(Takes place between the stories Song of Oblivion, Wings of Hope and Answers of Divine Light. So if you haven't read them, please do so if you wish to understand what's going on :)
Alphinaud had just returned from another meeting with the leaders of the Grand Company of Eorzea, whom still had several important questions to ask of everything that happened during the final battle. By the time that he finished speaking with them all on the events that resulted in Etheirys's salvation, he was exhausted and looking forward to getting some rest when he returned to Sharlayan.
Though he suspected it may be some time before all the remaining blasphemies be rounded up and slain, he was pleased to say that things seemed to be returning to normal. Hopefully, in a few weeks' time, this will all seem as a bad dream.
Upon his return to the Annex, he had heard from Tataru that Alisaie was also here and had since locked herself up in her room with some kind of project. Curious, he decided to stop in just to see how she was fairing… yet when he knocked, he heard her calling out, "Go away! I'm busy!"
Unable to help himself, he called, "Alisaie? It's me! I just wanted to talk with you?!"
"Fine! But make it quick!" she called in irritation before he entered and was met with a surprising sight. He found her sitting on the bed and surrounded by all manner of gears and cloth; causing him to look about in confusion as she seemed to be trying to put the pieces all together in a way that didn't look like she just smash it all into one and hope it didn't look terrible.
Too bad that was exactly what it looked like.
"Alisaie, what is all of this?" Alphinaud asked her as she seemed to be glaring at the book in her lap.
"Quiet!" she barked, her tongue between her teeth as she worked on trying to stitch some of the cloth together only to end up pricking her finger with the needle. "Owww! Damn! How does Tataru make it look so easy?" she questioned as she sucked on her finger.
"What are you trying to do?" Alphinaud asked with an exasperated laugh as he looked around at the supplies she was working with.
"I'm… I'm practicing," Alisaie said stubbornly, a little red creeping into her cheeks and ears as she paused in trying to get the little clockwork gears to fit together.
She didn't seem keen on discussing it, but he was now really curious as to what she was trying to accomplish. Though he asked, she didn't seem to want to delve into details as she told him to shut up and say what he wanted so that she could get back to work. Instead, he went the simpler route and just sat down while she glared at him, knowing that this was going to be a contest of wills if it came down to it. Knowing that his patience far outweighs hers and it was only a matter of time before she gave in.
She had put aside the needle, feeling that she was just making it worse and thought that she should get the body of her work finished, all the while trying to ignore him as he settled in his seat. But soon enough, he could see the mounting tension in his sister's face as her eyes would narrow when she glanced at him. He didn't speak though, just simply waiting as he pulled out one of the random books off the table and looked over it.
He was impressed that they went as long as they did, almost a whole bell, before Alisaie's patience was all but spent.
"Ok," she groaned out, clearly unable to take it anymore and just blurted out what the problem was. "It's just… Claire's been stuck inside for a long time now and I was thinking that I wanted to do something for her. And well, this came to my mind. I can do this! It's just… harder than I thought it would be."
"Oh, you thought to make something to cheer her up?" Alphinaud asked as he looked over the pieces and when he got a look at the title of the book she was flipping through, he felt that he understood what she was doing.
*Flashback to almost a week prior*
Alisaie was sitting upon the windowsill at the Bladesion Annex, trying not to show how worried she was as she glanced over at the bed where Claire was being examined once more.
The recent hero of the star was putting on a brave face but she couldn't hide the grimaces of pain as Y'shtola looked in upon her mostly healed wound with Alphinaud by her side.
"Has it gotten infected?" he asked worriedly.
"Doesn't look like it, more that it's just irritated from pushing herself before she was ready," Y'shtola said as she finished her examination, having pulled back part of Claire's shirt to see the red, angry skin from her scars.
"I'm here, and I could have told you all that," Claire said in an unusually bad mood.
