Work Text:
“Good afternoon, everyone.”
Agnea walked to the table by the front desk. It had been about half a day since Hikari plopped into his bed. Agnea followed suit, but she woke up later the same day. The other travelers were gathered around the table, all with a similar look, save Ochette. Brow furrowed, concern in their eyes. As for the beastling, she had a more straightforward expression: plain worry.
Agnea took a seat. There was an uncomfortable tension as all eyes looked at her expectantly. After a moment, Osvald decided to speak up. “...I believe you owe us an explanation. Where did you and Hikari go?” Agnea looked up at him. He’s scrutinizing me as though I’m a criminal. She didn’t mention that to him, though. “He left before I did. After I realized where he was going, I cut him off where the Eastern Wellgrove trail meets the Southern Sai sands,” she explained. “After that, we made our way back.” “That doesn’t make any sense!” Ochette chimes in. “We haven’t made any travel plans yet! Why would he go that far?”
Agnea found herself speechless. Ochette was like a little sister to her, and she didn’t know how to explain Hikari’s unique circumstances without breaking her heart. The panic must have been evident on her face because after a moment she felt a hand on her shoulder. “Calm down,” Throné told her. “You can take your time. Just tell us what happened, little by little.” Agnea relaxed a little. “...yes, of course. Thank you, Throné.”
So she told her story. About Hikari getting up in the middle of the night, about the note, about how she chased him down, about everything.
She told them about his inner demons. She told them about what he thinks of himself.
…she did NOT tell them about the several times they had kissed. That just wouldn’t be relevant… not to mention embarrassing.
“...and so we came back to the inn, and… well. You know what happened from there.” Once again, a stifling tension hung over the travelers. Ochette looked like she was about to cry. Partitio wasn’t doing much better. Osvald… Agnea couldn’t tell what she was thinking. Castti held a shocked expression. Throné held a disturbed expression while she rubbed Temenos’s back, while the cleric growled about something, his knuckles pure white as he clenched his fist. He’s shaking…
This is why it surprised Agnea when Temenos was the first to speak up. “How…how long has he been fighting this?” Agnea winced. That was all the answer Temenos needed. He was still for a moment… and then he brought his fist down on the table. “SHIT!”
Everyone stared at the cleric, somewhat rattled. “...Temenos?” Castti asked. “...my apologies, everyone.” He settled back into his chair. “I’m alright, I assure you.” Agnea was still somewhat shocked by what had just happened. “Er… Temenos, are you sure? That was… uhm…” “Out of character?” Osvald suggested. Agnea nodded.
“...why?” Ochette was shaking now. “Why didn’t he tell us? We could have done something! We could have helped him! We-we could have-” she sniffled. Agnea rushed to hug her, but Ochette held her at arm’s length, looking up at her. “...why?”
She thought about how to explain it to her. She knew the answer, but she didn’t know how to put it into words. “Sometimes, a human’s own thoughts turn against them.” Castti offered. “The human’s approach to this usually coincides with their personality. Some people will fall back on others because they know they are there for them. Others, like Hikari, bottle them up and shove them to the side.” She paused, making sure Ochette could understand. “This ends up being a problem in the long run because eventually, humans run out of room to put those thoughts. Which leads them to do many different foolish things. In Hikari’s case, it lead him to believe that he was a danger to our lives. And so…” She took a controlled breath. “And so he decided to leave us, believing it was the only way to keep us safe.” Agnea made a mental note to thank Castti later.
Ochette buried her face in Agnea’s chest, sobbing. Throné was gripping Temenos’s hand hard, and he was squeezing back with equal force. Everyone in the room wanted to cry, but only one person was spurred to action.
Partitio shot out of his chair suddenly. “Y’all probably already know what I’m ‘bout to say.” Agnea looks at his face. His eyes were red, and his voice had a small waver to it. He’s putting on a brave front. “The way I see it, Hikari’s gone and forgotten somethin’ important. He’s forgot that he’s one of US.” He looks around the room. All eyes, including Agnea’s and Ochettes, are on him. “And I’ll be damned if I’m gonna let it stay that way! We gotta do something. We gotta show him that he’s always got a place here with us!”
