Chapter Text
It was a cool, peaceful day. With few clouds in the sky and the sound of birds and nature surrounding you, you took comfort in the relaxing atmosphere. You were carving a bird, inspired by the birdsong you were currently listening to, and also because they tended to sell really well.
Money was getting a bit low, and you'd rather fix that sooner rather than later. It was something you've learned, traveling alone, to get money when you remember and not put it off for later. Too many times had you put it off, only to forget about it until you were trying to buy food and stuck your hand in an empty pocket. Vaugarde was a nice and welcoming place- almost too friendly, you often thought- but even they weren't ones to give out free food often.
It was good, that you were still carving out the main shape of the bird and not yet working on the finer details, as yells in the distance interrupted the calm atmosphere. You paused, and tried to listen. They were far, you could definitely get up and walk away to continue carving somewhere else and whoever they were wouldn't know any better, but...
That's something you would've done before. Before the King's attack, and before all these weird creatures- Sadnesses? You think?- started attacking people. You wouldn't consider yourself a hero, nor one that felt the need to save anyone and everyone you met, but you also weren't the type to just walk away when others were in danger. You weren't the best fighter, but your Craft was still stronger than most. That's how you're able to travel by yourself, after all, even with all these creatures attacking you no matter where you went.
With a sigh, you stick the unfinished carving in one of your many pockets and get up, beginning to make your way towards the commotion. You stuck to the shadows, keeping yourself low and hidden in the underbrush of the forest. The closer you got, the more clearly you could hear the voices. They sounded more and more frantic and panicked, and you could hear a Sadness- that is what they're called!- as well.
It wasn't long before you saw them. Three people, all against a Sadness. Book Lady, Rapier Girl, and Big Guy, you quickly dubbed them all in your head. You didn't have time to take in much about their appearance, considering the situation. The situation being, Book Lady and Rapier Girl standing off to the side, seeming exhausted and panicked as Big Guy was on the ground, backing away from the Sadness drawing closer to him. They all seemed injured, but Big Guy was your current priority.
The Sadness was a Paper type, which was perfect. The other two were too far to help, crying out to Big Guy, but luckily, distance wasn't much of a problem for you.
You charged forward, landing between Big Guy and the Sadness, holding your dagger in one hand and making a Scissors sign with the other. The attack landed and the Sadness stumbled back a bit, before locking its eyes on you.
Good.
You took a few steps to the side, trying to get away from the Big Guy and the other two, hoping that the Sadness's attention would stay on you now. Worst case scenario, you could probably outrun it- or, maybe you couldn't, as you didn't really take in the Sadness's speed before jumping into battle, but it would probably be okay. The Sadness approached you as you backed away, leading it further away from Big Guy. Then, it attacked.
You were quick to move out of the way, before landing another Crafted attack of your own on it. Somehow, that still wasn't enough to kill it, but it did seem rather angry at you now. In your peripheral, you saw Rapier Girl next to Big Guy now, but Book Lady was no where in sight. No matter, Rapier Girl was probably a healer, which meant Big Guy would be okay now.
You narrowly dodged another attack from the Sadness, before it got struck with another Scissors attack- this time, not one from you. It was enough to kill the Sadness, and you watched it disintegrate into nothing, revealing Book Lady standing behind it with her hand outstretched. Ah, so that was her.
With the Sadness defeated, you took a deep breath to steel yourself. You tucked your hands back into your cloak, but kept your dagger in your hand just in case. Just because you saved these people doesn't mean they won't try to attack you. You took the moment to take them in once again.
Big Guy seemed mostly healed now, and Rapier Girl was helping him stand up. Book Lady glanced back at them, probably confirming they were okay, before turning her attention back onto you. She seemed to be trying to analyze you, which made you automatically retreat into your cloak and bring your hat down slightly.
"Um... are you all okay?" You asked, trying to ease the tension suddenly in the air. Or maybe that was just you and your social awkwardness.
"Y-yes! We're all okay now! Thank you so much for your help!" Rapier Girl replied. She attempted a smile, but it was clear she was still trying to get over the nerves and fear from the fight. You couldn't really blame her, that Sadness did seem to have given them quite a lot of trouble. You simply nodded in response.
"Yes, your speed was quite... incredible. It definitely gave me the time to build up my Craft, and for Mirabelle to heal Isabeau over there." Book Lady added, motioning to the other two, whose names you will definitely forget in about 5 seconds.
