Chapter 3:
As the bells around the city prepared to strike the hour of midnight, the Basilicom of Lastation finally became a quiet haven for all within. Once bustling for over a week in preparation for the grand party, the maids and the workers finally gave a sigh of relief, as the final night before the festivities dawned upon them. All the decorations, all the bells and whistles, all the necessary requirements were set up and met for the big day; everything was done on schedule. Heck, the only thing left to do was to actually cook everything, and with the exception of those odd meals that took nearly 24 hours to make, that can all wait for tomorrow.
With that, nearly an half-hour was left for the 23rd, ready to successfully transition into the eve of Christmas. Kei Jinguji, honorable Oracle of Lastation, bid the workers a save journey as they left the premises, and the maids soon departed to their respected rooms as well. As the lights brightened the rooms of the otherwise drab head-building, Kei herself decided to move towards her chambers as well, everything that needed be done being done.
Uni was already asleep by this point, so as the Oracle departed to her own rest, the only one left awake was none other than the CPU of Lastation herself, Lady Noire. Unlike everyone else, for the majority of the day, the Goddess found herself locked away in her own private room, staring towards her mirror with a frustrated look plastered all over that adorable face of hers. Normally, on an occasion such as this, the lady of the house would find herself helping out with the decorations of at least the Main Hall. It was only the kind thing to do.
Unfortunately, she found herself at odds with, well, herself. You see, many within her nation knew of her existence, and have even occasionally gotten a glimpse of her in public, though most of the time it was for simplistic or normal reasons such as speeches or nationwide alerts (there were those days were they dressed as idols. No one had the faintest clue behind the reasoning, but everyone soon determined that a reason wasn't necessary). Thanks to her constant exploits in saving the world or saving her nation from crumbling, many have inadvertently discovered how she acted, much to her chagrin. Sure, she was a hero and a very able leader, but hearing her calm demeanor suddenly turn all tsundere was just too adorable for some souls out there.
But no one, with the exception of her Oracle and Sister and oddly Neptune (Marvelous as well, though I don't know if she exists here), knew of one of her favorite hobbies. When no one was looking, she would occasionally dabble in the fine art of cosplaying. Whether it was dressing up for the sake of doing so, or to attend a convention (her outfit was often the perfect disguise, as no one could identify her) in the honor of whatever was hot that season, she loved the whole idea of being another person.
Of course, most of the fun came from actually making the outfit itself. While most of the dresses she made were simplistic in nature, many required thousands of certain styles to craft, often overlapping in ways that would make modern fashionista's grow irate with perplexion. To her, this was a fun activity, and she would often slave for days on just one dress in order to get it right (she still got her job as a CPU done, but Kei always grew annoyed when she did this).
This liking for the creation of clothing transported itself to actual wears for regular life. Though it was unknown to even her close friends, many assume that her standard fancy dress was of her own design, seeing as how elegant it was. Whatever the case was, though, she still made many of her clothing on her own, always trying to make a design to give off the whole "only does everything" message she often pushes around.
As for the holiday of Christmas, every year Noire devoted nearly a full week of her time to creating an extravagant outfit fit only for Goddesses such as herself. To tell you the truth, while it left the public scene after a day or two, for a little bit her outfit would be the trending topics of the tabloids, because I guess nothing else is worth covering. Given that it gives her a positive image, she would always guarantee something new every time, and each one better than the last.
Forgive me for the tangent, but it all links up to the current situation. You see, she finally finished making the outfit for this year, complete with its Christmas colors and extravagant look. Unfortunately, she appeared to have made a rather huge mistake. Once it was done, she smiled and brought it towards the mirror, holding it in front of her as if to see just how it would look against her body.
Something about it was wrong. Very wrong.
Was it the bust that was just too small for her, well, breasts? Was it the collar that looked too baggy for an elegant girl such as herself? Was it the stitching at a few points that made it look rather haphazard to gawk at? Perhaps it was the height of it, where if she moved her leg a certain way, she might end up revealing far more than she would like? She just couldn't put her finger on it, and that was why, for nearly three hours today, she just stood there staring at it, growing further and further annoyed the more time passed.
