Little by little, the red mist shrouding the heavens gradually died out, becoming replaced with the pigment of clear blue and an array of white clouds.
Hanks released the breath he'd been holding in for too long. Veering his head from the windows, he averted his focus to the doors from across the cafeteria.
On cue, the entrance opened—a young boy with a tuft of brown hair and the blue canine entered the scene.
Immediately, Ted and the children sprang from their seats and rushed to their general direction.
Sensing this, Repede paused in his tracks and allowing the children to surround him.
Hanks waited for a bit, hoping to get a chance to see his foster son. A minute or so passed but still nothing.
As if reading his mind, the boy spoke up. "If you're looking for Yuri, he went off to talk to Flynn,"
The bearded man glanced at the approaching small figure. "And the rest of you?"
"Patty's wandering around, Rita's trying to modify Estelle's formula…" Karol explained, folding his arms over his chest. "Judith's communicating with Ba'ul and…" He stopped for a moment to ponder his thoughts and frowned. "I don't know about Raven."
Hanks tipped his head to the side. "…I see," was all he managed to say. His lips slightly curved upwards. "Well, I bet you must be hungry from that big fight," And gestured his arm to the kitchen on the right side of the cafeteria. "There's still plenty more curry if ya like."
Karol beamed. "Really?" He cried, his eyes sparkling with joy. "Thanks!" And ran to go get some.
Locating a nearby chair, the bearded man sat himself down and groaned. Fiddling with the frames of his glasses, he took notice of Marie the innkeeper who stared at him with a sympathetic look. Pursing his lips, he raised his hand and gave her an assuring wave.
Minutes later, the same boy arrived and chose to seat himself next to him.
"I'm not sure if I introduced myself, but I'm Karol," The boy greeted, grinning widely. "And you must be Hanks, right?"
Hanks nodded in confirmation.
And from there, they initiated a conversation—beginning from how Karol met Yuri, Estelle, and Repede in the Quoi Woods, up until the present time.
As Karol recounted the misadventures he and his friends went through, Hanks couldn't help but find himself leaning in and listening intently, eager to hear more.
Turns out, the friend who they came here to rescue—Estelle was the runaway princess they kept hearing about in the past few months. When Hanks first heard about this, he thought of the pink-haired woman that his foster son had left with. But thanks to Karol, it seems that his gut feeling turned out to be true.
What made it surprising was the fact that it was Yuri who voiced out his concerns about killing her. Recalling his foster son's words a few hours ago, it was safe to say that the dark-haired man saw the princess in a different light, much like the rest of their friends. He didn't seem to care much of her title nor brought up her noble status—Yuri saw her for who she was, a person.
And it was then that Hanks realized how much his boy—who, in the beginning, acted like a troublesome brat was slowly maturing into a man.
Hanks smiled to himself. Who knew that all Yuri needed was to go beyond the barriers of Zaphias and become immersed with the outside world? Yuri may look and act the same but Hanks knew, that deep down, that the swordsman's perspective in life was changing for the better.
Their conversation went on for about a couple of more hours. In between those times, the Schwann Brigade showed up and insisted that they'd go out and patrol the neighboring area. To everyone's shock, Karol and Repede decided to join them.
"I'm gonna go and see if there are any survivors," The boy insisted, "I'll even drop by the Lower Quarter and see if everything's okay."
Hanks nodded. "Be careful now,"
Stepping forth, LeBlanc spoke up. "Rest-assured, we'll take care of them," Forming a salute, he strolled through the exit, following the boy and the dog alongside his two subordinates.
As soon as they left, a female knight by the name of Soda appeared. Introducing herself as Flynn's right-hand woman and temporary co-captain for the Imperial Knights, she entered the cafeteria to inform the community of the spare rooms that her men prepared for them.
All eyes were on Hanks for an answer.
"You go on ahead," He began with an encouraging smile. "I'll stay here and wait for Yuri."
Obeying his instructions—Marie, Ted, the children, and elders were the first to leave.
Soon after, some of the women and men followed.
…Until finally, there was only Hanks and a few left who chose to remain and wait for Karol to return.
"We're back!" A loud boyish voice cried out, accompanied by a bark. "And we got goods!"
As promised, Karol came back safely holding a bag. Plopping himself on the ground, he inserted his hand inside before taking it out—one by one, he gathered the few items together.
Curious, some of the men and women walked over to take a look.
"Oh, my comb!" A woman suddenly cried, seizing her item. "And my dress!"
"My bag!" Hanks cried, reclaiming his as well. With widened eyes, he turned to the smiling boy and chortled in joy, "How'd you managed to find all of these?"
Karol grinned. "Like I said, I went to go and check up on the Lower Quarter." He explained, "The red mist and the monsters are not there anymore. The overgrown plants are still in the area, but you know what? I bumped into Flynn and he said that he and the knights are gonna get rid of them!"
