ulster's princess

how i resent you! miranda, Aff. TOA Blue Lions Student

[anruraiocht]

closed miranda from fire emblem: thracia 776. blue lions student affiliated with the officer's academy . written by limit (they/them)

notes:

miranda is written post-fe5 and post-fe4, although prior to her disappearance (read: elopement). she is currently still the princess of ulster

i cherry pick certain characterization details from the umemura novelization, mostly pertaining to miranda's childhood, but otherwise fe5 canon takes precedence

my sincerest apologies to all leifs and leif adjacents

mobile links: dossier / stats / headcanons

[anruraiocht]

may activity check

status: passed

skill points gained: 1 (24)

may activity check: any +1 | sword b > b 1/2

claims:

nova

[anruraiocht]

[ LAST DANCE ] - Miranda has always served a sunny spot, even in the pitch darkness. That is the mindset Sara tracks her down with, in search of a fire to warm herself by until the downpour comes to a halt, and she can see the skies open up once more.

The search doesn't prove too difficult. She has never been able to fathom the fact Miranda isn't more popular, crowded by people that appreciate her charm and wit as Sara has come to. That they do not know how to appraise her worth will forever be their loss.

She wants to hold Miranda's hand whether she is crying or not. Maybe she wants Miranda to hold hers too, when Sara cannot shed tears of her own. Today the rain isn't only in her heart, it's real and around them and ambushing one of the few infirmities that make her human.

But she doesn't have to be afraid because Miranda has talked her through rainy days before. Miranda will make everything better, okay if it cannot be good. Managable since the world can't be perfect.

"Will you dance with me?"

At the end of the day, not many are interested in dancing anymore. Exhaustion after the long day and dwindling interest in any sort of celebration have driven people into retiring early so they can wait out the storm. Those that remain wander around aimlessly, trying to fill the rest of their time however they can. It's still too early to turn in, some may try to justify to themselves as they do this and that inside the manor.

To Miranda, it is honestly more of a relief than anything else that the crowds have thinned a bit. It's easier to walk when there's less of a risk of crashing into other partygoers, especially when there is less space in the ballroom than on the beach. The less people that there are to approach her, the less she has to cover up her own day's fatigue with pleasantries.

The slightly tense expression on Miranda's face lessens when she sees Sara for the second time that night. Earlier that day, it had been her heart that held storm clouds, but now it is Sara's turn on carrying storm clouds in her heart. Despite what others may think, she is not a ghost or a spirit, but a girl with thoughts and emotions of her own. Even if others couldn't quite understand them, that didn't mean they were lesser or didn't exist.

In the little world they had created between the two of them out of necessity and desperation, there wasn't a need for pretending.

Miranda holds her hand out for Sara whenever she wants to take it. Maybe Sara will decide on a whim that she's no longer interested, that something more important has caught her eye partway through. It matters not. She will hold her hand out anyway, for as long as it takes for the warmth to return to the both of their hearts.

"Give me your hand." Her words are phrased like an order, but her tone is soft. "If you don't know the steps, you may stand on my feet and I will show you."

[anruraiocht]

[ LANTERNS ] - It seems more like an activity Nanna and her boundless optimism would have an appreciation for than Miranda and than Sara herself who doubts even a fraction of these wishes will come true. That doesn't mean she won't play along, adding one more paper boat to the procession of lights leisurely marching out to sea, just that her expectations are a little different, tempered by too many disappointments. Wishes like prayers go unanswered more often than not.

"I saw you with Nanna."

Sara has always known Miranda's heart held no hate for her friends. Inconceivable hurts cauterized it closed, welded the door shut as tightly as the cell was trapped in for years. Rekindling a flame after being burned took patience and healing, despite her bent towards fire, the element of life.

"You made a wish, right? I didn't tonight, but I did a long, long time ago." Her lips are drawn into a warm smile. "I wished for change, then you arrived in Melfiye."

It is no real indignity to be seen with one of your friends at a social event, but Miranda's face still flushes as though she had been caught doing... something. She's not exactly sure what. Having friends? She has friends, just as any girl her age does, but it feels different to have others comment on seeing you with a friend.

