“S-Sis…?” I didn’t understand back then why I felt so sad, why I felt as if my innards were freezing up. It felt…cold, so cold, colder than training under that waterfall for two hours.

She just stood there, staring into the midst. Sis was holding something, in a clenched fist pressed close to her chest.

“Sis?” I repeated, a little scared now. “…Where’s Momma?”

She just shook her head, and chuckled softly the way she always did when I had done something stupid. It was almost reassuring, though the forced expression upon her face betrayed how hurt she was.

“Momma’s…going to be away for a while,” Mia said softly. “You don’t need to be scared, Maya. I’ll take care of you.”

She turned around and kneeled down so that we were face to face. Her smile was gentle, and her free hand was warm as she wiped away a trailing tear on my cheek. I tried my best to smile back, but my frozen face wouldn’t respond. Instead, I asked the question that had been confusing me for so long.

“Sis…Why are you crying?” My voice shook slightly as I realised what I’d just said. I clapped my hands over my mouth, how could I make outbursts like that? Aunt Morgan had gotten upset once when I’d asked similar questions. Would Mia be mad too?

She didn’t respond, and instead picked me up and placed me upon her shoulders.

“It’s getting chilly out here, why don’t we go inside, eh?” It was as if she’d never heard my question. I felt a slight jolt as she deliberately rose up playfully.

“You’ve always liked piggybacks huh, Maya?”

But I had wanted to stay out there, stay out there and let my cheeks be stung by the whistling wind, listen to it howl like an injured wolf separated from its pack, the same way my heart ached, in need of reassurance. I wanted to stay, and wait for Momma to come home.

The fragile paper doors slid shut behind us, and Sis placed me down on the wooden floorboards. She stared at me for a moment, as though considering something, and then kneeled down to be level with me once more.

“Here,” she said softly and pressed the object she had been holding into my hands. She pressed my fingers over it. “You should take this, I think you would look after it better than me.”

Huh? Had Sis gone crazy? I knew for a fact that the reason why Aunt Morgan occasionally would smack me was because I lost things constantly. Why would she give me anything to look after? I uncurled the fist to reveal a magatama. It glowed dully - its spiritual power seemed to have drained away. It was dark green…and it was still warm. I glanced up, shocked. This had belonged to…!

“Sis, isn’t this…?!” The words wouldn’t come. It was strange, I couldn’t bring myself to even mention her.

“Take care of it, Maya. It’s important.” She straightened up and took me by my free hand. “I’m sure you’ll find a use for it one day.”

***

Two days passed, a week, maybe three. I’d lost count. It was a bit hard, really, since I’d only learnt to count up to ten back then. And I’d sort of forgotten how many days there were in a week. After spirit medium training, I would always walk over to the main door to sit, and wait. For the familiar clank of Momma’s jewelled staff be set down whenever she stopped walking and lean against it. For the amused laugh upon seeing my silhouette behind the paper door, and the voice which jokingly said, “knock, knock”.

It always took a while for Sis to persuade me to go to dinner. I’d been scared of accidentally missing Momma at the door in case she returned and insisted multiple times that I eat right there. But Sis always had some way of convincing me, be it that it was burgers night, (no matter how much it annoyed Aunt Morgan) or that Momma would’ve been much happier to walk in seeing us sitting all together, like the happy family she’d always wanted us to be.

A year slowly crawled by. I remember that a year had passed, since we went to the new year festival. Sis bought me a blue steel samurai ball that I still treasure today. Aunt Morgan even allowed me to buy some new purple beads to hang in my hair. But it still didn’t feel the same without Momma.

Finally, one night, a few days after Mia had started school, I asked her.

“Sis, when’s Momma coming home?”

I remembered how the grip on one of those foreign “pencil things” stiffened, and how the gray pointy stuff that wrote words broke and sprinkled powder over the parchment she was writing on. I was scared, thinking I must have messed my wording up and had done something else wrong. I waited there silently. She finally turned, a blank expression upon her face. It didn’t suit her usually sharp and thoughtful gaze.

