"When one's desire is fulfilled…"
"...those captured may be saved."
Special Episode 3: A Tale by the Name of Desire
Theresa pinches the bridge of her nose and lets out an exasperated sigh. "Tell me again how this happened." she says, giving the three young boys in front of her a tired look.
"Well," Neil starts.
"We were, uh, hanging around Arkcester," Acro continues.
Kyza nods. "And we found that book in one of the churches…"
Earlier…
"...Why?" Mana asks.
Akane and Veiss cross their arms simultaneously. "They were bothering Emile's old church." Akane says.
"I'm not like, a devout believer or anything, but even I know that's rude." Veiss says.
Akane and Veiss nod in unison.
Mana scratches her head as the three of them look up at Kyza (from Silver Sabelum), Acro (from Phoenix Fire), and Neil (from Aberrant Hydra). With the assistance of Veiss' Black Arms and Akane's chains, the two of them managed to dangle the three boys from one of the many overpasses in Arkcester.
"How did the three of them even meet?" Mana asks. "They're all from different guilds that are located a good distance apart."
Akane shrugs. "Hell if I know." she says.
Veiss yawns disinterestedly, "Who cares?" he asks. "The sooner we got them away from Emile, the sooner he finishes up here and we can get back to Zaflior." Veiss says.
"Speaking of Emile," Mana blinks, a look of realization on her face. "You just said he was in his old church, right?" she asks.
"Yeah, what about it?"
"I just came from there," Mana says with a frown. "The clergy said they hadn't seen him in a while." she reveals.
Akane and Veiss exchange a look. Then they look back up at the three boys, cloth stuffed in their mouths so they can't speak (or scream) as they dangle from the overpass.
Before either of the Phoenix Fire Mages can say anything, a book seemingly falls out of the sky and hits Veiss on the head before bouncing down to the floor.
"Owowowowowowow," Veiss hisses as he rubs his tender head. "Where the hell'd that come from!?" he cries as he and his teammates crowd around the book. Upon closer inspection it looks oddly…clean? It has a strange, almost magical shine to it. Even after falling from wherever it came from, it doesn't have a speck of dust on it.
Strange.
The three young Mages above them start struggling and screaming (trying to at least) against their bindings.
An odd feeling washes over the older three Mages as they wordlessly stare at the book.
"You said they were in the church…" Mana starts, thinking.
"And you said Emile disappeared…" Akane continues.
"...There's no way." Veiss says. "It's just a book."
The three of them look up at the boys again, panicked looks on their little faces. Then they look back down at the book.
…
…
…
"Emile is in the book." Akane, Mana, and Veiss deadpan.
Mana frowns. "Mary doesn't think we should touch it." she says. "But how else are we supposed to get him out?"
"Maybe we touch it but don't open it?" Veiss suggests.
Akane scoffs as she picks the book up. "Bullshit. How are we supposed to get him out if we don't read it?" she says and turns the book over to read the spine. "'A Tale by the Name of Desire'...?" Akane blinks.
Mana frowns curiously. "'A Tale by the Name of Desire'..." she repeats, looking over Akane's shoulder to gaze at the book.
Akane tenses suddenly and cheeks slowly start to turn red as she stares at the book. "Never mind. He can stay in there. I don't want anything to do with this stupid book." she says quickly and shoves the book against Veiss' chest.
Veiss rolls his eyes as he takes the book. "What? Chicken?" he taunts as he flips the book over, examining it.
Akane grits her teeth. "No." she hisses and explains, "The book probably has some kind of capacity, right? Like it can't suck in that many people? It's small and doesn't feel all that powerful." Akane says. "What if we open it and get sucked into it? When it reaches capacity and someone else - probably those stupid ass kids-" she says and points up at their preteen kidnapees. "-picks up the book, it's probably going to show them whatever our 'hidden desire' is. I don't feel like sharing that information with anyone anytime soon, especially them!" Akane finishes with a huff.
Veiss smirks and neither of the hotheaded Phoenix Fire Mages notice when Mana discreetly takes the book from Veiss. "Oh? Why not? Got some x-rated fantasies you don't want coming to light?" he teases.
