garregmach | (no subject)

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A mist settles in over the monastery.

Is it morning? Night? Who can say? Today, the day feels endless. The sun is nowhere to be seen — or had it been at all? Instead, a curious green glow engulfs Garreg Mach, like an eternal twilight settling in. Time seems to be paused almost, though the wildlife in and around the area continues to act as though nothing is wrong. As though this is perfectly normal. As though it is natural for the skies to be dark, with not a single star in sight, and for the sun to be forgotten in the mist that lingers. The paths are at least lit by small orbs of light, fireflies flitting about.

However, should one come into contact with one of those fireflies, a memory of the past will be projected for all in the close vicinity to see. Joyous occasions, tragic events — they don't seem to discern one way or another. Perhaps it would be best to watch your step for now, though.

Of course, after lingering for about a day, the strange ambience will fade into what appears to be a normal night at Garreg Mach. It's as if nothing had happened at all. Did it? Or was it all simply a shared hallucination?

[ ● MEMSHARE POST. Coming into contact with the fireflies will share a memory of your character's with those around them. You can top-level with a memory to start out or have people tag you and determine it then, whatever. I don't make the rules (except I do and I say yolo). Have fun with it!
● Open posts like this one are flipping to a two week schedule instead of a weekly one.
● Because of the above, the last bit is there for people who'd maybe like to play out aftermath threads later on but don't want to wait for a new post or make a new one.
● Settings have been slightly updated. ]

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I don't think anyone is, really.

[ She'd heard whispers about the goddess herself being around, but the thought of actually seeing her and speaking with her seemed, well— out there. Besides, if even the goddess was stuck here with the rest of them, would she really know much of anything?

Hilda rocks on her heels, gaze drifting off to the side as another firefly buzzes past her. ]

It feels like it should be daytime. I mean, I think I've been up for a few hours, at least . . .

[ Her voice trails off as her eyes follow the soft green light. ]

It should be. I had a little difficulty sleeping last night, so I cannot be entirely sure, but it surely is not late enough to be this dark.

[Yes, that absolutely is code for "I didn't sleep", but he won't burden Hilda with that. She already seems troubled, anyway. Why make it worse? Dimitri wanders back toward the door frame, glancing up at the eerie sky.]

If not for the fact that it has remained for so long, I would wonder if this is an eclipse... but the animals are acting normal, and I have never heard of an eclipse lasting for this long.

Eclipses don't normally look like this, right? With the fireflies and everything.

[ She lifts a hand, tapping at the one that flits by her— ]

[ The scent of smoke and ash from the fierce battle across Gronder Field lingers, the flames slowly dying out as the Adrestrian forces retreat. Hilda sweeps out her axe once more, sending the last few stragglers racing down the hill and then sighs, slinging it over her shoulders.

"This is hard work, you know," she remarks to Seteth, who merely shakes his head in response as he takes to the sky on his wyvern.

She'd meant to watch after him, really — keep an eye on him from below while he looked out from above — but her attention is pulled abruptly by a scuffle to the south, to where the Adrestrian forces had been retreating. Hilda snaps her head over, a sharp frown crossing her face and her brows crease at the sight. Or rather, at the bloody path that Dimitri had somehow managed to carve through Edelgard's army.

Step after step, he presses forward, her name a howled curse from his lips. Was it even Edelgard's name at this point, or the guttural howl of a rampaging beast? Hilda couldn't tell; she could only stare, transfixed, watching as Dimitri pressed onward after the emperor's back, even as the spears pierced him again.

And again.

And again.

One more agonized cry — "Edelga—rd!!" — before he finally collapses, before the soldiers swarm in like a flock of vultures. ]

Edited 2019-10-20 03:55 (UTC)

[ — and recoils back in horror as the scene plays out before them, breath catching sharply. ]

[It's sickening. That nearly happened — it would have happened if not for the girl that stabbed him first, if not for Rodrigue shielding him. At that moment in time, he was no better than that rabid best charging across the battlefield in Hilda's memory, spearing everything that stepped in his path with his tusks until the blood he'd lost was beginning to equal the blood he spilled. He visibly flinches at that horrid final scream, bile rising in his throat. He almost vomits on the spot.

A monster like that doesn't deserve to live.

As the memory fades, he stares straight forward where it was, his single eye ablaze with hatred. But this time, that hatred isn't for Edelgard: it's for himself.]

You should not have had to see that, [he says, voice rough from swallowing down that vomit. He doesn't seem to be aware of how he looks.]

I won't disagree with you there.

[ No one should have had to see that.

She glances off to the side, pursing her lips slightly as she clasps her hands together. ]

. . . but what even was that?

It was how I died, was it not? Someone here described it to me.

[Felix did. Hearing it wasn't half as terrible as seeing it, though, and Dimitri has to struggle to regain some semblance of a normal expression. He manages after a few more seconds, though his hands are still trembling.]

Perhaps this spell has shifted somehow?

[Desperate to think about literally anything else, he casts his thoughts back to the moment before that image appeared. It happened when she touched one of the lights, didn't it? If that is the case, then... would touching another one make it happen again? He's afraid to do it. There are countless gory deaths in his memory, ones that he inflicted.]

I think it happened when you touched the light. I can test the theory if you like, but... you may want to look away. I do not know what might happen.

. . . Yeah, it was.

[ She'd learned over the years to put on— not necessarily a brave face, but a grim one. Even now, it's still difficult. It's a good thing, she thinks, to be affected by things and not be numb to the chaos brought about by war, but it doesn't help matters.

