Nov 3, 2017
their teeths
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their teeths
its halloween, heres fray as utsuho
heaven or hell? yaoi on!
bnuy
hermes and crocus
The Wonderful Mess We Made - Gabriel/Frayli
In which two kids are stuck on another planet, in another universe, and learn to love each other more.
“Frayli, Fray.” Gabriel overshadows Frayli’s unconscious body, struggling to wake them up. At first, Gabe thought today’s date would go smoothly. Snowdin is a respectful town for a bunch of should-be-deader-than-dead humans, accepting his soulmates as long as they’re harmless and welcoming. They are formidable compared to monsters with how there are canine units dispatched in the town closer to Toriel’s shelter in the Ruins ( to sniff them out, probably ) and the Royal Guard having training specifically to collect their souls. Instead, they’ve taken a short detour through Waterfall and tripped into a pool, only to end up on the other side.
Except, the other side consists of talking rabbits that insisted they weren’t monsters ( “Tah! We’re Lopporits, thank you very much.” ) and their explanation made his blood run cold. That doesn’t mean Frayli has to sleep through Livingway’s lectures, she’ll left the scientific theory to Speculatingway, as they’ve already contacted their benefactors below to try and pick them up.
“So, what you’re saying is,” ponders Speculatingway. “Is that you’re not from around here? As in, another shard?”
Gabriel softens his voice, not wishing to spark animosity between he and the Lopporit. “No, no, no. That’s not what I’m talking about. We’re from different timelines, the both of us —!”
His rounded ears twitch at the thought of visiting timelines, wouldn’t that over-complicate things? Speculatingway inspects Frayli’s drooling face, they’re dozing off like Sleepingway during their Impending Apocalypse. Somehow, Speculatingway wonders if they’re some kind of Garlean creation or an Unsundered’s attempt at a familiar. That isn’t right, as the Unsundered are vanquished after facing the Warrior of Light in too many fights.
Gabriel tries picking up Frayli, retrieving a handful of feathers in his face. “If that doesn’t sound too weird, tell me! We’ve gotta get back, it was supposed to be a date...”
An unfamiliar, shrewd voice inserts itself out of nowhere, proper and diligent.
“Pray tell, what exactly is going on?”
Cat ears? Oh, now that Gabriel’s looking at her - he already decides that she and Theodore would become friends. The nameless mage carries a towering staff of sprawling branches, fitted with a purplish glass orb tying both the head and tail-end together. Her glassy, white eyes stare at nothing in particular, until the white-haired catgirl strains herself and examines them both from afar. Every time she struts, Y’shtola Rhul’s refined manners cleared the room of uncertainty and Gabriel can feel her watching them with intrigue.
Y’shtola bends down, petting Speculatingway on the head as Livingway runs alongside her. “It’s interesting. Two Hyurs I’ve never seen or met before, on the Moon. Tell me, what are your names?”
Wait, they’re on the moon?
“Hurry, we shan’t be wasting any time.”
Her ears twitch in impatience, waiting for his answer. Gabriel sighs, ignoring another Lopporit trotting in with a glass of carrot juice and throwing it onto their datemate’s face. For whatever reason, Frayli actually wakes up this time and Gabriel is thankful that he doesn’t have to spend any further time alone.
“I’m Gabe, and this is Frayli. Uh, is this…” Gabriel still clings to Frayli, close to feeling overwhelmed by the ambient magic floating around. “Sorry, this can’t be the Underground. There’s no way in hell that we’re on the fucking moon.”
“The Moon,” she titters, “is the home of the Lopporits and what used to be Zodiark. I can understand if you fret, but Zodiak is no longer alive. You’re safe.”
What Y’shtola doesn’t add on, is that they’re safe for now.
She gestures to her elegant attire, then opens up for a proper handshake. “You two are in good hands. Y’shtola Rhul, Scion of the Seventh Dawn and Archon of Old Sharlayan at your service.”
The catgirl - the Miqo’te - leads them into a teleporter where two of her other friends stand. Meteor Survivor ( wow, that’s a name ) and the smug-looking Thancred Waters, carrying a literal gunblade on his back. He notices the two studying his weapon, quipping about how well-polished it is - he explains in a shortened version of his typical recited speeches that the gunblade helps him fight, seeing as he lacked the Aether for magic.
They descend the monstrous construct, some kind of bio-mechanical tower, led by Meteor for extra protection and flanked by magical scholars.
( Along the way, Frayli is offered a blue potion bottled up in a decorative flacon. “It’s to change your appearance. We don’t want to ring any alarm bells. Ser Guerrero, you’ll be fine. You look like a standard Hyur.” )
As if to playfully tease him, Frayli switches to having rabbit ears in place of their avian features. Apparently, Aegyl are an extinct race from an ancient civilization, eradicated by a tyrannical empire in the distant past. Their sudden appearance would be more unexplainable and suspicious if Frayli walked in just as they were.
