Chapter XXVIII: Any Other Day
"Well… How is he?" the Black Knight demanded with crossed arms. He and Henry were currently inside of a cheap inn room. It wasn't anything too posh, but at the very least it was clean and would protect from the cold. A local doctor he'd found was looking over the dark mage to be sure there were no signs of his condition worsening while Tiki was out grabbing food and other supplies.
"It's challenging for me to even tell what was wrong with him in the first place," the doctor said as he adjusted his glasses. "You say he was stricken by the cold just last night? Impossible, no recovery could happen that quickly."
"...Tell me you didn't curse yourself on the way here just so you wouldn't worry us," the knight said with a groan.
"Nah, but I guess I could've done that last night, might've helped with the cold," Henry admitted with a small chuckle. "I dunno, maybe it had something to do with the herbs you gave me."
"Herbs you say? You must've been able to make a rare brew then," the doctor said as he took out a small journal. "Any possibility of remembering the exact species and proportions you used? I could make a powerful potion with your knowledge."
"If I remember I think it was three parts Dragon root, two parts Soft Stalk, and just a clumps of Aqua Leaf to round everything together," the Black Knight told him. "I wasn't doing anything specific; I was too focused on making sure on making sure this guy here got it than looking for a miracle cure."
"I understand, I might have to end up doing some…" the doctor paused in his writings as he narrowed his eyes at his notes. "I'm sorry, but what's this Aqua Leaf you were talking about? I'm afraid I don't know any herbs or plants by that name."
"...They're these little pieces of grass with green thistles on the top. Honestly it's a miracle that I found them, they're supposed to be delicate and I didn't think they could stand this kind of weather."
"Oh, you mean Green Mace? There are a few patches spread out here and there, but it's rather hard to come across," the doctor said as he wrote the plant's name down in his notes. "I've never heard it be called Aqua Leaf before though."
"My mistake, what about him?" the Black Knight demanded as he tried to change the subject.
"With his condition the only things I can prescribe are hot meals and a warm bed to rest in, there's little else that needs to be done," the doctor said as he gather up his supplies. "Come see me again if anything changes, though at this point this seems highly unlikely."
"If you say so," the knight said, dropping a few coins into the doctor's hand. "Thanks for the checkup doc." With the healer gone, the enigma crossed his arms.
"Something wrong?" Henry asked before smirking. "Or are you trying to catch up with your required brooding time since you fell behind when you actually bothered to care about me?"
'With his condition I'll give him a pass for that one.' "Tiki's been gone for a while, it shouldn't be taking nearly this long to get food... I think she's gone and gotten herself lost."
"That's kind of a quick jump to a conclusion, anything to base that on or is it an intestine feeling?"
"That's gut feeling. ...Let's just say I've had experience with someone who's known for getting lost in the most ridiculous ways you can think of," he told him before heading to the door. "I'll be back soon, just stay in that bed and don't do anything stupid."
"Ye of little faith much?" Henry muttered as the Black Knight took his leave. "Annnnnnd I'm bored. Man, being bedridden when you're not really sick is the worst."
Once outside, the knight took to the streets and began his search for the green haired Manakete. As his eyes wandered from beneath his helm, he saw that the people of town were eyeing him with fear and mistrust, doing their damndest to keep their distance. This suited him well enough, the less people he had deal with currently the better.
'Pretty decent sized town though,' the Black Knight thought as he continued to walk with his cape flapping behind him in the gentle winds. 'Plenty of guards and tall wall to protect the city from Risen or Bandits… This place must've been one of the more protected ones against any attacks… Hm?'
The knight noticed a small crowd starting to form down the street as villagers passed by him to rush towards the gathering. Figuring this might be important, he himself headed that way only to find several of the villagers kneeling in respect.
"Please, I appreciate your offer, but there's no need to extend such hospitality," Tiki tried to tell the several men in white robes that were before her. The young Manakete's hood had come down to reveal her eye catching green hair and her mystical pointed ears. Many of the white robed men in front of her were kneeling in respect, but it appeared the eldest among them was standing.
"Blessed voice, you must understand that all we wish to do is shelter you in your pilgrimage," the old Abbot tried to convince. "If our church is given the chance we would lay our lives on the line to assist a daughter of Lady Naga. We beg of you, allow us to guide you to your divine destination."
