Prompt: Fantasy
Missione: M1 (week 2)
Parole: 4951
I
Beyond the door, your footsteps echoes, the premonition begins
People’s voices come through the window that faces the main street; Makoto is too sleepy to understand what they are saying, but he can hear the anticipation in childish laughters. The city he is grown up in is a small one: sure, they have their little festival and activities they enjoy – also, Trickstar is a place you have to visit in order to reach the capital, unless you want to go through the side path, one that some merchants can’t avoid because of their business and that they hate because of the bandits. But, sure enough, nothing important ever happens there: no aristocrats who come to visit, no heroes who stop during their journeys. And today is not a festival day.
The door of his room is slammed before he can even try to find some motivation to wake up and leave his bed.
«Ukki! Wake up, stand up, c’mon!»
Subaru. Obviously. His heart should come to terms with it, so maybe Makoto wouldn’t die every time – because he has lost hope to see the day Subaru will knock. Like a shadows that always follows his master, Hokuto comes in after him, a light knocking on the door and a small sigh: «You shouldn’t come in unannounced.» he scolds Subaru, an apologetic smile towards Makoto. He’s too sleepy to smile back promptly, but he moves his hand to suggest that Hokuto should not worry about it. Subaru has been in both their lives for two years now; Makoto knows he’s just too full of energy and that he doesn’t mean any harm.
«What is it…?» he asks, a big yawn interrupting his sentence. Subaru is already near the window, looking outside with the same enthusiastic expression a child would have; Makoto reaches for his glasses and puts them on his nose.
«Today our city is lively. It seems that one of the Emperor’s emissary is here to recruit Heroes.» Hokuto explains, no more words than necessary. Makoto really appreciates his childhood friend’s ability to go straight to the point when it comes to explanations. Especially when he’s still too sleepy to be alive.
Sure, that alone is really something. It would still be even if Trickstar was one of the biggest cities of the region: Heroes are what most of the people wish to become, after all.
«So we are all supposed to gather in front of the Academy?» Makoto asks, finally getting up and starting to get ready to leave his room.
«We are. We have to be there with our weapons in less than a hour.» Hokuto nods, and those words are enough to make that day the worst day of the week. Makoto’s eyes wanders in the room until they can see the sword in a corner: his fated weapon, given to him when he graduated from the academy. They should be nothing less than soulmates, in a way.
Obviously, his weapon hates him. Hokuto probably knows what he is thinking about, since they graduated the same year, because he looks at him like he wants to say something to cheer him up, but in the end he stays silent. Somehow Makoto is grateful for it; he really doesn’t want to talk about how horrible his bond with his weapon is, not when practically everyone in the city already knows it.
«So he still doesn’t want to show you his human form, Ukki?» it’s what Subaru asks, and Hokuto sighs again. Makoto decides that looking at his sword won’t change anything and surely won’t help him to get ready. He just smiles, not totally comfortable, towards Subaru.
«Not yet.» he says.
It’s been two year of “not yet”.
The birth of a child is something everyone gets excited about. But all the more because of their Class, especially since it has nothing to do with their parents’. The first three years of a child’s life are the most important because doctors can understand what their attitude is and that will decide the Class they will belong to for the rest of their life. Some children are late bloomers and have to wait a couple of years more than the others, but at the age of six everyone knows who they are. Based on what his parents told him, Makoto was average: at three years old doctors were sure about his inclination as a Warrior and that was it. All he had to wait for was being old enough to join the Academy. Back then, before going to classes and meeting other people, he only knew about Warriors – because his father was the same as him – and Healers, because his mom was one of them and he never paid much attention to other children’s Classes nor he studied anything about them. It was all about playing together, after all.
But he gradually learnt about Wizards, Archers and Strategists. Truth to be told, he had never been thought about being part of another Class: Warriors suit him pretty well – or, better said, he doesn’t think he would do a great job as a Wizard or a Strategist. He started attending the Academy at the age of eleven, like every kid of the city, and that’s when Makoto met Hokuto: his childhood friend is the one he has known since the beginning of their studies, the first Healer apart of his mother he has met. Hokuto has been part of his family since then: they shared lessons, tests and the graduation, the most important moment for a student of the Academy.
Graduation means a lot. It’s not just about the end of the studies: when they graduate, students face one last test and if they success, they can have their fated weapon. Sometimes it’s an object – for Healers or Strategists, for example – like for Hokuto, who received a white glove with silver, abstract decorations. And those weapons or objects have a soul: a unique, real soul that makes that gift special, a precious ally, something so close to a soulmate that it’s hard not to think about it as a living being. When the student and the weapon’s bond is so deep they are like one, that very soul is able to take human form. It’s the proof of feelings so deeply connected – loyalty, friendship, sometimes even love – that there’s nothing considered as strong as that in the whole world.
