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 Posted: Fri Dec 08, 2023 3:55 pm
Dering had been walking for half an hour. He didn’t know if he was going in the right direction but it didn’t stop him. His feet seemed to know the way, and after the day he’d had he was just going to trust his instinct.
It had been nerve-wracking to leave the safety of his Wonder. Passing from the barrier of trees and stepping out of the forest felt like stepping into another world, even if he knew Lysithea. Well, knew it in passing. He sort of felt like he was intruding a bit, no matter how welcoming she had always been to him.
He was careful of where he stepped, and mindful of the area as he passed through it.
Nothing about the area seemed inherently dangerous, it just felt a bit like sneaking out of school at night. He didn’t want to get in trouble. Didn’t want to offend anyone. Didn’t want to make the wrong choice.
He might be a squire now but he was a new squire. He’d hardly had any time to let that sink in. As he walked across Lysithea, he twisted the signet ring on his finger. That was new, too. He couldn’t focus enough to figure out how to use it.
Right now, all he could think about was getting to Sterling–to finding Brooklyn.
…Lysithea couldn’t be that big, right?
On the horizon–no, nearby!–he was so sure that he could feel another energy signature. He let that guide him and he picked up the pace, not quite jogging but definitely speed walking towards it.
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Posted: Fri Dec 08, 2023 5:04 pm
So far, Stirling hadn’t received any letters in return, and while she had expected it, anticipated it…right now it hurt.
Right now she was beginning to grow a little angry…well. Unhappy. She…didn’t like being alone. Having friends had been the best…and then going back to a group home was just…a nightmare and now this…
It was just too quiet up here…too isolating and perhaps…she would just go mad.
Maybe she deserved it.
Today, she was taking a walk through the thistles, looking at them with feigned interest. There was a strange…squirrel like creature that she had seen, and she had been working to get it to acknowledge her. At least something was alive here…even if it did look like something out of a how to draw manga book, all cute and…fluffy.
She absolutely loved it. But…
The Knight’s head swung around when she felt another aura moving towards her…the aura of a Squire and…
Who the hell could that be? She didn’t know any Lysithea Squires, did she?
Still…she took off running towards it too, and stopped at the edge of a forest, staring in blatant disbelief as she saw.
“...Dering?”
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Posted: Fri Dec 08, 2023 5:53 pm
Oh, it was Stirling. Oh, it was Stirling!
He found her! She was here, she was really here! He’d really started to doubt himself. He’d let his feet lead the way and just hoped, and now here she was! Alive, in one piece!
His steps hastened. “I got your letter! I came as soon as I could. I didn’t know how to write back. I had to come up to Dering. I was just there,” he explained, trying to keep his breathing even as he crossed the distance. His lute was heavy and he had to hold it in both arms as he walked.
The closer he got, the more disheveled he looked. His boots were scuffed and muddy, and his outfit had a few scratches and tears. His hair was out of place and had a twig with a few leaves stuck in his hat. He hadn’t really had time to examine his new outfit so he wasn’t sure what was out of place.
“It’s so good to see you, I missed you so much. I don’t even know where to start. I was so worried. I was so worried. I thought about you every day.”
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Posted: Fri Dec 08, 2023 6:47 pm
Stirling couldn’t believe her eyes, and honestly, she was frozen for longer than she wanted to be, but, finally she let out a cry of excitement and joy and ran to cross the distance between the two of them, taking the lute from Dering and carefully putting it onto the ground before she picked the Squire up and hugged him tightly, spinning them both in a circle. “It’s you! I’m so glad you got the letter, I was…I mean. I…I had hoped someone would answer but I didn’t really know if anyone would want to, I didn’t mean to disappear…it’s all been such a mess lately…”
Putting him down, Stirling went and picked up the lute again, holding it in some confusion. “What…is this? Is it your new weapon? It’s kind of heavy, isn’t it? You…”
Finally it all dawned on her and a great smile spread across her face. “You’re a Squire now! Dering! That’s amazing! I’m so proud of you! I love your new boots and you just look!”
