I liiiiiiiiiivvvvveeee~! Like a zombie, I'm back from the death of fanfic drought. Woohoo~! Haha. And I bet over those many months of no updates or new stories I've lost a good portion of my audience... Oh, goody. However for any newcomers and my returning faithfuls, here's a one-shot to satisfy your fanfic hunger! After many months, I managed to brew up this twisted idea in my mind, revolving around the boat loads of fanservice that Dawn of the New World gave us. And now, more months later, I finally have it here for you all.
But I must warn you, this one-shot in no way means to offend anyone and their views or their feelings. This is purely my view of things from Genis' perspective, for I believe that is how he would naturally act in these situations. Same goes for any other character. And besides, this is a humor and parody fic of DtNW. So have a bit of a heart- better yet, have laughter since that's what this one-shot intends to do... or so I hope. Haha.
Summary: Genis Sage is arguably one of the most intelligent people on Aselia. However, even with smarts like his, he himself could not see that coming.
Setting: Post ToS, w/ Some Symphonia & DtNW Plotline Spoilers and DtNW Flanoir Scene Spoilers
Genre: Humor, Parody
Style: One-Shot, Third-Person
Disclaimer: I don't own anything of the Tales Series, only the concept of this one-shot.
Oh, Brother
Being in Flanior brought back memories to the gang of their past adventure to save the worlds. It was just like before; they had come to the icy city to calm and collect themselves the night before confronting Mithos Yggdrasill, and now the gang was doing the same again, only this time with Richter in mind. However, this preparation before the final battle wasn't as therapeutic as the gang imagined it to be, especially when the person who had once been your leader gets slugged smack in the face by a random civilian. That alone rattled-up everyone's emotions, building mixed feelings of confusion, sympathy, and anger within.
In Genis's case, it was mostly anger that pumped throughout his mind and body. He was enraged solely by the townsman's irrational actions as well as the victim's. It's one thing to punch a man for a wrong-doing, but when that man turns out completely innocent and you are not willing to listen to his side, you yourself are at fault. And if you are the one being ridiculed, you can't simply just take whatever they're throwing at you. You need to speak up for yourself. Letting other people speak for you and defend you isn't right. That's just being a coward. And Genis knew first hand about that.
But worst of all, Genis couldn't stand the fact that his best friend, Lloyd, had gotten hurt right in front of him. And, he knew everyone else felt the same way too. Heck, they all had a front row seat to the punching bag Lloyd show. Doing nothing to prevent such violence is what drove Genis' anger as well as the rest of the gang's emotions haywire. To be unable to protect someone right in front of you, let alone a dear friend, was truly demoting and disheartening. They surely weren't going to be getting calmed or collected anytime soon.
And so, the gang split up into their separate ways once Lloyd left the party. They followed his example, believing being-alone could attain some peace. Raine departed first, saying that medical supplies needed to be restocked. Next was Colette wanting to see how the town dogs were doing. Then Zelos scurried off, chasing after girls as always, with Sheena staying close behind his tail to make sure he wasn't going to do anything perverted. Presea soon left after them, seeking out the yellow figure on her Klonoa costume called Pac-Man to Genis' wonder. Lastly, Regal ambled away to the inn, planning to pay and reserve rooms for everyone. That left Genis all alone with Emil and Marta, both wearing faces of concern.
The young half-elf, seeing their uneasy expressions, could sense their worry. Reassuringly, he told them, "Everything will turn out okay. We all just need some space to clear our heads, and soon enough everyone will be together again. Until then, maybe you two should take a stroll?"
The two newest members' worried faces transformed into hopeful shimmering eyes and acute smiles. Nodding, the two scampered off with Marta's vice grip on Emil's hand, pulling him behind her. Her heartful cries of going to romantic places with Emil and Emil's confused stammering hung in the cool dense air as Genis stayed standing at the town-square. The silverette chuckled as he watched the blond boy's flustered, red face and Marta happily beaming in front. It reminded him of Colette and Lloyd. When they were younger, Colette would cheerfully tug the naïve brunette places and, like Emil, Lloyd would be blushing a flamboyant crimson all over his face.
A small smile grew on Genis' face as he turned in a different direction, thinking, "Maybe taking a walk wouldn't be as a bore as I thought originally." Taking one step forward, he proceeded to wherever his legs carried him, his mind thinking of the childhood days in Iselia.
