"" Dialogue
'' Thoughts
Disclaimer: I do not own "Strike Witches", so this is just a fan made.
Chapter 13: About Thoughtfulness
(or about understanding)
Lynette was awakened by the whispering of the cold wind that made its way to the base from the snowy Alps. Plus, the fact that she was sleeping alone did not help at all. As she got up to close the window, she realized her body was aching a little, it may have something to do with yesterday's mission. Nevertheless, she still closed the window and also gave a quick pick up on the bunk above her and just sighed. She put on her usual clothes and slowly made her way to the kitchen.
As the Britannian Witch opened the door, she could notice only two people were there, serving breakfast. "Have you seen Yoshika?" She asked with a neutral tone, not even bothered to gaze at them.
"Yes, she told us, she was going to the river." Shizuka replied, a bit surprised noticing that Lynette did not seem to be in her usual positive demeanor.
"Could you please tell her that breakfast is ready?" Perrine requested and Lynette just nodded as a response.
Then, she walked towards the forest traversing the plants, branches and fell tress. Moments later, she reached to the river and after checking for a bit, she could see the person she was looking for, sitting in a rock in the middle of the river. Yoshika was wearing her usual swimsuit, her knees dipping in the somewhat tranquil water and her attention completely devoted to a medicine book.
Lynette just stayed there, glancing at her roommate for a moment, dwelling in her thoughts until she closed the book with a finger in between its pages and put it on her lap. "Good morning, Lynne." Yoshika happily said as she turned around to have a better look at her.
"Morning, Yoshika; breakfast is ready." She said and headed towards the base again.
Noticing that, the Fusoan Witch just opened her book and continued reading it.
By the time, Lynette came back to the base, the two Witches were having breakfast with two additional already served, so she took a sit.
"Where is Miyafuji?" The Gallian Witch asked her.
"She's coming." The Britannian Witch as she took a sip of her hot chocolate and a bit of a toast. With nothing more to add, the three girls continued eating in silence. Not long after the Britannian Witch finished her breakfast and picked up her food tray.
"We will take care of that." Perrine said.
"Thanks." Lynette said, leaving the food tray near the sink. "I'll be on my room, just let me know if you need me to do something." She added, and left the kitchen afterwards, while the two Witches just exchanged glances.
Afterwards, Yoshika came to the dining hall. "Is that one mine?" She asked, now wearing her complete uniform, with the same book in her hands.
"Yes, Yoshika." Shizuka said, moving the chair so that she could have sit.
She put the book on a nearby table. "Thank you." And after taking sit, she began slowly eating it. Both Witches, had already finished theirs, but they remained on their sits, waiting for the aspiring medic to finish; moments later she did so.
"May I have seconds, please?"
"Of course." The Gallian Witch replied, standing up and serving her a second of everything, then both Witches took care of the rest of the dishes. Shizuka, cleaning them, Perrine drying them with a clean towel.
"May I have thirds, please?" Yoshika asked them, holding the food tray.
"Yes." Perrine said a bit surprised, as she served her the third of everything. Yoshika went back to the dining table while the two Witches finished with the dishes, yet they stayed there, waiting for her to finish.
Not long after, she came with the food tray empty in her hands. "Thank you." She said, and both then, took care of it.
"May I go outside to read this for a bit?" Yoshika asked her superior, picking her book up again.
"No, now we're going to have you checked at the infirmary." Perrine ordered her.
"But I feel fine." Yoshika appealed, yet Perrine just stayed staring her in the eyes.
"Fine." She replied and the three Witches headed to the infirmary, after greeting the medic, Yoshika took off her scarf and jacket and pulled down her swimsuit.
"Please lay down." The medic said and began examining her torso with her hands. "The cuts are superficial; you shouldn't have problem."
"Now sit." The medic said and Yoshika did so, while the medic started to check her notes. Then, she began measuring her pulse, while the Witch tried to remain as stoic as possible.
"It's normal." She stated, Yoshika sighing in relief and so did the two Witches. "Try to use some magic."
Yoshika gulped, as her ears and tails appeared, and so she put out a smallish shield while the medic just continued listening to her heartbeat.
"In your records, it is stated that you can use several shields at once."
"Yes." Yoshika softly replied as her body tensed up.
