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 Posted: Wed Mar 30, 2022 8:47 pm
Somehow, with Princess’ supervision, Sessrumnir and Alastor managed to get every last book off the floor in the library. The library itself wasn’t huge but it still had thousands of books, tables for studying and research, display cabinets with odd trinkets and artifacts. It probably helped that they weren’t trying to organize the books (since they couldn’t exactly read most of them), but they were careful to set books that had torn pages in the general area where they were found, in the hopes that the missing pages that had been gathered into a pile would make it easier to sort through later.
A broom had been found, and while Alastor worked on sweeping up any dust and debris from the floor, Sessrumnir took some rags and wiped down as many surfaces he could manage. He cleaned off the crystals that glowed, pleased that each of them seemed a little brighter after doing so. Or maybe it was because he simply touched them.
Even Princess helped. Sort of. Sessrumnir had packed a large, stuffed squirrel in the bag he brought with him, which meant Princess got to entertain them by bouncing around behind them while they cleaned, squeaking the stuffed rodent in her mouth over and over and over again. At some points she just stood and squeaked the toy, before tossing it and chasing after it. She only managed to break one old globe. But in her defense, it was kind of ugly and already mostly broken.
“This is the only room I’ve tried to clean up more,” Sessrumnir explained as he led the way to what he knew was Percy’s office. The same place he’d found Princess’ fang. He waited until he was sure that Alastor was going to be okay, before pushing open the door and making his way inside.
He tried keeping everything as it was. At least for the most part. It looked like things had been rummaged through, but most of the drawers and cabinets had some kind of lock on them. He assumed there was a key to them somewhere, but for the moment, everything was fine being left untouched. The couch in the office had been dusted and cleaned to the best of his abilities without damaging the fabric, and the desk had been wiped down. The windows, which were not really windows, but some light could at least come through, had been wiped down as well. They were built into the walls, obviously made to withstand the test of time, and they were doing pretty well.
Sessrumnir set his bag down on the couch, and opened it so he could start pulling out the food that they’d packed. Nothing fancy. Just sandwiches and other foods that wouldn’t spoil quickly if not refrigerated.
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Posted: Wed Mar 30, 2022 9:50 pm
Alastor was both in a good mood because of the progress they’d made, and the freedom to reminisce that Michael had offered, and, of course, Princess, who was prefect in every single way. She could do no wrong. In fact, she was helping Sessrumnir by breaking a few things. The library was a little stuffy, anyway, and they were nearly out of shelf space. She was a good girl.
And now they were at Percy’s office, and he was doing his best to keep a contented smile on his face. There was a part of him that was filled with a little dread because he really didn’t want to see the impact time had on this room, that was far more personal to him than any library could ever be.
He looked around and it was–
The same, and different, all at once. Pieces of Percy. Alastor had mostly good memories here, but the last had been difficult. He ran his hand over the desk and pressed his lips together, in the way that he seemed to do when he was thinking deeply, or about something not particularly pleasant.
“You’ve done a good job in here,” he said after a few seconds. “The lighting is a little duller than I remember, but I don’t think that’s your fault. Although, maybe it’s just my memories. Sometimes they have this glow about them. Like sunlight, filtering through trees. I know it’s not exactly how it happened, but. The good ones glow.”
Most of his memories of Percy glowed.
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Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2022 5:08 pm
Sessrumnir stayed out of the way to give Alastor a chance to look around. He sat down on the couch and put an arm around Princess as she chewed on her toy, keeping her from trying to knock Alastor over in her excitement to see him still.
He had a feeling that this room would have held a lot of memories for Devyn. He didn’t blame him for taking his time to sort through his thoughts. Michael knew he was probably hungry after working so hard, but wasn’t going to pressure him to eat if he needed to explore things he remembered first.
“I was thinking it’s a little dull in here,” he said quietly, so as not to startle Devyn from any thoughts. “Offices are usually brighter, especially for someone who liked to keep so many books with them. Be honest, did he actually read all of these books, or was he too distracted writing letters to you?”
The question was intended to be lighthearted. To keep Devyn grounded and not get swept away in too many thoughts. But if that was something he wanted, then Michael would just have to be there to pull him back out when he was ready.
