Naming Pt One (Ten Set 04 #7-Yes)
Title: Naming Authors: ladynero and icedark_elf Characters: Abel Nightroad and girl Zack Fair Fandom: Trinity Blood and Final Fantasy VII Theme Set: Ten Set 04 Theme(s): 07-Yes Warnings and Notes: Crossover rp. Smut. Set a few months after the first.
Word count: This prompt: 18,803 Total set: 32,313
Catarina smiled as she glanced around at the various people gathered at her Milan home. They were mostly dressed in the robes and habits of the clergy, but a couple wore finer outfits. Catarina herself had put aside the heavy robes of a cardinal to don a lighter dress of pale blue.
Smiling, enjoying the nice surroundings, Zack meandered through the others, saying hello here and there and generally enjoying the atmosphere.
Abel wandered over to Catarina and gazed out over the various people who were more like strangers than friends. But that was the price he paid for his anonymity. Catarina smiled at him. "Where is your shadow?" she teased.
That got a small shrug from Abel. "Zack's around here somewhere."
"Somewhere is behind your back," she said dryly, coming up from another direction. "Hello there, both of you."
Catarina smiled as she turned, not embarrassed in the slightest. "Are you enjoying yourself?"
Abel turned as well, nodding in greeting to Zack. They had come together with the rest of the AX and Foreign Affairs, but had gotten separated when Abel had hung back to speak to a few people.
She smiled back at Abel, and then nodded at Catarina. "It's so green out here. I mean, if you get outside the range of the reactors, it's like that as well, but there's just something about a place not being sucked dry of life."
"Armageddon did destroy much of the world, but it also allowed nature to reclaim what she wished," remarked Catarina, bending down to pick a stray wildflower by her feet. She twirled it in her fingers with a smile. "Personally, I believe that was the only nice thing Armageddon did."
Zack gave a lazy grin. "Lots of people I don't know today," she said, looking around, seeing a few more familiar faces among the crowd.
Catarina chuckled. "I try to throw a Midsummer's Celebration every year to give my department a day or two off."
"As well as let us just relax without the Inquisition breathing down our necks," added Abel with a smirk.
"The mice play while the cats play?"
"Something like that," shrugged Catarina. "I try to get Alessandro to come, but he begs off, not wanting to play favorites between Francesco and I."
"So you'll just need to take him elsewhere. If nothing else, getting him out of the city would probably do the boy some good. Maybe some of your agents and some of Inquisition that Alec likes can take turns. No favoritism there."
Catarina smiled. "I'll try that sometime in the future. It's a long, old fight between Francesco and I, both wanting what we feel is the best for the world, but he's willing to cross a line I hope I haven't gotten near yet."
Abel reached out to rest a hand on Catarina's shoulder. "You have more sense in your head than to sacrifice innocents for the 'Greater Good'."
"Which is a good thing," Zack pointed out. "I've lived and seen various worlds where the 'everyone is expendable' mentality is the main one. And they are not so happy places."
Catarina nodded and smiled at them. "All right, I've taken up enough of your time. Go, have fun and play. Abel knows all the best spots here."
"Usually because I had to chase you out of them," retorted Abel.
Snickering some, Zack nudged Abel with her elbow. "Come, oh old one. Show me some of these spots. Maybe we can drag the others off to play. Now would be a good time to show off some of my other tricks."
Abel chuckled and motioned her to follow him. "All right. What would you like to show off first?"
"I can let you try a materia, see if you can do anything with them. If so, I can start plotting out stuff for you." Zack walked along with him. "Maybe later we can snag people and I can do a full out spar. No offense, but dealing with the restraints put on us in the training rooms at the Vatican is a bit...limiting."
He glanced around and moved off in another direction. "The AX tends to gather off by itself since we deal with things the rest of the Department doesn't," he remarked with a small smile. "Also allows us to swap stories and reminisce over harder alcohol than wine."
"A group after my own heart." Zack snickered. "The bar hop when there aren't any bars around."
"Since we get paid more for the missions we do, we can afford to bring better quality alcohol." He grinned. "And why we don't like to share with anyone outside of the AX."
Zack just shook her head, grinning. "Hey, you don't have to explain to me. 'We blow up lots of crap, time to have a good time.' SOLDIERs could be the same way."
"I was only letting you know for the next gathering. That way you can bring a bottle as well." He entered a hedge maze and reached up to pull off a cluster of lilac blooms from the large bush by the entrance before holding them out to her. "Just because."
Blinking for a moment, she then took them with a small smile. 'Thank you." Leaning in, she brushed a kiss on his cheek. "And a thank you gift, since I don't have anything else at the moment."
He smiled, a faint blush on his cheeks, before holding out his hand to her.
Smelling the flowers, she took the offered hand. "So, best spots, hmm? The whole area is pretty."
"Well, the AX usually gathers at the bottom of the hill that's on the other side of the maze," remarked Abel, leading her into the maze. "It lets us be loud and rambunctious without scaring the others."
