Lys was missing, or at least that was what everyone else would assume if they were the ones to see an empty room and an open window in the middle of the night. However Marisa knew better, the girl wasn't one for running away very far when she was stressed and she often just ran for the nearest place that could be safe. Absent a proper library, and no that records room did not count, there was only one place that one could reasonably expect to find her.
Marisa opened the door to the wine cellar. It didn't take long for her to spot a little ball of white curled up in a corner.
"How long you been here?" Marisa asked as she casually walked in.
"Hey Risa." Lys raised her bottle with blushed cheeks and a somber smile on her face. In her hands she cradled a bottle of wine like it was a first-born child. "I dunno. Been… a while."
"Anything good we can borrow?" Marisa asked as she casually walked into the room and began to browse through whatever wine remained. Best to participate in the Gensokyan way of relieving stress. Been a while since she had a chance to drink anyway.
"Just average, this port's okay though." Lys held up the bottle and offered it to Marisa. Once Marisa grabbed it, Lys was quick to replace it with another. "Sooooo how did the interrogation go?"
"Truth Serum worked."
Lys perked up. "Really?"
Marisa nodded. "Yep. They didn't know much, just some hooded figures with pale skin visiting on occasion, but yea otherwise they were spilling almost everything we asked them once the Knights got a bit persuasive."
Torture. It was torture. But honestly Marisa had other things to worry about at the moment than to worry about how much those men seemed to enjoy their jobs.
"Hooded figures… with pale skin… Weere they…"
"It's not something we should worry about right now. Just keep drinking."
"Oookay." Lys was quick to continue to pop open the cork and gulp down the bottle.
Marisa sat down next to her and began to drink from her own bottle. Yea she had really needed this. And the wine was actually really good. Better than most other alcohol Marisa usually got her hands on. Honestly Lys's tastes in general were a bit pretentious, mostly because she always had access to some of the highest quality products in Gensokyo. The SDM had their own vineyard and brand of wine that they sold to the upper classes of Gensokyo and they were more than happy to partake of their own supply. Hell, they practically owned the market on Western Goods which was probably how Remilia afforded every crazy thing they did there.
"Risa… I'm s'ry"
Marisa paused, her bottle just inches away from her lips. "You don't have to apologize to me. I just… want you to do better." She then began to drink once more. It really wasn't like Lys to be so subdued. What happened to the girl that would challenge her anytime she caught her sneaking in the mansion?
They sat like that for a while until Marisa's own face became blushed and Lys had an almost glassy look in her eyes.
"I'm scared," Lys eventually admitted. "Of my Crests. If people start liking me just because of the things killing me."
"… How long do you have?" Marisa asked. It hadn't taken her long to figure out that Lys was dying after talking with Lindhardt. It explained so much about Lys and it had honestly made Marisa mad that she hadn't realized all this beforehand.
"Ten… fifteen years maybe. If I stay human."
Fuck. That… that wasn't very long at all. Marisa's own lifespan as a human always felt too short, but cut that to twenty thirty years? She would have driven herself crazy.
"Which is why you're in such a hurry to become a Witch," Marisa replied.
Lys nodded.
"… Why didn't you tell me?" Marisa asked. She knew that Lys was a private person and she didn't hold the secrets she kept against her before. But something like this… it hurt not to know. Hurt to think about how she should've treated Lys a bit differently.
"I didn't want you to be worried about me… to treat me differently."
Damn. Well apparently Lys was right to keep it a secret. Still sucked though.
"Lys… I'll always be worried about you." Marisa replied before letting out a sigh. "You're pretty annoyed that I haven't become a Witch yet even though I could at this point, right?"
"Yea. Why don't you?" Lys asked, her voice becoming more and more animated as she spoke. "You can become a Witch, not have to worry about dying from old age. You could have all the time in the world to do what you want, to find out what you want to do. Why don't you?"
"I'm scared."
"… what?"
Marisa looked down at her bottle. "I'm scared about what I'll become. Once I become a Witch I would be… one of them. One of the Youkai. Not human anymore. It won't be me vs them anymore during an incident… it would just be a Youkai competing with another Youkai."
"That… doesn't make much sense. Youkai get involved with resolving incidents too."
"I know. But explain that to the villagers. Explain that to me. It doesn't have to be rational, I'm just afraid to lose everything that makes me… me. Becoming a Youkai changes a person fundamentally in so many ways in both body and spirit. You can't tell me that you haven't noticed how different Patchy and Alice are from us sometimes."
