Work Text:
If Belladonna was the Warrior of Light, Minfilia was the Light itself.
The heart of the Scions, a beacon of hope for all. Naturally, Belladonna looked to her for guidance while adapting to her new environment – and naturally, she wished to help her with any work of the Scions she could, as her burdens were already enough.
Which is why she stood at the Waking Sands holding her hand-written instructions, a puzzled expression on her face while looking at the large crates in front of her.
“I don’t want to question Minfilia...but is there really a reason we need all these tomes shelved? We have plenty of things in crates here, do we not? I’m not sure they all fit in the bookshelves…”, she hesitantly spoke.
“Oh, most of them will”, the man passing behind her responded, “It was like that the last time as well. Now Belladonna, be a darling and fetch me the next one”.
Belladonna didn’t really know what to make of Thancred Waters. It had only been a few weeks since she’d known him, and they had not worked together much. His natural charm and relaxed demeanor were unlike her own awkwardness and hesitance to act, so on the rare occasion Minfilia assigned them tasks together, she felt as though she was simply shadowing him.
He seemed to care for Minfilia deeply, which was contrasting with the way he did not seem to take the Scions’ work seriously, at least in her eyes.
“The large one?”, she turned to him as he nodded. “I don’t think I have enough strength to lift it...I’m just an arcanist, you know. You’re the tougher one…”
“Well, you should train to be just as tough if you want to help Minfilia”, he scoffed. “The sooner we sort these out the faster we can study them. I thought you arcanists loved your books”.
Were she not afraid of seeming rude in front of her new partner, Belladonna would have rolled her eyes. Taking a deep breath, she mustered all her strength, silently wishing that Minfilia pair her up with Papalymo or Urianger next time.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
They stood on Cid’s airship, Belladonna holding Minfilia’s hand.
Lahabrea – the Ascian – had taken over Thancred’s body. Moments flashed through Belladonna’s mind. How much had she unknowingly revealed to him? When did she let her guard down? How had she not realized?
She regretted ever thinking badly of him. She needed to help him. She needed to help Minfilia.
Her voice trembled as she spoke.
“...We’ll save him, right? We’ll save him”.
Minfilia’s expression betrayed her apprehension, but her grip on her hand tightened.
“Yes. We will. We must”.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Just like that, Minfilia was gone. She had transcended her mortality, becoming the Word of the Mother.
Perhaps for the first time, Belladonna did not know what she felt more strongly – relief that she wasn’t dead or in danger, or devastation that she would probably never see her again – never speak to the version of her she had come to know.
She could not break the news to Thancred alone. If she felt the way she did, she could not begin to imagine how he would feel. She actively avoided him, regretting that she did not know how to console him.
She was dealing with a grief of her own.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“I’ve been thinking - when did you switch up your fighting style?”, he asked her while they were sitting at the Ala Mhigan Quarter, a small moment of respite after rescuing Krile. The battle against the Garlean forces was nearing, and they had been instructed to gather their strength and rest, albeit reluctantly.
Belladonna placed her hands on the table. “After you disappeared, I met a Miq’ote man”, she started. “X’rhun Tia is his name – and Thancred, he fought so gracefully, like the heroes in the books I used to read!...I followed him, for a while. I learned he also taught Alisaie the ways of red magic”, something sparked in her eyes as she continued. “I never really expected to take up the rapier. But balancing black and white mana came to me easier than I thought it would.”
Thancred nodded still looking at her, and she felt urged to continue.
“X’rhun Tia is a good teacher. I want to help him on his quest. The way he instructs me...it reminds me of Emanuel, a little bit”. Thancred seemed lost, so she hurriedly added “my stepfather”.
“Right, the Hyur”, Thancred’s mouth curled into a smile as he reclined in his chair. “I for one think it suits you. You stand to benefit from being a little bolder, too. Now is as good of a time to be active as any.”
“...Thank you. I still use my tome from time to time, however”, Belladonna replied, unsure of what to make of the comment. She grabbed a bite of her cookie, then another, mouth still full as she asked “Anyway, are you going to keep your hair that way? It’s grown out”.
Thancred tried not to laugh at the image of the woman he just complimented as a stronger warrior, munching on a cookie like a rodent.
“I’m going to cut it, just not now. I can’t be bothered to do it, with all that is at stake.”
At his words, the weight added to the conversation was almost tangible. Looking at him, Belladonna realised that he too had changed.
“Well, I for one think it suits you”, she mirrored his words, smiling.
“Be careful, Belladonna – I’d say you were flirting with me, if I didn’t know you any better”, Thancred responded smugly.
At Belladonna’s wide-eyed stare and fearful expression, he felt the need to clarify his words. “Oh, you are still way too easy to tease. Don’t worry, you’re really not my type – no offense. Plus, you’re too young for my tastes”.
Belladonna’s expression shifted almost immediately, and she couldn’t help but laugh.
She was happy to have Thancred alongside the Scions by her side, in the battle to come.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
They sat at Twine, staring at the golden landscape of the Hills of Amber. The setting sun bathed everything in an orange glow. Belladonna wanted to say it reminded her of Thanalan, although it wouldn’t really be true – this was different. More quiet. The storm had come and gone, leaving destruction in its wake.