Akane bristles. "As if. You know I don't like sharing anything about myself, why would I want to share the deepest desires of my heart to anyone who picks up the damn book-"
"But what if the book reaching its capacity is the only way to get Emile out?" Mana chimes in. "And if it's letting us live out our deepest desires…that's not so bad, right? I mean, I don't know about you guys but this book might be the only way I can fulfill that."
Akane and Veiss both make a face that says that that thought never occurred to them.
Akane stutters as she looks anywhere but her two companions, "W-Well," she scratches her cheek. "I wouldn't - I-I wouldn't say mine is totally unattainable…" Akane says. "...I hope." she adds quietly. When Mana and Veiss don't agree or say anything in response, Akane looks at them in disbelief. "What the hell do the two of you have going on in your heads!?"
Mana smiles innocently. "Just a cheerful reunion with my siblings." she says.
Veiss gives Akane a matching smile. "Nothing bad, just thinking about…stuff." he says.
Before Akane can say anything else, a passerby bumps into Mana and she loses her grip on the book.
Akane's, Veiss', and Mana's eyes widen as she stumbles and the book opens in her hands.
"...Whoops." Mana says awkwardly.
"Shit." Akane swears.
Veiss grits his teeth and turns to glare at the passerby, "HEY! Watch where you're goin' you f-"
He doesn't get to finish his sentence because in the next second, a blinding white light comes out of the pages of the book, envelopes the three Mages, and in the next second, the book is shut and the trio is gone.
The three boys hanging from the overpass watch as the book drops to the ground. The second it does, the Magic keeping them strung up dissipates and they're falling to the ground too.
Now…
Neil cradles his bandaged elbow as he sighs. "And we figured since most of the trapped people are from Phoenix Fire, we should bring the book to you," he says.
"You just didn't want to get into trouble with Master Glinda." Kyza mumbles under his breath as he adjusts the bandages around his head. "And there's the fact that-"
Neil flusters, "You shut your m-!"
Acro interrupts him, "We, uh, tried to bring it to that woman's wife, Sonia, I think," he taps his chin. "But the scary lady didn't want us to get her wife involved." Acro explains.
Theresa sighs for the umpteenth time since the boys arrived. "Just…Just how many people are in this book?" she asks.
Acro holds up his fingers to count as he lists them off, "Emile, Mana, Mary, Akane, Veiss, Seinaru, Yuki, that guy that ambushed us - some Dark Mage I'm guessing…who else?" Acro lists off.
"So many people…" Theresa groans and shakes her head. "You three, wait outside. The book should be at capacity now, I don't feel that much Magic coming from it compared to the way you described before." she says. "I'll see about getting them out."
"B-But what about the Dark Mage?" Neil stutters, worried. "I know you're standing in for Master Nadine so you gotta be pretty strong, but still…"
Theresa gives the young boy a comforting smile. "Don't worry about me." she says and turns to Acro. "Acro, go find Alistair and tell him to join me in here." Theresa says and settles down at her desk. "Okay." she says to herself, feeling a little nervous. "Which one of you brats is up first? Please don't be the Dark Mage…"
-he laughs as he stands upon a heaping pile of rotting corpses. "AHAHAHAHAHA!" the man laughs. "Hurts, doesn't it!? Take THIS! Lightning Devil's Rage!" the man shouts and a blast of purple electricity roars out of his mouth, electrifying and scorching the surrounding area.
The surrounding area full of innocent-
Theresa shuts the book.
Alistair sits beside her. "...Well I'm guessing this guy is the Dark Mage." he says dryly.
"Excellent observation, Alistair." Theresa says, equally as dry. "I've never heard of him before. A Dark Mage with Lightning Devil Slayer Magic? Let's save him for last, we'll get back to him later." she says.
Alistair shrugs and gestures at the book then. "Flip to a new chapter then."
Yuki Whiteclaw dries his hands as he admires his work. "There." he says. "All done! Surely they'll let me back in now?" he asks himself.
All his hard work…cleaning each and every church dedicated to his Lady, the Goddess Soasis. It took him a long, long time - trekking every inch of the country of Zaflior - but he's done it. Yuki Whiteclaw polished every single damn church from top to bottom, every crevice, every column. Everything.
