Edgar was sure that someone had gotten into his bedroom. Which is why he asked Locke to leave the room; now he'd have a good seven minutes alone with the man. Darkness was coming quickly over the desert, and every shadow had a shadow from the moon peeking over the dunes. Everyone knows that a shadow's shadow is darker than itself, and this particular shadow lived.
"You seem very alert; does that mean you know why I'm here?" Shadow asked in a dead-panned tone, arms crossed over his chest showing that he's all business.
"I have some idea."
The weight that shoved him back and pinned him against the headboard rattled Edgar's bones. He'd managed to prevent Shadow from striking him by protecting himself with the dagger he keeps behind the pillows. Handle gripped tightly in his right hand its held high at his face; as his arm trembled to remain still he wondered if it were from the poison that he is this weak or if Shadow is just amazingly strong regardless his thin physique. The long claw had come dangerously close to his face but luckily only his cheek suffered of a painful little slice before the quadruple blades slammed into the thick wooden headboard. Quickly he withdrew the dagger from its position beneath the stuck blades to evade the second claw coming his way; the clash of the two metals sounded a lot like ice when it cracked and slid off the metal roof tops of the industrial city of New Vector. A frightening high-pitched whail. The king thought that perhaps it was because Shadow had first struck out at him with his right hand that he was truly able to dodge the second attack, since the man had to strike at such a close range and over his own arm in order to get at him. As the first claw had the second stuck into the headboard as well, pinning Edgar's head between them.
"I've been hired to find out who'd slaughtered a South Figaro family while the father had been away, and who should I find leaving that man's home but you..."
"You don't understand.."
"Don't need to. My job isn't about understanding; people hire me, and I get rid of their problems- its that simple."
"Lately I've been ill. I'm not myself... you should know that."
"Like I said, its really not my problem why you did it."
"Then why tell me?" Edgar asked. "Why attack me as if you're giving me a warning? You've got the ability, the strength... even as we speak I lie poisoned and barely in any condition to defend myself. So do it."
The blades are pulled free from thick wooden frame. Popping his neck rather loudly by cocking his head back and forth, Shadow's dark blue, verging on black, irises widen as if the man is in pain; Edgar watched in mute fear of what would come from this strange look and to his surprise the assassin tugged his black mask down to reveal his handsome face, turned blue in the moonlight. The Reaper. Always in shadows until his victims will die. Cheeks puffed up for a brief second something thin shot through the air from his mouth again and again, each needle stuck into the headboard above the king's head. Edgar waited for the one that would crack through his forehead but when none came and it seemed that the man was done with his strange ritual, he looked up in confusion.
Shadow backed off and said. "I see your point." Standing back a ways, he extended an arm so the blades are able to reach Edgar's face. "Maybe I've gone soft because of your brother... or maybe I prefer killing fresher, more lively victims... rather than near corpses. That halo over your head shows that I gave you mercy. So whatever has come over you, see that it doesn't happen again."
Edgar's eyes sharpened and he chuckled low, and just for a little bit. "Near corpse. Halo? Try to kill me, little bitch."
Shadow cocked his head at the odd voice that came from the king's mouth. It was just as he had suspected.
Shaking his head, Edgar looked desparately into the assassin's eyes. "Do you see what I mean?" Panicked that Iron would take over again, he holds his own weapon to his throat. "Maybe its better this way? Perhaps I should be killed... My actions can't be trusted!" Just as the blade started to move across his throat it went flying across the room, clattering to the floor. "Why did you stop me!" He leaned forward to crawl to the end of the bed where he could retrieve his dagger but an eruption of coughs took over him when his throat contracted in a shudder of itchy pain. "Iron will only..." He coughed into his hand; the wet sound produced clots of blood just as they had earlier.
"Iron? Is that what you're going by now?" Shadow asked, though it seemed that he was not addressing Edgar. Walking closer to the bed, he grabbed the man by the root of his long blond hair tugging the king's head back far enough to snap his spinal cord from the strain. "Maybe I should dig you out from his throat."
