Once the dust settled after the events at Aurochs Fort the political landscape of Erebonia had changed significantly. The Kreuzen Provincial Army – Badly mauled from the battle and with their leader in chains – had declared a ceasefire and retreated its forces back to the fort, ceding control of Bareahard to the 4th Armored. With Jusis now effectively in charge that meant that the entire province was effectively out of the war.
Given the seismic shifts that had taken place it was unsurprising that the blond noble had requested a day to calm the panicked citizens and ensure everything in his territory was working at a functional level. A day for the rest of them to relax, resupply, and bask in the miserable tears of dejected nobles.
And yet as much as Fie especially wanted to be doing that last one she couldn't because she found herself stuck on the Courageous.
"It wouldn't feel right having all of us disembark while the ship's crew was forced to work. Why don't a couple of us stay behind to help?" At first it sounded like an innocent enough request, but almost immediately she found herself unanimously nominated to help out. It wasn't just her either as both Rean and Laura found themselves in the same boat. Their intent was so obvious.
The quiet girl had occasionally lamented the lack of normal childhood experiences, but having her friends and Sara place her on timeout because of bad behavior was something she could have lived without.
Obviously she tried to protest that unfair treatment, but in the face of a united front she had no chance. Even Towa was glaring at them adorably with a red face! Thus, instead of having fun playing around in the city of stuck-up losers she found herself lugging supplies onto the hangar.
And she couldn't even hang out with her fellow troublemakers either as the others had placed each of them far away from the others. As far as she knew Rean was on the bridge covering for Towa while the tiny captain was in the city while Laura was helping out in the kitchen. That last one caused her to scowl – Both of them had been trying to improve on their cooking during free moments, so to know that her rival was getting a big leg up while working with Nicholas bugged her a little.
With her mood soured by that annoying thought the grumpy girl placed the box of whatever she had been carrying down with a little more force than was strictly necessary, "H-Hey!" Something which earned her a miffed pout from Mint, "Be careful! There are some fragile tools in here!" The girl reached into the box and pulled out some weird object that Fie had absolutely no clue what it was, "See?"
This girl was usually Elliot's problem, but the former jaeger knew her well enough to know what was coming next. A dexterous arm reached out just as the supposedly delicate machine slipped from the clumsy engineer's hand, catching it before it could hit the ground. With the flattest of flat stares Fie handed the object back to the sheepish menace to society.
"Hehe... Thanks! You're the best!"
Fie rolled her eyes, but couldn't help but smirk a little. Menace to society she might be, but there was something endearing about her. Mood restored a little the girl went back to her forced volunteer work.
After another hour or so the last of the supplies had been delivered to their respective homes. Fie was sure that there was far more work to be done, but this was pretty much the limit of the free work she was willing to do. She thought about sneaking off the ship, but she could already imagine the lecture that she would have to suffer through if someone spotted her in the city.
A nap sounded pretty good, she decided at last.
But where to go? The former jaeger wasn't stupid – she knew the so-called disciplinarians in the class were occasionally stepping in to ensure they were still there. If she was to to take a nap it would have to be somewhere that nobody would go.
The engine room? That was definitely the one place nobody ever visited. But there was a reason for that. The sleepy jaeger shuddered as she imagined what would happen if she was snoozing away in there when someone started up the ship for some reason.
Nope. Some naps just weren't worth dying for.
The deck? Too exposed. A supply room? Too uncomfortable. Break room? Too obvious. One of the shops? Too loud.
She let out a miserable groan as she leaned heavily against the nearest large object, creating a ringing thud as her head struck metal. Wasn't there a single damn place on this ship where she could take a snooze without risk of being discovered or a high likelihood of death-
She paused before turning around. The large metal thing she was leaning against? That was Valimar's leg.
Where others might see the massive Divine Knight as an ancient weapon capable of turning this entire war around, right now Fie was seeing opportunity. But could she even convince it to let her do what she wanted to do...?