"...I'm afraid she already has a guide," the Black Knight said as he finally stepped in, surprising clergy members and townsfolk alike. "Unless she's got something to say otherwise?"
"No, this has been my intention from the very beginning," Tiki said for everyone to hear, relieved that her guide had come to her apparent rescue.
"Please milady, reconsider!" the priest called out as the Tiki made her way out of the surprised crowd with the Black Knight. "I can't say with confidence that this man walks within Naga's divine light!"
"Good, it'd be too bright for me anyways," he muttered under his breath as he walked with the Manakete. "You weren't able to get the supplies?"
"I'm afraid I couldn't, the moment the wind blew my hood down I had people kneeling at my feet begging to be blessed. Then when the church caught wind of my travels there were rather insistent that I should travel only with them to the Exalted family."
"From now on Henry or I should do the shopping," the Black Knight grumbled. "I don't need this to be a common occurrence and the last thing I want is for the church to do something drastic."
"Do you truly think that could be the case? I may be the Voice, but I think the church men and women would know better than to attack my guide," Tiki said as she looked back at the priest who were minding their distance now.
"Regular men and women of the cloth won't be a problem, it's the fanatics that worry me," the enigma.
"Fanatics? In Naga's order?" Tiki thought aloud. "You seem rather sure that they'd exist."
'Didn't want to get into a debate, but letting it end here would suck in the long run.' "It'd be naive to think that there weren't. Optimistic, but very naive. Every religion will have fanatics no matter how noble they try to be, it's the way of the world. There are probably a few members of Naga's religion that wished the last two wars had lasted until every Plegian was put six feet in the ground."
"Th-that may be true," Tiki admitted sadly as she thought back to what she'd heard about the last Crusade to engulf the continent. "What about the Grimleal then? For a religion that worships the return of the fell dragon for the purpose of ending the world I find it hard to believe that many of them would wish that for ethical causes."
The Black Knight couldn't argue with that, not by a long shot. "...True, but that's assuming that all of the members are there by choice." His expression under the helm turned dark as he thought back to a snarky woman from his past. "Many of them aren't even given a clear view to see the world." For such a heavy conversation, the Black Knight hadn't expected to hear Tiki giggling. "Seriously, what is it with you today?"
"I'm just happy that I'm able to understand the man beneath the armor a little better," she said to him with a smile. "You're far wiser than your tone would lead people to believe."
"Hmph, thanks… I think," he muttered, leading Tiki to giggle again. The two had almost made their way to the in before the Black Knight saw the soldier escorted chariot in front of them that gave him pause. The chariot stopped before them and the noble inside came out, raising the knight's ire to new heights. "Naga damn it…" This earned him a scowl from Tiki at the vanity in his language.
"Your reputation proceeds you, Black Knight," the noble said with a sweet, seductive smile on her lips. "I am Eliza of house Chamandure, tasked with protecting this town and its many inhabitants." Soldiers from her escort moved forward to stand between their lady and the mysterious knight. "I'd very much like it if the champion of the people would remove his helm so we could see the man that lies beneath."
"You'd have to find their champion first, I'm just a Risen and Bandit killer," the Black Knight told her with little emotion in his words. "Let us pass."
"Are you commanding me? In my own city?" Eliza asked before pursing her lips, leaving the Black Knight to groan. "You may have an air of mystery surrounding you, but it does not free you from the laws of man… I'll tell you again; remove your helm."
"And I refuse, again," the Black Knight said as her soldiers appeared to be readying themselves for combat beside her. "Don't do this, there's nothing you can gain by pissing me off."
"Such a vulgar tongue, are you really taking the people's interests to heart? You act you like you care for them, but the people don't even know the face you hide under all that armor."
'If this woman knew who I was she'd be asking for more than just to see my face,' the Black Knight thought to himself before noticing that the lady of nobility was making her way forward without her guards. She instead stood in front of Tiki and the two ladies started harshly into the other's eyes. 'Time like these I actually wish we had Henry's commentary to lighten the mood…'
"Apparently Naga's Voice has been fooled just as easily as the rest of the peasants," Eliza said, causing the man beneath the black armor to narrow his eyes. "Then again what could we expect, calling you the Voice doesn't leave any guarantee of a brain. Before Tiki could rebuke the claims, Eliza's arm shot out and gripped one of Tiki's breasts. "Unless you keep all of your thoughts in here."