The room was silent for a moment. “...he’s right!” Everyone turned to Ochette. “Hikari was being really stupid when he set off on his own. We’ve gotta make sure he wakes up to nothing but love and support! Right, Pops?” She looked at Osvald expectantly. “...indeed. Looking at this from a logical perspective, if Hikari has to deal with this turmoil any longer it will negatively impact his performance in battle.” Everyone could immediately tell that was not his true motivation. Men… the women of the group thought collectively.
“It’s perfectly fine to be fired up about this,” Castti began. “But it won’t do us any good if we don’t have a plan of action in place. Agnea, you know the most about his situation. What can each of us do for Hikari?” The dancer looked at all of them, holding nothing but gratitude in her heart for them. She took a quick, deep breath and sat back down. The travelers who weren’t already in their seats followed suit. Agnea thought for a moment, then raised her head, eyes sparkling with ideas. “Ok. Here’s what we’re going to do…”
____________________________________________________________________________
Hikari rushed through toward the castle. Everything was burning… No. Don’t get distracted. The King is in Danger. He barged through the castle door, only to find… nothing. There were no walls, no floor, no roof, no sky, no moon or stars. Just a pitch black void.
Hikari turned around, and sure enough the door was gone. What was happening? Then the memories flooded back to him. His father’s death, Benkei’s sacrifice, his cowardly retreat. His travels thus far with the Octopath Travelers.
He looked up from the ground, and he froze. His father, faced away from him. “...father?” Hikari stepped forward, walking on nothing. “Father!’ His pace picked up. He’s getting closer. “FATHER!” Hikari is running to him at full speed. He grabs his shoulder and turns him around-
“You are no son of mine.”
There is a gaping slice through his left shoulder to his right hip. The very same cut that Mugen had inflicted on him. Hikari reeled back and looked at him, a mix of hurt and confusion. “Wh-what?” “I told you to gather your strength. I told you to gather your allies. But what did you do?” His eyes were red. Like they probably were on the battlefield in his youth. He was slowly walking closer. “You befriended nobodies. You helped them on their quests. And you left Ku to suffer in the meantime.” He’s getting far to close.
“Fath-”
SLAP
Hikari stumbles back from the hit. “You are no son of mine.” Tears begin to well in his eyes. He looks back at where his father was, but he is no longer there. Confused, he whips his head around all directions, trying to find someone. Anyone. “Hello!?!” He shouts. No reply. “Father, wait! Father!” He’s backing up as he continues shouting. That is until he bumps into something. He stumbles forward, and turns around-
Benkei is glaring at him.
“You’ve engaged in stories that are not your own,” he began. “And for what? The happiness of others? You’re letting Mugen do as he pleases, and you’re barely any closer to reclaiming the throne.” “Benkei, I-” “Was my sacrifice meaningless?”
Hikari was speechless. He wanted to say something, anything , but he found his mind going blank as he looked into Benkei’s angry eyes. Benkei roars. “You are a USELESS COWARD!” He rears up and delivers a powerful blow to Hikari’s gut. It catches Hikari completely off guard. He flew a few feet away from Benkei, coughing up blood upon landing. The pain was making him dizzy. “You had but ONE goal to accomplish. ONE!” He kicks Hikari down as he tries to stand. Hikari is crying silently. And suddenly it stops.
He looked up, and Benkei had vanished. Hikari wanted to just lie there, and never move again. “And you can.” A voice responded to his thoughts. Hikari looked up and looks around. There was no one in sight. “...who’s there!?!” “No one but you.” He turned around, and there is a light. And within that light was… Hikari. Wh-what is this? Hikari stares in awe. He looks just like me. Hikari looked at him and gave him a warm smile. “You’ve suffered, haven’t you?” He… he knew. “That demon wants blood. And you’ve had to beat it back at every turn.” Hikari was walking toward him, and Hikari wanted to hear more. It was validating… relieving. “But it’s over now.” He reached out a hand to Hikari. “You can rest now.” Hikari looked at him, and he realized that’s exactly what he wanted. He reached out to him-
And then he saw the red glint in his eye.
“NO!” He scrambled back, trying to get away. It started laughing. “Haha! Saw through me, did you?” Hikari got on his feet. “There’s no point in trying to run. There’s literally nothing here. This is a dream, after all. It is what you make it.” He chuckled. “Or rather, what we make it.” Hikari drew his sword. “Get out. GET OUT!” Hikari chuckled. “Perhaps you truly don’t want to hurt anyone. How noble! But you can’t resist your true nature, Hikari.” Hikari charged the fake. “You know the truth as well as I do.”
His sword impaled him.
He coughed up blood. “You can’t… resist me forever. Sooner or later… I will be the one in control.”
Shadowy tendrils shot up and grasped Hikari’s neck. He couldn’t breathe. He tried to pull his sword out to cut the tendrils, but it wouldn't budge. He tried to rip the tendrils away from his neck, but he couldn't touch them. He panicked, realizing that he was going to die, he was going to die, HE WAS GOING TO DIE-
Hikari screamed as he bolted awake in a cold sweat.
____________________________________________________________________________
“Easy there! Easy!”
Hikari was hyperventilating, barely aware of Partitio’s efforts to calm him. What just happened!?! “Easy there, pardner! You’re alright.” Hikari looked at him, his heart still pounding. “...Partitio?” “The one and only! I gotta say, I ain’t never seen a feller so tired! You were konked out for an entire day!”
…a full day? Hikari thought to himself. That’s never happened to me before. He looked down, placing his hand over his head. …is that his doing? “HEY, Y’ALL GET YER BUTTS IN HERE! HIKARI’S AWAKE!” Hikari looked up. “P-Partitio, that’s really not necessary-” and he shuts up immediately.
Everyone in the group suddenly started filtering in, some of them bringing in bundles of… something with them. Hikari couldn’t see from his position. There was an odd feeling in the air as they surrounded him. As though they were not looking up to him, but not quite looking down on him either. What on earth is happening? “Hikari?” He looked to his left. Ochette is there, and she’s giving him a little basket. Inside it is… jerky. It smelled good. “I… I know you’ve got a dumbass in your brain telling you to do dumbass things.” Hikari paled. Do they know? He looks at Agnea. He expected to see an apologetic face or to see her look away. No. She’s watching Ochette. He looks back at the beastling as well. “You probably didn’t want us to know about it. You were trying your best to ignore it. But that’s even stupider than the stupid guy!” Hikari looked at her, surprised. Stupid? How could protecting you possibly be- “If you don’t lean on others every now and then, you won’t be able to take on the big threats! Why do you think I rely on Akala so much?” Hikari looked around. He’s napping in the corner.
“You know…” a voice on his right started. He looks over, and it’s Throné’s turn to tell him off. “Excuse the language, but Ochette is right. That stunt you pulled a couple of days ago was really fucking stupid.” She looked him dead in the eye. “You can’t escape from us anyways. So at least try not to push us away.” Hikari was awestruck. Throné rarely ever shared any of her personal opinions with him, so to hear all that was jarring. “Hikari.” On his left again. “I’m sorry.”
“...Temenos?”
“From the moment we met,” Temenos began. “I knew you were carrying a burden. I’m not big on sizing up those dreadful things, but if I had to I would say you’ve been carrying an increasingly massive boulder on your back.” Hikari feels as though he’s looked awestruck for at least the entire time he’s been awake. Have I really been so transparent? “But I could have prevented this. I could have said something or confronted you. But I kept silent. I left you to carry this immense burden on your own. I have failed you, not only as a friend but as a human being.”