Eh. Whatever. She would just wing it. And if anyone got mad at her later it was always easier to ask forgiveness than it was permission.
"The shrimp should be ready for you to add now."
"Of course, thank you." Laura nodded gratefully towards Nicholas as she followed the second-year's advice, adding the cooked shrimp into the pilaf she had been painstakingly working on.
Initial mortification aside, the Arseid thought her 'punishment' had turned out fairly well. Cooking was a hobby that she had always wanted to pursue, but rarely had the time to do so. Working with Nicholas reminded her of her secret lessons with Sharon.
She couldn't help but chuckle to herself. Fie was probably so annoyed right now. Their little rivalry had been growing over the months to encompass a lot more than simple fighting skills. Cooking, swimming, and even-
Laura flushed as she recalled the event that put her into this spot. M-Maybe she should work on toning down her competitive spirit a little? She was supposed to be above such petty competitiveness.
...Even if beating Fie at her own game felt really really good.
"Hmm..." The second-year muttered as he approached to look upon her creation. "You've added a very distinct flair to your pilaf, I see."
"H-Have I?" She thought she had been following his instructions well enough, but to hear that sent a pang of worry through her heart.
He must have noticed her unease, "Haha. That's not necessarily a bad thing. You must have some experience with fish, don't you?"
"I suppose so." She admitted as she gazed at her dish... Maybe she did go a little overboard with the fish? "Legram has always been reliant on the catches from Lake Ebel, so I guess I simply got used to it. ...Are you certain it's alright?"
"Mmhm. Cooking is not about simply following the recipe. Every chef has their own experiences and those experiences show in their work. What you've created here is a dish that's entirely unique to you, so take pride in it." His warm smile grew a little more strained as a haunted look formed in his eyes, "...Thankfully you've not allowed those unique experiences to alter the fundamentals of the dish in any way."
It didn't take a genius to know what he was thinking of. Not when he shared a club with Millium and Margarita. As much as she adored the little Ironblood Laura knew that her understanding of the word 'fundamentals' started and ended with 'fun'.
Both cooks were drawn away from the dish when the door opened, revealing two of her classmates. Her worried gaze lingered on a Rean who looked very exhausted as he shuffled in, but it was the scowling Machias that spoke first, "Good. Glad to see you didn't run off at least."
"Huh?"
The bespectacled commoner rubbed his forehead in annoyance, "I just came back to ensure nothing was out of the ordinary..." Laura couldn't help but twitch slightly. It was clear he had simply come back to ensure they weren't messing around. Had her stock truly fallen so low in the eyes of her comrades...? "...And lo and behold... Fie's missing."
"She is?!" The initial shock and worry faded almost immediately when she recalled the girl in question. There was no way that Fie was going to stick around and accept her punishment for long, "I suppose that was inevitable, all things considered."
"Unfortunately, yes. Honestly, that girl..." The vice-president scowled before shaking his head, "Either way, while I'm sure she's not up to anything too dangerous it would be best if we find her sooner rather than later. A task I think the two of you will be best suited for."
Despite her disciplined upbringing Laura couldn't help but let a little of her annoyance seep into her voice. "Are you sure it's alright for the three of us to be together?"
"I'll admit, it's a risk." Machias responded without hesitation, "I used to believe that you weren't the kind of individual to let someone like Fie manipulate you. For once I was rooting for your noble upbringing to shine through. Clearly that hasn't been the case."
Never had she found herself missing the Machias Regnitz who treated all nobles with such disdain. While he had never been openly hostile towards her the way he was with Jusis he definitely kept his distance from her. Right now that would have felt preferable to the unimpressed look he was currently sending her way.
Still, with Fie missing Laura couldn't concern herself with the opinions of others for long. A questioning glance towards Nicholas earned her a nod, "You've done more than enough for me. With the dish you prepared we should have plenty for the feast tonight." It had been decided that after everything the Thors students had done the previous day that a celebratory dinner was in order.
