Hello all :) Thank you very much for the continuous support! I love all of your input and reviews :D They make me write lightning fast :P

On a side-note, do check out: Adventures of Luck Voltia and Marion Thorn by Aleska1492 if you're seeking another interesting OC paired with our favorite mischief-maker :D

I present to you

Chapter 15: Tender insides

Luck came to what he had begun calling his home in the past months, which he honestly considered more of a home than his mother's house gained through blood money, exhausted, bleeding and wanting only to dive headfirst into his comfortable bed. He'd purchased that thing with his first pay, after all, and it had been a day to remember. Magna, Nova and him had gone from one mattress to the other at the shop, lying down on each and testing it out. In the end, he'd chosen the one he'd liked the best, the softest of the bunch, despite both Magna and Nova arguing for a firmer one. The former had said something about being uncomfortable sleeping in a bed that seemed to want to smother him at all times, while the latter had kept mumbling about how firmer mattress was better for the back in the long run. Still, Luck didn't regret his decision. He enjoyed the embrace of his bed and he didn't really have any issues with his back.

However, his dreams of a soft mattress were ruined by the snippet of conversation he caught between Vanessa and Captain Yami.

"I'm surprised that she came here," the witch said, tilting her head to the side. "Doesn't she feel safe enough to talk to her team about it?"

"I think it was a subconscious decision," Yami replied. "She looked so lost when she saw it was me at the door."

"You weren't mean to Nova, were you Captain?" Vanessa asked as Luck walked over to the bar, pushing himself onto a stool.

"Not at all, gave the kid some advice, too," the man laughed, letting out a long puff of smoke from his lungs. "Nightmares are a bitch for all of us. But, for us, it's in the job description. Healers shouldn't be put in such situations."

"Did something happen to Nova?" Luck asked, making them both turn and finally notice him. Yami seemed to think for a moment, and then replied.

"The last mission she was on has been taking a toll on her," he said tentatively, as if not wanting to give away too much. Luck appreciated his respect of keeping Nova's confidence, but he despised it a bit at that moment. "She couldn't sleep and sought you and Magna out."

"How come?" Luck tilted his head, not really comprehending.

"You're her friends, aren't you?" Yami raised an eyebrow.

"No, we are, but how come a mission was troubling her?" he asked again. Nova had told him that he had to communicate his confusion clearly. That way, he would receive answers. So far, it had worked rather well, so he employed it yet again.

"Not all of us are freaks like you," Yami sighed. Vanessa shook her head, turning to face Luck fully.

"I'm sure you've noticed already, Luck, but Nova isn't really suited for battle," the witch told him. "The missions we get sent on, sometimes they stay to haunt us."

"How come?" Luck asked again. "She wanted to be a Magic Knight, didn't she? How come she can't take it? What's so scary about a fight?"

"It's not the fight that scares her, I think," Yami said, twirling his drink in his cup. "It's the before and the after. The fear and anticipation and the relief that she's alive and someone else isn't. For a healer, taking a life or harming a human being, it isn't the first thought that comes to their mind." Luck stayed silent for a moment, thinking.

"Aren't healers supposed to have protection on missions?" he finally asked. "I went with her as her bodyguard last time. Surely she had someone guarding her back this time, too." Yami sighed.

"Do you feel safe when you go on a mission with Magna? When he's the one guarding your back?" the Captain asked patiently.

"Not really, I prefer to guard my own back," Luck shrugged.

"Urgh," Yami exclaimed, throwing his hands up, gesturing that he was done with the conversation going in loops and making Vanessa laugh.

"Let's put it this way," she smiled at Luck. "Would you rather have Magna or someone from the Silver Eagles guarding your back on a mission?" Luck grinned wide and opened his mouth, and Vanessa hastily added. "Not to start a fight to the death with them, but to actually help you if there's need for that."

"Well, I don't think I'd need any help," Luck frowned but noticed the disgruntled expression on the woman's face, "-but if I did, I'd rather have Magna with me."

"Nova had someone from another Squad, someone she didn't know and likely didn't trust, and it's highly possible that they didn't do their job all that well. Does that make it easier for you to understand?" Vanessa asked. Luck stayed quiet and then slowly nodded. He didn't see the triumphant look the witch gave their Captain.

"I'm gonna go get these wounds checked out," the teen told them, slipping off the stool and turning back the way whence he came.

