Fantasy Moments in Time

[Katsuya]

-The Gunner and The Sheep-
-Minnie von Ironheart-​

Her brows furrowed a bit as she nodded a bit. "Sometimes, but I don't know if he likes someone else or not." Minnie placed her fork on her almost finished plate, not feeling like she can eat anymore. "I'm more scared that he might not feel comfortable around me anymore...even though we traveled together during this whole war..."

She sighed sadly. "If that's the case...I don't want to bother him with my feelings." Then she got a bit curious. "Were you ever comfortable around Echo when you guys started dating? Or before that?"

Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- The Gunner and The Sheep -
" Johnny Caprice "​

A hearty laugh boomed from Johnny. "I wasn't at all!" some of the leaders looked their way, curious, some looking at him like he was rude.

Johnny behaved, then cleared his throat. Leaning towards Minnie, he whispered, "I freaked out when we first met, I lied and told her I had somnambulism so that she would leave me alone, I fainted when I first tried to talk to her properly, and when we were able to talk in the infirmary, I was so nervous and scared at the same time that I was getting jelly legs, but I did jumping jacks just to prove I was alright." he chuckled, looking at the distance fondly, as he leaned back on his chair, tilting it on two legs.

"But how do I say this . . . It was a good kind of uncomfortable. Like I did what I wanted to do, and even though it ended up funny, look at us now!" he grinned, then added more potatoes to his beef potato heart. "None of the bad things I thought would happen happened, and the bad things that happened like fainting didn't end up as bad as I thought, because Echo stayed in the infirmary with me."

He then turned to her with a very sage-like face. "Minnie, if you're friends, he won't be uncomfortable forever. But, it is your choice. If ever you want to work up the courage to tell him how you feel and you want help, you can talk to me, alright? And Echo too. We'll make a game plan together."

Katsuya
The Story | Characters | OOC
​

 

[Katsuya]

-The Gunner and The Sheep-
-Minnie von Ironheart-​

Minnie blinked owlishly as she listened to Johnny. She thought he and Echo were comfortable together since the beginning, what with the way they supported each other and believed in the other despite the trials they had to go through. She didn't think that Johnny would feel uncomfortable around the calm fawn at all. It's nice to know that even they had their awkward moments together in the beginning. Maybe...she has a chance? Minnie honestly didn't know but she'd still would like to tell him...somehow...

Her teal blue eyes softened up a bit as she nodded quietly. "...O-Okay...Thank you, Johnny..." Her cheeks heated up in red again. "I-I do...I mean-... I want to tell him, at least...wh-what should I do ? I don't know where to start." Minnie's face looked funny with the way she pressed her painted pink lips thin and awkwardly looking up at the sheep guy with furrowed brows.

Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- The Gunner and The Sheep -
" Johnny Caprice "​

"Fishing through talking!" said Johnny brightly, "But first of all, who is he and what is he like, if you don't mind me asking, Minnie?" he finally started eating the rest of his meal.

It seemed that Johnny was one of the last to finish. Most of the leaders were done, and now the group around the table was waiting for Mizutsune, who was outside feasting on three whales to finish. The long dragon seemed to be speaking to Princess Mia who had gone out into the veranda to watch her eat. It was sort of intimidating, but if the princess was scared of the dragon, she did not show it.

Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

-The Gunner and The Sheep-
-Minnie von Ironheart-​

Minnie, a girl who's a shy smaller then Lydia, shrunk with her shoulders hunching, face turning redder then anyone has ever seen from the little steel gunner. "..." She mumbled quietly before clearing her throat and tried again. "...It's Sen..." Fringes of blue hair veiled over her teal doe-like eyes in a shadow, making the hue intense from her surprising shyness of the topic.

"He's...really cool headed and smart and clever and really funny. Sure, he can be a bit of a prankster but he doesn't take it too far and really caring of his family and co-workers." Minnie rambled on, turning redder and redder with each word she's describing the green-eyed twin. Is her heart pounding? Why is her hand sweaty?

The little gunner calmly grabbed a napkin under the table and wiped the sweat off her hand, flustered. "His eyes are really...nice to look at too...Why is my hand sweaty?! But yea...He's protective too...Johnny, how do I stop sweating?" Her tone, normally apathetic and dull, sounded like she didn't know what's what anymore.

Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- The Gunner and The Sheep -
" Johnny Caprice "​

Johnny's eyebrows disappeared up his bangs, as he stared at Minnie for a moment. Minnie was so serious and hard core, while Sen was, 'We're gonna make a beard slap zeppelin and smack Valdanr with it!'

"You can't, it's normal." he chuckled, now understanding her more. So that's why she likes Sen, come to think of it, he didn't know the twin very well, apart from him and Seth enjoying putting him accidentally-on-purpose in scary situations with girls every time he visited the flying castle. That and they like inventing toys and loud explosions.

"Minnie, you got it in the bag. You already know what to tell him."

Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

-The Gunner and The Sheep-
-Minnie von Ironheart-​

Minnie looked at him like he just proposed to the ugliest sheep on the face of the planet with an apple. "What? No, I don't-! I didn't even know what-..." Perhaps she shouldn't say that out loud. Right now.

"I don't know what to tell him. What do you mean 'You already know what to tell him'?!" She whispered screamed, looking more like her age then the steely persona she puts up. Her hand won't stop sweating! "My hand needs to stop sweating. This is silly."

Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- The Gunner and The Sheep -
" Johnny Caprice "​

"What you just told me." Johnny whispered calmly, smiling. "Though I know it's more than just the words, there's where and when you tell him. Don't worry, " he chuckled at her expression, "there's loads of time before you tell him. I was actually quite surprised that you didn't go with them to the front lines, Minnie."


Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

-The Gunner and The Sheep-
-Minnie von Ironheart-​

Minnie blinked and sighed, slumping against the chair. "...The reason why I didn't go in the front lines with them is because ... I felt like I made things awkward with Sen." After having the 'Birds and the Bees' talk with Minuette, the little gunner couldn't look at Sen in the face ever again. She just felt like a total idiot right then and she didn't know how to recover from that...

It was just awkward...in general and she blamed some of it on her uncle.

"So...I rather not talk about that awkward moment...How do you know when it's the right moment?" Minnie asked Johnny before looking outside to where Princess Mia and Mizutsume are.

"..."

Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- The Gunner and The Sheep -
" Johnny Caprice "​

"Well, for me . . . first you have to know what you want out of telling him. I knew Echo liked me. I wanted to get to know her more, I still do today, and I wanted to try having a girlfriend, so after talking with James about my doubts --- I told him I was worried Echo might think my four ears were weird ---" he added chuckling, " I worked up the courage to ask her out."

He looked at Minnie for a moment. "When you tell them how you feel, it's not like you're going to marry them or that they are the one for you. It's like, just asking them to see if you're compatible together. That feels, less intimidating, right?"

Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

-The Gunner and The Sheep-
-Minnie von Ironheart-​

Minnie pondered for a moment and nodded, her hunched shoulders relaxed as the red hue in her cheeks lessened to a light pink. "...Yea...It does..." Then she grinned at the sheep guy. "...T-Thank you. That helps a lot..." She tilted her head a bit. "So...I have to know what I want out of telling him...What do I want out of telling him?"

As she thought on it, the little gunner tapped a metal finger on her lips, leaning back on her chair as she stared at the ceiling. "...I know I want to know if he likes me back...or not..." She placed a hand over her rapid beating heart. "That's still a bit scary...Oh...He might not like girls with missing...limbs..." Minnie looked sadly at her metallic arm and gulped quietly.

"...Is he even okay with a girl like me? I mean...I don't think he would like someone who's too...serious..." What if she's not feminine enough for him? Out of all the girls, Minnie is the only one who isn't as girly or soft and cuddly like the others. She wasn't raised to be girly either, thanks to her Uncle. The more Minnie thought about it, the more depressed she became and lightly plopped her head on the table. "...Maybe I shouldn't tell him..."

Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- The Gunner and The Sheep -
" Johnny Caprice "​

Johnny laughed. "You sound just like me before." he said, patting her mechanical shoulder good-heartedly. "I don't know him as well as you do, so I don't know if a missing limb is a problem. Kenren has a missing eye, ear, and two missing limbs, yet Chenglei ---" he suddenly caught himself, " --- y-yet Chenglei encourages him to-to go at it with women, and he's doing alright! Th-though that may be because he's a prince."

Johnny stuffed the rest of his meal in his mouth and chewed meditatively before gulping the huge bolus. "A-anyway, it's impossible to know the answer to those questions without talking to Sen some more, so don't assume it'll fail. It's just as likely to succeed too."

Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

-The Gunner and The Sheep-
-Minnie von Ironheart-​

Minnie twitched when Johnny patted her shoulder, but other then that she didn't really move much. She thought and pondered for a few minutes as Johnny stuffed the rest of his meal in his mouth. "...This is still scary...but...okay...I'll try..." Then she looked at Johnny with narrowed eyes, a glint of knowing something as she accidentally dropped her fork. If Johnny went to pick it up, she would lean down too, to whisper in his ear quietly.

"And you should be careful with that piece of information about Kenren and Chenglei. It would be really bad if anybody else heard your mistake and figured it out like me." The little gunner put two and two together when he mentioned about the pair and somehow...it's better source material to write about in her stories then the one about James and Chenglei; she's still going to finish it though. Then start a new one with the Prince and his bodyguard.

"Thank you, Johnny. Should we go to check on Mizutsume-san and Princess Mia?" Minnie asked as she leaned up, lightly grabbing the fork as if she didn't just figured out a big secret about the prince.

Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- The Gunner and The Sheep -
" Johnny Caprice "​

Johnny did bend to pick up the fork, and froze at Minnie's statement. He and his big mouth. "Y-yes, sorry about that. Will do." he whispered before straightening up like normal. It wouldn't do if the prince and the swordsman's big secret came out in front of all the leaders of the world.

He agreed to Minnie's suggestion and went with her to the veranda to speak to the princess. It had been a long time and Johnny gave her a hug, which surprised her as the last time they met he was afraid of girls. Princess Mia was glad to see Minnie again. They had not talked much when the family reunited in Dalaran after the siege at Holt, but she knew the gunner and her famous exploits, and asked her about her adventure over at the Sonoran Desert and the guide who brought them safely out.

Soon it was time for the meeting to start as Mizutsune devoured the last blubber of whale and licked her chops clean. She drank deeply from a bowl, big enough for two whales to frolic in comfortably, then poked her head inside the council chambers.

This wasn't Johnny's first meeting as he had attended a few when Kenren was still here and Minnie and the twins were still travelling to Dalaran. It started with the usual, reports of emergencies, actions being done, current status of the war, and then discussing the reports and the state of affairs. The leaders had their armies and fortresses positioned in different places, and each had their own spies who informed them of the enemy's movements which they shared with the council. Johnny did the same thing, speaking as he read an oriental report in the prince's improving penmanship.

It was quite similar to when the twins and Ricket planned with Minnie on their next moves and what their priorities were, except on a much bigger scale and with allies that aren't as trusting as friends. More like, seeing who could give in without losing the most out of this.

Princess Mia had the second smallest military might, but had the most support from the people. Kenren's was lumped together with the Storm Wallers so his had the highest of all and the total support of the Oriental people , who are still dismayed at the loss of the emperor as he had been kidnapped. Yet the prince wasn't really doing much to look for him, and was rather concentrating on the portal opening between Paroosia and Ashenvale.

The Jahara leaders, who were the surviving children of the sultan, supported Kenren and Princess Mia too because they were who Minnie supported. They had no army, as the rebels led by Ricket and his clan were back in Jahara, but they had the sympathy of the people. The two siblings had been feeling very useless as of late, having nothing to offer in the war against Valdanr, but still attended the meetings as it was something like an obligation.

The difficulty Johnny had when it came to meetings was in the decision making. One party would try to persuade the others to follow or compromise with their action, which takes a debate that usually takes hours. Everyone at the table knew Johnny's weakness was women, so they always brought along an overbearing woman to intimidate him. It was rather silly, and he was embarrassed for giving in so easily, like when he automatically said yes to assigning a company of airships to defend a transport zeppelin, which made Kenren angry because a company of airships was a lot, and he needed those airships to battle their way to Paroosia. But that was why it was good Minnie was here. No one has a more intimidating eye nor smile.

Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

-The Gunner and The Sheep-
-Minnie von Ironheart-​

Minnie gave Princess Mia a small smile, happy to see her again and then introduced herself to Mizutsume like she didn't just eat three whole whales. The little gunner told her adventures in the Sonoran desert, fighting with the rebels against Gluttony and his red orc vassal, and rescuing the Jaharan Prince and princess. Then the little gunner had asked Princess Mia and Mizutsume how they were while she was away with the twins, wanting to know how the elves were and if they are happy to know if their Manna tree is safe for now - ish.