"I beg your pardon!" the green haired Manakete shouted as she slapped the hand away, her face red with a mix of embarrassment and rage. The Black Knight rolled his eyes, why did some people have to be like that? "Claim what you will of me, but I happen to consider myself an excellent judge of character and the Black Knight has plenty… even amongst some of my deceased friends."
'Deceased friends?' the Black Knight thought before realizing that the proper thing to do at the moment would be to get between Eliza and his charge. Extending his left arm out he brought it between the two, not as a threat or for protection; merely giving a statement. "I'm afraid we won't be staying long enough for this to continue; we should be on our way."
"If you think I'm going to let you leave my city in one piece you're sorely mistaken," Eliza said as she snapped her fingers. Her men surrounding the carriage drew their weapons and slowly began to approach the Black Knight. "While you're within my walls you two are at my mercy," Eliza said as she slowly began to back away within the ranks of her men.
"Sir Knight... " Tiki began with a tone of authority.
"I won't kill them," he said in his defense. "I won't even need to draw my blade."
"So long we're clear on that," she said to him before raising an eyebrow, it was almost like she could feel that he was smiling beneath his armor.
"Clear as crystal… Brace yourself."
"Brace my-UGH!?"
Tiki winced with pain as it took all of effort just to stay standing. An unknown form of energy covered the immediate area, trying to force the dragon woman to the ground. It wasn't just Tiki who was hit with it; all of Lady Chamandure's soldiers and even their horses were forced to their knees or straight to the ground. Eliza herself had a knee buried in the snow, covering the cloak she was wearing with its frigid touch. Only the source, the Black Knight himself, remained fully standing.
"How the tables have turned, masked freak," he muttered to himself whimsically. "You all should go now; I'd hate for this to get any worse."
'What the hell is he!?' Eliza thought to herself enraged as she glanced around to the rest of her men. 'I doubt there's a man in this kingdom that could stand a chance against them, even the Kahn's themselves might not be able to beat him!'
"Didn't you hear me? I told you to get out of here," the knight said as he opened the door to the inn and held it open for his lady to enter. Tiki was startled by the development, but eventually entered the building in an awkward manner. Eliza glared at the figure, but complied without a word as she gather her men and left with the carriage. The knight was about to enter the inn to follow after Tiki, but something in the air made him pause. Glancing the snow covered ground, he caught a few spots of yellow and smirked.
Back inside the inn room, the dragon woman had her arms crossed and her head down as she waited for her guide to finally come back inside. Her waiting was rewarded as the Black Knight entered the room once more.
"So… did she lose her way?" Henry asked with a smirk, confusing Tiki.
"Not exactly, but it's time for us to get lost," he told them. "Staying in this town any longer than we have to is a stupid idea."
"But what about Henry's condition?" Tiki asked worriedly. "I don't want another repeat of last night…"
"Really? I wouldn't mind, Knight certainly took a turn for the better during that," Henry admitted with a gleeful smile.
"Shut up you idiot, or do you seriously want me to give you a reason to be bedridden?" the enigma asked with a groan. "We don't need to spend all day traveling, just far enough to where they won't find us easily. Without a snowstorm to worry about we can even make a decent shelter when we chose."
"I… I suppose we'll have no choice but to do that then," Tiki said in agreement.
"At least we managed to… wait, where are the supplies?"
"Supplies?" Tiki asked before her face became clouded with worry. "Sorry, I didn't make it to the shops before my hood fell… please forgive me."
"...Adding hunting to the list," the Black Knight said humorlessly.
Shepherd's Barracks
"Seriously, what's with her?" an out of breath Gaius muttered to himself as he exited the training grounds. "First she asks if I want to train and then she nearly kills me in a sparring match! What Sully's trying to accomplish going live or die and lengthening her practice sessions I'll never know… Damn, so candy sounds pretty sweet right about now, and I'd say I've earned some."
The former thief made his way down the hallways of the barracks, heading toward his room so he could grab some gold, head into town, and replenish his stock of candy. What he hadn't counted on, as he walked through the halls was coming across the young redheaded mage.
"Gaius!" Ricken called with excitement. "Hey! You busy?"
"Not really kid," Gaius admitted, earning a miniature scowl from the mage for the use of the word 'kid'. "Just about to head into town and grab some more sweets. What's got you in such a good mood?"
