I know that people normally have important details as such here, but I just think I have to say that Cid is a bit more not Cid. He's a bit more kind, some would say. I don't think it changes the story much, but in my opinion is just fun imagining different interactions had different things had been said.
"I'd love to."
"What the fuck?! What the fuck?! What the actual fuck?!" There's no way that this is right! Like there's no absolute way! My mob persona is going to be ruined!
Right now I just have confessed to the second princess of this Kingdom, Alexia Midgar. I lost a bet and I confessed with the pure intention of being rejected! All my time practicing in front of a mirror! All the time trying my absolute hardest to stutter naturally…! Gone to waste…!
"...Excuse me, what?"
Her eyes… she definitely has something planned…!
"I said I'd love to." She grabbed my hand as she interlaced her hand with mine.
This is not what I wanted…! Why?! I straightened myself and looked directly at her, "Uh… excuse me, excuse me. Can you say that be it one more time?"
She pulled me close to her, "I said I'd love to. What, were you hoping for another answer?"
YES!
"Nonononono! This- uh…"
"What's your name?"
I tried every technique in my book to look as frightened as possible, I wonder what she's thinking right now! Knees trembling, eyes wandering around, voice cracking–
"C-Cid Kagenou…"
"Well, Cid Kagenou, I'll be in your care from now on. Please treat me well."
Fuck no!
"Of course!"
She smiled, a smile so innocent that anyone would think that there's nothing to suspect…! But I am not "anyone"! I am the Eminence in Shadow! I work in the shadows! I can tell! There's something suspicious here!
Murmurs, talks and all alike all around me. It's been less than a day but I still understand, I mean, look at me. I am just an ordinary guy, there's nothing interesting about me! I continue walking with my tray of food though, towards the table where my friends were.
"He's so… basic… and he's a lower class noble… so why him?"
"He's not even smart as far as I heard!"
"Neither strong. He's just there."
Exactly my problem too! I don't get it either! It's too suspicious!
Anyhow, setting my food on the table, I sat down and sighed, "Like, how?"
"We were expecting you to be rejected!"
"In an instant."
Skel the blond dude answered first, while Po just hit the nail after.
"You are… don't take this the wrong way but pretty basic- scratch that, you're no-one compared to her, so why would she pick you?"
"I know right?! There's nothing interesting about me!"
"I know right?! There's nothing interesting about him!"
Doesn't matter, I'll make her dump me! How? We'll figure that out soon, but she will. After all there's no way someone would be in love with me of all people!
…I don't know why I could feel multiple people sneezing, and they're not even near…
I'll figure something out. That's all I know—
"Excuse me gentlemen."
Skel was frozen in shock while Po was grinning from ear to ear. I raise an eyebrow and turn to my left, there stood Alexia Midgar, the princess and my supposed "Girlfriend"... why is she here?
"Wha-wha-wha-wha-wha-" Skel was like a broken record already…
"What can we do for you?!"
She seemed surprised that I didn't say anything. Why would I? I want to get dumped already damn it… I continued eating my food without a care in the world.
A smile (Fake as they come) appeared in her face, "Mind if I join you?"
"Please! Go ahead!"
"We'd-We'd be honored!" Po and Skel answered, in that order. I just rolled my eyes… something which she obviously saw!
My new plan! Make it seem as if she's no-one to me! Where she's from, her family or anything related doesn't matter! That'll annoy her and make her want to dump me! That, or I can just make it as if I'm not interested, bored, or annoyed any time I see her. Either will work.
"...What an interesting way to greet your girlfriend, don't you think Cid?" She said as she sat down.
I narrowed my eyes before sighing and continued eating. "Do you mind introducing your friends to me?"
I nodded and pointed to the shining head, "That's Po Tato, second son of Baron Tato, and that-" my finger pointed to the frozen man, the scarecrow, "is Skel Etal, second son of Baron Etal."