It’s been almost a year since Subaru has taken his human form for the first time; sometimes, he and Hokuto still disagree on some matters and Subaru goes back to his glove form, but it’s more his way to pout than a real conflict between them.
Makoto’s sword rarely talks to him, and it’s just during practices. He has never seen his human form, and lately he considers some kind of miracle the fact that he knows how to call him and that the sword’s soul – so it sounds like at least – is a male one. So he doesn’t know why he should gather with all those people, some of his classmates, when there is no way he will be chosen by the Emperor’s emissary.
«So what’s this Hero thing, Hokke?» Subaru asks, his blue eyes looking at the little crowd that is in front of the Academy’s gates. Hokuto keeps walking, no need to check if Subaru is behind him, because he can feel his proximity: «Heroes are chosen to complete a mission that can’t carried out by normal people. They are usually representatives from every Class that have a strong bond with their weapons and a unique trait that distinguish them from any other person.» he explains patiently and stops his steps when he and Makoto are in front of the gates like everybody else.
«And do you have to pass a test?»
«That much, I’m not sure. I have never been chosen after all, nor I have ever seen someone be appointed here in Trickstar.» Hokuto admits, looking at his friend; Makoto shakes his head. He has never heard about it by his parents, and if Hokuto doesn’t know anything more about it, he surely can’t know anything either. From what he has been told, Hokuto’s mother was – and still is – an awesome Strategist; he has wondered if Hokuto would have preferred to be a Strategist more than a Healer, but he didn’t ask. It didn’t seem right. But Hokuto really is talented, Makoto knows it better than anyone else, not just from a childhood friend point of view, but also because they both studied in the same Academy, during the same years, and Makoto was in every test Hokuto took, in front of every board with results written on it.
A low chattering distracts him from what Hokuto and Subaru are talking about. Everyone’s attention is on the gates that are opening, on the chairman that is escorting a man out of the building. Said man is one of the most beautiful person Makoto has ever met: long, silver hair are tied in a high ponytail, the only exception being the long, thin braid on the left side of his face. His eyes remind Makoto of one of the amethyst stones his Wizards schoolmates used during their practices, but those eyes also have something he can’t really describe, something deep and a bit scary if he has to be honest. Surely, that man must come from a noble family, judging by his fine clothes: they resembles a uniform somehow, not that Makoto has ever seen one similar to it, with trousers and a jacket of such a dark blue it almost seems black and peculiar, silver decorations on the torso. Somehow, they look like the drawing of a mask. Also, seriously, who wears black gloves?
«AMAZING!» is the loud, sudden comment of that man, his eyes sparkling while he looks at the crowd in front of the gates – and in front of him. His lips are curved in a wide, amused smile «So many, talented young men and women!» he goes on, like he’s on a stage and has to fascinate his audience: «Not as much as in Fine, but for such a small city it’s surprising, isn’t it?» he asks, but it’s not clear if he’s talking with the chairman or not.
What it’s not a surprise at all is the fact that he comes from Fine, but it was a given the moment Hokuto told him that one of the Emperor’s emissary was in their city. Fine, as the Empire’s capital, is the biggest city and where the Tenshouin family lives, obviously. Makoto has seen the Emperor Eichi just a few time in the global, magical spheres through which the news for the country are transmitted thanks to the Wizards who are entrusted with the task. In Makoto’s eyes, Eichi didn’t really seem an Emperor, maybe because he’s really young – one or two years older than him? – and so it’s hard to figure how a young man can rule over a country full of personalities like the one that’s in front of his eyes right now.
«The Emperor thanks all of you for answering his call.» the man says, a gentle yet enigmatic smile on his lips: «As you have heard, I’m here to recruit a representative for each Class – a Hero that I’ll personally escort to the Emperor’s castle so that they can be entrusted with an important mission.» he explains, and he almost seems formal, if not for the fact that his composure literally breaks like he couldn’t resist the urge to move and talk freely. He claps his hands: «You don’t have to be nervous at all! This is just about being yourself and having fun and—»
«Could you please stop your blabbering and explain all this properly?» is the voice that interrupts him. Makoto looks at Hokuto, as surprised as him, and then at the man, trying to understand who just talked.