Soon the meeting started and Minnie payed close attention. She didn't want a repeat of what happened before with the air ships watching over a transport zeppelin. So whenever Johnny started to lean away and his face turned red, Minnie would jump in and gave her...'Innocent' smile...

The one that made her look like she will murder someone with an ice pick as Sen and Seth delicately told her before.

So when she picked up on one of the overbearing women pushing Johnny to agree on something silly again, Minnie stepped beside Johnny, placed a silent encouraging hand on his shoulder and said: "No." To the women.

"No. Why should we even do that?" The little gunner squeezed Johnny's shoulder as if to comfort him as best as possible while she payed close attention to what the woman would say. She wanted him to know that she's here to help him. She narrowed her teal blue eyes at the over bearing women, suspicious of their end goals. "Well?"

Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- The Gunner and The Sheep -
" Johnny Caprice "​

Princess Mia had been doing better in some areas and bad in others. The heroes' return had shifted the power between leaders and also in her favor so she wasn't having as much trouble with the dukes of her kingdom. What was left of her army was rescuing citizens who are stuck in hostile warzones, and guarding the hard-won territories in the state of Frankia.

The elves were very happy with the return of Luthien and so was the manna tree, who had been planted in Dalaran, where she was surrounded by her people. Luthien had thanked Ricket when they parted at the pirate town, and Minnie, Sen, and Seth for all they've done when she was finally handed over to the Queen of the Elves, who cried as she thanked the heroes too.

Mizutsune was very interested in Minnie's arm, saying that it was her first time seeing a battle prosthetic on this side of the Storm Wall. She told her about Awashima and about the heart smiths there, and that if she ever wanted a ragnite-powered gun arm she could visit the floating stone dragon city.

When the meeting started in earnest and the contest between the diplomats began, the overbearing lady who was taking the floor, stood up and said, "Miss Ironheart, you are a child and what's more not Kenren's representative, so hold your tongue." she said with enough austerity that Minnie looked like a naughty little kid before a stern teacher who knows better. The table was looking at Minnie exactly like that, and as the overbearing Lady pushed for her course of action, Johnny consented.

Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

-The Gunner and The Sheep-
-Minnie von Ironheart-​

The more they talk, the more Minnie became angry at how illogical these arguments are. Worse even, they are arguing against-!

The little gunner took a deep breathe as to not aim and shoot at the smirking ladies who are currently flipping their hair. Then she stood up to grab everyone's attention. Her shoulders down as she patted Johnny's shoulder again as she has been doing for the entire argument.

"...Madams, you just argued against children. About a war that has children fighting for everyone in this room and other countries. You take away their efforts, depending on children, and make illogical arguments that will potentially endanger not just their lives but the lives of innocent people who can't even fight back. You, ma'am," She pointed at the over bearing woman. "you said I should hold my tongue because I'm a child, correct? Tell me that when you go out there and fight like my friends and I have. You're right: I'm a child...."

She glared steely at the woman. "I. Am. A. Child! I'm a child who went through starvation, dehydration, violence- I lost an arm...Want to know how I lost this arm?" She stood straight, her shoulders slumped as her eyes were shadowed over with her blue hair. "A red ogre that worked under the dragon made his men to beat me. Made his men to hurt me. Made his men to let me suffer in the cold night while I was wet and had a high fever while my open wounds festered and being prodded by a cruel witch doctor. He cut my arm off with an axe...it wasn't even sharp...then he burned my shoulder to make sure that I can't put my arm back anymore. He whispered that I will be arm-less, legless, eyeless...if I didn't tell him about my friends who were on the other side of the Storm Wall." She took another deep breathe as her fleshy hand curled up into a fist under the table.

"...Why? Why did a child have to go through that? Why is it that I, a child whom you claim is too young to understand anything, went through that horror? Do you understand what it really means to be scared? To face almost certain death? No, you don't but I do. Several times. That's too many times for anybody, including for you and any other adult out there. I have been scarred for life; my arm is a constant reminder of what I went through...but I don't regret my choices. I don't regret to agreeing on helping the Ashenvale Elves and the Jahara royal siblings and their country. Why?...This child understands humanity. I don't care about where we come from or what our backgrounds are;"

Minnie lifted her hand to place it over her shoulder, frowning in disapproval at the supposed responsible adults. "All I cared was that no one else should go through what I went through in those months. So I find it rather ironic the heroes you are depending on right now are children...teens that are barely adults. They are fighting for you and everyone's lives. They are not even asking for anything in return; only concentrating on defeating the evil dragon. Why is it that children understand about humanity better then the adults who are only watching out for themselves? Why are those adults depending on these children and their efforts? What are your excuses? I'm pretty sure the adults are as smart and clever as these kids you are depending on so much. I believe in their efforts and so far...Kenren has good results and you are ebbing that away and lessen our chances at winning against that evil dragon during winter when it will be worse for them without the dragons' help."

