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 Posted: Sun Mar 31, 2024 10:31 am
Backdated to earlier in March. They toiled away at their Wonders—sometimes together, sometimes on their own. At the castle, Yvoire cleaned what he could. He swept the rubble out of Ellis’ room, then the hall that led to it. He put fallen furniture upright. He dusted and wiped down what remained. He tackled a single small project with every visit; though the heavy air of death and decay still remained, at least Ellis’ room began to show signs of care. Once, he returned to find that a single window, once cracked and half shattered, had fixed itself.
It was a start. In a castle this size, there was still much to do. Larger repairs would require more help and know-how, but he was pleased by what little he’d been able to accomplish. Yvoire liked to think his Wonder was pleased too.
Today, he walked the halls, making note of things he could feasibly clean or stabilize on his own. He carried a notepad and clipboard with him so he could keep track of what he’d done, and what still remained to do. Eventually, he came to the broken bridge that spanned the river and led into the city.
The great doors had fallen from their hinges, exposing this part of the castle to the elements. Yvoire knew he wouldn’t be able to lift the doors back into place on his own. He stepped over them carefully, wary of damaging them further, and stood out on an intact portion of the bridge, staring into the city, and to the cathedral that rose into the skyline among the cluster of ruined shops and houses.
It was almost fall again. A tepid breeze sent Yvoire’s hair swaying. In the distance, where life had returned to Ganymede, the trees were still lush with leaves, but they would change soon. As flowers bloomed on Earth and Destiny City came alive with spring, Ganymede would grow colder, awash with autumn color.
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Posted: Sun Mar 31, 2024 10:32 am
“Hey!” Reims called from across the bridge, scrambling back up to his feet when he realized that Yvoire had left his castle to wander over to the rubble that seemed to be the separation between their two Wonders.
He had been cleaning. He’d been picking up the broken pieces of furniture and sweeping the massive nave. He frequently had to stop and pick up large pieces of stone that had fallen from the ceiling or walls. Or if the stone was too heavy, he would just leave it and sweep around it.
Every so often he noticed that something he’d cleaned up had made itself look even better than it had before. Some old wooden chairs with cracks down the backrest somehow looked brand new. Some of the windows seemed like they had been repaired as well, throwing vibrant colors across the floor and walls as the light shined through.
“I found this and thought of you,” he called across the bridge, holding up what looked like a small frame with an intricate stained glass flower. The two top corners of the frame had a thin chain attached, so it was clearly meant to hang in a window or in front of some other light source.
“I can’t tell if it’s the same type of flower as the ones you’re wearing, but it looked neat so I wanted to share. Oh, but I didn’t want to yell for you, so I figured you’d come out eventually,” he quickly tried to explain, clearly proud of himself for guessing correctly about Yvoire’s appearance there.
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Posted: Sun Mar 31, 2024 10:33 am
Yvoire smiled. From the opposite side of the bridge, he couldn’t get a good look at what Reims was holding—just that it was colorful and glinted in the sunlight—but his insides felt as if they might squirm (in a good way) at the thought that Reims had been thinking of him.
Sending his clipboard and pen into subspace, Yvoire judged the distance between them. The stone bridge was in a poor state. Some of the sections that remained were larger than others, but sizable gaps broke up some of the supportive arches. Yvoire had no idea where to begin when it came to fixing it, or even if there was any chance to. Most of the rubble had probably fallen into the sad, gray river below, maybe carried off by the current in the case of smaller pieces, or too heavy to raise in the case of the larger ones. Yvoire hoped it might be like that window; with enough care, maybe the magic of this world and his Wonder would help repair the bridge too.
“Do you think we can jump across?” he called, raising his voice to a volume that was uncharacteristic for him. His throat went a little tight and scratchy as a result, but he had to be loud if he wanted Reims to hear him.
Yvoire eyed the gaps in the bridge again. As Pages, he knew their strength and abilities were greater than that of a normal person. He could run faster and jump higher; surely that meant he could jump further, too.
After a quick, gusting breath to prepare himself, Yvoire made a running leap across the first gap. His stomach plummeted and he let out a quiet squeak when his feet left the ground, nothing but air and water beneath him, but he landed on the next piece of the remaining bridge with only a little stumble.
