Fate took great pleasure in dressing her girlfriend that morning. They had taken their shower together after breakfast, ostensibly to save water and time, but the resulting play that had happened actually had both being grateful that Nanoha tended to start her mornings at Insane O'Clock.
There was no hiding the hollowness in Nanoha's cheeks, and so Fate had opted to accentuate the woman's eyes instead. The mascara, eyeliner and eye shadow she had applied made large eyes that were already a brilliant blue downright dramatic and arresting. Framed by her high cheekbones and nearly scarlet arching brows, it would take the casual observer more than a passing glance to notice the woman's faint, lingering pallor.
Her gleaming auburn tresses had been pulled up into an extra-high ponytail that included a fringe that had grown out long enough for Fate to tame everything into the tail. Once secured, the rest of her hair had been allowed to tumble down in soft waves to the middle of her back.
To contrast with the fiery highlights, Fate had found a white halter top that left Nanoha's shoulders and back bare, the woman quietly stating that it would not hurt if her new scars were visible. Tucked into a high-waisted pair of navy blue flared pants, the executive appeared to tower in her three inch white high-heels. The tour de force was the white, military-style trench coat with a contoured cut and gold accents that hung down to the woman's calves.
Stepping back to admire her handiwork, Fate ran an admiring nail down the length of her girlfriend's neck, past the hollow and down the valley between slightly heaving breasts. "It is a good thing I don't want to ruin your perfect make-up," she breathed.
"Or else what?" Nanoha husked, dilated blue boring into the blonde's wine-red eyes.
"Do you even have to ask?" Fate murmured archly, throwing a saucy look back over her shoulder to the bed. "I'd find a way for us to have fun, tested or no." That got a hearty belly laugh out of Nanoha, Fate's consistent come-ons proving a continued balm on her nagging self-consciousness over her scars. Glancing over at the suddenly silent blonde, the auburn haired woman was struck by the suspiciously bright eyes staring at her.
Closing the scant distance between them, she cupped Fate's cheek, taking advantage of her heels to study the woman whose lower lip shook slightly from the warmth of Nanoha's touch, "Hey, what's up?" She enquired softly, brow furrowed slightly in concern.
Swallowing, the blonde turned her cheek the littlest bit to press a kiss into the executive's palm. "When… I first checked the memory card in my new camera," she covered the hand over her face with her own, nuzzling the spot she had kissed, a tear escaping to dampen Nanoha's hand, "Pictures I had taken of you before everything happened… I promised myself that I would find a way to see and hear you laugh like that again."
"Oh, Sweetness. The only reason I can laugh at all is because of you, never doubt that." Nanoha brushed her thumb over lips she desperately wanted to kiss, but Fate was right, it would undo all of the blonde's hard work if they did that now. Shrugging out of her trench coat, she took Fate's hand and led her up to the second level, "Your turn to get ready, Princess."
Trusting Nanoha's sensibilities, Fate accepted the red embroidered dress with lace details spread across her collarbone and rising up to wrap closely around her neck. It was an interesting pick but definitely one that was still work-appropriate. The dress ended at her knees, showing off long, shapely calves sculpted from years of running and more recently, daily brisk walks.
Nodding in satisfaction at the crimson sheathe of lace and embroidery, the executive opted for equally deep red lipstick to emphasise the porcelain perfection that was Fate's glacial beauty. The rest of the blonde's make-up was in service to the dress and lipstick, judiciously applied to accentuate the wine-rich red of Fate's eyes that were Nanoha's favourite feature of her girlfriend.
"My song of Fire & Ice," Nanoha had declared with deep satisfaction once she finished tying up the upper half of Fate's blonde tresses, leaving the rest to cascade down the blonde's back and frame the face she adored. This earned her a musical laugh from her breathtaking partner and she grinned. Finding nothing that satisfied her in Fate's remaining clothes, Nanoha went back below and picked out a black, square-shouldered blazer from her own closet to give the blonde's ensemble a business-like punctuation. Throwing it over Fate's shoulders, Nanoha grinned, "All done. We should have a spa day to get our mani and pedi done."
Fate studied herself in Nanoha's full-length mirrors, admiring how the dressiness of the embroidered lace was so easily blunted by the simple addition of the black blazer, "Good idea. Red nails would have gone great with this. Nanoha-chan?"
