Chapter 5: A Sleepless Night

- Argh, my head!

This is the second time in a few days that Marche gets a headache. He slowly opens his eyes and realizes that the night has already come. The last thing he remembered is that he was chasing after Luso to teach him a good lesson about respect for adult. Then he felt exhausted, his vision was blurred so he tried to close his eyes and shake his head a little. But as soon as he closed his eyes, his memories stops there

- I can't believe I fainted, again! Is my stamina that poor? Maybe I have grown too old for this kind of stuff

He sat up and looks around, try to guess the situation. 'This is the same place we slept last night', Marche thinks. It's a good thing. It means he hasn't missed all that much action. He turns to the right, and finds Montblanc is sleeping soundly. The only problem is: he's asleep while sitting. He's facing this direction with a small handkerchief in his hand. With that much of clue, anyone can guess that he stayed up late to take care of his friend while he is also exhausted. Marche feels blessed for having this moogle as his friend. He has known Montblanc not all that long. They have only stayed together for 3 years, but those 3 years is something that Marche will do anything to relive it again. He gently places his hand on his friend's head and slowly rubs it. '6 years had passed, and yet your kindness is still the same as ever. That's what I like most about you'. Marche uses his right hand to support Montblanc's neck and slip his left hand under Montblanc's legs. He then slowly picks his little friend up and places him down onto his pillow and pull a blanket over him.

'Looks like once again I'm causing you a lot of trouble', thinks Marche as he remembered some memories about the time when he was sick in the middle of a forest during a quest for hunting down a beast. At that time, sadly the clan's nurse is dispatched on another assignment so there's no one to cure him up instantly. The group had to stop in their track to let him rest and hoped that he'll recover in time. That night, he also woke up in the middle of the night. Still, he was too tired to get up, so he decided to just lie there with his eyes slightly opened. Then, he saw Montblanc sat down next to him. That's all. He just sat there all night, watching over Marche. Marche wanted to gets up and tells him that he doesn't need to worry about him, but the fatigue slowly took away his conscious.

He then woke up at sunrise, and the moogle was still next to him, watching over him while he was asleep. Then in the next day, Bansat and Montblanc had a fight over the course of action. Bansat insisted that they need to quickly finish the quest and took Marche back to town but Montblanc wanted to take Marche back immediately, even though that means they'll fail the quest. Bansat told him that Montblanc's choice will surely lower the clan's reputation but Montblanc answered that if his clanmate is hurt then he will save that person even at the cost of disbanding the clan. Both of them dedicated so much for the clan that one can say Clan Nusty is their child. But their priority of things is different. Bansat would do anything to help the clan while Montblanc can even throw away his life to save a friend. Marche heard from a clanmate that Montblanc had witness the death of someone dear to him so he would do anything to protect the one he love. And just as their argument was getting intense, the beast jumped in and attacked them. It seems like the one they were suppose hunt down tried to hunt them instead. The clan defeated the beast in just a few minutes and Marche was carried to the hospital afterward, along with Montblanc. He used so much magick to finish the battle, to the point that it actually shaving his life away. But when Marche asked him why pushing himself to that extent, his replied was: "It doesn't matter. What mattered is that you're safe."

And that's not all. There're ton of memories of him about Montblanc's kindness and caring: that's the main reason why Marche has come to respect his little friend so much. He was a new kid in town, his father worked across the sea and only come home once in a while, his mother gave all her affection to his little brother,… all that stuff made him a bit distant and cold toward his classmate, and that lead to him not having many friend. Then when he came to Ivalice, he met Montblanc. Montblanc's kindness and caring was something that breaks him out of his shell, letting the true nature of the little boy to come forth – a boy filled with spirit of adventure. When he "came home" after 6 years, his altitude changed so much that everyone around the neighborhood thought that he should checked his mental health condition

Marche smiles at the sight of his hardworking friend sleeping soundly. He's determined to do anything to protect Montblanc, just like how his friend protects him. Then he looks to his left and finds Luso cowering. His face is full of sweat, and he keeps on mumbling something like: 'D-don't come near me!' and stuff. 'He's still just a kid', Marche sighs. He really admires Hurdy for being able to handle all that clutching and hugging of Luso while he's asleep

- Speaking of which, where's Hurdy?

