A/N: Prepare yourselves- this is a chapter is killller long, most definitely the longest I have ever written! This should be about the average size of the chapters from now on, too.
Also, did anyone get my secret tunnel reference in the last chapter? Please- please someone get it. Anyone.
Please.
In the midst of nothing but a sea of dark, swirling sand, three shapes rose up from the ground as though the earth itself had opened its mouth for them. Up through the sandy stairway they came, pressing against the grain of the slowing, heavy sand. Behind them, the staircase, which was crumbling away with the dying current of the sandy whirlpool, had disappeared all together, collapsed beneath its own weight. As they stepped out onto firm solid ground, the soft wind brushed the sand from their heads and shoulders till finally the dry granules rolled were tossed about their feet.
Marle eagerly brushed out what she hoped to be the last of the sand from her ponytail as she proceeded to shake herself off. "I seriously hope we never have to do that again. I'm not claustrophobic, but I-"
One last, unexpected and protesting blast of sand slammed into them suddenly, causing them all to shield their eyes as though they were looking into the sun. The gritty wind slapped at them, and then everything fell still again and the sand moved no more.
With her eyes still tightly shut, Marle patiently shook her head. "I hate sand." She spit some from her mouth.
Now that the hovering cloud of sand was gone, the golden light of the setting sun settled onto the trio- the only natural light they had seen for the last two hours.
It was a very welcomed sight.
But better yet was the stillness which came with it, settling upon the miles and miles of barren land that spanned before them. The air had cleared, no doubt a result of the vortex's' defeat. In place of the swirling sand, which seemed to be retreating back to where it had come, green grass had become visible again and the clear wind was sweet and gentle on their warm, sweaty skin.
"I cannot but agree," Frog croaked in displeasure at the sand sticking to his sweating forehead. "I ne'r wish to behold a dry grain of sand again, I doth believe."
But Marle didn't hear his complaint. She herself had never been one to complain for long, and any reason to complain was quickly dying as she looked about. Amid the almost endless sand, her eye had caught a large green spot. There were, in fact, many green spots where the stubborn grass had shot up, and it looked as though they were gaining more land as the sand blew away.
"Haha!" she laughed in disbelief, pointing at the ground before happily collapsing onto a green patch. "It worked! The grass is coming back! Grass!" If she had had more energy at that moment, she would have liked to roll or jump about, but simply lying on her back and running her fingers along the green blades with a content smile seemed to suffice for her.
Frog and Magus were seemingly less excited. The former was more concerned with getting the stray sand out of his ears and other uncomfortable areas, while the latter was more concerned with… well, nothing, it seemed. Magus simply stared off across the sea with an especially lifeless expression.
After a long moment, Marle sat up with a suspicion about her features. "Why the forest?" she finally asked, turning to Frog specifically.
Frog, who was now rubbing his nose, cringed as the grains of sand scratched his particularly delicate skin. "Pardon?"
Almost skeptically, the princess drew her knees into her chest, her eyes wandering about the flattest stretch of land she had ever seen; there was literally nothing left but sand and grass and tree stumps. "Why is it that the Mystics attacked the forest the same day we battled Lavos? Was it really our fight with Lavos that caused this, or was it just the Mystics' work?"
The knight, somewhat caught off guard, only blinked. "I had'th not considered such a thing." He became very still, rubbing his jaw slowly. "Tis' very queer."
"And even if it was just the Mystics," she continued, "what would they want with a whole forest? That hardly seems like something they would find useful."
Frog gave a moment of careful thought before slamming a fist in his open palm. "Warning shots," he breathed. "Tis' not a matter of supply, but rather a means of provoking panic amid the kingdom! They would'st to strike fear into the hearts of every man, from the lowliest baker to the highest knight."
"Maybe…" Marle's lips pursed in thought. "But Fiona said that none of the king's intelligence had come out this far. She's basically out of Guardia's communication reach, and she's probably the only one besides us who even knows the forest is gone, let alone who did it. That's not sending much of a message."
"And," added Magus, who spoke with less contempt than usual, though he did not turn to them. "Mystics aren't strategic or tactical enough to flex their muscles."
Apparently finding that funny, Marle laughed a little. "I thought not! But…" she watched the wizard's detached manner closely, trying to read what this meant for him. Surely he would have some idea as to what the Mystics were doing. "What do you think, Magus?" She waited, but at first it seemed he hadn't heard her for he gave no form of showing he had. Naturally, she asked a second time, rousing only a slight movement from him. "Magus?"
Unwillingly, he looked to come out of some sort of trance. "What?"
The princess shook her head at him, leaning back where she sat. "What, you didn't hear me?"
Frog was now especially attune to Magus' unusual behavior. Although the wizard's demeanor was constantly at a distance to them all, his attention span never ventured to the point of ignorance. "The Mystics," repeated Frog slowly. "What doth thou think'st of the matter?"
The object of both their attention slowly shifted his weight before looking thoughtfully over his gloved hand. "You would ask me?" was all he finally relented.
"Well, yeah," the princes deadpanned. "You used to be their leader!"
"And as such, I have no way of enlightening you on their current manor of behavior. Only that it is uncharacteristic."
"I'll say! And downright impossible! I mean, even if they were just 'flexing,' how did they manage to clear out a whole forest over night?"
"Is this what that woman claims?" Magus asked over his shoulder, sounding rather rhetorical now.
Marle nodded again, though she wasn't sure he had intended for an answer. "Fiona said that the Mystics came overnight, and when she woke up the forest had disappeared. There were no Mystics left either."
"This tunnel alone could not hath taken less than a fortnight to carve," Frog noted slowly, pressed between distrust and skepticism. He had followed their conversation as one would follow a game of tennis, yet without the fun of finding a winner.
"This tunnel isn't the Mystics' work," the wizard replied. He tossed his cape listlessly, barely affording a look over his shoulder at Marle. "There's something else involved."
Frog lounged backwards, supported by his sword hilt, but Marle was more shocked forwards by this. "What? Like what?"
"That woman was right about one thing; the Mystics are always controlled by a higher power. But whoever is pulling the strings now is aiming above the standard ambitions of Mystics."
"Like...?" she asked, sitting up with more and more curiosity.
Slowly, the wizard returned his gaze returned to the sea. "I don't know."