"Oh?" That seemed to temporarily perk Rean up from whatever it was that was ailing him as he gazed upon her dish, "You made this, Laura? It looks really good. I'm looking forward to trying it tonight."
Hah! Take that, Fie!
As the three exited the kitchen the vice-president turned to her, "The others will be checking in on you guys periodically so I better not hear that you two have been up to any funny business. I expect better from you, Laura."
She narrowed her eyes. "Why aren't you telling Rean this?"
"Because he's a lucky son of a-" The gunner let out a cough, "A-Anyways! I need to get back to the city. Watching those pompous blowhards struggle to accept this new reality has been one of the greatest joys of my existence."
Her glare didn't relent until after he exited her line of sight. Rean got a pass because he was a guy? Talk about a double standard!
Normally this was the point when Rean would say something supportive, but right now there was only silence. In fact, looking at him made Laura wonder if the swordsman had even heard the conversation, "Rean? Are you alright?"
"H-Huh? Oh..." His eyes regained a little focus when he realized he was being addressed, "I will be. It's just..." He closed his eyes and shuddered slightly, only further worrying Laura as to whatever was wrong, "You know how I was tasked to help out on the bridge while Towa was in the city?"
"Uh huh..." In all honesty it sounded like fairly easy work. With the Courageous landed and no emergency to report on it should have been simple observation work, but clearly something had gone awry.
"...Both Angelica and Vivi volunteered to stay behind and 'help' me."
Being stuck on the bridge with the biggest gossip in Thors alongside the horniest woman in all of Erebonia after what they had done two nights prior? "You have my deepest sympathies."
"They wouldn't stop bombarding me with questions! And the things they were asking..." His flush told the entire story.
"Y-You didn't actually tell them anything, right?" Of course he didn't. Her beau was a kind and resolute individual. There was no way he would talk about their private lives to outsiders without her permission...
So why wasn't he saying anything? "R-Rean?"
"Ahaha..." His sheepish laugh did anything but reassure her! "A-Anyways! I'm already feeling a bit better now. Let's just focus on finding Fie..."
"W-Wait! Rean!?"
"...I know she isn't on the bridge, but that's about it. Should we start our search from the top and work our way down?"
"Answer the damn question!"
The Arseid heiress fumed as they stepped off the elevator onto the fourth floor. But her anger at stubbornly evasive boyfriends faded as the search began in earnest. She was fairly confident that Fie wouldn't have slipped off the ship given the attention it would create, so exploring the Courageous top to bottom was definitely their best plan.
The fourth floor didn't really have any good hiding spots on it, but it was also the most deserted floor on the ship, with the conference room, the training rooms, and Princess Alfin's room. The conference room was completely deserted, as were most of the training rooms – the one exception being the ranged training room which pleasantly surprised the Class VII students when they discovered a newly arrived Theresia setting up shop alongside her best friend.
Princess Alfin was in her room to greet the duo, still in the Saint Astraia uniform she had worn into the city to remain disguised. As much as they wanted to ask about Fie, the distress visible on her face delayed the question. "Your Highness? What's wrong?"
"...Do you think this country can change?"
That loaded question caused her to share a glance with Rean, "Did something happen?"
The distressed princess bit her lip, "It's just... how can people be so apathetic to things that don't concern them? When I was in the city I overheard many nobles talking about Celdic. Most of them just didn't care about their plight, but a few of them were adamant that it was Celdic's fault that the tragedy happened! I didn't know Erebonians could be so heartless..."
Once again Laura found herself grateful to her father. Being an Arseid meant being a protector, and how could one be a worthy protector if one didn't feel compassion towards those in need of protection? She couldn't fathom being so apathetic to the suffering of others. Sadly, that honest upbringing left her at a loss to Alfin's heavy question.
But Rean – despite having a similar upbringing – proved once again why he was their leader and someone she cherished dearly, "It won't be easy. Or fast. The nobility has been in charge of this country almost back to its founding. Right now they see the tides turning against them and they are scared."