"You did this to yourself," Y'shtola scolded, now tempted to just let her suffer a little bit so that she learns that she went ahead and risked herself for no reason. "I have no sympathy for you this time. You're just lucky that you didn't tear anything open but gods, the skin surrounding the scar is inflamed. Looks like we may have to add another day of bedrest and more medicine."
She waited, seemingly waiting to hear her complain about her medicine, but Claire seemed to know that she would be pushing her luck if she tried to fight her on this one. Yesterday, when Claire decided to venture outside without telling anyone, she ended up irritating the scar across her chest again. Not that she noticed when she fell asleep with the twins cuddled up next to her on the bed… only for them to awaken early the next morning when they heard her whimpering in pain and breaking into a cold sweat.
In fear, they called in Y'shtola in to make sure that nothing was seriously wrong.
When Claire didn't say anything, Y'shtola sighed again and told Alphinaud to get some water so that she could dab a special ointment to the skin that would help ease the pain. Alphinaud did what he was told as Alisaie got up to start preparing Claire's medicine for the day.
"Truly, I fail to see what was so important that you would go and risk your health and possibly a relapse so soon," Y'shtola scolded, like a mother telling off a misbehaving child for getting herself hurt by doing some stupid stunt. "Just what were you thinking going outside without telling any of us?"
"I told you," Claire said firmly. "I thought I saw something and I needed to make sure."
"Yes, but what did you think you saw?" Alisaie demanded a little angry, slamming the goblet down with a little more force than what was necessary. "What was so important that you wanted to leave your room?"
"Meteion," Claire said, realizing that she just couldn't keep this quiet any longer and, like she thought, the other three stopped whatever they were doing to stare at her.
"I didn't find anything," she added to the worry in their faces.
"You truly believe that you saw Meteion?" Alphinaud asked her as she sat up slowly.
"I don't know if I was just seeing things or not, but I could have sworn that I saw Meteion as the little blue bird flying past my window," Claire explained. She didn't need to go into more details than that, for everyone understood what she meant and all were thinking of the bird form that Meteion took while they were still in Ultima Thule. The three of them all looked at each other with worry.
She didn't need to be able to feel another's emotions to know just how worried they were about this possibility.
"Again, I know not if it was her, mayhaps it was just something I dreamt of, for I don't see how she could possibly be here," Claire added and that did seem to calm them. But they also knew that her instincts were rarely wrong, so their alert hadn't faded completely.
"If it puts your mind at ease, I shall call the others together and we shall scour the city while we go about our tasks," Y'shtola said, some of her disapproval fading. "But next time, you tell us your theory before running off like that. We could have helped search, if nothing else."
Claire looked a little angry, but nodded in agreement before she finally felt the wonderful relief of her pain being numbed and sat back while Y'shtola gave her strict instructions to the twins.
"I would normally tell you off for longer than this, but I have a feeling that taking your medicine will be enough to teach you a lesson," Y'shtola said knowingly and seemed to delight in Claire's clear unhappiness before she left the room, promising to call the others, leaving the three of them alone together.
There was silence as everyone seemed to be wondering what to say or do from here. Though they all believed that they didn't need to worry about Meteion anymore, but the very idea that she was still around was enough to cause concern.
"You just relax, let us take care of everything," Alphinaud said as Claire laid back down, suddenly feeling worn out despite having only woken up a little while ago. "I know that it's frustrating for you to be cooped up here, but your confinement is almost over. Just be patient until then, alright?"
She looked unhappy, but she nodded in understanding as Alisaie looked on a little sadly, her mind already working on some way that she could help out more.
*End of Flashback*
"Yes, well, I'm trying to be more helpful," Alisaie confessed in embarrassment. "But it's a lot harder than I thought it would be. After hearing all of her stories, I feel that I have a pretty good idea of how it's supposed to look… but I don't think I have this right…?"
She went back to trying to follow the instructions in the book, but the more that she tried to twist the pieces together, the more bent and stuck they became. After about ten minutes of pure frustration, she set it aside and began to go back to work in weaving together a kind of cloth to decorate the outside, but once again she ended up pricking her thumb the moment she tried to pull the thread.
