The basic Libran nature is diplomatic and charming. Libras have an idealistic and generally peace loving nature. They are easygoing and sociable, in general.'
Zodiac Signal
A Final Fantasy Tactics fanfic
By Tenshi no Ai
I don't own the characters and locations in the game that are presented in this work, Square-Enix does.
When the bell attached to the door of the general store began to jingle out its little ditty, Mustadio Bunanza paid it no mind, occupied as he was in the store's selection of healing items. Ramza Beoulve had trusted him to keep an inventory of the troop's goods and replenish them at each town as needed, which meant that the mechanic was in charge of much of the funds they gathered in their travels. The shopkeeper, who was pretending to fuss with some weapons while he warily watched the unfamiliar young man out of the corner of his eye, immediately came to attention at the bell's sprightly jingle. Good morning, Sir Knight! How are you today? Here in Zarghidas, we have many fine weapons for your perusal...
No, thank you. I just wanted to look at your mantles.
As soon as Mustadio heard the calmly spoken words of the newcomer, he looked at the door, a cheerful smile adorning his face. Looking at potions was so boring by oneself! Hey, Beowulf! he greeted energetically, bringing up one of his hands in a friendly wave before letting it fall onto the counter, dangerously close to knocking over one of the bottles he had been looking at. The shopkeeper blanched at this.
Beowulf Kadmus, who hadn't noticed this act of carelessness, only smiled back and returned the younger man's greeting, wave and all. Then he noticed the bottles on the counter in front of Mustadio. Are you here under Ramza's orders?
Heh, Ramza doesn't order people to do things when he can help it, Mustadio replied. The knight nodded in understanding before walking over to the racks where the mantles were stored, carefully going through each one. Mustadio went back to his chore, something in the back of his mind nagging him. Since this young man in question had always been a fairly curious sort, he looked up from his goods at his friend--he considered everybody in the troop as his friends, even that strange Byblos thing they picked up from the Deep Dungeon. Beowulf's back was to him, and Mustadio quirked up an eyebrow as he watched the older man go through the mantles. If he concentrated, it felt as though there should be someone else with him...
Oh, hey, where's Reis? Mustadio asked loudly, disrupting the quiet atmosphere and startling both Beowulf and the shopkeeper from their respective duties.
After Beowulf took a deep breath--being in Ramza's group didn't tend to help the nerves--he glanced over his shoulder. She's with Miss Tingel and Miss Galthana, he answered politely before turning back, rectifying his earlier mistake and keeping his guard up this time.
After a full minute in which he figured out just who the knight was referring to, Mustadio nodded. Being from a rather laid-back community, he'd never gotten the hang of the polite language Ramza and some of the others tended to use. Oh yeah? I'm surprised. You two seem like you spend every waking moment together, he commented, raising one hand to tug on his ponytail. When he lowered the hand back onto the counter, he nearly gave the shopkeeper a heart attack.
At these words, Beowulf looked over his shoulder again, a small smile on his face. I'm sure it does. But, I'm happy to see her make friends. In the meanwhile, I thought I'd get her a gift.
The Goug mechanic nodded approvingly at this. He had learned from a young age to show how much he cared for his friends, with material goods and otherwise. One never knew when those friends would leave, either by their own volition or due to whatever life had in store for them.
It then occurred to him that the knight before him would understand that just as well as anybody else.
All the same, he was interested in the gesture and feeling extremely comfortable in the conversation. Hey, that's a good idea, a mantle as a gift. I mean, she's going around with completely bare shoulders and everything. It's kind of odd, y'know, that whole outfit is, but whatever works, right?
The small smile dropped from Beowulf's face, substituted now by a pensive look. Well, actually... he turned to the mantles, I'm the one who bought her that outfit.
...Oh, really?
Mustadio was at a loss for words. This didn't happen terribly often, except for perhaps after getting obliterated by giant mechanical beings, and in that case he had only been quiet until he had been revived. He was slightly dense, especially when it came to proper behavior, but he never deliberately intended to offend or insult anyone. The knowledge that he might have insulted a friend made him feel very uncomfortable.
