songerein | [07] move along, move along just to make it through

Entry tags:

[07] move along, move along just to make it through

Who: Susato and anyone
Which: Open catch-all log for September + network option
Where: The Wild Harvest garden, but open to other locations.
What: Yujin Mikotoba has left Songerein.
Warnings: Will add if needed.

🌸 A. an apple a day keeps the doctor away.

Sender: Susato Mikotoba
To: Everyone
Subject: Reverein's clinic

[ It's short, and to the point. Susato doesn't use the journal often to broadcast like this, but now that she is, she feels it prudent to be as direct as possible. ]

To whom it may concern: For the past couple weeks, the Reverein communal clinic has been without a proper doctor to run it. If you are in need of aid, please be patient, as the volunteers are doing the very best they can. If you have medical experience and would like to help, please let me know. Thank you. Regards, Susato Mikotoba

🌸 B. move along, move along, like i know you do.

[ Within the garden of the Wild Harvest, among the faint hissing of snakes and the lull of the waterfalls, Susato closes her journal and tucks away her pen. She takes a deep breath as she moves to stand from her favorite bench, and she walks with purpose into an area littered with stars that look like stepping stones upon the ground.

For a moment, she stops and simply stares. There it is. A blank star, waiting for a name. Perhaps it appeared some time ago. Perhaps she simply ignored it, but after digesting recent events, she has no time to wallow in the remaining stages of grief. He's not even dead, but she wonders if that doesn't make things worse.

Either way, she doesn't even need a pen. She slowly bends down, spending another moment feeling the rough surface of the starfish with her hand before she commits with her pointer finger.

The strokes appear in a glow, and the end result looks engraved. ]

御琴羽悠仁

🌸 C. wild card.

[ If neither of these fit! ]

(( ooc: Feel free to write your own prompt/starter, or if you'd like me to write a personalized starter for you, hit me up at

yammdere or via PM!

Side note: I would love to incorporate Quest #902. Hug it out if you hit prompt B. uwu ))

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. . .

[ Truthfully, it's a good question to ask. Susato doesn't have an immediate answer. She merely glances off to the far side of the bar, where Tifa keeps some starflowers close at hand and at heart. She's at least been keeping it tidy while she is not here, when 76 hasn't done so himself. ]

I suppose... As someone who has come face to face with a noctaere before, I feel I should have done better. I've never had to fight one, but I...

I have always relied on my words. I should have been able to make him see reason.

[...It seems they all feel the same about this. That they could have, should have done more. Beatrix sympathises. Deeply. Tapping fingertips atop the counter, knowing that though she shares the sentiment, she has no idea how to properly reassure her.]

If the rest of us were not capable of it, then it would not be feasible for you to hold the same expectation of yourself. Even if you have faced other Noctaere, this is a lesson to be learned from. The Noctaere do not all have the same level of capacity. One is not equivalent to another, simply because it is a Noctaere.

[Watching Susato for some moments, she continues.]

You did things that others of us could not. You came in where you were needed and did what was required for us to move ahead. The role you played, the role that everyone played was of grave import. Frankly, without it we would not have gotten to where we did. That is the fact of the matter. Whether you believe it or not does not change it.

[ Susato doesn't interrupt; she merely listens like a teenager being scolded. Beatrix is right, of course. Noctaere are different as much as people are different. At the very least, she feels a little lighter knowing that Beatrix is not one to fake pleasantries and compliments to spare feelings. There may even be a small smile. ]

I believe we all did the best that we could. We will have to live with that.

[ There is a sense of finality behind her words, though she does manage to add: ]

...Thank you. [ For saying all that. She didn't have to. ] Your support means more than I can say in words. I hope I can offer you the same.

[ There's another pause, almost like she hesitates, but in order to offer her support, she must point out the obvious. ]

You... don't have Save the Queen with you today. [ Among other things. ]

[They do all have to live with that. Beatrix can objectively agree, even if it is a difficult thing to hear. She questions her own abilities, has her own insecurities, feels she has made several of her own failings. The kinds of burdens she cannot set onto the shoulders of those around her, even if they would be able to empathise as much as she can with their similar plights.

The standards for herself are always so much different than the ones she places on others.

At Susato’s gratitude, she simply shakes her head, though makes no outward protest as much as she should like to. And what follows after that is little more than a distracting observation on her part.]

No. I suppose I am not.

[Her gaze drops for some moments and before she’s willing to let Susato continue that train of thought, she slides over something small and bound in paisley fabric for safe keeping.]

