After The Sunset... by Leona Magnus aka Addea
Disclaimer: ToD, Rutee Katrea, Leon Magnus, Marian and the other characters belong to Namco and Mutsumi Inomata. They had never been mine even for just mere second. This fan fiction is meant for entertainment purposes only. Please don't sue...
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Rutee Katrea opened her eyes lazily. The laughter of children threatened to wake her up although her inner self told her not to wake up. It's as if something unusual was going to happen to her that day but she couldn't quite make out what it would be. She just... Well.. Felt it~ It had been a week since the world celebrated the downfall of the Aethereans and the Aethersphere. There were parties all around the world but no one realized that someone was hiding all of her grieves from being seen. Slowly, Rutee put on a black shirt and denim trousers with a blue denim jacket. She didn't have the heart to dress like she always did before (you know what I mean..).
Rutee had to smile as she saw the children laughing merrily and playing happily together. These children, like her, had grown up without their parents' love. That was one of the reasons why she could nicely put up with orphans. She walked slowly to the storeroom of the orphanage and observed around. Boxes of old junks could be seen. ' Atwight...' She suddenly remembered her faithful water elemental Swordian, Atwight, who sacrificed herself along with the other Swordians to save the world. Rutee looked at the empty sheath lying on the floor of the storeroom. It seemed to her that Atwight's last words echoed throughout the room. " I promised your mother to protect you. That's all Chris Katrea ever wanted. Learn by heart to always be true to yourself. Goodbye, Rutee..."
" Goodbye, Rutee..."
" Goodbye, Rutee..."
" Goodbye, Rutee..."
A part of her wanted to cry but... No! She can't cry! Rutee Katrea is known as a girl who never cries in Cresta. She couldn't cry... At least, not just then... Before feeling worse, she ran out of the storeroom and went to the shore northern of Cresta . No one but the seagulls was there. The seagulls flew away as she went nearer to them. She looked up, to the middle of the sea. Rutee suddenly realized that she should not have gone there. It made her feel even sicker. Not long ago, a small island stood in the middle of the sea. The island... It was the place where the previous crisis rose. It was also the place where Rutee knew who her little brother was and the place where her little brother died.
' If only I saved him from the flood and... Wait a second! What am I thinking? There's nothing left to be regretted. Get on with your life, Rutee Katrea Gilchrist!!!' Rutee scolded herself.. Gilchrist.... Yes, she's starting to use that name again. She's one of the Gilchrists anyway~ However, the main reason she wanted to use that name again was because she wanted her mother and father to be alive inside of her. She wanted to always remember them. 'Katrea' and 'Gilchrist'.... 'Chris' and 'Hugo'... Although she couldn't quite remember them, she loves them...
Rutee looked up to the sky... It's good to see the blue sky again, she thought. The second 'likely' Aeth'er War sure left a big mark inside everyone's hearts. They seemed to be more understanding on how important light is in their life. The nightmare was over and they would have to do their best to maintain the peace. Peace... Eternia was peaceful again. No more danger but a handful of not-too-dangerous monsters was left on the great land. " Huh..." Rutee sighed at nothing. Suddenly, she heard footsteps from behind of her. Rutee didn't have to turn around to know who was coming. She could feel the presence.
" Hello, Marian..." She said dully, without turning around. She could hear the owner of the footsteps sighing. " How did you know it's me?" The owner, Marian asked as she sat down beside Rutee. Rutee had to chuckle. That was quite a question. How did she know? " Well, Marian, I just know... Why are you in Cresta, anyway?"
" Looking for you."
" For me? Why?" Rutee looked dazed. She turned to look at the woman sitting on her left. Once again, Marian exhaled." If I tell you, would you try to believe me?" She asked. " I can't promise but I'll try. What do you want to tell me, Marian?"
" Well... Rutee, your brother Emilio...He.. He's alive." For a moment Marian had said it, Rutee felt like the time had stopped moving. Everything went slow and suddenly became meaningless to her. She couldn't believe what she just heard.