"Jeez, what is wrong with this thing? It looked so good under the needle! Ugh, I have no time left! This is seriously getting on my nerves now! Ah!"
She threw the dress onto the bed and covered her eyes, feeling a massive headache creeping up. She just couldn't grasp how after all this work and all the time wasted, she came up short with a dress she still couldn't figure out. After so many years of doing this, how could she fail so tremendously now? It just didn't add up, and that could only serve to make the whole situation far worse. "Oh, it's hopeless! I can't make a new one now! Damn it!"
At last, she fell onto her bed as well, feeling like a little kid giving a tantrum for the ages. In under a day's time, she will have to greet the press, greet her people, greet her official soccer team, greet essentially anyone she somehow invited to this exquisite hoopla; this was going quickly from being the greatest day of the year to the day she will die from embarrassment. Yep, this will be it. The tabloids are going to have a lot of fun with this.
Still, there was nothing she could do. The only thing that came up was that she could always wear a previous year's dress, but she feared that people will begin crying "oh no! She reusing an old dress! Lastation is going through a financial ruin! Oh, the humanity!" That would make everything swell, now wouldn't it? Naturally this all had to occur within the last minute.
Her stomach rumbled as she yelled to herself; after all of this preparation, she realized that she didn't have a single thing to eat since early this morning. "Well, hopefully I can think better full," she decided, a sigh escaping from her lips as she stood up.
She was completely dazzled by the lights and decorations of the halls, brightening up her path as she made her way to the pantry. She witnessed a maid walk by who bowed to her, bidding the CPU a good night's rest. Noire was confused by this, but maybe she worked herself to a state of fatigue; with all of these preparations, she wouldn't be surprised. She yawned as she entered the Main Hall, with the big tree gazing at her every step, its flickering bulbs appearing to match her emotions of rage and frustration.
No one greeted her in the kitchen, which was both a relief and slightly confusing for her. Acknowledging the steady amount of supplies that would be cooked for tomorrow, she decided to not be picky and make something very simple and plain. As she crafted this simple food, she thought to herself just how hard it will be to unravel everything she crafted; it could be possible to fix whatever the hell was wrong with it, but with the time limit she was essentially held down. "Maybe I can just modify an old one. Less time that way...no, that means I'm letting them win." No idea who would win in this case, but whoever it was, she tossed that idea out the window.
She ate the tiny meal she made right at the counter; it was improper, she knew, but her mind was in such shambles that she really didn't care about it right now. When the meal was done, she cleaned up and left back to her room. She noted that aside from the Main Hall, all the lights she saw illuminated down her path were now dark and lost within the shadows. That's odd. They're not supposed to be off until nighttime. Did Uni blow the fuse again? She really has to stop target practicing in the basement!
She plopped down on her bed and looked at the mirror again, though confusion settled quickly as she realized that, if Uni truly did blow a fuse, then all the lights within the Basilicom should've been out. Yet, both the Main Hall and her own room had lights on, so something must have been up. "I guess Kei got a headache. Man, I do to. Maybe I should take something..."
As she said this, her eyes drifted towards the other side of her bed, the one that had the windows facing it. Near where her head would rest was a tiny table, one that had a picture of Uni and Nepgear (it was her favorite picture for whatever reason), a tiny Christmas tree all for herself, and her trusted alarm clock, just in case a maid couldn't get to her in time. It was a simple machine, one that remained sitting there for years. While it still has a shrill sound and was in desperate need of being replaced, it never was wrong; unfortunately it was loud, but never once wrong.
So when she saw that it was almost midnight, her eyes bugged out of her face, with her whole body tensing up. "W-W-When did it get so late? It was 2 just a second ago! Oh n-n-n-n-no, how did I let this happen?"
