Of Assassins, Samurai, and Magic
A/N: And the next chapter is up! I've tried to keep everyone as close as possible to their characters in the anime though I'm sure there will be a few OOC moments. Comments and reviews are much appreciated. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: The characters and the worlds I write in do not belong to me. The stories that I write are intended for entertainment purposes. I do not make any money from them.
*** ~ Chapter 11: The Calm Before the Storm ~ ***
"I'm sorry Okaa-san, there's been a change in plans. I'm needed back at the palace."
Lindy sighed. "And I was so looking forward to cooking for everyone later. I even learned a new recipe for tonight." Another sigh.
"Sorry."
"I suppose it can't be helped. You have an important duty to fulfill after all." Lindy smiled, taking a quick sip of tea from her mug. "Things must be so exciting! It's not every day you get summons from the Empress herself. Requesting the aid of the City Guard to help envoy her guests, no less. They must be very important people."
Harlaown Chrono ran a hand through his short navy hair. "I'm not sure of the specifics myself yet. I only know that Signum-san brought the request to us personally."
"Signum-sama did?"
Both Chrono and Lindy turned to face the new voice.
"Ah, good morning Kaa-san, Nii-san." Fate bowed to both of them before making her way into the kitchen.
"Good morning Fate. Slept well?" Chrono smiled at his imouto, Fate returning the smile and nodding as she joined them at the table.
"Yes. Very well, thank you."
She may not have been his blood sister, but Chrono treated her no differently.
"Is everything alright?"
"Hai," Chrono nodded. "I'm just stopping in before I head back to the palace. I won't be joining you for dinner tonight like I promised." Chrono frowned.
Pulling out a chair, Fate seated herself at the end of the table. Lindy sat on her left and Chrono sat on her right. The blonde gave Chrono a sympathetic smile, knowing how work sometimes barged into their family time. Being Captain of the City Guard wasn't easy. And while Fate admired her brother for his dedication to the safety of all within the city gates, she did not envy him, especially because of times like this.
"Going to visit Nanoha-chan again today?" Lindy dished out rice from the cooker into a small ceramic bowl for her adopted daughter. A plate, chopsticks and a mug of tea already sat waiting on the table for Fate.
"Hai." Fate plucked some tamago from the serving dish on the table and dropped them onto her plate before reaching for some baked fish. "Kyouya-san returned home yesterday. I thought I'd pass by to make sure they're doing alright."
Fate pressed her palms together in front of her face, closing her eyes as she bowed her head. "Itadakimasu."
Chrono grimaced upon mention of the older Takamachi. Kyouya was a mentor to him of sorts, teaching him the ways of the blade back when Chrono was younger. The tragedy that befell the Takamachi siblings was a tragic one, bad luck seemingly cursed upon the family. First their parents were taken from them in the most brutal of ways, Nanoha almost killed herself. And now the dojo with the two older siblings had fallen. Chrono could only imagine what the youngest Takamachi was going through.
"That's very nice of you Fate-chan." Lindy watched the blonde smiling. Her elbows rested on the edge of the table with her chin resting on her intertwined fingers. "Nanoha-chan is very lucky to have such a wonderful friend."
Fate blushed at the comment, meekly scooping up a bit of rice with her chopsticks. "Ah, well… I'm sure she would have done the same if I were in a similar position."
"Send them both my regards when you visit" Chrono said rising from his chair.
Fate nodded at him as she continued to eat.
"I'll try my best to stop by later today" the older Harlaown sibling said. "Though I may not be able to with all that's happening. Amy said she'd still bring the twins over though."
"I'll be ready for them when they stop by" Lindy said with an infectious smile. "I bought bean cakes from the market yesterday and have been waiting to eat them with someone." She giggled.
Chrono chuckled. No matter how old his Kaa-san got, she always remained the young, and carefree woman he loved her to be.
"Nii-san."
Chrono paused in his steps and turned back to his imouto. "Hmm?"
"The message Signum-sama delivered. What did it say?" Fate looked up at her older brother curiously. Signum was not a messenger and by no means an errand girl either. The fact that she hand delivered the message to the City Guards had Fate both curious and worried. While it was true the samurai and city guards worked hand in hand on the safety of the city folk, Signum delivering a message from the Empress didn't sit well with the blonde.