( He was compared to a rabbit before, bouncing and jumping around while they watched him spar with Andrea. )
Instead of the Underground, Gabriel and Frayli arrive in a whirling blizzard with harsh winds and rougher temperatures than Snowdin. This is, or was, Garlemald before the Civil War - thank goodness for Thancred simplifying Y’shtola’s brief lectures, in a mutual understanding that they’re in an entirely different universe from their own.
Magic comes from the soul. On Etheirys, magic is everywhere. People born in Etheirys are capable of wielding magic, no matter what gifts they have, their bodies are made up of thin aether while weaponry and the shining crystals dangling off Meteor’s steel armor act as conduits. In short, it’s less simpler than the magic back home and Gabriel knows that Frayli is itching to try it out, because Gabe also wants to try something new.
Once they’ve arrived at the camp-site, Thancred carefully explains to them all of the different races. None of them are monsters, but varying flavors of human.
Hyurs are your bonafide humans that resembled the ordinary kind back home, aside from having eccentric hair colors. Elezen are elves with their long, knife-like ears and gorgeous faces. Miqo’te, like Y’shtola, are nimble and restless, descending from Meracydian hunters and they’re warned to never call them catpeople. Lalafells are, well, Lalafells! Roegadyns are a maritime race from the northern seas, known for their brawniness and near-endless stamina.
Thancred points to a horned, scaled woman that Gabriel would’ve mistaken for a dragon if he wasn’t told beforehand. Horns and scales belong to the Au Ra, once mistaken for dragons by the Elezen of an Eorzean kingdom. The lion man in yellow is a Hrothgar - their women are sparse, leading to matriarchal clans revolving around them as formal royalty.
“And your lover over there,” Thancred badgers, “is a Viera. Characterized by their long rabbit-like ears and tall heights. All Fantasia brewed by Thavnairian alchemists are random, I wonder if this is meant to be?”
How did he know? Is he that easy to read? Gabe’s flushed cheeks are covered by the extreme temperatures of fallen imperialism, he stops for a second and gawks at the flying beasts in the skies. Despite seeing the remnants of self-destruction around him, Etheirys is still alive and breathing. There are faint murmurs between soldiers about an on-going apocalypse that has to be dealt with, as Thavnair is undergoing wildfires and Old Sharlayan is busy preparing for… something.
When Thancred re-unites with his own faction, stew is made and shared for everyone involved in their mission - ex-soldiers of war and the combined forces of Fantasy Europe alike. A taller Elezen emerges from the crowd, handing them mugs as he assures the two that they’ll figure out how to send them back home. It won’t be for long, he said, Y’shtola is figuring out shard travel and if she manages to, traveling to other universes is the next step in her plan.
Frayli holds Gabriel’s hand, and he responds in kind by resting his head against their shoulder. The bitter cold freezes his gloved hands, but their shared warmth is a reminder that he’s alive.
A weird revelation that suddenly hit him. Gabriel Guerrero is alive. His soul isn’t floating around in a projected vessel of magic, no, Gabe is alive and breathing and —
“Blue Jay,” Frayli giggles, “What’s up? Did you notice…?”
Gabriel’s state is ambiguous, for the time being. If he asks Y’shtola, his current known expert on Etheirys magic, she might have a theory or two.
He sets down his clay mug in the shape of a yellow bird, hugging Frayli as they ate. “I did! Holy shit, oh my fucking god! I don’t know how it happened, but it’s weird and I’m not sure what to think! But…”
Gabe smiles, embracing Frayli in a tighter hug. “I have my body back.”
Frayli laughs, kissing him on the cheek and bunting their forehead against his. “Congrats! We should be focused on getting out of here. If you’re happy to be flesh and blood, then… I don’t mind staying here even longer, for your sake.”
“Gah, you don’t have to!” Gabe pauses, releasing himself from the hug and pulling down his beanie. “… If you really do, are you sure about that?”
Then, Frayli nudges Gabe in the chest and smirks widely, revealing their fangs. “Oh, I’m sure. I’d do anything to see you happy, Gabe.”
Here, dancing is a Job. A Job doesn’t require paying bills or working under corporate higher-ups on Etheirys, they are ancient ( or recent ) disciplines that have fallen out of use, forbidden, or controlled by exclusivity in how and why they’re given. An entertainment troupe that was passing by in Thavnair, in celebration of the nation’s saving throw, witnessed Gabe teaching Frayli how to naturally dance by channeling rhythm. They aren’t exactly the greatest dancer in the world, having a clumsy way of using their legs, but Gabriel loves Frayli for his willingness to learn and share his hobbies.
One of the troupe’s dancers, a Keeper of the Moon named Panha Moshroca, explicitly points out his talent and applauds over the non-stop bickering near her. Apparently, her friends have an intense rivalry about their own skills and seek to improve upon each other in the least sensible way possible. It reminds him of he and Teddy - there is no way Theodore’s worried sick about Gabe’s sudden absence, though, Gabriel admires him and hopes that he’s safe with the rest of his soulmates back in Snowdin.
“You could be an amazing Dancer! I mean, ahaha! You already are!” Panha skips on her bare feet, thrusting her clawed fists in the air. “By the Twelve, only if I had spare crystals… Oh, there we go!”
