adelphoi | (no subject)

(no subject)

[ being in insomnia again is.. strange. the city is the same as she had remembered, and yet so different, so strange after so many long years in tenebrae. this city seems so enormous and sprawling, sharp and stark in comparison, bright and chrome and full of people. though she remembers her time here, her earliest years, she was still quite young when her parents swept she and her brother back to the motherland, and those tender years of growth had been spent in a city very different, a home that she had grown used to, settled into.

and now they are here again, political tensions spurring her father to emigrate here, to lucis again. the empire has been still and quiet, and there have even been talks of treatise, but alisaie trusts her father's judgment, for all his political involvement. more than national pride, he hopes for his family to be safe and secure, and short of living in the bush, insomnia had seemed to him the ideal location. with the wall so strong, such a city must be impenetrable, yes?

alisaie does not know the details of it all, her father would disclose only so much - she and her brother were to focus solely on their studies, bettering themselves, and not to worry about such things outside of their control. lucis might not be a large nation, but insomnia is safe, and secure. it suits their needs just fine.

still, settling in, for alisaie, is not necessarily easy. unlike the rest of her family, smooth-talkers with political savvy, she has a hard enough time simply getting along with her own peers. her friends in tenebrae had been few and distant, their relationships thin and civil but little more. to have to start over again is.. a nightmare. but she is not here to make friends, she is here to finish her schooling, to graduate and prepare for university and beyond. there's nothing to be afraid of.

yet her knuckles are white around the books clutched to her chest as she climbs the stairs that first day, eyes forward, chin high, and it takes less than a week's time for her to earn a reputation as a haughty, conceited little snob, the little rich girl sort who is far too good to waste her time with those she deems beneath her - everyone, apparently. this is not entirely the case of course, but it suits alisaie's needs just fine. let them think what they want, so long as it affords her a wide berth and quiet time to herself, without the terrifying distraction of working her way into, and maintaining her place within, a social circle.

the weekend seems to take an eon to arrive, but friday is here at last. alisaie sits outside at a table on campus, alone, peeling the crusts distractedly from her sandwich, her advanced chemistry textbook open in front of her. three afternoon classes, and this horrible week will be over.. ]

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[ the fall of lucis will ring in her memory forever.

alisaie, for her part, has done.. decently enough for herself, all things considered. her parents both had been lost with the city fell, away from home in the night, but alisaie, with her brother at her side, had managed to escape the city with a handful of other citizens, fighting her way through the backstreets with little more than a single rapier.

since she was young she had learned to fence, though her parents found it immensely unladylike, and a waste of her time, alisaie had kept to it. the sword felt right in her hand from the moment she lifted it, and moreover, fencing helped her to expel her frustrations in a far healthier way than snapping at her brother or peers. who could have known that it would one day be so useful..?

with time, she had learned to combine her natural magic affinity with the blade, and truth be told it is likely all that kept her and alphinaud alive in the earlier years. with no family or friends to guide them, they had made their way on their own, scrounging their way from outpost to outpost for work, and she grew stronger, for the hunt. though they had not gotten on terribly well in their youth, she and her brother are now a force to be reckoned with, and they have learned well to make it on their own. he keeps their books, charts their travel, sees to payment and lodging and food, and she.. kills things. hunting is dangerous work, and therefore quite lucrative. the bounties themselves bring in plenty to live on, and that is not even counting the parts and pieces she can haul back to sell raw, or provide to alphinaud for his alchemic experiments.

still, hunting is not enough. the nights grow darker, and rumours of the crown prince and his followers begin to thin, until at last the sun rises no longer.

she has no idea whether or not prompto is still alive, and she has done her best to try not to care. her youth was another time. another life. prompto made his choice, and at the prince's side, surely he would be as well cared for as he could possibly be.

no. she does not need to think of him. she does not need to think of anyone but herself, her brother, and the smallfolk as a whole, a collective. the world. but she never finds herself allowing others close again - and in a world like this, she has even less reason to.

