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September FFXIV Writes Collection
To make it easier for anyone who'd like to read through my writing for the swap server's ffxiv write event this past September, below is a list of all the days and their associated post!
I hope you enjoy reading!!
Frame
Even before he learned to read words, Alphinaud learned to read lines: tension in a jaw or shoulders, the way a foot pointed in a conversation. The lines of the body always revealed what words did not, and sometimes could not. It helped him stay on the good side of his parents and tutors when he was a boy, and of various statesmen in his adulthood. More personally, it served him well as an artist.
Zoisite still challenged him. She was all body, few words, leaving him with no choice but to decipher her with his eyes instead of his ears.
Perhaps that was also why she so frequently appeared in his sketchbook.
When Zoisite was doing well, truly well, her strength was visible, and her shoulders grew into a clean, straight line. When depression inevitably drifted in, she thinned and softened, the lack of strength revealing roundness, and her clothes hanging just a bit too loosely.
During the Scions’ extended stay in Everkeep, Alphinaud was drafting an important letter to Koana in Tuliyollal about expanding Tural’s aetheryte network when Zoisite stepped into the doorway, and every intelligent thought left him at once.
She’d always been fond of those Twelve-forsaken black shorts, but they met their match in Solution 9’s synthetic knits. Her new top was composed of two layers, one sleeveless, clinging indecently to her chest and leaving her midriff exposed, its hem rising even further as she reached up to run her fingers through her hair. The second covered only her arms and shoulders, pretending at modesty and failing delightfully.
Day 30: Frame
“You should each be getting a package soon,” Tataru says one morning. It had been a while since the girls had gotten together with the wider Scion group and they were wrapping up festivities in Mor Dhona when Tataru had sought them out.
“Oh?” Alira queries, watching Sibbie and Rielle run through the city, while Sebastian watched from Sid’s arms nearby.
“You don’t have to spoil us Tataru,” Aurora smiles. “Just organizing this has been wonderful! Having a few days back here, all together as a group. It was truly needed.”
Annabeth and Alinea nod their agreement, while Tataru blushes.
“No, no. This was for everyone. They would never admit it, given that we all do see each other on random occasions, but Thancred and Urianger do miss hanging out with the wider group! Y’shtola too!”
Alinea raises a fist to her chin, thinking. “It is true. We keep in contact, but we haven’t spent as much time together as we once did.” She smiles, looking at her girls. “When you’ve spent months on the road together, it can be awkward to have deep conversations in only an hour.”
Alira snorts, “Speak for yourself. Annabeth and I get to the good bits within two seconds.”
Annabeth bursts out laughing, her laughter infecting all the others.
“Well, anyway,” Tataru says, after her laughter subsides, “Besides the fact that we really should do more of these, I’ve had this idea for a gift for ages and I finally got it completed! So you can look forward to them shortly!”
Annabeth bends down and opens her arms for Tataru, who runs into them. “Thank you. For keeping us safe and sane and together.”
The other girls gather round for a group hug and it isn’t long until the Scions who haven’t left yet, join the group.
“It’s rather sad to see everyone off.” Thancred says. “Well, we’ll just have to stop by more frequently.”
Alinea grins, “Don’t be a stranger. You should hang out with the boys more often - they could use another for their sparring weekends.”
Thancred raises a brow as Erenville shrugs, “I am still not one for fighting, but I will watch and offer moral support.”
Urianger smiles, “I will join you for that.”
The group continues to gain more attention, as more people stop to say farewells. After making their way through the crowd, giving hugs and making plans for future visits, the girls and their families all say their goodbyes and teleport to their homes.
It is a few days later, when a knock at the door causes Alinea and Draco to both jump in surprise. She looks down at where the frosting has now splattered on both the countertop and Draco’s nose. She chuckles, licking the frosting off the counter, while Draco raises a finger to get the frosting off his nose. She goes to answer the door, while Draco feeds the frosting to the carbuncles.
Alas, there is no one at the door anymore, but instead, there is a parcel wrapped in brown packing material. She lifts it, surprised by how hefty it is for its size, and brings it in.
“What is it, mum?” Draco asks, his head tilted as he makes his way towards her, carbuncles close behind.
She smooths his hair with a hand, before replying. “I’m not sure.”
A linkpearl call beckons her and she gets her answer shortly.
“Did you receive Tataru’s gift?” Alira asks the girls.
“I received something,” Aurora says, “but I haven’t opened it yet.”
“Same.” Annabeth adds.
“Is it about the size of a picture frame?” Alinea asks the group.
