Brave set a steaming pot down in the gathering's center. Sweat trickled down the black iron from the heat, and it ran to stain droplets into the raw wood table. She stretched her arms to shake off the strain, then something popped in her back. Arcian was the first to commiserate an apology.
The other Bells around the table gave their thanks instead. Few of them had the energy to do more than wait in the Alliance commons while Brave ducked into the mess galley to find something to settle them with.
Not one of them was a soldier—as they so often were reminded—but that did not entitle them to any civilian comfort. If they wanted to eat, they'd need to feed themselves.
Usually there was food ready for them in Castrum Oriens, but a disrupted supply meant even the Adders went without full meals this sennight. "Disrupted" was no kind substitute for the truth: a massacre followed by an inferno, so the pack chocobos' feathers raised a stench that harassed the Eorzean front for malms.
Brave explained with a laugh that the meal before them was scraped together with the only three ingredients she could find: flour, chicken, and water.
"Water," Elliot declared, "is not an ingredient."
Haru smacked him on the arm. "Just shut your mouth."
"I mean... Maybe?" Norhi tilted her head.
Brave pinned him with a dead look. "I boiled the bones into a stock, so yes. Water. With chicken dumplings."
"And no seasonings?" asked Elliot.
"Can we please just forget him?" blurted Arcian.
Wyda grinned. "Does the fire to boil it count too?"
At this point, Brave dunked a ladle into the pot and served herself a bowl. "Look. I'm too hungry to care about the philosophy behind my soup. Have it or don't."
"Don't—I mean, wait!" Elliot stumbled to his feet, whipped his legs free of the bench, and flew out of the mess hall.
Yumi started a silent count with her fingers until he returned. Forty-four seconds. "I never thought he could run that fast."
Elliot leaned one arm into the table, panting, and smacked a wax paper puck to the table with his free hand. "A tea cake," he proclaimed.
Wyda pointed her spoon at him. "Drinking tea and eating supper at the same time—that's way too efficient for you, Carambole."
"But it's flavor!" he protested.
For the first time, the room considered what he said. The doubtful sat beside those who had nothing left to lose.
Brave shook the wax paper from the tea cake and lofted it for inspection. "...Does anyone hate the idea?" she asked.
No one protested.
"All right, Elliot—you win. Three ingredients." Brave tipped her bowl back in the pot and crushed the teacake over the sorry stew.
Stories following the conclusion of the RP Arc, TOWER.
Stories: [1] 2 3 4
Live your Todays
Sitting on Alvarium’s walls is a girl and standing behind that girl is a man. They’re only three years apart but that’s what it feels like to Gloria, sometimes. Everyone’s got jobs, hooked up, had kids, and croaked while she remained stuck in some mental, teenage purgatory of rebellion, discovery, and petty angst. Gloria pulls her coat tighter around herself and shivers from the cold.
“Fuck. You’ve always been skinny but now, you’re like a skeleton,” Florus says. He rests his hands on her shoulders and gives her a comforting squeeze. “…Stiff like one, too.”
“Piss off. Like you’re one to talk,” Gloria pouts.
“Hey, what’s worse? Sticking to meal replacements or doing whatever the hell fad you’re onto now?” Florus says. “Paleo, keto, activated charcoal. Wasn’t there a month where you only ate kale?”
“Kale is good! Not that you’d know, you tasteless prick.”
“Oh, fuck. Really got me there.”
Gloria snorts. Get stung enough times and you learn to ignore it. Besides, if Florus wasn’t being a little shit, then it’d be even more off putting at this point. Bantering like this reminds her of the old days; years of living normal lives, having normal wants, worrying about normal things. It’s behind them like a memory now, locked away by the horrors they survived and the loss they carry. Maybe she would have rather stayed in her middling, small-minded purgatory for a little while longer. It wasn’t so bad in hindsight. Gloria sniffs and hugs herself even tighter.
“Hey. I, uh.” Florus kneels down and takes a seat next to her. He keeps one arm wrapped around her shoulder. “You good?”
