melodiesofeternity | A Starlight Carol

Red nodded, though he seemed lost in a rare moment of thought. "...Yeah, they do. Look at us... it's like we've known each other our whole lives." And here he was, in the present, struggling to remember any of it. But those names... Rose. Carmine. They stirred him. Somehow.

"I can do it too!... not as good as Master, though." The young Red worked a couple fingers up against his tongue, and managed his own whistle-- if a little bit on the airy side.

"Oh!" Rose seemed all the more enthusiastic. "Let me try too!"

"Haha! Lemme teach you, then!" The younger Red managed to spit another quick sound out between his fingers- perhaps forcing the air a little bit moreso than he really needed to; an attempt to show off that came out a little flat.

It was probably why Rose stepped past him to speak to Carmine. "Can you teach me?"

"--HEY! What's wrong with learnin' from ME?!"

A quick laugh-- thankfully, more good-natured than mocking. "Not good enough, Red. You're still ten years too early to compete with your teacher."

"...That's right. Carmine was my teacher. He taught me how to hunt, how to pilot the Asmodeus... and not just me. Everyone looked up to him, but... he and I had a lot in common."

"...So?" she spoke up once more. "How do you do it?"

"Okay... with the fingers on both of your hands, put your fingertiph..." his words were muffled around his bandaged hands as they again dipped below the bindings around his mouth. "...ahn yehr tonkhh..."

Rose repeated Carmine's motions. "--laig diss?"

"Right. Now, blow."

A deep breath was blown out between her fingers... only to let out a pitiful, wet sputter instead. The little Red was beside himself with laughter.

And against his better judgement, Red chortled. "And Rose was pretty impressive too, even if she couldn't whistle at all. I actually made her a set of--"

And he gasped. Those thoughts from the corners of his mind came rushing back. And despite the fond scene, Red's fur was bristling. Was it... panic?

"...Oh no."

What kind of magic could block off memories? It made his head hurt and his mind fuzzy just trying to puzzle it out. It was actually a little distressing... but maybe Bonnie had a point.

"Yeah, but... what's so special about all of this?"

"I can do it too!... not as good as Master, though." The young Red worked a couple fingers up against his tongue, and managed his own whistle-- if a little bit on the airy side.

"Oh!" Rose seemed all the more enthusiastic. "Let me try too!"

"Haha! Lemme teach you, then!" The younger Red managed to spit another quick sound out between his fingers- perhaps forcing the air a little bit moreso than he really needed to; an attempt to show off that came out a little flat.

It was probably why Rose stepped past him to speak to Carmine. "Can you teach me?"

"--HEY! What's wrong with learnin' from ME?!"

A quick laugh-- thankfully, more good-natured than mocking. "Not good enough, Red. You're still ten years too early to compete with your teacher."

"Teacher--!!" Red dropped his fist into his palm in epiphany. "Carmine was the one who taught me how to fight! And Rose--" After saying the names so many times, it seems, the engine in his skull finally turned over. "--I looked up to her like a sister!

"...So?" she spoke up once more. "How do you do it?"

"Okay... with the fingers on both of your hands, put your fingertiph..." his words were muffled around his bandaged hands as they again dipped below the bindings around his mouth. "...ahn yehr tonkhh..."

Rose repeated Carmine's motions. "--laig diss?"

"Right. Now, blow."

A deep breath was blown out between her fingers... only to let out a pitiful, wet sputter instead. The little Red was beside himself with laughter.

The 'present' Red's brow furrowed. "...But how could I forget everything about them 'till now? And if someone did make that happen... why would they make me forget my friends?"

Even seeing it, Red was hell-bent on not believing it. He whirled about on his heels and faced the apparition with an uncommonly-vicious snarl.

"He's right! Are you tryin' to scare me with this? You think this is the first time I had to stare down the end of the world?!

You think I don't know we gotta stop all this from happening?!"

Bonnie blinked in confusion. "Wait...kupo...is this someone else's memory? Is it possible for that to happen, kupo?"

Bonnie peered at the boy with the tail. She couldn't quite place if she'd ever met him before. No one from Crystallis quite rung a bell. Neither did the name. But something did occur to her as she kept on mulling things over.

"Wait...are you saying there were no happy memories to find for him, kupo?" She couldn't believe that was true.

"The other way around," present S'reee said. "Well, not teaching. I was asking them to help me in a ritual performance."