This is for you. May not necessarily be the cherry blossoms like your flowers, but similar. It seemed it would suit you.

[ Susato tilts her head in gentle question. Perhaps she had expected Beatrix to continue with some sort of explanation, but instead she finds herself accepting the delicately wrapped gift, the fabric soft against her fingertips.

For me,, she thinks, though for some reason she fears repeating it. At first, she can't tell what it is, but then each bloom is revealed like curtains being pulled back. They are a deep pink, darker than what she is used to, but no less beautiful. Her fingers trace the bumpy texture of the petals that seem to glitter, and she swallows whatever she'd been about to say. ]

It's beautiful. They look like roses...

[ Which fits Beatrix perfectly, and may also give her an idea.

Before that, however, she holts the brooch close to her heart, seeking just the right place to pin it. ]

Does it suit me as well as you'd hoped?

[Whatever Beatrix may be thinking, which is merely idle curiosity at the present moment, it doesn’t reflect much in her expression. Most things don’t. If anything, she almost always looks a touch displeased. Unamused. Annoyed. It’s easiest to always look that way. Then few can determine whatever she may be thinking or feeling truly.

It’s a wonderful self-defence mechanism.

She watches Susato and waits patiently, perhaps eyeing her reaction more closely than others might. She’s trying to draw out information by way of observation alone. Words, after all, are not the only things that can be used to express one’s self.]

They do a bit. Primroses, perhaps. Not quite a real rose, I do not think.

[But what does she know? Beatrix doesn’t spend a lot of time looking after any other plants than real roses. Susato holds it to herself and Beatrix takes several moments to simply assess her.]

It looks beautiful. But what I think hardly matters. Is it something that you like? If not, I can find something else.

[ Primroses? Susato doesn't fully understand what that means. It is her first time hearing the term, but of course they're not real roses. Susato seems to shrink under Beatrix's sharp, critical gaze, but it's almost like her words are a threat to take the gift back.

With a sense of urgency, Susato pins the brooch to her kimono, fumbling slightly before it's secure. ]

No, please! I love it.

[ ...And before Susato even has a chance to change her mind or think about her decision further, she blurts out her next words: ]

I, I have something for you, too.

[Studying Susato for some moments longer, Beatrix considers reassuring her. It wouldn’t bother her too much if she didn’t find favour with it. She’s not great with gifts. In fact, she’s downright terrible with them. The only reason she picked out something like she did was because she saw the colour and that made her think of Susato.

In the end, she decides she doesn’t want to make things worse than she already has. Besides, Susato has quite the counter. She pauses for several moments at the proposal, if she wants to call it that, and then she utters out a quiet laugh.]

Something for me? I did not give you something to get something in return.

I know. [ Susato speaks quickly, eager to put that thought out of Beatrix's mind. She shakes her head to dismiss the idea entirely. ] I don't mean to interpret your kindness in such a way. It's...

[ Her hand rests at her chest level in a comfortable fist. After a moment, she finally reaches into the folds of her kimono and pulls the necklace chain she has there over her head. She will offer it to Beatrix with a closed palm; and when she opens it, she will find a rose-shaped bottle made of glass. ]

It's something I have thought a lot about after everything. A protection charm. [ Inside the bottle charm, there are numerous coloured origami cranes, which obscures the glass's natural pink tint. ] I've made a few for those close to me over the months, and... and now I would like you to have one.

[She's not really sure what to address first. The necklace itself is very befitting of her. She knows it just from looking at it. Some people have needed time to understand that roses and Beatrix go together a bit like... tea and milk, honestly. Susato, on the other hand, has picked that up almost immediately. She shouldn't be surprised. Yujin was an observant man. It stands to reason his daughter would be quite a bit like him.

The features in her face soften for just a moment. She's touched by the thought. By the idea that anyone would think of her to give her a gift like that. But this isn't the first trinket she's gotten from Susato either. There was the flower crown during the festival, and the cookies as well. She doesn't necessarily think herself worthy, but...

She knows at the very least, she'll treasure such things. In this world, they mean so much to her, even if she can't say it that way.

Beatrix tilts her head, examining the folded cranes protected by the tinted glass. "I've made a few for those close to me over the months..." Implying she considers Beatrix close. What a high honour it is when one should think that of her. The recent days have made it very difficult to accept these things, though she's never been good at holding such with grace.]

This is lovely. I will treasure it.

