Improbability Factor: Chapter One – Dogs of War
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By Ptath and Thalia
Beta-ed by Thalia
Inspired and assisted by Lady Raina
Disclaimer: We do not own Weiss. Even if we could, simple self-preservation would dictate we stay far, far away.
'This' mean thinking to one's self ('Time to introduce myself')
'This' means talking telepathically ('hello, my name is George,')
"This" means talking out loud ("I like cats.")
FARFARELLO SAY: A SURPRISE WILL COME FROM AN UNEXPECTED SOURCE.
Koneko, 2:00 pm
Schuldig rounded the corner, feeling quite pleased with himself when he located the person he sought. Sakura stood in front of Farfarello's door staring at it, completely unaware of the German's presence even though he had spoken her name twice now. As he approached he began to feel it . . . anxietyhesitancydesirefear. Something was clearly wrong.
'Sakura?' the telepath asked gently hoping it might pull her out of her entranced state. He was starting to worry.
She looked up, starting slightly at the sight of him, more alarmed than guilty at having been caught.
"Is everything ok?" Schuldig inquired carefully, even though he knew it wasn't.
Sakura blinked distractedly, mumbling that everything was fine even as she began to move past him. Normally, the German would have simply let her go, knowing that Aya would come find and talk to her. Or if Sakura really needed something, she could always go to Crawford or Ran. Unfortunately, Ran was downstairs helping prepare for Aya and Crawford's 'Welcome Home!' party, as the pair was due to return to Tokyo in an hour.
And there lay the reason for Schuldig's search. Sakura was technically in charge of the party and her sudden disappearance had thrown things for a bit of a loop.
He reached out, snagging her arm as she passed, determined to help the newest member of their family when something was clearly bothering her.
Sakura went rigid with the physical contact, and Schu was hit with the memories that ran through her head. Shooting Aya, trading places with Aya-chan, Schu's taunting, Schu hitting her, and Fear.
The German's eyes went wide. She was afraid of him. Truly, genuinely afraid. Ordinarily, someone fearing him wouldn't have bothered the smug telepath, but this time was different. This time it hurt. He had known she didn't like him when he and Brad had made their surprise appearance at the Koneko two months after the Elders had fallen, but he had thought things would be a little better by now. Of course, he hadn't ever really made any efforts towards endearing himself to the teenager, so he couldn't really blame her. In fact, until now, she hadn't even given him an inkling of an idea about how scared of him she was. After their first visit she had always been polite and respectful, she had been incredibly helpful (and patient) when they had first started working at the Koneko, at Saito Mansion she had reached out to him, tried to comfort him despite her fear, she had walked arm-in-arm with him at the end of the wedding, and now she was living under the same roof with him.
Gently pulling the girl so that she stood in front of him, he released her and looked her in the eye.
"I'm not going to hurt you." Schuldig stated softly.
Sakura looked away, unable to meet the other's gaze. She had hoped he hadn't picked up on any of it, but she should have known better.
"I know," she replied barely above a whisper. "I'm sorry."
'Why do the innocent always insist on being guilty? It really isn't all it's cracked up to be,' he thought sadly as he reached over, lifting her chin so she was looking at him. "Don't ever apologize for the way you feel."
She nodded to show she understood what he was trying to say.
"Now," he continued in an easy voice, "why don't you tell me what's wrong, and we'll see if we can't come up with some sort of solution."
Sakura sighed. "It's not important, at least not in the grand scheme of things. Besides it's stupid."
"Obviously, it is important to you which makes it important to me. We're family now. So spill, what gives?"
The teen sighed again, this time giving in, readying her explanation. "A couple of weeks ago Far asked to borrow something of mine. It is special to me and I really didn't want to, but I was afraid to upset him and agreed. I think he could tell I didn't want to and promised he would give it back just like it was, but that was about two weeks ago and now, well, I'm afraid I might not get it back. I don't think he intends on breaking his word, I mean I'm sure he just forgot, but I would very much like to have it back. I've thought about just asking him but . . ." she let her words trail off.