Memory-S'reee is continuing her complaints to the two young teens. "You have to pick each whale wizard carefully for each part. I don't know who he had in mind to do what. Now I have to work it out myself -- and I need help, from wizards who can handle trouble if it comes up." She rose higher in the water to stare at the humans, her tone turning pleading. "You two can obviously manage that. And the Ten will listen to you, they'll respect you, after what you went through up in the High and Dry. You've fought the Lone Power yourselves and gotten off-"

Present S'reee seemed to wince. "Powers above, I didn't realize how deep I was in then." A whale might be perfectly fine with being in 'over her head', but they still breathed air, so depth was a concern.

Oh, how chilly! It almost reminds him of home... if home were a vast battlefield full of mysterious troops, fancy mansions, and an actual sky. As Papyrus enters this memory, he glances around. ...Is that someone in a maid outfit? It's awfully cold for such attire!

Ah, and there's a familiar face! He remembers Corrin from the ship!

So he approaches her, glancing from her to the stranger.

"SOMEONE CLOSE TO YOU, I TAKE IT?"

Or maybe a fabled rival or foe! It's hard to say. He only just got here.

[How festive! How nostalgic. Sure, this clearly isn't his house, but the decor. The atmosphere! It's so very, very Snowdin!

He can't help but grin as he wanders close, watching the others partake in the cooking. Such terrific teamwork!

And yet... He stops, turning to the present Terra. He doesn't look so happy.]

IS SOMETHING WRONG?

[It's not his place. Not by a longshot. But it's so strange to see such a happy memory yield such a contrasting response.]

Oh. How... empty. So very different from the holiday houses he'd come to expect from living in Snowdin. Papyrus' shoulders drop as he soaks in the surroundings. Just one gift? And that woman...

"OH. YOU DON'T REMEMBER? HMM... MAYBE IT HAPPENED WHEN YOU WERE VERY, VERY YOUNG, THEN."

It would make sense, anyway. Older memories did often fade with time.

Despite the oddness of this Carmine fellow sticking fingers under his muzzle like that, the memory itself seemed pretty wholesome! Fairly upbeat. Papyrus, like red, chuckled at the sight. Perhaps this wouldn't be such a bad memory after all. If anything, it seemed more nostalgic.

At least, that's what he thought, until Red's tone abruptly shifted from amusement to panic. Sockets widening, he turned to the canine.

"WAIT. WHAT'S THE MATTER?"

Just what sort of realization did he have? What was going to happen next?

...Oh no.

Papyrus had seen many bad memories through this night. Many regrets. Many tragedies. And yet, while this one lacked death, the heartbreak crept its way into his ribcage. He could tell, just by the real Klonoa's reactions, that this was far from a pleasant dream to him.

To be torn from someone so very close. So important. Not even given a choice...

Papyrus shuts his eyes. Shakes his head. Whether Klonoa wants it or not, he approaches, kneeling down to his level.

"I'M TRULY SORRY..." But at least he's not alone, right? He can help. Maybe. Perhaps offer a friendly distraction?

"I UNDERSTAND." He folds his arms, sighing. "THERE'S... A FRIEND OF MINE. A VERY STUBBORN, VERY PASSIONATE FRIEND WHO WILL DO ANYTHING TO SEE HER GOALS THROUGH. AND NO MATTER HOW HARD I'VE TRIED TO REASON WITH HER..."

Well. He probably shouldn't mention the whole attempts to murder Frisk bit. That's hardly cheery. "BUT THE POINT IS, I THINK THAT WHEN MET WITH STUBBORNNESS, YOU HAVE TO BE EQUALLY AS STUBBORN! STAY STRONG, ADRIEN!!! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, BELIEVE IN YOU!"

Sure, it's rather a moot point without his father around, but who knows? He could show up at any time!

Ashelia nods at Elena and keeps an arm around Frisk.exe as they walk, sword in her other hand. She beckons for Frisk.bin to stick close to her as well, skirting around the hooded figure. "I am the Lady Ashelia." She gives the hooded figure the side eye as they pass, but there's nothing else for it. She'd encountered the other Starlight Spirits - this one was bound to be the same. To at least feel as though she has some control over the situation, she gives Frisk.exe's shoulder a strong squeeze, ignoring the melting of her heart for the time being.

Okuyasu thinks for a moment. "Oh, where Papyrus is from?"

Cor chuckles mirthfully upon that reminder. "Oh, yes, I remember how irritated he got over that. Though he did admit he might've accepted her saying 'Mama' instead.

His tone turns bittersweet as he glances over the Lady Amicitia. "...your mother was a good woman. She even tolerated me during my teenage years."

OWEN 4TH. WHET NO4. There's some sort of meaning behind these, something Okuyasu doesn't have the mental capacity to decipher. Someone killed Uendo's shiso, and it was probably someone Uendo knew. That must suck.