Chrono scratched the back of his head. "I don't know much yet" he replied. "I'm to report to the palace to be briefed on everything. But… according to the rumours that have been flying around, a very influential alchemist from overseas is coming to meet with the Empress in a few days. Jail something or the other."
"From overseas? You mean from the west?"
"Hai." Chrono crossed his arms over his chest, a frown forming on his face. "The rumours go on to say that he's come to speak with the Empress about how to stop the Spirit Seeds once and for all, along with the faction wars ravaging the country."
Burgundy eyes went wide. Fate's jaw went slack. "Is… Is that even possible?"
Lindy smiled. Fate's awe struck expression was the cutest thing ever, if she thought so herself. "It's only rumours right now dear" the teal haired woman said. "Don't read too much into them just yet. Not until they have been verified as truth and not hearsay."
"But still…" Fate said, her food forgotten. "If that turns out to be true, do you really think he could really stop it all?"
Lindy's once cheerful expression dropped. "I don't know" she said, concern evident on her face. "This just seems so… convenient. An unheard of alchemist suddenly visiting the Empress saying he has the answer to it all… At a time when she's desperately searching for a way herself to stop all of this bloodshed… Something just doesn't feel right about it…"
"Stop! Thief!"
Erio Mondial ran as if his life depended on it. In some ways, it did. The portly noble chasing after him would surely have him executed, if not, have some limb taken from him if he got caught. All for a few silver coins the noble clearly didn't need. Not with the belly the man had.
The day had started off like any other. Erio got up at the break of dawn, just as the merchants were setting up their shops for the day. Using his size and the shadows to his advantage, Erio stealthily lifted a few loaves of bread and cheese from the various merchants and took off towards his make shift home. As hungry as he was right now, he wouldn't eat until he reached his destination.
Some would call that discipline, but it was far from that. It wasn't just himself he was stealing for. There were two more mouths to feed, and being the eldest of them all, Erio had to make sure they were satisfied first before he ate what was remaining. But on his way back home, the red head spied what he considered to be a big break. There, walking down the street coming towards him, was a rather well off looking noble. Round around the waist with a plump coin purse hanging off the man's belt just screaming to be plucked.
Normally Erio would have shied away from such aggressive methods of stealing. It was one thing to steal from a merchant's stall when the merchant's back was turned. It was an entirely different thing to actually steal one's coin purse from their very own person. You didn't have as much room to run away if you got caught.
Erio bit his lip. He had to try it. He had to. Things were starting to get desperate. The food he stole lately wasn't enough. His companion was getting worse, no matter how much food he got for her. She was sick and needed medicine. And food could not buy medicine. But coins could. Which is why he risked it all now. Before he couldn't fix things.
But Erio fumbled. Big time. Just as he was lifting the man's coin purse as they passed each other, the noble chose to look down for his coins at that exact moment, something in one of the merchant stalls nearby having caught his eye. For a few awkward seconds, the noble and Erio stared at each other in surprise. Then Erio got his wits about him and practically ripped the coin purse from the man's belt, taking off running. That action snapped the noble out of his shock and the chase was on.
"Thief! Stop him!"
Erio cursed. For a man so chunky, he certainly kept up with the younger, fitter boy. Even after four city blocks of running, the noble somehow managed to keep Erio within sight, even amongst the crowd of people they both zipped through. Erio's only saving grace was that the commotion had yet to grab the attention of a samurai or city guardsman. Once they got involved, it would be all over for him.
The red headed boy darted left, through the nearest alleyway between buildings. He had to change up his tactics here. Erio would never lose the noble if he kept running in a straight line. So he started to zigzag. There were a few grunts and yells behind him, Erio turning his head to look back over his shoulder to see what it was about. The noble, while surprisingly speedy, was not agile in the least bit. As much as the portly man tried to pull a sharp left turn into the alleyway like Erio did, he ended up tumbling past the entranceway into a mob of people. And hence all the yelling.
Erio smirked in triumph, still looking over his shoulder when he darted out of the alleyway. Turning his head forward the moment he stepped out of the dark path, he caught sight of something robed in black before-
A yelp. Food went flying. And then a tumble.
