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i just wanna know: who broke it?
[Sheena'd thought she was all done with dimensional travel, now that the two worlds were united. But here she is, having fallen asleep in one world and woken up in a Tethe'alla that's just different enough from the one she knows to be constantly jarring. Her connections to Aselia's summon spirits dangle loose, snapped by distance - not even Origin's power could follow her here, it seems. That's more than a little unsettling.
It takes her some time, alone in a bizarro version of Meltokio as she is, but eventually she stumbles on a lead - an old scientific journal, a mention of the power of something called an Aegis being able to transcend space and time, at least in theory. And a little asking around tells her that Tethe'alla has its own Aegis, though no one's seen it for years. Well. Worth a shot, right?
Somehow she manages to talk her way into the Tethe'allan castle where the Aegis's core crystal awaits being woken up, with a series of smiles and her very best politicking - yes, of course she's got nothing but loyalty for Tethe'alla, of course she's skilled at this, of course it'd be a great honor.
(Zelos would be proud, she thinks, wryly.)
They're dubious, but her persistence wears them down, or maybe they're just desperate enough for a return of the Aegis's power to let her try, and the orange core crystal is offered out to her.
She takes a deep breath, and reaches out to touch it.]
It takes her some time, alone in a bizarro version of Meltokio as she is, but eventually she stumbles on a lead - an old scientific journal, a mention of the power of something called an Aegis being able to transcend space and time, at least in theory. And a little asking around tells her that Tethe'alla has its own Aegis, though no one's seen it for years. Well. Worth a shot, right?
Somehow she manages to talk her way into the Tethe'allan castle where the Aegis's core crystal awaits being woken up, with a series of smiles and her very best politicking - yes, of course she's got nothing but loyalty for Tethe'alla, of course she's skilled at this, of course it'd be a great honor.
(Zelos would be proud, she thinks, wryly.)
They're dubious, but her persistence wears them down, or maybe they're just desperate enough for a return of the Aegis's power to let her try, and the orange core crystal is offered out to her.
She takes a deep breath, and reaches out to touch it.]
HE STILL WAS DEAD AND SO WAS I
Sheena's a mess of words and thoughts and emotions, and, honestly, Zelos has to fondly breathe out a laugh to smooth the irregularities of their emotional bleed. "I mean," he says, rolling his eyes, "you're in my dreamspace. Last I checked, only the driver of an Aegis could access that. So, yes, I am back." He shrugs, gesturing with one hand around them. "Or at least, soon to be back. I'm still running some last minute repairs, but... yeah."
Zelos then waits a moment, eyes softening as he regards his driver again, and smiles. "I didn't have any problems reconfiguring. You... You kept it safe, huh?"
AAAAAAAAA
But okay, he says soon. Soon is - fine. This is nice, anyway. She isn't in a rush to wake up.
"Of course I did," she says. "I mean - that's what you said to do." Not that it really needed saying when it comes to the core of his very being, but having that memory to hold onto had definitely helped, in the moment. Sheena seems to realize she's still sitting on him and pushes herself off to the side quickly, offering him a hand up.
[Returns a month later with Starbucks] You like jazz?
Lost in how their resonance, this time being tied to someone's life force feels just like being found once again. Usually, he'd be happy to be lost in the network, at peace and ease with the quietude of his mind--his drivers were never kind, or gentle, or quiet, after all, always having something to say or do or demand from their blade.
But here, laughing at his driver as he takes her hand to pull himself up, core and ether lines glowing, the world around them slowly, slowly regaining colour, it's as if the intrusive thoughts and feelings once directed at him are but whispers of times long by. He isn't the Aegis here, a weapon to be used and discarded when his job is done. He is simply Zelos, a blade in partnership with Sheena Fujibayashi, waiting to reawaken.
And speaking of reawakening...
"Well, thank you for that, I guess," he says, gently touching his own core. He closes his eyes. The crystal is so warm and bright, eager, buzzing. He scoffs. "It won't be long now, actually. I can feel it. Maybe a few more minutes or so."
Zelos smirks, then opens his eyes to direct his amusement right at Sheena. And he can see it in his peripherals, the corners of his conscious growing fainter, receding together with the image of the world itself. White fog, the tell-tale sign of waking. Thick and all-consuming, purifying what it touches.