"What the fuck are you doing Shadow!" The bowl of ice cream left a terrible mess against the door and floor when dropped in Locke's haste to get to the bed. Removed from the back waistband of his pants, the thief held a very sharp dirk to the back of Shadow's head. "Release him."
Shadow didn't even spare Locke a bored a glance, his gaze hard on Edgar's.
"I will kill you." Growled the thief.
"Even if you did, it wouldn'tt have been quick enough." Shadow replied in a voice less than impressed and he'd not even turned to look at the man who threatened his life.
"Locke... lower your weapon. Shadow won't hurt me," Edgar pressed. "I think he may know something."
Not one to disobey his lover, Locke reluctantly lowered the weapon but the moment Shadow eased back from Edgar the theif slammed him into the stone wall.
"Locke." Edgar snapped.
"I realize you love living like you've got no loyalties to anyone, but I'm inclined to remind you that Sabin is Edgar's brother and I doubt he would go easy on you if you harmed Edgar in any way."
"Are you done?" Shadow asked idly before brushing Locke aside.
Keeping his eye on the assassin, Locke walked over to the bed taking a seat in direct view of his bed-ridden lover as if to show his protection of him will not wan. "Why are you here anyway? Shouldn't you be out doing your usual 'killer for hire' thing."
"The attitude doesn't suit you Cole, you should drop it." Shadow mentioned before leaning against a wall, arms crossed. "I've been hired to kill the person responsible for taking the life of another man's family. I found out that the person was Edgar."
"Edgar didn't mean to do it; he isn't well."
"So I've been told." His gaze glances past Locke to the king, who looked on the verge of vomiting.
"Then back off... Tell the man that you couldn't find him, or that you've found him and killed him- I don't care, but you'll be dead within seconds if you come after him again."
Shadow remained unimpressed with the threats. "Edgar... Have you seen anything in the castle in the past few months?"
"I've been seeing things constantly, I've..." He stopped speaking to quell another coughing fit, and managed to keep his calm without letting it out. "I've heard voices, I've been followed, touched... you mean to tell me you've seen this person as well?"
"No. Not here anyway." He walked over to the dresser grabbing from it a piece of stationary and a pen. The two looked on as the assassin scribbled something onto the paper before handing it to them. "Here. Is this what you've seen?"
Reaching for the oil lamp, Locke gives the little knob a twist and a bright flame glowed to life. A skinny, slithering, black almost shadow like thing stared at them from the piece of paper. Legless and sinister.
"Goddess," Edgar reached for the paper taking it to examine closer. "that... that's exactly what I've been seeing but then it changed somehow. It... it looked more like me. How do you know this if you haven't seen it as well?"
"Like I'd said, I haven't seen it in the castle but I've seen it around the area." Shadow returned to his position against the wall. "It has no name, not yet any way but from what I've gathered it enters the body of anyone whose..." He seemed to be searching for a word. "emotionally damaged in anyway and he festers from it, feeds it, and then takes over the host's body." He smirked evilly. "It seems to be an accumulation of the despair in the world."
"That's impossible... something like that can't exist."
"We live in a world of many things Locke, something like this could have come from anywhere or anyone. That old myth that a persons anger can carry on even after the body is done living... think of this as a variation of that."
"So... you're saying that someone died of war depression and this thing was created out of that?" Locke thought that over a moment. "So how the hell do we get it out of Edgar?"
"Its been given a name and a face... it may not be as easy as cheering the man up with pouncing puppies and uproarious joke telling."
Locke made a face at the man knowing that he was, in his own way, mocking them. Shadow had no use for emotions beyond the pyschotic giddiness of taking another persons life. "But why Edgar? He's not despressed or anything?"
The king lowered his gaze to his lap. Locke had so much faith in his personal strength that to let him down would only further his own anxieties.