"It's Ragna's sword! They finally got it fixed!" the young mage told him.
"That so?" Gaius thought aloud before smirking. "Guess I should take a look then; I owe him that much."
"Yeah, let's head over and take a look," Ricken said, with great enthusiasm.
Chuckling the thief followed him down the hallways into the Shepherd's break room. It was unoccupied, save for Stahl who was sitting on a couch gasping for air. On the center of the back wall was a mantle which held the recently repaired Aramasa.
"Dang, it even looks exactly the same as before…" Gaius didn't need to finish the sentence, Ricken and Stahl had both been there that day. The thief then decided to address the green armored knight. "What's got you so out of breath?"
"I'm the poor sucker that had to carry that thing all the way from the forge and put it up there!" Stahl told him while still sweating from the effort. "How Ragna ever managed to use that thing the way he did is beyond me!"
"Well, you could say that a lot about the guy," Gaius admitted. "Even now he's still something of a mystery to us… By the way, who did the work on the sword?"
"My uncle, he's spent some time as a blacksmith so I asked him to look at the blade," Stahl said before shaking his head. "The thing wasn't even rusting; it was just covered in dried blood. My uncle did his best to make it clean, but he couldn't even recognize the material that the sword was made out of, and don't even get him started on the inner workings on the blade."
"Seriously? Wonder if glasses would have any clue… or if she could explain it to us in a way we'd understand," Gaius said, referring to Miriel. "Off topic, where's blue? Shouldn't he be here to get a good look at this thing?"
"I think I saw him with Robin," Ricken told him as he thought back to that morning. "I think I remember him saying that they were heading out to the fields."
"Seriously?" Gaius asked as he took a seat at the table and leaned back into the chair to make himself comfortable. "We're stuck here working our butts off while Chrom's supposed to be handling paperwork, but instead he's going out with Robin on a date? I didn't figure blue to be the type to skip out on work like that."
"I don't think that's what Chrom was doing…" Ricken said with a worried tone that made Gaius and Stahl concerned. "Not with that dark look in his eyes."
Meanwhile -The Fields-
"Are we almost there?" the crowned prince asked, trying to keep his tone even as he walked through the fields surrounding Ylisstol.
"If the reports from Cordelia are still accurate we should be," Robin told him as she looked over the papers in his hand. "They should be just over this hill."
Chrom said nothing in response, merely giving a short and curt nod. Despite the clear and sunny weather the two were blessed with, the prince's mood almost made it seem like the two were trekking through rain soaked mud on their way to war. Robin was worried about her beloved's current attitude, but there was really nothing that she could think of doing at the moment. Eventually the two came to their destination.
"So there they are," Chrom said darkly as he stared upon the group of monsters before them; about sixteen Risen. None of the hellish abominations were mounted and very few of them were spell casters. Simply put, it was one of the weaker groups that appeared more often than most and would have to join another group to become a full on threat to the kingdom.
"So… what did you have in mind for an attack?" Robin asked sadly, already knowing the answer. Chrom said nothing, simply unsheathing Falchion. "...Why are you insisting on doing this by yourself? You know that you can rely on the others for help."
"...I need to stop living in Ragna's shadow," Chrom told her as he looked down at his sword. "All the time I've spent with him, it was clear who the better fighter between the two of us was… He could take a group of Risen like this out without his right eye and arm no problem. If I'm going to protect this kingdom, to protect the people I love… I need to tap into that kind of power."
"Liar," Robin said bluntly, surprising Chrom with her directness. "You've never felt that you've been in his shadow, not in any case. Not before he died, not after; you've always stood with him, shoulder to shoulder… This has nothing to do with him, it's about what happened this morning, isn't it?"
"Those… those bastards," Chrom said gripping his hand tightly as he grit his teeth. "It was her first day back in the courts, and they attacked her… We did everything we could to inform Emmeryn on the kingdom's condition, everything we could to prepare her for dealing with the nobility… but it wasn't enough. They made their points and walked over hers like it was nothing…"
"She just needs more time," the Tactician told him. "Though you have a point, I wasn't expecting resistance like this in the courts; they've become emboldened. And they were pushing far too hard for Emmeryn to make a public appearance again… and to search for a suitor."
"Over my dead body," Chrom dismissed. "She's not ready, how can she be? She still feels responsible for the war, and for Ragna… She's changed, and not at all for the better."