"...Has anyone ever told you not to tell people you were watching them?" The princess admonishes, although she already knows her concern for social conventions will fall on deaf ears. It isn't as though Sara had ever particularly concerned herself with social conventions before and it is unlikely she would bother starting now just because Miranda had complained. "It is embarrassing to think you were watching me!"

Making wishes in front of others is a fairly normal thing for most people, despite her complaints. She, too, had made wishes in front of her parents' eyes when she was a little girl. Even though she can no longer remember what silly little things she had wished for back then, she had certainly done it. Her wishes after that point had all been made in the quiet of her room, but at one point in time, all of her wishes had been made in the company of others.

The 'I wish every day could be happy' surrounded by people had eventually become 'I wish I could be happy' by herself.

Miranda unclasps the charm from her bracelet and holds it out unceremoniously to Sara, partially in a bid to change the topic from having been seen crouching next to the water in her dress.

"When I first received this, I thought it was a normal star. But I discovered later that it has all of these strange grooves and bumps on it, so I find it a little creepy. You like this sort of thing, do you not? I'll give it to you."

The normal stars in the sky that Nanna wished upon and the slightly strange stars that Sara wished upon; Miranda had never been the kind of person capable of granting wishes, but the least she can do is hand over a charm.

"Do you regret making that wish?" Miranda asks, looking out over the sea. "Another one of your wishes might not have been answered in exchange for that wish. Perhaps a grander wish you might have had went unanswered to grant it."

The breeze by the sea as the sun sets is cool, but Miranda finds that she isn't all that cold tonight.

"I wished for change once, too. And now there is someone bold enough to tell me that she had been watching me. Just where in the world does she find the audacity to say such things to me?"

[anruraiocht]

[ CARRIAGE LINE ]

Awkward though it might be on the surface for the two to interact again, given the nature of their last encounter and what their shared nation required of them, when Leif sees Miranda, he finds himself with a burden lifted off his shoulders.

After all, she was the one who reminded him to look forward— of his lingering dissatisfactions and how he could not compromise no matter if it felt easier to do so. She herself wouldn't accept his attempts to do so even if he tried, and knowing that, in one way, he really did feel like he needed to catch up to her.

Oh, how the tables have turned since their days of youth.

So he had asked it of her casually enough to split the carriage fee to save on costs, promising none of that attitude from before. He exits and before he can run off too far, he helps her down out of the carriage too. Everything's smooth sailing to a degree, with the valet who stops them giving them both their respective bracelets and giving them basic instructions before sending them on their way.

“ Miranda, I thought of what you said earlier. I haven't accomplished everything I've set out to do yet. But I want to use this ball to set myself towards that path, ”  he declares to her.  “ To that end, might I count on you to support me? I would like to ask you for your bracelet charm and use it as a reminder of what I set out to do— your words will be my first steps towards my goal. I'll hand you mine too, of course. ”

The carriage ride had been quiet, one that Miranda had spent with her arms crossed and her gaze firmly fixed out of the window. She had shut down every attempt at conversation with clipped responses, resolving not to speak any more than strictly necessary of her. Even after Leif helps her down from the carriage, all he gets is a huffy thanks and a suspicious glare for his courteousness.

This is how things should be, one could argue. A prince escorting a princess to a ball; a classically romantic notion. But the truth is once Miranda sets foot on the ground, they will part. His escorting ends once the bracelets are fixed to both of their wrists and they will go their separate ways to enjoy the night in their own ways.

Just like last year, they arrive at the ball and are told to play a game of collection meant to encourage intermingling at this social event.

They're no longer children, but they keep coming back to these childish games like clockwork. The world demands maturity from them both and punishes them viciously for failing, but in these moments of peace, they always seem to return to to an echo of a time they can never return to. The days of their youth will never come back, but the only way to walk from here is forward.

Leif clad in the clothing of his beloved and Miranda clad in colors of her own.

"Very well, Prince Leif," Miranda sighs, unhooking the charm she had only just received from the valet. "I will give you my charm. However! If you do not accomplish your goal tonight, do not bother coming back to me! I will not suffer your bellyaching over... er, whatever it is you plan to do with all of these charms. I will not forgive you if you fail even after receiving my charm first! My pride is riding on your success, so do not dare betray me by failing!"

