Friendly Meeting
Disclaimer: I don't own Suikoden III or its characters - it all belongs to Konami.
He only joined the Fire Bringer a week ago, and had never been in this part of the world before, but Futch already felt as if he'd lived at Budehuc Castle for years. There was just something charming about the rundown building, with its outside walls covered in ivy, and with the young castle master, who was only too anxious to make everybody feel welcome. He tried to explain the feeling to Sharon once, but she just laughed and told him to stop being sentimental. The dragon knight shrugged good-naturedly. She'd understand when she was older.
So it didn't surprise him when he walked into the main hall one morning and almost stepped on a girl who was kneeling off to the side, setting up an ornately sculpted upright mirror.
"Viki!" Futch exclaimed, gratified to see her look up and grin happily in recognition. When she lifted her head, she also loosened her grip, and the mirror toppled over with a crash. He hurried to help her, but she waved him away with one hand.
"Don't worry, I've got it!"
When that was done, she stood up, dusting her hands off on her dress. The dragon knight started to speak, then did a double take. Fifteen years passed since he said goodbye to the girl in Dunan, yet she didn't look a day over her age she'd been then. She looked exactly the same, right down to the slightly vacant eyes.
"Something wrong?" Viki asked. Futch shook his head.
"No, nothing!" he said a shade too quickly. "I was... just marveling at the number of people here I already know." That was true enough. He'd already met Apple and Jeane on arrival, and every day after it seemed like yet another old acquaintance appeared out of nowhere. It just added to the strange sense of familiarity. "And now you."
"I know! Isn't it great?"
"Well..." Futch stopped to scratch his nose. "Hey, did you just get here?"
"Yup! This morning."
"Want me to give you a tour of the place?"
Viki nodded.
"Come on, then." He enjoyed showing the castle off to her, pointing out interesting little details, and realized that he much have grown more attached to it than he imagined. It felt almost like it was his own home he led her through, not just a temporary residence. He showed her the storehouse, library and statuary. They stopped by the infirmary, hoping to reunite with Tuta, but Mio told them regretfully that he was out for the day. He led her to the ship, meaning to show her the excellent view from the deck, but she tripped on something climbing up the stairs. Futch reached for her hand, but someone else caught her before she hit the floor.
"Oh, a Maximillian knight!" Viki said, admiring the golden eagle on her rescuer's breastplate.
"You knew my grandfather?" Fred Maximillian demanded, startled, but before she could answer, the barrel she tripped over started rocking back and forth. Futch took a step back in alarm, but Viki knelt down to take a closer look.
"It's Gadget!" she cried, delighted. "How'd you get here?"
"Gadget Z," Belle corrected, joining them. Futch stared at her without meaning to, because the girl seemed incredibly familiar, but he couldn't place it.
"Are you a trickster?" Viki went on. "I used to know one before! Her name was Meg!"
"Really?" Belle asked eagerly. "That's my mom!"
After chatting with her for a few minutes, they continued walking, meeting several other children of former friends and allies, and even a few people they faced before on the other side of a battlefield years ago. Viki greeted them all exuberantly. He took her to every floor of the castle, even the lower levels. Then they set off for the places outside, the restaurant, trading post and training center. At the stables, he proudly reintroduced her to Bright, which she hadn't seen since the dragon was a hatchling. When he finished the tour, they started back to the main building.
"What do you think?" Futch asked. "Nice place, right?"
Viki started to answer, but then suddenly gasped and clapped her hands together. "Oh, what a beautiful lake!" she cried, pointing. To be truthful, the dragon knight hardly paid attention to it, aside from idly noting that Budehuc was the third castle on a lake he'd stayed at. But when he shaded his eyes and looked more closely, he realized that it really was a lovely sight, seeing the reflection of the clouds and the way the sunlight glinted off the water.
"There's no giant squid in this lake," he quipped, remembering that Viki had been on excellent terms with Abizboah and his family. After leaving Dunan, he completely forgot about them until now. Then he had an idea. "Hey, let's go for a picnic!" he said, and winced when he realized how lame it sounded, but it was a perfect day for it. "We can find a shady spot closer to the shore, where it doesn't drop off so sharply." Near the castle, the ground ended in a steep cliff, but farther along it gradually evened out, until it was safe to wade right into the water. Viki agreed right away.
As they strolled along the lake's edge, munching their food and talking companionably about all sorts of things, Futch wondered why he never became friends with Viki sooner. Looking back, he realized that he actually avoided her. He couldn't figure out why. Now he really enjoyed her company. Her cheeriness was contagious.
But after a while, he noticed that she didn't seem as talkative as when they first set out. He looked over at her face, and saw her distracted frown.
"What's wrong?" he asked, startled. "Are you homesick? Something wrong with this place?"
Viki forced a grin. "No, of course not! It's a gorgeous castle. It's just..."
"Just what?"
"It's been bothering me, ever since Apple told me all about the situation here. Is it true that... that everybody here is gathering to fight Luc?" When Futch nodded, she went on. "Is it a different person, with the same name? Or is it really our Luc?"
"It's the same one," Futch told her. "No doubt at all."
"I don't believe it."
Futch knew how she felt. In the midst of all the happy reunions with old friends, fellow veterans of the Gate Rune and Dunan Unification wars, there was something lacking, and now he knew what it was. The others wouldn't understand. To them, the masked bishop was just an obstacle to be removed.
"It's true," Futch said gently. "I didn't quite believe it either, when I found out what was going on here. I thought there had to be some sort of mistake, but there isn't. Somewhere during these fifteen years, he went astray. There's nothing we can do about it now."
"You know what it means though, right?" she demanded. He did.
"Maybe not," Futch said. "Maybe there'll be another way." But even as he spoke, he knew that was never going to happen. Viki was right. There was only one end to this story.
"I wonder if this is how the Generals felt when Lord McDohl fought the Emperor," Viki said. "You know, Milich, Kwanda, Kasim, and the rest of them."
"They put aside their personal feelings and joined the rebels anyway," Futch pointed out. "Sometimes we just have to do that."
"Riou and Jowy didn't! Jowy lost his way too, but he was forgiven!"
Futch admitted it was a confusing situation, but they both knew that, no matter what they thought, the world would really be a better place without Luc. Maybe they'd even be doing him a favor, taking him out of his misery. It felt strange, thinking such heavy thoughts on a beautiful spring day. They stood quietly for a few minutes, looking out over the lake. It was Viki who broke the silence.
"Well, that's enough being gloomy for now!" she said, regaining her usual good humor. "No use dwelling on something we can't fix, right? We'll worry about it later. Let's go back inside."
Futch was relieved to hear her say that. They made their way back to the path leading to the side entrance of the castle, passing Barts's garden on the way. Viki stopped to admire some flowers growing on one of the fruit trees.
"Want me to get you one for your hair?" Futch asked. "I'm sure he won't mind if I pick just one..."
Without waiting for an answer, the Dragon Knight reached up and plucked a white blossom off one of the lower branches. Viki took it gladly and sniffed. Then she sneezed.
A few minutes later, Futch found himself tangled in a thornbush outside the gates of Caleria. He freed himself with an effort, wincing at a dozen new scratches, and headed to the Mountain Path to walk all the way back to Budehuc Castle, hoping to get there before dark. Now he remembered why he never talked to Viki.