Breezy Trip
In Favonius Library, Markus drops a couple books on a table with a thud, before plopping down on a chair.

Markus: "Let's see... I did everything I needed to today, right? I went on my morning patrol, and during that patrol I found Bennett buried in a ditch and healed his scrapes, found Klee and prevented her from fish-blasting, and then foraged for some stuff I knew Albedo needed before finally heading off on my afternoon patrol..."

He lets out a tired sigh, before continuing,

Markus: "During my afternoon patrol, I went to forage for stuff I knew Diona needed, but before that I needed to help Razor chase off some hunters unfamiliar with the area that were trying to harm his wolf family, and then I found Bennett in another ditch and had to heal his cuts again, and Fischl was in there too and I healed her as well... I think? Wait, did I even end up gathering the stuff Diona needed? Did I even properly patrol the areas I was supposed to today...? Agh, my head hurts..."

He lets out another tired sigh, his head drooping down onto the table in front of him.

Markus: "Did I need to help Barb and the cathedral with anything today? I sure hope not, I still need to keep my promise to Lisa to help organize these books... And it's already... nightfall..."

His eyes begin to close, despite himself.

Markus: "N-no... I still have work to... d-do... Stay... a-awak-..."

--

Markus: "Ah!"

After dozing off for a bit, Markus sits up in surprise, triggering a startled gasp from someone beside him.

"A-apologies! I didn't wake you, I hope..."

Markus: He turns his head before responding, "Noelle? What are you doing here?"

He feels something begin to fall off his back, grabbing it before it hits the ground.

Markus: "A blanket? Did you..."

Noelle: "Y-yes... I wasn't sure if it was alright to wake you, but I at least didn't want you catch a cold sleeping in a place like this, so..." She says shyly.

Markus: "Jeez... How long was I asleep? This is so embarrassing..."

Noelle: "I'm sorry... I should've woken you up after all..."

Markus: He shakes his head with a smile before Noelle can feel guilty. "No, it's okay. Thank you, Noelle."

Noelle: "Are you doing research on something? You seem very busy. Would you like me to make you some tea?"

Markus: "That's alright, it's late, you should be turning in for the day."

Noelle: "It's no trouble at all. I can..."

Markus: "Noelle." He says firmly. "I'm sure you've been working hard helping others all day already. Don't worry about me."

Noelle: "B-but...!"

Markus: "It's fine. The last thing I want is to give you more work to do."

Noelle pauses, and then says,

Noelle: "O-oh, Markus! Ever since we became friends, I've always wanted you to try my favorite tea. I'll go brew some for us to share together!"

Markus: "H-hey! All you did was twist your words around to get me to accept it; nothing actually changed!"

Noelle: "W-whatever do you mean?" She glances away slightly. "I don't know what you're talking about..."

Markus: "I didn't know you were the type to be so... sly."

Noelle: "Perhaps it's because of your influence, Markus." She puts a hand to her mouth and giggles lightly.

Markus: "So it's my fault, huh?" He chuckles, giving in. "Fine... you win."

Noelle steps away for a few minutes, returning with a kettle and two teacups. She notices Markus in the middle of examining the contents of a book as she pours some tea in one of the cups.

Noelle: "What kind of book is that?"

Markus: "Nonsense, that's what." He grumbles, practically slamming the book shut before placing it back on the table.

Noelle: "Oh...?" She raises a hand to her mouth, surprised by his sudden shift in tone.

Markus: "A-ah...! Sorry, I-I mean... Ahem." He coughs nervously, becoming a tad flustered. "Lisa told me a lot of people have started to bring their own 'pieces of literature' to add to the library, and she wanted me to help 'organize' them."

Noelle: "Organize them?" She inquires, after finishing pouring the tea and taking a seat next to Markus.

Markus: "As in, weed out the ones tha-..." He nervously coughs again. "E-erm, I mean, help determine which belong in the library, and which... don't."

Noelle: "I see..." She pauses. "Actually, I don't really, I apologize. But, is there any way I could help?"

Markus: "I feel like you're... too good-natured for a job like this..."

Noelle: "What does that mean?" She tilts her head in confusion. "Are you only saying that because you're worried about me overworking myself?"

Markus: "Actually, I'm not this time, but... It's true, you shouldn't overwork yourself, especially over something like this..."

He lifts a hand to grab another book, but Noelle stops him, gently placing his hand back down with her own.

Noelle: "In that case, neither should you, Markus."

Markus: "H-huh?"

Noelle: "Even after taking a nap, your eyes still look so tired. You must've been busy all day, yes?"

Markus: "I-I... I guess. But I still need to help Lisa with..."

Noelle: "I'm sure she wouldn't mind if you helped her with this tomorrow, or a different day. Instead, why don't you take a much needed break? Would you like to have a chat over some tea? I've always wanted to converse with you after becoming friends."

Markus nods, giving her a small smile.

Markus: "Sure... sounds good. Thank you, Noelle."

--

A few days later, around noon, Markus enters the Favonius Library. As he's about to start working on organizing the books again, he hears a faint noise coming from a corner of the library.

Markus: "Who is that? Lisa? Or maybe Ella again? It's still pretty early in the day, though..."

He drops the books he's holding on a nearby table and checks out of curiosity, and sees who it is. It's a familiar young girl huddled in the corner, facing the wall, her attention deeply focused on something in her hands.

Markus: "Oh, it's you, Minnie."

Minnie: "Eep!"

She jumps up in surprise at the sight of Markus, quickly turning to face him, hiding the 'something' behind her back.

Minnie: "M-Markus?! No way, why did you of all people have to find me here?!"

Markus: "What's that supposed to mean?"

Minnie: "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be working right now?!"