Gloria sends Florus a simmering glare because, like, of course not?! So why’s he even asking? As if anyone could be good after being barfed out of Final Days (and more)! Florus sucks in his lips and nods awkwardly to himself.
“I mean, yeah. Sorry. I know you’re not good. You’ve got literal roots tangled in your nerves and flowers coming out of your lungs and —“ Florus stops with a cringe. “…yeah. Sorry. Not good.”
“God, you suck at comforting people,” Gloria groans. “Where’s Ollie when you need him?”
“I don’t know. Dead, I guess?”
“Florus.”
“Sorry. I’m...” coping. He doesn’t say it.
Florus shifts uncomfortably in place and decides not to mention that his hallucination of Ollie is shaking his head no at him. He pulls Gloria closer and tensely breathes out.
“I’m sorry. Of all the people who should’ve lived, it should’ve been him,” he admits in a whisper.
“...What? And you shouldn’t have?!”
“Gloria, I’m not -- No. I don’t know what to tell you.”
“Well, figure it out or shut the fuck up! You think I can handle you dying too?” Grief balloons in her chest, hot and near bursting. “God, I don’t even know how much time I have left. What the hell am I supposed to do? Where’s all this supposed to go?”
Florus swallows. It’s like his heart’s tied in a double knot and he can’t get anything out, can’t do anything right, but Gloria’s crying and he feels like crying, too. He tucks her face into the crux of his neck and presses his lips into the crown of her head.
“I don’t know, Gloria. I really don’t,” he mutters.
Gloria huffs grumpily.
“But nobody knows how much time they have left. You could get hit by a car and then, it doesn’t matter that you have some fucked up, plant cancer.”
“Great. Wow! I feel so much better.”
“Ugh, okay. Look. It’s not like you can pause life until everything is perfect. We’re living right now, so we have to live right -fucking- now, because we don’t know if we have it good or if things will get worse again.” Florus inhales deeply. “...But you’re alive. And I’m alive. And...yeah. It’s not over for us yet.”
There’s another heavy silence. Eventually, Gloria shuffles deeper into Florus’s arms and groans tiredly into his chest.
“You became such a sap while you were away, Flo.”
“You’re welcome.”
They laugh quietly. Gloria tries to fix her runny makeup, but no amount of fussing can undo tears. This is just how she looks now.
“...God, I really thought you were dead,” she mumbles.
“Me too.”
“Mm.”
And then, a dull absence. Florus and Gloria are both waiting for a third voice to chime in. The snow comes down hard; he can barely see the distant mountains now. Canyons, like scars, like rips in the landscape, in himself and in Gloria. There’s a hole where their friend should be. A hole, and a grave.
Florus wipes a streak of running mascara off of Gloria’s cheek.
Your heart can never hold still. It pounds against your chest frantically, always turning your sights to one thing after the next. When was the last time you were certain? The last time your life was stable? Maybe this is how you prefer things. On the move constantly, not tied down to one person or place. You chase one goal after the next. Can you ever really feel complete without a place to land? Shouldn’t you build yourself a nest?
A strawberry and mint confection! With a hint of a boozy cream in the middle. Norhi likes her baked goods. And bakes a fair bit herself. She'll readily admit that her own efforts trend in the more homey direction. But she does appreciate a fancy plating once in a while.
A month had passed and the last trip of the Curie was heading back to Ul’dah from Garlemald in two days. Norhi’s cart was loaded and arranged to carry Akizuki, Vhene, Misah’to, and his girls, Annia and Bianca to Camp Broken Glass, to be loaded up for the trip. The apothecary was put back together. And the management of it was officially handed over to Helen. Now, Norhi just had a few last strings to tie off before leaving. She wrote some letters and made some visits. She went around and said her goodbyes to everyone as best she could.