Processing his words, Hanks nodded intently.
"We were about to go back to the palace when Repede found a bunch of these lying around," He jerked his chin to the items laid on the ground and continued. "I figured that these might've been important to you guys so I went ahead and took them."
"Thank you," Hanks thanked sincerely as he shifted his focus on the small brown bag in his hands. "This bag of mine means so much to me."
Karol nodded, though the eager look on his face dissipated quickly upon realizing that something was wrong. Walking over to the woman who was busy marveling at her dress, he cleared his throat and said, "Umm…excuse me, miss?"
"Oh, yes?"
"Can I take a look at that?" And pointed at her dress.
"…Sure," The woman agreed, offering it to him.
Once the boy got a hold of the dress, he started examining the fabric. "There's a hole…" He mumbled, "And it's a big one too."
Confused, Hanks walked over to him and peered down to take a look. His eyes widened—the boy was right; there really was a gaping hole at the center.
"Luckily, I know how to stitch it up!" Karol exclaimed, already digging into his bag to take out his tools. "This'll take only a few minutes."
The sound of the door opening and footsteps caught their attention. Whirling their heads around, they were greeted with the familiar face of Yuri.
Acknowledging his foster father, Yuri waved his hand.
Smiling, Hanks bobbed his head in return.
"What's up, Karol?" Yuri began, breaking the silence in the room.
Hearing his name being called, the boy arose from the ground and angled his body to face him. "Oh, Yuri!" He beamed excitedly. He then presented the swordsman with the small brown bag. "Take a look at this! It's as good as new!"
"Good to see you're as useful as ever," Yuri commented, his voice calm. Setting his hand on his hip, he narrowed his eyes. "That's not yours though, is it?"
"It's mine," Hanks joined in, catching their attention.
Yuri's face lit up as he caught sight of the bearded man strolling toward them. "Hanks," He addressed the latter.
"This boy's been fixing up all the stuff that got knocked around in that commotion," Hanks explained while Karol came in and offered him the bag. Accepting it, he smiled as he watched the latter return to his spot near Yuri. "He even went back to the Lower Quarter to pick all these things up."
Karol chuckled. "Actually…" He trailed off, averting his eyes to the canine sitting beside him. "Repede was the one who found most of it."
Repede opened his mouth, sticking his tongue out as if he agreed.
"These're my favorite shoes and you can hardly see where they got torn!" One of the men who chose to remain stepped in to speak up, "This guy's awesome!"
Shortly after, a woman came in to voice her opinion. "He sewed up a dress that was very important to me," She recalled, referring to Karol's handiwork. She glanced at the boy and gave him a smile. "Thanks again for that."
Unfazed by this, Yuri turned to face his friend. "…You sure about doing this, Karol? Tomorrow's the final battle."
"It's okay," Karol expressed, surprisingly composed. "I was actually a little worried." Lowering his head, he added, "I couldn't really sleep anyway when I started thinking about the battle tomorrow."
While the pair conversed with each other, Hanks shifted his eyes to the man and woman standing near him and smiled. In return, they returned the gesture.
Looking back to his foster son, who seemed to be preoccupied with having a private conversation with his younger friend, Hanks smiled as a warm sensation swelled inside his chest.
It was a bizarre sight to see the swordsman making genuine friends and bonding with them. Back then, the only person Yuri counted on was Flynn…and now, look at him—branching out and making friends of his own.
"This boy's got a bright future ahead of him," Hanks pointed out, earning the pair's attention.
Coming forth, Yuri spoke up. "You are looking at the esteemed Boss of our guild," And nudged his arm to the boy next to him.
Karol blushed at his compliment. Bringing his hand behind his head, he sheepishly grinned.
Hanks chuckled lightly. "You know, you might learn a thing or two from him yourself."
Yuri rolled his eyes and sighed. "…Aaaand, there it is," He grumbled, shaking his head in dismay. "Man, I walked right into that one," Even so, a smile was etched on his lips.
Bringing the small bag close to his chest, Hanks closed his eyes. "Memories support the heart," Hanks began, reciting the same words his beloved Jiri once said to him. "And our dearest possessions are the vessels for those memories." Reopening them, he locked his gaze at the younger boy and thanked him graciously.
And just like that, the bearded man walked off.
"Hanks."
Stopping in his tracks, Hanks motioned his head to look at his foster son. "Hmm?"
"Marie and the kids are sleeping in their rooms," Yuri explained, his expression solemn. "You should go join them."
"Look who's talking," Hanks tossed back, "I'm impressed that you're still standing from all that workout you did earlier."
Yuri cracked a smirk. "Nah, still got some patrolling left to do," He said, waving his hand dismissively. "I'll sleep later."
