Loaded Homecoming

[Benedali Serrus]

[member="Maka Sumoto"]

Bennie winced at what Maka said, his immense dislike for the dead Jedi evident in his voice. She wondered if, even now, Maka was still jealous of the Jedi. But that idea was quickly dismissed. Even though her archer had still acted like he was sweet on her, things had mellowed down since the time she'd had to go out and bring him back. He certainly hadn't repeated those three words.

The Duchess looked back up as he brushed away her tears, her own hand coming up to hold his. Despite herself, she smiled at his words. "Thank you, Maka. For -- *hic* -- for being here for me and -- *hic* -- not leaving me. *hic*" Of course the hiccups would come during a time like this.

 

[Maka Sumoto]

Maka's eyebrows raised up as Bennie reached up to hold his hand. Just the idea of leaving her again made him want to cry. Why had she thought he would? The archer brought her hand up to his lips and gently kissed it. Behind his glasses, he did feel tears finally welling up.

"Why would I leave you, Bennie? I love you."

Of course, it occurred to him that he had left before... But that had been a totally different situation. Maka might have seemed almost alien to his duchess and her people, sometimes, but there was no way he could ever leave the one place (and the one person) who seriously accepted him.

[member="Benedali Serrus"]

 

[Arick Serrus]

Arick shook hands with the paramedic helping him towards a small side gate in the north side of the Serrus Manor, the human grinned and made small, half hearted jokes as he supported Arick. The moment one of the workers (a maid judging by her clothing) saw Arick and his assistant walking up the skinny, winding path, she ran down towards them.

"Cap'n Serrus? 'Elcome back sir!" She said, the medic glared at her, and spoke to her in a gruff voice, one much different than he had used while chatting with Arick "Go, tell this man's sister, and that archer of hers; Their bird is back." Arick grinned and gave the medic a weak attempt at a punch when he called him a bird. The maid, who yelled something about a Clarys, went running into the building. Arick and the man watched her shadow as it ran up the long flights of stairs towards Benedali's room. Two watchmen paced down the path towards Arick, each slung his arms across themselves, together the four men started through the gate.

Clarys burst into the duchesses room, panting. She put her hands on her knees and muttered something. She stood after a moment, and said. "Well, ye better get ta kissin, I reckon you got about five minutes before your bird gets back here." She tilted her head and looked at the two. "Yes, I reckon you gots about five minutes before that there medic carries his ass in!"

[member="Maka Sumoto"] [member="Benedali Serrus"]​

 

[Benedali Serrus]

[member="Maka Sumoto"] [member="Arick Serrus"]

He said it. He actually said it! Through her hiccups and tears, Benedali smiled again, a smile that was an odd combination of sorrow and happiness. Well, maybe not happiness, but something akin to it.

Before she could say anything, though, Clarys burst into the room, claiming Arick was back. Her head reeling, the Duchess instinctively withdrew her hand, standing up. "He -- *hic* -- he's back?!" When the servant nodded, Benedali felt a whirlwind of emotions go through her, and she looked back at Maka, this time her smile just a bit bigger. "He came -- *hic* -- back, Maka!" Reaching over, she grabbed his hand and, without thinking, gave her archer a kiss on the cheek -- one which was not as formal as the pecks she normally gave.

But then she straightened up as another thought got through to her. "Medic?!" Jerking on Maka's hand, her expression now, worried, she hiccupped, "We have to go to him!" before wrapping her robe tightly around her and darting into the hallway.

 

[Maka Sumoto]

Maka couldn't tell if he was happier that Bennie had kissed him on the cheek, or that Arick had suddenly dropped from nowhere to return to them. He opened his mouth to say something, closed it, and just nodded. When the duchess ran out of the room with just her robe, he rolled his eyes and walked out of the room more calmly. Of course, it was simply an act and he actually jumped down half the stairs in the tower.

He got downstairs to see the chicken man being half-carried by a guy in a uniform. The archer just sighed in mock exasperation and gestured at Arick's wounds with his metal arm.

"Arick, you drop off the face of the planet, and come back as deep-fried chicken? C'mon, man."