Both back then and now, she had always planned on supporting him regardless.

[anruraiocht]

[LANTERNS] -

Nanna held the thin paper strip between her fingers, head bent low in quiet thought. “There’s something about writing down a wish that feels a little like confession, isn’t there?” she said, smiling faintly. She glanced up toward her companion, brows raised as though asking if they’d felt the same hesitation. “But I think… if you don’t speak your dreams, no one can help make them come true.”

She rolled the paper into the lantern’s rim and leaned in to guide it to the water, her breath catching slightly as it took to the surface and began its slow, flickering drift. “May yours reach the stars,” she whispered, barely audible, before stepping back and watching the others join the glowing tide.

"I am told Fiana is a coastal village." Miranda depends on the words of others, because she has never seen it herself. Her life is not marked by constant movement like Nanna's, but by the same four walls. "Does the shore here remind you of it?"

She wouldn't know. She'd never seen it.

"It is my first time seeing the ocean aside from riding on boats. The sand from the beach gets everywhere and it is hard to walk on. The water is colder than I would have thought, as well. I had thought beaches would be more... I am not sure. I do not know what I expected. It is very different from a river."

Miranda had probably wished to see the ocean at one point. She had a lot of wishes when she was younger. Wishes that she had no one to share with save for a single knight. It did not matter whether she shared them aloud or kept them to herself, because they never came true. Even if they did come true, they were such minor things that they hardly counted as wishes at all.

What other little girl wished to be able to walk freely around their own home?

"Writing your wish down does make it feel more tangible, I suppose," she says, not meeting Nanna's eye.

The water feels cold on her fingers in a way she wishes it didn't, even after she shakes the water off and joins her fellow princess where she waits. If she only watches the shore, she won't have to see her lantern sink.

Miranda unhooks a star from her wrist and offers it to Nanna.

"We are meant to trade these, are we not? Take it."

[anruraiocht]

"It's you," the lad exclaimed, coming to a halt after spotting her. "You're Miranda, right?" He remembered her well from last year and the kindness she had shown him in the closing hours. Morgan had always meant to follow up with her, to ask more questions—maybe even make a friend. Miranda was a hard woman to find, however, and he'd since given up. Maybe they were fated to only cross paths at this time of year.

"I'm not sure if you remember me, but I'm Morgan. You offered me your brooch last year." The tactician pointed to himself, a smile on his face before getting back to business. "Thank you again for that, I really appreciated it."

Rummaging through his pockets for what felt like the thousandth time tonight, he pulled out the special charm he'd been given. "I was hoping to return the favor this time... Would you accept my charm?"

There aren't many that address Miranda by name, so she turns her head at the sound of her name being called. Although now that the person calling her name is standing rather than sitting, she has to crane her neck to look up at his face.

That had been a whole year ago at this point, hadn't it? A full year really is a long amount of time in a young person's life. She of all people knows that well.

"Oh? I see you have chosen to join in on the festivities this time," she notes. "Are you not reading this year?"

Not that she has much room to speak when she had fled the ball early, which hardly counted as 'participating'.

To continue with the theme of upsets from last year, she is not the one extending out her hand first. She stares blankly for a few moments at the charm, trying to gauge how she should react before her expression softens and she pulls a charm of her own off of her bracelet.

"Morgan, was it? Thank you. It isn't nearly as impressive as a brooch this time... but here."

A seashell for a starfish. It feels a bit more like children trading toys than trading charms.

[anruraiocht]

ball engagements

Miranda's charm: Starfish

Received charms:

Seashell: M!Morgan, Nanna, Pelleas

Starfish:

Anchor: Sara

Turtle:

Pearl: Leif

[diadic]

*note: support bonuses are not always reciprocal

         ⤷   non-mission task:   excavation   ( furniture )

[diadic]

( FE5 spoilers )

      The two had spoken once about the burdens Miranda had been given as a princess for her lands. Leif had known she was being badgered, that she had less freedom and autonomy in terms of the topic of this hypothetical marriage and what to pursue, but the full extent with which it had weighed on her hadn't really ever entered his mind.

So often, things never make it there at all.

