Disclaimers: I don't own Bravely Default, all rights to the owners.
Full disclosure, I haven't played Bravely Default in a LONG time, so pardon any inaccuracies in how I write the characters here. I'm used to their Bravely Second characterization, and I just haven't seen Ringabel in forever.
There are many things vestals do not do, for they must be pure of mind and utterly devoted to their holy crystal.
Vestals do not care for material wealth. A life of prayer and devotion has no need for money, save food and shelter, all of which can be handled by the surrounding clergy. In fact, it's sometimes seen as scandalous for a vestal to even touch money.
Before going on the run, the only time Agnès came into contact with money was when pilgrims would press donations into her hands. The hard and smooth metal of a pg always stood out to her in stark contrast to anything else she would interact with on a daily basis. The coins felt very alien, once upon a time. They were pieces of a world she simply didn't exist in, and as very few things in her life as a vestal were made of metal, that only made them feel all the stranger to hold and touch and run her fingers over. At least, that was the case for the few seconds she could feel them before handing the coin to a nun to be put with the rest of the donations.
Having to deal with money regularly once she was being pursued took a while to get used to. In fact, Airy dealt with most of the money at first. It took the others (that being Tiz, Edea, and Ringabel) to properly explain to her how money worked and why it has value at all. Airy only understood how to use it, not why it could be used. Even now Agnès feels strange when handling money. It feels odd to trade shiny metal for food, or clothes, or weapons, or trade monster blood or horns or teeth for that same metal. The act of exchange is still foreign. A vestal isn't supposed to exchange; she gives. She gives everything to the crystal, and that's all that matters.
Ringabel in particular found her difficulties with money interesting. Amusing, you might say.
"It's a deal, Lady Vestal." The man explains with a suave smile. "An equivalent exchange! A loaf of bread for it's value in pg, an equal trade."
"But that is not equal at all. One is metal, the other is food." Agnès replies. "And the metal has no use."
"Ah, but it does! It allows the person who has it to purchase something else." Ringabel chuckles. "The money stands in for an item in the future, one that can be decided when it is needed rather than at that very moment."
"That's quite bizarre."
"I assure you, it's very normal." Ringabel says. "But you are still confused, so let me explain another way. Money has no practical value in and of itself, as you point out. What money is, however, is the medium in which goods are exchanged."
"Pardon?"
"Let's see… how valuable is a loaf of bread, Agnès?" Ringabel asks.
"Quite. It allows you to eat. You need it to live."
"Just so! But is it more or less valuable than a sword?"
"I suppose it would depend on if you need a sword."
"Let us say that you do. Is it more valuable than bread? You still need to eat."
"They are both valuable."
"Equally? One sword is equal to one bread?"
"No." Agnès frowns.
"So how much bread is worth a sword?"
"I don't know, but an agreement on the amount could be found."
"Very true. Now, what if you need a sword, but I don't need bread?"
"I… then I need to offer you something else." Agnès says.
"Indeed. What if you have nothing to offer me though?"
"I need to find someone else to sell me a sword."
"That would be the case… if you didn't have money." Ringabel says. "Because by giving me money, I can go to someone else, and get something I do need. You can get your sword, and I can get what I need, even though you have nothing of practical value to offer me. You can almost see money as a favor in physical form, and when you give money to someone for something you are turning in that favor for something of value."
Agnès nods. That makes a sort of sense. Enough she can follow, at least. "But what does that have to do with the sword's worth in bread?"
"Well, even if I don't need bread, I still need something of equivalent value to the sword I'm offering, don't I?" Ringabel says.
"Of course."
"But I don't need bread."
"Yes."
"Let's say seven bread is equivalent to a sword." Ringabel hums. "Remember, I don't need seven bread, but that is what a sword is worth in bread. So, in exchange for the sword, you give me the amount of pg that translates to seven bread or a sword. I'm getting my favor tokens, such as they are, worth of the sword I'm giving to you. I can use them later to get bread, if I do need bread, or I can get seven bread's worth of carrots, or I could hire someone to fix my fence if it's worth seven bread, or I could combine multiple sword sales to buy something worth seventy bread."
