nose.
As she heard no respond, she walked forward to stand next to her frozen friend.
" Emiko- " she got hit by a hand which still held her face.
" Do not ask what happened. " and Emiko let go of her poor friend.
" What the hell is wrong with you! And why are you blushing? It's a first- "
" Do, not, ask. " Emiko looked at her with a strong aura around her. And a big blush.
" H-hai... "
" What took you so long to come? I'm getting tired to wait. " a small girl with blond-hair scolded at the two demons who were coming to her side.
" Sorry, a lot happened. " Emiko replied as she didn't want to go in details.
" I don't care. Don't be late next time. " the vampire said coldly.
" Understood. " Emiko bowed at her.
' Why is she so obedient towards Evangeline-san? ' Setsuna thought as they entered the home.
Both girls greeted the maid robot who served them a cup of tea.
" So, what's the matter? " the samurai girl asked. She kept quiet until they reached their destination but now she really needed to know what was the problem.
" Your demon relative has been watching Princess Megumi's bodyguard this morning. And she said he was a threat. " Evangeline replied as she sit at the table.
" What do you mean? " Setsuna looked at her friend who just held the tea cup in her hand.
" Okay...this is gonna be a long story, so please pay attention. " Emiko sighed before speaking again.
" The reason I left you when you were 5, is because the Dean asked me to do something for him. As I was a strong demon, and learnt spying since I was born, he used my power to spy on the Cloud Kingdom. It was the trade to take in both. "
Setsuna's eyes widened. She didn't expect this kind of conversation.
" I've been through a lot before I could reach the country, and when I did, I was 12. I told them I was a wanderer who needed a place to stay. My goal was to be close to the royal family. So I ended up being the princess' bodyguard, because that way I wasn't too suspicious. I could get all the informations and I wasn't so close to the king who could find my real identity. "
Emiko glanced at her friend who seemed astounded by her news.
" Was it too much to take? You want to ask me something? " Emiko's eyes were serious.
" No...not yet, please continue. " Setsuna tried to push away her feelings.
" Alright...I'll try to be short...I've spent ten years in the Cloud Kingdom, and I kept in touch with the Head-master about all their doing. The reason of the war between these two countries was the gate to the Demon world. That is to say, the World Tree. "
" W-what? I don't understand- " Setsuna was a bit lost in this big flow of informations.
" -The World Tree is a connection between Human world and Demon world. It's the main reason Mahora Academy was establish here, and if you had noticed when you do your round, the World Tree is the center of the Academy. Which is also why there are always some demons who can crossed the barrier no matter how strong it is. " Evangeline interjected to explain. She then took her cup to drink.
" Are you ready to listen further Setsuna? Though we don't have much time to discuss in details, we can still take a break if you need it. " Emiko said as she noticed her sweet angel was completely lost.
The kendo girl looked into the blue-eyes in front of her.
' She's so serious... ' Setsuna took a dreep breathe.
' I can't be confused now, I have to focus. ' she smiled weakly.
" Go on. " and nodded to her childhood friend.
" Hm. The king of the Cloud Kingdom wanted to take control of the World Tree. Before the war, both countries maintained friendly relations. But as soon as the king of the Cloud heard about the Gate, he tried to use it without Mahora's approbation…Setsuna… " Emiko stayed quiet for a moment.
The lady vampire closed her eyes and waited, as she knew what she was about to say. However Setsuna didn't, so she urged her friend to keep going.
" Emiko, what is it? Why do you stop? "
The blue-eyes girl lowered her face to look at her cup of tea. She didn't know if the woman in front of her was ready to hear what she had to say.
" Come on, speak up! "
" The day, the Cloud kingdom tried to use the gate…was the day our clan was attacked. " Emiko quickly closed her eyes. She felt a sudden burnt.
Setsuna turned blank. Evangeline opened her eyes to look at them.
' They look more than simple clan relatives. '
" Do you mean…they killed… " Setsuna lowered her face, trying to gather her reason and find a way to integrate the revelation in her mind.
" Yeah… " was all Emiko could say.
The blond-hair child decided to take the next explication, as the two of them were having difficulties to speak.
