My First Story Here
Alright, I haven't posted a single thing since I joined ages and ages ago. It's time that, finished or not, I put at least SOMETHING up here. So, I give you an unedited and unfinished work:
Title: (None Currently, Suggestions Appreciated)
Chapter(s): One and Two
Author: Ciambawildcat
Pairing: Legault/Lloyd
Game: Rekka no Ken
Rating: Currently PG
Word Count: 1,900
Chapter One Summary: Lloyd and Legault's thoughts on the arrival of a black-hearted woman and her child.
Chapter Two Summary: Nino gets lost during a storm, and an unlikely pair come to lend their aid.
Notes: This relationship will probably be slow-blossoming, and the story will be mostly focused on other aspects of the Black Fang for a while, so don't expect too much action just yet.
Chapter One:
When she came, the only good thing she brought with her was Nino.
I remember when I first met her. She stared up at me with those huge blue eyes, the kind that could melt the ice over any heart. Her smile, so full of innocence, nearly broke what she thawed.
"You must be one of my new brothers," she said, sounding genuinely happy to meet me, "I was so happy when I found out that I would have some older brothers. It's been so lonely, with just mother and I. I...I always wanted to have a brother." And with those words, she threw her arms around me as though she had known me for years. I couldn't believe that such an angel of a child could be the daughter of that witch Sonia, it just didn't seem possible. They didn't even look alike. Sonia was a dark queen of icy cold beauty, but had a heart as black as the Valor Forest. She was full of cunning and evil, you could see it in her cat-like eyes. But this child was her polar opposite. So sweet and pure; she didn't belong. I took to her almost instantly. It is so rare to find someone so innocent, with a heart and soul so fresh and delicate, and not an evil thought anywhere. I put my arms around her in return. My little sister? She was a winter flower. I had to be sure that the frost she was surrounded with would not kill her off. I would have to protect her from everything, even myself.
"My name is Nino," she told me, "are you Lloyd? Or are you Linus?"
"I'm Lloyd."
"Lloyd, thank you for the hug. I need to go and meet Linus now, but we'll play later, okay?" I nodded, and she ran off. Her angelic aura faded from around me, and suddenly I was back in the black hell of Valor, the Dread Isle. I had forgotten to tell her, but she wouldn't be meeting Linus today. Her older brother would be spattered with someone else's blood by now, he had an assassination on the main land to take care of.
I sighed, wondering how on earth I would save that poor sweet girl. All around her was the plague of death and darkness. She couldn't have been brought to a worse place.
* * *
I slunk out of sight as she floated past. Sonia. Her eyes flickered in my direction for a brief instant, and a dangerous smile crept onto her face. I shrank even farther into the dark room I had taken cover in. With those piercing yellow eyes, I wondered if she had not seen through the darkness and spotted me. I would not be surprised. That woman was barely human, and perhaps she wasn't even that. Something was off about her, something in that picture of perfection was twisted, and malign. I'm not the most trusting of people, and my sixth sense for danger was screaming 'this woman is bad news'. I just wondered how Brendan didn't see it. How had he, of all people, taken this devil for his wife? She would be the ruin of us, I was sure of it.
The evil creature had almost disappeared from sight, when a voice rang out.
"Mother, mother!"
A young girl dashed into view, coming to a halt in front of that woman. A daughter? I didn't know she had a daughter. Perhaps she was adopted, though how Sonia's heart would have opened enough to allow herself to do something kind was beyond me. I looked into her face. A brief flicker of annoyance passed across it as she looked down at the young girl. As I thought, she didn't have it in her to take in an orphan for good purposes. There had to be something she wanted from the girl.
"What is it, Nino?"
Her voice was sharp, she didn't care for the child one bit.
"I found Lloyd, but I can't find Linus anywhere!"
"Did you check the whole base? All of it?"
"I think so..."
"Then try outside next."
She turned and strode round the corner and out of sight, dismissing the girl. The small figure trembled for a second, and I thought she might cry. In my life I never thought that I would soften enough to want to take in a child of my own, but I felt that I wanted to do something to get that child out of the evil woman's possession. It was a cruel fate that led her to that devil, who lied to her own child. She knew as well as I did that Linus wasn't on the island. I watched the girl, Nino, feeling a small trace of sympathy. It wasn't much like me, charged with killing my former comrads if they turned coat, to feel any kind of remorse at all. But this girl struck a small spark in me that made me see things in a new light. Legault, the Hurricane, feel bad for someone? What have I been drinking that has addled my mind so? Still, something about the girl changed me. Though in the end she didn't cry, and instead went out into the dangerous forest anyway, I couldn't shake the strange emotion that had started building inside of me. I began to feel sympathy. And from that moment it was obvious to me that I would not last much longer in this business.
