C6: Peace in the Garden
"Are we ready to start assigning the brackets yet?"
"Unless you want Bayonetta to sit this tournament out, no."
"Hasn't Dr. Amherst found out how to fix her yet?"
"She has a method, Director. But it requires the Hunter's cooperation."
"If the Hunter is being too stubborn, we can always threaten him."
"It's simpler than that, Director. Dr. Amherst simply hasn't gotten around to asking him yet."
The Hunter turned the half carved block of wood in his hands, lost in thought as his fingertips drifted over the surfaces he had so far managed to shape. He had no recollection of ever whittling before, but it certainly seemed that his hands remembered. A remnant of the life he had abandoned when becoming a hunter, most likely.
The air around his stirred as the arboretum cycled its atmosphere. Samus had explained, in short words and with a shorter temper, that the facility was a man made system designed for both comfort and the provision of breathable air. The Hunter had been awed by it at first, but now he simply enjoyed the simple quiet that permeated the atmosphere. It reminded him a little of the Hunter's Dream, but even there he had carried the weight of the Hunt. Here, he could simply be, without anything but his own thoughts and desires to disturb him
Once again the slim blade of the carving knife began to cut away at the wood in the Hunter's hands, shaping a curve in the cloth of a skirt. When he had started cutting away at the wood, the Hunter had only a vague idea of what he wanted to create. As he had progressed, however, the simple desire for a wooden figure turned into the urge to form Arianna's visage. As it was, he had only just finished carving the general shape, and now it would be more difficult.
A small current of air was disturbed as someone else entered the vast arboretum, and the Hunter noted that whoever it was could either fly, or weighed next to nothing. Neither of which was that unusual amongst the many and varied combatants in the Arena. He chose to ignore them and focus on the carving, the blade in his hand carefully shaving away pieces of wood from what would become the base, and the hem of Arianna's dress.
Again the air stirred as the unknown personage passed closer to him. He caught the faint smell of open air and what could only be described as the scent of the wind. Vague recollections of that tugged at his mind, but he pushed it away as the tip of his knife dug into the wood, where the gap between hem and base would be. The scent grew stronger, however, and he finally looked up.
Before him was a woman, fair of skin, long green hair flowing down her white robed figure. Behind her head hovered a sigil seemingly made of pure light and in her hand was a white scepter, decorated with a crystal at one end. She regarded him silently as he took her in. He knew who she was, of course. Palutena had been pointed out to him a few times before, but they had never spoken.
"I did not expect to find anyone else here." Her voice was soft and almost musical, sounding exactly like a Goddess' voice should, like the wind and sky had poured their respective beauty and power into a single tone, "You are the Hunter, yes?" He nodded, and she spoke again, "What brings you to these gardens?"
The Hunter shrugged and made a vague motion with one hand that was intended to indicate their general surroundings, "Its quiet. I haven't had much of that for a while." He looked down at the rough hewn semblance of a human being that would become a replica of Arianna, feeling each of the contours and wondering what the next step should be.
He did not expect the goddess to remain to speak with him, but she surprised him, "What is it you shape, Hunter?" Her tone was not that of someone making small talk, but genuine interest. Once again the Hunter raised his gaze to Palutena's, meeting her gaze levelly, "I do not wish to impose, but I do admire art in all it's forms."
"You're not imposing. If I look angry, that's just my normal expression." The Hunter lifted the figure so that she could see it more clearly, "It's not anything yet, but it's going to be... someone." He hesitated before saying Arianna's name, knowing that would almost certainly stick in his throat.
Palutena looked at it, then at him, "The person whose image you fashion, they are important to you?" Her perception did not particularly startle him, though it did put him in the position of explaining about Arianna. And he wasn't entirely sure about Palutena's nature just yet, he'd had bad experience with "Gods" before. As a form of response the Hunter nodded, trying to convey his desire to remain silent on the matter. But the goddess wasn't about to drop it, "What is their name, Hunter?"
A sigh escaped the Hunter's lips, "Her name is Arianna." He half choked on the name, as he'd feared would happen, but he felt the need to clarify why he was carving her in particular, "She and I... well, she's very important to me." The words came out lamely, but he didn't know exactly how to express what he felt for the blonde haired courtesan who had so completely taken possession of his heart that he couldn't go one day without a pang of sorrow at their separation.
Again the goddess surprised him, "Then why did you leave her?" The Hunter's jaw tensed and he stared down at the figure in his hands. Palutena continued, "I have seen affection among others here, temporary romances that bloom and wither in the space of months or years. Very few have the love necessary to carry it with them into the Arena." She paused, possibly waiting for a response, then continued, "Yet, just by listening to you speak of her, I can hear the things you do not speak. The emotions which you struggle to express are apparent in your voice and motions."
The Hunter still didn't look up, choosing instead to focus on his visualization of what he would carve from the wood. His thumb passed over where Arianna's face would be and he remembered the kiss they had shared in Oedon chapel. The sheer thrill of that memory almost set him to tears. He spoke softly, "You hear a lot of things I'm not saying, apparently." Finally tearing his gaze from the wood he looked up at Palutena, "Why would I leave her, you ask?"
