Nanoha FanFiction Discussion

[deathcurse]

Originally Posted by Nanya01

@dc: Wow, things aren't happy here, are they?

In one of my fics? Of course not!

Originally Posted by vic-vic

2 Deathcurse
Everything became more complicated and it`s seemd that hayate goes deeper and deeper in the shadows.

Can`t wait for continuation.

Thanks! Hopefully I can show how everything fits together by the end .

Originally Posted by RadiantBeam

All I'm going to say is.... don't do it, Nanoha!

No, but seriously, she probably isn't going to help at all. Even if she wants to talk to Hayate about her behavior, I'm rather certain Hayate herself is already aware of what she's doing; so having Nanoha call her out on it would probably hurt more than help at this point.

No, she probably won't, but that wouldn't stop her from trying anyways . Although she doesn't actually confront Hayate until after more things happen....

*resists the urge to make a bad, obvious pun*

EDIT: Pageclaim for puns!

Too late, my mind had gone there anyways!

[Satashi]

Spoiler for Got to learn sometime:

"Okay, back up just like I taught you," Nanoha instructed her daughter casually. She remembered how nervous her own experience was when learning how to drive, and didn't want to make it any harder on her daughter. "That's good... perfect!" At that moment Vivio's foot slipped off the clutch and the manual transmission sputtered for clunking to a hault. "Brake!" Nanoha ordered quickly, making the car stop just after it tapped their mailbox.

Vivio gripped the steering wheel hard, eyes wide as she looked straight forward. Nanoha took a breath and calmed down before talking once more. "It was just a light tap, that's what they make bumpers for, don't worry."

"...Really?"

"Really." Nanoha nodded. "Calm down a bit and start the car. It dies on everyone the first time they drive."

"...Okay." Vivio inhaled deeply and waited a few seconds before cranking the car again. Once the rumble came, Vivio shifted into first and pulled forward just enough to get away from the mailbox before the car died again, rolling back to once again tap the brick lined box. Silence came over the car and the blonde let her head hit the steering wheel. "I'm sorry..."

Nanoha forced a giggle and was happy when it came out just as casual as she had wished. "Silly girl, you let your foot ease off the clutch too fast. Keep your feet even as you let go of one and push on the other."

Encouraged by the fact her mother was calmly teaching her, Vivio nodded and steadied herself once more. The car cranked and she eased forward. "... Okay!"

"Just turn on the grass to back out properly," Nanoha advised. "Don't worry it hasn't rained lately so it'll be fine." Her daughter did as she was told and soon they were out of their drive way and on the road that went around their housing community. "There, see, it was easy." No sooner than she had spoken did the car jerk forward and die a third time when Vivio unsucessfully tried to get into first gear.

"Ack..." Vivio sighed and cranked the car again. "I'm sorry..."

"It takes a moment to get used to." Nanoha tried to sooth her as a car honked its horn behind them before moving around to pass.

"I- I should move!"

Nanoha was about to tell her to calm down, but was a little too late. The teen over compensated to make sure the car wouldn't die and the engine revved loudly before making it dart forward. The wheels hit the gutter on the side of the road before Vivio could correct it and slow down enough to move forward steadily. "Oh man..."

Nanoha grimaced, but recalled that they had wanted to black out their wheels anyway. "Don't worry, just focus." They cruised steadily, the rev of the engine getting louder and louder. "...Vivio, shift."

"Oh!" Vivio hit the clutch and shifted, maknig the engine roar dully when she hit the gas again. "Wh-what's going on?"

"That's fourth gear, sweety."

"I -I knew that!" Vivio shifted again, this time making the car almost jerk off the ground paired with the sound of a small screeching. "I peeled out! so cool!" She sunk down. "I-I mean I'm sorry."

Nanoha tried to smile. "Fate-mama will teach you how to do that properly...." Nanoha scratched her cheek. "Just stay calm- Vivio look forward!" the car jerked to a stop before rear ending the car before them. "Okay... stay calm..."

Vivio sweated heavily, gripping the steering wheel with wide eyes filled with horror. She knew she only missed by a few inches, and it was evident when the car in front of them pulled up a bit...

Should I continue?

[Nanya01]

heh heh. Why not, Satashi?

[Comartemis]

Originally Posted by Satashi

Spoiler for Got to learn sometime:

"Okay, back up just like I taught you," Nanoha instructed her daughter casually. She remembered how nervous her own experience was when learning how to drive, and didn't want to make it any harder on her daughter. "That's good... perfect!" At that moment Vivio's foot slipped off the clutch and the manual transmission sputtered for clunking to a hault. "Brake!" Nanoha ordered quickly, making the car stop just after it tapped their mailbox.

Vivio gripped the steering wheel hard, eyes wide as she looked straight forward. Nanoha took a breath and calmed down before talking once more. "It was just a light tap, that's what they make bumpers for, don't worry."

"...Really?"

"Really." Nanoha nodded. "Calm down a bit and start the car. It dies on everyone the first time they drive."

"...Okay." Vivio inhaled deeply and waited a few seconds before cranking the car again. Once the rumble came, Vivio shifted into first and pulled forward just enough to get away from the mailbox before the car died again, rolling back to once again tap the brick lined box. Silence came over the car and the blonde let her head hit the steering wheel. "I'm sorry..."

Nanoha forced a giggle and was happy when it came out just as casual as she had wished. "Silly girl, you let your foot ease off the clutch too fast. Keep your feet even as you let go of one and push on the other."

Encouraged by the fact her mother was calmly teaching her, Vivio nodded and steadied herself once more. The car cranked and she eased forward. "... Okay!"

"Just turn on the grass to back out properly," Nanoha advised. "Don't worry it hasn't rained lately so it'll be fine." Her daughter did as she was told and soon they were out of their drive way and on the road that went around their housing community. "There, see, it was easy." No sooner than she had spoken did the car jerk forward and die a third time when Vivio unsucessfully tried to get into first gear.

"Ack..." Vivio sighed and cranked the car again. "I'm sorry..."

"It takes a moment to get used to." Nanoha tried to sooth her as a car honked its horn behind them before moving around to pass.

"I- I should move!"

Nanoha was about to tell her to calm down, but was a little too late. The teen over compensated to make sure the car wouldn't die and the engine revved loudly before making it dart forward. The wheels hit the gutter on the side of the road before Vivio could correct it and slow down enough to move forward steadily. "Oh man..."

Nanoha grimaced, but recalled that they had wanted to black out their wheels anyway. "Don't worry, just focus." They cruised steadily, the rev of the engine getting louder and louder. "...Vivio, shift."

"Oh!" Vivio hit the clutch and shifted, maknig the engine roar dully when she hit the gas again. "Wh-what's going on?"

"That's fourth gear, sweety."