Hikari looked into his eyes. The usual face of the cheerful, sassy cleric is gone. There is true regret in Temenos’s eyes. Hikari… has never seen this before. “Temenos, you’ve done nothing wrong.” Throné bumped his shoulder. “...but I forgive you nonetheless.” “Your lack of faith in our response is disturbing.” Osvald spoke up from behind the others. The group stands to the side to allow them to see each other, though Agnea shoots Osvald an angry look.
Osvald ignored it. “You failed to tell us about something extremely important,” he continued. “If you won’t tell us about this, then how will we ever be able to look at you and wonder if you’re hiding something?” “Osvald!” Agnea protested. “...no, he’s right.” “But Hikari-” “So you understand.” Hikari looked at Agnea, who was trying to express an apology on Osvald’s behalf. He shoots her a look. I hear you. But he has a point.
“Look, Pardner.” Hikari turns to face Partitio, who was leaning on the bedframe at Hikari’s feet. He hands him a gift. “Partitio, what is-” “Open it and find out!” Hikari looked at the merchant incredulously. But he proceeds. He removes the wrapping, and takes out-
A watch?
“Uh… why did you get me this? Don’t get me wrong, it's a very nice watch and I’m grateful that you went out of your way to get me a gift.” He sputtered. “But… why a watch?” Partitio chuckled. “I thought it’d work as a reminder! The gold on the rim is kinda the same color as my coat, but that’s beside the point.” He looked at Hikari. “No matter what hour of the day it is, I want ya to know that you’ve always got a place to talk with me. I don’t want ya to stress about this on your own. Because alone’s the exact opposite ‘a yer situation.” Hikari understood, and he couldn’t help but smile. That was so very… Partitio.
“Hikari.”
He nearly jumps out of his skin. Castti was on his left, offering him a glass of water. Hikari hadn’t noticed until now, but he was thirsty . He snatched the glass and gulped it down as fast as he could. Some of it dribbled down his mouth and onto his bare chest, but he didn’t care.
“You clearly haven’t been taking care of yourself. If you had been, we wouldn’t be here right now. So here is my treatment plan for you.” She sat on the edge of his bed. “Every day, for at least half an hour, you are going to come and find me and talk about anything and everything that has you worried.” That hit Hikari in the heart. No one (besides Agnea) had ever done that for him before.
“Um…” all eyes turned to Agnea. “Could we have a moment by ourselves?”
The group looked around at each other, and one by one they filter out of the room. Throné, however, whispered something to Agnea on the way out that results in a fierce blush. Throné left the room with a smirk plastered to her face.
“So.”
“So.”
An awkward silence fills the room. Hikari feels his heart beat faster. What is this?
“Do you get it yet?”
“Get what?”
“That you’re not alone.”
Hikari chuckled. “I realized that at the Leaflands border.” Agnea blushed. At the time, she had kissed him to convey a message, as well as her own feelings. “Ah- yes . You did.” She stared at him. Hikari felt his face heat up. “...is there something on my face?” Agnea didn’t appear to notice his comment, or so Hikari thought until she spoke. “Me, in a moment.” She walked up to him, climbed on top of Hikari, and pressed her lips to his. His eyes widened, but after a moment he reciprocated. They remained like that for what felt like an eternity cut short. They pulled away. “Move over.” Hikari did as he was told. Agnea grabbed the blanket and wrapped both of them up in it. “Agnea, what are you-” “Did you really think no one heard you yell when you woke up?”
Hikari fell silent. It seemed he couldn’t stop letting things slip. “There’s one thing that I still think isn’t clear to you.” He looked at her, and couldn’t help blushing as she pulled his face to her chest. “We love you. And you are more than worth that love.” She spoke directly into his ear. “You are worth it.”
Hikari couldn’t help himself. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her in closer. Agnea ran her fingers through his hair. “You’re an amazing person. And I am so happy to have gotten the chance to know you.” Hikari felt unbidden tears fall down his face. After their moment at the border, he thought that he had no more tears left to cry. Clearly, he was wrong. He let out his emotions as soft fingers ran through his hair. They remained like that all throughout the night, and for the first time in what felt like an eternity, peaceful sleep found Hikari.