Alexia bowed her head a bit towards the duo, "It is a pleasure to meet you. I am Alexia Midgar, second princess of the Midgar Kingdom."
The duo nodded, man they sure were nervous. "We k-k-know!" "It's a pleasure- It's a pleasure to speak to you!"
Silence ensued, I was acting uninterested and the Duo not wanting to annoy the princess… until a multitude of maids pulled up with a bunch of food, way too high of a calibur compared to whatever I was eating right now.
"Wow, that sure is a good amount of food." I said with honesty.. An idea!
"I hope you don't mind… Most of the time I never manage to finish it… Honestly I wouldn't complain about having some lower-class options…but…"
"Did you just say 'I never manage to finish it'?"
"Yes..?"
Aha! "Then I can get some?"
I grabbed a piece of her pig cutlet anyway, not waiting for her response and threw it in my mouth… This is delicious!
Looking a bit to my left I saw a vein in her forehead, ready to blow up. Come on, don't hold them in! "That was delicious! You don't mind if I grab anything else, right?"
"Well, I–"
I grabbed another piece of food without a care in the world, "Mmmm!"
"WHA-WHA-WHA-WHA-WHA–!"
"This dude got a chance with the princess and is trying to ruin it?!" the duo said. That's right Po, I am trying to ruin it!
Alexia took a deep breath, inhaled then exhaled, before she grabbed a piece of bread, "Do you want some of this too?" and brought it close to my mouth..
"Eh?"
Why is she going with this? Wouldn't most people try to stab the living shit out of me if I were to do this? I mean sure we're a 'couple', but… it's been less than a day!
After a good amount of eating, I was stuffed… but it seems like my plan had yet to work, she was still here, a smile on her face. Gotta think of something else it seems.
"Neh Cid."
I turned my head to Alexia, "Yeah?"
She put a finger in her chin, is she trying to be cute or something? "If I'm not wrong, you're studying Royal Bushin fencing in the afternoon, right?"
How does she know that?
"Yeah."
Act uninterested, no matter what she says!
"Oh? Is that so? I take that class too."
"Cool."
"...How about we take that class together?"
Um, how about no?
"Uh, no thanks, I'm fine."
This seemed to genuinely surprise her… why? Haven't my previous actions proven that I don't care 'bout this?
"Oh no, I insist! I'd love to study with you!"
"Even if I wanted to, I'm in section nine, the lowest of all the sections."
"That's all right. I already put in a good word for you and they opened up a spot in section one."
All that without telling me, darn it.
Sighed, shook my head and nodded, "Alright."
"I see why you're in section nine."
"That's a low blow even coming from you."
I was currently on the ground, all sweaty and beaten up. I sparred with Alexia as she tried to teach me the basics, but it seemed that she was letting her pent-up anger be released… maybe for what I pulled in the cafeteria.
"Honestly I expected you to do worse than what you actually did, so congrats."
"...I don't think that's as much of a compliment as you're making it out to be."
She grinned, "It's not every day someone from section nine goes to section one, you know that, right?"
"It was against my will."
"Lighten up, you're here with your beloved girlfriend after all."
I wore my white exercise uniform… Everyone else around me wore a black uniform… white was for beginners, black was for experts. She started walking away to put the wooden swords away.
"Yeah, not like I wanted to."
Her head snapped, "What was that?"
After everything that just happened, "Nothing."
I stood up and started stretching a bit. Let's think of plans. Eating her food? Seemed to annoy her, still a couple. Ignoring her and treating her as if she was no-one? So far it doesn't seem to be working. Trying to avoid her by any means necessary? She pulled a fast one and we're in the same class.
What now? Just talk to her about breaking up? She'll probably cut me to pieces. Worth a try though.
I started walking to put the sword back in its place.
She too was there, "You know, you have a good fencing style."
Oh? "Thanks."
Honestly, first thing; first genuine compliment from her, that I've heard.
"But I hate it… it's too similar to mine."