"OUCH! Oh, who am I kidding?" Alisaie grumbled, finally tossing the needle down on the bedspread with frustration. "I can barely work with clay and this is a lot more complicated than mud."
Alphinaud did his best not to crack a smile at the memory of her disastrous attempt to mold a porxie from clay before and instead just patted her on the shoulder.
"Now, I'm sure that we can help out with this," he reassured her. "I know a little bit about mechanics as well as possessing an artist's eye. And I'm sure that the others would be more than happy to help out. Mayhap using some better materials…?"
"I'm just practicing with this," Alisaie tried to justify. "I really want to be the one to do this though… I feel that, even though it's not much, it's something I can do for her after all that she's done for me."
"I know the feeling all too well," he reassured her. "And that is why I also want to help. She is dear to me as well and I want to be able to gift her something to show her just how much we all appreciate her and that we all care for her worries. I'm sure if we mention this project to the others, they will be happy to lend us their expertise."
Alisaie was frowning at this and it was clear that while she greatly desired some help since she was just tormenting herself with these parts, she obviously had wanted to be the one to put it all together. Knowing that calling her out on her previous frustration wasn't going to win her over to his side, he just smiled and suggested, "How about we just tell the others about this and see what they have to offer? I'm sure that once you have a better idea of how it's all supposed to fit together, then it will be a lot smoother."
She glared at him, realizing at once what he was trying to do… but she could also see the wisdom in this since her only other choice was to sit here and with half bent materials. She sighed, accepting defeat, and muttered, "What do you have in mind?"
*The Day the Scions Broke Disbanded*
It was official.
This was the day that everyone both looked forward to and had been dreading. Most of the others had already left, already eager to begin their own adventures and to continue on the Scion's work in their own ways… leaving only the main group of Scions in the center of Mor Dhona before they parted ways for the foreseeable future.
Everyone talked, discussing where they were heading to next, and trying to delay the inevitable departure. But soon enough it got to the point that they were just finding excuses to stay and at last, they left in groups.
Estinien decided that he would accompany Y'shtola as far as Ishgard, planning to part ways with her once they reached the city proper. Once he got a good look around to make sure everything was still standing, he planned to take an airship directly to Thavnair from there. He did promise to check up on Ser Aymeric though before he left, apparently he had a 'parcel' for him that he wanted to drop off and Claire just smirked at that—suspecting that his promise of getting the Lord Commander a costume hadn't just been an idle threat.
As for Y'shtola, she was eager to begin her research and though she didn't have a clear idea how she would be able to discover a way to travel between shards, she at least had a few ideas in mind to where she could start such as probing the books in the Great Gubal Library. She also stated she wasn't sure if Master Matoya would be able to offer much in terms of advice since this was an unprecedented ambitious project, but she felt that she would keep the cankerous mage company for a couple days while she studied.
"Assuming that she first doesn't drive me crazy with making her tea, that is," Y'shtola added with a wave to them all as she and Estinien turned and headed off towards the northern exit. "So if you never hear from me again then either one or both of us has died in attempting to kill the other!"
Thancred, Urianger, G'raha, and Krile on the other hand all planned on heading to Limsa together and would take a ship back to Sharlayan before parting ways upon arrival. Claire waved them off, all of them smiling with both sadness and excitement for the future.
"Remember! Should you ever need any of us for anything, or if you just need a travelling companion, don't hesitate to call on us!" G'raha called, his youthful face alight with joy.
"And that is totally not him asking for you to come and rescue him from the mountain of paperwork he will be doing the next few weeks!" Krile added cheerfully and he jerked back from that.
"Krile!" he complained as Thancred laughed, also waving happily to her.
"But what he said!" he called as he gave Claire a friendly thumbs up. "Take care and see you again soon!"
