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One may have expected the fifth floor to be quiet when they arrived. Falin was fully expecting that they would simply rest until the red dragon arrived, and then they would execute the plan.
That line of thought, of course, was before they actually got there.
See, the orc’s village was actually in the middle of an old city town with towers and buildings alike being adapted into homesteads. When Falin first got here, it had seemed simple. They would take residence in one of the towers to keep watch on the red dragon and then spread out to attack from different angles when the time came.
They enacted the first part of the plan, climbing into a tower and traversing their way upwards to keep an eye on the rest of the area. It was looking promising.
That was, of course, before the screams started echoing through the town.
Falin could recall hearing a sound much like it, back when she was much, much younger.
The sound had been heard countless times around the chicken coop, whenever Botsu and Muimui ran out in the middle of the night to chase off the bravest of foxes that were attempting to wiggle their way through the coop’s door.
The foxes would scream, their teeth bared and tail puffed out in agitation as they would still try to scramble into the coop.
Sometimes, Botsu would be the one to finally leap forward, grabbing the fox by the scruff and throwing it aside like a ragdoll. Usually, Falin could hear the resounding thunk of its body hitting something.
Most of the time, however, it was Muimui who would surge forward and easily kill the animal, its limp body held between sharp teeth.
It always haunted Falin. There was something about the struggling, the screams that turned into whines and whimpers and mixed with the growls and barks of the dogs that kept her awake at night. She couldn’t fall asleep until she heard that cut off sound, the sudden crescendo of terror before it was over.
In the morning, Muimui would present her catch with a wagging tail, ignorant to the horror she had unknowingly caused the night before.
That, or they would find the fox laying in the chicken yard like a warning to any others that felt brave enough.
It never worked. There was always inevitably another fox that felt bold enough.
Thus, it’s only natural that she grabs Kabru by the arm when he tries to run off after the sound, his brow pinched with agitation as she shakes her head.
“It isn’t a person,” she tells him, listening again as the scream echoes through the town, followed by the agitated roar of flames. There, far away from them, she spots a flare of light that peeks over the stone. “It must be another monster fighting with the red dragon for territory. It sounds like some sort of fox thing… Laios would probably know what it was if he were here.”
There’s a pause, his expression minutely shifting as he considers this. Finally, he carefully asks, “Wouldn’t this be the perfect time to confront it, then?”
The answer comes easily. “No. Getting in the way of two fighting animals is a death sentence, especially something that’s bold enough to go against the red dragon.”
That statement alone determines their decision: stay in the tower and take watch shifts. It’s honestly rather easy, once they’ve made their decision on who will take what shift.
Kabru is the one who lays it out, taking out a piece of paper and carefully drawing out his thoughts. “We’ll have at least two people at the roof of the tower, which is right above us,” he explains, “meanwhile, everyone else will remain in this chamber right below. Falin and Holm should stay against the wall, specifically in the center. Those are the most stable parts of this tower, and we’ll need them safe.”
Her heart twinges with the knowledge that Kabru is putting her life above the others right now. His face is subtly pinched in concentration as he continues.
“While we wait, we’re going to take the time to sleep, fix weapons or armor, and eat.”
Falin nods along, yet she’s suddenly struck as she looks over everything. “We’ll want to keep the cooking of meat to a minimum. Any smell like that could attract monsters to us. We’ll want to minimize that.”
Pausing for a moment, Kabru’s brows raise as he slowly nods. “Right. I didn’t even think about that. In that case, we can use the dried meats and bread from our own stores and add what you think would be best from your own.”
Senshi nods his head, crossing his arms, “We can use those ingredients, but I can also add the leftover tentacles. I knew we’d need ‘em. If we’re gonna be here for a while, I can also rehydrate the meat to add to the tentacles. Soaking the meat shouldn’t give too much of a smell, so we’d be safe. It would be much better than just dried meat and bread.”
There’s a twinge in Kabru’s expression, his smile twitching at the edges. “That sounds great! It’ll be more filling as well. Either way, we’ll want to have at least two people on the roof, especially right now. Who wants to volunteer for the first watch? We’ll swap every two hours.”
Mickbell’s hand shoots up, as does the other one that’s holding on to Kuro’s arm. “We’ll take care of it!”
“Right,” Kabru nods, “I’ll take the next shift with Rin, and—”
“I can make dinner around then,” Senshi suggests, which gets a few nods of approval.
