Magic Knight Rayearth/魔法騎士レイアース Changelings and Mages

_Please go easy on me. This is my first MKR fanfic, and I've only really seen half the series. I've seen the majority of the first season, as well as the beginning and the end to the second season, but no in between. Sadly. Lets hope Christmas wishes come true._

_Disclaimer: I own nothing of the original characters or story line of Magic Knights Rayearth. I do, however, own this story line, and the OC's (Yes, the horrors of OCs!). Only take with permission._

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"There, do you see?"

"That one, there-"

"With the white hair?"

"Part fox-"

"She's the one."

"That murderer-"

"I heard it wasn't her fault-"

"Rubbish. She deserves to serve Lady Debonair,"

These rumors and whispers followed Akarui everywhere. Whenever she left the confines of the Knight's Wing or the Royals Wing, she always encountered courtiers, and this is what always followed.

That one girl was right though. She couldn't control her powers, and she destroyed half a village, and killed 5, injuring others. She didn't care though. It was their own fault for tricking her and then giving her to the monsters created from their own fear. Besides, her forest survived. Nothing else matters.

Usually Akarui would keep to herself, in the Knights or Royal gardens. Nobody bothered her there except for the occasional Fuu, Umi, Hikaru or Ferio. But the Council had called her, now that she was fully recovered from her injuries. Her fate was decided by them, and now she was to hear the fruits of the Magic Knights' efforts to keep her innocent.

As Akarui ambled through the halls, accompanied by Lantis, she thought of how much she missed her forest. She hadn't been allowed to leave the palace walls, first because of her injuries, then because of the Council wanting to lock her up for eternity. Not that she'd mind. She'd sleep for a while, then escape when they all forgot about her.

Lantis had stopped at two gigantic wooden doors, expertly carved to perfection, gold woven into the crevices. As he opened the doors, Akarui looked behind her, at the staring courtiers, and gave her trademark fox smile, before stepping inside the too bright room.

The room was circular, Akarui moving to the center of it, with the Council members 10 feet in the air above her lined up in several rows. The walls of the Council seats around her were oak, with the floor under her feet made of stone. The ceiling was 30 feet in the air, a cream white white, chandeliers hanging from it. Behind her stood an empty royal throne, and another with Fuu sitting in it, her eyes betraying her concern. Next to her sat Hikaru and Umi, in their Knight's uniform, disregarding their 'Princess' statuses.

"Akarui. You have been brought before this Council, in order to be judged for you actions exactly one month ago. Do you have anything to say for yourself?" a fat one asked, his face reminding Akarui of a type of hunting dog.

"Only that it was in self defense. Those 'villagers' tricked me into coming out, then had the nerve to capture me then hand me over to the Fear of their hearts, convinced I was a demon."

"We already know this, little one," replied a 2nd one. This one resembled a large cat, his beard, mustache and sideburns covering the majority of his face like a mane.

At the words "little one", Akarui's anger had grown and it took all of her self control to not rip his head off. She becomes grateful for Fuu teaching her how to act around others. After all, she hasn't had much contact with humans besides them trying to kill her or running away in fear. It didn't help that her parents died when she was very small.

"Stop being so indirect. Tell her our conclusion," stated a third.

"Calm down," replied the first. Turning to Akarui, he asked, "Do you feel any remorse for you actions?"

Akarui raised an eyebrow. "No."

"And why is that?"

Akarui directed her anger to her eyes, showing him that she's already using up lots of self control as it is. "Because they deserved it. I put trust in them, coming out to heal one of their children as they had asked, only to be caught in a net, stunned and give to monsters. I was forced to watch as the home I was to protect was torched and demolished, the cries of the tree and animals tearing at my heart." At this point, her voice had risen in rage, to a quiet roar, "I destroyed the monsters, saving my sanity, in a completely accidental explosion of power, but they deserve ever pin prick of pain."

Lantis next to her cringed inwardly as the sentence ended, sealing her fate.

The first councilor grinned sadistically, before stating, "She's obviously mad. She holds no remorse for our poor and defenseless citizens, and I have to wonder as to whether or not she's lying-"

"She's not lying, councilor."