“Huh,” Alira says. “I wonder if that’s exactly what it is.”
“Oops,” Alinea grins, winking at Draco. “I didn’t mean to guess it right.”
Annabeth chuckles, “Well, seeing as we seem to have gotten the same sized gift, let’s open and see what they really are.”
Alinea smiles as she hears Alira tear into the paper. Aurora and Annabeth follow a far more delicate practice, while she unsheathes a small knife from a kitchen drawer and uses that to remove the paper.
As the packaging falls away, she gasps. There in front of her is what appears to be a painting of her and Estinien’s wedding day. Draco makes his way around to see and grins, seeing all the familiar faces that he’s grown up around.
“There’s a button,” Alira says, choked up. “On the back of the frame, top right. Press it.”
Annabeth hums, but all the girls obediently click the button.
Tears start to fill Alinea’s eyes. She’s not sure who all Tataru worked with to create this, but it is a marvel to behold. The image of her wedding fades and is replaced by another - this time of the girls and the Scions, shortly after they were all released from the hospital after Ultima Thule. After a few moments, another picture shows up, and another, finally landing on one from their recent Mor Dhona trip, where everyone was gathered all together, smiling and laughing.
Alinea breathes out, “Tataru, this is beautiful.”
Aurora sniffles, “It is.”
Alinea places the frame down, and pulls Draco into her lap, who in turn, pulls in the carbuncles. She kisses his head, before asking her girls, “What did you see?”
Annabeth goes first, “The first picture was a family photo, of Gaius and I’s combined families. I don’t even know how or when she got that image. There was a picture of my twin and I, my siblings and I, one with Gaius and his children, me pregnant with Leon, our wedding day, of course.” She laughs, “There were multiple of us, but it ended on the one from this past trip.”
Aurora shuffles before saying, “There was a really beautiful picture of Erenville and me, of my dad and I on The Misery, one with my dad and my grandfather. I think we probably have similar shared ones.”
Alinea smiles, “Knowing Tataru, it’s probably a mix. Some the same, of course, but others,” she pauses, looking at a group photo of them at one of their sleepovers, “well, others may have more meaning for some.” There’s a pause in conversation, before Alinea calls out, “Li, you there?”
There are a few sniffles, but soon Alira’s voice joins again. “Yea, these, these are just pretty special. There’s a few here of Sid and the moogles,” she chuckles, “there’s one of my wedding and me pregnant with both my children. There’s a couple beautiful family photos and she even included one of Eden and his family.”
They take a few moments, just to be with each other, reliving the memories that cross through each picture.
“We should add her to this call,” Alira says. “And thank her properly with a gift. What do you think she needs?”
Annabeth laughs, “Whatever it is, we’ll get it for her as often as she needs.”
“We definitely owe her for this,” Alinea says, adding Tataru to their linkpearl call.
“Do you love them?” Tataru’s voice rings bright and clear.
“We love them,” the girls reply.
“You made me cry though,” Alira adds. “But it’s for a good reason so I won’t hold a grudge.”
They all chuckle, before Alinea starts a chain of “thank you’s” to the Scion’s most important member.
“Truly Tataru,” Alinea says, after all the girls have said their piece, “this is truly a most wonderful and thoughtful gift.”
“Aw, I’m just glad you girls liked them. And as life happens, we can add more new pictures to them! So these will continue to grow with you and your families.” Tataru offers.
“Tataru! That’s amazing!” Aurora asks Tataru more about how the frames were created, but she refuses to divulge any information.
As Tataru is about to jump off the call, Annabeth calls out.
“You know, there is just one image missing,” she says.
“Which is that?” Tataru says, concern lacing her voice.
“One with just the five of us. I am very glad you did include yourself in others, but we need to have one with just you.”
“Oh, well,” Tataru says, as the girls murmur their agreement with Annabeth.
“We’ll have you round for tea soon.” Alinea says, “It may include the children, but we need to have one with you in the forefront.”
“Well, it better include my god-children!” Tataru cries out, well aware that she is one of many godparents to the children, but a role she takes very seriously.
Alira laughs at Tataru’s indignation, “Very well, we’ll have all the children round and we’ll have a big tea party to celebrate!”
Annabeth chuckles, “This party list is going to grow in size isn’t it?”
Aurora grins, “Very likely, but I can’t wait!”
“So, I’ll see you all soon?” Tataru asks.
“Very!” Alinea says.