~ O.B. ~
Taking a stroll to ease the mind wasn't a bore, but it proved to be a bit problematic. Genis, no matter what, kept thinking about Lloyd and how miserable he must currently be feeling. Well, the silverette concluded it was a result of reminiscing too much, but even knowing that didn't help. Genis knew that the only way of reaching internal peace for himself and everyone was to revert Lloyd back to the happy, idiotic brunette he once was, the one everyone knew and loved. However, that posed as a challenging feat for the half-elf.
Lloyd made it quite clear, stating he needed time alone and that he'd meet up with everyone later. So it was only natural if he told Genis to leave him be, wanting loneliness more than anything. Either that or Lloyd may even end up ignoring Genis' words. In the emotional state that the brunette was in, Genis was anticipating nothing less.
But then what could he do? Genis needed to think of a way of confronting Lloyd and holding his attention.
"But how?" he determinedly thought, face twisted in perplexity. His sapphire eyes slowly shut, his focus increasing. "Just how can I cheer that idiot up?"
"Watch out!"
"What?" Genis exclaimed to himself, stopping in his tracks and eyes jutting wide open. Before the silverette could spin around to the source of the unknown voice, something cold made contact with the back of his head.
Splat! it cried as it squished its slushy matter into Genis' silver locks. An icy sensation immediately shook his body, the shivering wave traveling from the back of his head to the very tips of his fingers and toes. Once he gained his bearings, Genis raised a hand to touch the area of impact, where he scooped up the remnants. Bringing it to his face, Genis instantly recognized the crystal-white, frozen substance. It was snow.
Turning around, he met his attacker face-to-face. "I'm so sorry!" pleaded a sorrowful, little boy bowing profusely. "I promise it won't happen again and my friends do too!" Looking past the boy, Genis saw other kids around the same age, awkwardly standing around and wearing apologetic looks. Apparently they were all enjoying a snowball fight - that is until Genis wandered into their battle zone, unknowing of the flying snow projectiles.
Expecting a good talking to and possibly the chance of getting beaten up, the young boy before Genis shut his eyes, trembling in fear. To the kid's surprise, the only thing that met him wasn't harsh words or even a fist; it was the sound of laughter.
Genis was laughing. When his laughter diminished, the silverette was left grinning and the children wide-eyed, confused at the sudden outburst. Sincerely, Genis said, "I should be the one saying sorry. I walked in on your game, so you don't need to apologize."
"Ah," the boy began to beam, "thank you!"
Genis shook his head, "No, thank you. Now you guys have fun and be safe."
With an exchange of waves, the playful kids went back to their game and this time Genis carefully made sure to watch where he was going, especially now that he had an idea to cheer Lloyd up. As he walked briskly over the snowy cobblestone walkways, he bent down slightly to pick up some snow. Using his hands, he sculpted a nicely formed snowball.
Gently holding onto it in one hand, Genis could only deviously smirk at his masterpiece and the events to come, his pace quickening in his excitement. "Now there is only one place that idiot could be…"
~ O.B. ~
"The overhang!" chimed Marta, still towing Emil along behind her.
"Overhang?" cluelessly repeated Emil.
"Yes, the overhang by the church, which overlooks the entire town! It's one of the top ten romantic places on Aselia - a must-see for any tourist, especially when nightfall comes and all the lights are illuminating the town like a lightshow. And it's even better when the skies are clear so the stars are out… Ooooh~! I can't wait until we get there!" Marta energetically cheered, a spring in her step as she trudged on.
Emil could only respond with a smile, seeing her so ecstatic; however, that smile instantly faded away once the blond boy's arm was vehemently yanked. Marta's pace had sped up considerably, and Emil began to struggle at first to keep up.
"C'mon, Emil!" Marta cried, practically on the verge of sprinting. "We're almost there! Just a few more stairs."
"Easy for you to say… You're not the one being treated like a dog on a leash," Emil softly remarked, trying to ignore the minor pain building up in his wrist from Marta's tugging.
After scaling a few more steps, they reached the top of the flight of stairs, where there before them was both the church and the overhang. Singing, Marta announced, "There it - huh?" She silenced herself, leaving her mouth agape and eyes open in surprise.
