#antas

Just when you think things are fading, that the scars and old injuries on your body were receding, something always comes around to mess you up all over again.

It really feels like you’re getting used to risking your life for the sake of saving people. In your mind, they’re your dumbass friends, but you really can’t call them that when you’re over here being a bigger idiot than any of them.

You don’t have magic, and magic refuses to heal you in the way it does others. But you go on anyway, letting your legs take you forward to grab another reached out hand, another knocked out body, and shield another person caught unawares.

You stopped keeping track how many bones you’ve fractured, how many scars you’ve gained, how nerves you’ve damaged.

You’ve almost learned to live with it, but, as always, you can’t really keep to that state of mind.

Not with all these students reminding you every so often.

“I don’t understand how you can forgive them,” Valenio hovered by the doorway, clearly intending on following right behind you as some sort of moral support. “After all that, I feel uneasy even being in the same room as any of those housewardens.”

As if those same housewardens also don’t feel uneasy whenever you’re in the same room. You’re not some taboo subject that shouldn’t be seen or touched.

Valenio means well, you know that, but it irritates you all the same.

“Don’t think about it too deeply, buddy,” you sighed out as you walked past him, “It’s a mess, but I can handle it. Just, focus on your own things, ‘kay?”

Antas was… more direct about it.

“Simply put, those pixies of yours wouldn’t stop filling my ears with their bell-like voices,” Antas waved about, as if they were still ringing in his ears, “Injuries and scars such as this are rare, you know. They think your body is giving up on you, that you’re on your last legs.”

Ah, that explains the stacks upon stacks of berries, tiny potion jars and other get-well commodities you’ve seen being left on your window as of late. But, even with that truth of those pixies concern, it’s easy to see that this was just an excuse to stretch out his own brand of concerned.

“Yeah yeah, don’t pay it too much mind,” you’re trying to keep it out of yours in the first place, even through all the occasional pain and itching, “If I’m actually dying, you’ll know about it.”

Tul’Veith is gentle to you, infuriatingly so, whenever you two meet up. He was already straining himself worrying over his body and studies, and here he was, constantly struggling to bring you more potions just to help you out.

“It took me a little bit, but I managed to get my hands on some amazing ingredients. Uh, here, this one should help with pain.”

And, you have to push it back to him. You know he’s not telling you the whole truth. He pulled from his own treasures that he used on himself, to help his own ailing body.

If you let Tul’Veith start with this worrying, he’ll never stop. And you’ll get distracted, and probably even think that you need this and drain him of everything he has.

“It’s fine. I’ll figure it out myself how to deal with it.”

Just, he really needs to stop.

And Vio, he seethes. Well, he’s always seething against something, like the whole world has somehow wronged him in every way it can think of. But, when you’re around, it seems as though it gets deeper, more sour.

He bites into his lips until they start to bleed, and he tugs at his hair until it’s out of its ponytail and is just a curly mess.

“Sorry, I didn’t sleep well at all.”

But, he doesn’t point anything out. He trudges on and at least pretends to have a normal day, coming up with every excuse to explain his mood rather than blow up in your face about your recklessness, and blow up at everyone else that gave you these scars.

You leave him alone, because as much as you appreciate him not saying anything, you don’t want any part of his mood.

Cheridal’s been persistent. He comes over to your dorm more and more, often taking up task that are generally tedious to do, like cleaning your forks and spoons to a mirror shine.

“Really? Nothing to talk about or say? No anger or resentment to speak of?” Cheridal asked as he wiped away every drop of water from your utensils before putting it in its proper drawer.

“Stop fishing, Cheridal,” you flicked water at him, almost cringing when your rubber gloves slipped down your arm, but you tugged it back with your teeth, “I don’t hate anyone. I don’t need anyone to take revenge for me.”

“Just, saying, the offer is still open.”

So he says, like he wasn’t eager to correct a perceived injustice. Your feelings are more than enough to get him to act, doesn’t really care if everyone else did something wrong or not.

You won’t let something like the state of your body be the reason you hate anyone. This was just the result of your actions. A reminder that not even magic would be able to save you if you do anything too stupid.

It wasn’t really something you planned, this hiking trip.

“So,” you jumped over a big root only to have your pants snag on a branch, “woah!”

Luckily, Valenio caught you by the shoulder, though the strength in his hand made your joint creak a bit. He helped you down on the other side, muttering a deep, “Careful.”

“I told you that you should’ve gotten some hiking boots,” tutted Antas as he floated right over your head, facing towards the foliage covered sky with his arms behind his head, as though in a private pool, “Little humans with their little ground bound selves are going to trip over nature’s biological chaos.”

It’s odd to you, really, to see him wear the face of Crowley and yet none of his usual clothing. It was a simple ruffle front shirt with the dark pants of his uniform and thigh high boots. Barely any of his usual effort, as though this really was just relaxing at home.

Meanwhile you and Valenio were pretty much sweating through your clothes. Well, more Valenio than you. It seems he’s still not used to the warmer temperatures of the surface world, especially compared to the deep sea.