They end the call shortly after and Alinea leans back against the wall. Draco and the carbuncles had nodded off sometime during the call, so she takes a moment to figure out where to place the picture frame in their home. When Estinien walks through the door later, Draco runs into his arms, eager to tell him the news of the day. Estinien raises a brow at the boy’s description of the frame, but when he walks up to Alinea and sees the image change, he smiles. The image shown is one of the two of them, before they were ever romantically together. They were on the boat to Sharlyan, up early one morning, just talking as the sun started to crest over the horizon. Alinea looks back at Estinien as he comes to stand behind her and wraps her in his free arm.
“Look how far we’ve come,” she says.
Estinien places a kiss on her head, squeezing her waist, as a new image takes its place.
“Aye, and we’ve only got more to experience.”
She turns in his arms and meets Draco’s eyes, before lifting her eyes to Estinien’s.
“That we do, together, along with all our family.”
Throw in the Towel
The bowstring snapped against his forearm again, arrow flying off into the trees, nowhere near the target. Feldspar hissed, shook his wrist out, and told himself the next one would be different.
It wasn't.
By the tenth miss, his fingers had gone numb and his shoulders were trembling with every draw. The other boys, at least the ones with nothing better to do, had gathered to watch him, snickering at his failure.
"Should ask your carbuncle to shoot for you. Bet it's got more pull."
He kept his eyes on the target. If he didn't acknowledge them, they weren't really there. After loosing another, he watched helplessly as the arrow careened into the grass.
Resisting the urge to throw his bow into the nearby river instead, Feldspar returned it to its spot on his back and curled his fingers into fists, digging his nails into his palms.
If he were there, Hudde would have put his hand on Feldspar's shoulder, made him take a deep breath, and reassured him they could always try again tomorrow. He'd always been endlessly optimistic about Feldspar's ability to improve, saying that anyone could get better at anything if they put their mind to it, but Feldspar never seemed to get any better at this. If anything, since Hudde had died three turns ago, Feldspar was getting worse.
Something soft bumped his calf. He looked down, finding his emerald carbuncle blinking up at him, tail swishing patiently. Feldspar let out a sigh, crouching to pat it on the top of the head. "I know. We still have chores to do." Another sigh. "I'm done with this anyhow," he added, not sure if he meant for now, or forever.
Feldspar stood, gathering his arrows as the audience dispersed, cursing to himself. Then, finally, he turned towards camp. Towards gardens, stalls, and clotheslines.
If he couldn't be a hunter, he would just have to be everything else.
Day 29: Throw in the Towel
“So you’re throwing in the towel?” Wuk Lamat challenges Alinea.
Alinea heaves a deep sigh, “No, I’m retiring. There’s a difference.”
Wuk Lamat scoffs, trying to goad Alinea, “Sure there is. Sounds like you’re quitting to me.”
Alinea stops in her tracks and takes a deep breath. She can feel Fray at the edges of her consciousness and she starts counting to ten, as Sid had taught both her and Alira. She makes it to six before she hears Wuk Lamat start to speak, when another voice, a more welcome one, joins them.
“Alinea, I have heard the news from Alphinaud and Alisaie. Thank you, for everything you have done for us and Tural. I know staying this long was never your intention when Wuk Lamat first petitioned you for your aid, but I thank you none the less.” Koana bows deeply and Alinea cannot help the smile that crosses her face.
“Vow Koana, thank you for your kind words,” Alinea says, bowing in turn. “I am glad that Tural is back in a state of relative peace once again. I’m sure Estinien and I will pass through the city in the future. He’s rather fond of Shaaloani and I have made many friends in the surrounding areas.”
Koana grins, “You both will always be welcome here. Your fellow Warriors of Light too, of course.”
Wuk Lamat’s jaw drops as she looks between her brother and Alinea. “Wait, you don’t have anything else to say about this, Koana?”
Koana frowns at his sister, “No, I do not. If Alinea is happy in her decision,” he inclines his head towards Alinea, “then that is all that matters. I wish her all the peace and tranquility that she has helped others find.”
Alinea bows again deeply to Koana and performs a more muted bow for Wuk Lamat.
“You have both been very generous hosts and I thank you for seeing to our needs while we aided your people. Now, I must take my leave. If you ever do truly have need of me,” she turns to Koana fully as she says this, “reach out to Alphinaud and Alisaie. They will keep me appraised.”
Koana nods and bids her farewell, motioning for Wuk Lamat to follow him. Wuk Lamat scoffs and begrudgingly follows after her brother.
“You’re going to regret this, you know. In a month tops, you’re going to be so bored, you’ll be back begging for some adventure,” Wuk Lamat calls out.