"And I can imagine we are a scary bunch for the mundanes," she said with a shake of her head.
"Leon's only scary to the ladies when he's been drinking. That's when he starts chasing everything in a skirt," Abel said with a straight face.
Zack gave a bright smile. "Lucky for me, I don't wear a skirt."
He chuckled. "The only one who won't drink is Tres."
"Really?"
"Android. It doesn't do anything for him."
She made a noise of remembrance. "I think I recall you saying something about that."
He nodded. "Gunslinger."
That got an intrigued smile from Zack. "I'm going to have to spar with him at some point. He sounds like fun."
"You'll probably spar with all of us at some point," Abel remarked. "Gives us an excuse to beat up on each other."
"Yes, but for the most part, we have issues with location and timing," she pointed out. "Especially since I'm trying to stay out of any special attention at the Vatican."
"I was referring to today."
Zack's face lit up. "Really?"
He nodded. "Mostly Leon, Hughes, Tres and myself end up sparring, but the Professor's been known to fight occasionally." He smiled a bit sad. "Reminds us we're alive."
Bumping him with a shoulder, she smiled at him. "I empathize. So we'll get to thump on each other. That'll be interesting."
He grinned back. "Try not to dislocate any more knees, okay?"
"No promises," she teased.
"I only ask you try not to damage Tres too badly. Depending on the Professor's state of inebriation, he might not be able to fix him until tomorrow."
"If it makes you feel better, I'll keep to bare hands." Zack gave him a wicked grin. "No frying the others with lightening."
He chuckled as they emerged from the maze to stand on the top of a steep hill that allowed them a view of the sprawling countryside for a good couple of miles.
She paused, looking around with a bright eyed smile. "This reminds me of home."
"Oh?" He glanced at her, curious.
"Grew up in the jungles around Gongaga. Lots of green there. Though you guys seem to have a lack of Touch Mes."
"I'm sure I'll regret this, but what's a Touch Me?"
"Frogs that turn you into frogs."
He shook his head. "Those sound like a prank waiting to happen."
Zack gave him a pleased smile. "Oh, yes. I was so pleased when I found a materia that let you turn other people into frogs."
"Oh dear," murmured Abel, his face worried but his eyes dancing.
"They also let me turn people into versions of themselves about a foot tall." She gave an innocent smile. "Not that I would -ever- use such a thing for evil."
"If such a thing were to happen around the Vatican, I will deny all knowledge, of course," murmured Abel.
"Hey! Are you two love birds gonna join us or just stare at the country side all day?" called Leon from below them.
"You're just jealous I'm keeping him all to myself," Zack called back.
"Someone that pretty? You're right!" Retorted Leon, and Abel blushed as he started down the hill.
"Neener, neener. You should have acted faster, then," was the catcall back as she went with Abel.
"But you only arrived a little bit ago. I thought I'd give you time to settle in," remarked Leon, a grin on his face as he settled back down on one of the flat boulders that formed a semi-circle around a fire pit. The Professor was sitting off to one side next to Hughes, while Tres stood nearby.
"I should tell you I'm a speedy bastard. How else am I supposed to pull off as much awesome as I do?"
"By being your charming self and dazzling the rest of us poor mortals into doing your bidding?" inquired Leon.
"And the fact that he managed to make that sound completely sincere is nothing short of amazing," mused the Professor, a teasing smile on his face.
"Dance, my puppets, dance?" Zack added in a dry tone.
Leon smiled, a bright and charming smile. "Princess, for you, I would find a way to lay the stars at your feet for your enjoyment."
Abel glanced at Hughes as he claimed a seat against the back of the hill. "How much has he had to drink already?" Hughes gestured to the dozen bottles of amber liquid that were still sealed.
Zack started to snicker. "Wow. Okay, that is a change. Usually I'm the flirty one." She also found a comfy spot to settle.
"He's a Spaniard," Abel and the Professor stated together, startling a small snicker out of Abel.
"You know that means nothing to me. Though, apparently, Spaniard means shameless flirt."
"That's the definition of a Spaniard. We are the Lovers of the world, able to appreciate true beauty in every form," drawled Leon with an inviting grin as he sprawled there.
She snorted. "Subtle. I'm a SOLDIER. We thump things."
"A beauty such as you should be wrapped in velvet and silk and draped in jewels while men tend to your every need," protested Leon. "Not out in the muck, fi~eeee!"
Abel hid a smile as the Professor calmly dumped one of the buckets for the fire pit over Leon's head. "That should cool your libido some, Dandelion," drawled the Professor.
"I was being reminded of the shows my mom watched when I was a kid, honestly," Zack felt the need to add. "Soaps and all that."
"If you don't stop him early, he'll go on all night," stated Hughes, glancing at her.
"I'd have drop kicked him eventually," she drawled. "Though I would have refrained from dislocating his knee." That got a sideways grin towards Abel.
Abel grinned. "Good. Injury-inducing sports aren't until later."
"I have a cure."