Tears came into her eyes suddenly and Stirling wasn’t sure why. “I’m so happy you’re here.”
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Posted: Fri Dec 08, 2023 7:17 pm
At first, Dering found himself with mild panic and alarm when she disarmed him–not because of her but just because he was already overwhelmed with emotion and confused. Panic and alarm were just natural states of his, anyway.
She picked him up like he weighed nothing, and his knees instinctively bent while he was in the air. She didn’t spin for long or fast enough to make him dizzy, but he was on the ground again soon enough. Without his lute to hide behind–not that he minded her examining it!–he just sort of awkwardly tugged at his new uniform.
“You don’t have to cry,” he insisted, despite knowing very well that it wasn’t up to someone if they were going to have a cry or not. “I’m really glad to see you. I didn’t know how to contact you. I mean, I tried calling, but–oh, this is all very new.” He gestured to his uniform somewhat helplessly. “I mean, it only just happened. I know that you can use your Ring to send messages, only, I hadn’t found mine. I hadn’t been up to Dering again since the last time I went with you. I was tearing everything apart trying to find it, and this happened. I found my ring, though.”
He cleared his throat; he might have been too energetic earlier because he was a bit out of breath and tired, and now he was talking so much at once.
Dering still wore a small smile, though his brows were knitted with worry. He seemed to want to comfort her but wanted to give her a bit of space to breathe, too.
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Posted: Fri Dec 08, 2023 7:37 pm
“I’m glad that you found it…that’ll make talking a lot easier, and I’m so proud of you for the upgrade…do…you want to come sit down? You look exhausted…how…how far did you walk?”
Did this mean that their Wonders were near one another? Or that she could…just go anywhere on the planet she wanted? That was a thought that made her feel rather excited but…no, it didn’t seem like it was the truth…she had found a definite ending to where she could go…so maybe it was just when the other places had someone there?
This was something to investigate and think about later. “Come on, you can come back to my ah. Castle. I have some food and drinks that we can share…nothing cold but…still. It’ll get you off your feet for a while…ah…why don’t you desummon the lute so you don’t have to keep carrying it? Nothing’s going to attack us up here…I mean I have these squirrel things but they seem pretty friendly to me…nothing bad that I’ve encountered yet!”
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Posted: Fri Dec 08, 2023 7:46 pm
“Um, I don’t know how far I walked.” Dering looked over his shoulder, across the expanse of Lysithea, and expected to see his forest.
As far as he could see, there was only soft grass blowing slightly in the breeze. He scanned the horizon and half-turned, as if he was certain he could see Dering from here, but–
He wasn’t ever sure he knew what direction to walk in to get back.
“I am a little tired, though. It’s…somewhere over there.” He gestured vaguely in the direction that he came from, but seemed a bit helpless in identifying anything more than that. “We’ll have to explore together some time. I just followed my feet to get here. And then when I got close, I could feel your aura.”
He shook his head and turned to face here again. “You have a whole castle, though? Oh! I brought you a few things. Since you’re staying here. It’s not much, but I wanted to try and help.” He didn’t want to put his lute down but he didn’t want to be rude, so he moved it out of the way. “You have squirrels up here?”
There was so much that he wanted to ask her, it was hard to focus on just a few of his questions!
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Posted: Fri Dec 08, 2023 7:48 pm
Stirling could tell that he was quite attached to his new weapon and forbore to say anything else, just walked with him through the field of thistles that surrounded her castle…her. Well. Home.
“I’m very excited to see what you brought! I’m just…more excited to see you. To see someone. I…it’s been really lonely up here, I’ll admit. And yeah! They’re super cute…not sure when they got here but…”
Swinging her head around, Stirling pointed to one that was standing atop a rock. Its fur was a pale yellow, and its tail was far larger than that of any squirrel on Earth, it was nearly four times its body and was just…fluff.
“I’m half hoping that I can become friends with one and it’ll let me pet it…but, not really expecting anything to come out of it…anyway. The castle is here…ah…welcome to Stirling!”
