🌀 Delice ft. Briony Rayen
Lumi peeked into her bag. Nestled next to her coin purse was a small, grey lump, fast asleep. She tried to withdraw her money without disturbing it. Slow, steady...
"Ow! You little- I just want to count my Gil!" She whined, as the startled nutkin chomped down on her fingers yet again. Unconcerned by the moogle's protests, the small creature yawned and curled back around her coin purse, as it tried to fall back asleep. Lumi snatched the cloth pouch back up before it could fully settle in. "It is not a pillow." She snapped.
She counted her coins as she turned to her bestial companion. "So... 80, 90, 100... which portal do you think we should try first?"
"Well… not the cold ones. That's all I ask for."
How did she not bring up the elephant in the room, or even look concerned about it? Humans were always ready to point out all of the fallacies in her lies and machinations, and did so mercilessly as soon as they had the occasion. But Lumi… well, she was a moogle, so there's that.
"Hm." The moogle looked around, trying to find the least hostile-looking person they could talk to. She ended up tugging on the sleeve of a young, bestial woman possessing similar qualities to herself, hoping the likeness would make her kinder. She, too, had long, fluffy ears, but was much, much taller, and her sinewy legs made her look like she could dropkick Lumi clean through one of these portals with ease. She did not look
mean, though. "Excuse me! Do you know where I could find a shop that sells magical wares, like staves and wands?"
The woman spun around and looked down, clearly not used to being addressed by someone so small. "Oh. Ah, you can try the Aldergrove? Not a lot of magic users out here, but there's a small community of 'em through that portal and to the west, maybe they can help you." She pointed to a portal in the second row above them, and disappeared through a nearby frame without another word.
"Thank- oh. Well, wanna check that out, Br-ayen?" Lumi craned her neck to look at the upper portals. "Which name do you want to be called, by the way?"
Oh, so she did
not forget. "What do you mean? I'm Rayen, that's… my name." And Briony was just… not yet.
"Oh. Okay," Lumi shrugged, when the girl did not elaborate. "So, Aldergrove then, Rayen?" Distracted by the prospect of magical goods past the portal she was pointed towards, she briskly started making her way up the steps before Rayen could respond.
The demihuman had no choice but to follow the Moogle, entering the portal right after her. She was quite puzzled by Lumi's behavior, but that was only one more reason to stick around her.
Past the ornate portal frame, they found themselves in a beautiful, lush green landscape. Enormous trees towered over them everywhere they looked, and all the shops, homes and any other structures were built right in them, nestling into the gigantic trunks.
"West, West…" Lumi repeated the directions she was given, trying to find her bearings. "I
think we are going this way. Do you know where West is?"
"This way, surely!" Rayen attempted a smile.
"Alrighty!" They walked in silence for a few beats. Now that her initial excitement of finding their way to the shop was being satisfied, the question that had been floating in the back of her mind surfaced. "Oh yeah, so why did you lie about your name?"
"I did what? No!" Rayen replied instinctively, forcing her to wait a few seconds before continuing. "I have many… well… sisters that look all like me. Maybe you met one of them?"
Lumi looked up at her companion, scrutinizing her face. That was certainly... possible? She wasn't sure if she wanted to press on, lest her people
do look this similar and she just couldn't tell them apart. And acted the same. And talked the same. But her eyes fell on the dagger attached to her belt, and she carried on without further thought. "But that's the same dagger from before. I remember you had it at the inn. And your bow..."
"They were all… uh, made by the same arti-artisans." Rayen has some trouble answering this time, and somehow stutters. Not one of her best performances! Is Lumi really giving her so much trouble?
Maybe telling the truth is a better idea - as long as her storytelling is on point, Lumi will surely understand all of her struggles and her difficulties, and will stop being a thorn in her side! She waits for a response as she tries to cook up a good story.
The Moogle's eyes flickered between the flustered bestial and her familiar equipment. This was weird. She felt like the more she explained, the less believable everything she said was. Lumi was not overly invested when she first asked about her name - it was more of a conversational point, but now she felt like she needed to find out. "I dunno, do you all wear the same clothes, too? Your voice is also very famil-"
"No, it's all wrong…" Rayen barked, interrupting Lumi, but that was the least convincing she's sounded in ages. "Well. You know what, guess I'll tell you. Do you still remember the day of the conference?"