"Yes, but a bit of alcohol goes a long way to smooth over injured pride," remarked the Professor with a smile.
That got a laugh, and Zack nodded. "True, true."
Leon glanced around. "Did anyone remember to invite Esther to this gathering?"
"Were we suppose to?" inquired the Professor, the look on his face indicating his hope was for a negative answer.
"You know, I've yet to actually meet this mysterious Esther," Zack commented.
"Forty dinar says she starts complaining about the alcohol first," Leon said as a shrill voice cut through the air. "Father Nightroad? Where are you?"
Abel winced at the voice before shaking his head. "Sucker's bet."
Tucking a leg up to rest her chin on it, Zack made an amused sound. "Father Nightroad?" she mused, quirking a brow at Abel. "Don't here that too often."
"She insists on calling me that. Claims nothing else is 'proper'," drawled Abel, plastering a fake and friendly smile on his face as a red haired nun slipped down the steep hill only to huff at them all.
"Really, what are all of you doing hiding here?" inquired Esther, brushing down her skirts before pointing an accusing finger at the bottles. "And with alcohol too. That's evil liquid."
"Only if it tastes nasty before giving you the hangover," Zack said, shifting to lean on Abel.
That got a snicker from Leon as Abel smiled at Esther. "What are you doing here away from the celebration, Sister Esther?"
Esther sniffed and folded her arms, primly. "Trying to find where you were, Father Nightroad. The party is over *there*."
"And we're over here." Okay, Zack was being snippy, but she had developed a strange possessive feel over Abel, which she was positive she shared with Catarina, and was fairly sure this girl had as well. Something about the red head was tugging on her nerves. Maybe her attitude?
"And you are?" demanded Esther, glaring down her nose at the woman in a *priest's* uniform.
"Oh! I had thought you had met already," babbled Abel, acting the foolish priest. "Sister Esther, this is Sister Zack Fair. Sister Zack, this is Sister Esther Blanchett. She arrived at the Vatican a few months before you.'
Nodding politely at the woman, she then nudge Abel slightly. She got the play acting, but he needed to tone it down just a little.
"Pleasure to meet you," stated Esther, her tone indicating that it was anything but. She turned wide eyes on Abel. "But why aren't you at the party? Cardinal Sforza put so much work into it."
"We shall be along later, Sister Esther," Abel said, trying to soothe her enough to go away. "But this is our little ritual."
Resisting the urge to roll her eyes, she glanced at the other agents, just to see their reactions. Okay, she was starting to get some of the attitude. But the kid was just that. A kid. Seemed spoiled, but sometimes they were just like that.
Leon had an indulgent smile on his face, the Professor was staring at his pipe as if trying to figure out how it went out when he never lit it, and both Hughes and Tres were simply unreadable.
"Cardinal Sforza knows we are here. Even sent us. We'll be back eventually."
That got a narrow eyed stare before Sister Esther humphed. "You had better.' With that warning, she turned and flounced off.
Abel practically collapsed once she was gone. "Remind me again why I brought her back with me?"
"Better watch it, Abel. She'll spank you if you are naughty," Zack said in a deadpan tone.
Leon snickered. "Nah. She wants to find out what's under his robe," he chortled, ducking the small pebble Abel tossed at him.
"She's a *child*," protested Abel.
Waggling her eyebrows at Abel, Zack purred. "Well, can't blame her on that one. It's the silver. Attracts all us 'oh, shiny' magpies." She shook her head. "Though she does seemed to come off as a bit spoiled. No offense."
"She is an orphan, raised by a nun in Ishbal," remarked the Professor. "Then, when her mother figure was killed by the local Count, she started waging a guerrilla war against him."
"She is quite spoiled," agreed Leon. "I expect her to disobey any order that doesn't suit her."
That got a frown from Zack. "I'll keep that in mind. That's -not- a safe attitude to have in a battle situation." She shook her head. "So, evil liquid?"
Leon chuckled. "What's your poison? Whiskey? Rum? Scotch?" He waved a hand at the bottles even as the bottles started being passed around. Hughes collected a bottle of scotch, the professor chose whiskey, and Abel claimed two bottles of rum before they could vanish.
Zack just waited for everyone to pick out their favorites. "It takes a lot for alcohol to get through the Mako, so I take just about anything. Even the taste changed after the injections."
Leon nodded and claimed a scotch himself. "Then help yourself," he announced, handing over a bottle of rum. "Abel seems to enjoy that."
Collecting the bottle, she grinned. "All right, then. So, how have all you guys been lately?"
"Partially bored,, partially busy," confessed the Professor with a shrug. "You have been a godsend, my dear."
Leon nodded and opened his bottle to take a sip from it directly. "Sister Noelle was great and we will miss her, but you seem to have a decent head on your shoulders to pick up the slack."
She waved away the comments. "I know, I'm awesome," the woman said with a grin. "But what have you guys been up to besides dealing with Miss Spoiled?" And they had been dealing with her, given their reactions to her.