"So what's with the cards? Do they mean something?" For now, he steps away from the scene, hoping not to disturb anything but keeping an eye on the dead body. "Don't you want them to catch the bastard who killed him?"

"The doctor was a crazy asshole of the not-so-pleasant kind. Kind of glad that Mors' old Shield lent me the family lawyer; was able to save more lives from his malpractice that way."

Cor looks very Lucian by modern-day disasters, if Ignis can recall. And from the tone of his sigh, he's still a little frustrated and regretful. "...all because my mother had a lighter brown hair than most folks, despite her family being in and around the city for ages..." It does, however, help explain the strict anti-discrimination policy Cor set during the last years of the formal Crownsguard.

Cor moves with him, but mostly out of thinly-veiled anxiety. Memory or not, it's hard for him to keep calm when his old fear is right before his eyes. "Wasn't just Lucians that tried to challenge him, over the centuries." Ravus will see a few old-style blades from Tenebrae and Galahd among the wealth of swords in this area.

Ravus may also note that for someone who was 15-going-on-16, he was very skilled for his age - almost like he was born with a blade in his hand. But he's far from the master that the older Cor is, and it shows in how he nearly fell over from a blocked blow that a wiser man would've tumbled to the side for.

"...Gladio's the only one who ever bested him," Cor quietly adds.

Edited 2018-12-29 19:13 (UTC)

Okuyasu exhales heavily. He thought seeing Keicho's ghost would have him get over it, but it's hard, seeing the raw memory played out before him. His life changed on this day, but it cost him the rest of his human family.

"Nah, I never brought him up. It's not like you can see the body from here..." he trails off, hovering towards the north-facing window. The powerlines are barely visible in the evening sky, but the body is still there, hanging on the wires.

Gladio is treated to a blushing!older Cor upon hearing that teasing. "...I was 12...this was the last winter holiday before..." His last few words are pensive, almost bittersweet. "Before I joined the Crownsguard."

Gladio will get his answer as the memory plays out. Cor's parents try to coax their son to slow down as he kept rushing between the elevator in their apartment building, and his shuffling mother and supporting father. A hospital is definitely mentioned, and there is the faint whiff of a recent stay on Mrs. Leonis - who, incidentally, mentions that her husband makes far better biscuits than the hospital ever could.

Cor frowns, more concerned than disapproving of younger!Frisk's method of obtaining presents. "Were your parents truly that poor?" He asks curiously, presuming that the kid must've had parents at some point.

"Look, I don't really get what's goin' on. High and Dry? Ten? Whale Wizards? You know those sound like band names." They would make for great Stands. "And they're humans, not whales."

Kuja is mildly indignant. "Don't be stupid, I know what happiness is, there've been plenty of times when I was happy-"

"Schadenfreude is not equivalent to happiness, Mister Tribal. None of those memories really... count."

The argument goes on, and it's- eerie, how the tailed boy's eyes seem to be the exact same shade as Kuja's. Plus there's the tail. Perhaps they're related?

"Yeah well I've got an even better sword than Excalibur!"
"Nothing's better than Excalibur, stupid!"
"Yuh-huh! That's why it's called, uh... Excalibur 2!"

Kuja sighs. "How long is this going to go on, anyway? I am quite tired, Spirit, and yes, I get it, I managed to bring some small happiness into the world. Can we go?"

"I don't think you do get it, Mister Tribal. Just watch."

The spirit leads the way, through the pristine and well-lit streets of Treno's 'face', the half of the city the Queen presents to the world... All classical architecture and finely-dressed nobles and attentive guards- to the half the city that never gets advertised. Dark, filthy streets, people living in squalor, thieves taking everything they can to survive- this is Treno, unmasked and raw. A gilded cesspool, indeed.

Frisk.bin marches mechanically alongside Ashelia, Frisk.exe, and Elena. This was all just... so much. Why were they seeing this? They were already forced to relive what they did to Lilac? Although... they deserved to be punished, didn't they? God, they were such--

--and then Frisk.bin sees Cid. They freeze, knuckles white as they clench their fists. They didn't know him, not really. But he was a face they saw nearly every day, and that's what finally does it.

Frisk.bin starts sobbing, big, ugly cries that rack their whole body with its force.

"Yeah, actually! He lives in Snowdin," Frisk says, smiling. "Pretty nice there. One of the only places in the Underground where it was illegal to try and kill me."

A Starlight Carol

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Re: The Bad

Bad Memory

Good Times

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