Every night Hurdy would go out alone and comes back before sunrise. When Marche asked Montblanc and Luso about the details, they told him that nighttime is Hurdy's private time, and he should let Hurdy to be alone. Marche's curiosity has been kept under control for a few days now, but there's no way he would passes this chance to see what Hurdy is doing at night. He stands up and starts walking deeper into the forest.

The forest scene at night is much more different compare to the same scene in daylight. Moonlight slips through the space between the leaves; brighten the forest with a dim light. The grass under the moonlight has the color of silver, making it more mysterious and beautiful than ever. Also, there're lots of small ball of light floating around the air – Montblanc once told him that those are the spirit of the forest – hovering around like a firework festival. Mesmerized by the scene, Marche keeps on walking deeper and deeper into the forest. Then, after walking around aimlessly for about 30 minutes, he hears the sound of a flute. 'That must be Hurdy! I should follow that tune', thinks Marche as he walks toward the source of the gentle melody. And once again, he finds a scene more beautiful than what all people can ever imagine

In front of Marche's eyes lies a small lake in the middle of the forest. The water surface reflects the moon perfectly, making a second moon on the ground level. Every now and then, a gentle breeze passes by, making the surface of the lake swayed a little. The "second moon" is also affected, and its round shape is distorted into a dozen light streams near each other, before merges back into one piece and reshapes itself back to being a giant silver mirror. On the shore of the lake there's a rock with the shape of a triangle. Its height must be around Marche's chest. Currently, there's a shadow on top of the rock. The shadow's shape resembles a human, except for the two long rabbit-like ears on its head. Also, he's holding a short straight stick in front of his mouth, and a soothing tune is coming from him. That's Hurdy, no doubt about that. Marche just stands there like a statue; tries to savor the whole thing while it last. Clouds that cover the moon are slowly cleared away by the wind, letting the moonlight to pour down on the whole scene. The young moogle is no exception. From behind, Marche can see Hurdy's shadow appears on the grass. His back is now covered in darkness, while some outline of his body is now covered in the white light like a scene coming right out of a natural photo. And then, his tune stops. Only by then Marche snaps out of the realistic dream and tries to retreat back to the camping site. 'They're right. I shouldn't disturb him'. Marche wants to let Hurdy to be alone and continue to play that gentle melody. He doesn't want to interrupt Hurdy's concentration, especially when he's in the middle of composing a wonderful tune like this. But just as he's about to leave-

- What do you think of my new piece, Marche?

- …How do you know I was here?

Marche quietly walks toward the rock Hurdy's sitting on. It would be silly of him to just run away after being called out. On the other hand, if Hurdy wants to lecture him for disrupting his private time, he should be taking responsible, not running away from it. Hurdy turns back and face him

- For a musician, a sensitive ear is the most valuable accessory. That ear is the key to feeling the rhyme of things, to understand music, and most of all, to convert things into music - Hurdy says as he turning back

- Sorry, I didn't know you were in the middle of composing a new tune

- No, no. That's fine, kupo. In fact, I also want to see you in private, Marche.

Marche doesn't know what he wants to talk about. They're not that close to actually have some kind of secret conversation. But something mixed in Hurdy's words make him feels like he has the responsibility to listen to what he's about to say. His smile fades away, make him looking more serious than usual

- Forgive me for saying this out of the blue, but please leave my brother's side, kupo!

- … What?

Marche couldn't seem to understand what Hurdy's said. His eyes are full of determination like a mother protecting her child from danger. This is the exact opposite of his usual behavior: cheerful and friendly

- But, why? What's wrong?

- Please do know that I will do whatever it takes to save my brother, even if it cost me my life! He will not be trapped for years again, kupopo!

- What are you talking about? Trapped? Since when Montblanc got trapped?

- You of all people should know that best. After all, he was trapped at the same time as your arrival to this world, kupo. Lucky for him, he's not alone this time, kupo. - Hurdy's tone keeps getting harsher and harsher with every line he has spoken, as if mocking him

- Okay, slow down and explain to me the whole thing. You said Montblanc will not be trapped "again? There was a first time? And why? Also what does that has to do with me?