You see, wearing a dress that could get her humiliated was one thing, and that one thing was pretty hefty, at least to her. However, all of that would be meaningless if she suddenly showed up at the party looking like a wreck thanks to no sleep. A CPU on average needs at least 8 hours of sleep each night in order to look their best (citation needed), and when just one minute is lost from this, well, to Noire it isn't pretty (I highly doubt Vert gets her 8 hours every night, and she turned out okay).
Needless to say, the Goddess didn't care about the dress anymore. She instead turned the light off and pulled the cover over herself, resting her head on the pillow without even trying to untie her hair. "Okay, sleeping in a little tomorrow won't hurt, right? Kei should understand. Ugh, seriously Noire, you got to keep time better. Jeez, stupid dress. I'll...deal with it tomorrow."
With that, Noire went into a peaceful...
Um, okay, now she has entered the realm of sl...
Wait, wait, uh...okay, now she's entered the-
"Ah, I can't sleep!"
She tried for about 10 minutes, but no matter what, for whatever reason her mind refused to calm down. She was a little tired, don't get me wrong, but her mind sure as hell wasn't, as every three seconds yet another thought crept in, forcing her to think about all sorts of things. She thought about Uni, about Neptune, about the supposed planet Neptune, about the Santa Tome, about her dress, about the recent Dogoo outbreak in Leanbox, about her symbolism in the long run...
She sat up quickly, anger evident as she slammed her hands once more over her eyes. "Oh come on! It's the big day tomorrow! Come on, Noire, pass out or something!"
Yet no matter how much she told herself, there was no chance for her in the end. No matter what she did, sleep didn't beckon to her, leaving her alone in this darkened Basilicom, the greatest day of the year just minutes away from existing. If she couldn't get any rest for tomorrow, well, that would just be horrific. She imagined the pictures being taken of her with bags under her eyes, her skin all clammy and paler than usual, with a yawn escaping the lips of her now grumpy-personality. Yeah, that won't win her any shares in the long run.
Especially if, given how some of the newspapers run in all four nations, one of the other Goddesses just happen to stumble upon one of these embarrassing photos; specifically a Goddess with short purple hair with a knack of not allowing anyone to live anything down...
She had to get some sleep, and fast.
"Well great, what do I do, then? Kei and Uni are asleep, I don't want to disturb any of the maids...ugh, this is so stupid! I can go to sleep any other night, but when the next day' important, naturally..." she threw that pillow of hers at the wall and slumped down on the mattress, frustration captivating every part of her. Her eyes trailed towards her unfinished (or incorrect) dress, and steam stormed out of her ears. "I blame you for all this."
Sadly, staring at the ceiling alone in the thick darkness was not enough to fatigue her any further. Knowing that staying in her room at this time would simply be wasting any chance of her getting some sleep, she decided to head out, hopefully finding something that would either expel a lot of energy from her body, or at least bore her enough that she'll be out for over 12 hours. One or the other, she didn't mind.
Silently closing her bedroom key, Noire made her way down the dark hallway, tiptoeing so Kei and Uni were not disturbed; she felt that her little sister should experience this insomnia-induced hell with her, but even she wasn't that cruel to actually wake her up. Tomorrow was just as important to her as it was for the CPU. She kept her feet shuffling so the hardened floor didn't squeak, and alas she found herself at the door that read "Noire's den: Unless it's important, don't bother me when I'm in this room...no, it's because I need to think! It's not like I'm troubled or anything, just let me do my work!" Why it didn't just read "The Den," ask her, not me.
"Well, I guess I still have to finish Falcom's book. Crap, that thing is too interesting! If I read it, I'll be up all night," she pressed her head against the wall, defeat evident in her emotions and pride. She began wondering if there was anything else that needed finishing; she still had to wrap up Uni's present, but that wouldn't take long. She could read one of Kei's novels, but even in her desperate state she wouldn't read one of those. She could take down the lights in there and put them back up again, but that would just be rude. She could read one of Xnobody's new books, but they always kill her in the end; temporary slumber is what she wanted, not eternal.