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Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2022 5:22 pm
Alastor was only half turned away from Sessrumnir and Princess, and though some of his face was hidden, the way the corner of his mouth twitched up into a smile was not.
“Oh, I think he read a few of them. I’ve got a trunk back home of all the letters he ever wrote me. I brought some with me, just in case I needed a pick-me-up. I’ll have to read some of them to you, Princess. A few of them mention how beautiful and smart and strong you are,” he said, and though there was a playfulness in his voice he was sincere.
Percy had been important to her, too. Or at least, he’d thought. He didn’t know how deeply a Summon could feel, but he had always treated Princess like she was any other living creature. More than just a common creature, though. She was old and powerful and full of magic in a way that he didn’t quite understand.
But, he knew her, and he loved her.
“You can read them too, Michael. If you like. Some of them are a bit sappy. I’m surprised you haven’t found any of my letters. Especially in here. My penmanship is excellent, you’ll be impressed. Though, to be honest, I used to be a bit sloppy. But Percy was an artist, and I thought I might impress him if my handwriting was nice. I don’t really know why that made sense back then, but it did. And, it worked.”
He moved behind the desk to run his fingers over some of the locked drawers, but he seemed to be relieved to see that they didn’t open so freely.
It gave him hope that the rest of Percy’s treasures were untouched.
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Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2022 5:32 pm
Sessrumnir shook his head when Alastor mentioned being surprised he hadn’t found any of his letters. “No, I haven’t found anything that seemed personal. I did find a small book that looked like it was written in Latin here back before I found Princess. But that was just proof of something that might have been from Earth,” he explained as he pet Princess wherever he could reach, although paused to scratch behind her ears.
“I mean, I haven’t really tried very hard to snoop around,” he said, wondering if maybe he should have. But no, he didn’t want to disturb anything that wasn’t meant to be disturbed. He hated that people tried taking things from the wonder, but he also didn’t want to potentially damage anything further, or ruin its integrity. Didn’t want to ruin the proof that something horrible had happened here.
But with Devyn there, things didn’t feel as heavy. Again, he wondered if maybe it was his starseed not wanting anything to be changed. Not until there was a reason. Or… he was just making things up in his head.
“I haven’t seen any real artwork either. Percy was an artist, but…” he glanced around the walls where old tapestries hung, but they looked like they’d been there for much longer than Percy would have been there. Relics that kept the rooms warm and covered the stone walls. But no paintings.
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Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2022 5:47 pm
“You have more restraint than I did. The first thing I did when I got to the Hall was snoop. And I was small, so they could hardly keep up with me. I got into everything. I meant no disrespect, but I was young and curious. I wanted to know about who I was, who I was supposed to be. I went from being a normal kid one day to having this mantle–a very heavy mantle placed upon me.“
He sat down in the chair behind the desk with a heavy sigh, like maybe any tiredness he’d accumulated through the day had just hit him. The food Michael had packed suddenly caught his attention, but he just leaned back in Percy’s chair for a moment.
“He was very shy about his art. He was talented, but he wasn’t the sort to show off. I was the showoff, and I showed off enough for the both of us. The Hall of the Ancients–my home, and the fortress of every Senshi before me, and also the diplomatic hub on my world, is full of his artwork. Any time he made a piece I loved, I completely redecorated so I could show it off. My room is full of his paintings. The whole place is. I’ll show you,” he promised.
“They’re worth admiring. I used to give everyone tours just so I could show off my favorite pieces. Also because some of those dignitaries needed a good walk. I don’t want to take you to Alastor while it’s still dangerous–well. It’ll probably stay dangerous until I get some help up there. But when I get back to Eternal, I’d like to show you. The Hall should be safe, it’s the rest of it I worry about. I don’t think the shadows will breach it, but I suppose it’s always a threat. It’s not that I don’t think you can handle danger, it’s just. I don’t know what I’d do if I lost you.”
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Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2022 6:43 pm
“I was a bit older than a child when I became a knight,” he reminded Devyn, although he couldn’t help but smile sadly at him as he sat behind the desk.