"I think I see." Agnès says. "Money can be used to get something equal to what you give, just not necessarily from the same person, and not necessarily at the same time, but this works when everyone uses money, because the amount being asked of any one person will always be balanced out by what they can ask of everyone else."
"Precisely!" Ringabel grins. "Now, admittedly it's more complicated than that in practice, but on a basic level that is how money works. Coins are lovely, shiny, favor tokens."
Vestals do not care for physical wealth, Agnès has since decided, not because of some inherent evil, but because money is very, very confusing, and the confusion would distract from their prayers as they try to wrap their heads around such an odd form of trade.
###
There are many things vestals do not do, for they must be pure of mind and utterly devoted to their holy crystal.
Vestals do not feel pride, vestals are not vain, for vestals are servants to their crystals. They are only important as much as they facilitate their crystal, like a maid who cleans a castle or a mason who repairs it's stones. There is no pride to be taken in prayer, only humility, reverence, understanding, and determined purpose.
Agnès never saw pride as an issue. She never felt very important, and that did not change when she was forced to leave her temple. She tries her very best to never be prideful, but her companions make that quite difficult with their numerous, heartfelt praises.
"I don't know how you do it Agnès." Edea groans as she drops into a chair by the fire. She tosses her rod aside, and it smacks into the girl's backpack before rolling to a stop on the floor. "Magic just makes no sense to me. I can barely manage thunder, much less thundraga like you."
"It's not all that difficult. It just takes a bit of study and practice."
"Yeah, if by 'a bit' you mean weeks upon weeks." Edea grumbles. "Your focus is crazy. There's no way I could stare at formulas for that long."
"It's really not hard…"
"For you maybe. You make it look effortless!" Edea says. "Gah, stop being so amazing at magic Agnès! You're making the rest of us look bad!"
"I'm not so good, I swear." Agnès tries to soothe the other girl, but Edea snorts in frank disbelief.
"Oh, sure, you can cast every black and white mage spell under the sun, but you're 'not so good', sure." Edea huffs. "You're making it worse by trying to spare my feelings Agnès."
"Sorry."
"Ah, so you're back, my dear Edea?" Ringabel says, descending from the boys' room up the inn's stairs. "How was the magic practice?"
"Terrible, and Agnès is being mean about it." Edea grumbles.
"I-I am not!" Agnès protests, aghast.
"You are! You're going all 'oh, I'm not good at magic', which means that I'm complete garbage in comparison!" Edea says, and waves a hand vaguely in Agnès' direction. "Super mean."
"Now Agnès, how could you traumatize poor Edea so?" Ringabel tuts, a smile on his face. "By downplaying your own efforts you belittle Edea's! Take a little pride in your accomplishments, if only to make Edea feel better."
Agnès blushes just a bit. "I didn't mean to offend."
"Then stop apologizing and brag next time." Edea says. "You're good at magic, act like it."
Agnès never really gave thought to her skill. Leaning magic was a necessity, and not one she put any particular significance in beyond practicality. Yet most people, even dedicated mages, couldn't manage thundraga like she could, or even the stronger healing spells. She didn't feel particularly important or significant for being able to use them, but perhaps she was.
That doesn't mean she wants to act like it though. He can't imagine bragging about her magical prowess. What would others think of her? It would be quite rude.
"Did I miss something?"
"Tiz! Finally." Edea huffs, and sits up. "I thought you said you were right behind me."
"I was. I had to put away-"
"Yeah, whatever, no one cares." Edea interrupts. "Agnès is saying she's bad at magic."
Agnès frets again. "Edea, I never meant to imply-"
"You really think that Agnès?" Tiz says softly, his soft brown eyes filling with concern. Agnès averts her gaze, and something warm and unfamiliar curls in her stomach.
"N-No, not at all. Edea is exaggerating." Agnès murmurs.
"Are you sure?" His voice is kind and worried, and Agnès feels slightly embarrassed at his concern.
"Yes Tiz."
"Just to be clear, you think Agnès is just great, right Tiz?" Edea says. She props an elbow up on the armrest of her chair, and rests her head in that hand.
