A/N: The third chapter is here! Before we get started though, I guess I should get a few things straight. I have decided to make Phoenix and Carbuncle girls. Since I've been referring to Shiva and Madeen as female and Ifrit, Bahamut, and Ramuh as male, it'd feel a little weird if I made all the other eidolons "its". Now I know that Carbuncle has always been called an "it" throughout the series, but I want to give it more character :( So I made Carbuncle a girl! (I also feel like there was one moment in an FF where Carbuncle was called a "he" but I don't remember which one it was and I might just be dreaming. But even if this is the case, I don't care XD Carbuncle is a girl in my story!) And as for Phoenix, I have no idea if it was given a gender in any previous Final Fantasies, but whatever; I'm making her a girl as well ^_^

I've also been referring to Dagger/Garnet as Sarah. For those of you who completed the little Eidolon Wall sidequest, you'll know that Dagger's original name is Sarah; before she came to Alexandria, her biological parents called her by this. Since this is the name that was given to her when she lived as a fledgling summoner, I feel like the eidolons she borrows power from would call her by the name they've remembered her as; not by the name she's been given as a child who was to take the place of the Alexandrian royalty's dead daughter. That's just me though! And hey, I already know that eidolons probably don't have emotions since they're created and defined by their legends, but if I went by that, I wouldn't have a story to tell. ...I've went on long enough. I hope you enjoy this chapter :)

Odin hardly ever talked. He was an eidolon of dark silence. An eidolon that was hardened by countless battles; one that was known for bringing quick deaths to all. Zantetsuken was a name feared throughout history and its wielder's name was used only in the darkest of threats. When Odin was summoned, he got the job done as quickly as possible.

He wasn't much for social company.

"Hey Odin, whatcha doin'?" Carbuncle was floating lazily around his head in an attempt to get his attention. Odin stood stoically, trying to block out the sudden interruption in his thoughts. A look of irritation flitted across his face as Carbuncle drew closer in. "Come on, don't be like that!" Carbuncle pouted and hovered in front of Odin's eyes. Much to her chagrin, Odin closed them.

Carbuncle sighed. Odin was always like this; just brooding and thinking and frowning away, never speaking or cursing or making an attempt to articulate anything, and it disturbed her. In an attempted act of intervention, she tried to tickle Odin's nose with her tail. Big mistake.

"Owowowowowow hey leggo leggo! That's my tail you're pulling!"

Odin grunted and let go of the tiny eidolon's tail.

"Geeeez what was that for?!" Carbuncle winced and gingerly touched her tail. Odin crossed his arms and called Sleipnir over, mounting him mid-gallop. The act was graceful, but at the same time it was an apparent show of intense focus and unparalleled riding skill. "Stupid showoff," Carbuncle muttered under her breath. "…Hey, not even a goodbye? What the heck, man! Wait for me!"

Odin hardly ever talked because he rarely found it useful to do so. Verbal communication got in the way. All he needed was a beseeching cry from Sarah, and he'd be given a short amount of time to do whatever it took to get rid of the threat. No other communication was needed. He never needed to respond with words; his devastating attacks usually spoke for themselves.

For as long as he could remember, he never really talked to anyone. This included the rest of the eidolons residing in Boredom; even if they were around him every moment of his existence, they still provided him with no reason to open up. The only being that Odin regularly talked to was Sleipnir, but most of the time he didn't even need to; Sleipnir seemed to know his thoughts before he could even voice them aloud. He felt as if Sleipnir was an extension of him; another being who was included along in his legend as the ultimate steed and his only companion. Even if Sleipnir could not respond through speech, he responded in other intriguing ways, such as a twitch of the ears, the occasional sharp whinny, a certain look in his eyes, and many other methods of communication. Sometimes, Odin could swear that the quick, heavy breaths heaving through Sleipnir's body were bouts of laughter.

Other than Sleipnir, however, Odin found no interest in talking to anyone or anything. Carbuncle was no exception.

"You dimwitted, uncaring, socially inept butthead! I was talking to you, for crying out loud!"

Odin grumbled in annoyance. By the beards of every goddamned Ramuh-imposter living on Gaia, I swear I'm gonna rip this stupid floating dog apart…

"When someone is talking to you, you look them in the eyes, okay? The eyes!" Carbuncle nodded sternly. Odin didn't miss the obvious implications of the other eidolon using such child-like language. "When someone asks you a question, you answer, alright? Tell me you'll remember these things."

"No."

"What the– Come on, what's wrong with you?! So RUDE! Get over yourself!" Carbuncle turned on her heel and stalked away. "One day, you're gonna be all alone because you never talk to anyone! And then everyone will forget about you because you're all alone! And then you'll DIE!" Carbuncle paused her tirade, still huffing and puffing indignantly. She had put a good fifteen yards between herself and Odin during the short time she had spent shouting at him. "…Oh, does it seem like I'm upset? You bet your stupid muscly behind, I am!"

Odin sighed silently in exasperation. She's gonna come back. Gonna turn around and walk her stupid ass back over here. I just know it. She's gonna come back and I'm gonna hate it, and then she'll start talking and I'll hate it even more and then I will fly away, like a Zuu, a colorful, magnificent Zuu, off into the brilliant grey surroundings where I'll never be bothered by that stupid Carbuncle ever again, and–

"I'M STILL MAD AT YOU I HOPE YOU KNOW!"

