{THIRD PERSON POV}
Breakfast was painful for Mordred to watch, because even if he didn't scream out in pain, Mordred knew that Jaune was hurting right now.
Thankfully, by the time Mordred and Jaune arrived at the kitchen, most of them had almost finished eating their food, which meant that Jaune only needed to eat for a few minutes to fill his stomach just enough not to worry the others.
'This kid...' Mordred shook her head as she took a bite of her bacon when she heard Jaune talk to their mother.
"So, Mom, did Dad tell you when he'd be back?" he asked her while he drank a glass of apple juice.
Their mother nodded and answered him. "Yeah. He told me he would be back today, so most likely he'll be back by noon at the latest."
Saphron raised an eyebrow in slight surprise. Even Mordred was slightly surprised by this turn of events, because how? Whenever their father went on an emergency mission like this, it would take at least a few days before he came back home.
It hadn't even been a full 24 hours before their mother got the news that their father would be back, and that was weird.
"Did... did Dad get injured?" Saphron asked Luna, and even then she couldn't bring herself to believe the words that came out of her mouth. Miles being injured was almost impossible to imagine. In her eyes, and she would bet money that in her siblings' eyes too, their father was as close to invincible as people could get.
He was an S-rank Huntsman. Saphron didn't think that anyone could beat her father, let alone injure him. She wasn't stupid enough to think her father was immortal, but with his large Aura reserve, experience, and skills, it would take a lot to kill him.
Before any of the other children could chime in, Luna answered her. "No. He isn't hurt. He just got lucky and managed to finish his mission really fast. No need to worry about your father, children. He is just fine."
"Yay! Dad's coming home!" Noir shouted in excitement, and the rest of the children also voiced their agreement, except for Jaune and Mordred. Jaune was still trying not to show any sign of pain, and Mordred was busy shoveling food into her mouth.
Thank God nothing bad happened to Miles, because if Mordred found out that he was injured, God knew what she would do. She would probably egg him on and say that if he had stopped Jaune's training, he wouldn't have gotten hurt.
She was petty like that, and she wasn't ashamed of it. In her mind, it was Miles' fault that she was this petty.
But under all of the sharp, prickly, venomous, burning interior, Mordred still cared. She cared more about Jaune than Miles, obviously, but she still cared in her own way. Miles was still her father, and as angry as she was at him, she couldn't completely hate him.
If she had to choose between saving Jaune's life or her father's, she would choose Jaune every single time. Jaune was her little brother, and she wouldn't abandon him for anything in the world. Even if the world decided one day to hunt Jaune, she would be by his side, and she would fight everyone if she had to.
"Mom! After we eat, Jaune and I are going out. We planned to do some stuff, okay?" Mordred told her mother, even though she hadn't made any plans to go out today.
Jeanne raised an eyebrow at Mordred. "Where are you going?" She asked, but it only managed to make Mordred angry.
"It's none of your fucking business, you blonde fucktard!" She slammed her hand on the table and pointed at Jeanne.
"Mordred... you're blonde too," Saphron reminded her, which made Mordred's mouth start to foam like a rabid dog.
"The fuck did you say to me, you nerdy shit? You wanna fight?!"
As the table turned into chaos, Jaune sat in his seat, trying to endure the pain, but he was also extremely confused, because... what plans? Did he plan to go out today with Mordred? Did he forget? Was this a side effect from whatever happened to his heart? What was happening? Did he get amnesia?
Mordred let out a tired breath after having a shouting match that she didn't actually win, because Luna told her to be quiet. She looked at Jaune and saw his plate was empty, so she took the chance to stand up and grab his hand.
"We're leaving! We'll be back before dinner!"
<=======]==¤
When the worried Mordred and the confused Jaune were out of the house and out of sight, Mordred kneeled on the ground and turned her back to him.
"Come on, get on," she said, motioning for him to hurry, because the others could come looking for them at any moment if they got curious enough to follow.
Jaune looked at her in silence for a few moments before he let out a chuckle. "A piggyback ride? Why?"
"Bitch, just shut the fuck up. I don't want you to keel over and die," she grumbled. "Just fucking get on."
Jaune wanted to laugh, but his heart hurt too much, so he just climbed onto her back and let her carry him.
"Just... just don't fucking move so you don't hurt your stupid-ass heart, okay?" she told him, and she felt him nod against her shoulder.
As they walked toward the forest, she felt Jaune shake a little. "You okay?" she asked, because if he wasn't, she didn't know what to do. Aura wasn't working on whatever the hell was hurting him, and she hated knowing that Jaune was in pain while she couldn't do anything about it.