"I need to see them." The medic stated and Yoshika reluctantly put out three small shields, each one separated with enough distance, as the medic continued measuring her pulse and a minute passed. "It has remained normal."
"I told you I was feeling fine." Yoshika said, pushing her chest out.
"You can put your clothes back on." The medic said as Perrine stood up and walked towards the medic. "She's still stressed but she's healthy, as for an explanation regarding the variation in her pulse, as I stated she needs a more thorough examination to understand her condition."
"Would it be prudent to let her take part in the upcoming operation?" Perrine asked while Yoshika gave her a betrayed look.
"As in now, she's perfect in health condition but it is necessary to carry out a more rigorous analysis on her after the operation takes place."
"I'm going to make sure of that." Perrine commented as Yoshika stood up from her sit.
"As I told you before, you can continue with your normal activities, just don't push yourself too hard."
"Understood." Yoshika said, tying her scarf, nevertheless the two Witches did not look so convinced but there was nothing they could do now. Meanwhile, outside the infirmary the Britannian Witch was heading to their shared room, relieved after hearing what the medic said, to rest for a little.
Later that morning, and even though Perrine wanted to continue with her normal activities, her body did not cooperate with her at all. It was already hard enough to get up, but she needed to check on one of her subordinates. After doing so and Shizuka assuring her that she could handle the little activities that were pending, she agreed to go to rest not before getting something done.
She was now at Lynette and Yoshika's shared room, knocking the door.
"It's open." Lynette said and so Perrine entered the bedroom and to her surprise, the Britannian Witch was resting on Yoshika's bunk, still wearing her nightgown.
"The medic said Yoshika's healthy again." The Gallian Witch said, still near the door frame, crossing her arms.
"I know, I've heard myself." Lynette replied, not even gazing her.
"It's just the way she is." She proclaimed.
"I know."
"If there's something we could do, is just to assure ourselves there's someone to support her." Perrine stated.
"I've been thinking the same." The blue-eyed Witch replied with a neutral tone.
"But as for now, the whole Joint Fighter Wing would be working together, so there's nothing to be preoccupied of." Perrine stated, yet Lynette just continued watching the ceiling, not muttering another word. "Just don't be so angered with her."
"I'm not; I just need some time to clear my mind."
"I understand." Perrine said and left the room afterwards and headed to her own to rest.
Moments later
After Shizuka persuaded Perrine to go to rest, she became the one in charge of the cooking duty, but Yoshika noticing that, insisted to help her, and she reluctantly allowed her to. Thus, the two Fusoan Witches prepared the lunch and not long after, they were now just waiting for it to become cooked, so Yoshika just continued reading her medicine book while Shizuka was checking today's newspaper.
"Look, there's an article about us on the front page. World's Impenetrable Defense: The 501st Joint Fighter Wing Protects Three Countries at Once, it says. There's even a picture of us." Shizuka commented, catching Yoshika's attention as she stood up from her sit.
"Huh? It looks like one of those photos that were taken shortly after Berlin was liberated." Yoshika commented, putting her book down.
"Yeah, Commander Barkhorn is still there. Her aid would've come handy yesterday, though." Shizuka added.
"We pull it off, just as always. Yoshika happily said with a hint proudness in her tone.
"And- and you one by yourself." Shizuka added with some hesitation.
"I know it was reckless, I'm deeply sorry for worrying you but I can take care of myself." Yoshika commented with a hint of harshness.
"Everyone knows that Yoshika, it's just that you didn't have someone to back you up and you were sick just yesterday." Shizuka added.
"But I feel fine now."
"That's not my point. What I'm referring to is what would have been me if you weren't there to heal me back in Berlin?"
"I'm not gonna let that happen ever again to anyone of you." Yoshika argued back, raising her voice a little.
"It's not about me or anyone of us, it's about you, what if you were the one who ended up injured? No one would have been there to help you. That's why Lynne was so worried about you and all of us were." She made a pause, as she held her hand. "We were not even sure where you were."
Yoshika just stayed in dead silence, and only the boiling pots were now heard.
"Now you know what I'm getting at?"
"Everyone's concerned about me, and I've not done anything but worry y'all." She added.
"Yes."
"But I even still, I couldn't just stay here and do nothing." She argued back.
