Standard Mission: Singing Bones

The Mountain Village

- Bastion -

Bastion's eyes widened at his accusations against the Council head's son. That was what had happened back then?

Regardless of Vayu's actions, this cast a dark shadow on the nature of this arrest and the head's moral integrity in the matter. To use his position to not only allow his son's heinous crimes, but to then punish the one person willing to expose them, was reprehensible.

"Council," he said, standing up as they started to walk off. "Before we leave, I wanted to warn you of a demon who's influence has been growing in these parts, a far more powerful and dangerous demon than the Jorougumo. She preys on the sins in the hearts of men, feeding and twisting them until they become demons themselves." His eyes focused on the Council elder, his gaze cool and steely. "So please be on your guard. I would hate to think of a corrupt heart drawing her here and giving her a foothold to desecrate this peaceful place and its people."

With that, he turned his back on the Council and crossed over to Rohan.

"I do sincerely hope that day never comes," he said quietly. "But if you hear of any whispers of the Ring of Gaea in near here, or of... Mother Harlot, then send word to me at once. Whatever it takes, I'll come back and help."

He offered his hand to Rohan. And a smile.

- Cleo -

As Vayu and Bastion shared a moment, Cleo hung back. He didn't disagree with their sentiments, but he also didn't feel entirely comfortable with sharing in the conversation, given his current state of mind. Offering his support to the both of them was a given, but what form that support would take on was yet to be seen.

The stew was, unsurprisingly, excellent. "If you ever decide to ditch this place for the city, I know a place where your cooking skills would be appreciated." Cleo gave Akio a wink. "Vayu's cooking tastes pretty good, but I bet you look better stirring the pot."

Without waiting for her response, he leaned in to whisper in her ear. "Chase your dreams, Akio. We both know you're too good for me. I'll do my best to keep an eye on your brother while you can't though."

Much to Cleo's surprise, the Council came to them this time. He'd expected them to stay locked away in their room and send a summons. Bastion seemed to have the interaction handled. So, Cleo kept out of it, at least until Vayu spoke up.

took forceful advantage of women
abused them in the worst possible way

The wooden spoon he'd been eating with snapped like a twig between his fingers, and his eyes moved first to Akio's and then Rohan's, looking for any kind of confirmation. Were the others that had been involved still a problem?

Are they really that different from you?

Warmth spread down his palm, and Cleo slowly released the broken spoon, which had cut into his hand. Closing his fingers around the dull pain, he watched their reaction to Bastion.

It wasn't that Vayu's sudden halt wasn't noticed, but Cleo filed it away for later. Right now, he was more interested in how the old men would handle these accusations.

Mountain Village

Akio snickered when Cleo gave his whispered message. “Oh, don’t worry about me,” she said. “I’ve already found my dream. And I don’t know what kind of illusion you created, but you were never a contender. I’m already happily married.”

Then she became serious for a moment. “I do thank you for your heartfelt offer to look after our brother.” Leaving Cleo to his own thoughts, she turned her attention back to the Council and his reaction to Bastion’s words.

“Your warning is noted,” the Head of Council said. It didn’t look like he would say anything else about the accusations Vayu had revealed. With one last look at everyone, he turned around, the other two Council members in tow, and left.

“Thank you, Bastion,” Rohan said and took the young man’s hand. “And I hope we won’t have to wait until that happens to hear from each other again.”

It had surprised Akio and Rohan just as much as the rest of the Vanguards, so when Cleo thought their eyes, they could only offer a surprise look in return. With a glance towards Vayu, who was standing off to the side with Sonya and was clearly distracted, Rohan sighed.

“Understandably, you have questions,” he said after there was a silence. “Probably just as many as we do. It was never really resolved what happened back then and I doubt it will ever be,” he explained. “Mainly because Vayu is the only one who came out of the whole incident alive, and he refused to say anything.”

“Looking back now, I can better understand why,” Rohan added, looking towards his brother. “He was the troublemaker of the town and had his fair share of run-ins with the law. No one would have believed him.”

He shrugged. “I think we’ve long accepted that what happened may not have been just, but it’s in the past and we can’t go back and change it. So, the only choice is to move forward and hope the next time our village is tested, we will do better.”

“Did you break you spoon?” Akio’s voice chimed into Cleo’s thoughts. “How did that happen?”

----------------------

“Akio told me I could find you here,” Sonya said and smiled. Vayu’s heart melted when he saw her smile, flooded by memories. “And I wanted to see you before you had to leave.”

“You look good,” Vayu finally managed to choke out after a silence that felt like an eternity.

“Thanks,” Sonya responded, her face lighting up. “You do too, so grown up. And very different from the rebellious young man I remember,” she gave him a wink.

Vayu felt his cheeks burn. “You look exactly like I remember you,” he mumbled.

“I’m glad you found a place to be yourself and new friends,” she said. “And I wish you all the best. Unfortunately, I have to leave and get back to my family.”

“Your family…?” he echoed, trying to tie his feelings together with logic. What had he expected? That she waited for him for an eternity. Of course, that would’ve been ridiculous. And that she would search after him? Even more ridiculous. Most people here never ventured beyond the next few villages, let alone to Chaldea.

“Yes, my husband and my kids,” Sonya added. “Good luck and stay safe.” She leaned in to give a kiss on the cheek.

“You too,” Vayu said, feeling like he was in shock. Trying to get his bearings about what had just happened, he slowly continued his way towards the village gate.

- Cleo -

Cleo put a hand over his heart, making a wounded sound. "So, it's to be straight for the kill, huh? I try to let you down easy, and this is how you pay me back?" After a brief pause, he chuckled, assuming his normal posture. "I'm happy to hear that you've found your dream though. You deserve that."

After Rohan's confirmation that all other parties were dead, Cleo allowed himself to relax again, only now realizing that he'd broken his spoon because Akio mentioned it. "Ah, I do seem to have broken it somehow. I'm sorry about that." He closed his bleeding hand, slipping it under the table. It would be easy enough for Silky to fix up later. Right now, he didn't want to cause any more of a scene.

Plus, all attention seemed to have refocused on Vayu and the woman that had approached him, an old flame, judging by their conversation.

"If you trust me not to break another, I'd love to finish up the stew." He said, grinning disarmingly at their host.

The Mountain Village

- Bastion -

“Thank you, Bastion,” Rohan said and took the young man’s hand. “And I hope we won’t have to wait until that happens to hear from each other again.”

"I hope so, too," Bastion replied.

With a wave goodbye to Akio, who seemed preoccupied with Cleo's flirtations, he headed off after Vayu and found him alone at the gate. He stopped on the opposite side, shuffling his feet awkwardly for a moment.

"It can't be easy. Having to leave your home twice now," he said quietly. "But... for what it's worth, we're happy to have you in Chaldea. Hopefully, you can call it home someday, if not now."

Mountain Village

“Of course,” Akio said and brought him another spoon.

“I know you have a long journey back. I’ll meet you at the gate with some provision,” she told Cleo. “It’s the least we can do.”

She watched the interaction between Sonya and Vayu while she headed back to the assembly hall to gather the provisions.

At the gate, Vayu was tending to his horse in the shade of the gate when Bastion arrived.

“Thanks Bastion,” he said. “It’s actually not as difficult as I thought it would be. There’s too much history here. I am happy to be in Chaldea too.”

Akio arrived a few minutes later, carrying some food. “For your journey,” she said and helped them distribute it on the horses.

She gave Vayu a hug before he could protest.

“Take care of yourself,” she said to all of them after stepping away from her brother.

After Cleo had arrived, they mounted their horses and left. Vayu was unusually quiet, lost in his own thoughts.

