I apologize for being slightly late with this one. Family stuff happened, my computer's internet is messed up and my anti-virus expired. So unfortunately, updates will be sporadic at best.
...Anyways, hopefully this one will be a little more cheerful then the last chapter I wrote, eugh… …Then again, knowing what happens in the Ice Monument, I doubt it will be. Just wait for the ending people! Again, some of the lines were lifted off of the original script.
Themes are: Bittersweet Symphony - The Verve, Cynical World - Yuki Kajiura, Exile Vilify - The National
Chapter 15: Bittersweet Symphony
Even during the late morning, the rainstorm that started earlier that day had yet to cease. An annoyed look on her face, Norma held her bag above her head as she ran down the road to Teach's house. Her yellow boots splashed into puddles along the street, sending water everywhere as her feet continued pounding down through the empty street.
Though she was quickly becoming soaked from the rain, her mind kept wandering to the Everlight. If her research was correct, then there was an ancient treasure in a temple of ice. It was in a remote spot that apparently no one could really access anymore... The Ice Monument was the only location on the Legacy that had such a connection (or was considered icy), so that ancient treasure just had to be the Everlight! The girl smiled, slowing to cross the slippery wood bridge that led onto Teach's street.
I'll show you, Master! Norma thought to herself with a grin on her face. I'll find the Everlight… "That, I promise!" She announced, just as the large tree in the historian's yard came into view.
Even through her thoughts flooded with treasure, dreams and the rain soaking into her dress, a small part of her mind still pondered about the disappearance of her blond roommate, Walter. She had woken up that morning to see a messy bed and no sign of him. Norma should have gotten used to his disappearing without a word, especially during the first few days of his stoic attitude while living in Werites Beacon, but... Ever since the hurricane and the incidents afterwards, he had stuck around more often then not. In fact, you could almost say he had wanted to be around her more, as often as her friends were. Now he had just up and vanished, without so much as a too-brief-to-be-polite note. It seemed... off.
Reaching the porch, Norma quickly stepped inside and let her arms fall from their position above her head. Water dripped from her bag, and she swung it through the air a few times to get rid of the excess drops, spray patterns hitting the walls. Even then, the bag was still moist to the touch, but it would have to do for now. Pushing her thoughts about the Ferines to the back of her mind, she refocused on the Everlight and grabbed the doorknob in front of her.
Pushing open the door, the crystal eren looked across the room at the rest of the Fun Bunch, settled around the couches in the middle of the living room. Senel sat on one of the larger couches, with Shirley on his right side and Chloe to the his left. Moses was sprawled out on the other couch, feet hanging off an armrest and feigning a sleepy expression. Grune was daydreaming on one side of the living room, while Jay and Will spoke with the group on the other side. Most of the group looked like they too had a wet walk to Will's house, with Moses and Jay looking the most drenched.
The girl clapped her hands together and grinned, "Great, looks like all of you are here!"
Moses shrugged, "Well, ya can't do much on a rainy day like this one." By the look of him, his walk in the rain was the worst of the group, though the messy strands of his hair had begun to clump together and dry.
"So, what have you called us here for, Norma?" Jay asked, his normally silky black hair uncharacteristically frizzy.
Norma fought back a cheer, and instead crouched and sprung back up onto one foot, arm raised in a victory pose, "Alright, we're off to the Ice Monument! The Everlight's waiting for us!"
Chloe visibly stiffened, her normally serious expression suddenly taking a slight worried edge. Senel looked at her in curiosity, then back at Norma, who was still striking her pose. "Are you sure that's the place?" He sounded skeptical.
She lowered her arm and gave them a knowing look, nodding her head. "Of course I am! Have I ever been wrong before?"
"Yes you have." Shirley stated, in a plain voice.
"Oh, yes, many times." Grune added, her expression still dreamy as if they were all part of the fantasy in her mind.
Norma still nodded her head with a huge grin on her face, and the other team members were silent, giving Grune strange looks. Chloe turned back to the bubbly girl still nodding and carefully responded, "The Man-Eating Ruins, for example." She had only heard about their trip's details from Jay, but apparently their camping trip entailed a full search of the ruins, with nothing found.