The doubtful knight crossed his thin arms over his chest at that, and his frown visibly grew. "Who, then, hold'th these strings?"
This time, Magus didn't answer. Though he knew all too well that Frog suspected him to be involved somehow, he chose not to address it; not now, at least. Frog slit his eyes at him, itching to question him further. He opened his mouth and had even taken another interrogative step forwards when Marle caught his attention, nodding towards the dimming sky. Unwillingly, he sighed.
The sun was setting, and forest turned wasteland was really no ideal place to stay overnight.
"C'mon," Marle sighed, relenting her own curiosity for the moment as she got to her feet. "Let's go back to Fiona's. She'll let us stay the night! And if we move fast, we can get there before sundown. I don't want to be stuck out here in the middle of nowhere in the dark, and I especially don't want to be anywhere near this sand!" Her eyes laughed as they watched Magus' slow turning movement. "Besides, I'm sure she needs someone to hold her pig."
Even Frog, whose arms were still unhappily crossed, let out a slight smile as he took lead of the group. He wasn't particularly happy with the strange discoveries they were stumbling upon, but the thought of a good sleep was all he needed to give his worries temporary leave and thus motivate him forwards.
Though unfortunately for him, a good sleep was not to be had.
-v-
The silence of the night mixed, with the soft snaps and pops of the dying fire, gave little light to the three sleeping travelers. Had they all been truly asleep this would be of no concern, but not quite all of them were sleeping.
A small twig jabbed at the golden embers, coaxing out little more than a few short-lived sparks.
Frog, the source of the fire's agitation, sat upright at its side, eyes fixed intently on the movements of the miniature flames. Having spent all their energy between 'farming' and fighting, the tired trio had just barely made it to Fiona's before the sun went down, and barley set up camp before Marle had fallen asleep. Magus, too, had quickly settled down into a convincing sleep. Of course, they had all been fairly tired before they had even got to the surface.
But only Frog remained exhausted now. While the others had been asleep for what already felt like hours, it appeared that he was yet to find such bliss.
The humble house, being the only thing visible for miles around, did little to keep the unforgiving chill from Frog's unfortunately cold blood. He shivered at the merciless breeze at his back. With a yawn and a quick glance around the side of the house, he considering restocking the fire, but there was not much wood to be had and he could not bear the thought of taking anything more from the poor woman hosting them. Besides, the thought of moving was…
He yawned an overpowering yawn. Slowly, without realizing it, his exasperated body drooped towards the side, following the dozing motion of his head and the drooping of his eyelids. He would have almost fallen asleep then and there had not a faint sound snapped him back to attention. With a startle, he caught himself and looked about, although only half knowing what he was doing.
"What's the matter," started the voice he wanted to hear least at the moment. "Can't sleep?"
The knight was subsequently motivated to straighten his posture a little and shuffle closer to the embers. He rolled his neck and poked again at the flames, earning another small round of golden sparks.
Magus held his own silence, listening for any noise from across the fire. As a silent rule, Frog always slept across from him. But apparently that wasn't the only silent rule running at the moment, for either the knight was too tired or too smart to answer the unpleasant invitation. "Is it fear that keeps you awake?"
Gradually, Frog blinked.
"You do this night after night," the wizard continued in an unusual stretch of conversation. "To ensure…?" If the word genuine could ever be applied to the likes of Magus, it appeared that now was the time, for he genuinely did wait for an answer. It wasn't for the sake of being proven wrong however, for he was very certain of why Frog was still awake. "What?" the wizard continued, not put off by his silence. "That you won't wake up and find yourself in the void?"
Frog's dark pupils shot up to where the wizard lay. He seemed to be looking up at the stars, although Frog could not tell whether his eyes were truly open. His large form lay underneath the simple layers of furs and scraps of whatever Fiona had managed to provide for them, all of which rose and fell with the deep breaths of his chest. He looked as though he could be counting sheep rather than making lethal assumptions.
Maybe he was counting frogs?
A light hum interrupted them. Marle, a notoriously heavy sleeper, was mumbling something quietly to herself as she tossed and turned, which neither understood despite having subconsciously stopped to listen. Out of the corner of his eye, Frog watched the princess shift in her sleep, humming slowly under her breath as she reached for another layer of furs to cover herself. Her smile was blissfully unaware. He envied that at the moment.
"I'm touched that you know me so well."
Returning his attention to the wizard, who had rolled onto his side to look to the princess, Frog shook his head lightly, resisting the urge to retaliate. "Someone must tend the fire," he replied simply, but it was after too long of a pause. True to his character, Frog had always been a terrible liar, and although Magus had no pre-existing knowledge of this, he could tell well enough that his ally of sorts was not skilled in any shape or manner of deceit.
"You're lying," Magus stated sardonically, still watching Marle out the corner of his eye.
The knight shifted a little, an inkling of a weary frown creeping at the corners of his mug. "I suppose'th a liar can always smell out another of its kind."
"Me, a liar?" His tone almost feigned ignorance, but there was so little tone that it was genuinely difficulty to argue there was any play to his words. He glanced at his nails before buffing them against his leather breast plate.
"I hath not doubt thou would'st jump at the opportun…"Frog's scoffing trailed off at the unexpected glare of color flashing at him through the darkness. From across the fire, two deep, red irises gleamed steadily at him. The unblinking glint of scarlet had an eerie etch in the faint light of the flame.
"What makes you think I would wait for an opportunity?" came the dark voice. He didn't want an answer; he wanted a reaction. And as usual, he would get one.
Behind the faint fire light, Frog was now very tense and very serious, his glare undividedly fierce. "Do not think," he began coldly, not a single muscle moving, "… do not think thou can'st play such games with me. Do not think for a moment thou could'st erode any confidence with such quip and venom. And do not assume," his gloved hand lingered on the hilt of the Masamune, "that I will let'th mine guard down. Ever."
Perhaps amused, Magus held his gaze for a long moment before returning to his lounging position on his side. "Do you intend to disturb me with such threats?"
"I make'th no threats," Frog corrected.
Magus was silent for a short moment, before finally lying on his back once again. He took a deep breath of the fresh night air and closed his eyes. "Do not forget too quickly that for now we share the same goal."
Frog glowered to himself and elegantly mumbled something under his breath along the lines of 'yeah right' before looking back into the fire and letting his muscles relax. But his mind did not. It could not.
Magus was hiding something; he was sure of it. He was certain there was something else that the wizard was after- he would even say searching for- since joining them; something other than revenge on Lavos. Had Magus truly been concerned with revenge, then his focus would have been to get to and destroy Lavos as quickly as possible.
And yet the wizard had not even so much as mentioned Lavos' name since joining them.
Instead, he had spent much of their time wandering as though he were on some personal side-quest, coming and going from place to place across the Earthbound land, places Frog had not yet been to or seen. He had been like an animal sniffing at the wind as he had roamed, and they had followed. While Frog had first thought it to be a search for guidance towards this 'Time Guru,' or at least some trace of how to help them retrieve Crono, he had gradually lost faith in such a hope. Even now that they had discovered the Chrono Trigger, Magus remained fixed on something... else. No, unless Magus saw Crono as a necessity to defeating Lavos- which was not so likely- then it was most definitely not hopes of reviving Crono which had fueled his fierce searchings.
But what had, then?
"What is it?" Frog asked lowly, glancing back across the fire for an answer. But he found none, for Magus was gone. He jolted up and looked around, seeing nothing for miles and miles before settling down uneasily with a sigh. He snatched up his stick and jabbed at the golden embers once more in hopes of distracting himself. This time, there were no sparks to be had.
It was going to be much longer of a night than he hoped.
-v-
"What's taking so long…?" grumbled an unruly shape lying on the satin carpeted floor.
No amount of string, no toy or song or any amount of pacing was serving the impatient prince any use today. To him, it felt as if he had been waiting for days, and that time itself has slowed down simply to torture him. He had spent the whole day waiting, walking around the fields of Kajar, and then Enhasa's vast and mysterious city walls, and finally the palace corridors itself before settling into his sacred space.
Now, he sat impatiently in the middle of the floor in Schala's room like an uncivilized animal, limbs sprawled out in every direction till his arms crossed angrily over his chest. Though he lay right in the last of the blonde sunlight streaming from the large, open windows, he was neither calm nor relaxed.
He wanted to throw things- or even scream. He wanted to stomp all the way to that accursed hall where his sister sat with the queen and Dalton, chanting quietly and doing God knows what! He wanted to save her from the life sucking practices he knew were happening in there and simply run away from this awful palace. He wanted to yell in the queen's face that she was an awful woman, and an even worse mother.
But he didn't.
Instead, he flopped an arm onto the floor.
"Uuuuuuuuuuunh!"
Alfador's ears twitched lightly.
Seeing he would receive no attention, he grumbled to his feet and found himself roaming thoughtlessly towards the bookcase. With a quick glance, he chose the richest looking book he could see, hauled it down and brought it over to the bed beside Alfador, who had been pleasantly half asleep. The book was a deep scarlet red, a leather bound beauty that smelt of salt and fire. He rubbed his palm over its rugged surface slowly, silently, as though he were waking it from a sleep. He could feel nothing.
"Ah, you've picked my favorite!"
Nearly jumping out of his skin, Janus turned to see the strange little creature who had invaded the room once again. She was perched by the headboard, seeming to balance on nothing but the air itself. He gave her an angry glare and held onto the book as though it would scare her away somehow. It didn't.
"Perhaps I could read you a while?" she asked, extending her hand out for the book. This only made him hold faster to it, determined not to let her steal another book from him no matter how stupid he thought them. Giving as much of a reply as he cared to, he barred his pearly teeth at her. "Hm, I see you don't like to share," she laughed. It was a strange, ethereal sound like nothing he had heard before, which was really something coming from a kingdom such as Zeal. "No matter, I know it like the back of my hand, so I'll just read to you from over here."
As though she had commanded it, every particle in the room seemed to still- Alfador's twitching trail, Janus' uneven breath; even the dust particles, which he could see streaming though the sunlight, slowed to a crawl. He looked briefly to the doorway and considered bolting for it, but ultimately decided against such a defeat in the war over his own personal place. A persistent foe she may be, but he was even more so and refused to surrender his stronghold to anyone, let alone some stupid, dancing...
Doreen closed her eyes peacefully and began to recite in that same, ethereal and otherworldly tone. "Rock, stone, skin and bone," she began. "Humanity grew, though in the darkness on their own."
The book began to tremble in his hands. Startled but not completely surprise, he pulled it tight against his chest in attempts to contain it.
"Betrayal and hate, love irate; the harvest of truth offered to the glorious Glow, bound and gathered by darkness and woe. For it was distorted and shaped to their liking; the gift mauled from its original striking."
The book was thudding painfully into his chest, demanding to be released. It has long since scared Alfador away and winded the stubborn young boy, who was shaking so violently that he actually cursed his lack of magical skill. No longer able to contain it, Janus released it and the book flew open in a burst of light. Strange sounds of crackling energy filled the air, rippling over him in their unseen power. Yet he could not close the book no matter how he struggled against it, nor could he let go of it, for much as it terrified him it also thrilled and enticed him.
"Wise man, foolish man, fickle man, fiend; can you prevent your own folly? Mend your own deed?"
A furious bolt of light slammed down upon the pages, crashing over them with such burning force that it sent him flying, flying into the wall, through the wall, into the darkness, the void.
"How will it all end? Only time will tell."
-v-
"Thank GOSH that's over with!" Lucca collapsed out of the tent, composing herself after a few deep breaths. "If I ever see that face again… it'll be too soon!"
"Yes," Robo observed. "I too, am pleased to be outside once more."
Alfador mewed in agreement.
"Well, Crono owes me one, that's for sure…" She shook her head, fighting the bittersweet cost of the moment. Even if it had taken a painful level of emotional trauma to get that stupid clone, it was really a small accomplishment of sorts compared to what lay ahead. Even so, it was a step in the right direction, and Lucca felt a mildly consoled. It was one step she could cross of the list, which then led her to consider the next step with some hesitation. "I just wish he hadn't sent the clone to his house…" she frowned. "I don't know what I'm gonna tell his mom."
Robo looked back up the stairs they had come from. "Perhaps we should focus on retaining Ayla first?"
"Right. Almost forgot." Lucca looked past her friend towards the large stairway, ever thankful for a robot's one-track mind. "Let's just hope she hasn't… damaged anything."
But Lucca's hopes were in vain. Upon finding the small stage and seating area both deserted and bare of food, the scientist could theorize all too well what had happened.
