Crystal Hero

A more longer reason below the cut:

‘ YET, YOU ARE THE MOST INTRIGUING ’ ripped from beyond, the voice that called beckoning for her to follow it led her to this world. She could recall the gates being opened, light that burned the skin burying itself deep within. From that day forth, most were perplexed by the Bard’s presence, she announced herself simply as another wanderer - a stray without a home. 

It was further than the truth, the collision in the The Ghimlyt Dark now but a distant memory as fingers were pressed to her temple. It was soothing in some ways, to sing a song that brought merry to those who needed it. All while striving to seek the truth in what felt so further from it. He remained a mystery that plagued her with a thousand thoughts, what was underneath that hood of his? Gentle eyes become sullen, this girl is not the same - the friend she sought in desperation but could not find. 

“If the stories are true, what a rotten life” she speaks to no one, merely around them as her posture slumps. Exhaustion, it was creeping in more than she had thought perhaps pushing herself wasn’t the best idea. Elbows that rest upon her knees, chin placed upon her palm as idly the wild furr of her tail swings. Then, she perks amusement laden upon her smooth features, nose even crinkling as she chuckles. 

   “You have every right to be concerned, when an enemy is silent that means they are up to no good” relations with Eulmore were neutral but strained, many seemed to have little to say but who could care when lost to their own pleasures? All the while, the realm around them continues to crumble further into ruin. “I shall find a way back, but, after some well deserved rest! I fear I am a useless champion if I fall asleep in the midst of battle” the tip of her tongue sticks out, twinkling in lilac eyes is nothing but mischief as she teases. Sayuri’s laughter is roaring, filling the space between them despite all, her head shakes as she carries on. 

  “We shall grow old before our time with all this fretting, someday, we must enjoy ourselves though duty bound we are quickly becoming dull” 

“Am I?” He couldn’t help but laugh at that, the sound a bit odd coming from beneath the hood. It was easy to imagine the way the curve of his smile reached his eyes - blue? green? With the crystal that covered his features, blue seemed like a fair bet, but the green would be a nice offset. 

“I fear you haven’t given the rest of the locals a fair try then, if you believe I am the most interesting one here.”

Her comments about Eulmore and Vaulthry were met with a soft sigh. Far too true, and he knew that, but there was little they could do at this moment. The threat they posed was ever-present, lurking over them and casting a shadow that covered all of the Crystarium - but could they live their lives in fear? Constantly hiding from the potential threats that lurked in the distance? What life would they be offering to the ones who called this place their sanctuary, their home?

Hearing the inquiry, Artemis momentarily shifts her gaze between the stranger with his crystalline weapon in hand and the Nix and nods. She could see and anticipate that the giant frog is going to do another jump attack. The young keybearer hastily takes a few steps back, away from both the Nix and the overturned cart, to get out of range as a precaution.

Before the giant frog could push themselves off the ground, she tightens her grip on her keyblade and takes aim toward them, unleashing a strong Dark Blizzaga spell. The spell takes hold and freezes the creature thoroughly, leaving white and black-purple snowflake patterns on its skin. 

Watching the arrow land on its target, Artemis raises her free arm to shield her eyes and look away from the intense explosion that resulted. The Nix stays down and releases its last croak before perishing. Bewildered, she slowly lowers her arm and briefly glances back at the archer as if silently asking if this sort of reaction was supposed to happen.

“Huh.”

While this had been the result he had been hoping for, G’raha would have been lying if he said he had truly expected it. His plans were always of the ‘looked good on paper’ variety; in theory something was supposed to work one way, but that didn’t mean it ended up working that way in reality. 

But this time it had, and how could he complain. They were down a frog and the strange woman with her strange weapon were safe. What more could he have asked for?

The miqo’te offered her a smile as he started toward her, bow vanishing and returning to shape of the staff that he kept carried on his back. “Well. I’m glad that is dealt with. Aren’t you?” he said, the last comment more of a gentle jab and a joke than anything else. After all, she had run off without really talking to him. 

 “I…” 

  Why had he suddenly said such things? He tried to keep his feels close. Despite how awful he was at hiding them or controlling them, he tried his hardest. Nobody needed to see him fall apart. Nobody needed to see him vulnerable. He didn’t want pity or worry. People seeing him as something other than a weapon… That just invited problems. Like them seeing how fucked up he actually was. Or… him getting too close. 

  Though he was already close, wasn’t he? Too many people now had touched his heart. He knew that the pain would be unbearable if he were to lose any of them. It terrified him to no end. He never wanted to be close to people. Not after his family. Not after so much pain. It scared him more than Primals or death itself. 