Suddenly, he feels a presence behind him. Yuki turns around to see a young woman with ash blonde hair with a white and cyan creature at her side. Yuki beams, "Well if it isn't the almighty Light Sorceress!" he says. "How ya been? Are you here to deliver my admittance letter?"
The Light Sorceress gives him a warm smile. "Hello, Yuki." she says and her smile turns a bit awkward. "I was, yes, you were correct about that, but on my way here I received word from Master Glinda that our neighboring country, the Pergrande Kingdom, has just adopted the religion of our Lady Soasis and they already have several hundred churches dedicated to Her built." she says.
…
…
…
"N-No big deal," Yuki says. "They want me to clean those up too, right? Easy work, I can get that done in…three years?" he wonders, scratching his head. "Just how big is the Pergrande Kingdom?"
The Light Sorceress gives him another smile. "I'm…not sure…" she says. "But I believe once you finish with this they'll let you back in for sure!" the Light Sorceress says cheerfully.
Yuki nods, a determined look on his face. "Right on right on right on!" he says. "Just another three or so years of lightwork and I'll be back!" Yuki says, determined. "That's my dream…"
In a flash of light, a grown man is suddenly sitting on Theresa's desk.
Yuki blinks, staring at Theresa and Alistair like they're the ones who came out of nowhere. "Huh?"
Alistair wordlessly picks Yuki up and stands him up off of Theresa's desk.
"What's going on?" Yuki asks. "I was in my guild and then I was having such a nice dream…" he wonders and taps his chin. Then he smiles and shrugs. "Oh well. Bye!" Yuki says and skips out of Theresa's office.
Theresa and Alistair exchange a look.
"Let's…let's just move on." Theresa says.
Alistair nods. "Agreed."
Seinaru Fujisaki lets out a strong cry as he swings his katana, dealing the finishing blow to the monster. It crumbles to dust at his feet, Seinaru making a small noise of disgust as some of the remains land on his foot. He shakes it off, "Gross." Seinaru grumbles and turns around.
"Seinaru!"
Seinaru looks up at the sound of his name being called and smiles. "Taiyo." he says. "Are you finished healing everyone over there?" he asks.
Taiyo smiles as he jogs up to Seinaru and gives him two thumbs up. "All done! Now let me get you, your arm is bleeding." he says as he grabs Seinaru's arm. "Jeez, you're so reckless, brother."
Seinaru gives him a small laugh, "But I can afford to be with you at my side, Taiyo. We're a good team." he says.
Taiyo nods. "No one can stand against you, Seinaru. You're strong."
"Not just me. You're strong too, brother." Seinaru says. "Together we're unstoppable. You save the innocent and I take care of the monsters."
Taiyo drops Seinaru's arm, done healing it, and gives his brother a bright smile. "That's my dream, Seinaru. To keep helping people with you, my best friend, at my side." he says.
Seinaru can't quite match the brightness of Taiyo's smile but nonetheless he smiles back. "As long as you're happy, that's my dream too…"
Having learned from earlier with Yuki, Theresa tilts the book away from her desk when it starts to shine again. When the light is gone, Seinaru Fujisaki is standing across from the pair, his usual stoic expression on his face.
Seinaru looks down at his arm, his expression shifting ever so slightly. "...Hm." he says and looks back up at Theresa and Alistair. "Why am I here?"
Alistair nods at the book.
"...I see." Seinaru says. "Can I go, then?"
Theresa nods.
Seinaru gives them a small bow and exits Theresa's office without another word.
"Well he seems like a ray of sunshine." Theresa says sarcastically.
Alistair shrugs. "You get used to it." he says and turns back to the book. "Let's keep going."
"Morrigan! Morrigan, look!"
"I'm looking, damn it! Shut up, you're ruining the moment, Cooley!"
A woman with red hair and a man with dark hair bend down in front of a young girl. She has the woman's hair and the man's eyes.
The woman, Morrigan, smiles. "What've you got there, Mary?"
The girl, Mary, holds up a large, large firearm. She smiles brightly, "A gun!" Mary says cheerfully.
Cooley wipes a happy tear from his eye. "Look at her! She's growing up so fast!" he says. "Our baby girl!"