Hanks nodded. "Alright then." He replied back, his facial features softening. "See you in the morning."
Yuri laughed, giving him a two-finger salute.
As he saw the young man left, something inside Hanks felt uneasy. For some reason, he had to say something, anything.
"Yuri."
Pausing in his steps, Yuri whirled his head around and faced his foster father. "Yeah?"
Hanks stood there, unable to form proper words. Shaking his head, he simply went along with, "I'll tell you later."
Yuri smirked, nodding along.
Bidding farewells, the two went off their separate ways.
The clock rang past noon—signaling Karol and the rest of the night owls of the community to eventually leave the cafeteria and go to sleep.
As for Hanks and Repede, they decided to take a stroll together. While wandering through the corridors and atriums, they were met with benevolent knights who appeared on watch duty.
Everywhere they went, there seemed to be at least one knight standing near a door or idly on guard.
Becoming reminded of Yuri mentioning about Flynn leading the entire army, Hanks inwardly chuckled.
And then a thought occurred to him.
Didn't Yuri say something about patrolling as well?
Growing worried, Hanks quickened his pace. "Come, Repede," He ushered the blue dog beside him, "We have to find him," And made it his mission to find his foster son.
After what seemed like an excruciating hour, they finally found him…lying against the wall with his arms crossed, his eyes closed, and in a rather odd-looking sleeping position. His head was slightly tilted to the side, close to his Second Star sword which remained at his side.
As Hanks got into close proximity to him, all he could do was sigh deeply.
"What are you doing here?" He murmured to no one.
Shifting his eyes to the left, he found the answer—there, in front of him, was a door encrusted with white and gold. The bearded man squinted his eyes, ruminating through his thoughts.
The design…why does it look so familiar to him?
Curious, he wobbled to the door and proceeded to knock on the wooden surface.
No answer.
Hanks frowned slightly. Maybe it was a closet?
Suddenly, his ears picked up the sound of light footsteps from the other side.
"Just a second!" A muffled voice called out, unmistakably female.
Panicking, Hanks scurried over to a nearby pillar and hid behind it, followed shortly by Repede.
Seconds later, the door opened.
A blob of pink hair popped out.
Hanks's eyes grew large in size.
He watched as the woman—who he recognized immediately to be Estelle gracefully emerge from the door in her yellow nightgown. Looking around, her eyes eventually landed on the dark-haired man and for a second, Hanks could've sworn that her expression had softened.
Running back inside her room, she came back, this time with a pink blanket at hand.
Quickly, she tip-toed her way to the sleeping swordsman and carefully covered the lower part of his body with the blanket. Once she managed to do that, she slowly lifted her hand and lightly brushed the strands of his hair away from his face.
Smiling sweetly, the princess stood up from the ground and walked back inside her room. Before she could go in, she stopped and peered over her shoulder, gazing at the swordsman for a few seconds before closing the door behind.
Once he heard a soft click, Hanks finally came out of his hiding spot.
He motioned his head to the dog next to him who in return, stared back with a knowing look.
Morning was here—a moment of comfort and solace.
Unfortunately for Hanks, this was not the case as he had accidentally overslept. As a result, he wasn't able to properly say goodbye to Yuri and his friends who had already up and left.
"And Flynn?" Hanks inquired the Schwann Brigade, "Where is he?"
"He's gone to assist Yuri and the others at Zaude," LeBlanc explained, "There's no need to worry over them as Sir Schwann is also with them."
"I say, we should focus on the matters here," Adecor replied, pressing his arm against his armored chest. "As instructed by Sir Schwann, we're here to aid you on your way back to the Lower Quarter."
"Thanks to the Imperial Knights, the area has been cleansed of the plant situation," Boccos added in, straightening his posture. "But in case there is still a monster lurking around, we'll be here to protect you."
Registering their words, Hanks crossed his arms. "Do whatever you want," He drawled out, placing a hand on his hip.
The trio nodded, saluting once more.
Together, they began the great migration back to the Lower Quarter. And thanks to the aid of the Schwann Brigade, the entire community managed to get back home without a trace of injuries. Though it was expected that some of the houses were destroyed, in the end, all that mattered was that everyone was alive and well.
Bursting through the front door, Hanks made his way to the ruins of his living room with LeBlanc trailing after him. Peering upwards, he groaned when he saw a huge hole above him, giving him a good look at the clear, morning sky. Though the staircase remained intact, with the huge hole, there wasn't much progression to be made upstairs.
Taking notice of the latter's deep frown, Hanks shrugged his shoulders. Crouching to the floor, he took hold of one of the framed pictures that dropped from the table. Brushing off the bits and pieces of glass, Hanks mustered a smile at the sight of the picture of his beloved wife, Jiri.
Soon afterward, he managed to collect most of the pictures that were scattered across the whole area.