"Sensei… has been alive for a long time."
"Exactly. Living that long or even knowing that you'll live that long it changes how you make your decisions, the risks you take. And Alice, she's been a Witch for like nine, ten years? And she hardly acts like a human at this point."
"I think Alice is just weird in general."
Marisa let out a quick chuckle. "Okay I'll give you that."
"Are you afraid of me becoming a Witch?" Lys asked.
"No." Marisa shook her head. "It's your choice. I'll support you on it, help you out even. Even if you do change, at least I'll be there to see you grow."
Finished with what she needed to say, Marisa continued to drink. She hardly acknowledged Lys scooting over and resting her head against her shoulder, apart from smiling at least.
It was a good talk, but in the end though there was something that Marisa hadn't told her. Another reason she was afraid of becoming a Witch. It was the reason why she refused to ask Reimu about a certain law of Gensokyo, one that had to be kept in order to preserve the balance. If she became a Witch, what would Reimu do with her?
A bright light struck Marisa's eyes, waking her up and causing her to groan as she angled herself away from the light.
"Marisa!?" It was shrill loud harsh voice that she immediately recognized as Mercedes's.
"Uh… what's wrong?" Marisa groaned as she rubbed her eyes. Her cheeks were still a bit heated so that quick nap hadn't been enough to get her sober.
"Marisa!? Are you and Lysithea drunk!?"
"Lys mostly," Marisa admitted to it casually. "Needed one of us sober enough to walk around in the morning." She took a deep drink of the bottle before looking at the crowd that had started to gather at the doorway of the wine cellar. A good number of their classmates and the Professors, though for some reason they were all looking pretty distraught.
"Why? Something wrong?" She asked as she lowered her bottle.
"The drinking age in Fodlan is 21," Hanneman replied.
Marisa blinked, stared at Hanneman, opened her mouth slightly, and then looked down at her bottle.
She raised it to her mouth again.
Felix stomped up, snatched it out of her hand, and then tossed the bottle backwards. A distinct crashing sound in the background revealed the fate of the bottle.
"Ugh… can I plead the Fifth?" Marisa asked.
"I don't even know what that is," Felix explained plainly.
"Crap." Marisa looked around. "Where's Lys?"
"Heh heh."
Everyone in the room tilted their heads back and looked up at the ceiling. Above them was a little giggling white and red ball floating above them without a care in the world.
"We're not even in the outside world Marisa," Lysithea giggled as she continued to spin around midair. "And the fifth is about silence doesn't really help when you're breaking the law right in front of them."
"Wait, did you know about the drinking age?" Marisa asked.
"Yep," Lys popped her mouth on the p. She continued to giggle as several of her classmates jumped up to grab her only for her to deftly evade their attempts. "What's wrong? Are we playing tag? You know we could always add some Danmaku."
"No Danmaku Lys! No Danmaku!" Marisa shouted. "Just please come down to the ground."
"Oookaaaay." Lys her around so that feet was oriented downwards before lowering herself to the ground.
"Lysithea you are aware of Fodlan's drinking age?" Hanneman asked.
"Yep."
"Then what compelled you to break the law?"
"I was feeling real shitty yesterday so I came here to drink even though I kneeew it was baaaad. Then I felt guilty because I was breaking the rules. Buuut then I kept drinking and now everything's great!" Lys threw her hands up in cheer and began drifting upwards again. It was only thanks to Byleth's timely intervention of grabbing her by the leg that she didn't start floating to the ceiling again.
"Professor, is there nothing you wish to say to your student?" Hanneman asked.
"Young mercenaries drink all the time."
"But this isn't a mercenary group!"
"I'm aware which is why she will be disciplined later. When she is sober enough to understand what's happening."
"Wow Professor you got some really nice strong hands. You should show off your arms more!" Lys said as she suddenly began to touch and prod the man's bicep.
The Professor simply remained composed as he let her grope his arm. "Set up the caravan, I'll make sure she's there in a suitable condition."
He then used his arm as leverage to carry her out of the room.
Marisa could only stand as everyone else nearby stared at the Professor and Lysithea retreating forms with mixed expressions on their faces before turning back to her.
Marisa chuckled. "I plead the Fifth?"
Lys's snores could be heard from the carriage that they had dumped her throughout a good chunk of the caravan as they made their way back to the Academy.
Marisa on the other hand remained uncharacteristically silent. Mostly because of the mixed bag of looks she was getting ranging from annoyed, shocked, and just plain amused.
