Author's notes:
Thank you again to everyone who has read and especially to Ann E. Casap, shelter and YugannaMirialover who have reviewed on this story.
This chapter, as promised, centers around the relation between Hysteria and Hitomi but also will reveal something else that might be surprising. And I tried to add something funny, I hope that you'll like it. Enjoy!
Chapter 7 – The arrogant will fall
Hitomi awoke early in the morning. While getting up she yawned loudly. Her eyes tried to blink the sleep out of her face, what took her a while.
Palpating the spot she had been wounded in for a bit she felt that the wound had fully healed already. Relieved at that she began to attach her armor, totally ignoring the fact that Hysteria was still sleeping.
Though being the one that was not hurt she still was a child, after all, and had a great talent in acting as if she was not tired despite being close to falling asleep standing. So it had happened the day before: after energetically lecturing Hitomi she fell asleep in no time, despite Hitomi being the one with a serious wound that needed rest rather than her.
Hitomi didn't care to wake her comrade. In fact, she considered leaving her behind, taking care of the rest herself and then returning, as if nothing had happened. On the other hand she was worried about Hysteria getting herself in danger – and at that she was really good, too.
"Honestly," she whispered while looking at her with an honest face, "if you don't change that attitude of yours, you won't live long. Planning on making someone like you a number 1? Not in a hundred years!"
She then decided to look around the village for something to eat since Hysteria would be sleeping for at least another hour.
As she reached the door she turned around and hissed "Look who's slowing us down now!"
Suddenly she had gotten into a bad mood again. She had never before felt something that she would have called hate, but then she was not so sure about if her feelings for Hysteria were of that kind. Hysteria did not even try to get along with Hitomi. She basically was mocking Hitomi whenever there was a possibility.
After she had found a bit of rather old bread she decided that it was better than nothing and returned, where she, to her surprise, found a fully armored Hysteria – that was impatiently tapping with her right foot while having her arms folded.
Angrily she snorted at Hitomi: "It is damn time that you get here! What were you doing? And what is that rocky thing you are carrying around?"
Hitomi closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and, with a deep voice said, as calmly as possible: "Bread."
"Bread?" was her answer. Hysteria walked up to her, knocked onto the bread a few times and concluded: "Definitely a rock."
Grinding her teeth Hitomi ripped the brown loaf into two and pushed one half of it rudely against Hysteria's chest.
Through gritted teeth she hissed: "Eat or starve. And don't dare to complain another time!"
Uncomprehendingly the girl looked into Hitomi's boiling gaze, took the bread and asked: "Got up on the wrong side of the bed today?"
Hitomi just turned around, walked over to a window and started to rip pieces out of her bread to eat them.
Hysteria did not quite understand what was going on. To her it felt like Hitomi was mad at her, but that was ridiculous! It was not like she had done something wrong. It was Hitomi's fault for being beaten up every time and for them to take that long for their job. As a good comrade, she thought that she should talk with Hitomi about her mistakes in order for her to not make them again – and to motivate her by telling her how to do things right.
So she walked up to her from behind, still holding her bread with both hands, sheepishly asking: "Is there something you want to talk about?"
"Don't get near me" a menacing voice threatened, making Hysteria stop.
"Huh?" she asked, "what kind of problem do you have?"
At that Hitomi let her bread fall down. Hysteria could feel a sudden rise of Hitomi's Yoki that made her take a few, cautious steps backwards.
"H... Hitomi?" she stuttered nervously.
"The problem?" she groaned. "The problem that I have?" she groaned even louder while clenching her fists and starting to shake a little.
But no, that wasn't right, she shouldn't let the anger control her! 'Calm down,' she kept thinking to herself and eventually managed to return her Yoki level to normal and get her boiling body under control again.
Hysteria's grip had fastened making the hard bread's crust crack. Alarm was written in her face. Her forehead was wet of sweat and she had a terribly tense feeling inside of her stomach. Hitomi's Yoki had a rather big impact on her mental side. Suddenly she wasn't so sure about talking to Hitomi anymore.
Hitomi turned around, took her claymore and coldly stated that it was time to do the rest of the job.
Without even thinking of protesting Hysteria took her blade, too, and the both of them left the house they were in.
###
In a distance that felt a bit more secure to her Hysteria followed Hitomi, not taking her eyes off her. They had quietly walked for nearly three hours. The much younger warrior was still tense and ready to leap away anytime. Hitomi's outburst had taught her some respect, that much was certain.
