The Shopkeeper's Daughter: Act 1

[desertbloomed]

Characters: Ashelia, and other Heroes that answered her call
Where: Her house, B-05
When: 09/10
Summary: Ashelia has an interesting proposal: that the Heroes of Light start acting like them.
Format: Prose or action is fine
Warnings: none!

Everything was set up perfectly. The table was laid out with a bowl of (non-spiked) punch and some sugar biscuits. Chairs were arranged into a circle. Ashelia paced around the living room anxiously. We haven't the time for this. That little girl was dying, and here she was, holding a meeting to propose a plan of action on what to do about it. That's what Queen Ashelia would do - that's all a queen could do. But I am no queen here. She should be out there, finding the seeds herself. The battle with the Chocobo Eater continued to gnaw at her, though. She'd gotten out of it relatively unscathed, but only because there were people more able to take the hits. She needed the other Heroes for this. As much time as she felt she was wasting with this meeting, she couldn't be in two places at once.

Comments

[desertbloomed]

"Precisely why I have gathered us thus." Ashelia gestured around the room to the other Heroes, unable to keep the grin on her face. As many misgivings as she had about making a nigh on impossible to keep promise, this was the kind of action she missed on the throne. It reminded her loosely of gathering around the campfire on her journeys across Ivalice with her companions, discussing their next move or attempting to puzzle out their own motivations, their own hopes and dreams.

"A balanced party is a must, as you say. I'll not be responsible for another Chocobo Eater debacle," Ashelia quipped with some humor.

[wear_tear_rust]

Angeal couldn't keep the laughter back with his hand to his face to hide that embarrassing memory. "You saw that?"

Of course, he saw the humor in his own mistakes which made him one of the most memorable instructors among SOLDIER. Mistakes were best for learning and he wasn't offended in the least that shown through his laughter.

[desertbloomed]

"I did." Ashelia smiled at the man, pleasantly surprised. He wasn't a grim as he seemed at first. "We all learned valuable lessons that day. And, alas, to stop learning is to stop living, no?"

[wear_tear_rust]

"Agreed." He chuckled with a nod. Angeal was the easier of the three SOLDIERs to get along with and he didn't mind the light jabs in mirth about his mistakes. While he was a proud man, he also knew when to put his ego aside for the sake of the mission. It did no one any good when there were more important things to be concerned with and he rubbed his hands in thought.

"I believe my pulse is pretty strong so that means a lot more learning is to come. I welcome it." He smiled warmly, then turned his attention back to the map.

"Are we going by airship or chocobo?" It was important to know so he could pack accordingly. The last thing he needed to happen was a lack of provisions.

[desertbloomed]

"Chocobo. The majority of the Heroes have their own. While we've passes to travel to the other cities, I imagine we would have to hire a ship ourselves if we desired transport to somewhere so remote." The queen shook her head. "No, chocobo will do just fine."

[wear_tear_rust]

That sounded much better to him since they needed to see along the ground through the trek. Airship would mean gaining a lot of ground cover but less likely they would find what they would need along the way.

He passed back the parchments that contained her notes after he was confident that he learned all that he needed. "Good. Demeter wouldn't mind the run."

Mogington looked completely bored and yawned as he laid behind Angeal's shoulders.