" The demons who attacked your clan, were sent by the Cloud kingdom. I was there when the war occurred here. Of course it had nothing to do with me so I just watched those stupid humans killed each others. But I heard everything. The Cloud side wanted to control the demon world, but as your clan was strong enough to resist, they decided to decimate it. "
Setsuna tried to open her mouth to say something, but couldn't.
" Setsuna, I want you to look at me. " Emiko asked her as she put her elbows on the table and rested her head on her intertwined hands.
When the smaller raven girl did, she was surprised to see the blue of her eyes disappear.
" I understand how confuse you feel right now, and how mad and angry, so much that you can't control yourself. However listen to me… " Setsuna could feel how strong she controled her own anger.
The red of her eyes wasn't bloody like last time. No…it was red as hatred.
" The day I can avenge our people will come. But until then, I want you to be at ease. You have been living here since you're a small kid, and you never heard about your past. In other words, there is no need for you to bear this duty. I'll take care of it, as the Queen of the Onime clan. " Emiko looked deeply into Setsuna's eyes.
" You should keep living like you did until now, and protect Princess Konoka. I just wanted you to know everything, it's the least I can do. But I don't want you to worry, I'll never be mad at you if you don't show more interest- "
" -Why, are you saying this? " Setsuna said as she looked back with the same determination.
" Why you say? Because you had a chance to live another life, and forget about your past- "
" Don't mess with me! Do you think I don't remember how my life was before I met you? Thanks to you, now I can. And no matter how bad our clan treated me, the fact that my mother was killed is the only reason I'd kill those bastards when I'll see them. Setsuna shouted as she stood up. Her glare didn't move an inch.
Emiko sighed and closed her eyes. When she opened it, her eyes went back to normal.
" Now I understand why the Head-master wanted to erase your memories. " Setsuna frowned with anger.
Emiko looked back at her, her head still resting on her hands. The vampire watched them. The feeling of an avenger, she understood it perfectly.
" Look at you…you lost all of your calm and composure. I just said a few words to you and you already want to take the wrong path. If he hadn't erased your memories, who would know if today you would be wandering as a complete demon, or still be here with Princess Konoka. " Emiko said quietly.
At her lover's name, Setsuna stopped frowning. An image of princess calling her name eased her anger.
' Secchan! '
She closed her eyes, and sat back.
" You, of all the people, have the right to say that you're glad our clan died. Because you've been freed since then. "
Evangeline looked at Emiko after she heard her words. She was a bit surprised to hear that. But after giving some thoughts, she understood something.
' So she's protecting her, the cursed one… ' Evangeline smirked.
Emiko felt the lady vampire stare, and didn't want to go further in the story of the past.
" Setsuna, while I spied on them, I understood the king was still obsessed to win over the gate. When he asked for a reconciliation pact, I knew he wanted to lure the Dean. I know all the people of the Cloud, but the current main bodyguard of the princess, is someone I've never seen. And this morning, I've notice he has spent all the night to study the tree. He's planning on doing something. Don't get deceive by his kind attitude. Since I'm a spyer, I'll take the job to find out what's his aim. " Emiko finished the discussion as she stood up.
Setsuna's eyes opened with surpise. She wasn't done since she had so many questions in her mind to ask. She was opening her mouth when they heard someone talking outside.
" Oh? A house in the middle of the forest? I wonder if someone's living in there… "
Emiko blushed deeply as she recognized the voice.
" Crap! Why do you always love to wander around! Ahh-please! Don't tell her I was here! I'll escape from the other room- " Emiko ran to the kitchen when she stopped mid-way.
" And what do I get from lying? " the lady vampire smirked.
Setsuna was once again lost.
' What the hell is wrong today? No, since yesterday! Gah, I knew I shouldn't have drink! ' Setsuna sighed heavily in her head.
" …Whatever you want. " Emiko replied quietly as she knew what she was going to give.
" Alright then, don't run away but hide. " Evangeline grinned at her.
knock knock knock
" Is anybody here? " the voice of the princess of Cloud kingdom hit the door
Emiko instantly disappeared.