The group turned back to the brunette. "Did you forget already?" Norma stopped nodding and turned to look at her. She stretched out a hand to emphasize her point. "We could be putting ourselves in danger…" Chloe's face was slightly paler than usual, though no one really noticed this with their attention on Norma. Chloe silently pleaded that the girl would see her sense and not want to go.
"Do you have a good reason for taking us there?" Jay asked.
"'Cause the Everlight's there, stupid." Moses drawled, earning a beaming grin from Norma and a scowl from Jay.
The shorter teen threw up his arms at the bandit chief in exasperation. "What I want to know is why she thinks the Everlight is in the Ice Monument, of all places."
Will crossed his arms, "You have clear evidence based on your research, I presume?"
Norma tilted back on her heels with her hands on her hips, "Y… yeah! Lots!" She stated quickly, a slight stutter in her voice.
Chloe gave her a serious look, a cool feeling running down her arms at a thought running through her head. "You seem… nervous. Why won't you give us the details?"
Jay shrugged, "You're not Moses; you can't expect us to trust your animal instinct."
Said-bandit twitched. "You better be tryin' to play funny, Jay." He growled. Jay turned to face him, and the two were silent as they exchanged looks, one annoyed and the other nonchalant.
Senel turned to Norma after a brief moment of looking at their two team members glare at each other. "Say, Norma..." She gave him a puzzled expression. "Why don't you tell us why you're so interested in the Everlight, anyway? There must be some reason it matters so much to you."
Norma was silent, her bangs shading her eyes as she looked over at the window. Then finally, a few moments passed by before she turned back to them and said, "Well… I guess if you want to know that badly… Lemmie tell you a little story."
x x x
Around the same time, a blond figure was exiting the duct into a large grove of pine trees, his eyes scanning the forest for any sign of movement. Nothing... So the village wasn't guarding the duct, Walter thought to himself as he neared the familiar coral-colored archway, hidden underneath a barrier showing only the lake. Though it helped him enter the secluded village, if he had been in charge not even a bird would have been able to get inside due to the impressive level of security. Cautiously, he opened the entrance of the village and closed it immediately after he snuck inside, careful to avoid the two Ferines appointed to the gate.
As he crept along the shore of the lake avoiding the Ferines he passed by, he thought about his experience earlier that day with the Gadorian knight. What had possessed him to not only talk to her, of all people, but also ask her to keep her teammates and ultimately Norma from going to the Ice Monument? Noted though, he was so incredibly tense from nervousness, worry and so many other emotions that he could snap at any moment. So... he was bound to make a few bad decisions, right? That didn't include revealing yourself to another one of Senel's group, you idiot!
Noticing a Ferines by the shore, Walter paused in his mental bashing to hide in a nearby shrubbery (he seemed to do that a lot since he's been revived) until they left. Stepping out silently to check if they were gone, he continued along his way, plucking loose leaves and twigs from his hair. But… He had to admit, Valens was an intelligent person. She would eventually figure out from his strange behavior that he was serious and, like he hoped, would follow through on the request. Then again, the suspicious knight was also smart enough to know there was something fishy about his oddly specific warning. She would eventually trace the hint at her teammates to Norma, blowing her cover and rendering her deal with Jay mute; she didn't need more stress in her life, neither did he. Besides, then the two hours of his annoyed suffering from the dagger-happy teen's interrogation would have been completely useless.
Growling to himself, he finally reached the small grove of pine trees where a few lone graves resided as his thoughts grew more self-berating. "Walter, you idiot…" He softly growled to himself.
You just proved yourself viable of that stupid-blond stereotype of the Orerines yet again by revealing yourself, he told himself as he walked up to the two graves. Norma's other friends may have tolerated him enough not to tell her other teammates, but Chloe wouldn't just let him walk around Werites Beacon like he owned the place. He had tried to kill them before, numerous times in fact. Even when they had become allies, he hadn't hesitated in attacking them with his words when he could.