Having just recently received Lee’s response to her earlier letter, she attempts to catch Vicky. But given the lack of it, she leaves the letter with Vicky’s father, while wishing him the best. Norhi was worried. She does leave a note for Vicky alongside Lee’s letter. On the back side of the note was a small map, drawn of the Eastern Shroud, showing a route from the Hawthorne Hut to her shop and home.
Vicky,
I’m heading home on the Curie this week. Wanted to say goodbye and that I hope to see you again eventually. Please take care. As I said, you got a place with us if you ever want it. My thoughts and feelings from our conversation still stand. I hope things go well for you.
Affectionately,
Norhi M.S.
She stops by the corner that Sergius and Rhua had posted up in, to watch over Arym. She thanks them both for everything and gives them a copy of the map to find her home, if they ever need or want to visit. She also leaves them an unsealed letter for Arym, saying they could read it if they wished. But that it would mean a lot to her if they made sure Arym saw it, when he was awake. Though, if they thought it would cause harm, then she’d understand if they didn’t. On the back of the letter is yet another of the same map.
Arym,
I’m sorry that I’m not getting to say goodbye to you in person. I had sincerely hoped for the chance to clear the air. I wish I understood your reasons for the choices you made. I wanted to part on even footing and clear minds. But the Curie’s last trip to Eorzea is this week. So, my time here is up. I would still love, someday, to talk and learn about what happened and why. Even though I fear I will never get to see you again. What you do with this is your choice. And if I have to live in ignorance, then so be it.
Annia and Bianca were also hoping to say goodbye. The attack on Alvarium rattled them badly and they begged Misah’to to move to Eorzea. And with Misah’to still healing from a broken hip, he needs a lot of help. So, they’re coming out with me to Gridania. Misah’to’s thinking of applying to the Bellworks in Ul’dah though. Since there’s at least a small Garlean community there. I’m sure it’ll work out, somehow.
The map on the back is how to find my home in The Shroud, if you ever want to come by. Take care of yourself.
With Hope,
Norhi M.S.
From there, Norhi makes a few more rounds. She leaves a copy of the map with Vanya and Minerva, promising that either her or her half-brother, Nhie’a, would be by every couple months with a cart of supplies for trade and gossip. She leaves a copy of the map with Gloria too. Just in case. And lastly, she hands a letter, and another map, to Puklo Pak to chase down Florus with. Despite her instructions to be kind about it, Florus would wake up with the letter taped to his forehead.
Florus,
I had sincerely hoped to talk before I had to leave. I understand why you stayed out of sight, in the aftermath of all this. But still, I wanted to tell you just one thing. All of the questions I wanted to ask, when I first learned about Overseer and you, barely matter now. But I still need to say this.
Do you remember our last personal conversation? Do you remember the thing you asked of me at the end? To keep hoping? For you?
Well, I am still. I still have my hopes for Alvarium and everyone we met. But for you especially, I still hope. I hope that you grow. I hope that you learn more of Life in all its ineffable mess. I hope you find peace in what happened. I hope your path going forward brings you opportunity to do good.
You planted the seeds of something beautiful. And yes, much harm came along the way. And perhaps things could’ve been better. Or gone differently. But the result, now that we’ve defended this growing place, is very beautiful. I had some hopes dashed. And some hopes validated.
And so, I hope for you that you Grow. Grow in all the joy and all the pain, which that can bring. I hope you Learn. Learn from what went wrong and from what went right. I hope you make peace with regret. Regrets never go away. Not really. They’re like grief. They’re a part of you. Don’t try to cut yourself up to rid yourself of it. Please, instead, Grow and Learn. I hope that all of this brings you a future, full of everything Life can offer. Both good and bad, both cursed and blessed.
Grow and Learn,
Norhi M.S.
P.S. Tell your boyfriend and your father I say goodbye, and that I enjoyed our time together. The map is for my home, if any of you want to visit.
With all of that done, Norhi makes sure there is a map posted in the common room and one in the apothecary. She then loads up her family and starts Crystal down the road to Camp Broken Glass. Chocobo and Cart are loaded into The Curie. They get comfortable in the passenger hold. And they finally go home.