"Of course. She's amazing." Tiz says without hesitation, and not even a hint of sarcasm. There's a long silence, and Agnès fidgets in place, fighting down another blush. Tiz then belatedly adds. "Uh, her magic I mean."
"Sure, sure." Edea says. Her eyes move to Agnès, dancing with amusement. "See Agnès? You're amazing."
Agnès does not think she's much more prideful or vain now than she was before, she'd hope she's still humble, but her friends do tend to tease her for that humility a lot more than the nuns and pilgrims ever did, and Tiz always seems worried about her when she tries to be humble.
###
There are many things vestals do not do, for they must be pure of mind and utterly devoted to their holy crystal.
Vestals do not make friends. Vestals must be unattached, they cannot allow others to influence their thoughts and corrupt them. Even friends of good intention can be problematic, as there is no guarantee they are as pure as the vestal herself. Companions are sometimes necessary, of course, when the temple staff are not enough to deal with a problem and outside help must be relied upon, but friends are at risk of corrupting the vestal, and must be avoided.
Agnès is acutely aware just how miserably she has failed at avoiding attachments. She didn't even hold out a month before she started to consider Edea, Ringabel, and Tiz her friends, and unlike the other rules she can't say she regrets breaking this one all that much.
It took the others not an inconsiderable amount of effort to get through to her though. It took constant badgering before she was willing to sit down and share snacks with Edea, or listen to Ringabel explain some amusing entry he found in his journal, or just spend time with Tiz at all.
Well, maybe less so on that last one. Without distractions like special sword training or a magic journal, Tiz had plenty of free time at the start of their adventure, and would often sit nearby wherever she was.
A lost puppy is what Airy used to equate him to. In hindsight, Agnès would agree.
It was hard not to become fond of the others after she started to open up. Edea was determined, headstrong, and almost aggressively friendly at times. Agnès distinctly remembers Edea dragging her along to a restaurant back when Agnès wasn't so sure she should have friends, and heaping food onto Agnès' plate that Agnès absolutely didn't end up eating most of, all while talking her ear off about how annoying Ringabel was and how at least she can eat her food in good company and so on and so forth.
Agnès was mostly just baffled by the end of the meal. Going out with a friend wasn't something she'd ever done, and it was a bizarre experience to have someone vent to her for an hour while stuffing their face with food. It took several of these outings before Agnès realized they could actually converse and that Edea didn't mind being interrupted.
Ringabel was odd. She'd expected him to be pushy or uncomfortably forward, but he wasn't. He never was. Beyond an occasional wink and suggestion to get a drink or a meal, he was much more interested in probing her about what she knew about the crystals and crystalism, and would offer up important tidbits from his journal in return. Even on the occasion she accepted his suggestions to a meal or drink, he was never flirtatious. In fact, he was downright professionally polite whenever he dealt with her one-on-one. It was jarring sometimes how much he'd change when anyone else was present, be that a stranger or one of their other companions. The seriousness would drop to an easy grin and almost pompous arrogance, neither of which was untrue to himself, but was never directed her way.
In hindsight, Agnès understands Ringabel saw her as someone who could be used to confirm many important facts in his journal, and so made absolute sure to keep on her good side while he verified all that information. It was only after she'd start to open up that they truly forged any connection beyond mutual professional interest.
Ringabel could, and can, be quite calculating when he wants to.
And Tiz. In some ways, very little has changed between them. He gravitates to her company by default, and over time she's come to do the same. There's few notable events like with Edea and Ringabel. No dragging her to a restaurant or probing her for information. Dealing with Tiz has always been about the thousand small things rather than the big events. He didn't drag her restaurants, and he only asked a few questions here and there. He was polite, he was the first to offer her help with anything she needed such as showing her how to set up a tent or start a campfire, he would repair her clothes when they got damaged by travel or battle and eventually taught her how to do it herself, he always made sure to accommodate her vegetarian diet even when it was impractical for what he was otherwise cooking (and he did most of the cooking when they were travelling, because he was by far the best at it), and a thousand other small things that slowly ingratiated him to her.