[Lifting a hand, she sweeps loose curls over her shoulder to make room, that she can draw up her hands to feel for how to clasp the necklace about her neck. When she feels she's adequately managed it, she straightens the way it settles atop her collar and carefully shifts her hair that it might not get in the way.]

What do you think?

[ Susato watches carefully, ever ready to help if she has to with the clasp, though it appears Beatrix does just as well on her own. She thinks back on when she placed a similar necklace around Kazuma, though allowing the act was probably more for her own benefit rather than his own. A comfortable warmth starts to radiate from her very core, as well as an odd sense of... relief.

In that moment, she's never been more sure of anything. ]

It is perfect.

[ Susato pauses, allowing for some time for Beatrix to admire it further if she wants to before she goes on. ]

In truth, I pray that you will never need its magic again, but if you do, the cranes will wither and burn. Come to me when you need more, and you'll find I am always well-prepared.

[Truth be told, she’d had a thought to ask for assistance, however, being that she still freezes up a little when others touch her or get close to her, it is likely for the best that she’s struggled on her own. It’s an eventual success, regardless of how silly she looks doing it. Evidently Alexandria’s general does not make a habit of wearing much in the way of jewellery.

At Susato’s assessment, Beatrix dips her chin and settles her left hand over the glass charm holding its colourful cranes. She isn’t sure she understands how protection charms work. It seems like an older world magic and she wouldn’t be surprised if Gaia has something similar to it. Well, something not quite as devastating as Eidolons, which seem remarkably old.]

I must confess that I do not quite know how such things work. Back home, there are stories here and there about glorious, grand weapons with similar abilities, but I always wrote them off as mere folklore.

[Not a surprise considering what a sceptic Beatrix tends to be.]

[ What she explained is the extent of what she knows, so sadly, that's all she can offer the general. Perhaps there are still some surprises that she'll come to learn for herself, but until then, at the very least she will be able a small piece of Susato wherever she goes. ]

I felt the same way. When I first made one, it was for Mr 76, in the hopes that he never suffer the kind of hurt I saw, ever again. I did not expect that it would do anything significant, but this world has a way of bringing such feelings to life.

So... here I am. Folding them in my spare time, keeping them in jars.

[ In truth, sometimes she notices there are far more than she's actually folded... but perhaps that's just a trick of the light. ]

[”...but this world has a way of bringing such feelings to life.”

It’s dreamotion. What an interesting discovery. It wasn’t so long ago that Beatrix was looking for a way to bottle dreamotion energy with the interest of keeping an able-bodied supply for the sake of a consistent and everlasting barrier of defence around the town. She makes a note to further pursue this idea when she’s feeling a touch more like herself.

Susato’s information, however, gives her some amount of hope.]

Interesting. I thought originally it might have been a tradition from your home world. I suppose the how, in this case, matters considerably less than the what and its intention. Hopefully I will never have need to make use of it, but if I do, I have this.

[After a moment’s consideration, Beatrix continues, just a touch of hesitation in her voice.]

Do you think you could make another for me if I wished to give it to someone?

[ One day, she'll regale Beatrix with legends of the crane. A mythical being, said to live for a thousand years. How it had become tradition, in the future of her world, her culture, to fold such creatures--a whole thousand of them, for each year they live--to wish someone well.

For now, she perks up curiously, her warm smile giving way to curiosity. ]

Oh? Y, Yes, of course I will. Though... you should already know, I already have plans to give one to everyone who came out that night. [ If it is any of them... Eustace and Tifa included. But she'll wait for more information. ]

I—

[Before she can actually get the rest of the words out, Beatrix is hesitant all over again, realising that she's felt that way a great deal as of late. Although Oriphi's words linger in her head, Eustace's, and many of the others that have been shared with her, she cannot completely shake the feelings that rattle about her insides. Finally, as she draws in a breath, pulling together the pieces of her that she fears may just go clattering about, she looses a breath. And presses herself to continue and to clarify.]

I did think that you might do something of that sort. The others will appreciate it, I have no doubt. I was hoping you might make one for someone outside of it. I do not think I have the capability to protect him. Perhaps something like this, however, can.

. . .

[ Susato thinks she knows who it is. She's never met him, but she's gathered by now that he means a great deal to her. Before that, however, she can see the way her breath shakes, and the uncertainty with which she speaks. Susato speaks softly, though there is a certainty in her voice that cannot be denied. ]

Is that why you do not have your armor, nor Save the Queen? Because... you feel you have lost that capability?