“Yeah yeah, I hear you,” you waved, dismissing him as you check the damage on your pants. Nothing wrong, just a loose thread. Yes, it was dumb of you to travel this far into the woods but to fair, you were going in a straight line. And Valenio’s with you so it’s not as if you’re alone. “Anyways, Valenio, mind telling me more about the flower you’re looking for?”

“Rude,” Antas scoffed, but you can hear the amusement in his voice and feel his carapace hands patting your head. You didn’t stop him and kept walking.

Valenio hummed and reached into his bag. He pulled out a worn journal with an odd bone pen sticking out from the pages. “It’s called the Lucretia’s Wine Glass. Named not for its peculiar shape that gathers its nectar in, but after a winemaker woman that shared a glass of her most precious wine with her lover. Supposedly the drops spilled gave birth to this flower.”

“Oh my, how romantic,” Antas flipped in the air, now on his stomach, his legs swinging about as he propped up his chin, “And familiar. Isn’t that story the subject of your next performance, dear Valenio?”

“Oh so that’s the theme,” Valenio didn’t really tell you much beyond the date, “how cute. Why didn’t you tell me?”

Valenio coughed into his hand, “It’s… overly sentimental. And… I didn’t want to give a wrong impression.”

“There’s nothing wrong with choosing a romantic opera piece, though,” you said with a light touch of laughter.

Antas flew down and whispered, “he likely thought you wouldn’t like it. Tell me, how many students in this college would be willing to sit down and listen to something as overly sappy as The Winemaker’s Glass Gift?”

Not many. Not many at all.

“Don’t whisper as though I can’t hear you. Even with all the noise, I’ve learned to distinguish them just fine.” Valenio sighed out as he slide down a rock structure.

“Whoops, sorry.”

“So,” you gestured in front of you, “why the flower hunt?”

“Because…” Valenio paused and you stopped as well. Poor man had a hand pressed against the tree. He reached into his bag, pulled out a flask and poured its contents all over his head, “That’s better. Because, the story is about love, dedication, and devotion. It’s a beautiful piece, and I feel it would bring me closer to this song if I had this flower to perform with.”

Well then, no wonder so many Pomefiore students both admire him, despite this barely concealed fear.

“Well, I hope you find that flower then,” you looked up, “though, what about you? Why are you here?”

An aura of glittering butterfly scales lapsed into view, rendering the woods still for just a moment before the winds brushed past you all once more. Antas was smiling, as one would towards a threat that had no chance of touching them.

“Think of me as your invitation, Prefect, Valenio,” finally, as though tired of being in the air, Antas let his heel click on a stone protrusion, “Can’t very well have those close me be stolen away because they forgot that woods aren’t ever truly untouched.”

“Be wary, Agoria has a habit of disguising himself as someone else.”

“How the fuck do you expect me to find him then?”

“Because he’s fae. Don’t think I haven’t notice how drawn they are to you. I think you’re perfect for the job. Now, have a nice run! I have full faith you’ll bring that disobedient pup back.”

You’re going to stab Divus one day, you’re absolutely sure of it. Or at least have one of your little buddies soak his sheets at three AM as revenge.

Bastard, making more work for you, even though you fully accepted the huge money bride he gave you. Oh well, what can you say? You love money and you do want to have more of it. Still, that didn’t stop you from stomping down the quiet hallway. You were in the middle of a nice study session too, researching the golden age that resulted in the campus of RSA to be built. It’s all interesting stuff, truly.

But nope, you have to run an errand that has nothing to do with your job as a janitor. Well, a handsomely paid errand but still!

There’s a little tap on the window next to you. You opened it and in came in a water fairy. They twirled, the ends of their water hair breaking off into floating droplets before holding their hands out.

“You found him?” Already you can feel the stress rolling off your shoulders.

The little fairy nodded, holding out their hands higher. A reward is in order. Phew, you don’t have to search around the entire campus then. You pulled out a puff of dragon’s beard candy and stuff it into their waiting arms. The entire candy spanned their torso and they twirled again at the generosity.

Little tinkling bells, laughing and praising the gift to highest clouds. They flew down the hall and you followed.

Soon, you found yourself in the greenhouse garden. While this part of the campus wasn’t one you frequented often, the fae here clean it up just fine, it was populated with a number of students plucking and planting. The water fairy insisted Agoria was somewhere around here. His scent was distinct as well as familiar, apparently.

“You’ve got to be shitting me…” you grumbled.

Guess fae are able to sense their own kind quite well, but unfortunately this Agoria was an expert at not being found.

You don’t have much knowledge about him, as you don’t go to any class, period. You’ve seen him, talked to him even when he returned a book you were on the hunt for. You weren’t friends, not even close. Just two strangers with a mutual respect to not make this place more of a mess than it already was.

However, as much as you wanted to spite Divus, he was indeed correct about you being the best for the job, for you did find him.

There’s a figure under a tree, snoozing away. To anyone else, it was Leona resting in an indent made just for his body. Nobody would bat their eyes twice, as he rests wherever whenever. By all means, the splaying of his limbs, the twitches of his ears, even down to the slovenly worn uniform and scuffed sandals exuded Leona.

The only reason you know it wasn’t him? This part of the garden took more effort to get here than anywhere else. Regular Leona wouldn’t bother coming here, let alone would he be welcome.

When you do find him, and if he’s in disguise,

With the help of the wind fairy, your steps were quiet. You hopped over roots and stopped right by the disguised Agoria’s body.

Pinch his clothes and pull. It’ll rip like cotton.

You knelt down, grabbed his collar and ripped it off. Like the scales on a butterflies wings, the fabric tore and disintegrated, falling away in a scattering glitter of color. The hole in the disguise, the glamour, expanded and fluttered just the same. It was a beautiful array of colors, truly, though it did make you cough when you accidentally breathed in the dust.

Soon, all that lay before you was the Agoria Divus was looking for. A tall man, with long waves of lilac hair blanketing his back like a bed sheet. He was awake, eyes wide as he blinked at you in surprise. Huh, he didn’t just have two eyes, there were six more pebble sized ones on his forehead.

“So,” He pushed himself up, high heels gently scraping the grass he was napping on. “you found me.” He sounded shocked, mystified even. His voice was deeper than you thought, though that could be effects of sleep.

Honestly, though you were more fascinated by the carapace on his hands, a blue so dark it may as well be black. How he manages to scratch his face without nicking it is beyond you.

But, you’re not here to admire the sheer variety in fae features. You’re here to do an errand.

For the Caretaker, Antas is another pet, but one that ran away from his owner after he attacked her live on television. Usually, driders such as he are considered to be dangerous pests, so when they show behavior such as that, they'd be put down without hesitation. Basically, he's a mini drider that wanders from house to house, hoping to find a cool little corner to spin his web in and rest. He does not look good, all malnourished and dehydrated since he does not know how to hunt for himself. But, of course, the Caretaker eventually finds him around in their garden and they have to take him in. He had to be in isolation for quite a bit cause he did not relax around the other pets. He needed to have small bits of exposure, over time until he eventually comes out of his shell. And man did he. His spider half started getting more and more vibrant until eventually they started to bloom in some colorful lilac butterfly scales on his abdomen with a stain-glass like pattern. But yeah, he very much ends up attached to the Caretaker at the hip. Would try to crawl up their leg and onto their shoulder. Sometimes will hide in high places and jump right on their head. He's a quiet little thing, but the little shakes of his limbs tell all of his happiness. He can still fit on your hand, just so you know.

Valenio in the house pet au is another pet that managed to escape his kidnappers. He's never had an owner but he did have a friend that he liked to visit cause they fed him all sorts of weird foods he's never find in the deepsea. He had a lot of little guppies following him around, hiding in his very long trails of frills and fins. He doesn't look that different from his regular au self, just vastly smaller. Though, he is the length of your leg. He is big, though not as heavy as you might think. His little human torso, you can grab with one hand, but just barely. But, anyways, Caretaker was having a beach day but had to cut it short when they found a beached Valenio, very much heavily injured with all the little guppies trying to keep hiding in what was left of his fins. At home, Valenio has a tank all to himself. It's a huge tank as well, almost reaching the ceiling. You need a ladder to reach but it's all fine. Caretaker did try to take him back to the sea, but nope, Valenio is staying planted in the tank. He likes it. You can't move him. Just you try. Much like the other pets, he's not the smartest. He tried to get the Caretaker in the tank with him, cause he didn't know they couldn't breathe underwater. Also, despite the large size of his tank, it's the easiest thing to clean cause he goes out of his way to help you out. Though he does have a meticulous system that you have to follow or he will give you the silent treatment.

Oh and the guppies are weird little things. They're these shapeless forms of ink, they tend to take on the form of clione but sometimes they look like jellyfish. Either way, it's a sentient thing that hide within the fins and frills of Valenio. They're not a hazard, nor does it bother him.

Vio is a another human, a brat of a human fae, but a human nonetheless. He's attending the college nearby and is trying to expand his social network in order to make something of himself and his family. To that point, he actually does, initially, look down on the existence of the Caretaker since all he's heard about them is that they're a shut-in that everyone else spoils. So, to his eyes, the Caretaker is a leech. Basically, he's rather ignorant of the plight of the Caretaker cause he has tunnel vision on his own goals. He has magic, so the job industry and the education system treats him as well. Vio has his own troubles to deal with, so he sees his efforts and his well treatment as a result of all his hard work rather than it being something he was always going to get. He will get humbled when he sees the stacks and stacks of rejection letters on the Caretaker's shelf.

Cheridal is a red sea snake that has taken up home in a little ice cream shop by the sea. His owners really do love him to death, but they can't be with him all the time, so they arranged for him to be staying with the Caretaker whenever winter rolls around. His owners don't live near here and they're hesitant on taking him with them as they don't want him to be too far from home. Cheridal is actually smaller than Jamil, thinner too, but that doesn't stop him from play fighting with all the pets. Hell, he'll even play fight with the Caretaker. He'll beat them one day, he swears! He really has too much energy, so when he's not wrestling, he's usually swimming in the pond outside. If the Caretaker is not looking, he will try to sneak into the freezer for any frozen treats that might be in there. He's a weird creature. He likes to take an ice cube, toss it to the floor and skid it across the floor and chase after it.