Wondering as to why she stopped, Emil stepped around Marta to see, "Marta, why'd you -" He didn't need to speak any further, for he answered his own question when he spotted two familiar figures at the overhang. "Oh…"
~ O.B. ~
"Voices?" pondered aloud the silverette. As he walked, Genis' pointy, half-elf ears were quick to pick up the distinct sounds. In a few moments of focusing in on the reverberation, he could easily pin-point the direction it was coming from. Coincidently, whoever was speaking just so happened to be located at the place of Genis' destination. But from where Genis was currently standing, he couldn't make note of who exactly was speaking. Only the single fact that one was female and the other male was what he could deduce at the moment. Treading with caution over the icy pathway, he glided over to the bottom of the long staircase leading up to the highest level and to where the two people were talking. The silverette's curiosity peaking with furrowed brows of interest, he grasped tightly onto his snowball in hand, readying himself to commit a preemptive strike if needed. With gallant strides, Genis escalated up the flight of stairs, noticing the many freshly made footprints on the snowy steps ahead.
"Someone is definitely here… and they aren't alone," Genis crucially noted to himself. But then, that definitely meant Lloyd was up there with someone else, a female in particular. Out of the group, which girl had garnered the courage to confront Lloyd? "Who beat me to punch?" Genis inquisitively thought, slightly depressed at being out-done.
Reaching the last flight of stairs, Genis could faintly see the backs of two unique individuals. His eyes lighting up in surprise at the sight, he halted mid-step, stopping mere steps away from the top of the staircase. Covertly, Genis peered upward with scrutiny, making sure his sapphire eyes weren't playing tricks on him. And sure enough, they were not. Knowing the two figures all too well, he exclaimed in his mind, "Emil and Marta? They got here before me! But, does that mean they both were talking with Lloyd then? Wait! That doesn't make any sense. I clearly made out only two voices, not three… So is that idiot here at all?" Unable to come up with a conclusion, Genis stayed frozen in bemusement, "Just what's going on here?"
Staying quiet, Genis eavesdropped on the two new members standing at the top of the stairs, wanting a clear answer to his questions.
"I was going to try to cheer Lloyd up," he heard Emil say.
"So Lloyd is here… but he's cheered up already?" quizzically thought Genis.
"Looks like someone beat you to it," he heard Marta reply.
"Someone? Who is this 'someone'? WHO?" Genis screamed, frustrated.
Turning to him, "Come on, let's go," Marta urged to the blond.
"What? They're leaving so soon!"
"Yeah," Emil agreed with a nod.
"Oh, shoot!" Genis lowly whispered for only himself to hear. The young teenager needed to get out of their line of sight and fast. Spinning around on his heels, he looked downward at the steps below. There before him were three long flights of stairs. With Genis' athleticism, there was no way he could scurry down the staircase in a flash without Emil or Marta noticing. Rushing over, he glanced over the edge of the railing, seeing how bad of a drop it was to the earth. He could only gulp as he imagined his fate of trying to stick a landing from jumping off the sides and managing to run away unscathed. In his panic, he looked back up to the top of the staircase, instantly spotting Marta leading Emil around again, this time down the steps. Thankfully for Genis, the two were too preoccupied watching their first steps, being careful not to slip, to witness Genis' deer in the headlights stare and mouth agape in horror. Those few moments of their eyes fixated to their feet gave Genis a few seconds to do something and fast.
"So, Marta, are you mad?" the blond boy worriedly asked as they descended.
"I am, but because it's for the privacy of two other lovebirds, I'll get over it," Marta confessed. "You'll just have to make up for our first romantic date later." A teasing yet cutesy smile beamed at him.
"I-I will?" exclaimed a red-faced Emil, not understanding how he got wrapped up in all of this.
"Well, if you don't, I'll just have to replace you!" Marta declared straightforward, coming at a standstill to turn around, face the blond boy, and give him a serious look and arms poised at her hips.
"Huh?" Emil croaked.
"Yeah, you heard me! I'll replace you with… with…" She paused, struggling to think of a man fitting to make Emil jealous. "Um…"
"Genis?" unexpectedly yelled Emil.
"What? Genis?" Marta repeated, confused. "He may be smart but he's not my type, Emil!" she admitted with folded arms and head raised high. Outraged by Emil's response, Marta spun back around, only to see a certain silverette before her. There leaning against an icy railing was none other than Genis Sage himself. He stood relaxing, looking over the scenery in admiration, even whistling a little tune. "Genis?" Marta once again hollered, this time in amazement.
Hearing his name, the silverette's whistling abruptly ceased. Genis then looked up, acknowledging the two, "Oh, hi, Emil, Marta." He pulled away from the railing.