So, he backpedaled.
Well, hahaha, I guess that'd make sense. It looks great on her, really great. And she really has lovely skin. I mean, if someone has to bare it all, it might as well be someone who looks good doing it...
It was after the former Temple Knight began to look at him in a very annoyed sort of way that Mustadio realized that he should've just shut up in the first place. So, he decided to change the subject to a nice, neutral topic. So, find a good mantle yet?
Beowulf stared at Mustadio a moment longer before inwardly sighing and turning back to his objects of study. I'm trying to decide between a couple of these, he answered tiredly, but I'm not sure which one would look better...
Oh, let me see, I can help, Mustadio said, leaning over the counter--
-cksh!-
--and when he looked down, he saw glass shards and a spreading puddle of holy water next to the shopkeeper's feet. Said shopkeeper merely held out a hand. Mustadio stared at it.
That'll be two thousand gil.
Because you broke it. You break it, you buy it.
But it was an accident!
As the mechanic and the shopkeeper bickered over this new development, Beowulf looked at them, then at the mantles he was holding. He shrugged and put the mantles back before walking over to the counter and pulling out a few bills of gil. Excuse me, he called, catching the attention of the other two before placing the gil on the counter, saying in his usual calm tone, This is for the damages.
Quickly snatching up the money, the shopkeeper nodded to Beowulf. Thank you, good sir, he said gruffly before turning to the other customer and yelling, You, get out before you cause any more trouble!
There was a strange look on Mustadio's face as he watched his friend leave. He turned to the irate man and smiled slightly. You don't have to tell me that twice, he replied with a smaller measure of his usual cheer than usual as he headed out of the store. The morning was cool and windy, a typical autumn in this northeastern trade town, and there were very few people outside. The young man ran up to the tall figure of the knight, his strange look from before manifesting into a mixture of worry and repentance. Hey, Beowulf, I'm sorry about all that. I don't have much on me, but once we get to Goug I can--
It's alright, Beowulf interrupted, his tone casual, don't worry about it.
But, but--! Mustadio sputtered incoherently. Weren't you going to get a present for Reis with that money?
The older man merely closed his eyes at this, smiling despite the topic. Like I said, don't worry about it. After he opened his eyes and noticed the look of doubt being aimed at him, he shook his head. Besides, the only elements she feels these days are the ones inside of her.
Mustadio didn't reply for a long moment, instead looking away even as he kept the other man's pace. When he finally did respond, his tone was serious. Yeah, well, it's the thought that counts, right?
That's a good way to think of it, but she--
The clanging of the church bells momentarily startled the two, and they looked over at the small stone church at the same time the massive cherry doors opened, nicely-dressed villagers leaving the sacred building. This sight caused one man to watch this sight thoughtfully while the other looked away with an inscrutable expression marring his youthful face.
I didn't realize it was Sunday, Beowulf said, continuing to watch the parishioners as they crowded the small streets. When he realized that he wasn't receiving a response from the younger man--something of a small miracle in and of itself--he looked over at his comrade. The Germonik Scriptures makes every church hard to look at, doesn't it? he asked in a friendly manner.
Mustadio seemed to be struggling for the right words before he glanced up at the taller man. Not really. Actually, I... he sighed, scratching at the back of his neck before looking away, I don't really believe there even is a
Such an admission was very unfamiliar to Beowulf, who, even when he was a Temple Knight for the Church, had never witnessed anyone admitting such a blasphemous statement. Because of this, he had to admit that he was very interested in hearing more. Why do you think that? he queried, trying to sound completely non-threatening and succeeding for the most part.
Looking extremely hesitant, the mechanic nervously bit his lower lip. Well, ah, you know...being from Lionel and all, it kind of strikes me as strange to tell a Temple Knight why I'm an atheist.
I'm not going to murder you in your sleep, you know, Beowulf commented neutrally, a small smile appearing on his face when Mustadio stared at him in horror. Those days have been over for a long time for me, and I'm happier for it. I'm just curious, that's all.