It was where Percy would have sat, surely. Maybe even Devyn depending on the reason for being there. The hours they must have spent in that very room, the things they talked about, the secrets they shared. Michael felt a little out of place between the thousand year old Senshi, thousands (probably) year old summon, and surrounded by history that he didn’t have anyone to teach him about. Aside from Devyn and what he could learn from memories.
“We’ll make your world safe again,” he promised. He hadn’t been able to prove that he was going to follow up on that promise, but he was going to (gently) harass Soleiyu until he was able to get Devyn up to Eternal again.
“You can show me all of his paintings when we’re there and it’s safe. Maybe I can help you redecorate so you can switch things out or add even more. Do you have a gallery? I can build more walls to display them better,” he offered, because if it was something that made Devyn happy, then why wouldn’t he want to help?
The concern about losing him had Michael pausing.
Of course it would be a pain to lose him. If he died, it meant having to wait until his starseed was reborn again, and at that point, there was no guarantee he would be a knight.
“Don’t worry, his starseed will stick around for a while,” he said with a somewhat forced smile. He didn’t blame Devyn for wanting Percy’s starseed within reach. It made things easier that way. But Michael couldn’t help but wonder if that really was all he’d be good for -- a vessel for a starseed. He supposed that was better than having no purpose, but it was a little disheartening.
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Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2022 7:11 pm
Alastor tilted his head just slightly; his eyes were half lidded, like he was very comfortable in the chair. “Well, it’s your starseed now. So I hope you plan on sticking around for a while.”
He didn’t make friends easily. He never had. Honestly, it was a miracle that the stars had aligned as they did to make this work out. He doubted making friends would ever go better than it had gone with Michael.
“And not just because you keep putting all of these ideas in my head and offering to help. You’re easy to be around. I feel very comfortable around you.”
Maybe it was just being away from the Chaos on his world, or the fact that Michael was one of the first people he’d actually spoken to in–what, decades? It might have been. Maybe longer. Maybe it was the fact that he had Percy’s starseed, even if Devyn knew they were different. He didn’t think it was as simple as that, as something he couldn’t see.
He was pretty sure it was just because Michael was Michael.
“I don’t really have a gallery. I should have built him one before, he deserved it. But, better late than never, even if it’s only just us looking at them. Do they have galleries on Earth? I’d like to see. I’ve never been much for art,” he admitted. “Just Percy’s. But he appreciated art. And I appreciate beautiful things.”
Sessrumnir and Princess were a nice sight on the couch, not so very far away from him. He couldn’t help but smile; she looked so happy. “Like Princess,” he said, just to make sure she knew he still thought she was the prettiest girl in the universe.
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Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2022 7:55 pm
Princess, of course, was thrilled no matter what was being said about her, and she made sure they knew she was ecstatic by squeaking her toy in quick succession and nearly knocking over the side table with a powerful wag of her tail. Sessrumnir sighed, although he didn’t seem upset, and moved over some more so he could try and pull Princess up onto the couch with him. She was very pleased to climb up and nearly crush him underneath her as she squeaked the squirrel in his face until he gently pushed her head away. She settled in his lap, chewing a bit less noisily for the moment.
She was a welcome distraction, of course. Sometimes it was difficult to respond to Devyn, because Michael wasn’t sure what would spill out of his mouth. What nonsense he would spew. Things like how he also felt comfortable around Devyn, and how it was easy to talk to him, and how he wanted to be the one to stick around -- not just because he had Percy’s starseed.
When Chris started grumbling about how he wasn’t Serge, Michael thought that he was overexaggerating. But now that he felt a pull… a connection to… what? Devyn? Or maybe just Sessrumnir? He wasn’t sure if he could honestly say he was just Michael any more.
“We can visit art galleries. There are plenty of museums around the city. We’re not too far from a bunch of other museums at our country’s capital. That’s where Peter interned for the past couple summers,” Michael said, taking the time to focus really hard on petting Princess while he let the heat in his face fade. It wasn’t fair that simple compliments like how it was easy to be around him could fluster him so quickly.
“Maybe we can have a few of his paintings brought to Earth. Set them up in a gallery there, so more people could see them.” They would have to be careful, of course. But it was a possibility to look into.