the night is deep and dark as she travels tonight, her campsite is comfortable and safe, but in the distance she can hear the low, haunting, mechanical roar of iron giants. they are not near enough to cause her trouble, but she listens for them nonetheless to track their movements. tonight, it seems, they are quiet.

that is, until they aren't.

the sounds of fighting in the distance are unmistakable, steel clashes and the ground trembles and alisaie is off in an instant, cutting through the dark forests, her keen hearing and sight a boon to her when hunting in the darkness. has some fool traveler been caught unawares? or mayhaps another hunter? even a seasoned one would have trouble taking down one of those giants alone, they are fierce and enormous and impossibly strong.

she finds it reeling back, preparing to strike with its mighty sword, but alisaie dashes in to crash into the blade's side, knocking it away from its prey, and before it can recover she attacks, quick and relentless. fire and black lightning crackle from her hands, stone lifting from the earth to hurl itself at her enemy, and she leaps high, cutting at it with her rapier, savaging its face until at last it falls with a wailing, echoing groan, slamming hard into the earth, still and silent, the scourge peeling its corpse away slowly.

slick with sweat and breathing hard she turns on the man on the ground, the giant no sooner hitting the ground before her blade is turned on him, catching in the faint light, its sharp edge beneath his chin. ]

State your business.

[ this darkness has brought out the worst in men, and the night is often thick with thieves, and worse. ]

[ He may have bitten off more than he can chew, but when had that ever stopped him before?

Still, perhaps it was a little foolhardy, even for him, to attempt taking on an iron giant by himself. But with Gladio and Ignis out of the area, and few other hunters even willing to consider it, Prompto had no choice but to go alone. Its presence had been threatening supply lines, and in a world like the one they live in now, short supplies can be the difference between life and death. He had to do something. He has to do something. That he is still alive in this time is nothing short of a miracle, and so he will keep fighting for the people around him, and for the king that is someday fated to return, so they can bring back the light.

But now he's miscalculated, put himself in a fight he can't win on his own. Even his strongest firearms only glance off of the creatures immense armor, and in the end, it becomes a battle of stamina. Who will tire and let his guard down first?

In this came, it's Prompto, and the iron giant throws him back, winding him as his head snaps back painfully on the ground, leaving him dizzy and disoriented.

Is this...it? Is this where he will die, after everything? In some ways, it wouldn't be so bad. He would see his parents again, he would see Lunafreya again, the king again...Alisaie again. His chest tightens painfully as it does anytime he thinks on her, and the horrible mess he had made of their relationship, of how he'd thought to provide her with the best future she could have. But he'd said such awful things to her that day, things he could never forgive himself for...especially after Lucis fell, taking the Leveilleurs with it.

But those aching regrets are so far in the past now that they feel like old wounds, now. At least if he dies here, now...he can apologize to her at last.

The iron giant moves, ready to strike him down, but before it can do so...something intervenes. No, not something — someone.

Prompto takes the opportunity to scurry back, but he doesn't think to get to his feet as he watches an accomplished mage and swordsman — swordswoman? it's difficult to tell in the darkness — take down the iron giant with one hit after the other. The creature falls and dissipates into the darkness from whence it came, and then his rescuer turns on him, the tip of their blade at his throat. She speaks, and something in her voice arrests him. He only has the flashlight clipped to his vest and the stars to see by. It's not enough to make out her face. But that voice...

He puts up his hands in a sign of surrender, his weapons vanishing in a flash of light, breathing hard as he squints through the darkness up at her. ]

I-I'm a hunter. I took a request to take this guy out, but you did all the hard work. Th-the bounty's yours.

[ Just...please. Don't kill him. ]

[ she's out of breath from the fight, adrenaline singing in her blood, but her blade remains still as stone, unyielding, its tip presses hard to his jugular, and even when he gives his reply she does not immediately lift it away, instead studying what she can see of his shape sprawled beneath her.

his voice..

nevermind that, for now. after a few moments of careful watching to see to it that he makes no move on her, she at last withdraws her blade, though she keeps it unsheathed at her side. ]

I've a camp nearby. You were foolish to take it on alone.