Alinea turns towards the exit, grinning to herself. “Oh, I highly doubt that,” she says to herself, casting her gaze up to where Estinien has been observing from one of the pillars. She can feel Wuk Lamat’s eyes on her and so, she departs in the fashion of one always poised for dramatic exits. She walks away, holding up her right hand briefly before waving it in a circle three times. She chuckles at her own antics and then breaks into a short sprint, before launching herself in the air to land next to Estinien.
“Well, that went well,” he teases, pulling her against him.
“Hm,” she shrugs, “could’ve gone worse, could’ve gone better.” She grins, “I really couldn’t care less.” She throws her arms around his shoulders, “Ready for our new adventure?”
His grin matches hers. “I thought you’d never ask.”
Day 28: Relaxation (Free Day)
Alinea breathed in the jasmine scent. This evening was all about her relaxation and as she soaked in her bathtub, rose petals floating on the surface, she let out a deep breath. She had started the evening by giving herself a manicure and pedicure, relishing in using the fancy creams and scrubs that had been a gift to her this past nameday. Then she had drawn her bath, adding her favorite jasmine oil and adding the rose petals as an extra touch. She wasn’t sure how long she had been soaking in the tub, but her carbuncles were passed out on the bed.
After reheating the water for a third time, she finally decides to dry off and apply cream. While out on the road, she wasn’t able to take the time to pamper herself and she’s tried to make it at least a monthly mission to spend time on herself like this. It was still sometimes strange to apply cream on her skin, next to the constellations. She grinned, Alira once had found a cream with glitter in it and had excitedly gifted it to Alinea the next morning. At first, Alinea was a bit uncomfortable drawing more attention to it, in a way that potentially seemed to scream for attention, but she had come to love the cream and would wear it for special outings. For tonight though, she chooses just a lightly scented moisturizing cream.
Sephy eventually wakes up after Alinea slides in next to the carbuncles after putting on her favorite silk pajamas. Alinea pulls out a book from her night stand before humming and deciding to make a cup of tea upstairs. Sephy moves over to keep Alinea’s space in the bed warm and shortly Alinea comes back with a cup of tea, a slice of cake, and treats for the carbuncles should they want. Sephy could never refuse a treat and while Demetri’s nose twitches at the scent, he remains tuckered out.
Alinea smiles at her carbuncles and fondly pets them. Sephy moves over to curl up next to Alinea’s side while Demetri flops back, allowing his back to rest against Alinea’s legs. As Alinea starts reading, having occasional sips of tea, her eyelids start to droop. She shakes her head and refocuses, only for a yawn to overtake her. Sephy plops her head on Alinea’s lap and Alinea sighs, closing the book and putting it back on the nightstand along with her cleared plate and cup. She slinks down into the soft bedding and rubs Sephy’s head as Sephy tries to curl up closer to her. She strokes Sephy’s sleek body and before she knows it, sleep overtakes her.
Estinien comes back home a few hours later. As he opens the front door, he hears how quiet it is and grins. He drops off his bag and grabs a glass of water as he makes his way down the stairs. As he opens the bedroom door slowly, he smiles at the sight. Somehow, amongst all the lights being on, Alinea is fast asleep, with her carbuncles plastered against her. He chuckles and puts his glass of water on his nightstand. He clears her dishes away and brings her her own glass of water, which she’ll inevitably wake up for at some point during the night. He places a kiss on her head and even in her sleep, she smiles.
As Estinien slides into bed, he feels Alinea shift to reach for him. He chuckles softly as Sephy huffs and makes her way back to joining her brother at the bottom of the bed. As soon as Sephy has moved, he navigates Alinea into his arms, where she cuddles into his chest. It’s not long before sleep has overtaken the whole household where it keeps them till the mid-morning sun streams through the curtains.
Rebel
"The dread night of imperial tyranny and Ascian machination is ended. A new day now begins in Eorzea."
"True to their name, the Scions of the Seventh Dawn, along with our champion, have delivered us from darkness."
Zoisite had never meant to be a rebel, or a revolutionary. It was her older sister who yearned to see Garlemald defeated, to liberate the lands they'd conquered, while Zoisite had merely wanted freedom for herself.
Standing under the flapping banners of three foreign nations, being heralded as a hero, she felt Kyanite's absence now more than ever. When she left Doma three turns ago—no, eight turns ago—Zoisite had been certain that she'd find Kyanite in Eorzea. She was convinced that by involving herself in this war, her war, they'd be reunited again, and yet, Zoisite had found no clues after all of this time as to her whereabouts.