"And what are you gonna do with that gun?" Morrigan asks, brown eyes gleaming excitedly.
Mary points it behind her parents. "Boom!" she mimes shooting the gun.
Morrigan nods. "That's my good girl!" she says, ruffling Mary's hair.
Behind Mary's parents sits a bound and gagged man with Cooley's face. Sweat and tears are streaming down the doppelgänger's face as he looks between each of the family member's faces.
"Oh sweet Finn," Morrigan says with a scary smile. "You really think we're going to let you go after everything you've done?" she asks. "You tried to kill me and kidnap my daughter. Cooley just found you. We're not letting you go again." Morrigan says in a sickly sweet tone.
Cooley bends down and pats Mary on the shoulder. "Now," he says. "Just like we showed you, okay, Mary? Aim for his knees." Cooley encourages.
Mary nods and takes aim. "Avenge Mama…that's my dream. Boom!"
"NOOOOOOOO!"
"-OOOOOOOM!"
Alistair and Theresa stare as a translucent, oddly familiar looking girl floats out from the book.
Then the girl blinks, confused. She looks down at her hands. Then she looks around, her eyes landing on Alistair and Theresa. That only seems to make her even more confused because she looks back down at her hands. "...Huh?"
Realization suddenly strikes Theresa. "...M-Mary? Is that you?" she asks.
…
…
…
…
"DID THAT MORON DIE!?"
Alistair sighs. "Yep, that's Mary."
"IS SHE DEAD? IS MANA DEAD?" Mary panics. "I DON'T HAVE A PHYSICAL BODY WITHOUT HER, SHE CAN'T BE DEAD! SHIT, MAYBE IT'S BETTER IF SHE IS DEAD! I CAN'T BE SEPARATED FROM HER AT ALL YET - SHE'S NOT READY! THIS ISN'T GOOD THIS ISN'T GOOD THIS ISN'T GOOD!" she cries as she floats around the room in a panic.
"Mary-" Alistair tries.
"IS THAT WHY I WAS HAVING THAT DREAM? I MEAN, I DON'T USUALLY SHARE DREAMS WITH MANA BUT THAT ONE FELT…REAL? OH MY GOD I CAN'T BELIEVE SHE'S DEAD-"
"MARY!" Alistair snaps.
Mary shuts up.
Alistair sighs again, "She's not dead. You're probably just like this because your physical forms were temporarily separated because of this book. Mana's still in it. When we get her out, you two will most likely go back to normal." he explains.
"Oh. Okay." Mary says and floats above Theresa and Alistair. "What even is this thing? I kind of remember what happened but…"
Theresa turns the page, "Just listen. You'll understand."
A younger Veiss Dregliark lets out a booming, villain-like laugh. He has a swaddled newborn baby in one arm and Moonsaw in the other. He grins wildly, several hundred tied up people in robes with the familiar mark of Revenant Beasts adorning their clothes.
"AHAHAHAHA! YOU THOUGHT YOU HAD US!" Veiss laughs. "BUT NO, THE MIGHTY SILVER BLADE HAS OUTDONE YOU FIENDS, AS EXPECTED!" he cheers. Behind him, a man and a woman clap. Veiss gets an excited little look on his face at that.
"A-Are you proud of me?" Veiss asks, turning around to look at the man and the woman.
The woman smiles. "Of course, Veiss." she says. "You're only doing what's right after all. We didn't deserve what happened to us and you didn't deserve what happened to you."
The man nods and gives Veiss a proud nod. "You're doing good work, son. You've become the man we wanted to raise you to be." he says.
One of Veiss' captives cries out and pulls the vengeful boy's attention away from his parents, "Wh-What are you gonna do with us?"
Veiss looks down at them as if that were obvious. "Well, you tried to kill everyone I've ever known so it's only fair I do the same to you, right?" he asks.
The captives start screaming and crying even louder, making Veiss annoyed. He hands the baby in his arms to the pair behind him and approaches his captives, a sadistic, dark twinkle in his eyes. "Revenant Beasts ruined my life. You killed everyone I've ever known, everyone that ever cared about me." Veiss says. "And you twisted Brother into…that." he says, clutching his heart.