Markus: "I came here to help Lisa with some... book organization." He squints at her suspiciously. "Why were you huddled in this corner like a weirdo? What are you hiding?"

Minnie: "N-nothing!"

Markus pauses, before glancing behind him.

Markus: "Oh, hello, Patton. What brings you here?"

Minnie: "H-huh? My brother's here, too?! Why!?"

Markus: "Yoink." While Minnie is distracted, Markus snatches away what she was previously holding.

Minnie: "A-aw, c'mon! I can't believe I just fell for that!" She whines. "I'm so stupid!"

Markus: "A book? It looks... odd."

He opens it up, and begins reading...

~~~

One bright and warm sunny afternoon, up in an enclosed area atop a snowy mountain, a lone, mysterious gentleman worked alone.

Suddenly, a random enemy soldier jumps out of a random pile of snow, pointing a gun at the gentleman.

Soldier: "Mwahaha! Alberto! I'm sick of your cool, calm and collected handsome self getting all the attention from the ladies! This is the end for you once and for all!"

Alberto is caught unprepared and is frozen in place. Just as the soldier is about to fire...

"Alberto!"

A young woman dashes to Alberto's aide, pushing him away just in time.

Soldier: "Argh! You haven't seen the last of me!" He growls, giving up and running away.

Alberto: "Marcia!" He notices her arm was grazed by the bullet, and is bleeding a bit. "You... got hurt because of me!"

Marcia: "I-it's no big deal at all... baka..." She grumbles.

Alberto: "You've always been here to look out for me, Marcia. And you even accepted me, even after finding out I'm actually an almost extinct race of alien from space."

He leans in closer, staring into her eyes, with his own (super beautiful) ones, which shine like stars.

Alberto: "You're not like the other girls. I... love you, Marcia!"

Marcia: "W-what?! Where is this coming from... you baka!"

Alberto gently takes her hands into his own, making her even more flustered.

Alberto: "Do you feel the same for me too, Marcia?"

Marcia: "Are you kidding?! Of course I don't..."

She trails off, noticing him frown.

Marcia: "I-I mean... I love you too... I guess..."

Alberto leans in for a kiss, and despite Marcia being an extreme tsundere, she doesn't back away, and...

~~~

Markus: "... What is this?" He utters, dumbfounded.

Minnie: "E-enough, Markus! Quit reading it and give it back already!"

Markus: "Where did you even find this?! And why do these names seem awfully familiar...?"

Minnie: "I don't know what you're talking about! I definitely didn't base them off actual people when I wrote that!"

Markus: "Eh?"

Minnie covers her mouth with her hands, her eyes widening and her face turning pale.

Minnie: "A-ah! Markus, I beg you, please don't tell anyone about this! Especially not my parents or my brother!"

Markus: "I know you like to draw and write Minnie, but what kind of stuff have you been reading to come up with... whatever this is? Surely not anything appropriate for a 12-year old..."

Minnie: "I'm 13!" She pouts.

Markus: "Whatever! Quit reading weird things in here!"

Minnie: "Don't tell me what to do! You're not my brother, Markus! Hmph!"

"Hey now. No quarreling in the library."

Lisa suddenly appears from behind them, gently taking the book from Markus and looking through it herself.

Markus: "Oh, Lisa. You startled m-..."

Lisa: "Pfft!"

She suddenly stifles a laugh with her hand, losing her composure for a brief second before composing herself again.

Lisa: "Apologies. That was immature of me. But this story is quite... the interesting one. And these names are..."

She pauses, Markus tilting his head and raising an eyebrow in confusion.

Lisa: "... Never mind."

Minnie: "P-please give me my book back..." She begs, blushing in embarrassment.

Lisa: "Of course, Minnie. Here you go."

She gently returns it, Minnie cradling it in her arms defensively.

Lisa: "By the way, your family was looking for you. You should probably return home soon."

Minnie: "R-really? Aw man... I wanted to wri-... er, read some more..."

Minnie steps out of the library, her head drooping in disappointment.

Lisa: "You're here to help with the book organizing again, aren't you, sweetie? Thank you again for the help."

Markus: "No problem. I'm sorry I couldn't help much the other day, Lisa..."

Lisa: "It's alright, sweetie. Noelle already told me you were too tired from work."

Markus: "Noelle did?"

Lisa: "Yes. She's here, studying in the library as well. Have you not already seen h-..."

All of a sudden, they hear a loud crashing sound coming from another corner of the library. Markus's and even Lisa's eyes widen in concern.

Lisa: "O-oh my, what was...?!"

Before Lisa finishes speaking, Markus rushes over to check what the source of the noise was.

Markus: "Noelle!"

As Lisa approaches the corner, she sees Markus leaning down to help Noelle up, a couple of books fallen and scattered beside them.

Markus: "A-are you alright!? What happened?!" He exclaims in worry.

Noelle places a hand on her forehead, breathing heavily. She stands on shaky legs, Markus holding onto her shoulders to support her.

Noelle: "G-goodness, how embarrassing. I'm sorry, Markus..." She turns her head weakly towards Lisa. "And I apologize to you as well, Miss Lisa. I've made quite the mess..."

Lisa: "Don't worry about it, Noelle." She crosses her arms, remaining composed. "You look completely exhausted. You should be resting instead of studying here in the library. You're on break from your maid duties, right?"

Noelle: "I-I can't rest! This is valuable study time!"

Markus: "What are you studying?"

Noelle: "I need... to prepare for the next Knight exam..."

Markus: "Um, what? I thought the exam wasn't for another half a year or so?"

Noelle: "Yes! The sooner I prepare for it, the better!"

Lisa: "Oh dear..." She shakes her head.