Hitomi just looked straight forward with a more calm expression than before. She knew that it was not the right thing to have Hysteria scared like that, but at least she would keep quiet then. Although she seemed calm, her inside was just a few degrees away from boiling and she felt damn sure that, whenever Hysteria would say something mean again, she would hit the roof. So having her keeping her trap shut was the best thing then.
Around them there was nothing much, just endless numbers of deciduous trees that had began losing their leafs. The leafs that were falling occasionally hit Hitomi what not really abet her calming down. Hysteria just blanked them out since she needed all her concentration for Hitomi.
Still, it didn't feel right to her to approach an enemy in a situation like that. Her mentor obviously had no intentions of solving that matter, still it would hinder their fighting if they were like that. And, as she could sense, they'd need to fight together that time – the Awakened One that was with around twenty Yoma seemed dangerously strong to her. Something had to be said, but what?
The girl was afraid of making her mad again. She was not so sure anymore if Hitomi actually was weak. She got beaten up all the time, that much was true, but surely not because of her being incapable of fighting – her Yoki outburst had proven to Hysteria that she was a strong person, maybe as strong as herself.
Still it made no sense having someone like that beaten into half-death condition whenever they were fighting one of the ten nests of which only one remained. Was it due to the high number of Yoma that she couldn't handle at once? Had she not enough fighting experience to make proper use of her strength? Hysteria had no idea and knew, that only talking to her would open the possibility of her getting an answer – and maybe even keeping her from getting hurt badly the following time.
Fear had still the better of her, but after all Hitomi was her comrade, so she had to risk having her mad if that could help.
She took a deep breath, stopped in her tracks and carefully cleared her throat to not offend her if possible. That made Hitomi also stop.
Without turning around she loudly whispered: "What?"
Her apprentice took all her courage together and bravely said, stumbling over her tongue a few times: "I... think that... I got that you are mad... and I... really want to change that! We are approaching a strong enemy, so I thought..."
"What?" she got cut off.
That cracked her bravery a little bit, but still she continued with determination: "We should get along as good as possible! I don't know why you are angry, I admit that! But please tell me so we can change that! I really think that it is not..."
Without warning a hand roughly grabbed her head and pushed it back for her startled gaze to meet a gaze that was constantly shooting daggers at her.
Beads of sweat were forming on all her pores and she felt her blood leaving her face in panic. She gulped while inwardly cursing herself for having tried to talk to her mentor.
Too soon. Hitomi regarded her for a while and saw the impact that her sole presence had on her comrade. She sighed loudly and closed her eyes while leaning her head back. She was a kid, after all.
As she met Hysteria's gaze again she stated as calmly as possible: "Listen, shorty," she paused, waiting for Hysteria to poke her, what did not happen, "no, Hysteria."
That made the young warrior's heart jump for a bit, having Hitomi actually use her name.
"I have told you many times: your defense is a non-existent thing. You are not able to take orders and you never listen to anyone who has a different view of things than yourself. You are strong, of course, and you are going to become even stronger. But you have to change your attitude. I am not telling you your mistakes to make fun of you! My job is to turn you into a warrior capable of going on missions on her own and that is all that I am doing. If you don't cooperate because you feel huffy for being lectured that is not going to work! Honestly, if I wanted to hurt you, I'd just beat you up."
It took Hysteria some time to process that input. There she did it again! Covering her own incapability by putting the blame on her! Talking to that person really was of no use was what Hysteria had figured.
Hysteria gritted her teeth and then shouted: "Why are you still saying that? Can't you accept your own mistakes? Stop putting the blame on me!"
She had done it. Again. Hitomi abandoned her task of looking after her as the rage took over. Her Yoki was erupting and she reached fifty percent in a split second. Hitomi's face was distorted, her eyes shone golden and her fingers had turned into claws.
Her left hand was still holding Hysteria's head. She raised the pressure and lifted Hysteria to her eye level.
An Hysteria's arrogant attitude was smashed to bits by Hitomi's look. She quivered heavily and could neither say a word, nor think.
A guttural voice growled at her: "what enough is..." she threw Hysteria away nonchalantly, "IS ENOUGH!"
Her right hand grabbed her weapon's hilt and, leaving an afterimage, she appeared close to Hysteria who was still unable to act due to the shock. Then Hitomi's technique that easily surpassed even the speed of the top ranks began to slowly cut Hysteria away from the outside to the inside: the Soundcutter.