Almost all the practical skills she learned when travelling, she learned from Tiz. Edea taught her to fight, and Ringabel taught her to be shrewd, but Tiz taught her how to live in a world she was unfamiliar with. A world where she had to do more than pray, and a world where she couldn't rely on nuns to handle all other matters.
Tiz was, and is, much less effort to interact with than the others. Edea is always moving, and Ringabel is always talking, but Tiz is calm. If he moves, it's steady and not rushed. If he talks, it's usually out of concern or to convey some information to her. There's no pressure when dealing with Tiz, and there's nothing to keep up with or keep track of if she doesn't want to. With Tiz, a walk to see the town is just a walk to see the town, not a chance for an extended talk about crystalism's core beliefs or an unplanned exploration of the town's restaurants and shops.
Not to say she dislikes Edea and Ringabel, but they take much more effort to interact with and can be quite exhausting. Tiz's presence is not a constant draw on her energy. Sometimes it's a draw on her attention, but not on her energy.
A vestal is not supposed to have friends. Agnès can't say she's unhappy to have broken that rule.
###
There are many things vestals do not do, for they must be pure of mind and utterly devoted to their holy crystal.
Vestals do not, under any circumstance, consume alcohol.
"What did you do Ringabel!?" Edea hisses as she supports Agnès, one of the vestal's arms being slung over her shoulder as Edea helps the girl to walk.
"I swear this wasn't on purpose!" The man whispers back, similarly supporting Agnès on the other side. "I offered her a sip of vodka, and she enjoyed it, so she asked for more. I didn't know she was going to pour and drink a whole glass when I went to the restroom!"
"How was she supposed to know you take vodka in shot glasses? She's lived her whole life in a temple, she probably didn't even know what vodka was, much less that it's alcoholic!" Edea hisses back. She takes a breath, then sighs. "She didn't even ask what you were drinking?"
"Of course she did. She asked if it was beer, and I said no."
"Ringabel!"
"What!? It's not!"
"That's her way of asking if it's alcohol! She probably only knows about beer having this sort of effect!"
"How was I supposed to know that!?"
"I don't know. Your journal? Common sense?" Edea growls. "The fact that vestals don't drink, so it should be obvious?"
"Can you both not talk so loudly?" Agnès whispers. Her voice is slurred and quiet. "I'm feeling quite under the weather…"
"It's alright Agnès, we're bringing you back to the inn." Edea murmurs gently.
"Oh no, you can't." Agnès protests. "Everyone was supposed to meet in the tavern! There's a celebration, I don't want to ruin it."
"You won't, Agnès. Ringabel already did." Edea says, glaring at Ringabel as she says it. The man winces and looks away.
"Did… did he get slapped?" Agnès asks in concern.
"Not yet." Edea growls. "But good idea."
"I'm sorry, all right?" Ringabel says weakly.
"Did we leave Tiz?" Agnès asks. She tries to look around, and that only makes her stumble and forces Edea and Ringabel to stop and balance themselves. Agnès' voice suddenly raises. "Tiz? Tiiiz!?"
"Shhh, Agnès, shhh." Edea whispers frantically. "Don't be so loud!"
"We'll probably run into him on the way back." Ringabel reassures. "He hadn't arrived when we left."
"Oh." Agnès says, blinking slowly. "He's okay?"
"Of course he is Agnès." Ringabel says, and pats the vestal on her back. "Healthy as can be."
"Good." Agnès mumbles. "He always looks so sad…"
Edea and Ringabel share a look. They didn't know that. Had Agnès noticed something they hadn't? Edea is the one to ask. "What do you mean Agnès?"
"So sad…" Agnès says vaguely. Tears prick the corners of her eyes. "And he won't say why. Can I not be trusted? Did I do something?"
"Hey hey hey! No crying!" Edea says frantically. "You didn't do anything Agnès. Nothing at all!"
"I didn't even try!" Agnès bemoans.
"That's not it!" Edea says. "Ringabel, do something!"
"What do you expect me to do?" Ringabel whispers back. "Erm, don't cry lady vestal! It is not our place to pry into our friend's affairs. Simply being available to help is all that can be asked, so dry the tears, won't you?"
Agnès sniffs and nods. Resolve hardens on her very red face for a few seconds before something else completely distracts her. "Tiz!"