"If you wanted to go so bad, I'd go with you and I'm sure Lynne would come too." Shizuka stated. "Your perception is always spot on."
"Thanks for trusting in me." Yoshika added.
"And If you say you're feeling better, you can now continue with your normal routine, I think." Shizuka added with a hint of hesitation.
"I'll be just studying, I said I'd be doing just that but in the woods." She made a pause. "The tranquility makes it easier to understand those books."
"And I can accompany you if you want me to, so you don't have to be alone." Shizuka added.
"Thanks, Shizuka."
"And if you want to continue with the routine you followed under Group Captain Minna's guidance. That would be fine too, I guess."
"I hope Perrine don't mind it."
"I speak with her." Shizuka added. "And I can warm your up, if you let me."
"Huh?" Yoshika wondered what she meant.
"To train, I meant to train." She blushed a little, realizing what she just said.
Not long after, the rest of the Witches started to come to the dining hall with a messy-ish appearance and half-asleep, and after they had finished with lunch, the rest of the Witches took care of the cleaning. Thus, the two Fusoan Witches headed to the forest, carrying a few books. Not long after, Yoshika continued with Minna's routine and Shizuka followed her steps.
Meanwhile, Lynette alongside Eila and Sanya spend the afternoon taking care of the plants and flowers that were planted near the smallish bridge that was allowed entrance to the base and the whole afternoon went by.
"Want go inside now?" Sanya asked as she picked up the gardening tools, but Lynette did not say anything and continued loosening the soil.
"It's kinda late." Eila added, noticing that.
"I think it is." Lynette sighed, standing up, dusting off her hands, and the group went to clean themselves up, then they headed to the dining hall. To Lynette surprise, almost everyone was there, with the plates already served yet Yoshika was not there. Still, she took a sit in her usual place, next to Yoshika's.
"Have you seen Yoshika?" She asked.
"After she had dinner she told me, she was feeling a bit sleepy and wanted to go to rest." Shizuka commented, Lynette now had a troubled expression on her face. "She looked fine, just sleepy." She assured her, but the Britannian Witch did not look too appeased. Thus, she began to eat the dinner a little more quickly and not long after, she finished it, and left the dishes on the sink and headed to their shared room, leaving everyone exchanging glances.
"So… what do we do?" Francesca asked.
"Don't know." Eila commented.
"She seemed more calmed to me, just a little down." Sanya stated.
"I spoke with her, and she's not longer infuriated with Yoshika." Perrine commented.
"And what about Miyafuji?" Erika asked the group.
"I spoke with her and she's sorry but she'll do it again."
"Told ya." Charlotte commented "Then, again you've conquered her once; surely, you can do it again."
"What?" Shizuka asked as she felt the blood rushed to her cheeks. "I didn't do anything like that… to her." She added, nervously playing with her fingers.
"I'm talking about her stubbornness, what else could be I referring to?" Charlotte stated with a mischievous grin, and Shizuka's redness still remained. "I've been thinking of something, we all know what Yoshika likes most, right."
"I don't like that kind of implications." Perrine announced as the whole group nodded in agreement.
"Just hear me out…"
At the same time
Lynette quietly knocked the door, but there was no answer, not a single sound could be heard, so she slowly opened the door, and it was almost completely dark as only the stars shedding their light slightly illuminated it. The wind was softly blowing yet the room did not feel cold, just lonely.
She took off her clothes and put on her blue nightgown and laid on her bed, but even after a few minutes, she could not get herself to fall asleep.
"Yoshika, are you still awake?" Lynette whispered but a few seconds passed as if nothing had been said.
"Yoshika?" She softly said with the same results, so she got up as quietly as possible, and climbed up to her bunk, only to find that her roommate was profoundly sleeping, snoring a little, half covered with the blankets and her dressing gown untied. She carefully covered her well, then she climbed down to her own bed and laid down there.
Though, she could not speak with her, Lynette felt a bit eased, noticing that she was fine. Thus, she turned side on her bed and now she was able to fall asleep.
Somewhere in the Artic Ocean
Michiko was on the deck, wearing long black coat with book in her lap, watching the horizon, until a man came to her side.
"Is something wrong?" Hijikata asked.
"It's just that I just hope we're not too late." Michiko added with some pensiveness in her tone.