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Posted: Sun Mar 31, 2024 10:33 am
There was a moment of alarm when he realized what Yvoire was planning on doing.
“Hey, wait--” he tried calling back, but he wasn’t sure he was heard fully over the sound of the river below.
At one point, the stone bridge was probably very handsome, very sturdy and could support whatever was being transported across. It was no footbridge but with width for two way carts probably.
To make sure he didn’t drop it, Reims dismissed the little stained glass flower into his subspace. He glanced around them, not entirely sure how Wonders worked. He knew there was something about granting permission. Was verbal enough? Did he have to be present for Yvoire to make it all the way across? He wasn’t sure, but he didn’t want his fellow Ganymede Page from jumping into some invisible barrier or something crazy like that.
He clicked his tongue to the roof of his mouth, and followed suit by taking a leap across to the part of the bridge still standing. The river was wide enough that there was still a largeish section in the very center. Maybe they could start working on their respective sides and just meet in the middle like it seemed they planned on doing now.
“Careful,” he called, feeling a little silly about being protective when Yvoire was quite capable on his own.
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Posted: Sun Mar 31, 2024 10:33 am
Yvoire paused for a moment to settle his swooping stomach and wait for his heart to return to its normal rhythm. The bridge, like the castle, was a mess of rubble. On this next section, he had to clamber over a large piece of stone and a few dark, rotting fragments of something he couldn’t identify, but which he thought might have come from the roof. Whole sections of wall had fallen into the water below, but enough remained that he had to wonder if some of the bridge on this side had once been enclosed.
Normally he would be sad by it—that something so old and beautiful had been destroyed—but the smile hadn’t yet left his face as he eyed the next gap.
Reims was on his way to him. Yvoire let out a quiet laugh. Maybe this was a little reckless, but he couldn’t help being a bit exhilarated by it.
He took another running leap and managed to control more of his fear this time. Yvoire landed with more surety, picking through the signs of destruction that remained on the next intact bit of bridge. He was careful with it, stepping nimbly and gently nudging pieces aside when he could, wary of doing more damage. The next gap was smaller. The one after that was larger than the first. Yvoire crossed them both with relative ease.
The center was close. He could see Reims more clearly—his overgrown hair and the pinched set of his features.
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Posted: Sun Mar 31, 2024 10:34 am
This was reckless. This was silly. And Reims wasn’t about to stop, especially with the way Evie was laughing like it was a fun game. Okay, maybe not a game, but there was something exciting and electrifying in the air. Besides, if he got close enough to him, Reims could jump into the water after Evie to fish him out in case he lost his footing.
“Oh, you think this is funny?” he teased, but his expression relaxed a bit as he watched Yvoire easily cross over another part of the bridge. After clearing another part on his side, there was only the center left.
It was the biggest gap on his side. It looked like there had been another pillar for structure in between but it had been broken down and washed away with the water. That was fine. He could just show off how easy it was for him to jump across.
He took a small step back, and then made the jump--
Which he landed, naturally, and grinned in triumph.
Except he felt something shift under his feet. The ledge where he landed had already been ready to crumble and pieces of the bridge were already starting to break apart underneath him, throwing him off balance from regaining his footing on solid stone again.
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Posted: Sun Mar 31, 2024 10:34 am
Yvoire didn’t know that he would call it funny, but it was fun. Sad, still, that both of their Wonders had fallen into such disrepair, but they had plenty of reasons to hope they would one day return to their former glory. All he had to do was look beyond—to the lush trees and the distant landscape and the blue sky through which the occasional bird swooped and soared. Their Wonders were only spots of decay among the living. One day, they would be alive again, too.
“Careful,” Yvoire said—a little gentle, a little teasing. He managed to stifle his next laugh so Reims wouldn’t think he was laughing at him, but even biting his lip couldn’t grant Yvoire control over his smile. (Were his braces visible like this? Or did magic conceal them? He certainly felt them there still.)
Arriving on the center portion mere seconds after Reims, Yvoire took one of Reims’ hands and tugged him a little closer—away from the crumbling edge that threatened to give out beneath him. A few pieces of stone broke loose and fell with a quiet splash.
“See, that wasn’t so bad,” Yvoire said. His cheeks were a little flushed, but that wasn’t too out of the ordinary for him.