[She'd like to not answer that. Any of it, really. Ori asked for her assistance with learning of swords, but... Beatrix is not at all comfortable wielding hers at present. Between Eustace and Burmecia, for the first time since she's picked it up, she wonders if she's worthy of a sword that has been passed down betwixt hands before she was even a concept in the mind's eye of a woman and a man.

Beatrix doesn't outright answer, though her head does tilt just a touch.]

Is that your way of turning down my request? If it is because I have not offered anything in return, I can amend that easily.

[ ...? Susato clearly looks taken aback by the accusation. After recovering, she is shaking her head as vehemently as she can manage. ]

No, of course not. I would have obliged, even if you had not offered anything. Though I will remind you that you have.

[ Her fingers nudge the brooch delicately, as if to bring them into her view, but then she will let it go. ]

I suppose I... I was simply trying to make sense of things, as anyone would. I apologise if I overstepped.

[The reaction is transparent. As ever, Beatrix's harsh demeanour continues to affect others. Some simply shake it off because they're accustomed to how cold and protective she can be of herself. Others like Susato... It's a reminder that Beatrix can't speak to everyone in the same way.

Her expression softens for just a breath or two, wordlessly apologetic.

She shakes her head slowly.]

I did not bring that to you with the intentions of obtaining something in return. As I am being consistently reminded whilst here, not all relationships need be transactional. Or the actions taken in those relationships.

[Folding hand over the other, she pauses and then continues.]

I told someone here I wanted to protect them. That they should always allow me to place myself between them and danger if such things arose. Given what we experienced with Eustace and the others, I understand now that for me to have made such a request was irresponsible. I need more power, more strength, more... something. I do not know what that something is. Until I find it, I would like something in place of that. Something to make up for my inadequacies.

[ She dares not interrupt. They've spoken over the past few months after they met, though this still feels like the first time Susato is really seeing or hearing her. It is striking just how difficult it is, to listen to a strong, confident woman talk about herself that way; though Susato herself has been guilty of the same. ]

Beatrix... I...

[ For a moment, she doesn't even know how to respond. It is rather a lot to absorb, so there is a quiet sigh as she tries to find the words. ]

...I understand. I will help you convey these feelings, but it will be because you are my friend. Not because of your inadequacies or anything you lack.

[It is beyond humiliating to make such admittance. She is a strong woman. Self-sufficient. Ever carrying an air that she doesn't need or want anyone else. To portray herself in any other way... She doesn't like it. But if she's honest, and she has to be, she understands that she's a liability if she can't do the one thing she's always thought she was good at. Whether that's rebuilding her confidence or whatever else is required of her, Beatrix understands she can't put others at risk.

Not right now.]

If there is anything you need from me in order to make them, say something. I am not fond of getting something for nothing.

[She says, after telling Susato it wasn't transactional. Old habits really do die hard.]

. . .

[ Susato seems to pause and think, though it's not long before she is shaking her head. It's not transactional, but perhaps there is something she feels that she could use to fulfil Beatrix's request. ]

I'd like you to tell me about him.

[ She lets those words hang in the air for a moment, as if giving Beatrix a chance to change her mind, but she decides to clarify: ]

It will help me find a bottle that suits him... Something that he likes. Or something that reminds you of him, perhaps. [ Something that is meaningful between them would probably enhance the magic as well. ] ...Would you be willing to give me some guidance?

[This again. She had to do the same back when she wanted a flower crown for him from Tifa. She wonders in the present how she would describe him. Things are different between them now, after all. They are… closer in a variety of ways. Before she can get locked into it, she understands why Susato makes such a request. It’s to make this a more personal accent. It will mean more if it’s something close to him because then it will have meant that she put a good deal of thought into it.

After a moment of looking somewhat uncertain, she dips her head with some thought. And then perhaps a breath or two later, it raises.]

I suppose… that is agreeable.

[Although her insides don’t seem to agree, with the way they seem to drown in something akin to trepidation.]

I am not certain what you wish to know of him. I know he likes music. Theatre. Poetry. I remember, not long after we had both arrived, he was conducting research on the journals we use here for me and he wrote me poetry.

[Back then, she had acted as though she disliked it deeply. The truth is that she has a soft spot for poetry. She keeps plenty of poetic books hidden among her more serious ones on war and strategy.]

I associate him oft enough with poetry. Walking poetry, perhaps. He has a way with words.

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