You really was a bitter person, the blond realized as his fingers ran across smooth stone, a slight chill running down his arms at the dark irony of staring at one's own headstone. Bitter enough that you wouldn't let sleeping dogs lie and attacked them at every chance you got. Even disobeying the Merines' orders and going after them in the Quiet Lands, just to try and get rid of them once and for all. It didn't matter if you couldn't even stand, you still wanted them... him gone. And yet, you managed to ask one of his previous enemies to do him a favor?
Sitting underneath the large tree to avoid getting any wetter then he already was from that morning's rain-shower, the blond brought a leg up to his chest, his fingers loosely clasped in front of it. And so the subject of the Ice Monument comes up yet again… Would Chloe actually listen to his request and keep her teammates, and therefore Norma, away from the place? Or would she refuse, like he suspects, and have his plan blow up in his face like so many of his other past decisions? He hoped she saw the sense in his words from that morning and chose the former of the two.
Walter leaned back against the tree blowing hair out of his face, only for it to fall back in place above his left eye, a few strands stabbing him in his eye. Frowning, he brushed the hair away from his face, and his head thudded back against the scaly bark harder then he would have liked. "Owch!" Lifting a hand to massage the newly-created bump on his head, the blond glared in a random direction before he could be lost in his thoughts again that day.
Unfortunately for him, his luck wasn't the best; that much hasn't changed much. His glare just so happened to have landed on a blond pig-tailed girl who's expression clashed somewhere between indignant, shocked and demanding. His annoyed expression slowly drained away as he blinked in surprise. "…Oh." Her again.
"You again?" Fenimore's sister exclaimed loudly, jabbing a finger in his direction as she continued almost in a yell. "Why won't you leave us alone? Don't you have anything better to do with your Orerines friends?" She spit out the two words like a slur, her aqua eyes blazing.
Walter let his hand fall from his head on the top of his knee as he gave her a level stare. "Actually, I was looking for you, Irelnes." His head cocked to one side, he couldn't help but smirk a little as an embarrassed blush ran across her face. She would probably be insulted by the name he gave her, but he didn't know what else to call her. Besides, it actually fit pretty well, if his previous experience with her was to be believed.
"M-my name is Thyra; don't call me that!" The blond girl stumbled over her words, her cheeks red. "And why would you want to see me, hmm? Again, shouldn't you be playing with the other Orerines, and completely ignoring the Ferines' needs, your own people-"
Walter interrupted her ranting with a piercing glare and a low tone, "Don't accuse me of ignoring our plight, even with the Orerines' newly-founded alliance with us. I already died once trying to protect my race, I won't hesitate to do it again if the need arises." This seemed to shut her up, so he lightened his gaze and continued. "To answer your first question, Thyra, I recall hearing a lot of questions from you after our last encounter. I came to answer some of them out of common courtesy, and ask a few of my own."
Thyra was silent for a moment, then answered, "…And you'll leave after you're done? You'll leave us alone?" She seemed to replace the word 'us' with 'me' in her mind.
He nodded, "I can't say I will stay away forever, as I'll eventually have to reveal myself to Maurits and probably return as a result. But I won't bother you anymore." It was as honest as a response he could give. He knew if Senel and the others found out, they would tell Maurits about the news, and odds are he would return within the week of that happening. As much as it would be a relief to live among his own kind again… He has gotten used to Werites Beacon, all of the chaotic people and places included. And... it would feel strange not to have a roommate anymore.
Her eyes narrowed cautiously, but slowly nodded. "Fine then. So..." She thought for a moment, walking further into the clearing until she was in front of the two graves."You died, pray tell how exactly you are among the living again? Are you undead or something?"
Walter gave her a strange look, "Am I undead...? Are you kidding? You can't reanimate something or someone with their soul intact; it's impossible. So no, I'm not a zombie or anything like that." He shook his head at the ridiculous thought. "And simply put… well, I was given a second chance at life, nothing more or less."