Akarui turned around to face a Ferio, standing beside a throne. His face was cold, and he must have only just arrived. Looking to a girl next to him, he gave a nod of encouragement. Her long blonde hair reached to he butt, with the clothes of a farmer. Blue eyes were homely and inviting, but spoke only nervousness now. Akarui's eyes widened in recognition. This girl was fighting the men to try and save her, when she was captured.

"This girl witnessed the entire event, Council Zen. She will give her version of the tale. I have already checked it with Master Mage Clef under Truth Spell. She speaks the truth."

Stepping back, he allowed the girl to move in front of him, and all heads turned to face the girl. She took a few steps towards the railing, then spoke to the councilors, "What Akarui speaks of is true, I'm ashamed to say. Several of the men from our village have seen her, and she has stopped them from cutting down the forest on several occasions. She has even saved several people, including me, on trips into the forest from the rare monsters that haunt the Forest of Silence now. Many were convinced she is an omen, paranoid after the events of Zagato and Lady Debonair. They devised a plan to hunt her, making a deal with their own shadows of fear. Our town is more cut off from Cephiro, and we often have to make it on our own, giving us more reason to fear, you see."

The girl paused for breath, and stole a nervous glance at Ferio. He nodded encouragingly, before she turned back to continue.

"I am ashamed to say that I was one of those people, but unaware of their true intentions. My little sister, whom I adore, was very sick, and they told me that if I listened to them, they could guarantee that my little sister would be saved by Akarui. I believed them, and together we brought her out. As she was healing my sister, I saw behind her the net that was made, and a villager with some magical ability about to perform a spell. Before I could warn her, they attacked. I tried to get to her, to save her, but they were too strong. She was given to the monsters.

"The monsters threw her and hit her, beating her repeatedly. She fought back, but was unable to get an advantage. That's when one captured her, in some sort of blue sphere. They talked for a while, Akarui screaming at him and throwing herself at the walls of the blue sphere. That's when I saw it. The reason for her anger. They were destroying the Forest of Silence. I couldn't see it very well, but I do remember the sky darkening, and then there was this bright flash of light, followed by an extremely powerful gust of wind. Then it was raining, and that's all I remember."

She finished proudly, admiring the courage she had come up with to help repay a favor. The girl looked down, and smiled serenely at Akarui, sitting down at a chair a maid gave her.

The councilors waited a few moments before erupting in argumentative conversation. Several were shouting, and it didn't look like anything would be done in any amount of time at all.

"ENOUGH!" Ferio yelled to the entire council. "I have a proposition to make. Akarui?"

"Yeah?" Said Akarui, hiding her sensitive ears from the explosion of sound.

"You are to remain here as a Mage in training. This will allow you to learn how to control you powers, preventing further accidents, and give you more power to protect the Forest of Silence with. You're teacher will work out when you can see the Forest and all of that with you. They will be responsible for you're every action, to be with you at most, if not all times. Who will support me.

Various hands rose, and slowly but surely, about 1/2 of the council backed Ferio.

"Good. This is our ruling. Akarui, wait in the Knight's Gardens until one of us sends for you to introduce you to you're new teacher."

Akarui nodded and said, "Understood," before bowing out of the room.

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Clef was not in the greatest of moods.

In fact, one could even go so far as to say he was depressed.

It had been this way for a while. Ever since he fell in love. But unfortunately, with his standing as Master Mage, it was treason to fall in love, or act upon it. Until recently, when Queen Fuu and King Ferio convinced the council (finally) to change the law.

Not that it did any good now. He'd been forced to push away both, and both fell in love with someone else. Umi with Ascot, and Presea with General Hadyn. He loved both and lost both.

And now he had the added bonus of women constantly throwing themselves at him so that they could bear the children of one so great.

It didn't help that he had changed to his taller form, making him even more of an item.

Just today, he'd received 19 declarations of love, had a council meeting about the disaster a month ago, tried to quell the people's fears, and had to sort out applications for various other jobs in the castle that would had been left to someone else. But of course, Ferio ordered him to do it. Probably as payback for being ungrateful for the change of law.