«My, my, Tomoya-kun. I was just trying to reassure them, since they are so young and cute.» he admits, a little chuckle escaping his lips; and that’s when Makoto notices it: a really simple rod, with no particular decorations apart from a small emblem Makoto has never seen before. And that rod is shining, and it’s something Makoto knows well – something he wishes for, the way a weapon changes their shape until they have a human form. So nobody is really surprised when that rod becomes a young man, his looks as plain as the object seemed: light brown hair and eyes (the same color of the rod), smaller than his Master, with crossed arms on his chest and an expression between the scolding and a little pout.
«If you properly explain what they are going to do they won’t probably be scared or worried at all. Master.» he adds, like he’s trying to impose somehow with just that word; but said Master just laughs at him, and yet it’s not to ridicule him, that much is clear to that small crowd.
«You are right as always, my dear partner.» he adds, and Tomoya’s disbelief is so obvious that if it wasn’t for how embarrassed he looks, Makoto would at least chuckle. The chairman coughs to attract his attention and it seems to work, because the man goes back to look at them: «Now, this is what is going to happen: first of all, it would be of great help if you could divide into groups based on your Class. I, Hibiki Wataru, will examine every one of you. If there’s a Hero, said person will leave the city with me tomorrow. Otherwise, you will be able to go back to your everyday life.» he explains, looking at Tomoya like he’s expecting some kind of praise. If it comes, Makoto doesn’t know because his attention goes to Hokuto next to him.
«Maybe I should tell him that my weapon hasn’t shown its human form to me.» Makoto suggests. It seems so useless to make an Emperor’s emissary examine him when he already knows that it’s impossible to be chosen when every single Warrior who graduated with him – or before him – knows at least what their weapon looks like and has a strong bond with it. Hokuto waits for a moment and then shakes his head.
«You should let him examine you. If anything, you could ask him for an advice. After all, if he’s the Emperor’s emissary, he surely is a man of great knowledge and experience.» Hokuto suggests, before Subaru joins their conversation, as excited as always.
«You totally should, Ukki! Maybe your weapon doesn’t work and they have to change it!»
«Subaru, you should know better than anyone else how weapons react and work. How can you say such a stupid thing like Makoto’s weapon being the same as a broken utensil.» Hokuto scolds him, a stern expression on his face. Subaru pouts, offended.
«I don’t understand why a weapon wouldn’t show its human form to its Master! Because I’m a weapon? And I wanted to talk to Hokke, and hugs you and play with you? And be of some help too!»
«I…» Makoto begins, peeking at the sword at his side «I don’t think that he’s broken.» he admits «He just…» he hesitates. It still hurts to admit the truth Makoto came up with in those two years of nothing more than some sentences in his mind. He bits his lower lip for a moment and then tries to smile at them both: «But Hokuto-kun is right. I can try to ask for some advice.»
Isn’t that better that simply admit how much his weapon seems to hate him?
It’s less than half an hour since he and Hokuto went to different groups, and the Healers were called first into the main room of the Academy, doors closed after them and no sounds to be heard. Makoto recognizes most of the faces of his group, but hasn’t started a conversation with any of them; not that other groups are really talkative at the moment. Some of them seem to be studying, a nostalgic feeling that reminds him the last test before graduation; some others – especially between Archers – are simply focusing. Makoto is just there, his back against one of the wall in front of the big wooden doors, and apart from peeking at what others are doing every now and then; he’s not doing anything at all. He’s already convinced about telling clearly to Hibiki Wataru that there’s no way he can be chosen and that he would really appreciate it if he could tell him what he’s supposed to do with his weapon. He also can’t help but think about Subaru’s words, about how much he – but, judging by what he said, it’s the same for every weapon – wanted to be able to talk to Hokuto not just telepathically. Well, “every weapon” except for his.
I already talk to you., it’s what he hears in his mind and what makes him jump a little. Last time he heard that voice was… the week before, maybe. If he thinks about it, his weapon seems to make sure Makoto knows that he’s there. He just says a few words, like he’s assuring him that he’s still there, but nothing else. Makoto has tried to have a real conversation with him, but he failed time after time.
“You tell me that you are here”, Makoto thinks, sure that he’s being listened to “it’s not exactly ‘talking’”.
You are used to it.
«Not because I want it…» he mutters, making sure nobody is near enough to hear him. Sometimes he wonders if a weapon can change his Master, if their bond is almost non-existent. He doesn’t know if that thought has been heard before or not, though.
