paixaorpg | A Curious Sort of Meeting [Complete]

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A Curious Sort of Meeting [Complete]

Character(s): Auron and Yorda
Content: They meet. They talk. Stuff happens. *bricked*
Setting: Outside the Actua Are in J7.
Time: Afternoon.
Warnings: None yet.

It was a lovely, sunny day, and Yorda had decided to go for a walk. After all, there seemed to be no danger present, nor had she been warned about anything recently (and although Timon had disappeared, she didn't yet know the true reasons behind it). She had bathed, having figured out on her own what the bath was for (but the meaning of the strange metal stick with the odd flower-looking thing attached to it hanging from the tiled wall eluded her) and gotten dressed, still wearing the same dress she had arrived in (although her feet remained bare).

And so it was that the girl stepped out into the glittering city with her hair still wet, the natural glow of the princess seeming brighter in the sunlight.

She wondered what she would do today. Freedom was wonderful, to be sure, but sometimes she didn't quite know what to do with it.

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He had wanted some time to get away, and the best thing he could think of to do so was to walk. There was no set destination in mind, just whatever it took to get away. Auron was tired, to be honest. The conversation with Jecht had taken a lot out of him. He noticed the glowing girl, but only gave her a passing glance before continuing on his way, still deep in thought.

Yorda, of course, noticed the gigantic sword and... followed. She had never seen anything like it before; although the boy had wielded an old, plain sword that nevertheless was sharp enough to rid them of the shadowy beasts quickly, the only sword she had been (felt, really) familiar with had been green and glowing, with arcs of electricity crackling from it and runes carved into the blade. The princess padded along silently behind the man, wanting to touch the blade but knowing it was sharp - and besides, her mother had forbidden her from ever so much as looking at the sword (although once she was dead, there was nothing to prevent Yorda from seeing it as the castle began to tumble down.

"Who are you?" Yorda asked finally, biting her lip and tilting her head.

Auron tensed. Someone was following him. It was just a feeling, as he couldn't quite hear the footsteps, but it was one he had become familiar enough with over the years to trust. It wasn't until the girl spoke that he relaxed, a brief expression of annoyance flashing across his face for an instant (though whether it was at her or at himself was difficult to say).

He glanced behind him, looking the girl over. There was a strangeness to her that he couldn't put his finger on, but for the most part she seemed only to be a curious soul who had decided to follow him. "Auron," he replied, looking ahead of him again and continuing to walk.

Yorda let out a laugh, happy and innocent, at being acknowledged. It was a delight every time she was, and it was a lovely reminded that she was still alive and free, and able to form relationships with others. She fell into step besides Auron, smiling happily at the older man and watching him, curiosity shining in her eyes.

"Auron," she repeated, as though tasting the strangeness of the name. She decided she liked it, however, and looked at him curiously, gracefully stepping through the crowd in oder to remain by his side. He was dressed in bright colors, which was still something Yorda wasn't used to - until the boy had come to the castle, the only colors in the world to the princess had been black, brown and gray - not to mention the white of her own skin and dress.

An eyebrow rose in silent inquiry as she laughed and stayed beside him. Whatever her fascination was with him, he would allow her to satisfy it for now. She hadn't done anything yet to warrant sending her away, after all, though he was beginning to feel a little uncomfortable about her staring. He shifted the sword resting on his shoulder, the only outward expression of it.

"Where do you come from?" Yorda asked, unaware that her staring was making Auron uncomfortable. She didn't know of such things, and no one had yet told her that it was unappreciated or wrong. She certainly didn't mean any harm by it. "I have never seen anyone like you before." While she'd seen others dressed brightly, she hadn't seen anyone carrying a sword anywhere, not since the castle - and even then, it had only been the boy.

Auron glanced down at her again. "Spira," he replied, pausing a moment before deciding to clarify, "A different world than this." He doubted it meant much to the girl. He hadn't quite seen anyone like the girl, either. She looked different, but he had become used to such differences among the populace of Paixao. "This place is composed of many such people."

Yorda nodded, wondering if her world had anything to do with Spira; the boy had been wearing bright reds and blues, much like this man here. "What is your world like?" she asked, hoping the man would tell her more. All she knew about her own world was that she had lived on an island for as long as she could remember, alone but for her mother, the shadows, and the doves.

And then the boy, but he wasn't here.

