Time and Tides Archives

Eden was likely a bigger city than this, but at least it seemed to have some sense of organization. Lindblum, in his eyes, was a sprawling mess with side streets leading every which way and no sense of layout whatsoever. Though he had been wandering the city for two weeks, Cid was not very much closer to getting used to navigating its streets than he was when he first arrived.

Judging by the nearby shops, he assumed that he was in the Business District. Maybe. Possibly. What air cab had he ended up taking last?

"I need something to do with all this damned time," he muttered to himself as he looked around, trying to judge his location.

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Dagger had been seeing ghosts for weeks now. Not in the literal sense, but in the way that many of the dead haunted her thoughts, her dreams, and in rare instances, seemed to rise before her very eyes Vivi's appearance had been the only welcome instance. It seemed it would continue today, as she turned down the main street with Eiko, listening to the little girl chatter away.

And then for a moment, out of the corner of her eye, she saw Vayne.

Not Vayne. He was gone, too long now to hope that perhaps Iifa would have spared him. And after more than a second's glance, the stranger bore only a very passing resemblance and only then, if one squinted, or didn't look too hard. Still, it was enough to give her pause, have her staring just a bit too long to be polite. And then, she realized she did recognize the man for himself, At least, she thought she did.

"Excuse me... Mr. Raines, was it?"

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Still feeling as lost as ever, Cid did not notice the girl until she spoke. Even then, he couldn't quite put a name to the face... She did look vaguely familiar, but with all the new people he had met, he could not remember exactly which one she was.

"That would be me," he said, nodding his head in greeting. When was the last time he had been called Mr. Raines? Not Commander, not Brigadier General, not General (for short), but a simple Mr.

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"Sorry, I don't mean to be rude. I--" Half way to introducing herself, Dagger remembered, her looks, her place, and the fact that she had introduced herself to this gentleman as Queen Garnet. It wouldn't do for this near-stranger to know that's who stood before him. She didn't know yet if she could trust him. "--I saw you on the network before, and, well, you seem a little lost. Is there something you're looking for?"

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"Not particularly." He continued to gaze down at her, still trying to place a name to the face. "I am merely...browsing, I suppose."

He wasn't about to admit that he was completely and utterly lost, no.

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"I see. Oh, sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. I bet I seem rude, knowing your name like that but not giving mine," That's right, cover up your discrepancy. Better to let him think you're some silly girl who spends too much time on Mooglenet. "My name's Dagger. You're a sky person, right?"

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Dagger. There was a name, but he could have sworn that he had met her with another. For now, however, he would just go with it, as there was no need to complicate a simple situation.

He held his hand out in greeting. "A pleasure to meet you, Miss Dagger. ...and yes, I am one of the so-called sky people."

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lastsummoner.livejournal.com

Garnet's distraction and subsequent veering off to talk to the man went unnoticed by Eiko at first. She had been so engaged in chattering, while she looked around, that she missed that she no longer had Dagger around to talk to and had continued pattering her way down the street. Her small blue head whipped around once she realized she was alone and she came jogging back to where the queen was.

"Hey, Dagger! I thought I lost you!" Even being a bossy little thing, she was still every inch a child and grabbed hold of Dagger's hand, and swung it back and forth. "Who's this?"

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Delita had been sitting out amongst the fountain staring at the water cascading. He was meditating on the time spent with Refia. He was having trouble understanding his own reactions to her. Life was much simpler before he had met her, but he couldn't seem to stay away from her.

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The fountains were one of the nicest places to go on a warm summer day such as this one. It was only natural progression that the girls would end up there eventually, perhaps to throw a spare gil in the fountain and make a wish. A silly game, really, gil in fountains didn't make wishes come true, but it was still fun. As they were coming up the cobblestone toward the fountain proper, Dagger fished into her little purse, looking for a single gil to give Eiko. When she looked up again, she took notice of the familiar figure sitting near the fountain, and smiled.

"Delita!" she called out in greeting, waving to him.

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Delita snapped out of his revelry at the sound of his name. Recognizing the voice, he turned around ready to bow only to find a woman before him that he barely recognized.

"Lady Tribal?"