Marcille is the one to volunteer for the third shift alongside Falin. She’s eager, practically jumping at the opportunity with a great urgency.
Falin simply nods along, taking her place at the center of one of the walls, laying out her sleeping pack and placing Conte to the side. She places some of the herbs from her last meal on top of the hilt, watching with quiet delight as the mollusk carefully pokes its eye stalks out. It considers the offering, nudging it with one stalk before its radula slowly emerges to eat.
It’s always so fascinating to watch Conte eat, to see it consider what she’s giving it before it feeds.
Thankfully, it retreats back into the sword rather quickly to avoid detection.
It isn’t a moment too soon, because Marcille pulls her things over with a happy hum, plopping down right next to her.
“This is so nice! It’s almost like we’re back at the Academy, sharing a bed for the night,” she whispers excitedly, rolling out her own cot with a twinkle in her eyes.
They won’t be able to change into their sleep clothes due to the circumstances, but Falin does at least take off her boots and fold up her outer robes.
Somewhere outside, a shriek sounds out from somewhere, that same sort of fox scream that makes her shiver.
“We should try to sleep while we can. Kabru said that someone will come over to wake us up when it’s time for our shift,” Marcille murmurs, placing her hand atop Falin’s with a smile.
Her heart thuds in her chest, her breath caught in her throat. Why is that happening? She hesitantly places a hand over her heart, massaging the skin with confusion.
“Right. Right, yeah.” Her eyes go down to the hand over hers, the potential implications, and it isn’t until Marcille suddenly retracts it and apologizes that things suddenly snap into place.
Oh.
Oh.
Her gaze flicks over to where she can barely make out Toshiro’s black hair without squinting. When she squints, she can see the way that he glances her way.
He considers whatever it is he’s seeing between the two of them, and he simply quirks a small smile at her. Is there a strange look on her face? She can’t help but place a hand on her cheek, feeling around for any sort of strange twinge in her expression.
She finds nothing, aside from the fact that when she places two fingers to her pulse, it’s beating very quickly.
Ohhhhh.
Oh, this is bad.
Toshiro only gives her a small shrug. It’s almost like—
OH.
It isn’t bad because of the fact that it’s Marcille. In fact, it’s the exact opposite. She never really considered it, but she did often focus a bit too much on Marcille’s eyes, or the way that she laughed in such a way that made Falin’s chest flutter.
No, it’s the fact that it’s only now that she’s realizing it. She had every sign to point her to the glaring, very obvious crush.
Goodness, she put Marcille on the same level as Laios in terms of whether or not she wanted someone to live instead of her.
It’s so obvious.
So, how did she not realize it?
Toshiro noticed before her. Toshiro, the man who proposed to her. No wonder he looked like a kicked puppy when she told him that Marcille was still a part of the group despite her mess up with the big bat.
Now, she has to confront this, doesn’t she? She should, at least. Part of her wants to… while the other part does not.
Later. She can do that later.
From somewhere far off, the fox monster screams again, and a dull rumbling fills the room. It should terrify her, it should haunt her.
Instead, she lays down on her cot, unable to keep her eyes off of Marcille. The elf is already fast asleep, her golden hair spilling over her shoulder and getting caught against her lips.
She smiles, carefully threading her fingers through that hair and tucking it behind Marcille’s shoulder. It would be a shame for her to accidentally get those stuck in her mouth.
It’s only then that she finally settles, trying desperately to calm the thrumming in her chest, the eager ba-dum ba-dum ba-dum of her heart.
Is this normal? she idly wonders, Has Laios ever felt this way about anyone?
Oh, who is she kidding? Of course he hasn’t.
He never liked the people in the village back home, and he was able to leave the military far too easily for someone who may have feelings for a fellow soldier.
Maybe he’s been interested in someone in their party before. Maybe he’s felt this way, but he’s never said anything to her about it.
Would he ever dare? She knows that she would tell him this.
She knows for a fact that she’s going to tell him when they get him back.
Sleep is somehow easy, despite the fact that her mind is moving a million miles a second and she’s laying next to the girl she’s rather suddenly realized she’s in love with.
It truly cannot be helped, can it?
She doesn’t dream when she sleeps. Instead, she can still hear the quiet chatter between the other people in this room, whispered words between friends and new allies.
At some point, she hears people get up and climb up the ladder to the roof, and shortly thereafter there’s more shuffling until there’s silence.
She can still hear the fox monster letting out its screams, but it’s like some sort of disturbing lullaby that soothes her.
