FF PSL | ❝ two-toned echoes tumbling through time. ❞

[crystallinedreams]

song of hope

BOOK 3: TWO-TONED ECHOES

One brings shadow, one brings light
To this riddle all souls are tied
Brief our moments, brazen and bright
Forged in fury, tempered in iceCODE BY TESSISAMESS

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[castshislot]

« How big do they get? What manner of creature are they? Are they similar to the fae where they avoid mankind? »

[ An almost child like awe comes over him at the mere idea of encountering dragons. Oh, Elidibus had mentioned how the Warriors of Light would have been busy with the conflict with some dragon named Nidhogg. It hadn't mattered much to him at the time. His only purpose was to find a way to trigger a calamity to bring the First to the Source. He truly did believe it was the only way to save his home and the souls on it... until Minfillia and Hydaelyn spoke through her.

Now, he feels a bit of regret for not bothering to learn of the Source. Especially now that the sisters were in his world and learning of it. They were getting to know his people--rather, their descendants. He supposes the least he can do is learn of their world and their people.

He looks between the two. K'thisru seems almost aglow over the idea that her sister is engaged. Hell, he expects her to sprout whiskers and make a face like a proper cat would. Alkaid, on the other hand, seems almost to shy away from the idea of telling people. Odd. He never had the inkling to marry another, but, he would of thought that she'd be over the moon for it.

Ardbert sighs and rolls his eyes at the display. ]

« Well then, go on, out with it. One of you tell me about this mysterious knight that's managed to capture the attention of a Warrior of Light. »

[elpides]

Oh, very big. Well, not all of them. There are small dragons, of course, but then there are dragons so big that even a flap of their wings could knock you clean over.

I wish that you could meet Hraesvelgr, or at least Midgardsormr.

[ But of course, he can't, and she imagines that at least one of the two great wyrms would just as soon be left alone even though the war that lasted for so long has finally ended.

As for K'thisru being aglow, she certainly is. She is beyond elated for her sister and the man she loves, but of course, that elation is tempered by the notion that there is no specific date in mind for when they shall finally be married. A part of her wishes that they could simply have a quiet ceremony somewhere to make the matter official, because it seems to her that the pair long for each other and constantly miss each other, and being finally joined together might help ease their loneliness to some degree.

It does nothing for their separations, of course, but at least they would have the knowledge that they are finally joined as a couple. ]

Oh, he is very brave... Very tall and handsome, I might add. [ But lest Ardbert take offense, K'thisru is quick to make another addition to that: ] I think that he isn't the only one who is handsome, if you don't mind me saying.

[ She didn't always think of Ardbert that way, but he has won her over by his actions and the kindness he has shown them. ]

Ser Aymeric is a good man too. [ And she hopes that Ardbert will realize she means he is a good man as well. She holds admiration for the Lord Speaker and Ardbert both. ]

[castshislot]

[ Various sizes and all of them intelligent? The wonder never leaves his eyes even as he listens with rapt attention and attempts to visualize what they must look like. Surely, they must be nothing like the fae folk, and more lizard like? Not that he's sure why he is so concerned with it all. It's not as if he'll ever see one with his own ghostly eyes.

Tall, handsome, brave. Ardbert fights back the urge to roll his eyes at the typical definition of a knight. Oh, he'd seen plenty of them in his time. Back when Votenburg was truly a place and not a set of ruins that the fae folk danced upon. A hand raises to dismiss the comment. ]

« There's no point in trying to tell the dead they're appealing to the eye. » [ Why bother? It's not as if he can talk to people or really enjoy company outside of the sisters anymore. ]
« We're here to gossip about this "Ser Aymeric" that caught himself a Warrior of Darkness. So, beyond being a dreamy sort of knight, what else about him? Surely it must be more if it's caught your sister's attention so much. »

[ Alkaid curls her shoulders and looks down at the blanket. A blush takes her face once more as her tail sways, ears pressed to her head, but she remains silent still. ]

[elpides]

[ Suddenly, K'thisru reacts to what Ardbert has just said, and she puffs out her cheeks and shakes her head at him. ]

Oh, please. There certainly is a point in telling you that. [ She places her hands on her hips and levels a stare at him. ] You must have had someone that caught your eye, or maybe you caught someone else's eye.

[ She casts a look over in Alkaid's direction, as if waiting to see if she has anything to contribute, but it seems that for the moment, she does not. ]

Aymeric is- Well, he is one of the few who welcomed us to Ishgard and helped make it feel like a home. And he never made either of us feel like we were just his errand runners, or the city's errand runners. [ She smiles and laughs a little at the recollection. ] He even invited us over for dinner.