"It could have been someone else who'd brought it into the castle, and it latched on to Edgar because he was there. This thing leaves a trail of tar wherever its been. Have you spotted any around the castle?"
Locke gasped sharply when the places he'd found tar flashed through his mind. So Edgar wasn't seeing things, there really had been someone in the castle. Looking over his shoulder, he turned his hips a little so he could better face the male. "Edgar?"
The king held up a hand to silence his lover. "I'm sorry Locke. I was having a bad night and... Katia had cut her finger when bringing me dinner." Edgar silenced for a moment. "Come to think of it... it had started around that time that I began to hear a voice. It was always whispering some nonsense that I could not understand so I ignored it. But then I began to see things, even dream them... all this time I've actually been followed."
"But how do we get rid of it?"
"The host will either die or it will move on to someone that can feed it better." Shadow smirked. "From what I can tell Edgar is fairly weakened by this poison, maybe you'll get lucky and the demon will leave him on its own."
"Edgar's NOT going to die over this... we just have to think of a better way." Locke tapped his foot in thought. "You said it yourself if he's in a better mood it might weaken this thing. Will that still work?"
"It could."
Nodding, Locke stands. "Well, I'll do what I can... and hey, the party is tomorrow. Whats better than a good party?"
A suffocating sound filled the air around them. It sounded very familiar.
"Setzer's ship." Edgar mentioned quietly.
He knew the guards would go up to the roof to ensure that it was actually the man and not someone who'd managed to grab his ship from him and sneak over to the castle without really sneaking. Last thing he wanted to do was see the man. Locke would really have a hard time on his hands in the cheering him up department. He knew what Iron did and on top of feeling useless to the world he now had guilt to add to it all. He could have stopped Iron, couldn't he? Seven minutes later his bedroom door opened, two guards came in and to everyone's surprise Terra entered behind them rather than the gambler.
Her green gaze scanned the room in brief confusion before settling on Edgar. "Here," She walked over to the bed arm extended, carrying a vile with yellow and blue liquid inside, both seemed so potent that the color didn't mix into green as it should. "Setzer said to give this to you. That he's sorry."
Shaking hands take the vile. Tugging free the little corked cap he downs the contents quickly.
"The two had been in a fight." Terra explained to Locke when seeing the angry expression on his face. "It got out of hand."
'So that's how he explained it.' Edgar thinks. He can already feel the medicine working, it was almost instantanious. 'I don't know whether to thank him or call him a fool for adding to my suffering.'
"Clearly." Locke snapped.
"Locke, please... everything will be fine now. Don't start trouble where there is none."
The thief is fuming, his fist clench and unclench as he boils beneath the surface. "I need some air." He says in a hard tone.
Over by the bed and gently stroking Edgar's soggy bangs, Terrs looked over her shoulder and said. "The others are arriving, the guard told me... they're being showed to their rooms."
"Thanks." He snipped out before disappearing.
Shadow didn't even say his goodbye's, he'd disappeared just as smoothly as he'd entered. No one had seen him and no one heard him.
"Terra?" Edgar took her hand into his. "I'm sorry for lying to you, and I'm sorry for hurting Setzer."
"I think he knows that, when he woke up he told me to bring you the cure right away."
Edgar nodded. "Thank him for me."
"I will." Her tone held a slight edge to it.
Edgar could imagine that she's in the same position as Locke right now. Angered that her lover is hurt but releaved that everything is or at least will be all right. When all this is over, he planned on making it up to all of them but first he needed to have a word with himself and the sooner the better.
"...Edgar" It seemed that the woman had a long pause before saying his name. Sitting down on the edge of the bed, she took his hands into her own. "Setzer tells me that you've lost your senses. That you've hired people to attack us... what's going on with you? Are you very ill?"
"Unfortunately. I am very sorry."
"No. I just want for you to get better." She smiled warmly.