" Marian, you are kidding... Leon... I mean Emilio... Well... He's dead!" Rutee jumped up in disbelief. " Rutee, this matter is not a funny thing to be made into a joke. I'm not kidding. Emilio is alive and he's in Master Hugo's.. Er.. He's in your family's mansion."
" IT CAN'T BE! KRONOS ONCE RESURRECTED HIM AND I FOUGHT HIM IN DYCROFT! He.. He asked Stahn, Philia, Garr and I to kill him and WE DID KILL HIM! Emilio couldn't be alive, Marian. He's dead!" Rutee started to tremble. Even her voice shook.
" Rutee, Rutee... Calm down. How did you know it was the REAL EMILIO? Kronos was powerful, wasn't he? Maybe he just created an undead that looked like Emilio so that you guys would refuse to fight against his made creature. Or, he resurrected someone else and made him look like Emilio. Tell me, Rutee. What kind of weapon did the Emilio you fought used?"
Rutee pondered at the question for a while and then answered. " He used a sword but.." " But not Chaltier, right?" Marian cut her before she could finish her sentence. Rutee's eyes widened. Marian continued," That's because the Emilio in the mansion right now has Chaltier with him. Get a grip, Rutee. The real Emilio is breathing and alive!" A long silence took place between the two of them. Millions of questions ran through Rutee's mind. To believe or not... There's only one thing to decide the truth. Go and see for yourself, her practical side told her. Yes, that's right...
" Fine then, " Rutee broke the long silence. " I'm going to Darilsheid. Let's go, Marian." The wavy black haired woman smiled. She followed Rutee and made their way west to the capital of Seinegald, Darilsheid. Back to the mansion to reveal the truth, Rutee thought. They walked and walked without even uttering a word to each other. After fifteen minutes of walking, they reached Darilsheid. There weren't many people on the street. It's half past two in the evening and maybe the people were having lunch with their friends or family.
Rutee and Marian continued walking to the biggest mansion in Darilsheid, Hugo's Mansion. At first, Rutee hesitated to go inside but she agreed after Marian consoled her that everything would be fine. They went inside and heard footsteps. Rutee's eyes widened as she saw a young boy running down the stairs. " Marian! You're ba.... Back...." The boy also stopped as he saw Rutee. They looked at each other for a while. " Leon?" Rutee mouthed. They boy in front of her had the same amethyst eyes like her.. A familiar hairstyle... The same height... She could not believe her own eyes. What a miracle!! It's her brother, Emilio Katrea or rather known as Leon Magnus.
An annoyed yet sad look dawned upon Leon's face. He ran back upstairs and Rutee could hear him slammed the door behind him. " Emilio!!" Marian called after him but Leon didn't answer. " Please stay here for a while, Rutee. I'll talk to him." She ran upstairs to Leon's room and knocked the door. " Emilio, open the door. It's only me." No answer... She knocked the door again, harder." Emilio! Please!" That did it. Leon unlocked the door, letting Marian in and went to the window, staring out of it. " Why did you run away from her? Don't treat Rutee like this. She's your sister!"
" It's because she's my sister that I ran away from her!" Leon snapped. " What?" " Marian.. I ... I betrayed her! I wouldn't dare to see her again. She might... She must hate me very much now. Besides, I treated her badly when we were comrades. I could never make it up to her, Marian. I've done so many damn things to her and the others!"
" You're wrong, Emilio. She never did hate you."
" How did you know that?!"
" I still remember what she said to me when they saved me in Mikheil. She thought you were dead and said, ' Thank you for taking care of Leon, Marian. I thank you as his sister. I promised to avenge him no matter what.' She cares for you, Emilio!" Marian said, looking directly into the young man's eyes. Leon avoided her eyes and turned away. " I don't know why am I still alive, Marian," he began. " Mother died when I was still very young. And now, father is dead too. My sister might hate me. If it's not you, I would just kill myself now."
" You can't be more wrong, dear boy."
