Chapter 2

Blood and Iron

Somehow and finally, he had fallen sleep. He could fell the grogginess, and see the first rays of sunlight peeking out for the window. He didn´t remember dreaming anything, but that was just as well; he couldn´t have be anything good. Paul rubbed his eyes, and waked himself up, vaguely remembering that he had to do to something. He sat up, looked around the room and noticed the pile of clothes on the floor. That was it. He had to send the uniform to wash. He picked then up with one arm, took a big breath and leaved the room. He had no idea where he was going, or where he was, but it was morning, so the servants should be cleaning this place. It couldn´t be hard to bump into one.

There were only rows of doors in the hallway, but even though he feared to hear the crack of a wooden door and see one of those lunatics come out, he turned the corner without hearing a sound or seeing anybody. He fell stupid. Louise had ordered him to send her clothes to wash and then wake her up, not the other way around, so it was not a pressing matter. That implied some kind of schedule, and that with the whole uniforms thing didn´t make it hard to see that this was institution of some sort-likely the way they were indoctrinated into the sect or whatever all of this was. So he had nothing to fear. For now, at least.

He turned a few corners and walked down some stairways before he found a servant, a maid in the middle of a hallway, knelling besides some kind of sculpture and dusting in off, humming.

"Excuse me, Miss?" She didn't seem to notice, just went on with her work. Paul loudly cleared its throat, but it didn´t work. "Miss?"

She perked up, turned her head towards him, sent down the duster and stood up, brushing some dirt off her skirt.

"Sorry, milord, I was distracted… You are not a noble."

"No."

"It was not a question."

"I know."

She fidgeted in place.

"Sorry, really, yesterday wasn´t a good day for me and I still kind of pissed off, but I didn´t want to make this awkward. Commoners like us have to stick together." She noticed the clothes, and blushed very noticeably. "Are you a pervert or something?"

"No. I am…" He was about to say kidnapping victim, but didn´t. "I am a familiar. Those are my master's clothes; she sent me to have her uniform washed, but I don't even know where to go or how to get there, so I thought you could give me directions."

"Ah, so you are Miss Vallière´s familiar, sorry about that…"

"Wait, how do you know?"

"The staff talked a lot about Valliére´s summoning. She was the first one to take that many tries, and summon a human instead of some kind of animal, so it was a juicy topic. We take can we can get. " Summoning, she said. Great. Even the common people were crazy. "Anyways, don't worry about the clothes. Just leave them to me."

"Are you sure? I mean, you are at work and I don't want to brother you needlessly."

"That's sweet of you." She smiled, at it made him that it could be great if she was five years younger or hell, even tree. "But it won't get in trouble or something off the sort for taking a five minute break, at the most. Trust me."

Paul nodded, and the maid took the clothes off his arm.

"Have a nice day."

"You too." She turned, and Paul watched her go down the halfway and turning the corner. He signed, and leaved.

Paul had arrived. He had retraced his steps without too much trouble, and while he saw two or three of those uniformed kids of the hallways, they all gave him a wide berth, so it was all right, am he hadn´t be sure if he could find Louise´s room, but he saw a plaque with her name on a door, so even that had been needless worry. He thought about knocking first, just in case she had waked up on her own, but he didn´t think she could have sprout a sense of decency in the time he had been gone, so he just opened the door, entered and closed it behind him. He could see her head poking out of the mattress, and noticed she wasn´t moving, so he walked to her bedside and looked down at her.

"Master, is time to wake up." She stirred beneath the mattress, but nothing more. "Wake up, Master!"

She grumbled cutely, and turned around in her sleep. If they hadn´t talked last night, he could have thought she was pulling its leg. Paul carefully considered its options, grabbed her by the shoulder and shook her.

"Wake up, Master! Master, Master, Master!" She slowly opened its eyes and yawned.

"Oh, is already morning." She said, clearly but not loud, and stood up on the bed. "The uniform is on the closet, familiar."

Rather than complain, he obeyed, opened the closet, took the pieces of the uniform and the shoes one by one in his arms, went back to her and put the clothes on the bed. He helped her out of her nightgown, put the shirt on her and buttoned it, then put the skirt around her waist, trying not to look but looking all the same, zipped it up, put the shoes on her feet, wrapped the mantle around her neck and tied the nook. She went towards the door, and even thought Paul wanted to ask where she was going and what he was supposed to do he though better off it and followed behind her as she left the room without even acknowledging him.