Oh...well, okay, I guess, the ponytailed young man shrugged. The two men sat down on a stone bench near the church, and Mustadio took a deep breath before he began, still nervous at this act of revealing how completely different he was from the rest of Ivalice's masses. It seemed too good to be true that any Ivalician, much less a former Temple Knight who had been affiliated with the Church, would want to calmly discuss his beliefs with him.
Sometimes, it wasn't such a good thing to be unique.
After a minute, Mustadio looked at his friend. I believe that people use their notion of God' as a crutch, and they never bother to drop it and learn to walk on their own. The image of his own father, bent over and firmly holding onto a solid cane, came into his mind and he unconsciously gritted his teeth. Being from Goug, I've seen firsthand the artifacts of the past. I mean, there's Worker 8, and then there was that Celestial Globe' that Father recreated. All these things were made by human hands, not by any sort of deity, yet all that knowledge disappeared after the Glabados Church came into being...
I understand, but wasn't there a religion in Ivalice during that time as well? The Church of Fara, I believe.
Yeah, but we don't even know if that was a monotheistic or polytheistic religion. We don't know anything about the time of the airships except for what's in the so-called scriptures. Maybe that religion was led by people who wanted advancements in technology, maybe not. But, my problem isn't that religion itself exists, but rather that the idea of an omnipotent, omniscient God' causes people to limit their own potential in reverence' to it.
Beowulf's eyes widened at this. It was easy to see Mustadio and underestimate him, considering the constantly effusive and easygoing persona he often showed, but every once in a while he displayed an odd streak of cleverness that was hard to connect with his usual behavior. I see, the knight said, raking one hand through his slicked back hair. Can you explain?
Sure. Sometimes, a church official will come down to Goug and gather up all of us in the mechanics' community and warn us that, while it's good to dig out artifacts in the drifts, if we start rebuilding them it's like saying that we're trying to challenge Mustadio gauged the blank look on the older man's face and shrugged, you know, that there's a reason that all the airships and such disappeared, since they dared to try to reach heaven' itself.
But even without that example, doesn't everyone believe that heaven' is this beautiful and grand place where the poor and the good of heart will enter after they die? Being a commoner and all, that sounds pretty attractive. You see all the slum dwellers practically craving for death so that they can reach this promised land' instead of trying to live out the life they have now and making something of it.
Then, wouldn't it be more correct to assume that the idea of Heaven would be more of a tool used by the aristocracy in order to control the lower classes? As it is, used by the Church, it seems to be more of a gift of hope, that there is a good place for good people, the knight's dark eyes took on a faraway look, murmuring, even if you can't find it here.
Hey, Draclau was pretty fat when I saw him. The aristocracy and the Church are pretty much the same thing these days.
...So then, what do you think about the idea that God and Heaven gives people hope?
Mustadio paused at this question, tugging at the end of his golden ponytail. Considering that most of the scriptures were written by Ajora and his disciples, doesn't that make them null and void? He was a spy, not the Child of God' or anything. The only way to even know if there even is a god' and a heaven' is to die, so what does it matter now when we're still alive?
You didn't answer the question, Beowulf said politely. What about hope?
...If it's any kind of hope, it's a cold one, the mechanic bluntly stated. When I die, I'm dead. I won't die hoping there's an utopia waiting for me, I'll die knowing that I did the best I could with my life.
That's a good answer, the former Temple Knight complimented with a smile, but, what about your friends and family? Don't you think that it might comfort them to know that your soul is in a better place? With the Lucavi proven to be real demons, we now know that we have souls that can be usurped by evil.
Mustadio looked down at his lap. I don't know about that, about souls and stuff. All I know is the here and now. Tell me, he looked up, staring at the other man with an unusual intensity, if there really is such an awe-inspiring deity, why would he let the very people he created suffer?
Beowulf said nothing at first, only holding the gaze that connected him with the younger man. Finally he broke it, looking up into the vast blue skies with a sad smile on his face. I think that, if you really want an answer, we should look into human nature, not up at God.