[member="Benedali Serrus"] [member="Arick Serrus"]

 

[Arick Serrus]

Arick grinned as Maka and Bennie came near. The Medic saluted Maka with his free hand. The uniformed human tried to stop Arick before he spoke, but how exactly was he going to get away with that?

"Hey, atleast I came back in one piece. Metal-head. I can tell you're worried" Arick said sarcastically.

He looked at Maka, grinned, and looked over to Bennie. "So, what have I missed?"

[member="Maka Sumoto"]
[member="Benedali Serrus"]

 

[Benedali Serrus]

[member="Arick Serrus"] [member="Maka Sumoto"]

Benedali practically threw herself at her brother, wrapping her arms around him (mindful of his wings, of course) and squeezing as if she was afraid he would leave again. Which, with the way things were going, wouldn't be that far off. "Arick! You're *hic* finally back!" The Duchess withdrew slightly, throwing a guilty look at the medic for her lack of concern about her brother's condition. That soon faded, though, in light of his question.

Quickly wiping at her eyes, the redhead filled him in, hiccups no match for her determination. "You've missed *hic* all sorts of things, *hic* brother. For one *hic* thing, Maka lost his arm *hic* not too long after you *hic* left. Then almost half *hic* of the population just randomly *hic* disappeared, but the *hic* Republic managed to win back *hic* Alderaan!" Her enthusiasm dissipated fast, though, as her gaze and arms dropped. In a quieter and more solemn voice, she added, "And...*hic* Orron, he--*hic* he's....*hic* gone. A Sith ki--*hic*" Even without the hiccups, it was difficult for her to get the word out, so instead Benedali said, "A Sith got *hic* to him. *Hic*."

 

[Maka Sumoto]

From behind Bennie, Maka gave Arick a look that screamed please don't humor her anymore. Sure, Orron was dead, but that happened to people who went around picking fights without thinking about it. The archer wouldn't have said anything, but he seriously hoped that Arick was insensitive enough to say what he was thinking.

In the meantime, Bennie's mention of the day he'd had to cut his own arm off certainly didn't make him feel better. He muttered something about karking Vongspawn, and leaned against a wall, waiting for some kind of medic or stretcher to come and take his winged friend to the medcenter.

[member="Benedali Serrus"] [member="Arick Serrus"]

 

[Arick Serrus]

Arick looked at Maka with a glum seriousness in his eyes. Without saying anything, he seemed to ask Maka if he should say what he was about to. Of course, MAka didn't answer. Arick, well, attempted to hold Bennie at arms length.

"If Orron wanted to keep picking fights with dangerous people, its his damn fault that one of them finally got tired of it. Orron almost got himself killed the first damn day we met him, there was no way he was going to make it if he kept going around with that attitude."

He turned to the medic that, so far, had been glaring at Arick's sister, being so rough around Arick had obviously rubbed him the wrong way. Before Bennie could respond, the man quickly ushered Arick past the other two, and into a medical ward.

[member="Maka Sumoto"] [member="Benedali Serrus"]

 

[Benedali Serrus]

[member="Arick Serrus"] [member="Maka Sumoto"]

Spoiler

[media]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XcZX89Z0nVA[/media]

I know the lyrics don't really go with the current situation, but I think the music itself fits. So, BLEH!

Benedali stared at her brother in stark disbelief, completely shocked by his behaviour. She'd known that Maka immensely disliked Orron (and, in hindsight, she couldn't exactly blame him), but...Arick? Her brother? His complete insensitivity didn't help, either.

The medic dragged Arick away from a stunned Duchess, allowing her to break out of her shock for long enough to say, "You've changed, Arick. And I don't believe it's all for the better." But if he heard it, she wouldn't know -- she didn't stay around to find out.

Brushing past Maka, Bennie mumbled, "I'll *hic* be in my rooms if you need me."

How stupid could she be? How could she have not realised that both of her men utterly despised the Jedi? But, she decided, that wasn't the real reason why she was upset again. It was because neither one of those damned fools could at least be nice enough to hold off on the insults until enough time had passed. Well neither one cares that much. They've made that clear enough. The Duchess knew she was being irrational, but in her mind she deserved an opportunity to be irrational.