“I’m not sure.” She suddenly said, her voice as hollow and dead as a rotting tree trunk. Her whole body shook, and she looked away in shame. Then her hands suddenly clenched into fists.

“Why…Why did she even leave in the first place? Leave us behind…whilst she’s trying to escape from…what? I don’t know!” She raked a hand through her chestnut hair in frustration and pulled on it as if trying to remove it from her head. “I don’t know…I don’t know anything about why she left…how…she felt then… She could’ve chosen to stay…We would’ve tried to help! Tried to understand.” Her voice was barely a whisper.

“She could’ve stayed,” she repeated, her eyes full of tears.

My heart was in my throat. I had never seen Sis in such despair. I didn’t know what else to do, and ran over to her for a hug. Her head rested against my shoulder silently as she too wrapped my hands around me. Soon, her chest was no longer heaving, and her gasps were back to relaxed breathing.

“But you’re gonna help her, Sis, aren’t you? You’re studying to become a ‘Lar-wer’!” I screwed up my face in concentration at the unfamiliar word. “You’re bringing her back to us!”

I heard Mia laugh, the first time she’d laughed in many, many days. She looked at me, dimples in her cheeks as she smiled. Just then, I felt a flare of hope in myself, something that melted through the icicles of anguish. This meant that I was right, Sis was doing something to help! And I knew that she would succeed. I patted her shoulder with my tiny hand, trying to sound all-important for what I was about to say.

“Don’t worry, Sis! You go ahead and become a ‘Lar-wer’ and I’ll do my best to help you!” I leapt from her arms, wobbled over to the work table and enthusiastically grabbed the broken “pencil”. “I could write this thingy up right now!”

My feet suddenly left the floor as she drew me close again, and kissed me quietly on the cheek.
“No, Maya.” She said gently. “Leave all that complicated stuff to me. All you need to do is be there when I need you.”

“Th-that’s all?” I was aware I was blushing, but couldn’t seem to find the reason why.

“Oh, and don’t forget what I’ve always told you.” She smiled. “I want you to be brave and smile no matter how bad it gets.”

“Like this?” I stretched my mouth as wide as it could get and giggled as Mia tickled me playfully. Feeling very accomplished inside, I hugged her back. Sis had given me an important job! And I knew better than to fail it.

That was what I’d thought back then.
***
You see, that is exactly why, as I lifted a shaking hand to draw back a curl of her hair to see her pale face, as I heard an unfamiliar male voice yell out in horror, as I stared at her unmoving body, that I had felt the two halves of my heart being torn slowly apart.

Sis had given me a job, a simple task. To stay by her side, and be with her whenever she needed me.

Such a simple task, one that I had not achieved, and would never get a second chance to attempt again.

I watched as Mia’s blue magatama gave its last feeble glow before dying out, freezing into useless stone, and thought I saw a spark of green briefly flashing from my own pocket.

"Perfect, just perfect. It's only lunchbreak and I've already humiliated myself by mixing up the victim's photos TWICE, AND I've forgotten my purse!"

She clutched her head and massaged her temples in an attempt to make the growing ache in her head die down, not knowing how much worse her first day as a defense attorney could get. It just didn't seem to work.

With a sigh, she slouched in her sitting position upon her work table and scanned the office. Mia was aware that she was alone; everyone else had left either to purchase their lunch or rest outside in the fresh air. So far, she hadn't come across a single work partner that seemed thoroughly interested in doing their job properly. She let her thoughts wonder astray; maybe proving herself worthy to her boss wouldn't be so hard after all…

That's when she first heard his voice.

"What's this little kitten doing in a lion's den all by herself?"

She positively jumped off from where she was sitting at the cocky remark that had just shot out at her like a stray bullet. Mia turned her head sharply to stare at a dark skinned man with wild black hair who was leaning by the doorway.

