realityshifted | (no subject)

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tales of symphonia (d1) botta

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[When Botta is upset, he's found it comforting to hang around the Plane's forest. And this has been an upsetting week. First the incident at Iselia Temple - which, if he must be honest, he doesn't entirely regret: especially after learning some details of the future from Emil, he hadn't really intended to go through with killing the Chosen. But Kratos' presence there was unexpected and entirely unnecessary. And if that weren't bad enough, there was that graffiti at the base when he returned...

So he's found a patch of Presea flowers near the edge of the forest, and is quietly kneeling in the dirt, pulling weeds from around them. After all, one Renegade base is in a desert, and the other in the tundra, neither environment conducive to the garden he always wanted. This might be a good substitute.]

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[After a rather nasty argument with Kratos, Lloyd stomped away, angry and frustrated. He wasn't jealous, he really wasn't; Kratos just acted like he was so much better than everyone, and that kind of attitude just pissed him off.

Then he spots Botta kneeling in the flowers like he hadn't ordered his Desians to kill Colette and the two boys with her not long ago. Lloyd's jaw and fists clench, and his gaze becomes unfocused. It wasn't fair. It wasn't fair. The elf was nice to him when he first met him, showed him the world and told him how it worked. And he was against him that whole time... He wanted to kill Colette.]

Botta!

[His voice cracks just slightly, though who knows if it's from anger or sadness.]

[He glances up at Lloyd, and nearly winces. He'd sort of been hoping to avoid this conversation - he really has no idea what he's going to say. If only he had known that Lloyd knew the Chosen...perhaps he could have given some warning.

It's too late for that now. He sits up, wipes his hands on his robe.]

...Lloyd. ...Before you say anything else, understand that had Kratos not arrived, I would have found another excuse to delay until I had a reason to retreat. [They did have reason to believe that reinforcements would be sent, after all, although Kratos showing up personally hadn't really been on the list of possibilities.]

The situation is more complex than you can know.

[Lloyd listens. He owes him that much for explaining the Plane to him. He listens, and yet there's still an unhappy frown, a tug on his lips that betrays that it's something other than anger that he's feeling. This is Lloyd's first taste of what betrayal is like, and it doesn't feel good at all.]

... You sure didn't look like you were delaying.

[He shouldn't even be listening. Botta's a Desian. He could be lying to him right now. Lloyd wouldn't be surprised. Was he lying to him when he was so nice, too? Was the fact that Lloyd made him smile just an act?]

I don't see what's so complex about it! You're a Desian! I can't believe I didn't... [see it before. But how the hell could he have seen it? Botta as the one in charge of the Desians was the last thing he was expecting, and the elf probably saw it clear on Lloyd's face when he made it to the top of the stairs.]

[Well, the soldiers with him didn't know, so he was cutting it a little close. But he meant well, really!

Botta shakes his head.]

...That's exactly what I mean. You don't even understand enough for me to begin to explain.

Understand what? Explain what?! Botta - What's going on?!

[There's just no way this guy can be a... a Desian... Not Botta, who's being kind even now. Desians were all evil and cruel, and this... kneeling and taking care of flowers, not trying to lob his head off the moment he saw him, trying to explain... those aren't evil and cruel qualities. It's making Lloyd's head spin.]

[He closes his eyes, trying to think of the right way to word this.]

...Are you sure you want to know? You could still go home to your village and live your life. [Sometimes, ignorance is bliss, and Lloyd is still only a boy.]

[Lloyd purses his lips. Being told to go home like a good boy never fails to make him angry... But the way Botta worded it was different from the way Kratos did it.

He clenches a fist and looks down at the flowers and plants.]

Colette's going on a journey to save the entire world. She's going out there and facing people like the Desians every day to save a bunch of people she's never met before... And you really expect me to just go home?

I suppose not. 'Hoped' might be a better word. [But Lloyd is determined as only the young and ignorant can be. It's endearing and frustrating, and it's something Botta's seen burned out of too many recruits to have illusions about its enduring nature.]

What would you do, Lloyd, if you knew the future, but only a piece of it? If you knew that victory was within your reach, but not how to get there, or how you might turn it aside without even knowing. Would you change, or would you try to hold to the path that would guarantee a brighter future for all the world, even if it meant going through the motions of actions that you knew would be doomed to fail?

[Botta isn't entirely sure what he's doing anymore. He thought he was going to change, to allow the Chosen to go free of his own choice, but looking back, events progressed exactly as they would have had he made no choice at all, and that's disheartening. In the end, maybe he was still too afraid of the consequences to truly rebel against fate...]

[Lloyd doesn't really understand what Botta's asking. For him, right now, there's just one future. Colette would save the world, and then they can live happily for a while in Iselia. Is there some other path? One that's different from saving their world?

He looks wary. He turns his head away just slightly, though he keeps his eyes on Botta, and shifts his weight on his feet.]

What do you mean, "doomed to fail"? And how am I supposed to know the future?

[Did Botta know something he didn't? Lloyd's expression turns much more concerned at that thought.

Is this about Colette? Is... something going to happen to her?]