"Have fun!" Vanessa giggled at his back.

"You do know that there are such things as platonic friendships, right?" Luck heard Yami ask, but didn't pay it much thought. He had another battle ahead of him. By the looks of it, and the depth of his understanding of it, it wouldn't be an easy or a fun one.

Luck opened the door to the Tower like it was his birth-given right, with a slam of his foot to the heavy, thick wood, as always. Immediately after he poked his head in, grin ever-present on his face, he noticed the stink-eye of almost everyone in the room. He recognized the woman that was Nova's supervisor, Maria or something, and noted the couple of Knights in white robes with silver details on them, sitting patiently, waiting to be treated.

"Good afternoon!" Luck greeted, on one hand because Nova had warned him to be polite, on the other just to see those frowns deepen in the anticipation of mischief that would undoubtedly ensue. He heard someone whisper 'Cheery Berserker' and his grin grew. He knew that they called him many names across Squads. That was, after all, part of the reason why he'd allowed himself to let a little bit loose during the Exam. A reputation was a valuable thing and Luck's was up there with the rest of the Bulls'. Luck the Battle Maniac, Cheery Berserker, Crazy Luck, he'd heard it all. The thought of those titles brought a smile to his face, as almost always they meant a new fight on the horizon. But, Luck was on a mission. He squashed the need to challenge each and every person in the room in favor of it. He'd muse later on about the realization that, at some point, Nova had taken precedence over his battle record.

"Voltia," the healer addressed him through tightly pressed lips. "Take a seat, I'll be with you in a minute."

"No need," Luck brushed her off and bounded over to the door of the back room. "I have a personal healer." Before the woman could object, he kicked that door open, too, relishing in the startled faces of Nova and her other supervisor, a man. "Nova, Walt," he nodded to each and walked over to the girl casually, but with purpose.

"My name's Will."

"Oh for Wizard King's sake, what have you done to yourself?" Nova tried to catch him by his arms and get his tunic off, but Luck simply caught her wrists and pulled her up and off the chair she'd been sitting on. The disgruntled man grumbled something, but didn't try to stop the Bull who pulled his trainee out of the room.

"I'll have her back in time for supper," the Mage cheerily told the astonished room full of patients and healers, leaving without closing the door behind him.

"Luck, Luck, I have work. I can't leave now. Luck!" Nova struggled to get free of his grip, but he just released one arm so he could pull her wriggling form along easier. "Luck!"

"Rejected," he said to her in an even voice, which made her stop struggling. For a second. He was aware that his actual voice, the deeper version which was reserved for the most serious of battles when he was in full focus, had some kind of an effect on Nova, but he wasn't sure if it was fear or something else. She'd kept insisting that she wasn't afraid of him, so he trusted her on that. At that moment, though, he just wanted her to stop wriggling.

"You can't just go 'rejected' and pull me out of a busy day! This is my livelihood, Luck!" she kept complaining and resumed her struggling. The voice-effect-spell had worn off. At least, the duration of the spell had grown in the past month, Luck noted with a cheery thought.

"Rejected."

"No, no rejection, I need to go back."

"Rejected." Luck dragged her pretty far from the Tower before he activated his lightning boots. He felt her sharp inhale more than heard it, because at the next second, he flung the girl over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes and flew off.

Nova didn't scream. He'd carried Magna like that once, when they were on mission in a dicey situation, and the Fire Mage had almost burst his eardrum screaming at the top of his lungs. But, Nova didn't. Instead, her little fingers grasped his tunic at his back, holding on for dear life in complete and utter silence. Luck wasn't sure if he preferred her lack of reaction or not.

He landed in a small forest clearing after about five minutes, far enough from the Capital to dissuade both Nova from going back on foot and the city guard from dispatching a unit to their location. He let go of the girl. That was when Luck noticed that Nova was trembling all over. It bothered him, but what was done was done.

"Show me your fighting stance," he ordered. Nova looked up at him with glassy eyes and Luck felt a pang of guilt in his stomach. Perhaps, he should've been more polite about his little excursion. "C'mon, Nova, fists up," he directed her, taking her hands and putting them up himself.

"No," the girl tore her wrists free of his hold. "Take me back."

"No."

"Luck."

"Nova."

"I have work."