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Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2022 8:17 pm
Alastor had busied himself watching Princess; he knew the dangers of her tail and chasing after it, or trying to wrestle it into place to save everything around her. Michael was doing a good job right now, and she looked so happy. He knew she wasn’t a dog, but to see her enjoy something so simple eased nearly every last one of his frayed nerves.
“You’d go to art galleries with me? Percy would like you. I think I’d like that. Just to see what it’s like.”
It wasn’t really his thing, but now his interest was piqued–although, if he was being honest, it was less at other peoples’ art and more the idea of sharing Percy’s.
“Do you think something like that would be possible?”
He seemed to wake up just a bit, and though he didn’t move much, he sat up just slightly in the chair. “I think he’s talented enough. And he could paint anything. I think he captured the heart of a piece more than anything. I mean, visually it looked good. But if you looked at a piece, you could feel it, too.” Or, maybe he just knew Percy so well he felt like he could understand the brush strokes, too.
“He’d have liked to be in a gallery. Privately. Anonymously, probably. So he could sneak around the halls and hear what people had to say. But then he’d get nervous that someone would say something bad and would have probably just hidden.”
Alastor spoke only fondly, like this was a very endearing trait about Percy that he would love forever. “But if his pieces were in a gallery, I could just beat up anyone who said anything bad about them. And then go back to Alastor and only tell him the good things I heard.”
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Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2022 8:28 pm
“Oh, some of them can be very boring,” he warned as he rubbed Princess’ head, and moved one of her paws from digging into his leg. “Sometimes it’s difficult to tell the difference between a scam and actual art. So yeah, I’ll go with you to make sure you’re not tricked into thinking what we’d consider very good art and junk.”
But there was something else that Devyn said that pulled at his curiosity. And before he could stop himself, Michael asked, “Is that where he’s buried?”
Why else would Devyn go back to Alastor to tell him all the good things people may or may not have said about his art?
Michael immediately pressed his lips together and shook his head, feeling guilty for not being able to stop himself. “Sorry,” he apologized, and cleared his throat. “Yeah, we can figure out something to show off his art. Even if it’s just a temporary gallery. Mom does a lot of fundraisers that involve art galleries and book clubs and things like that. She’d be the one to know what to do.”
Well, maybe once she was done mourning. But he figured Devyn would understand that it might take some time.
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Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2022 9:08 pm
Alastor leaned back in the chair again, only this time he sank down a bit more as if the energy had been drained from him. He didn’t look particularly crestfallen, but he nodded at the question. “Percy’s there, yeah. I wasn’t really thinking at the time. It might have been a little selfish of me. They have groves here, where people chose to be laid to rest. They planted a tree for them, and the only real criteria was that you had to dedicate yourself to Sessrumnir in some way, or call it home, or,” he gestured vaguely; he’d go over all of that when they found the groves. “I thought he might have liked that. But then, I didn’t think he’d want to be so far away from me. And I didn’t want to be so far away from him. But, I had an acorn. I’d been saving it. Got it from that big tree. I was saving it for somewhere special, and. Well, I said I’d know where to plant it when I found the right spot, and. It was with him.”
Briefly, Alastor looked tired. He was brushing his thumb over the armrest in a familiar way, like he knew the grooves intimately. It was a natural gesture, something ingrained in him that he wasn’t really even thinking about. There was a pain in the back of his throat when he spoke, but he never faltered.
“It’s a big tree, now. I mean, Michael–really, I should have known. I don’t know how I tricked myself into thinking–well, you know. It was in my backyard the whole time.” He was there, the whole time.
He sighed, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. It wasn’t a relief, but it was a weight from his shoulder just slipping away. “How is your mother doing?”
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Posted: Fri Apr 01, 2022 6:13 am
There was a heaviness in his own chest as Alastor spoke. Enough that Sessrumnir needed to lift a hand to absently wrap it around the orb hanging there. He knew it was probably uncomfortable for Alastor to talk about. Grief did that to people. Trauma manifested in different ways. Devyn’s was just… denial about everything. Maybe that was kinder than letting it torment him for the centuries that passed after Percy.