Reims had grown a little taller since last year. Yvoire noticed it most when he was up close because he had to tip his head to catch Reims’ gaze. The heels on Yvoire’s boots hardly made a difference. The colors in his cheeks darkened somewhat at their proximity, but Yvoire’s smile didn’t falter.
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Posted: Sun Mar 31, 2024 10:35 am
Being tugged a little closer to Evie meant Reims still stumbled a bit, and while Evie had his hand, Reims kept from toppling them both over by quickly wrapping an arm around him. That way, in case they did fall, he could at least try to protect Evie’s head from any damage.
“Not bad? That was close. Thanks,” he breathed, and couldn’t help but smile as he looked down at Evie. Oh, the flush in his cheeks was cute. The proximity made his ears burn.
He was about to let Evie go, so he could step back if he wanted, not intending to crowd him but--
“What--”
There was a strange energy that seemed to blossom around them. Like a wind that rose up from nothing. He didn’t know what was going on, so he pulled Evie closer to him, just in case this was some weird magic that was happening that he didn’t know about.
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Posted: Sun Mar 31, 2024 10:35 am
It didn’t feel bad. The only magic that had ever felt bad to Yvoire was Chaos. Youma. Negaverse agents. And that one dark, deep, all-encompassing power they’d felt that night at the bank. In comparison, the magic here on Ganymede felt light and gentle, but deep, too. Warm. Uplifting. Like they belonged to it and it belonged to them.
Yvoire let Reims hold him close, but he wasn’t afraid. His Wonder had never harmed him. The moon of Ganymede had never harmed him. Reims had never harmed him. He was safe here. They both were. Yvoire had nothing to fear from any of it. Earth was far more frightening, overrun by Chaos as it had become.
Still, he squeezed Reims’ hand. He put his head to Reims’ shoulder because Reims, like the magic around them, was warm and comforting. Yvoire felt bright and alive as the magic grew and grew—warmer, more intense, and so pervasive he could almost taste it—until it burst free and left him stronger than he was mere seconds ago.
Yvoire held onto Reims for a few moments longer. He breathed in and took stock of himself. The hat on his head felt heavier. The cooling air no longer brushed his bare forearms; his sleeves had grown longer. Something thin and light fluttered in the breeze behind him, tickling the back of his thighs where his stockings and shorts still left skin exposed.
Lifting his head, Yvoire saw that the fabric on Reims shoulder had become darker, the lapels lined in bright red.
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Posted: Sun Mar 31, 2024 10:35 am
It was startling. He wasn’t used to good things happening, although he supposed he should have been getting more accustomed to it when he was with his friends. Especially with Evie while they were at their Wonders.
While he felt the need to always be on guard and prepared for something to happen, he was able to relax a little more as the warmth surrounded them. As the magic that filled their starseeds took shape into something else. Something with more power.
When the energy or magic or whatever it was settled, he took a small step back so he could look down at both of them.
“Woah,” he breathed as he looked Evie over, the red from his ears reaching his cheeks. He felt like it would be weird to say Evie looked pretty. He didn’t want to insult him. He glanced down at himself as well and drew a hand away from Evie so he could flex his fingers inside the black gloves. Or almost black. It was like a dark gray but close enough.
“Wait, I have a hat too?” he let out a quiet laugh and reached up to lift the top hat off his head to take a better look. He laughed again because he felt a little silly and way more formal than he was used to.
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Posted: Sun Mar 31, 2024 10:36 am
“You have a hat too,” Yvoire agreed.
His smile widened. The hat was cute. The long jacket was very dapper. The gloves, though plain, almost gave a ceremonial air. The chains at Reims’ neck and across his abdomen twinkled in the sunlight. He had a thin red tie in his hair. Yvoire lifted a hand to touch it.
“It looks good,” he said, though he didn’t specify if he meant Reims’ overgrown hair or the hat. Or something else. All of it. The jacket and the slacks and the shoes and the decorative patterning. “Like a gentleman.”
Yvoire took a moment to look down at himself. He wore a vest now. The bow at his neck was different. He had a chain like Reims, which Yvoire touched with delicate fingers. A thin, translucent piece of fabric fluttered around his hips. His stockings were similar, but new, with bold white stripes to break up the sheer glitter of before.
He reached up and took his hat off too. It had gotten bigger, with a larger bow, and a dark red flower added into the pinks and deep purples.