"I spoke with Major Sakamoto earlier today and the brasses are really pleased with the performance of the Joint fighter Wing."
"Is Nuremberg already freed?" Michiko wondered.
"Not yet, but they're going to make the first advance in the coming week." Hijikata commented. "Nevertheless, just yesterday, several Neuroi came out of the hive and the 501st stopped them from leaving Karlsland." He made a pause. "There's nothing official yet, but it's highly rumored that they will be assigned to take down the hive in Prague after Nuremberg is liberated."
"I hope Yoshika is okay." Michiko commented.
"There are no reports of injured Witches as far as I know." Hijikata said yet Michiko did not seem so relieved. "What I meant is that the supplies will aid them to advance to Prague."
"I just hope I don't get in her way." Michiko added.
"You don't need to be a Witch to help her, I helped Major Sakamoto for several years and I'm still helping her in some way, and also, I'm sure Lieutenant Miyafuji will be happy to see you."
"I really hope so."
The next morning
Yoshika got up pretty early in the morning began preparing breakfast not long after Perrine and Shizuka, joined to help her or rather to finish and serve the food for all the Witches. Not long after the rest of the girls joined them and to the surprise of everyone, Lynette was the last one to come.
They had breakfast mostly in silence with some small talk here and by the time they were almost finishing, a loud noise made its presence in the room.
"Sounds like plane." Shizuka commented, trying to distinguish to which model it belonged.
"It must be Group Captain Minna and Major Sakamoto." Perrine announced, both hands on the table.
"Why didn't you tell us they'd come today." Eila stated.
"They were supposed to arrive by the evening." Perrine claimed, now a bit nervous.
"Again, why didn't you tell us before?" Charlotte retorted.
"They just told me yesterday!" Perrine confessed. "Everything must be sparkling clean." Perrine stated as the whole group rushed to clean everything, though it was not that difficult as everyone had kept the base spotless just until yesterday.
Not long after, the group finished and by the time they made it to the hangar, the plane was already taxiing in the runway track. Everyone was now posing as the doors opened and the first one to come was Minna followed by Mio, and the two began going downstairs.
Meanwhile, Erika, stopped posing and put her arms behind her head.
"I'm happy to see you're doing well." Minna stated.
"Thank you, ma'am." The group said in unison.
"And for the look of it, everything's been running smoothly as well." Mio added.
"Yes- yes, ma'am." The group added with some hesitation, making Minna give a quick glance to Mio as she nodded.
"Mio, please, oversee the unload of the supplies." Minna stated. "Perrine, please come to the office." She added, as the Gallian Witch gave a step forward. "As for the rest of you, continue with your daily routines." So, the Witches did so, still there was not much to do. Meanwhile, Yoshika headed to their bedroom and picked a few books and headed to the river again.
At the office
Perrine was sitting in front of her superior officer and had already handed her several documents which she was in the process of reviewing them.
"The higher brasses in Gallia were very pleased with your commanding in the protection of Munich, Ostmark, and Helvetia." Minna commented. "They even re-."
"I should've been expecting that, but I made my decision clear the last time I spoke with them" Perrine interrupted her.
"I understand." Minna replied.
"Nevertheless, there's something you need to be informed of. We didn't intend to protect Ostmark. Yoshika was feeling ill, and she need time to recover and..."
"She slipped away and flew to the border."
"Yes." Perrine stated with some fuzziness in her tone as Minna continued reviewing the report.
"The report is vague enough so that we don't get in problems with the Fuso Navy due to unnecessary endangerment of one of their Witches. You did well." Minna stated as she continued reading the report. "I'll speak with her and what kind of illness did Yoshika have? Did it have something with her magic?"
"The medic is not entirely sure, and she needs to have more thorough analysis after the operation takes place."
"Well, she looked healthy; nevertheless, I'm going to make sure of that she gets the examination after, and I'll speak with the medic myself." Minna stated. "Did any of you have accident with your Striker units? The expenses are awfully high."
"No accidents to report as far as I'm aware." Perrine commented, realizing that she also noticed that.
"Actually, it seems it's being happening since we came to Munich. I'll speak with the maintenance team." Minna stated, as she put back that report in its folder.
"It must have been tiring for you, dealing with the girls all by yourself."
"Everyone did they part, it wasn't as difficult as I expected." Perrine stated, sighing a little.