[castshislot]

[ Ardbert shrugs once more at the compliment. However, the second statement gives him pause. He glances between the pair. What a disappointment he must be for saying that there wasn't. At least, not that he had the pleasure of meeting. Perhaps someone had eyes for him, but, he was too enthralled in adventures and then too determined to stop the Ascians. There were people he was close to that he felt a form of kinship, but never someone he would say had swept him off his feet. Not in the way that Alkaid seems to be. ]

« Can't say that there was. At least, not in anyway I was ever made aware of. Suppose I might of had some fans or people who idolized me. Though, I imagine that all stopped the moment the Flood ran rampant through the world. »

[ He looks to K'thisru then. ] « What about you, then? Anyone set your heart a buzz like your sister? »

[ Alkaid moves to answer, but seemingly thinks twice about it. She knows of one person who had eyes for her sister, but well, nothing ever came from it. Instead, Alkaid looks back to her engagement ring and twists it gently. Ardbert raises an eyebrows as she smiles to herself and her tail sways just a bit more. ]

« I've met knights, but, I can't say I've seen them make a woman nearly melt on the spot. Must be nice though to have a bloke who doesn't see you as just the local adventurer errand girls. »

[elpides]

If only our paths had crossed earlier, and the circumstances been different. [ K'thisru finds herself unable to stop a wide grin from spreading across her face. ] I think between the two of us, we could have found someone to introduce to you.

[ It is, of course, mostly a tease, but she means it too. Everyone deserves to have a chance of finding the one, and in her mind, Ardbert is no exception to that. ]

Me? I- Well... [ There is someone who has lately caught her attention, but he also seems far too sophisticated and knowledgeable to ever pay her any mind. In the scene inside her mind, he sees her as someone vaguely interesting but not particularly important except as a Warrior of Light... or Darkness. ]

Aymeric really is someone special. Ishgardians as a whole are a good solid group of people, but he stands out in the crowd.

[castshislot]

« Imagine that. A set of Warriors of Light trying to find someone for each other. Almost sounds like a game we'd play over a round of drinks at a warm hearth. »

[ His gaze moves back to the reclaimed and redecorated castle at the heart of the lake. Titania's castle now, not the royal family of Votenburg. He is curious to wonder if he knew someone that was like this "Aymeric." Not that it'd matter much. ]

« "Well"? Sounds like you've got eyes for someone. Go on, then. Tell us who it is. Seems hardly fair to know about the one that's swept your sister away and not you. » [ Ardbert smirks then, hoping the joking tone comes across. ] « Aye, the people of Votenburg were the same. I told you both a bit about them before; seemingly made of hearts of ice, but, once you cracked that cold exterior? You'd never find a more welcoming and caring group of people. There were the bad eggs, of course, and the ones who weren't as pure hearted as their fellows. The royal family certainly had their share of them. »

[ He sighs, leaning back as he continues to ponder. ] « Must be more to it than the fact that he treats you like people and seems separate from his people while apart of them? What else was it, I wonder, that's left the bloody good impression on the pair of you. »

I just knew.

[ Ardbert turns his gaze back to Alkaid as she finally speaks up. The white mage keeps her gaze locked to the ring on her finger. His head tilts, and a glance is sent to K'thisru to wonder if she knows by chance what Alkaid refers to. He figures they're about to learn, but he wonders what the sisters have shared before. ]

I... just knew the moment we met him. [ Alkaid repeats and yet clarifies her statement. Her ears fold down as a deep red blush takes her cheeks. ] I thought that he couldn't have an interest in me outside of being a Warrior of Light. That he surely had a lady of noble birth that caught his eye and merely was waiting for an opportune moment to propose. But, I knew that no one else I'd meet would make me feel the same way. It took time for me to realize, b-but I loved him the moment I met him. I figured--I thought--that if I could never share my feelings, or if he could never see me the same way, then I would devote that love to the people of Ishgard and their home. Because, in the end, it made him smile... and seeing him smile made every struggle worth it.

[ Ardbert blinks, closing his mouth at whatever witty retort might of come out. He hadn't really expected Alkaid to share anything, given she rarely seems to share the personal side of things. Once more he glances at K'thisru to see if she wears the same expression he does, or if she already knew what her sister had shared. ]

« That explains why seeing Votenburg the way it does makes the pair of you so upset. Why you decided to have a picnic in the land of the fae. Homesick, I reckon. »