 “Forget about it. I said something foolish.” 

Crimson eyes narrowed as G’raha’s tail flicked behind him. It was hard for him to hide the irritation that was rippling behind his skin; for better or for worse the miqo’te was a bit like an open book, with everything rippling over his skin and barely hiding beneath the surface. Being so easy to read was a bit annoying, especially now that he had entirely ditched the persona of the Exarch, but-- it was better to be easily read than to... never allow anyone in.

Right?

Lore bit his lip, ears wilting back ever so slightly. “You don’t have to apologize,” he murmured, lips curving into a half smile, “I happen to like listening to you talk about Allag.”

There was an awkwardness between them since he’d woken the other from his slumber in the Tower - one he knew lay mostly in G’raha attempting to readjust to life as himself and the self he had been. The orange crystal in his pocket felt like a lead weight for a moment, Lore knew he felt off kilter for similar reasons - not that he’d spoken of that to anyone at all.

He shook himself and offered up a warm, sweet grin at G’raha’s words, bouncing on his toes lightly like some excitable kit.

“I promised I would take you adventuring, did I not?” he murred lowly, taking a step forward, raising a hand to adjust G’raha’s scarf briefly, if needlessly, “It is one promise I intend to never break.” He stepped back and canted his head toward the doors, “‘Sides, La Noscea is always a fun time!”

He grinned wider at the disbelieving snort that came from one of the other Scions (Hoary, you bastard) in the bar. He really hoped no one decided to regal G’raha with any of his unfortunate exploits in that area..

“Yes, we should!”

He didn’t miss the way Lore reached out to gently adjust his scarf, and G’raha found himself giving the other a lopsided grin for the moment. It was such a small, silly gesture, one that felt far more intimate than it truly was. It was comforting to think that Lore could forget himself to that level around him, even if it was just for a moment. 

“You did,” G’raha said with a small smile. Of course, everyone’s definition of an adventure was different - but he wasn’t going to argue if exploring and looking into another archeological dig was Lore’s definition, especially when it came to him.

The slight snort that came from Hoary had G’raha giving him a slight side glance and he couldn’t help but wonder - was Lore lying? Or was it more that there was something else there he wasn’t being told. G’raha’s memories of La Noscea and Limsa were of a pirate city that tended towards some of the more... 

Hmm.

     Feeling the other man attach to his sleeve, Vel glances back, his breath catching as he expects the worst– the fire licking right at their heels, perhaps. Though his legs had carried them both far enough from the blaze to avoid being entirely surrounded, as they had been, his lungs still strain as the ashen air whips across his face. But no, they’re still far enough that the conflagration is but a threatening glow behind them and not threatening to swallow them whole that very second. 

No, it seems that G’raha simply wished to hold onto him, and Velkyn certainly wasn’t about to deny him that. Brows drawing together into a deep furrow, he carefully pries G’raha’s hand from the fabric of his sleeve and holds it in his own instead, fingers lacing with the other miqo’te’s and giving a careful squeeze as he once again begins to lead the way.

For better of for worse, G’raha’s got him.

The warrior fixes his gaze ahead, picking their path through the forest by following the tracks of the animals who had been quick enough to escape the flames. Broken twigs and trampled roots made for an already beaten path, and the instincts of the creatures who had trod them weren’t far from Velkyn’s own. 

Get to the water. There’s a river nearby, wide enough to have a good chance at stopping the burn, with an open plain on the other side. A far distance for the flames to jump, with nothing substantial to jump to. It’s the best they can do.

The moment he hears the sounds of the water ahead, Vel’s ears perk, his tail twitching sharply back and forth as he finally looks back to G’raha, eyes burning bright with adrenaline and anxiety. “Almost there. Can you swim?”

Even if he couldn’t, they’d have to manage. There was little other choice. Vel just needs to know what to account for.

As they reach the edge of the water, Vel wades in without a second thought, still guiding G’raha by the hand. The current isn’t too harsh, he notes as he steps further and further in, the water rising about his waist before the bottom drops out from beneath his feet. That is to say, it isn’t too harsh for him, at least. If G’raha is a strong swimmer, it shouldn’t be a problem, but in the event that he isn’t…

Well, Vel hadn’t let go of him yet. Nor was he about to.

He could swim. Perhaps not as well as Velkyn or Alisaie - but they were also the two who had received the blessing that allowed them to breath underwater. No one else could really swim as well at that, but he at least wasn’t as bad as Alphinaud or... Urianger.