It just means the red dragon isn’t close by. It means that they’re safe still, that they don’t need to worry about running into action quite yet.
It means she can savor this feeling of being next to Marcille.
When Chilchuck comes to wake them before their shift, it’s far too soon. It’s been nearly four hours, apparently, and yet it seems as though it’s only been a few seconds.
She rubs the sleep from her eyes, gently shakes Marcille awake, puts her boots and outer robes back on, and waddles over to Senshi’s wok, which he’s left closed up to keep the food warm.
It’s a kind gesture, and one that Falin appreciates immensely, especially when she cracks it open and ladles two bowls of food for herself and Marcille.
Speaking of Marcille, the elf joins her a few moments later, her blanket wrapped around her shoulders like robes. Falin can’t help but giggle at her, offering her the second bowl.
Marcille takes it with an appreciative hum, taking it into her hands and falling into an easy silence.
They stay like that, quietly eating and glancing towards one another and other parts of the room. She can see Chilchuck off to the side, writing something out in his own book. Earlier, she can imagine he was stringing his bow and counting out his arrows.
Further away, she sees Mickbell and Kuro huddled together as they sleep. It’s almost… cute, really. Mickbell is such a loud and abrasive guy that… It's nice to see him actually relax.
It looks like Toshiro and Holm are talking about something, and whatever it is, her friend doesn’t appear to be anxious. Instead, it appears that he’s relaxed, his face smooth of any stress lines, instead listening to whatever it is that Holm replies with.
Huh.
When she and Marcille are done, they make their way up the ladder, Marcille still holding that blanket around her shoulders.
It’s a good thing she does it, too. Even if heat tends to rise, the ceiling of this chamber is far too high for it to be warm up on the rooftop.
Instead, there’s a chill air that wriggles through her as her head pokes out to the rooftop. Rin and Kabru are quietly talking amongst themselves, but they go silent as she hoists herself up. She can’t linger too long, not with Marcille following up after her.
“Your shift’s over!” Falin quietly cheers, her attempts at giving a little bit of energy into it interrupted by the piercing shriek of the unseen fox monster.
Kabru gives her an easy smile and nods, offering Marcille a hand to hold her blanket for her. Marcille takes the offer, and she clambers up to the rooftop without any issue.
“I swear, that thing sounds terrifying,” Rin mutters, glaring out towards where they last heard it — it’s easy to guess, after all, especially when the red dragon responds with its own rumble, moments before there’s a blast of fire, and many barks echo out, almost as though whatever it is that’s fighting the red dragon is just playing with it.
“I just can’t believe they’re still going,” Marcille mutters, taking her seat without much preamble.
Falin turns back to the two with a hum, offering a small wave, “Try to get some rest! We’ll keep an eye out!”
Kabru and Rin leave after saying their goodbyes, leaving Falin alone on the rooftop alongside Marcille.
Okay. She can do this. She can spend the next two hours without making this too weird. She can just—
“Are you cold?” Marcille suddenly blurts out, her voice quick and strangely louder than usual, “I brought up the blanket just in case. We can share it if you want!”
Okay.
This was not part of the plan.
It was never a part of the plan.
She has two options here: refuse and risk hurting Marcille’s feelings, or accept (because… well, she is cold) and have to deal with her own personal crisis for the next two hours.
Well, the answer is simple when she puts it like that.
“I wouldn’t mind that. It… is pretty cold, isn’t it?”
The way that Marcille’s face lights up is something Falin thinks she needs to etch into her memory. Would that be weird? It definitely is, isn’t it?
Clueless to her thoughts, Marcille carefully drapes the blanket over one of Falin’s shoulder and huddles close.
She’s warm. Marcille is warm like the sun in the spring, a gentle, soothing warmth that fills Falin with a sense of satisfaction.
It’s quiet up here. Aside from the wails and rumbles of the two battling monsters, she still finds that it’s pleasant, in a way. The only sounds aside from the white noise is that of their own breaths.
“You know…” Falin murmurs, breaking the silence if only to quiet her racing mind, “I’ve really enjoyed this trip.”
When Marcille sends her a quizzical look, she finds it in herself to continue.
“Don’t- don’t get me wrong… It’s been pretty stressful, especially with Laios and his situation… but I guess I’m just happy to have meals with people again.”
There’s a long pause, and for a moment Falin wonders if she’s said the wrong thing.