Edgar huffed out a response in lieu of that comment. He really didn't think he could get any better with the way he's feeling. "Iron hired these four people to go after you. He believed that with a little armor and weapon every thing would be alright. Only one of them has any real skill to speak of and the rest... Goddess help them."
"That woman... Setzer said that you- Iron," She corrected herself. "sent them after us."
"She never showed, and thankfully she never managed to catch up to you."
"Yeah, about that... Sonya, she's dead."
Edgar paused hearing that. "...I see."
Nodding, Terra gave his hands a squeeze. "Edgar ho-.."
"I don't know how I feel about it personally. I'm saddened hearing about any of the deaths that are sent my way from the people in the kingdom and other islands... but to know that I'm directly responsible..." He trailed off.
"It isn't you... its this thing."
"You're very right about that; Shadow just got through telling us that he's occassionally seen this demon slipping around through out the lands taking peoples pain over the edge, causing them to either kill others... or themselves."
Stunned, she asked. "How?"
Edgar shrugged. "It seems that it gets into your body when you're most vulnerable, then he commits these acts... it was my own stupidity that gave him life beyond just passing through. I've been absent of myself for nearly a month, but I have managed to block my thoughts and knowledges from him, hopefully before it was too late."
...
The two guards at the door lay dead on the floor of the prison. Weakened, it had been a struggle with just moving about. Damn that white haired freak and his games. When he regains control over Edgar he will murder them all with his bare hands. Stumbling, practically crawling, he made it to the cell where Darrien has been cooling his heels since his capture by the Figaro prince.
"Iron. What kept you, I thought you said you'd bring in some bodies and-..." He stopped speaking when he got a good look at his leader.
He looked like he'd been badly burned or... perhaps he'd been out in the rain and was melting... The black around his eyes and lips was smeared beyond repair, it even seemed that his hair had been melting and trying to fall free from his scalp. "What happened to you? Did those Returner bastards do this?" He asked, hands gripping the bars of the cell.
Iron could not speak at the moment, it seemed he could only gurgle on his own blood. Being merged with a human was harder than he thought it would be. If he knew then what he knows now, he would have found a better way to use Edgar. But damn it, his pain and suffering was like a banquet of the finest feast. Royalty really do have it better. And then he shaped him, with the black in his hair and on his face, the brown contacts. He'd found someone very special that day, a soldier sure that his dear sister would perish. He'd followed the man, clung to him, caused him great pain and despair until he was ready to kill himself within the next hour... but then it happened. Edgar's sorrow drifted into the air like a sirens call. Sensual and low, pleading for someone to mess with it. Iron could not resist. He had taken Edgar the moment he looked into his reflection in the mirror and saw the monster that he is staring back at him. And now look... he's gone from demon to nearly alive. A rebirth of sorts. And he hated it. The man that had created him, cast him aside, died because his family had died. He'd lost a leg and his will to live right along with it. But he wanted to know that others were suffering as he was suffering and so he'd died with all his pain and sorrow cloaking him like a thick blanket, and when his soul left his drowning body the tar, the darkness and muck stayed behind.
Sticking his finger into the lock of the cell it clicked open allowing Darrien to exit. The young man grabbed onto his friend holding him up. "What happened?" He asked again.
"Ju-... go... now!" He grumbled, a slender vein exposed hand stretched outward and pointed a finger to the cell where the hidden cave exist.
"But you're hurt."
'Hurt' didn't describe it. It felt as though his skin were on fire and made of paper; on top of that, the cold floor beneath him was only adding to the burn but in a freezing sort of way. But he lied to get his follower to back off. Darrien would be more help to him gone than he would if he stayed. "I'll be fi-.." His breaths sputter out in hard wet sounds. "Just go."