"We-We're sorry-"
"Shut up." Veiss snaps. "I'm not done." he says. "When I finally found people that cared about me again, Mana and Mary, you fucked them over too. And then you took them away from me. I mean, really though, what was I expecting?" Veiss laughs darkly. "We haven't found many clues but I know your guild is responsible for the disappearance of Emile's mother and responsible for what happened to Akane's home." he sneers. "You're evil. You deserve what I'm bringing to you."
"P-Please-"
"Shut UP!" Veiss screams, kicking one of the Revenant Beasts Mages in their face. "I'm going to kill you. Every single one of you." he says and starts laughing. "You will know the pain you brought to me and my family. That's my dream. Now die." Veiss says and swings his sword with a mad grin.
Once again, a flash of light comes and Theresa tilts the book away from her desk and Veiss is suddenly standing in her office, the crazy look still on his face and his arm ready to strike.
He freezes when he realizes he's no longer in the same location he was before. Veiss blinks, slowly lowering his arm. "Uh…" he looks up, frowning at the horrified look on Theresa's, Alistair's, and Mary's faces. "What's wrong?" Veiss asks.
"...N-Nothing." Theresa says and clears her throat.
"At least we know he cares…" Mary trails off.
"..." Alistair doesn't say anything.
Veiss looks down at the book on Theresa's desk. He slowly puts two and two together and smiles awkwardly. "Ah. You saw that too?" he asks.
The three of them nod.
"Right…" Veiss trails off. "Wait. Mary?"
"Long story. Shut up and listen." Theresa says, turning back to the book. "There's only three of you left."
Akane Kumiko blinks as she catches herself waving goodbye as a customer leaves her store. "Wha…?" she blinks again, confused. "My store…?" Akane mumbles and looks at her surroundings. Her eyes widen at the sight of the hundreds of stuffed animals lining the multitude of shelves around her. "Wow…" she says in awe as she climbs onto one of the counters to get a better look.
Akane admires the stuffed animals for a few minutes before, "K-Kanny? What are you doing?"
Akane looks down at the sound of that name being called. She narrows her eyes. "Mana?"
Mana looks up at her, confused. "Yes?" she asks.
"What are you doing?"
"Coming back from my lunch break. What are you doing?" Mana shoots back.
Akane frowns as she hops down from the counter. "I-" she pauses. "I don't know, actually. What's happening?" Akane asks.
Mana frowns worriedly. "What do you mean what's happening?" she asks.
("It seems like she's not under the book's spell…" Theresa muses.
Veiss raises an eyebrow. "Nope…" he trails off into a smirk. "I fucking knew Mana would be in her dream. Ha. Stupid Akane.")
"What do you mean 'what do you mean what's happening'?" Akane retorts. "Where are we?" she asks.
Mana's frown deepens. She reaches forward and cups Akane's cheeks. "Are you okay, Kanny?" she asks. "Are you sick? You don't feel warm…" she wonders, putting one of her hands against Akane's forehead.
Akane blushes furiously.
"...Oh, now you're warm-"
"M-Mana!" Akane squeaks and steps out of Mana's reach. "What are you doing?" she hisses, panicked.
Mana tilts her head to the side. "Checking to see if you're sick. I think you are." she says. "Go back upstairs, I'll call your mother to take care of you, okay? And I'll watch the store today too." Mana says with an easy smile.
Akane freezes. "My…mother?" she says in almost a whisper.
"Yes, your mother." Mana says and starts frowning again. "Chiyo is staying in town for a while, remember?"
...
That's completely impossible and that's what makes Akane realize what's happening. 'Her' store, the lack of Phoenix Fire's mark on Mana's hand when she reached up to check her temperature…her mother.
"That damn book…" Akane sighs. Then she realizes something else. "You…" Akane pales. "You're here." she says.
Mana still looks terribly confused. "Yes, I'm back from my lunch break." she says. "As I said. Are you sure you're okay?"
"N-No," she stutters. "I mean, you're here. With me."
Mana frowns once again. "I'm…I'm gonna go get you some medicine." she says and starts walking towards the stairs behind Akane. "Don't go anywhere." Mana says, kisses Akane on the cheek, and heads upstairs.