A tall, tanned girl with the top two buttons of her shirt unbuttoned got in their way in the middle of the hallway. Rather that wonder what she wanted, he only wondered if decency was not in their dictionary. She grinned.

"Good morning, Louise." She said, chirpily, and Louise stopped, frowning.

"Good morning, Kirche."

"So that is your familiar, eh?" Paul clenched its fits.

"Yes."

"Ah, it's so like you to summon a commoner with 'Summon Servant'. What else to expect from Louise the Zero?"

Louise crossed her arms at her chest, and gave no other reaction, but he knew she was near her breaking point.

"Really, if you're going to have a familiar, it should be a good one, like this. Flame!" A thing came out to her side for a half opened door, red with bright yellow eyes, teeth that looked too sharp and a tail in flames. Paul took a step back. He could feel the heat, light but still there, so he couldn´t just hand wave the impossibility away. A bolt of horror ripped his away into his heart, remembering last night´s conversation with Louise, her explanation, and then he shoved the possibility away. It had some kind of explanation, just one he didn´t know.

"A salamander." Louise stated, bitterly.

"That's right! But Flame is special even among salamanders. A flame this vivid and large means he is from the Fire Dragon Mountains. Collectors can't even put a price on then!"

"Nice." She drawled out, and Paul could just about hear her teeth chattering. He had do to something or she was going to lose it, really lose it, and good knows who she could take it out off, so he found its mouth moving nearly without realizing it:

"I could kill him." Both women looked towards him-Kirche with her eyes bulged, and Louise expressionless. "All it takes is sitting on him and choking him; hell, dropping something heavy on him could squash him like a bug. Even if I can´t take him by surprise this thing can´t possibly breathe fire as long or as well as dragons, so evading could be simple and while his teeth are sharp by the time he could bite me I could already have my arms around its throat. So even if you are so childish as to brag so blatantly, at least do it with reason. This thing is just another animal."

Kirche huffed, and laughed haughtily, but it was plain to see that is stupid mouth running session had shaken her.

"I guess the Zero´s familiar couldn´t be expected to understand. I'll be off now." She turned away, and disappeared past the next corner. They stood there, in silence, for a moment. Then:

"Familiar?"

"What do you want, Master?"

"Thank you. Don't get any ideas, is not like I can´t defend myself, but you did like a Familiar is supposed to do, at that deserves a reward. So, good work."

"Thank you, Master."

"Don't mention it." She said and started walking. Paul followed behind her.

Paul wanted to take note of the route for the time he was confident enough to try an escape, but every marble hallway with the rows off doors started blending into each other by the first few minutes. For him, they may as well have been walking in circles until they passed a door to a courtyard, so green it was nearly blinding. There were teenagers sitting on chairs, with those beasts at their side or on their laps, with maids and butlers going back and forth the desks without a care. The whole field was encapsulated in dark, tall walks of stone, like it was some kind of castle-at maybe it was. Could he just simply sneak off in the night and walk through the door? It didn´t seem likely.

"Familiar." Paul nearly jumped, and turned towards her. "What were you staring at?"

"Ah, sorry, master. It just… this place is so beautiful I got distracted." He bit his lip, embarrassed to even have said such a thing, but it was the first thing which was not the truth that had passed through his mind.

"I suppose your awe is understandable, so I forgive you." She said, and nodded. Paul couldn´t help but stare, incredulous she actually took such a cheesy thing in stride. "But don´t do it again. Being easily distracted is unbecoming of a familiar."

"Yes, master. I am sorry." He gratefully said, at that was what he hated most of all-on the top of everything else, of taking him away for his life, she made him grateful to these scraps of kindness. But he had to remember: he was a bird in her cage, just a bird in her cage and no more than that.

She leaded him away for the courtyard, and to what could only be a dining hall, with large tables and plates full off food, and one of those ancient lamps hanging for the ceiling. It was packed to the brim, at that made him nervous but he followed anyway. Louise stopped near next to an empty chair, and even thought it took it a moment to realize why she wasn´t sitting down, he did. He pulled the chair out for her, and she sat down. Looking down at all that food made his stomach turn.

"Uh, master?"

"Yes?"

"Can I eat?"

"There's a bowl next to my seat, for you." Paul looked down. There was a bowl on the floor, next to the seat, where a few scraps of meat and floated in thin soup at hard looking bread on the edge. He sat down cross legged, in front of the bowl, trying not to think too much about it or if even was healthy. Food was food. "You can have this, too."