"Um, yeah, of course." Lumi responded tentatively, a little thrown off by her sudden forcefulness, but eager to listen, nonetheless.
"Yeah, well. Whatever happened there was just me going undercover and acting sneaky. I kinda had to, if I wanted to get to Estryn safely and be there for the conference - plus what I did at the tavern was not something I'm proud of - but, given the situation…" Rayen took a heavy, long breath.
The skeptical look in Lumi's eyes lingered, but at least she admitted she and "Briony" were one and the same.
"Given the situation, it's useless to keep this up. We're all criminals now, but we're in it together."
Rayen's face looked like a weird mixture of hopeful and angry, ready to snap at any moment. She had always acted by the notion that, in doubt, she was better off lying… but now she'd gone way over the limit, and realizing that
only now made her very scared. Especially now that she was part of this so-called group, who could have accepted her as a nice battle asset, just like Ekha did, or just thrown her aside only to blame everything that happened solely on her.
"I'm right, Lumi… am I not?" The demihuman looked intensely at the Moogle's eyes from above.
"Oh." That was still pretty foreign for Lumi to hear. They
had talked about their status as 'criminals' earlier with the group, but something about the grave look on Rayen's face made her take the assertion a bit more seriously.
Cool. She couldn't help thinking to herself.
...Just
a bit more seriously.
"Um, yeah, I guess you're right." She responded, not really sure where Rayen was going with this, as she pondered her new status as a hardened criminal.
"I know neither of us meant for this to happen, in fact I still shudder about it to this day, but now… we got each other, right? And…" Rayen had to resort to that one word, even though it was pretty hard to say. "Sorry."
Lumi nodded. She was a little surprised by the apology, but appreciated it all the same - not that she felt like Rayen really owed her anything. But she was right, about her and everyone else they came with. They have to stick together. "Yeah! Don't worry about it, it really doesn't matter what I call you or what I called you, or why… we're in this together now, Rayen. If that's your real name," she added jokingly with a small nudge.
"Doesn't even matter anymore. Not like you needed to know it to find out it was me all along!" Rayen eventually smiled, trying to collect herself and relax a bit. "And now, let's go and find some weapons!"
🌲 Delice - Aldergrove
As the lady they asked for directions mentioned earlier, tucked away in the western corner of the shopping district, was, indeed, a small community of magic users, and the few magical apparatus shops that existed in this biome were all here. It seemed only one of these shops specialized in weapons for mages, and as Rayen had her own supplies to gather, Lumi pushed open the heavy doors on her own.
The store was larger on the inside than it looked on the outside, but still had a cozy feel to it; the dark, wooden walls and cluttered shelves definitely made it more homey. She was the only one here at the moment, aside from the shopkeep - a hulking, bestial man with bear-like features sitting behind the counter, reading. He didn't
look like he was built to be a magic user, and from physical appearance alone, Lumi could not begin to guess how old he was. From his mannerisms and how he moved, though, he reminded her of her Grandpa a bit. In a good way. His presence was comforting. She felt a slight pang of guilt thinking about her Grandpa, but quickly brushed it aside. Lumi stepped up and cleared her throat.
"Excuse me, sir! I am looking to purchase a staff or rod."
The old man peered over the counter and smiled kindly at her, before closing the tome in his hands.
"Why, of course, miss! We have a wide selection of magical weapons available - I am sure we will be able to find something for you today. We'll help you walk out of here with something suited to your needs and skills. Now, let me start with a simple question; what kind of spells do you know?"
"Thank you! Let's see, I am a big fan of fire. Not, like, generally, but I mean that Fira is my best spell. I can also cast Thunder, Blizzard, Water..." She ticked them off her fingers as she listed her proficiencies.
"Ah, a Black Mage, then! Give me one moment - I have just the rod for you."