He wore bright red shirt and striped vest, including two dark bands at the curve of his arms with matching trousers, and a neat black tie positioned near his collarbone.

She flushed at being caught sitting with probably a dazed look on her own desk.

However, it wasn't the way he dressed that rendered her speechless, it was his eyes. Dark, hazel brown eyes that held her gaze with such curiosity…such intensity. Mia noticed a clean, white mug in his hand with steam coming out of it. Coffee, she guessed from the strong aroma it emitted.

But that didn't matter.

A total stranger had just called her Kitten!

"I have a name." She replied coolly. "It's Mia Fey."

"Ha…!" He gave a short bark like laugh that made her flinch. The man walked slowly towards her. "Well, I suppose at the beginning of a conversation, one should always know the name of the person he is speaking to." He extended the hand holding his mug towards her. "Diego Armando."

Mia stared at him with disbelief. "What, you expect me to shake hands with your coffee mug, m-mister?" she managed sarcastically.

"No, I expect you to drink from it." He replied with a teasing grin.

Her eyes widened.

"Don't worry, it's perfectly safe. I haven't even taken a sip yet, which I warn you, is rather unusual for someone like me," He gazed at her again with those dark brown eyes. "…Unless I'm distracted, of course."

<i> I-Is he HITTING on me? That's it, this day could not possibly get any worse than this. </i>

After a moment's silence, the man continued the conversation as if the last few sentences had never been said.

"I heard that you forgot your purse."

<i> Oh please… No. </i>

"So, how about it, Kitten?" He held up his still steaming coffee mug and raised it to his lips. "Want to do lunch?"

It took all of Mia's physical strength to stop her jaw from crashing to the carpeted floor, or simply to refrain from screaming at this man to politely go away.

"After all," he continued. "You are the office newbie here. I think I should keep an eye out for you. Have you seen the way some guys back there look at you?"

<i> Yeah, you're giving me a great example of that. </i> She thought vehemently. No, she wasn't going to lose to him that easily. In fact, this was a perfect opportunity; she would show him that she wasn't just some vulnerable elementary school girl. Mia had worked extremely hard to get here in this office all by herself, and she will not tolerate any of this behaviour shown towards her, especially by this man that obviously has never heard of the term 'personal space'.

"Fine," she replied, pasting a sickly sweet smile on her face. "I'll go, but bear in mind, Mr. Armando that this is in no way a date."

"Ha…! I don't keep promises like that, Kitten." He motioned towards the door with his coffee mug. "Shall we?"

Broken Pieces

Characters: Mia Fey and Diego Armando (some mentioning of Dahlia Hawthorne)
All characters belong to Capcom


clank, click, clank

The sounds came from the kitchen, and echoed dully in Mia's ears. She closed her eyes and willed it to go away. But was that possible?

Could you really turn back time to before the trial began and when the white mug was still intact and not painfully cut into his hands?

Could you really have saved him, even when he willingly drank the deadly liquid from that tiny and seemingly insignificant bottle?

Could you really have won against the demoness, even if you tried again?

No.

Mia's heart plummeted and she felt another teardrop slide down her already wet cheek. She wished she really could turn back time, but that was impossible.

The urge to just fall back onto the bed she was standing against and push her head into the pillows left her, she straightened up and walked towards the kitchen.

clank...
"ARGH!"

...clank

"Damn mug...it was my favourite one too..."

"M-Mr. Armando?"

He turned his pained face around to look at her, and his expression brightened considerably.

"Finally stopped casting depressing clouds into the air, Kitten?"

"Your...h-hand... Is it alright?" She managed.

Both heads turned to the deep wounds cut into the flesh. Mia felt a surge of guilt in the pits of her stomach. It was technically her fault that his hand was like that.

He seemed to be able to read her mind.

"I chose to crush that mug out of my own anger, Kitten. It had nothing to do with you."

"Why do you still insist that I didn't get us into this mess?" Her voice was strangely indignant and more tears welled up in her eyes.