She extended her arm and wiggled her fingers slightly, hoping that she was making a good impression…though. She wasn’t completely sure. “It’s not great...not yet. But it’ll get there, I’m sure!”
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Posted: Fri Dec 08, 2023 7:50 pm
The thistles should have been intimidating but Dering couldn’t look at anything here without seeming impressed and surprised. She had a whole castle here, and real, living creatures. He had flowers and trees and a great number of things that were alive and thriving at Dering but it was silent. There was no birdsong, no crickets chirping. There was something uneasy, hidden in the fog, but he’d yet to find anyone–or anything–at his Wonder.
Though he hadn’t ventured deep enough into the forest to explore it completely, he hadn’t found any structure–not even ruins–at Dering.
But she had a castle.
It made sense, he supposed. So much of Lysithea felt like the backdrop for some magnificent fairy tale.
“It’s so cute,” he said, staring at the ball of fluff. “I hope you can pet it. It looks so soft.” Oh, but it was a wild animal. He knew to keep his distance, just in case.
“How long are you going to be up here? It seems so lonely…”
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Posted: Fri Dec 08, 2023 7:50 pm
Stirling was pleased by his reaction and wanted to run, to skip…and just to be giddy, but she kept her joy restrained as best she could. “Well, I’m not really sure yet…as long as I have to be, I suppose. I don’t have anywhere to go back on Earth…and like...I’m not exaggerating when I say I’d rather die than go back to that place they put me in that was literally awful.”
She led him into the castle and gestured around. “It is really lonely, but like…it’s safe. And it’s mine…and I can pop down and get food every once in a while…and I’m hoping to like, start farming maybe? I have to figure out how to farm but…it seems like a good idea.” Shrugging, she let her powered form fade and let Brooklyn stand there instead. “So, what do you think? It’s big and roomy and like…nobody can tell me what to do up here!”
Her smile slipped a little and she shrugged. “I’m…hoping that maybe…ah. Maybe Dagon will still…I mean. I don’t know. I need to get in touch with her but, I kind of want to be self sufficient first? I don’t know. Everything got taken from me and I don’t want to leave myself open to that again…”
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Posted: Fri Dec 08, 2023 7:52 pm
Dering looked at her somewhat helplessly when she said she had no idea how long she was going to have to be here. He didn’t want to imagine what things must have been like for her to run away. She got to live in a castle! An empty castle, that she had to clean and repair and…
He hoped it wasn’t haunted.
Brooklyn was brave, though. She could handle living alone? And she wanted to start farming?
He hadn’t even thought of those things. He couldn’t imagine it, he didn’t know how to take care of himself like that. He’d always lived in the city. But, Lysithea was magical. And Brooklyn was strong. And brave. If she put her mind to anything, he was certain she could accomplish it.
He listened intently, but it felt like there were many branching thoughts in his mind, rapid firing different ideas. It was a little hard to keep up with, but he was prioritizing what she said, and how he could help her.
Dering didn’t power down, but only because it hadn’t really occurred to him that he might have been able to and not been sent down to Destiny City.
“I think it’s neat up here. I think it could be really cool. I want to get you more lights.” He didn’t have money. Maybe he could ask Talia for help. She would want to do whatever she could, he was sure of it.
“I like that you have a place that is your own.” He wanted someone to help take care of her, though. She was too young to carry all of this burden alone, no matter how strong she was. “You don’t have to do all of this by yourself, though,” he said hesitantly. He felt like he was intruding. He didn’t want to offend her. “...I brought some canned food. And a can opener, in case you didn’t have one. And a little candy, and some blankets.Is there anything else you need? I can try to get it and come visit you again soon? Or we can meet up when you come down to Destiny City?”