Erio lay on his stomach, winded and immobile in a daze. He had run full speed into something, tangled with it and then tumbled to the ground in a heap of limbs. The red head didn't know what exactly he ran into, but it was solid enough to knock the breath out of him and stun him.
Blinking a few times and remembering to breathe, Erio pushed himself off the ground into sitting position. He then realized that he wasn't on the ground itself. Nor were the things under his hands the cobblestones that lined the street. Blue eyes widened. No, not on the ground at all. Erio was sitting on top a person. The one he ran into. On her stomach that is. And his hands were still on her… her… Erio went beet red, instantly retracting his hands as if burned by fire.
"Itai…" the flaxen haired woman said groaning.
The sound of the woman's voice snapped Erio out of his thoughts, the younger boy scurrying off the woman and leaping to his feet. "Are you alright? I'm so sor-"
The red head immediately regretted his action, a painful twinge shooting up his right leg from his ankle, the moment his foot met the solid paved ground. Erio bit his lip and growled, doing his best not to scream in pain as he shifted his weight to his other foot. This was not good.
A hand went up to the blonde's head, wine coloured eyes blinking a few times as the daze lifted from her mind. "I'm just a bit winded" she said, giving Erio a small smile as she got her wits about her. "No harm done."
The woman (amazingly gorgeous in Erio's opinion) sat up and surveyed the scene around them. It was then she noticed him favouring his right foot. His lips pressed together into a fine line, his blue eyes full of pain. "Are you-"
"Thief! Stop thief!"
And then the noble chose this time to catch up to him.
"Kuso!" Erio spun around limping, the red head gritting his teeth as the portly noble barrelled through the alleyway he had come from, directly towards him. Erio made a fist. There was no way he could going outrun him now.
"You piece of trash!"
Erio tensed, his muscles twitching as the large man reached out a hand to grab him. Suddenly there was a blur of black and Erio found himself staring at a black kimono with cherry blossoms printed on it.
"Is there a problem Nooburu-san?"
The noble recoiled, more so in surprise than in disgust. With his attention solely focused on Erio, he hadn't noticed anyone else around him. Erio glared at the man when he gave the blonde in front of him a lecherous look, licking his lips. The boy's fist clenched harder, Erio wanting nothing more than to smack that smirk off the older man's face. But the moment he shifted his weight, the burning pain returned making him freeze in his spot wincing.
"No, no problem at all" the man said grinning.
Before the man could say anything further, the blonde spoke. "I am glad to hear that. Good day to you Nooburu-san."
As the black robed woman turned to face Erio, a meaty hand landed on her shoulder. "Say, how about you come back to my estate with me. I'm always looking for people with your… assets…"
Erio had enough of this. "Leave her alone you pig!" Ignoring the pain in his ankle, the red head rushed the noble twice his height and quadruple his weight, shoving the man back as hard as he could. But really, what could a mere child do against a full grown man of that size?
"Filthy rat!"
The portly man stumbled back a few steps from Erio's shove, but quickly recovered and swiftly kicked him in the ribs sending the boy crashing to the stone road hard. Erio clutched his stomach whimpering. The noble advanced one step forward before his left foot, the foot he currently had most of his weight on, was knocked out from underneath him and he was sent flailing backwards by an open palm strike to the solar plexus.
"You harlot!" The unsightly man scrambled to his feet, breathing heavily.
Burgundy eyes narrowed at the man, once again the blonde putting herself between Erio and noble. The hidden yellow magatama jewel on her bracelet chimed softly in response to her rising anger
"How dare you-" The noble didn't even finish his sentence before launching himself at the woman, fist outstretched ready to teach her a lesson.
"What is going on here!"
The noble's fist stopped two inches short of the blonde's face, a gauntleted fist having grabbed the man by the wrist. Pink locks of hair swayed in the gentle breeze. Furious blue eyes bore into the man.
"T-T-Taichou-sama!"
The noble's eyes went wide, the man shivering like a leaf under Signum's gaze. Erio also shivered, the aura of power the woman exuded making him swallow unconsciously. The red head didn't know who she was, but he knew she meant business. Of the dangerous kind. Erio made a note never to piss her off.
"Botan-san" Signum said icily. Blue eyes glared at the man. "Causing trouble again?"