"What are you doing all the way out here, Genis?" curiously asked Emil.
"I've just been, you know, wandering around, seeing the sights," Genis replied.
"Oh, really?" Marta incredulously mentioned, putting her hands back on her hips. "Then why do you have a snowball hidden behind your back?"
"Damn, they're on to me!" Genis thought, tensing up upon the examining glares of the two. "Oh, man, I knew this was a stupid idea to try to play things off as an 'innocent passerby'."
Emil and Marta still waiting for an answer, Genis gulped down his anxiety to manage an alibi, "W-well, I was playing a round of a snowball fight with some other kids down there, but I fled up here in hopes of not getting out. I just kept this snowball around in case they tried to ambush me." He briefly laughed, hoping to relieve himself of nervousness. "… Anyways, why are you two here? You two visited the church?"
"We actually were going to go to the overhang, but currently it's being occupied right now by others," Marta said.
Secretly, Genis rejoiced, "This is my chance!"
"Ah, the two lovebirds, Lloyd and the other girl, right?" Genis calmly put.
"Right!" confirmed a carefree Marta. However, she soon realized her mistake in falling for Genis' trap, and she attempted to compensate for it, "I-I mean, no!"
"Oh," Genis raised a brow, inwardly celebrating his success, "so that idiot is with someone. Who?"
"We can't tell you! Isn't that right, Emil," she indignantly proclaimed.
The blond boy nodded in agreement.
"Well, if no one will tell me, then I'll just go see for myself," Genis announced, walking towards the top of the staircase.
Immediately, Marta jumped in his way, preventing him to pass, "You can't! This is a sanctuary for lovers."
"But I'm only going to go take a peek like you two just did. How is that any different?" the silverette defended.
"It's because- Oh, I can't say!" Marta cried.
"Marta, he has the right to know at least. Besides, Genis will find out someday in the future," Emil insisted, trying to coax her out of it.
"But, Emil-" she tried to retort, pout faced.
Sighing, Emil resorted to baiting with a charming grin, "I'll take you to a new romantic place, somewhere no one has been."
Hook. Line. And sinker.
"Oh, alright!" Marta succumbed. "But you're taking me to this new romantic place right now!" Running up to Emil, she latched onto his arm like a leech and began pulling him around once again. The two leaving the scene in a matter of seconds meant Genis was all alone on the staircase. Like before, Genis was watching the two new members of the team exit once more, their figures disappearing in the white abyss of Flanior's grandeur.
Now the only one standing atop the stairway, the silverette had got what he wanted, which was entrance to the overhang. But he couldn't help but wonder, "Just what were they making such a big deal about? I mean, it's just a little one-on-one comfort talk with Lloyd, right? So what's the hurt in watching a bit?"
Shrugging it off and throwing caution to the wind, Genis remolded the snowball in his hands, making sure his projectile was going to be ready for what he planned. With nothing in his way, Genis ambled on up the final steps in big strides, scanning the area before him as he hit the top. As he was about to reel back the snowball for flight, aimed at the first sight of Lloyd's brown bush of a head, he noticed something shocking, something way too out of the norm for Genis to even comprehend all at once. It was so stupefying, the half-elf had lowered his arm, relaxing it suddenly from shock and not intending to hurl the snowball anymore. Instead, he took a step back, sapphire eyes bulging out of their sockets and completely baffled at the sight by the overhang. This time he was praying to Martel that his eyes were playing tricks on him.
Despite Genis' endeavors of rubbing his eyeballs in hopes of refocusing his sight to see that it was simply a mirage, a figment of his imagination, he kept witnessing the same spectacle. What his sapphire eyes saw was his very own sister, Raine, mere inches away from Lloyd's body, their eyes fondly fixated at one another. Their unusual close proximity alone was just enough for Genis to be left speechless, and the lovey-dovey gleams in their eyes made his jaw drop, his slack jaw dangling dangerously close to the snowy ground beneath him. However, the scene wasn't over just yet. What followed next, truly made Genis' mind malfunction.
"Lloyd… ?" Raine tenderly called out. She bit her bottom lip, tearing her attention away from the brunette to the piles of snow to her side.
"Yes… Raine?" Lloyd cooed caringly, smiling his classic goofy, juvenile grin.
"Whoa! D-did I just hear Lloyd call Raine… Raine?" the silverette blinked furiously in disbelief, thinking his own ears now were deceiving him.
