Work Text:
Hearts Like Ours
By: Aviantei
[Twelve Shots of Summer: Gotta Write ‘Em All! 2-10 A]
A Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic One Shot
The world within the flow of rukh was warm and full of light. Serendine thought she could catch the comforting scents of warm sand and fresh wine, though they were so subtle that it could’ve just been her imagination. Though she knew she no longer had a living body, she stretched out her arms, enjoying the sensation of full autonomy, of not being bound to someone else’s soul.
Freedom.
The landscape was blank and empty, save for the chirping and rustling of wings from the golden birds above. Ignoring them, Serendine danced across the endless white ground. The armor she’d always encased herself in had traded out for a loose and flowing dress and her hair was once again long. Letting a laugh bubble out from her lips, she twirled, reveling in the waves of pink that spilled over her shoulders and rippled through the air.
“It’s been far too long since I’ve seen you smile, Seren.”
Serendine planted her foot down, forming the joy on her face into an unimpressed expression. Some distance away stood Sinbad, though he had changed much since Serendine had last seen him in person. Back then he’d been at the cusp of manhood, but the years had aged him up into a tall, stocky adult. The reminder of the time she’d lost fanned a flame of regret inside Serendine, but she kept the feeling in her chest and not in her words.
“As far as I’m concerned, it hasn’t been long enough,” Serendine said, propping a hand against her hip. She didn’t bother to move closer to him. “You sure made a fine mess of things. I hope you’re satisfied with yourself.”
Sinbad strode across the ground, a sheepish look on his face. For a split second, it made him look like a boy again, a mere sailor’s son. “You saw that at the end, then?”
“I’ve seen everything. I’ve been stuck inside you after all.” That consequence hadn’t been on either of their minds when their magoi had merged together, and perhaps Sinbad hadn’t even noticed, but Serendine had had to deal with it for over a decade. “I do suppose I should at least thank you for putting Ceylan in his rightful place on the throne, even if it was partially your fault you had to do that in the first place.”
A familiar light of amusement flashed in Sinbad’s eyes. “Only partially? That’s a more lenient charge than I was expecting.”
Serendine crossed her arms, not caring that she started to scowl. “I recognize plenty that part of what happened with Parthevia was my own failures.” As both a princess and an older sister. When she noticed that Sinbad was almost within arm’s length, she narrowed a glare. He seemed to have caught the message, halting his advance. “What are you even doing here, anyways? Surely there’s someone else you can harass.”
“I thought it would be nice to have an actual conversation after so long.” It was true that they hadn’t spoken a word since Serendine had passed. Near the end, part of her essence had reached towards reality, but that had just been a manifestation of a memory, and she hadn’t gained any sort of consciousness. Sinbad’s light expression didn’t waver in the slightest. “Then again, if you’ve seen everything, there’s not much to talk about, is there?”
“No, there isn’t. I’d appreciate it if you left me to my business.” Serendine looked up to the rukh once more. There were thousands upon thousands of them, their golden color more beautiful than any precious metal she’d seen before. Even if they didn’t connect to the world as they once had, the essences of the dead were still part of the Great Flow. “I don’t have much I can do, but I’m at least going to find my father.” Unlike Sinbad, there were many things she wanted to say to him.
So many.
Sinbad followed Serendine’s gaze, his amber eyes somewhat unfocused. “That might take some time. Are you sure you don’t want some company?” It seemed a distracted state of mind did nothing to stop his mouth from spouting utter nonsense.
“Don’t you have somewhere you need to be?” He had a country and people who were waiting for him, after all.
“Oh, come on. Death is an adventure all in its own. Did you expect me to pass it up?” It was that exact sort of attitude that she both hated and admired in him. Sinbad turned towards Serendine and offered out a hand. “We’re heading the same direction, Seren. Shall we go together?”
“Like hell,” she said without even having to think it over. Spinning on her heel, Serendine turned her back on him. “I’ve had enough of your presence to last an eternity.”
Sinbad’s boisterous laugh filled up even the vastness of the space around them. “I’m sure our paths will cross in the future.”
“I hope I never see you again.”
Sinbad’s laughter didn’t falter, and Serendine felt a small smile form on her lips. With the ease of the sun slipping down over the horizon, the sound of his chuckles faded, and the presence of the magoi Serendine had spent so many years submerged in slipped away. It was just her on that vast plain, with nothing else tying her down.
No country.
No Metal Vessel.
No burning for revenge.
Just me.
She rocked on her heels a few times, then allowed herself to once again become caught up in the sheer joy of movement. Her bare feet were just as agile as when she had lived, and she was laughing, and then she was dancing, and then she was running forward, on and on without tiring into a world that had no end.
And still overwhelmed with joy, Serendine raised her hands towards the sky and felt the flutter of the rukh’s wings before they welcomed her home.