He let out a sad sigh, "As terrible as it is, perhaps this war is necessary. Once the dust settles a new generation can replace the entrenched tradition that has ruled this country for so long. I believe in Jusis and Angelica to do the right things. And it won't just be them either. All of us are working towards that goal in our own ways. After seeing both sides of the divide I'm positive there's a future where commoners and nobility can coexist. We just have to keep fighting for it.
Laura couldn't help but intertwine her fingers in his before giving a squeeze, making it clear that her support would continue to be freely given for such an honorable endeavor. After the terrible things she had witnessed lately her faith towards her fellow nobles had waned, but to hear those words from his mouth made it sound like they really could affect the change this country so desperately needed...
"Rean..." The princess too smiled happily, even as she wiped her eyes of any stray moisture. "You aren't interested in a third girlfriend, are you?"
"...Huh?"
Laura didn't realize the questioning sound had come from her mouth until Alfin looked towards her, eyes alight with excitement, "Don't worry! I've always been a little... curious about other girls. I'm sure I will fit in just fine!"
"I... uh..." Really elegant, Rean.
"I'm not so sure that would be a good idea, Your Highness. The scandal that would create would-"
"It's fine. I've already gotten my brother's support. I can even use my imperial authority to pass a decree if needed! Come on! It would be so much fun!"
Rean continued to remain silent as he stared at the princess in shocked confusion. How could someone make such an emphatic speech one moment and be completely useless the next?! "...We are currently looking for Fie. Have you seen her anywhere?"
Sadly for the Arseid practitioner her attempt at deflection amounted to nothing, "Oh? I haven't see her around, but if she's missing I wouldn't mind filling in as a replacement. I think we're quite alike, actually. Did you know I can make my voice sound just like hers? If I just change up my clothes and hair to match hers I'm sure you would never tell the difference!"
"That's... good to know? If you'll excuse us, we really need to find her before the ship departs." It was a good thing she was still holding onto Rean's hand as that allowed her to drag him away from the dangerous princess.
"Teehee. Don't think I'm going to give up anytime soon!" The cheerful Alfin called out before muttering to herself, "Can't wait till I get back to school. I bet she will have some ideas to seduce them..."
Once safely away she turned to glare at her fellow swordsman, "You could have said something you know. I have no intention of sharing you with anyone else and I am positive Fie feels the same way."
Mostly positive, at least. Fie had a weird outlook on things like that. But there was absolutely no way the former jaeger would convince her to allow another girl into their lives, even if only temporarily!
Finally Rean managed to let out a nervous laugh, "I admit, she caught me off guard. I wasn't expecting her to joke around like that."
She could only sigh in dismay. Did he actually think Princess Alfin was saying all that as a joke? Sure she probably played it up to be dramatic, but there was no doubt in Laura's mind that the princess was being quite serious. While she didn't feel threatened by Alfin's actions it still bugged her. Alisa, Emma, and anyone else who might have been interested in Rean had seemingly backed off once their relationship status became public, so to meet someone who was so blatantly pursuing him still...
...And she couldn't help but worry about who the mystery Saint Astraia girl Alfin mentioned was.
"Whatever you say." Best to just do her best to forget about that entire conversation, "It doesn't seem like Fie is present on this floor. Let's continue onward."
Laura had thought the third floor would have potential given it was the floor with the most rooms and the decks, but it proved to be a fruitless search in the end. Even with most of the merchants off the ship to resupply there was no sight nor sound of the jaeger and after a few minutes the duo continued onward, back to the second floor.
Knowing that Fie wouldn't be in the kitchen – unless the crafty jaeger slipped in after they left – the two bypassed the floor's central room. Instead as they approached the other end of the level they came across an unexpected pair. "Elliot... and Celine?"
"Hey Rean! Hey Laura!" The young musician looked like he wanted to wave, but his hands were filled with blankets. How unusual.
"What are you doing?" Rean was the one to ask the question.