"Well...maybe if I just sit down, I can think about this. Maybe that will put me to sleep?" her idea was curious, but in the end it just might work. She slowly opened the door and closed it behind her, and with the flick of the light switch, the room became adorned with beautiful blue lights hangin from nearly every corner of the room. She really loved the color blue as much as she loved the color of black, though in a state of lighting, it was best to use the brighter one. Besides, blue has a calming effect that she needed right now.
She slumped down on one of the big couches in the room and looked out towards the window. Being the fancy woman that she is, she grabbed a remote and aimed it at the blinds, and with the click of a button, the fence blocking the view outside went up with a metallic "click," allowing the CPU to witness a rather brutal blizzard occurring right now. "Snow's calming and all...but a blizzard? That's just not fair!"
With a sigh, she began to think, hoping that the thoughts will stabilize and thus allow her to go back to her room and sleep the night away. "All right Noire, just relax and think about tomorrow. Don't let Neptune in, don't let Uni in, don't even let Kei in. Just the party and yourself. That's it. Should be easy enough." She was about to eat those words.
At first, she only thought about how the party was going to go down, and how hopefully it will be far better than last year's (nothing inherently wrong with last year, but you know). Everything was normal then, but eventually she started to drift. It probably began when she thought of the rock band that was about to play, and how she hoped 5pb. Would've accepted her invitation to play this year. Somehow this lead to her thinking about the eventual rise of Dogoos as the dominant race across all of Gamindustri, and how their invasion could began very, very soon. That lead to her wondering how Uni could fare as the eventual leader of Lastation, and if Kei would remain to be her Oracle.
She thought about how rain could potentially be the deadliest force on this planet, which lead to her thinking of how weather in Planeptune was far worse than Lowee somehow. This lead to her wondering if Ram and Rom will ever age, which then lead to her wondering if she will ever age, which lead to her wondering if Kei and Uni ever age, which lead to her wondering what technical "age" of Gamindustri were they in, which lead to her wondering if Histoire was really older than time itself, which lead to her wondering if time will ever end, which lead to her wondering about the eventual fate of the universe around them, which lead to her wondering if the other Gamindustri's will suffer the same fate, which lead to her wondering if the other Noire's were resting on the couches in their den right now to, which lead to her wondering if there was a universe where she was a sheep, which lead to her wondering if one day a war will break out between all universes for Dimensional Supremacy, which lead-
"Goddammit!"
As if to say she hated pillows, she picked up the couch's and threw it at the wall, nearly knocking down a set of lights. "What the hell does it take to get to bed? I swear to, well, myself, I never have this problem any other day. Nope, tonight has to be the bad one. Kinda figures," her voice was filled with anger, but the sounds of defeat were growing more and more by the second. It was essentially midnight at this point, and she still felt as tired as she did when she first tried sleeping.
I have to do something. I would do anything right now! Anything!
As she thought this despairing thought, she looked over at her coat-hangar on the other side of the room, where her jacket and other wintery essentials stood in case she ever needed them. It was located right next to window, where the weather outside would hopefully be no match for their protective powers. Besides the cover for her abdomen, there was also her cap (for the season, it was a santa-tome style one, complete with a furry ball at the top), her boots, that scarf Neptune supposedly knitted herself (it was well-done, making Noire suspicious), and of course the gloves she got last year, courtesy of MAGES.
Why was it necessary to point out all of this? Was she trying to bore herself by thinking of the fashion of the wintery season? Was she just so stupefied by her insomnia that she was going mad?
Well, that last one may be on the mark, for she started to hatch a rather horrible idea. Lastation's CPU is not known for making bad decisions, so when she does make one, it has to be really bad.
"Well, I mean it looks bad out there, but...snow calms me down, I guess," She was seriously thinking about it, no doubt, but she soon slapped herself. "Wait, no. It's a freaking blizzard. How is that calming? To Blanc maybe, but not me! This is crazy, girl! You know it!"
But even while saying it, she was still going to do it; for whatever reason, be it a complete loss of hope or just her mind so fatigued (but not sleepy) that she wasn't thinking straight, she was going to take a walk outside. Her outfit for the outdoors should help her, but we are still talking about heading out into the dark with the wintery weather in full swing. Anyone in their right mind would make sure to stay far away from the streets, instead staying around a fire with their friends and family. She would be in a better condition than Win was, but a Blizzard was still a blizzard; protection only did so much.