Chapter Two:
A light rain had begun to fall. Small drops landed on my face and trickled softly between the rough hairs on my chin. The rain calmed me, which is why I decided to take a walk out here in the forest. I'm glad I did, for as I came to the broken tree I heard a voice calling, a girl's voice. Puzzled, I followed the sound until it grew clearer and I realized who it was.
"Li-nus, Li-nus!"
It was Nino, out here in the wilds of Valor, in the rain and dark, still looking for my brother. I felt a pang of guilt as I realized that she wouldn't be out here if I had only told her earlier that Linus was away. Some great protector I was. I began to run in the direction of the voice as the rain grew heavier, she would catch her death of cold out here. I called her name over the rush of the rain.
"Linus?"
I almost ran right into her as I tore through the brush. She looked a mess, with twigs in her hair and mud staining her hands and knees- she must have fallen at some point- as well as being drenched to the bone. I suppose I didn't look much better- the sharp thorns on the bush I had plunged through had torn open my trouser leg, and I could feel warm blood welling up from the cut. We looked at each other for a moment, and then she ran into my arms.
"Lloyd! Lloyd! I can't find Linus anywhere, and it's getting dark, and it's starting to storm!"
I think my heart did break at that moment, as she buried her face into my chest. She had been looking for him all this time...
"Don't worry Nino, don't worry. I forgot to tell you, Linus is away on a visit to Bern right now, but he'll be back in a week, and you can meet him then alright?" The small wet head moved against my chest. She was nodding. "Come on Nino, it's pouring out here, let's go inside." I took her by the hand, marvelling at how small it was, and began to lead her back to the base. I saved her the hassle and led her in a way that wouldn't take us through thorn bushes, but it would take a bit longer, and I was worried about her freezing to death in her little dress. I hastened the pace, but by the time we got back she was shivering uncontrollably. I felt terrible, I had brought this upon her by not telling her about Linus. It was my fault, her brother's fault, that she was so cold.
I hurried her inside, a million things I needed to do running through my head. She would need a change of clothes, and a towel. Had someone started a fire yet? Perhaps some warm food would do her good. Had anyone made dinner? I was beginning to feel a small wave of panic. It was my first day as an older brother, and I was obviously no good at it. What should I do?
Fortunately, I was rescued from my solitary plight, as an unexpected figure slinked round the corner.
***
On the move, I weaved my way through the twisting network of passageways that only I knew. The farther I got from the devil woman, the better. I would take refuge in my secret hideaways for a time, and formulate a plan to deal with this threat. Slipping out from behind a tapestry, I made my way up a narrow passageway only to turn the corner and find myself face to face with quite the surprise.
Drenched from head to toe and dripping blood, Lloyd led the small trembling figure of Nino along, she too dripping, but her trail was of mud. I blinked back my surprise at the two of them. Lloyd had his arm around Nino, protective. His eyes fell upon me, at first wary, then relieved. I somehow doubted that this chance meeting would lead me to my secret hideout tonight, obviously I was supposed to do something about their state. It would be the courteous thing to do.
"Been playing in the rain?" I joked, unclipping my purple cloak and handing it to Nino. "Here." She took it gratefully, with a hearty 'thank you' and a bright smile. I nodded politely, and turned my attention to Lloyd. I honestly wish I could say that I didn't check out his soaked figure, but I'd be lying. I'm not the most moral of people, and Lloyd is a very attractive man. It would only be natural to want to look...at least that was what I told myself as I disguised my quick scan of his body as me looking down at his cut. It would need to be treated, it was fairly deep, and the bleeding wouldn't stop anytime soon. I didn't want to have to take another life because of something as trivial as an injury. I closed my eyes for a second in pain, pushing back those memories. Those were Sonia's first words to me, and though she said it was Brendan's command, I knew it was her own.
'Kill her... Kill her...'
I pushed it back. The more I thought about it, the more it hurt. It was best to just pretend that it didn't happen. Instead, I focused back on the present.
"You should go sit by the fire," I told them, "and Lloyd, I'll go get something for your cut."
I hurried away. I played a lot of characters when it suited me, but I was out of practice playing the gentleman. Around here, I tried to stay out of sight most of the time. At least, ever since she showed up.