"Ayla?" she called, poking her head under one of the stone tables.
"Uuuuuuh?" The groan came from underneath the other table, where the primal woman lay clutching her bare stomach mournfully. "Much… too much…"
With a shake of her head at animalistic gluttony, Lucca attempted to help her prehistoric friend up, but to no avail. In fact, it nearly had the opposite effect, for Lucca nearly found herself pulled to the ground before recalculating her lifting tactics.
"Ayla!" she exclaimed in surprise at the heavy woman, "did you eat your weight in food, or have you always been this heavy?"
"Ayla eat… so much… gut… so much full… great pain…"
Her head could not stop shaking. "We couldn't have been in there more than fifteen minutes and you've already managed to consume all the food in sight. I don't know what you deserve more; a metal or a smack on the head."
"No smack, Lucca," her friend groaned mournfully. "No smack… much pain."
Making a mental note that this would most likely be the only time Ayla would ever be at the mercy of another person, let alone herself, Lucca couldn't help but laugh a little. "Robo, could I get a hand over here?"
"Of course." With his unmatched strength and not even so much as an 'I told you so', Robo lifted the heavy woman out from under the table and into his arms. "Where would you have me take her?"
"Well…" Lucca checked her glasses. "I don't want to go to Crono's till I know we can be in and out, but we can't just carry her around all day without attracting some unwanted attention- I mean, more than she's already gathered for herself." She cringed, remembering huddle of traumatized prehistoric actors they had passed on the way in. "I guess we'll have to take her to his house, but I'm not sticking around longer than necessary. His mom asks a million questions about everything, and the last thing we need is to spill the beans about where Crono is and isn't right now." She sighed. "C'mon, let's drop her off for a bit. The others will be a while yet."
But to her surprise, the rest of the group was already waiting for them at the square, snacking on something Marle had bought at one of the concession stands as they cooled off beside the fountain.
"I thought you guys were going to help Fiona?" she asked once in earshot, half confused and half agitated at their poor time management. She watched Alfador zip towards his master as though he were some kind of magnet.
"Yep!" smiled Marle, taking a giant bite of her cotton candy. Her lips were blue from the sugar.
"What?" Lucca was tempted to slap the sugary distraction from her hands, but thought better of it. "Marle, we don't have time to mess around. You guys need to get going- now!"
The princess let the cloud of cotton candy slide away from her mouth. "But Lucca, we've already dealt with it!"
"Right, and I'm actually Queen Lenne," the scientist scoffed impatiently. But seeing the equally serious faces of Frog and Magus- which was quite the feat considering the fluffy clouds of sugar in their hands- she reconsidered herself. "Wait, you mean it? You've dealt with everything already?"
"Well I wouldn't say everything..." Marle replied slowly. "But we stopped that sand vortex!"
Lucca frowned. "That was… awfully fast."
"Fast?" repeated the princess quizzically. "What's your definition of fast?"
Lucca pulled a small device out of her pocket and pushed a button before answering. "I'd say twenty-five minutes would definitely be the new world record."
Marle and Frog exchanged nonplussed looks. "But we've been gone a whole day…"
"A day?!" the inventor repeated as though she hadn't heard correctly. "What're you talking about? There's no way that's possible. We've been in that tent for all of twenty minutes." Then as an afterthought, added, "Not that any amount of time in there is tolerable..."
Everyone who was not in pain from over-eating looked a mix between confused, surprised and generally stumped. Ever the odd one out, Magus scowled at the pink cotton candy which had been unwillingly thrust into his now sticky hands. Nobody seemed to notice the smell of burning sugar as they talked.
"It seems that time is flowing unevenly in different eras," Robo concluded, still hoisting a groaning Ayla about. "Although I can't see what would cause time-space differentiation between the gates."
"It would appear so…" Lucca bit her lip. "That could explain why nothing seems to change here… unless we make it change, that is." What Robo had spoken of Belthasar's message about the time-space continuum came to mind, stumping the scientist into a thoughtful state.
Frog, who looked to be the most physically weary of the three, piped up. "The clone, Lucca? Hath thee obtained it?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah." Whipping her head away from time physics, the scientist turned back to them with a fully attentive frown. "Yeah, it's at Crono's house… waiting."
Marle's shoulders dropped. "What're we going to tell his mom?"
"Nothing," Lucca clicked her tongue and looked away. "What she doesn't know won't hurt her. Besides, he won't be gone long."
-v-
"How long did you say he's gone on vacation, Lucca?"
Crono's mother, an eccentric woman in her mid-forties with frank features and an equally frank tongue, was traipsing about her living room in a fluster of sorts. She had been attempting to dust the mantle of the fireplace but could not seem to stand still long enough to be successful in the matter. Her long skirt bunched up here and there with her uneven and anxious turns- she couldn't believe that son of hers! All these new friends here in her house and her son had gone off on some holiday, leaving it up to Lucca to introduce them to her! And what nerve he had, leaving without telling her where he was off vacationing to! What kind of child had she raised!?
"Uhh… I… think a…" Lucca grappled for some amount of time that seemed reasonable. Although she had every intention of scaling that dread mountain by the end of tomorrow, she had no clue how long it would take convince Crono to go home. Deciding that she would have to drag him, she aired on the generous side. "A w-week, maybe?"
From where he stood in the doorway, Magus shook his head unsympathetically. Were they all such terrible liars?
"A week!" Crono's mom looked very surprised at the news, then crossed her arms and frowned. "You can't really expect me to believe that, can you?" Lucca swallowed nervously and began scrambling for words, but thankfully, the woman wasn't done her rant. "How much did he pay you to come here and give me this phony story?"
Lucca tried not to look extremely nervous and uncomfortable with how quickly this was falling apart on her.
"That boy..." Thankfully, she did not push her suspicion for long. After angrily swatting out the dust in the curtains, she turned to the young inventor again. "Hasn't been home for dinner in three days now, you know. And a whole week still!"
The inventor did not do well to contain her surprise without quickly turning away to look out the window. "Three days, huh...?"
From her spot at the table, Marle's face flushed pale with the realization of what that meant. Time was flowing unevenly- very unevenly. Frog, who sat beside her, seemed just as shocked. His attention, or what was left of it through the exhaustion, was now completely fixed on the older woman's rant.