"Man, this is so stupid. Like, like Neptune stupid-no, even she wouldn't do this! Gah, I can't believe myself!" The more she spoke to herself, the more it became clear that she was becoming mentally unhinged. The sandman had to find her quick, or else we will have a rather cranky Goddess come morning.
She placed on all of the wear she needed and began to leave the den. She looked left and right, knowing that if anyone tried to stop her, she would never get to walk; honestly, she wanted to be stopped, knowing this was completely stupid, but one side of her wanted to go through with it, so she might as well keep going. That's how it works, right? She just hoped that any frostbite she got wouldn't affect her image in any way; otherwise, the lack of sleep and good dress would be the least of her concerns.
When she turned to the Main Hall, she was astounded by the fact that everything was still brightly lit. The tree was still as bright as the sun itself (well, go with it), and the chandeliers, adorned with thousands upon thousands of unique blends of colors, still brightened the room to a higher degree. Even the garland and branches that hung from the rafters appeared to be bright, with the bulbs, mistletoe, and false snow everywhere complimenting this wintery paradise. Normally, if she was in the right state of mind, she would have loved to stay and gawk at the room's majesty, but she was scared to think that this would keep her up way longer than she would like. "Focus, Noire, focus. Just get outside, walk for a little bit, and come right back." It was still a horrendous idea, but ah, she made it this far. Might as well go all the way.
Before exiting the Basilicom, she looked outside the windows towards the main field, where nothing but the light radiating from the snow and window greeted her. Snow particles fell quickly down to the ground below, with the wind blowing everything around like a chaotic party. Visibility was already horrible at night, but coupled with the whiteout effect and intense winds, she would be lucky to be able to see anything at all.
Doubt was still in her mind, but if it meant going to bed soon, for some reason this was a grand remedy. "Maybe I should make the best of the situation. I know! I'll just, I don't know, head to the park or something. That should still be lit, so I'll be safe, and more importantly, I'll be able to get tired, right? Oh, I better be able to."
With that, she once more silently open and closed the door, entering the wild world with much fear in her eyes. If she just looked behind her, sitting on a chair right around the tree, she would have been able to see Kei Jinguji reading a newspaper to herself. The Oracle was able to get some sleep, and honestly she could pass out right now if she decided to. She was only up, though, to read whatever article captured her interest. When she saw her Lady suddenly disembark on a quest at midnight with a blizzard raging all around them, she wanted to stand up and slap her silly. Unfortunately, she decided against it, knowing that Noire usually knows what she is doing.
But just in case, she got her phone ready to call the Lastation forces, just in case the freaking leader dies out there. Wait, she really wasn't going to try and talk to her? Of course not! You see the weather out there! That would be suicide!
…
She had to admit, the falling snow and fierce wind actually complimented the night well, and aside from freezing to death thanks to this sudden bout of insomnia, the walk was quite the pleasant one.
But still Noire criticized herself for actually going through with this, wrapping her arms around her body as tight as possible as she tried to keep whatever warmth she could find. Even with the scarf wrapped tightly around her neck and lower jaw, she still felt as if it was completely frozen in a block of ice, the top of her head only protected by a flimsy hat, which she struggled to keep on thanks to the wind trying to steal it.
Thanks to the stormy breeze, though the snow fell at a rather strong magnitude, the roads and even the sidewalks were only covered in a dusting, so traveling wasn't so bad. Still, whatever snow fell always managed to cling onto her, and that didn't help any matter whatsoever. "Stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid," she kept whispering to herself like a broken record.
Sadly, her mind was still in shambles, thousands of thoughts of both relevancy and quirky played over and over again, making her grow numb as she tried to ration them all out equally. There were thoughts of how Snowmen came to be, of how reindeer got associated with the holiday, of how strange snow was when you really thought about it, of how the term tsundere came to be, of how-
With these rampant apparitions floating around in her brain, one would wonder why she kept walking, as it was clear that it wasn't helping. Personally, I completely agree with you all, but I think the main reason why she kept going was that, at one point, she thought of Neptune laughing at her, thus making her think this was all a challenge. I am seriously worrying about this tired woman.