"I'm sorry," LeBlanc expressed, referring to the collection of furniture and other trinkets that were left in the house. Removing his helmet and hanging his head, he added in, "If there's anything my men and I can do, we'll do our best to reach out to His Highness, Ioder, to make amends."
Hanks shook his head. "What's lost is lost. No matter how much you want to get it back, odds are—you get it or you don't get it."
Shuffling toward him, he continued. "The Lower Quarter is strong and will remain strong so long as we are all together. This," He jerks his chin to the chaos around them. "is nothing to us." Inhaling deeply, he said in a soft voice. "I'm an old man, there are not many things for me to keep."
A long, quiet silence followed.
Crinkling his nose, Hanks snuck a glance at the hole through his roof.
"What's wrong?" LeBlanc wondered aloud.
Hanks opened his mouth to say something, but when he didn't know the right words to say, he closed it and remained silent.
Since the invasion of the monsters and overgrown plants throughout Zaphias, Hanks knew that the minute it began, something worse was bound to follow after.
What they were experiencing now was a tip of the iceberg of something bigger and more treacherous.
And as much as he hated to admit it, the feeling in his gut was always right on the Gald—the next day, a fracture of the sky, which ironically resembled the same shape as the hole in his roof, materialized out of the blue and along with it came the appearance of an unidentifiable monster.
One look was all it took for Hanks to realize that this was it—the end of the world was coming and nothing good was coming out of it.
But the final blow came when the Schwann Brigade arrived to deliver an urgent message to him and the community the day after.
"Sir Schwann contacted us…" LeBlanc began, shuffling his feet. "And I'm afraid, we have some news."
"Is it good?" Ted questioned curiously.
"Is it bad?" One of the girls piped in.
Growing restless, Hanks stepped forth. "Don't put us on the edge of our seats!" He scolded them, chuckling. "What are ya waiting for? Speak up!"
Adecor and Boccos exchanged looks of disappointment.
Catching this, Hanks quickly shifted his eyes to their subdivision leader, LeBlanc. Alarmed by his equally saddened expression, he asked, "…What is it?"
"The battle at Zaude…was a success," LeBlanc spoke up, struggling with his words. "Commandant Alexei has been slain…and in the next few days, Flynn Scifo would be the one to take his title."
Immediately, a large round of applause and cheers erupted from all directions. Everyone, excluding Hanks, celebrated.
"And Yuri?" Hanks spoke up, once the noise diminished.
No response.
"WHERE'S MY SON?" He raised his voice, urgent and desperate.
Heaving deeply, LeBlanc looked up to face him and simply muttered, "…I'm sorry. He's gone."
The aftermath of the battle of what he assumed to be at Zaude was blurry in both accounts of experiences and records.
According to Yuri's friends who were present, Alexei was suffocated to death by the large green apatheia which they explained to be a form of crystal made by the aer that an Extelexeia consumes during their lifespan, but due to its large size, they were separated—with Yuri on the left side and them on the opposing right.
When they managed to get to the other side, it was already too late—Yuri was gone and there was no trace of his whereabouts.
The only conclusion they could come up with was that he might've tripped and fell to the ocean.
Descending about a hundred feet and diving into the cold, chilling embrace of the waters…that information alone was a strong implication that the dark-haired man had died in the process.
Everything about this was difficult to swallow, bringing indescribable pain inside the poor old man. And then he remembered—the last memory he had together with his foster son. He knew right then and there that was something was wrong and so, he attempted to say something.
Then again, Hanks knew that even if he tried going back in time to warn him, Yuri would still persist on the mission and move forward.
Once he was alone, he removed his glasses and brought a hand to his throbbing temple. Eventually, the walls broke and the tears that were threatening to spill had flown.
Later that night, Hanks cried himself to sleep.
…Damn him and his stubbornness.
…Damn him and his restlessness.
"Why do you have to be like Lily?" Hanks fretted lowly under his breath, covering his face with his hands. "Why risk yourself, knowing that you would die?"
Something tugged him on the sleeve, causing him to stiffen.
Brushing off the tears gleaming on his cheeks, the bearded man turned to the little girl sitting next to him. "What's the matter?"
Standing up, the girl points her finger.
Following her direction, Hanks was surprised to find a familiar face.
Realizing that he was in the presence of royalty, the bearded man quickly got up and bowed his head a few times. "…Yer Highness!" He cried almost in a panic.
Estelle forced a smile. "No formalities," She insisted, "Please, call me Estelle."
Still shaken by her presence, Hanks cleared his throat and nodded. "…Oh, uh…alright." He agreed, going along with it.
The pink-haired woman tightened the grip on her gloved hands. "I came as soon as I heard about what happened," She spoke up, her voice sincere. "Everyone's out there, doing what they can to find Yuri."