Hearing the brunette and catching a glimpse of Lloyd's charismatic smile, Raine couldn't help but chuckle, hiding her laughter with a hand over her mouth. Adorning her cheeks were undoubtedly faint rosy-red blush marks, a sight quite rare for Genis, considering the only time he ever saw his older sister flush red in the face was when it regarded her and ruins together, the thing she loved most in her life. Well, not including her own brother and family of course.
"A-and is Raine… blushing? What in Martel's name is going on here?"
"I'm concerned for Genis' well-being," Raine thoughtfully explained, staring into Lloyd's hazel orbs. "How are we possibly going to tell him?"
"Me?" the silverette cocked his head upon hearing his name mentioned.
"Tell Genis, huh?" Lloyd repeated, thinking deeply.
"Tell me what?" Genis screamed internally, on edge and yanking his own silver locks in suspense.
Smugly, Lloyd beamed his childish grin Raine's way again. It didn't take him long to answer her question, for he confidently announced, "We'll tell Genis about us-"
"Us?" and suddenly the gears in Genis' brain started to turn, the dots connecting.
"- when we -" Lloyd paused. Stepping closer to Raine and reducing what little space they had between them to no space at all, the brunette, without hesitation, placed one of his hands beneath the elder, half-elf woman's chin, cradling it ever so gently. He pinned his chocolate brown eyes to her crystal blue ones, the two unable to break away from each others stares this time. With one final breath, Lloyd uttered alluringly, "get married."
"MARRIED?" Genis exploded, his head reeling back. His disturbed, twisted face was aimed at the sky as if looking to the Goddess. One of the silverette's eye twitched as he asked, "Why, Martel? WHY?"
This time around Genis' sister actually shared a similar thought as him, causing Genis to reel his attention back to the two blossoming lovers to his disgust.
"Married…?" Raine muttered, mouth open in surprise. "But, Lloyd, I-"
However, Genis regretted looking back soon after.
Interrupting Raine's speech was two things. Lloyd's lips. They made contact with Raine's own lips, colliding passionately and unrelenting in affection. This resulted in a stunned to the core Raine, her face - not faintly red - extremely dark crimson all over. And for Genis, well, he just snapped at that point. His mind became brain dead and his face pale as a zombie.
As he broke away from the kiss, still cradling her chin, Lloyd amorously told Raine, "I love you, Raine." He smiled his goofy grin once more.
Still trying to understand what just occurred Raine blinked a few times, letting the moment soaking in, before responding with a smile, "I… I love you too, Lloyd."
Whoops! Scratch that! Make ruins the second thing Raine loves in life.
Recuperating his sanity, Genis knew this scene was way too surreal. He was left speechless, dumbfounded, and had no idea at all that such a revelation would unfold. Even with all his intelligence under the silverette's belt, there was no way that Genis saw that coming.
Being unable to remove what happened at the overhang from his mind, Genis could only shake his head, entering a state of denial, "… What just happened?" He took several steps back as if to assess the situation from afar, but in doing so he walked into a world of trouble. Literally.
Not knowing that behind him was the stairway a few steps away, he lost his footing upon coming to the first step and, in turn, Genis was thrown completely off balance, loosing all control of every part of him. And not only that, but in the process, his grasp on the snowball was lost as well, sailing up and up into the air. He and the snowball were now a rag-dolls, obeying the whims of the great force of gravity. Falling backwards, his arms flailed about as if acting like a bird would give him the ability to fly. But alas, he could not. Harshly his back collided hard on the cement steps, his body sliding down the stairs like it was a fun slip 'n slide until reaching the first break in the flights of stairs.
Grimacing, Genis struggled to get back up on his feet. He lay flat on his back atop a sheet of icy snow, the cold numbing his senses, especially the feeling of pain that initially hit him. Helpless, all Genis could do was open his sapphire eyes. And when he did, he noticed something familiar spiraling down.
Above his very head was the snowball he was going to throw at Lloyd flying straight at him.
From helpless to hapless, Genis shut his eyes to brace himself as the snowball smacked him right in the face.
Splat!
~ O.B. ~
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Genis screeched, bolting right up. His sapphire eyes danced in shock, trying to understand his current situation. Examining his surroundings he learned that he was laid out on several sheets, which were soaking wet. He flushed a dark crimson, thinking of what possibly happened. Checking himself, his face glanced down at his pants.