"I -I knew that!" Vivio shifted again, this time making the car almost jerk off the ground paired with the sound of a small screeching. "I peeled out! so cool!" She sunk down. "I-I mean I'm sorry."

Nanoha tried to smile. "Fate-mama will teach you how to do that properly...." Nanoha scratched her cheek. "Just stay calm- Vivio look forward!" the car jerked to a stop before rear ending the car before them. "Okay... stay calm..."

Vivio sweated heavily, gripping the steering wheel with wide eyes filled with horror. She knew she only missed by a few inches, and it was evident when the car in front of them pulled up a bit...

Rofl. Go auto or go home, Nanoha-mama.

[00-Raiser]

Originally Posted by Satashi

Spoiler for Got to learn sometime:

"Okay, back up just like I taught you," Nanoha instructed her daughter casually. She remembered how nervous her own experience was when learning how to drive, and didn't want to make it any harder on her daughter. "That's good... perfect!" At that moment Vivio's foot slipped off the clutch and the manual transmission sputtered for clunking to a hault. "Brake!" Nanoha ordered quickly, making the car stop just after it tapped their mailbox.

Vivio gripped the steering wheel hard, eyes wide as she looked straight forward. Nanoha took a breath and calmed down before talking once more. "It was just a light tap, that's what they make bumpers for, don't worry."

"...Really?"

"Really." Nanoha nodded. "Calm down a bit and start the car. It dies on everyone the first time they drive."

"...Okay." Vivio inhaled deeply and waited a few seconds before cranking the car again. Once the rumble came, Vivio shifted into first and pulled forward just enough to get away from the mailbox before the car died again, rolling back to once again tap the brick lined box. Silence came over the car and the blonde let her head hit the steering wheel. "I'm sorry..."

Nanoha forced a giggle and was happy when it came out just as casual as she had wished. "Silly girl, you let your foot ease off the clutch too fast. Keep your feet even as you let go of one and push on the other."

Encouraged by the fact her mother was calmly teaching her, Vivio nodded and steadied herself once more. The car cranked and she eased forward. "... Okay!"

"Just turn on the grass to back out properly," Nanoha advised. "Don't worry it hasn't rained lately so it'll be fine." Her daughter did as she was told and soon they were out of their drive way and on the road that went around their housing community. "There, see, it was easy." No sooner than she had spoken did the car jerk forward and die a third time when Vivio unsucessfully tried to get into first gear.

"Ack..." Vivio sighed and cranked the car again. "I'm sorry..."

"It takes a moment to get used to." Nanoha tried to sooth her as a car honked its horn behind them before moving around to pass.

"I- I should move!"

Nanoha was about to tell her to calm down, but was a little too late. The teen over compensated to make sure the car wouldn't die and the engine revved loudly before making it dart forward. The wheels hit the gutter on the side of the road before Vivio could correct it and slow down enough to move forward steadily. "Oh man..."

Nanoha grimaced, but recalled that they had wanted to black out their wheels anyway. "Don't worry, just focus." They cruised steadily, the rev of the engine getting louder and louder. "...Vivio, shift."

"Oh!" Vivio hit the clutch and shifted, maknig the engine roar dully when she hit the gas again. "Wh-what's going on?"

"That's fourth gear, sweety."

"I -I knew that!" Vivio shifted again, this time making the car almost jerk off the ground paired with the sound of a small screeching. "I peeled out! so cool!" She sunk down. "I-I mean I'm sorry."

Nanoha tried to smile. "Fate-mama will teach you how to do that properly...." Nanoha scratched her cheek. "Just stay calm- Vivio look forward!" the car jerked to a stop before rear ending the car before them. "Okay... stay calm..."

Vivio sweated heavily, gripping the steering wheel with wide eyes filled with horror. She knew she only missed by a few inches, and it was evident when the car in front of them pulled up a bit...

Should I continue?

Seriously, why do manual cars still exist anyways? Why go through all the trouble when an automatic will do it for you?

Anyways, maybe Vivio should go on "Mid Childa's Worst Driver" This is precisely why I don't drive.

Go ahead and continue it... but only after you do more of your Vivio CYOA! I've been dying to know what happens on Yuuno and Corona's date! >_<

[itanshi1]

If you must know, better MPG, and less likely to eat/make up/cell phone/shave while driving

[blitz1/2]

Originally Posted by Satashi

Spoiler for Got to learn sometime:

"Okay, back up just like I taught you," Nanoha instructed her daughter casually. She remembered how nervous her own experience was when learning how to drive, and didn't want to make it any harder on her daughter. "That's good... perfect!" At that moment Vivio's foot slipped off the clutch and the manual transmission sputtered for clunking to a hault. "Brake!" Nanoha ordered quickly, making the car stop just after it tapped their mailbox.

Vivio gripped the steering wheel hard, eyes wide as she looked straight forward. Nanoha took a breath and calmed down before talking once more. "It was just a light tap, that's what they make bumpers for, don't worry."

"...Really?"

"Really." Nanoha nodded. "Calm down a bit and start the car. It dies on everyone the first time they drive."

"...Okay." Vivio inhaled deeply and waited a few seconds before cranking the car again. Once the rumble came, Vivio shifted into first and pulled forward just enough to get away from the mailbox before the car died again, rolling back to once again tap the brick lined box. Silence came over the car and the blonde let her head hit the steering wheel. "I'm sorry..."

Nanoha forced a giggle and was happy when it came out just as casual as she had wished. "Silly girl, you let your foot ease off the clutch too fast. Keep your feet even as you let go of one and push on the other."

Encouraged by the fact her mother was calmly teaching her, Vivio nodded and steadied herself once more. The car cranked and she eased forward. "... Okay!"

"Just turn on the grass to back out properly," Nanoha advised. "Don't worry it hasn't rained lately so it'll be fine." Her daughter did as she was told and soon they were out of their drive way and on the road that went around their housing community. "There, see, it was easy." No sooner than she had spoken did the car jerk forward and die a third time when Vivio unsucessfully tried to get into first gear.

"Ack..." Vivio sighed and cranked the car again. "I'm sorry..."

"It takes a moment to get used to." Nanoha tried to sooth her as a car honked its horn behind them before moving around to pass.

"I- I should move!"

Nanoha was about to tell her to calm down, but was a little too late. The teen over compensated to make sure the car wouldn't die and the engine revved loudly before making it dart forward. The wheels hit the gutter on the side of the road before Vivio could correct it and slow down enough to move forward steadily. "Oh man..."

Nanoha grimaced, but recalled that they had wanted to black out their wheels anyway. "Don't worry, just focus." They cruised steadily, the rev of the engine getting louder and louder. "...Vivio, shift."

"Oh!" Vivio hit the clutch and shifted, maknig the engine roar dully when she hit the gas again. "Wh-what's going on?"

"That's fourth gear, sweety."