Hanks raised an eyebrow. "That doesn't sound right," He replied, "Shouldn't you be with the others?"
Estelle nodded. "I was supposed to, but…" She trailed off, inhaling a deep breath. "I was worried to stay at the castle."
"And you managed to escape," Hanks furrowed his eyebrows. Gaining a nod from the latter, he pressed on. "How?"
Estelle beamed. "I climbed out of the window…"
Hanks's eyes went round from shock. "And the knights?"
Again, the princess smiled. "You'll have to thank the Schwann Brigade," She answered before gesturing to the blue canine next to her. "And Repede." And then extended out her hand to reveal a few pebbles. "And these."
The bearded man peered downwards before looking back up to face the latter. Did she just imply that she threw rocks at the knights? If so, then that means—oh, no, was Yuri influencing her?
Shaking his head, Hanks changed the topic. "Well, I'm glad you're here," He expressed, "But don't you think yer family is worried about you?"
"My father died from an illness. My mother passed before I reached the age of three," Estelle explained, "I do have a blood relative, my cousin—Ioder. But beyond that, not really."
"So yer an orphan too…" Hanks murmured lowly under his breath, becoming reminded of a certain dark-haired man. "Just like him…"
"Pardon?"
Blinking, Hanks shook his head and grinned. "My dear, what are you here for?"
"I'm aware that some of the people here are in no shape to move," Estelle stressed, her seafoam eyes reigniting with vigor. "If it's not too much trouble, allow me to assist you all with the repairs and the injured."
"Thank you," Hanks replied back, forcing a smile. "We'll be needing all the help we can get."
For the next few weeks, that was exactly what Estelle did.
Besides treating the wounded, she contributed to the repairs of the housing and replenishing the water supply when the fountain was not working. With Marie preoccupied at cooking duty and helping some of the members who were homeless at the inn, it was Estelle who took the responsibility of caring for the children.
And as expected, she was quite popular with them as Ted and the children would talk all about her—absolutely adoring her presence as well as with her beautifully crafted stories.
With her warm and friendly ambiance, the community of the Lower Quarter loved her, immediately branding her as one of them.
During her stay, Estelle filled Hanks in on the updates of her friends, mostly interlinked with Yuri's disappearance.
Since the final battle, Flynn hadn't visited the Lower Quarter since. He was initially planning to surprise them with the others when the incident occurred. Determined to find his missing childhood friend and foster brother, Flynn resorted to his commanding role and implored for ships throughout Terca Lumireis to scour far and wide, especially around Zaude.
Patty, the captain of their boat—Fiertia, and Ba'ul, the giant flying Extelexeia took to the skies to assist Flynn. While doing so, she would often take the time moving back and forth to relocate her other friends.
Judith and Rita were the first to rush to the scene of the crime—at the pedestal of Zaude, where the battle took place. Every single day, they would head there in search for their missing friend and when night had fallen, they would travel back to Aspio through the Fiertia to research more of the shrine—hoping to find some secret passageways or other triggers that could give them clues.
As for Karol and Raven, they've returned to Dahngrest. Prior to the final battle at Zaude and the mysterious monster looming the heavens, the guilds were clashing each other again—seeking dominance over the over in reaction to the great catastrophe above them. While stationed there, Raven, who remained as the Schwann Brigade's leader, issued the command to LeBlanc and his other subordinates to support the princess's wishes and abide by her orders whenever necessary.
In response, LeBlanc, Adecor, and Boccos would appear in the Lower Quarter to distribute and restock their supplies such as clothes and food to the point of building up tents that were originally made for the knights and sprawling them throughout the neighborhood.
Other than that, the Schwann Brigade were also there for another reason—to escort the princess safely to the castle. Time and time again, Estelle would refuse their offer and to her relief, they would respect her wishes and continue on with their work within the area.
With Estelle remaining in the Lower Quarter, she was given the opportunity to sleep in one of the available rooms. Hanks, who happened to be one of the homeless victims, urged her to take his temporary room which was located next to the one that Yuri once resided in.
Again, she would refuse…choosing to sleep outside near the barracks next to the staircase. Until one night, Hanks found her curled up on Yuri's bed with Repede idly resting on the ground and watching over her.
Though the canine may not show it, it appears that he had grown attached to her—remaining at her side for quite a while now. Entering the room, the bearded man took a spare blanket from the chair and gently covered the sleeping princess's form with it.
After that, he went on to put another blanket on Repede.
Startled, the canine peered up at the bearded man.
"Thank you for being there for her," Hanks mouthed to the dog with glassy eyes. "It must've been difficult for both of you."
Without another word, Hanks left the pair and headed back inside his room next door.
It was another morning—clear blue with white clouds…and the addition of the gaping hole in the sky.