[ Even if she doesn't sheathe her weapon, he breathes easier without the tip of a blade pointed into his throat. He exhales tremulously, catching up his lungs for a moment before he starts to climb to his feet. Again, her voice stirs him, pulls at his heart, even if he is too stunned to understand why. He has no reason to think this woman is someone he knows. He...knows hardly anyone, these days. ]

I-I know. But I couldn't let it take out anymore trucks. I...I really owe you one. Thanks, mysterious stranger!

[ He would have been a goner without her help.

Her...

Who is she?

He leans in, brow taut, as he looks at her through the darkness, trying to discern her features. ]

Who are you?

A hunter, same as you.

[ she answers, simply, turning from him to begin moving back toward the campsite. she can see the faint column of smoke rising above the treetops to guide her, but her ears and eyes are enough to help her navigate otherwise. ]

And I will take that bounty you so kindly offered.

[ alisaie is not necessarily greedy, but with alphinaud unable to take on more powerful hunts alone, and the two of them relying only on one another to survive, she must take what she can get, when she can get it. surviving grows more and more difficult by the day. like as not she will cut him a share as well, but since she did the majority of the work.. yeah, she's not feeling too guilty about taking the majority of the reward. sorry, my dude. ]

[ When she turns her back to him, he catches sight of the sweep of her braid, and that is enough to steal the breath from his lungs.That braid, that ribbon...how many times had he touched it? Run his fingers through it? Braided it for her? The flesh-memory of it tingles on his fingers, and just through the darkness, he can make out the tip of a pointed ear.

But it can't be. It's...impossible.

No. Another...Elezen. After the Starscourge claimed the light, borders had become meaningless and he has seen plenty of Elezens hunting around the land. It's not unusual to find one out here. It's just a coincidence that she has the same braid that she does.

But her voice....

His heart thunders against his chest, though he continues to follow after her. ]

You deserve it. We can head to Hammerhead to claim it tomorrow. [ ... ] Have you...been hunting around here for long?

[ she moves quickly, striding between the trees with a long, purposeful gait. it's been a long day, she's tired, her aether drained low, and the sooner they reach the safety of the campsite the better. alisaie has lost whatever sense of wonder and excitement she once had for the world, she moves in a way that wastes no time, her tone brooking no argument, nor opening the floor for conversation. ]

Good.

[ the trees thin, and it isn't long before they're coming up near to the edge of the campsite, and the warm glow of a campfire. ]

Are you hurt?

[ he's keeping up well enough, but you never know. ]

[ Wow, okay, he didn't want to hear her answer anyway!!!

But he can hardly blame her for being guarded. Most everyone is nowadays, even himself, compared with how he used to be. In some ways, he's grown and developed into someone he can be much prouder of, even if his smiles don't come as easily as they used to, nor his laughter. It's just...been awhile, since he's had a good reason to do either.

He opens his mouth to answer, but the words never come, because no sooner have they come upon the campsite does the fire's glow silhouette her face and then...he knows. What he sees must surely be impossible, but he knows.

It's...it's her.

Shocked and immediately stunned, his feet grind to a halt, his eyes wide and his ears ringing. He looks like he's seen a ghost, because as far as he's concerned...he has.

It can't be. ]

[ he does not answer her, which niggles under her skin, but the moment she turns she knows exactly why.

it's prompto.

his voice had been familiar, but she had made no attempt to place it, his his face - there can be no mistaking it. he's changed, certainly. he's grown, his edges harder and stronger, but his is a face is a face she would never forget. for several long moments she simply.. stares.

unlike prompto, she has been well aware that he was alive. how could she not be? the perfect, heroic prince and his band of loyal lapdogs were all anyone talked about once the city fell, and even now, though things are dark, she knows that they are still hovering around, working, hunting. honestly, it was likely only a matter of time before they ran across one another.

but that does not mean she must be happy about it. sheathing her rapier at last, alisaie plants one hand on her hip. ]

I asked if you are hurt.

[ she repeats, her voice stony. ]

[ A second time Prompto foregoes answering her question, remaining arrested by her very presence. Is...is this real? Can it possibly be real? Did the iron giant knock him out, and now he is dream? Or did it kill him, and now he's reached her in the afterlife? Blood pulses hard against his ears, nearly deafening him, tears springing to his eyes, hands clutching at his chest. ]

You're alive.