The telepath was picking up on it again . . . fear. She wasn't afraid of Farfarello like she was of him, but she was afraid of upsetting the Irish man in any way. Smart girl. "You're afraid of upsetting him," he finished for her.
"Um, yeah," she mumbled ashamed.
"So what exactly is this item that Far took such an interest in?"
The girl avoided his eyes as she began to explain yet again. "It is a teddy bear my dad gave me on the Valentine's Day before he died. It's the only thing I have left of him. Its fur is pink, well fuscia really. Everyone warned me it would probably be wise to get rid of as much of my pink stuff as possible before I moved in. Manx, Aya, Crawford, Ran, Nagi, Omi. Everyone. And I did my best and usually I keep my bear hidden away, but I had had a rough day at school and just needed something to hug and hold on to and remember the good times and then Far just happened to walk by and I hadn't bothered to shut my door and well . . ." she trailed off again.
At this point, the girl had reached miserable, and yet again, Schu couldn't blame her. She had only been living with them for three weeks, and already she had fallen prey to some of Farfarello's insanity only to be left feeling trapped with no one to turn to with this problem without being a bother. When they got this issue settled, they were going to have to have a little talk.
Sakura was surprised when the German suddenly walked past her and entered the madman's room, returning a few moments later with her cherished possession. He handed it to her noting the look of relief that swept over her features. He smiled.
She looked up at him as she gently hugged the bear to her. "Won't Far be angry that you went in his room?"
"Don't you worry your pretty little head about a thing," He said smiling as he draped an arm over her shoulders. This time she didn't try to pull away. They walked towards her room so she could safely deposit the bear in its hiding spot. "I'll take care of everything."
"Thanks, Schu. For everything." And finally he got a smile out of her.
He reached over ruffling her short hair affectionately. "Anytime. Now, we better get back down stairs before they send out a search party for us."
Koneko, 3:15 pm
Farfarello bounded up the stairs, his single eye glowing as he hollered, "They're here! They're here! They're here!"
"Of course they're here," Schuldig called from the sitting room. "Ran went out to help with the luggage!"
Outside, Brad sighed softly as the sound of screaming voices drifted down the stairs and out the garage.
"You look like you didn't expect the Koneko to still be standing," Ran commented in a dry voice as he hefted yet another of Aya's bags out of the trunk of the taxi.
"Considering the personal habits of some of the people inside," Brad calmly stated, "and the ruckus I heard when we called to let everyone know we had made it back in one piece, expecting to find a pile of smoldering rubble where the Koneko once stood is entirely logical."
"No faith," Ran sighed, shaking his head, "no faith what so ever."
"I have plenty of faith in you," Brad retorted. "I am, unfortunately, well aware of how quickly events can spiral out of control."
"Do you really think Farfarello would let anything happen to the Koneko?" Ran demanded. "He's been driving everyone nuts. He keeps buying new coasters so he can be sure that the tables don't get stains on them, he's dusted the building three times a day, he's re-washed the sheets on your bed five times and he required Ken to be escorted around the Koneko at all times. He hot waxed the kitchen floor; he polished the china in the china cabinet once a week and has practically taken over the flower shop. I think he's developed something of a Napoleon complex."
Brad raised an eyebrow as he watched Ran heft the last of the suitcases from the trunk. "We should start taking a vacation every time the Koneko gets dirty," he commented. "Or find a way to convince Farfarello that clean buildings hurt God."
Ran slammed the trunk shut and leaned against it, brow furrowing slightly. "We could get the building blessed," the telepath said dryly. "Maintaining a residence consecrated in a non-Christian faith would probably be motivation enough."
"I suppose so, but I'd prefer to keep the pagan rituals to a minimum." Brad glanced at the pile of suitcases and then at Ran. The red-head shrugged slightly, scooped up a few suitcases and disappeared.
"And all you need is a little bit of baking soda and some club soda to get that stain out. Shouldn't take more than a few minutes!"