I said nothing although I heard that. Suddenly, Alexia tensed up and walked somewhere(?). I followed behind, concealing myself as best as possible.
She was behind a door, talking to someone,Mr. Zenon , as the students called him, "I assume that he's your answer, Alexia?"
Me?
"You can't help a girl falling in love… I decided to be his girlfriend , in the most genuine way possible."
I couldn't see them but I already knew she's doing something exaggerated with her hands.
"You're acting like a child. You can't run away forever."
"I'm just in love, anything bad about that?"
"It may not be public but we're still betrothed."
Oh! So that's why! Yeah, I should've known.
"I'm going out with my boyfriend. This doesn't matter." I hear her walking back. I ran- sprinted as fast as possible without making any noise to the other side of the room.
She opened the door, and saw me lying against a wall, eyes closed. Cool style.
"Cid, let's go."
I opened my eyes and walked towards her.
"...so you're using me to try to dump your fiance?"
We were currently behind the dojo on an empty field.
This seemed to shock her, before she nodded, "Something like that. Surprised you know."
"I heard you both."
"Ah." I don't think she believed it. Doesn't matter to me though.
"Anyways I don't know what this has to do with me, and I don't want to be sucked into your mess."
"That's cold, coming from my boyfriend." and pout.
"You're playing with a man's heart here, that's not cold?" a grin appeared on her features.
"Oh, are you any better I-Confessed-Fake-Love-Because-I-Lost-a-Bet Kagenou."
My eyes widened, how does she know?
"B-Bet? What bet?"
"Oh come on, I know the truth."
"..."
"I bet you're wondering how I know." nod, "I had a little talk with your friend… Po was it? He confessed to everything with just two questions."
"..."
Those idiots! I could be free right now…! Wait, calm down. There's still time for me to return to my usual mob persona.
Imma get your ass, Po, mark my words.
"Oh, why are you frowning so much?"
"I'm mad."
"...that was a fast answer. Are you not happy talking with your girlfriend?"
"No."
"Geh! At least hesitate a little!"
Silence. Nothing was said as we just sat.
"Anyways, what do you want from me?"
"I want to continue our fake relationship. At least, until Zenon either gives up on me or y'know." she acted as if her head was chopped off. The hell?
"So, you want me to get my ass handed to me?" A questioning look appeared on her face. "I mean the dude is famous and crazy strong! I barely managed to scratch a fly if I tried!"
"He's not going to do anything to you."
"You don't know that."
Suddenly, from who knows where, a pouch appeared in her hand.
Rustling noises, suddenly a gold coin–... Huh?! She threw that coin into the air, and it landed right in front of me.
"Do I seem like the kind of guy who'd do anything for money?"
"Yes." Geh! At least hesitate a little!
I glanced at her, then another coin fell next to the one prior. Then another. Then another. A smile appeared on my face. "You're absolutely right!"
I grabbed the coins without a care in the world- why is she patting my head?
"You're such a good dog!"... what? Lady?! – two more coins in the ground.
"Woof!"
And thus, I decided to continue my romantic relationship with Alexia. She tried teaching me things, albeit forced in the library. She grabbed random books which she could find, or asked the peached-haired girl (Sherry was it?) to help her find certain books and tried to force me to read and learn…
I couldn't even spend time with Po and Skel in the cafeteria and try to get my revenge, because she'd be there trying to feed me or trying to get me to feed her.
But, if I want to continue my life as a mob persona, then I have no choice but to do as she pleases! If word comes out that I only confessed because of a bet that I lost, the whole school would have their eyes on me, and that's something I really do not desire... it seems like my mob persona is nearing it's end...!
So I just went with it.
Unfortunately, a lot of people noticed… of course. They were bound to notice. Fortunately, everyone was focused on the fact that Alexia had a boyfriend. I can sit back and play the role of a boyfriend character.
We're walking past him. Zenon I mean. Alexia sped up to walk faster. It seems like Mr. Zenon opted for the wait-and-see approach.