As days went on, slowly and surely, the hole was beginning to expand and all the citizens in the Lower Quarter, as well as the rest of the world, could do was stare and wait for the inevitable to commence.
Brushing the thought off, Hanks wobbled his way to the small public square in the Lower Quarter—and as always, was delighted to see the princess reading a book. To his surprise, the entire community was there, including the Schwann Brigade.
It seems as though everybody decided to take a break altogether and for a moment of peace, allowed themselves to listen to Estelle's encouraging stories.
"…And the Dark Enforcer and the Magical Maiden lived happily ever after." Estelle read the last sentence, closing the book in her hands and holding it close to her chest. "The end."
On cue, there was a series of cheering and whistling.
Smiling brightly, Estelle stood up and bowed to her audience. "I believe that's it for today," She expressed, which earned her loud groans and looks of sorrows. Giggling lightly, she added in, "Okay, how about this? After lunch, I'll read another book."
Once more, the audience cheered.
As the numbers of the crowd diminished with the rest, including the members of the Schwann Brigade and the children rushing off to assist Marie at the public inn, Estelle found herself alone with Repede.
"We should go help Marie too," She suggested to the dog.
"Woof!" Repede barked in agreement.
Before they could move, they heard a voice from nearby. Whirling her head, Estelle was startled to find a young man holding a bouquet of flowers toward her.
"Miss Estelle…" He stammered, shuffling his feet and blushing mad, "I-I love your stories and I listen to them every single day!"
Blinking, Estelle smiled. "Oh, thank you. That's so sweet of— "
"PLEASE BE MY GIRLFRIEND!"
The princess's eyes widened. "W-what?" She sputtered out, unable to think.
The man collected his breath, ready to proclaim his declaration of love again. But before he could do so, a voice beat him to it.
"Stop right there, Bernard!"
The man named Bernard flinched in his spot and turned around to find the mayor of the Lower Quarter glaring at him. "Why are you still here? Your mother's looking everywhere for you!"
"Oh, yes!" Bernard squeaked. Averting his focus back to the princess, he quickly bowed and apologized for his actions before running off.
An air of stillness ensued.
"You can breathe now, my dear," Hanks spoke up, breaking the ice.
Registering his words, Estelle finally exhaled. "That Bernard is something," She commented, tipping her head to the side and blushing a little.
Rolling his eyes, Hanks turned to face the princess. "How many times did he asked you?"
"This would be the fifteenth time…" Estelle counted, nodding to herself. "Yes, fifteen, I believe."
"He should really catch a break and find someone else," Hanks grumbled, followed by an exasperated sigh. "Let me know if this happens again and I'll notify Rosie."
"Rosie?"
"That dimwit's mother," Hanks explained, "If she hears about his advancements toward ya, I'm sure she'll find a way to stop him from doing so."
As he started to walk away, Estelle called out his name.
"Yes?"
"Thank you," She thanked him, bowing respectfully. "But you know, you didn't really have to do that."
Hanks frowned a little. "What do you mean?"
"Bernard…he's not the only person here who tried to court me," Estelle expressed, smiling sheepishly. "But don't worry, I've politely rejected them."
"That's good," Hanks replied back, "It hurts to see a poor man being rejected by a woman who's already committed to someone else—" He stopped right there in his sentence, his eyes widening as he realized that he had slipped something that he wasn't supposed to say.
But Estelle and Repede heard it and to his dismay, was forced to clarify his explanation.
Sighing deeply, Hanks peered up to glance at the princess who looked back at him with a confused expression. Bringing his hands together behind his hunched back, he proceeded to move his head over to the steps near the fountains. "Come and sit, my dear,"
Estelle nodded, though was quick to rush over to assist the poor old man who was struggling to sit. Once he was settled in, she followed suit, and then Repede.
"Has Yuri ever told you about his first love?"
Hearing this, the pink-haired woman's mouth slightly parted. Though it was subtle, Hanks caught her chewing on her bottom lip and her eyes downcast. From the looks of it, it doesn't seem like the swordsman told her nor anyone else about his childhood.
Inwardly, Hanks grinned at this. This might be a good opportunity to finally tell her.
"When he was ten, he fell in love," Hanks began, though was quick to make hand quotations on the last word, "His first love turned out to be a woman about fourteen years older than him."
Estelle nodded, listening intently.
"She happened to be temporarily living in the Lower Quarter. Yuri first made contact with her when he saw her watering the garden." Hanks closed his eyes and chuckled, becoming reminded of the memory—of a younger version of his foster son entering their house, proclaiming that he was in love with someone and wanted to find a way to ask her to marry him. He remembered how Jiri looked at the boy, and then to him and just shook his head. "Don't know much about her but I heard that she was quite the beauty. Anyway, Yuri went up to her and asked her the big question."
Estelle waited for his next set of words, nodding along.