"Not like this," he began, but then amended that statement. "Save for Macalania Forest. Due to the Fayth's power, it is made entirely of crystal." Though how long it would remain so now that the Fayth were gone from Spira was difficult to say. No doubt it would slowly begin to degrade.

Although it did make him wonder whether or not Paixao's state was similar to that of Macalania's.

"The rest of the world depends on where you are. Forests, beaches, mountains, long stretches of plain, and an island consisting only of desert. There are only two large cities. Everything else is villages."

That sounded interesting, but... "What is crystal?" Yorda asked, blinking. There had mostly only been stone and metal within the castle walls, and she had never heard of crystal. It showed, as most unusual words did, and her tongue tripped over the word.

She thought for a few minutes. "Beyond the island," she told the man suddenly, "there was the sea and the forest." She sighed a little. "But the island is gone now."

She didn't know what crystal was? A strange world she must have come from. Although when she mentioned an island and only sea and forest he began to realize that there might be more than a difference in worlds that may have lent to her curiosity. Auron stopped and looked around before pulling some "fruit" off of a tree. It appeared to be a cherry, only made of some kind of red gemstone.

"This," he replied, handing it over to her.

Yorda took the cherry, turning it over in her hands. She had seen much of this odd, glittering substance around the city - but she hadn't known it had a name. She continued to examine it, holding it close to her face, then far away, childlike in her usual curiosity. "And Ma-ca-la-nia," she said, looking at Auron again and pronouncing the name of the forest carefully, "is all of it like this?" It sounded wondrous, and the girl gave a bright smile at the thought of it.

He watched her study it, almost as curious about the girl as the girl was about what she held. It was strange to see someone so ignorant as to the ways of the world, and in this place he had a feeling she was likely to get herself into trouble if she hadn't done so already. Auron nodded. "Though I have yet to see something of that color," he replied. "The trees, brush, even flowers... They all look like that."

"Oh!" Yorda cried softly, giving a little laugh in delight. "There was nothing like that on the island." She offered the jewel back to Auron and smiled. "It must be nice there. The trees and grass on the island were all green. The light came through the leaves and made them light up." She smiled at the memory, remembering the cool shade of the trees and the grass tickling her feet as she walked. She looked down, then, frowning a little. "Why is there no grass in the city?" she asked suddenly, looking back at the swordsman.

Auron thought about that for a moment. "Travel," he decided. "It is harder to move supplies over dirt and grass than over stone." That was all he could think of, at least. Though it seemed this one seemed to like its flora from what he could see, as fake as it was. "Some have more than others."

Yorda blinked. "There is more than one city?" she asked. "Where is it?" Of course, Yorda had no way of knowing what other places there were here; she hadn't set foot outside the city ever since arriving. She was too used to simply staying in one place and had remained in the hotel Sonic had brought her to. Of course, now that Cora was helping her, the two of them would live together.

Auron shook his head. "Not here," he clarified. "In general. Though more likely exist in other worlds." How to get to those, however--and how they themselves had gotten to Paixao--he still couldn't figure out. If they could, they might have a way out of this place.

Yorda nodded. "How many worlds are there?" she asked. "Is this not the same world of my island?" She felt dismayed at the thought, and looked it - if this was a different world, then maybe she really would never see the boy again! How could she have possibly gotten here? Had she, perhaps, been carried off by something after being knocked out while the castle (and the island, for that matter) came tumbling down?

"I don't know," Auron replied, deciding to answer both questions at once. He noticed her expression and for the briefest of moments he wondered what she had left behind. As much as the rest of them, no doubt. He had nothing to say to her that would make her feel better for what she had lost without lying, and so he said nothing further.

Yorda nodded in acknowledgment to the man's answer and continued walking beside him, silent for the moment. She hopes the boy would be alright, that he had been transported to safety across the ocean (it was slim, but it was still hope, and the only one he'd had of living) and that they would meet again.

After a few minutes, she looked curiously at Auron's sunglasses. "What are those?" she asked, lightly running a finger along the frame for a moment.

Auron frowned and took a step away as she reached for his sunglasses. He hoped she didn't intend to do such things the entire time she decided to stay around him. Auron liked his personal space, especially when it came to people he barely knew. Harmless or not, this girl fell under that category. There was a brief glare of warning, and he began to walk again. He had a feeling she'd continue to follow.

"Sunglasses," he replied shortly.

Yorda gasped at the glare. Had she done something wrong? Confusion flashed in her eyes, and she tilted her head, not understanding why Auron had looked at her like that. Still, she ducked her head after a few moments, unsure of how to apologize when she didn't know what she had done.

