After bath, Ion dragged Asch to the dungeon.
Thanks to red-head, the day before he couldn't interact with Arietta. Sure, he saw her in the morning, but she was asleep, and although she was very adorable and cute and stuffs, Ion wasn't satisfied.
He made sure Asch knew of his annoyance.
"She's raised by Ligers. And even if she found roasted meat to be delicious, she's used to eat raw. Maybe something alive, I'm not sure. So, if she asks to eat you, I wouldn't even try to reason with her. It's your fault I didn't get to play with her yesterday. You should have won."
Asch said nothing, and Ion didn't look back so he didn't know how Asch was reacting to the statement.
Possibly not well.
Although the fact that he didn't say anything worried him a bit.
Arietta's cell was different with Asch's. Hers was only barred, so people could see her from outside and there was a window. It was also barred, but at least light could come in and told her the passage of time. Asch wasn't even given the luxury of that.
At the sight of the stranger, Arietta snarled and growled.
"She does this to almost everyone. Don't take it personally. She's not good with humans in general. Strangers specially. She just opened up to me."
Ion explained as he tried to unlock her door. It's rustic and stuck, so he made a mental note to ask Mohs to renovate the whole dungeon. Just because the place was meant to inflict despair to the damned, doesn't mean that their keepers had to suffer with them. Besides, most of the damned were pushed into their criminal activities by the Scorers. Sometimes Ion wondered if they deserved to be punished if that's the case.
"... This is the girl you said resemble to me?"
"The one and only."
Asch studied her through the bars. He didn't seem so impressed.
"Don't mind the fact that you are, were, whatever, raised by Score-obsessed idiots while she's by ligers. Wondrous ligers. Seriously, they make the perfect parent for humans. The thing is, both of you were taken from your home against your wish. You both don't like it, and both of you are anomalies. You, being a walking time-bomb and she being this wonderful girl. Isn't she lovely?"
Asch ignored his question and instead asked further.
"What about you?"
"Hm?"
"You said you resemble me too. What about you? What happened to you?"
"I became Fon Master," Ion answered as a matter-of-factly.
In Asch's eyes, Ion's smile suddenly seem maniacal. Ion knew he thought so. After all, his dull green eyes for a moment showed fear.
Ion hated explaining his history. Daathic artes were special artes, only used by the Fon Masters. But that's not all. It's not that Fon Masters were the only ones taught of it, they're the only ones capable of casting it. Apparently it's something in their blood.
Only Daathic Artist could be a Fon Master.
Ion's parents knew from the start that their child would be a Fon Master. He knew the Scorer said so. He also knew that's why they gave him to the Order as soon as he could understand speech.
Maybe... maybe even his grandparents knew.
Or maybe even his great-grandparents.
He wasn't sure. But he imagined Scorers telling his ancestors 'you have to marry this person, and we'll make sure your child marry his/her destined person, and also his/her child, and I can see few generations down a Fon Master will be born from your descendant's womb!'and was utterly disgusted. What's worse was that it's entirely plausible.
It's like... people were told, no, made to get together just to make him happen.
Like cattle.
Stupid people who thought lowering themselves like that was okay. Ion was glad that he's no longer connected to those dumb people anyway. He was brought to St. Binah once, for some task he already forgotten with Evenos, and he saw his parents then.
He hadn't seen them since he was given up, but Ion recognized them. They recognized him too. His green hair and eyes stood out.
They approached him.
They hugged him and said that they've missed him.
For a second, Ion thought they cared. That they didn't want to give him away. At least, not really.
Until of course, those idiots asked him to read them Scores.
Ion realized then, that he wasn't missed at all.
No, it wasn't him, their son, who was missed. It was the Scorer who could had been be in their midst who was missed.
It took everything he had to not cast Daathic artes he just learned to use.
Instead, he smiled at them and apologized because Score reading had strict regulation, and he couldn't just do it to anyone anytime. They faltered, as expected, and tried to reason that surely he could do it for his parents.
Seeing their faces as he tilted his head slightly in mock show of innocence and purity and said truthfully in their faces what he thought, 'I'm sorry, my parents died years ago,' was satisfying.
Although Ion kind of regretted that.
He should had agreed and faked their Score and make them jump off a cliff or something.
"Anyway, it doesn't matter. Just believe me when I say I understand completely what you are feeling. And what you might feel in the future."
Ion understood Asch's pain of being taken away, and if one day he ever realized that even his precious people only saw him as tool, Ion would know what it's like too. But, Ion would not say it to him. Not now at least. Maybe later, when Asch found out about it himself.
Somehow Ion was sure was bound to happen soon.
"... I find that hard to believe."
The door opened with a click, and Ion grinned triumphantly.
"It's okay. I don't really care about what you think."
He motioned Asch to enter the cell too, and the older boy did so albeit reluctantly. His eyes still locked on the snarling girl on the floor. Him being in even closer proximity to Arietta distressed her, apparently, because she shifted in what Ion assumed was a defensive position. Teeth bared and hands clenched on the ground just like an upset cat. The blanket which had covered her body slid down, and Ion could hear Asch's breathing hitched.
"... Ion?" He called, sounding bewildered and his voice was higher pitch than usual.
"Hm? What is it?" Ion asked back as he locked the door once more. As precaution. Once again struggling due to the rust.
"Why is she naked?"