So Hilda tightens her grip on her own hands as she tries to will her own fear and distress away, focusing on the larger issue at hand.

The lights. Right. ]

We should probably test it, just to make sure.

[ She doesn't immediately move to look away or cover her eyes, but she's bracing herself, ready to if need be. ]

[All right, then. If Hilda would rather not look away, then at least... he warned her. Holding his breath, Dimitri reaches out to touch one.

--

It's early autumn in Faerghus, a chill just starting to take hold in the air. There are no armies in sight — only a small, dark-haired boy, clutching Dimitri's hand and dragging him along while he runs as fast as he can. A girl runs beside them, bright blonde hair neatly tied into double braids, her cheeks flushed with exertion.

Once a well enters their field of vision, the boy lets go and points insistently, eyes full of tears.

"He's in here!"

"It's not that big of a deal, Felix," a voice calls up from inside the well.

The girl marches forward as well, sticking her head over the edge. "Don't say that! He could have killed you, Sylvain!"

Apparently, this warrants a laugh from Sylvain, though it's nowhere near as convincing as the false laughs from his adulthood. It only makes Felix cry more.

Dimitri hurries forward too, tying a loop at the end of the rope they brought. The rope for the well's bucket had snapped when Felix tried to haul Sylvain up, worn by time and moisture and unable to lift an older child. He tosses it down, peeking over at Sylvain's too-pale face worriedly.

"We'll pull you up, okay? Just put your foot in that loop and hold on!"

--

Dimitri exhales. That's not something he particularly wanted to show someone else (mostly for Sylvain's sake), but it wasn't as bad as it could have been.]

Right. So... it shows memories, then.

[ She watches with quiet concern, not saying anything until Dimitri breaks the silence. Hilda glances over at him, nodding slowly. ]

It looks like it.

[ Slowly, she sucks in a bit of air, trying not to appear rattled. ]

Well! I guess we're going to have to avoid these things for now, huh? That's reaaaally annoying . . .

It most certainly is. I would not want anyone to have to see something... unpleasant.

[Dimitri grimaces, sidestepping one that he sees coming in his peripheral vision.]

If we could at least choose what we were seeing, perhaps it would not be so bad.

[There are actually quite a few things he would really like to see! With Hilda, he would definitely ask to see her brother if he could. Maybe he'll meet him someday back home? If he prevails, he'll be the king after all, and Claude did entrust the Alliance to him.]

Yeah, I guess. That seems like it'd be too convenient for this place, though.

[ She lifts a hand to her chin, tapping at it with consideration. ]

What do you think they are, exactly?

Little spell fragments? I do not know...

[Are their timelines mixing? That would be a terrifying thought. Dimitri crosses his arms, clearly uncomfortable.]

Perhaps I should see if I can find Sothis...

[Wait. Oh no, that was out loud! Hilda isn't too devout, is she? No, she'll most likely just think he's insane. Unless Claude mentioned Sothis to her, then she might believe him.]

[ Fortunately, Hilda is anything but devout. And because Claude had given her the task of gathering information and whatnot, she'd already heard whispers of the goddess — or at least, the ghostly girl that bore her name — that could be found in the monastery.

She tilts her head to the side curiously, smiling slightly. ]

So, you've actually talked to her?

[Why is she smiling like that? She definitely thinks he's crazy! Dimitri glances away, reddening slightly.]

I know how that must sound, but I am not the only one who has seen her. Edelgard and Flayn have, as well, and she also said that she spoke with Claude. ...but yes, I have spoken with her a few times. She seems to be content to quietly look on for the most part.

[Some people might find her floating around in the Knight's Hall sometimes to be creepy, but Dimitri genuinely doesn't mind. She's a hell of a lot more pleasant than the ghosts he's used to, after all.]

Weird.

[ That's it. Nothing about blasphemy or them being crazy. Just . . . "weird." ]

Well, if one of you guys thinks you can ask her about it, that would probably help, you know? Maybe she knows a thing or two about it.

[ She wasn't afraid of them necessarily, but ghosts weren't exactly her thing. ]

I think that she might. I have seen these little lights floating around her before, though coming into contact with them did not do anything...

[What if something happened to her? As ridiculous as it is to be worried over a goddess, Dimitri finds himself worrying all the same. Though they don't have extended conversations that often, he actually finds her presence to be somewhat comforting, not unlike having Dedue hovering around behind him silently. He purses his lips and glances around the dining hall, but he can't seem to find any area with a greater concentration of the lights that might indicate her being somewhere nearby.]

Well, if you've already got a rapport going on with her, then it's definitely worth asking.

[ You're pals with the goddess, right? It's fine. this is fine. ]

["Pals" is going too far! He may refrain from kissing up, but Dimitri would never be able to casually call Sothis a pal.

He pauses, considering Hilda's take on it.]

We do have an understanding, I suppose. It couldn't hurt.

Right? The worst thing that happens is she tells you she doesn't know, and we're back where we started.

[ She hums cheerfully. It's a foolproof plan, really. ]

[Significantly worse things could happen, but there's nothing to be gained from pessimism. Dimitri keeps his mouth shut.]

I will go ahead and see if I can locate her, then. Unless you need assistance with anything?

[ She waves a hand at him. ]

No, no, go ahead.

[ She's fine. Really. She just— needs a moment, that's all. ]

[Dimitri still lingers for a moment or two more, feeling like he should say something else — but in the end, he decides that they'll both be more comfortable if they can put that awful memory behind them. With a polite nod, he sets off to find Sothis.]

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1/3

2/3 vw chapter 18 spoilers

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