The answer they got was not what either of them expected as Celine hissed at them, "Do you know how hard it is to sleep in my favorite spot when the bed is covered in weird human stains!? I might be a cat, but I know enough about your species to know just what that was!"
Weird human stains... blankets... second floor... the infirmary, "Oh my god! I'm so sorry!" Never before had Laura bowed to a cat, but right now she only wished she could bend a little lower to the ground to better hide her face, "We meant to do it ourselves, but Celdic happened and all the planning and the assault and-" She was babbling now, wasn't she?
"Spare me the excuses! Why you humans feel the need to copulate all the time is beyond me, but do it far away from me. I do not want to have to clean your messes off my paws!"
"...Is there anything I can do to help?" Staring at the ground she was unable to see Rean's expression, but he definitely sounded meek as he addressed Elliot.
"Haha, it's fine. I was just coming back to grab my violin when I found Celine and offered to help. Swapping out the blankets will only take me a minute."
That the musician barely seemed fazed by such a task was a testament to his growth over the past half year, "I-In that case, you have our gratitude, Elliot."
"Mmm. And we're really sorry, Celine." Rean reached down and despite the cat's protests managed to get his hand onto her ear where he began scratching, "We'll be going to the rest of the Spirit Shrines after this, so I'll be counting on you."
Playing up Celine's pride while also targeting a feline's weakness for a good scratching? "Oooh! T-That's right! And don't you ahh... forget it!" Critical hit.
While the black-haired swordsman continued to lavish affection onto the nearly catatonic cat, Laura turned her gaze back to Elliot, "We're looking for Fie. Have you seen her anywhere?"
"Hmm..." The youngest Craig hummed thoughtfully, "I haven't, but you should ask Mint. She told me earlier that Fie was helping her move some engineering supplies."
"That is useful information, thank you." It took a second to pull Rean away from Emma's familiar, but soon the two were once again continuing on their trip across the Courageous.
"Nope! Can't say that I've seen her in a while! One moment she was here catching my tools like a hero and the next she was gone. Maybe she's actually a ghost!"
Laura couldn't help but sweatdrop nervously at the engineer's conclusion, "I... do not believe that she is actually a ghost."
"Oh yeah? Well I haven't seen anyone use the elevator until you two arrived, so how else would she leave unless she is a ghost?"
The most obvious explanation was that Fie simply slipped past the absentminded girl without her noticing, but considering they had already checked the other floors there was one other possibility, "Perhaps she is still around here?"
"I don't sense her around..." Rean muttered as he glanced to and fro. "Maybe she's in the engine room?"
Laura shook her head. "She knows we're not supposed to go in there. I am quite certain she would not break that rule." Her partner definitely didn't seem fully convinced by her words, which caused her to stop doubting herself a little, "...I am mostly certain, at least."
"Definitely a ghost!"
"Excuse me, Rean?" That voice didn't come from the Class III student or any of the other people still remaining in the area. In fact it didn't come from a person period.
"Valimar?"
The great machine was currently in its hangar bay, but was clearly awake as it looked down upon them, "Are you perhaps looking for secondary contractor Fie?"
She shared a glance with Rean at this unexpected development, "You know where she is?!"
"Affirmative. I was approached by secondary contractor Fie. She informed me that my Awakener had left something inside of me and sent her to retrieve it... That was approximately two point three hours ago."
"But I never-" Rean's confusion quickly gave way to shock, "Wait, are you saying that Fie is inside you right now!?"
"Affirmative. Vital signs appear to be normal, but she has been completely unresponsive... I have been unsure of what to do." It was odd hearing the legendary machine sounds so confused. It was almost human.
Valimar's Awakener sighed tiredly, "I know exactly what she's doing." Taking a nap, undoubtedly, "I'll go get her-"
"W-Wait!" Laura wasn't exactly sure what compelled her to step forward in that moment. Jealousy that Fie was getting to see the insides of his Divine Knight perhaps? Regardless, the swordswoman reached out to Rean just as he began entering the machine.