"This is more important." She huffed and Luck felt his anger spike. Why couldn't she see that he was in the right? Usually, it was her. She was more rational than him. He didn't deny it. Luck had never denied it when someone was better than him. But, this time, he was right.

"Fine, I'll walk back," Nova grumbled and turned around, walking towards the tree line.

"If you're gonna be like that… Fine, I guess," Luck shrugged and summoned his lightning glove. Without hesitation, he fired a mid-size lightning bolt at her wide open back. Nova shrieked and managed to evade at the last second.

"Are you insane?!" she yelled, turning around. Her hair swished, having come loose from its bun during their short flight. Her eyes had a glint of anger in them. For the first time, Luck was struck with the realization that Nova was actually quite beautiful. Like that, angry as hell at him, she was beautiful. Not pretty, but breath-taking. So, he fired another lightning bolt at her. Again, she jumped to evade with a shriek.

"Better get ready," Luck grinned. His blood was pumping just like it usually did in battle and he couldn't help but crouch down, feeling ready to give chase. He wanted to chase the beautiful Nova, but he also wanted to help her. At that moment, those two driving forces collided, seeing as the same action would bring them both to goal and satisfaction. "I'm coming," he announced unapologetically in a singsong voice. Nova's eyes widened as she finally took him seriously. She spun on her heel and ran for the trees.

Luck giggled, the blood rushing to his head overwhelming his sense of reason. His sense of smell became better, his hearing sharpened and he took a deep breath, counting from ten down to zero. Then, he burst forward, leaving a small crater in his wake.

Nova was good at hide-and-seek, he had to give her that. She'd woven left and right through the trees, before covering her tracks or backtracking, only to continue a different route. She hadn't gone straight for the Capital. But, Luck couldn't say that he was a bad seeker, either. He followed the trail of her mana, a gentle, blue wisp of a path, which seemed to dispel like smoke as soon as he touched it. Nova was just ahead. She'd veered to the side in order to evade him.

Luck spotted the ends of her hair vanishing behind a tree and easily launched another bolt at it. A scream was heard, then silence. Then, a yell.

"Are you seriously trying to kill me?!"

"Seriously, seriously," Luck confirmed. "Better get your fighting mood on." He dived towards her, going behind the tree he'd hit, only to find the space empty. "Hmmm…" Luck paused. She'd scampered out of there rather quickly. He sought out her mana trail, only to see it going up. He followed the path of wispy smoke with his eyes, and then, with a warrior cry, Nova landed on him from above. "Ugh!" Air left his lungs as the girl locked her legs around him, sitting on his chest and catching his lightning covered arm.

"You idiot!" A drop of liquid hit his face and he winced instinctively before a hard bonk resounded, pain exploding from Luck's forehead through the rest of his skull. He groaned, opening his eyes to see Nova's face right in front of him. Guilt pooled in his stomach as he saw the state of her. Her nose was red, runny, and her green eyes were almost the color of the treetop above them, full of tears that were freely falling onto his face. "Y-you idiot!" she repeated, in a gut-wrenching sob. "Idiot!" she said again. "Idiot…" her voice cracked and her head fell forward. Despite the pain in his forehead and the suddenly, all the more present, ache of his wounds from the mission, Luck released his spells and grasped the girl in a tight embrace. It was an awkward angle, with her sitting on top of him, and he was painfully aware of the sobs going through her small frame with such force, crying that he'd caused, but he hugged her nonetheless.

They stayed like that for a while, Nova crying, repeating 'idiot' over and over again until her voice ran out, and Luck, bleeding from his wounds, but not giving up on the tight hug. At some point, the sobs stopped and he dared to pat her head gently, something that she often did to him after praising him.

"There you go," Luck said in a soft whisper. "You can do it, too." Nova's head rose from his shoulder, the look on her face a mixture of anger and astonishment, but no expression could mar her beauty. Even with the red nose, or especially with the red nose, she was so beautiful. "Shall we go home?" Luck asked conversationally with a grin, making the anger win.

Nova slapped his chest hard, making him groan. She called him an idiot again, but then saw the pool of blood and her whole demeanor changed.

"Luck," she whispered. "Did I do that?"

"No way," he shook his head. "But your forehead is a weapon to be reckoned with."

"I don't know how you've survived for this long," Nova sighed, getting off of him and pulling his tunic up to examine his wounds.

"Me neither," Luck chuckled.