She soon made it to her Nation's Capital City, with all the buildings darkened on both the interior and ex. Sans from a few lights here and there, namely the street lamps, everything was pitch black. On a normal day in this city, even when the clock strikes midnight, cars would be driving up and down, nightfolk would be drinking the night away, some creeps would be stalking others for the sake of their own pleasure, and for the normal ones, late-night workers would be either returning home, or going to work.
It wasn't the same this night, and besides the blizzard, one has to wonder why it was like this, for every year right around Christmas time, no one was ever on the streets. Even Noire was confused by it; every other nation was buzzing on all nights of the year. Why wasn't hers?
Well my friends, here is the reason why. You see, the last few days before Christmas are well known for being hectic, at least for markets and such. In the daytime, this was completely accurate in Lastation, as thousands of people ran around everywhere, trying to get everything done at the last minute. However, as soon as the night drew upon the world, it looked as if everything stopped; besides a few stragglers, no one was on the streets at this time. Apparently, everyone thought that at night, the deals would be better, meaning a stampede should be expected. Thus, everyone was so paranoid to go out, that not even a puddle of individuals was made. For Noire that night, it was a blessing to behold.
She walked down a sidewalk, passing by a meatshop with a sign on the door reading "If you don't want your town to be cancer, go on ahead and vote for Dancer" (some political thing or something). In the distance she could see the lights of the park growing closer and closer, and though the cold still brushed its deathly figures around her, she felt just a tad bit warmer acknowledging this. The walk was surprisingly not that bad; the journey back shouldn't be horrible, granted that she actually got tired from all this. She still had no idea what type of mind she had that made her do this, but eh, it appeared to work. She hoped, at least.
But the main problem she was experiencing was that her mind was still racing everywhere, though it was now finding a subject to remain on for a good duration. Unfortunately, the subject was once again on the failure she called her Holiday Dress. The Clock was ringing its midnight bells as she placed her palm on her forehead, feeling a headache draw in; how did this whole dress fiasco even happen? She was always accurate with every measurement, not once ever getting it wrong (Kei taught her well with numbers). Her whole holiday turned into a living hell over this.
As the wind continued to struggle in taking her hat off, she fumed over what others are really going to think; no, not the tabloids or the damn politicians that I guess exist, but her close friends and family. Will Uni laugh at her mistakes? Will Kei simply shake her head and walk away? These were horrible questions that she played back-and-forth, always sounding more sinister the longer she touched on it. Will her guards and maids stifle their laughs? Will the soccer team feel ashamed that they played for a Goddess in that?
Suddenly her mind was filled with the Soccer team.
She walked by a gigantic Santa-Tome Balloon, cautiously looking behind herself at quick intervals, the wind blowing starting to sound like a person following close. "Just ignore it, girl. You're literally right next to the park. Safe there, I hope." As she kept getting increasingly paranoid, she wondered how the Soccer team got into the main focus. Oh well, she thought, It could be worse.
The Soccer team had an annual tradition of going to the party and getting the chance of meeting their CPU. Out of all four nations, Lastation's official team (there were like 50 teams in the nation, but only one national one, or something) was usually ranked near the top, Leanbox following closely behind. They were truly the team that a Goddess would be proud of, and thus not looking her best was a terrible thing to endure.
However, she recently heard that the team was starting to play rather, how do I say it, off. They still won matches, don't get me wrong, but they didn't have the same flare as they did for the rest of the year. Most of the time, whenever they won, it was either an extremely close match with a lot of points, or a curb-stomp battle where the opponent barely had the chance to even reach the goalie. Now though, they barely score, and some matches have literally ended in a victory with only one point to their name. They still won here and there, but the losses started to become apparent, and their victories appear more desperate than ensured.