I’ve heard it. Don’t want to., the voice in his head says, to his surprise. Makoto has tried to imagine how his weapon would look like, to figure out what kind of ‘person’ he would be – he knows his weapon is a boy or a man, because of the familiar and yet distant voice – and until now he has managed enough to understand when his weapon is sulking.
He totally is.
«I’m… not saying that I want to get rid of you.» Makoto tries, whispering like the sword is a person standing beside him, even if he isn’t. And he waits for a reply that doesn’t come and he knows too well that it’s useless to give him time hoping he’ll say something more. When he goes silent, he never speaks again for a while.
The doors opening distracts him from his thoughts. Green eyes look for the familiar figure of Hokuto, but behind Tomoya there’s nobody to be seen except for Wataru. Makoto frowns – maybe they made Healers leave the room through a second door? Makoto has been in the main room a few times, but honestly he never looked specifically for other entries.
«Next is the Warriors Class. Please, enter.» Tomoya simply says, moving on the side so that they can easily enter.
The room is empty and exactly as Makoto remembers it. The only person in that big space is Wataru, standing at the center of the room like he belongs to that place and he’s completely at ease even when surrounded by strangers. He doesn’t give them instructions, so Makoto isn’t sure what they are supposed to do: wait there for some sort of test? Fight each other like in some sort of tournament? Or is it—
«My weapon disappeared!» it’s the first thing they hear, suddenly and unpredictable. Makoto turns his head towards the voice – he’s a senior from when he was in his first or second year – and it’s true: the big lance he had on his back is nowhere to be found. A hubbub fills the air and the room, worried and perplexed voices wondering what’s happening. Makoto peeks at his waist: his sword is still there.
«My knife!» the voice of a girl not too far from where he’s standing is like an alarm nobody need nor asked for. Someone asks what’s the meaning of all this, others start to look for the missing weapons and yet as the time passes, more and more warriors are left alone without their partners. Makoto feels his stomach twitch and his eyes wander from face to face; he doesn’t like what he sees: people worried, scared because their most precious thing – their most precious companion – is being stolen or at least disappeared without trace. Makoto knows this. It’s one of the first things they teach them in the Academy, the way people become unreasonable, how panic can be the worst enemy and how to face it. Yet, he’s never be good at it: he can improve the general mood, yes, but calm down Warriors is on total different level. They are known to be all instinct and brave and foolish acts.
That’s when Makoto notices it: Wataru, still standing at the center of the room, is like a God looking down on poor men who can’t avoid their fate. Makoto can’t tell he looks bored or amused, even; if he is seeing exactly what he expected or not. Their eyes meet and Makoto feels a shiver go down his back – not being able to explain why, his hand goes on his sword. It’s still there, and a sudden relief lets him breathe again.
Makoto wouldn’t be able to say for how much they look at each other. But as suddenly as it began, it ends: people are not in the room anymore, voices don’t echo, and he almost starts believing that it was all an illusion created by Wataru.
«So it’s him.» Tomoya says, looking at him with a genuine curiosity in his eyes. Makoto isn’t sure what he means, and it’s all the more confused when Wataru starts laughing. It’s not a mean laugh, and the feeling of him looking down on all the Warriors in the room just disappeared, making him look like a child that finds everything incredibly amusing.
«Oh my, I would have never guessed! What’s your name?»
«…Yuuki Makoto.» he answers, but takes a step back, trying to sneak a peek of the doors behind him. Is he in a situation where he needs to find a way to escape?
«Yuuki-kun!» Wataru seems almost entranced «So, you are the strongest Warrior.»
…Wait, what?
«I’m— not at all?! My weapon doesn’t even want to take human form in front of me and rarely speaks to me?!» he can’t help but blurt out those sentences. Truth, it would be a great honor to be considered a Hero, but what could happen if he were to join a mission without having enough power to be of some help? He could even endanger people.
«Certainly your weapon is stubborn.» Wataru speaks softly, a tender smile Makoto is sure is focused on Tomoya for a brief moment «But he did his best just now, you know?»
«His best? What for…?»
«Not being separated from you.» Wataru says it like it’s natural, but Makoto can’t believe it in the slightest. Not until Tomoya explain it a little better, with a small sigh – he must be accustomed to help his Master in those sort of things.
«My Master is a Wizard. Just now all of you and your weapons where in a room full of his magic. More specifically, this spell is supposed to severe for a few minutes the bond between Master and weapon. Since the Hero must have the strongest bond with his partner, this was the test. And you passed, somehow.»
«But my weapon—»
«Maybe it never showed it’s true form or power to you, but I can sense it quite well. They really did their best. Especially when you touched it…?» he suggests, and Makoto looks at that weapon, trying to hear its voice in his head. He doesn’t speak out loud, but tries to ask him telepathically anyway.
