Black Clover - The Three Brothers
Blake let out a long yawn as he awoke from his sleep. Rubbing his eyes, he opens them to see the anti-bird staring at him as it sat on his chest.
"Ah, morning birdie. I trust you kept my little bro safe from the dangers of the dark?"
The bird raised its wings high, signaling victory.
Blake smiled, petting the bird's head with his finger. The bird hummed in response. "Good to hear."
Blake rolled off the bed, casually hitting the floor before getting up and putting on the rest of his outfit. The bird accompanied him, resting on his head.
Hmm, how to start the day off. Get some physical training in? Practice my magic control? Scarf down some breakfast? Or should I do some chor—
Blake's thoughts were interrupted as he collided with a wall.
"Agh, what the hell?" Blake turns as he hears a similar sound to the left of him, it looks like Asta was a victim of this as well.
"Yo, newbies, how's it hanging?" Magna called out to us as he walked over, hands on his hips with a smile on his face.
"Magna, question!" Blake raises his hand.
Magna pointed at Blake. "Ask away!"
"Where the hell did these columns come from?!" Blake knocked angrily on the brick wall.
"Yeah, they weren't here last night!" Asta added.
Magna shrugged. "Yeah, that happens. This base of ours shifts around pretty much all the time."
"Seriously?!" Asta shouted.
"No wonder it looked like a mess on the outside." Blake mumbled to himself
The three boys began walking beside each other. "You'll get used to it after a little bit, all the main places pretty much stay the same," Magna explained. "Glad to see you two are early risers, time for you to take care of one of the chores."
Blake eyed him suspiciously. "I don't like how you said that."
Magna guided them to the base's basement and stopped in front of a large caged room that hosted plenty of scary-looking magical beasts.
"As the newbies of the Black Bulls, it shall be your problem—I MEAN AWESOME DUTY— to make sure these monsters are properly fed morning and evening! Otherwise, they might eat us..." Magna explained, then pointed over to the table where the slabs of meat and the tong were prepared.
"Alright, Asta, have at it!" Blake shoved his little brother towards the table.
"WHAT?! ME?!"
"Come on, it'll be fine. I'll be here as backup, alright?"
"W-Well, alright, if you say so." Asta picked up the tongs, grabbed a slab of meat, and slowly approached the cage of the beasts. "H-Here nice little beasties, eat up..."
"AUFF!"
One of the magical beasts chomped down on Asta, fitting him halfway into its massive mouth.
Asta flailed about as he screamed bloody murder. "HE'S GOT ME! HE'S GOT ME!"
Blake tried to pull Asta out. "You damn mutt! Hng, let him go! This meat's too tough!"
Magna belted out laughing at the display. "You guys are a riot together!"
"You're not helping, Magna!"
"You're not helping, Magna!"
By the end of it, Asta was slobbered in the beast's drool, feeling absolutely disgusting.
"It smells so bad..." He muttered, cleaning himself with a towel.
Blake sighed. "Alright, my turn." He grabbed another slab of meat with the pair of tongs and approached the beasts once again, waving it in front of himself.
Immediately, one of the magical beasts aimed its fangs toward Blake instead of the meat.
"Blake, look out!" Asta shouted.
Blake already sensed the attack and delivered an uppercut to the beast's jaw, rocking its head.
"Woah! Not bad!" Magna complimented.
On the beast's way back down, Blake firmly gripped it by its jaw. He decided to give that thing Yami did at the exams a try, attempting to release his magic power in waves. By the frightened look of the beast, he figured it was working.
"Alright, listen here you mangy mutt. Don't bite the hand that feeds you; I mean that as literally as possible. If you ever tried that again, I'll leave you running like a little cub to mama bear Yami, understood?"
The beast furiously shook its head.
"The same goes for the rest of you! Got it?!"
The rest of the beasts scurried away as far back into the cage as they could, furiously shaking their heads as well. Blake shoved the one beast's head back into the cage, before picking up the platter of meat.
"Now, one at a time!"
As he waved the slabs of meat, the beasts came forward and politely took their share one after another.
"There, all done!" Blake dusted off his hands before giving a thumbs-up to Magna and Asta.
"I never thought those things would listen to anyone other than Yami..." Magna clapped his hands. "Nice work, Blake!"
