rakuen | Knightly Honour Demands...

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Knightly Honour Demands...

Dinner was a noisy affair even with so few students, as people mingled amongst those they'd met already or discovered old friends they hadn't had the chance to meet already. The general furor with the chocolate fudge cake had claimed at least an hour, too. Sora had been bouncing from table to table, as she went to talk to someone, then returned to her table, then back to someone else she'd spotted, and so on. Now it was Suzaku's turn. She'd felt bad about her attack the moment the situation had been explained, but the penalty had removed most of her ability to focus on that for long enough that she felt he deserved a proper apology, Knight to Knight.

She'd located him fairly early into dinner, but he'd been deep in conversation with some of the others. Now they'd all gone to get dessert or talk to other people, and she seized her chance. With a smile to her friends, she indicated where she was headed, and slid into the seat opposite the other Knight.

"Suzaku? Um, about this afternoon. I should really apologise..."

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Suzaku smiled at Sora, he hoped she didn't feel like they were excluding her but nodded as she said she was going back to her friends. It was probably for the best, if she was their knight it was best that she was close to them so she could protect them in case anything happened. "It was nice meeting you Sora, I will see you around I am sure!"

He looked back at Euphie, still shocked and still uncertain but determined not to let her know this. He did not want to upset her and he did not want her finding out what had happened.

"Of course you wont let him down!" He said completely certain of this face. He took another deap breath, almost completely calm now. "It is so good to see you Euphie," he smiled.

She waves little to Sora as she leaves, "It was good to meet you too, Sora."

And then, back to Suzaku. She eats a bit before replying. It's getting late and her stomach is rumbling-- she hasn't eaten all day. "I'm not even sure what my, ah, weapon is supposed to be. Hopefully it's something useful. And..." she looks from her plate back to him, suddenly a bit shy. "I'm very happy to see you too."

Suzaku pushed his plate away, he had finished his dinner and as he did not have a Player he was not allowed cake. Not that he minded, with everything else that had happened today not having cake was very low on his list of concerns, if it was even on there at all.

"I am sure it will be, I don't think you should worry," he gave a soft smile. He had the vague recolection that his weapon was a sword, as if he had dreamed about this, dreamed about pulling a weapon from his chest and it being a sword. He shook his head, that couldn't be, surely. It was very vague and he couldn't concentrate on it at all without it leaving his mind.

He smiled again incredibly happy even if he was incredibly confused.

Euphemia's own dream is muddled and confusing; there was only a brief moment of clarity before she woke up, and she can't quite put her finger on it now that a day or so has passed.

"I'll do my best not to... it's difficult, though. Do you have a player?" she asks.

Suzaku smiled reasuringly at Euphemia, he hoped that she would be alright and that she would stop worrying, she didn't need to worry. He didn't want her to worry. At her question he shook his head. "No, not yet I haven't been able to find a Player yet." He should though, like Sora says the only way for them to play this game and beat it was for them to take part, and for Suzaku to take part he needed a Player.

She smiles and thinks for a moment. "I wonder if Gino would mind having you... did you know each other back home?"

Suzaku blinked, if Gino had not lost his memories then he definatly would not want Suzaku to be his weapon, as it was Suzaku was wary of restarting their friendship because if Gino got his memories back he would know Suzaku had been lying to him and pretending they were friends.

He was not going to mention any of this to Euphie though, she could not know, because she would wonder how they had managed to become friends and then enemies without her ever knowing. Suzaku felt bad for hiding the truth from her, but really he did not think anyone, especially Euphie could cope with the knowledge that they were actually dead.

So instead he just shrugged, "Yes I knew him back home." That would have to do and hope that Euphie just assumed they had met through Suzaku's job in the military. "I do not know if he would want me as a weapon though..."

"Why not?" she asks slowly, figuring what he had hoped: they knew each other through the military. "He's very friendly, and if you knew each other back home I'm sure he'd be very happy to see you."

Suzaku nodded slowly, there was nothing else he could say to dissuade her from this or convince her that this was a bad idea, not without telling her the whole truth. He hated keeping things from her and he hated lying to her like this but in this case the truth would be much more devastating then letting her believe nothing was wrong.