Paul looked at her. She was holding at plate full of food, which she placed near his bowl.

"You behave like a familiar should, so you deserved this."

"Ah. Thank you, master." He didn´t know what else to say.

"Think nothing of it, familiar." She replied, and turned to eat. There was some kind of prayer, about a Founder Brimir and the Queen, but Paul didn´t pay much attention to it. He didn´t really want to find out of the soup tasted, so he started with the plate, taking a piece of roasted chicken first. He had to pelt it off with his teeth, but aside for that it all right. Soon enough he finished the plate, at turned towards the dingy bowl. He raised the bowl to his lips, seeing the brownish soup and the meat and drinking it anyway. It tasted horrible. He took the bread, and bit into it, nearly shattering its teeth and it wasn´t any better on the way down. He had too discreetly hit his chest more than once to not choke on the fucking bread.

When Louise stood up, he followed her out of the dining hall. She stopped, and he stopped with her.

"Due to the Springtime Familiar Summoning, there are no classes today. You can consider this your free time, thought if I need you I am going to call on you. I'll be in my room."

"I understand, master." She nodded, and walked away.

He had wandered through the courtyard since she had left, not really doing anything but looking for chances to escape. Unfortunately he could see a lot of trees, which indicated a forest, which indicated that he was probably at a big distance for the nearest city, so he didn't fell brave enough to run, leaving aside that the main entrance was indeed locked. He felt vaguely sick soon after, and he had to stop, so he leaned against the nearest wall, hand am its chest.

I won't throw up... won't throw up... won't throw up, Paul thought urgently, almost maddeningly. He didn´t think he could puke, but he felt vaguely sick and he didn´t want to take any chances. Food was food, even the food on that bowl, and Louise could probably take him puking as an offense, because who else but her had made sure the food was there? So he held it all down. When the thought began to lose its urgency, he separated for the wall. He didn´t fell that good, but he was not trembling or anything like that either. He could deal with this, all right. Paul walked away. Soon after, he heard raised voices, and stopped to listen.

"You said I was-"

"Please listen to me, is all-"

"I didn't do anything-"

"-Is the maid´s fault."

"-Please."

It was not much, but enough to know it was an argument. Perhaps it was better if he walked in another direction, just in case, but he soon set that idea aside. It seemed childish worrying, mostly. He could just walk in there and pretend he wasn´t seeing anything. No need to worry. He turned the next corner.

Paul froze.

It was the maid off this morning, cowered and looking at the ground while a two girls and a blonde boy argued between themselves. The boy was waving some kind of package around, pointing at the maid.

"It's all a misunderstanding-"

"You told me you wanted my soufflé, that…-"

"I accompanied her on a trip to La Rochelle and nothing more."

"What?"

"I could never betray you, Montmorency. I love you."

"Shut up, you are just a liar!" Montmorency sneered, at stormed off.

"Sir Guiche, how could do that to me?" The other girl said, and covered her head with her hands.

"No, Kathie listen to me. Is not…" Guiche said with a suave tone, reaching towards her with his hands, but she just ran away, sobbing. He watched her go, stunned, and then turned towards the maid, eyes bulging and red faced. "It's your fucking fault!"

The maid nearly jumped, but nothing else. Paul didn´t like that, she was the only one to treat him like a real human being, but he couldn´t really help her and it was not like anything serious could happen. Surely, the faculty could break it up if anything even got started.

"I am sorry." She said, clearly but not loud. "I am sorry…"

Then Guiche punched her in the face, and she fell to the ground, a hand on red cheek. She closed her eyes, and shook quietly, while he loomed over, his expression twisted in rage. The kids on the other tables turned to look, and suddenly this part of the courtyard was in silence.

"What the hell, Guiche?" Someone shouted, but it was lost in the commotion.

"I am sorry, I am sorry…"

"If you had kept your mouth shut, like a commoner should, this couldn´t have happened!"

"I am sorry, I am sorry…"

"Shut up!" He screamed, and kicked her in the stomach. She cried out, doubled over and started sobbing. Paul ran towards them, trying not to think about what he was doing and what could happen, just concentrate in getting there because this was too much. "Just shut up! Is your fault anyway, you maid. "

Guiche pulled his leg back again then, but he hesitated for a second when he heard him coming, so he reached him in time to grab him by the shoulders, steep on his foot, and thrown him away for her. He crashed against the table, throwing all to the ground and breaking it in half. He watched him for a moment, lying on the broken table among pieces of glass, stunned, while the people around him screamed, frozen or backed away. He didn´t mean for it to happen.