Thyra gave the man in front of her a skeptical look, annoyed he wasn't giving her more information. "Do you really expect me to believe that load of-"
"You'll have to, as I'm not going to expand any further on my answer. Next question." He waved his hand as if to shoo away her indignation.
"Th... that's not fair! I deserve to know, especially if you're walking around causing trouble for all of us!" Thyra was a tad bit red in the cheeks, which reminded him so much of Fenimore…
Walter rubbed at his chest absentmindedly, feeling a small ache resurface. He really should stop comparing the two sisters. "How do you deserve to know? You don't need to know a thing about me, Thyra. I'm just choosing to humor you and cure some of that limitless curiosity of yours." Watching her get flustered was entertaining, he thought, even though she tended to throw back some harsh words.
Thyra's eyes burned in frustration at the stubborn Ferines in front of her. "Fine then! If you're so keen about 'satisfying my curiosity', how about you tell me how my sister died for that worthless Merines!" His breathe caught for a moment, and she noticed. "Not so knowledgeable now, are you? Too caught up worshiping and groveling at her feet that you completely forget about my sister's-"
"Do you really want to know?" He asked simply, his eyes staring off into what seemed to be some memory. "You won't find any smug satisfaction in it... The only thing you'll gain is just sadness and grief."
The girl was surprised by how pensive he became, and for a moment seemed to contemplate his words. Though not too long after, she shook off his gentle warning and replied, "Yes, I do want to know." He became silent and closed his eyes in thought, and a minute passed by before she began to grow impatient. "...Well?"
"Give me a moment." Letting out a deep breath and opening his eyes, Walter began. "I wasn't there during most of it, so I'm not exactly sure if it's how it happened or not. According to Maurits, when Shirley had begun the Rite of Accession, everything seemed to go according to plan... Except that Nerifes wasn't speaking to her. The Ferines were skeptical because she had already failed once before, but Fenimore would have nothing to do with it and yelled at them for not believing in her." He held back a smile at the mental image of her yelling at the other Ferines and defending her friend.
Thyra nodded, her eyes drifting over to Fenimore's tombstone. The last of the spring flowers were on their final blooms and the violet cyclamens began to peek out from beneath the dead petals. "Fenimore always said what was on her mind, and didn't hold back when she disagreed with someone."
Walter looked up, his eyes mixed with anger and sadness. "After this, a Ferines staggered into the alter, telling that the Orerines had infiltrated the area. He collapsed soon afterwards, and after that, a group of Gadorian knights interrupted and demanded to take the Merines prisoner."
"But why would they-?" She tried to ask, but he held a hand up.
"They said that she was conspiring with Vaclav, and thus the Crusand Empire against Gadoria. They tried arresting her despite the fact that she was held against her will and that her sister sacrificed herself to save that miserable city from the Nerifes Cannon." Teeth clenched, he still wished that he could have just one hour, even a few minutes to make that captain pay… "The Ferines tried to defend against them, telling Shirley to escape, who were completely defenseless. And… they just cut them down in cold blood."
While she was listening to him speak, she had walked a bit closer so that she was leaning against one of the gravestones. When she heard of their fate, her hands covered her mouth and she slid down the back of the cold stone, her eyes watering.
Walter was clenching one of his arms, his eyes distant and flickering with sorrow. "A women had stood in front of the Captain of the soldiers, and Shirley stepped in front to protect her. He swung his sword, and Fenimore pushed her out of the way... She was stabbed instead of her." His eyes clenched shut, and distantly he heard Thyra give a small choked gasp.
He opened his eyes, and saw that Thyra had covered her eyes as her shoulders trembled. He had told her this would happen... "Shirley was calling for help, but no one too a step to help her. They didn't even try… I had flown in at that moment, not knowing what was happening, but Maurits didn't want me to interfere. Fenimore told Shirley something… And she…" His stopped abruptly, not being able to speak anymore. He had a feeling his voice would crack if he did.
A long silence followed, broken when Thyra finally brought up her tear-streaked face and asked, "Is that the truth?" Her voice was shaky from holding in her hiccuping cries, looking at him without the usual bitter anger or biting sarcasm. Her eyes held only the grief of someone who lost their family, their other half.
