Playing in the Snow

[Benedali Serrus]

[member="Maka Sumoto"]

Benedali was in the stables prepping her horse for a long journey. Unfortunately, the journey was not for a fun reason.

The Duchess was preparing to set out on a multiple-day journey to find Maka, her archer. Two days prior, she had awoken to find that he was gone, and when she pestered everyone, including her brother, they could not give her a good reason. Worried but deciding to wait him out, Benedali went about her normal duties. It was only when the next day, Arick declared that he needed to leave, that the Duchess decided to take matters into her own hands.

The plan was simple: go to the snowy regions of Alderaan (which was where everyone pointed her to) and bring back Maka, whether he be willing or unwilling. To avoid unwanted attention along with clueing her enemies in on something that is wrong, Benedali was to make the journey alone, and by horseback. The household was to carry on like normal, with one of her ladies-in-waiting taking the Duchess's place.

She cast one last glance over her things, mentally checking them off: enough food rations to last a week if she was smart, a blanket, a water canteen, her comlink, a small med kit, a fire-starter kit, and one of the vibroblades from the training room.

Hair pulled tight in a bun and decked out in clothes that would keep out most of the cold, Benedali hopped onto her horse and set off, looking back at her home as it receded behind her.

 

[Maka Sumoto]

Maka was totally miserable. The woods were his favorite place, and he could walk around them like he owned them (and he probably did own some of them), and he loved hunting big animals. This was almost his dream vacation, but for how horrible he felt. He'd ditched Bennie and Arick, along with a bunch of other people who would probably be worried about him, all because he was angry.

He was angry at Bennie, for not noticing that he was trying to hint at how much he liked her, without being overwhelming, and then going off with some Jedi nerf herder. He was angry, of course, at Orron, for being said Jedi nerf herder. He was angry at Arick for not throwing the guy off the property when he'd come initially. He was even angry at the stupid prince of Alderaan for coming to the planet when he knew he'd get killed or captured here.

But most of all, he was angry at himself. He hadn't been direct enough with Bennie, he hadn't been firm enough with the idiot Jedi, and he certainly should have kicked the prince's ass back into orbit when he showed up. And now, he could be almost certain that his beautiful redheaded duchess was out here in the snow, looking for him. She was too stubborn to not have him around, even if it meant coming out to the middle of nowhere to have him around.

He sighed, and went to sleep without eating anything. He was too tired, and a bit depressed, and it was taking a toll on his energy levels. At least he had plenty of meat and berries to eat...

[member="Benedali Serrus"]

 

[Benedali Serrus]

[member="Maka Sumoto"]

It had only been a day since Benedali had left, and already she felt haggard and worn. But the Duchess was determined to press on, no matter what.

About noon, she and her mount had encountered a patch of land that had been Vongformed. Calculating that it would take too long to go around, Benedali had pressed through. While most of the creatures left her alone, she nonetheless had several close encounters which left her horse skittish and her adrenaline pumping.

The Duchess had reached the edge of the snowy region a few minutes after the sun went down, and she began to curse herself for forgetting a flashlight. At least there's plenty of moonlight, she thought wearily. And indeed, there was. The moon was full tonight.

Tying up her horse to a nearby tree, she withdrew her vibroblade and began to gather branches and brush for a fire and her bed. She honestly didn't know much about surviving in the wild, but she did know that having a good bed was important, especially out in the cold.

A half hour later, Benedali had a nice little fire going, along with a nest. Her stomach growling, she grabbed one of the ration boxes from her saddle (which was now a makeshift pillow) and ate. After finishing, she added more fuel to the fire and laid down under her blanket, vibroblade in hand as she gazed at the stars. "Oh, Maka," the Duchess sighed, "Why'd you have to run off?"

 

[Maka Sumoto]

Maka got up, feeling like hell. He sensed that something was off today. Something was going to happen that might affect him badly. Very badly. Or something great might happen. The disturbance in the Force could swing either way. He grabbed his hunting gear, and stepped out of the little cottage, into the snow. He grinned at the feel of the soft snow under his boots, and walked to the edge of the clearing, only to see corruption on the ground.

Vongformed corruption. Son of a queen.

Maka drew his knife, and began scanning the vongformed ground, looking slowly left to right to avoid any nasty surprises. Something roared out of a corner, and was promptly stabbed in the neck with a sharp blade. A fang of something ended up in his shoulder, but he pulled it out and wrapped a medseal around it. It was numb, and he had to hold his knife in his left hand instead of his right. At least it wasn't bleeding... Or was that a bad thing? He couldn't tell... He was too dizzy...