"We need to get these treated," Nova scolded him, tugging the tunic back down and rising to her shaky feet. She resembled a newborn fawn.

"Okay," he complied, accepting her hand to get up. However, as they headed for the Capital on foot, he didn't let go of her. He rather liked the feeling of her small, warm fingers in his larger hand.

"I was about to alert the city guard!" Will exclaimed as Luck and Nova entered the Tower. The Mage was leaning on the healer at that point, exhaustion and blood loss having caught up to him. "What happened?" the healer asked when he noticed the state of the troublemaker.

"An idiot had idiotic ideas full of idiocy," Nova grumbled, but still gently led Luck to a cot.

"I'd say I told you so, but it seems it's already been pounded in," Will sighed. "I finished the paperwork, so you only have the new entries to Mr. Voltia's chart when you're done with him. I'm going to bed." Will gave a small wave and untied his apron while leaving the room. "Don't stay up too late," he warned Nova.

"Thanks," she grinned at the man, but he only frowned at her obviously red nose from crying. "Sit." Nova left no room for Luck to argue with her. He obeyed without objections. In silence, Nova took off his tunic to access the bleeding gash on his abdomen. With a little help from her OR, she took care of it, before inspecting him for other wounds. She detected mostly surface bruising, which didn't worry her too much. There was some internal bleeding, but it was minimal. Nova decided that it would be best left alone, to be monitored on a daily basis. "You need to come see me tomorrow again."

"Oh?" Luck tilted his head to the side. Then, realizing how that had sounded, Nova blushed around the ears profusely.

"For the wound!" she clarified. "There's a bit of bleeding in your stomach which should stop on its own, but if it doesn't, I'll go in and fix it. N-nothing more."

"Oh," Luck nodded. "And then we can make a date of it."

"D-date?!" Nova was painfully aware of the heat spreading down her neck. She stared incredulously at the young Knight who was busy attempting to put his tunic back on without disturbing his freshly treated wound.

"Yeah," he nodded cool as a cucumber, after his head popped out of the opening of his signature shirt. "Go to the woods and practice some more hide-and-seek." Nova wanted to smack him. Or herself. Of course he wasn't asking her out. Friends. They were friends. Nothing more, nothing less. Then, realization dawned on her.

"No," she firmly told him. "You can't go frolicking in the woods with internal bleeding."

"But we're not gonna frolic," Luck's head tilted again and he frowned. "We're gonna practice. If you don't wanna fight properly, you need to at least be able to run properly. I'll just chase you a bit."

"No," Nova was adamant. "Until that," she pointed at his stomach, "heals, you won't be chasing nobody nowhere."

"Fine," Luck pouted and Nova found herself thinking that it was adorable. She quickly shook her head free of those thoughts. "I'll see if Magna can come chase you. He does like to practice getting some distance on those spells of his," Luck shrugged, then winced. "He needs the practice, to be honest."

"No," Nova sighed, turning away from Luck to fill in his chart. But, that was a mistake. Leaving one's back open to the Cheery Berserker was always a mistake. Nova paid for it immediately, feeling a zap go down her back. She jumped a bit at it, but just glared at the smiling fiend over her shoulder. Don't engage. Never engage. Else, he would never stop. After all, it had worked so far. If her calculations were correct, she was among the people who were zapped about once in two weeks, while those who provided suitable reactions to feed the beast's desire for mayhem were zapped on average ten times a day. She was in the clear. "Do I need to see you home or-"

"I'm fine," Luck hopped off the bed and gave Nova a wave. "See you tomorrow."

"Only for a check-up!"

"Rejected," Luck cackled, leaving the Tower.

By the time Luck got to the base his side was hurting to high heaven. While he knew that he should've just taken a break and rested before heading to see Nova, he couldn't help himself. The girl had easily wormed her way into his heart, leaving him unable to let her wallow in her own troubles, though he didn't really understand them. He tried to, but the emotion of it, the feelings she was experiencing, escaped him. She wasn't the only one, either. Oftentimes, Magna would tell him how he had crossed the line. What did that even mean, to cross the line? Where was the line? What color was it? What was it made out of? Did different people have different lines? Like multicolored satin ribbons they wrapped around themselves in tiny circles, one smaller, one larger, one so close it almost choked them? Where was his line? What was the color of it? Luck didn't know. He'd never thought about such things, despite all of his extensive studies.