Marian and Leon turned around to see Rutee standing in the doorway. " Rutee?" Rutee made her way inside towards Leon. " You think the dead we have loved ever truly leave us? You think we don't recall them in times of trouble?" Rutee questioned. " What... What do you mean?" Leon was dazed. " You still didn't realize it? Mother and father are alive in you, like how they are alive in me."
" Eh?"
" Look in the mirror, Leon. You and I have mother's eyes. So, she's alive in us. Then, you and I share one same sword skill. We both can use father's sword skill. When we swing our swords, we'll recall him more clearly. For that, he's alive in us. How can you ever think they've truly left us?" Rutee had been right. Leon couldn't deny it. She continued, " Marian told me you think yourself as a victim of fate. You're not the only one, Leon. I am too. You lost your mother, I lost her too. You lost your father, I lost him too. You lived your life not normally, I was like that too. But you have Chaltier and Marian when I have nothing."
Leon bowed his head, looking at the floor. A long silence took part. The sun was setting and the sound of chirping birds could be heard. Rutee turned to Marian. " Marian, Emilio Katrea Gilchrist might still be alive but my brother Emilio is dead. The Emilio I knew always trusted himself, strong and never give up hope. The Emilio we both are facing now is just a weak person who claimed himself as the youngest master swordsman in Seinegald. We are facing the weak Sir Leon Magnus, not my brother Emilio.... Not..."
" Rutee..."
" The sun is setting. I can't stay here for long. No one needs me, here. I don't want to bother any of you nor I want Leon Magnus to call me *'onee-san'. Thank you for inviting me here, Marian. I'm leaving." Rutee bowed her head to Marian, went out, and closed the door. " Do you really want her to leave? Isn't this mansion also hers? Do you want her to not know her real brother well? Think about it, Emilio. You grew up with your father and the memories of your mother. But Rutee... Rutee grew up without even knowing where she belongs. Is it fair?"
Leon thought... Thought... And continued thinking...
* * * * * * * * * *
Rutee closed the front door of the mansion. Blank, was what she felt. She wished Atwight was there to comfort and console her. She took one last glance at the huge mansion and started walking away as the sky grew darker. " Wait!" She stopped. That voice... She turned around just to find Leon staring at her on the doorway of the mansion. He had a sad look on his face. " I.... I..." He stammered. " I... I'm sorry for everything! I knew I was wrong. Please forgive me!!" He pleaded. Rutee's shocked face turned into her smile. " You never did anything wrong to me. If you did, I've forgiven you long since," she simply said.
" If I let Leon Magnus go, would you stay here with Emilio? " Leon asked again. This time, Rutee blinked. Did the boy meant it? " Please say you'll stay. I promise to be good. We can change our family for the better. Mother and Father would want to see us live together under one roof like other families do, Rutee-neechan"
Family? Rutee-neechan? Leon called Rutee 'SISTER'! Rutee avoided Leon's gaze and walked to the gate of the mansion. " Please, Oneechan!" He thought Rutee was going to go away but to his surprise, Rutee shut the gate instead. She turned to look at him with a mild smile and said, " I'm home. What's for dinner, then?"
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
There was a silence between them...And...
After years of stopping himself from crying, Leon burst into tears as he ran towards Rutee and hugged her tightly. For the first time, Rutee felt her eyes filled with clear liquids. Tears... She closed her eyes and let her tears trickled down her face silently as her brother wept in her arms. The sky turned dark. Stars shone brightly on the darkness of the sky. What a day... A life changed after the sunset. Rutee kept repeating the same words as she hugged her little brother back.
' I'm home...'
' I'm home...'
' I'm home...'
For a moment, she thought she saw Chris and Hugo somewhere on the dark sky. They were smiling down to her and Leon. She smiled back and said in her heart. ' Mother ... Father... Emilio and I would try to bring the dignity of our family back. You can count on us and if you could... Please watch us.... From above...'
The next everyone on Eternia knew, Hugo's Mansion was filled with laughter and happiness all the year around.....