Walter looked at his feet, "Much as I would do anything to say otherwise, it is…" He ran a shaky hand through his hair, "…And I didn't do anything. If only I had disobeyed Maurits and actually helped, Fenimore might still be here. To hell with awakening the Merines!"
His hand clenched into a tight fist, his face anguished. "Shirley had already lost her sister who she just discovered to actually be alive... and Senel turned his back on her to be with a memory of Stella. She didn't need the responsibility of bringing about the Cataclysm, she needed her friend. Her only friend, if what I guessed to be true. Maurits may have thought Fenimore dying was the final push Shirley needed to ascend, but Fenimore didn't need to die! She didn't deserve to die, and..." I didn't do anything to help.
Biting his lip, he leaned his head back until it collided with the tree with a small thump, his hair sliding out of his face. "Damnit…" He whispered to himself.
Thyra had been watching him during his rambling, and her eyes suddenly widened as she looked at him in a new light, "…Walter, did you… Were you in love with Fenimore?"
Walter's blue eyes opened slightly, tired gaze looking at her for a moment. Was I? ...I still am. His eyes closed, and his chin fell forward slightly in a single nod, "…I guess you could call it that." He responded quietly.
Thyra sat up straighter in her shock. This explained everything, from his change in mood whenever she was mentioned to the strange way she would look at her. ...A bit creepy, but she was her twin: they looked identical. Hell, had Fenimore lived then a couple of years down the line she might have even been related to him. …Now her mind really was running away from her. Still though, if he loved her so much, then why was he so quick to defend the Orerines?
Bitterness ran through her mind again, and she frowned, wiping away the tear tracks on her face. "Why are you so forgiving of the Orerines then, if you really were in love with my sister?"
He opened his eyes. "Thyra…" Walter began, but she continued onwards, her anger beginning to rule her mind yet again.
"Don't start with me, Walter! The Orerines were the ones to kill Fenimore… So why are you defending them? You know they've committed countless crimes against us, killed our race and have done horrible things to the Ferines. Don't they deserve the same treatment? Don't they deserve to be killed just like we were?" She argued, her voice rising as she spoke.
"'An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind'…" He answered simply, his eyes trained to a random spot in the village behind her.
"What was that?" She blinked, not understanding his line.
Walter brought his gaze back to her, "You say the Orerines deserve to be killed, but could you really inflict the same pain on the people of the mainland that you've experienced?"
"Easily!" She countered back at once, and he shook his head.
"Think about it... Could you possibly kill a defenseless family? Tear apart a pair of sisters to satisfy your bitter need for revenge? They aren't so different from the Ferines; they feel just as easily as you and I. Going through with the Cataclysm would sacrifice millions of innocent people, just to take care of a few."
Thyra recoiled away from the blond, not believing what she was hearing, "Has living with the Orerines corrupted you…? Maurits said that you were probably the most hateful and vengeful of the Ferines when he spoke of you, so why are you speaking like that?"
He shrugged, a small smirk lighting his face, "Dying can change your views on life." Slowly standing up, he stretched as he continued decimating her argument. "Have you seen the sea, Thyra? Nerifes approved of Shirley's choice not to go through with the Cataclysm. Fenimore accepted Shirley and her friends-"
"You're lying!" Thyra suddenly exclaimed.
Walter's gaze was cold once again, "I never lie, Thyra. Make sure you learn that. Fenimore opened her heart to Senel and his friends, and learned to forgive." Thyra's expression fell, and his eyes softened as he approached her. He offered her a hand, and she hesitated for a moment before taking it. He pulled her up, and walked around the graves until he was in front of Fenimore's.
"Forgiving someone is a thousand times harder then hating someone." He said, his fingers gently brushing against the top of the smooth coral-colored stone. "Fenimore was a strong and kind-hearted person to forgive the Orerines, even with you missing and her village destroyed. …Make her proud, Thyra." Standing in front of Fenimore's grave, he said something under his breathe only he would be able to hear.