"The vampires have been quiet," remarked Hughes, his sword staff resting against his shoulder as he sipped his scotch.
"Makes me wonder what their next plan of attack will be," confessed Abel.
Leon snorted. "We smacked them good when they tried to destroy Rome. They're still licking their wounds."
"They tried to destroy Rome? When did this happen?" She was always curious about events that pre-dated her.
"About a day or two before you arrived," Abel confessed. "The Silent Noise Machine?"
Leon nodded. "Father Four-Eyes was off saving the Lady Bird from her attacker while the rest of us were stopping the Archbishop."
"Ah, hadn't realized that had anything to do with vampires." Zack shrugged.
The Professor nodded. "The Archbishop had hired the Rosen Kruentz Order to build him the Silent Noise machine. The upper echelons of the Order are composed almost entirely of Methuselah."
"So it's that group, not vampires in general." She nodded, sipping her own drink. "This place is going to be interesting to hang around in for a while."
"Eh, Hughes lumps all Methuselah together," drawled Leon with a lazy grin.
"Noted." Absently, she started to fiddle with materia, so used to having something to do with her hands that she tended to play with things. "So, anything interesting going on with you guys currently? Or same old, same old?"
"There is talk about a possible meeting between our Lady Cardinal and an Emissary from the Empire in Carthage in a few weeks," remarked the Professor with a shrug. "Francesco has been planning on finding a way to send his Inquisition as well."
Abel snorted and pulled his glasses off, laying them next to him on the rock bench. "Probably cite security or something."
"Which will make it fun, if they are as bad as you've described them."
"Petros is okay, once you kick his ass in a fight," snickered Leon. "Paula's the scary bitch of the couple."
Zack grinned. "I'll remember that. Kicking his ass, you say?"
Leon nodded with a fond grin. "I ran him into a wall dodging my attacks. Knocked himself out."
The Professor chuckled. "I remember that fight. Made a good deal of money off of the Inquisition because of it."
She snickered. "Maybe I could do what I tried with Abel and put him through the wall. That's usually pretty effective."
"I thought I had you with a couple of those moves and then you went all flexible on me," remarked Abel, purring slightly as the rum warmth spread through his veins.
"I'm a bendy ox, what can I say?"
Leon looked her over. "Just how flexible are you? I've heard rumors, but there's never much truth in those."
For a moment, she mulled it over, then set the bottle down and stood up. Popping her neck, she started to bend backwards until her hands hit the ground. Then, shifting her weight until she was balanced, she picked her feet up and bent them at the knee until she had them crossed under her chin. "I can do more, but I don't feel like stretching that much."
All four men stared at her, their mouths slightly open at the display. Even Hughes was staring, bug eyed, at her.
Unwinding, she straightened until she was just balanced on her hands like a normal person, and then let her legs drop and stood up. "I'm getting out of shape, honestly."
Leon dragged his eyes over her, an appreciative slant to his smile. "Not that I can see. Your shape is quite lovely."
There was a soft growl from Abel that startled even him. Leon laughed, good naturally as Abel blushed slightly.
The growl got a sideways look, then she just grinned. "I'm in good enough shape to do what is needed, but I just know I'd be getting yelled at about not being in peak condition by the labbies."
The Professor snorted. "There is no lab here, my good lady, only fellow fighters enjoying a peaceful rest, some fine drink, and perhaps a bit of sparring later to heat the blood in other ways."
"And tonight, Cat will bring us a couple of picnic baskets of food and join us," added Abel.
"Sounds like good fun. Though I'm sure she'll be sad she missed seeing you guys with bug eyes."
"Kate probably took a picture," snorted Leon, shifting around to stretch out on one of the stones. "That would be one of the things she'd do."
"Hope she did. I think that's the first time I've gotten that reaction before."
"We have not seen anyone quite that flexible before," confessed the Professor with a sheepish smile. "Not even Noelle was that flexible and she was quite flexible."
Abel raised his bottle. "May she rest in peace," he toasted. The men lifted their bottles as well in salute to their fallen comrade.
She gave a curtesy drink, never having known the woman. "I have about five or six inches of what amounts to springs instead of spine. That's most of the cause of the bendy."
"That could not have been a fun time," remarked Leon, shaking his head before grinning at Hughes. "You no longer are the winner of the Greatest Injury Award, Hughes."
That got a stare and a snort before Hughes took another drink from his bottle.
"Better than Cloud, still. He was dead before they dragged him back." She sighed. "Lab people suck." Shaking her head, she pushed back the memories. "So, drinking, story time, beating each other up, and waiting for food? I like this kind of picnic."
The Professor shrugged. "It is one of the few times we can relax and be ourselves." He grinned at Hughes. "Moody bastards and all."
"Get a couple of bottles of rum into Abel, and he'll curl up in a corner, purring," added Leon in a conspiratorial whisper.
"I like purring," she said with a similar tone, glancing at Abel again with a small grin. "And moody bastards are fun to be around as well."