### Fin ###
*Oneesan/ Oneechan == Sister
Notes: Hah! That was quite a fic from me. It might sounds stupid,eh? Anyways~. Comments and flames are welcome^___^
Disclaimer: ToD, Rutee Katrea, Leon Magnus, Marian and the other characters belong to Namco and Mutsumi Inomata. They had never been mine even for just mere second. This fan fiction is meant for entertainment purposes only. Please don't sue...
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Rutee Katrea opened her eyes lazily. The laughter of children threatened to wake her up although her inner self told her not to wake up. It's as if something unusual was going to happen to her that day but she couldn't quite make out what it would be. She just... Well.. Felt it~ It had been a week since the world celebrated the downfall of the Aethereans and the Aethersphere. There were parties all around the world but no one realized that someone was hiding all of her grieves from being seen. Slowly, Rutee put on a black shirt and denim trousers with a blue denim jacket. She didn't have the heart to dress like she always did before (you know what I mean..).
Rutee had to smile as she saw the children laughing merrily and playing happily together. These children, like her, had grown up without their parents' love. That was one of the reasons why she could nicely put up with orphans. She walked slowly to the storeroom of the orphanage and observed around. Boxes of old junks could be seen. ' Atwight...' She suddenly remembered her faithful water elemental Swordian, Atwight, who sacrificed herself along with the other Swordians to save the world. Rutee looked at the empty sheath lying on the floor of the storeroom. It seemed to her that Atwight's last words echoed throughout the room. " I promised your mother to protect you. That's all Chris Katrea ever wanted. Learn by heart to always be true to yourself. Goodbye, Rutee..."
" Goodbye, Rutee..."
" Goodbye, Rutee..."
" Goodbye, Rutee..."
A part of her wanted to cry but... No! She can't cry! Rutee Katrea is known as a girl who never cries in Cresta. She couldn't cry... At least, not just then... Before feeling worse, she ran out of the storeroom and went to the shore northern of Cresta . No one but the seagulls was there. The seagulls flew away as she went nearer to them. She looked up, to the middle of the sea. Rutee suddenly realized that she should not have gone there. It made her feel even sicker. Not long ago, a small island stood in the middle of the sea. The island... It was the place where the previous crisis rose. It was also the place where Rutee knew who her little brother was and the place where her little brother died.
' If only I saved him from the flood and... Wait a second! What am I thinking? There's nothing left to be regretted. Get on with your life, Rutee Katrea Gilchrist!!!' Rutee scolded herself.. Gilchrist.... Yes, she's starting to use that name again. She's one of the Gilchrists anyway~ However, the main reason she wanted to use that name again was because she wanted her mother and father to be alive inside of her. She wanted to always remember them. 'Katrea' and 'Gilchrist'.... 'Chris' and 'Hugo'... Although she couldn't quite remember them, she loves them...
Rutee looked up to the sky... It's good to see the blue sky again, she thought. The second 'likely' Aeth'er War sure left a big mark inside everyone's hearts. They seemed to be more understanding on how important light is in their life. The nightmare was over and they would have to do their best to maintain the peace. Peace... Eternia was peaceful again. No more danger but a handful of not-too-dangerous monsters was left on the great land. " Huh..." Rutee sighed at nothing. Suddenly, she heard footsteps from behind of her. Rutee didn't have to turn around to know who was coming. She could feel the presence.
" Hello, Marian..." She said dully, without turning around. She could hear the owner of the footsteps sighing. " How did you know it's me?" The owner, Marian asked as she sat down beside Rutee. Rutee had to chuckle. That was quite a question. How did she know? " Well, Marian, I just know... Why are you in Cresta, anyway?"
" Looking for you."
" For me? Why?" Rutee looked dazed. She turned to look at the woman sitting on her left. Once again, Marian exhaled." If I tell you, would you try to believe me?" She asked. " I can't promise but I'll try. What do you want to tell me, Marian?"
" Well... Rutee, your brother Emilio...He.. He's alive." For a moment Marian had said it, Rutee felt like the time had stopped moving. Everything went slow and suddenly became meaningless to her. She couldn't believe what she just heard.