It seems like everything wrong with my life started with that woman.
Comments/Criticism/Editing Encouraged.
Title: (None Currently, Suggestions Appreciated)
Chapter(s): One and Two
Author: Ciambawildcat
Pairing: Legault/Lloyd
Game: Rekka no Ken
Rating: Currently PG
Word Count: 1,900
Chapter One Summary: Lloyd and Legault's thoughts on the arrival of a black-hearted woman and her child.
Chapter Two Summary: Nino gets lost during a storm, and an unlikely pair come to lend their aid.
Notes: This relationship will probably be slow-blossoming, and the story will be mostly focused on other aspects of the Black Fang for a while, so don't expect too much action just yet.
Chapter One:
When she came, the only good thing she brought with her was Nino.
I remember when I first met her. She stared up at me with those huge blue eyes, the kind that could melt the ice over any heart. Her smile, so full of innocence, nearly broke what she thawed.
"You must be one of my new brothers," she said, sounding genuinely happy to meet me, "I was so happy when I found out that I would have some older brothers. It's been so lonely, with just mother and I. I...I always wanted to have a brother." And with those words, she threw her arms around me as though she had known me for years. I couldn't believe that such an angel of a child could be the daughter of that witch Sonia, it just didn't seem possible. They didn't even look alike. Sonia was a dark queen of icy cold beauty, but had a heart as black as the Valor Forest. She was full of cunning and evil, you could see it in her cat-like eyes. But this child was her polar opposite. So sweet and pure; she didn't belong. I took to her almost instantly. It is so rare to find someone so innocent, with a heart and soul so fresh and delicate, and not an evil thought anywhere. I put my arms around her in return. My little sister? She was a winter flower. I had to be sure that the frost she was surrounded with would not kill her off. I would have to protect her from everything, even myself.
"My name is Nino," she told me, "are you Lloyd? Or are you Linus?"
"I'm Lloyd."
"Lloyd, thank you for the hug. I need to go and meet Linus now, but we'll play later, okay?" I nodded, and she ran off. Her angelic aura faded from around me, and suddenly I was back in the black hell of Valor, the Dread Isle. I had forgotten to tell her, but she wouldn't be meeting Linus today. Her older brother would be spattered with someone else's blood by now, he had an assassination on the main land to take care of.
I sighed, wondering how on earth I would save that poor sweet girl. All around her was the plague of death and darkness. She couldn't have been brought to a worse place.
* * *
I slunk out of sight as she floated past. Sonia. Her eyes flickered in my direction for a brief instant, and a dangerous smile crept onto her face. I shrank even farther into the dark room I had taken cover in. With those piercing yellow eyes, I wondered if she had not seen through the darkness and spotted me. I would not be surprised. That woman was barely human, and perhaps she wasn't even that. Something was off about her, something in that picture of perfection was twisted, and malign. I'm not the most trusting of people, and my sixth sense for danger was screaming 'this woman is bad news'. I just wondered how Brendan didn't see it. How had he, of all people, taken this devil for his wife? She would be the ruin of us, I was sure of it.
The evil creature had almost disappeared from sight, when a voice rang out.
"Mother, mother!"
A young girl dashed into view, coming to a halt in front of that woman. A daughter? I didn't know she had a daughter. Perhaps she was adopted, though how Sonia's heart would have opened enough to allow herself to do something kind was beyond me. I looked into her face. A brief flicker of annoyance passed across it as she looked down at the young girl. As I thought, she didn't have it in her to take in an orphan for good purposes. There had to be something she wanted from the girl.
"What is it, Nino?"
Her voice was sharp, she didn't care for the child one bit.
"I found Lloyd, but I can't find Linus anywhere!"
"Did you check the whole base? All of it?"
"I think so..."
"Then try outside next."
She turned and strode round the corner and out of sight, dismissing the girl. The small figure trembled for a second, and I thought she might cry. In my life I never thought that I would soften enough to want to take in a child of my own, but I felt that I wanted to do something to get that child out of the evil woman's possession. It was a cruel fate that led her to that devil, who lied to her own child. She knew as well as I did that Linus wasn't on the island. I watched the girl, Nino, feeling a small trace of sympathy. It wasn't much like me, charged with killing my former comrads if they turned coat, to feel any kind of remorse at all. But this girl struck a small spark in me that made me see things in a new light. Legault, the Hurricane, feel bad for someone? What have I been drinking that has addled my mind so? Still, something about the girl changed me. Though in the end she didn't cry, and instead went out into the dangerous forest anyway, I couldn't shake the strange emotion that had started building inside of me. I began to feel sympathy. And from that moment it was obvious to me that I would not last much longer in this business.