He shook himself out of his stupor, knelled in front of the maid and placed what he hoped was a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"Are you okay?" Paul whispered, rather lamely. She looked at him nearly gaping, her every twitch making painfully clear that she was hurt, but gave no other response. "I-is going to be okay."

He carefully helped her stand up, making sure she was in the least amount of pain possibly but all too aware that Guiche didn´t hit her much but sure as hell hit her good.

"Commoner." Paul turned to look as Guiche pick himself up the wreck, its white shirt torn up and drenched with something that could be coffee. "How dare you! I k…I-I challenge you to a duel."

"Fine, whatever you want." He answered without a shaking voice, because such a thing didn´t matter anymore; he was already fucked. "Just leave her alone."

"Make some space!" Guiche screamed, at the others kinds stepped back, making a circle around them, and then he put a hand at his pocket. Paul tensed up, thinking it was gun but when he took it out it was only an artificially looking rose. While he incredulously looked at him, Guiche waved the rose around, singing in a language he didn't´ understand. He shook himself out of his stupor, and prepared to charge him to the ground before he could really star doing anything.

"Stop!" Paul froze. It was Louise voice. He followed her voice, and saw her making her way through the crowd. "Just stop!"

The singing stopped, and he fell the ground stir beneath his feet. He somehow managed to maintain is balance until the shaking stopped.

"No, Guiche! Stop already!" Paul turned to see whatever the hell he was doing right now, at froze. A woman in armor wielding a lance appeared out of the earth, and stood in front of Guiche. Just like that, like it was even possible. When he tried to deal with what was in front of his eyes, the thing moved and before he could think how to react he felt a hot, sharp pain in his stomach, and fell backwards tasting blood. When he hit the ground he was only barely aware of the screams and spitting out blood, while he tried to get back up and run or anything at all. He saw stockings, a short skirt and felt soft hands hold his face.

"S-stop already, y-you are bleeding, can´t you see you are bleeding?" He managed to sit up, somehow, supporting himself with a hand against her shoulder and another in the ground.

"Stand away, Zero."

"S-shut up, he had enough." Paul saw the blur that had become that armored woman approaching. "Listen to me!"

"Just this is not going to cut it. Stand back." Paul pushed Louise away, or at least tried to, but she barely even moved. Its forced was going with his life. Such thought that was, really.

"No!"

"You have not right to interfere in a duel, so stand back." Paul whipped the blood for his lips with the back of his hand.

"T-this is on you, not me." He said, and smiled shakily. The blur stopped suddenly, and trusted her hand out, driving the spear into his chest and through the other side. Paul looked down as in a daze, and saw the spear in his chest, coated with blood, vaguely aware of Louise´s scream and the scrambling of the crowd. He felt on its side, numb, while the blood polled on the ground.

"Someone get a healer!"

"How could you-"

"I didn´t mean to, I didn´t mean-"

"I-it was a-already over, y-you bastard, i-it was already over."

"-to, I didn´t mean to, I didn't mean to."

Paul raised his hands and grasped the handle of the spear, blood and at all, and its mind cleared, the pain stopped and he felt like he could stand up. He pulled the spear back slowly, without making a sound, and stood up. Louise looked up at him, misty eyed, as he swung the spear towards the armored woman and took her head clean off. It fell to the grass, rebounded and stopped against a tree. The rest of the body shattered against the ground. Guiche looked towards him, rose shaking him its hand. Pual went towards him.

"Stay back!" Guiche stretched, waved his rose around and petals fell, becoming identical armored woman when they hit the ground. One ran towards him and he knocked her aside with his spear, dodged a blow for the second and stabbed her through the chest. Guiche seemed looked in place, despite the obvious terror on its face. When he was close enough to feel his breath, Guiche made to wave his rose but he grabbed his wrist, twisted it and head butted him. Guiche felt to the ground on its back, whimpering and Paul stranded him, raising his spear above his head.

Itskillorbekilledkillorbekilleddon´tthinkabouit

He stabbed Guiche near the heart with all of its strength. He gasped and writhed around, blood spilling for his mouth. He pushed the handle through his chest, and watched as his moves became weak and his eyes glazed over. When Guiche stopped moving, he tore the spear for his chest.

"Kill or be killed." Paul muttered while the spear shook him his grip and the pain slowly returned. The spear slipped between is fingers, and he fell to the side, breathing heavily. His eyes rolled back into his head.