“Did you really do your best?”, he asks, sure about the fact that he won’t get an answer; yet there’s this small, tired breathe like it’s tickling his ear. Makoto holds his breath, as it could help him to hear better.
I already said it, that I don’t want another Master., is the only answer that is given to him.
Why is it that it makes him so stupidly happy?
He is surprised and incredibly relieved when, leaving the main room, he joins Hokuto in the hallway. Their gazes meet and Makoto feels his whole body relax; probably is something really obvious since he hears a little chuckle behind his back, surely from Wataru. He doesn’t mind him, also because Hokuto is smiling at him, not without a bit of surprise in his eyes.
«Were you chosen too, Yuuki?»
«Yes.» he admits, not sure how to feel about it «Was your test like mine? Weapons disappearing and people panicking?» Makoto knows it’s not a great description but he still can’t believe what did happen in that room – not only being chosen as a Hero, but his weapon finally showing that he wants to stay by his side. Wasn’t it for the serious situation they seem to be getting into, Makoto would simply be overjoyed without a worry in the world. Yet, he can’t pretend he doesn’t know what being a Hero means.
Hokuto looks at him, confused and surprised at the same time, giving a silent ‘no’ as an answer, shaking his head.
«Hibiki-san» Hokuto calls for the man, looking back at him and his weapon still in human form «what’s the mission we are supposed to accomplish? And why just a Warrior and a Healer?» he asks directly, no hesitation in his voice. Makoto’s eyes move from him to Wataru, trying to understand better that man that doesn’t seem too far in age from them and yet is already one of the Emperor’s emissary. The only thing Makoto is sure of is that Wataru must be an amazing Wizard: to be able of casting such a big spell without any of the Warriors noticing it must have some meaning after all. Makoto has seen many Wizards at the Academy, fellow students and teachers but one of the few things he knows about magic is that it doesn’t come out of nowhere nor it is impossible to notice it beforehand. How powerful is that man?
«Obviously you won’t be just a Warrior and a Healer.» Wataru replies, winking at the both of them like they’re old friends «You are just the first two Heroes for this mission.»
«How many…?»
«Three. We are going to recruit them together of course!»
…of course. Of course.
Hokuto looks at him like he’s trying to understand if they are thinking the same thing or not; Makoto shakes his head a bit, because really, he has no idea what ‘recruiting together’ could mean when it’s Wataru the one is saying it. He misses Subaru’s bluntness in situations like this, but it can’t be helped since he’s in his fight form, a simple glove that Hokuto wears on his right hand.
«Are the other three in other cities?» Makoto asks, since it’s obvious that if they were all in Trickstar they would have been all together already. Wataru doesn’t reply, too busy with who knows what, since the only thing he seems to be doing is humming a melody Makoto doesn’t know. Tomoya, who is walking beside his Master, sighs and slows his pace so that he can walk with them and explain everything.
«Nobody knows where the Heroes are. They could be in any city, actually. So we are going to visit all of them until we find them.»
«We don’t know where they are?» Hokuto is not the only one quite surprised; who leaves their home to search in every city just in case the person they are looking for – identity unknown – is there? It doesn’t sound like a great plan. Or like a plan at all.
«But our country» Makoto interrupts them «has at least four big cities and many villages…»
«And many valleys and forests, Makoto-kun! Doesn’t it excite you?!» Wataru exclaims, slightly turned towards them, smiling widely.
Makoto doesn’t have the heart to tell him that no, it doesn’t excite him at all.
«But, alas!, I’m afraid our adventure will be shorter than what we anticipated since I know one of the other Heroes’ identity and I happen to have already spoken with him.» Wataru admits and the funny thing is that he really seems concerned about them having less chances to be adventurous. Also, how Tomoya looks at Wataru, completely caught off guard: «Did you speak with one of them?!»
«It’s alright, Tomoya-kun! You were sleeping and you were so cute I decided not to wake you up when it happened!»
«You should have told me when I woke up— and could you please stop being so ambiguous about our relationship?!» the Weapon scolds him, a bit flustered. It makes Makoto smile – maybe it’s just because he feels like he can relate so much to Tomoya and how he seems to be overwhelmed by the situation…
It’s Hokuto who distracts him asking the simplest and yet most important question: «So where are we going first?»
«To the next city on the way to the Capital,» Wataru replies, an amused smile on his lips that looks a lot like the one in the main room that Makoto saw earlier «Knights!»
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