It is indeed Tiz. He looks very concerned to see Edea and Ringabel all but carrying Agnès down the street.
At least, they're trying to carry her. Agnès is struggling against their grip, and eventually manages to get free, breaking into a stumbling run vaguely in Tiz's direction, though she quickly goes careening off to the side because of the alcohol obliterating her balance, and Tiz has to lunge forward to grab her so she doesn't smack into a building.
"Careful Agnès." He says, keeping one hand on Agnès' waist and one on her back to keep her steady. She leans into him heavily, grabbing tight fistfuls of his shirt to steady herself. "What happened? Why are you drunk?"
"I am not." Agnès says. Her eyes have to take a moment to properly focus on Tiz's, and she sways on her feet, only kept up by Tiz's grip. "I feel a bit under the weather, but I am not drunk."
Tiz glances at Edea. Edea shakes her head and jabs her thumb at a sheepish Ringabel. Tiz gives the older boy a disappointed look, and Ringabel grimaces in apology.
"Did you accept something from Ringabel?" Tiz asks softly. "A gift for your birthday maybe?" That's what the celebration was going to be for in the first place. A taven wasn't the ideal place, but it was the only thing that could pass as a restaurant in the town.
"He offered to let me try his drink." Agnès says, and then, with conviction: "Do not worry. It wasn't beer."
Edea mouths "vodka" at Tiz. Tiz's eyes narrow, and Ringabel sweats.
"Ringabel would not try and give me beer, Tiz." Agnès scolds. "He's our friend."
Ringabel hides his face in his hands while both Edea and Tiz glare at him.
"Agnès." Tiz says gently, when he returns his attention to her. "Vodka is alcohol too. Think beer but stronger."
"That... " Agnès blinks slowly. Her brow furrows. "Unacceptable."
"Yes." Tiz agrees. "But it's done now, and we have to deal with it. We should get you back to the inn. Lean on me, alright Agnès?"
"Unacceptable!" Agnès repeats. She tries to push away, but forgets to release Tiz's shirt, resulting in absolutely nothing happening. It wouldn't have worked even if she had, because Tiz hasn't released his own grip. "I can handle myself. I must. For a vestal to be seen unable to walk on her own like a drunkard would be… be..."
"Unacceptable?" Tiz prompts.
"Yes! Unacceptable!" Agnès nods, the motion of which smacks her forehead into Tiz's chest. "Ow…"
"Maybe I should just carry you Agnès."
"Unacceptable!" Agnès gasps. "Tiz! That's indecent!"
"Agnès…" Tiz says pleadingly, his cheeks going a bit red.
"Just go along with it Agnès." Edea says. "It's your birthday, right? Tiz is trying to give you a birthday gift."
Tiz looks utterly confused, but doesn't comment. He hopes Edea knows what she's doing.
"A gift?" Agnès blinks. "Oh, it is my birthday, isn't it?"
"Yeah, and for your birthday, Tiz will carry you." Edea says, as if talking to a child. "You wouldn't want to turn down a gift from Tiz, right?"
"No, no, of course not." Agnès murmurs. She blinks slowly, tiredly. "Not from Tiz."
"Then let him carry you, alright?"
"But it will be indecent." Agnès protests weakly.
"You don't trust Tiz?" Edea asks.
"Of course I do. Others will think he's being indecent. I don't want to do that to him." Agnès says firmly. "I won't sully his reputation."
Edea rolls her eyes to the sky. Maybe Ringabel would get a bad rep if he got seen carrying around Agnès while she was drunk, but certainly not Tiz. "Don't worry Agnès. No one will see but the innkeeper, and we'll explain what happened to him."
"Promise?"
"Promise." Edea says, and nods for Tiz to pick her up.
Tiz cautiously brings an arm down to Agnès' legs and scoops her off the ground, taking great care not to hold her too closely to himself for fear of that accusation of indecency. That quickly goes out the window when Agnès squirms, and Tiz has to hold her close so he doesn't drop her.
Sometime between Tiz picking her up and getting back to the inn, resting her head against Tiz's warm chest, Agnès falls asleep. She wakes up the next morning with an intense headache when Edea brings a plate of food and a glass of water into her room.