Maka collapsed, right in front of a cold-looking horse.

[member="Benedali Serrus"]

 

[Benedali Serrus]

[member="Maka Sumoto"]

"Mmm...Cecine, close my blinds...it's not time for me to get up..." Benedali scrunched her face up in the sunlight before slowly opening one eye. Why am I outside...?

A sudden thump of something hitting the ground and a following whinny removed any confusion from her mind. The snows! The Vongformed areas! Maka! The Duchess grabbed her blade and leapt up, whisking the blanket away from herself. She frantically looked around for any signs of danger, her vibroblade whirling in her hand. After a moment, she relaxed when nothing attempting to kill her presented itself.

Keeping her blade out, Benedali walked over to her horse to see if something was wrong with it. That was when she recognized a familiar being laying down. "Maka!" she cried, dropping down beside him. "I found you!" She looked over him, worried. He didn't appear to be doing too well. "What's wrong?!"

 

[Maka Sumoto]

Maka looked dizzily at the familiar redheaded shape in front of him, and tried to talk at it. His voice came out in a whisper. He couldn't make himself heard to the four pretty redheads he could see, so he grabbed the one that looked the most solid figure in front of him, pulling her down so his face was close to hers.

"I'm dying, beautiful... Fucking Vong creatures and their fucking fangs. Least it can't get you, now."

He gestured weakly to the medseal under his armored jacket, and hugged Bennie tight with both arms.

"I love you, you crazy girl."

[member="Benedali Serrus"]

 

[Benedali Serrus]

[member="Maka Sumoto"]

The Duchess hugged him back, her worry increasing. "Maka, don't say that," she whispered. "You're not going to die!" She withdrew from him, deliberately choosing to set aside his other comment for later. Now was not the time.

Squeezing his hand, Benedali stood up and walked over to her saddle. "I hope I'm still within range of the house," she said. "I'm going to try and hail the guards, see if they can get someone out here, Sith be karked." It wasn't often that the Duchess swore, but sometimes when she was emotional it couldn't be helped.

She knelt back down next to him. "Maka, you're going to be fine. You know why? Because you're not allowed to die. I say so, and right now I am the highest ranking person out here, so... Don't disobey orders, Maka!" This was all said in a tone of mock arrogance, though her anxiety over her friend threatened to ruin her attempt to make light of the moment.

Squeezing his hand again, Benedali raised the comlink up to her mouth.

 

[Maka Sumoto]

Maka furrowed his brow, and shook himself. It wasn't his time, yet. He knew it wasn't. He had to survive, it was his vision that had told him that. He put his hand over the comlink, and squeezed Bennie's other hand. They were way to far from the castle to get back in time. He could be dead in a day and a half.

"I'll be dead by the time we get home, Bennie. Gotta go back the way I got here. In... an hour or two, I'm gonna pass out, no matter what you do. We're gonna get to my house. You gotta inject me with stims or something to wake me up when we get in. I can probably fix it myself, but you have to get me back there. Understand?"

She'd ordered him not to die, and now he was making her the instrument of his success. He just hoped he could stand long enough to get on the horse.

[member="Benedali Serrus"]

 

[Benedali Serrus]

[member="Maka Sumoto"]

She looked back at Maka, about to protest when he spoke. The Duchess listened to his instructions, wide-eyed. Ducking her head to confirm she understood, the redhead moved to stand up before looking back at her Archer. "You have a house? With a roof?"

Benedali suddenly shook her head, raising a hand. "Sorry, sorry, not a good time, I know. Give me a moment, and I will have the horse all ready to go." This time, she really did stand, and began to pack everything away as quickly as she could. She paused with her hand over the saddlebags before withdrawing the med kit. Opening it up, the redhead withdrew a painkiller pill and handed it to Maka. "In case you're in pain," she explained. "I don't know how long it'll last." The Duchess's face was pale and drawn, as much from the cold and the Vongforming as it was from worrying over him.

 

[Maka Sumoto]

Maka swallowed the pill dry, and smiled, feeling a slight numbness go through him. He managed to sit up, and looked at Bennie packing everything up. He looked at the horse beseechingly, and reached up to grab a strap on the saddle. He pulled himself up, and almost immediately had to lean back on the poor, confused, animal. He grinned tiredly at Bennie, and laughed weakly.