Princess Miranda, because right now in how she speaks of duty and fate fully exemplifies the princess she really is, is every bit the royal that Leif failed too often to fill the role of. The way she speaks is grim and decisive because she must be when thinking of a world far more than her and what it shall cost her.

But despite this, the way her fury and frustration makes itself known through her face and hands betrays it wholly. It is not how a Princess is expected to be.

It is, however, comfortably familiar to Leif just as one knows their own reflection in a mirror.

“ It's not like that, ”  he starts, paying stilted respect to this upset he recognizes, one he believes he has no right to defend himself against. Someone might have come to defend his honor, saying that he would be going off not to gallivant but instead to carry out his own responsibilities as King, saying that a woman cannot possibly understand the acts a man must carry out.

But if one believes that a woman cannot understand the life the man must lead, then the man is just as much in the dark for the sorrows the woman is told to suffer. Who shall be there to defend her honor? Who shall be there to defend her when she is anything less than perfect?

Leif doesn't know the answer. But he knows he doesn't need to be the one to raise his hand to strike either.

“ ...I was told I don't think very much like a leader. That I don't have the time to be complaining when I lose the people I care about or feel them growing distant from me. I'll lose people over and over, so... it was as if I was being told to get used to it to be king. ”  

But no matter how many times it happens, no matter how many times he feels this loss, it hurts as if it were the first time.

“ When we first spoke of marriage, Princess Miranda, ”  he slips into it, tries to put on that mask of prince that never fully looked like his own face when he stared at it,  “ I told you I wasn't sure because of love. ”

Do you not like me? the Princess had asked.

No, that's not it, the Prince had replied. There's just too much on my mind to be thinking about whether I love someone or not...

“ ...I said it because I cared about it. But people would say that is childish of me too, wouldn't they? ”  His own bitterness comes out as much as he had been trying to restrain it.  “ ...If I took it out of the matter, would it be easier for everyone? Political marriages don't get destroyed because of 'childish' whims... ”

But beneath bitterness is the sad ache of wanting to grasp onto something still— even if his words spoke to the contrary.

“ ...We'd stay because we're supposed to. If we're supposed to, then everyone feels more secure, just like you said... don't they?? ”

[anruraiocht]

One day a prince will save you. He'll whisk you away on a white horse and everything will be okay again.

That is the fantasy that had been sold to her to expect. But the young princess, awash in the blood of her own father, had resented the prince for not coming sooner. She resented him for coming at all. She resented him for leaving her behind alone. She resented that she continued to take his hand, knowing that both of them would only get hurt.

At what point do you stop bothering to step foot on the carpet at all, knowing it's just going to get pulled out no matter what you do?

"There is nothing wrong with a kindhearted leader! My father was unfailingly kind and I will not allow anyone to sully his legacy, least of all you!" The last frayed thread of Miranda's patience snaps and with it, she snaps, too. Her father hadn't been the 'correct' kind of leader either. A failed king, too softhearted for his own good, as everyone was keen to remind her. "I would not have followed you were you the kind of leader that did not care!"

Even if he had not been successful, he had cared, which was more than she could say of anyone else. Now, he asks if things would have been better if he hadn't cared, if he had trampled on her feelings like everyone else.

"Did you accomplish everything you set out to do, Prince Leif? I recall saying I would not give you my hand until you have accomplished everything, including winning my heart."

The allure of having something solid to hold on to. The fantasy of stability dangled over their heads; a half-hearted promise that one day things really will be different. This time, people really will stay. At the end of everything, they will be rewarded for all of their suffering with something concrete.

A person who will stay, because they must. A person who will stay, because it is expected that they will. A person who will never leave, because they cannot. A bird in a cage that will remain there forever, because at least it's safer in there. A frog in a well

The prince worries about being childish, but the princess is every bit as childish as he is.

"Perhaps my life would be easier, but I would not be so foolish as to give my hand to a weak willed man who only listens to what others tell him to do!"

[diadic]

*note: support bonuses are not always reciprocal

         ⤷   non-mission task:   excavation   ( furniture )

[diadic]

      Miranda speaks with a vehemence and energy that Leif finds himself almost envious of without even realizing it. Slowly over the past year, his world had seemed as if it had been losing its colors. Striking to remain upright, paint brush in hand, but he finds he doesn't know how to make those strokes on his own no matter how much he tries, only coming out with water and no pigment whatsoever. What was it he had done?