Deeply sighing in relief, the silverette wiped the sweat from his brow, "Good… I didn't piss myself during such a horrible nightmare." Noticing the excess amount of sweat lingering on his forehead, he realized his entire body was soaked to the bone. "It was so traumatic my body got encased in sweat… Well, that explains the cold sensations during the nightmare, but what about-"
His eyes continued to skim around before landing on the object in between his legs. Picking it up, Genis looked it over, "- the snowball…?" It was an ordinary pillow, but as Genis flipped it around on its other side, he dropped it, disgusted by what hit him in reality.
Its other side contained a considerable collection of drool.
Genis shivered, "Ugh…"
Looking around again, he continued to assess his situation. On Genis' left was an old wooden bed with white sheets from which he concluded that was where he fell down from. To the right of him was a long line of bookcases, stacked to the brim with thick, hefty books, ranging from mana, to monsters, to cooking, and to history. Lots and lots of history to note. And right in front of him was a window to the outdoors. The sounds of birds chirping happily outside as well as children excitedly playing games seeped in. Rising to his feet, Genis could finally make out what lay on the outside. Just outside the window was a small pond filled with lilies and fishes, who swam about, kicking up little sparkles of water into the air occasionally.
Knowing that pond all too well, Genis concluded triumphantly with a huge smile, "I-I'm home! In Iselia!"
"Well, isn't Mr. Sleepy-head Sage awake now!" teased a recognizable voice.
"Huh?" Genis mumbled aloud, turning to the source of the comment. His eyes widened at who was sitting in his house.
At the small dinning table, sitting nonchalantly on the wooden chair was Lloyd Irving, beaming a large carefree, goofy grin. Before him was an empty glass plate, and in the brunette's hands were eating utensils, a fork in his left and a knife in his right. A bib was tucked snug in his red garments, hanging out and covering his chest.
"Mornin'!" Lloyd greeted.
"What the-? What are you doing here, Lloyd?" Genis asked pryingly.
"Well, for breakfast of course!" exclaimed the brunette, motioning the fork and knife up and down in unison while pounding the table. "I'm a hungry guy, y'know?"
Suddenly, busting down the front door was Raine, carrying large bags of groceries. Cheerfully, she announced her arrival, "I've got the ingredients!" His sister lugged over the heavy bags over to the small circular table at which Lloyd sat at, laying out all the items she bought.
Thunderstruck, Genis angrily stuttered, "W-why the hell are you here for breakfast? D-don't you and Dirk have enough food up in the forest?"
"Eh," Lloyd yelped, puzzled at the young half-elf's rage, "I thought you were used to this by now."
"Used to this?" Genis incredulously cried. "How the hell am I going to be okay with you barging into my house and demanding for food?"
Lloyd simply shut up in response. Hurt could be easily depicted on his face.
"Genis, stop this nonsense!" ordered Raine with an iron fist. "Lloyd has been living with us for a month now, so why are you so displeased of his presence during such a spur of the moment?"
"He's been living with us? On what occasion is he staying for?" Genis questioned, folding his arms across his chest. "I'm positive it's not a sleepover because sleepovers don't last a month and I don't recall inviting Lloyd over either."
"Don't you remember, Genis?" Lloyd asked.
"What?" Genis dumbly replied.
Raine stood alongside the brunette, laying one of her hands graciously atop Lloyd's. Releasing the hold on the utensil, Lloyd opened up his hand, holding onto Raine's tenderly. The two looked into each others eyes for a split second, and Genis saw that same affectionate glint in their eyes from his nightmare. The silverette's stomach began to churn at the sight.
Together, they turned to face Genis, staring him dead on in the face, decreeing with pride, "Genis, we're-"
"Oh, shoot! Here we go again!"
"- married."
For a brief moment, Genis' mind ceased to function yet again. It wasn't until the thought emerged in his mind did he stir from his freeze frame pose. "This is all just another dream!" laughed Genis. "Better yet, another nightmare!"
Again, Lloyd and Raine gazed at each other, but this time in confusion as to what Genis meant.
Rushing off to the side of his bed, Genis picked back up the pillow that he slept on, bringing it up for them to see, "See! When I get hit by this pillow, I'll wake up… like right now!" Quickly, Genis brought his pillow to his face, smacking himself.