Noire only had the chance to go to one game, and she noted that when she went the vendors that always tried to get a buck had thousands of items for the fans. One player she noted that had the most merchandise was apparently the newcomer, Win. Apparently people were calling her one of the best up-and-comers in the league, and thanks to her youthful and cheeful demeanor, the kids all loved her, reinvigorating interest in the sport for all ages. She was surprised, though, that even older folk liked her as well, considering that in all other previous encounters, the adults would grow tired of the "Childhood Hero" after awhile.
She thought that all the talk about her was either for publicity only, or was just words from children that love to speak highly of others. However, when she took a seat in the arena where she played that day, Noire saw that the talk was clearly correct. Win was truly relentless on the field, and it looked as if she knew every move the other player was going to make; she only saw one match, but she wouldn't be surprised if Win never passed the ball incomplete. It wasn't only just her skill, though; she saw her positive style towards her teammates, and it appeared that they were all pumped for every play done. Her team was good anyways, but the young soccer girl appeared to make everything better.
So what went wrong? Did Win's charm overstay its welcome, and thus it didn't work anymore? Did she get injured? Maybe they got way too overconfident and started underestimating the enemy; that would make sense, she supposed. She wouldn't be angry at them when they arrived at the party, in case they were afraid of her wrath. If anything, she will still be the proudest CPU in the land.
If only she had a good dress to wear.
At last, she arrived at the park, relieved that all the light was casting on her. She had to admit, the combination of the cold and walk actually made her pretty tired, though she wanted to guarantee that her mind wouldn't started racing again. She took a walk down a snow-covered gravel road, admiring the efforts her citizens made to make this piece of land the best Christmas paradise. The humongous tree in the center, with its bright star shining gold like the season's memories, glowed like a beautiful candle in a beautiful atrium. It made everything better for her, and honestly she stopped worrying about that dress of hers, if only for a little while. She found a park bench to sit on, and she felt herself relax against the freezing hell around her.
"You know, maybe if I just resize the bottom of it, it will look right! Yeah, that's it! No wait, that wouldn't...no, but then the bust wouldn't be right..."
Yeah, when I said for only a little while, I meant about five seconds.
Still, it was nice to unwind after all this time, and even with her worries, she still couldn't help but feel happy for whatever reason. The snow continued to fall along with the wind, but none of that honestly mattered. To tell you the truth, if it wasn't so bright, she may have accidentally fallen asleep right then and there. Yeah, then her dress really would be far down the list of concerns. I'm surprised she didn't look like an ice cube yet!
However, her relaxation soon stopped when she heard a rather hefty commotion on the other side of the tree. "Hm? Who else is out here?"
Begrudgingly she stood up, stretched a little, and began to walk over there, keeping caution at a high level, just in case this person happened to be a criminal. Who would dare desecrate this sacred land? A douchebag, that's who, she thought, a slight smirk appearing on her lips. Still, a douchebag could be a dangerous felon, even during the Holiday season.
She saw a few guards standing around the park, making her wonder how they could let this person go by without a hitch. "Maybe it's just a guard, then. It could be, I hope."
She soon reached the other side, and observed the production set of the Goddesses and the Horsebird; beautiful tale in her mind, though she never stated if it actually happened. She knew that she heard something over here, though nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Maybe it was just the wind, or maybe the guards in the distance just talked really loud. "Jeez Noire, you really got to stop being so para-"
She soon caught sight of what appeared to be an abnormal lump lying next to the still lit fire. "What on Gamindustri?" she remarked, slowly walking towards it. Was it a small hill they accidentally put the set over? If that was the case, then this will certainly be a disaster, no doubt about it. "I'll tell them about it, but something seems off."
Indeed, something was indeed off. For one, the hill looked human. Too human.
"What the hell?"
Hesitantly, thankful that she had a glove on, she touched the lump, and heard a grown that sounded rather weak. Intrigued, she said "sorry" and pushed the lump , turning the apparent body over. When she saw who it was, she nearly jumped in fright.