Vestals should not, ever, under any circumstance, consume alcohol. Agnès will defend that statement with her life, if only to save herself from more embarrassment and more headaches in the future. Edea didn't stop teasing her for weeks about how she all but ran to Tiz, even though two of her friends were already helping her walk.
Agnès furiously denies having a preference for any of her friends. Edea is entirely unconvinced.
###
There are many things vestals do not do, for they must be pure of mind and utterly devoted to their holy crystal.
Vestals do not dream of shepherds.
It was going to be a bad day right from the start. Sure, the sun was high in the sky, and not a cloud was in sight, but the group had to travel through Miasma woods. Woods were already problematic as they were, what with all the roots and rocks and monsters, but the Miasma Woods had the added joy of having pools of poisonous liquid scattered about and a thoroughly unpleasant stench permeating the entire place.
Edea is in the lead, with Ringabel behind her, Tiz behind him, and Agnès bringing up the rear. The group has long since lost the path and were blindly heading southwest, hoping to eventually exit the woods and not run into one of the mountains nearby.
Everything that could have gotten in their way that day made sure to do so.
It started bright and early, with a long, tedious trek through a massive patch of brambles. Edea and Ringabel cut a path as best they can, but Agnès' wide dress inevitably gets caught on the thorns around them multiple times, giving the garment multiple tears and holes by the time the group slashes their way out.
"I'll repair the tears later, Agnès." Tiz promises as he helps untangle the brim of her dress from yet another stray thorn. "I've got plenty of spare thread."
"I really can't ask you to do that."
"You don't have to. I'm offering." Tiz says. He manages to pull the thorny branch off of her, and winces when one of the slim thorns manages to puncture through his thick glove. Agnès quickly flicks a weak healing spell at him. That's overkill for such a tiny injury, but Agnès doesn't like the idea that he was hurt helping her because of something stupid like the lower portion of her dress being too big. "You only have to accept."
"Then I accept." Agnès murmurs. "Thank you, Tiz."
It's very kind of him to offer. He's been teaching her how to sew lately, but Agnès won't pretend she's very good at it. It's probably best he handles any important repairs.
Brambles are hardly the only hurdle that the group comes across. Within the hour, after weaving around a poisonous puddle so large it seemed more like a small lake, the group had another challenge.
"So, are we going around?" Ringabel asks, tapping his chin as he stares at the wall of rock and dirt. "I would hate to dirty my coat."
"Of course we're not. That's going to waste even more time." Edea huffs. "It's not that steep, we can walk up it."
"And slip on the first loose rock or dirt we chance upon." Ringabel points out. "Give a thought to our safety and not just our speed, dear Edea."
"Give a thought to your own and just try calling me 'dear' one more time." Edea shoots back. "It's not that bad. There are plenty of handholds. Roots, rocks, it'll be fine. I'll even go first."
"And inevitably kick dirt into the face of whoever is behind you? I think not." Ringabel tuts. "Tiz is the most sure-footed, he should go first, and Agnès beside him in case she needs help. You can bring up the rear with me, dear."
Edea promptly punches him in the shoulder. She doesn't argue with his point though.
Agnès quickly discovers that climbing is not something she is good at, and something her dress once again does not help with. She has to awkwardly swing her feet around when climbing so her boots don't catch on the inside of her dress, and the mostly white fabric catches every possible dirt stain it can.
"Ringabel, you better not be doing what I think you're doing!" Edea growls below her.
"I have to look where I'm climbing, don't I?" The man replies, sounding somewhat offended.
"Mrgrgr…"
It takes a second before Agnès understands what Edea is warning Ringabel off doing. The climb isn't quite vertical, but it is very steep, and since Ringabel is right behind her and her dress naturally flares quite wide… well…
Today truly is a terrible day.
"Besides, I'm in no rush to offend the lady vestal." Ringabel huffs. "I do actually value my friends' opinions of me, believe it or not."
"You'd better." Edea mutters.