The Thud! it made got Genis deviously smirking. As he pulled the pillow off himself, he proclaimed, "And now, I'm magically awake." But when he opened his eyes, he saw the same sight as before, Lloyd and Raine obliviously staring at him, thinking that he had clearly lost it.
Genis nervously laughed, "Eheh… I must've done it wrong." With the pillow, he smacked himself again, "Awaken!" Realizing his efforts were for not, Genis kept trying and trying, continuing to hit himself until he died with that saliva covered pillow. And with every hit, he cried, "Awaken, awaken, awaken!" But as time went on, and no progress on waking up was made, the helplessness in his voice began to seep in. He just didn't want to accept the situation he found himself in.
"Get a hold of yourself, Genis!" Raine said. "This isn't a dream, nor a nightmare."
With no hope left, Genis let the pillow slip away from his grasp, falling with a plop on the wooden floor beneath him. Disbelievingly, the half-elf boy muttered, "… I-it's not?"
"No… it's reality. We're brothers now," Lloyd declared. A long sadistic smirk grew on his face as he watched Genis' expression of horror intensify with each second of revelation after revelation. And as the topping on the cake, Lloyd maliciously commanded, "Now… make me a SANDWHICH!"
Grabbing hold of his cranium, Genis yanked his silver hair and threw his head back, crying a long death wail, "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
~ O.B. ~
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" hollered Genis, bolting right up once again. Darting his eyes around, he noticed he was in another room, an inn room to be precise. He lay atop a bed. The sheets were astray after all the ruckus he went through of tossing and turning in bed like in his dream, and the pillow still had the same wet drool. Genis' entire body was caked in sweat, his body shaking after enduring two surreal experiences in a row.
To make sure once in for all that he wasn't in another nightmare or even a good dream, Genis' shaky hands went to his cheeks, pinching them both with vigor. "Ow!" he cried. As he rubbed his now sore cheeks, Genis knew that he definitely was awake. Knowing this, he smiled to himself, "… Thank goodness."
"Ugh," he heard Lloyd moan in the bed beside him. The brunette stirred from his bed, sitting up in it. Annoyed, Lloyd asked Genis, "What's up with the ruckus in the dead of night, Genis?"
"Ah, Lloyd! It was a horrible nightmare!" Genis complained. Then he corrected himself, "No, it was a horrible nightmare in a nightmare!"
"Nightmare in a nightmare, huh?" Lloyd, mystified, repeated. "What about it?"
"Well, you see," Genis began to explain using hand gestures, "we were all at Flanior, the night before fighting Richter, and as we made our way into the town you get slugged in the face by a random townsman's fist. And-" The silverette glanced at his brunette friend, noticing he was slowly dozing off, evident from the fact that his head kept falling down and his hazel eyes struggling to stay open. "- Lloyd!" he shouted, angry at his inattentiveness.
"W-wha-what?" Lloyd cried, flailing about until he saw Genis staring not amused and arms crossed.
"Want me to keep it simple?" Genis asked, silver eyebrow up.
Nodding, Lloyd said, "Yes, please."
Genis continued, "Anyways, you were punched and you walked off. Party disbanded. And I wandered around. Thinking I could cheer you up, I hurried to your location at the overhang. Emil and Marta were there, but they left. And then you and Raine talked about marriage and kissed each other! I slipped down stairs and woke up in another nightmare. You were in my house demanding food, and you and Raine were married! It was horrific beyond belief!" The half-elf teen finished with a sickening look.
Slack jawed, Lloyd replied, "Wow, Genis…"
"Yeah, I know… It's unbelievable right?" Genis chuckled.
"Yeah," Lloyd nodded. Laughing, he commented, "You, my brother, have serious issues."
Genis flinched, eye twitching at what he heard. Softly, the silverette asked, "… W-what did you say?"
"Huh? I only said 'you have serious issues'. Geez! Don't need to be so uptight about it," Lloyd defended.
"No, in between all that."
Befuddled, Lloyd repeated, "Uh… 'my brother'?"
"Ah-ha!" yelled Genis, pointing a blaming finger the brunette's way. "You have no right to say that!"
"Seriously? You mean I can't say 'my brother'?"
"Ah-pah-pah!" Genis spat, standing defiantly on his bed. "Never call me that!"
"Okay, okay! I won't call you that… Sheesh," Lloyd assured, hands up in surrender.
Jumping off his bed, Genis ran off to the door, planning on exiting the room. Opening it, he pointed once more to Lloyd, clearly decreeing, "We will never be brothers!" After his announcement, he left the room, shutting the door behind him.