Needless to say, he walked irate down the hall towards the Knight's Gardens, as the Magi's Gardens he discovered were covered in hiding fangirls. Clef had a need for fresh air and some privacy before heading back down to the throne room to sort through applications for apprenticeship, his gait was close to stomping, more of a powerful sweep with his cape bellowing behind him, and he was 3 nerve endings away from screaming at the next to cross his path, both in frustration and depression.

Turning the corner to enter the calming aspects of the garden, he spotted someone standing in front of the fountain. Clef stopped, and stared, for no one was allowed in the Knight's gardens except for the Magic Knight's, their lovers and him. Studying her, he was confused by his assumptions.

A mysterious air surrounded her, none made sense. To judge from the white of her hair she was very old, yet her exposed skin was pale and baby soft. Her clothes where of a pure white hunter's outfit, t-shirt with tunic, leggings and pouch for supplies. She had no arrows as expected of a hunter, instead having twin daggers hanging off of leather straps around her waist. The hilts contained sapphires, glinting in the sunlight that streamed into the garden. Her stance suggested comfort, hands in pockets and back slouched in laziness.

Clef's blue eyes narrowed in thought, as he tried to figure out the most peculiar thing about her. Out of her head, one turned towards his direction, stood two white fox ears erect in their position.

Shocked as realization dawned on him of what exactly what she was, his eyes grew wide in disbelief. _That_ race had died out centuries ago if he remembered right, caused by one of the pillars. But here she stood, a changeling, of all creatures, in the Knight's private gardens. Perplexed, he cleared his throat, causing her to crane her head around.

He was met by eyes the same color of the jewels on the hilts of her weapons. Her heart-shaped face was as pale as the rest of her, her shoulder length hair framing her face around the sides. The changeling's eyes looked him up and down in a half bored, half curious expression. Finally, Clef was the first to speak.

"What are you doing here? And what is your name?"

Her head moved up and down, analyzing him. Keeping the same half bored expression, she replied, "You ask a stranger's name and have no thought to give you're own? I would think you would have recognized me already. Haven't you heard the rumors?"

Clef scoffed. "I haven't had time to listen to the rumors of late. The incident at Moon Field Village has left me with little time at all, and I'd prefer to spend that time alone. All I know is that the villagers were convinced that they were defeating a demon, when it lashed out and blasted them.

One of Akarui's eyebrows raised, then both knotted together. "Do you believe them?"

Once again Clef scoffed. "No," he replied sharply. "Most of the villagers had signs of being hypnotized, and it was hardly believable anyway. The blast of magic was most definitely either a elemental or type of forest creature. Not even a trace of demon magic in that blast. At the scene, there were some demons, yes. I was one of the first to defeat them."

Akarui relaxed slightly, lowering her guard a tiny bit. She turned to face him fully, before saying, "My name is Akarui."

"And what would you be doing her, Akarui?" replied the haughty Clef.

"Ferio told me to wait her until after the Council meeting," she stated, obviously bored by the conversation. "And before you jump to conclusions, he's just going to tell me who my new master is."

Clef raised one of his own eyebrows, suspicious. "And what would you be apprenticing in? I haven't seen you're name on the request forms."

"It isn't really my choice to go into apprenticeship. It was the Council's," she looked away, muttering the next line. "I'm to learn how to control my newfound powers."

Realization dawned on him. "You were the one who created the explosion. . . " he trailed off. Thinking about it, it all made sense. She relaxed when he said he believed it to be an accident, she had to be given apprenticeship that wasn't her choice by the Council, and he saw her before, but only a glimpse, as Lantis had carried her off.

As if to confirm his theory, a guilty look crossed her face, before it was replaced with an irritated glare. "Look, I didn't mean to kill those people. I was only concerned with my forest. I don't care for you stupid humans, and if it were up to me I'd be back home never to bother humans again." She finished close to screaming level.

Clef drew himself up to his full height and advanced towards her, and intimidating look on his face. Despite her small statue, she didn't back down. "Look here, _girl_, I didn't blame you for the accident. That's exactly what it was, an uncontrolled blast of energy. I don't know what you've been through the past month, but whatever it is, I don't need you unloading it on me. I have no need for childish actions, so if you want to go and rant, go to someone who will care!"