Before it's all consumed, before they separate, Zelos laughs again.
"Make sure my awakening is nice, okay? Some flowers would be nice."
I like trains
He wakes up on his side, facing the wall, tucked up tight against someone, and it takes him a moment to remember that he and Sheena are sharing the bed. Blinking open bleary eyes - (that feel rather difficult to open, indicating Lloyd must've cried in his sleep) - he sits up slowly, careful not to jolt Sheena awake, and stares at the wall facing him. It's still dark as hell, the blinds closed but not nearly efficient enough to block out this much light, so he guesses that it's probably still the middle of the night, and he's probably not going to go back to sleep again -
- wait. Is the wall glowing?
Lloyd squints. That certainly is an orange tint to the wall that he's sure hadn't been there before. He should investigate.
...
Nah, that's a problem for future Lloyd. He turns to make himself comfy again, only to catch more of the orange glow, half hidden by the covers, and it's bright intensity forces Lloyd to shield his eyes as they adjust to the glow. Once they do, he catches a figure around it, Sheena to their side, and -
Realization and surprise and joyous relief run Lloyd over like a stampede, and he can't help the laugh and the loud "Zelos!" that escape from his mouth, before he just throws himself on top of the sleeping blade and hugs him close. "You're back!" He exclaims, feeling the happiest he has in weeks. "You're finally back!"
[GETS RUN OVER BY A TRAIN AND DIES AGAIN]
Being pulled into a hug immediately jolts Zelos awake and he yelps, hands flailing about uselessly as he gathers his bearings. Who? What? Where? What the fuck--okay, recap. He just finished reconfiguring himself, had a conversation with Sheena. And if he's awake again and back in the real world, which he deduces from the weight on top of him and, the scent of firewood near him, and the loud laughter in his ears, then Sheena must be nearby.
Someone's on top of him, but--hold on, it's too dark to see and his ether lines aren't exactly illuminating them well enough. But this person's shoulders are way too broad to be Sheena, that's the first thing Zelos notes. And this hair, it's a mess, but in an entirely different way from Sheena's. Hm. He sets his hands on their back, and--
Oh.
There's that familiar, discordant, powerful ether-mana signature pulling itself down a right arm. He knows this signature, has already felt it once before. It's nothing like Sheena's own.
"What the hell, Lloyd!" he exclaims, tapping at Lloyd's head, trying to go for exasperated and instead managing to slip out something fond. His other hand is still on the other's back in some sort of hug. He scoffs. "I can't breathe, dumbass! And what kinda greeting is this? Where's my damn flowers!"
NOOOOOOOOO
Zelos is glowing bright against the dark, grin infectious as he looks up at Lloyd, and not for the first time Lloyd feels his heart skip a beat. He's radiant and gorgeous as he always is, but while Lloyd usually forces the sappy crush down far into his heart in order to function, he lets himself feel it for once, smiling, relieved, and so so so joyous. "I'm sorry," he laughs a little, because, well, Lloyd knows he isn't the lightest guy around and he just crushed Zelos, "I just couldn't help myself! I'm so happy you're back. We missed you!"
WHAT'S UP I FINALLY HAVE SPOONS, WANT SOME
Zelos blinks. He's the only source of light in the room, and thus the only way he can see Lloyd's joyous smile and energetic expression. The darkness in the room is just as unusual--he'd calculated it'd be morning by now, so what the hell?--as it is inviting, and he almost wants to go back to sleep, but... eh, it's been long enough.
He forces himself to sit up, pushing some hair behind his ear with his free hand and looking over his shoulder. Sheena is on the other side of the bed, waking slowly, and Zelos can't help the scoff that comes out between his smirking lips, or the glow on his cheeks from growing. So... they slept with his Core Crystal between them, huh?
That's... hm, okay. Not gonna think about that. Nope.
"Architect, you'd think my literal driver would be up and happy to see me by now," he jokes, trying in vain to will down the glowing blush and his awkward happiness. He then uses the hand he doesn't have around Lloyd's arm to gently shake Sheena awake, chuckling. "C'mon, Sheena. Don't leave an Aegis waiting! I want flowers!"