Then, Marcille finally breaks their silence as she asks, “Is that new? I know we’ve never really been the sort of party to gather around a pot and cook things, but we’ve always had meals together! We had so many meals together at the Academy all the time!”
From somewhere far off, the fox monster shrieks as though protesting Marcille’s words. It would be funny if it didn’t make Falin sad.
A dull ache in her chest blooms at the thought. “Yeah, I guess… but we never really… well… talked during that time.” Marcille’s confusion remains on her face, so she continues, saying, “With the party, we were always pretty quiet… and with you, we never just talked. It was always about school, I guess. You and I usually ate together before I had a test, remember? You were usually too busy otherwise.
“My parents stopped eating at the table with us when I was around nine. Laios and I just ate together, of course, but… then Laios left for the military. I spent such a long time eating by myself, that…”
Her sight is blurrier than usual, her voice going tight as she tries to smile, “...that I guess I just got used to it. This trip hasn’t been good at some points, and I know that. It’s been so stressful having to think about what I’m going to do if—”
Oh no, she’s crying. She’s crying in front of Marcille and this is going to get so awkward, but she still spits out the rest of her thoughts before she devolves into tears, “if there isn’t enough of Laios’ body for me to revive him!”
Part of her expects Marcille to recoil, to push her away and tell her that she’s being dramatic. It’s a dark, wriggling thought beneath her skin, one that worms its way into her chest and forms a vice grip around her heart.
Instead, Marcille pulls her in close, placing her hands on either side of Falin’s face and wiping the tears away with her thumbs. Marcille’s brows are pinched, as though she’s focusing on the tears and the agony before her, and they are already doing an awful job at watching out for the red dragon, aren’t they?
“I’ve been thinking about that too, if you would believe it,” she admits, her green eyes scanning over Falin’s face, and they really are the color of anything and everything that she loves, aren’t they?
Falin could compare her eyes to that of the grasses of the verdant valleys back home, to the leaves of the trees that loomed overhead, to the color of moss and duckweed, to the clovers she once held between her fingertips and wished for good luck with.
They’re the color of a precious stone she cannot recall the name of, they’re the color of a praying mantis, her arms cradling the head of her mate so that both of their bodies may feed their young, and they are the color of- well, they’re the color of Marcille’s eyes.
“It’s been haunting me. I don’t want to think about what we’re going to do if Laios is really gone. ” Marcille’s fingers brush against the side of Falin’s face as she carefully tucks a lock of hair behind her ear. “Except… Well, we won’t know for certain until we get there. Between Laios’ notes and Senshi’s own words, we’ve got nothing to worry about. It’s only been a little over a week! We’ll be fine.”
Falin’s tears have mostly subsided for now, though she still hiccups and sniffles every once in a while. How embarrassing. She clenches her fists, and even if her nails are bitten short, they still pierce small crescents into her palms.
Marcille is waiting for her, patient as ever, and Falin wants to cry all over again. How patient Marcille is, to just deal with her when she’s like this. The only other person who has ever been this patient with her, to let her cry and then comfort her, is Laios. If she isn’t careful, she’ll just start sobbing over him all over again.
“Thank you. I- I really do mean it,” she manages, voice strangled by her attempts to keep it together, but Marcille just grins and pulls her into her arms. Falin’s head rests right against Marcille’s heart, and there’s a frantic ba-dum ba-dum ba-dum she can hear thrumming.
“You don’t need to thank me for this. You know that, right?” There’s a laugh in Marcille’s voice, good-natured and kind as she runs her fingers through Falin’s hair. “I don’t mind taking care of you. It comes naturally to me.”
It comes naturally to me.
Oh, Falin’s done for. She’s done in.
“Marcille?” Falin begins, her heart hammering in her throat as she hears her friend give a ‘hm?’ in reply, “I wanted you to know I really, really cherish everything you’ve done for me. I want you to know that I hope that… I hope that you never think I don’t appreciate you.”
Marcille stirs beside her, and she cranes her neck to look up at her.
She’s looking at Falin with a pained expression, sucking in a breath before she finally speaks.
“You-! You really think I could ever think that about you?” Marcille blurts out, and oh, they’re going to be here for a while, because Falin knows that tone, and it’s reserved only for when she’s about to be talking for a long time .
“I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’ve just spent the last week eating monsters because you were so determined to get down here and save Laios! I’ve gotten my head shaken up by a mandrake, nearly got us killed by arguing with an orc, watched you nearly drown from a kelpie because you are so determined to help everyone despite it hurting you, and you think I wouldn’t notice that you care?!