 

[Maka Sumoto]

Maka groaned and sagged against the wall as the two Serruses both went away from him. He felt himself slide to the ground and just put his head on his knees, completely defeated. Now instead of being a little bit angry at the archer, Bennie was really angry at him and her brother, and he didn't see how he could fix that with a hug and another long conversation. He felt himself crying, and just mentally shrugged. He looked up at the little blonde girl from before, and looked down the hall his Duchess had run down, and shook his head.

"I can't fix this one."

[member="Benedali Serrus"] [member="Arick Serrus"]

 

[Arick Serrus]

"Well, whatcha gunna do 'bout it then?" the girl said with a scowl. "I expected better from ya Sir." She shrugged with impatience and walked away, to where, who knows. Who cares.

Arick groaned in pain as the medic helped get him onto a cot. He muttered as the man wen't around stealing pillows from the other beds, bringing them back and insisting Arick use them to prop himself up. "Why can't you three ever get along." The medic said jokingly. "How can I with those two bickering about that jedi." Arick retorted. More doctors came to stand by the two as they talked. Arick wasn't even remotely sorry about Orron and he had told Bennie, that was the end of that.

[member="Maka Sumoto"]
[member="Benedali Serrus"]

 

[Benedali Serrus]

[member="Arick Serrus"] [member="Maka Sumoto"]

Benedali had reached her door and her hand had just about touched the panel...when she stopped.

I can't keep acting like this! she thought furiously, suddenly, and out of the blue. I'm not some pampered brat, throwing a temper tantrum over every little slight against me! She needed to stop feeling so sorry for herself! The Duchess squared her shoulders, looking at her distorted reflection in the metal of the door as her thoughts continued to whirl. Orron wouldn't want me to sit here and mope. And look at what I've done to help my people! None, that's right!

All my life, I've lived in splendor. I've had everything I wanted at my fingertips, and nobody ever said no to me. I had wealth and influence, and no need to depend on my own skills to survive. My vibrosword skills are merely exercise, not a lifestyle! But look where it's gotten me, where it's gotten my family -- my mother dead, Arick's mother dead, our father dead, and now Orron dead!

And the Sith? We were never a threat to the Sith. We were nothing but fluff, and they knew it. Even with the Sith that killed Orron, nothing ever happened. We were tiny, inconsequential. We were nothing to them.

Benedali's manicured hands balled into a fist. Well, we should change that. I should change that. No more mewling helplessly about how unfair life is. No more waiting for others to fight our fights. Now is the time for a change of lifestyle. "Now is the time," she whispered aloud, repeating louder, "Now is the time to move on and change!"

Riled by her thoughts, the noblewoman turned on her heel and raced back down the hall with a new vigour she hadn't had, not even when the Sith had first taken Alderaan. "Maka!" she barked, a new level of authority in her voice. "You're coming with me!" Not giving the poor archer a chance to say a word, and not stopping, Bennie grabbed his shirt and tugged before releasing it and continuing. "We're going to my brother!"

The medical ward wasn't very far, and in no time at all the redhead had burst into the room and the few members of the medical staff there scattered like nerfs in the wake of a storm. Shouldering past the medic (whose complaints fell on deaf ears), Benedali stood in front of her brother's cot, hands placed firmly on her hips.

"I don't care what you say or what you do, but as your Duchess I am ordering you to accompany and assist me in becoming a pirate against the Sith."

 

[Maka Sumoto]

Maka got up, his eyes red from crying, and now wide with bewilderment. He got up uncertainly, following Bennie into the medical ward, and almost collapsed laughing when he heard what she had in mind. After all, it was what she'd been trying to stop him from doing for the past year. He managed to collect himself, had a quick mental image of the duchess dressed like a pirate, and promptly lost it again.

"H'okay, wait... So, you're ordering us to do exactly what I've been trying to do this whole time, but couldn't because you'd scream at me? And you're coming with us? Excellent."

His grin faded as the reasoning for her sudden turnaround clicked in his mind. It was still the Jedi... No matter who else was around, or who else she was with, it was still him. The excitement was totally gone now, replaced by a feeling like he was going to cry again. His voice was very quiet when he spoke again.

"But it's just revenge for him, isn't it? You're going to use us to drop the hammer on random Sith in the hope that we'll actually meet someone who had something to do with his death."

He sat down hard against the wall like he had in the hallway, dropping his face into his hand again.

[member="Benedali Serrus"] [member="Arick Serrus"]

 

[Benedali Serrus]

[member="Maka Sumoto"] [member="Arick Serrus"]

"Oh, Maka..." Benedali whispered, looking over her shoulder at her slumped archer. Shooting a glare at her injured brother -- who was going to tell her how he got those wounds, just not right now -- the Duchess turned and sat down, pulling Maka into a hug. "Silly, silly Maka."

Pressing her lips against his forehead, she paused for a moment, collecting her thoughts, before contiuing on. "It's not revenge for him specifically -- it's just...it's payback. For what the Sith have done in general. Before, I...I was too weak, and scared, and self-centred to realise that I didn't want to really do anything because, well, I didn't want to lose anyone else. But now I've realised that I'm tired of being weak -- and I'm tired of standing by while loved ones died. I've decided I no longer want to complain about things that I can change." She squeezed her arms tighter. "And I've already lost a lot of people. I don't want to lose you or Arick. But I won't be able to stop that if I just sit on my pretty little rump all day."

Over Maka's head, Bennie looked hard at her brother. "What do you say, Arick?"

 

[Arick Serrus]

Arick sighed, this was only going to go down one way, he may as well go down with it. "Why the hell not. We're all going to die anyway, why not sooner." With a bit of effort Arick rolled off his cot and stood, the medic -who still glared in Bennie's direction- helped support him. "So what exactly are we doing? All i could tell is you want us to go fight some body?" Arick grinned, "And it's about time you did something. What have we both been telling you for what, like, hours? Anyway. Maka, what about you?"

[member="Benedali Serrus"]
[member="Maka Sumoto"]

 

[Maka Sumoto]

Maka just sat there for a moment, and then finally slipped his arms around Bennie again, smiling warmly and lowering his voice to a whisper so Arick and the staff around him couldn't hear.

"Love you too, crazy girl."

He looked up and grinned crookedly at Arick, quickly wondering again what the hell exactly had gotten him all those wounds. Then he raised his voice back to normal and looked between his duchess and her older brother.

"What the hell do you think I'd do while a couple of crazy people went haring off after more crazy people with space magic? Don't want you frying yourself anymore that you've already got, chicken man."

[member="Benedali Serrus"] [member="Arick Serrus"]

 

[Benedali Serrus]

[member="Arick Serrus"] [member="Maka Sumoto"]

Bennie grinned, glad that the two were on board. Though, she'd have to ask Arick about his injuries later -- there was no way he was avoiding it.

Cracking her knuckles, the Duchess squeezed Maka one more time before standing up. "Right then! First thing's first: We're going to need to sell off the estate, along with anything that we don't need. Although, I was thinking we could maybe keep a few valuable items, just so we'd have backup money. I'm sure our cousins would be keen on having this house. They keep complaining about how they need a new summer house. And then, the staff would be able to stay." All business now, she began to pace back and forth, hands clasped behind her back. "Even so, we'll have to go through our stores and determine what stays and what goes. Not to mention, we'll need a crew."

Suddenly, Benedali whirled and snapped her fingers at the medic, who had been listening in the background and now jumped. "You! What's your name?"

"Toric, my lady. Toric Nal'dune."

"Are you a really good medic, Toric?"

He puffed out his chest, momentarily forgetting about his grudge against the pretty redhead. "My lady, I'm the best of the best around here!"

Clasping her hands together, she grinned. "Good! You're now part of our crew!"

"I--What?" But Benedali didn't give him time to protest. Gathering her robe around herself self-consciously (for she just now realised she wasn't wearing real clothing) the Duchess proclaimed, "I'm off to go change. Send Clarys up to my rooms!"

 

[Arick Serrus]

"So... Maka. Care to explain what happened while I was gone? Bennie seems to have had a change in heart. Don't tell me it was all because of that jedi?"
Arick turned towards Toric. "So, you're a good medic eh? If you really were a good medic. I wouldn't have any of these wounds now would I? If you were a good medic, I would have come home on my own two feet."
He said, giving the man a feeble punch "Maka, I demand an explination. If I don't get one, I wont tell Bennie how I was wounded. Neither you or I want to see that happen."

[member="Benedali Serrus"] [member="Maka Sumoto"]