Finally took a moment to write a third one-shot, continuing on the idea my previous two stories were built from. Hopefully I'm keeping the quality here and all of you who read it find it enjoyable. On with the show!
Final Fantasy Tactics and all related characters are the property of Square-Enix LTD. This work of fiction was written for no financial gain nor will any be sought. This is for entertainment purposes only.
Queens and Quests
Bariaus Hill had always been a favorite spot of Agrias. The way the winds rustled the scarce grass on top of the plateau, the fresh scent of wildflowers, the beautiful sunsets and the clean rocky formations; it was all quite relaxing and in retrospect, the fact that she once had a picnic here with Her Majesty Ovelia and her other two knights, Alicia and Lavian, made her love this place even more. Sitting on a rock a few meters away from the main camp she had reflected about it for a bit.
At that very moment, though, she was assaulted by uncomfortable scenarios doing the rounds on her head. She had just heard of the imminent coronation of King Delita and Queen Ovelia. Delita...that man had always felt wrong to Agrias. He always claimed to act on the Princess and the realm's best interests. But thanks to Ramza she knew better. She knew he was driven by revenge and hatred. She could only wonder what that meant for Her Majesty.
A hand on her shoulder shook her from the reverie. She turned and saw Mustadio smiling down at her, then taking a seat on the ground near the rock, carefully placing a mid-sized box next to him, most likely his tools it seemed to her. "Thinking of the princess?", he asked, perhaps reading her expression like a book.
"That man, I cannot trust him. The way he uses everyone to fulfill his revenge. Even now, I feel as though Her Majesty is only safe as long as she's useful to him", Agrias replied, looking back to the horizon where the sun was setting. Her worries not quite turning to rage but coming close to it, she grabbed a pebble and tossed it far away towards the nearby gorge.
Silence permeated the air for a while after that. Mustadio leaned back propped by his hands behind him, his legs extended, trying to think of something to soothe his friend. "What do you intend to do?", he finally asked, knowing that the situation was not so simple that a 'it will be alright' would suffice.
"What can I even do?", Agrias replied, dejected. She grabbed another pebble and held it on her hand, "I cannot simply leave everyone to go whisk Her Majesty away from mere conjectures and judgments on that man's character. 'That man'", she scoffed, "it is difficult even to call him 'King'. Majestic he is not, I can assure you."
"Hopefully she'll be useful for him for a long while then - now don't get me wrong", he was quick to add when she shot a bothered stare at him, even though she had said such a thing herself she didn't like hearing about Ovelia being thought of as a mere tool, "I don't like it either but you're right when you say her safety is conditional. What I meant to say is that after we defeat the templar knights, you could go back to her side to better protect her."
She remained silent for a moment, after turning back to the horizon. "You forget i'm also an heretic to the church now. If I were to keep her safe i'd truly need to extricate her from the castle at best, kidnap her at worst. Can you believe she truly thinks Delita loves her?", she angrily stared at Mustadio, incensed at what she thought was preposterous.
"Well, he definitely has a knack to put on the moves...ow!", Agrias quickly slapped Mustadio on his head, scandalized.
"If you're not going to take this seriously I'd rather ask you leave me alone!", she yelled at him, then quickly got up. Walking a bit towards the gorge she stood enraged, her arms crossed.
Mustadio followed her but remained a couple steps behind, "Hey, I am taking it seriously. Maybe I just delivered it, uh, wrongly", he reached a hand to touch her arm but it quickly got brushed off. "Look, I'm sorry I said that, you gotta admit he has a damn good silver tongue. In a way it could give a reason to convince the princess that it has always been just words if you play your cards right, I mean, when you go to her". He waited for what seemed an eternity for Agrias to turn around but finally decided it was best to let her head cool. He started making his way back to camp.