Brad suppressed a groan and strode around the car and shoved a small suitcase in his wife's hand.
"Dear, please stop scaring the driver," he instructed in a calm voice. "Your brother has taken several of the suitcases in already. Do you expect him to take care of all of them?"
Aya gave Brad an exasperated look. "Of course not," she scolded. "And I was just giving Mr. Saga some advice. I wasn't scaring him at all, was I?" she stated, turning towards the nervous looking driver.
'Oh, uh, of course not," he stuttered. "It was all very, uh, interesting. But, the clock is ticking! Must be going! Congratulations to you both." The driver continued to babble as he backed into his car nor did he waste any time slamming the door shut and speeding away.
"Oops," Aya murmured. She looked at Brad, the faint gleam in her eye showing her amusement.
Koneko, 4:00 pm
Ran watched his sister click to yet another picture, pointing and gesticulating wildly, a huge grin on her face. She had commandeered Omi's laptop and gotten Nagi to set up a screen and projector so she could show everyone the pictures she had taken.
His lips quirked as a picture of Brad appeared. The precog was holding some unidentifiable substance, presumably food, and was staring at the camera with a 'You want me to do what?' look on his face.
Ran let his eyes flicker towards the other American. When Brad finally noticed his gaze, Ran raised an eyebrow and tilted his head towards the office. A curious look on his face, Oracle nodded and the telepath stood, leading the way towards the shielded room.
Ran shut the door and leaned back against it even as Brad leaned against his desk. Brad gave him a steady look.
"I take it this isn't something we could discuss in front of the rest of Schatten?" he asked.
"Yes, I…" Ran hesitated, trying to figure out how to word what he needed to say. Finally, he sighed. "There's no easy way to say this," he admitted reluctantly. "I'm Maelstrom."
Silence filled the room. Both men stiffened slightly when loud laughter suddenly rang out in the other room.
"Come on, Brad," Schuldig called through the door, "Aya's about to tell us how you nearly fell overboard! Don't you think you should be here to defend your honor?"
Brad narrowed his gaze as he looked back at Ran. "I take it Schuldig doesn't know?"
"No," Ran admitted. "And I'm not telling him," he added sharply. "He'll know soon enough as it is."
"What, are you a precog now?" Brad demanded.
Ran shrugged. "I just know."
The precog groaned and covered his eyes, his mind racing.
"All right," he said after a few minutes. "I will need you to explain a few things for me but, perhaps, at a later date." Brad glanced at the door Ran was still leaning against. "I'd prefer not to spoil the festive mood any sooner than I have to."
"Makes sense," Ran replied, relief coursing through him. Then he grinned. "Besides, you need to get out there and defend yourself. Can't have the great Oracle of Schwarz become a laughing stock just because he couldn't explain why he almost fell off a boat."
Koneko, 8:00 pm
Aya hummed under her breath as she puttered about the kitchen, washing dishes and setting everything back in order. After putting away the final pots and pans, she took a moment to look around.
"Doesn't anybody know how to go grocery shopping in this house?" she exclaimed as she began opening cupboards.
"Ran's been going," Farfarello piped in from his spot on the counter. "But when he noticed we were getting low a day or two ago, he decided that you would want to restock yourself."
"Oh, really," Aya said dryly. "He's just afraid of all the shoppers."
Far raised an eyebrow. "You've seen them," he pointed out. "They're insane! A riot broke out over a sale of pickled whole artichokes. He said later that it was too dangerous for an assassin to be messing with."
"What was he doing getting artichokes?"
"He wasn't."
"Oh," Aya murmured. Then she sighed. "I suppose I'd best make up a list. I'll go in the morning before breakfast for any immediate needs."
Far beamed at her. "Here," he said extending a sheet of paper. "I made a list of everything we ate while you were gone. And yesterday, I checked to see what on it we had, didn't have or were low on."