"The woman told him that if he wanted to prove his love for her, he needed to find the biggest fish in the river and give it to her." Hanks turned to face the princess and as expected, she stared at him with widened eyes. "And so, he and Flynn ran to the river to find this fish. Flynn had accidentally slipped in and…"
Once again, memories resurfaced—of how it turned out that one of the aquatic monsters were dwelling in the river and had spawned out, scaring both the boys to death. Luckily, a traveling guild came in and saved them, bringing them to their house. When he and Jiri heard word of what the boys were doing and the monster that appeared, they scolded them on the spot and grounded them for the whole week.
Shaking his head to brush off the memory, Hanks continued. "he survived, and of course, they got grounded. But oh, Yuri…he was not giving up. He would often sneak out of the house to find that big fish. And then one time, when he was alone…"
He closed his eyes as he suddenly recalled the memory of his foster son accidentally slipping into the river. This time, he was alone and nobody was there to help him. Hanks heaved a sigh, silently thanking the heavens again and again—knowing that if it weren't for Flynn, who knew of Yuri's intentions, he wouldn't have raced to the river and caught the poor boy in time.
"He almost died there, you know," Hanks croaked, lowering his head to nurse his temple.
Estelle said nothing and instead, scooted a bit closer to pat the bearded man in assurance. Repede joined in and picked up his tongue to lick on his cheek. Touched by their affectionate gestures, Hanks thanked them both and forced himself to continue with the story.
"Yuri was saved and he was forced to admit to the woman that he couldn't find this big fish she wanted him to give to her." He bitterly smiled. "Poor Yuri…he found out the next day, that the woman was already engaged to another man and that the fish she wanted him to give to her was to make him understand that he was never worthy of her."
"If you can't catch a big fish, you can never get someone like me," He hinted, remembering what Yuri had told him shortly after being rejected.
Estelle narrowed her eyebrows. "That's horrible," She stressed, her grip tightening to shape into a fist. "Is she still here?"
"No, she's not," Hanks answered, much to her relief. "After Yuri told me about what she said to him, I bumped into the woman and demanded her to leave the Lower Quarter and to never return."
"Wasn't she engaged with a man living in the Lower Quarter?" Gaining a nod, Estelle frowned. "What happened to him?"
"She left but he stayed," Hanks confirmed. "They broke off their engagement. Honestly, it was a good thing they did. That woman was trouble; I'd tell you that. As for the man, he found someone else." As he said those words, he motioned his head to a middle-aged couple strolling by, their arms locked and smiling merrily.
Catching on to what he meant, Estelle grinned. "I see," She muttered, recognizing them to be the same ones who would drop by and listen to one of her readings. "That's wonderful to hear."
"So, you see…" Hanks started, gaining the latter's attention. "Yuri's got some misconceptions about love. He thinks that what he knows is the right thing but doesn't realize that there are consequences that come along with it. He chose to do whatever his first love tells him to do and because of that, nearly got himself killed and rejected in the end."
"…How do you know," Estelle began, "if you're in love?"
Hanks smiled. "You can't see it from a mile away. It comes at you…and it doesn't start out as being perfect. It would begin with a strange feeling right here," He puts a hand over his chest where his heart is located, "And gradually, it would grow until you realize that you want to remain by their side. There's nothing logical about it but you know that deep down, it feels right."
Thinking it over, she gradually reduced the stiffness of her shoulders and grinned. "I thought I had that with Flynn…" She admitted, blushing a little. "Very warm and friendly, encouraging…he was exactly what I pictured a prince charming or knight in shining armor would be like. I do often miss his presence and his worries, but every time I'm around him, I feel constricted. It's the same feeling I have with the Palace."
Hanks nodded, listening to her words. "And Yuri?"
"The complete opposite, actually," Estelle confessed further, veering down to look at her joined hands. "I almost killed him with a vase…and bossed him around when I shouldn't. But you know, he was always patient with me. He even gave me the option to decide on what I wanted to do. Regardless of what I said, he won't question it. He'd respect it."
Blinking, Hanks couldn't help but slip in a grin. He let out a hearty laugh.
And what soon followed were more stories from both accounts, of Estelle's travels with Yuri through her eyes and more stories of Yuri's childhood.
Bursts of laughter and jokes were emitted, and when it was time for Estelle's public reading to the community, all Hanks could do was sit next to her with Repede, Ted, and some of the little girls who managed to climb up and sit on the princess's lap.
"Ready for another story?" She asked her audience.
When she saw the bright faces of the children, elderly, some of the couples from afar and to the Schwann brigade stationed near the public inn with Marie, something inside her blossomed.
"Okay, let's begin…" Flipping to the first page of the book she held with both hands, she began reading the first sentence. "Once upon a time, there lived a lonely star…"
"Yer still awake?"