Opening one of the wood and glass cases behind him, Lumi pressed herself up against the front counter as she eagerly watched his hands hover over a selection of ornate wands resting on red satin. He passed a silver and sapphire rod, reaching slightly towards a beautiful wand with a golden claw gripping a bright, red gem at the top -
that one! - she privately thought to herself. But he reached
past that and retrieved... a plain, wooden rod. It was also topped with a gem, but the stone at the top was anything but brilliant, with almost a yellowy-brown lustre to it.
"Here you are!" The old man turned back around, presenting the dingy, old rod as Lumi tried to hide her disappointment.
"Oh... thank you, but I'd like to... look around a bit more, if you don't mind. Um, what about that one?" Lumi asked, pointing to the pretty, gold wand she had her eyes on.
The shopkeep looked back, before turning to her with a knowing smile. "I think that one will be perfect for you... after a certain amount of training. But in the meantime..." He tapped the rod in front of them.
"I have money," Lumi countered stubbornly, pushing her coin purse onto the counter. She felt a kick coming from inside her bag.
"I understand, but Miss," He started, not unkindly, but definitely firmly. "I did say you will be walking out of here with something suited to your needs and skills. My shop would not be the oldest and most well-known seller of magical wares in Delice, had I let every young hopeful walk out with any staff or rod they like. People are not just paying for my wares, but also my expertise. So please, trust me on this one. I understand it is not the most beautiful rod, but at least give it a try before dismissing it."
Defeated, Lumi hesitantly reached out and took the rod from the shop owner's outstretched hands. The stone glowed dimly as she held it, and the rod felt pleasantly warm, in a way that she would not have expected plain wood to feel. Interesting. She turned it in her hands a few times, before brandishing it at the empty space around her.
"Now, this is a polished citrine stone, imbued with the power of Fire magic. You will find that it gives you an edge with spells of that element, but, of course, all of your other Black magic will be enhanced as w-"
A large jet of fire emerged from the wand, engulfing a small stool and knocking it back with so much force it crashed loudly into the shelf behind it.
"Oh, my- I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to do that - just wanted to get a feel for-"
"That's quite alright," The old man chuckled surprisingly calmly, as he reached into his robe and pulled out a solid silver wand. With a flick of his wrist, a stream of water emerged from the wand, putting out the fire and dissipating before it splashed onto the carpet below. Lumi watched in awe. It was a simple display of power, but his very controlled and precise use of magic was impressive. "But now I hope you see why it is important to match the rod with the user. You will adjust to this one fairly quickly, and as your skill increases, you will be able to hone your powers alongside rods and staves imbued with even stronger powers."
Lumi nodded. "I understand, thank you, sir." She beamed, looking at the rod in her hand in a new light. Her first use of magic with it was slightly disastrous, but also more powerful for the level of effort she had put into that than she'd ever felt. Lumi was excited to see what she could do in a real battle. "I think I will take it. How much do I owe you?"
"You are very welcome, dear." He checked the price tag on the empty spot the rod had previously sat on. Lumi could see it priced for 450 Gil, and began counting out her coins. "You can have this one for 350 Gil."
"A-are you sure?" She looked up mid-count, stunned by the kindness and generosity, especially after what she'd done.
"Uhhh… Lumi, what was that?" Rayen's voice was heard right at that moment, unceremoniously interrupting the transaction. "You alright? I was just buying arrows at the next stand over and…"
"Oh! Uh, yeah, all good. Just... trying out my new wand here." Lumi giggled, glancing at the singed stool. The man nodded at Rayen with a smile, but did not elaborate further on the accident, which Lumi appreciated. He turned back to the moogle.
"Yes, 350 Gil will do. I love helping young mages find their passion for magic, and I see a promising
fire in you; excuse the pun." He chortled. "You have a talent, and I hope you will continue to hone and improve it with this."
They completed the transaction and Lumi thanked the kind man once more, before leaving with Rayen. Looking at her new weapon, the moogle hummed merrily as she skipped down the street. After a few paces, she glanced back at her companion, pointing to the arrows in her hand and quiver. "You still gotta pay for those?"
"Oh, I already did! It's a lot of arrows to carry but I don't wanna run out again." The moogle nodded absently in response, but those arrows were nothing out of the ordinary for Rayen to use - the rod that Lumi was holding,
that was a different story. Despite what Rayen might have thought of her back at the inn in Estryn, her companion was gonna go places.