Aya suppressed a giggle as she took the list. "Thank you," she said, her voice merry. "It's good to know that someone was keeping up with the house while we were gone."
Far frowned slightly. "I had to." He studied her for a moment, cocking his head to one side. "We all missed you. A lot."
The empath paused, looking up from the list. She looked at him, suddenly realizing how hard the separation had been for him, how hard it had been for him to fight the insanity Esset had inflicted on him alone.
"I'm so sorry," she said, her voice stricken. "I didn't even think. If I had, I would have made sure we returned sooner." Aya reached out and covered Far's scarred hand with her own. "I didn't mean to make things hard for you. I won't let you go back to that," she promised in a fierce voice. "I won't let what they did to you overwhelm you again. I won't!"
"It's ok," Far exclaimed in startled surprise. "Just don't do it again! Please, don't apologize. There's nothing to apologize for!" He took a moment, calming himself. He looked down at their clasped hands and shifted until he was holding her hand in a gentle grasp. "Just don't leave us again. Please?"
"I won't," Aya promised in a soft, gentle voice. "I wouldn't dream of it."
Koneko, 8:47 pm
Ran and Schuldig froze when the door to their room slammed open.
"Schuldig," Aya barked, "out!"
The German froze in mid-step. He turned, eyes wide and took in the sight of an enraged Crawford Aya. He blinked for a moment, decided that that book he'd been thinking about reading wasn't really that important and bolted.
Ran sat on his bed, a large, thick book on his lap and an apprehensive look on his face. He bit his lip for a moment before reaching over to the nightstand and grabbing a scrap piece of paper to mark his place with. After shutting the book, he dropped it on the floor and looked at his adopted sister expectantly.
"What did you mean earlier when you told Brad that Farfarello was driving everyone crazy?" Aya demanded in a cool voice.
Ran gave her a level look. "What brought this on?" he asked calmly.
"You have to ask?" she snapped.
"Yes," he replied. "I want to know what the problem is so that I can fix it."
Aya blinked, feeling as though the wind had been taken out of her sails a bit. She pulled back for a moment, took a deep breath and started over.
"Earlier, when you and Brad were unloading the car, you said that Far had been driving people crazy. I want to know what you said, what you did, the team did, in response to his behavior."
Ran frowned for a moment, thinking back. He looked back up. "We didn't say anything about it," he finally said. "We knew that he didn't like you and Brad being gone, and it made sense that he would want to keep everything in order for you." He shrugged. "We tolerated it as best we could. He got a little obsessive at times, so we had to rein him in occasionally, but for the most part we accepted it as a coping mechanism." He gave her a level look. "If he asked for help with something, we helped. Ken accepted being followed around the house all the time, when Far decided to wax the floors, we helped moved the furniture in the kitchen."
He leaned back against the headboard and studied his sister quizzically. "What brought this on?" he asked curiously.
Aya sighed and walked over to the bed. She threw herself down and looked up at her brother. "I was talking with Farfarello in the kitchen," she explained. "I hadn't realized…" she paused for a moment. "You do know that Esset induced his insanity, right?" When Ran nodded, she sighed and let her eyes roll to look at the ceiling. "I guess I've helped him get past a lot of what they did to him," she admitted. "And since I was gone for so long, he suddenly found himself having to fight it all alone." Her voice fell silent for a moment, and when she spoke again, it was much softer. "I just had to be sure that no one said or did something to make it worse. Especially after I abandoned him like that."
Ran snorted. "I hardly think going away on your honeymoon counts as abandonment. You came back, after all. And Far knows that the Koneko was still up to your standards. I bet he feels proud of himself for being able to help." He gave her a thoughtful look. "Have you considered pointing out to him that he managed by himself for three weeks?"
"What?"
"Well," he explained, "I'm not saying that he's back to normal now or that he doesn't need help. What I am saying is that he's improved to the point that he was able to hang on for three weeks without you. Yes, the coping mechanisms could get…extreme. But he did find ways to cope."
"I guess you're right," Aya admitted after a moment. She grinned suddenly. "I'll point that out to him tomorrow. He volunteered to go shopping with me tomorrow morning. Something about protecting me from killer vegetables."
Koneko, Next Day, Breakfast
Yohji yawned as he slowly brought his coffee mug to his face. He certainly didn't want to begrudge Aya her 'First Breakfast together as a family after three weeks!' but still…couldn't they have done breakfast for dinner? He yawned again and finally took a sip of his coffee.
Across the table, Schuldig did the same thing.
Simultaneously, coffee spray showered the breakfast table. Brad merely sighed softly and raised the morning paper higher to protect himself from stray coffee streams.
"Is there a problem?" Nagi asked mildly.
"This," Yohji gasped as he bolted for the kitchen…and water. "This is not coffee. What is this?"
Schuldig suddenly pushed past him and stuck his head under the faucet. 'There's a bag on the counter, Kudoh,' he sent. 'Why don't you check that?'
Yohji glared at the German who seemed intent on drowning himself in the kitchen sink. It was entirely too early for sarcasm.
With a soft grumble and numerous grimaces at the foul taste in his mouth, Yohji reached out and grabbed the bag of coffee.
Don Pedro's Guatemalan Coffee.
"Farfarello put it on the list," Aya explained as she walked into the kitchen. She calmly pulled Schuldig out of the sink and filled two glasses of water.
Back at the breakfast table, Brad absently took a sip of his own steaming hot mug of coffee. The same reaction ensued.
"What the hell?"
Schuldig and Yohji walked in. Yohji extended his glass of water to Brad, a smug look on his face. Schuldig placed the bag of coffee in front of his leader with a dramatic flourish.
Don Pedro's Guatemalan Coffee.
"Why am I looking at a bag of Central American coffee?" Oracle demanded in a tight voice.
"This is what we drank," Yohji explained.
"We were hoping you could get the full explanation," Schuldig continued.
"Guatemalan coffee hurts God."
"It also hurts my highly sensitive, highly sophisticated palate," Yohji snapped.
"We all must suffer..." Schuldig muttered, "for the sake of one. What happened to democracy?"
"It went out the door when God got involved," Nagi said dryly.
"Yes, when God gets involved, or, a god gets involved, you get an oligarchy," Omi added.
Sakura merely rolled her eyes and went back to mopping up the coffee that covered the table. Nagi watched her work for a moment before speaking up. "Need a hand?" he offered.
"What?" she replied. "And let a man try and clean something? It can't be done!"
"She's right," Aya added as she re-appeared with another cleaning rag. "You wouldn't believe the number of messes I had to clean up that this one and Toma left behind," she said as she jerked her head at Ran.
"Hey," Yohji called suddenly, "let's focus. BAD COFFEE!"
Ken sat back and watched Schatten squabble. Yohji, Brad and Schuldig had banned together to protect their coffee rights while Ran tried to get a word in edgewise with his sister. The soccer player finally sighed and glanced at the bemused looking Omi, Nagi and Sakura.
"You're going to be late for school if you don't get moving," he commented.
Sakura bit her lip, suppressing a giggle as she ran to fetch her bag.
Koneko, Brad's Office, 10:13 am
Brad leaned back in his chair and gave Ran a level look. "I had originally planned to wait a bit longer until we had this conversation, but I've decided that sooner would be better than later. What happened?"
Ran raised an eyebrow. He shifted his weight slightly, until his arm rested on the back of the chair whose arm he was perched on.
"I mean," Brad groaned, slightly, pinching the bridge of his nose, "How did you end up in Japan? How long were you at Rosenkreuz? Just how close were you and Schuldig?"
"Teleported. Seven years. Very close."
The precog gave Ran a dark glare. "Thank you, Schuldig," he said sarcastically.
"Fine," the telepath replied with a faint snort. "Schuldig and I considered each other brothers. Our minds merged and Rosenkreuz subsequently attempted to separate us.