And life goes on. Garlemald is no more, the Final Days have ended, and Alvarium settles softly into memory. For a time, there's silence.
But eventually, gliding through that silence is a bird.
There's a sparrow at Norhi's window with a letter bowtied around its leg. With unnatural intelligence, it waits for as long she needs to unravel and read what's contained.
Thank you. And sorry. For everything.
For a time I was your Overseer. It was a tremendous privilege. It was a terrible mistake. It was a lot of things but a lot of the good came from people like you.
I'm not like that. I try, but I'm not, and I'm not blameless. I'd like to think that we were, for a remarkable period of time, friends. Maybe not anymore, but if you want to rebuild this bridge I burned...then I'll be on the other side.
Goodbye, Norhi. May Sahlia and your Twelve protect you and fill your days with love. You'll always have a home in Alvarium.
The sparrow flits away, and like all creatures of the air, it flies in the hopes of finding gentler, warmer climes. It flaps into the blue skies and disappears.
One last letter eventually finds its way to Florus. Somewhere. Somehow.
Damn Moogles.
The letter is short. One page. And scribbled on in crayon by three different little girls. Norhi's quick handwriting in the middle.
Funny thing about burning bridges is that you need a second person to start the fire from the other side, if you want to burn it on both ends. If the other person's throwing water, then maybe they want to leave their options open. The bridge is still damaged. But time, patience, and effort, can help with that.
The thing that frustrated me the most, about everything that happened is that so many people started burning bridges without even seeing how I felt or what I thought. I got told that I saw them as my enemy. And I wondered what I had ever done to convince them of that. Maybe one day I'll find out.
Till then, goodbye. And take care of yourself.
A month had passed and the last trip of the Curie was heading back to Ul’dah from Garlemald in two days. Norhi’s cart was loaded and arranged to carry Akizuki, Vhene, Misah’to, and his girls, Annia and Bianca to Camp Broken Glass, to be loaded up for the trip. The apothecary was put back together. And the management of it was officially handed over to Helen. Now, Norhi just had a few last strings to tie off before leaving. She wrote some letters and made some visits. She went around and said her goodbyes to everyone as best she could.
Having just recently received Lee’s response to her earlier letter, she attempts to catch Vicky. But given the lack of it, she leaves the letter with Vicky’s father, while wishing him the best. Norhi was worried. She does leave a note for Vicky alongside Lee’s letter. On the back side of the note was a small map, drawn of the Eastern Shroud, showing a route from the Hawthorne Hut to her shop and home.
Vicky,
I’m heading home on the Curie this week. Wanted to say goodbye and that I hope to see you again eventually. Please take care. As I said, you got a place with us if you ever want it. My thoughts and feelings from our conversation still stand. I hope things go well for you.
Affectionately,
Norhi M.S.
She stops by the corner that Sergius and Rhua had posted up in, to watch over Arym. She thanks them both for everything and gives them a copy of the map to find her home, if they ever need or want to visit. She also leaves them an unsealed letter for Arym, saying they could read it if they wished. But that it would mean a lot to her if they made sure Arym saw it, when he was awake. Though, if they thought it would cause harm, then she’d understand if they didn’t. On the back of the letter is yet another of the same map.
Arym,
I’m sorry that I’m not getting to say goodbye to you in person. I had sincerely hoped for the chance to clear the air. I wish I understood your reasons for the choices you made. I wanted to part on even footing and clear minds. But the Curie’s last trip to Eorzea is this week. So, my time here is up. I would still love, someday, to talk and learn about what happened and why. Even though I fear I will never get to see you again. What you do with this is your choice. And if I have to live in ignorance, then so be it.
Annia and Bianca were also hoping to say goodbye. The attack on Alvarium rattled them badly and they begged Misah’to to move to Eorzea. And with Misah’to still healing from a broken hip, he needs a lot of help. So, they’re coming out with me to Gridania. Misah’to’s thinking of applying to the Bellworks in Ul’dah though. Since there’s at least a small Garlean community there. I’m sure it’ll work out, somehow.
