melodiesoflife | The Fete at the Observatory

Characters: All (hopefully) uncaptured Heroes of Light
Where/When: At the Heroes' Observatory, the evening of February 10th
Summary: Ashelia has called a meeting - under the guise of a party - to discuss the next steps forward for the Heroes following the revelations revealed in the shared dream.
Warnings: N/A
Note: Each part of Ashelia's speech is centred around a different topic. Feel free to indicate what in particular your character is responding to in the headline for your top level! Alternately, if your character is bringing up something on their own, or not in direct reply to something Ashelia has mentioned, feel free to out the subject in the Subject line! There's a lot going on and a lot of ground to cover, so let's keep it organized so things are easy to find later!

"I would like your attention, please." With her experience as an accomplished politician, Ashelia's voice cut through the din of the gathered Heroes. The high ceiling of the meeting room lent itself well to the sorts of echoes that could easily cause headaches, unfortunately. The Queen planned to bring in some fabrics to soften the effects, but there had been little time for decorating, and it seemed there wouldn't be anytime soon.

The Lady Ashelia stood at the head of the incredibly large wooden table that dominated a good chunk of the room. Wooden chairs lined the edges of the tables, straight-backed and unfortunately not cushioned. It was clear that the Queen of Dalmasca didn't want anyone getting too comfortable in this particular room. There were papers in front of her, books and file folders and ledgers, all organized into neat piles. She picked up one of the papers, clearing her throat quietly before continuing. "If as many of you as possible could take a seat, I can call this meeting to order - and yes, I would like to apologize.

"As you may have guessed, this is not a fete. It is important for everyone to know..." Ashelia paused, waiting for the last straggling voices to quiet down before continuing, "that Mognet has been compromised. There is no longer such a thing as private correspondence, if ever there was. Keep this in mind in the coming months. The war has begun."

Ashelia paused for questions and comments before continuing.

"As many of us have realized, and Markus observed earlier over Mognet, the usual appearance of new Heroes of Light at the Crystal of Fire around the fifth of each month did not occur. This disturbance of the established cycle may seem abrupt, but upon further examination, 'tis not so." The Queen took a sip of water. "The cycle has been disturbed previously, though not in such a drastic manner. Last month, crystal statues appeared and disappeared within the hour. Heroes awakened from the crystal stasis were unceremoniously dropped from the sky. So you see, this disturbance has simply progressed. I welcome your thoughts on this."

Ashelia paused for questions and comments before continuing.

"Next on my agenda is the true motivation behind my calling this gathering. The night of February 5th, I had a dream." She stopped, shaking her head. "No, a vision. It did not take me long to realize I was not the only one to experience this. I've written the contents here." Ashelia held up a file folder. "However, if I am correct, many of you need only read it to refresh your memory." She stopped for a moment, putting the folder back on the table. "The ramifications of this new information are clear. The Empire holds four of our number captive, as well as countless other displaced Heroes in crystal stasis. It is my belief we must act on this information. We must save them."

Ashelia paused for questions and comments before continuing.

"The last subject I would like to cover is this." She held up a small, worn notebook. "This is the diary of the Lady Kalki, one of the Empire's Triumvirate. This woman, more than any other, has made clear her intentions are in opposition to us as a group. I encourage everyone to read through this document." Ashelia put the notebook down on the table and held up another file folder. "I have written a transcription myself, as the original is quite delicate." She put the file folder down. "This document provides invaluable insight into whom we can only assume is our enemy. It , unfortunately, poses more questions than it answers, but it does make clear that it is she who holds the answers that we need."

Ashelia took another sip of water, looking around at the gathered Heroes. "I once again open the floor to questions and comments. I believe it will take all of us to rescue our comrades; however, I also believe that if we do work together as one, we shall not fail."

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Ohh. Except that's possibly the exact thing she could do to make Kaji feel even worse. He's seen too many kids having to act more mature, having to grow up too quickly, or having impossible burdens placed on them. To be fair, it's one of the things that still legitimately makes him angry about this entire situation; that whoever is bringing people here would choose someone like Ib, who should be having a normal childhood.

She shouldn't have to be so strong.

"It might help. Because I really want to try to fix this without you all having to fight." He looks at Ib seriously. "Especially you. I know. You've proven yourself, you were right there helping people at the Battle. With the Job powers, you can kick my butt across town and back," he smiles a tiny bit at her. "But you shouldn't have to."

Ib wants to be selfish, to just cry and insist that he stay. They could think of some other way to get information. But.... even if she should be back home, having a normal childhood, she isn't. And she's a hero too, so she can't give anything less than the other heroes.