“All you’re missing is a bow,” Yvoire teased, then plopped his own hat onto Reims’ head.
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Posted: Sun Mar 31, 2024 10:36 am
Reims laughed. He’d instinctively ducked his head down to accept the hat when Evie lifted it up.
“How do I look?” he grinned, and then returned the favor by placing his hat on Evie’s head. It was difficult not to try and look him over. It was just new! Not because he was trying to be a creep or something like that! He just liked how fancy Evie looked. And he couldn’t keep his ears from remaining red after being told he looked like a gentleman.
There were a few long moments of just admiring how they looked when Reims blinked with a sudden thought.
“What about our weapons?” he asked and, without bothering to take off the bow and flower covered hat, held out his hand to withdraw his weapon from the subspace it disappeared to when he didn’t have it in his hand.
Instead of a simple, yet beautiful, letter opener, it was--
“A glass sword?” he stared, incredulous, but laughed because it was better than a tiny little knife. Okay it was more than just glass, but there were definitely stained glass pieces in the center of what was supposed to be the blade.
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Posted: Sun Mar 31, 2024 10:37 am
Yvoire giggled, then jumped back a step as Reims summoned his weapon, holding the borrowed tophat onto his head so it wouldn’t fall off and take a tumble into the water below.
After overcoming the momentary shock of a sword, Yvoire concentrated enough to draw out his own weapon. What would his wooden flower become? Maybe a sword like Reims? Or some sort of staff? Something decorated with flowers like the ones on his hat would be so pretty!
Yvoire got neither of those things. Into his hands materialized a parasol—the long handle made out of the same wood as his flower had been, with a flower bud carved at the end. He almost deflated. The stripes and ruffles were as cute as the rest of his outfit, sweet and delicate looking. How was he supposed to fight Chaos with this?
For a moment, his expression fell. Then Yvoire took a breath and considered it again. He could strike someone with it. The handle was thin but sturdy; solid wood could hurt. The point at the end wasn’t as sharp as he would have liked, but he could make use of it if he had to. With just the right amount of pressure, he could do some damage. He wasn’t helpless or weak. He would just have to be creative.
“You definitely got the better weapon,” Yvoire decided, “but this isn’t so bad. At least I can hit people with it.” He jabbed at the air once to demonstrate, then crept a little closer to get a better look at Reims’ sword.
“Is it sharp?” he wondered. Yvoire almost reached out for the blade, but thought better of it at the last second—just in case. “It’s so pretty. Is it heavy?”
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Posted: Sun Mar 31, 2024 10:37 am
Reims saw the way Evie deflated and he quickly shook his head.
“Only the better weapon on days that it isn’t raining,” he insisted. “I think it’s very cool. I bet you could use it like a shield too, if you open it up. You could hide behind it and push through the enemy lines. Okay, maybe that’s a little much, but I think it’s very nice.”
He held out his sword as he spoke, wanting Evie to get a look if he wanted.
“It doesn’t feel sharp. About as heavy as a baseball bat, so that’s nice. I mean, I guess it might be sharp if I broke it, but then it could all just fall apart,” he sighed. He didn’t want to try it, although maybe he should so he knew how to use it if it did break.
“Better than not having any weapon at least.”
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Posted: Sun Mar 31, 2024 10:38 am
Yvoire considered their two weapons. He appreciated Reims’ ideas and thought of his parasol a little more positively after that. He didn’t want to be ungrateful for it after his Wonder had allowed him to have this power in the first place. It would serve him well, he only had to have the nerve to use it to its full potential.
He took a moment to lightly touch the glass of Reims’ blade, avoiding the edges in case the metal surrounding it actually was sharp, though when he looked closer he didn’t think it could actually cut anything. Not unless Reims did as suggested and broke the glass. The frame around it seemed blunt.
“At least if the glass does get broken, you’ve got gloves to protect your hands,” Yvoire said.
With a smile back in place, he opened his parasol and gave it a brief twirl to watch the stripes blur. Then he lifted it up over his head and stepped toward Reims again, shielding them both from the sun.
“It suits you,” Yvoire said, cheeks still faintly pink. “The sword. And the new clothes. Even the hat.” He lifted a hand to flick at his own hat still on Reims’ head. “Reims, Squire of Ganymede.”
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