"I told you she doesn't like humans. She bit everyone who tried putting her clothes on. And she's not used to wear anything, being raised by monsters and all."
"I thought you said she'd opened up to you."
"I did."
"And... why haven't you tried? Why is she still naked?"
Ion rolled his eyes. Apparently watching another gender's body was another thing altogether for Asch. In his peripheral, Ion could see him blushing, his face almost as red as his hair. His eyes had been averted to look at the window, way above Arietta.
"For your information, I have. I've prepared a wardrobe full of clothes for her, as well as uniforms since I want her to work in the Order. I also have tried to put it on for her repeatedly. But she's not accepting it. Not yet. She bites me too. I'm crossing my fingers," he said as he walked to Arietta, already showing her his usual blissful smile. The girl stared back and forth from Asch to Ion suspiciously, still tense and feral, and when Ion tried to touch her, she snarled at him.
"Oh," Ion heard Asch said, apparently just noticing the pink dress Ion had been holding. Arietta growled and barked at the red-head, and Ion knew that she wanted to pounce Asch and tear him apart with her teeth and sharp nails. He held her though, despite his words earlier that he wouldn't even try to reason to her if she wanted to eat Asch.
Asch took few steps back until his back was against the bars regardless.
"Yes. Oh. She hates it here too much I think. That's why I decided to bring her back to her mother. It's okay, Arietta. He's not going to hurt you. I'll make sure of that," he tried to say to her soothingly, and against all odds she relaxed just a bit.
"You're letting her go back to the wild?"
"Of course not. I'm talking to her mother and hope that I could explain to them both that Arietta belongs with the humans, without her having to feel like leaving them. I mean, thought that it'd be best for everyone. The monster attack here would stop, and she'd be happy. Maybe after that she'd at least try to accept our culture more. The only thing that had gone through her now is roast meat."
"You... you what?!"
"Yep. We're going the day after tomorrow. I have business in Engeve anyway, and so I thought why not go to the Northern Forest before that? Aren't you excited, Arietta? We're going to see your mommy!"
Ion said it as he pushed her gently, and gave her his most dazzling smile. The girl frowned in confusion. While Asch...
"You... you're going to talk to... to her... wait, you said she's raised by ligers. Don't tell me..."
"Astute observation. I'm going to talk to the liger queen, yes."
"What?!"
His exclamation was like music in Ion's ears. Really, if Arietta, lovely Arietta, wasn't in front of him, on his arms, Ion wouldn't be able to resist the urge to turn around and see for himself Asch's panicked expression. Such a change, a very welcomed change. Instead, he focused on the still confused Arietta, while the older boy behind him was still at lost for words.
"Mo-mommy?"
"Yes, we're going to see your mommy! That's why, I need to ask you something. I don't want people to see you like this, so please, can I ask you to wear clothes? I've picked the most comfy one for you? See?"
"Mommy... mommy...?"
"Uhm, I don't think you understand... How should I word it... Oh! We're bringing you home."
"... home?"
"Return."
"Return... home... mommy?"
She still seemed confused. Arietta just learned words bit by bit from hearing Knights and Ion talking, and admittedly those three words were not used often. In the end, Ion just giggled and ruffled her hair.
"Then, it'd be a surprise. But I still want you to wear clothes. Please, Arietta? For me?"
"... Ion?"
"Yes. It's for me. For Ion. Please?"
She frowned again, seemingly contemplating it this time, before nodding reluctantly.
"Thank you, Arietta! I'll make it up to you later. More meat perhaps?"
"Meat. Roast."
She nodded in agreement as she inspected the dress Ion brought her curiously. Her frown deepened when she finally decided that she couldn't put it on herself, although Ion knew Arietta knew what the dress was for.
"Here. Let me help you. Okay... your hands go through here..."
And in few swift movement, Arietta was already wearing a dress. She looked down at herself and frowned, fingers tugging the hem and collar, and she obviously seemed uncomfortable. But she's not resisting.
"Arietta, you look beautiful," Ion said, and to him when Arietta's cheeks turned visibly redder, she was even prettier.
"... weird."
"No! It's not weird at all! It suits you well. You look great in it! Pink matches your hair and eyes. Don't you agree too, Asch?"
"... yes," he said finally, although it was not easy to tell he was just saying it. Or maybe he's just still in a daze, still surprised (although it's a major understatement, Ion supposed) of Ion's plan for their immediate future. Plan 'Distract Asch from his stupid thoughts' was a success then, as of now, Ion supposed.
If Asch gave little to no reaction to the words Ion said to Arietta earlier, he's willing to take it as a good sign.
"Now I can be at ease. It's a dangerous for a girl to be baring her body, even to the Oracles! None of them are really holy, despite popular belief. Arietta is more humane than all of them combined. It calms me even if we're not going to be with them all the time."
"... what?"
"I don't think it's good idea to take any Knights. You know, the ligers might see it as aggression or something. I just want to ask the queen's permission to be with her daughter. I don't want to make her feel disturbed or anything. So we're going alone, just the three of us. But they'll surely come with me if I tell them, probably even kill every ligers they find. We'll have to find a way to escape..."
In which Asch responded with a cry of, "are you mad?!"
Ion paused to consider for a moment as he marvelled the sight of Arietta struggling to overcome her discomfort before turning around and answered with a smirk.
"Possibly."