"That man is so infuriating!"
We are currently on a tram ride together and for the last twenty minutes I've been listening to her speak about .
"He thinks he's so great, just because he has a little bit of skill with a sword."
And this has been going for a couple minutes already, I'm at her right, tired, bored and mainly bored.
"Sure, sure."
She seemed to notice how I've been answering, "You saw that phony smile on his face, didn't you Poochie?"
"Sure, sure."
"You will only say "sure" once."
"Sure."
I should've known, but in the open she's calm, collected and prudent, but behind closed doors, she was a whirlwind of insults and spite. Trying to argue with her is only a waste of time, I've noticed.
I've stopped trying to argue with her, to be more exact. I just agree to anything she says, that way I save myself a multitude of problems.
She was buying ice cream for the two of us, staying in line "to show off my relationship". But now I'm wondering.
"What exactly is the problem with marrying Mr. Zenon?"
This seemed to have caught her off guard, "You're asking now? Everything is a problem!"
"What do you mean?"
"I hate everything about his entire existence."
You don't make sense. "But he's good-looking and has status, fame and money… and in fact, he is popular with all the girls."
She stared at me, baffled, "That's all just on the surface."
"What do you mean…?"
"It's easy to pretend to be perfect. That's what I do."
Ah. True. I mean I live a double life after all, I know what she means.
"I see, that's a very convincing argument…" I said, somewhat sarcastically.
"Did you say something?" She asked, an icecream appearing inside my mouth.
I shook my head, once again, avoiding any argument by any means necessary.
"Anyways, I don't judge only by what I see on the surface."
That only raises the question, "Then, what do you judge by?"
"Flaws."
"Oh, a very negative way to judge people. It fits you."
She grinned and got closer to me, "That's why I have nothing against a guy who's totally average, full of flaws, and has no real redeeming qualities."
"Thank you." no arguing.
I put her ice cream cone in front of her face and asked, "Then, what are Mr. Zenon's flaws?"
"He has none."
"And that's a problem?"
"Yes." oh? "If a perfect human exists, they're either a massive liar or just not right in the head."
"Ah. Yeah that makes sense."
"Yeah. That's why I can't stand Zenon. I don't know what's wrong with him, I just know there's something wrong with him. What it may be? I don't know…"
She pulled a gold coin and grinned, "I just know that if it's hidden, it's probably something massive."
She smiled and threw the coin to the air, "Now, with your help, you'll buy me time for me to figure out a way out of this! And then, you'll be free."
"Now fetch!"
Money is money, I don't care how I'm supposed to look in front of people. We walked back to another tram and we sat together, "You're such a good pooch!" and pat me.
I just closed my eyes and rested my head against the tram. "Can I ask a question?"
She nodded, not that I could see. "Why do you dislike my swordplay so much?"
I opened my left eye to see her staring at me, "Where did that come from?"
"You said you disliked it. I was wondering why, since it's rare to hate the basics."
She frowned.
"Tell me, Pooch. What is it that they call me?"
I have no clue. So let me just throw a random guess in there, "The Fencer Ordinaire?"
She nodded, "Exactly. Our styles are ordinary, basic… unfortunately.." I guessed it right? Sheesh!
Okay so she dislikes it because it's basic? I don't get where she's coming from?
"Unfortunate? I don't think it's unfortunate."
Silence.
"I like your fencing style."
She lowered her head, her fangs covering her eyes, "All my life, I've wanted to be as good if not better than my sister, Iris… but I don't have that talent that she does. I tried getting better, trying to figure it out on my own, yet…"
She took a breath, "I lost in a fight to her. IN the Bushin Festival, I suffered a humiliating defeat to my sister. She said those words to me, 'I like your fencing style'... I felt mocked. Pathetic. I've hated my sword style ever since."