" Marian, you are kidding... Leon... I mean Emilio... Well... He's dead!" Rutee jumped up in disbelief. " Rutee, this matter is not a funny thing to be made into a joke. I'm not kidding. Emilio is alive and he's in Master Hugo's.. Er.. He's in your family's mansion."
" IT CAN'T BE! KRONOS ONCE RESURRECTED HIM AND I FOUGHT HIM IN DYCROFT! He.. He asked Stahn, Philia, Garr and I to kill him and WE DID KILL HIM! Emilio couldn't be alive, Marian. He's dead!" Rutee started to tremble. Even her voice shook.
" Rutee, Rutee... Calm down. How did you know it was the REAL EMILIO? Kronos was powerful, wasn't he? Maybe he just created an undead that looked like Emilio so that you guys would refuse to fight against his made creature. Or, he resurrected someone else and made him look like Emilio. Tell me, Rutee. What kind of weapon did the Emilio you fought used?"
Rutee pondered at the question for a while and then answered. " He used a sword but.." " But not Chaltier, right?" Marian cut her before she could finish her sentence. Rutee's eyes widened. Marian continued," That's because the Emilio in the mansion right now has Chaltier with him. Get a grip, Rutee. The real Emilio is breathing and alive!" A long silence took place between the two of them. Millions of questions ran through Rutee's mind. To believe or not... There's only one thing to decide the truth. Go and see for yourself, her practical side told her. Yes, that's right...
" Fine then, " Rutee broke the long silence. " I'm going to Darilsheid. Let's go, Marian." The wavy black haired woman smiled. She followed Rutee and made their way west to the capital of Seinegald, Darilsheid. Back to the mansion to reveal the truth, Rutee thought. They walked and walked without even uttering a word to each other. After fifteen minutes of walking, they reached Darilsheid. There weren't many people on the street. It's half past two in the evening and maybe the people were having lunch with their friends or family.
Rutee and Marian continued walking to the biggest mansion in Darilsheid, Hugo's Mansion. At first, Rutee hesitated to go inside but she agreed after Marian consoled her that everything would be fine. They went inside and heard footsteps. Rutee's eyes widened as she saw a young boy running down the stairs. " Marian! You're ba.... Back...." The boy also stopped as he saw Rutee. They looked at each other for a while. " Leon?" Rutee mouthed. They boy in front of her had the same amethyst eyes like her.. A familiar hairstyle... The same height... She could not believe her own eyes. What a miracle!! It's her brother, Emilio Katrea or rather known as Leon Magnus.
An annoyed yet sad look dawned upon Leon's face. He ran back upstairs and Rutee could hear him slammed the door behind him. " Emilio!!" Marian called after him but Leon didn't answer. " Please stay here for a while, Rutee. I'll talk to him." She ran upstairs to Leon's room and knocked the door. " Emilio, open the door. It's only me." No answer... She knocked the door again, harder." Emilio! Please!" That did it. Leon unlocked the door, letting Marian in and went to the window, staring out of it. " Why did you run away from her? Don't treat Rutee like this. She's your sister!"
" It's because she's my sister that I ran away from her!" Leon snapped. " What?" " Marian.. I ... I betrayed her! I wouldn't dare to see her again. She might... She must hate me very much now. Besides, I treated her badly when we were comrades. I could never make it up to her, Marian. I've done so many damn things to her and the others!"
" You're wrong, Emilio. She never did hate you."
" How did you know that?!"
" I still remember what she said to me when they saved me in Mikheil. She thought you were dead and said, ' Thank you for taking care of Leon, Marian. I thank you as his sister. I promised to avenge him no matter what.' She cares for you, Emilio!" Marian said, looking directly into the young man's eyes. Leon avoided her eyes and turned away. " I don't know why am I still alive, Marian," he began. " Mother died when I was still very young. And now, father is dead too. My sister might hate me. If it's not you, I would just kill myself now."
" You can't be more wrong, dear boy."