Choice: How are you going to report back?
a) embellish the report to eradicate any doubts about Vayu’s crimes
b) give the full truth
c) leave out certain details, but remain truthful as much as possible

(CHOICE C)

The Mountain Village

- Bastion -

In some ways, Bastion thought it was a shame Vayu could so easily give up his former home. The Council aside, he'd found it to be quite a nice place, and a part of him was sad to leave it.

But it was also a relief to know Vayu could continue forward without the past pulling him back.

After waving goodbye to Akio as she lingered by the gate, he turned his gaze and his thoughts back to Chaldea. Reporting on the mission would be... tricky. He was always as thorough as possible when giving reports, and it was important that the Council be aware that Vayu could not be assigned to any further missions there if they came up. But he also didn't want to cast aspersions on his teammate when so much corruption and uncertainty surrounded the situation. And anyway, the Council did effectively resolve the charges.

"As far as our report," he said carefully. "It's probably best that we all know where we stand, so I plan to tell report all the... necessary details. Any unproven hearsay or questionable sourcing isn't worth muddling the records. The Council needs to understand why one of our number was locked up, affecting the mission, and why they can't return, but... I think as far as anyone is concerned, a resolved charge in the village is that village's business."

Was that just rationalizing half-truths? Maybe, maybe not. With so many other large uncertainties and quandaries going on right now, though... this one could probably afford to slip through the cracks.

[c) leave out certain details, but remain truthful as much as possible]

- Cleo -

"You're too generous." Cleo responded to Akio's offer of provisions. "I don't think any of us are stupid enough to turn down good cooking for hardtack though."

After saying goodbye and getting on their way, Cleo summoned Silky to take care of his hand. Thankfully, the blood had stopped before he needed to saddle his horse, but the demon still gave him a piercing look when she mended the wound, as if he should have called for her sooner. He expected her to return to the gauntlet after completing the task, but she instead settled onto the saddle behind him, humming to herself.

"Sometimes, it's easier to leave the past behind." Cleo chimed in. "I'm glad that you got some kind of closure though." He offered Vayu the closest thing to a smile that he could produce, given the topic. Cleo's own past still haunted him, perhaps even more strongly now than it had before their recent missions.

His eyebrows raised at Bastion's comment about the report. Perhaps the young man wasn't as tightly wrapped up in proceedure as Cleo had originally though, or maybe recent events had led to this change in perspective. Either way, it was nice to know that, despite their differences, Bastion would step up for his teammates.

"You know, I've never been a big fan of writing reports." Cleo responded. "Maybe I'll just copy yours. It's not like it's a test or anything, right?" He smirked at Bastion, gauging the other Vanguard's reaction to that statement.

The Mountain Village

- Bastion -

Bastion gave Cleo a thoroughly unimpressed glance. "I highly doubt they'd believe my choice of words coming from you."

He could almost see Archangel's distasteful expression, his remarks of Cleo's uncleanness, and had to contain the urge to flinch. He didn't want to judge his companion, who'd been there for him, but that hostile judgment couldn't help but be a bit unnerving. He still didn't know why Archangel seemed to dislike Cleo so much in particular, but... maybe that was best.

"I suppose you can at least look at the large focal points I make, for consistency's sake," he murmurs, scratching his cheek. "Just don't make a habit of it."

He would take his own advice to heart in the future.

On the way to Chaldea

Vayu stiffened when Bastion started talking about their report. That was something he’d been thinking about over and over. What if they found out the whole truth and banned him from being a Vanguard?

Thankfully both Cleo and Bastion agreed that there was no need to delve into all the details. So maybe, just maybe, this would end well.

“Thanks guys, I really appreciate that,” he said, turning around on his horse to face them. He wanted them to know that this meant a lot, especially coming from Bastion, who usually steered for direct truths.

“You’re good friends to me.”

Because that’s what it still felt like, even after the truth had seen the light of day. And maybe even closer than before.

Alignment check:
Cleo: 0, 1 LP, 1 CP, 1 CP
Bastion: 1 LP, 1 LP, 1 LP, 1 CP