That's… sad actually. Makes me feel kinda bad. I mean, she may be using me, but at least she's somewhat paying me and helping me… although I don't really need it. I may just try to be nice right now.
"I understand where you come from. I don't know much about you, but I guess your sister feels like a star out of reach… but it's not the fault of fencing." She looked at me, a questioning look in her face.
"There's goals one has. Do you think, just because she knows a different fencing style, she's better? No, Alexia. You know better. If there's something you can do, is try to master what you have and then surpass what's mastered."
"You can't continue switching styles and hoping for improvements."
"Are they basic? Yeah, sure. But if it weren't for them, would anyone know how to fence? No. If you mastered the basics, it's pretty hard to be deterred or defeated, I think. Don't you?"
Her eyes were wide, tears formed in the corner of her eyes, "I like your fencing style, Alexia. Comparing yourself to others doesn't do any good, but comparing yourself to your past self shows improvement. Don't let any defeat or any other person tell you otherwise."
Silence. She was staring at me as if I had said something so incredibly stupid… I don't think it is. I feel like it's the right thing I could've said… I think?
She doesn't do anything though. She's just staring at me. Is she mad? I don't know.
"Y-You're not lying, are you?"
I'm a "mob character", Alexia. You're supposed to be the pro here! "No. I am not."
Wah! She threw herself at me and brought me in for a hug?! What are you doing?!
She's crying on my shoulder… y'know what I can let it be–, Imma let it me.
After what felt like hours, the tram came to a stop.
"Thank you for this talk Cid." she said as she stopped hugging me and cleaned her tears. She smiled, "I hope to talk to you tomorrow."
Oh. Wait. Did I just…? Meh doesn't matter. If it all plays properly, she'll dump me soon... I hope.
She walked out of the tram and went away. I want to get home, man am I tired.
These two idiots are in front of me for the first time since Po decided to confess to Alexia why I confessed. My eyes narrowed as they trembled in their seats together.
"Y-You can lower the killing intent, Cid… please."
Skel, you didn't confess anything, but I have a very good reason to believe that you would've had Po not done it first.
"Y-Yeah wh-what Skel sai- AY!" a fork flew past his head.
"I could've ended that relationship way sooner had you too fooligans not said anything." [(Fooligans is made up, right? I just wrote it without actually knowing if it's a word lol)]
"I didn't though!"
"You would've!" Po screamed
And the bickering has begun.
I silently ate my food. I haven't seen my girlfriend all day. Which is weird considering the last two weeks she's been nothing but a nuisance… but it feels weird not seeing her… as if something had happened.
Is Mr. Zenon that's walking in our direction? Why does he have such a strict– My Eminence in Shadow senses are tingling! I feel like something related to that man must've happened!
He had some knights with him… I feel like this had to do with Alexia somehow.
"May I have a moment?"
Po and Skel hid behind me as fast as lightning, but began nodding nonetheless behind me.
Mr. Zenon closed his eyes, "Princess Alexia did not return to her dorm last night." my eyes widened, she was kidnapped then?
"She was kidnapped?"
"We don't have much evidence. Ribbons and her shoe were found in the middle of a plaza, a scuffle seemed to have happened. She was last seen with you."
Oh, I see where this is going.
I'm going to be blamed for something I didn't do!
"Since you were last seen with her, we would like to ask some questions. I assume you're going to cooperate, right?"
I nodded, "Yeah. I wish to find her as soon as possible." She may be a headache, but she's a princess. She's an important piece of lore, after all.
Yo! Author here. I've noticed that most Eminence in Shadow fanfics have more details but less character dialogue, and don't get me wrong, I absolutely love that style of writing… I can't write like that. Sure I can go into details at times, but not to the extent of others. Anyways, I just wanted to have something different. I wanted Cid to be a bit nicer, I guess? I don't know. I want him to have a harem but trying to integrate the princesses with with shadow garden members gon be a nuisance lol. I'll figure it out. We'll see… (n his sister but that's just… idk what imma do)