"I also find it ironic that you women are the ones who are arguing instead of the men who hired you. Are they truly afraid of a child? Johnny survived going through the Storm Wall. He braved so many new things and situations in order to have the dragon army here with their honorable leader, Mizutsume. Who is awesome to want to help a bunch of humans that didn't even believe they existed until now. This guy. This guy, right here, is part of the reason we even have help from the dragons. You know, the ones who are fighting in the front lines too. The ones you are grabbing their food source from as they fight to help us! He convinced them to help us in our crisis when they could have just let us suffer under the evil dragon's rein...and yet you have the gall to make the ones who are helping us starve too? Do you want our budding relationship with the other side of the Storm Wall to die already with these choices? All of his efforts will be wasted-! The effort Echo and Renee made with that garden to feed the dragons, wasted! All because of this..."

Then she looked at Johnny with a worried frown. "Johnny? Are you okay?" She whispered, worried that he will faint like in the past as she once again squeezed his shoulder comfortingly.

Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- The Gunner and The Sheep -
" Johnny Caprice "​

Johnny had become a pale, meek, blubbering lamb by the time the talks ended for the day, but when Minnie stood up and gave her robust vindication against the intimidating ladies, the color returned to his face.

"I'm alright, Minnie." he patted her arm. Then he took a deep breath and shakily got up on his jelly legs; Princess Mia gave them both an admiring smile.

"M-Minnie's right, now isn't the time to be divided by our own agendas. Crippling Kenren and all my friends will cripple us all in the long run." he pointed eastwards. "If the portal opens and the giants come, there will be m-much suffering. The horrors of war will reach our homes and families, and everyone's fortunes will be affected much more than they are today." he stood up a little straighter --- he looked like he was having a stomach ache.

"For only a while, let us unite and put our common enemy to rest. We all share this doom, none of us can escape it if it comes to pass. At the very least, do not hinder those who are spearing the war, their victory will serve you too. There is more honor and glory in helping them. They will sing songs and tell stories of your deeds during the greatest calamity of our times, and you will have won powerful friends who will come to your aid when we will eventually rebuild our world."

After that, there was much more talk in the assembly. Johnny found his courage through Minnie and it seems that there will be another meeting, much sooner than expected to reconsider all that was discussed.

"At least we still have a chance." said Johnny hours after the meeting ended. He was chilling with Minnie, relaxing after another day of hard politics.

All in all, some of Echo and Renee's food supply will be taken and distributed to other warzones. So the dragons will be able to stay for a shorter amount of time. He would have to send letters to Kenren immediately today, so he asked for Minnie's help in writing them.

Lydia's warlocks had been mentioned, but no changes resulted, no changes to Kenren's military after the war too. But Johnny agreed that the heroes will be neutral and let other countries share in their power and knowledge. (Lots of talks after the war to repair this one.) And had also agreed to give them access to Sen's blue prints and designs to speed up manufacturing of his weapons. At least the twin was in Paroosia with his things.

"When they mentioned Sen and laying their hands on his inventions, I thought you might pop, Minnie." said Johnny, putting his feet up a chair.

Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

-The Gunner and The Sheep-
-Minnie von Ironheart-​

"...I wanted to shoot them..." Minnie quietly admitted before sighing and slouched against her chair and thankfully out of the itchy dress. Instead she wore a long dark grey trench coat with a red arm band that showed she was part of the Cool Beans guild, a dull sea green vest reached down to her waist and over a darker shade of dull sea green skirt that has comfortable tulle underneath. She adjusted her red tie loose so it wouldn't choke while making sure her belts are tight enough to hold her stuff and clothes up. Combat boots kept her feet warm as she sway them back and forth.

"It's illegal business practice. If they wanted Sen's blueprints, they should have payed first or discuss with the owner instead of trying to steal it for their own gain. That...That riled me up more then they know..." Minnie said. "But me shooting at them will only prove their point; that I don't know anything. Watch...I can't wait for karma to kick them in the butt and I won't be helping because of this...Taking the good will of others...bunch of..." Minnie angrily muttered, her glare intensified with each unheard grumble; but then she relaxed her face and looked over at Johnny with a small but relieved smile.

