Well, the votes are in, and the overwhelming opinion seems to be for Leviathan to come ASAP! You guys are all so mean to poor Ignis, haha. So, at most there will be three filler chapters between here and the rite (yes, counting this one). For today, I have less than an hour of free time to get this done so here we go with a super-short Caedus chapter!
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"You've really fought cactuars?" Talcott was leaning so far forward in his kitchen chair that there was a real risk he'd fall off. Caedus, sitting in the chair beside him, smiled.
"Sure have. And I'll tell ya, those things aren't easy to take down." He wiggled his fingers, trying to mimic the spiny needles of the creatures he was speaking of. "When they launch those needles, you're either out of the way, or you're a pincushion." His smile became something of a smirk. "The first time Aria fought one, she got hit and couldn't sit down for two days."
"I did not!" snapped the woman standing behind the kitchen counter with Monica. She threw the dish-drying towel in her hand at him, which he caught with little effort. "I took the needles in my leg and could sit down just fine, thanks."
He chuckled, tossing the towel back to her. "Whatever you say."
It was the day after the guys had left, and after both Iris and Talcott asking if they'd stick around, they'd relented to spending a bit of time at Caem with the others. Cor had left that morning with the promise that if he found something they could help with, he'd give them a call.
Caedus watched Talcott jump out of his chair and head outside, probably to talk to Iris about the story he'd just been told. Then the man leaned back in his own chair. He wasn't sure if he wanted Cor to need their help or not. If he did need help, odds were good that it'd be against the empire. Caedus didn't know if Aria could handle going against them right now.
Looking up at the sound of laughter, he watched her joking with Monica about something he couldn't quite hear, the women speaking under their breath. To all appearances, she'd recovered from her ordeal, but her actions when confronted with the imperial base worried him. Still, he was proud of her for choosing to stay in Lucis, where she could do real good as a hunter. And where he could keep an eye on her, to keep her safe.
Niflheim had taken his family from him once. It would not happen again.