"Oh, Lucca, come on. You keep much better track of time that that boy! Apparently time has no meaning to him lately." She groaned an impatient groan, and stopped her pacing long enough to look hurt. "You would think he could at least stop by and let me know where he's off gallivanting!"
"Actually, ," Marle piped up suddenly. "Crono really did need to get away for a little while. He was really spooked with having been thrown in jail and almost killed... that can get to a person."
The woman gasped, reaching for her green hair in horror. "Oh I was worried sick about him! It was so terrible! I almost stormed the castle myself and demanded to speak to the king, but then- oh thank heaven- he showed up at home just fine."
The princess nodded calmly. "Actually, the king suggested it- a little time away to clear up the air and such."
Seeming to finally accept this as a tolerable answer, the older woman sighed and shrugged to herself. "I suppose so..."
Lucca, now holding her cool a little better thanks to Marle's diversion, quietly counted on her fingers how many weeks had gone by since they had last visited home in their travels here and there through time. She cringed, knowing it had been too long and her parents were probably also a little worried about her. In fact, it had been at least three weeks -never mind three days- but she said nothing. Even if she had wanted to, there would have been no chance.
"But still.. I'm worried about him, you know," continued their elder. "He can't just run away from his problems and fears- he needs to talk to someone! He's always talked to you about these things, Lucca. He trusts you…" She looked intently at the young inventor's suddenly blushing cheeks till something across the room caught her eye. "Oh, shoo! Whose strange cat is this? I've never seen a purple cat before…"
Alfador had taken very kindly to Crono's cat, who, admittedly, had not taken so kindly to Alfador. However, he was determined and had set out on a chase of the tanned tabby.
Standing watch by the front door, Magus wrinkled his brow at his feline's uncharacteristic behavior; Alfador had never taken well to other animals, or much of anyone else. What had gotten into him?
"Audery, stop that this instant! Bad girl!" Mewing in loud argument, the cats raced through the door frame, between every single pair of legs under the table and then up the stairs, where they could hear their clamoring and yelling continue. Rather exasperated with everything, the older woman tossed her cloth into the sink and leaned against the counter. Lucca took the opportunity to change the topic.
"I believe you've met Marle and Frog before?" she asked, turning to the older woman.
As though he had just woken up, Frog startled a little. He quickly recovered and bowed his head as she nodded. "Hullo, ma'am," he croaked.
Marle smiled and waved. "Hi again!"
"That's Magus there by the door." Magus didn't wave. "My good friend, Robo."
"How do you do, ma'am?" the machine asked with an incline of his body.
"And the sleepy one is Ayla."
"Nuahhhh…" was all Ayla could manage from her place on the floor.
"Oh dear, is she sick?" Her eyes grew with concern, and she began bunching up her long skirts again. "It's very nice to meet you all. Lucca, get some water for her, won't you?" The older woman's motherly nature and short attention span went hand in hand when such opportunities arose; namely, anytime there were more than two people under her roof. These days such opportunities were few, Lucca noted. As saving the world was a full-time job, Crono was only home long enough and often enough to let his mother know he was okay, and she herself hadn't stopped by in ages, it seemed. But old habits die hard, and she found herself under this roof more often than not.
"Here, lay her on the couch- its brand new, don't you like it? I just had it brought in a few days ago. There, that's better. Would you like some soup, dear?"
Lucca had never seen Ayla so close to tears. "No food!"
Crono's mother looked mildly affronted. "Perhaps some… normal clothes, then? And a warm bed."
"Nauhh…"
"My goodness," she sighed, putting her hands on her hips and shaking her head. She looked up at the clock on the wall, squinting at it as though she couldn't quite see it, although Lucca knew perfectly well that she had above average vision. Lucca also knew perfectly well she was not checking the time; rather, she was checking how much time she had. Recognizing the seemingly innocent quirk with dread, Lucca began to panic.
"Actually, we don't-" she started, hoping she could catch her before it was too late. But alas, there is no stopping the ball once it begins to roll.
"Look at you all." Crono's mother was already moving towards the kitchen, a firm conviction in her voice. "You're all in rough shape, aren't you? You, dear," she half motioned to Magus. "You're by the door there. Run along and grab some vegetables from the garden and I'll whip up supper for everyone. You all look like you've fought the devil himself!"
"N-No!" Lucca began nervously, dreading the thought of staying longer than necessary. "That's okay, we have to-"
"Lucca," the older woman shushed. "You're always in such a rush. Grab me that scrub brush, will you? And those vegetable, er, Magus, was it?"
Magus didn't move.
Knowing that Crono's mother couldn't handle much more in the way of offence, Lucca grabbed the scrub brush and quickly ushered Magus out of the house. "Right on it!"
Outside, Lucca wasn't sure if Magus was scowling more at her or the sudden glare of the sunlight in his eyes. "Do you really think the mighty lord Magus has succumbed to picking vegetables for Earthbound lowlife?" he asked disdainfully.
"I think the mighty lord Magus needs to get over it and pick some vegetables, or we're going to be kicking our cans around here waaaay longer than we need to."
"I could relieve each of you from this mortal coil with ease."
"That's not what I meant," Lucca smacked her head. "Just chill, alright? I'll send Robo out to pick the vegetables. Stay out here and keep your cool... or whatever you do."
Lucca returned to the house, and Magus decided the best way to keep his 'cool' was to prickle icicles at his fingertips. A moment later, Robo emerged from the door.
They looked at each other silently.
"I will pick the 'vegetables'... now."
Uninterested, Magus looked back to his gloved fingers.
Robo never really was quite sure how to speak with Magus, so there was another long silence between them till he wheeled himself past the picket fence, where he bent down and began uprooting the foreign objects. He thought he heard Magus mutter something about weeds under his breath, but he didn't turn back to confirm, for his data base was already searching through the word 'garden' and everything affiliated with it. Initial history records told him the 'vegetables' he had been sent for were life sustaining substances that covered the Earth in various shapes and forms, but he could recall nothing like it from his own time. Only since leaving the dreary future had he noticed such leafy green specimens.
Despite his mechanical mind, Robo could come to believe that he enjoyed digging out the vegetables in the garden. Of course, he would do anything Lucca asked him, but this brought him a new type of pleasure and a new slot of information in his hardware. The color green really was wonderful.