She wanted to save the First. She wanted to avoid the calamity. She wanted to get the Scions back home.
And to top it off, she felt like she needed some rest. So much had happened and they had barely had time to process it.
“...So, you spoke with her”, Thancred’s words, almost a whisper, snapped her out of her thoughts.
Of course, he was talking about Minfilia. With that sentence alone, he broke some tension held since they had first seen each other in the First, maybe even before that. They hadn’t really touched on the subject of Minfilia. Or this world’s Minfilia – Ryne, Belladonna reminded herself. She was Ryne now.
It was a beautiful name that Thancred had given her.
“...I did, yes”, Belladonna’s eyes still stared out into the sunset. “It was bittersweet. Comforting, but I realized…”, she continued trying to ignore the lump at her throat, “...I realized that we will truly not see her again”.
She failed, and could not help the tears that made their way to her eyes. She silently let them roll down her cheeks.
“However, I…I know she is watching over us.”
Thancred looked at her, his expression unreadable. The silence was too strong to bear.
“I feel like an idiot”, she sniffed. “I know you feel this more deeply than I. It’s just that a lot has happened, I... I feel like I haven’t had time to grieve those we’ve lost. I keep thinking about them. I think I’ve made progress, and then memories come flooding back. Of Minfilia, of Papalymo, of Moenbryda, of Ysayle, of…”, she trailed off.
“Of Haurchefant”, Thancred completed her words.
“...of Haurchefant”. Belladonna’s eyes shined in the dusk through her tears.
Thancred shifted a bit from where they were sitting. The noises of the newly-awakened Talos could be heard in the background.
Nevertheless, we move forward.
“You still carry them all with you. Like I carry Minfilia’s wishes, and Ryne’s hope. Here”, he said, tapping his chest.
Despite her sadness, a small smile made its way to Belladonna’s lips.
“I know”, she blurted out, thinking about all the pain Thancred had also gone through. Spending more time with him, Belladonna had realized that he was a very strong man. She admired his strength, how he still pushed forward - in contrast to how she still let her emotions consume her.
“Sorry, I’m crying again. You must think I haven’t grown at all”, she voiced her thoughts out loud.
“By the Twelve, Belladonna, you’re unbelievable”, Thancred laughed. “There is nothing to be embarrassed about. I feel it too. We all do.”
He gave a gentle tap on her shoulder, and only then did Belladonna notice the tears in his own eyes.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Soon, it would be time to go home. Though, calling the Source home almost seemed a little weird, after all the time they had spent in the First.
Soon, it would be time to leave Ryne behind.
He stood alongside Belladonna staring out at the Empty, as Ryne and Gaia were tidying up the tents with Urianger, both thinking about the same thing.
“It will work. And when we settle things back home, I will come to visit her, Thancred. I promise”, Belladonna said with determination.
Thancred almost faltered, but then there was confidence in his words.
“...She will be fine”, he replied, smiling.
They glance back at the others outside the tents. Urianger seemed to be lecturing Gaia, as Ryne watched them with an innocent, yet hopeful gaze.
She will be fine, Belladonna affirmed. Ryne was wise, despite her age. She looked like the future.
“You must be proud of her”, she told Thancred.
Thancred’s gaze proved her point.
“More than you can imagine”, he said softly. He then studied Belladonna’s eyes – the dark limbal ring characteristic to Au Ra like her replaced by a glowing yellow, after the last Lightwarden. She too, had endured so much, and matured. Where there was once hesitation, he now saw a fierceness, a determination – or perhaps, a spite that drove her actions. Though underneath lay that ever-present curiosity she had since he first met her.
“I’m proud of you too, you know”, he said. “Look at you. Our little Warrior of Light has grown”.
Belladonna tensed a bit, the words catching her by surprise. She thought of telling him about how afraid she felt when they battled their first Primal, about how this has been a journey beyond her wildest dreams, about how in all honesty, she didn’t expect to still stand. About how he should also give himself credit.
“Thank you. Maybe I have”, was all she said instead.
“Don’t shy away from it – you have evolved. You were much more naive when I first met you”, Thancred said, before ruffling her hair.
The gesture made Belladonna squint, but she embraced it all the same.
“The same is true for you”, she said. “When I met you, I thought you an indifferent skirt-chaser. I’m surprised you haven’t had any sweethearts while you’ve been here”, she smirked.
“You’ve also grown much more comfortable teasing me”, Thancred scoffed. “Worlds are at stake, it’s hardly the time for this. Plus, things have changed”, he said stealing a glance back at Ryne.
Belladonna’s eyes followed his, looking to the girls and to Urianger, her eyes growing softer.
“So you say. I’m definitely coaxing details out of you next time we are alone”.
Thancred raised a brow. “I don’t know what you’re implying”.
She nudged his shoulder, and he huffed, shaking his head.
“Come”, he said eventually. “Let’s go help them”.
They stepped back to the others.
She would also be proud of us, Belladonna thought, as they walked on toward the future to come.