"Yeah, with a roof and everything. I told you I lived out in the forest. Got food and everything. Just didn't think I'd get any lethal wounds today, or else I would've brought something a bit more helpful than a roll of medseals."

Seeing her rush around like somebody's life was at stake... oh, wait... It would've been funny if somebody's life hadn't been at stake. But as it was, he was glad Bennie loved him enough to do this sort of thing, even if she wouldn't admit it. He grabbed her shoulder with his left and, and pulled her into a hug again, to stop her from running around like that.

"You're gonna kill yourself from worrying before this stupid venom does for me. Calm down. We have a few hours before I pass out, and the house isn't even a six-hour ride. Not exactly the way I wanted you to see it, but I'm glad you get to."

[member="Benedali Serrus"]

 

[Benedali Serrus]

[member="Maka Sumoto"]

As soon as Maka took the pill, Benedali had moved to the other side of the horse. She checked the straps and everything, not noticing that he'd stood himself up. "Well, I know you said you lived in the forest, but I just... I don't know, I assumed you lived in a cave," she said defensively, fiddling with the stirrup. The Duchess did a double-take when she saw that Maka was now standing.

She started to brush past him, muttering about how he should've waited til she helped him up, when Maka pulled her into another hug.

Hugging him back, she replied, "Maka, I can't stop worrying. It's just what I do, when family gets hurt; ask Arick about the time when Cecine broke her hip." At the mention of her brother, Benedali chewed on her lip. She'd have to tell Maka he had left sooner or later, but right now with his injury she decided it would be best to wait.

Pulling herself away, she climbed onto the horse's back, looking down at her Archer. "I'm certain your house is lovely, Maka, even if it is in a cave." She offered her hand to help him up. "Come on, then, before you pass out and we're both stranded in the middle of nowhere."

 

[Maka Sumoto]

Maka took the offered hand, and managed to pull himself up awkwardly onto the horse. He had enough of his lucidity to be vaguely uncomfortable being so close to Bennie, but he ignored it. Not dying was slightly more important than his comfort. Just to be safe, he held onto the saddle as well as he could without actually putting his arms around her. He did, after all, feel a tiny bit embarrassed at making the girl he liked run out into the forest after him. Of course, he'd figured that they'd find each other somehow, but definitely not in this sort of situation.

"Well, I won't pass out for a while. And we just have to follow the trail I created by crashing about like an idiot. Pretty easy, really. But, I won't talk about this anymore. How is it at the castle?"

[member="Benedali Serrus"]

 

[Benedali Serrus]

[member="Maka Sumoto"]

Oh for the love of-- Benedali didn't have to be a Force User to figure out Maka was uncomfortable with being so close to her. Case and point, the fact that he avoided putting his arms around her. As anyone who rode living mounts would know, sometimes close proximity couldn't be helped.

Letting out a sigh, the Duchess rolled her eyes. "Maka, you're going to have to hold onto me, otherwise the second we move you'll fall off." Dropping the reins, she reached behind the saddle and pulled out the blanket. Holding opposite corners, she flipped it behind them and tied it together in the front, creating a crude harness. "There. Now you won't fall off when you pass out. I'm not moving, though, until you hold on."

As she waited for him to comply, Benedali answered his question. "It's quiet, honestly. There's nothing much to do outside of the normal duties. You know, keeping everything in good condition, appeasing our Sith Masters, the usual." The last bit was said with a mixture of sarcasm and bitterness.

 

[Maka Sumoto]

Maka sighed with a raspy noise, and put his arms around Bennie's waist. He leaned his forehead on Bennie's shoulder, and smiled a little bit.

"This actually for my safety, or did you just want me to be closer?"

He felt sad at the mention of 'Sith Masters' and at the tone of Bennie's voice. He wanted her to be happy, which was already impossible given the circumstance of this ride, but her anger made it worse. At least, if it'd been directed at him, he could probably alleviate it.

"You know the rest of the planet is like this, right? Being eaten by that Hydra Lady's creatures. Even the Vong are being killed by the Vongforming. We gotta find somebody who can do something about that. Another Vong Shaper."

[member="Benedali Serrus"]

 

[Benedali Serrus]

[member="Maka Sumoto"]

Despite everything, Benedali still managed a smile. Spurring the horse onward where there was indeed a trail, she reached a hand up and patted the side of her Archer's head. "Whatever makes you feel happier, Maka."