Abel snorted, a blush on his cheeks. "At least I don't hit on anything with two legs, Leon," he retorted, getting a good natured laugh from the Spaniard.
Chuckling, Zack looked at the quieter ones of the group. "Having fun watching us being idiots?"
"Affirmative," announced Tres before returning to watch the country side.
That just got a grin as she looked at the others, amused.
Leon snickered as Hughes started relaxing a bit from his curl. "Tres doesn't talk much, and neither does Hughes," explained Leon with a shrug.
"Communicate through thumps and sighs?"
"More like glared and growls from Hughes, and Tres... well, he's got some human feelings, but they don't get much of a work out." Leon shrugged again.
Abel smiled slightly. "He saved Little Elise when he had orders to shoot her," he remarked.
"He might have more than you think, just likes playing jokes on you."
"Possible. There is no way to know how complex his programming is without going in and tearing it apart which is not an option," remarked the Professor.
"Hey, Tres, are you just playing the silent stoic type to watch the others look goofier than normal?" Zack asked right out.
"Affirmative, Sister Zack," came the reply, and Leon snickered.
Zack chuckled. "He's right here, guys. No point about talking like he's not. And watch it, Tres. I can still fling you around."
"We're use to Tres fading into the wood work that we forget he's there most of the time," apologized the Professor.
Abel snickered. "And then he pulls out his guns and levels a room."
"Tactics, tactics, everyone has their tactics." She hummed. "Leon is outrageous, I'm a dumb fighter. Abel acts like he can barely hold two serious thoughts in his head. I bet the Professor is the distracted type, and Hughes and Tres are the 'sudden destruction from the quite' types. Right?" Zack gave all of them a sly smile.
Leon snapped his fingers. "Damn, figured us out."
"This means we can't let her get away with this information," purred Abel, his eyes flickering red from the alcohol as he rose to his feet.
"You're looking to get tossed, aren't you?" she said, eyeing him.
"As long as it doesn't ruin the nice buzz I have going on," countered Abel.
That got a surprised look from the Professor. "You haven't had much to drink, Abel. Have you been feeding enough?"
Zack rose and got a closer look. From the sound of that comment, Abel was reacting oddly to something. "Abel?"
Abel shook his head, distracted. "I'm fine. Been eating enough."
Rising to his feet, Leon walked over to stand in front of Abel. "That's not what he said. Have you been *feeding* enough? You were hurt pretty bad protecting Catarina, but you didn't come to any of us later."
She glanced around. "Will someone explain what is going on?" Zack's voice was calm, but this was going to bug her to bits if she didn't find out what they meant by all of this.
Abel swayed slightly on his feet and Leon helped him sit again. The alcohol was hitting Abel hard, a good indication that he hadn't fed recently.
"I am sure you have heard our codenames before," began the Professor. "But did you ever wonder what they meant?"
"I noticed a tendency towards abilities, but Abel hasn't yet shared what his actually means, no. I haven't wanted to push, as he still gets those twitchy vibes on occasion."
The Professor nodded. "Abel is unique among us because he was created instead of born. He is a Crusnik, a being that feeds on vampires as they feed on humans."
After nicking his neck, Leon curled a hand around the back of Abel's head and brought it down to the injury. A soft snarl slipped out of Abel as he shifted to his lowest form, driving his fangs into Leon's neck as he curled his arms around the Spaniard, holding him close.
Watching that for a moment, head tilted, Zack hummed. "Okay. So he obviously hasn't been taking care of himself." So what he was created? So was Seph. And she had no idea how much of her body had been changed, let along possible personality changes she just didn't know about. "Which means I need to poke him into doing so, correct?"
"He is comfortable around us because we have known him the longest. He would normally seek one of us out for a donation, but things have been a bit hectic and each assumed he was going to another," confessed the Professor with a shrug. "We didn't mean to keep you in the dark, but it never came up."
Abel nursed the wound for a few moments before pulling away to clean it with his tongue. Once the minor injuries healed, he glanced at her with wary red eyes.
Zack looked back. "You, sir, are a prat."
He blinked at her, stunned, and Leon snickered, swaying a bit.
"Bet he never got that reaction before," drawled Leon, shifting to lay down on the ground.
"You are supposed to be taking better care of yourself. Or else I'll have Catarina wanting to know how I broke you." She poked him in the chest. "I'm willing to donate if you need it, so don't you go doing any sort of 'oh, I'm not fit for human company' sort of bullshit. I had enough of that with Sephiroth, thank you very much, and I refuse to deal with it from someone else."
Abel blinked again, his mouth opening and closing as he continued starting at her, but no sound emerged.
The Professor snickered behind his hand as Leon howled with laughter. Even Hughes was quietly laughing behind his hair.
She looked at him expectantly.
"I think you broke him anyway, Princessa," gasped Leon. "I haven't seen him that stunned since I kissed him."
That seemed to snap Abel out of his surprise and he shifted back to his human form, a faint blush on his cheeks. "You're taking this rather well."