"It... it hurt a little," Jaune answered, but Mordred knew that was bullshit. Hurts a little? Jaune broke his arm and pretended it wasn't broken for two whole weeks until it healed in a house with a retired Huntsman healer and an S-rank Huntsman. She wouldn't be surprised if the pain was enough to leave her bedridden.
She wanted to call him out for playing down his pain, but she knew he just didn't want her to worry about him.
"Just... just tell me if it hurts too much, okay? I'll stop, let you rest, and let you take a few breaths," she said, and her voice cracked at the end.
"Mordred..." Jaune called out, and she turned her head slightly to see his face.
"Yeah?" she answered.
"Did... did we really plan to go out today? If so, then I'm sorry. I think I forgot about it..." Jaune whispered, and Mordred felt her chest tighten at the tone of his voice.
Fuck. Was this what was bothering him? Not the pain, but the fact that she told their mother that they both planned to go out?
"Jaune," she said. "That was a lie I told Mom. I need you not to fake being okay, but you can't do that while you're in the house. The others will either ask you for help, or the brats will want to play with you."
"Oh... I really thought I forgot one of my promises to you," he said softly.
"Save your breath. Wait until we reach the spot before you talk again," she told him. "That's an order from the great Mordred Arc."
She kept walking through the forest.
As they moved deeper in, Mordred felt Jaune's faint breath near her ear, and she tightened her grip on his legs to keep him steady.
"Mordred..." Jaune called again.
"Yeah?" she answered, blinking hard.
"Thank you..." His voice sounded sincere, and it made her throat tighten.
"No need to thank me, Jaune. I'm just doing what I'm supposed to do, as your big sister," she said, forcing the words out evenly.
"Just wait twenty more minutes. We'll reach the spot soon," she added, because she didn't know what else to say.
After twenty minutes, she finally reached the spot. "Shit... you sure you're okay if you get a little wet, Jaune?"
When she felt Jaune nod, Mordred jumped straight through the waterfall and landed at the cave entrance.
"Wait a second, Jaune. Let me make it more comfortable." Mordred gently set Jaune down beside a rock, then quickly grabbed some spare clothes they stored there. She rolled them up into a makeshift pillow and placed it next to him.
Then she helped Jaune lie down. "You comfortable?"
"Yeah... thank you... again," Jaune said with a tired sigh. His heart still hurt; the pain was decreasing, but it still felt like he was being stabbed.
"We'll stay here for as long as you need, Jaune. I told Mom to expect us back before dinner, so we've still got, like... ten more hours," Mordred said. She sat next to him and held his hand. "For now, just sleep again, Jaune. I'll be here, so don't worry."
Jaune nodded and closed his eyes, but after a few minutes of silence, he spoke again.
"I'll... I'll miss you so much, Mordred..." He tightened his grip on her hand.
"Hey, Jaune. I'll miss you too, you dumbass, but don't worry. After you graduate from Shade, you can team up with me," she said, forcing a smile. "We can be the Arc Duo. It'll just be the two of us. When we're pro Huntsmen, no one can say shit to us. We'll kick their asses and take names."
Mordred wanted to curse their father and say a lot of things in front of Jaune, but she couldn't. She knew Jaune didn't like it when she got angry at their father.
But who could blame her? Their father was a stupid asshole who only thought about what he wanted. What about Jaune? What about what he wanted? Did he have no right?
If their father hadn't made sure Jaune wouldn't get a chance to join Beacon, she would have had at least two years with Jaune at Beacon, because she would be in her third or fourth year. If Jaune got into Beacon a year early, they could have had three years.
But that blonde fucker just had to ruin it.
"Yeah... we'll be the best, isn't that right, Mordred? But what about your teammates?" Jaune asked.
"What about them? Who the fuck cares about them? I'll be so strong that I don't need them. It'll just be us two against the world, Jaune. You're the only one I trust with my back, Jaune," she answered, lifting her chin. She wasn't going to trust strangers to watch her back.
She knew damn well that the only person she could trust was Jaune, and she knew that Jaune trusted her too.
"Thank you, Mordred... thank you."
"Hey. What the fuck did I say about you thanking me, huh? Do I need to repeat myself and say that I'm only doing what I do because it's my job as your best big sister? Fuck that. I am the best sister in the whole world, Jaune. Me. Mordred Arc." She pounded her fist onto her chest, and it managed to make Jaune laugh softly.
"Yeah... you're the best, Mordred... the best I could have ever asked for."
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