"Have you ever stopped to think that you'll outlive everyone you know?" Magus asked dryly without looking to the garden. He hadn't moved. "Without a soul, you're doomed to live forever."
Robo blinked, scanning his data base for the unfamiliar word.
Soul; /sol/ noun. The spiritual or immaterial part of a human being or animal, regarded as immortal.
He paused briefly to process a fitting reply. Was that what Lucca had referred to when she talked about Magus being a soul-sucking monster?
"I have heard that the soul can refer to the embodiment of a specified quality, such as kindness or love." A fan clicked up somewhere on his back when he pulled a carrot from the earth. "I may not be human, but at least I am eligible for the description in one sense of the term."
Magus' frown remained unfazed. Silently, he watched the robot whilst tugging at his gloves.
Back inside, the house owner was in a violent rush around the kitchen, picking relentlessly through cupboard after cupboard. "Where did I put the nutmeg, now? I could have sworn I just used it yesterday…"
"No really, that's okay," the inventor interjected for the third time now, determined to get some form of an argument in. "I'm sure we don't really like nutmeg anyway. Really, we just had to swing by and pick up something and be on our way."
"Don't be silly, Lucca," the woman laughed, stooping down to check in the lower cupboards. "I don't think you even know what nutmeg is."
Lucca groaned. "But-"
"Lucca, you are always in such a hurry. Honestly, you worse than a squirrel running around at lightning speed all over the place. You must be off the wall without Crono to slow you down." She shoved a few things around in the cupboard. "And what has gotten into that boy, anyway? I thought I had taught him better. He is going to get a real mouthful when he gets home."
Despite herself, Lucca couldn't help but smirk at the prospect of such glorious justification. "Good."
"What was that?" Not waiting for a reply, the older woman's upper half disappeared head first into the bottom cupboard, but her angry and now muffled voice persisted all the same. "Well anyway, just because Crono isn't here to make you slow down doesn't mean you're getting past me. He's learnt from the master, you know!"
"I know," Lucca echoed softly, shaking her head.
Finally, Crono's mother reappeared from the cupboard and threw up her hands, exasperated. "Where in the world is that nutmeg? Lucca, could you look in the fridge please?"
The inventor desperately wanted to protest, but she knew it would be a wasted effort. Knowing she was fighting a losing battle, she reached for the refrigerator door, muttering mostly unintelligible words under her breath.
Crono's mother was a woman of particular character; unorthadox, was what Lucca would dub her publicly, though outlandish was her personal word of choice. She had an apron full of quirks, few of which truly threw Lucca off guard anymore. Had she not known this family like the back of her own hand, she would have shared the confused expression on Frog's face. From where he stood in the doorway staring outside, the knight's head turned with an arched brow, watching the woman search for her spice in all the wrong places. Marle simply giggled.
"Now, tell me Lucca…" Getting to her feet and searching through another cupboard, the woman continued. "What have you all been up to lately? I haven't seen any of you around town."
Lucca, who was fidgeting through the fridge, began fidgeting a little more. She had never been good at lying, and knowing she was about to be asked a million questions made her nervous. "Well… you know, just… some… errands. We've been out of town, looking for some things…"
"What kind of things?" the mother asked, having forgotten the nutmeg in search of something else. "Pass me those eggs, would you?"
Lucca groaned inwardly, rubbing her temples behind the cover of the fridge door. "Yeah, we had to… uhh…"
"Lucca, you're mumbling again."
"Uhh…." Lucca choked out, rubbing the back of her neck as if something were biting her before shakily reaching for the carton of eggs. It was empty. "We uh, we…"
"We've been searching for new equipment for Lucca's latest invention," Marle interrupted casually, crossing her legs and lounging back in her chair with just the faintest of a smile. "She's got this wild new experiment she's been working on- and she's overly secretive about if you ask me- but some of the parts she needs are just about impossible to find. It's starting to feel like we've been looking all over the country!"
Lucca looked at her blankly as she shut the door.
"Oh really?" Crono's mom asked over her shoulder. "What is this one going to do, Lucca?"
She set the empty carton on the counter and chuckled nervously. "Well…"
"Well is right!" Marle interrupted again with a laugh. "She won't give us even a hint about it, so she had better not spill the beans to you! All she's promised is that it's going to be good, so I'm hoping it's a machine that can switch my brain with hers!"
The inventor made no reply, though she did arch a brow at the princess.
"A surprise invention, hm?" mumbled the older woman as she reached for the egg carton and found it empty. "Darn it!"
Marle winked at Lucca, who finally found her voice. "Yeah. Surprise brain machine."
"Well then," the princess chuckled and plucked a cherry from bowl in the middle of the table. "It's a good thing we know she's not an evil genius, or we'd have to send the whole town running for the hills."
"It wouldn't be the first time… probably not the last, either." Lucca blushed and rubbed the back of her head. The older woman laughed a bit, finally turning around to face them. "Now Lucca, I don't suppose there's anything around here that would help you out for this invention?"
"Uh.. I don't think so-" she began.
"Good, because I'm going to have to send you to the market for some groceries. I'm fresh out of one too many things here. Eggs, nutmeg-"
"Grocery shopping?!" Marle blurted excitedly, nearly jumping out of her chair. "Really?! Can I come?"
Both Lucca and Crono's mom turned to look at her strangely. For once, Crono's mom didn't seem to know what to say. She had never been out stranged by anyone, which was really something considering Crono's friends.
"It's just such perfect timing." Marle grinned. "I saw some good deals in the market earlier today."
From where he stood in the doorway, Frog smirked without turning.
"Ookay," the older woman concluded awkwardly. She grabbed a pen and scribbled down a few things on a piece of paper before handing it to Lucca with a small satchel of coins. "Make sure you tell the butcher that he owes me for last time, and ask the Pierre about the weekly special."
"Butcher, Pierre," Lucca repeated, tucking the money and the paper both into her pocket.
"Right. And don't forget the eggs. I NEED those for supper tonight." She smiled down at her in a rare moment of stillness. "And the nutmeg."
"Eggs, nutmeg. Butcher Pierre. "
"Don't joke like that, Lucca!" her older woman firmly swatted the scientist over the head. "If you're going to butcher anyone, it should be Fritz- he's influenced Crono with his terrible, wanderlust ways!"