"Now, you also need to have some R & R with the rest of the girls." Minna stated.
"Thank you, Group Captain." Perrine said and she left the room afterwards and rushed to Lynette's room. As soon as the Gallian Witch, left the room, the former commander of the Joint Fighter Wing entered the room.
"Miyafuji disobeyed orders again." Mio stated, taking a sit.
"She didn't have authorization to sortie, therefore, she did." Minna commented, reviewing the annexes of the report.
"And what're you going to do?" Mio asked with a neutral tone, crossing her arms.
"The bombers raised the alarms of six countries at the same time, and the girls protected three of them or rather four of them."
"So." Mio commented.
"Even though I'm sure Yoshika could handle it just fine, she still endangered herself, therefore I'm going to speak with her in due time." Minna commented, yet Mio just continued staring at her. "She needs to rest to be ready, I'm not going to punish her, it would be unnecessary."
Mio sighed. "Sounds fair." She added with a hint of disapproval in her tone.
In the other side of the base.
After the Witches were done with the little cleaning that was pending and the lunch was almost completely done, the Liberion Witch headed to the forest to look for the two Fusoan Witches
"Miyafuji, Hattori, wanna go to the sauna." Charlotte said.
"I feel pretty warm now to be in sauna." Yoshika stated.
"C'mon Yoshika, it will be fun." Shizuka said, yet Yoshika just continued doing pull-ups on a tree, near the river.
"I'll be there later." Yoshika added.
"Huh, so you feel warm?" The Liberion Witch asked, as she slowly made her way to Yoshika.
"I do?" Yoshika wondered, letting go of the branch.
"Now you don't!" Charlotte exclaimed, lifting her up and throwing her to the river, while Shizuka watched it a bit surprised.
"What was that for?" Yoshika complained raising her voice, yet Charlotte did not hear her as now throwed Shizuka to the river.
"And me three." Charlotte added as she jumped to the river. "Feeling refreshed Yoshika?"
"I…." Shizuka splashed water to her face. "…do." She added, now with a smile on her face, then she splashed water to both Witches, initiating a water battle that lasted for a couple of minutes. Then, the three Witches, now soaking wet, slowly made their way to the sauna.
Now, in the dressing room, they stripped, and then, Yoshika slid the door open. Lots of steam came out of it, and after it dissipated a little, Yoshika could notice that almost everyone was there, save for Perrine and Lynette.
Still, the three Witches made their way inside and took sits and everyone stayed in silence, just enjoying the heat for a few seconds.
"I wonder how much time we have until Minna calls out to the meeting room." Charlotte broke the silence in the room.
"I guess until the evening, Perrine's speaking with her right now." Eila stated making Yoshika tense up.
"Don't worry Yoshika, everything's gonna be just fine." Sanya commented.
"I'm not worried, it's just that…" Yoshika sighed and nothing more was added.
At the same time.
Perrine was outside Lynette and Yoshika's shared room, hoping the Liberion Witch was right and gathering the bravery to knock the door.
"May I come in?"
"Yes, of course." Lynette said, as the Gallian Witch opened the door, and noticed that she was laying on Yoshika's bunk just like yesterday.
"Want to get to the sauna?"
"I'm fine here." She replied, turning side to look at her.
"It will be relaxing, keep in mind it's the last day we rest ourselves."
"I guess you're right." Lynette said as she slowly climbed down the ladder. Thus, the two Witches headed there.
After they undressed, and as they entered the sauna, Lynette was a bit surprised to see that everyone was there, including Yoshika, then, she took a sit and though it was little crowded there, no one really mind, it was enjoyable.
"So, what did you tell Minna?" Francesca asked.
"Nothing too important, just reports." Perrine.
"Did you tell them about the spare parts for my P-51H?" The Liberion Witch asked.
"It totally slipped out of my mind." Perrine said with a convincing tone.
"What about the caviar Sanya and I requested?" Eila asked.
"And did you mention the second power outage?" Shizuka wondered.
"I think I forgot about that too." She added.
"So, we better tell them right now." Charlotte commented as the six Witches stood up and all headed outside, leaving Yoshika and Lynette alone in the sauna.
After they left, the silence took hold of the room, and they did not even look at each other.