[ He breathes, disbelieving. He has so, so much more to say to her, words he has thought to himself over and over again in his head, things he would say to her if the impossible proved true and she somehow survived the attack on Insomnia. And yet nothing right now is more important than this singular fact. She is alive, and strong as well, the girl he fell in love with still beneath her stony expression.

He sucks in a shuddering breath, tears spilling freely down his cheeks as he sinks to his knees. ]

Oh, gods, you're alive...Alisaie...

[ Please. Please tell him he isn't dreaming. ]

[ he drops to his knees before her, his eyes brimming with tears, and for a brief moment she is shocked, a pang of something like guilt striking her heart - but it is fleeting at best. she has hardened since last he knew her, and besides, she has seen these tears before, she has heard his pleas before. he'd fooled her, long ago, with that sweet baby face, with his bright smiles and laughs. he'd cried these same tears before he'd ground her heart into the mud.

it was a long time ago. her anger and betrayal do not burn so hotly as they did then when she was a young girl, naive and impressionable and too sensitive for her own good, but nevertheless she remembers. she knows not to trust him, not to believe in his kindness. he's a user. what does he want from her now? protection? she cannot say. ]

Clearly.

[ she says, then turns from him to move back toward the fire. if he's hurt, it's his own problem now, she's already asked twice. seating herself before the heat of the flames. ]

There is food, if you need it.

[ a vague gesture. ]

[ He isn't sure what he expected in return — nothing, maybe, given how difficult it is for him to even think beyond the simple fact of her existence right now. But as he kneels stunned on the ground, she turns away from him, moving towards the fire. It feels like a slap to the face, not unlike the one she'd given him those years ago, when they were younger and more innocent, when he had...broken her heart.

But...he shouldn't be surprised, should he? He destroyed any sympathies she had for him long ago, and that was well before civilization as they knew it fell to the darkness. It has been so long. She has changed. They both have.

Still, his heart seizes up in his chest, and his tears continue to fall, hiccuped sobs breaking from him as he follows her with his eyes. For so long, he assumed her dead...it's so difficult to believe that she is truly, really alive. Has been alive this whole time, when he could have been seeking her out, apologizing to her every day for what he'd done to her. The reasons don't matter anymore. He can tell her the truth now.

...But would it do any good?

His fists fall to his side, digging into the dirt beneath him. He doesn't yet rise. At the moment, he lacks the strength to. ]

I-I...when Insomnia fell, I...I should have looked for you, I-I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, Alisaie...

[ He palms away his tears, his head hung low in penance. ]

You're alive...

[ He's still processing it. ]

Why?

[ it's beginning to grate on her, his whinging, those crocodile tears. if he thinks he can win her over with them again he is sorely mistaken. she'd been sharp and stubborn even in their youth, with the fall of civilization she has only become moreso, and along the way she's lost what little ability to be comfortably social that she ever had.

she has her brother. he is all she needs. there is no reason to want for more. ]

Why should you have looked for me? I did not look for you. You had no obligation to me.

Of course I do, I have every obligation to you, after I...I...

[ After he broke her heart. After he said such unforgivable things to her.

He stirs at last, but only so he can move to sit closer to the fire and warm his extremities. The nights get so cold, and the fire is warm and inviting, no matter how much his heart might be railing right now. He glances over at her between every movement, watching her through clumped eyelashes, fearing that if he looks away for too long, she might vanish again, gone from his life without a trace, just as quickly as she had reentered it.

Gods, she clearly hates him, and she has every reason to. But how can he leave her side now that he knows she's alive once again?

After a long moment of his throat working wordlessly, he finds his voice once again. ]

...How did you escape the crown city?

[ her gaze cuts toward him, hard and sharp, but thankfully for his own sake he does not follow up on that thought. it's still bewildering to her, why he is putting on this act, what he could want from her to be trying so hard to worm his way back into her good graces. the prince's entourage are not very popular, everyone knows that, so mayhaps he's simply trying to gather allies where and when he can.

no matter. it's hardly worth dwelling over. she has no intention to do any more for him than see him safely to hammerhead once they've gotten some rest. ]

It was not easy.

