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"Alright, pipsqueaks, listen up!" Captain Yami's voice rang through the sitting room, where he stood in the middle, cloak on and arms crossed. "We got a mission from the Wizard King, so get ready ASAP, we gotta move out. Anyone who's not fast enough gets left behind." He huffed out a laugh as he said that last part, the cigarette in his mouth moving with his lips.
"Where are we goi'g, Captain?" Asta asked excitedly, stars in his eyes as he clasped his hands and stood attentively in front of Yami.
"Well, glad to see the enthusiasm, kid. We're going to a village called…hmm, can't remember. But we're going to a village to stop a bandit problem."
"Awedome, this is gonna be so gool!" Asta exclaimed, pumping his fist in the air and spinning around.
Yami frowned at the boy, taking note of how congested his voice sounded. And his face was a bit pale, too. Yami sighed, uncrossing his arms and rubbing at his eyes. He almost felt bad for what he was about to do, but knew it had to be done.
"Hold it, Asta," he said, grabbing the back of the boy's cloak so he couldn't run away. The other squad members were already filing into the room. Luck was bouncing on his feet, excitement in his eyes, while Magna excitedly pumped his fist and Finral sulked. Noelle stood with her hands on her hips, and Vanessa leant against a doorframe, both watching the scene in front of them. Grey, of course, just stood there puffing out steam.
"Something wrong, Captain?" Asta asked, stopping his movements of walking away and looking back at his commander.
"You're not coming on this one," Yami finally managed to say, looking away from the boy so he couldn't see the sorrow in his eyes.
"What?! Why not?" Asta whined, jerking out of Yami's grip and spinning to face him properly. The Captain of the Black Bulls watched as Asta's feet shuffled quickly to regain his balance after spinning around.
"You're sick, I can't take you out in the field," Yami said, keeping his voice firm to let the boy know there was no other option.
Asta smiled at him, squaring his shoulders. "No, I'm fine!" He put his hands on his hips and grinned broadly. Yami was almost convinced. Almost.
"You're congested, and unsteady on your feet," was the Captain's dry response. "There's no way I'm taking you along just to have you get killed by a bandit while you sneeze."
There were a few chuckles at that, and Yami shot a few glares Luck and Magna's way. Asta ignored them, though, still trying to argue his case.
"I might be a teeny tiny bit sick, but it's fine," he said, "I'm not gonna get stabbed!"
"Tch," Yami scoffed. "Sure, I'll just take you on your word for that." Asta looked like he was about to thank him, and Yami held up his hand, then sighed. "No! I'm not bringing you along, and that's final."
"So you're gonna leave me here all alone?" There were tears gathering in Asta's eyes, and Yami struggled to keep his gaze.
"Well, no," Yami said, taking the cigarette out of his mouth, "I can't leave you alone, so someone will be staying with you."
Suddenly there were steps echoing through the room and Noelle came into view, flipping her hair as she walked. "Well, I suppose I could be persuaded to stay behind," she said, stopping next to them. "Although I'm sure my presence will be missed in the skirmish. But, it would be the… charitable thing to do to stay with an ailing squad member." Her eyes were closed as she spoke, arms crossed over her chest.
"Yah, no." And Yami squashed her hopes of staying alone with Asta, taking care of him, and making him care for her in the process. "You're both kid newbies, I'm not leaving you alone. At least one adult superior has to stay behind to supervise, although I don't mind if you feel the need to stay behind, Noelle."
He looked around the room at the others. Magna and Luck were back to arguing, Grey was still standing, stoically puffing smoke, and Finral he needed for their transportation.
"Vanessa!" He called, waving her forward. She uncrossed her arms and started walking towards them.
"Yes, captain?" She asked, joining their little circle.
"You'll be staying here with Asta and Noelle. No special orders, just don't let Asta destroy the building or anything."
"Yes sir," she said, switching her gaze to the two newbies.
"Alright, the rest of you, move out!" Yami called, striding out of the room, not looking back. Magna and Luck stopped their argument and followed him, then started arguing again. Grey just lumbered along, and Finral sighed, stuck his hands in his pocket, and followed him out.
When they were all gone, Vanessa clapped her hands and said, "Alright, you two, you heard the captain. No destroying the building, or killing each other. Call me if you need me."
And with that, she walked out of the room. Noelle and Asta looked at each other, then Noelle tossed her hair again and walked across the room to sit on the couch. Asta just sighed, and went to sit down too.
Sure, he was sick, but it wasn't fair that he had to sit out because of a little cold! He sulked for a bit, then went to go train. And when the rest of the squad got back, mission successful, he held out for a few minutes before eagerly asking them all how it went. Yah, he had just been practicing his patience, that was all.
At least the building didn't collapse, and all three were still alive. Mission accomplished, he was such a successful Magic Knight, enough to be the Wizard King some day!