Sleipnir whinnied in annoyance and bucked violently. Carbuncle had somehow cut the distance between her and Odin to under a yard in less than five seconds, and had been right next to the poor horse's ears when mouthing off Odin.

"I know you want to talk to me. Everyone does! You know what; everyone talks to me because they like me. On the opposite side of the spectrum, no one likes you. Everyone thinks you're some sort of stoic 'badass' type who never shows his feelings. But I know you! You and me, we're buddies! You're just a big hunk of delicious friendship and love; there's no fooling me! On the outside, you're a dark, raging and warlike monster; this is the Odin everyone sees. But on the inside, you're a lovely, compassionate, and caring–"

Odin's fist met Carbuncle's head and Carbuncle went flying.

"YEEEOW! Owowowowowow!"

Sleipnir's ears flicked in amusement, and Odin nudged the horse's flanks, encouraging the horse to put distance between them and the temporarily incapacitated eidolon.

"Psst! Hey Shiva!"

"Yes?" Shiva looked up and saw a bruised Carbuncle floating unhappily towards her.

"You know who I hate?"

Shiva had to laugh; she couldn't help herself. "You? You hate someone? I am incredulous!"

"No, I'm being serious! I hate him with every ounce of my being! I haaaatehatehatehate him and I will continue to hate him until he APOLOGIZES!" Carbuncle directed her last word in Odin's direction; he was quite a ways away, sitting next to a hunkered down Sleipnir. It looked like he was petting the armored horse.

"Let me guess. Is it Odin?"

"Yes! I despise him! I loathe him! I can't stand the sight of his stupid behind!"

"He's a tough one, that's for sure. Really dark and emo."

"I was complimenting him, and he hit me! Can you believe that? Domestic freaking violence, Shiva! I was complimenting him! Who gets mad at compliments? No one, right?" Carbuncle looked at Shiva for reassurance.

"Well, obviously he does."

Carbuncle's tail seemed to be making erratic slashing motions as she observed the lone rider in the distance. "I don't get it. I don't understand his behavior," she paused, pouting. Her eyes narrowed. "But I do understand why I hate him. I hate him because he's mean! A mean, awful, ungrateful–"

"Asshole," Shiva completed.

"Yeah! He's that! A dumb, hurtful, meaningless, good-for-nothing, brainless–"

"Prick."

Carbuncle nodded her head vigorously. "He's so self-centered. Riding around on his horse as if he's a king or something; but no! He's no king. He's just a big waste of space disguised as an eidolon! No one likes him."

"Agreed."

"You know what else he is? He's a stuck-up, horrible smelling, narcissistic–"

"Empty ballsack."

"Whoa, that's a new one."

Shiva smirked and folded her arms. "When you spend a lot of time keeping a watchful eye on Zidane to make sure he doesn't seduce our beloved Sarah, you pick up on these kinds of things." She shrugged, and glanced at Odin before returning her gaze to Carbuncle. "He'll open up some day. Just leave him alone for now."

"No he won't! He'll never change; not in a thousand years!"

A sigh escaped from Shiva's lips. "Well, he's not exactly a forgettable character, so as long as he manages to remain memorable to the people of Gaia, I think he has ample time to turn around. You can't force these kinds of things, remember?"

Carbuncle nodded dejectedly. She sat down and allowed Shiva to pat her head. "I just wanted to help…"

"You don't know what's best for everyone, even if you have good intentions at heart," Shiva said. "All you can do is let them know you're available if they want to talk."

Scarcely a second passed after Shiva gave her opinion on the matter when a third voice joined the conversation. "Oho, giving some counseling, dear Shiva?" Ramuh strode happily over to the two with a twinkle in his eye.

"Oh shut up," Shiva rolled her eyes.

The three eidolons looked at Odin, who was surrounded by an aura of darkness, yet seemed oddly at peace. If one squinted hard enough, they would just be able to make out the slight movement of his lips as he patted Sleipnir. For an eidolon that carried the title of "The Wielder of Zantetsuken", he didn't seem too bad.

"…A right ol' proper stud, ain't he?" Ramuh winked.

"What the heck?!" Shiva kicked the elderly eidolon in the shin.

"Ouch! Hey, what? I'm telling the truth!"

"Comment one more time about Odin's looks and I'll throw up in your mouth, you old codger," Shiva said.

Ramuh shrugged. "Just saying he has a lot of muscles, that's all. Rippling all over his body and stuff. Like a sea of profound strength; flowing beautifully while instilling fear in ones who call him their enemy. Blunt, yet poetic. I used to be that buff too, you know. And then I grew a beard."

"It's almost like you're trying to win a contest for beard length or something," Shiva said sardonically.

"Fear the beard, woman. Fear the beard."

Carbuncle was still looking at Odin while Ramuh and Shiva continued their banter. Suddenly, a smile began tugging at the corners of her mouth. She started giggling, and then burst out into laughter. It was a pleasant sound, like the peaceful, yet energetic babble of a springtime brook. "Imagine Odin with a beard as long as Ramuh's," she got out, before being overtaken by a fit of giggles.

"…That just might be the nastiest thing I've ever heard." Shiva shook her head, but couldn't help a smile from coming to her face.

Odin could hear Carbuncle laughing. It's a nice sound. Much better than hearing her talk. He cracked his neck. I feel a little bad for punching her. …Not gonna apologize though. She deserved it. He leaned his back against Sleipnir and closed his eyes, falling asleep to the sound of Carbuncle's tinkling laughter.

It's a nice sound…