"Hmm?" The EVP glanced up from her pawing around for the right hair pins for the job at hand. Being called that by Fate was always enough to bring an extra light to the azure eyes now affixed on the captivating blonde.
"Can we get a picture of us together before the bodyguards pick us up?" The blonde found her hatred for pictures disappearing after the few she had taken had proven instrumental in helping her find her way back to Nanoha. If ever her mother succeeded in stealing more of her memories from her, Fate wanted an idiotic and embarrassing amount of pictures and videos to tell the tale of her and Nanoha's love back to herself.
A low chuckle was all the answer Fate needed and she smiled at the woman behind her via the mirror she was using.
The arrival of a party of five to TSAB's Singapore HQ caused a bit of a stir amongst the denizens of the building. Nanoha had taken care to craft a proper narrative for their return to the office - That there had been a serious incident that required Yagami Hayate herself to step in, through no fault of either Operations executives, and it had taken them this long to be deemed fit to return to work. The pure, unvarnished truth, and something very few in TSAB would take at face value without some proper performances to support that claim.
The last thing Nanoha wanted was for share prices to tank from rumours about Operations being on the brink of collapse, especially just before the close of the fourth quarter.
It seemed to be working. Word about the two Operations executives returning had spread like wildfire and there was a distinctive buzz in the normally staid and cold premises.
Sweeping in with Rein, Ginga and Edel in tow, the two executives cut coldly impressive figures as they stood by the reception desk, waiting for their bodyguards to be registered into TSAB's systems as special guests of the company's CEO. For added effect, Nanoha had her left arm in her sling, her military trench coat slung over that shoulder so that just her right arm was in its sleeve.
Neither executive spoke, both opting to quietly catch up on emails on their phone while they waited. The registration process was done in fifteen minutes, ample time for news of their arrival to be cemented as more than a few assistants and admin staff tumbled out of the general use elevators.
Fate fought to keep her face impassive at the silliness of it all. Nanoha had warned her about their high profile positions but this was ridiculous. The blonde did not remember this level of scrutiny even when she was fulfilling official duties back in Midchilda. If one more low level staff appeared on a spurious errand to check reception's scheduled list of guests for the day one more time, the blonde was going to lose it in the worst way - with uncontrollable giggles.
Nanoha seemed to have a sixth sense about Fate's state and moved closer to whisper into the woman's slowly reddening ear, "By the way, Marketing's AVP tried hitting on you before." Fate gave a light cough to hide the laugh of surprise that had threatened to shatter her deliberately icy demeanour.
Unzipping her folio, Fate pulled out the organisational chart Nanoha had made for her all those weeks ago. Nanoha felt a small curl of tenderness tug at her heart to find the silly little thing laminated in thick plastic to better preserve the moment of whimsy that had been the gift she had come up with in return for the pen Fate had given to her.
That pen now sat clipped in the breast pocket of her white trench coat, the blonde having noticed the little detail before Rein had picked them up. The shy smile the blonde had given to Nanoha was something she would treasure always.
Fate tapped on the pair of socks the executive had drawn onto the chart, burgundy gaze bright with amusement, "This guy? Ravi? What are the socks and tea bag about?"
Nanoha's eyes scanned the lobby in a seemingly lazy manner that did not fool Fate in the least; she knew the woman was gauging how far their voices would carry or echo. Deeming it safe, her boss continued, expression cool though her eyes held a certain warmth meant only for Fate, "He tried selling Darjeeling to you one afternoon when you were in the office pantry."
Fate's nose crinkled ever so slightly, "I hate black teas." Nanoha made a mild sound of amusement, "You told him as much. You weren't impressed with his mismatched socks, either."
"...Nanoha, I'm going to outright laugh in his face if I meet him for the first time, again." She warned.
"That's okay," Nanoha answered easily, "He deserves it. He's a buffoon. Good on paper, useless in the saddle."
Fate focussed on not appearing to enjoy Nanoha's pithy observations too much, which saved her from cracking up at the cavalcade of errand boys and girls every middle manager and up had sent to the lobby while the bodyguards got themselves registered. Catching the woman's luminously cat-like eyes, made all the more vivid from the eyeliner Fate had applied for her, the blonde whispered to her in utmost seriousness, "Nanoha, I'm glad I fell that first day."