"But...I'm glad you were able to talk back...You faced your fear head on." Minnie leaned over her chair to gingerly pat his arm with her metal hand. "Thank you for your hard work, Johnny."

Spoiler: Minnie's preferred outfit

Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- The Gunner and The Sheep -
" Johnny Caprice "​

"You're welcome. Thank you too, Minnie, your speech gave me strength. You had a very good point." said Johnny, smiling at her too. He clapped his face with his hands. "Alright, I'll do my best tomorrow too."

For most of that afternoon, Johnny hung out with the gunslinger girl talking to her about how they could outtalk those intimidating ladies. That especially overbearing one was such a handful, she single-handedly mowed down their arguments with her wit and words. He told Minnie that she was the diplomat for Crossbell, an alchemist kingdom where most of the world's healing and manna potions come from, and her name was Evora Macavelli, a shark at business deals with the beauty, and a pair of very high heels to match.

He then asked Minnie for help in writing letters to Kenren of all that's happened before the dragon-mounted messenger left that night. There was always a courier from the prince in the mornings and evenings, making the crossing from Dalaran to Frankia across the Shoflo Ocean in two weeks. He didn't eat any dinner until they were through, but afterwards enjoyed a hearty meal together with all his summons.

Every letter he received from Echo he shared with Minnie (except for the very intimate parts). The gunner too received letters from Sen, Seth, James, and Kenren. From the prince, it was mostly instructions, but from the twins it was like reading something that came from a friend. They told her about their day, though not enough to give away anything in case the letters got intercepted, and for fun sent her trinkets from the war: weapons from Seth accompanied by a story as to who had wielded it and what they did, while Sen always asked about her arm and sent funny things like all the toilet seats from an enemy fortress, or something cool like a fang from a monster.

Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

-The Gunner and The Sheep-
-Minnie von Ironheart-​

Minnie's smile turned warm as Johnny smacked his face and she nodded. "Glad to help you somehow." For the rest of the afternoon, she stayed with the entertainer about pushing the women back, especially the pushy one. They planned and Minnie wondered if such a woman came from the Alchemist country, why didn't she help with gardening or sending healing potions to the armies? It would help immensely...

With the letter, the little gunner helped Johnny write back to Kenren before the dragon-mounted messenger left that night. She left little notes and descriptions about each pushy woman and the people who hired them in the letters so the prince knew who said what and why difficulties happened. She didn't leave until everything was done and then stayed with Johnny while eating with his summons. She didn't want to take chances with her lingering anger towards the pushy women and their bosses.

Every letter she got from the twins, she shared and Johnny would notice that she would have this small and happy smile on her face whenever she read Sen's part. She'd write back about what's going on with her day, not really talking about the debates and meetings but more about how she really wished the servants stopped dressing her up. She also wrote about how her arm is, even mentioning about Mizutsume's offer with changing it into a Ragnite gun arm which she thought was cool but she didn't really know about it yet without Sen's advice on it. With the trinkets, Minnie would send stuff she thought they might like; For Seth, a bunch of prankster tricks like smoke bombs of different colors and different scents like rotten eggs and vomit. For Sen, leather gloves that's fire proof and tools that can shrink and become like enchanted key-chains for him to carry around easily.

The trinkets she got from the twins made her laugh in front of Johnny, especially the toilet seat ones. Like why would Sen send her that? It's so weird, but...somehow it helped diminish her anger towards the diplomats. She kept the monsters' teeth and claws though, either to carve them into something useful like a knife or make them into a charm bracelet to carry on her belts.

"...I miss them...and their antics..." Minnie said to Johnny that night.

Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- The Gunner and The Sheep -
" Johnny Caprice "​

It was two weeks later that they got the reply from their letters. Johnny had gotten used to Minnie's reassuring mechanical hand on his shoulder during the meetings, and slowly he got braver. He found Minnie's company pleasant, having someone to talk to about their friends on the frontlines, and would always come to watch her tweak her prosthetic and help her hold it in place as she linked the bolts and wires back to her shoulder if she needed it.

She wasn't as intimidating as he thought she was, and had once or twice come upon her writing something, though not a letter, and had asked her one day what it was.