Nodding, the male hurried over to the cell with the cave entrance and in one swift jerk pulled it open, passing quickly through he pushed on the slab of stone to reveal the cavern beyond. Iron lay on the floor in true pain, wondering when it would sub-side. He can't go to Edgar now, not with all those idiots around him. He'll have to wait until the man is alone again, if he could survive until then. He'll have to attach himself to someone else, just for a while... sort of like a temporary thing. But whom? No one in this castle has the same type of... There... he can feel it. A deep dred and its coming from the hall right upstairs. Who on earth could that exquisite pain be coming from?
...
"Locke, good to see you again." Celes Cher said patting the man on the shoulder.
"Hi." He nearly barked at her. Seeing the arch in her fine brow, he shakes his head. "I'm having a bad night."
"I can see that. Why?"
"Probably because lover boy has come to his senses and decided to go out with me." Relm said as she walked through the door, a proud smile on her pretty little, over-painted, face.
Smiling impishly. "That kind of hard denial can only belong to Relm," Replied Locke. "Hey."
"Hi. So what's with you? Lose something?" She removed her purple cloak. "Someone? Does Edgar need consoling?"
"Yeah, Edgar. He's having sort of a bad night and can't see anybody right now." Locke explained. He really didn't think Edgar needed anymore company.
"He'll wanna see me." Relm insisted.
"That's enough, you." Strago grabbed his granddaughter by the ear tugging her toward the upper courtyard. "Will you be showing us to our rooms, or should we take whichever we please?"
"No. I'll show you. Come on." He turned and started away.
Gau said nothing when entering the castle, he only walked along quietly behind the others. He would have sent a message but his writing abilities were limited and he was sure that he wouldn't be understood- especially when he's so hurt the only thing his brain can think to say is his own name. He really cared for Cyan Garamonde, and now he's... he's... He felt a hand grip his own and turned to look at the person who'd done it.
Relm smiled at him, a smile that asked for him to open up about whatever was bugging him. Being the youngest of the group, the two had found an odd sort of friendship, meaning she never hit on him and he remained forever grateful for it. His experience with flirting and other people was always touch and go, because he's lived in the wild for so long. He had better chances picking up a dog for a hot date than a living, breathing human. He could tell Relm and she would tell the others. But what could they do about it? They could help him kill the man who's responsible. When Gau left the room to go get help he'd returned and found the frozen statue had melted or maybe even just crumpled away and the man he'd stopped was gone.
He supposed it was his fault for not properly seeing to it that the man met his end for killing Cyan; even if he can still cast out the magic he gets from monsters, its very, very weak. The most use you can get out of absorbed fire is cooking dinner, starting a camp fire, with thunder you might be able to create a little rain or give someone a mild jolt that could paralyze them for a moment. Gau's completely useless. He shouldn't have been playing around, he should have gone straight to the castle when they changed guards but he wanted to hang out in the new town for a bit. If he were there then maybe his friend with the wheels for legs would still be here...
As the other Returners arrived they were showed to their rooms by the guards on duty. They had a lot of conversation to exchange during dinner. Catching up with one another over, the things they've been doing over the years. It was a surprise to hear that Edgar wasn't feeling well, moreso that Locke refused their asking to see him. He didn't think now was the time to do so, that Edgar needed rest. Terra had joined the dinner as soon as it had started. She obtained a bit of information about the situation but it didn't exactly comfort her, especially when she had to explain that Setzer might not be up for the celebration the next night. She'd told a little lie that Setzer had gotten injured while repairing his ship and needed to rest. She'd planned on returning to the ship when dinner was through, she'd bring something with her for him to have just as Locke had excused himself with two plates and a glass of wine that he asked the help to put on a cart for him to bring up to Edgar's room.
They moved quickly with the task and assisted him to the king's room. After a while in the common room, the group separated to their own quaters with the exception of Relm who snuck into Gau's bedroom.
"So what's with the long face?" The young girl lounged on the chaise by the open window.
Pouting the boy muttered a low "Gauuu" as the emotions began welling up inside him again.