"What? That you drink blood or that you were created? I've seen worse than the first, and you didn't expect me to freak out over Tres, so why would I do it over you?"
Abel shook his head, a rueful smile on his face. "I forget that you're not from this planet, and don't have the same mentality as everyone else does."
Zack snorted at him. "Now my question is do you need more?"
Abel shook his head. "No. I'll be fine now."
Leon reached over and smacked Abel's leg. "Next time, take a few minutes and hunt one of us out."
Zack poked him in the head. "Like I said, I'm willing to donate as well, if needed. Just let me know."
Nodding, Abel ducked his head. "The others learned about my abilities in battles, so I didn't know how to just sit down and tell someone."
"I'm more concerned about my blood causing issues if it comes up." She sat back down.
"Well the one way to test that would be in a controlled situation," remarked the Professor with a smile. "There are still two of us here able to donate should something happen."
"Three," added Catarina, walking down the hill with two large baskets in her hands.
"Hello," Zack said, getting up to help the woman. "Finally came to hide?"
Catarina grinned and held out a basket. "Finally was able to make my excuses to my guests and vanish."
"Is Esther going to be popping up again, complaining about the evils of alcohol?" asked Abel, and everyone sighed in relief as Catarina shook her head with an amused smile.
Chuckling, she took it. "I don't think she likes me, by the way."
"Probably not, but she's not a full field agent like you are," remarked Catarina, setting the picnic basket down between the Professor and Hughes as she claimed a seat on the other side of Abel.
The Professor handed her a bottle of scotch as she passed, getting a smile back. "Kate, if you wish to join us, we're all here now."
"Oh, good. I need to find out if she took a picture," Zack grinned at the guys, moving to set the basket down so the others could reach it.
There was a shimmer of light as Kate appeared, smiling a bit wickedly. "Oh definitely," she remarked, curtseying to Zack. "A pleasure to finally meet you, Sister Zack."
There was an amused smile on Catarina's face. "What picture would that be?"
Zack was intrigued. Holograms without a visible projector? Neat. "The guys had some bugged out eyes earlier. It was rather funny."
"Oh?" inquired Catarina as the gents in question looked elsewhere. A smirk curled her lips. "May I see this picture, Sister Kate?"
"Of course," replied Kate, cheerfully, holding out a hand an an image of Zack bending almost impossibly while the men watched, stunned, appeared.
Chuckling, Zack sipped at her drink, looking amused.
Catarina blinked before snickering. "Your lovers must be very lucky," she teased, grinning at Zack.
That startled a laugh out of her, and she had to keep from spitting alcohol on anyone. "That's bad."
"I didn't think we were drunk enough to start on the sex part of the evening," snickered Leon.
Abel snorted. "You're always thinking about sex, Leon. When are you going to put a leash on that libido of yours?"
"From the way he's been going on, I think you are indulging in wishful thinking, Abel."
That got a shrug from Abel. "Hope springs eternal."
"And Spaniards are the Lovers of the World," retorted Leon with a rakish grin.
Shaking her head with a grin, Zack watched the interactions.
Catarina rolled her eyes and nudged Leon with her foot. "Get up before I forget you're not a rug," she drawled. "You'll probably have plenty of time on your back later."
Smirking, Leon rolled to his feet. "Is that a promise, mi princessa?" he purred.
Zack snickered. "He really can't help himself, can he?"
"Nope. It's something in their blood that they have to romance anything on two legs," sighed Catarina. "At least if they're male."
"And if they're female, they act like modest and romantic ladies until two of them get into an argument. Then screeching crows complete with hair pulling," added Abel with a nod.
"That's why you carry a water bottle and use it to douse them when they get too bad." She gave Leon a bright smile. "At least it works with cats."
Leon huffed and climbed back up into his seat. "I am not a cat." A wicked smirk stretched across his lips. "Abel is."
"How do you figure that?" inquired the Professor.
Zack gave a fairly credible purr.
Abel blushed as Catarina laughed. "He does purr, and give him enough time in a sunny spot and he'll curl up to nap." She reached up and ran her hand over Abel's hair.
"Not as much of one as Seph was, but you do get a silver for trying."
"Oh? How does your Seph top our Abel in the feline department?" inquired Leon with a grin.
"Kitty eyes help. A lot."
Catarina glanced at Abel before shaking her head. "I can't picture Abel with anything other than his blue eyes."
"Bright green cat eyes. Add in the long silver hair, the purring, and the love of sunny spots, and you got Seph."
That got snickers from the group and a light giggle from Kate, even as Catarina grinned and nudged Abel again. "Still prefer blue over green."
A faint blush spread across Abel's cheeks as he took a drink from his bottle.
"Poor man has blushed more tonight than the whole time I've known him so far."
"Real blushes too, and not the ones he does as part of his foolish priest image," Hughes remarked, cuddling his almost empty bottle.
Patting Abel's shoulder, Zack took sympathy on him. "So, you guys do this every year?"
Catarina nodded. "Barring emergencies or missions."