"Wait. I'm...", she sighed heavily, "I'm sorry I overreacted, the situation has me on edge. I thank you, truly I do. I know you tried to lighten up the mood, as terribly worded as your attempt was", he smiled and stuck his tongue out a bit on what Agrias recognized was his 'tee-hee, I screwed up' face. "Yes, quite funny indeed", she mock reprimanded him. "Regardless, I suppose there is a degree of truth to what you say". She walked back towards the rock she had been sitting on for a bit then placed a hand on it, half turning her head towards Mustadio as she did so, "perhaps it is the only way, to take her away once we're done with the templar knights. A life of exile is better than no life at all. I will not fail my vow to protect Her Majesty". She finally turned her head up, as if energized by remembering her oath, the hill's winds blowing at her as if to envelop and soothe her.
Once more Mustadio approached her, placing his hand on her shoulder, "And remember you need not do it alone. I don't know what the others will do once we're done with the templar knights but i'm sure at least Ramza would help. You can be absolutely sure I will".
A part of her already knew she could count on both Ramza and Mustadio, but she still felt surprised and thankful at hearing him say it. She placed her own hand on top of Mustadio's and turned to look at him. His warm smile made her feel secure in the knowledge that she wouldn't be alone when she finally went and saved Ovelia, "I'm truly blessed to have companions such as Ramza and you. Thank you, Mustadio", she smiled back, then turned fully around and grabbed his hand, filled with comradery towards Mustadio.
His face quickly turned red, but the moment helped him hold his ground. Stuttering slightly he replied, "I w-would never leave a f-friend behind". He took a deep breath, then resumed his words, "The more people, the merrier they say. Besides, we can always go to Goug and hide there. Being nearby a sea-faring town also lets us skedaddle were they to find us anyways". Suddenly remembering something, he let go of Agrias' hand, then turned to the box he had left near the rock, "Oh yeah! I had something for you, actually", he picks the box, then places it on her hands.
"Hm, this is a pleasant surprise. To what do I owe the gift?", she asked, not quite knowing why she was receiving the box, while she sat down on the rock again and placed it on her lap.
"Well it's not EXACTLY a gift, since i'll still be needing it but i'm sure you'll feel happier when you look at it. Go ahead, open it!", he replied and placed his hands behind his back, expectant.
The box was wooden, and approximately the size of her lap. She took the lid off and then she saw it, "Is this...truly it? I cannot be mistaken!", the metallic contraption looked like some sort of miniature automaton. Standing on two legs and with some sort of parallel saws on its head, it had a container on its back, as if it was meant to hold miniature rods. To a random overlooker it'd look like some sort of bizarre chocobo. "It's the 'Chop-chop Chocobo!', such a bold figure could be of none other!", she exclaimed, excited. Holding it on her hands, she could almost see it move, cutting down trees and placing them in its container.
"The one and only, or more precisely the teeny-tiny version, since I made it to get an idea on how it'd end up looking. It moves, though, look!", taking it back from Agrias he hit a switch on its side and the tiny machine moved around. Agrias gasped and looked at it like a child that had just received a new gift.
"And magnificently so! Just look at that. Oh, if only the princess could see it!", she followed the tiny machine with her own small steps, then picked it up after a moment. With the little metal chocobo on her hands, she closed her eyes and sighed, "One day we'll show her the 'Chop-chop Chocobo', you'll see". With a warm smile she placed the machine inside the box, then handed it over to Mustadio.
"You can be sure of it", he returned the smile with one of his own, his hands lingering for a second on hers. Closing the container's top, he asked, "Hey, dinner should be ready soon, shall we go back?".
"I think I will stay for a bit longer here, if you don't mind. I require a moment to gather my bearings before coming back to the rest of our comrades", she said while turning back towards the already setting sun, her hand now resting on top of her rocky seat. Without turning back, she addressed Mustadio once more, "Thank you, my friend. For this and for being there. I feel much better now".
Mustadio simply smiled to her back, "Yeap, anytime, Agrias". He turned back with no other words, leaving her to her thoughts. As she felt his presence gone she sat once more on her rock, her elbows resting on her knees, watching the sunset and wondering if her royal charge - no, her dear friend Ovelia was watching it as well.
Well then, this time it was more of an Agrias PoV, so hopefully that makes it novel and interesting as a contrast from my more Mustadio-centric ones. Yet again I happily receive any comment, opinion, greeting or whatever you wanna tell me either by review or message. I'll be seeing you all around!