G’raha stumbled as he ran behind Vel, squeezing his hand tightly- but equally being drug along in the other’s panic to get them as far from the fire as possible. He didn’t blame him. It was better than being carried along, at the very least. 

The ice cold water was a rather abrupt shock to his system, and he gasped as they forged further in - up until the moment there stopped being solid group beneath his feet and he went from being waist-deep to under water. For a moment G’raha found himself flailing, arms desperately slapping around as he tried to pull himself back above water. 

He could swim. It had just been-- maybe just a bit.

With a slight gasp he surfaced, shaking his head as he twisted around to look back at the flames. From here, it seemed far less... just less. Dangerous. Threatening. And the unnerving knot that had twisted in his chest began to lessen as it became easier to recall that it was only in his memories that the fire had been a threat.

Memories were just that, though. He couldn’t change them, but they couldn’t hurt him. Not anymore.

Well. That wasn’t so bad then. And he’d be lying if he tried to say that it hadn’t actually been nice to just sit and speak plainly with someone. Plus he was going to be coming away from it with a new perspective things as well as some assurance that he didn’t seem to be some kind of aetheric time bomb. He should probably be thanking G’raha.

And then all thoughts - be they of gratitude or otherwise - fled his mind when gentle fingers scratched behind his ear as he stood up.

There was a long moment while G’raha stuttered out a reply where Maru just stood and stared at him, slightly disappointed that he’d stood up and it had prompted the redhead to stop the pleasing attention. Conflicted then, between going on his way as he said and stopping to find out what that had been about and if maybe G’raha would like to continue, Maru hesitated.

As the scion suspected, Maru hadn’t been doing anything that he needed to get back to - his attempt at leaving was to avoid any awkward hanging around, not a desire to really be on his way anywhere in particular.

Awkward silence did then descend and after it had dragged on for a minute as Maru fought with himself, he finally raised a hand in a wave goodbye and turned to take his leave even though he had no idea where he wanted to go. One moment he was there, the next he was gone but his mind lingered on that touch, fleeting though it had been.

Maru wasn’t on the ball as much as he might like to be but it did make him wonder - just how much of their conversation could be applied to the two of them?

Did… did G’raha like him?

No. One touch, unintentional as it was, didn’t mean anything. It couldn’t. RIght?

Maru didn’t seem like he was going to be moving anytime soon-- because he was shocked, because he was offended by the touch that G’raha had absentmindedly indulged in. Any moment now he would snap out of whatever stupor he was in and he would be mad-- he would yell, most likely, or worse was that he would just be... disappointed.

Red ears flattened as G’raha stuttered something out before hastily retreating, hurrying from the makeshift infirmary into the heart of the Rising Stones - and from there, vanishing, escaping out into the cool Mor Dhonan air so that he could allow himself to cool off.

He was an idiot, and as more time passed he could feel his face starting to burn, turning a brilliant shade that came close to matching his ears. He was an idiot and he needed to start watching himself better. Bad enough he made that mistake once; he didn’t need to make it a second time.

Even though she had asked for a compliment, he still made her blush by agreeing. Definitely a good choice then, she told herself, smiling back and then paying as soon as she slipped her geta on. So long as they returned their clothes by the same time tomorrow, they would not be fined. This meant they could walk around at night too, if they desired it.

Moonflower put her hand on his offered arm and they exited the shop. “Yes,” she agreed happily. “And there’s so much we could do! But first, I think we should get dango and tea, and I know exactly where to go. It’s this way!” The kimono prevented her from taking long strides, but that was fine. If it became necessary to run, she wouldn’t hesitate, but going at a more sedate pace would be a good way to really absorb their surroundings. 

As they walked, she commented, “You wouldn’t think that the rest of the country is closed to outsiders, just by looking at this city.”

He wasn’t quite sure what she was talking about with dango (though he wasn’t so slow not to know what tea was, thank you very much) but G’raha just nodded as he followed along. It didn’t escape his notice that she couldn’t really walk as fast as normal in the dress she was wearing, but it wasn’t something he commented on. But was that the point of this? The style? Were you supposed to just hobble around? That hardly seemed... efficient. 

The topic shifted easily, moving from them to the city they were walking through, and G’raha found himself frowning at those words - closed off. He had dealt enough with cities that viewed themselves as above the rest of the world, closing their doors to the problems that plagued elsewhere. Eulmore... 

Was this the Eulmore of the Source?

“I know you’re not… I just want to be selfish, just for a little while.” She’d say softly into his neck. She truly couldn’t fathom that this was real, that he was here. She couldn’t stop the silent flow of tears of joy she felt as she just held him. Upon hearing of his eagerness to leave the Tower, she would raise her head and nod, “Right, right… let’s help you see Mor Dhona’s infamous Gloom, yeah?” She grinned.

