Author's Note: Again, thank you Assassin of Syria for your second review, it warms my heart to see you're enjoying this. ( '∀' ) I've already replied to your questions by sending you a PM in case you haven't seen in it yet (because just last night I found out I have several PMS in my inbox that I didn't know existed hehe). I'm still learning how Fanfiction . Net works so please point out if something within my PM goes wrong. (*￣v￣)ノ Also this chapter is longer than the others so you might want to buckle up for a long read! ಥ◡ಥ
Lili was bored; as in plain dead bored. The local tournament they've booked was cancelled to due to an incident, so this means Lili had nothing to do for the whole week — no battles, no brawlings, nothing — and it infuriated Lili more than it should have.
Because of this she resorted to finding real violence in alleged dangerous streets because she isn't going to spend her few days touring the sights, she's gonna beat the crap out of violent people and the thought of it made butterflies in her stomach flutter excitedly.
With a new plan on the move, they proceed to another tourist destination. The trio are standing in front of a famous Belgium landmark, taking pictures and awing here and there to lessen the young bodyguard's suspicions when in reality, Lili and Sebastian are waiting for the paid doppelgänger to set in position.
Minutes later, Sebastian's earpiece boomed with a new voice; one closely resembles Lili, only a tad deeper. He turns to Lili and gives her a subtle, knowing nod.
Lili then immediately heads to the direction of a restroom where she planned to meet her doppelgänger — of course with Leo meters behind her, that's a given; she's just glad he couldn't go into the women's restroom.
Inside the bathroom was Lili's lookalike standing in front of the sink mirror waiting for her arrival. Her doppelgänger wore neon colored clothes, and her hair was in a high ponytail; Lili has taken note of her neon color preference contrast to the lady's own pastel palette beforehand.
When the two lock eyes, the doppelgänger scans her outfit then smirks. "Jeez, it's no wonder you have a personal bodyguard, you look as if you're hiding from somebody."
Lili's current attire wasn't her typical style; she wore layers and layers of coats until it seemed her curvy form wasn't visible anymore. Not only that, she wore three different types of scarves, a pair of white earmuffs and dimmed shape glasses. While it is justified by the area's current cold weather, many — including Leo himself — think her outfit was a little overkill and exaggerated.
The lady huffs as she slips off her garments and gives it to the other. "I've had to cover myself with all these today so that boy outside wouldn't know the difference between you and me."
"Chill-ax Ms de Rochefort, I literally look exactly like you; like, no one would tell difference." the neon woman smiled lazily at her, which causes Lili to narrow her eyes with distaste.
"Except I don't talk that way. Please try to be as collective, formal, polite...and reticent for your case, as you possibly can until I get back."
Lili and her doppelgänger had quickly exchange clothing to avoid suspicions for taking too long. After they've finished, the doppelgänger gave her a confident thumbs up before walking out of the restroom. Lili waits for another minute or so to pass as she fixes herself.
Once the real Lili has walked out, she scanned the public for Leo and Sebastian and found them gone. The bait worked! Giggling to herself, Lili adjusted her new neon clothes and dashed away into the crowd, more than ready to cause some chaos.
There's really something off about Lili, and Leo knew it as he continues to watch 'the lady' walk around the place. While there was no out of ordinary by appearance, he can really tell there was something wrong ever since 'Lili' walked out the restroom; her once formal and graceful strut was now more relaxed and breezy, her hands that would usually be intertwined has now hang loosely next to her sides, her straight back is slightly more slouched, and how she'd look around every so often instead of looking in a straight line makes it even more weirder for Leo.
He remembers minutes ago as he was scanning the area around them, he'd seen a glimpse of a young woman in a colourful wear who looked exactly like Lili, who've walked the same way as 'the lady' is now. And hiring lookalikes aren't exactly uncommon these days.
He knows Lili preferred if he were meters distance away from her, but he had an iffy feeling he needed to confirm. He risked walking closer and tapped her shoulder. Now this simple action had made the young bodyguard even more certain to his suspicions as the doppelgänger jolted at his touch then staring at him wide eyed instead; the Lili he'd accustomed to would already knew it was him just by the tap and would turn to him either unamused or annoyed.
"Excuse me for being straightforward but you're not really Ms. de Rochefort, are you?"
'Lili' gapes at him for a pause, nervously glancing to Sebastian for help then back to him. However Sebastian too, was surprised at his sudden confrontation.
"H-how did...I mean..."The lookalike lady shakes herself and hardens her face into a haughty upset expression as one snobbish person would, but her voice shakes and falters unsure. "How dare you talk to me like that, you peasant! I should have you know my father would ought to give you a beating if you disrespect me again!"
The doppelgänger clamps her mouth shut when she found herself completely unsure of what she just said and turns to Sebastian for assistance. Sebastian just accepted the failure and facepalmed, forcing the girl to gaze back at Leo; every second passes had made her even more doubtful. "Or would have you fired? Or replace you...?"