"So what do you propose we do?" Robin asked.
"For now we give it some time. At least she hasn't forgotten those she cares about. She's approved of several donations to orphanages and other measures to help the common folk… and from what I've heard she's working on repairing Ragna's coat personally."
"She's not the only one, nearly all of the women in the Shepherds seem to want to help," she said. "It's a step forward at least… so why are you here now?"
"Someone has to take care of the Risen and after the day I've had I just want to unleash all of my pent up aggression on something," he admitted. "It's not very becoming of anyone, least of all a prince; that's why you're the only one I can trust to see me like this."
(Cue Lust Sin)
"...I guess I can keep a secret," Robin told him with a sad smile as Chrom readied his blade. "I'll step in if you need me."
"Against this group, I'll be disappointed if I can't handle this myself," he muttered charging the Risen. The mindless lumbering creatures took notice of him only too late as Chrom's sword cleaved through a Soldier classed monster, creating two perfect halves. The Risen vanished in a dark cloud and a pathetic moan. An armored knight tried to impale Chrom with its sword, but the young prince deflected the attack before impaling his own blade through the Risen's head.
'He wasn't joking at least, it looks like he's got this group handedly,' Robin thought as Chrom continued to cut through the undead hordes. The tactician then noticed a mage type that had snuck around to Chrom's blind spot. 'No! And I'm too far to hit it with a spell!' "CHROM!"
The young prince did nothing, merely letting the attack cast its fireball spell and hitting him dead in the back… only for Chrom to continue slashing the Risen in front of him like nothing had happened.
'He… he blocked out the spell's effects completely!' Robin thought with wide eyes. 'True the spell may have been weak to start, but it doesn't even look like Chrom was even touched by it… In order to think of doing something like that you need to have a mental focus directed to stopping the magic's effects and only developed mages can use it effectively… h-how did Chrom find a way to do that?'
The young blue-haired swordsman then spun in a full circle and cleaved through a majority of Risen. A soldier Risen then threw it's javelin for Chrom's chest, but the prince merely brought his blade down and cleaved the spear into two halves. He then lunged leapt into the air with a forward spin, slashing the attacking Risen as he landed. The final Risen of the group was an archer with its bow drawn on Chrom, but he rushed forward and cleaved through Risen, arrow, and bow in a single strike.
'I won't allow monsters like these to prey upon those too innocent to defend themselves,' Chrom thought to himself. He then heard a bow twang and quickly moved his sword to deflect the arrow. The attacker was a Risen mounted atop a nightmarish horse and wielding a bow. Strapped to the knight's side was a steel sword. The Risen snarled as it shot off another arrow which Chrom sidestepped to avoid. 'The one looks like the chief; the leader of this group of Risen. I can't try to catch this thing on foot, I'll have to wait until it uses up its arrows and then-'
Chrom was surprised as the bow knight changed tactics and instead headed straight for him with a bow drawn. Once it was close, it unleashed the arrow which was swiftly blocked by Chrom. The prince was about to counter the knight's attack, but with surprising accuracy the Bow Knight drew its sword and slashed at the ground and sent a cloud of dust right into Chrom's eyes.
"CHROM!" Robin cried out as the Bow Knight swung its sword with amazing ferocity and cleaved right through him. Robin's eyes widened as she watched, knowing that there'd be an eventual spray of blood… until Chrom's form waved and faded.
"TOO SLOW!"
Appearing on the other side on the knight in the span of an instant, Chrom roared as he cleaved the Falchion upwards, first beheading the nightmarish mount before slashing though the Risen at the torso. Not a sound was heard as both vanished back into darkness.
(End Theme)
Chrom let out a sigh of relief before sheathing his sword. That last attack had come too close for his liking, he considered himself lucky that he managed to get out of that attack unscathed. Turning his head, he saw his tactician watching him from a distance breathing heavily as she'd fallen to her knees. His eyes grew wide as he ran to her.
"Robin!" Chrom shouted as he ran towards his tactician. "What's wrong!?"
"I-It's nothing," Robin said as she continued to pant heavily. "F-For a second there… I-I thought I saw you die."
"Sorry to worry you like that, it's just a bit of a trick I picked up," Chrom said before smiling gently as he kneeled down to help her up. "Please forgive me?"
BAM!
"GAH!"
