Work Text:
Asta was concerned about Noelle.
Lately, when they trained, he often caught Noelle staring at him. When she realized he had seen her, her face turned red and she started babbling things that made no sense, launching a spell at him, or demanding he put on a shirt.
Asta wasn’t sure how to interpret her behavior (like often). So, after Noelle ran away from him while training for the third time this week, he shuffled back to the base and dropped on the couch, dejected.
“What did you do to the girl?” Vanessa asked with a laugh. “She didn’t even greet me back!”
Asta shrugged. He wasn’t sure himself. He grabbed a towel and tried to dry the remains of Noelle’s spell. He wondered if one day she could make spells with warmer water. It was always the coldest shower.
“I don’t know,” Asta admitted. His voice was heavy with defeat.
“What happened?”
Asta sat down and told Vanessa everything: about this time and the times before, and the way Noelle would blush and at times launch a spell at him, and at other times run away. The witch listened and it looked like she was trying not to laugh.
“I think I know why she’s acting like this,” Asta said, his face serious. He had to share his hypothesis with someone who knew Noelle well. Maybe Vanessa could help or point to him what he had done wrong. “I think she’s still worried about my scar.”
Vanessa snorted before she started outright laughing out loud. Asta watched her, confused, until she apologized and poured herself another glass.
“Sorry,” Vanessa said. She cleared her throat and for a second, she looked like she was about to laugh again. Asta wondered what was so funny. “So, um. Your scar, right? The one that’s right where your abs are.”
Asta looked down at his lap. “I think she’s… worried it still hurts.”
Vanessa snorted. “Oh, no. She’s not.”
“Really? But why does she… look at it all the time then? And why is she upset when I point it out?”
Vanessa took a deep breath, then let it out slowly. Asta waited. Vanessa seemed to know what was going on with Noelle and he would listen. It was important.
“I’m not in the girl’s head. I wasn’t in that dungeon with you either. But I don’t think it’s worry. Maybe she simply enjoys the view.”
“The view?”
Vanessa gestured at him before giggling again. Asta sat there, confused and shirtless. Vanessa looked back up at him. Asta stared back at her blankly.
There was a beat. Nero took off and left the room. Upstairs, Magna chased Luck down the halls and crashed into a pillar. The wind howled into the cracked window that Yami had no intention of fixing unless someone did it first.
Then Vanessa’s face got more serious and she put down her wine.
“Asta. You know you’re cute, right? And attractive to some, right?”
“Me?” Asta said, blushing to his ears.
“Oh, Noelle will kill me for that…” Vanessa muttered before looking back up and smiling at Asta. “Maybe… you know… Noelle likes looking at you. Because she finds you attractive.”
“Oh,” Asta said. “You think?”
“It’s a… possibility,” Vanessa said, grabbing her glass again.
Asta thought it had to be true. After all, it was Vanessa. She knew about girls more than Asta did, and she knew Noelle better too!
“So… do you know what to do now?” Vanessa asked, a slight smirk on her lips.
♣
Finral came home to a giggling Vanessa, which wasn’t rare, but to a giggling Vanessa who gestured at him to come closer. And that could only mean one thing.
Mischief.
Finral listened patiently to Vanessa’s recalling. Sure, Finral had noticed what was going on with the rookies. Only the two protagonists seemed oblivious to it. But Finral also knew Noelle. And he knew Asta. That couldn’t possibly go well. Asta would make a blunder. Noelle will overreact. The world will explode and with it, Finral’s relative peace.
“So what did you advise him to do?” Finral asked prudently.
Finral knew Vanessa. He knew she was a great source of advice. He also knew that she would never pass up an opportunity to tease the rookies and that usually came before giving good advice. But since she was only half drunk and not completely hammered, Finral had hope this time.
“Mmh… Nothing much.”
“Vanessa,” Finral said, aggravated.
“Finral,” Vanessa replied in the same tone.
“What did you—”
“Nothing! Whatever he’s doing right now, it’s what he decided to do with the information I fed him…”
There was a shriek. A loud, loud shriek. Then the noise of a window bursting. And a loud, loud scream. Finral and Vanessa moved to the window in time to see Asta being yeeted out by a water spell. They watched in silence as Asta disappeared into the ether.
This is worse.
Finral whimpered and glanced at Vanessa, who kept watching the sky where their rookie had disappeared off to.
“Don’t you think Noelle’s control is getting better?”
That was not the conclusion Finral would have drawn.