Leo tried his ultimate best not to burst out laughing; the doppelgänger continues to stammer and look around, still trying to convince him until she finally groans and gives up. "Okay fine, you got me: I'm not your precious rich girl. I'm just somebody who looks like her and was paid to do this. How did you know?"
"A good bodyguard would tell an imposter right away." Leo replied with much pride in his voice. Although in truth, he just knew Lili's mannerisms and habits too well despite not knowing much about her. "So, where is she? Did she say anything to where she's going?"
The doppelgänger and Sebastian glance at each other for a moment before the doppelgänger shrugs. "Don't ask me, all I know is she's got my neon clothes."
Leo gazes to Sebastian, who eyes around uneasily.
"Sebastian? I know you have a part of this. There's no one else here Lili would confide to but you."
Finally Sebastian sighs in defeat and adjusts his glasses nervously, staring down the ground. "I don't know where she is exactly, but all I know is she's...looking for fights in dangerous alleys."
Leo gasps and his eyes wides in utter shock and horror. Not a million years would he expect someone like Emilie de Rochefort would wanna look for trouble and to even start a freaking street fight?!
Then he recalls the moments when Lili would be oddly interested in the topics of war and brutal torture methods, and the times of searching the perfect street fighting gloves, or perhaps the time she'd contemplating buying spiked boots before complaining how dull and fake the spikes were.
Those moments never dawned to him as anymore than a hidden penchant until now.
"Is this what she's been hiding from me?! How could she...you know all about this and how dangerous this is...how could you still let her?"
"I...I think it'd be best if the lady herself explains it to you." Sebastian mumbles. Leo grabs his hair with an obvious growing frustration and panic, quickly losing his cool by the second; everything was starting make sense when putting the pieces and his intuitions together.
This is the exact reason why he was here and yet the lady was trying to get herself in danger all along! He didn't even had the time to get mad, all he knew is he gotta find her FAST!
"You gotta..." Leo pauses to take deep breathes then resumes. "Okay we're not that far from where we started, let's check the map. Sebastian, try calling her." Leo then whips out his phone to zoom in his map while Sebastian attempts to contact Lili through his own.
Lili's phone vibrate inside her borrowed neon bag, but she couldn't hear it; the bag was thrown to someplace as she prepares herself to her fighting stance. Just her luck, she found a couple of thugs in an alley just gullible enough to fall into her taunting remarks.
As they stalk slowly towards her, one of them sprints forward. With a sadistic smile, she meets the thug halfway and crouches down, ducking the thug's fist and sends an uppercut with a powerful backhand slap meeting the man. He flies up in the air then falls onto the concrete ground on his stomach. Taking the opportunity, Lili jumps onto the thug's back and twisted her boots down into his body until a loud bone crunch was heard.
Another thug steps into the fight; he takes a hold of Lili's arm and drags her close until his fist collides her face. She grunts from the attack but quickly recovers and slips off from his grasp then cartwheels back away. She sprints forward, twirls into the air then kicks the second thug down and lands gracefully.
Just when she thought she was done, some of their friends caught her by surprise and dragged her back around her waist. This time, they've outnumbered her; four of them held her limbs while the others surrounds them serving as barriers.
Lili tries to break free from their painful restraints but to no avail, the only thing she could do is give them a deadly glare and a bunch of swears in French.
Cackling, all of them looked at her with devilish grins and the way the thugs glance at each other with subtle nods and raised eyebrows implied a very worrying indication.
They were just preparing for their payback method...only to get one of them from afar kicked to a knockout behind the head. Stunned at the sudden action, they all turn behind them and see...
"Leo?! H-how did you-" before Lili could say anything further, a thug punched her in the stomach, a pained groan escape her lips.
Leo stands stiffly on his ground and gulped uncomfortably, his anxiety slowly crawls in as one of the thugs turn to him with an intimidating gaze. Despite his nervousness, he dares to glare back at them. "I'd let her go if I were you."
"Or else what, you gonna do something kid?!" A thug approaches him, punching his fist to his palm. Leo suppresses the urge to show fear and tries to hide it by turning away for a moment and chuckling to himself, ruffling his blonde hair. "Ahh...this is not how I expect this day would go."
Leo takes a deep breath, then gets into his fighting stance. He can feel his heart beating faster and his palms sweating, but he remains calm and stoic.
The young man tries to distract his jitters by focusing on his reckless disguised protectee and the current enemies; he can't let the opponents get the best of him. 'Just relax, Leo. You can do it.' He thought to himself before then striking the first punch.
After getting rescued by Leo and switching clothes back with the doppelgänger, they've reunited with Sebastian and retired back to their hotel. In Lili's room, she and the young man were sitting across each other with a set of tea on the coffee table between them; Leo lays comfortably on the inclined armchair while Lili stays silent and still on the fluffy sofa.