The map on the back is how to find my home in The Shroud, if you ever want to come by. Take care of yourself.
With Hope,
Norhi M.S.
From there, Norhi makes a few more rounds. She leaves a copy of the map with Vanya and Minerva, promising that either her or her half-brother, Nhie’a, would be by every couple months with a cart of supplies for trade and gossip. She leaves a copy of the map with Gloria too. Just in case. And lastly, she hands a letter, and another map, to Puklo Pak to chase down Florus with. Despite her instructions to be kind about it, Florus would wake up with the letter taped to his forehead.
Florus,
I had sincerely hoped to talk before I had to leave. I understand why you stayed out of sight, in the aftermath of all this. But still, I wanted to tell you just one thing. All of the questions I wanted to ask, when I first learned about Overseer and you, barely matter now. But I still need to say this.
Do you remember our last personal conversation? Do you remember the thing you asked of me at the end? To keep hoping? For you?
Well, I am still. I still have my hopes for Alvarium and everyone we met. But for you especially, I still hope. I hope that you grow. I hope that you learn more of Life in all its ineffable mess. I hope you find peace in what happened. I hope your path going forward brings you opportunity to do good.
You planted the seeds of something beautiful. And yes, much harm came along the way. And perhaps things could’ve been better. Or gone differently. But the result, now that we’ve defended this growing place, is very beautiful. I had some hopes dashed. And some hopes validated.
And so, I hope for you that you Grow. Grow in all the joy and all the pain, which that can bring. I hope you Learn. Learn from what went wrong and from what went right. I hope you make peace with regret. Regrets never go away. Not really. They’re like grief. They’re a part of you. Don’t try to cut yourself up to rid yourself of it. Please, instead, Grow and Learn. I hope that all of this brings you a future, full of everything Life can offer. Both good and bad, both cursed and blessed.
Grow and Learn,
Norhi M.S.
P.S. Tell your boyfriend and your father I say goodbye, and that I enjoyed our time together. The map is for my home, if any of you want to visit.
With all of that done, Norhi makes sure there is a map posted in the common room and one in the apothecary. She then loads up her family and starts Crystal down the road to Camp Broken Glass. Chocobo and Cart are loaded into The Curie. They get comfortable in the passenger hold. And they finally go home.
Norhi woke from the nap she’d been taking, disturbed by the recurrence of an odd memory-dream that had haunted her since the conclusion of the tumultuous events on the Volare. It’d only been a few days. The true emergencies were over and rebuilding was started. Misah’to was even released from the infirmary with a wheelchair. His girls were hovering over him night and day. It would’ve been cute, if Norhi wasn’t so concerned about their own healing. But even with all the work to do, exhaustion did not keep that weird dream at bay.
Dissipating into aether should’ve been more terrifying than it had been. Somehow she knew it wouldn’t be the end. That whatever was enabling her to save her friends, would enable them to guide her home. And they had. It had all worked out.
"Hope. Hope until it's all that's left in front of you. Grow and reach for the horizon. Grow and Hope."
She’d prayed and summoned the Healing Winds, before feeling her physical form fade. And then it all became weird. Turbulent. A riot of despair and anger and fear, pulling her down the string that N had fished for Telos and Twelves with. It was all she could do to hold on and stay herself. Telos’ voice echoes in her mind, [[ i’m scared…make it stop. i don’t want to face this alone. ]]
"Let's go.. Lest we put her efforts to waste.."
"Norhi--no, she can reappear, just like N can. We can't leave her here."
"…Rhua's right. We have to-- have to keep going. We have to."
"He--he took her, right? He took Norhi--?"
"We can't stay. She's gone. I'm sorry."
The soft in and out echoes of their voices, their panic and shock and grief, root her a little more. She calms and focuses. They’d find her. She just needed to be ready.