"Childish?" she whispered indignantly, before yelling again. "You think I'm CHILDISH? Think about those villagers who tried to kill me for healing a child-"

"THEY WERE UNDER HYPNOSIS YOU IDIOT! They had no control over their actions-"

"NO CONTROL MY ASS, RETARD!! THEY KNEW EXACTLY WHAT THEY WERE DOING!"

The screaming match continued, and as Ferio walked into the gardens, a storm cloud hung above the gardens. The two before him were inches apart, both faces livid, with what he could swear was lightning between their eyes. If it wasn't for the compressing atmosphere, he could swear it was comical.

Ferio cleared his throat during a pause in the screaming. Both looked to him at the same time, screaming, "WHAT?" Realizing who it was, Clef sobered immediately.

"My King-"

"None of that Clef. You know what I've said about that." Ferio noticed that Akarui's face was still in a quiet, controlled anger, though it had sobered quite a bit. Ferio cringed inside to give her the news from the Council, but it had to be done.

"Clef, now that I think about it, you haven't had an apprentice since before the Zagato incident. Am I right?"

Clef nodded. "Yes, m-Ferio."

Ferio nodded. "You haven't had time, right?"

Clef shook his head. "No, Ferio. The Council keeps me constantly on strain."

"Well, that will change. I'll make sure it does."

Clef's eyes narrowed. Ferio wouldn't do this on normal occasion, but before he could question, Ferio was speaking again.

"-believes you to have a wind and water magic. They want you to learn that in all haste, so we're going to get you the best type of teacher we can."

Clef's suspicions rose. Ferio had been talking to Akarui, and usually the best teacher would be. . .

"No. . . " Clef trailed off. His eyes were the size of teacups, and he was shaking his head, his blood drained from his face.

Ferio nodded, while Akarui looked suspicious and confused, her head tilted to the side.

Ferio looked to both before he said, "I see you too are aquatinted-"

"No Ferio. We aren't. I'm the only one polite enough to give one."

Ferio's eyebrows rose. "Well, Akarui, this is Master Mage Clef, highest of the Mages. Shake hands now, yes, like that. Say hello to you're new teacher."

Akarui's mouth dropped. She opened it, then closed it. Opened, then closed, then turned towards the Master Mage with a accusing finger.

"You had something to do with this, didn't you?!" she screamed.

"You think _I_ had something to do with this?"

"Well obviously, who else?"

"Let me tell you, I had nothing to do with this! I found out at the same time you did, only a little bit sooner-"

"I KNEW IT! You tricked me, you worthless mutt!"

"I FIGURED IT OUT SECONDS BEFORE HE TOLD US YOU IMBECILE!"

"ENOUGH!!" Ferio screamed. "That is _quite_ enough of you're bickering. You two are stuck together, so you might as well get used to it. And Akarui, I'll suggest you cool that temper of yours if you want to ever get a favor and visit your home. You will start tomorrow at sunrise, meeting here, is that clear?"

Both were too stunned to speak, and only nodded their heads. "Good. Clef, follow me." Clef followed obediently, leaving Akarui to her last night of freedom.

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"Clef," Ferio started, "I wanted to tell you exactly what to expect from Akarui."

After the fight, Ferio had led Clef to his private office, to talk in private.

Clef nodded solemnly.

Ferio sighed again. "She's not. . . . your average student. She's stubborn, has an affinity for being alone, and most of all has had little chance to learn how to interact with other people. She's lonely, and afraid. The Courtiers are constantly spreading rumors that she picks up easily. She's a monster, she deserves death, 'I can't believe they let a mutt like her in to stink up the castle', you know? But what's worse is she doesn't know how to handle it. She's been thrown into an entire new world, and if it wasn't for the Queen, Princesses Umi and Hikaru, she would have already drowned."

Clef nodded. "I understand Ferio. It still doesn't mean she can do what she wants. She's going to have to be taught a lesson."

Ferio looked to the ground. "I know that. Just-just go easy one her, okay?"

Clef looked to his friend, then nodded again. "I'll do my best."