The air stirred again as the aboretum renewed the cycling of air. The resulting wind stirred both Palutena's robe and the Hunter's hair. He continued to speak, soft and slow, "Because if I stayed, then she could very well be dead by now." A humorless smile touched his lips, "There is corruption in my blood, and I've seen men kill their own wives and children as a result of it. The reason I am in this place and not in her arms is my desire to contain my own beasthood."
Palutena accepted everything he said in stoic silence. After waiting for several moments she replied, "I apologize for opening such a sensitive subject, Hunter. I allowed curiousity to get the better of my sense." He raised an eyebrow, a goddess apologizing?
Suddenly a question sprang from his lips before he had a chance to consider it, "Divine one, how do you treat your worshipers and those who pray to you?" The question seemed to shock the green haired goddess, and she regarded him in silence. The Hunter cursed his loose tongue and tried to clarify his query, "In my world, the closest we have to gods are what we call Great Ones. And while some of them are... sympathetic, many of them do not seem to notice us other than to brush us aside when we interfere with their plans." He saw her expression become a mixture of shock and indignation, "I'm not insinuating that you are the same! I merely...I just want to know what it's like to have a kind god."
She stared at him, eyes wide, and he looked at the ground. Palutena gazed upon this mortal man with pity and respect. He had lived in a world where individual lives meant little to those above, and those below were used and discarded. She knew little of the Hunter's world, or his past, but his last statement put him in a place where loss and sorrow were commonplace, and joy was scarcely found. A slow understanding arose within her as she realized why this Arianna was so precious to him.
The Hunter felt a gentle brushing touch on his shoulder and looked up into Palutena's empathetic eyes. Her right hand rested upon his forehead and she spoke, "Hunter, though I am not God in thy world, take with thee this blessing. I bless thee, Hunter, that thou wilt return unto thy Arianna. And when thou dost return, thou shalt be whole in body, mind, and spirit, such that no fear of foe may arise from within or without." Her hand glowed softly as the blessing took hold. It was not a guarantee by any means, but it was hope.
He was dumbstruck by her benediction, and tears began to flow from his eyes as she lifted her hand from his brow. With a small smile the goddess took her leave of the silently weeping Hunter, who bowed forward, clutching the wooden carving that would become Arianna to his chest. After a long time he wiped his eyes and set once more to shaping the figure into the form of his heart.
Hours later he gazed upon the completed figure of Arianna in his hands. He stared hungrily into her face, as if Arianna would be able to speak to him through the facsimile. Gently he ran a finger over the carved hair and sighed. If he had one regret about leaving the way he had, it was not telling Arianna the most important thing of all. For some reason neither of them had said it, and it felt like a paltry replacement to say those words unto a mere carving. But he felt he owed it to her to say it at least once. Holding the figure before his eyes the Hunter took a deep breath and opened his mouth to speak.
A rough disturbance in the air and the sound of heavy footfalls interrupted him and he looked toward the door. The smell of fur came to him and his instincts told him to reach for a weapon. Instead, he gently placed the figurine in his coat pocket and moved to leave the arboretum. Before he could, however, Wolf stepped in front of him. The two faced each other, a wolf and a hunter staring in the eyes of their rival.
Wolf's voice growled forth then, "Someone wants to talk to you, kid, in your rooms. Someone important or I wouldn't be here right now." The two maintained eye contact, neither wavering or blinking. The Hunter inclined his head in acknowledgment. Slowly they passed one another, the Hunter reaching for the door to leave as Wolf spoke once more, "Kid, do yourself a favor. Keep your nose out of trouble or you'll get bit." With that the canine warrior strode off into the trees.
The Hunter silently accepted those parting words and departed for his rooms. Unconsciously he wrapped one hand around the carving of Arianna in his pocket. As he walked through the halls he passed by several other fighters, some he was more familiar with than others, but he was at least of all their names.
As he turned the last corner and passed by a jubilantly bouncing Kirby and an annoyed Meta Knight, the Hunter saw that someone was indeed at his rooms. A woman with grey hair, stern expression, and a white robe over blue clothes. He approached her warily and she looked at him, "About time. Most everyone said you stayed in your room. Where were you?" She waved a hand before he could answer, "Doesn't matter. Follow me, we've got important work to do." The crisp tone in her voice told the Hunter that she was used to her orders being obeyed.
But instead of immediately following the woman, the Hunter bypassed her and went into his room. He could feel her glare on the back of his neck and her tone became frigid, "Either you come with me or I-" She paused as the Hunter set his carving on the small table beside his bed. He turned and looked at her, saying, "Lead the way."
Her icy blue eyes bored into him, then she spoke, "My name is Dr. Amherst. And you, Hunter, are going to help me fix something. Or rather someone."
The Hunter fell in beside the doctor as she walked briskly down the hall, "Who am I helping you 'fix'?"
She didn't even look at him, "Bayonetta."