Hysteria's skin got torn to bits while she tried to comprehend the situation she was in. Hitomi had close to absolutely lost it and, if not stopped, would most likely completely mince the one she was supposed to protect. Before Hysteria could realize that, however, her survival instinct took over and let her release as much as fifty percent of her Yoki herself. With the newly won force she managed to dash out of Hitomi's range and to heal most of her wounds due to them being small.
As Hitomi stopped her attack after having noticed Hysteria being gone, an enormous blast wave spread out that nearly knocked Hysteria away, but she managed to remain standing. Hitomi had closed in to her again already to start her attack again. That time, however, Hysteria's instincts told her to answer back and so two blades of immense speed began to clash while spraying sparks to no end.
Much to Hitomi's surprise Hysteria was actually close to keeping up her own speed, but still she did not stay uninjured. She was able to parry most of Hitomi's strikes but had no means of answering to all of them. Hysteria soon became aware of that and pulled back, causing Hitomi to stop her attack and therefore create another blast wave. That time Hysteria was prepared and kept a steady stand.
Since Hitomi was using her best technique, Hysteria decided, even though it was far from being perfect, to use her very own technique, too. The moment Hitomi was close to her and about to use her technique again, Hysteria greatly increased her speed to suddenly rush past Hitomi. As Hitomi's superior speed, it also left an afterimage that looked like it was slipping right through Hitomi's body. A technique that she later would name Elegant Step.
For a moment both of the warriors were just standing there, their backs facing each other. A wound opened on Hitomi's right shoulder. It had cut through her right collarbone and a lot of muscles (but it left her right lung intact) what led to her right arm being of no use anymore. Hitomi grimaced and groaned slightly because of the pain, but didn't show any further reaction besides pushing her right arm against the side of her chest with her left hand. In her right hand she was still holding her blade that she had to draw as Hysteria suddenly attacked her.
Hysteria collapsed as a sea of blood splattered out of two wounds that formed a cross on her chest. Her Yoki had went to normal the moment Hitomi had hit her.
'I see,' she thought. 'You were right all the time.'
Hitomi turned around to regard her comrade. She was already healing her shoulder and had a satisfied grin on her face.
"See?" she said contentedly. "Told you so."
###
The day before...
Two women were resting at a nice campfire that was the only thing to illuminate the night. They had found themselves a nice spot near a forest glade where they were enjoying a bit of rest from their journey that far.
About twenty meters away, in the clearing, there sat their comrade that was guiding them towards their target. At that time, however, she had different things on her mind. She was monitoring a friend of hers that had happened to also have a job to do in the southern lands of Mucha.
The both of them had gotten to know each other on a mission that was meant to give the Retrieval Squad of the Organization access to the sample of an Awakened Being. Its grave was protected by one of the woman's comrades.
She had not wanted for her former comrade's grave to be defiled and therefore protected it. Through force and words she was kept from doing so. The warrior that kept her, the one who was sitting in the clearing right then, got friends with her and was then watching over her friend with concern.
Vanessa, one of her comrades, had been watching Jacqueline's behavior for the week they had already been on their way and still had not gotten any idea why she always was placing herself away from the campfire. Since her other comrade, Neerie, was asleep, she decided to just ask her fellow warrior Jacqueline. So she arose and walked over to her, letting herself plop down right next to her.
After just sitting there for a while, staring into the same direction Jacqueline did, Vanessa still couldn't see anything, and plainly asked: "What y'lookin' at?"
She had noticed Vanessa the moment she had arisen and had already wondered about what she could have wanted. For a moment she thought about if she should tell her but then came to the conclusion that there would be no harm in it.
"A friend, nothing more" she explained.
Her older companion leaned forwards a bit and took a close look at Jacqueline's face. To not much result, though, because she always wore a mask completely impenetrable by whoever might have been looking at her.
While remaining in her position she suspiciously raised an eyebrow: "Concerned 'bout yr crush?"
That caused a reaction in Jacqueline's face, a reaction so small that Vanessa was not absolutely sure about it having actually been there or not. Still, for a moment she looked like someone who had his darkest secret exposed by some other person's lucky guess.
"No, she is just a friend" she stated convincingly.
"He, I see" Vanessa answered chuckling. "Has to be 'n important friend, if y'stalk her Yoki all the time, huh?" she added with a wide, catty grin on her face.
That moment a mental dagger shot through Jacqueline's chest.
A slight blush appeared on her still calm face as she stated: "I'm not... stalking her. I'm just... concerned, that is all!"
"And that is why you blush?" Vanessa shot back.
That moment a second mental dagger shot through Jacqueline's chest.
The color of her face turned darker again and also showed faint signs of her being embarrassed.