She’s barely aware of what happens after this. The tenuous connection to her friends comes through N’s little fishing line. So, their voices and emotions fade in and then out and then in again. She feels the push of N trying to help Telos again with his wish. But then Pollux was there with her, in that maelstrom of Telos’ despair. She’s comforted by his presence, even while their shock and grief swarms down the line again.
"I came out here to protect my Bells. You don't take them from me. You don't dare!"
"We'll get there! We'll get them back!"
Norhi would’ve sighed if she had a body. Oh Brave. Oh Chief. But then the mood shifts. Discovery, relief, but terror and worry and fear. Norhi hears the brief echo of Max’s voice breathing out Gloria’s name like a sacred oath. Norhi felt hope flare within her. They found Gloria. Good.
She feels herself fade a little, but Pollux’s presence roots her back in the murmuring, indistinct voices of their friends. N’s magic reaches out again and reality begins to shatter. Their group’s panic surges down the line and Norhi’s worry joins the storm of despair around her. But then there they are, two dancing souls twirling into the storm and reinforcing the reality of the world once more. Brave and Jackal join Norhi and Pollux. And somehow they’re safer together. Stronger. For the moment.
"Fuck! Fuck! FUCK!"
"…'Till another horizon, Chief."
There’s a tornado of anger chasing down the heart-line now. The emotions are getting louder. Though the voices aren’t too distinct yet. But then Norhi hears a murmur, words she can’t make out. But it’s Arym’s voice. There’s shouting, muffled and angry. A gunshot and more shouting. Twelves speaking. Friends arguing. It’s all right there at the edge. But then Norhi hears something new. Not from the line or in the room. Reima was praying. Munchix was offering his own pleas. Annia and Bianca were crying. And more. So many voices, all from Alvarium, from its people.
Norhi saw the horizon point then, where the line connected them to the physical. She pulled on her hope and surged forward. And she was whole again. She feels her friends follow her and start to rematerialize as well. And then she’s tackled by Elliot. The chaos that followed is still muddled in Norhi’s memory. But somehow, they all made it home alive. And more or less in one piece.
Norhi dreamed still of that storm of despair. Of that strange hold that emotion held on everything happening. She’d heard a word being used in explanation, while down at Camp Broken Glass last moon. Akasa. She made a mental note to look it up and rolled off the cot she borrowed. If she couldn’t sleep, she’d find work. But she had a feeling this event would haunt her dreams for a very long time.
And N’s voice would follow her, awake or dreaming. “And yet, even if our stories inevitably end in tragedy, we have to hold fast to hope and fill ourselves with meaning. Because no one else can do that for you. Only you can.”
“So, who’s going to take care of the girls when you go back to Eorzea?”
Misah’to blinked up from the box he was setting down in the apothecary, looking over to Helen in surprise. “I.. Pardon?”
Helen, a lovely woman with pale brown hair and a softly shaped face, continued to look concerned over her question. “Annia and Bianca. Surely you’re not taking them to Eorzea? Not with the way you’ve talked about how bad it was, being taken from your own people.”
Misah’to straightened up then with a sigh and took a moment to crack his back. He then gave Helen a very sheepish smile. “I’m not taking them to Eorzea. And… I’m not giving them to someone else to raise. I promised them I’d take care of them. I have no intentions of becoming an oathbreaker.”
Helen’s concern only deepened at this. “But… You’re not going home then? I know you miss it.”
Misah’to nodded and then shrugged, turning back for the door. “I do miss it. But it’s not going anywhere. At least… not unless the rest of the world does. But… in another ten years, when the girls are grown, and I see about going home, part of me is going to miss Garlemald. I’ve lived here longer than I have there. I’m not sure I’m ready to go back to Eorzea anyway. Not… Not without knowing there’s Garleans there who’ll understand me.”
Helen looks down, fretting with the empty potion bottle she was supposed to be filling. Misah’to liked the woman well enough. She had a warm personality, once you got past the introvert in her. He smiled and leaned down to meet her eyes. “Hey… Whatever happens, I’m going to do what’s right for the girls. It’s important to me. And Norhi understands that. And so does all the family she’s made. Besides, I’ve got you and everyone here to support us. It’ll be fine.”
Helen nodded and then looked up with a small smile. “I suppose that is for the best. I’m sorry that you have to wait so long. I guess… Yeah. I’m glad the girls won’t have to be separated from you. I wasn’t looking forward to that.”
Misah’to grins and looks to the door to see Norhi coming in with the girls and a tray with dinner. “I’m glad too,” he says, before turning to join his family.
---
—Tonight—
Misah’to laid in the cot that had been set up for him. His right hip and leg were wrapped up and immobilized for healing. That one drone had rammed pretty hard into him, after he’d disabled its gun. He was lucky he’d not been alone. And that help had come. That ship had just come down from the sky and the red was as much on the ground, as it was above the clouds. So many were badly hurt. Several were dead. And his girls, his dear Annia and Bianca, were badly shaken.
So, he laid there in the cot, Bianca curled up on his chest and Annia tucked into his left side. His cousin, Norhi, had emerged from the ship with several others that had helped build the town. Somehow they’d ended the conflict. Norhi wasn’t eager to talk about how. Not with the girls listening. Though, the notch in her ear was new. She complained that it made her feel unbalanced. But as late as it was now, she’d even succumbed to sleep, slumped in the chair next to his cot. She’d bustled about for bells, healing and bandaging the injured. She was going to have a sore back when she woke up.
About this point, Bianca whimpered and shifted. Sah’to turned and rubbed her back, gently shooshing to soothe the nightmare away. But she woke up with a quick inhale, panicked eyes checking the room before focusing on him. Annia startled from this and woke as well. He sighed and hugged them both. “Go back to sleep. It’s still late.”
Annia frowned and looked at her sister. The two seemed to be having a silent debate. Finally Annia turned back to Misah’to. “We want to go to Eorzea.”
Misah’to frowned and looked between the two girls, trying to digest what they really wanted from that. “That doesn’t sound like you’re proposing a vacation.”
Bianca shook her head and buried her face against his shoulder. “It’s scary here.”
Annia hugged against Misah’to tightly. “It’s gotta be better there, right? No more broken city and no more danger? We could go live with Norhi, right? In her forest?”
Misah’to sighed and wrapped his arms around both girls. “Well… First off, she doesn’t own that whole forest. And… Eorzea has dangers of its own too. Like everywhere does. But… I can see how it might be less scary. Are you sure about this though? Lots of people aren’t too kind to Garleans in Eorzea. And… you’d not have your people around you.”
Annia frowned, her voice insistent. “If Uncle Pollux can do it, so can we! Besides, he’s gonna go back too.”
Norhi shifted and laughed faintly at the conversation, sitting up and knuckling her back. “If it helps, the Bellworks is a sanctuary company for Garleans. There’d be a community there for you. And, while it’s a great deal hotter than Garlemald, I think the girls would like Ul’dah a lot more than the Twelveswood.”
Misah’to sighed and looked at the girls. “I’ll think about it. We can talk again in the morning.”
Satisfied with that answer, the girls settle again. And Misah’to then noticed Helen giving him an amused grin from across the infirmary. She just gave him a thumbs up and goes back to restocking the bandages. He looks at his cousin who produced a pillow from somewhere and was getting comfortable on the floor. “You think the Bellworks might have work for me?”
Norhi hummed. “Maybe. I can talk to Brave about if you want?”
Sah’to echoed her hum. “Maybe. I’ll see how I feel about it in the morning.”
“I’m not strong,” she whispers. “I’m not strong at all.”
Tagged by @endangered-liaison and @sergiusreports way, waaaaay back. Whoops.
Not tagging anyone specifically since All The Shit Ever is about to hit the fan in about two hours RPwise, but whoever wants to do it, knock yourself out.
snowghoul
2087
prguitarman
titsay
jbbartram-illu