And yet, she was still curious, still walking side by side with him. "What do they do?"

Auron glanced over as she came up beside him once again. "They keep the sun out of your eyes," he replied, any trace of annoyance gone from his voice by this point. "Make sure it's not too bright." They also helped to hide what you were thinking and feeling. It wasn't the best thing if one wanted to get close to anyone, but as far as Auron was concerned that was fine. It was futile to get close to too many people after all. Only if it was necessary.

"I like the sun," Yorda replied, smiling once again. "It's light was hardly visible inside the castle." She loved the sunlight, and the breeze - but that was rarely visible in here. It was one of the few things she didn't like about the city; no sunlight, and no real plants. "The birds flew in. They stayed with me." Until she chased them, curious of their wings - but they had always come back.

Once again, Auron replied with silence. All he knew of the castle she spoke of was what she had told him. He had no experience to relate to her, no castle, no birds. And so he walked.

Although, he did have some thanks to provide for this meeting. his mind had successfully been diverted from earlier events.

Yorda thought. "The shadows here are like my mother's," she murmured. "They are all empty." She couldn't help but pity them, even while she shuddered in fear at the thought of them. She pushed them from her mind and kept walking, silent for the moment.

Even if this man was intimidating, the girl thought she liked him. Of course, after the intense loneliness of her imprisonment, it was hard for her to understand disliking anyone; she had even loved her mother.

Auron turned toward her again, frowning. The shadows here? She must have meant the Heartless. Though it was interesting that her mother would have Heartless as well. Then again, they didn't know enough about the creatures to say where they would show up or around who. "Empty?" he asked. Did she meant their lack of hearts or something else? It was a strange statement to make, but... Did the girl know more than she let on? Or perhaps just more than she thought?

Yorda nodded. "They are no longer themselves," she replied, looking back up at Auron. "They can never come back." It still made her sad, but perhaps after they were destroyed, they could find peace. Violence, however, frightened Yorda, even when it was being used to protect her. She would run rather than fight - and the princess didn't know how to fight, anyway.

Auron frowned and once again he stopped walking. No longer themselves? Could never come back? What did she mean by that? It almost reminded him of the fiends of Spira. "What do you mean?"

Yorda walked a few steps before realizing Auron had stopped. She turned around to look at him, her eyes sad. "Mother changed the children who were brought to her," she said in response, "and they do not ever return as themselves. They are hers." They all had belonged to the Queen, Yorda herself included - all except the boy.

Changed. Didn't the Heartless cause others to change as well? He didn't remember all of the details (they were made of darkness, they sought the hearts of others, they even sought the hearts of worlds), but something along those lines clicked. "Why does your mother have such shadows?" he asked. How she changed the children brought to her, he'd rather not know for now.

"Mother is dead now," Yorda replied. "But they brought children to her, and she made them hers." She shuddered, knowing the process it took to change them in such a terrible way. "They would do as she said, even if it destroyed them." She thought for a moment. "My mother was their queen." She looked away from the older man, rubbing her arms, cold for reasons she didn't know. "The hooded men who brought her the children were afraid of her."

Auron watched the girl for a moment. Her mother's actions obviously disturbed her, and he couldn't blame her for her reasons. Lording over those forced to do her bidding, those transformed into creatures few could explain, only able to obey, even Auron had to admit that it was a frightening concept. But someone fought, or else this queen had died of natural causes, though what natural cause there could be for one who was capable of transforming people to shadows he didn't know. Still, there was one question that bothered him more than others. "For what reason were children brought there?"

"I do not know," Yorda replied, "but the shadows all had horns, and so did the boy who saved me." It had seemed to amuse her mother, at first, the stubborn way the boy had taken Yorda's hand and led her about, fighting off the shadows which came to drag the princess back. Then the boy had actually proven a threat - along with Yorda - and the Queen had no longer been so amused.

One thing was certain; they couldn't have been brought to the Queen for the same purpose as Yorda, could they? After all, one only needed a single replacement body.

Auron nodded. He didn't understand this queen or her motives, and it seemed as though the girl understood them about as much as he did. It was probably best that she had been taken away from that island she had come from. Paixao was better, even if it was only incrementally so.

"Be watchful for those here who would do the same," he warned.