[ she shrugs, while cracking open a cold can of white beans. ]

My brother and I stole through the city during the chaos, and made our way through an old, unused gate near the north end of the wall.

[ The corners of his swollen eyes grow tense as she explains, his expression growing bleak. Just her and her brother? Then did that mean...their parents hadn't made it out? Just the two of them, alone, forced away from everything that they knew? Even for one as tenacious and strong-willed as Alisaie, that must have been unspeakably difficult. He isn't surprised in the least that she conquered it and is now out here, an accomplished hunter. Of course she is. But gods, to have gone through the fall of Insomnia firsthand... ]

It must have been...horrible. I...don't even know what I would have done if I were there.

[ Died, he's sure of it. There's no way he would have been resourceful enough to get out on his own. By sending him off with Noctis, King Regis had saved his life, in more way than one.

He falls silent a moment, the crack of the fire filling the air, his hands and knees fidgeting. He's never been at ease socially, even less so after their little quartet - then trio - had broken up. What does he say? Apologizing out the gate doesn't feel...right. He doesn't want to come off as insincere - or, at least, and more or less insincere than he already must sound to her. But at the same time, he's dying to explain himself, to throw himself at her feet, and apologize, over and over again, until he's blue in the face.

But they're both tired and emotions are running high. Gods, he's barely come to terms with the fact that she is alive at all. He needs to...take care with this.

He sighs quietly. ]

And...after?

[ it's a wise choice, alisaie would not take particularly well to an apology right now, nor would she believe it. though she'd known he'd been alive, she was in no way prepared to ever see him again, most especially under conditions like this - in close quarters, sharing space, alone. it's sudden. powerful. she will no be so receptive to his claims as he might hope. ]

We picked our way toward Hammerhead.

[ and from there, onward. cindy and hammerhead's denizens had been more than happy to help them on their feet, to teach them the ropes and lend them a trailer for cheap. survival had been trial by fire, but alisaie had enough skill with a blade and magic to be able to take on smaller, less dangerous hunts. from there, they had moved on. outpost to outpost. building their skills. ]

Why?

[ what does it matter, how she spent her time? ]

[ He isn't expecting that question, though it's only fair. Why would she think him at all interested in what she'd been up to since their last meeting, when he'd appeared to only have used her? As if he'd never had any real interest in her?

But...explaining why is not easy, either. He can't come right out and tell her he's still in love with her, that he was always in love with her and will always be in love with her, now, can he? ]

I-I just...wanted to fill in the blanks.

[ He still thinks about her so much. He wants to know how she got to this point. ]

I'm...glad you made it.

[ She has no idea how glad. Even if she hates him, knowing she still lives feels like a rebirth. ]

[ she truly doesn't. he had made no attempt to rekindle their friendship after he'd tossed her away, made no attempt to find her or even ask after her when the crown city fell, what reason could he possibly have to be glad that she lives? barring his own self-interest, at least.

but she is making herself perfectly clear, at least, this moment. she saved his hide, and she would do it again, because there are few enough people who can take on the daemons as it is, and it is not for her to cast judgment on whether or not he is worthy to live, but that is the extent of her loyalty. she will see him safely back to town, and once more they will be on their own, as they have been since the crown city fell.

the sooner the better. her heart aches just looking at him. hearing his voice. ]

There were many who did not.

[ most did not. ]

...I know. My...my parents, too.

[ And though he had never been close to them, it still hurts. It all hurts. It's only the brazen hope for a brighter future that has carried him on, especially since Noctis disappeared into the crystal. ]

We've all...lost a lot.

[ No one has escaped this calamity unscathed. No one.

At last, he lifts his eyes to her, his gaze heavy and pained. ]

I...I'm sorry. We...we set out to save the world, and...we didn't. Or...at least, we didn't get to do it the way we wanted to.

