Blossomgale Bringer

"Asbel is likely wherever you last left him," Lambda offered, his violet gaze resting upon her own. "Nothing of note has happened to him since you last parted his company, or rather if it has it has nothing to do with myself or my presence here." 

"I am not the same one that you saw this morning," the being explained plainly, though there was an odd flicker of emotion at the back of a gaze that so seldom held it. "From your perspective I would be from the future. I am the one who has lived the years you have not yet witnessed. From a time in when this man no longer exists."

So Lambda had already been there, to the future that Sophie awaited with pinpricks of dread. It was... silly of her. Somewhere inside her, she had been hoping that this part of her life -- this happiness, this peace, this perfect stage so warm and secure -- would last forever. Just the mention of that stage's imminent extinction deflated her. She had accepted her fate, but for just a moment it felt as though she had never even taken a single step forward.

But her purpose comforted her, if only slightly: Even in the future, she and Lambda would continue to watch over this land. That was her mission, ineffable and treasured. She would be strong. She would try.

"Oh... I understand. You're the Lambda from the future, where everyone is already gone." The purple-haired girl looked out to sea. Her expression shifted and she looked aged in her ageless body. She made no sound, but it was as though a sigh had escaped her.

"But how did you make it back, Lambda? Are you here to see Asbel again?"

The fool had forced both of them to stop their millennia long squabble long enough to truly see the other. Lambda did not know if he could ever fully trust her, if there would ever come a day he could set behind him the suffering in his past enough to never doubt the humanoid who had his destruction programmed into her very being. But at the very least for now, he would not dwell upon it, and he would continue to see what it was he could learn from this world. 

She was shocked, surprised to see him this way, and he could not find blame for her in this. It was something… even he had not anticipated, and given their disjoint in times, it took little to deduce what she was likely thinking. 

What he desired to know, perhaps what he was testing were the words she had offered him upon Telos Astue, a promise… that she would not fight him any longer, that she would extend to him her trust. He desired to know if those words had been spoken truly for him, or if they’d been no more than a means to appease his partner for whom she clearly cared for deeply.

"But why?" She asked. "You're in Asbel's body right now. If he isn't there with you, where is he?"

No matter how diligent Richard was in duties, he never quite seemed to get on top of his paperwork. 

For each afternoon he spent toiling away at the various matters that demanded his attention as Windor’s king, there seemed only more and more to do. The moment he turned his back it doubled and he felt right back where he had started. 

Richard couldn’t find it in him to resent such matters, however. They were his duties as king, his responsibility to carry for the people he had wronged and the kingdom that he loved. He was glad for the chance to assist his country, to begin to repair the damage that he had caused, but sitting at a desk this way, he couldn’t help but wish that at times there were other ways in which he could assist his people. He envied Cheria who travelled with her relief network or Hubert whose position allotted him a far more direct approach in handling the monster attacks.

Richard missed his friends. It seemed like far too long since he’d last spent any appreciable amount of time with them. The throne had been truly relentless as of late and he simply had not found the time to visit them. Days seemed to chain on endlessly without their presence to break them up. He wondered how long it would be until he could see any of them again. He silently hoped it would be soon. Little lifted his spirits like a shared moment with the people dear to him. This paperwork on the other hand, certainly knew how to put a damper on it. 

Such were the thoughts in his mind as he toiled away at the newest pile of papers that had made their way to his desk. He’d already been here for some time and his eyes were telling him that they were quite prepared for a break, when a knock at the door to his office drew his attention. The king all but jumped at the welcome distraction. 

"Yes," he called to whomever waited on the other side of the door. "Who is it?" 

"Your Majesty," the voice came muffled through the door. "You have a visitor." 

A pleased smile turned at his lips, warming his entire expression. He hadn’t been expecting anyone… which meant only one thing. 

"Sophie Lhant is here to see you sire." 

Sophie poked her head around the door to Richard's office, and a smile tugged her lips up and softened her gaze when she saw the king for the first time in too long. Leaving the guard who had escorted her there behind, she trotted into the room to stand in front of the Richard's desk.

"I was going to send a letter," She said, "But it's..." There was a pause as she thought of how to word it in an official manner, like how Hubert would say it. "It's a matter of utmost importance."

She folded her hands across her chest, a sort of tense energy charging her usually stoic demeanor. She seemed fidgety, excited. "Have you heard of the Mask of Barona, Richard? He sounds a little bit like you, but he always wears a veil. When Pascal was crying, he said, 'In times of pain, turn to me!' And he made it all better. He was a strange man, but he was like a hero, too."

The girl unfolded her hands. "Maybe he's out in the city right now, helping people. I thought that, since he's the mask of your city, you might have heard of him."

She was talking much more than she usually did, but she was practically shining with a childlike admiration for the masked figure. "What else does he do, Richard? Where does he go? I'd like very much to meet him again."

Sophie was a very smart girl— Cheria should’ve known that trying to cover up the fact that she was anything but alright wouldn’t work.

"…Yes, I’m sick," she answered quietly when Sophie asked. It wasn’t the truth, but it wasn’t a complete lie either— It would have to do for now, until she found some way to muster up the courage to tell Sophie that the woman she gave the loving nickname of ‘Mom’ wasn’t going to be around anymore at the end of the day.

The hands that were in Sophie’s shook, and the heart in Cheria’s chest sank. Even more so when the humanoid started focusing on using a magic that would help soothe her sickness for a little while. It really was reminiscent of what Sophie did to her seven years ago, and Cheria could only offer a small, relieved smile as the warmth that flooded through her did in fact make her feel better.