So she blinks back her tears and returns his smile. It's not quite convincing, but she's trying.

"I think you're pretty strong too. You..."

She pauses, trying to swallow back her emotions and keep her voice steady.

"You have to come back though. Okay? If you go, you have to promise to come back!"

That's almost heart-breaking, the way Ib is trying to be so strong. Kaji doesn't want to leave her behind. But, at this point, she might feel guilty if he stays.

"I promise." He puts a hand on her shoulder, about the most comforting thing he can think of, and tries to smile. "If there's one thing I'm really good at, it's saving my own neck when things get risky." Okay, maybe that's not the most positive thing he could have said, but it's true.

"I'll come back. That's an easy promise to make. And maybe I won't even have to leave for long at all. We'll see." If he can convince the Empire that he's turning double-agent for them while really being double-agent for the Heroes? Well, that's standard for Kaji, and means he doesn't have to leave Ib.

When he rests his hand on her shoulder, she reaches up as if to return the gesture. Then suddenly the dam breaks. She throws her arms around his neck in a tight hug, burying her face in his shoulder.

"Right. You're strong. And you're smart. And..."

It's hard to tell if she's trying to reassure him or herself. Maybe a bit of both. Either way she's getting his shoulder all wet.

"And you'll find out a bunch of stuff and then.... we'll beat them."

Ib is not letting herself consider any other alternatives right now.

Kaji is getting better at this; he only tenses for a second before hugging Ib right back. He'll let the kid cry it out, and be here for her now while he still can.

"We'll beat them," he answers quietly. "And when we beat them with smarts, fewer people will have to fight. It gets too dangerous, I'll come back. I promise I'll come back." See now? Twice you've promised, Kaji. What's this kid doing to him? But right now, he can't consider any alternatives, either.

She nods into his shoulder, not trusting herself to speak through her tears. There is a part of her that knows she's being unfair, making him promise things like that. But she really can't bring herself to care. She doesn't want to be mature, or fair. Not right now. She just wants to make sure he comes back home.

It takes her a few minutes to get her tears under control. And even after she does, she stays where she is for a bit longer, just taking comfort from the hug.

Okay, there has to be something he can do to help fix this. Kaji already has some ideas, he's going to have to talk to a few people, get them to check in on Ib, if it turns out he's gone for a really long time. He likes his idea of convincing the Empire to let him be a double-agent, it would fit better. But it might not work out that way.

When it seems she's calmed down a little, Kaji has a question that's been on his mind for a while. He shifts back so he can look her in the eye, but keeps a hand on her shoulder. "Say. I've been thinking about something. And I feel bad for not asking sooner. When's your birthday?"

She wipes the remaining tears from her eyes. There's a bit of embarrassed surprise when he asks about her birthday. Ib hadn't mentioned it because between the attack, all the people who got hurt, and their captured friends it really didn't seem fair for her to bring it up.

"It's... next week. The 27th..."

Kaji's eyes light up in surprise right back. "Oh, wow! We've gotta do something for it." He smiles widely. Hmm, he thought he was going to have more time, but he can manage this. Yes.

"At least a cake." Because that, Kaji can handle on his own. "What do you like? Strawberry? Chocolate? Name it, it's yours." He might be overwhelming her a little, but this is important to Kaji.

"Well..."

She'd love it. Heck, what kid doesn't want to celebrate their birthday? But Ib can't celebrate when they have friends that are still captured. That just wouldn't be fair. Still....

His enthusiasm for it is really touching, and it brings a smile to her face.

"I didn't think it was was fair for me to have a party when all this bad stuff just happened."

But in case he changes his mind she very hastily adds...

"But just a cake might be okay. Do you think it could be lemon cake?"

She'd be fine with almost any flavor though. Her fondness for lemon is mostly because it reminds her of Garry, of home. Which...would be nice for her birthday.

Kaji's smile deepens endearingly. The kid's got a good heart on her. Better than, well, than any of the rest of them.

"Lemon cake it is. I think I can manage that."

What isn't fair is the possibility that her birthday has to be swallowed up by guilt or worry about the others, so maybe a compromise is the best solution.

"And then we can do something bigger after we've brought everybody home safe. So that they all get to have fun, too. How does that sound?"

Her own smile deepens in return. Ib knows she's really lucky to have people around that care so much about her.

"I... I'd like that. A lot."

This time, the hug is quicker. And a lot happier.

"Thank you!"

The Fete at the Observatory

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