…
…
…
"Oh." Akane says, her face a dark shade of crimson.
"BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Veiss bursts out laughing. "I FUCKING KNEW IT! STUPID BITCH HAS THE HOTS FOR MANA!"
Mary starts mumbling to herself about questioning Akane's intentions with Mana when she gets out of the book.
Alistair face palms. "What does that matter…?" he says. "At the end of the day, if she can't admit that this…" Alistair gestures nonsensically at the book. "...this toy store or whatever is her deepest desire she's never going to get out of the book."
Veiss grins. "Don't forget about Mana. That's her desire too! AHAHAHAHAHAHA!" he throws himself into another fit of laughter.
Theresa sighs and flips the page. "Let's just check in on someone else, it looks like Akane's going to be a while. Who's next?"
"HAHAHAHAHAHA! TAKE THIS! AND THIS! AHAHAHAHA!"
Theresa shuts the book.
…
…
…
…
…
"That was…graphic." Alistair says, shocked.
Theresa wipes a bead of sweat off her forehead. "Yes…indeed it was." she agrees.
Mary smiles awkwardly. "Yeah…I probably should've warned you guys - she has some pretty violent things in mind when it comes to…them." she says.
Veiss wipes a proud tear from his eye. "Thatta girl, Mana." he says. "Come on! Open the book again, I wanna see where she goes from there!"
Theresa sighs and reluctantly opens the book back up. "Dear Goddess, please make this quick…"
"AHAHAHAHAHAHA! This is so much fun, Mana!"
"Right, Maggie? Oi, come on, Morgan, put your back into it!"
"Shut up, I'm trying my best! Malur isn't kicking that hard either!"
"Hey! Don't be mean! My feet are getting slippery in the blood, tell her, Magnus!"
"Ehehe, it's alright. We can take a break now, anyways. I don't think either of them are getting up anytime soon."
Five children with nearly identical faces stand around two bound bodies that are bloodied and bruised beyond recognition. They're dressed in torn, foreign clothing and their bare feet are covered in blood.
A girl with long blonde hair stretches her arms out, "Gods that was a lot of work."
A girl with short black hair makes a face of disgust as she shakes some blood off of her foot. "Ew."
A boy with shaggy blond hair smiles brightly. "Good work, guys! They'll think twice about ever trying to kidnap children again!" he says proudly.
A boy with cropped black hair doesn't look too convinced. "Yeah…I don't think they'll be thinking ever again." he says. "I'm pretty sure I see some brains on Mana's foot."
A girl with long black hair lets out a boisterous laugh. "This is my dream for sure." she says with a smile. "I'll kill every last one of them with you guys!" she says cheerfully.
The second Mana lands on the floor across from Theresa's desk, Mary disappears, as Alistair predicted.
Mana blinks, staring at the two horrified looks and the proud look from Veiss. "Uh…"
"You want to go on a murder spree with your siblings!" Veiss exclaims cheerfully. "I'm so proud to be your friend!"
Alistair clears his throat as he picks at the collar of his shirt. "While I can certainly relate to those feelings, uh, I've never had such violent fantasies…" he trails off. "Maybe I should take notes…"
Theresa doesn't even bother saying anything. She lets out yet another sigh, flips the page, and continues reading. "Emile can't be that bad…right?" Theresa mumbles to herself.
Mana at least has the decency to look embarrassed. "Sorry." she says with an apologetic smile. "I did say this book might be the only way I can fulfill my deepest desire…"
"Emile!"
No response.
"Em!"
No response.
Jun Kaldo sighs as she walks to the foot of the stairs. "You'll be late again!" she calls.
Still no response.
Jun sighs again and starts to make her way up the stairs. "He's so hopeless…" she says. As she makes it to the upper landing of the stairs, the sound of Emile's snores start to fill her poor ears.
Jun walks over to Emile's room and opens the door, "Em-" she stops when she sees the utter atrocity that is her adopted son's room. "Your room's a mess, as always." Jun shakes her head as she approaches her sleeping son. She puts her hand on Emile's chest, gently shaking him. "Em. Wake up. You'll be late." Jun tries.
No response.