Claire just smiled and nodded, still waving until they had passed through the gates and were out of sight. How many times did she walk through those same gates? How many times did she come through here on her way to the Rising Stones? It was going to feel strange not having to report in so often… in fact, she had a feeling she will have rare occasion to come here… at least for a time.
Also, Claire had to admit that it was a lot harder than she first thought, watching them all leave one by one… until she was left alone with the twins. She slowly turned to them, and she could see the apprehensive ways that they were fidgeting.
"You know…" Claire offered, "I… don't have any immediate plans… and I'm sure the stables could look after Huginn and Muninn for me for a little longer. So… how about I accompany you two… mayhap as far as Ala Mhigo?"
Relief broke across their faces and the twins immediately took her up on her offer before they went about shopping around the markets to look for various items for their other friends they met in Garlemald. Most of their gifts were of warm clothes, medicines, and blankets… which Claire asked how they were paying for all of them since they no longer had access to the Scions funds.
"Don't worry, we're buying them from our own pockets," Alisaie reassured her. "The Leveilleur fortune was vastly depleted while working on the Ragnarok but we were able to make a decent amount from our moons working here as would-be adventurers. Had to make a living somehow after father 'disowned' us from before."
"How are things between you and your father?" Claire asked curiously as she watched them tuck all their purchases in their bags.
"Good, better than good in fact… I feel that we are able to really connect with Father in a way that I didn't know was possible," Alphinaud said with a smile. "I feel that we all understand each other so much better now. Not that we weren't always like that, but it's… different now. In a way, it's like all the burdens he had on his mind have been lifted and he's more eager to look forward and see something good than dread to what will come on the morrow."
Claire was truly gladdened to hear all that as the two were ready to leave and they stepped outside the gates together. They would take road down south towards Gridania before traveling east towards Ala Mhigo to take the airship stationed there towards Garlemald.
As such, she let them do most of the talking, and they were eager to explain some of the ways that they thought up to help bring the relief effort to the people of Garlemald. Of all that they could learn from them and teach in return… Alisaie was particularly eager to introduce the idea of magic being a good thing to the people there while Alphinaud couldn't wait to put all of his diplomacy skills to practice and help them come up with at least a temporary form of government to help stabilize the people until the rebuilding could begin work in earnest.
"Where they will go from here, I can't say… but I am hoping that when Garlemald does rebuild, it will be a new Garlemald that all will be welcomed to," Alphinaud confessed. "At least, that is what Jullus said and I think that with people like him helping with leading the effort, I don't think that it will be impossible."
"Will take a while though," Alisaie shrugged. "Gives me a headache just thinking of how much work will have to be done to turn that pile of ash and rubble into something resembling a city. But that's the thing about Garleans… they are a stubborn bunch if nothing else. Mayhaps Cid or some of the Ironworks will be able to return and help shape the nation? We should ask them when next we see them. What about Gaius? Did he say if he was planning to return to help?"
"Cid told me that he did speak with Gaius briefly when he saw him in Terncliff and asked him that very question," Alphinaud answered. "He said that he would help however he can from afar, but he didn't think that returning would be wise… at least not right away. He is focusing his efforts on the rebuilding of Werlyt right now… but I think that he will step in to help if we were to ask."
Claire smiled at that, having a good idea to why Gaius would be so eager to remain in Werlyt after they earned their own freedom. Hard to believe that this devoted fatherly man and the one she fought against with all of Eorzea nearly beneath his heel were one in the same?
"So, what about you?" Alisaie asked Claire, grabbing hold of her arm happily. "You will come to visit us? You did promise?"
"Of course," she answered knowingly. "There are a lot of things to look forward to and I'm eager to see how you both will change Garlemald for the better. How could I miss that?"
That seemed to cheer them both up greatly and she gazed at them fondly as they soon left the trees of the Black Shroud behind and were reaching the hot rocks of Gyr Albania. She remembered when she was on that ship when first coming to Limsa Lominsa… how the two of them were there in the cabin with her, though she didn't speak to either of them… in a way… it was strangely fitting that she part ways from the two of them here, at the end of this long, long journey.