"I -I knew that!" Vivio shifted again, this time making the car almost jerk off the ground paired with the sound of a small screeching. "I peeled out! so cool!" She sunk down. "I-I mean I'm sorry."

Nanoha tried to smile. "Fate-mama will teach you how to do that properly...." Nanoha scratched her cheek. "Just stay calm- Vivio look forward!" the car jerked to a stop before rear ending the car before them. "Okay... stay calm..."

Vivio sweated heavily, gripping the steering wheel with wide eyes filled with horror. She knew she only missed by a few inches, and it was evident when the car in front of them pulled up a bit...

Should I continue?

Wow....She might actually tie Spongebob as worst driver.

[Thunderbird]

Originally Posted by 00-Raiser

Seriously, why do manual cars still exist anyways? Why go through all the trouble when an automatic will do it for you?

Well for those of us who still like "old style" driving, its those reasons listed above and its easier to drift as well

[spawnofthejudge]

Originally Posted by 00-Raiser

Seriously, why do manual cars still exist anyways? Why go through all the trouble when an automatic will do it for you?

Manual is Gar. Natch.

[RadiantBeam]

Originally Posted by deathcurse

Too late, my mind had gone there anyways!

Mission accomplished.

Originally Posted by Satashi

Spoiler for Got to learn sometime:

"Okay, back up just like I taught you," Nanoha instructed her daughter casually. She remembered how nervous her own experience was when learning how to drive, and didn't want to make it any harder on her daughter. "That's good... perfect!" At that moment Vivio's foot slipped off the clutch and the manual transmission sputtered for clunking to a hault. "Brake!" Nanoha ordered quickly, making the car stop just after it tapped their mailbox.

Vivio gripped the steering wheel hard, eyes wide as she looked straight forward. Nanoha took a breath and calmed down before talking once more. "It was just a light tap, that's what they make bumpers for, don't worry."

"...Really?"

"Really." Nanoha nodded. "Calm down a bit and start the car. It dies on everyone the first time they drive."

"...Okay." Vivio inhaled deeply and waited a few seconds before cranking the car again. Once the rumble came, Vivio shifted into first and pulled forward just enough to get away from the mailbox before the car died again, rolling back to once again tap the brick lined box. Silence came over the car and the blonde let her head hit the steering wheel. "I'm sorry..."

Nanoha forced a giggle and was happy when it came out just as casual as she had wished. "Silly girl, you let your foot ease off the clutch too fast. Keep your feet even as you let go of one and push on the other."

Encouraged by the fact her mother was calmly teaching her, Vivio nodded and steadied herself once more. The car cranked and she eased forward. "... Okay!"

"Just turn on the grass to back out properly," Nanoha advised. "Don't worry it hasn't rained lately so it'll be fine." Her daughter did as she was told and soon they were out of their drive way and on the road that went around their housing community. "There, see, it was easy." No sooner than she had spoken did the car jerk forward and die a third time when Vivio unsucessfully tried to get into first gear.

"Ack..." Vivio sighed and cranked the car again. "I'm sorry..."

"It takes a moment to get used to." Nanoha tried to sooth her as a car honked its horn behind them before moving around to pass.

"I- I should move!"

Nanoha was about to tell her to calm down, but was a little too late. The teen over compensated to make sure the car wouldn't die and the engine revved loudly before making it dart forward. The wheels hit the gutter on the side of the road before Vivio could correct it and slow down enough to move forward steadily. "Oh man..."

Nanoha grimaced, but recalled that they had wanted to black out their wheels anyway. "Don't worry, just focus." They cruised steadily, the rev of the engine getting louder and louder. "...Vivio, shift."

"Oh!" Vivio hit the clutch and shifted, maknig the engine roar dully when she hit the gas again. "Wh-what's going on?"

"That's fourth gear, sweety."

"I -I knew that!" Vivio shifted again, this time making the car almost jerk off the ground paired with the sound of a small screeching. "I peeled out! so cool!" She sunk down. "I-I mean I'm sorry."

Nanoha tried to smile. "Fate-mama will teach you how to do that properly...." Nanoha scratched her cheek. "Just stay calm- Vivio look forward!" the car jerked to a stop before rear ending the car before them. "Okay... stay calm..."

Vivio sweated heavily, gripping the steering wheel with wide eyes filled with horror. She knew she only missed by a few inches, and it was evident when the car in front of them pulled up a bit...

Should I continue?

RAMP!

Okay, now that I've gotten that pointless shoutout out of my system....

Continue, please. It's always fun to see Vivio being tortured. Though I have to admit I can really relate to how she's feeling right now; always a fun experience, learning to drive a car for the first time.

[Rising Dragon]

My learning to drive a car involved flattening two plastic trash barrels, destroying an address sign, and putting the spare generator partially through the garage wall...

Let's see if Vivio can do more damage!

[Comartemis]

My folks found me an abandoned parking lot with enough space to do Nascar loops and figure-8s and set me loose in our ancient Bravada Oldsmobile; worked like a charm for getting the basics down. Worst part of learning to drive on this end was my epic quest () through the DMV to get my license.

[Nanya01]

I learned how to drive before I was in kindergarten.

...

What? I did.

I lived on a farm until I was 7, I sat in the adult's laps so I could see what I was doing and I had the steering and gear shifting parts down. I just couldn't reach the pedals until I was a bit older.

[Tempy]

I learned how to drive manual long before switching to auto. As a result, I find my hand resting on my shift, fighting the urge to move it. Honestly, I like manual more; it gives me more control over my car and its performance. Sure, it's a gradually dying skill, but it's a useful skill to know.

Plus there's something dramatic about shifting gears, especially to loud music.

... Suddenly, Need for Speed: Cranagan Drift

[deathcurse]

This part is dedicated to isagrimorie, because without our current word-war I wouldn't have finished this so soon!

Part 1-4A, Part 4B, Part 5: Trial Day 1A, Part 5: Trial Day 1B and Part 5: Trial Day 1C and New Part 6

Crime Never Sleeps
New Part 7
“The worst things we do are always by our own choice.”

Spoiler for Crime Never Sleeps, New Part 7:

Auris took her seat, watching the other people seated along the long oval table with careful eyes. She had no doubts that they had seated her deliberately at the tip of the oval so that she would be under the scrutiny of everyone else, and as the rest of the NSIS Overseers filed in she had to privately admit that the attention was making her stomach churn.

Just because they’re here to catch any mistakes you made, doesn’t mean that they will actually catch any, she reminded herself as she opened up her presentation file, reviewing it quickly in her lap.

The Overseers came from different branches and positions, and some of them weren’t TSAB but from civilian agencies. Privacy was in full force here, with a minimal usage of people’s names, but there wasn’t really a way for them to keep their identities private from each other—or from Auris. She had no doubts that some of them wished for anonymity—watching eyes worked both ways.