[ There's still a chance. That Noctis will return at ten year's time, and banish the Starscourge for once and for all. But that's so far away still, and he...can't blame them. He can't blame any of them, for not believing in them, for cursing their names as failures. ]

[ it's not so surprising that he had lost his parents. only a handful of people were able to make it out of the city, and the imperials were ruthless in gunning down soldiers and civilians alike. the only reason she and alphinaud were able to make it out alive was their critical thinking skills, combat prowess, and honestly, a great deal of luck. there are a few other stragglers who made it beyond the wall before they tightened the noose, but not many. prompto's parents surely had no chance at all.

but she shakes her head, tapping her fork idly to the tin in her hand. ]

The world is still here, is it not? You cannot save what is not yet lost.

[ whether or not noctis and company failed.. is not her place to judge. alisaie's issues with prompto are completely and entirely personal, and nothing to do with the state of the world. though he had been terrible to her, she still does not doubt that he and the others did all they could to push back the darkness.

but it is not over. so long as she draws breath, she will fight. ]

[ Her words stir his heart and grasp him at his core, grounding him and alleviating him all in one blow. If nothing else...at least she does not hold the accountable for failing the world. He deserves her ridicule for so many reasons, and yet she doesn't take him down with accusations about their efforts, the ones he's heard over and over again, to the point where he's started to think they might deserve them.

Impossibly, the ghost of a smile ascends his lips, something in his expression softening. ]

...Yeah. Yeah, you're right. That's why we're still fighting. To put an end to this, once and for all.

[ Would that they could do it together, side by side with her, but that ship has long since sailed.

And then, the emotion in his heart too much for him too contain once again, he begins to weep, covering his hands with his face, sucking in deep, hiccuping breaths.

She's alive. She's alive. ]

[ he's off again, breaking into sobs and where once she might have rushed to his side and held him near, now he rolls her eyes and hisses through her teeth. it would be so nice, so simple to be able to believe him, to trust those tears, and his pain, but all she can see in her mind's eye is the flinty expression he wore when he said he was done with her. that he had gotten all he wanted. alisaie is not quick to trust, and for all she had given him she had been burned for it - that is on her. she allowed him too close, she gave him all of herself without thinking, naive and blind. she takes responsibility for that.

but she will not be taken in again. now, especially, when the world is dark and people are desperate to cling on to what little they have, she can trust very, very few. cindy, the folks at hammerhead, they helped her when she had nothing to give in return, when they had nothing to gain - besides her brother, they are the only people she can even begin to trust.

prompto is among the last. ]

Oh, enough.

[ she snaps, rising to her feet and snagging a dry heel of bread on her way toward him, which she jams right into his mouth, after smacking his hands aside. ]

Eat, and calm yourself.

[ Suffice it to say he is hardly expecting her to swat his hands away and shove food into his mouth, and as she does so, he looks up at her with wide, dismayed eyes, his tearstained cheeks gleaming in the firelight.

Well. Her orders are straightforward enough, and so he doesn't protest, chewing the bread slowly as he calms, staring into the fire when he doesn't dare to follow her with his eyes.

He eats the rest of the crust in silence. He won't speak again until she prompts him to. For as emotional as this is for him, he doesn't want to upset her further, and gods, what scum she must think him. Does she think his tears are just for show, too? A ploy to earn her sympathy?

Is there truly no way to fix this, to mend what was once between them, even a little?

But that isn't what's important. She's alive. And...that is more than enough for now. ]

Edited 2018-10-01 06:25 (UTC)

[ it's.. difficult to look into his eyes, to see the tears on his cheeks and remember when last she looked into them so fondly. there had been a time when he had looked on her so tenderly, when his eyes shone with every smile. it was so long ago. years. she thought herself over him so long ago, but it is.. not so simple. she's moved on. but he is the only person she had ever given her heart to, the only one to whom she had bared her soul, and all her tender, delicate parts. remembering the pain of that betrayal is.. keening.

she turns away quickly enough, and he falls silent at last, alisaie finishing off her tin of beans while he chews into the hard bread.

he'll need more than that to keep his strength for the trip back, and so she opens another tin of white beans and drops a fork into it, then hands it over. ]

This next.