She tried not to focus on that sad stuff and merely continued to listen to their plans, pointing out the many places they passed and reflected fondly on everything they had experienced before they finally arrived just outside the palace in the Ala Mhigan Quarter.
Clair had originally planned on leaving them here, but she cleared her throat and offered to go a little further north, just wanting to make sure that they reach their destination without incident.
"You think something will happen?" Alphinaud questioned in surprise.
"Well, the last time that I let you go off on your own on an airship, we found out that it went down in the Burn and didn't know if you were alright," she pointed out. Truthfully, she knew that the two of them would be fine, but they seemed to take her answer and eagerly pulled her on board the airship with them.
At this point, she was dimly aware that none of them wanted to say goodbye for it would truly mean the ending of this journey… a journey that she wasn't sure she was ready to leave behind yet either.
Rather than say anything, they changed into their warmer coats on the rest of the ride through the air, over the mountains even as a thick mist began to lay upon the snowy peaks. They were let down upon the very edge of the Magna Glacies, saying that it was often too dangerous to fly overhead and were instructed to let them walk the rest of the way, but Camp Broken Glass was up and running with warm heaters and fires so they will be able to shake off the cold once they got there.
Claire tugged her coat a little tighter around her, her body still a little bit on the weaker side since she couldn't fight off the cold that she normally could. She rubbed her cheek against the flurry collar of the coat and made a mental note to thank Tataru when she next saw her.
They began to walk the Glacies once more, unable to stop reminiscing when they first walked this road and the battle that had been waiting for them. She had learned that the Ilsabard Contingent was still hard at work with curing the many tempered souls here but they were making good progress. In a few weeks, they were confident that they would be able to finish up with all the souls that they had… though more were still pouring in almost every day.
Well, with the end of the Final Days… they had lots of time to be able to work on this.
They were walking along the frozen road, without any cold winds this time, with warm sunbeams peaking in and out from the thick clouds overhead. It felt that maybe summer would still come to these frozen lands after all… she hoped so because the people could use a break from the constant freeze.
But soon enough, she spotted the very faint outline of the buildings of Camp Broken Glass in the distance and knew that this was it.
"Well," she said, finally stopping, the ground continuing to crack underneath her feet. "I think that the two of you will be just fine on your own from here. So, I guess this will be where I take my leave of you."
"W-Wait, what?" Alisaie gasped in surprise. "I mean, don't you want to see Lucia and Maxima real quick? We can go a little further…?"
Claire just gave her a tender look and pointed out, "Will that make saying goodbye any easier? If anything, it might make it harder."
Alisaie lowered her head, secretly knowing that she was right, but didn't want to admit to it.
Alphinaud cleared his throat and slowly nodded again in agreement.
"Well, in that case… thank you for accompanying us," he told her, his eyes shining as he looked at her so fondly that it made her heart melt at the sight. "And not just for this journey… but for every step of the way since the day we met. I promise that we will do you and the others proud in these following days. And we'll write as often as we can… though it might take a while for the moogles to find you…?"
"Yeah, sometimes tracking you down is so difficult," Alisaie sighed. "I feel that I should just get a map and throw a dart at it and try my luck where it lands with how often you wander. Not to mention that you have a talent for going to places that most cannot go? Like the First… the moon… the ancient past…? Just to name a few."
Claire laughed and instead told them to just send the letters to her home in the Lavender Beds—the two of them knew the place well after spending so much time there with her themselves—and she would be wishing them nothing but good fortunes here.
She turned to leave, but as she did, Alisaie cried out, "Wait!"
Claire looked back as Alisaie was now rummaging through her bag for something.
"I-I wanted… I mean… what I'm trying to say is…? I meant to give this to you before we left the Rising Stones…? But I just…?" she stuttered, wanting to say something but she seemed completely unable to string more than a few words together.