She wanted to say something to defend herself, as Vanessa aimed for the finishing blow: "Y'know, she'd be pissed if she'd knew that y'stalk her."
Mental Dagger number three.
Jacqueline was in utter distress. Just who was that woman and what did she aim for? She sure was right that Jacqueline had taken a liking in Hitomi during their long journey from the west to the east, but that was nothing out of the ordinary. Warriors regularly didn't meet many people. And those they met were either rather unsightly Organization's man or other warriors. Someone without many social contacts tends to bind even stronger to the few persons he meets, so to a warrior at that time it was nothing special to form strong bonds with her comrades. So, naturally, Jacqueline had taken a liking in Hitomi.
Still, how did Vanessa know? And why was she trying to make Jacqueline admit it? And, the question that concerned Jacqueline even more, was: why was she embarrassed about it?
Vanessa then leaned towards Jacqueline, having her own face just inches away from Jacqueline's and, grinning even wider, dealt the finishing blow: "You totally have the hots for her!"
Jacqueline cracks with mental dagger number four.
It had taken Vanessa just a few lines to totally melt Jacqueline's untouchable facade away. As the latter stared onto the ground with her hands between her lags and a face that screamed "just kill me!" Vanessa showed an astonished face, as she said: "So I actually was right?"
###
A rather huge blast of Yoki made Neerie wake up. A short look into the direction it came from gave her a rough overview over the situation. Sighing, she arose and walked over to the scene.
There she found Jacqueline, standing, her Yoki and face having reverted to normal and, a few meters away from her, there lay a very passed-out Vanessa. Neerie squat down next to her and, looking a bit pissed, poked Vanessa with a stick what the latter requited with small twitches.
"Still alive?" Jacqueline asked.
"She reacts, so yeah. What did she do?"
###
"I see" Neerie stated while sitting leaned against her blade, looking into the campfire. "But you know, that is nothing to be ashamed of."
"Most likely," Jacqueline sighed, "but still it felt... strange having her hit the spot every single time. It's like she read my mind – and that made me feel uneasy."
Neerie smiled at that: "Vanessa has a talent with such things. Hiding something from her is close to impossible. If she gets the slightest idea of someone not being honest or not giving the whole truth, she gets on your nerves until you tell her everything. She has proven to you, that you don't have to tell her with words, though."
Jacqueline took a short look over to were a beaten up Vanessa was lying, thinking to have overdone it a little for a short moment, as Neerie spoke up again.
"I wonder, still... what does she mean to you?" she asked with the smile of a good friend that intended to help her if possible.
Jacqueline regarded her for a bit. She was not that good in seeing if a smile was honest or fake, but to her it seemed like Neerie was a person that she could trust. If Vanessa had posed a question like that Jacqueline would most like have beaten her up again.
So, taking a deep breath, she slowly started to tell all she felt like telling.
###
Before I first met her I had to deal with a Black Card beforehand. That had taken a rather bad impact on me. Hitomi was, at that time, causing trouble for the Organization by protecting the grave of her dead friend. I was send to keep her from doing so. I inwardly prayed that I could solve that matter without having to kill another comrade.
Even though we engaged in battle at first, I managed to make her unable to fight and to take her to the next town for her to rest. I really envied her for being able to protect a dead friend's grave - I didn't tell her, however. But I felt that there was something strong and honorable in her. Something of the kind that I do not possess. Somehow it is fascinating me.
As I carried her to the town she fell asleep halfway. As I looked at her sleeping face I was embraced by a warmth that I had not felt before. For a while I just could not stop smiling.
While she was resting I was told to take her to the Organization as soon as she was able to walk again. Then a journey of two months began. Well, we could have been faster if we had walked four days straight and then had rested for a few hours, but somehow we ended up resting nearly every night.
We talked to each other nearly all the time. We told each other about our lives, about the ones we've loved and lost and we made fun of the Organization's people. On our way we even met Number 7, Tattletale Lisa, who provided us with... the newest... gossip... fuck. Now I know why Vanessa knew.
However, we got along very well. I just was rapt by her prettiness and her plain but deep personality and all the things she had went through and to her I basically was the one who saved her life, because every other warrior would just have killed her on the spot. She even rested her head on my chest during one night...
###
"I see" Vanessa chimed in, startling her comrades. "Wish I'd have popcorn."
"Pop... what?" a dumbfounded Neerie asked.
"Since when are you awake?" Jacqueline asked with a monotone voice.