So, he went to the person who mostly helped him with all of his curious questions, never taking offense – Nova. She had admitted to him at some point that she was interested in psychology. The study of the human mind, he knew of it well. But, while some concepts described in the numerous books he'd read escaped him, they fit into the puzzle of Nova's mind well. She offered him explanations he would never think of himself.

He'd talked to her about his mother. Luck, he wasn't very good at opening up. Still, Nova managed to pry him wide open like some kind of a clam. The latch was broken and he couldn't shut it again, not with her. She could always see his insides, the tender meat that held all of his meager secrets. And, while being so exposed had bothered Luck before, it didn't in this case. Not with her. Nova didn't prod the soft insides, she never pried, she gently coaxed him to tell her whatever he wanted. And, he found himself wanting to tell her everything.

Luck took a quick shower. The gunk that had built up in his clothes, hair and the sweat and dirt on his skin was a relief to get rid of. Some of it, he'd gotten on his mission. Three days without a shower. He felt like he'd been swimming through a sewer. Another part of it, along with a few leaves and scratches, he'd gotten while chasing Nova through the woods. It was all in order to help her. One helped their friends, after all, Luck knew that much.

Finally clean, freshly bandaged, even though he couldn't do it as neatly as Nova did, Luck slipped into his nightclothes. Then, he crawled into his bed. His stomach rumbled in protest, seeing as he'd forgone dinner, but Luck ignored it. Sleep was already claiming him. He could eat tomorrow.

He took a deep breath and realized that his bed smelled off. But, not the bad kind of off. There was something familiar and welcoming about it. There was a faint scent of medicinal herbs, the kind he always smelled on Nova. A touch of lavender. It was almost overwhelmed by the smell of his clothes detergent, but not fully.

Then, Luck recalled. Yami had said that Nova had come to their base the previous night. She must've slept in his bed. He didn't really mind it. In fact, he didn't mind it at all. He would be happy to sleep in a scent like that every single day for the rest of his life.

Luck turned onto his back, then further, towards the wall, leaving his back open to the room. He hugged one of his large pillows and took a deep breath. The herbs mingled with lavender. Nova had used that pillow, he knew. Her face, red nose and tears in her eyes, popped up in his mind. The hair, all over the place. He could picture it perfectly. He'd caused her tears, but he thought that they were good ones. The cathartic kind. After all, she'd laughed afterwards. His Nova had been so beautiful, like that, finally letting go of her usually perfect composure. Giving him the chance to see her tender insides. Laying in his bed, drifting off, Luck's final conscious thought was whether his little healer would let him see yet another soft side of her, something buried deep within, to reciprocate his own vulnerability when he was with her.

That's all folks!

P.S.: Shout out to all who pointed out my spelling mistakes, you're lifesavers :D I'm gonna roll back and correct them in a few days, tomorrow's my last exam of the month! If you notice anything else, my eagle eyes, let me know, I do appreciate it tons!

Reviews:

Kadienewberg:

Thanks so much for the lovely review!
Indeed, it's quite tricky for Yami to go tossing random people around by the head xD Though, I don't think he'd toss all of his Bulls recklessly, adopted members included :P
No spoilers on if Nova will join the Bulls or not hehehe I'm leaving that one a mystery!
We must be on a similar wavelength! I was planning on doing something rather similar to Nova being a 'imaginary girlfriend' or 'ghost gf' xD I'll do my best to live up to the expectations when the time comes :D I love trolling characters, too, and Asta and Noelle are very troll-able xD
Crimson Lions? Could be… Could be… Or maybe she goes the unusual route and joins Silver Eagle? Hahahaha
Hope you enjoyed the update! Cheers :D

Katsusando:
Hi! Thanks for the review :D Love the dots of utter face-palm energy xD Nova is too rational sometimes for Luck's 'it feels right, leggo' ideas xD
Hope you enjoyed the new chapter!

AmericanNidiot:
Thanks so much for the lovely review!
I bet he is! He already has plans and secret plots, and I don't doubt that Vanessa is involved, too :D
Julius, I reckon he'd be devastated to lose a healer dedicated only to him in favor of a Squad xD But, who knows?
Hope you like the update :D

Obstreperous:
Thanks for the review!
For now, it seems like orthopedics… but are there curses in orthopedics? :P