— * . isolde
THE REACTION HE GIVES HER makes the blonde nod assuringly , lips curling into a smile that conveyed something between pride and a bit of melancholy . though there were many incredible things about this new life she’d been given , isolde couldn’t help but miss the company of a pegasus by her side . there were only so many things that could compare to the feeling of seeing the world from above — even a battleground was easier on the eyes from such great heights . ❝ i was , yes … and thank you . i don’t think anyone has ever complimented me on that , ❞ a chuckle . ❝ i was the only one amongst my peers , but that’s alright . though becoming a cavalier wouldn’t have been bad , a pegasus seemed like a better option for keeping an eye on and protecting my friends … not to mention , pegasi are very docile creatures . i’m guessing you like horses , too ? ❞
when owen explained the reasoning behind his lack of formal training , her brows furrowed at the fact that he , who seemed ever enthusiastic about the same things as she , had not had the opportunity to learn the way she had . though garreg mach was long gone , there were still fond memories of it in the knight’s heart and she was thankful for all she’d learned there … or almost all of it . ❝ i see … it makes absolute sense , yes . as a mater of fact , the place where i learned most of what i know was very much ruined by war . it was … painful , to say the least . ❞ isolde pauses , the memory of finding dimitri , the professor and her housemates in ruins overtaken by thieves still fresh in her memory . still , her tone became a bit more cheerful mere seconds later , ❝ but we managed to save a few things and slowly rebuild the monastery , especially after the war . ❞ brushing a blonde curl behind her ear , she raised her brows inquisitively , ❝ this good place you mentioned , do you wish you could see it again without the war ? is that where you and inigo met ? ❞
— AT HER QUESTION , OWAIN STARTS TO THINK ; about . . . about many , many things. Firstly , there’s almost a level of pain he can feel from her due to the fact that she seems so . . . understanding. And then the confirmation maybe their paths aren’t exactly so different , that despite the fact they hail from different places , their stories run parallel like heroes’ fables that follow different worlds , different heroes , different legacies - but the story is relatively the same. And this is a tragedy where the story is written with the same ink , same words , but the tokens of this story , like some messed up game of chess , are different. Different performers that are forced to carry on the same old song and dance. And that makes his heart sink for her.
❝ . . . THE GOOD PLACE . . . ❞ The good place is of course referring to the past. To a time where before he was even a thought , before his parents’ union was even fully cemented. When war barred off celebratory marriages & families had time to settle down - only his dearest cousin was born at this time. ❝ Well , Inigo and I met . . . we’ve known each other since we were kids , kind of ?? Our PARENTS knew each other - soldiers in the same army. But then war rolled around on our end and . . . we had to take up the mantle. ❞ History is a story - and like so , it repeats itself. The only different thing is the enemy - and of course , the survivors are swept away to become the victims. He wonders if the same thing would happen if the blight wasn’t done away with and he settled down , had kids - but he also doesn’t like the thought. Doesn’t like the thought of not having met Isolde . . . focusing his time on anyone else - . . . No. No. Maybe it’s a bit too early for those thoughts - or is it ?? ❝ The good place . . . well , didn’t start out good. I got - I got scared when we first got there - curled up into a ball and cried because I got separated from Inigo and the others. BUT DON’T TELL HIM THAT , wouldn’t let me live it down. ❞ But then he takes a breath. ❝ What made the good place . . . good . . . it was the people. And . . . I think any place would be a good place as long as I had those people. Home isn’t a where , it’s a who ; you know that saying ?? That’s it. ❞