I guess, Mustadio shrugged, looking away, or maybe looking into human nature is where you'll really find
-Libra fades into Scorpio...-
First of all, there will be no updates for this series in November. The reason is explained in my bio, because this isn't the place for it. Also, I hope I didn't offend anyone with the topic of this part.
Libra, the sign of partnerships. I wanted to display a quality that I keep reading about but have never really been privy to (and both my parents are Libras), mainly that they can have dignified discussions without it turning ugly, even sensitive subjects like religion. To focus on a negative aspect that is shown in the game, Libra is one of the few signs (Gemini and Cancer being the others) that apparently has a reputation for being manipulative. These two do the exact same thing, which is to manipulate Ramza into helping them get what they want by not telling him anything until it's dragged out of them. This is particularly ridiculous with Beowulf, who doesn't even bother to tell Ramza that that huge, purple dragon might actually be something completely different until they find the Cancer stone...which he then claims for himself (as seen in the Brave Story scene Reis' curse'). At least with Mustadio, Draclau gets out most of the story from him (though, that was because the Cardinal was involved, but...). I don't like to look into the more negative aspects of a sign, but it's quite the odd coincidence otherwise.
Other than that, Libras tend to be friendly people with strong morals as well as romantics, which would explain why Beowulf is one half of the only successful relationship in the game (because people who love each other tend not to kill each other. At least, that's my belief.)
Libra is the cardinal air sign of the zodiac, which the game shows pretty consistently that it means that its members are leaders, but in a more subversive way. In a more literal sense, Beowulf was the leader of the Lionel Holy Knights. Its opposite sign is Aries.
-When Mustadio has too high of a Faith quota to stay (that'd be over 94 for permanent Faith), he says, I'm an atheist. But, I believe in the Lord more than you do.
Reviewers!
Hey, Hawk of Death. I think that, out of all the pairs of siblings in the game, the Folles siblings are the best. They're just cool. Well, actually, I like Wiegraf a little less because of how he was Crush Punching anyone who even dared to breathe within three or four spaces from him in the first battle. Jerk.
Hi, TobyKikami. Well, okay, the lines you mentioned this time were lines that I liked. I don't think there are any witty lines in this part...a person can only go so far being snarky.
Hello, The Burning Misery. I tend to believe that the characters in Ramza's group are the most minor people of all; after all, after they join, they basically cease to exist unless it's Agrias at Golgorand or Meliadoul at Murond's shrine. I just like focusing these stories--and most of the ones I write in general--on characters that aren't focused on in the FFT fic-fandom.
Poor Simon. He gives you the Germonik Scriptures, which he even translated himself, and you call him minor'? Poor dude. :)
I believe that Wiegraf cared too much in the beginning. He kills Gustav and chatises Golgaros for their kidnapping schemes because those are actions that disagree with his own moral code. The entire reason why he created the Death Corps was because of how much he cared for his fellow commoners. He becomes truly harsh and unfeeling, in my opinion, when he joins the Church for personal power, for that is when he starts forsaking his own morals.
You are more than welcome to disagree about the Gafgarion note, but it wasn't an opinion. He says as much about why Ovelia needs to die at Zirekile Falls. Actually, ol' Gaffy's a very interesting character, because while he cares a lot about money, even he's repulsed by Dycedarg's willingness to kill Ramza and tries to convince Ramza to go back to Igros. Well, he's not the caricature of the heartless mercenary is what I'm trying to say.
Yo, Luna. You shouldn't say all siblings in this game have a strong relationship', because what about Queen Ruvelia and Duke Larg? Well, you're right, but I like nitpicking, sorry--
I didn't realize it before, but you're right about the older sibling goes nuts after the younger one dies' thing. Heh, I guess you can kind of add Ramza to that, considering how he is after Alma gets kidnapped.
I honestly feel that Wiegraf should've joined the party, or something partially useful to my team. I so would've taken him over Agrias. Sometimes I feel that the whole Lucavi plot cheapens' the political atmosphere of the plot, but it would've been a hopeless endeavor to fight against the political structure, right?