Jun sighs and stands back, putting her hands on her hips. "Honestly, he's like this every morning…" she says to herself and turns to stretch her back. "Aaaah…oh?" Jun blinks, spying a piece of paper poking out of one of Emile's desk drawers. Being the nosy mother she is, Jun pulls it out and looks it over.
It's a graded test!
…
…
…
Jun shakes her head, not surprised. "And your test scores are the same as always too…" she says and looks back at Emile. "The Emile Kaldo who got a fifteen on his math test!"
She says it loud enough to finally wake Emile. He startles, sitting up and looking around, panicked, "Y-Yes!?" And then his eyes land on Jun standing by his bed with a piece of paper in her hands. "Wh-Why're you looking at that without permission!?" Emile cries, reaching forward to snatch it out of Jun's hands.
Jun steps aside just in time and Emile falls forward out of bed, landing on the floor jaw first.
"Are you okay?" Jun asks.
Emile groans, already feeling his chin start to swell up.
Jun smiles and shakes her head. She bends down and hands Emile a piece of paper. "Here."
Emile picks his head up and his eyes widen. "My test…" he pauses. Not his test. "Wait, what's this?" Emile asks.
Jun smiles. "A tutor will be coming over today. I found this interesting flyer." she says. "I already called them."
Are you looking for a tutor? We can train your children to become future world leaders. reads the flyer.
Emile pouts and pushes himself up into a sitting position. "Why do I need a tutor?" he asks.
Jun stands up straight and reads the flyer out loud. "'We can train your children to become future world leaders. Our tutors are young and handsome!'" she says happily. "Plus, they'll teach twenty-four hours a day, free of charge, as long as they get room and board."
Emile isn't impressed. "That sounds like a scam…" he grumbles as his eyes fall towards the wall clock behind his mother. Emile's eyes widen when he sees the time. "It's already this late!?" he cries as he scrambles onto his feet and runs out of his room. He pauses and pokes his head back in to look at Jun, "Anyway, I don't need a tutor!" Emile declares and resumes his run.
Emile runs a bit too fast and can't stop himself as he approaches the stairs.
He falls.
"Ow ow ow ow ow ow ow…" Emile whines when he hits the bottom.
Today's turning into a great day.
"Yo."
Emile jumps at the sound of the unfamiliar voice in his home. "Wha-?" he rolls over, his eyes landing on small, pale boy with shaggy black hair and odd markings on his face.
"Are you Em?" the boy asks.
Emile blinks as he picks himself up and sits down on the floor. He looks down at the boy,, confused. "E-Em…?"
"I'll be instructing you from today on." the boy says.
Emile leans forward, studying the boy, confused. "Uh, what's with this baby?" he wonders. "And who the hell let you inside my house!?"
The boy is unphased by Emile's confusion. "Don't worry, Loser Em." the boy says cooly. "One of your fifty siblings let me in."
Emile blinks and frowns. "Eh? Hey, how do you know my nickname?" he asks.
"Gathering information is all part of the job, Em." the boy answers.
Now Emile's starting to get annoyed. "Oi, stop calling me Em! My name is Emile Kaldo! I don't want a baby like you calling me Em!" he says heatedly.
The boy doesn't miss a beat and slaps Emile across his face.
Ouch. He hits hard.
Emile feels tears welling up in the eye of the side he hit, "What was that for?" he whines.
Just then, Jun comes down the stairs. "Oh?" she says when she notices the stranger in her house. "Who might you be, little fella?"
The boy whips out a card out of nowhere, flashing it at Jun and Emile. "I'm the home tutor, Novem." he finally introduces himself.
…
…
…
"The home tutor…?" Jun repeats.
"...Novem?" Emile repeats.
…
…
…
Jun and Emile burst out laughing.
"HAHAHAHAHA! Don't make me laugh!" Emile says. "You're just a baby! Hahahaha, my stomach hurts-"
Novem roundhouse kicks Emile to the ground.
"M-My face hurts more than my stomach…" Emile groans.
"Are you okay, Em?" Jun asks. A second later, she gasps. "Oh! Hurry up or you'll be late!"
Emile jumps up, panicked. "Th-That's right! I don't have time to waste on this weird baby!"