Dimitri in general looked especially annoyed. Hell he even had the whole I'm not mad at you just disappointed look down pat. "Why did you think that raiding Lonato's wine cellars along with Lysithea was a good idea?"
"Well it wasn't being used and well… it's kinda the Gensokyo way after a good battle."
"To get drunk?"
"To get a drink at least. We never had a drinking age there so it really isn't something that ever came to mind," Marisa admitted. "But seriously? 21? Isn't that just way too old to wait just for a little booze?"
"I did not make the laws but we must do our best to follow them," Dimitri replied. "It's how we retain order in Fodlan."
"I haven't been here long but from what the Professor over there said I don't think a lot of people actually follow that law."
"As nobles we must be held to a higher standard to uphold those laws," Lorenz interjected. "Likewise the same should follow for those who attend the Officers Academy."
"For once I have to agree with Lorenz," Dimitri admitted.
Lorenz turned toward the prince. "… What do you mean by that?"
"Okay then no drinking, got it," Marisa replied before floating away on her broom and heading toward Claude. He seemed more than happy to talk with her. "So seriously how much trouble are me and Lys in?"
"You? Seteth's strict but not unfair. You can argue that you didn't know the laws and he'll probably just punish you with some assigned reading on said laws. Maybe a little extra work."
Marisa nodded. That didn't seem so bad. "And Lys?"
"Yea no. She's kinda screwed."
A loud snort could be heard from the carriage before Lysithea began to mumble loudly about fluffy piles of whipped cream.
"Very screwed."
Shez laid on the ground as red pooled up around her. This was it. This was how it ended for her.
It was a hard fought yet short life full of fighting and… well pretty much only fighting. That's basically all a merc ever did really. Huh… thinking of it that way didn't that mean her life kinda sucked? I mean there had to be more to life than swinging a couple of swords around. Even if it was fun and got her heart racing in the heat of battle. And the coin to spend on a couple of books and a good meal or two was also pretty good. Actually you know what, her life was fine. Or at least it had been fine right up to this point, cause well the dying after all.
"Monica I'm not going to make it." Shez raised one of her swords up and offered it to the mage. Monica would have to take up her mantle now. Maybe use her magic to set her blade on fire to make it really cool. "Please take it."
"Shez…"
"You must live on and avenge me!" Preferably against those gray freaks. Slaughtering a bunch of happy flying kids, even if they were particularly violent, probably didn't seem like a very productive thing to do.
"Shez… I don't think you're actually dying," Monica told her with an unamused look on her face.
"I am! Look at all this blood!"
"That isn't blood, it's ketchup."
Shez immediately sat up and looked backwards. And huh there was actually a broken body of ketchup right where she had been lying. "Why were those kids carrying around ketchup?"
"Because we were going to play a prank on the Shrine Maiden!" One of the winged flying girls said. She had long black hair and wore a frilly dark blue dress.
"So was this all just a prank?" Shez asked.
"Yep! Just a little fun!"
Huh… Well that changed things. Especially because of the wholesale slaughter Shez had just committed. "Oh… uh I'm sorry we killed most of your friends?"
"That's fine Sunny and Luna will come back soon enough."
"I don't think that's how it wooorrrks…" Shez replied. "I mean people die when they're killed."
"Really?" Monica looked affronted. "That's what you came up with? Not they won't ever wake up again?"
"Looks I mean it's true right?" Shez argued.
"What do you know about fairies?" the flying girl asked.
"Like the storybooks?" Monica replied.
"I dunno about the story books but they'll come back. I don't think you killed them that bad. They'll just need a few hours."
"… Do fairies resurrect or something?" Monica asked.
"What does that mean?" the fairy asked.
"Come back to life."
"Well. Yea," the fairy replied as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"Okay then." Shez stood up. "Now I officially feel like an idiot."
"Stating the obvious there," Monica replied before looking at the fairy. "Do you know where are we?"
"Gensokyo! You must be some outsiders that ended up here right?"
Monica tilted her head. "Yea that's about right."
"You two should go meet the shrine maiden then. I'll even take you guys to her since you played with us."
"Really? Thanks," Shez replied. "If we have some time I'll play with you some more."
"Yay!" the fairy cheered before leading them into the forest.
A/N
Finally been getting in the groove of writing again between this fic and my other new Worm/Fear and Hunger crossover. Hope you guys enjoy this quick chapter.
Attached below is my Kofi account. Any tip is appreciated though I will still do my best to keep writing, nevertheless.
/soul249134