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Akarui walked away from the scene, already bored out of her mind. Anger filled her, and dread for the morning. Her heart was left in the forest, amongst all the animals and trees, but if she intended become useful, she needed to become at least adept in her skills. If she didn't, it wasn't possible for her to continue to protect her forest, and the forest would suffer.

She couldn't believe her luck. Stuck with a arrogant snob of a teacher, she has to live with his bossy personality. This is one of the days Akarui almost wished to have been born normal, so she could have known how to handle this type of situation. She wasn't adept to living with humans at all, and in this place, there was no room for mistakes.

Sighing, Akarui's hands reached to rest behind her head as she toured the halls, no destination in mind. But of course, she was part fox. The need to play or prank was unbearable, and she knew she needed some mischief in her life. Continuing down her path, she found one of the many kitchens. Immediately, she spotted her prey.

Hard at work at the counter sat Umi, the beautiful blue haired Knight, mixing up a batch of cookies. Ascot hovered over her shoulder, curious and anxious in his manner.

"What are these supposed to be again?"

"Cookies, Ascot. They're delicious. Everyone loves them back home, and there are hundreds of kinds."

"Are you sure they're. . . . safe?"

"Do you mean to say that I'm a bad cook?" Umi's tone was dangerous, and Ascot looked apprehensive, while backing away slowly.

Perfect.

"Oh drat, there's no flour anymore. Come on, we'll go get some from another kitchen. If we hurry, we can have the cookies ready by dinner."

A wide, foxlike grin spread upon the girls face, as her victims disappeared through another door. Checking the coast was clear, Akarui walked casually up to the soon to be "cookies", memorizing the exact position of everything around her. After doing so, she reached over to a bottle of salt, dumping the entire thing into the batter. Next, she reached up to the cabinets, pulling out a banana and seasonings. Mashing up the banana, she added it to the concoction, before stirring in the seasonings. Returning everything to how it was, she decided to come back an hour later to see how things were holding up here.

The trick wasn't much, but it was enough to keep her satisfied. She never played a trick before on Umi, making her unsuspecting, and was never properly introduced to Ascot. Knowing the gardens would be unoccupied, she left for the comforts the branches provided, feeling a nap among the roots coming on.

If only Fuu hadn't been one of the ones to take care of her.

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"Umi, are you sure these are safe?"

Umi "hmpfed" indigently, before she replied, "Do you question my cooking skills, Ascot? We were gone for 5 minutes, and everything was exactly as before, so no one touched the batter, and I followed the recipe exactly otherwise. It's fine, just try it."

Ascot looked at the strange food setting warm in his hand with a look of utter suspicion. Hikaru had showed him a picture of a cookie before, but it looked nothing like this. The cookie was lumpy and had a reddish tint to the crust.

As Ascot eyed the cookie, Akarui timed her entrance perfectly. coming in to grab a glass and some milk from the cooling room, then sitting down at a table with a perfect view of the couple before her. Watching with interest from the corner of her eye with ears twitching back and forth, she drank her milk in sips, making the drink last longer.

Ascot examined the cookie one last time, before he closed his eyes, and tentatively took a bite. Words weren't enough to describe the experience. The vile thing was extremely salty, causing bile to burn the back of his throat. Hard chunks of burnt banana cracked his teeth, while the rest was mixed with various other spices, none mixing well.

Ascot's face had paled, turning to a greenish tinge, fingertips holding his lip to keep from regurgitating the cookie. His eyes rolled up to the back of his head for a split second, and he made noises as he flapped his arms wildly looking for disposal.

Umi panicked, her face contorted with fear, and she beat Ascot's back, only causing him to sallow the disgusting treat. Meanwhile, though concerned for his safety and keeping ready to jump into action, Akarui was beside herself with laughter. Just the scene of Umi pounding madly on Ascot's back while his face turned green was a scream on it's own.

But the real topper was the look on Caldina's face as Umi tried to use the Heimlich Maneuver on Ascot.

Akarui almost burst out in laughter. But her self control won the day, and she slipped into the shadows to revel in her moment of triumph.

"What's going on here?" Lantis's voice alone was enough to shake the rafters of the kitchen. Caldina and Umi froze in their positions, and Ascot finally was able to go throw up into the waste bin.