Lloyd, dumbfounded, whispered to himself, "What's his problem?"
From the bed across Lloyd's, Zelos stirred awake, rubbing his eyes as he sat up. "Something up with the Little Brat?"
"Apparently he had two nightmares, one about me and Raine talking about marriage and kissing and another about me in his house, married with Raine. Also there were these strange characters he mentioned… Richter, Emil, and Marta, if I remember correctly," the brunette explained to Zelos. "Genis has been acting really weird lately."
"You're telling me," Zelos started. "You should've seen him when he kept complaining to me about Raine and Regal getting together by love letters in his dreams. That really annoyed the hell outta me!" Zelos rubbed his temples remembering Genis' pestering. The red-head then sighed, "And now he's at it again… Oh, brother."
Lloyd joined him, sighing as well and shaking his head, "And now you're telling me."
Author's Note Time!
Gotta love a dream in a dream. Haha.
And yes, in some sense, I was bashing the Lloyd x Raine pairing and a smidge of Raine x Regal; however, I must say that technically it was Genis who did the bashing. I personally have no beef with either, especially the Raine x Regal coupling, although I still today, ever since seeing their Flanior scene from DtNW, find Lloyd x Raine completely weird and humorous. And thus, this one-shot was born because Genis was the perfect outlet, for he shared similar beliefs and thoughts as I. For example, in DtNW he freaked when learning of Raine and Regal's 'love' letters to each other. So I only find it natural that he would have a total meltdown upon learning of Lloyd and Raine.
Also, as to why Lloyd and Zelos don't recognize who Richter, Emil, and Marta are... it's all up to interpretation. With the nightmare sequences, you can pretend Genis is experiencing these dreams Post ToS, and therefore, DtNW has yet to happen or does not exist at all as if the entire game was just Genis' imagination. Or you can think of whatever you want. Doesn't matter.
And with that, I rest my case. Again, no hard feelings to the supporters of the pairing Lloyd x Raine. This is simply a humor, parody one-shot fic of DtNW.
Genis: You are one twisted chick, you know that? After going through all those nightmares, I'm going to be scarred for life.
Me: What can I say, all's fair in love and humor.
Genis: ... It's suppose to be all's fair in love and war.
Me: Exactly. ;D
Genis: And how dare you put the bash blame on me? I was tortured for Martel's sake during this entire one-shot!
Me: Well, I blamed you because you are my muse! That and plus if I ever get any flames from this, I expect you to douse them with one of your water artes. ;3
Genis: Martel... what have I done to deserve this?
Me: Hey, it could be a lot worse! They could have actually put yaoi-like Flanior scenes in DtNW, then everyone would be screwed. Haha. xD
Genis: *Shivers* D-don't say that!
Me: It's possible it can happen. You can't deny that, Genis, especially with all the fanfictions around the net. Besides, they've already re-made Vesperia for the PS3 with tons of new content, and now they're doing it for Wii's Graces, giving the masses Graces f for the PS3 with an entire extra post-ending gameplay that actually contains plotline value. So who says they can't just milk a past spinquel (spin-off sequel) and re-make it for the PS3 with better things and much more fanservice that caters to yaoi fans this time.
Genis: They wouldn't dare...
Me: And when that day comes, I'm going to have a lot of fun bashing- I mean, you're gonna have a lot of fun bashing. Heheh. ;D
Genis: *Eye Twitches* NOT AGAIN! *Runs Away In Fear*
With all kidding aside, I highly, highly doubt they'll port DtNW to PS3. Sorry if I brought anyone's hopes up for nothing. Anyway, hope you all enjoyed this and got a laugh or two from it. I've got one more very short one-shot fic in my reserves. Probably going to post it tomorrow. That one will be also related to DtNW and is going to be quite different from my normal style of writing. It'll be more skit-like, so heads up.
And by the way, before I go, important question relating to uploading documents to FanFiction. I've been having trouble with punctuation issues that I just noticed recently. Whenever I have a sentence containing both a '?' and a '!' together at the end and upload the document to FF, the one that comes first in the sentence stays, while the one at the end disappears. I'm seriously concerned with this issue due to the fact that I feel getting an exclamation point chopped off at the end is like chopping off half a character's emotions in a story. So I've just been wondering if there was a way of keeping both in the sentence.
Thank you to those who help in advance! Later, everyone~! :3