Chrom stumbled back as he gripped the side of his head where Robin had struck him with her tome, his check already going numb. The force was enough to send him flying off his feet and land on his rear. As Robin made her way to her feet, Chrom felt very tiny as he watched his beloved staring down at him with cold, harsh eyes.
"No you idiot! I won't forgive you! First you call me out here just so you can show off without telling me a thing about what you've been doing to train, and then you make me think that you'd have died!? You're lucky I don't-!" Robin stopped her words as she realized Chrom was staring at her with eyes full of surprise, the wound she'd inflicted on him starting to swell painfully. "...Just don't do that EVER again."
"If you're that upset I promise," Chrom said with complete sincerity. "Never again for as long as I live." He winced as Robin hit him again, not as harsh as before, just a simple bop to the head.
"Don't say it like that you idiot," she sighed, leaving Chrom to only chuckle.
Later -Back in Regna Ferox-
"Well, camp's all put together, now all that's missing is big, dark, and moody."
Henry's comment did ring true; he and Tiki had just put the finishing touches on their campsite. They'd used branches to create a cover large enough to house all three of them, a fire pit had been made and was given the two heat, and the Black Knight was currently off hunting for food.
"He should be back soon, I doubt he'd be gone for too long," Tiki reassured him. "Besides, even if there was trouble I doubt there'd be anything he wouldn't be able to handle."
"I guess… but there's one thing I've always wondered…"
"And what's that?" Tiki asked with curiosity.
"Knight's a pretty scary figure, even when he's not doing that whole brooding personality routine… What makes normal people think that they can take him on? Don't they find him imposing?"
'I don't think Henry knows how imposing he can truly be,' Tiki thought to herself as she remembered the dark knight's action when they were in the city that morning. "What about you? With all of your quips and japes it doesn't seem like you find him that imposing yourself."
"Who said I was normal?" Henry said with a creepy yet innocent smile. Tiki found little room to argue. "Plus, you saw what Knight's really like. I'm like his little brother, he's not about to hurt me or let anything hurt me no matter what I say."
"Even I have my limits," the Black Knight said as he returned. Tiki and Henry stared at the game he'd managed to hunt; a large elk was draped across his shoulder, he carried a few rabbits by their ears, and the pouch he'd used to carry Henry's herbs the night previous was already filled with fresh berries while another pouch appeared to be filled with spices.
"Nya ha ha! Looks like we're having a feast tonight!" Henry said with glee.
"Hopefully we can eat it all, I hate the idea of wasting food," the knight said as he began skinning the elk. "Then again… we are feeding a dragon."
'He's starting to have snarky comebacks now… is this a sign of progress?' Tiki thought to herself before shaking her head. "In that case you should worry if you have enough, I happen to lose control of myself whenever I grow hungry."
"Trust me, you'd want to eat Henry first, he'd probably be easier to chew on."
"Hey!" the dark mage shouted before thinking to himself. "Would being eaten by a dragon be a cool way to die?"
"It'd be a unique one, I can say that much," the Black Knight admitted as he finished tearing off the elk's hide with his gauntleted hands.
"Wouldn't your sword make that easier?" Tiki asked before noticing that the knight's scabbard was empty. "Where is your sword?"
"In a small pool of water, about five minutes to the north," he told her. "It's turning the place into hot spring right now."
"Wait… you mean you got to take a bath? Lucky!" Henry whined. "After all the constant traveling we've been doing I could really use one, I haven't had a bath since I met you knight."
"I could guess," he muttered. "Look if it's that big of a deal why don't you go take one now? I'm done with it."
"Wait… if you've got a bath ready, why not offer it to Tiki first, you've got to have some courtesy."
"Easy, because then you'd know that I'd be in the bath," the Black Knight told him plainly.
"...Knight, I don't know how hard this is gonna break your heart… but I don't swing that way," Henry told him, earning himself a snowball in the face.
"You know what I meant; everyone on the continent wants to know who I am under this armor, you're both included in that I take it."
"Nah… Well, maybe," Henry admitted. "I just want to know if those rumors about you being a possessed skeleton under all of that armor is true… if you're taking a bath that's one rumor debunked."
"You almost sound disappointed," Tiki said with a smirk. "Go ahead and take the next bath Henry, I'll help big, dark, and moody here with the food."