Vanessa, noticing that Jacqueline was about to burst out again, diplomatically tried to calm her down: "Keep it cool, will y? And yeah, Tattle told me. Y're all lovey-dovey. But so what? Whoever complains's just envious."
Jacqueline just sighed: "Whatever... we should go to sleep, tomorrow we'll walk fifty miles again."
Her comrades agreed and so the chatter fainted until all three of them were asleep.
###
The three of them were walking again. In less then three days they would be so close to their target Luciela that she would most likely be able to sense them. Jacqueline's focus lay elsewhere, though.
That morning she awoke due to a sudden outburst of Hitomi's Yoki. It was short and vanished soon, but she could still feel the anger insider of her. That way it had been since their respective missions had started. For some reason Hitomi almost every time got wounded and was mad afterwards, most likely at her comrade Hysteria, whose Yoki suggested her acting high and mighty.
However, it had gotten worse and Jacqueline feared that Hitomi's anger sooner or later would get the better of her.
Neerie, who was walking right of her, had noticed that Jacqueline had been acting more strange than usual and therefore asked her if something was wrong.
"Nah" she said, trying to convince herself more than Neerie.
She wanted to believe in Hitomi being able to keep her calm but the longer it went on the more she saw the chances for that shrink.
Then she stopped short in her tracks as she noticed a small stir in Hitomi's Yoki. She and Hysteria had stopped moving. With tension she watched as Neerie and Vanessa asked her what the matter was.
Then she felt Hitomi's Yoki rise to dangerous heights within a mere moment.
"Fuck" she said as her eyes widened a bit. Without warning she ran off into her direction.
"Hey, were y'going?" Vanessa shouted after her, but got no answer.
The both of them looked at each other, nodded once and then followed Jacqueline into the forest.
###
Stems were racing past her as she navigated herself through them. As soon as also Hysteria's Yoki had risen she also had started to accelerate her steps with Yoki. At an astounding speed of more than 110 miles per hour even the Doublefingers had trouble in keeping up with her.
'Don't!' she kept shouting inwardly. 'Don't kill her, or...'
As she suddenly noticed a sudden flash of Hysteria's Yoki, followed by it receding completely, she arose her Yoki and her speed by twenty percent each.
"Fuck" she groaned through gritted teeth.
She knew that Hysteria was important to the Organization and as things looked, Hitomi had won the fight. Still, neither her anger nor her Yoki had calmed then and Jacqueline was afraid of Hitomi killing Hysteria. No matter, how she looked at it, that would absolutely have made the Organization have her executed. And that she had to prevent at any cost.
###
"Dammit, that girl's fast!" Vanessa complained. "What's she?"
Neerie had asked herself that question, too. Jacqueline was without doubt far more than a number 6. Even ignoring her excellent skills when it came to Yoki sensing, reading and even manipulating, she had a Yoki slumbering inside her that totally made up for her rather low baseline of strength and speed.
"Basically," Neerie concluded, "We could well call her number 1."
Vanessa looked at her partner for a moment, before sizzling and focusing on catching up with Jacqueline.
###
Hysteria still lay face down on the ground. She was busy keeping her consciousness as well as healing the wounds on her chest. She totally had underestimated Hitomi. And in addition to that, she had overestimated herself. Hitomi had been right all along: her offensive abilities were extraordinary, but her defense was nothing worth mentioning. That was the truth she didn't want to believe out of Hitomi's mouth, so she made her taste it through her blade.
Suddenly everything Hitomi had said made sense. It was Hitomi who was protecting her by acting as a shield. Hitomi ending up badly injured was Hysteria's fault. And therefore it was Hysteria who slowed them down.
With teardrops in her eyes she whispered sobbing: "Im such a stupid blockhead!" More loudly she tried an apology: "You were right! All the time! I just didn't see it! I'm sorry, I'm so sorry! Please forgive me!"
Her shoulder was already healed. She impaled her blade into the ground and walked over to Hysteria who lay on the ground like a picture of misery. Finally having calmed enough Hitomi kneeled down next to her, shifted Hysteria on her back and, while gently smiling, made Hysteria's head rest on her lap.
"You see?" she explained. "I am not making fun of you. Trust in what I say."
"I will," Hysteria cried while covering her eyes, "I will!"
From afar, Jacqueline was watching. She was really relieved as she had seen that the battle had stopped and that the two of them were reconcile themselves.
"Thank you, god" she whispered.
With a wide smile she turned around and began hurrying back to her comrades. There still was a job to do.
Author's notes:
So much left to tell, but most likely a job will be finished next time.
kstefan88