"Just..." She thought for a moment. "Chop it up if you can't talk right now."
"Cyan... Gone..." He sadly moaned out his own name again.
"What do you mean gone? He'll come here, maybe he just got stuck out at sea."
Gau shook his head rapidly, his choppy lime green locks messed themselves even more than they naturally were. Relm thought it was a sad shame that the help around here was gonna have to put so much effort into cleaning the wild child for tomorrow night.
"No... Cyan... Dead."
Relm thought she had heard wrong, but there was no way of that. Its impossible for a person like Gau to lie, or even come up with imaginative stories like that. He is who he is. But there's a chance that he's wrong.
"Are you sure? Did someone tell you this?"
"No! No!"
"Alright," She waved her hands to calm him. "relax! I was just checking because people can be cruel." Standing she walked over to the bed, then sat down. "Now tell me, how do you know?"
"Gau saw... Mr. Cyan had no head on his body and no body on head."
Relm couldn't stop herself from intaking a sharp gasp. She had meant to stay calm but the image she'd gotten from his gruesome words took her breath away. "Am I the first person you've told?"
Gau nodded.
"I..." Relm stopped herself. She really was unsure of what to say. "I'm gonna tell my grandpa, he might know what to do." Getting up from the bed she hurried to the door, but paused. "Gau. Did you see who did it?"
Nodding the boy replied with a heavy tone. "A man. Big and metal. Gau stop him and... he got away when Gau left for help from others in castle."
"He got away?" Her voice dropped in thought. "Do you know how tall he might have- no, never mind. I'll see that Cyan's death is avenged." She dissapeared beyond the door closing it after her.
Gau's shoulders slumped forward. He knew Relm could do it, but he was still upset. Laying himself down sideways on the bed, he tugged the pillow into him for comfort. He nuzzled the pillow as if it were mother. Sniffling, he closed his eyes only for a second before they shot back open. Sitting up, the animalistical boy looked about the bedroom, alert and ready for whatever his nose was detecting. Sniffing at one direction of the bed then the other, he pricked his hearing for any out of place sounds. There! Casting off a bolt of lightning the child fled the bedroom. He wasn't sure where he was going but he wasn't staying there. His senses were too high to hang around and be assalted by something like that energy back in the room.
66666
"What are you doing up?" Terra asked when setting the food down on the night stand beside the bed. "You need to relax." Walking over to the male, she slipped herself under his arm to act as a crutch for him and helped him over to the bed. "Here. Take it easy, please. I can't afford to see you injured. Its too stressful." When he's seated she grabbed the plate. "I've brought dinner for you. Are you hungry?"
"Terribly. Thank you." He took the plate from her and started in on it like it were his last meal and only when the pile of potatoes was done did he slow his pace, eating the slices of ham as if they were to be appreciated through every bite. "Is Edgar alright? Did we make it in time?"
"Yes. He's resting now."
"Thank the Goddess'." He smiled faintly when her delicate hand touched his shoulder.
"The others have arrived for tomorrow. If you feel up for company I'll tell them they can come up to see you."
"I don't mind if they'd really want to, but personally I like it here with just you."
Blushing, she gave him a shove. "Eat all of that, and I'll draw you a bath."
Setzer paled. "Goodness, I haven't seen a bath in a while. I must smell terrible."
"Oddly enough, you smell like yourself." Leaning a bit she sniffs at his neck. "Hm. Not bad, but you still need the bath." As she walked to the door she said over her shoulder. "A smell like that is more permiated than stuck to the body." She chuckled when Setzer nearly choked on his bite. If there were ever a way to rattle the man it was picking on his heigen. That he could react meant that he was feeling better. And that's all the woman asked.