Asta clapped his hands as well, much more rapidly. "So awesome!"
Blake chuckled, walking out of the basement with the two. "Well, for some, it takes a bit of force for them to change their behavior." Blake then pointed at his brother. "Though, Asta definitely doesn't fall into that category."
"Huh? What's that mean?"
"Asta, you'd ask Sister Lily to marry you 100 times a day, and she'd reject you 100 times, probably throw in a Fist of Love about 5 times through that, and you still kept bugging her about it." Blake knocked his fist on Asta's head. "Sometimes, I think your brain is stuck on a loop."
"Do you have to keep bringing that up?! That was years ago, I've stopped doing it since then!" Asta snapped back, becoming a little embarrassed.
"Seriously? Wow, Short-sta, you really had it for this Lily chick." Magna wrapped an arm around Asta's shoulder. "Was she hot?"
"She was beautiful! She still is! And Blake, don't act like you didn't have a crush on her too!"
"Oh, you could tell? Color me surprised! At least I knew to take no for an answer. Not to mention she's a decade older than you."
"Hnnnnggg, alright you have a point!"
Magna pulled his arm away from Asta. Now he was curious.
"So, what'd it take for you to stop pursuing this girl?"
Asta looked up, trying to remember. "I used to think that it's just because of her being a part of the church, and I thought I could find some way to stop that from getting in the way. After a while, I realized she just didn't see me that way. Even if she wasn't a sister of the church, it wouldn't change anything. So, I accepted it.
"Before we left, I told her sorry for all the times I bothered her. She said I never did, that's Sister for ya. But I told her to look over this goal of mine instead and she made it a promise." Asta puts a fist into the air. "Now, I'm even more motivated!"
Blake halted, his eyebrows raised in shock, looking on in wonder at his brother.
"Huh, did I say something wrong?" Asta asked, confused.
"No way! That's the kind of mindset only a real man can embody! You were even starting to make me teary-eyed..." Magna said.
Blake slapped Asta's back playfully. "The two of you mature so quickly, It's hard to still not think of you as the little brother with a beaming smile."
"Aww, thanks, you guys!" Asta had a bashful smile.
"Besides, I'm sure there's plenty of great women out there for ya, short-sta! Hm?" Magna's attention turned to the new girl in front of them.
From one of the entrances, Noelle entered with a confident stride in her step. She stopped short of a couple of feet away from the three.
Blake narrowed his eyes at the girl. Her demeanor and appearance were quite a match to one of the captains from the exams. Then, something caught him off guard.
The girl's mana outline was thick, very thick. it surpassed Yuno and even the Captains, it was the most that Blake's ever sensed in his life, but it was also constantly spiking, much more erratic than anyone else he's met.
How little control does she have over her magic?
"You weren't around for the baptism, not cool newbie! But, no point in mouthing off about it now. Asta, Blake, this is another one of our comrades, she joined around the same time as you." Magna explained.
"Really? Cool!" Asta walked over to the girl. "Glad to meet ya, I'm Asta from Hage! Let's strive to do our best!" He held out his hand with a bright gleam and smile on his face.
Noelle stared at the boy with narrowed eyes, before slapping her Asta's hand away.
"A little insect with no magic, don't address me so casually."
This action earned her Asta's confusion and Blake's irritation.
Who does she-?!
"I am Noelle Silva, a member of this kingdom's Royal House of Silva. You'd do well to remember it." She spoke with a haughty tone, flipping one of her pigtails.
"ROYALTY?!" Asta got to his knees, head to the floor. "I beg your pardon! A little insect like me shouldn't have-"
*WHAM*
Blake delivered a skull-cracking fist to Asta's cranium before picking him up by the back of his collar. "What the hell are you doing, Asta?!"
"Hey, what was that for?! Wait...LITTLE INSECT?!"
Blake sighed, dropping Asta who landed on his two feet. "Don't give into her nonsense, we got no reason to bow before some uppity brat who thinks her bloodline makes her superior to others." He glared at Noelle, his irritation slowly turning into vexation.
"Yeah! The fact that you're the sister of the Silver Eagles captain means junk!" Magna added, glad to see a royal getting smack-talked.
Noelle glared at the older boy in return. "Have you lost what little sense you have? How dare you so blatantly disrespect a royal?"
"A little more food, a little more magic, a little more wealth. Remove that and what difference is there between us?"
"Those differences mean everything. Maybe you need a demonstration of how much it really matters." Noelle coldly responded, she raised her hand and began generating some sort of water attack.
Blake didn't waver one bit and slowly began taking step after step toward the silver-haired girl. The more he stared at her, the more his blood began to boil.
"Are you stupid? Don't blame me if you get hurt." She attempted to say as a warning.
Blake picked up on the slight stutter in her words.
"Why would I be afraid of someone who can't even control their magic?"
This time, his words made Noelle visibly stifle. She took a step back.
"W-What are you talking about?!"
"Am I wrong? Then do it, hit me with your magic." Blake was half the distance from Noelle now.
Even with his taunts, Noelle didn't attack. In fact, her hand was shaking slightly, a small crack in her confidence.
Blake's glare darkened, looking down at the short girl. "You're of the royal family and yet you've been placed in the Black Bulls, alongside the so-called "maniacs" and "misfits", that makes you the worst out of all of us. What's your right?"
"Blake..." Asta tried to speak but was ignored.
Blake's fists tightened and gritted his teeth, the words flowed from his mouth. "I hate people like you. Delusional enough to put yourself on a pedestal held up by the broken and bruised backs of commoners and peasants. They've all faced hardship and pain that'd snap you in two!"
The closer he step to Noelle, the more apparent her nervousness was.
You don't deserve any of what you've been given! It'd be better for the lot of you to just drop-!"
"Cut it out, Blake!"
Blake felt the force of Asta's fist slamming into his head, jumbling his thoughts. He took a moment to collect himself, replaying what he said to the girl. "W-Why did I...A-Asta?"
Blake's eyes darted from his brother to the royal girl. She was...trembling. She was biting her lip, blinking in quick succession to attempt to stop tears from falling. Blake felt a horrible feeling swelling in his chest. "W-Wait-"
"You don't know a thing about me!" She shouted, her eyebrows furrowed, tugging the Black Bull Robe off her shoulders and throwing it to the ground. "This brigade doesn't deserve me!" She turned and stormed away.
"Hey, wait!" Asta tried to call out to her but she was already out of sight.
Magna scratched his head, looking at the girl walking away before turning to Blake. "That...may have been a bit much."
"I..." Blake wasn't sure what to say, bringing a hand to his face. Sure he didn't like royals and nobles, but he never had such an aggressive reaction to someone like that before.
"Just because she was being a jerk doesn't mean you should've done the same!" Asta added.
Blake took a deep breath in and out. "I...crap. I'm going to my room, to clear my thoughts. I'll see you two in a little bit." He pushed past his friend and brother, ignoring their protests, mind caught on to what happened moments ago.
"He do that often?" Magna asked Asta.
The boy shook his head. "I remember him telling me about getting into a fight with some nobles back before he got his grimoire, but I've never seen him that angry before." Asta looked back to where his brother walked off.
Was that even you, Blake?
"797...798...799...800." Blake slammed onto the floor, finishing his 5th set of Burpees. Getting active helped him focus on what he needed to think about.
It's hard to believe I said all of that to her. It felt like something—or someone— had been...speaking through me?
Blake held his grimoire, recalling those moments he first got. Is this connected to back then?
Blake sighed, he preferred to not bother with what happened in the past. He focused on what's occurred now.
Even if she acted pompous, she isn't the one I should've directed all that anger towards. She's the same age as Asta and if she's the sis of that dickhead, It's only expected she'd have the same bad attitude.
Blake sighed, tightening the red wraps around his arms after they finished getting cleaned and dried.
He stood up, slightly wobbling from having put his legs through hell. Couldn't just do a bunch of squats could ya? Nooooo, Blake, had to go and torture yourself, moron. I guess I should try to find her and apologize, hopefully, she hasn't left the base.
Blake closed his eyes. With enough focus, he can pinpoint mana signatures, which made it quite easy to find people he knew.
He totally didn't use it to cheat during hide-and-seek with his siblings.
From what he could tell, he couldn't find the girl's mana within the base, the range he's currently limited to.
Damn, she must be outside then. Shouldn't take long to find her hopefully. Blake slid on his duster and stepped out of his room, navigating the halls of the Black Bulls like it was a maze. He eventually found an entryway to a balcony, one that Vanessa was currently lazing about on.