It was technically possible Kyanite never made it to Eorzea to begin with, or that the two of them kept missing each other by coincidence. That no one knew of her at all, least of all the Scions, who she'd imagined Kyanite would have identified and sought out immediately, made Zoisite develop an alternative theory.
The title everyone so desperately wanted to assign to Zoisite, Warrior of Light, made her feel thirteen summers old again, sneaking into Kyanite's room to try on her armor without her permission.
But if that was true, and Kyanite was at Carteneau, as Zoisite feared…
Merlwyb's speech cut to the heart of Zoisite's spiral. "No victory, however sweet, can wash away our bitter sorrows. No triumph can reclaim those we lost. Yet do not presume you honor them by dwelling on the past. It was not the past they fought for. You would repay their sacrifice by looking to the future."
Was that what Kyanite truly wanted?
"A future united, as the Warriors of Light united in the champion."
Was it Louisoix's vision that moved her, too?
"Now is the time for us to rise as one, bearing all of Eorzea on our shoulders!"
No matter her intent, it seemed it was Zoisite's burden now to see it through. She'd smile, she'd rally, she'd run headfirst into battle.
But she would always be a poor approximation.
Day 27: Rebel
Alira and Alinea were about to slip into the Sil’dihn subterranean tunnels when a voice causes them to pause.
“And where do you think you two are going?”
Alira gives a small sigh, while Alinea turns and smiles, greeting their new guest.
“Nanamo! What are you doing out here?”
Alira waves at Nanamo, who looks between the two of them.
“Do you all still come out here often without me?”
Alira winces a bit at Nanamo’s tone, while Alinea shrugs, answering “Occasionally. There’s still a lot of history left in these tunnels. Lira and I were bored today, so we thought we’d take another look.”
“And you didn’t invite me?!” Nanamo crosses her arms across her chest and frowns at them. “How could you forget me?”
It’s Alinea’s turn to wince. “We didn’t forget you, your Highness. We just know you're busy and we tend to not really plan our visits. Rather we just come and go when the whim takes us. “
Alira nods, “You’re busy ruling a kingdom, Nanamo. That’s extremely important work. We don’t want to pull you away from it.”
“And what if you happened to find more about my family’s history, hm? Is that not important to me?”
Alira heaves a sigh, turning to Alinea, “You’ve got this one.” She goes to lean against a nearby boulder and watches the exchange unfold.
Alinea shakes her head, “You know if we found anything of import, we’d tell you immediately Nanamo.”
Nanamo tilts her head, “Did you not invite me because I slow you down and,” she starts to air-quote, “cause enough noise that more creatures find us?”
Alira winces and Alinea turns and sends her a sharp look, shaking her head. She sighs and turns back to Nanamo. “While that is unfortunately true,” she winces again at Nanamo’s gasp of indignation, “I’m sorry Nanamo, but it is the truth! That really wasn’t why we didn’t invite you today. We were honestly just bored and wanted to see if we could find any more historical documents that we should pull out for preservation.”
“Or if there were any spell books that we should pass over to Master Matoya or Kazagg Chah,” Alira offers.
Alinea palms her face with her hand, before conceding Alira’s point. “That too.”
Nanamo looks at the two women and then sighs, “You’re right. I’m sorry.”
Alira’s brows are as high as they’ll go, while Alinea’s head is tilted in confusion.
“Pardon me?” Alinea says.
“You are right. I’m not a natural down there and I know my shriek last time caused some bats to be alarmed and fly at us. And I trust you know who should have access to what knowledge,” Nanamo waves a hand. “That I trust implicitly. But,” she sighs, “I suppose sometimes it gets a bit boring in Ul’dah. I’m still stuck with the Syndicate and I guess. Oh, I don’t know. I just wanted to rebel a bit.”
Alinea and Alira smile at Nanamo.
“Well, if that’s the case,” Alira says, rising from her boulder. “We can always help when there’s talk of rebellion.” She winks at Nanamo, who chuckles.
“So,” Nanamo says, boot scuffing the ground, “May I join you two?”
Alinea smiles, “Of course. We’d be delighted to have you.”
Nanamo claps her hands, “It’ll be just like old times! Catching up on things… Only, no tea or cakes.”
Alira shakes her head fondly, “Don’t worry. Alinea brought some snacks in her pouch. Once we’ve found a safe area, we can dig in!”
Alira enters the tunnel and Nanamo follows after her, only for Alinea to stop her.
“Did you have some sort of alert put out to see if we came back without you?” Alinea asks, smirking.
“Maybe,” Nanamo winks and scurries off after Alira.
“Devious indeed.” Alinea smiles and follows after them, keen to see what was waiting to be discovered today.