Slowly absorbing the import of Fate's words, the blonde knew that Nanoha understood exactly what she meant by saying that. Fate did not remember exactly what had happened, only that it was the catalyst through which their friendship had been born. The silent look the executive gave her AVP spoke volumes about how much that chance happenstance meant to her and Fate had to tear her eyes away to avoid dissolving into a puddle of goo right there in the office lobby.
Nodding at the returning guards, Nanoha skillfully hid the utter mush that Fate's statement had turned her into and led the way into the bowels of the beast.
Fate took in the unfamiliar surroundings of the TSAB offices with all the aplomb one would expect from a personage of state used to being a part of diplomatic delegations. It helped that Nanoha was walking beside her, quietly pointing out salient things such as the executive elevators she had access to, which levels the cafeteria and cafes were, and where the restrooms were located.
Arriving outside the section bearing matte gold words indicating they were at the corporate offices for TSAB's Singapore Operations, Nanoha stepped past glass doors that had silently slid open automatically at her approach.
Inside, sat a petite redhead a finger's width shorter than Inoue Agito, her expression set in a frown whilst she ran her blue eyes over her workstation's monitor. Those same eyes flicked up at the executive's entrance, the woman readying a blast at whomever had shown up without an appointment.
Instead, they widened to saucers at the sight of her boss and she leapt up out of her seat. In a flash, she had her arms wrapped around Nanoha's waist, the executive grunting softly in response to the redhead's deceptively strong squeeze.
"Gently," lilting soprano soft, Fate cautioned the obviously overwhelmed woman. A quick glance at the woman's nameplate on her desk informed the blonde that this was Vita, Nanoha's Executive Assistant.
Immediately loosening her grip, Vita looked up, expression apologetic. Bending her rules with regards to personal space for today, Nanoha returned the hug with the arm not in a sling. "Thanks, Fate-san, it's okay; I'm tougher than I look." That gave away Vita's status as one of those who had conspired to bring the couple together to Fate. Aha.
Stepping forward, the blonde offered a hand in greeting, "Miss Vita, I presume?"
Belatedly recalling that the blonde would not remember her time in TSAB, Vita reluctantly released Nanoha to take the AVP's hand, "Er, Vita is fine. Welcome back… Miss Fate?" The redhead looked so uncomfortable that the blonde could not help but take pity on her, "Fate is fine. I apologise for not remembering you."
Nanoha gestured to the three bodyguards that had followed them in, "Rein, Ginga, Edel, this is Vita, my executive assistant. Vita, you know Ginga. Rein heads the agency she works for." Expression foreboding, she added, "I expect at least one of you with Fate-san at all times."
"Nanoha," Vita cut in, "What about you?" To which the EVP blinked, one eyebrow cocked, "What's going to happen to me in my own office, Vita?"
Rein appeared ready to argue, though even she had to allow that the likelihood of anyone attempting an attack from outside of the 42nd floor would be suicidal at best. "A pleasure, Miss Vita. I will station myself here. Ginga and Edel, please continue to be with Fate." Nanoha recognised Rein's orders to be the concession that it was, and dipped her head in acceptance of the stated arrangement.
Now that the little performance for the office was over, Nanoha shrugged out of her long coat with a sigh, revealing the site of the bullet wounds in her shoulder. The E.A. shot Nanoha a vaguely pained look to see those and the sling her arm was still in. "It's better than it looks, I promise." Nanoha reassured the redhead, tugging her arm out of her sling as proof. "I only need it if it starts to ache."
Casting a cool glance over those gathered, Nanoha exhaled, "Vita, please show the others around. I'll be in my office catching up." Departing in a chilly silence constructed entirely for the bodyguards and her E.A.'s benefit, Nanoha escaped into the privacy of her office before she was caught making cow eyes at Fate or something.
The remaining women stared at one another in an uncomfortable silence. "Guess I'll show you guys the pantry. I know I need a fucking big coffee and rum…" Vita muttered. The blonde seemed resigned when she was watching their boss disappear into her office, though her smile of gratitude still held that same shade of warmth Vita recalled from when they had first met. 'Damn, Nanoha…'
Thinking much the same thing, Rein indicated she would remain in the outer office while the rest of the women acclimated themselves to the environment.
A light rap on her door jamb pulled Fate's attention away from the many monitors populating her work desk and she glanced up to find her boss' E.A. standing in her doorway, looking slightly discomforted. What few glimpses that Fate recalled of the short redhead informed her that the woman cared for Nanoha far more than her prickly demeanour let on. That was more than sufficient cause for Fate to view the woman in a very favourable light. Thus, her smile of welcome was genuine even if it was not effusive.
