It had been expected that plans would change for the evening. Instead of Olivie going to give her recollection of events on Touma’s home world to the investigators, she would do that the next day. And instead of Vivio and Nanoha going out to a local restaurant for dinner, they instead settled for eating with everybody in the office cafeteria. Thank goodness that the kitchen staff worked late hours to provide something to eat for those who worked night shifts in the head office.
Hayate had been the exception as she went to check on her Knights and take them home for their own evening meal. If she had stayed, they probably would have stayed to keep an eye on things and there was a good chance that having them share a table with the Kaiser while there were still some underlying tensions would have been awkward.
The conversation had been focused on Vivio’s upbringing. It was something that the older Kaiser wanted to hear so that she would be at ease in the event that she would no longer interact with the child in the future although that didn’t seem likely to happen seeing how the little girl didn’t want to let go of the other woman. There was so much she wanted to know about her predecessor but the child didn’t mind doing the talking this time around (although she tried not to talk too much about the Cradle since that made the other woman get all gloomy and sad).
“And then when me and Nanoha-mama became a family, Fate-mama offered to be my guardian and somehow, I just got used to seeing her as my Mama too.”
“So you have two mothers, hm?”
“Do you find that strange?” asked Nanoha while grabbing a slice of bread.
Olivie shook her head. “Not really. When I went around visiting various communities, I saw a fair share of households where children were raised only by women and they seemed to turn out healthy and fine. But is it alright if she grows up without a male parental figure? She might be missing out on something.”
“What do you mean by that, Your Majesty?”
“My father, Matthias Segbrecht, instilled many of the values that I live by today, Ms. Carim. If not for him, I would not have been involved with the communities of common people and could have grown up with a closed heart.”
“Can you elaborate a bit more on that?” Yuuno had taken out some things so that he would be able to record everything that she said.
“My daily activities on the Cradle were planned out in advance. Mornings were for combat magic and martial arts training. My grandparents and Great Uncles often tested my limits to get a good reading on my progress. Then afternoons were for studying military strategy and being involved in planning out operations to conquer worlds so that the Belkan Empire could be reborn again. Evenings were for getting familiar with different functions of the Cradle and learning how to make the most use out of those mechanical automatons that were on board. If I had continued that routine every day of the year, I probably would have turned out to be a perfect puppet Warrior King for my elders and any other powerful figures in the political landscape.”
Yuuno nodded in understanding. “The Belkan political atmosphere had been described by some historical textbooks as dangerous with members of the court always looking to gain more power and influence by playing games of deception. They were people who would smile at you right up to the point when they plunge a knife into your ribs.”
“That’s a rather accurate description,” admitted the young woman.
“You didn’t have a mama to care for you?”
Olivie merely smiled sadly at Vivio. “When my mother was giving birth to me, some complications arose and it came down to a choice to save her life or mine. So I essentially grew up without a mama. The female servants that tended to me never stepped out of place and never acted as mother figures even though they looked like they wanted to.”
“They probably were kept in place by the wills of those elders of yours,” noted Nanoha. “But they probably couldn’t keep your father in place. Is that right?”
“He knew how to navigate the political system in order to provide for me. He protected me where he could from anything that could put me in genuine danger, physically or emotionally. He always managed to find time for me when I needed his counsel. Above all, he was my friend who wanted what was best for me. It was thanks to him that I was able to leave the Cradle and stay with Ingvalt on Shutra when he saw how I was crumbling emotionally thanks to living on the ship daily. I honestly can’t think I would have turned out the way I did if not for him.”
“He must have been something,” remarked Subaru while digging into her own meal.
“His greatest pride was being my papa next to becoming a Kaiser who could serve the people faithfully. It was something I tried to do while on Shutra and now that I’m on this planet, I would like to continue to carrying out that mission.”
“So… I should ask for a papa?” asked a confused Vivio.
“Not necessarily,” replied the older Kaiser gently. “If things are okay with you as they are now, then you don’t need to change anything. It’s your choice after all. Just don’t dismiss the benefits of having a male role model.”
“So what’s he like, Mom? Your dad that is.”
She paused for a moment to address her son’s question. “Hmmm… he was a very large and outspoken man full of life. And I’m not sure if I would be able to describe him well so I’ll have to try and draw an image that I can share with you all.” She closed her eyes for a moment and projected the memory of her father into everybody’s minds which caused a number of varied reactions.
“T-that’s your papa?” squeaked out Vivio.
“Correction. That’s our papa.”
“He’s huge!” exclaimed Subaru. “Kinda crazy looking too!”
“How does Her Majesty’s father maintain those curls on his hair?” Otto found that particularly fascinating. “And what is with that purple cape and pink tunic?”
“Yes, I know it’s an eyesore. I wish his choice of wardrobe was a bit more normal but what could I do?” Olivie sighed dramatically. “Maybe he did it to throw his enemies off balance by dressing in weird colours.”
Nanoha chuckled once before cleaning up her tray. “Well, it’s getting late and we need to be getting home. Let’s go, Vivio.”
“Eh? But I wanted to talk with Ollie-chan some more!”
“Ms. Carim said that we could stay at the Church for now. After I make up for not speaking with that officer today, I’ll be able to enrol for proper language classes and start figuring out how I can best serve the community while Touma can get registered to go to school at that St. Hilde Academy. But if your mother doesn’t mind, you can come see us after your classes end at the Church.”
“WAAII!” Vivio couldn’t wait for tomorrow to come. She then turned to the boy sitting by the Kaiser’s side. “That means I’ll get to see you lots at school, onii-chan!”
“Er… yeah, that sounds… nice.” Touma just shifted uncomfortably by the way she smiled at him. Then again, who could blame him when a child version of his mother was looking up at him in adoration?
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(Posted Thu, 25 Aug 2011 04:49)
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