- Kupopo? Well then, I will tell you a story from my past, a story that surely connected with you

Hurdy closes his eyes. He starts talking while searching for his memories – the memories of all the years he wants to forget. '21 years ago, in a winter night, my oldest brother Montblanc declared the foundation of his clan, Clan Centurio, and he decided to celebrate this occasion by eating at the finest restaurant in town with his clan. I, who was still just a spoilt child, got angry with Montblanc because he didn't let me go with him. After some argument between us, I yelled out of anger: "Why don't you just leave me alone and go out with your stupid clan?! Why don't you just go to sleep and never wake up, kupo!". After that, I ran up into my room and cried myself to sleep. The next morning, I thought to myself that I'm not at fault, and Montblanc should be the one to apologize to me, kupo. But he didn't show up that morning at all, which is a strange thing because he usually is the first one to get up and prepare breakfast for everyone. Brother Horne asked Gurdy to go upstairs to wake Montblanc up. But he, along with brother Nono, kept on sleeping no matter what we do, kupo.

We tried to wake him with normal ways like water and noises. None of that worked, kupo. We then tried to invite high-class magick users to cure them but the result was the same. They all told us that my brothers are under some kind of spell that's too powerful for them to break. And not just my brothers, kupo. All around the continent, many people from different races also got into a sleep like that. They all shared the same symptom: sleep and never wake up. Their body was "frozen", their bodies still stay the same without nutrition, water, air… And the most important fact about this "curse" is that the victim got trapped into an alterative world and they don't even notice the different, kupo. The only way to solve this problem is to destroy the source of the curse, but this method proved to be impossible since the item that cause all this was located inside the alternative world. Since the people inside the dream never noticed the different, they will never know that they were living in a dream world and that lead to the fact that they won't even notice that it was a world built by the grimmoire.

Our family changed dramatically, kupo. Sorbet stopped traveling around the world - the thing he loves the most. He settled down to take over the clan's leadership, trying to maintain the thing Montblanc loves so much (though it proves to be too difficult for someone who tries to travel around the world to look for freedom). Horne started selling bit by bit of his item collection just to pay for every single mage who claim they have found the way to break the curse. Every night you can find him crying in silent, not for his collection, but for his older and little brother. As the only girl in the family, this affected Gurdy the most, kupo. She slept less than usual, ate less than usual, and worked less than usual. At some point, she even tried to sells her chocobo stable just to have money to help her brothers (Good thing Horne was able to stop her). All the time you can find her wandering around the house, taking care of her brothers (although they didn't need it thanks to the "frozen" effect) instead of working in her stable. Also, there were times when she fainted out of exhaustion from staying awake all night watching over her brothers while they're asleep.

As for me, I was suffering days after days, kupo. I regretted for all the misbehaving and disobedience. I cried and cried over the fact that the chance to face my brothers to apologize for all the things I have done is next to none existence. I even tried to suicide once, but Horne stopped me just in time. He said that if I want to atone for what I have done, then live. Live and take responsible for my actions, by taking care of everybody, by becoming a better person, by having faith in my brothers that someday they will return.

But things kept going wrong in our family, kupo. Sorbet, who is clearly not someone who can't take much responsibility (and that's why he constantly traveling around: to find freedom), cannot take it anymore. All the responsibilities were dragging him down, made him look like an undead. Horne's work also got into trouble. Without Sorbet around, my and Horne's share of work increase rapidly. Horne is a tough man, so that much was not enough to bring him down, but he was slowly drained off his energy. Gurdy also overworked herself many times, struggling to keep the balance between work and family. As for me, no matter how much I tried to help, to change myself, nothing happened. Nothing at all, kupo! No matter how hard I tried, nothing changed. My brothers didn't wake up, my family didn't get better, and I never had the chance to redeem myself, kupo!