"What my sister means is that we prepared a gift for you before you go," Alphinaud said and Alisaie threw him a dark look.
"A gift?" Claire repeated in surprise. "You didn't have to…?"
"We know that," Alisaie went on, finally finding her tongue. "But… we wanted to."
So she pulled out the little green box with the red ribbon and held it out to her. It was a decent size and Claire took it curiously and opened it up. What was inside caused her eyes to widen in shock and she stared at them as they smiled back nervously.
"Alisaie had the idea, but everyone pitched in to help," Alphinaud explained. "Estinien was able to hunt down some materials we needed and since Thancred has some experience with mechanics, he was able to help put the clockwork pieces together for us. Y'shtola and Urianger helped to put a little magic into it to make sure that it's durable and that you don't need to worry about it breaking. While Krile and G'raha provided the mammet heart by using a piece of the crystal tower to be able to give it the magick it needed… which left Alisaie and I worked on putting it all together and more of an artist final touch upon it."
Claire only took the doll out of the box and knelt down while staring at the minion with wide eyes before looking up to them and seemed too stunned to speak. She had plenty of such wind-up minions that followed her around, but there was no mistaking this one.
"We just took your description from your stories and did our best to copy it," Alphinaud said as the wind-up Venat was fully activated and began to move about.
"We know that you wish for a chance to talk to her again and while it's not the same, it's like she can still be here watching over you," Alphinaud said, his face turning red from something other than the cold.
"I don't know what to say…" Claire whispered before looking up at them and gave a faint smile. "But… thank you. Thank you so much."
As hard as it was to say goodbye to the others, it was especially tough to say goodbye to these two. Now more than ever with such a thoughtful gift that they clearly put a lot of time and effort into building.
After all that they've been through together, she just couldn't imagine them not being a part of her story from this moment forward. But, perhaps some time on their own adventures would be good for them all.
"I promise to treasure it. So… you don't need to worry about me. Because this is not goodbye… it's see you soon," Claire promised them and held out her arms as they both ran forward and hugged her so tightly that one would think they were trying to crack her ribs.
"You promise me to take care of yourself!" Alisaie scolded her, her face buried in Claire's coat. "Just because we're not going to be there all the time doesn't excuse you if you get hurt or something!"
"And if you need help with anything, anything at all, please don't hesitate to call on us," Alphinaud added, his arms shaking slightly.
Claire just hugged them both back, her heart aching a little at the thought of parting after everything that happened. But she would know where they were and promised them both that she would take it easy and would visit as often as she could.
They pulled away, both of them smiling sadly, but there was something new there, a sense of eagerness for the two of them to prove just how ready they were to finally leave her care. Though neither of them said it, they followed after her since the very beginning. The Warrior of Light acting as both shield and sword against the hardships that threatened to overwhelm them. But they always secretly wished that they would one day grow strong enough to walk by her side rather than walk behind her.
Now was the time to prove how far they came and take all they learned from her examples and set out.
As for Claire, she felt that this departure was so much more heavy than all her many other partings. But she wasn't worried. Not this time. Besides, she knew they had each other to look after and would call on her should they truly have need… at least, she hoped that they will.
That was when she did something odd, at least to the twin's eyes.
Claire placed her hand over her heart before releasing her hand. It was a parting gesture of her homeland… she remembered how the elders used to tell her how her mother had been fond of using it whenever her father would leave on his journeys though she never really thought of using it until now. By placing your hand over your heart and then releasing your hand, it was another way of saying 'go with my love'.
"Don't say that we have come now to an end… for we will meet again," she promised them.
They left, both of them waving merrily and she waved back, now feeling a little… lonely at the sight of them heading away. She didn't move from this spot yet though… even as they were just two tiny pinpricks in the distance and the winds began to kick up a bit as the little Venat minion remained at her side the entire time.
At last, Claire turned around and began to walk in the opposite direction of the twins, the little minion following after her on her heels. Her mind drifting back to the first time she saw them on the ship to Eorzea.