The corners of his mouth rose in a tiny smile at the greeting. "I had not expected to meet with you here."

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Dagger stopped abruptly, the most surprised and perplexed look on her face. And then she laughed. Really laughed, because he had just called her Lady Tribal. Although the thought had never occurred to her take Zidane's name (it just wasn't done in Alexandria, especially not when the Royal Name was in play) hearing it in reference to herself was so startling, she couldn't help the laughter.

"No one's ever called me that. It's a good thing Zidane isn't here, I might never hear the end of it," she replied, stepping closer, just assuming Eiko would follow. "Just 'Dagger' is fine though."

Dagger Tribal. She had to admit, that had a nice ring to it.

"I'm here visiting family." It wasn't a lie, exactly -- a stretch, maybe, but it was also a good cover when she was trying to keep a low profile. "What're you doing out here? I didn't know you were in Lindblum."

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"As you wish, Dagger." He did not believe he would ever understand the woman before him, yet it did not halt is effort to understand her.

As such, Delita was taken by surprise at the question posed his way. Just how did he tell Garnet that he was musing about a girl. While he had no desire to lie to the Queen, he also was not open to discussing personal matters in the open like this.

Refusing to look the Queen in the eyes, lest she see through his half truth. "I have found reason to inhabit Lindblum in the recent past. 'Tis conveniently located centrally to the world, allowing myself the freedom I require."

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If she noticed Delita's attempts to disengage, she didn't say anything about it. Instead, she smiled and perched herself daintily on the edge of the fountain.

"I guess you're right. Lindblum is a great place to be, if you're looking for convenience. Before all of this... convergence started, it was really the center of Gaia. It still is, in a way, I think. It's just different now."

Convenience. Required freedom. She paused, pressing her lips together thoughtfully. There had been a time when she'd asked this Knight of Ivalice to keep his eyes and ears open for her. Since then, she'd heard nothing from him, but then, she hadn't really asked, either.

"I'm sorry I never really had a chance to visit at the wedding," she said. "I've been meaning to talk to you, but so many things keep coming up. Did you and your guest have a good time?"

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lastsummoner.livejournal.com

Delita's attempts to disguise his real motivation for being in Lindblum had come to an end. Eiko finally got her fill of being patient about getting her gil to toss in the fountain and came marching over to ask what the hold up was.

Oh! Dagger was talking with someone. Well, that was an easy fix, so she put her hands on her hips, planning to just butt in and get her wishing gil. But she recognized this one!

With no warning whatsoever, and no consideration for the conversation at hand, she blurted out, "You're that boy Refia likes!"

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Delita's eye went wide with disbelief. How did Eiko know of Refia? What exactly did they both know.

"Refia? 'Tis true she was my companion to your wedding, and I cannot but answer truthfully that my evening was enjoyable, but I know not of anything more than what I speak."

While he might be willing to speak more with Garnet in confidence and privacy, to speak in the square with the little one listening was beyond the capabilities of the Holy Knight.

He could only wonder if Eiko's announcement rang true or if he was not the recipient of idle gossip.

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destinyfollowed.livejournal.com

Freya had grown restless somewhere between her arrival and the things that had happened after that. She had taken to exploring and patrolling the various locations around her, until she had gained a rudimentary idea of what she'd fallen into.

The merging of the worlds had just been an abstract thought to her, until she'd embarked on her explorations. In any case, it was no longer just a thought; it was real.

She had a lot on her mind, and so she retreated to Lindblum. After Burmecia, it was a place that she was quite fond of. So there she sat, on a flight of stairs that led up to one of the many shops in the area, running her hands over the handle of her spear, still lost in thought.

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Even though Dagger knew that Freya had surfaced again, there hadn't been an opportunity to see her yet. In fact, Dagger had been clinging to the idea that Freya had simply wandered off again, and was out of touch. It wasn't until she hadn't shown up for the wedding that she'd really begun to accept that Freya had been among the victims of disappearance. So, when she'd resurfaced on the network, it had been a relief.

Still, she hadn't expected to see her on the streets of Lindblum. Even with the sky people, and Gaia's diverse population, A Burmecian in Lindblum could stand out like a sore thumb.