But just as when I thought all hope is lost, a miracle happened. 3 years after the incident, the curse was broken, kupo. That morning, when we gathered in the living room, the atmosphere was gloomy as usual. We are all exhausted, physically and mentally. No one said a single word. But a sound came from the stairs. It was a yawn. And a familiar voice: "Oh my, look like I overslept, kupo!". We all turned to the direction of the sound, unable to believe in our eyes. The one who came down was our dear oldest brother, Montblanc. Then another sound came – the sound of metals clashing with each other. That was no doubt Nono with his toolkit. They both acted like nothing happened. Montblanc was the first to notice. He said: "Huh? Did I miss something? Why are you all looking like you want to cry?". Then, before he could understand what happened, we all ran toward Montblanc and Nono at full speed and tried to hugged them. They looked surprised at first, but decided to keep quiet because of all the tears on our eyes, kupo.

But, bad luck still sticks around for one final show. The first one to taste the bitterness is Nono. After woke up, he started talking nonstop about how his dream came true: the Brilliante I - though had become a merchant ship under circumstances - is finally setting off into the unknown horizon. He talked about how he learned all the selling tricks in just a few days before the opening ceremony, how he managed to avoid sky pirate from time to time, how he experienced the world from above the ground, … He talked so passionate that we couldn't even tell him about the fact that his ship is still just a scrap pile in the workshop, kupo. So at the moment he stepped into the workshop, all his "memories" shattered. His love, the Brilliante I, was never completed in the beginning. The whole week after that, he shut himself inside his room, crying nonstop. All he did was cried himself to sleep, woke up, ate something, and then continue to cried, kupo. A week later, he got out of his room. He looked like a moving corpse. It seem like he was able to accepted the fact that his dream cruise remained a dream, and once again he worked his hardest to lived his dream once more. Just by looking at him can make one understand how much had he been put through.

Yet, that was nothing compare to what Montblanc had to go through. When he heard about the curse, he was still keeping his cool, kupo. But as soon as we told him that Chad -the clan's archer - was also get caught up in this incident, his face distorted. He immediately ran full speed to Chad's house. Upon reaching the place, he found Chad sleeping on his bed like nothing happened. He started crying with the happiness expression he can make. But that was not all, kupo. Everyday Montblanc went to his house, hoping that one day he will wake up like the rest. But he didn't. Among the people who got caught up in this curse, there were those who awake and reunite with their love ones and those who never awake again. For those people, their body is now out of the "frozen" effect so it will crumble to hunger, thirst, age, disease. Despite all the caring from Montblanc, Chad was stepping closer and closer to the heaven gate. Then, on a rainy day, when big brother visited him, Chad was no longer breathing, kupo. It was a devastating blow for Montblanc. On the following days, he just sat on the wodden chair in his room with his eyes staring at the sky, as if his soul was sucked up the moment he saw his friend's death.

As if the Godness of Misfortune had taken a liking in Montblanc, bad things kept on happening to him. When he finally determined to go out of his room to visit his friend's grave, he had no idea what was in store for him. Because his mind was still unstable, I decided to go with him. Standing in front of Chad's grave, Montblanc just kept silent. I knew no word can ease his pain, so I also stood there without saying anything. After an hour of standing in silent, Montblanc decided to leave. But on his way back, he found a tombstone, kupo. It's the tombstone of a friend of his, Lex. He died from falling of a tall mountain when he tried to get a rare flower that rumored to be able to break the curse. Montblanc stared at the tombstone like he was hypnotized. Then his body shivered. He ran away from the graveyard so fast I can barely follow. He stopped on top of the hill near the graveyard. When I caught up with him, I saw something that haunted me for a month: I saw Montblanc cries. Looking at him like that made me feel heartbroken, kupo.

His clan was also affected. All around the continent, there was a rumor about clan Centurio spreading between the people: it was "the strongest outlaw clan led by Montblanc". Suddenly, the clan got many illegal requests, kupo. People fear, hatred, envy, despise … were aiming at the clanmates. Under the pressure, the members got to withdrew themselves from the clan one by one. That was not all. Within 3 months after the curse had been broken, lots of people gathered at the clan's base – our home. They all said that they are clan Centurio's member, while Sorbet had never even seen their face. There were a bangaa with a criminal face, a lawbreaking nu mou who claimed to be a "genius", a short hair Viera with a fear of bug … and so on, kupo. Sorbet tried to chase them away since they look like a weird and dangerous bunch, but Montblanc welcomed them instead. There was nothing we can do about it, since he's the real leader of the clan. And as expected, that group caught so much trouble, causing the clan's reputation to go down rapidly.