As he talked about the Vongforming, though, she couldn't help but let out another sigh. "I know," the Duchess said, a bit of distress in her tone. "But as of late it's been so hard to really do anything with the other Houses; House Serrus isn't very militaristic, and it's difficult to do anything rebellious without procuring the wrath of the Hydra Queen and the others. We've thus far managed to stay below the radar, but I'm worried sooner or later we'll all be struck down before we can do anything."

 

[Maka Sumoto]

Maka rolled his eyes a little when Bennie patted the side of his head.

"It'd make me happier if I didn't have to nearly die to hold you like this, but that's a conversation of its own."

He laughed, coughing as he did, and moved his head so he could see Bennie's face better.

"The Thuls are of the Sith. The Organas would be stupid to move, weak as they are. The Panteers have been a nearly dead house for something like three and a half thousand years, not counting when Alderaan was blown up. The Rists are great spymasters and assassins, but that's their limit, besides the fact that their castle was razed to the ground or something like that. As for the Ulgos, I wouldn't be surprised if they were planning a way to kill every last noble of our house and all the others. Alderaan will strike itself down, as it always has before."

[member="Benedali Serrus"]

 

[Benedali Serrus]

[member="Maka Sumoto"]

Benedali turned her head so that it would be difficult for Maka to see her face. "Well, when you say it like that..."

Truth was, though, she knew Maka was right. The Houses needed to band together if they were going to have any hope in reclaiming what was rightfully theirs, but they were too weak. Too broken.

She remained silent, tight lipped. First Orron, and now Maka. Why couldn't they just have a little faith? That was all they needed! If everyone just had faith that the Houses could eventually sort their differences, then the freedom fighters would have a chance. But everyone insisted on being naysayers, and quite frankly it was, so to speak, putting the Duchess down.

But Benedali cared too much about Maka and was too worried about his health to vent her frustrations at him, so she simply placed it aside for later.

That didn't stop her from biting the inside of her cheek, though, in an effort not to speak.

 

[Maka Sumoto]

Maka frowned a bit, and his voice came out as a low mutter. He knew she got like that when he was pessimistic. But it was true, and she knew that. There was literally no way to deny that the royal houses would never reconcile.

"Don't do that, Bennie. You've got something to say, so say it. I'm sorry I left you with nobody to talk to, but I'm here now, even if this seems like a horrible time to talk."

He stretched a little, so his face was closer to Bennie's ear.

"Come on, you need to talk. I need to talk, too. And be close to you. I caused you all this trouble, and I'm dying, but at least I get to hold onto you for a bit."

[member="Benedali Serrus"]

 

[Benedali Serrus]

[member="Maka Sumoto"]

"You talk, then," Benedali retorted. "You talk, and I'll listen. I need to concentrate on steering the horse, anyway." As soon as she said that, though, she let out another sigh. "I'm sorry, Maka. I didn't mean to be short with you. It's just...you know I don't like it when you get pessimistic. Like how you insist you're going to die. I don't want you to keep saying you're going to die. Especially now, with Arick gone to who knows where."

Benedali didn't know if it was the cold or what, but her eyes began to prickle with tears. "And you keep apologizing. Stop apologizing, Maka. It's not your fault you got hurt. You didn't cause any trouble."

She fell silent for a moment, before patting his hand. "How much further do we have to go?" she asked. "It's a bit too cold out here for my liking."

 

[Maka Sumoto]

Maka sighed, and closed his eyes as he squeezed Bennie with his arms. He felt like he wanted to cry, but couldn't. Almost all his emotion seemed to have gone into staying awake and alive.

"Fine, I'll talk then. I left because I couldn't stand to be around anybody for a bit. I was too slow, and I didn't tell you how I felt. I thought you'd get scared if I went as fast as I wanted to, and I was obviously wrong. The only thing in this situation that's not my fault is that I got hurt. I basically dragged you out here, in the snow, because I didn't know what to say to you, really. I thought it'd be a good idea to leave you to talk to Arick, but of course the winged wonder ran off."

Tears came, a little bit unexpected, to his eyes.

"So, I've left you alone, dragged you to this hellhole, and got stabbed in the shoulder with some Vong sh*t just to tell you I love you. I. Completely. Suck."

[member="Benedali Serrus"]