Startled by the voice, the pink-haired woman turned to face the bearded man behind her. Acknowledging him, she sighed and curved her lips to form a sweet smile.
"I can't sleep," She admitted, reverting her eyes to the collection of stars in the night sky. Despite the large reddish wormhole-like currents eerily moving to and fro, it didn't seem to affect the breathtaking scenery.
Hanks wobbled his way to her and at the same time, nodding to the blue dog that remained by her side.
"…Oh, there it is!" Estelle cried, alarming the old man. He watched her point one of her fingers to the stars.
Looking up as well, he noticed the familiar speck of light. Pushing his glasses against his nose, he gasped. "Well, I'll be…" He trailed off, mustering a grin.
"Brave Vesperia," Estelle began, dropping her arm.
"…Brave Vesperia?"
Estelle moved her head to look at him and nodded. "It is the brightest star in the night sky. In the ancient tongue, it's translated to the 'evening star' or 'bravery of the morning star."
"I see," The bearded man mumbled to himself, quite pleased with her interpretation. When he noticed the latter's sudden quietness, he grew worried. "What's the matter?"
Swallowing thickly, the princess slowly shook her head. "Nothing…" And forced a grin. "It's just…seeing this star reminded me of the time when we lost Yuri." Breathing in, she added, "When we entered the Shrine of Zaude, we found out that Brave Vesperia was nothing more than a large blastia suspended in space…this whole time, it was safeguarding the Adephagos from entering the stratosphere."
Hanks remained quiet, nodding to her words and allowing Estelle to express herself.
"I refuse to believe that Yuri is gone," Estelle pressed on, her voice firm. "And if…it's not too much," Bringing her hands together, she closed her eyes and began to mutter a silent prayer. "Please, show me a sign. Let me know that he's okay."
A moment of silence passed.
Hanks bit on his lower lip, offering the princess a look of empathy.
Like her, he too wished for a sign that his foster son was alive and well.
"Thank you, my dear," He murmured, loud enough for the latter to hear.
Motioning her head, Estelle smiled sweetly.
All of a sudden, Repede stood on his hind legs and rushed off.
Alarmed, Estelle chased after him, though stopped abruptly to apologize to the bearded man before following after the dog.
Sighing, Hanks staggered back from whence he came. His ears picked up the princess's voice and Repede's bark from a distance and then stopped abruptly when he heard the familiar baritone followed suit.
"Estelle? Repede?"
And to his surprise, the pair responded back—"Yuri!" and a delightful bark—giving Hanks the confirmation that yes, a certain dark-haired man had returned from the dead.
Wanting to join in on the reunion as well, Hanks scurried over to the first steps of the staircase. As much as he wanted to yell out his foster son's name, he knew that this was not the right time to do so. And so, he stood there, smiling and watching the princess laughing joyfully as she tackled the swordsman, who in return, was left dazed and surprised that she managed to pull such a stunt.
Eventually, it became rather intimate when Hanks noticed how Estelle wrapped her arms around his waist while Yuri remained still, though leaning a bit to put his chin on top of her head. There, they stood, together and reunited at long last, within each other's arms.
When he noticed Repede staring at him and jerked his chin as if to signal him to come over, Hanks refused, raising his hand and waving it dismissively. Excusing himself, the bearded man wobbled away, his arms locked together behind his slightly hunched back and going back to his newly repaired house.
For now, it would have to wait.
Hello, this is Kroissant!
here I am, as promised-this time, twice the amount! (usually, it's around 5,000 words but now, 7,000!)
Also, a little background behind the title-the brightest star in the sky is a reference to Brave Vesperia and Estelle (whose name means little star).
As I've mentioned before, we are beginning to see the end of the dialogues borrowed from the game and the beginning of the post game.
This was honestly tiring to write out as it was a lot of emotional built up to write toward Hanks-and the part with him screaming for Yuri's whereabouts was supposed to be the end of this chapter. But I didn't want to stop right and in the midst of the danger, Estelle came in to save the day.
A lot of Hanks and Karol/Estelle bonding as they are the closest ones to Yuri besides Repede and Flynn. As much as I want to include the others, they don't appear to have a scene with Hanks nor are they acknowledged by him which is unfortunate.
Anyway, just to keep in mind-after this chapter (and one/two more scenes at the beginning) will mark the end of the dialogues borrowed from the game and I will begin to interpret the yustelle shots from the post-credits scene.
Also, I would like to say thank you again for your kind words and comments! They give me strength so thank you!
Also, thank you to Cypher0120 and 9Tailsfan for their comments! I've listened to each and every song you've recommended and they are really good!
Once more, feel free to leave a comment (and kudos in the A03 community) if you can! I'm open and eager to hear your opinions and criticisms!
See you all tomorrow!