"Freya? Hey! Freya!" Dagger called out from across the way.

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destinyfollowed.livejournal.com

Freya's long ears twitched slightly as someone called her name. Looking up from where her focused gaze fell, she saw the princess - the queen, now - a short distance away, calling to her. Getting to her feet, she called back, "Hello, Dagger, it's good to see you."

It felt like it had been a long time since she'd seen the young woman, and so seeing her now felt very pleasant indeed. Granted, she was not as close to her as she was to Zidane, for instance, but that did not mean that she did not regard her as a friend. "What are you doing here? I expected to find you in Alexandria, and not Lindblum," she said, trying to sound more surprised than accusatory. After all, Dagger was free to go where she wished; Freya was simply curious as to what business brought her here.

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True, Freya and Dagger had never been the closest members of their party, but there was a certain bond shared between comrades. As it wasn't, she took no offense to Freya's question.

"I'm here visiting Eiko," she said with a smile. "We haven't had a chance to really spend any time together... and I've been planning on taking a trip, to visit all these new places. I figured, I might as well stop through Lindblum, first."

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lastsummoner.livejournal.com

Speaking of Eiko, she finally got bored with looking at the display of action figures that had so enticed her moments before. Her head whipped around, and then when she spotted her summoner sister, she went racing over to catch up. Only she knew just who Dagger was talking with.

"Freya!!" Garnet was all but forgotten as the child flung herself at the dragon knight for a tight hug. She'd missed her!

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destinyfollowed.livejournal.com

Freya nodded in understanding; she was hardly the sentimental or nostalgic type, but she also wanted to keep the relationships she had with Zidane and the rest who had traveled with him going. "I still have yet to see everything," Freya replied. "I mean to, eventually, of course."

She opened her mouth to say something more, but she suddenly found that was a difficult thing to accomplish, as the air was driven from her lungs by someone flinging themselves at her and hugging her. It took just a few seconds for her to catch her breath and see who had greeted her so energetically. She wasn't surprised when she realized it was Eiko, the girl they had just been talking about.

"Hello, Eiko," Freya replied, mild surprise evident on her face. Eiko looked older than she remembered, although she wasn't entirely unrecognizable: her hair color was the same, and she had that same innocent smile that she remembered. All the same, it was nice to reconnect with old friends again.

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Dagger was always in the market for new accessories -- not the gaudy type, of course, but something she could actually use. She never seemed to find anything better than what she already had, but it didn't stop her from looking. At a glance, she saw the girl with the bag of goods, handling the trinket.

"...Are you a white mage?" she asked, glancing at the object. It wouldn't do her much good if she wasn't.

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Dagger nodded. "It's one thing... It won't do you much good if you're not a white mage, because it teaches it's bearer 'reflect'." she had one of those back home, collecting dust. She glanced up at Serah then, and smiled.

"So, you don't know which class you are? There are some people in the armor and weapons shops that are pretty good about figuring that kind of thing out."

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morehatthanmage.livejournal.com

Vivi wandered through the business district. He'd stayed in Lindblum when all the other children were taken home. It was...less uncomfortable than he'd expected. The repairs were wonderful, it was impossible to tell from looking what had happenned here. But there were still occasional accusing looks and whipers that weren't as quiet as the whiperers seemed to think they were and for all the people who had managed to put everything behind them there were still just as many people who remembered where every last scorch mark had been and weren't going to forget any time soon.

And he, he realized as he passed the place where four years ago he'd been captured and people hungry to avenge all the people who had been lost to the attack that day screamed ways to kill him until the soldiers stepped in to take him to the regent, was one of them. He took a side street and got lost a few times to avoid walking near there.

There'd always be people who didn't want him here. Just like there'd always be people who'd object to one of the weapons Alexandia had used staying there. He didn't know much politics but he knew they were messy and he didn't want to cause problems for Cid or Dagger. There were people who didn't want him there in Black Mage Village now, too. Maybe it'd be best if he went to one of the sky people cities.

But then Eiko'd be upset because she was on her own again and he didn't want that either. Thinking was hard, maybe he'd just trip and fall down.

-well okay he didn't actually PLAN to do that but he did it anyway.

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