How long ago that was…?
At first, it started off as a new adventure… everything was different and exciting. Even after discovering she had the Echo and was granted her first Crystal of Light… they were both a blessing.
Eventually, she found herself with countless souls depending on her. Constantly pushing her forward as they pointed to a new foe to face, a new enemy, while the challenges grew ever more difficult. She would be forced to walk… with steel in her hand or a spell upon her lips… all the while her back became more and more bent beneath the ever increasing load. Her head down… more ragged and worn until she felt herself a weary traveler on the road.
Soon enough, her blessing transformed into more than that. Prayer… promises… whose weight could make anyone lose sight of the things that you held dear.
And those few times that she would be allowed to stop her wanderings… she would look down at her hands and see red splattered over them and down her front as she stood in a pool of blood… so much so that she knew she would never be able to wash herself clean.
And not just with the blood of her enemies… but of her friends… companions…?
She remembered Haurchefant laying there dying with a bloody smile… she remembered Papalymo as he faded in a burst of light… she remembered Ysayle shattered like diamond dust… how Minfilia sacrificed herself to bring hope… Moenbryda to simply fade before she even got the chance to really know her…?
Hythlodaeus… Hades… Venat…?
"Is it all worth it?" she could almost hear Fray's voice in her head.
"Take heart and protect them well," she then heard the memory of Vrtra add.
And so she would try her best. Even as she would continue forward by leaving a trail of blood behind her with a barrage of battered weapons upon the earth like graves.
Always at the end of every battle she has been forced to walk it till the end. Yet… she never gave up. She couldn't give up.
She thought of destroying the Ultima Weapon, of the dragons she had been forced to put down… all the while she was left to stumble away from the battlefield exhausted and beaten before being forced to head to the next fight. Beyond time… over worlds after wars that needed to be fought…?
She thought of the Exarch, before he lowered his hood to reveal the dear face of G'raha, his ruby eyes with warmth aglow… she thought of Ardbert, who would always stand at her side for the rest of her days… whose presence she felt within her even now.
The sound of fingers snapping caught her attention and she could see another figure in her mind's eye appear before her… holding out a hand with an expression that was both kind and sad… all the while the bright orange crystal glimmered in his palm like a miniature sun.
She pulled out the crystal of Azem and looked at it and wondered just what Emet-Selch thought of in those final moments? Was he relieved that it was over…? Or sad that he failed? As for the crystal, she noticed that the magicks didn't cause it to hum with power like it used to though she wasn't sure if that was because she used up so much aether to call her friends to her side in that last battle or if the magicks faded with the last trace of the ancient world.
Mayhaps it would continue to work or it wouldn't… she didn't know.
But at that, she imagined of all of her friends standing at her back, the warm glow brushing away the cold she felt as she clutched it tightly to her chest. She saw all of her friends and family waiting for her. The Scions, the Fortemps family, Ryne and Gaia, the Ironworks, so many people she couldn't really picture them all at once…?
She continued to stepp forward, and in her mind's eye she left the trail of blood behind her… her steps still bloody. All the while the little minion continued to follow and she paused before she picked up the toy in her hands. Claire smiled sadly at the bright blue eyes of the doll as she regretted not asking the one question that she wished that she had been able to when she last spoke with Venat.
"Though you have asked me this before… I believe that this question is better suited for you. Has your journey been worthwhile?" she asked the little doll as the minion gazed back.
"That's what I wanted to ask you… Venat," she asked, somehow hoping that Venat—the real one—could hear her. "Thank you for your sacrifices for our futures… I just… I want to thank you… for always believing the best in us…"
She hugged the doll to her, as if she were a little girl again and had found her favorite toy after it being lost for a long time.
"Either way, don't worry about us anymore. We will find our own way from here on out," she said, shutting her eyes as an image of Venat appeared in her mind again, and she asked once more, "So tell me this, has your journey been good?"