Marian and Leon turned around to see Rutee standing in the doorway. " Rutee?" Rutee made her way inside towards Leon. " You think the dead we have loved ever truly leave us? You think we don't recall them in times of trouble?" Rutee questioned. " What... What do you mean?" Leon was dazed. " You still didn't realize it? Mother and father are alive in you, like how they are alive in me."
" Eh?"
" Look in the mirror, Leon. You and I have mother's eyes. So, she's alive in us. Then, you and I share one same sword skill. We both can use father's sword skill. When we swing our swords, we'll recall him more clearly. For that, he's alive in us. How can you ever think they've truly left us?" Rutee had been right. Leon couldn't deny it. She continued, " Marian told me you think yourself as a victim of fate. You're not the only one, Leon. I am too. You lost your mother, I lost her too. You lost your father, I lost him too. You lived your life not normally, I was like that too. But you have Chaltier and Marian when I have nothing."
Leon bowed his head, looking at the floor. A long silence took part. The sun was setting and the sound of chirping birds could be heard. Rutee turned to Marian. " Marian, Emilio Katrea Gilchrist might still be alive but my brother Emilio is dead. The Emilio I knew always trusted himself, strong and never give up hope. The Emilio we both are facing now is just a weak person who claimed himself as the youngest master swordsman in Seinegald. We are facing the weak Sir Leon Magnus, not my brother Emilio.... Not..."
" Rutee..."
" The sun is setting. I can't stay here for long. No one needs me, here. I don't want to bother any of you nor I want Leon Magnus to call me *'onee-san'. Thank you for inviting me here, Marian. I'm leaving." Rutee bowed her head to Marian, went out, and closed the door. " Do you really want her to leave? Isn't this mansion also hers? Do you want her to not know her real brother well? Think about it, Emilio. You grew up with your father and the memories of your mother. But Rutee... Rutee grew up without even knowing where she belongs. Is it fair?"
Leon thought... Thought... And continued thinking...
* * * * * * * * * *
Rutee closed the front door of the mansion. Blank, was what she felt. She wished Atwight was there to comfort and console her. She took one last glance at the huge mansion and started walking away as the sky grew darker. " Wait!" She stopped. That voice... She turned around just to find Leon staring at her on the doorway of the mansion. He had a sad look on his face. " I.... I..." He stammered. " I... I'm sorry for everything! I knew I was wrong. Please forgive me!!" He pleaded. Rutee's shocked face turned into her smile. " You never did anything wrong to me. If you did, I've forgiven you long since," she simply said.
" If I let Leon Magnus go, would you stay here with Emilio? " Leon asked again. This time, Rutee blinked. Did the boy meant it? " Please say you'll stay. I promise to be good. We can change our family for the better. Mother and Father would want to see us live together under one roof like other families do, Rutee-neechan"
Family? Rutee-neechan? Leon called Rutee 'SISTER'! Rutee avoided Leon's gaze and walked to the gate of the mansion. " Please, Oneechan!" He thought Rutee was going to go away but to his surprise, Rutee shut the gate instead. She turned to look at him with a mild smile and said, " I'm home. What's for dinner, then?"
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
There was a silence between them...And...
After years of stopping himself from crying, Leon burst into tears as he ran towards Rutee and hugged her tightly. For the first time, Rutee felt her eyes filled with clear liquids. Tears... She closed her eyes and let her tears trickled down her face silently as her brother wept in her arms. The sky turned dark. Stars shone brightly on the darkness of the sky. What a day... A life changed after the sunset. Rutee kept repeating the same words as she hugged her little brother back.
' I'm home...'
' I'm home...'
' I'm home...'
For a moment, she thought she saw Chris and Hugo somewhere on the dark sky. They were smiling down to her and Leon. She smiled back and said in her heart. ' Mother ... Father... Emilio and I would try to bring the dignity of our family back. You can count on us and if you could... Please watch us.... From above...'
The next everyone on Eternia knew, Hugo's Mansion was filled with laughter and happiness all the year around.....
### Fin ###
*Oneesan/ Oneechan == Sister
Notes: Hah! That was quite a fic from me. It might sounds stupid,eh? Anyways~. Comments and flames are welcome^___^