Yorda understood better than she liked, but she didn't understand what was so abhorrent about the horned children. The girl would happily accept anyone, regardless of what they looked like, as long as they weren't cruel - and her mother had been that and more. To use one's own child in an attempt to live longer was wrong; Yorda was beginning to understand that (whereas all she'd known before was that she'd wanted to be free).

At Auron's words, the girl stepped closer to him again, looking up at him in confusion. "Who would do that?" she asked.

"The desperate, the power hungry, or the cruel," he replied. "There's no definite answer." He didn't claim to understand it either, and he imagined there were few who did. Only those who perpetrated the acts could give a clear response, and even then it was likely to be one only they understood. "That's all I can tell you."

In that moment, Yorda understood, and she nodded her head. While she didn't like that, she knew by now that some things didn't change, no matter where one was. Still, she had yet to completely understand it. "Who is like that?" she asked. The princess may have been innocent, but she knew enough to be wary of the outwardly malicious, at least - even if she didn't know how to look beneath the friendly masks certain of those in Paixao wore.

Auron shook his head. "I can't give you every name. There are those who hide their intentions behind a mask of kindness. And others who are known but hide their identity." She would have to trust her instinct to find who to trust. Something told him she would find it difficult, as it seemed she was very sheltered, but it was something she would have to learn herself.

Yorda nodded. Her instincts weren't very much in use at the moment, although she knew enough to know when to run and hide (although that didn't always work; while she had been in the castle, the girl had mostly frozen in fear and disgust of the shadows which came in various attempts to drag the princess back to her mother). "The ones that claimed the city were very strange," she murmured, almost to herself. "I do not know what they want, but I believe they will hurt people." She was especially afraid of Maleficent, who reminded her of her mother.

"It is likely," Auron replied honestly. "A few of them have already done so. What the other two intend to do I don't know." And that unknown worried him. They had some information on the trio in City Hall, but not enough. There was no way to tell what they would try next, and with Hades's brazen attempt with the party (what he had intended to do with it Auron still didn't know), it seemed nothing was out of the question.

"What have they done?" Yorda asked, dreading what the answer was and might be. Her dismay showed on her face; were they like her mother, who had hurt so many and caused so much harm? Yorda had not dared to go near the thorny building that was once City Hall - and as Yorda didn't know how to fight (and had often frozen or fled when it came to be time for defending herself), it had no doubt proven itself a good idea - especially as she had yet to discover exactly what powers she had inherited after her mother had died.

"One held a party at the opera house. He lured people in before shutting the doors and letting monsters loose within the building." He had known going in that it was a trap, but he wanted to know what the group was capable of. He still hadn't figured out the purpose behind the trap, but he supposed that mystery would solve itself in time.

Yorda's eyes widened. Such actions sounded so like her mother, and she was sure her horrible familiarity with such things was visible. The girl looked up at Auron again, sorrow written on her face. "I am sorry," she replied, lowering her eyes. It wasn't anyone's fault but the culprits, she knew, but it didn't stop her from feeling badly. She had considered going to that party, not knowing what one was. It was a good thing she had refrained from going, all things considered. "Was anyone hurt?"

"Don't apologize." As far as he knew she had nothing to do with the event, and thus nothing to apologize for. "I don't know," he replied honestly. "There may have been a few injuries. I didn't stay long once the doors were open."

Of course Yorda had nothing to do with it. She would never do anything to hurt anyone, not if she could help it. What's more, Yorda had always frozen up when the shadows had come after her, unsure of what to do and unable even to run. She was lucky enough that, once the Heartless had come after her, she had retained the presence of mind to flee. If she'd been in the room with the creatures, she would have simply frozen as she had before. "I am glad you got out safely," she replied. "I hope everyone else did as well."

There were enough who had, as he remembered, or else enough that he had seen leave the opera house, at least. Auron nodded once and glanced in what he believed the direction of his hotel to be. He had done what he had set out to do in the first place, after all. As far as he was concerned, he had no more reason to be out wandering as he was.

He glanced back at the girl, waiting for a moment before starting to head back in that direction. Something told him she would follow. Probably with more questions.

Yorda, of course, followed, simply happy to be outside. She remained a little behind Auron; a force of habit from the castle, where she had been led around. She wondered about the people behind the wall of thorns as she walked; what were they after? What did they want? The girl certainly didn't know, that was for sure - and no one else seemed to know, either.

She was just glad her mother wasn't around any longer. Surely her mother would have done something terrible in a place like this.

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A Curious Sort of Meeting [Complete]

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