Lucca snorted. "That I can do. I'm glad we can agree on something. We'll be back soon." As she and Marle walked out the door, she turned to Frog and whispered, "Make sure no one kills anyone, or says or does something stupid."
Frog, who had been watching Magus with tired eyes, nodded solemnly. To him, that simply translated into keeping Ayla asleep and Magus out of the house.
"Don't forget the eggs!" came the last shout from the kitchen.
"I know!" was the slightly impatient reply. With a deep breath, she turned towards the garden where Magus and Robo were. "We're stepping out for a bit. Don't do anything stupid here, okay?"
Magus cocked his head ever so slightly. "Define stupid."
"No thanks." Once out of earshot from everyone, she turned to Marle with a strange look. "I really hope they don't blow our cover. Should we even leave them behind?"
"I'm sure it will be fine," Marle replied listlessly, smiling at the dappled lightening of the sun through the trees.
"You know," the genius sighed, then smirked at her slyly, "you're a pretty good liar. Most of the time."
The princess shrugged, unsure of how to take her words. "Thanks?"
Lucca shook her head. "Hn. Should it scare me that the future queen of my country can spin lies better and faster and under way more pressure than any spider with its web?"
Marle laughed. "Would you believe my answer anyway?"
Lucca laughed back. "Well, I believed everything till you got to the part about shopping."
"Shopping?" the princess quirked her head.
"Yeah, you know, how you got all overly excited to go shopping. That was a little weird."
"Oh…" Marle trailed off, looking a little embarrassed. "Was it?"
"No one likes grocery shopping that much- I mean, maybe some people actually enjoy it, but it's still more of a chore than anything."
"Really?" her friend gasped in disbelief, stopping in her tracks to stare at the inventor. "You mean it's not that great at all?"
Lucca laughed. "No, I mean not when you... wait..." she paused, looking at her in disbelief. "You've never gone before?"
"Well… no." Marle kicked a small stone off the path and tucked a strand of hair behind her ears. "I've never had a chance or a reason to. But I've always wanted to... just for myself, or maybe even for some friends. It's on my bucket list, actually." She grew bouncy again. "That's why I was so excited!"
Lucca's face morphed from shocked, to sorry, to blank. "Its- what? Really?"
"Yeah yeah, I know it's such a simple little thing… beyond simple really. But I've never even got a chance to cook for myself. I mean, it might not be any good, but at least I would be doing something normal people get to do… something for myself for once."
Lucca was silent for a long moment. "Well," she finally decided, turning to get them walking again. "Make sure you cook your chicken till there's no pink left. That one I learnt the hard way."
Marle laughed, and both of their moods lightened.
"By the way, thanks for getting me out of that mess back in the kitchen there," she sighed, shaking her head with embarrassment. "I would have said something totally stupid if you hadn't interrupted."
Marle swatted her on the arm. "I don't think stupid is in your vocabulary, Lucca."
"Eh, I make no promises. I've done some stupid things that I still can't seem live down."
"Like what?" Marle looked genuinely shocked.
"Well actually Crono is mostly to blame for the majority of them. But… there was that one time… oh boy. She wasn't joking about me having the town running for the hills. That… invention was a bad idea."
"What? What was it?"
Lucca shook her head with reminiscence, grinning that smug and brazen grin which subconsciously surfaced when she got to talking about her inventions. "I thought it would be a good idea to turn the town's fountain into a... well, lab test was what it really was. Idealistically, I would have turned the liquid into something more expensive and valuable than water, like milk or something practical that would benefit everyone. But instead, Crono thought we should turn it into a pot of boiling cheese..." she laughed. "We even had the town's cows hooked up to it. Of course, we had not the slightest idea how to actually make cheese, so we left it over night thinking that it would turn out in the morning. But the next day..." she shuddered. "Marle, always keep milk cold."
Marle's eyes sparkled. "You mean it went bad?"
"Bad?" the inventor shook her head. "Bad was an understatement. Not only had the milk developed this funky smell and exploded all over the place, but the cows had decided to drink it and- augh! Literally everyone left town for the day while we cleaned up. I haven't been able to stand milk since."
The princess' giggles turned into a full, chesty laugh. "Seriously? That's hilarious! It sounds like you and Crono were good at getting into trouble!"
"Pah, I still blame him for that one. It was his idea."
"I wish I could have been there. I think it was a hilarious idea."
Lucca rolled her shoulder a little. "Well, that makes two people at least."
The girls were silent for a minute as they walked on, each lost to their own thoughts as the warm summer wind pushed them along. "His mom was right about Crono slowing you down," the princess started suddenly. "In a good way."
Lucca arched an eyebrow in surprise. "What?"
"I think he makes you more relaxed," she continued, placing an unexpected hand on her shoulder. "Like, literally makes you. You've been so tense since he's been gone- I mean, understandably so. I... we're all feeling it. But I was really worried about you there, when you weren't talking."
Lucca was silent.
"He's... your best friend, huh?"
Slowly, the inventor nodded. "Yeah," was her simple, hoarse reply.
Marle sighed lightly, taking her hand back. "You're really lucky, you know. Crono is so great."
Unsure of what exactly that meant or how to respond, Lucca glanced at the princess from her peripherals. Marle wasn't one to speak with nuance, but Lucca knew that the gorgeous princess had taken a strong liking to Crono, and that Crono was particularly smitten with her. She had known it instantly, the first time she had seen them together at the fair. The way he made her laugh… How she got him to talk about nothing.
Lucca would never admit it, but she had initially been a little glad of Marle's disappearance into the time machine- till Crono decided he was going after her, that is.
"Yeah," Lucca finally replied, realizing she had been silent for far too long. "He's an idiot. But I- I mean, he's the best idiot I know. I miss him."
The princess eye followed her for a long moment, and then a silent smile spread its way across her features. It was a strange, knowing smile, though Lucca didn't ask into it for the fear of finding that Marle could read her like an open book.
"I hope you don't mind," Lucca began, deciding to change the subject on terms of both need and want. "But I really should stop at home. My parents are probably worried about me, and I have a few things I could do with before that hike up Death Peak."
"Oh…" came Marle's less energetic reply. She slowed down a little. If Lucca had looked over her shoulder, she would have seen the princess look off in the direction of the distant, misty castle and bite her lip.
Lucca shook her head. "It's almost impossible to get away from Crono's house, so this is the only chance I'll get before it gets late."