Giving the stone a sad smile, he turned back to Thyra, who was obviously waging an internal battle with her anger and what he said about Fenimore. "If I might ask you one thing…" She turned her attention back to him, her eyes still a bit harsh. "What is your true name?" She had never told him what her Ferines name was.
Mulling over whether to tell him or not, she eventually answered. "…Welzes. My true name is Welzes."
Really, he was surprised at the irony of her name and her viewpoint, but placed it in the back of her mind. "Hope… Your name suits you, whether you think so or not."
Thyra's cheeks tinted the slightest amount of pink, and she waved an arm at him, "J-just go away already!"
He nodded, a very slight smile on his face. "I'll leave then. Please don't tell about my being here: I'll talk to Maurits myself when I have to." With one last nod to her, he turned towards the shore and began his trek through the village back to Werites Beacon.
Walter's eyes trained to the deepening red sky as he passed through the huge archway, and his smile grew a little. Though it would take a while, eventually he hoped he would be able to forgive just like Fenimore did. And sometime when that happened, he hoped he'd be able to let go of her as well.
x x x
The calm feeling had long ago disappeared shortly after Walter returned to Werites Beacon in the evening, the lamps lit and the streets emptying of all but those who came and went from the Inn's restaurant. Even after a full day, the rain had refused to let up, and continued to drench the city with cold raindrops. As Walter walked towards the Inn for a bite to eat, a feeling of dread began to settle over him. Why in Nerifes was he suddenly so anxious? Was it just the weather, or was he worried about Norma?
He shook his head, pulling his cloak a little more closed as he walked up the puddle-filled street to the entrance of the Inn. As he neared the entrance, he heard desperate voices from inside which sounded like Norma's friends. Carefully standing next to the door, he listened on to their conversation.
"…Only ones that can help her." Senel said from beyond the door, and his curiosity was peaked. Help who?
"Yeah, Senel's right!" Moses commented next.
A voice which sounded like Will's spoke next, "First, we need to find Norma. Let's split up and find her."
Walter heard footsteps near the door, and rushed towards the tree near the lounge, flying up into the branches. The seven members rushed out of the inn's lobby and spoke quickly to each other, splitting up to search the town. His eyes narrowed as the rain began to pour even more, raindrops falling through some of the leaves onto his face. Why would they need to find Norma…? What had happened-?
His eyebrows scrunched up for a moment. Wait a minute... Norma and their group had not been here when he left for the Village of the Feirnes. They had gone somewhere, probably to search for the Everlight. But where would she go? His mind strained for a location she might have spoken of, then it hit him like a brick in the face. The only place he knew that she would go, that he had been shown in his dream earlier that morning. The Ice Monument...
The blood drained from his face as he realized what had happened. She was injured. And missing, somewhere in this torrential rainstorm. And he refused to just stand by this time. Not a moment passed by before a winged figure shot out from the tree and disappeared from sight.
The rain continued to fall into the night, raindrops pounding loudly against the pavement. Even then, it didn't stop eight figures running around the city, desperate to find their missing friend.
x x x
The name Walter called her meant "Cold Person". He was saying she was mean, not knowing her Ferines name at the time. His "eye for an eye" quote came from Ghandi.
And as much as Walter was a jerk in the games, he had his soft moments, especially around Fenimore. Apparently, the game creators had thoughts of making him into a playable character, so I think that if Walter had disobeyed Maurits (he almost did anyway) and helped, then Fenimore might have lived and Walter wouldn't have been the jerkass he was after the Alter of the Sea. Then again, the Tales series has a thing about 8 playable characters, so they probably went the route they did for drama's sake…
Reviewer Corner (only one review? Please review, you guys! I get lonely! ;A; )
Shiroi Iyasu: Yeah... I seem to have a thing for hurting people. It makes for good drama, though I hated that he seemed too OOC for me. And by that time, I didn't know how much longer it was going to be, but it is ending sometime soon... There's this chapter, the next, the two-part finale and the possible epilogue to be precise. So you've got 4 chapters aside this one to read left. ...I'm going to miss writing this story~! :sob: