Stolen Hearts: Chapter 18 (Patreon)

The sterile hospital room was utterly silent apart from the whirring and beeps of the various instruments set up around the bed in its center. The beeping of the heart monitor rang in Misa's ears as she stared at the patient, keeping an eye out for any changes in her condition.

Her eyes ran over the bandages covering horrific burns on the girl's arm and hand, so thickly applied that it looked more like a mass of fabric and gauze than anything resembling an actual limb. Combined with the reddened color of the skin on her face and neck as well as the singed ends of her hair and the fur on her ears, the young Faunus certainly looked like she had seen better days.

Even so, Rei’s expression was peaceful, the medication running through her veins ensuring that she didn't feel an iota of the doubtlessly agonizing pain that her body should have been in. A small mercy in this cluster-fuck of a situation they had found themselves in.

“Do you think she'll ever be able to use it again?” Misa turned back as the other occupant of the room spoke. Arun was uncharacteristically quiet, in a similar state to Misa as he stared at Rei with saddened eyes, “I’ve seen some bad burns in my life, but those definitely take the cake.”

“...I don't know.” Misa confessed quietly, turning back to Rei, “Like you said, those burns were some of the worst I've ever seen in my life, but all things considered, she should have lost that arm the moment the doctor saw it. The fact that she didn't means it probably has some hope of healing. Given the nature of the burns, we'll just have to wait and see.”

Arun nodded slowly, not taking his eyes off of Rei, “I can't believe she was even able to do that to herself. She should have been turned to a pile of ash the moment she absorbed the dust. Harnessing that much magic without any prior exposure would have killed anyone but Lord Gerard.”

It still might have. Misa had never seen anything like this before. Rei hadn't simply harnessed the magic, using the dust as a conduit with which to draw from, she had absorbed it. She had taken it into herself as if it was her own and used it much the same, filling her body with enough energy to power Lord Gerard’s estate for a decade, if not longer.

Like Arun had said, the fact that she hadn't turned to ash right then and there was a miracle, but there was still the possibility of lingering effects from what she had done. Someone taking that much magic into themselves, Maiden magic no less, was both incredible, dangerous, and completely unheard of.

As such, there was no precedent set. It was entirely plausible that what she had done would have lasting effects on her well-being and unfortunately, they wouldn't be able to tell until she woke up.

“...Lord Gerard theorized that she had the potential for magic, you know?” Misa spoke up after a long moment, “That's a big part of why he recruited her in the first place.”

Arun made a surprised noise, “Is that so? I wondered about that. She's a pretty good thief but nothing special, not yet at least. She’s too young. Buck's the only one anywhere near her age and Lord Gerard only recruited him because… well, you know.”

Misa nodded silently, already knowing what he was about to say. Her master was a sucker for lost causes and those down on their luck, always had been. Buck had definitely been the latter and was dangerously close to the former. It was lucky that he had found Lord Gerard, even if the way he had left something to be desired.

That also probably played into the reason he had recruited Rei as well. Misa knew the girl's story, knew of her declining situation. If Lord Gerard hadn't found and hired her, Rei likely would be homeless or in prison right now. Or dead.

Truthfully, it was pure luce that Roman Torchwick had been unavailable to steal the dust for them. It was even luckier that he had recommended Rei of all people as his replacement. She wasn't exactly making waves in the underworld and as such, wasn't that well known, but it was possible that the man's intuition had clued him into something different about the girl.

Or maybe he had just said the first name that had come to his mind. Misa wouldn’t put it past the man to do such a thing. He had always struck her as the type to do as he pleased. Either way, it had worked out for them even more than the man himself would have. Lord Gerard had followed up on his recommendation, expecting someone who was at the very least competent in their craft, and had found so much more.

Latent magic, and the possible aptitude for its use. The origin of which was even more astounding than the feat itself.

Maidens didn’t have children. It wasn’t exactly a rule, but most of them understood that bearing a child with such tumultuous energy boiling underneath their skin was a bad idea. Most of them. Lord Gerard kept tabs on all of the Maidens and their activities, it only made sense given his own nature, but it seemed that one apparently managed to slip through his extensive observations.

The Winter Maiden of two generations ago was a paranoid and flighty woman. She had no friends, never stayed overly long in one location, and had the habit of displacing herself across entire kingdoms at the drop of a hat which made it extremely hard to keep tabs of any kind on her. During her travels, she somehow managed to both conceive a child, and keep her pregnancy a secret long enough to have the child and disappear once more.

Some sixty years ago, Aria Lynx gave birth to a healthy baby boy mere weeks before meeting her untimely end at the hand of Salem’s forces. This boy would grow up and have children of his own, living a nice and full life before his own passing less than ten years ago, leaving behind a granddaughter who thought the world of him, and a bakery for her to inherit.

Rei often spoke of her grandfather as if he was the biggest positive influence in her life, a role-model and someone that she tried to make proud with her every action. She had done her best to keep his bakery thriving in spite of all that stood in the way of that, and it seemed that that wasn't the only thing that she had inherited from the man.

In the extremely rare cases that it was passed on, magic could stay dormant in a bloodline for several generations, lurking silently under the surface until it found the perfect host to utilize it. Said host was rarely found before the magic running through their veins became too diluted to detect, much less use, and even then it needed to be awakened under specific circumstances. It was much like Aura in that regard.

Rei was one of the lucky few who both had magic, and possessed the tools to use it. Her very soul was made to be compatible with energies that were normally unique to the individual, as illustrated by her semblance. She was the perfect host for her latent magical energy, she just needed someone or something to awaken it. And she found it.

If only said awakening hadn’t left her in such a state and rendered the dust that had been the catalyst completely inert. Lord Gerard was certainly going to have mixed feelings about this development

“Hey, did we ever get her swords back from that cave?” Arun suddenly asked, breaking the silence.

Misa nodded, “We got one of them though I’m not exactly sure which. The other fell further into the cave and we weren't able to find it. It’s probably unretrievable given how deep those caves seem to go.” Most of Rei’s equipment would need to be repaired or replaced actually. Her fight with that grimm had left nearly her entire arsenal in disrepair. Even the sword they had managed to recover would need to be repaired despite its oddly durable nature.

Arun sucked his teeth, “She's not gonna like that. I hope Hawkins doesn't get too mad at her. That man’s always been testy with his work.”

Misa smiled, a bit of amusement managing to make its way through her dour mood, “Hawkins actually didn't make them. Her girlfriend did.”

Arun blinked before a grin split across his face, “Ha! Really? She must be something else then, if she was able to make something like those swords.”

“I wouldn't know, I haven't had the pleasure of meeting her just yet. You're right though, those swords were crafted with extreme care and skill. Whoever she is just cares for Rei deeply.”

He nodded, “Just another reason for her to get better quickly, I suppose. Making the missus angry is always a bad thing, no matter the gender.”

Misa smirked, giving him a look, “You’d know, wouldn’t you?”

Arun chuckled lightly, “Yeah well, my taste in women has always been on the more intense side than others. This woman I’m interested in right now is harder to read than the terms and conditions on a new scroll. Never know where I stand with her half the time.” His smile became different as he gave her a look that was different from the normally teasing expression he normally wore, “I think she’s worth the trouble though. Time will tell.”

Misa looked away from the man before he could see the blush forming on her cheeks, “Right. Well… keep being persistent, I suppose.” She said quietly, “I hear that some women like that in a man.”

His smile widened, “I'll keep that in mind.”

Misa didn’t respond, keeping her eyes on the sleeping Faunus instead of the armored man behind her. The silence stretched for a moment, before Arun spoke up again, this time in a much more serious tone.

“Do you think she was responsible for that grimm? There’s no way it was a coincidence that that thing showed up in the same place as us, right?” He asked, referring to the monster who was responsible for Rei being put in such a state.

Misa scowled as she thought back to the grimm that Rei had fought. It was easily one of the largest of the creatures she had ever seen, nearly half the size of a Sea Feilong with armor thicker than most Deathstalkers. The amount of damage it had done to the cavern during its fight with Rei spoke of absurd strength, enough to easily pierce through stone and aura alike.

A full team of huntsmen would stand little chance against it, especially given its unknown nature, and even she and Arun would have had trouble with it had they been put in the same situation as Rei. That just made her feat all the more impressive, even if it was mostly thanks to the dust that she was able to pull it off in the first place.

“I’m not sure.” Misa finally answered, “That grimm certainly wasn’t natural, but I can think of no reason that Salem would suddenly gain enough interest in the dust that she would make a whole new grimm just to retrieve it. Both she and the Wizard have had more than ample time to seek it out and their resources are just as vast as Lord Gerard’s, albeit in different ways.”

Arun nodded, getting her point, before letting out a sigh, “Well, whyever it was there, at least nobody will suspect someone stole the dust. They’ll probably just think it fell down into the cavern with all of the researchers when the station collapsed.”

“Unless that red-haired researcher decides to mention Rei. He survived as well, albeit with broken ribs and a fractured skull.”

Arun shook his head, “Even if he does, he has no reason to believe she was there to steal anything, much less the dust. I found some bodies deeper in the cave that didn’t belong to any of the researchers. Huntsmen, I’m pretty sure. He probably thought she was just one of them. As long as he doesn’t know which kingdom they came from, nobody would bother cross checking his info because of how many of them go missing all the time.”

That was true. With so many would-be heroes constantly getting in over their heads, it became extremely difficult to document all of the losses to their ranks. People inevitably slipped through the cracks and it was possible that the ill-fated team sent to help the researchers would be one such occurrence.

As she thought, Arun suddenly stood from his chair, cracking his back with a small grunt, “Anyway, I should probably get going. I told Pa I wouldn’t be gone for more than a day or so and Rei doesn’t look like she’s waking up any time soon. I’d better hit the road before I get an angry call.” He grabbed his weapon from where it was leaning against the nearby wall, strapping it to his back before. As he turned to leave, he gave her one last look, “Let me know when the kid wakes up, alright? I’ve still got to give her that recipe, after all.”

Misa smiled at his thinly veiled concern, “I will. Stay safe, Arun.”

He gave her a smile and a nod, “I'll try my best."

The door closed softly behind the man, leaving Misa alone with the sound of the beeping monitors and the unconscious teen’s breathing. The silver-haired woman stared down at the young Faunus, taking her deceptively peaceful demeanor in for a long moment, before she sighed and stood as well. Arun was right, she wasn’t waking up any time soon and she still hadn’t given her master the full report on what had transpired. She would return to Lord Gerard and come back in the morning.

She placed a hand on Rei’s good hand, squeezing it lightly, “Get well soon, Rei. We have a lot to talk about when you wake up.”

Misa truly hoped that Lord Gerard wouldn’t be too angry at her for what she had done.