We agreed not to talk about all this for half of the year to let them recovered mental state and accepted the current situation, but I just couldn't take it anymore, so I decided to ask Montblanc about what happened when he was put under the curse. He told me that on the night he celebrated his clan foundation, he suddenly felt dizzy. He went home early to get some sleep. When he woke up, he found a piece of paper telling him that Sorbet, Horne and us twin decided to go on a long journey. Nono was already camping inside the workshop to build his Brilliante I, so it was normal not to see him around the house in the morning. He went out and found you bumping into a bangaa so he went out to help, and ultimately, inviting you into his clan. His memories were altered so that he didn't notice anything strange about his clan, while in reality, Chad was the only one he knew, kupo. Then you know the rest. You all chase after a friend of your to convince him to face the harsh reality and abandon that illusion world. To you, that was a happy ending, but to us citizen of Ivalice, to Montblanc and Nono, it was the beginning of a nightmare that lasts for years, kupo. Those who can't deal with the reality become insane or even suicide. Those who accept the reality will have a shadow covered their heart and their life will never be the same again. Those were your faults! Your faults, kupo! If you haven't come to this place, if you had face the hardship of life like a real man instead of wishing to run away to another world then none of those things would have happened. Brother told me you're a brave warrior and a true friend. A true friend would have done anything to save his friend from this kind of thing, instead of just prolonging it to satisfy his own thirst for adventure, kupo. That makes you no different than the one who put my brother under the curse. Do know that no matter how much brother love you, no matter how much you done for us, I will never forgive you, the one who claim to be his friend, kupo!'

From the moment Chad's name was mentioned, Marche's body begin to shake. Then along with the story, his shaking speed up rapidly. He knows that lazy but trustworthy archer for 3 years till his death in the Jagd. He didn't know all the back stories behind the whole accident, but that doesn't mean he was not involved. After all, he was one of the kids who wish for this world to exits. And that was not all. He also didn't want to leave this world, so the world was not destroyed the moment he broke all the crystals, thus lengthen the suffering of his friend for another month until the "Gift Day". When he thinks about all the people he met were actually suffering day by day, he couldn't stop himself from feeling guilty: guilty of not being able to see something apart from his problems, guilty of unable to get past his selfishness to set free his friends-

- That's enough, kupo!

Marche's trail of thought was interrupted by a familiar voice. From the bush that Marche was standing just a moment ago comes out Montblanc. Marche is shocked. He couldn't look at his friend straight in the eye after hearing Hurdy's story.

Hurdy looks at his brother walking in, speechless. He was careless. Pouring all his anger onto Marche makes him lose his cool, and thus, lose his keen sense of hearing like usual. If there is one person in this world that he doesn't want this conversation to be heard by, it is Montblanc. His kind, gentle brother is too naive in this kind of stuff. He never wants to blame anyone for anything. That's why Hurdy wants to have this conversation in private. Someone needs to stand up for his brother if he doesn't want to do it himself.

- B-Big brother, since when did you get here?

- …Since the beginning, kupo

Then Montblanc turns to Marche and says:

- Come on, let's go back, kupo

Marche stands still. He's now full of sorrow and regret inside, mostly toward his friend, so he hesitates to do what Montblanc said

- Wait, brother! I do this for your own good, kupo! You know that do you?! Why won't you admit it?! It's his fault! It's his fault that you were stuck in an illusion world for 4 years, kupo! You could have come back in a year or two, but you were carried away by this selfish person who just want to get away from his problems-

Each sentence is like a knife pinning straight into Marche's heart. He's falling deeper and deeper into the sea of regret. Just a single "It's true" from Montblanc right now can make him suicide to make up for his friend's lost

Not only Marche, but Montblanc's body is also shaking. But not like Marche, his shaking is not from guiltiness or regret. He yells out, interrupting Hurdy's words

- If he weren't there, then I won't even be here today, kupo!

This is the first time Montblanc actually feels anger toward someone other than the one who killed his master.