"Right."
"It won't take long, I promise."
Marle, looking a little downcast, couldn't help but fix her eyes on the shape of the castle, growing closer and closer as they walked into the western sun.
-v-
Lucca had been called a lot of unpleasant names growing up, none of which she wished to rehash. Being the quiet, 'different' one was more than enough to get all the unwanted attention she wasn't asking for.
And while Crono might have been considered more normal than her- either that, or everyone knew better to mess with the kid who spent hours attacking home-made targets with his wooden sword- Lucca knew enough of his strange quirks to christen him with her own names; she merely considered it sharing the burden.
The knocking on his large, bright green door echoed about the quiet area till a small woman with deep, green hair opened the door.
"Oh, hi there!" The motherly figure looked down at her with a smile. "You're Crono's friend, aren't you? Well I like to have him out of bed by ten o'clock, so-" As if on queue, the faithful ringing of Lenee's bell called out on the hour. Her ears perked up to listen, and she smiled. "Don't you just love the sound of Lenee's bell in the morning?"
Lucca nodded awkwardly and opened her mouth.
"Oh yes," his mother began again, suddenly remembering why the little girl was there. "But he's up early this morning. He's already out playing somewhere around here."
"Thanks," was all Lucca said, and turned to run back down the path.
"Oh, hold on," the older woman stopped her. "Lucas, right?"
"Lucca," she corrected , trying to inch away. Didn't that woman recognize her well enough to call her by name now?
"Oh right, I knew that. Tell Crono to be home by twelve for lunch, will you dear?"
"Yes ma'am," Lucca turned and bolted around the side of the house.
The area of town that Crono's house was nestled into had an amazing view of the ocean. While Lucca's house was a situated on a peninsula and therefore rightfully had the best view in all of Guardia, the beach along Crono's house could still hold a candle to her. The small house was as far east as you could go in town, overlooking the great cliffs that gave way to a horizon full of the sparkling ocean. It was also backed by the dark pine forest everyone claimed was haunted, but those were just silly rumors that she wouldn't admit kept her from setting foot past the row of towering trees. From where she stood atop the cliff, the wind tossed the smell of fresh ocean spray and pine needles through her short, purple hair.
Sitting down with her back to the cliff, she scanned the area for a certain red-head she knew had to be hiding somewhere close. Her eyes rolled over the roof; no, he wasn't hiding up there. Good thing too, because the last time he tried that, it hadn't gone over so well.
Oh, there 'it' was.
Hanging off the bottom tree branch like a sloth at full speed was the full-bodied, lazy character known as Crono. He seemed to be scanning the area around him, watching for something.
"Hey," Lucca called casually, strolling up to him. "What's up?"
"Haven't you heard?" he whispered as though someone were listening.
"Heard what?" she asked, taking a seat at the base of the large tree trunk. While her aerial friend had earned the title monkey, Lucca preferred to stay on the ground where she was already at risk of enough harm. Something about the combination of her and climbing things…"That you're crazy?"
He shot her a flat look. "The princess escaped from the castle."
"Again?" She rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "Geeze, you make it sound like they keep her tied up in there."
"Maybe they do."
Lucca cringed. "What, is she some kind of savage?"
Before Crono could answer, the sound of faint, mindless chatter pricked their ears, and another sort of savage became visible down the hill; or more appropriately, savages. Over the hill appeared three blonde, bobbing ponytails, growing close and closer by the second. Lucca groaned, wishing she had waited an extra twenty minutes to come over like her mother had wanted. Something about needing time to digest breakfast...
"Crono," she warned, getting to her feet.
But it was too late. Seeing the three pretty girls walking up the hill past his house, the young boy's face lit up into a devilish grin, mustering as much charm as a twelve year old boy could. With scary ease, he swung himself up from the upside-down grasp he had on the branch, perching himself smoothly on top of the tree's limb.
"Hey, ladies," he drawled, leaning against the tree trunk slyly.
Recognizing the three girls as the no-good trio she would spin on her heels to avoid in town, Lucca felt her stomach sink.
"Hey, cutie," called the blonde one in the middle. "What's up?"
Crono smiled and haughtily pointed to himself. "Me."
Lucca groaned, no longer sure who was worse here. Both of them made her want to throw up.
"Really?" The three giggled simultaneously. "How'd you get all the way up there so easily?"
"Practice," Crono smiled again.
Exchanging some sort of glance neither understood, the leader of the girls went on. "So, you wanna come down from there and go check out the new zoo in town?"
'New zoo?' Lucca thought to herself. Since when?
Leaning on his arms, the boy swung his feet out and jumped down, earning a flinch from the inventor and more giggles from the girls. "Sure," he answered smoothly, quite proud of himself.
"Yeah, I heard they're missing one of their monkeys." Their leader squirmed, as if she were trying to hold some sort of secret in.
Crono's eyes flashed; that was too good of an offer to pass up. "I'll find it!"
"You're a real hero," she cooed, stepping up to him with her flaky smile. Crono actually blushed, though it was hard to see through the mop of red hair on his head. "Now, mind if I put a collar on you? I'd hate to have you run off on me."
Before she had even finished, the other two girls burst out laughing, laughing so hard that tears welled in their eyes.
"He even looks like them!" laughed another as she fell onto her side.
"And smells like one!"
Crono's confused expression lingered on the blonde girl, who was bent over laughing at her own terrible joke. They howled and howled, then tried to get their breaths back. Still laughing, the other two helped the fallen one up and strut off.
"Later, looooser," called one of the girls over her shoulder, wiping a tear from her eye.
Crono watched them leave with a blank face, but Lucca knew better. Despite the 'tough guy' act her put up, Crono was one of the most sensitive people she had ever met, and she liked that. But while it made him more caring to the people around him, it also made him more vulnerable.
Even if they were just catty girls with lame insults, she knew he had been hurt when he turned back to her dumbly.
"Hey," she got to her feet and lightly punched his shoulder. "Ignore them. They're just a bunch of stupid, brainless girls."
He smiled at her a little, or at least tried to. He turned back to the tree, caught hold of a smaller branch and hoisted himself up silently.
Lucca let out a loud sigh. "I mean, you don't smell that bad, you know."
A large pine cone bounced off her helmet, reminding her again of why she kept it on outside of her dad's workshop.