"Vita. Can I help you?"
Sidling in, Vita looked askance at Ginga and Edel and Fate understood the woman's reticence.
"Ginga, Edel, if you could give me a moment? I'll remain seated." The assurance meant for her guards' benefit was sufficient for both to dip their heads and step outside. Closing the door after the exiting guards, Vita sat across from Fate in the chair situated there. Not speaking right away, the shorter woman studied the blonde.
Fate had lost some of what she had gained since joining TSAB, but that was easily remedied to Vita's mind. What worried her was the icy chasm that seemed to exist between her boss and this blonde. "I just wanted to ask how you were doing. Is the apartment to your liking?"
Touched that the woman cared to ask, Fate's eyes warmed, "Just some headaches here and there, nothing a few Tylenols cannot help with. Did you help set up my living area?"
Vita nodded, her careful observation of the blonde unceasing. Inwardly, Fate sweatdropped. If the E.A. kept this up, the blonde could slip at some point and give away the ruse. She reminded herself that eyes were everywhere in this building, and outside of it, too.
"It is beautiful," the blonde said with sincere gratitude.
Shrugging a smidge, the redhead appeared pleased nonetheless, "You mentioned liking the ocean, thought you'd like decor that looked like it."
Seeing how her girlfriend's eyes reminded Fate of the vast beauty of the Aegean sea's depths, it came as absolutely no surprise that her past self had made mention of that to Vita. "The colour scheme is very relaxing," she complimented, "Thank you for watering the plants, too." She gestured to the greenery by the office windows where flourishing leaves reached out towards the sun's rays.
"Small thing," Vita mumbled dismissively, "All I had to do was work with Granscenic. Nothing like what you and…" Her eyes cast slightly to the side, the woman finding difficulty voicing the intense worry she had felt for the two executives.
"I regret the lapse in my memories," Fate said with heartfelt empathy, "I do believe we got along, however. I would like very much if we were to be friends again."
That got a smile out of the petite woman and she nodded, "We used to plot over what to feed Nanoha," she shared with a grin. That was not breaking any rules the executive had set, right? Right.
Liking where this was going, Fate leaned over her desk, crimson eyes sparkling over the rim of her glasses, "Indeed? What does she like to eat?"
The icy AVP's sudden interest in their boss seemed promising, so Vita happily hopped up to move around the desk momentarily. "Excuse me," she said and took over control of Fate's mouse. Navigating to a shared folder, she opened an excel spreadsheet that she had made with previous Fate.
The blonde blinked at the list of dishes recorded in the sheet, complete with various outlets that served each, and a one to five star rating system to indicate what sort of response each dish had garnered from the EVP. Covering her mouth with one hand, she exchanged looks with Vita who appeared quite smug that she had not made any mention about the blonde's friendship with Nanoha, while still illustrating the lengths Fate would go through to keep the busy woman fed.
A vague memory of Nanoha cracking open the cover of various takeout containers at her desk intruded upon Fate's mind's eye, along with the quietly grateful look the woman would send the blonde's way each time. "Hmm, yes, this will do nicely," she mused aloud, much to Vita's delight. Her co-conspirator was back.
That reminded Fate of the time. Blinking, she noted that it was past one in the afternoon. "I don't suppose…"
Vita shook her head, voice wry, "She's still in a call with Granscenic. I was going to remind you to knock off at two with her."
Nodding, Fate gave Vita's hand still on her mouse a pat, "Thank you. I will be sure to make her get her lunch."
Feeling vastly accomplished, Vita gave Fate a big grin and made her way back out. At the return of her bodyguards, Fate greeted them and added, "Please have the bag Nanoha gave you ready. We will be departing shortly." Satisfied with the murmurs of assent she received, Fate set about clearing off her final queued task, she had plans that involved one workaholic girlfriend and a lot of pampering.
The din and squeals of children playing could not be contained by double-glazed soundproof glass panels, and Fate heard the noise long before TSAB's office creche came into view. Exiting into the 2nd floor lift lobby, Fate was struck by the bright and cheery colours that greeted her eyes. Walls depicting grassy meadows and ceilings painted to mimic the bright blue sky gave the area a vast and open feeling and the blonde immediately knew that the entire floor had been dedicated to the well-being of the little people being cared for here.