The Venat in her mind's eye blinked as she looked at her as if she had never been asked before and Claire had to wonder if anyone had. But at that thought came the memories she witnessed of Venat's suffering… the long road she had been forced to walk as she was filled with pain and leaving a trail of blood behind her as well…?
Yet, to her surprise, the Venat in her mind began to cry… she was smiling at her but there were still tears falling from her rosy cheeks.
Claire only smiled back as her eyes opened… suddenly understanding what Venat's answer would have been.
"I know," she said at last, letting out a single long sigh, feeling all of the tensions leaving her at once and a new lightness seemed to settle within her body as she took a strive forward. She had the blood of many on her hands and she had come to terms with that long ago. She couldn't change that even if she tried… but still, that didn't mean that she had to become someone like Zenos. She would carry all that she had learned and done with her and see what the next day brings.
One day she would be allowed to rest when she returned to the Star… and she would have to answer to all that she had done for both good and bad.
But she would face it head on when that day came.
Slight rays of sunshine seemed to shine through the clouds as the faint promise of spring around the corner seemed eager to come to these snow-swept lands.
Peace had come to the world for now yet she knew better than to think that weapons aren't needed anymore. Because somewhere along the way that was what she became. Yes, she was treasured and cared for by her friends and allies but she had still slain countless others before her. Whether she liked it or not… at some point she did become a weapon. But she embraced that thought this time around rather than shunned it… embrace the weapon not for her deadliness nor the glory that came with it… she loved only what weapons allowed her to defend.
Despite all that, she would take it a little easier for a while and see where that would lead her. For even when it felt as if hope faded into the world of shadows… the call of adventure was the one thing that kept her spirits up. And she suspected that no matter if that be in this life or any of her past lives as it was with Azem… or even any future incarnations… the love for something new was an instinct too strong to ever discard.
She and Venat had walked the road together since that day and though she couldn't always be there for her, she knew that Hydaelyn loved her all the same as well as all who had come before. She would remember. But not just Hydaelyn though. Hades… Hythlodaeus… Hermes and Meteion… all those she met when she traveled to the past…? She would remember that they all once lived.
Y'shtola said that she was planning on writing a book on her experiences and a part of her thought if she could do that herself. Her hand ran along the ever faithful journal in her bag and wondered…?
Well, in either case, she raised her head as the road seemed to stretch endlessly onwards at her feet and her heart seemed to skip at the wonder of what was waiting at the end of it. Though many would say that she had done enough for this world… she knew that she would continue to travel and fight for as long as she lived in this world. She would ride whatever storm was waiting for her until the very end.
Now that she had all that settled, she began to run openly with her laughter on the wind; eager to return to Mor Dhona to pick up her chocobos. Mayhaps tonight she would celebrate with a small campfire by Lake Silvertear before she ventured out into the world properly tomorrow? She had so much work to do though… and her mind was racing with all that she was free to do now so fast that she found herself torn on where to even begin.
All the while, her latest minion followed after her faithfully, as if it too was excited to see what the next adventure would bring.
(Awww, so that is the end of her journey but the start of a brand new one. I had thought about adding this since I had an idea of where we got the Argos Mount at the end of Endwalker, but we got the wind-up Venat minion as well. Besides, it seemed a nice way to really put this particular tale to an end and help Claire really have some closure. Also, if you're wondering about the hand gesture she did… I've been rewatching the Lord of the Rings and it was a parting move that I noticed that the Elves tended to do and to me it was as if they were letting them know that they were going with their love. I couldn't help but think of that when I was writing this scene and I just had to add it in. Anyway, this will be the last story for a little while, though I am still currently working on a four-chapter story involving some of the craziness that happened in Garlemald. I should get the first chapter out before 6.2 in a few days' time, but no way will I be able to finish it before then. That's fine, I do hope you are looking forward to it and are welcoming this final closure to Claire's journey… at least with this one. I'm sure that I will continue to write more stories in the future, but for now, I hope that this tides you all over. Until next time, thank you so much for reading!)