"You two are teaming up against me? Hmph, typical." Knight lamented while Henry headed off for the waters. "Why'd you let him take the next bath; as time goes on my sword's going to be giving off less heat and you'll have to drag it back."
"Helping you with dinner is the least I can do with everything that you and Henry are doing for me. Hand me that rabbit."
"Here," the Black Knight said as he handed her the caught quarry. While he continued his work on the elk and gathered stones to rest over the fire. As he did so, he was impressed to see the pace and speed that Tiki was working at. "You act like you've done this before… not surprising with how long you've been alive."
"Trust me, the first time I tried doing this the meat was completely shredded," Tiki said before giggling. "Mar-Mar told me that the mincemeat was a good idea for cooking."
"Mar-mar?" the Black Knight questioned, only realizing too late that he'd asked aloud. Tiki's expression seemed to turn solemn almost instantly. "...Sorry."
"It's not your fault; sometimes I can't help but think about him," she said with a sad smile. "Marth was… special."
"The Hero King?"
"The very same… He was kind, he cared about his companions, and he didn't want a single life to be spent just to save his... He was the greatest friend you could ask for."
"...You loved him?" he asked as he began placing meet over the fire. The knight knew he was pressing his limits, but he almost felt like he needed to know more.
"Yes… though it was clear his heart belonged to another," Tiki said before smirking. "You don't seem to know your history."
"...I tend to dwell on my own past way too much, not much room to dwell on history's." The knight then reached inside his pouch and gently sprinkled herbs over the meat.
"Spicing the food?" Tiki asked.
"Yeah, since we're not tenderizing it the spices should help the meat go down a little easier," he explained. "It's nothing special, just a little of my own personal blend."
"Where'd you learn this?" Tiki asked. "You even had a good idea of what herbs to use to heal Henry last night."
"My master, he taught me all about this," the knight explained. "Not much to say about the guy strangely. He never seemed to be the type to give a straight answer to anything, but he was pretty wise… and patient. When I first started cooking I must've burned dinner at least a dozen times."
"Then you started preparing food properly?" Tiki asked.
"No, then everything I made was stone cold," the Black Knight told her. "I was about to give up, but then my master told me I could only eat what I cooked… I guess it ended up being enough motivation for me." The knight then took a few berries out of the pouch and crushed them, spreading their juices over the meat. When he was done he noticed one of the berries still in his hand. "Hey, catch."
He casually tossed the berry to the Manakete and Tiki was quick enough to catch the fruit between her teeth. The knight gave a chuckle of approval as she ate it, giving the Manakete an idea. "Hey let's see if you can do it."
"That's… not a great idea, you'd have to get it through my helm's opening."
"I'm a better shot than you'd give me credit for, Sir Knight," Tiki declared proudly as she took a few berries out of the pouch. The knight rolled his eyes beneath his helm as he waited for Tiki to make her first shot. Her berry sailed through the air for a short distance before entering the helm's opening, causing the knight to lurch back slightly. "You see?"
"Not really with a damn berry in my eye," he swore only leaving Tiki to burst out laughing. 'She really is like a child sometimes… Though, I guess I don't really mind.'
Not long after the food had finished cooking Henry returned to the campgrounds from his bath, clearly feeling refreshed from the hot water. Tiki had already finished her portion of dinner, so she excused herself for her turn in the man-made hot springs. Henry told her to get in while it was still hot, grabbed a portion of meat and contently took a seat under a tree.
"Aren't you going to start eating, Knight?" Henry asked as the knight simply crossed his arms and left the food on the dying fire.
"I'll eat later, not exactly feeling hungry now," he told Henry as he continued to stoke the fire.
"If you say so… You know Tiki's heading for the baths."
"I'm aware; she just left." the knight responded evenly, not sure where this was going.
"So… aren't you going to join her? Nya ha ha!"
The Black Knight abruptly froze in his work as Henry continued to cackle. The enigma let out a low growl before grabbing one of the stones from the fire pit and hurling it at the tree, leaving it to dump snow all over the dark mage, burying him completely.
"Knight!" Henry called from beneath the snow. "I was joking! Kniiiiight!"
"Yare yare daze…" the Black Knight muttered to himself, still somewhat fed up with Henry's antics.
Author's Note
So more filler here… I guess I enjoyed writing this chapter at least… Anyways, like I said give me just a few more chapters and I'll be done with THIS section of filler… Doesn't the three year time gap technically count as more filler? Anyways, here's you Omake.