"Y-yeah! Th-thanks! For saving me, I mean!" Big Guy- or, Isa...-? yeah, you already forgot his name- stammered. You nodded, and after a moment, took out your knife again.
"It's no problem, I figured you all needed me to cut in, so..."
Book Lady wrinkled her nose in annoyance, Rapier Girl- Fruit? Her name reminded you of some sort of fruit- blinked, as if processing what you said, and Big Guy started full-bellied laughing. You couldn't help but smile, then. You enjoyed making people laugh, but the annoyed reaction was also enjoyable.
"Another jokester! Yessss! You know, we could really use someone like you!" Big Guy avowed. You blinked. What?
Your confusion must have shown on your face, as Book Lady cleared her throat. "What Isabeau means-" Isabeau! You remembered the first half!- "is, assuming you don't have any reservations, we could use your help. At the very least, out of this forest, if you don't have somewhere specific to be."
"N-no pressure, of course! I know its a pretty sudden request! If we're keeping you from somewhere, y-you can go ahead and leave! We don't mean to try and force you to do something you don't want!" Fruit Girl added.
You thought for a few moments. You... didn't have anywhere specific in mind. You were on your way to the next town, simply because you needed more money and food, but otherwise, you weren't going anywhere specific. Traveling with others wasn't something you were used to, but... well, you didn't have anything better to do, did you?
"Sure. Where are you all going?" Was your response. Fruit Girl seemed relieved at your response, Book Lady seemed to relax a little, and Big Guy- Isa...boo? seemed excited.
"We're on our way to Bambouche, but obviously, we need to make a few stops along the way." Book Lady explained. You were thankful for the additional explanation, as you were pretty sure Bambouche was quite a ways away, but you didn't always trust yourself with knowledge like that. You nodded.
"Thank you! For agreeing to come with us, I mean! We... we could really use all the help we can get, heh..." Fruit Girl said. You smiled at her, hoping it was reassuring, and shrugged.
"I don't mind. I don't usually travel with other people, but this seems, uh, fun." Book Lady raised an eyebrow at you, before some sort of realization came to her.
"Well, I hope you'll still think it fun when we tell you that Mirabelle-" Mirabelle! Like mirabelle plums!- "over there is the one blessed by the Change God to defeat the King, making us Vaugarde's saviors," She explained.
Oh. You took in all of their appearances again, eyes probably wide with shock. You have heard the rumors, of course, about the Housemaiden blessed by the Change God to defeat the King, and how she was traveling with two others. A researcher and a fighter- or, defender? you felt like you heard both those terms for him-, and looking at them now... yeah, those descriptions seemed accurate.
Well. That changed things. Though, you still felt compelled to travel with them. You didn't care too much about being known as a savior, but you liked Vaugarde. It was weird, sure, but it was friendly. It... well, it was the closest you had to a home, and you didn't really want to see it get frozen in time. The saviors said they needed help, and...
You still didn't have anything better to do.
You laughed. "Yeah, sounds like fun."
"I'm glad you can find saving a country fun," Book Lady- researcher lady?- deadpanned. Big Guy- Isa...- Fighter? Defender?- laughed.
"We might as well have as much fun with it as we can, right, Madame? Better than being miserable about it," He smiled. Plum Girl- the Housemaiden! The blessed one!- gave a bit of a troubled smile.
"Yeah! The situation is already miserable, so... so we should have fun! To help stay positive! Because! Things are already bad, so we have to stay positive about things!" She clapped her hands together and gave a firm nod, probably trying to convince herself of her own words. Book lady sighed, but there was a hint of a smile tugging at her lips.
"Then, I suppose we'll try to have fun with this."
"Alright!" Big Guy pounded his fists together excitedly. He then turned back to you. "Welcome to the team- uh..." Realization dawned on him. You still hadn't told them your name, and they hadn't officially told you theirs, either. You're pretty sure you hadn't heard Book Lady's name even once.
"Oh! We forgot to introduce ourselves!" Plum Girl gasps. "Sorry! I'm Mirabelle!" She smiles.
"And I'm Isabeau! And over there is Madam Odile!" Big Guy- Isabeau adds.
Mirabelle, Isabeau, and Odile... yeah, you will definitely forget those.
You smile. "I'm Siffrin," You say, before flaunting your knife once again. "Knife to meet you."
A conflicted expression. A laugh. And a sigh. Perhaps traveling with these three would be fun.