Just the mere fact that children were being housed on the level closest to the ground floor spoke volumes about how much TSAB valued giving their staff peace of mind when it came to their children's safety. The guards stationed in the lobby area simply reinforced that fact.
Nanoha had led their little entourage to the front desk and identified herself to the sceptical security staff there. She had not bothered pulling her long white trench coat back on, and her arm was once more back in the sling after hours spent typing on the keyboard. This presented a rather odd figure for the serious-looking man with a gleaming bald pate and beetling brows to process.
Fortunately, the retina scan easily confirmed what Nanoha had told him and he immediately straightened to give an awkward half-bow to the Japanese woman. THIS was the White Devil of TSAB? A quick glance told him the blonde who had arrived with the Head of Operations was most certainly the AVP who was frequently brought up with the Head in conversation. At times with contempt or a sneer, but usually with moony eyes, and he understood why, now.
The man was new to the job and had heard rumours about the absent executives, but none had ever mentioned how incredibly striking the EVP was. She certainly looked worse for wear in her sling and a white halter top that did nothing to conceal the jagged scars in her shoulder. But the lean spareness of her frame spoke of adversity overcome, and the eyes she had brought close to the scanner evoked the shimmering depths of the ocean, the deep clarity at once drawing in whilst piercing at the same time.
The ethereal beauty of the blonde AVP came almost as an afterthought though to see the two side by side, he was having trouble deciding which to rest his eyes on. In the end, he settled for some middle ground between the two, even while the second woman came forward voluntarily to have her eye scanned as well. "M-Miss Takamachi, Miss Testarossa, will your companions be entering with you?"
The EVP shook her head, setting the long waves of her auburn hair to dance and glimmer behind her, "We won't be staying long, just dropping some toys off for Haruka-chan." Fate held up a large bag silently and the man nodded, pressing the button to admit the two women past the bullet-proof security doors that incidentally led all entrants through a metal detector corridor.
"Thank you, Mr. Ouyang." Nanoha had picked out the man's name from his clip-on badge earlier when she had approached the desk to identify herself.
The expected beep of protest sounded when the EVP stepped through, though a quick glance to his screen had Ouyang waving the woman through. Fate passed through the same corridor without issue, and with no further ado, the executive led the blonde past what looked like an indoor garden trail complete with live butterflies, to the source of the noise.
A few adults were standing outside an enclosed ball-pit playpen where toddlers were running riot inside, diving in and out of a sea of multi-coloured plastic balls. More adults in uniforms and aprons were scattered amongst the squealing young ones, keeping close watch on the proceedings. Next door to that was a playpen for even younger children, filled with foam-based educational toys and yet more supervising staff. Spying the pair Nanoha had been meaning to meet, the executive approached a female couple that Fate had also spotted.
To Fate, the significance was far greater than simply seeing a couple watching their child at play and eyes of Bordeaux red hid her stare. The two women were obviously employees of the company. They were of similar height of roughly around five foot five, and stood with their arms around one another, indulgent smiles on both their faces. The blonde was in a purple blouse and forest green pantsuit, whilst the purple haired Asian woman had on a full-length A-line floral dress with a square neckline and obvious built-in flap for breastfeeding purposes.
"Suzu-chan, Ali-chan." As one, the women turned in response to the familiar voice and their eyes widened in tandem to find their old friend smiling wryly at them in greeting. "Nano-chan!" Bypassing their friend's widely known ambivalence at having others in her personal space, the couple gave the woman a quick but no less heartfelt hug. The public arena that was the office kept any from being overly effusive, hugs aside, though Nanoha had unbent enough to return the hugs, understanding that her condition had worried the few close friends she did have.
Fate had remained aside, understanding that this was a reunion of sorts. Nanoha was loath to leave the blonde out of the proceedings, no matter that they were keeping their own relationship private for the nonce. Thus, she drew back to introduce the woman without delay, "I'd like to introduce my AVP, Fate Testarossa. Fate-san, this is the EVP of Finance, Tsukimura Suzuka, and her AVP, Alisa Bunnings. They're married and the parents of Haruka-chan."
Suppressing her surprise at how closely the couple worked together, Fate bowed to the two, offering both a cordial smile that hid how excited she was to meet an actual couple that worked in the same department. "A pleasure. I look forward to working with you." A pause, "Haruka-chan?"