Another Sleepless Night
"Damn, this town's a lot bigger than I'd thought it'd be. Where the hell is that tome shop?" Ragna the Bloodedge was traveling by his lonesome as he searched through the small tome that the Shepherd's had decided to stay in for a short time.
"Is that really him?" came a whisper that Ragna barely managed to hear from a few meters away.
"It matches the rumors about him perfectly! Snow white hair, a crimson red coat, a massive blade, and a red and green eyes that can see in your soul!"
Turning to where the whispers had come from, the rumored Reaper eyes landed on a small group of village maidens. Noticing they were the subject of his gaze, the young ladies blushed and giggled to themselves leaving Ragna to let out a low groan. Truth to be told, he'd be lying if he said that he hated this kind of attention; it was certainly a few steps up from being scorned, hated, and feared like he'd been back in his old world. Thing was there was a time and a place… and if recent events were anything to go off of now was definitely a wrong time.
'Still, they could help me find that magic shop, beats spending an hour wandering around town,' Ragna thought to himself before he glanced around to be sure. There didn't seem to be anything out of place. Shrugging he headed over towards the group of girls, all of which only seemed to giggle harder as he approached. "Hey, do any of you know where I can find a tome shop?"
"The tome shop? You practice magic too?" one of the girls asked before giggling. "The rumors didn't say you were smart as well."
'They wouldn't be right if they did,' Ragna thought glumly. "So do ya know where it is or not?"
"I-I know where it is," one blushing young maiden told him. "I-I can take you there if you want."
"No thanks, I'm just trying to get some directions," Ragna turned down, checking over his shoulder once more for good measure.
"Aw, but that sounds so boring," another maiden said to him with sultry grin on her face, one that Ragna was starting to see more and more as the rumors regarding him spread further. "I know a good restaurant in town. Maybe we can go there after… I… show…"
'It begins,' Ragna thought bitterly as he noticed the woman was glancing behind him. Looking over his shoulder, he took notice of the young silver haired woman in a white cloak and a grey jumpsuit with an eyepatch over her right eye and the smile of a demon plastered over her face slowly walking towards him and the girls.
"If I were you I'd run now," Ragna warned the girls. Sweating nervously, all of them took off running for the hills and left him to stop the Murakumo unit from going on a yandere style rampage. "Nu, you seriously can't keep doing this."
"But Raaaaaagna," Nu whined sadly. "You were breaking Nu's heart flirting with those girls, you big meanie."
"Yeah, and you'd have broken their effing necks," Ragna told her. "And for the record I was asking them were to find the magic shop, NOT flirting."
"Then why didn't you come to Nu? We could find the shop together!" Nu said happily before lunging at Ragna. The ill prepared Reaper could do nothing as the young girl landed onto his chest and latched her arms and legs around him.
"Nu! Get offa me! Nu! We're in public for god's sake!" Ragna shouted as a few townspeople stared at the scene in front of them. A well placed glare from the Reaper was enough to scare most of them off, but Nu refused to let go. "Nu seriously, get off."
"Aw c'mon Ragna," Nu said before her gaze turned the creepiness factor up to 13 (because eleven out of ten isn't enough). "Why don't you take that big sword of yours and put it inside of Nu?"
"WAY too specific!" Ragna shouted as he continued to shake Nu off of. "That's it! Barrier burst!" A golden burst of energy suddenly emitted around the Reaper and sent Nu flying off of him. The young girl gave a short shout of surprise before landing on her rear on the ground in front of him. "Seriously Nu, cut the crap already!"
"Aw… Ragna's embarrassed," Nu said, which wasn't entirely untrue. "Oh well, Nu will just have to be patient." Her gaze then turned creepy as her voice became so quiet that only the Reaper could hear her. "Just come find Nu when you're ready to become one with her… I'll be waiting."
"Don't hold your breath, that's not about to happen," Ragna denied as bluntly as he could put it. Nu didn't say anything she merely smiled as he walked off… which left Ragna wondering how she got around so easily if she was constantly going barefoot everywhere.
"Damn that chick is unsettling… I can't tell if she's still trying to kill me, if she's trying to sleep with me, or if it's some perverse mix of the two… There goes any chance of sleeping soundly for me tonight."
Support Rank C obtained with Nu-13