They set Schu and I on a "training mission" and used a post-mission check-up to separate us and wipe our memories. I panicked and teleported for the first time. Somehow, I ended up in Japan."
"How dangerous are you?" Brad asked solemnly.
"What?"
Brad gave Ran a level look and began to dig through the papers on his desk. After a few moments, he pulled a page out of a file and held it out to Ran.
Ran's eyebrows went up when he beheld the warning Rosenkreuz had placed in Schuldig's file. "I'm impressed," he said with faint amusement.
Brad sighed. "Let me ask again. How dangerous are you? Is Mayhem?"
The telepath handed the paper back and looked Oracle in the eye. "We aren't."
"I need you to be on the level with me," Brad said in a frustrated voice. "I have to think about all of Schatten and I would hope that you would too considering you used to lead half of this team and the connections you've made with mine. And trust me when I say that you won't be doing anything to help or protect Schu if you lie to me."
"I would never hurt this team," Ran snapped in an irritated voice. "We were only considered dangerous because we were too strong to be controlled. And when I say control I'm using the Rosenkreuz/Esset definition."
"Alright."
"Secondly, what makes you think that I'd try to protect Schu?" Ran said in a defensive voice, instinctively downplaying the relationship between himself and the German.
"Everything you and Schuldig have done since Schatten was formed tells me you would protect him," Brad finally snapped. "When your memories returned you, and I quote, told me to 'leave Schuldig the hell alone!' You and Schu were clearly at odds yet you both remained in the same vicinity of the other, willingly. In fact, you sought each other out if the other disappeared. And with this," Brad continued, "you haven't told Schuldig that you were at Rosenkreuz, that you are Maelstrom. Considering that you called your relationship that of brothers, the only reason I can think of for not telling him is that you wish to protect him from some rather painful memories. Am I wrong?"
Ran let out a sharp breath and gave Brad an unreadable look. "No, your not," he said reluctantly.
Brad nodded slowly and took a deep breath. "Very well, then," he said. "I think that will suffice. Let me know if there's anything else you think we should discuss."
"So, we're done?" the telepath asked cautiously. "You don't want to know more?"
Brad looked at Ran and then at the warning and began to read it aloud. "Theft, arson, vandalism, harassment, use of explosive devices, mental manipulation of other students, mental manipulation of Rosenkreuz officials, assault…" He looked back up. "While I'm certain you could tell me some very interesting stories, I think I'd prefer to remain ignorant of the depravities you and Schuldig committed."
A hint of a smile flickered across Ran's face. "Your loss."
Takahashi Ichiro High School, Lunch
Nagi tapped his pen to his paper idly and let his eyes wander over towards the window. The teacher continued to drone in the same monotone voice about integrals, natural logs, and 'u,' all things Nagi had known about for more than a year.
The day had been fine thus far, he reflected. Perhaps, even good. His birthday had been acknowledged at the breakfast table by all…before the coffee incident, that is. And considering who made up Schatten, something like that had been bound to happen. All in all, it had been rather normal.
When the loudspeaker finally announced lunch, Nagi reached into his desk and pulled out his bag so that he could go meet Sakura outside. When he reached the shoe caddies, Sakura turned and grinned at him.
"Someone has an admirer," she teased.
"Wh-what?" he stuttered, eyes going wide.
Sakura giggled and pulled the door to the locker open. "See? Someone left you a present!"
Nagi stared at her for a moment. "What were you doing in my locker?" he asked in an odd voice.
"Getting your shoes for you, silly" she said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "Who's it from? There's a note with it!"
With a soft groan, Nagi pulled the box out and handed Sakura the note. "See who it's from," he instructed her as he began to pull the ribbons off.
"What the…"
Nagi stared at the now open box. Inside lay a dried, dead, black rose. He looked up at Sakura with confused eyes, the alarm running through him shooting through the roof when he saw her frightened look.
With a shaky hand, she held the note out to him. The simple text read plainly:
WE'RE COMING FOR YOU.
-ESSET
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