"I see— So Asbel’s not here with you?" Cheria visibly relaxed at that, also relieved by the fact that she didn’t have to tell both Sophie and Asbel about her sudden fatal illness.

It would be hard enough just telling the purple haired girl. To have to tell her that her dream to watch over the world and Asbel’s future generations wouldn’t come true— Well, maybe it would still come true if Asbel ended up with… Someone else…

Cheria’s stomach lurched rather uncomfortably, and she quickly shook her head. When the light had faded and Sophie finished her task, the healer smiled and thanked her softly.

"I am," she said in response to Sophie asking about her being done with work, though she was frowning again at the sudden reminder of what happened before she arrived in Barona. She quickly covered it up with a smile though, deciding to change the topic.

"Would you like to spend some time with me, Sophie?" Pulling away so only one of their hands remained in the other’s grasp, she walked a few steps forward before turning her head to look at the girl. “Since I’m off work, we can go anywhere you’d like. Do you have any ideas?" 

But the humanoid perked up at Cheria's offer, following in her footsteps as they moved further down the road. Anywhere she'd like... She would have to return to Lhant to help Kerri, as she had promised Asbel, but Sophie wouldn't even consider turning Cheria down after witnessing her tears.

Oh, she looked so adorable in that apron. These were the moments that defined her motherhood. If only Asbel could see this…

Even if her movements with the knife weren’t as quick and precise as Cheria’s, Sophie had done an excellent job. Cheria supposed that Sophie’s ability to copy abilities on the battlefield, also came in handy for things like cooking. 

"That’s alright," Cheria said as she walked behind her. “When you get to this part of the carrot, try cutting it like this…"

Carefully, she took Sophie’s little hands into her’s and walked her through the motion. The knife went through the carrot, cutting away a decently sized slice of it.

...What would a carrot cut by Asterism Line look like? Carrot shavings? Somehow, that didn't sound half bad to Sophie, though she could only imagine what it would be like...

“My charm point? What is it, do you like it?”

"Ah..." Sophie watched the creature detach itself from the strand of hair, head following its haphazard path as it fluttered away to disappear behind a cluster of bushes. "It's gone."

Thinking that there was something new about what this woman had just said, the girl returned her attention to the blond standing before her, their unusually colored eyes meeting.

SOB THAT SOUNDS GROSS THO

I HOPE UR STILL SURVIVING THO I KNOW IT IS HARD ;u;u;u;u; WE MISSED U A WHOLE LOT BABBU ;A;;A;A;

Aww, it hasn't been too bad. I figured it'd be better if I didn't spend as much time on Tumblr, though. ;w;

I WILL SURVIVE! SOMETIME WE SHOULD ALL CHAT AGAIN AND HAVE FUN TIMES

SCREAMS

BABY

YESSSS I HAVE MISSED YOUUUU

SOPHIE HAS MISSED ASBELLLL

Their paths did not cross terribly often, but Lambda would still know her voice at the sound of it, still found some strange sense of familiarity in her violet hair and the expressions she had learned from the one she’d called ‘father’. Facing her never failed to be difficult, knowing how he appeared, what memories he undoubtedly brought with him… but it had been his last promise to Asbel, that he would watch over her on his partner’s behalf. That fool… troubling him to the very last. 

"Asbel?"

Asbel? Why would she call him by such a name? His lips twisted into a frown for a moment before recalling precisely where he had wandered to before noting the name carved above his own in the bark not nearly as ancient as it should be. He was not where he should be. This was one completely unaware of everything that was to come.

Twin violet eyes narrowed still tracing the names on the tree before him. What would she do to him if he faced her now, this way, in this form? For years longer than he ever cared to recall she had chased him, had hunted him with the sole purpose of ending his existence. Their truce had been tenuous, based solely and entirely upon the one whose form he now carried. Without that, would she try to destroy him one more? Eliminate him for stealing the one most precious to her? 

His entire body tensed, reacting to his emotions in a way that was still so foreign to him at times. His hosts had never fully complied to his will, ever held a shred of their own consciousness, their own hold on the body he had usurped. Never before now had a form been completely his own, and Lambda still did not fully understand everything that entailed. 

Lambda turned to face his visitor, his entire posture guarded and defensive as the expression on his face. He knew the moment their gazes met she would know precisely who he was, she who had been created to recognize and track down him above all else. 

Her chest pulsed with a familiar twisting sensation and she gasped aloud, bright eyes widening in shock as they met another pair similar in color. Her shocked stare flicked from one eye to the other. Violet... Violet again... Not a hint of blue in either. But Asbel had promised. Lambda was supposed to have given his word.

Sophie stared down at her white dress, the ends of her long lavender hair curtaining her vision despite the pink headband that held it back. Even after merging with the Little Queen, growing taller, becoming the future's guardian, would she have to go back to being Protos Heis, after all?

The girl shook her head and looked back up, meeting Lambda's gaze. No... She had to have more faith in Lambda. Old habits died hard, but she had resolved long ago to bury them. Despite the imprinted codes of her immutable mission, she wanted to trust him. She wanted to be friends. That's why his name was carved by hers. That's why, not too long ago in Sophie's time, she, Richard, and Asbel, with Lambda within him, had joined hands.

She took a tiny step forward, a small hand curled in front of her chest. Her tone was worried, despite her steady eye contact with the other being.