Observing the reserved and icy blonde, Suzuka decided she preferred this over the previous AVP's over the top greetings in the past. That one reeked of smarmy insincerity, if only she had pegged onto it earlier. Smiling, she pointed out a toddler with light purple hair giggling and bashing her adult playmate with a squeaky sponge hammer. "They're tiring the wee ones out before it's time for their snack and nap time."
"She walks almost as well as you do, Ali-chan. Maybe even better," Nanoha remarked, earning her a jab in the ribs from the stocky blonde, "Oof, watch it, I just got my cast off." Fate's mouth had opened, about to warn about the executive's still tender torso, but she had quickly closed it once more, reminding herself that they were just colleagues in this scenario. Besides, Nanoha was more than capable of dealing with the Finance executives, it seemed.
Noting Fate's curious glances, Suzuka smiled again, realising the blonde was too polite to pry, "We attended the same schools as kids," she explained. "A-chan and Nano-chan are the sorts who don't know how to convey affection without violence." She cupped her cheek and affected a long-suffering sigh, "They never did grow out of it."
In the process of digging Alisa back in the ribs in retaliation, Nanoha cast Suzuka an affronted glare, "Speak for your wife, she started it."
"Only because you had to open that big mouth of yours." Alisa sniped back, getting another sigh from her wife. "You see what I mean, Fate-san? Utter cave women."
"She says that, but she was the one who had to hit Ali-chan over the head to-mmmph." Suzuka gave Fate a serene smile from where she stood, hand over Nanoha's mouth to halt any further revelations from the executive. Fate recognised the wicked little gleam in her girlfriend's eyes and understood that the woman was trying to pull the blonde ever so slightly into her own circle of friends.
Returning the Finance EVP's smile, Fate simply held out the bag of toys that Nanoha had packed the previous evening. She still felt unreasonably warmed at the auburn haired woman's request that she wear her perfume then hug the soot sprite plush for long moments. Initially confused, Fate had asked why she had to hug only this particular toy.
Accepting the toy back from Fate, Nanoha had buried her face into its Fate-scented softness, "You bought this for me, before… you were taken."
Making a small sound of dismay, Fate gathered both girlfriend and toy into a hug, surrounding both with all of her.
"I couldn't… I got the Yakul plush for you," the woman admitted in a voice raw with the fresh memory of what she had lost, had almost lost for good. "Giving it to you felt as if I was saying a permanent goodbye."
And that was when Fate realised why the toy's fur had felt damp when she had accepted it from the Takamachi heir all those weeks ago. "I wanted something that smelled of Feito-chan, in case…" Her voice hitched and Fate tightened her hold around the woman.
"Nanoha-chan, I wanted to shake you so hard back then. Did you know that I wished you were still in the ICU just so I could visit with you, and spend all day with you? I missed that so much." Wide blue eyes stared at the blonde in utter surprise. "If ever I forget again, I am insisting that you remind me as soon as possible about how much I love you. Any delay is absolutely unacceptable to me, do you hear me?" She did give the woman an emphatic shake this time, exasperated at all the lost time they could have had.
"I… I thought it was for the best. I still worry…"
"I will take that chance," the blonde firmly declared. "I love you too much to care. Just as you loved me too much to care, when g…" Fate swallowed, "When guns were pointed at you."
The form in her arms fell silent, though it had tucked itself more snugly into her arms, the plush falling by the wayside in the process. Eventually, she felt a nod from the head nuzzled into the crook of her neck, "I understand."
Returning to the present, Fate watched the giggling toddler, now playing with Nanoha who had taken off her heels to enter the play-pen. The auburn haired woman had a soft look about her, an indulgent smile constantly tugging at the corners of her mouth while she went through the whole plethora of plush toys with the little girl to see which one the child favoured the most. Haruka's current favourite seemed to be Jiji, the black cat from Kiki's Delivery Service, though that was subject to change with each new toy Nanoha pulled out from the bag.
Knowing she was under intense scrutiny by the Finance executives, Fate simply crossed her arms and took in the scene without giving away the suddenly acute desire for Nanoha to have her own child to play like so with. She knew in her heart of hearts that the Takamachi heir would make an excellent parent. 'One step at a time,' Fate thought to herself. Last night was another move in the right direction. They needed to build on what they had, first.