"Alright then, I saw him this afternoon," best he let her know that, or he'd be confused at why Gino didn't show any surprise at him being there. "I guess theres no harm in asking."

"Ah, well, that's good... and yes, let's ask!" she says, finishing up her supper. There's just the slice of chocolate cake left for her eat, but that can wait. She scans the room, eyes jumping from head to head, until she finds the tall figure of her Player.

"Come, this way!" she takes Suzaku by the wrist and gently leads him. "Gino," Euphemia says, trying to get his attention.

"What is it?" Gino's apparently done with his own meal, because his plate is shoved off to one side in favour of the manual, which is open on the rules for the two victory conditions. There are a few sections underlined; the pencil is being twirled absently in his right hand. When he actually looks around a few seconds after his question, he blinks, then grins from ear to ear. "Hey, you found him. Good job!"

Suzaku looked at Gino who was poured over the manual and raised an eyebrow, for all his talk back in the yard with Yuki about it all being a game Suzaku had never seen Gino so serious about something that was not his duty as Knight of Three. Still he was glad, they had to take this seriously, stop looking it as a game and see it as a threat, one that had to be worked out and managed and hopefully brought down.

He gave an awkward nod, and stood stiffly. Despite him trying to act normal for Euphie he was still awkward and wary around Gino and when Suzaku was awkward and wary he hid behind formality.

He hoped Euphie would just figure it was because Gino was noble or something. He kept quiet as Gino had addressed Euphie and waited for her to answer.

"Yes!" Euphie replies. "Suzaku doesn't have a player right now, so we thought you might be willing... if it's too much, that's fine too, but there's no harm in asking."

He looks between the two of them, and only barely keeps himself from narrowing his eyes at the other knight's tense expression. The guy's going to owe him some serious explanations after this.

Which would, of course, be easier if he owned him. So! Assuming the name she said belongs to him, there's no problem.

"Sure, sure," he looks over, to check with his soon-to-be-Weapon even if it's obvious the guy doesn't have a choice in the matter. "That alright, Seven?"

Edited 2011-01-07 02:17 (UTC)

"Seven? I thought his name was Suzaku."

Suddenly, a tiny girl. Well, not really suddenly. She had been sitting at the table next to Gino the entire time, but someone like Mei was easy to miss when sitting beside someone as tall as Gino.

The most likely reason she hadn't spoken up right away was that she was busy finishing up dinner's dessert. With the cake now gone, she set the plate back on the table and leaned over the tabletop to get a look at Suzaku.

Suzaku stood stiffly still not relaxing. He tensed up even more when Gino called him "Seven" and gave a small glance towards Euphie, hoping she hadn't realised. He blinked again at the small child that popped up from behind Gino but concentrated on the Knights question for now.

He was still wary, but Sora had been right, he needed a player in order to get anywhere. This way he was able to be close to Euphie also and make sure no harm came to her, not that Gino would let any harm come to her either.

He nodded stiffly, "Yes," he said simply, quietly but formally.

Euphemia blinks at their new addition. "Hello, Mei!" she says, coming to sit next to the girl and to also get out of Gino and Suzaku's way. She isn't sure why Suzaku is being called Seven either, and lets Mei's question hang in the air before she adds her own.

"Is your cake as good as you imagined?" She smiles small.

Gino swivels in his seat and stands as Euphemia sits down, so he's facing Suzaku with his back to the others, and kneels, again. The vow is easier with an equal.

"I'll own and protect you," he says, simply. Without a name, the rest seems a little pointless, and without memories, well... He gets to his feet. In that brief moment, where they're both blocked from the girls' view, his expression shifts to one a lot darker than his easy-going smile. One that distinctly promises that Gino is not happy about something, and it's going to be Suzaku's job to explain all about it. Later.

"We're talking after this," he barely moves his lips; the quiet words are lost in the general noise of the hall, "Pale entrance. Eight o'clock."