"Please forgive me." Both Witches said in unison, then both stayed in silence waiting for the other to continue.
"I shouldn't have slapped you." The Britannian Witch started. "It was really mean and I'm really sorry."
"I really deserved it" Yoshika sighed. "I've been selfish just acting by myself, not caring about anyone else."
"You're not selfish." She made a pause. "You care about everyone, and you just want to protect them." Lynette said as she held her hand. "Just don't it alone." She added, yet Yoshika did not say anything.
"I said I trusted you, didn't I?" The Britannian Witch commented.
"Yes." Yoshika bashfully said.
"If you want to pull off something like that again, just ask me. I'll do whatever I can to be there with you." Lynette stated. "If you want me to be by your side."
"You know I'd love that." Yoshika said as she held her other hand and now, they were face to face, feeling each other breaths, Lynette slowly closed her eyes, and felt how Yoshika let go of her hands. Then, she felt how Yoshika's hands passed in between her arms and chest onto her back, and then, she tenderly embraced her. "Thank you for forgiving me."
"Thank you too." Lynette added and she cuddled her, and a few seconds went by with nothing being muttered.
"This is a bit embarrassing." Yoshika shily commented as she felt her bared breasts being buried by Lynette's.
"Just a little." Lynette said, realizing what she was feeling of her yet she hugged her tighter.
Meanwhile, outside the sauna
The whole group was outside the door, trying to peek through the wooden walls in various poses.
"I can't see a thing." Francesca softly said as she tried to peek.
"Me neither." Eila added.
"They're really making out in there." Charlotte announced.
"What!?" Everyone said in unison.
"Just kidding, I cannot see anything either." Charlotte as everyone sighed in relief until the door slid opened unexpectedly, scaring them in the process.
"What's the meaning of this?" Mio said, not believing that most of the squad were completely naked, stuck to the sauna door.
"We- we were about to get dressed." Eila said as she picked a piece a cloth near her which was not even hers.
"Yeah, we were doing just that." Charlotte added as she tried to put on a bra that did not even fit her.
"Do it at once, we'll be expecting you in fifteen minutes." Mio said as she left the room, wondering what they were doing.
"Yes, ma'am." The whole group said in unison as reluctantly continued getting dressed in silence, hoping to hear something and by the time they finished it, something could now be heard, that blushed the whole group, someone was moaning inside the sauna and some seconds passed that feel like minutes to them and they did not stop, and they all stuck to the wooden door again.
"You've softened up a little." Lynne said.
"You think?" Yoshika moaned a little.
"Yeah." Lynette added, as the whole group gave a step back, as everyone gazed at each other.
"It's all your fault." Perrine fumed.
"How was I supposed to know they'll do that kind of stuff with all of us here?" Charlotte commented as she became even redder.
"So…. do we interrupt them or what?" Eila embarrassedly asked as she began playing with her fingers.
"You're in charge, what do we do?" Charlotte addressed the Gallian Witch.
"Why you ask me?" Perrine replied. "I don't know what to do!"
"What if we all checked what they are doing by ourselves!" Francesca suggested excitedly, as she beckoned with her hands.
"I don't think they'd like that." Sanya quietly said as her cheeks became even redder.
"What if we all checked what they are doing by ourselves!" Francesca suggested excitedly, as she beckoned with her hands.
"I don't think they'd like that." Sanya quietly said as her cheeks became even redder.
"That sounds good to me." Shizuka said, full of resolve, yet her redness did not help her, but she still put herself in front of the group, and slid the open the door at once. "Lynne, Yoshika, Group Captain Minna is requiring us to be in the meeting hall at once." She loudly announced, with her eyes closed.
"That's… underwhelming." Charlotte said, as the whole group sighed in relief as their flushness began to fade.
"Yep." Francesca said noticing that both Witches were sat in the wooden stairs, one above the other, Yoshika in between Lynette's legs, and she was massaging the shoulders.
"Huh?" Yoshika wondered why they say that.
Sure." Lynette added Witches said in unison a bit surprised as they stood up. "Why are your faces all red?"
Author Notes:
Sorry for the late update but I've been kind of busy.
I know there're many Eila and Sanya fans out there that will be disappointed by the lack of action, I've planned an arc for them, but it will take some chapters to get there.
In the next chapter, the first part of the mission will finally start.