“She’s doing her best. She’s always been strong, and dad was often away from home anyway. She never resented him for it, but it was obvious that she missed him. I think she’s been keeping herself busy taking care of the kids. She’s staying with them and Chris until…”
The thought had him pausing and sighing. There was still so much they didn’t know about how to get to Ganymede. If she was still alive.
“I think Chris is taking it worse. He’s not a good fighter, so I think on top of losing dad and maybe Paris, he feels guilty for not being able to do more.”
Not that Chris would tell him how he felt about all of that.
“Peter I think is forcing himself to be okay, but he’s been staying with one of his friends most of the time. He’s angry at the Negaverse, but he also got to spend the least amount of time with dad, so there’s some misdirected anger to disguise his grief.”
Another ache in his chest had Sessrumnir looking up at Alastor behind the desk again. Except it wasn’t Alastor. Sessrumnir was confused for just a moment, wondering when he’d powered down, but he quickly understood. And for the first time, he held his breath, as if doing anything would break the connection.
Devyn was either very deep in thought with how his eyebrows were furrowed, or upset about something, or both. But he immediately relaxed a bit as an arm reached across him as he sat in the chair. Percy had his lips pressed against the top of Devyn’s head, his other hand gently combing through his long black hair.
I trust you, and I want to stay by your side, the image of Percy whispered so quietly that Sessrumnir almost couldn’t hear.
But then his heart practically stopped as Percy looked up, seemingly directly at him -- No, that was impossible. He had simply looked up to stare across the room as he rested his cheek against Devyn’s hair. Still, it felt like eye contact for the briefest moment, before Devyn was turning to look up at Percy and pulled his attention back.
“I think you found the right spot for your acorn,” Sessrumnir said quietly, when Alastor’s image replaced Devyn’s and the memory faded.
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Posted: Fri Apr 01, 2022 6:56 am
A faint smile twitched onto his lips again and he nodded. “I hope Percy would agree. But it felt right. And now it’s grown so much. I don’t think anyone could topple it. And even with my world as it is, it’s still done its best. No leaves, no acorns, but it’s alive. I can feel it. Like a little heartbeat. Or it’s in my mind,” he confessed. “Things aren’t always what they seem on Alastor. Maybe part of why I’m glad to get away from it. My head clears up a bit when I’m here. Or, maybe it’s just when I’m around you. I was still a bit foggy before I met you.”
Although, maybe that was the lack of sleep, and shelter, and food.
But, those were all things Michael had secured for him, anyway, so he was still responsible.
He listened to Michael as he spoke about how his family was dealing with things, and there was again a notable absence in how he was doing. Devyn wondered if it would be rude to ask. Or worse, he wondered if he’d upset Michael in doing so.
But, he did.
Because, Michael had promised that if Devyn was taking care of himself, he would do the same.
“How are you doing, Michael?”
And the unspoken, but ever present, ‘And what can I do to help?’ hung heavy in the air.
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Posted: Fri Apr 01, 2022 9:07 am
Sessrumnir nodded in agreement about the tree. He hadn’t seen it, but if it was anything like the oak in the atrium, then it was going to be standing for a thousand more years or more. Maybe once they figured out a way to get things settled down on Alastor, it would have a chance to grow leaves and acorns like it was supposed to. Not that he expected to be able to change the weather, but they could try to build something to protect it better.
He knew he should have expected the question directed at him, and he pressed his lips together because it was easy to just push everything aside. But with Devyn it was even easier to let himself say anything and everything that came to mind.
But he couldn’t burden Devyn like that.
“I’m not doing very well, Dev,” he said quietly, his eyes on Princess rather than Devyn at the desk. But he took a breath and let it out, as though that was something he’d conditioned himself to do when he was getting overwhelmed. “I’ll be better once we can get Paris back.”
Or so he hoped. It was a goal that kept him busy at least. Something to focus on rather than thinking about all of the losses they’d suffered.
“I thought things were going to be different, you know? I thought we finally had an advantage. But everything went wrong…”
He paused to shake his head, not wanting Devyn to start worrying about things he couldn’t change, and glanced up to offer him a small, sad smile. “Sorry for worrying you. I’ll be okay.”
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