Wait a minute. Her gauntlet. Erio had seen one like that before. It was a different colour, gold instead of the typical silver the regular samurais wore, but very much the same design. Wait. Only samurai wore that type of armor. She's a samurai? But that Botan guy called her-
"I-I-It's not what you think Taichou-sama! I swear!"
She's the Captain of the samurai! Erio gulped. Living on the streets, one heard many things, not all of them were necessarily true, but most were credible. And even if only a quarter of what was said about this pink haired captain was true, Erio had a lot of reasons not to get on her bad side.
Botan tried to pull himself free from Signum's grip, but the samurai refused to budge. "I certainly hope not." Signum almost growled at the man. "Testerossa-san, are you alright?"
"I am unharmed" Fate replied, offering the pink haired samurai a smile. "Thanks to you."
For a brief moment, Signum's cold glare softened as she looked at Fate. Then her expression was icy once again, her gaze fixed on the pitiful man in front of her. "You do realize that assaulting a woman carries heavy consequences, do you not Botan-san?" Botan wilted even further under her gaze.
Fate could only pity the man. Signum was rather intimidating when she wanted to be. Like she was right now. And only a fool would dare defy her under such circumstances. Many believed that Signum was not up for the job of being Captain of the samurai. That it was only a man's position. But time and time again, Signum proved all the disbelievers wrong showing her true strength. The swordswoman took her position seriously, a little too seriously if you asked Fate. But she was fair and protected the citizens. And that left her very much appreciated by the cityfolk, that is, all except those who would try to ruin the peace of the city.
"T-T-Taichou-sama!" Botan said trembling. "I-I-I can explain!" The noble immediately turned his fearful gaze towards Fate and Erio. "That street rat stole my coin purse and that harlot-"
Fate winced as in a flash of movement, Signum grabbed Botan by the collar and brought the man up to her face. "That harlot" Signum said between clenched teeth. "Happens to be the imouto of the City Guard's Bushou" Signum said growling. "You know, Harlaown Chrono-san? I don't think he'd very much appreciate you calling his imouto that. And frankly, neither do I."
Botan's eyes went wide. Beady eyes flicked back to Fate for a moment. She was the Captain's imouto? Oh gods… He was done for. Botan dropped his head in defeat. He should have never chased after the scum. A handful of silvers was not worth all of this trouble.
"Botan-san, you and I are going to take a walk back to the imperial dungeon" Signum said turning the man around and dragging him behind her. "My Chukanbushi will be more than happy to refresh your memory on the proper way to treat a woman."
Erio gaped. How in the world did he land himself in this situation? Not only had things gone from horribly bad to incredibly lucky, he was also standing in the presence of two very powerful women. Both the Captain of the Samurai and the imouto to the Captain of the City Guard. What luck he had. Or bad luck.
Fate watched as the nobleman known as Botan was dragged away by Signum, towards the imperial dungeons where he would no doubt spend a night or two thinking about what he had almost done. While she was not normally the vindictive type of person, he did call her a harlot which she took great offence to. Had the pink haired samurai not intervened, Botan would have soon found out what happened to those who pissed off the City Guard Captain's imouto.
"Testerossa-san." Signum paused, looking back over her shoulder at the blonde.
"Hai?" Fate looked at Signum inquiringly.
"When you get the chance, pass by my office. I have a parcel to give you and something to discuss."
Fate blinked. A parcel for me and something she wants to talk about? "Hai."
With that said, Signum nodded, dragging Botan behind her and out of sight.
The sounds of scuffling drew Fate out of her thoughts. Erio was now hastily collecting the dropped food off the street, limping painful from one item to another. The boy had seen enough excitement for one day and wanted nothing more than to get back to his companions to make sure they were okay.
Fate grimaced at the obvious pain he was in, but she knew he didn't want to show weakness. "Here, let me help you." So instead Fate opted to aid the youth, stooping to pick up the fallen noble's coin purse.
Erio snatched it out of her hands. "Don't touch that." He looked at her menacingly.
Fate smiled at him. "Where are you headed? Maybe I can he-"
Erio narrowed his eyes at her. "I don't need your help!"
Fate tilted her head to the side, burgundy eyes regarding Erio curiously. "No, of course not" she said much to Erio's shock. "You're very strong. Not many people could have stood up to that Botan-san back there like you did. But you did, and protected me from him. Thank you."