Agnès is distracted listening to the conversation, and thoroughly embarrassed by it, and is distracted enough that her hand doesn't quite grab the next handhold, and her foot (which had risen off its perch in anticipation of finding the next, with that that hand to pull herself up) fails to find the hold it had just left. Yelps as she slips, face almost smacking into the stony incline as she scrambles for purchase, until something grabs her by her collar and holds firm, giving her just enough support to plant her feet and find new handholds.
Agnès looks up to see Tiz precariously bending sideways above her. He's awkwardly leaning to the side, both arms fully extended in opposite directions as he keeps his own handhold with his left hand while holding her collar with the right. It does not look like a comfortable position at all, much less when taking into account that he had to support most of her weight in one hand while in that awkward position.
Both of them speak at the same time.
"Are you-"
"I'm-"
They both pause. Tiz releases her collar, seeing as she's found her handholds again. Agnès clings to the wall, suddenly missing the security of his grip.
"Be careful." Tiz murmurs. "Take it slow if you have to."
"Yes." Agnès mumbles back, thoroughly embarrassed to have been saved. She's keenly aware of Edea and Ringabel's eyes and ears being trained on her. "Th-Thank you."
Agnès climbs much more slowly than before, now scared of slipping and sliding down the rocky incline and severely injuring herself in the process. She keeps her eyes fixed on the slope, only shooting an occasional glance upward when she feels particularly secure in her grip and she often meets Tiz's watchful eyes when she does so.
The slope is annoyingly tall, and it takes a full half an hour of slow climbing to get up. When Tiz finally gets to the top of the slope, he turns around, crouches on the lip, and extends a hand to help Agnès up. She takes it without hesitation. An immediate sense of security and relief rushes over her upon feeling the pressure of his glove around her own, and she eagerly tightens her grip and allows Tiz to pull her up the last few feet of the slope.
Agnès is perhaps a bit too hasty in her climb, because her foot slips on the last step, and Tiz quickly wraps his other hand around her waist to stop her from falling, pulling her against him for safety.
It's a practical move, absolutely, but Agnès' breath still catches in her throat. The two of them are nose to nose and chest to chest. Tiz's arm remains around her waist to keep her close and the rest of him keeps them anchored in place, firm and steady and reliable, like Tiz has always been.
Agnès is only minorly aware that she's gripping his shirt with her one free hand, and that neither of them has moved to separate despite being in this position for a solid few seconds now. They both stare at each other, and Agnès silently marvels at his lovely brown eyes and-
"I'd like to get up now thank you!" Ringabel interrupts. "You two are plenty capable of making doe eyes at each other when I'm not clinging to the side of a gully."
Agnès and Tiz flinch apart, disentangling their hands as a flush crosses both of their faces. Agnès meticulously brushes off her dress while Tiz helps Ringabel and Edea up the last feets, trying to distract herself from what just happened.
Vestals do not stare into a shepherd's eyes, nor marvel at how firm and reassuring they are to touch.
"You just had to ruin it, huh Ringabel?" Edea complains when Tiz helps her up.
"My arms were getting tired." Ringabel protests. "I wasn't going to wait until they gave out."
"You could have waited two minutes." Edea huffs. "They were having a moment."
"W-We were not!" Agnès squeaks. "Thank you, Ringabel, for speaking up."
"Denial isn't a good look on you, lady vestal." Ringabel tuts. He then leans over to catch his breath. "I apologize, but my arms really are tired. Might we rest a moment?"
That's not the end of the problems they encountered either. There was one more problem, or, rather, one more notable problem and many small ones surrounding it.
Alraunes, as it turns out, don't like people walking through the heart of their territory.
Edea has taken the lead once more, so she takes the brunt of the alraunes' attacks as the little plant monsters pop out of the ground and spit their paralyzing pollen at the group. Edea burns through their supply of remedies in an effort to fight the paralysis, all while slashing at the little plants with her katana.
Agnès finds an easy use for herself, attacking with fire or healing as necessary during the fights. Ringabel does a mixture of things, also opting for fire most of the time but supplementing his magic with sword strikes. Tiz mostly doesn't fight, having the monk asterisk currently equipped, as attempting to punch alraunes is a great way to get paralyzing pollen to the face or get cut by the thorns found all over the plants' bodies.