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Posted: Fri Dec 08, 2023 7:53 pm
Brooklyn nodded and looked a little eager for the food he brought, and the thought of candy. That was something that she would absolutely want to have but…it wouldn't be something she needed…
“You brought all that for me? Thank you so much, Julian…I appreciate it more than I can really say, I think that’s going to help me a lot for right now! Um, yes please to the visiting, and I’ll absolutely keep writing to you, I’ll let you know when I’m going to be coming back down. I’m going to assume...I mean. I’m going to try to come down as often as I can…but like. I’m afraid that if I come down and can’t come back up…I’m not sure where I’d end up staying…so that’s a problem…but…I’ll figure it all out. I’ve got this. And now that I’ve got you…I have more than I would have ever expected so…”
She swallowed and hesitated for a moment, before opening her arms in case he…well. In case he wouldn’t mind a hug. She could use one but she didn’t just want to take. “I’m so glad you’re here. I missed you so much…I can’t even like…begin to describe it. I’m so proud that you’re a Squire too…you look amazing…I know I said it already but like….It’s true.”
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Posted: Fri Dec 08, 2023 7:54 pm
Dering had slowly become aware of the fact that he must look like a mess, but he was trying to stay optimistic. He’d freshen up and look better for the next time they got to see each other. Sheepishly, he brushed his fingers through his hair to try and tame how wild it had gotten–flinched when he found the branch–and shook his head to loosen any extra unintended accessories.
He wasn’t much for physical contact, he’d hardly ever been. He seemed to like his own little bubble and had a unique way of keeping to himself and taking up as little space as possible.
This wasn’t about him or what he wanted, though; that would always take a back seat to the people he cared about. Her arms were open, and whether or not it had occurred to him to hug her, he wasn’t the sort to leave her asking and wanting. The lute was temporarily abandoned and he moved into her arms while carefully wrapping his around her.
He didn’t really think he deserved to be a squire, but he didn’t know how such a thing happened. He hadn’t really thought about it, and he wasn’t really sure what to do about it.
“If you ever get stuck in Destiny City, I’m sure we can figure something out. I’ve been trying to be more social.” He didn’t add that it wasn’t working much but he was trying. There was room to improve and he was doing his best. “If I absolutely had to, I’m sure my roommate would let me smuggle you in for a little while.” He was still at Hillworth and they were as strict as ever, but…
She was his friend. He’d try to do whatever he could to keep her safe.
“If there’s anything else I can do, I hope you’ll tell me. I want you to be okay.”
Better than okay, he wanted her to be good. He just didn’t know what he could do to best support her.
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Posted: Fri Dec 08, 2023 7:56 pm
Brooklyn nodded and squeezed Dering slightly before letting go. She had missed physical contact with people that she cared about. One could only be so much of a feral cat, after all. “I’ll do that. I…I really hope you know that you coming here has really made all of the difference in the world and I feel like I can make it now that I know you’re around and that you know I’m around…It’s like I can breathe again.”
Having him on her side would make surviving all that more easier, and might make it easy to figure out a new way to really live.
“Come on, I’d like to show you around for a few minutes if you have the time? If not, I’ll just be in touch with letters, I have lots of paper and pens!”
She didn’t want him to leave right away but...she knew his situation and it was fine if he had to. Who knew how long he had even been walking to find her, after all. Whatever happened though, she was content.
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Posted: Fri Dec 08, 2023 7:57 pm
Dering didn’t know how long he’d been here, but he wasn’t going to leave, not when it felt like he’d only just arrived. A smile brightened his face. “I have time,” he promised. If he was going to get in trouble, the damage was already done. It would have been nice if he didn’t have to worry about the school finding out, but even if he and Luke had never spoken of it…
He still thought that he could trust him to cover if anyone suspected he was breaking rules. Maybe it was expecting too much of him, he didn’t want Luke to feel used or ever be put in an uncomfortable situation.
Dering didn’t let his mind run wild with thoughts, not right now. He could worry later. He wanted to enjoy this time with Brooklyn. There would be more opportunities in the future, too! But he wanted to make the best of things now.
“I want to see everything you’ve been working on. And if there’s anything I can help with before I head home, I’ll do my best. And when I get back, I’ll write more. Now that I can. I think.”
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