How does he get that color back? He bites his tongue, letting Miranda handle the conversation with the craftsman who simply laughs it off.

“ Oops. Hey, sorry! Didn't mean to strike a chord, ”  the craftsman plays apologetically, holding his hands up in surrender.  “ Y'just... look like it, y'know? ”

One of his buddies pipes up.  “ Hey! Don't harass the customers and come over here, you big oaf!! Help me out! ”

“ Alright, alright! Coming! ”  he yells back. To the two royals, he tries to shoot a sheepish grin.  “ And you two, feel free to take your time thinking things through, alright? ”

And with that, the man leaves their space, leaving Leif and Miranda alone. The craftsman's words linger in the prince's mind, reverberating, encouraging him to stare vacantly at the one who had spoken with such fire while he had remained quiet.

When the two had first met, he had thought her dreadfully quiet and boring. Between the two of them, she was the one who couldn't live to paint the world with her own colors, but in the time since, built of her struggles, she had found her way.

Did Leif lose his? Or...

“ ...If I had accepted your marriage proposal, would things have ended up better? ”

[anruraiocht]

A young man and woman looking to purchase furniture together, even going so far as to ask each other's opinions. Any person with half a brain would be able to look at them and guess that there is some sort of relationship between the two of them. And when it comes to the relationships between men and women, what other end point is there but marriage?

The flimsy paper catalogue in the princess's hands feels as heavy as a bag of bricks.

"Better?"

Her voice pitches upwards, drawing the gazes of the craftsmen who had been pretending to be busy elsewhere. Catching Miranda's fierce glare, they sheepishly turn away once more, suddenly fascinated by the arm of a chair that really could stand to be sanded down just a little bit further.

"...I have thought a lot about it, you know," Miranda continues after closing her eyes and breathing in and out a few times. It does not completely tamp down the fire of her temper, so liable to burn out of control, but it smothers it enough that she can see clearly when she opens her eyes again. "What would happen if you returned with an answer for me. You clearly do not share Princess Nanna's fondness for letters, so I have had years to think on it."

The temperature in the store is frigid, but Miranda continues to speak through it.

"Objectively speaking, the council is correct. I am aware of that. I would not stand to listen to them prattle on if I could not see their point. The Munster District would be more stable united under one kingdom. Connacht and Munster are managing for now, but their people will grow anxious the longer they are without a ruler. My people, too, would likely feel more secure if they were unified with Leonster. If I were a king instead of a princess, perhaps reconstruction efforts would be proceeding more swiftly than they are."

She'd thought about it quite a bit. About all of the hoops she needed to jump through, all for the misfortune of having been born as a girl. A girl without a father is pitiful. A girl without a husband is just as bad.

"Were we to be wed, you would be able to give your approval in my place and be taken seriously for it because Ulster would be your kingdom, too. My role, which I will be badgered about until I fulfill, would solely be bearing your heir to preserve your holy blood. I will wait in the castle, thinking about when you will go traipsing off next and if you will decide to return at all. You will wander off as you like and I will remain where I am. We would not be here purchasing furniture for dormitory rooms."

Miranda grits her teeth, hands clenching the catalogue and wrinkling the pages. It's a perfectly fine catalogue, but in her hands, it becomes completely ruined.

"...When you ask me if things would have ended up better, do you mean for me? Or for yourself, Prince Leif?"

[anruraiocht]

april activity check

status: passed

skill points gained: 1 (23)

april activity check: any +1 | reason b+ ½ > a

claims:

nova

[diadic]

*note: support bonuses are not always reciprocal

         ⤷   non-mission task:   excavation   ( furniture )

[diadic]

    “ Sorry if that's how you took it... but thank you, ”  Leif smiles, relieved to see the hand she extends even if he doesn't physically take it. The first time they had reunited, the difference between the princess in his memories, far buried in the recesses of his mind, and the princess who had been shown to him in that dark monastery was like night and day. 

Today, she is the same as she always is, no matter what forces topple the monastery over here. Not only that but she remains so easily within reach.

He eagerly falls into step beside her then, going so far as to even match her gait for once. They speak of nothing noteworthy along the way at all, but Leif insists on being her conversational partner the whole way there nonetheless, speaking any little thing that comes to mind.