At first Laura thought she had been too slow, but suddenly found herself engulfed with a feeling of weightlessness. Her entire world faded out of existence. It was as if she suddenly stopped existing for the briefest of eternities.
And just like that the feeling was gone. Instead all she felt was a hefty weight upon her. And after a few seconds there was movement beneath her. Movement that only increased in intensity until something began shoving at her.
Finally gaining her bearings she took in her surroundings. The weight upon her? That was Rean. For some reason the swordsman was sitting on her. They were in an enclosed space with multiple consoles in front of her. Was this the inside of Valimar? In that case the weight beneath her must be...
"Get off me!" ...It was Fie.
Rean tried his best to move off of her, but there was a problem with that, "No room to move!" He complained loudly. It seemed that Valimar's cockpit wasn't designed to sit three people.
Still, after much wiggling and persistence the two sword users were able to maneuver just enough for the slippery Fie to escape from beneath them. Eventually the three settled into a somewhat awkward but tenable position with Laura in the chair, Rean atop her, and Fie draped over both of them like a blanket. A very annoyed blanket, "What the hell are you doing!? I thought I was used to every kind of wake-up imaginable, but nearly suffocating under your fat butt might be the worst one yet!"
"M-My butt isn't fat!" Rude! And quite uncalled for!
The man atop her laughed sheepishly, "Sorry about that. We were looking for you. Didn't really think it through when we came in here though..."
"Well, you found me. So go away."
"No." Were Fie in any position to glare at her Laura was sure she would be subjected to the fiercest one possible right now, "You have caused enough trouble for everyone as is."
"You really suck, you know that? I'll definitely be coming back here though. Pretty cozy place for a nap."
The blue-haired girl couldn't help but roll her eyes. That girl just didn't quit! Still, Fie's irreverence aside... "So this is where you fight when you are inside Valimar? It feels so... lonely."
"I guess?" Rean replied dubiously. "I've never really felt like that though since you two have always been close enough to support me."
"What about the time you fought a Magic Knight in Ymir after leaving us?"
"...Besides that time, of course."
She could feel the mischievous aura Fie was currently radiating, "Or what about the time in Nord when I decided to stay behind?"
"...Thank you, Fie." He responded dryly. "That was meant to be metaphorical."
"Those instances aside..." Laura knew her unimpressed glare had no effect on the silver-haired gremlin, "now that we're here you can count on us to fight alongside you as best we can in your future fights."
"Does that mean you're gonna start whacking Ordine's foot with your sword?" Fie cheekily asked.
Instead of rising to the bait Laura simply smile. "If that is what needs to be done."
"Haha... Thanks. But I don't think that will be necessary. Hopefully we'll be able to clear the rest of the Spirit Shrines and I'll soon have a new sword for Valimar. That should allow me to fight on even grounds with Crow, but he's not wrong. He has three years of experience with Valimar-"
"Kinda makes you wonder where he was practicing in his Divine Knight without anyone noticing." The former jaeger interrupted.
"I... uh..." Rean trailed off, clearly not expecting such a question. Laura too found the concept intriguing, "E-Either way! As I was saying, I know I won't be able to match his experience, but as long as I have the two of you supporting me I will prevail."
Trapped beneath him she could do little but give a reassuring squeeze to his thigh to show her unconditional support to his upcoming struggle.
"Kay." Something which Fie did verbally, "I'll hook you up with my combat link when the big fight happens. That means we're still free to sic Laura on Ordine's foot."
"Fie!" The three of them shared a laugh. Given everything that had been happening recently Laura had a feeling that the war was about to reach its zenith. That meant that things were about to be at their most dangerous, but for some reason her confidence had been rising in equal measure these last couple weeks. Moments like this made her feel that everything was destined to turn out alright.
Well, almost everything. "I know we're having a moment and all, but I'm starting to lose all feeling to my legs. I don't suppose we can hurry it up a little?"