When they had received the reply letters, Johnny was shocked to learn that Serena, Sen, and Seth had been captured by the enemy, and was not surprised that the prince called them both to the frontlines to help. He had dashed up his room and flung all his things pell-mell into his bags and was outside in his fluffy dragon form in less than five minutes.

He was concerned with Minnie as they travelled, as he thought too about James, and Renee and how they must be feeling right now. Because they were friends with Mizutsune and Princess Mia, Johnny left Kenren's interests to them and somewhere in a certain council chamber, some ladies were stuttering as they tried to get a gargantuan white dragon to see their point of view.

Katsuya

 

[Zer0]

- Into the Depths of Renee's Soul Room -
" Seifer Rathmore "​

The red string that connected Renee's soul to Seifer's tugged lightly, a sign that he was coming for a visit. His confident steps echoed in the hallway outside the gate of her room, before his familiar warm touch was felt on the gates. They opened.

"Baby!" Renee's vision was obscured by white hair as Seifer flung himself on her in relief and wrapped her in his arms and legs, then squeezed as though she was his teddy bear.

Outside their souls, it was their first night in the outpost where the fighting was hottest. Seifer had done poorly in battle today. The sight of all the imposing foes had shaken him, and he froze. He didn't want to fight, and if it wasn't for Renee being there, the one whom he trusted the most and wanted to defend the most, he would have run away.

Still, his fear and inexperience got to him, and though he fought, he didn't do much. Sure his arrows hit, but he was just in the background as some other archer, who fired at the same time (he fought with a group of archers under Renee's company), got the kill.

His cowardice didn't go unnoticed by his comrades, and though they said nothing out of respect for Renee, he could feel their cold looks when they went back.

Seifer sighed. He was a tower of pride, and if it was shattered, how great the impact was when his ego fell. He was his usual high-and-mighty-self, but Renee would know that he was feeling really down for not being able to shine, let alone do much. He never was able to feel good about himself if the people around him weren't dazzled, knocked-out, or a little intimidated by him.

"Renee, how was the rest of your afternoon? I went back to camp early so I wasn't able to take part of the assault on the train station. I heard Chenglei captured it." he said distractedly.

Katsuya​

 

[Katsuya]

-In the Depths of Renee's soul-
-Renee Pendragon-​

Renee opened her eyes when she felt that familiar light tug from the red string and smiled, sitting up from her bed as she hears his confident steps echoing from the hallway outside of her innermost room. When the gate opened and Seifer flung himself towards her, she had her arms wide open, accepting his weight as she was pushed back down and squeezed like a teddy bear; she hugged back just as relieved as he was. The little figure that looked like a white version of Sirius with wings on his head squeaked in disgruntlement as the bed bounced from their combined weight but he continued to sleep.

"Snuggly catbunny!" She pecked so many kisses on his face, her wings fluttering happily as she takes in how Seifer felt at the moment. Renee noticed how down Seifer looked when her company went back and though she couldn't say anything on the outside since she stayed to fight; she was worried about him. Then she heard his sigh before asking her of how her day was.

A distraction.

"The afternoon was tough, but Chenglei's plan managed to trick the enemy. Some of us hid while others were acting as decoy. I was part of that hid behind the debris. Just as the decoy group stopped and the enemy thought they got them, we jumped out and knocked out the rest of the enemies." Renee rolled her eyes with a giggle as she remembered quite clearly that Chenglei had this crazy but pleased look as he watched the men finish of the rest before swinging his sword too. Honestly the blonde second in command is such a blooming sadist in the battlefield and Renee is unfortunately the only one (from what she noticed) that sees this side of him as she was supposed to report to him after her company left.

One of her hands went up and gently cupped Seifer's cheek, rubbing her thumb lightly as her orange eyes looked into his grey stormy ones. Worried and concerned. "...Sweetie? Did something happen when you went back early?" There was a quiet knowing tone in her voice but she wanted to hear it from Seifer in case she was wrong.

Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- Into the Depths of Renee's Soul Room -
" Seifer Rathmore "​

"That's good." Seifer kissed Renee's cheek. He sighed again when she asked her question, leaning into her hand. "I didn't do well today . . . " He sighed even more, snuggling into her chest and pressing her hand closer to his face with his. "The guys were looking at me like I was a coward . . ."

He suddenly pulled back, "But! I had a really good early dinner of fish and chips, then I had a warm bath, and then I danced for two hours and now I'm here in your arms, so . . . It's not so bad . . ." he buried his face in her chest again.

Katsuya