Right in front of her, appearing to be a frozen mummy, was the star soccer player herself, looking like she was on the brink of death.
"Oh my god...Oh my god..."
She had no idea what to do. Yes, she could yell for a guard to get help, but she was so overcome with shock that she didn't know what to say. How did this happen? This was the star soccer player; she should be lying in a warm bed in a nice house. Did someone, dear lord, put a hit on her that unfortunately worked out? Did she get lost on the way home and accidentally fell asleep? "I...I need to get her to someplace warm..."
The hospital? That would make sense, but in her worried state, she suddenly blurted out the next best thing:
"The Basilicom!"
She scooped up Win-chan, feeling the cold encapsulate her arms. Knowing that carrying her alone would be a bad idea, she looked over to a guard that was still gawking over a really big candy cane. "Hey you! I need help!" The Guard instinctively knew he was being called on (I guess Kei trained them well) and ran up to his lady.
"L-Lady Noire, it's past midnight! Why are you out so late with no prot-"
"That's not the problem right now! Look, this girl is in danger! Help me get her to the Basilicom and fast!"
The guard looked at her; he was a fan of Win-chan, but he didn't recognize her. "Um, okay I guess?" He didn't know why Noire cared for a homeless person this much, but then again, Christmas was coming this way very quickly. He did want to bring up the hospital, but this was Lady Noire we are talking about; he didn't want to sound intrusive.
The two of them made it back to the Basilicom in no time flat. The guard tried to give his jacket to the poor girl, but Noire insisted that she should do it. Of course, this was a very bad idea, but the CPU didn't mind right now. This was the Soccer team's star, and it was in her best interest to keep her warm. Most importantly, though, she needed to keep her alive above all else.
When the two (I guess three of them) stormed into the Basilicom, Noire quickly ran towards the big fireplace at the end of the Main hall, placing Win-chan delicately down upon a blanket. Kei, who was still sitting reading her newspaper, looked on in confusion. She watched as she saw her Goddess yell at the unfortunate guard to get some blankets and fast. "Oh man, do I take the clothes off or leave them on? Crap, what was it? What was it?" She kept yelling to herself, trying desperately to keep Win alive.
At last, she sighed and walked over to Noire, looking at the time intently as she did this. She tapped Noire's cold shoulder, causing the CPU to jump in fright, almost into the fire itself. "K-K-Kei! Um, thank god you're here! Please, Win's in danger, and I need help now! Do I take the clothes off or not? What will help her? Ugh, I can't believe I forgot!"
Kei did feel some concern for the soccer player, but her priorities were always on Noire, and no one else will ever top her. "Milady, go to bed."
Noire looked back at her in disgust. "What did you just say? She's going to die unless we do something, Kei! I can't go to bed now!"
The Oracle sighed again. "I'll look after her. You have to go to bed immediately, Noire."
The Goddess shook her head. How could her very Oracle say stuff like this? "Kei, I can't-"
"Yes you can, Noire. Please, you need some rest. I'll make sure she survives. I know how to do this, okay?"
The CPU looked at Kei rather oddly. Out of all the years she knew her, she never once saw the Oracle in a survival scenario, so how did she...?
Eh, whatever she knew, it was probably more than what Noire did.
Seeing the guard run down the hall, she looked back at Kei with tears in her eyes. "You better be right, Kei! Please, I don't want her to die!"
Ms. Jinguji waved goodbye to her crying CPU. The Guard rushed right by her and looked at the Oracle. "Um, I guess our lady is going to bed? Do you know what to do, because I honestly have no idea."
Kei sighed, and began treating the frozen Win-chan.
Noire soon fell on her bed, trying to wipe the tears off her eyes. She didn't know Win at all, but she still wanted her to live. Noire just wasn't good when it came to innocents dying (then again, no one is), especially when she couldn't do anything to stop it. "Please be okay...please..."
In the end, she finally did find the rest she required, though she departed with two feelings. One, of course, was fear for the fallen Soccer girl, and the second was anger. Why was she angry? Because she was able to fall asleep now when someone's life was in danger.