"And I'm monitoring communications back at the Vatican so I can alert everyone should a problem arise," added Kate, spreading out her skirts as she 'sat' down.
"This is nice." She looked at the others, watching how they seemed to be relaxing slowly.
"It started the first year the AX was formed. I was hosting my Midsummer's Celebration, and realized that Noelle had slipped off during the party," explained Catarina. "I got concerned and Abel and I went looking for her. Found her here, crying into a bottle and joined her."
"A few years later, I helped build this small seating area when we found ourselves wandering this way during the celebration with alcohol," added Abel.
"Alcohol is our friend."
Catarina nodded. 'And morning after pills."
All the men blushed at her frankness while Kate giggled again.
Zack gave the guys a grin. "Such shy boys."
Catarina smiled. "Yes, but so pretty together."
Abel and Hughes's blush deepened while Leon managed to smirk at them, despite the red still on his cheeks. The Professor was trying to hide behind his bottle as he drank a bit more.
"Well, they are very pretty boys." Zack was amused at the blushes, looking at them.
Catarina hummed as Abel suddenly became interested in the basket of food, pulling it over to him to dig in. "Anyone else hungry?" he asked, his voice slightly higher than normal.
"I sense a story here I'm going to be asking about later," Zack said to Catarina, smiling, and sipped more of her bottle. At least this stuff didn't taste bad.
That got a small smirk back. "Abel's a bit shy until his second bottle of rum," she whispered. "Then he starts unwinding more."
"Unwind very well, I think." Zack gave a small smile.
Catarina nodded with a matching smile. "He won't go as far as the other boys, only because of his strength and tendency to bite during sex. But a bit of rubbing and petting is pleasant to watch."
Zack could see that easily enough. "Bonding with people who share the same sort of danger." A low voice. Had seen it enough times during the war, honestly.
She nodded. "Kate leaves about that time, and Tres guards us from anything that might show up, including other clergy."
"That reminds me. Any chance I could get one of those projectors you guys use for Kate? I have something I want to poke at."
Catarina glanced at Kate who was watching everyone with amusement. "Kate? It's your call."
The blonde nun glanced at Zack. "How soon do you need one?"
"It's not an urgent thing. I was mostly curious on how it differed from our version of the tech." She wasn't going to explain how it was different, but she might be able to do a limited version of the solid light tech they had back home.
"There's a few spare projectors on the Iron Maiden you can play with," remarked Kate with a shrug as her eyes lost focus for a few minutes. "I'll have someone bring them to your room at the Vatican."
"Satellite technology is wonderful," remarked Abel with a smile. "Kate can join us and not have to haul the Iron Maiden over the country side scaring people."
"Thank you. Hopefully, it'll end up in interesting results." She glanced at Abel, and shook her head with a smile.
"How much of your training are you hiding from the Inquisition?" Hughes asked, changing the subject as he looked at Zack, curious.
"Um, I can dodge bullets, probably use the ceiling in most of the building as a springboard, and have magic, and generally kick much ass."
"Can we see?" asked Catarina, her eyes lighting up a bit. he waved a hand around. "Pick a playmate."
Zack gave a bright smile. "I've already been asked to not break anyone. Who wants to play?"
Leon nudged Abel. "Go on, show us how it's done," announced the Spaniard.
"Yes, please do, Abel. Besides, it will be a chance for you to stretch your wings, so to speak," added the Professor.
"Wings?" She gave him a sideways look.
Sighing, Abel stood up and slipped the robe and guns off before walking a bit farther away from the group. "Let's give them what they want."
Catarina nodded. "Very nice black feathered wings. Soft to touch and nice to play with."
"So, am I allowed to use magic, then? Or are we back to a "no weapons" sort of fight?"
"Use whatever you have at your disposal," Abel remarked, shifting again. He held out a hand and summoned his scythe to him. "I will."
That got a slow smile from Zack. "You are so totally going to regret that." Checking her bracers, and her sword, she shed the overcoat, and moved closer to Abel, blade in hand.
He stood there, patiently waiting for her to make the first move. He knew he was superior to vampires the way they were superior to humans but he didn't know how she measured up to him.
"Going to stand there all day?" She asked, eyes focused on him.
"Was wondering if you were going to make the first move," he remarked, his voice a bit deeper than normal.
Zack just smiled, and unleased a Quake two on him.
He staggered, barely keeping to his feet before he lunged at her, his scythe swinging through the air at her. The others started cheering them on, enjoying themselves.
Shifting, she moved the Buster to take the hit, coming up with another spell, and tossed a Transform at him. She was aiming for Mini, and was curious how well he could shake them off.
He grinned as his scythe was caught on her sword only to swear and twist out of the way at the faint shimmer heading his direction. It caught him, and he yelped as he suddenly shrunk. "Not nice!"
Howls of laughter were coming from Leon and Catarina now.
"Be glad you aren't a frog." She moved back, smiling, and was being nice enough to let him recover before she'd make her next move.