Not everyone here is from the same time that we are. There's a young man who comes from two years in the future of our world. ...I've spoken with him about it.

[Unlike a certain red-clad hero, Emil is actually pretty happy to see his half-elf friend on the Plane. Things are still a bit crazy at home, so he's done his best to clear his head and focus on what's going on /here/ instead. He shuffles toward Botta, though there's always a trace of hesitation in his movements; he doesn't want to interrupt him or something.

He's curious, though. He's... never seen someone pulling up plants like that.]

Hey, Botta. What are you doing?

[Ah, it's Emil. Botta smiles at him, rather tensely.]

Hello, Emil. ...It's been a long time since I lived anywhere I could keep a garden.

There's no sun on the Plane. I wonder what makes the flowers grow.

[He's never kept a garden before. Still, he's interested enough to kneel beside Botta. He watches for a minute, tilts his head.]

... Why are you yanking out all those plants? I thought you were supposed to be-- well-- planting them.

To be honest, I'm not sure.

It's to keep the flowers healthy. The soil can only support so many plants at one time, so a part of gardening is pulling up the weeds, the unwanted plants.

Oh...

[Emil examines the displaced plants.]

I guess you can't make a place for everything...

[He...hadn't looked at it that way. Now he looks down at the weeds as well, feeling a little dismayed. That's how gardening works. He's never thought about the weeds before.

Their roots may be too damaged now, but...] ...Would you like to try replanting them elsewhere? It's a large forest, there must be some free space.

[Emil isn't expecting an offer like that. He blinks out of surprise, then brightens.]

Y-- yeah, of course! Let's find them a new place to live.

[Making little bro happy helps his mood, too. He finds a clear patch of dirt.] How about over here? There should be space.

[Emil looks.]

That's a good spot. Won't they need water, though? Maybe I should run to the kitchen...

That's a good idea, I can't conjure any myself.

[He can gather a bit of earth mana around the area where they'll be planted, though, to enrich the soil and give them a better chance.]

Okay! I'll be right back.

[His shoes scrape the stars below as he gets to his feet, then he jogs off toward the kitchen. He returns in a couple of minutes with an entire pitcher of water, walking this time.]

Will this work, Botta?

[did someone say garden? because here's a gardener. a very tsundere gardener]

No no no, you have to be more delicate, desu!

[it doesn't matter how skilled he is, she's going to assume he's horrible until she talks to him]

[Ordinarily, Botta is a very patient man, tolerant of others' quirks and irritating tendencies. But he's had a bad day or two, so this slight against his skills makes his brow furrow in annoyance.]

I haven't done them any harm. These flowers grow near where I lived as a child - I do know what I'm doing.

[she doesn't trust him ; ;]

No? Most humans don't know how to treat plants at all. You don't look any different, desu.

Perhaps you could make allowances, then, for my not being human. [In case the pointed ears didn't give it away.]

You aren't? What are you, then?

[His first instinct, the first instinct of any half-elf facing such a direct question, is a wild impulse to lie. Claim to be an elf, claim he was kidding and is really human after all. Anything but the truth, which will only bring trouble.

But he's never been ashamed of his race, and no one here cares what he is, even the people from his own world. Reason pushes the impulse aside.]

I'm a half-elf.

[Suiseiseki doesn't really know what an elf is and she tilts her head, curious] Mmm? And what's a half-elf, desu?

[Oh hey there. Have an Emil clone passing through.]

Those flowers are very pretty.

[Blink. Wasn't Emil here already?]

...Thank you. [Is there a way to say this nicely...?] Was there something you forgot?

[Something he forgot? Aster assumes that Emil must have gone through this area recently. He can understand the confusion.]

No, this is my first time in this part of the forest. My name is Aster.

[Oh. Okay. That's a little weird, but maybe there's an explanation. Heck, maybe it'll explain why Emil feels so weird to his mana senses - Aster, notably, feels exactly like a human should.]

And I'm Botta. I'm sorry for the confusion, then - you look just like someone I know.

It's nice to meet you, Botta.

[He smiles. Unfortunately for him, no explanation follows. Aster has yet to figure it out at this point, even if he has come up with theories.]

You're talking about Emil Castagnier, correct? We do have a similar appearance. There's no need to apologize.

And yourself, as well. I suppose I should have expected you'd be familiar with him - are you related, perhaps? [It's not completely inconceivable for cousins to look that alike, he supposes. Maybe.]

No. Not that I'm aware of at this time.

[In fact, the last possibility in his mind is a family relation. His parents would have told him about a relative so close in age and appearance. There's something else at work here.]

How long have you known Emil for?

How strange.

Since I arrived here. [A month? Several months?] ...It's hard to say the exact length of time.

I suppose it is strange.

[He plans to research into it further. Botta hasn't known Emil long, but it should be enough.]

I understand. Time seems skewed in this place. I have a difficult time trying to figure out the date.

[Botta nods.] It can be disorienting. I try not to spend too much time here at once, lest I lose track.

Yes, that's probably a good idea. I suppose it's lucky though. Since we all come from different worlds and times, time itself would be confusing if it actually existed on the plane.

[Which reminds him.]

Do you mind if I ask what the name of your world is?

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