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The Unpronounceable
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Clock Tower
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Due to some of Iron's advice, I'm reposting the fixed 2nd part of chapter 6.
Spoiler for 6/2.1:
]*****Sunday*****
“HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!”
Hayate smiled from where she stood. In the center of the room, Nanoha was smiling sheepishly, thanking Subaru and Teana for their gift. Next to her are Fate and Vivio, the Enforcer explaining something to the young child, who looked a bit confused.
Signum was talking with Vice, while Shamal seems to be discussing something with Shari and Mariel. Vita was eating something, along with Rein and Agito. Oddly, Zafira seems to have disappeared. Though with Arf’s absence, it wasn’t that hard to guess where the Guardian Beast could have been.
Chrono was talking with Verossa, Carim and Schach. Well, more like glaring at Verossa, who had indeed try to flirt with Fate earlier. Although for some reasons Hayate got the impressions that Chrono had been glancing at Carim, while the blond Knight have a faint blush on her face. Must be her imaginations.
Then her eyes came across Yuuno. The man was drinking alone at a table, a soft smile on his face. His eyes was roaming around the room, occasionally stopping at the Ace of Aces before moving on.
Hayate was glad that he came. If there ever was someone who can qualify for being even MORE of a workaholic then Nanoha, then Yuuno is that person. Honestly, she had lost count of how many times he had collapsed, only to return to work the next day. Sure, he still takes the occasional vacation, but more than once he had stayed overnight to finish his work. Thankfully, Arf had told her that it doesn’t seem to be the case lately.
One thing that intrigued her, however, was Yuuno’s reaction. It was… lackluster. He had forgotten about Nanoha’s birthday before, but he would usually panic and start to reschedule most of his work. But he wasn’t like that when she told him about it last Friday. If she didn’t know any better, she would have thought that Yuuno wasn’t even bothered by the fact that he forgot his crush’s birthday.
She could tell that something had changed within her friend. His gaze didn’t linger as long as before, his eyes don’t held the same wistful look it once does. It was as if his interest in Nanoha has waned.
Then the Queen saw Chrono sitting down opposite to Yuuno. For a while, they sat nothing. Chrono then sat something, which judging by Yuuno’s face, was either a scathing remark or a teasing one. Sighing, Hayate make her way over, hoping to stop the Admiral from going overboard. As she approaches, however, she overheard their conversation.
“I just hope she won’t get mad about this.” Yuuno muttered to Chrono
“Since you’d told her, I’m sure she’ll understand.” the admiral shrugged.
Silence follows his statement, before Yuuno widens his eyes.
“Wait, you didn’t tell her?” Yuuno asked
“No, I didn’t. I thought you did” Chrono replied.
“You were the one who organized this trip!” the blond glared at his friend.
“And you’re her most frequent visitor.” Chrono retorted
“Who’s she?” Hayate asked nonchalantly. She just couldn’t help herself and she grinned at how Yuuno jumped a bit.
“It’s patient #202, Hayate.” Chrono glared. “And keep it down. It’s still being kept a secret.”
“Sorry.” The brunette smiled sheepishly, before her face turned serious. “What is it?”
“We can’t tell you much, but the short version is that we found one of Jail’s bunkers. Unfortunately, only she knows the password, so we were supposed to bring her there.” The blunet answered with a whisper.
“I see… “Hayate muttered, before frowning “And how is Yuuno involved in all of this?”
“He drafter me because of my expertise on Lost Logia” This time, it was the librarian who answered her. “Apparently, before Jail started on acquiring the
Cradle, he used to collect ancient artifacts.”
Hayate nodded. Then a teasing grin make it way onto her face.
“Don’t worry Yuuno! I’m sure she’ll forgive you.”
“Are you sure?” Yuuno asked, a bit suspicious at Hayate’s grin.
“Yup! You’re her husband, after all!” Hayate declared, though thankfully it’s drowned by the sounds.
Yuuno choked on his drink. Chrono merely smirked. “True. With the way you kept visiting her, even when she yelled at you not too, the description fits.”
“YUUNO!” Before Yuuno can form a response, Nanoha called him over, her hand holding a book. “I can cook you know!”
Thankful for the chance, Yuuno hastily make a retreat to his oldest friend, ignoring Hayate and Chrono in the process.
Spoiler for 6/2.2:
*****Next Day*****
Breathes In. Breathes Out. In. Out. In. Out.
Yuuno chanted in his head as he rides the elevator. Glancing down, he checked the large bag that he had brought with him. Hopefully, this would help him stave of her wraths.
When he arrived at the front door, the Librarian was rather puzzled by the guards.
“Here to see her, prof?” The one on the right grinned.
“Yeah.” Yuuno nodded. “It’s something wrong?”
“It’s nothing sir.” The one on the left replied. He remained stoic, but Yuuno could have sworn the man was trembling lightly. Nodding to them, he enter the room.
“Good morning Due” Yuuno greeted. Discreetly, he placed the bag near the door.
“Yo.” He frowned a bit when he saw her form tensing up.
“Due, what’s wrong?” Yuuno asked with a concerned tone. “Are you alright?”
“I’m fine.” She replied stiffly.
Yuuno frowned. Walking around, he sat down in front of Due. “Are you sure?”
“I-I said I’m fine!” Strange. She’s stammering now. Deciding to check her temperature, Yuuno leans in and touches her forehead with his.
“Your temperature feels normal” Yuuno muttered to himself “So why is your face all red? Are you sure you’re not…Ow!”
Yuuno’s question was cut off when Due headbutted him. Then she grabbed the pillow and start hitting him with it.
“Ow! Hey, cut it out! Ow! That hurt, you know!” Yuuno feebly tried to defend himself from her attacks, but it’s rather hard with her enhanced strength.
“Shut up shut up shut up!”
“Ow ow ow! Okay, that’s it! “The Librarian tackled the Cyborg. Catching her by surprises, Yuuno pin her arms to the side with his own. It was a struggle to keep her down, but somehow Yuuno managed it.
“H-h-hey, w-what the? L-l-let me g-go!” Due squeaked.
“Calm down.” Yuuno tried to placate the former assassin, but it doesn’t seem to be working. If anything, she looked even more frazzled than before.
“T-this isn’t f-funny, you know!” Due shouted. “L-L-Let me go!”
“Shhh, keep quiet!” the librarian whispered. ‘Honestly, if this keeps up people might get the wrong idea’. Yuuno thought to himself. ‘If they already haven’t’.
“H-h-how can I?” The other blond whispered through gritted teeth back. “You’re too close, idiot!” She squirmed, trying to get free.
Yuuno blinked. He didn’t though of that. ‘Well, she is usually so forward that I didn’t think it was the reason. But why though?’
“Hello?! Due to Yuuno!” The Cyborg called out, still struggling underneath him “G-G-Get off me damn it!”
“Alright, I’ll get off, but I want you to calm down. Sounds good?”
“Just do it already!”
Slowly, Yuuno back away from the Cyborg. As he get off the bed, the Cyborg sat up. She seemed to have calm down somewhat, although her breathings were erratic, and her face was still red.
“Jeez… Did you have to do that?” The blond grumbled, fixing her clothes
“Hey, you’re the one that started it. Why did you suddenly attack me like that though? Did you have a nightmare?” Yuuno averted his gaze from her. It wasn’t intentional, but when he was on top of her… The Librarian immediately clamps down that line of thought.
“Well… it wasn’t a nightmare. It was rather… pleasant actually.” Due absentmindedly replied.
“Pleasant?” Yuuno raised an eyebrow. ‘Come to think of it, I never ask her what her dreams are about. I wonder…”
The Cyborg, for her part, widens her eye, before her face become even redder than before. “Pleasant? I didn’t say pleasant! Whoever said it was pleasant?”
“Due?”
“It wasn’t pleasant at all! Nope, it was great! No, I mean it was aro-abnormal!”
“Eh, Due? You okay there?”
“I’m fine! Never better! I’m not thinking about reenacting it! Nope! Not at all”
By now, the blond woman looks to be on the verge of hyperventilating. Yuuno wants to calm her down, but his proximity to her was what set it off in the first place, so pinning her down is out. That leave…
“Sorry, Due, but this is for your own good. Struggle Bind!” A green circle appear underneath the woman, and from it, several green chains shot out and wrapped themselves around Due.
“Due, just slow down and…” Yuuno trailed off. The other blond had let out strangled noise before closing her eyes. “Due?”
When he cast a diagnosis spell on her, he find out that aside from fainting, everything else was fine with her. Releasing the binding, Yuuno shifter her body to a more comfortable position, then sat down on the chair next to the bed. Before he can decides his next course of action, a holoscreen popped up, signifying an incoming call.
“Arf? Why would she call me?” Yuuno muttered to himself. Seeing as he doesn’t want people to find out about his little trip yet, Yuuno switched the call to voice only mode.
“Yuuno? You there?” Arf’s voice came. The Head Librarian noted that his assistant sounds a bit annoyed, with a dash of anxiety.
“I’m here. What is it?”
“Trouble. Some newbies just messed up the database. We need you here, now.”
“How bad it is?” Yuuno frowned. If the database is damaged, then this could be a serious problem.
“On a scale from 1 to 10, I’ll say around 4. Thank the Kaiser that the backup is still running, otherwise this could turn into a 7.”
“Alright, I’ll get there as soon as I can.” Yuuno said with a sigh of relief.
“Right. In the mean time, I’m gonna teach those brats a lesson. And tell me why you’re using voice only later.” Arf hang up.
As Yuuno head for the door, his eyes caught the bag he had brought with him earlier. Pausing, he glances back at the bed, only to sigh as the blond had kicked off the blanket. He turn around and gently tuck her in, then placed the bag’s content next to her.
“No… don’t…” Due mumbled in her sleep, her face twisted into a grimace.
Yuuno frowned. He hated leaving her like this, but the situation at the Library could worsen. A thought ran by, one that he usually would have dismissed. But he had heard somewhere that sometimes, it would droves away nightmares.
‘… Just a peck wouldn’t hurt… Right?’ He tried to convince himself.
Gathering his courage, Yuuno leans down and kiss the blond lightly on the forehead. When he pulls up, his face was comparable to the cyborg’s face from earlier. He noticed that she seemed to have calm down somewhat, and her face’s expression is a lot more peaceful now.
Leaving the room, he remembered about her panic attack. It might be nothing, but better safe than sorry.
“Excuse me.”
“Yes sir?” The guard on the left responded.
“Could I ask you two a favor? Could you call someone to check up on her later? She panicked earlier. There are some problems at the Library, so I need to return there.”
“You can count on us professor.” This time, the more serious guard replied.
“Thank you” Yuuno nodded at them, heading for the elevator.
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