He snarled and forced the foreign energy that he could feel out of his body. It wasn't any different than shaking off an attack by one of the Methuselah.
"Ready to play some more?" she asked sweetly, weight balanced so she could move.
He smirked and lunged for her again, not bothering to answer that.
She struck out with her blade, not wanting to let him get too close. He was fast, and strong. Not a combination she really wanted to grapple with.
Catching the massive blade with his own, he flipped the scythe around to flick the barbed tail at her, aiming to wrap it around an arm. He wasn't trying for any debilitating shots, but for disarming instead.
She shoved hard with her sword, then went up, taking a full leap, which would easily put her on the other side of him.
He spun, knowing this trick of hers, and flicked the tail towards where she would land, trying to force her back farther.
Twisting, she threw lightening at him, trying to clear out her landing spot.
He grunted and accepted the bolt, automatically channeling it through his body and out his scythe.
Landing, she bounced back some, putting space between them again. "Interesting."
He chuckled as the static crackled along his scythe. "I'm full of interesting tricks."
"So I see." Giving a smile, she darted in at him at full speed.
He barely managed to get his scythe up to block whatever blow she was aiming for. She was *fast*.
She just slammed the blade at him hard, trying to knock him off balance, even if just a little. Buster was good at things like that.
He grunted and went limp, letting the force of the blow knock him back a bit. Strong too.
Bringing her weapon back for another hit, Zack felt herself relaxing. This was fun.
Time to up the stakes. He twisted out of the way, showing that he was flexible, just not as flexible as she was, and started building up his electrical charge. A faint shimmer started around him as his hair writhed and snapped with static.
Oh, this was -interesting-. Still, she was trying to do a bit of display here, and called out a full out Demi spell. That was another of those spells she didn't know if it would work, but it was worth a shot.
He chuckled as he felt the energy bounce off of what he was building, and he used his scythe to heave his own lightning bolt at her.
The hit drove her back, but at least she was wearing a tetra. All she did was smile at Abel over her sword, eyes definitely glowing. "Nice. You know that only heals me, right?" This time it was ice she tossed at him.
Jumping into the air, he twisted over the cold spell and chuckled. "Do now."
She followed after him, striking out again.
He blocked the blow and spread his wings before flapping hard at her, hoping to knock her off balance with a down draft.
Going a bit limp, she rolled forward over the block, and got his shirt in a grip. "Hey there."
"Hello," he purred, darting forward to kiss her, hoping to distract her.
She nipped back, and then twisted, trying to fling him towards the ground.
He growled and pulled away as he tried to get out of her grip, his shirt tearing from the force.
Letting go, she let herself fall back to earth, grinning wildly. "Come on. We're not done yet."
"Never claimed we were," he announced, throwing a huge bolt of lightning at her to slam her into the ground.
Clothing smoking, arms crossed over her head, she looked up at him, and smiled. "Going to play that way, hmm?" With that, she brought out Bahamut, fading as the summons took her place.
There were cries of surprise and Abel snarled, holding his ground as he stared at the dragon. "Come on, beastie."
Bahamut simply did as he was supposed to, and cast Mega-Flare on the target. Then it faded back to its realm, Zack reappearing.
He brought his scythe up, splitting the flare around around him but the backwash of the energy threw him to the ground hard enough to leave him stunned.
She moved forward, blade in hand. "Like that one? He's the weakest of the Dragons."
"Weakest?" grunted Abel, rolling over to push himself upright as he shook his head.
"The other Bahamuts are stronger than that one." She lunged forward, looking to slam him back against the ground.
He didn't think, just reacted by rolling out of the way and twisting to his feet, wings spread for balance.
She followed, feet digging in as she adjusted her direction.
The group was back to cheering them on as Abel was forced into a defensive stance to meet her attack
This time it was Leviathan she summoned with a smirk.
Jumping as high as he could, he flapped his wings to take him higher, throwing lightning at the sea creature.
The water washed under him harmlessly, and when Zack came back, she called fire on him. This was fun.
He barely managed to twist around the flames, but yelped as his feathers were singed.
She waited, smiling up at him, waiting to see his next move. "So, are we being entertaining yet?"
"Yes," called Leon. "But neither one of you has surrendered yet."
Chuckling, Abel folded his wings and dove at her, hoping to build up enough speed to take her by surprise.
Attention snapping back to him, she watched him, waiting, then cast Wall, seeing the flicker of it coming into existence around her.
He swung his scythe with all his strength and blinked when it only sank halfway into the shimmering barrier.
As he blinked, she hit him with a Confuse.
He hit the ground, scythe vanishing as he staggered to his feet again, wings flapping as if they didn't know which way to go.
Zack tackled him.
Yelping, Abel crashed to the ground again, still trying to shake off the confusion that had clouded his mind.
Slamming her hand down next to his head, she felt the ground give some. "If I didn't like you, that would have been your skull."
He tilted his head back, baring his throat in surrender as the laughter and whooping of the watchers grew louder.