And then his expression shifts back as if nothing happened, and he takes a step to the side, turns, and drops an arm around the knight's shoulders. Back to normal volume. Normal exhuberance. "It's a nickname, Mei. D'you want to be Eight?"

"Hi, Miss Euphemia!" Mei turns to look up at the other girl and smiles. "It was! I haven't had cake in so long, it was so good!" There is a list of things like that. She may as well cover all those bases before she figures out how to escape.

She turns back to watch Gino and Suzaku again. So another Weapon joins the team. That guy sure is collecting a lot of them, isn't he?

"Huh?" Mei blinks. "Eight?" She considers it, but shakes her head and declines. "No thank you. I already have a number, though not as a nickname, I think." At least, she wouldn't consider it a nickname.

Feeling awkward Suzaku nodded, it felt very strange usually he was the one vowing to protect others. He shifted slightly and nodded, but it felt strange to accept the vow in silence, "Thank you, and I promise to serve you as best I can as long as you want me," there that made it slightly less weird. At least the vow was two sided now.

At the knights dark look and request to meet him at the Pale dormetories Suzaku nodded, he didn't want to talk. This was awkward enough as it was and once Gino found out what had happened and how Suzaku had joined with Lelouch he would hate him all over again.

He looked at the little girl, and she really was little, as she spoke. He felt a surge of anger again at this system that had stolen even this little girl and brought her here. She was right in one thing though, why was Gino calling him seven? Suzaku thought back and realised Gino hadn't called him by name at all since they'd arrived, maybe he had forgotten it.

"Hello miss," he said with a polite smile towards Mei.

She claps her hands together and smiles wide. "There we go! All of us are now joined. I hope we can get along and work hard through this round." And she stands, taking Suzaku by the elbow. "Are you okay?" she asks quietly. He's been tense as a bowstring, and it hasn't escaped her eye.

"Hello, Mister Suzaku. I'm Mei!" She smiles back at him, then looks over to Gino, then at Euphemia. These three definitely know each other from before the school. There's too much familiarity between them for Mei not to notice that.

With everyone else standing up, the tiny girl followed suit, swinging her legs around to the other side of the bench in a turn and hopping down.

"I don't really mean to pry," though she will anyway, "but have you three met before this place?"

Suzaku smiled at her cheariness, it was quite amazing that such a little girl could be so cheary and calm when she had been brought somewhere against her will. It showed strength. "Hello Miss Mei, it's nice to meet you," he smield at her and gave a small reasuring smile to Euphemia who had came to stand with him.

"I'm fine..." he said, it was not exactly the whole truth but he was trying to make it so. He had vowed to Gino and now they could work out what was going on and start beating whoever had them playing this game.

Mei spoke again and Suzaku gave a small smile, "Yes we have all met before, I... am..." he had almost said was but checked himself for Euphemia's sake, "Euphemia's knight and me and Gino..." well he couldn't say they had worked together, because Euphemia did not know that either, "are friends, he's a knight too," he had almost said were friends there as well, but he was trying to keep things friendly and as unconfusing as possible. "Do you know anybody here Mei? Apart from Gino and Euphemia?"

"Yes, that's right," she confirms after nodding at Suzaku. "Though it was only a tiny bit, I knew Gino back home. And Suzaku is my knight." She sighs a little; a happy, light-hearted sigh. "Ah-- I'm sorry, but please excuse me for now. I want to go eat my cake... thank you so much, Gino! I appreciate it. It was good talking to you too, Mei." And with a tiny wave she hops off to do just that.

"You're knights?! Eeee, that's so romantic!" It is. Knights are always saving princesses and defeating evil. That's totally romantic! "Euphemia, you're so lucky~!" But wait, doesn't that make Euphie a princess? Oh. She's gone before Mei can bring that up. Mei does wave a farewell to her, nonetheless. She can ask later!

The tiny girl looks thoughtful for a moment before answering Suzaku's question. "I've met Fletcher. I think he's my age! And Miss Yuki. But..." Mei shakes her head and clenches her hands into determined little fists. "I'm not going to dwell on who isn't here. I need to think positive!"

That's right! No sads for Mei!

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Knightly Honour Demands...

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