How the reconstruction efforts are going, what kind of furniture he's heard is available, what they'll need, the weather forecast and how it might work out for them...

“ Since it's going to be fair weather the rest of today, it might be worth it to transport all the furniture ourselves if we can. It'll take a few trips, but it'll save having to pay on both of us... ”  he carries on like this even after they've already gotten there, currently perusing through the catalogue of pre-made designs on offer. He lifts his head from the pamphlet in his hand to look at his fellow royal directly.  “ What kind of bed do you want, Princess Miranda? You acted like you had something in mind. ”

That's when another voice pipes up from one of the craftsmen.  “ What's with you two? Newlyweds on a budget? ”

[anruraiocht]

It's a pleasant day out; one where the air is brisk, but not yet too cold to make the walk unbearable. As they walk, talking about inane things, it's easy to forget about the early chill of winter in favor of good company. Excluding when they passed under the shadows of buildings, the warmth of a sun still high in the sky is just enough to be comfortable.

It's a perfectly average day, unmarred by the kinds of things that have brought the two of them here.

Only a few short years ago, entry in to a shop had gone hand in hand with the disappointment of knowing that they would not be able to afford most things for sale. How far they've come that they can now enter a shop looking not for necessities to get through the day, but things to decorate their rooms with.

"Hm. I wasn't planning on buying that many things, so that should be fine. I cannot imagine there being too many things that we would not be able to lift between the two of us."

Although looking between them, any bystander would be able to tell that one party would clearly be lifting more of the weight.

"The beds they used to provide in the dormitories had headboards that were too low," is Miranda's answer to Leif's question as she continues to flip through the catalogue. The options and varieties of style had been more thorough than she'd expected from a shop in town. "I prefer a higher headboard on my bed. I am sure it must have been to save on material costs since they needed to buy a bed for every room, but if I am going to be buying a replacement anyway..."

Another further explanation on the intricacies of headboard height are aborted by Miranda whirling on the hapless craftsman who'd had the guts to speak up.

"N-newly weds?! How dare you!! I am not— We are not— Do not presume anything!"

[diadic]

*note: support bonuses are not always reciprocal

         ⤷   non-mission task:   excavation   ( furniture )

[diadic]

      A chance encounter with Miranda on the way back to the monastery, Leif could have allowed her to simply be, but after everything, a gaping sense that if he let her continue her life without calling out to her, he'd regret it.

(Damned if he does, damned if he doesn't.)

“ ...Miranda!! ”  He takes his chance, forcing himself into her world once more with a brave bold step.  “ Did you hear? There's some men in town who'll help craft furniture for you even if you don't have money. They say putting in work is payment enough. ” 

It's the reason he's out here today instead of losing himself in training or in investigating Burrowhaven, to be completely honest. One by one, people move back into the monastery, and Leif's room had already been built by another. It wasn't the kind of thing to put off anymore, a disrespect to the hands that put their all into the restoration process, but the return to normalcy was supposedly a good thing.

That's what he tells himself too, ignoring the trepidation in his heart. It's been a while since he's been alone with his thoughts, not having anything to distract from them, and with each step he's taken, he's found he can't stand them.

“ ...If you're looking for something, why don't you come with me? ”  he presses.  “ You will, won't you, Miranda?? ”

@anruraiocht !

[anruraiocht]

If Miranda were a person with more humor in her life, she might find it a little funny the amount of time in her life that had been dedicated to refurnishing rooms she didn't intend to spend much time in to begin with. Coming back to an empty room one time is an unfortunate tragedy, but two is just plain unlucky.

Regardless of her feelings on the matter, it isn't as though she can very well just continue to leave her room completely barren.

Resigning herself to the task of heading out into town to seek out furniture herself, Miranda is stopped by an unexpected obstacle, boldly forcing himself back into her life.

"Prince Leif?"

Her brows furrow as if on instinct and her hand finds its way to her hip, but she does not storm off, staying to hear out his request. It's certainly not one she expected from him of all people. He'd always struck her as the kind of person who would stubbornly choose to put together his own furniture, no matter how rough it turned out, but perhaps that had just been her own prejudice speaking.