“Falin, you’re the most important person in my life, and you’re so much more talented than you give yourself credit for! You’re the best person I know! Don’t you realize that? I wouldn’t be here if you didn’t matter to me!”
Oh, she thinks, her head spinning, she’s serious about that. Oh. Okay. She feels as though all of the air has been punched right out of her.
“I’m the most important person in your life?” she manages to ask instead of answering all of that.
Marcille lets out a choked sound suddenly, as though her own breath has gone down the wrong pipe.
Falin sits up to really look at her now, watching as her friend’s face turns a bright red.
Oh.
OH!
With a soft smile, Falin leans in a bit closer, slowly placing her hand over Marcille’s “Did you not mean to say that? It’s okay. I understand.”
This, for some reason, does not help Marcille in the slightest. She instead lets out a noise high enough that only Kuro would be able to hear it.
“It’s just—!” Marcille takes a deep breath, sagging as she slowly exhales, resting her head against Falin’s shoulder.
It’s practically perfect, the way that she can rest her chin atop Marcille’s.
“I’ve been… thinking. A lot.”
“That isn’t new for you, you know.”
Marcille swats her side, even if she’s laughing with Falin all the same. “Shush! I mean it! I’ve been thinking about… well… the last time we fought the red dragon. I still remember what you said before you teleported us. Do… you remember what you said?”
She does. She remembers it despite remembering barely anything else.
“I do.” It wouldn’t hurt to be truthful, right?
“Well… I keep going back to it every time I see you fight. I think about it when we sit around the fire and eat. I remember it when you’re sleeping next to me, and I can’t help but just stare at you, because why in the world would you do that for me?”
Falin opens her mouth to protest, to say because you and Laios are both the most important people in my life, but Marcille shakes her head, putting her hands up and shakes them, a wait, please wait gesture that Falin listens to.
Sucking in a breath, Marcille finally says, “I- I want you to know I feel the same. I want you to know that I’d do anything for you. No matter what, I’ll always put you above everyone else. Even if I end up hurting others… I will make sure you can live on.”
Her breath catches in her throat, but she still manages to nod. Is this really happening? How? How?
“And I mean that,” Marcille insists, pressing on, “I really, really mean that. I really, really, really mean that! I hope you realize just how much I-”
It comes easily to her. It comes far too easily to her, because it’s something she’s been wanting to do at least for a moment. So, she puts her fingers to Marcille’s lips to quiet her, tilting her head with a soft laugh as she leans forward and places a gentle kiss against her cheek.
“It’s okay. I meant it then too, and I’ll mean it for as long as you’ll have me,” she softly murmurs against Marcille’s skin, leaning back to gauge her reaction.
There’s a distant look in those green eyes, and when Falin pulls her hand away, there isn’t a response.
Instead, Marcille squeezes Falin’s hand, intertwining their fingers as though they’re meant to be like this, that they’re supposed to always be together and never let go.
In the back of her mind, something suddenly tells her she needs to move her attention away from this immediately.
Looking out to the town, she squints as she searches for a glint of flames.
“Marcille, when was the last time you heard that monster scream?”
For a moment, Marcille doesn’t respond as she instead gives an eloquent “Wha—?” before she actually considers it.
Marcille’s eyes grow wide as she seemingly comes to the same conclusion.
“It’s been too long. It’s been screaming its head off, and now it’s quiet,” Marcille murmurs, abandoning the blanket as she stands to her feet to get a better look. Falin joins her, even if her eyes are practically useless in this situation.
She just needs to look for a dull red blotch somewhere in the distance, somewhere—
“There!” Falin suddenly declares, pointing towards the hulking red mass that ambles between buildings far off, no longer distracted by whatever it was that was shrieking at it.
“Alright, not too close to us, but still close enough to let everyone know!” Marcille insists, taking a hold of Ambrosia, “Let’s go! C’mon, we gotta go!”
As they get to the ladder, however, Marcille stops her, looking at her with a bright grin.
“Here, before I forget!”
It’s then that Marcille leans forward and kisses her on the cheek, and suddenly nothing else matters.
Yeah, alright. Alright. This works. This works quite well, doesn’t it?
“We’ll talk about this later, okay?” Marcille assures, “I promise! Let’s get Laios first!”
For the first time in a while, Falin can’t help but feel as though it’s going to all work out. It’s going to work out.
It has to.
It has to.