Erio scowled, looking to the side in embarassment. "Y-your welcome…" he said quietly. A faint blush crept over his cheeks.
"Fate."
"Huh?"
"My name is Fate" the blonde said with a smile. "What's your name?"
"Er-" Erio glared at Fate. Why was she being so nice to him? "My name doesn't matter."
Fate frowned at that. "I think it does."
"Why are you being so nice to me!" Erio screamed at her, though Fate didn't seem surprised. "I don't need your pity!"
"Pity?" A sadness flickered in Fate's eyes that Erio could not ignore. "I do not pity you. You simply remind me of myself when I was your age." A pause. "Alone. Scared. Fighting to find my place in this world."
Erio swallowed, his anger forgotten for the moment. It was as if this Fate person could read his mind or something. The ache in her burgundy eyes was not unlike the ache in his own heart.
"But then I found someone who helped me find my place" Fate continued. "And it is that person I owe my life to today, for without her, I would not be here."
Erio remained quiet.
"I just wanted to be that person for you. Like she was for me."
Erio Mondial was flabbergasted. She wanted to help him? His shock soon turned to anger. That's what the samurai said when his parents died. But they lied to him. "Liar!" Erio ran off.
Fate could only watch him disappear in sadness.
CRASH!
"Get out!"
"Onii-san!"
"I said GET OUT!"
The door to Kyouya's room slid open hastily, a crying Nanoha bolting passed a startled Fate as she dashed down the stairs. Fate had just made it to the Midori-ya Café, Nanoha having left the front door unlocked for her to enter. It had taken the blonde a few minutes to reach the cafe after the incident with the red headed boy. Fate was already half way there when the boy ran into her. And like she always did when she visited her best friend, Fate went straight to Nanoha's room, only to find herself thrown into the middle of whatever just happened between the Takamachi siblings.
"Fate-san."
"H-hai!" Fate jumped at the sound of her name, turning towards Kyouya's room with fearful eyes.
"Go after her."
"Hai!" Fate needed no other prompting to chase after the distressed brunette. Fate rushed out of the Midori-ya, zipping past a cloaked figure, in her haste not noticing them. The cloaked figure with twin red braids trailing their shoulders looked back up at the Midori-ya Café, blue eyes narrowing.
After a few minutes of running, Fate found herself at the local graveyard. This was often Nanoha's place to be when something distressed her. Taking a deep breath to calm herself, Fate walked up to Nanoha, who sat next to her parents' grave stones curled up in fetal position. "Nanoha." A hand rested on Nanoha's shoulder, Fate crouching next to her.
"Fate-chan!" Nanoha tackled her best friend and wept in her arms.
Fate held Nanoha close, stroking her back. "Shhh…" she hushed soothingly. "I'm here."
Nanoha sobbed on her shoulder. Burgundy eyes closed, tears forming in her eyes. The hidden yellow magatama jewel on Fate's bracelet chimed softly, Nanoha's own hidden red magatama jewel doing the same. Fate gritted her teeth, feeling the shudders running through the brunette in her arms. Wine coloured eyes opened again, a fire and fierceness burning within them. Those who hurt Nanoha would pay.
That was a promise.
A/N: For those of you unfamiliar with the non-English words, I have translated them below.
Hai = Yes
Kuso = Damnit!
Itai = Ouch
Okaa-san/Kaa-san = Mother
Onii-san/ Nii-san = Big Brother
Imouto = Little Sister
Tamago = Sweet Egg Omelet
Nooburu = Noble
Taichou/Bushou = Captain
Chukanbushi = (Middle Samurai)The most common rank among the samurai, Chukanbushi-level samurai are intermediately skilled samurai. They often act as guards, sentinels, watchmen, and other miscellaneous positions.
Itadakimasu = "I humbly receive." The phrase is similar to "bon appétit", or saying grace to give thanks before a meal. For more information on Japanese etiquette, visit the link below.
http:/en[dot]wikipedia[dot]org/wiki/Etiquette_in_Japan#Eating_and_drinking
For an explanation of Japanese honorifics (eg. [name]-sama), please check out: http:/en[dot]wikipedia[dot]org/wiki/Japanese_honorifics