It's not a massive problem, at least, not until they find their way into the center of a small dirt bowl and two dozen of the little monsters pop out of the ground at once, all around them.
The wave of pollen that envelops the group is stifling. Agnès can feel her limbs locking, and she falls to the dirt in a moment. Ringabel follows soon after, but Tiz and Edea remain standing. With their quick reflexes, they both managed to stuff a remedy in their mouths as the pollen hit, allowing them to stave off the paralysis.
Still, half their party is down, and the alraunes capitalize by rushing them in a giant mob.
Edea brandishes her katana, standing over the downed Ringabel. She makes wide, sweeping cuts to keep the plant monsters at bay. Tiz has no such weapon, and so has no such luxury, and so has to resort to the much less pleasant and less effective defence of punching with his gloved fists. A defence that gets those gloves punctured by spines, and has blood leak from his hands as he tries to punt the plants away from Agnès.
Several times Tiz tries to reach into his pack to grab a remedy, but the overwhelming number of alraunes force a constant offence from him. It becomes clear rather quickly that he won't manage for much longer if he doesn't run, and Agnès would plead with him to do so if she could, but Tiz has another much more foolish plan.
Tiz abandons all offence, instead dropping down and curling his body around Agnès while rifling through his pack one-handed and pulling out a remedy. The alraunes lunge and stab at his curled form with their spikes, littering him with wounds as he pushes the remedy pill past Agnès' unresponsive lips, and then manually closes her mouth, forcing her teeth to puncture the capsule and release the medicine inside.
Most of the medicine in the remedy doesn't work if the patient doesn't swallow, but the medicine for curing paralysis is fully capable of soaking into the skin around Agnès' mouth, allowing her to swallow the rest of the pill and get it's normal effects. Agency returns to her unresponsive limbs, and fire quickly flashes from her palms as she blasts the spell out to her sides, trying to clear the crowd of plants.
Tiz rolls off her, looking absolutely horrible with how many cuts now litter his back and arms. Agnès can't cast a healing spell fast enough and slams him with cura, wiping those bloody cuts and holes from his body in an instant with overwhelming magical power. She then turns on the alraunes with a vengeance, scrubbing the dirt clean of them with waves of angry fire that burns both them and their attempted pollen-based retribution.
Thankfully, a dozen alraune are just as susceptible to fire as two or three, and they all burn just the same. Within a minute Agnès has cleansed the area of alraune, as well as any other unfortunate small plants, with angry flames born of worry. With their foes well and truly gone, Edea quickly feeds Ringabel a remedy while Agnès whirls on Tiz.
Tiz speaks before she can. "Agnès! Are you alright!?"
Agnès is almost offended that he's asking her that. She's not the one who let herself get torn to pieces acting as a meat-shield so she could revive her friend in the hope that they could save her. "Yes, I am, but are you alright? You had so many cuts…"
"Your magic patched me up just fine." Tiz reassures.
That doesn't make her feel much better. "You shouldn't be so reckless."
Tiz frowns. "But then they'd have gotten to you."
Her heart skips a beat, but Agnès holds to her argument. "I am not so frail that I cannot take a cut or two. I'd just as soon never see you so injured again, Tiz."
"Sorry for worrying you Agnès." Tiz says apologetically. Agnès doesn't miss that he never actually agreed not to do it again. "I didn't want you to get hurt. I wasn't thinking."
Vestals do not dream of gallant, foolish shepherds, and the proclamations of care and protection that cross their lips without restraint or a hint of insincerity, and their selfless sacrifices for the protection of others.
With his shirt torn to shreds, Tiz removes it when they make camp so he can repair it. Agnès does a very poor job of not staring at his bare back and arms while he works.
Vestals do not dream of shepherds, and certainly not of shirtless shepherds. At this, Agnès fails miserably, and often, and while she is thoroughly embarrassed by her own interest sometimes, she can't quite bring herself to regret it.
As with many of the things I write, I'd love to see this idea taken up by someone more skilled than me, because I know the way I write these characters is a bit off at the best of times. They're too nuanced for me. I'm used to writing Fire Emblem where you can sum up a character's personality in one sentence.