Minutes later, without breakfast, Emile is running out of his house in his school uniform. "I'm off!" he calls to Jun and starts running. He thinks back to the so-called 'tutor', Novem. "What was with him…?" Emile wonders.
"Actually, I'm a hitman."
"A hitman? Yeah, right…" Emile laughs as he runs.
Then it hits him.
"Wh-What the hell!?" Emile cries, looking up at the weird baby sitting on his head.
Novem gracefully jumps off of Emile's head before he can shake him off. "Em," he starts.
"Weird baby." Emile shoots back and crosses his arms. "What the hell were you doing on my head?"
"I was waiting to get you alone." Novem says. "Are you happy?"
Emile blinks. "What's with the sudden, deep philosophical question?" he asks.
"It's just a question, Em." Novem deadpans. "Are you happy with this life? Your life? Is this your dream?" he asks.
"My dream…?" Emile repeats and starts thinking. "Well, I have a very loving mother who adopts every homeless orphan she sees which means I have a lot of siblings. That means I'm never lonely. I also have my friends at school, Akane, Mana, Veiss, and the others." he lists off. "What else could I want? I have a family, siblings, friends…yeah, I guess you could say this is my dream. I'm happy." Emile nods. "Why do you ask?"
Novem smiles. "That's my dream too. I'm glad." he says. "Loser Em."
"Hey-!"
Once more, in a flash of light, Emile lands on the floor in front of Theresa's desk, Novem on his head like always.
Novem beams. "Hey guys!"
Mana smiles. "That was so…wholesome." she says fondly.
Theresa nods in agreement. "But…really? Emile having the most wholesome desire of a happy family?" she asks out loud.
Emile blinks. "Um…is anyone going to explain what's going on?" he asks. "The last thing I remember before that dream was chasing those brats around Jun's old church…" Emile trails off, thinking.
Alistair crosses his arms. "We've learned that Mana and Veiss are violent freaks with violent fantasies and you and Akane are actually…not terrible."
"...Huh?"
"Never mind that for now." Veiss says, going over to help Emile up. "I'll explain later." he says as he stands Emile up. "Right now, would you and Mana kindly exit the room?"
Emile frowns as he dusts himself off. "I mean…I guess?" he says and looks around. "Where's Akane, by the way?" Emile asks.
"...I'll tell you later."
Mana puts on a matching frown. "What? Why? Is she still in the book? I want to see-"
Veiss shakes his head quickly. "Ooooh no no no no no," he says. "You're definitely not allowed to see. I shouldn't even be seeing but I already have so the damage is done."
Emile sighs. "I don't really get it, but…" he shakes his head. "Come on, Mana."
Once Emile manages to drag a whining Mana out of the room, Veiss, Alistair, and Theresa turn back to the book.
"Alright," Theresa begins. "Let's see if Akane's ready now."
Akane's face burns with embarrassment, confusion, and shyness as she watches Mana handle her store - their store? She's still not sure.
Earlier, Mana came back down the stairs with the medicine in hand, sat Akane down a little ways behind the counter so she could still see, and set to work in the store as if this were all business as usual.
"Seriously…" Akane mumbles, her face burning even hotter whenever Mana glances back at her and shoots her a smile. "Get me out of this damn book…"
"Stupid Nene…" Veiss snickers. "Doesn't know how to get out…ha…"
Theresa sighs. "She's still not ready." she says.
"What about the Devil Slayer?" Alistair says. "Let's check back in on him."
Veiss' draw drops as he looks between Theresa and Alistair. "...Devil Slayer!?"
"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! TAKE THIS! LIGHTNING-"
Theresa shuts the book. "Maybe we should focus on Akane and let this man out when we're in the company of Rune Knights." she says.
"Agreed." Alistair says.
Veiss clears his throat as he adjusts the bandages around his arms. "A-Agreed."
PF x AH x SS
A/N yes
i wrote most of this during three 2am sessions so
hopefully you like it
this is not the last you've seen of this hidden desires book
i'll love u forever if you can tell me where i got the idea from
the next update won't technically be an update but it is needed methinks and it will be long so
look out for that
xx
merri chrimas