"Oh, nice seeing you, Vanessa." Blake spoke with a smile on his face.
She turned to him with a small smile on her lips. "Ah, there you are. I wanted to grab you for some drinking but your little munchkin said you weren't feeling well, you okay?"
Blake cocked his head at the unusual word. "...Munchkin?"
Vanessa giggled. "Asta, big guy."
"Oh! Storing that one for later..." Blake mumbled, jamming a finger into his temple for a moment. "Hey, any chance you've seen that royal girl around?"
"You mean Noelle? Hmm, no, can't say that I have." She aimed a cheeky grin at the young man. "She piques your interest?"
Blake recoiled at the question, a sour expression across his face while he waved it away, "Not in the slightest. The opposite in fact," He scratched the back of his head, looking to the side. "But I had a pretty bad interaction with her earlier, she looked-
Blake stiffened. Suddenly, an overwhelming amount of magic power began to form nearby. In mere moments, a massive orb of water raised into the air above the Black Bulls base, and several sizeable spiraling water attacks came from it, tearing through the surrounding forest.
Holy crap, the power radiating from that thing is insane! It's similar to what happened when I... Blake's breath caught in his throat as he picked up on the familiar mana from within the swirling mass of water magic.
"Oh my, what could that be?" Vanessa spoke, lackadaisical as she often is, "Woah!" She yelped as Blake flew past her, making use of Wind Magic.
He flew towards the mass, close enough to see her within it.
"Hey, royal girl! Can you hear me?!" He shouted towards her, though it gained no response from her. She's gonna drown if she isn't gotten out of there, I need to-
Let her die
Blake jolted from what passed through his thoughts. What the hell was that? That wasn't him, was it?
Blake didn't have much time to think as another spiral of water formed from the sphere, shooting toward Blake. He was able to tank the hit, but the force sent him flying back down into the forest.
"Seriously intense, that's fucking strong.." He spoke, panting. What can I do? Any magic I use has a chance of harming her or worse. Using Spatial Magic would flood the area with the girl in it—WHERE'S ASTA?!
On cue, he saw Asta flying through the air. Falling, actually. Activating his Wind Magic again, he flew above the trees and grabbed ahold of his brother by his shirt just as he began his descent. They ended up nearby the rest of the squad, no doubt having heard the ruckus.
"Whew, thanks for the save, Blake."
"Don't thank me yet." He pointed at the magic. "You need to cut that thing in half. If ya don't, the girl's dead. No pressure." Blake raised Asta above his shoulder.
"NO PRESSURE?! I CAN'T EVEN FLY!"
"THEN FALL WITH STYLE, I DON'T KNOW! 321 GO!" Blake propelled his brother toward the sphere with tremendous strength.
Asta zoomed towards the girl at incredible speed, drawing forth the broadsword from his grimoire. "Don't worry, I'm getting you out!"
With a broad slash of his sword, Asta was able to cut through the outer shell, the water within bursting forth, becoming droplets, releasing Noelle from the sphere.
Asta's velocity barely halted with his heavy slash, due to the amount of power Blake sent him flying with. He almost slammed into Noelle, but he twisted around and pulled Noelle to him from behind, securing the girl in his arms.
"Whew, that was a close one."
The silver-haired girl stirred in Asta's arms as she began to awake, barely audible mumbles escaping her as her eyes opened.
"It's okay, I got you!" Asta then notice their descent increasing rapidly. "Oh crap, maybe not! Help! Help!" He cried out, flailing his legs in an attempt to act against the fall.
"[Spatial Magic: Fallen Angel's Gate]!"
Finral cast his signature spell, allowing Asta and Noelle to fall through one portal and onto the forest ground through the other, Asta landed safely with Noelle in tow.
"Alright! Space Magic for the win!" He cheered.
Yami chuckled proudly. "Well done, kid!"
"Appreciate the assist, Finn." Blake patted the back of his senior knight rather roughly. He eyed his grimoire strapped to his waist as it glowed. "And the spell."
"No problem, now with you here I can share the role of Yami's "wheels"." Finral soothed the spot Blake patted.
"Hm, the hell are you talking about?"
Finral grew a tired look on his face instantly. "Oh, you know, you'll see."