After drinking her tea down to the last drop and easing herself, Lili explains to him the real plan of this trip; her backstory, her fear for her father's disappointment, everything.
Leo listens attentively, but on the inside he felt a whirlwind emotions of disappointed, surprise, shock, anger, and sympathy all at once — he was disappointed and angry that Lili would rebel against her father's wishes, but at the same time he can't help but feel pitiful to think she'd have to do all this just so she can tussle around. As far as he knew, fighting was never something to be ashamed of.
"Leo, please don't tell my father about this. I don't want to add up the stress he's burdening." Lili gazes to him deeply with pleading eyes. Leo gazes back at her in doubt and unsure.
While he does sympathize with her, how is his goal to become the successor of the Rochefort Enterprise be a reality at this point? Both options were losses for him either way, but the lesser problematic path is if he'd out her to Mr. de Rochefort; in that scenario, there's still a chance standing for him.
"I could lose this job if I don't; he can fire me for not doing my job properly. You know that, right?" Leo sighs, leaning back into the chair farther.
"You won't if we can keep this as a secret. I never wanted you to get involved in the first place."
"So you chose to sneak away as much as you possibly can, even going as far to hiring a lookalike."
"I didn't have a choice. On that note, Sebastian and I are very impressed you've figured it out so fast. Was it fairly obvious?"
"She just didn't have the same grace and elegance as you have; like how you'd walk, look around, talk, and so forth."
A light pink hue forms on the teenager's cheeks from embarrassment and from flattery, she never knew he was studying her throughout those weeks. Despite the faint blush, she continues to smirk through. "My, my. Aren't you very observant?~"
Her bodyguard could only shrug back. "We barely communicate, might as well pick up a couple of cues only you'd do."
And that couldn't be any more true; the current conversation they're having is their longest talk yet. Lili frowns down to her cupped hands, feeling the guilt creeping its way towards her. There was silence as both young adults avoid the other's directions until Lili spoke out, "...So are you going to tell my father?"
Of course Leo didn't have an immediate answer, his mind was still undecided. He instead turns to the window outside and saw the starless, nightly glow of the city and the time on the elegant wall clock next to it. It was already late, and he's expected for her father's nightly report by the next hour.
"I'll think about it...for now, you should prepare for sleep." He gets up to his feet and bows to the lady before heading to the door. Lili quickly gets up and walks him out.
"R-right of course...goodnight, Leo." there was nervousness in her throat but she doesn't let herself stutter. She kept her polite smile until he'd completely left and retired to the room next to hers.
Lili slowly closes the door then leans her forehead against it, dread and anticipation swells in her stomach. It was all over for her if her bodyguard decides to tell her father, but what if he doesn't? There were only two ways tonight could go and the suspense is too intense that the lady doesn't wanna spend another second thinking about it.
She heads to bed and forces herself to sleep by tossing and turning every minute.
Leo prepares himself for the usual nightly video chat from Mr. de Rochefort on his laptop. With nothing but silence in the air, and his desk lamp as the only source of light, he waits for the call and leans back to his seat while staring up the ceiling — his thoughts traveling back to Lili and her confession, then to his ultimate goal.
What was he going to say to her father? As much as he wanted to out her secret...he couldn't. A part of him says because it might lose all the trust he has built so far with Mr. de Rochefort for not seeing the signs early, and a part of him wants Lili to reach up to her truest potential; a graceful fighter with her own unique brawling style.
He learned how to Baji Quan so he could defend himself and avenge his mother if it ever came down to a fist fight, Lili learned how to convert her gymnastic skills into her own style so she could compete and fight for her entertainment; Leo is going to be the first to admit that he's impressed by her.
No more than a minute later, Mr. de Rochefort's number appeared. He accepted the call and so the screen transitions into the appearance of Lili's father in his office, with his usual bright smile — one that believes the innocent vacation cover ups and doesn't have a clue of the real motivation.
With a slight twist of regret in his stomach Leo finally made a decision...and doesn't tell. He didn't tell about the doppelgänger problem, the thugs, or anything Lili revealed to him, he just told what the man would've wanted to hear.
Pleased, Mr. de Rochefort's call soon ended minutes later. Leo closes his laptop then prepares for bed.
Despite the warm dark atmosphere and the soft mattress pampering his body, he couldn't sleep; his thoughts were bombarded of his new assignment as Lili's bodyguard.
Now that he'd made up his mind and decides to play along with her world touring brawling plan, what was he going to do now exactly? He won't be able to protect Lili from danger every so often now — since clearly she's going to be the one running after it.
To satisfy his internal bombarding and screaming questions, he settled for being there for the lady when she needs him, and he'll be there to protect her if she couldn't. Yeah, that works for him.
Finally, his mind settles down to a peaceful sleep.