- If he weren't there, then I would continue to live like usual instead of finding a way to shatter that world. I know that out of all the siblings, you're the one who care for me the most. But did you ever ask me how I feel about it? You said that I was sad, but did you ever ask me why? I was sad, that's true. But if you ask me whether or not will I change the past of I can, I'll say "No, I won't" for as many time as you like. Those 4 years are a part of my memories that I will never regret having experienced onece. And now you want blame the fault on Marche while he didn't even know a thing about this world? That's not caring anymore! That's just you blaming other to sooth your own pain

- What, b-but-

- Come on Marche. We should leave and let Hurdy have some time alone to think about what happened

Marche follows Montblanc as if he's sleepwalking, leaving behind the shocked Hurdy. His mind cannot even think straight right now. All he feels is a bit of relieve, that's all.

Back to the camp, Montblanc sits down on his blanket and tells Marche to sit down too. Marche sits close to him with their back facing each other. They simply just sit there. The warm of Montblanc's body got transferred onto Marche's back, sotthing his mental wound, chasing away the chilliness of the night and the coldness warp around his heart.

An hour has passes. Then two hours. Three, four, five… They just sit there without saying anything. They don't need word. They understand each other too well, so any thought and feeling of one can be easily guessed by the other. Montblanc understands just how much pain Marche has been experienced for the last few hours. Marche understands how much Montblanc wants to comfort him. Their connection maybe forgotten over the time, but it still remains there, waiting to be found again

At last, it's dawn. The first sunlight of the day slips through the thick layer of trees and grasses, bathing the two in a radiant light. Marche is the first to speak up

- Do you … ever regret meeting me after hearing your little brother's story?

Marche can't see Montblanc's face, but he can feel that his friend is smiling. Then come the answer:

- You should know my answer already, but I'll say it anyway: No, I won't, kupo

- Is that so…

- That's right…

Just a short conversation, packed with thousands words they need to hear from each other. That's how close they are, and maybe that's how close they'll always be.

They both turn to look at the sunrise. Marche's mind is now fills of hope instead of regret and sorrow. He knows that no matter how much he fails, how much he strays from his path, this little friend of his will surely be there to back him up, to share with him all the sweet and bitter memories

Extra 2: Teach us, Mr. Randell!

Mr. Randell: Ok, it's time for our first lesson. Does anyone have any question?

Ritz: Teacher, why are kids from Earth are so powerful even though they only stayed in Ivalice for a few years?

Mr. Randell: Good question. I have a lot of theory about this matter, but I think the most convincing one is that the power is base on one's imagination. The Earth's kids don't have this kind of action, so they mostly imagine all this stuff, while the Ivalice citizen takes all that as their reality, so of course the different in power is as clear as day and night

Adelle: Teacher, why are there peoples who didn't get caught in "your world"?

Mr. Randell: Ahem! Actually, when the new "world" is created, it needs citizens. That's why the grimmoire basically sucked the soul of many citizens and lead them into the new "world". The one who were chosen are base on my idea, including all kind of people to make the world look "real". But because what present in that world is just the soul, if the soul is "killed" then the body live on but will never be able to wake up

Adelle: Teacher is so cruel!

Mr. Randell: It's not my intention you know!

Marche: Teacher, I have a question

Mr. Randell: Yes, young Marche, what do you want to know?

Marche: Why is the older me looks at you like he want to kill you?

Mr. Randell: E-ehm, that's…

Marche (future): Because I do want to kill him!

Mr. Randell: Class dismissed!

Marche (future): You think you can run away from me?! I'll skin you for each page of the grimmoire Luso have written on!

And no one ever saw Mr. Randell stepping into the classroom again…

Author notes: So ... many ... words...

There's no fighting scene in this chapter, then why does it have to be this long?! This time I take it to a darker route. I alway want to do this in a story where everyone have a good backstory, whether it is a tragedy or a happy story. That's why I rename the Grimmoire from the Grimmoire of Fate to the Grimmoire of the Moon, after all

I'm taking a break for half of a month. Too much thing to take care of right now. Maybe I can find someone to draw the picture of the Grimmoire of the Moon for me to use as the cover after this break. See you all soon!

Next time: Searching for a Judge