"That's... foreboding..." Blake mumbled. He looked back at his brother and the royal girl.
Asta set Noelle down on her feet. "You alright?"
"I...yes, I'm fine."
Noelle soon took notice that all the other members of the brigade had come out as well. She couldn't bring herself to lift her head up. The insults of her siblings ran through her head again and again.
Please, I can't handle... any more of the mocking...
"THAT WAS SOME AWESOME MAGIC YOU GOT THERE! MAN, AM I JEALOUS!"
W-What? Noelle was shocked, she had to step back. He...he isn't being serious, is he?
"Once you get control over it, you'll become unstoppable! Without a doubt!" Asta puts out his hand to her. "Let's work on becoming stronger together! Okay?"
The short boy's unwavering positivity and companionship caused many feelings Noelle was unfamiliar with to swirl within her, her face being tinted by a small blush.
She reached her hand out, hesitating only for a moment, before shaking Asta's hand. "O-Okay."
Magna cocked his head. "So, you actually aren't good at controlling your magic? Big whoop! The Black Bulls are made up of failures, it ain't a big deal, idiot."
"You must have spent a lot of mana doing that. Have some of this!" Charmy offered Noelle some food.
"We totally have to spar sometime! No better way to improve than being pushed to near death!" Luck attempted to offer some advice.
Vanessa walked over to Noelle's side. "Magic control is what I'm best at, I'll teach you! Plus some big-girl techniques."
Noelle couldn't comprehend what was going on. How? How could they all be so compassionate? So supportive towards her?
A suffocating, but warm, feeling welled up in her chest, just as tears did the same to her eyes.
"Noelle."
She looked up to see Blake speaking to her, but she quickly looked away. If there was anyone who wouldn't be happy with her, it'd be him.
Blake softens his expression, seeing her tense up. "I...fuck I'm bad at this..." He mumbled, scratching his neck. "I...I'm sorry, about what I said to you before."
That got her to look at him, at least. Okay, good so far.
"The two of us got off on the wrong foot, insulting you for your control of your magic was stupid." Blake undid and pulled off the bandages on his arms, showing his burn scars to Noelle.
Her eyes widened, even recoiling slightly from the sight of it.
"These were from when I didn't have good control of my magic either." A chuckle escaped him, wrapping the bandages back on. "Hell, It still gets out of hand sometimes."
Out of some sort of brotherly instinct, he softly pats Noelle's head. "Like I told ya, there's not much difference between us when it comes downs to it. So we should be able to rely on each other to become better." He points a thumb at himself and gives her a confident smile. "If you want to get stronger, count on me to train you!"
Noelle's eyes widened. Once again, painful memories bore into her mind.
'I will never acknowledge you as my daughter. It's inconceivable to think I could make someone like you.'
'That grimoire of yours is practically paper-thin. It's ridiculous to think you're born royalty!'
'You can barely control your own magic, how could I have such an embarrassment as my younger sister?'
'You will never be allowed into my squad. It isn't right that our mother had to die while you lived. You're an abject failure.'
Noelle's trembling hands slowly gripped the hand Blake placed on her head.
Those cold, lifeless thoughts that played through her head had begun to become less and less clear, less vivid. This newly developed warmth this brigade has given her overtakes what she's dealt with almost her entire life. And at the epicenter of it, was Asta and Blake.
One brought forth feelings she didn't know were there. The other gave her a sense of comfort that had felt neglected for so long.
"Noelle, are you okay?" Blake's voice rings out.
Oh god, she didn't even notice the tears that were streaming down her face. But, she didn't want to hold them back, she couldn't. She wanted it all to come out.
Her hands gripped Blake's tightly, not wanting to let go. She moved closer, leaning into him as she bawled her eyes out, her tears wetting his shirt.
"Woah, easy there." Blake was used to comforting his younger siblings, but he wasn't expecting Noelle to have such a burst of emotion.
He looked down with an expression of sympathy for the girl. I guess her life...hasn't been so easy after all. Poor girl.
He secures his arms around her. Just as tight as it needs to be to make her feel protected.
"You're safe, so let it all out. It'll all be okay."
Her sobs only increased after hearing that.
Blake sighed warmly. That settles it.
He has another little sister now.
Black Clover - The Three Brothers
A/N: Feedback is always appreciated.