66666
Edgar, in a very unking-like move, tilted the bowl of soup up to down the rest of the contents in the bowl before setting it back down on the tray. You'd think he hadn't eaten in a long time. Infact, he was sure that he hadn't. He couldn't recall any meals making it past Iron's lips. He wondered absently if the help even questioned it or did they simply make the meals and depart assured that their king would be there to eat it. Sabin would be down for meals, as well as Locke. Anytime he was out of the castle he had nothing, sure Iron made sure his men were fed, but he never ate anything himself except that first time and it wasn't so much Iron, but himself posing as Iron. He had lost some weight, his hair was lifeless and limp about his shoulders and back. He looked like a drowning long haired cat.
"Feeling any better?" He asked meaning 'did the antidote work?'
"Yes." He continued eating with enthusiasm.
A relieved sigh seemed to expel from him without his wanting it to. Locke had to compose himself. Setzer got lucky; he was very close to following Terra to the roof so that he could speak with the man himself, but seeing that he'd brought Edgar the antidote, he could forgive him after all.
"Did this Iron thing really make you attack Setzer?" He asked for clarification.
"Yes." He's now taking a sip of wine, hoping the interrogation will end.
"And you couldn't stop him?"
"You saw what I did to the maid just under his slight influence." He looked his lover in the eye. "To put it mildly the other persons worse off than Setzer would be the two guards that he'd killed with arrows."
"I see..." Locke hadn't even considered that it would have been that bad. A scuffle at most, but second only to death. "But hey, don't let it get you down. It wasn't you who did those things." Wrapping an arm around Edgar he kissed him on the cheek.
"I can't just push aside the blame because someone was controlling my body. If I were strong enough to block my thoughts from him than..."
"Than nothing. It wouldn't have mattered if you were strong enough to speak while he held control of your movements" Locke shrugged. "It still wasn't you."
"But I let myself become a target!" Edgar hissed loudly. "I let myself be open to such persuations and look what happened... How can that be justified?" He lowered his tone. "I only wanted some fresh air. I wanted to live carefree like all of you... and this is what it got me."
Locke scoffed to that. "You think we live carefree?" He asked in a tone that was verging on arguementive. "Every day we risk life and limb to help you out. We travel here, we let ourselves get lost all over this damned ruined world so that it can make the lives of the people living here easier. And it can make yours easier as well. A good portion- maybe all of the people on the other islands don't even know where Figaro is. They just have to trust the messangers and even then they're guessing as well. Edgar," He waited for the king to look at him. "Hey. I was out there maping out the world for transportation... you shouldn't have taken that as any sort of slap in the face of me wanting to be away from you."
Edgar sniffed. "Now you're saying that I'm selfish?"
"Yes. As a matter of fact I am calling you selfish." He stands up. "But so what. Its understandable! You're here all the time..." He emphasized. "you feel like you get no relief, no break, as the rest of us do. When it isn't true. You wouldn't know that with the way we're always missing though, so yeah... I get it, you're lonely and you think we don't care but we do." Sighing in annoyance when seeing that Edgar is glaring at him, Locke shakes his head. "What else can I tell you... Setzer is constantly flying around scanning for poor lost travellers to take them where they need to be. He needed maps, the men at the peers needed maps. The merchants... I had to do these things." He smiled. "A male-queen can't just sit on his throne while watching the king do his business. He's gotta get out there and do his part as well."
Edgar seemed to think about that.
"Terra remained in Mobliz because there are a lot of orphaned children either looking for family or waiting to be adopted by others willing to take them in. She runs that orphanage on whatever funds she can muster. I'm sure Setzer helps out whenever she gets up the nerve to ask for money, but mostly she does this on her own."
"I get it..."
"Gau and Cyan are helping build Desear while keeping watch over Doma castle... Once that town is built it'll need inhabitants and of course for that to happen people will have to know that its still out there."
"I get it." He said with a little more energy.
"Celes is helping build homes in other broken towns in Tzen and Albrook. Mog and the other moogles roam the lands the best they can blindly, to find anyone whose been buried and thought they've been forgotten. Thankfully every charted cave they've made or been through they've been drawing out for me as well."