On cue, Panha stops in her tracks and reaches behind her ear to pull out… a shimmering, glossy pink crystal shaped like a flower petal. It has a glowing sigil etched into the center, resembling a lovely heart. She whistles at Gabriel for his attention, directly tossing the stone at him without much thought and, to her amusement, Gabe catches the thing in his hands.
The corners of Gabe’s mouth quirk up at Panha’s kindness. Frayli leans forward, examining the job crystal in his hands - mesmerized.
“Hey, thanks! I still don’t know how this stuff works — Frayli!”
Frayli swipes the Dancer crystal from his grasp, squinting at its shininess. “Hey, I’m not gonna steal it! I’m looking.”
“Well, you can look later,” sasses Gabe, “Now, give it back. Last time I checked, that Levellieur guy gave you one, too?”
The job crystal is dropped back in Gabriel’s palm and he glances at the pure white, tooth-like crystal hanging from the leather necklace around Frayli’s neck. He wonders if he should fit his to be an earring, but Gabriel doesn’t know how advanced piercing technology is on Etheirys and he doesn’t want to risk infecting one of his closed holes.
( In a world full of magic healers, Gabriel is still cautious. )
“Yours is prettier! Mine looks like toothpaste on a rock.” Frayli juts out their lower lip, arms crossed to their chest. “That’s okay, though. You’re really cute, so it suits you.”
Oh, Gabriel’s heart can’t take it. After Panha’s time in the background asking Radz-at-Han’s Troupe Falsiam for spare chakrams, she re-appears in a spontaneous manner likened to a teleporting cat in front of Gabe with his disicpline’s signature arms.
“They’re yours! Turns out Jagadai of the Qalli hoards them like crazy,” she laughs at her crewmate’s habits. “We can train right here! These chakrams might be sharp, but they’re a li’l special if you catch my drift.”
Momentarily, Gabriel thought that she was joking. He takes the quoits from her dainty hands, dropping his arms to knee-level from its material. Their heavy weight complimented Gabriel’s movements, he’d smoothly adapt to them over time while he’s on Etheirys, and the additional gravity that allowed his new weapons to dance around them with ease.
Frayli radiates light-hearted jealousy as they watch Gabe leap two and fro, following Panha’s instructions to a fault. When questioned about what they think, Frayli’s fluffy ears perk up in affectionate love and they scoff.
“Your weapons are cooler than mine. It’s not fair.”
Gabe pats them on the head, registering how Frayli’s one inch taller than normal. Fuck.
“You’ve got lasers,” Gabe responds fondly and smooches them on the lips, “And they’re far better than a pair of chak’s. We’ve got a while `til Y’shtola’s given us the all-clear.”
Old Sharlayan is their next stop after the Thavnairian feast is done. While Gabriel prefers eating savory meals, he tried his hardest to enjoy the meyhane’s flavorful dishes and found them to be… overly spicy. Having the opportunity to taste another foreign meal in another world is something he couldn’t pass up, yet Mehryde’s staff cooks them with the highest potency and adds enough seasoning to clear his senses.
Frayli cleared their plates with how much they adore spiciness over the over-bearing sweets that they tended to carry around.
They reach into the shoulder-bag hanging from them, confirming that there’s enough gil on their person to afford other things.
This isn’t a vacation, since Gabe and Frayli are helping out the locals with their Final Days problem. It wouldn’t hurt to sight-see, anyways. Not when Y’shtola has their back, willing to contact them once she’s discovered a reasonable solution to their personal dilemma.
What an intelligent lady. Her sass would elevate Aisha’s, it’d be a disaster of the two were to meet.
( Gabe misses his soulmates. They miss him, too. )
“I’ve heard from Ali-said,” begins Frayli. “Old Sharlayan’s professors are fucking assholes, but that we shouldn’t talk to them yet. She said ‘our mess’ can’t be public until they figure out what’s going on with Fan-Danny’s stupid plans.”
Gabriel rests his chakrams on the hangers attached to his belt, pressing his lips. “Do you think that… we’ll be able to get back to our universe in one piece?”
“We sure are!” Frayli points a thumb at the rugged Meteor Survivor, who had finally taken a shower and started feeding his birds. What are they called again? Chocobos? “Look at him! He’s apparently the hero of the entire world, or whatever.”
“Dude has some guts. I can't imagine seeing him lose, kinda reminds me of you.” And the determination to overpower his enemies. Gabriel shudders at the thought of taking the Warrior of Light with them.
Frayli twirls around Gabriel, nouliths whizzing and flying around him to cast an unwanted barrier. Huh, would Kayla like these? Probably not. A Red Mage would suit her better, from what he’s seen during Meteor’s duels in Vanaspati. Their rapiers complimented her fighting style a lot more, than healing using lasers and - actually, what the fuck is he thinking? She’d be fantastic with both!
Gabe pokes the defense barrier, releasing himself from Frayli’s silliness. “... Let’s hope that the Sharlayan guys aren’t as awful as Alisaie says they are.”
doodle batch from yesterday
requested by a friend