"Do you think me incapable of picking out furniture for myself? Even without your assistance, I am perfectly capable of choosing things for myself!" Despite the venom dripping from her words, the hand that had come to rest on her hip extends out to Leif, bracelets jingling softly with the movement. "But I suppose I would not be opposed to accompanying you if you are so desperate for company that you would come to me."

[anruraiocht]

♡

send a ♡ for what my muse thinks of yours

You exhaust yourself with circuitous thoughts, trying to pick apart tragedy in the hopes you'll find meaning. You will never be the same person you were before. The thing you long to return to no longer exists.

The world has changed and you must, too.

Once you've exhausted yourself, the hand of a boy you once knew helps you back on your feet. You can never go back, but you can still go forward.

○○○○○ | ATTRACTION  ●●●●○ | AFFECTION  ●●●●○ | INTEREST  ●●●●● | LOYALTY  ●●●○○ | TRUST

[anruraiocht]

march activity check

status: passed

skill points gained: 2 (22)

march activity check: any +1 | reason b 1/2 > b+ boel2025 participation: any +1 | reason b+ > b+ 1/2

claims:

none for now!

[anruraiocht]

a stain that never goes away

restoration: poison 202 (reason +1)

[anruraiocht]

If Miranda has any qualms about returning to Garreg Mach and immediately being shipped off to a different academy instead, they are squashed once she sees the state of the classrooms for herself. Even after being partially rebuilt, it's hard to reconcile the current state of the classrooms with what she remembers them looking like only months prior.

Perhaps it is better to be in Fhirdiad than being left alone to ruminate once more on what had once been a home, now in ruins.

The School of Sorcery isn't a half bad institution, once her emotions on being shipped out here settle. The research being done here is interesting and the libraries cannot be considered lacking. If there is a problem besides the chill of fall creeping in and making her draw her uniform jacket closer, it is the frantic discussion about a certain spell.

Poison 202, they call it in hushed whispers behind closed doors. A fearsome spell capable of controlling someone against their will. She had seen the 101 version's unsettling power for herself, but no one seemed to be able to give her a clear answer about what more the updated version could possibly do.

How does one make a spell that could possibly be worse than one that already strips a person of their free will?

She does not find her answer in the research gathered, but she does find a familiar head of blue hair, similarly far away from the monastery.

"You were in the illusory arena." They are also classmates, but that is currently much less of a concern to her. "Kris, was it? Do you happen to remember that spell Pelleas used near the end? I would have you tell me about what you know of this new version. No one else seems keen on providing me a clear answer."

@unsungblade

[anruraiocht]

the time and place to be alive

restoration: poison 202 (reason +1)

[anruraiocht]

Fhirdiad isn't that bad, Miranda finds. It probably wouldn't be her first choice of academies to attend in the long term, but it serves its purpose well. Were her interests to lie solely in magic, she probably wouldn't mind staying longer than the planned exchange to continue studying magic in such a focused environment.

In truth, though, it is a more rounded education she seeks. After this research exchange is done, she fully intends on returning to Garreg Mach, no matter what state it's in when they finally make the trek back from Faerghus.

...Well, ideally the classrooms will be at least functional by that point in time. Fire spells can only do so much to preserve the heat with so many holes in the wall and what could only loosely be considered a roof.

It is returning from a particularly grueling seminar on a new theory about strengthening basic spells that Miranda halts in her tracks. It is unbecoming of her to stop so suddenly in the middle of a hallway to gape at a blonde woman, but if anyone were to know the reason she froze, they would surely do the same

The resemblance had been harder to tell when they were younger and the softness of youth had rounded the edges of Nanna's face, but now that she has seen Nordion's princess as an adult, the resemblance is striking. It's uncanny, really, how much Nanna looks like her mother now.

She looks just as she did in Miranda's memories as a young girl; a fact more unnerving than anything else. Yes, on the day that Nanna's mother had disappeared from Ulster and Miranda's sight forever, she had looked just like this.

The problem with this is that fateful day had been over a decade ago and yet it looks as though not a single day has passed for only one party.

"You... You are Princess Lachesis, are you not?" Miranda bristles. "If you are an apparition, state it clearly!"

@landslioness