"I. Get. It." Edgar growled.
"No. You don't. You won't get it until you stop beating yourself up over your inability to receive help." Sitting back on the bed, he gripped his lover by the shoulders. "You're not superhuman, you can't do it all! Edgar... your job is boring, I get that. That's why when I'm here I lavish you with all I can give you because I know that at times I'm the only one who can... but your job must be done. You have to tell the people what reports you've received concerning bodies of people either dead or alive. You help them know what can be done right away and what will take some time... Edgar. You matter. More than you're giving yourself credit for. And we're all helping you out."
"Great pep-talk." He said sarcastically.
Locke shrugged. "Sometimes the best way to deal with this sort of thing is to hit the hardest truth first. Once you've moved past that than everything gets better." Brushing his fingers through the tidal wave of blond, the thief kissed Edgar on the mouth. "I promise that once all this is over, things will change. I told you that I'd be around more once the mapping was done. And why not, you and me can cruise around the islands helping out where we can. Chancellor Arnold isn't exactly stupid. He can handle a good portion of your work and leave whatever he can't aside for when you get back- or send a pigeon out to call you back."
"You make it sound so simple." He kissed Locke in return and over and over as the man spoke.
"The world can understand that not all king's sit on their throne all day." He smiled when the king's lips pressed into his neck. "Your mother wasn't a sitter, and your father didn't stay in the office for long when it came to you, Sabin and me."
"That's true." Removing the tray from his lap Edgar then reached over and pulled Locke against his side; the thief took the intiative to straddle his lap.
"Physically, yes, you are alone most of the time... but never mentally. You're on our minds just as much as we're on yours." He kisses Edgar deeply for a moment. "So snap out of it."
Edgar chuckled into his lovers collar bone. "Alright."
"We've got a party to attend tomorrow, you've gotta be shining, and kingly." He rocks his hips back and forth into Edgar's lap.
Edgar gave a pleased hum when his robe was moved aside and Lockes covered buldge rubbed into his bare package.
Snickering, Locke smoothed his hands over Edgar's chest to part the upper part of the robe; he planted kisses along the man's chest and torso, skipping over the knot made in the tie of the garment to the king's erection. "Your strength has returned." He opened his mouth over the head.
Edgar hunched forward when his member was encased by the warmth of Locke's mouth. His hand entangled itself in the brown and gray-peppered hair, his fingers massaged at his lover's scalp, familiarly touching the knot at the back of Locke's head where his favorite handband is tied off. Slipping a finger beneath the band he stroked it up and down to mimic Locke's movements over him. The thief sighed heatedly over a mouthful, entraced at how strangely erotic the movement at the back of his head felt. Removing the engorged human meat from his mouth up to the underside of the head, Locke's tongue flicked over the slit. Edgar's attention then swept from his headband to the peaks of his right ear, and the man's finger traced the pathways life created, his finger dipping into the hole just a bit each time Locke decided to flick his tongue rather than suck. Their sounds were quiet, as if anyone could easily hear them within the stone walls.
The steady leaking of semen allowed Locke enough to hold within his mouth, and petting Edgar's balls in one palm, his other hand came up to his mouth and two fingers slid in for coating. To Edgar's surprise his body was not intruded the moment Locke's fingers slid from his mouth, and their path went down behind Locke to his own backside instead. He slipped his hand below the waistband, giving a sound of a 'thank you' when returning his mouth around Edgar's member while the king helped him remove his pants. The activity of a blowjob went on for as long as Locke needed to prepare himself and when done he sat up and mounted his lovers hips; both their hands helped Edgar guide himself to Locke's entrance and in one fluid motion the male sat himself down over the king's body. He grunted being filled in and continued letting out little moans as they kiss and rode their way through every shuddered breath, trembling limb, and clenching body part towards the desired end of their pleasure.