The other end of the oval table was taken by the Head Overseer, Admiral Mizetto Kurooberu who was the Bureau’s Chief of Staff. Auris heard that the Admiral had volunteered to be one of the Overseers of the NSIS, although it meant more, credit-less work for the old woman. It seemed like someone at the time hadn’t trusted ex-Admiral Gil Grahem to stay inside the moral lines…but what did they expect? The Naval Special Intelligence Service hadn’t been created to look pretty—it had been made to help the TSAB get the job done.

Auris intended to do just that.

For all her father’s faults, he had wanted the same sort of thing too. She respected that.

Admiral Harlaown entered just then, holding the door for Hayate. As ex-NSIS Director, he had the choice to attend Overseer meetings if he chose. That had been surprising—Auris would have guessed that he would want to be as far away from the Shadows as possible once his tenure had been up. He wasn’t the sort who would enjoy this kind of harsh work, yet he refused to step out of it.

Guilt, Auris guessed. The high-and-mighty types were always full of it.

“Now that we are all present, I would like to start the meeting.” Admiral Mizetto gestured at Auris. “Director, your report?”

“Yes ma’am.” Auris synched her Device with the conference room’s projector and called up her first slide. “Over the past two months, we are operating under our budget. Prospective for next month will be a mild deficit due to the Gallant Trials and some of the transportation costs involved in working that case. However, overall the NSIS does not look to go over-budget in the first half of this year.

"Unfortunately, since our last meeting we have lost a total of two agents, both in the field. However, we have recently introduced six more recruits into the NSIS, with eight more in training at the moment.”

“That’s a lot of new recruits,” one of the Overseers remarked. “Didn’t you have five less than six months ago? It’s nearly three times what we’d expect at this point in the year.”

“The number of new agents has increased in the last few years,” Admiral Harlaown said.

“These things go up and down,” another overseer waved it off. “I’m sure it’s just an oddly popular period. This is a good thing, isn’t it? Increasing the NSIS membership allows for a higher budget projection for future years, and it also gives the Director more agents at her disposal.”

Auris waited politely for the discussion to die down before continuing. “Housekeeping details aside, right now the NSIS’s current focus is on containing the media exposure over the Gallant Case as well as completing the late Agent Touring’s mission. As I have presented to everyone previously, the Hellhounds pose a significant threat to the worlds in their territory, as well as the risk of future dimensional ruptures caused by any weapons they may acquire. It is our hope that we can succeed where Agent Touring had tragically been prevented from completing his mission.”

“What I’m worried about,” someone said, “was how the Gallant Case will impact on the public image of the NSIS. It is our mandate to keep the NSIS as covert as possible—we don’t want people looking into just what kind of missions the NSIS participates in. What are you doing to contain the situation?”

“We’re lucky that Raven Gallant is a minor,” Auris replied. “Most of the case details are confidential. But in addition, we’ve been trying to focus the trial on Gallant’s actions towards the Hellhounds, and focusing on Touring as an TSAB officer, rather than as a Shadow agent. Of course, I have been subpoenaed to testify at the next trial session, but our confidential procedures will allow me to avoid going into detail about the NSIS’s operations.”

“Lt. General Yagami would have to make sure to keep the questioning away from any revealing details.”

“We have everything in hand,” Hayate responded mildly. She was starting to raise Auris’ hackles with how amiable she was about everything—for people like her, when they pull out the smiling, vacant expressions were when they had the most secrets to hide. Auris saw far too many of those looks in her line of work. “I assure you, we will only be going into facts that help us further our case.”

The rest of the questions went easily from there, as most of the overseers were far more preoccupied with the Gallant Case than any of the other missions the Shadows were currently running. When Admiral Mizetto ended the meeting, the room emptied in a hurry, the late hour rushing them along.

Auris saw Harlaown murmur something to Hayate, who only shook her head and gestured for him to go on. To her interest, Harlaown frowned and when he left his shoulders were stiff.

“Trouble, my dear?” Admiral Mizetto asked Hayate quietly. Auris took her time sorting her documents, shamelessly eavesdropping.

“Nothing serious, Admiral,” Hayate answered, bowing slightly in her Earth tradition. “Thank you for your concern, and I apologize for the necessity of moving the meeting to this late hour.”

“No need to apologize, my day hasn’t been as long as yours. You will go home, get some rest?”

Smiling wanly, Hayate said, “I’ll try my best ma’am.”

“See that you do.” Mizetto glanced over at Auris. “Both of you. All you young people are working far too hard these days.”

“Yes ma’am,” Auris said, startled at the kindness. “Thank you.”

“It is hard work,” Mizetto sighed, staring out the wall-length windows at the starry night and suddenly looking her old age. “Hard work, what we ask of our young people here.”

**O**

Fate glanced up from her reading as the door to Hayate’s office hissed open. Hayate stumbled in, dropping her briefcase beside the door, too exhausted from a day of meetings to even notice Fate reclining in her comfy chair.

“Turn right around,” Fate ordered.

Hayate jumped in surprise. “Fate-chan?”

Glancing at the clock, Fate winced. Yikes, one-forty-five in the morning? Fate closed her holoscreen and got up, walking over to pick up Hayate’s briefcase for her. “Rein let me in. Come on, Hayate, I’m taking you home.”

“What?” Hayate said weakly as Fate gently steered her back out the door.

“Vita called me to make you go home for the night. They miss you.”

“I miss them too,” the brunette said automatically, giving in and letting Fate push her towards the parking lot. “But I—”

“The next court session isn’t for a few days, and Rein cancelled your meetings tomorrow. You’re going to eat some real food and get a good night’s sleep.” Fate smiled, chuckling softly. “Doctor’s orders.”

“Even Shamal is ganging up on me?” Hayate smiled tiredly as she got into Fate’s car, pushing the backrest back so that she could slouch, sprawling and letting her tense shoulders relax.

“They’re worried about you.” Fate shifted gears and they zoomed out of the base significantly above the speed limit. “Nanoha and I are worried about you, and all your other friends are too.”

“I’m sorry,” Hayate said, probably inadvertently as she winced immediately afterwards. She would have tried to cover up her slip with another comment, but Fate refused to let that slide.

“Why are you sorry?”

Hayate sighed and leaned against the doorframe, her cheek in her palm as she watched the streetlights zipping by them. Fate slowed down to ten above the speed limit so that she could spare looks sideways at her friend, not bothering to hide her concern. Finally, Hayate whispered, “I know that you guys don’t agree with what I’m doing.”

“But why are you sorry?”

Hayate didn’t answer that, and Fate drove on in silence for a while. She exited the highway and entered the neighbourhood where the Yagami house was located. Fate didn’t decrease her speed and Hayate turned to her, startled.

“Um, Fate-chan, you just drove past—”

“Are you feeling sorry because it’s not what you really want to do?”

Hayate stiffened, pushing herself back into the seat, shrinking away from Fate. “I can’t talk about this, Fate-chan.”

“Or,” Fate said astutely, driving randomly in a loop around Hayate’s neighbourhood, “is it because you’re doing it because you have to, to gain something else?”

She knew that she had hit close to bulls-eye when Hayate flinched, a look of relief passing over her face before she quickly hid the emotion. A desperate look replaced the momentary relief that someone had guessed the truth. “Please, Fate-chan. I can’t talk about it.”

Fate pulled up to the Yagami house driveway, cutting the engine and throwing the gearstick into park. She laid a hand on Hayate’s sleeve, clasping her wrist comfortingly. “Hayate, remember—we’re your friends. We’re always on your side.”

“I know,” Hayate sighed, rubbing her face in exhaustion. “I’m taking advantage of it.”

“We’re letting you take advantage. Don’t you worry about us.”

“You might not say that later,” Hayate whispered.

Fate hugged her the best she could, their seat belts making the gesture awkward. “I still will. Now go let them make a fuss over you, eat something and please, get some rest, okay?”

“Yes ma’am,” Hayate grinned, some of her humour returning. But Fate’s worry didn’t lessen at all as she watched Hayate walk up to the front door and begin unlocking it before being ambushed by her Knights and dragged inside in a mess of hugs and scoldings. Sighing, Fate started the ignition again and pulled out, driving back to her own family.

She feared that the depressed anguish in Hayate’s eyes wouldn’t go away, but only hide underneath her cheery exterior—hide and never really go away.

**O**

Lt. General Yagami leads the Gallant Case over TSAB Agent’s murder.—Daily News

Eleven-year old Raven Gallant provided no opportunity for her own defence at the Gallant trial, Day One—Lt. General Yagami stacking the trial?—Cranagan Press

**O**

Auris walked into her office, loosening her tie as she closed the blinds on her windows. She didn’t put on office security—if you look sneaky, people think that you have something to hide. She had fifteen minutes before her daily routine of checking her confidential files, so Auris had to work quickly.

Unlocking her drawer, Auris pulled out a handwritten sheet. This was the kind of sheet that could end her career in the military. Ironic, how half of what the Shadows director does could be classified underneath that category. The only thing preventing that is the fact that she gets what all the other military branches and sections need.

Information is worth everything in this world. And all that stood between being on either side of jail bars was whether or not you had a fancy title to go with your work.

What fun.

After playing the recordings from the bug she had planted in Hayate’s outer office, Auris had written down a few noteworthy names who had walked through Long Arch, as well as some interesting sentences they had dropped idly before leaving. It seems Hayate had dug herself quite the hole over this case.

“Thank Kaiser she’s the one everyone is pinning this on,” Auris muttered to herself, laughing wryly at the irony. That probably hadn’t been Hayate’s intention when she had stepped into the power struggle.

Anyway…Auris noted that Mayor Magnus had been paying Hayate many visits. Curious, because Alvar Lonsdale had informed Auris that the mayor had also been exchanging correspondence with some of the NSIS’s other overseers. And that apparently he had met with two of them for private meetings periodically for the last four years.

Auris didn’t like having anyone go behind her back to her bosses. “Computer, open messaging.”

Gaiz: Valiant, status report on your current mission.

Valiant: Final details will be handed to the Enforcers tonight.

Gaiz: Good. I have a new mission for you, verbal briefing only.

Valiant: I can report for duty at 22:00.

Gaiz: Good.

Auris closed that channel and activated her office security, watching the many colours flash over her walls as layer upon layer of magic flooded around her. “Computer, secure network.”

“Identification: Auris Gaiz. Password?”

Auris sent her telepathic password, a string of numbers and words, and watched multiple screens open around her, displaying her latest reports. Setting up a side screen to run an active search on the financial records of the two overseers she suspected, Auris let the program run and turned her attention back to her real work. Nothing particularly stood out today, although she did note a comment from Tagus about how much of the talk in the NSIS common room held Hayate in high regard for her success in the first day of the Gallant trial.

That’s inconvenient…now I’ll have to put forward a greater pretence of making nice with Hayate.

“Director, agent requesting entry: Jian Valiant.”

Auris shut down the secure network but kept her security measures up. “Come in.”

Jian marched over and stopped in front of Auris’ desk. “You had a mission for me, Director?”

Auris handed her the handwritten sheet. By convention, whenever a handwritten document changed hands it was expected that the agent memorize the information and destroy the sheet immediately afterwards. While Auris trusted Jian well enough, she still said, “That disappears in here.”

Jian blinked, then scanned the sheet, her black eyes flicking back and forth many times until she finally nodded and gave the sheet back. Auris fed it into her document shredder and incinerator herself. “I want daily reports at 23:00. Record nothing down. Questions?”

“I may need an officer’s permit to access the mayor’s records,” Jian said. “It’ll leave fewer suspicious traces if I access them through legal channels.” She hadn’t bothered to comment on how she’d find the records of the two NSIS overseers—there was no legal method for a Shadow agent to do that. But most of the overseers never bothered getting to know all the Shadows, so Jian had her own, better methods for finding out information.

Too bad Hayate was one of the overseers who did bother knowing all the Shadow agents. But it wasn’t like she swung that way anyway. At least, not to Auris’ knowledge…

“I’ll sign one,” Auris said, and saw that Jian had reacted slightly in surprise. So she hadn’t expected Auris to put herself on the line for her. Good; the more Auris’ actions startled her agents, the less able they’d become at predicting her actions. “It’ll be on your desk by the morning. Anything else?”

“That’s all, ma’am.”

Auris nodded her dismissal and sat back in her chair as Jian left. She already had her suspicions, but it would be better for Jian to confirm them. A pity that she had to use one of the few agents she trusted on this particular information-gathering mission, but the risk otherwise wasn’t worth it. Maybe she should extend a bone to Lonsdale and see if he bites…his odd obsessive habits aside, Lonsdale was the best computer hacker they had outside of the SIB specialists.

A message popped up on her holoscreen.

Roberts: Completed Part 2 set-up. Ready for staged break-out at any time.

Brightening, Auris typed up her reply, a cold smile curving onto her face.

Gaiz: Hold until signal. If proceedings favour release, wait until a brief turnaround in our favour before staging break-out. Must appear as if Target reacted in fear that verdict would be changed.

Roberts: Defamation or Termination?

Without hesitation, Auris wrote the order that she knew they were all dying to see.

Gaiz: Termination.

Spoiler for Author's Note:

YES, finally caught up with my old Part #s! I can finally stop with all the crazy "revised part" or "new part" whatevers! The next part will just be "PART 8"!!!!

Some of this part has been posted before, but by now I'm sure you've forgotten all about it ^^. Even so, there are a few edits here and there to help better foreshadow future events .

EDIT: Grammar changes, thanks spawnofthejudge!

[deathcurse]

And sorry for double post @_@.....(at least I avoided it last night! )

Originally Posted by Satashi

Spoiler for Got to learn sometime:

"Okay, back up just like I taught you," Nanoha instructed her daughter casually. She remembered how nervous her own experience was when learning how to drive, and didn't want to make it any harder on her daughter. "That's good... perfect!" At that moment Vivio's foot slipped off the clutch and the manual transmission sputtered for clunking to a hault. "Brake!" Nanoha ordered quickly, making the car stop just after it tapped their mailbox.

Vivio gripped the steering wheel hard, eyes wide as she looked straight forward. Nanoha took a breath and calmed down before talking once more. "It was just a light tap, that's what they make bumpers for, don't worry."

"...Really?"

"Really." Nanoha nodded. "Calm down a bit and start the car. It dies on everyone the first time they drive."

"...Okay." Vivio inhaled deeply and waited a few seconds before cranking the car again. Once the rumble came, Vivio shifted into first and pulled forward just enough to get away from the mailbox before the car died again, rolling back to once again tap the brick lined box. Silence came over the car and the blonde let her head hit the steering wheel. "I'm sorry..."

Nanoha forced a giggle and was happy when it came out just as casual as she had wished. "Silly girl, you let your foot ease off the clutch too fast. Keep your feet even as you let go of one and push on the other."

Encouraged by the fact her mother was calmly teaching her, Vivio nodded and steadied herself once more. The car cranked and she eased forward. "... Okay!"

"Just turn on the grass to back out properly," Nanoha advised. "Don't worry it hasn't rained lately so it'll be fine." Her daughter did as she was told and soon they were out of their drive way and on the road that went around their housing community. "There, see, it was easy." No sooner than she had spoken did the car jerk forward and die a third time when Vivio unsucessfully tried to get into first gear.

"Ack..." Vivio sighed and cranked the car again. "I'm sorry..."

"It takes a moment to get used to." Nanoha tried to sooth her as a car honked its horn behind them before moving around to pass.

"I- I should move!"

Nanoha was about to tell her to calm down, but was a little too late. The teen over compensated to make sure the car wouldn't die and the engine revved loudly before making it dart forward. The wheels hit the gutter on the side of the road before Vivio could correct it and slow down enough to move forward steadily. "Oh man..."

Nanoha grimaced, but recalled that they had wanted to black out their wheels anyway. "Don't worry, just focus." They cruised steadily, the rev of the engine getting louder and louder. "...Vivio, shift."

"Oh!" Vivio hit the clutch and shifted, maknig the engine roar dully when she hit the gas again. "Wh-what's going on?"

"That's fourth gear, sweety."

"I -I knew that!" Vivio shifted again, this time making the car almost jerk off the ground paired with the sound of a small screeching. "I peeled out! so cool!" She sunk down. "I-I mean I'm sorry."

Nanoha tried to smile. "Fate-mama will teach you how to do that properly...." Nanoha scratched her cheek. "Just stay calm- Vivio look forward!" the car jerked to a stop before rear ending the car before them. "Okay... stay calm..."

Vivio sweated heavily, gripping the steering wheel with wide eyes filled with horror. She knew she only missed by a few inches, and it was evident when the car in front of them pulled up a bit...

Should I continue?

Yes, continue please . I want to know who she hit! Cop? Fate-mama? Yuuno's new car?

[RadiantBeam]

Originally Posted by deathcurse

This part is dedicated to isagrimorie, because without our current word-war I wouldn't have finished this so soon!

Part 1-4A, Part 4B, Part 5: Trial Day 1A, Part 5: Trial Day 1B and Part 5: Trial Day 1C and New Part 6

Crime Never Sleeps
New Part 7
“The worst things we do are always by our own choice.”

Spoiler for Crime Never Sleeps, New Part 7:

Auris took her seat, watching the other people seated along the long oval table with careful eyes. She had no doubts that they had seated her deliberately at the tip of the oval so that she would be under the scrutiny of everyone else, and as the rest of the NSIS Overseers filed in she had to privately admit that the attention was making her stomach churn.

Just because they’re here to catch any mistakes you made, doesn’t mean that they will actually catch any, she reminded herself as she opened up her presentation file, reviewing it quickly in her lap.

The Overseers came from different branches and positions, and some of them weren’t TSAB but from civilian agencies. Privacy was in full force here, with a minimal usage of people’s names, but there wasn’t really a way for them to keep their identities private from each other—or from Auris. She had no doubts that some of them wished for anonymity—watching eyes worked both ways.

The other end of the oval table was taken by the Head Overseer, Admiral Mizetto Kurooberu who was the Bureau’s Chief of Staff. Auris heard that the Admiral had volunteered to be one of the Overseers of the NSIS, although it meant more, credit-less work for the old woman. It seemed like someone at the time hadn’t trusted ex-Admiral Gil Grahem to stay inside the moral lines…but what did they expect? The Naval Special Intelligence Service hadn’t been created to look pretty—it had been made to help the TSAB get the job done.

Auris intended to do just that.

For all her father’s faults, he had wanted the same sort of thing too. She respected that.

Admiral Harlaown entered just then, holding the door for Hayate. As ex-NSIS Director, he had the choice to attend Overseer meetings if he chose. That had been surprising—Auris would have guessed that he would want to be as far away from the Shadows as possible once his tenure had been up. He wasn’t the sort who would enjoy this kind of harsh work, yet he refused to step out of it.

Guilt, Auris guessed. The high-and-mighty types were always full of it.

“Now that we are all present, I would like to start the meeting.” Admiral Mizetto gestured at Auris. “Director, your report?”

“Yes ma’am.” Auris synched her Device with the conference room’s projector and called up her first slide. “Over the past two months, we are operating under our budget. Prospective for next month will be a mild deficit due to the Gallant Trials and some of the transportation costs involved in working that case. However, overall the NSIS does not look to go over-budget in the first half of this year.

Unfortunately, since our last meeting we have lost a total of two agents, both in the field. However, we have recently introduced six more recruits into the NSIS, with eight more in training at the moment.”

“That’s a lot of new recruits,” one of the Overseers remarked. “Didn’t you have five less than six months ago? It’s nearly three times what we’d expect at this point in the year.”

“The number of new agents has increased in the last few years,” Admiral Harlaown said.

“These things go up and down,” another overseer waved it off. “I’m sure it’s just an oddly popular period. This is a good thing, isn’t it? Increasing the NSIS membership allows for a higher budget projection for future years, and it also gives the Director more agents at her disposal.”

Auris waited politely for the discussion to die down before continuing. “Housekeeping details aside, right now the NSIS’s current focus is on containing the media exposure over the Gallant Case as well as completing the late Agent Touring’s mission. As I have presented to everyone previously, the Hellhounds pose a significant threat to the worlds in their territory, as well as the risk of future dimensional ruptures caused by any weapons they may acquire. It is our hope that we can succeed where Agent Touring had tragically been prevented from completing his mission.”

“What I’m worried about,” someone said, “was how the Gallant Case will impact on the public image of the NSIS. It is our mandate to keep the NSIS as covert as possible—we don’t want people looking into just what kind of missions the NSIS participates in. What are you doing to contain the situation?”

“We’re lucky that Raven Gallant is a minor,” Auris replied. “Most of the case details are confidential. But in addition, we’ve been trying to focus the trial on Gallant’s actions towards the Hellhounds, and focusing on Touring as an TSAB officer, rather than as a Shadow agent. Of course, I have been subpoenaed to testify at the next trial session, but our confidential procedures will allow me to avoid going into detail about the NSIS’s operations.”

“Lt. General Yagami would have to make sure to keep the questioning away from any revealing details.”

“We have everything in hand,” Hayate responded mildly. She was starting to raise Auris’ hackles with how amiable she was about everything—for people like her, when they pull out the smiling, vacant expressions were when they had the most secrets to hide. Auris saw far too many of those looks in her line of work. “I assure you, we will only be going into facts that help us further our case.”

The rest of the questions went easily from there, as most of the overseers were far more preoccupied with the Gallant Case than any of the other missions the Shadows were currently running. When Admiral Mizetto ended the meeting, the room emptied in a hurry, the late hour rushing them along.

Auris saw Harlaown murmur something to Hayate, who only shook her head and gestured for him to go on. To her interest, Harlaown frowned and when he left his shoulders were stiff.

“Trouble, my dear?” Admiral Mizetto asked Hayate quietly. Auris took her time sorting her documents, shamelessly eavesdropping.

“Nothing serious, Admiral,” Hayate answered, bowing slightly in her Earth tradition. “Thank you for your concern, and I apologize for the necessity of moving the meeting to this late hour.”

“No need to apologize, my day hasn’t been as long as yours. You will go home, get some rest?”

Smiling wanly, Hayate said, “I’ll try my best ma’am.”

“See that you do.” Mizetto glanced over at Auris. “Both of you. All you young people are working far too hard these days.”

“Yes ma’am,” Auris said, startled at the kindness. “Thank you.”

“It is hard work,” Mizetto sighed, staring out the wall-length windows at the starry night and suddenly looking her old age. “Hard work, what we ask of our young people here.”

**O**

Fate glanced up from her reading as the door to Hayate’s office hissed open. Hayate stumbled in, dropping her briefcase beside the door, too exhausted from a day of meetings to even notice Fate reclining in her comfy chair.

“Turn right around,” Fate ordered.

Hayate jumped in surprise. “Fate-chan?”

Glancing at the clock, Fate winced. Yikes, one-forty-five in the morning? Fate closed her holoscreen and got up, walking over to pick up Hayate’s briefcase for her. “Rein let me in. Come on, Hayate, I’m taking you home.”

“What?” Hayate said weakly as Fate gently steered her back out the door.

“Vita called me to make you go home for the night. They miss you.”

“I miss them too,” the brunette said automatically, giving in and letting Fate push her towards the parking lot. “But I—”

“The next court session isn’t for a few days, and Rein cancelled your meetings tomorrow. You’re going to eat some real food and get a good night’s sleep.” Fate smiled, chuckling softly. “Doctor’s orders.”

“Even Shamal is ganging up on me?” Hayate smiled tiredly as she got into Fate’s car, pushing the backrest back so that she could slouch, sprawling and letting her tense shoulders relax.

“They’re worried about you.” Fate shifted gears and they zoomed out of the base significantly above the speed limit. “Nanoha and I are worried about you, and all your other friends are too.”

“I’m sorry,” Hayate said, probably inadvertently as she winced immediately afterwards. She would have tried to cover up her slip with another comment, but Fate refused to let that slide.

“Why are you sorry?”

Hayate sighed and leaned against the doorframe, her cheek in her palm as she watched the streetlights zipping by them. Fate slowed down to ten above the speed limit so that she could spare looks sideways at her friend, not bothering to hide her concern. Finally, Hayate whispered, “I know that you guys don’t agree with what I’m doing.”

“But why are you sorry?”

Hayate didn’t answer that, and Fate drove on in silence for a while. She exited the highway and entered the neighbourhood where the Yagami house was located. Fate didn’t decrease her speed and Hayate turned to her, startled.

“Um, Fate-chan, you just drove past—”

“Are you feeling sorry because it’s not what you really want to do?”

Hayate stiffened, pushing herself back into the seat, shrinking away from Fate. “I can’t talk about this, Fate-chan.”

“Or,” Fate said astutely, driving randomly in a loop around Hayate’s neighbourhood, “is it because you’re doing it because you have to, to gain something else?”

She knew that she had hit close to bulls-eye when Hayate flinched, a look of relief passing over her face before she quickly hid the emotion. A desperate look replaced the momentary relief that someone had guessed the truth. “Please, Fate-chan. I can’t talk about it.”

Fate pulled up to the Yagami house driveway, cutting the engine and throwing the gearstick into park. She laid a hand on Hayate’s sleeve, clasping her wrist comfortingly. “Hayate, remember—we’re your friends. We’re always on your side.”

“I know,” Hayate sighed, rubbing her face in exhaustion. “I’m taking advantage of it.”

“We’re letting you take advantage. Don’t you worry about us.”

“You might not say that later,” Hayate whispered.

Fate hugged her the best she could, their seat belts making the gesture awkward. “I still will. Now go let them make a fuss over you, eat something and please, get some rest, okay?”

“Yes ma’am,” Hayate grinned, some of her humour returning. But Fate’s worry didn’t lessen at all as she watched Hayate walk up to the front door and begin unlocking it before being ambushed by her Knights and dragged inside in a mess of hugs and scoldings. Sighing, Fate started the ignition again and pulled out, driving back to her own family.

She feared that the depressed anguish in Hayate’s eyes wouldn’t go away, but only hide underneath her cheery exterior—hide and never really go away.

**O**

Lt. General Yagami leads the Gallant Case over TSAB Agent’s murder.—Daily News

Eleven-year old Raven Gallant provided no opportunity for her own defence at the Gallant trial, Day One—Lt. General Yagami stacking the trial?—Cranagan Press

**O**

Auris walked into her office, loosening her tie as she closed the blinds on her windows. She didn’t put on office security—if you look sneaky, people think that you have something to hide. She had fifteen minutes before her daily routine of checking her confidential files, so Auris had to work quickly.

Unlocking her drawer, Auris pulled out a handwritten sheet. This was the kind of sheet that could end her career in the military. Ironic, how half of what the Shadows director does could be classified underneath that category. The only thing preventing that is the fact that she gets what all the other military branches and sections need.

Information is worth everything in this world. And all that stood between being on either side of jail bars was whether or not you had a fancy title to go with your work.

What fun.

After playing the recordings from the bug she had planted in Hayate’s outer office, Auris had written down a few noteworthy names who had walked through Long Arch, as well as some interesting sentences they had dropped idly before leaving. It seems Hayate had dug herself quite the hole over this case.

“Thank Kaiser she’s the one everyone is pinning this on,” Auris muttered to herself, laughing wryly at the irony. That probably hadn’t been Hayate’s intention when she had stepped into the power struggle.

Anyway…Auris noted that Mayor Magnus had been paying Hayate many visits. Curious, because Alvar Lonsdale had informed Auris that the mayor had also been exchanging correspondence with some of the NSIS’s other overseers. And that apparently he had met with two of them for private meetings periodically for the last four years.

Auris didn’t like having anyone go behind her back to her bosses. “Computer, open messaging.”

Gaiz: Valiant, status report on your current mission.

Valiant: Final details will be handed to the Enforcers tonight.

Gaiz: Good. I have a new mission for you, verbal briefing only.

Valiant: I can report for duty at 22:00.

Gaiz: Good.

Auris closed that channel and activated her office security, watching the many colours flash over her walls as layer upon layer of magic flooded around her. “Computer, secure network.”

“Identification: Auris Gaiz. Password?”

Auris sent her telepathic password, a string of numbers and words, and watched multiple screens open around her, displaying her latest reports. Setting up a side screen to run an active search on the financial records of the two overseers she suspected, Auris let the program run and turned her attention back to her real work. Nothing particularly stood out today, although she did note a comment from Tagus about how much of the talk in the NSIS common room held Hayate in high regard for her success in the first day of the Gallant trial.

That’s inconvenient…now I’ll have to put forward a greater pretence of making nice with Hayate.

“Director, agent requesting entry: Jian Valiant.”

Auris shut down the secure network but kept her security measures up. “Come in.”

Jian marched over and stopped in front of Auris’ desk. “You had a mission for me, Director?”

Auris handed her the handwritten sheet. By convention, whenever a handwritten document changed hands it was expected that the agent memorize the information and destroy the sheet immediately afterwards. While Auris trusted Jian well enough, she still said, “That disappears in here.”

Jian blinked, then scanned the sheet, her black eyes flicking back and forth many times until she finally nodded and gave the sheet back. Auris fed it into her document shredder and incinerator herself. “I want daily reports at 23:00. Record nothing down. Questions?”

“I may need an officer’s permit to access the mayor’s records,” Jian said. “It’ll leave fewer suspicious traces if I access them through legal channels.” She hadn’t bothered to comment on how she’d find the records of the two NSIS overseers—there was no legal method for a Shadow agent to do that. But most of the overseers never bothered getting to know all the Shadows, so Jian had her own, better methods for finding out information.

Too bad Hayate was one of the overseers who did bother knowing all the Shadow agents. But it wasn’t like she swung that way anyway. At least, not to Auris’ knowledge…

“I’ll sign one,” Auris said, and saw that Jian had reacted slightly in surprise. So she hadn’t expected Auris to put herself on the line for her. Good; the more Auris’ actions startled her agents, the less able they’d become at predicting her actions. “It’ll be on your desk by the morning. Anything else?”

“That’s all, ma’am.”

Auris nodded her dismissal and sat back in her chair as Jian left. She already had her suspicions, but it would be better for Jian to confirm them. A pity that she had to use one of the few agents she trusted on this particular information-gathering mission, but the risk otherwise wasn’t worth it. Maybe she should extend a bone to Lonsdale and see if he bites…his odd obsessive habits aside, Lonsdale was the best computer hacker they had outside of the SIB specialists.

A message popped up on her holoscreen.

Roberts: Completed Part 2 set-up. Ready for staged break-out at any time.

Brightening, Auris typed up her reply, a cold smile curving onto her face.

Gaiz: Hold until signal. If proceedings favour release, wait until a brief turnaround in our favour before staging break-out. Must appear as if Target reacted in fear that verdict would be changed.

Roberts: Defamation or Termination?

Without hesitation, Auris wrote the order that she knew they were all dying to see.

Gaiz: Termination.

Spoiler for Author's Note:

YES, finally caught up with my old Part #s! I can finally stop with all the crazy "revised part" or "new part" whatevers! The next part will just be "PART 8"!!!!

Some of this part has been posted before, but by now I'm sure you've forgotten all about it ^^. Even so, there are a few edits here and there to help better foreshadow future events .

.....

Can I kill Auris?

[spawnofthejudge]

Originally Posted by deathcurse

Crime Never Sleeps

One format note: When a quotation spreads across multiple paragraphs, the quotation mark is only required at the beginning of the new one, but not at the end of the old one.

In the opening scene of the part, you missed having either, so I had to go back over it to realize what was going on.

Otherwise it's pretty cool. Interesting USA-centric note: Minors in cases are identified by initials only (even in the press) in the states. I guess that's not how you're having Mid-Childa do it.

[deathcurse]

Originally Posted by RadiantBeam

.....

Can I kill Auris?

No, I need her for the rest of the story .

Originally Posted by spawnofthejudge

One format note: When a quotation spreads across multiple paragraphs, the quotation mark is only required at the beginning of the new one, but not at the end of the old one.

In the opening scene of the part, you missed having either, so I had to go back over it to realize what was going on.

Otherwise it's pretty cool. Interesting USA-centric note: Minors in cases are identified by initials only (even in the press) in the states. I guess that's not how you're having Mid-Childa do it.

Ah, thanks, I missed that . Edited now .

Yeah, I debated over that--I wanted to use Raven Gallant's name because then it makes her more of a real person to the readers (and the characters), rather than just a pseudonym. Plus there was the irony of her last name ("Gallant" ) being used by the press for the trials that I found amusing. So in the end I decided to just use some of the existing minor laws but not others. I'm also taking it from the fact that the TSAB and public seem to know about Fate and Hayate's cases, and they were definitely minors when it occurred .

[Nanya01]

Originally Posted by deathcurse

This part is dedicated to isagrimorie, because without our current word-war I wouldn't have finished this so soon!

Part 1-4A, Part 4B, Part 5: Trial Day 1A, Part 5: Trial Day 1B and Part 5: Trial Day 1C and New Part 6

Crime Never Sleeps
New Part 7
“The worst things we do are always by our own choice.”

Spoiler for Crime Never Sleeps, New Part 7:

Snip

EDIT: Grammar changes, thanks spawnofthejudge!

So, Nanoha was right... They just want revenge and are using the trial as a sham.

*Shakes head*

Politics, makes me want to punch someone.

Page claim for punching politics.