Her words brought a low chuckle from him as he started to get to his feet. It had taken several minutes, but his body was finally beginning to feel real. This was real. He was truly here, back in the Source... back in a world he had thought he would never be able to see before. 

It was hard to truly say how he felt, as it was hard to deny that part of him believed that perhaps he didn’t deserve this. How many people had lost their lives defending the First? And how many of those lives had been lost because of him, be it through action - or inaction?

“I fair recall Mor Dhona looking rather beautiful,” he said in an almost absentminded voice. Perhaps not the friendliest place, but there had always been an eerie beauty hidden beneath its core that drew him there. 

That... and the Tower.

Hello anon! Sorry for any delay in answering this; holidays are time consuming.

“Before the Light came…? Um…” Minfillia frowned, looking down for a moment as she tried to think. Eulmore wasn’t exactly known for its well-documented history of the days before the Flood. In fact, she’d been mostly ignorant of it all until Thancred had stolen her away.

However, she learned much with Urianger and Thancred’s help. She now knew about the Warriors of Light and the various civilizations that had existed before the Light had ravaged everything in its path.

“I don’t know a lot, but Amh Areang used to be a large trading kingdom, wasn’t it…? Same with Il Mheg… and then Eulmore wasn’t always a place of gross decadence…” Minfillia frowned before shaking her head, “… That’s all I’ve been able to really learn. They… must have been lovely places, though.”

He wasn’t a native of the First, which meant his own knowledge of events prior to the flood were limited to what he had been able to learn from local gossip, and the bits and pieces he had been able to pull together from the tomes he had unearthed. In short - there wasn’t much he knew that truly went beyond what Minfillia herself was telling him.

The Exarch nodded, offering her a slight smile. 

“When the Flood came, a thousand years of history was scrubbed clean. All that remains of that knowledge and the memories of those who came before us is here.” Not... entirely true; there were still ruins to be explored that held their own secrets, but he doubted there would be any diaries of eulmorian natives hidden deep within them. The most valuable clues and insights came from the most mundane sources. 

M’firhi pouts at him. Pouts. Why does being around G’raha make him feel this carefree? 

“Is my company that repulsive?” he asks, only half joking. It does seem like G’raha…. really doesn’t want him around and he can almost literally feel his heart sinking.

Wow, he must be more tired than he thought.

Still, part of him wants to keep needling the other miqo’te. It feels nice to have his attention, even if it’s just annoyance.

“Oh trust me, I know how well you can hold your own,” M’firhi assures him even as he falls into step with him and stubbornly refuses to leave. He ignores those darker thoughts and grins at G’raha. “But I’m bored and you make for good company, so you’re stuck with me.”

“I want to be alone, M’firhi.”

It was the other miqo’te that was causing his thoughts to be the confusing whirlwind they already were. The other miqo’te that kept on acting like maybe he felt more towards G’raha than just being friends with him - and it both raised G’raha’s hopes while equally terrifying him at the same time.

M’firhi couldn’t feel that way about him. He needed to, had to, be with someone better.

send me a pair name and I’ll tell you what I think it would be like if they had a child. | @aprisatm

Name: Killian Lavigine

Gender: Male

General Appearance: Lithe, a little bit taller than his dad but way shorter than his mom, pink hair, pink/amber eyes

Personality: Talks a big talk but is a bit of a coward/mama’s boy. Will piss people off then hide behind his mom. 

Special Talents: 

Who they like better: Aisling

Who they take after more: G’raha

Personal Head canon: Often wears hats if going somewhere new or around new people as he’s slightly ashamed of being a male ‘viera’; his bunny ears are 

Face Claim: Yata Misaki

send me a pair name and I’ll tell you what I think it would be like if they had a child. | @anamnesiis

Name: Pandora

Gender: Female

General Appearance: Silver hair, blue eye. Only one eye; an accident had her losing her other one. Hyur.

Personality: Very respectful towards both her parents. Very quiet. Doesn’t tend to speak unless spoken to. Incredibly quick to defend both parents.

Special Talents: She’s rather exceptional with a blade and at manipulating aether.

Who they like better: Both

Who they take after more: Both 

Personal Head canon: She was a child badly injured during a rejoining who managed to just barely survive. Her entire family died and the Exarch, out of a sense of remorse, wanted to raise her. Emet-Selch probably wasn’t hard to convince. Probably less a child and more sort of like... a child soldier indoctrinated by them but she loves them and they do love her.

Face Claim: Iri Flina