Chapter Two:
A light rain had begun to fall. Small drops landed on my face and trickled softly between the rough hairs on my chin. The rain calmed me, which is why I decided to take a walk out here in the forest. I'm glad I did, for as I came to the broken tree I heard a voice calling, a girl's voice. Puzzled, I followed the sound until it grew clearer and I realized who it was.
"Li-nus, Li-nus!"
It was Nino, out here in the wilds of Valor, in the rain and dark, still looking for my brother. I felt a pang of guilt as I realized that she wouldn't be out here if I had only told her earlier that Linus was away. Some great protector I was. I began to run in the direction of the voice as the rain grew heavier, she would catch her death of cold out here. I called her name over the rush of the rain.
"Linus?"
I almost ran right into her as I tore through the brush. She looked a mess, with twigs in her hair and mud staining her hands and knees- she must have fallen at some point- as well as being drenched to the bone. I suppose I didn't look much better- the sharp thorns on the bush I had plunged through had torn open my trouser leg, and I could feel warm blood welling up from the cut. We looked at each other for a moment, and then she ran into my arms.
"Lloyd! Lloyd! I can't find Linus anywhere, and it's getting dark, and it's starting to storm!"
I think my heart did break at that moment, as she buried her face into my chest. She had been looking for him all this time...
"Don't worry Nino, don't worry. I forgot to tell you, Linus is away on a visit to Bern right now, but he'll be back in a week, and you can meet him then alright?" The small wet head moved against my chest. She was nodding. "Come on Nino, it's pouring out here, let's go inside." I took her by the hand, marvelling at how small it was, and began to lead her back to the base. I saved her the hassle and led her in a way that wouldn't take us through thorn bushes, but it would take a bit longer, and I was worried about her freezing to death in her little dress. I hastened the pace, but by the time we got back she was shivering uncontrollably. I felt terrible, I had brought this upon her by not telling her about Linus. It was my fault, her brother's fault, that she was so cold.
I hurried her inside, a million things I needed to do running through my head. She would need a change of clothes, and a towel. Had someone started a fire yet? Perhaps some warm food would do her good. Had anyone made dinner? I was beginning to feel a small wave of panic. It was my first day as an older brother, and I was obviously no good at it. What should I do?
Fortunately, I was rescued from my solitary plight, as an unexpected figure slinked round the corner.
***
On the move, I weaved my way through the twisting network of passageways that only I knew. The farther I got from the devil woman, the better. I would take refuge in my secret hideaways for a time, and formulate a plan to deal with this threat. Slipping out from behind a tapestry, I made my way up a narrow passageway only to turn the corner and find myself face to face with quite the surprise.
Drenched from head to toe and dripping blood, Lloyd led the small trembling figure of Nino along, she too dripping, but her trail was of mud. I blinked back my surprise at the two of them. Lloyd had his arm around Nino, protective. His eyes fell upon me, at first wary, then relieved. I somehow doubted that this chance meeting would lead me to my secret hideout tonight, obviously I was supposed to do something about their state. It would be the courteous thing to do.
"Been playing in the rain?" I joked, unclipping my purple cloak and handing it to Nino. "Here." She took it gratefully, with a hearty 'thank you' and a bright smile. I nodded politely, and turned my attention to Lloyd. I honestly wish I could say that I didn't check out his soaked figure, but I'd be lying. I'm not the most moral of people, and Lloyd is a very attractive man. It would only be natural to want to look...at least that was what I told myself as I disguised my quick scan of his body as me looking down at his cut. It would need to be treated, it was fairly deep, and the bleeding wouldn't stop anytime soon. I didn't want to have to take another life because of something as trivial as an injury. I closed my eyes for a second in pain, pushing back those memories. Those were Sonia's first words to me, and though she said it was Brendan's command, I knew it was her own.
'Kill her... Kill her...'
I pushed it back. The more I thought about it, the more it hurt. It was best to just pretend that it didn't happen. Instead, I focused back on the present.
"You should go sit by the fire," I told them, "and Lloyd, I'll go get something for your cut."
I hurried away. I played a lot of characters when it suited me, but I was out of practice playing the gentleman. Around here, I tried to stay out of sight most of the time. At least, ever since she showed up.
It seems like everything wrong with my life started with that woman.
Comments/Criticism/Editing Encouraged.