"I think I can explain, Lantis." Fuu's voice rang clearly out to the group, and they all turned to her.

"I've been witness to a couple of practical jokes like this in the past few weeks. They all have one thing in common, a link, something that bonds all together," Fuu continued. "The new girl, the one Lantis saved and Hikaru and I healed, was always conveniently in range to see the effects of the joke."

Lantis contemplated something for a moment. "She's Clef's student now, right, my Queen? Then why wouldn't she be busy with her studies?"

Fuu smiled gently. "He was just notified today. Ferio said they got into some sort of screaming match, so he's talking to Clef, while Akarui cools down."

"I would'va thought that Mr. Clef woulda first given somethin' for her ta do, huh?

Fuu nodded. "I agree, but Clef hasn't been himself recently. He'll be okay, he just needs some time. Right now though, we need to focus on the task at hand."

"So the problem is that little brat, huh?" asked Umi. "Why I oughta-"

"Do nothing," interrupted Fuu. "We'll get her back, don't worry. In fact, I already have my plan in motion. It won't be long now."

Umi and Caldina exchanged glances. Umi looked back, before asking suspiciously, "What exactly do you have in mind?"

Fuu simply smiled, while Umi, Caldina, Ascot and Lantis visibly paled. "You'll see."

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Clef smiled, laughing slightly at the joke the diplomat next to time was telling. Inside, he cursed every single one of them, as if they were the reason for his terrible luck.

Looking out the corner of his eye, he saw a certain red haired knight heading his way. Breaking off politely from the group, he headed out to meet her.

Meeting in the middle of the hall, Hikaru cheerfully greeted him as always.

"It's nice to see you again, Clef. I hate to have to pull you away from the diplomats, but I had somethings to discuss."

Clef groaned before muttering, "Take me away from them all you want, it means sweet freedom for me."

Hikaru smiled sadly, then looked at him sympathetically. "Your day that bad, huh?"

"You can't even imagine."

Clef made the last phrase barely audible, but Hikaru caught every word. Nodding in sympathy, she decided to change the subject.

"By the way, I heard you got Akarui."

Clef's head jerked up, and he looked questioningly at Hikaru for a few moments before catching on. "Akarui. . . oh, yes, my new. . . . apprentice."

"I'm glad you took her on, she really needs help. But I do have to warn you, Clef."

Clef looked at Hikaru with a mixture of apprehension and fear.

"It's nothing major, she just has a knack for getting into trouble. She's a bit of a trickster is all, but it is to be expected. After all, she is a fox."

Clef digested this information before running his hand though his lavender hair, and letting out and gigantic sigh. Unfortunately, information was running slow through him recently, as he tried, and failed, to gain back a multitude of lost hours of sleep. In this moment of weakness, Hikaru caught a glimpse of his real age, as he bent over, with lines adding wisdom and time to his face. Straightening up, Clef once again gained his apparent age, before speaking again.

"How damaging of tricks?"

Hikaru nodded solemnly before replying, "Nothing major. Last week she stole Lantis's clothes while he in the Bathing room. Before that, she hid a spider on Fuu's shoulder before Fuu went out to meet the Ferio. She unrolled toilet paper around the bathroom, and put girl's makeup badly all over Ferio's face. Oh, and I received word today that she probably was the culprit of several other tricks, including adding an entire salt container, bananas and other spices to a cookie batter, before it was cooked and give to Ascot. He threw up."

Clef's eyes bugged out of his head. Such insubordination was almost like an act of treason to his eyes.

"I have it taken care of in the morning, dear Knight." Clef bowed himself out, before setting off to plan his attack on the form of his new student. Hikaru smiled to herself. She felt bad for sending someone else to get back at Akarui, but she deserved it. Lantis had caught a cold afterwords.

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_Please read and review. It would be very much appreciated! Anyone who reviews gets virtual Otis Spunkmeyer Cookie Dough. And hints on writing would be useful, but the best would be tips on jokes Akarui could play on various characters throughout the series. Thank you, and review! (Hey, that rhymes!)_

_Kana_


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Magic Knight Rayearth/魔法騎士レイアース