"Because you didn't. End of story." His tone showed that the conversation was very much over.

clank

"Ah, that should be the last of them." The defence attorney admired his wretched hand and then gazed down at the full wastebasket holding the bloody pieces of the mug.

"Hmm, it's almost as if I decided to dye my coffee mug red, failed horribly and then smashed it into the wall." He tried to joke.

Diego Armando felt a pressure at the side of his shoulder and turned again back to her. She was holding a jar or some sort of ointment and bandages with a timid, yet determined look upon her face.

"Kitten, you don't have to..."

"Hold out your hand, Mr. Armando."

He reluctantly complied, and winced slightly as the ointment met his wounds and stung bitterly. The soft and non compressive feeling he felt as it was continuously wrapped around his hand allowed him to notice how she was trying her hardest to do this gently. Mia finished her handiwork and held it close, applying light pressure to certain parts of it.

"W-what are you doing?" He asked, amused.

"Just checking if you still have feeling in your hand." Her voice was quiet. "...Do you?"

"Nah, can't feel anything." He clutched it tragically. "Must have cut a nerve or something."

"H-Huh?" In midst her panic, Mia didn't notice his dramatic acting.

"Hmm, and now I seem to be seeing black dots over there." He continued and pointed vaguely into the distance toward the bedroom. "They're...pulsing."

"Okay, enough is enough, Mr. Armando. You go lie on the bed and…I'll call the hospital. Mia's voice was rushed and confused, not knowing how to respond to this very awkward
situation.

Still groaning horrendously, he was steered into the other room and settled into bed.

"Feeling slightly better?" She asked him, with a hastily prepared cup of coffee in her hands.

"Mmm…" He mumbled.

"Mr. Amando?"

"Put the coffee down...." He indicated to the bedside table.

She did so and was suddenly dragged by her wrist and onto the bed as well, right next to him.

"Hmm, the black dots seem to have disappeared. You seem to have taken their place, Kitten."

"M-Mr. Armando!" She quickly realised her mistake, and also the fact that she had done so too late. His arm wrapped around her waist and caused her heart to jump to her mouth.

"Well, what do you know…the pain seems to have gone as well."

"M-Mr. Armando, don't you dare!" Mia glared at him and managed to pull free. She leapt from the bed and settled on a stool next to it, her back turned towards him.

"Alright, alright. Lighten up. I was just trying to cheer you up a bit."

"You think…FLIRTING with me would cheer me up?!" Mia glared at him.

Fiercely.

A little too fiercely.

Armando's smile vanished as quickly as it had come and his face was suddenly and unnaturally serious.

"Mia Fey. It wasn't your fault that Fawles died. He poisoned himself. And that witch is the only one that should be blamed for it."

"B-But…I could have…"

"Could have what?!" He suddenly roared, causing her to jump back a bit in fright.
She had never seen him this angry before. It was always the cocky, arrogant attitude that attracted her to him as a mentor. Not this. Never this angry.

"Could have what…Mia. Answer me that."

"I-I…" She was at a loss for words.

"I'm waiting."

Silence.

"Hmph, I suspected as much." He sat up on his bed and tried his best to straighten his black mane like hair into place.

"Now you go ahead and call the hospital. I may have lied about my nerves malfunctioning but I am still in pain.."

"Mr. Armando…I…"

He held up his bandaged hand.

"Wounded man. Need help. Please."

"R-Right."

"That's my kitten." His smile returned as he reached for the cup of coffee she had brewed for him.

Only to spit out the contents as soon as he took the first sip.

"Kitten! That salt in the coffee thing was only a joke back in court!"

"Wh-what…?"

"You put SALT in my coffee."

"Oh. I did? I THOUGHT that sugar bag had…"

"Sugar? SUGAR in a perfect black blend of…" He suddenly paused to suppress a grin.
…
Silence.

"Oops."

They both burst out laughing.

The first time Mia Fey had laughed in many years.

And one of the last times she ever would.

End of One Shot