[it's definitely at least, good scenery, even if entirely unfamiliar. it gives him a chance to look at it all as they walk—between stolen glances at milla as she explains it.]
I broke the natural order of things by being here. Makes plenty of sense why they'd be confused by it.
[though it raises a bit of a question, one noct is sure must be important.]
Is... that gonna mess anything up? For you, or for this world?
[the beautiful Kijara Seafalls!! which is inhabited by quite a few monsters, but now that Milla is around they seem to be keeping their distance. perhaps they know better than to pick a fight with the Lord of Spirits]
Not at all. You may be an anomaly, but your mere existence won't keep the cycle from continuing.
[pppppause]
You're also not the first one in this world to be reincarnated outside of that cycle.
[definitely a nifty trick, though noct isn't going to complain if they don't have to fight right now. he's tired, he's had enough of that for now.]
...Gonna guess that you were like that too. [she died once, after all—in this world. so the fact she still has those memories would make her an anomaly too, wouldn't it?]
[she's silent for a moment as she lifts her free hand and places it over her heart. there's something distracted about her expression as she recounts these memories.]
. . . I did, yes.
Perhaps my memories and my sense of self were gone, but my heart. . . that remained. I remembered things as I traveled across the spirit realm and saw familiar landmarks of places I had visited in the realm of man. When I slept, I dreamed of Jude. I remembered meeting him. I remembered traveling with him. I remembered. . . how much I wanted to be the Maxwell he adored.
[her hand clenches into a fist]
With the help of the Four, I received an ancient arte from one of my predecessor's specters-- concentrated forms of his consciousness that he could send out to various parts of the world in order to carry out the cycle of purification and reincarnation. Origin purifies the souls of the departed now, but back then, before the Schism was destroyed, my predecessor used those shadows to monitor the process himself.
With this arte in hand, I climbed to the top of the Nia Khera Hallowmont, which was the only entrance to the Temporal Crossroads-- the door between the realms of spirit and man-- from the spirit world. From there, I saw my comrades. . . I saw Jude. . . engaged in battle with my predecessor.
Seeing his determination, his unwavering will, and his desire to keep fighting. . .
[a deep breath]
That, in tandem with the ancient arte, brought back to me my memories and everything that made me. . . Milla.
[notably she is just using "Milla," not "Milla Maxwell." because back then, she wasn't Maxwell, was she? not officially, anyway. she was Milla, the woman who made herself Maxwell through sheer determination and heart]
[he's quiet as she speaks, listening thoughtfully to her words and her story.
some of it goes over his head a bit—locations and artes, and other things that he can only recall from the stories she told him a decade earlier. but he still follows the general idea of what she's saying.
and hough there's something strange and melancholic about it, noctis finds a faint smile on his lips.]
...Sounds like you. Even losing everything about yourself, you kept going forward until you found a way to get it back.
[it's something she credits jude for, and noctis won't deny that he was probably part of it; he knows well enough already that jude is someone important to her, someone who has motivated her to be better and stronger, and hearing this story...
well, he definitely understands it a little more than when she'd first explained it to him.]
Bet even without that, you probably would've found a way to keep going until you were you again.
[but. noct is glad for it, because... he's glad the milla he met is someone strong enough to face that and conquer it. it's what made him like her to begin with and help motivate him so much to live up to the title that had been decided for him.]
[she's sorry she can't tell this story without confusing him with location and arte names oops]
I would have tried.
[and she tilts her head towards him now]
But I suppose that memory stands out to me as an example of the profound effect people can have on each other, even in such short periods of time. Of course. . . it's only one of many.
[well, at least it wasn't all that tough to tell which one of those spirits was muzét, for whatever that may be worth.
and definitely the one he was most unsure of, because for all that noctis has grown... he's still noctis. that's enough to fluster him at least a little when she gets like that.]
She... seemed like it. But I think that's just what sisters do. Or siblings in general. [coming from his... experience of dealing with people who have sisters.]
I'm sure... you'll fill them all in just fine, anyway. [please make sure muzét doesn't flirt with him too much, he is not ready for this life.]
[she can't help but chuckle, as though she's sensing his embarrassment. SHE REALLY DOES LIKE HIS EMBARRASSED FACES I'm sorry Noctis, she finds them endearing. . .]
I suppose it is. The only experience I have with sisters are with Muzét and Yuna, and they're both very different from each other.
[one was tiny and spunky and cute and determined, and the other was A MENACE]
[it's a good thing she'll be seeing those faces for a long time, then!]
Never had siblings of my own. But I've been around 'em. Seems like you got a little of both type with those two.
[he can see similarities in her relationships with yuna and the way muzét teases and compare it easily enough to everything he remembers from gladio and iris and how they behaved with each other. it's similar, so he figures it's just gotta be a Thing.]
[the beach is starting to give way to grass. Nia Khera's round huts can be seen in the nearby distance]
Then that makes me extremely lucky, to have a little of both types.
[that is the way she's interpreting it and nothing will change her mind]
We're coming up on Nia Khera-- ah. Well, the spirit realm version. [a pause] You're likely to run into several lesser spirits here. Don't be alarmed if you perceive them as human. Most new spirits reborn from humans do, although sometimes that impression of them fades over time.
[he'll let her have that interpretation—theoretically, there's nothing wrong with it anyway. it's not like he knows much about her relationship with muzét to judge it, regardless. she definitely has a way with making him feel a bit awkward from their brief meeting.
but he'll get used to it, probably.]
Got it. I think I can handle that... makes enough sense, anyway. [though, there is one important question.]
What's the difference, anyway. Just a power thing, or whatever? With... lesser spirits and great spirits.
[he knows the four are great spirits, and milla obviously as well. but he did catch gnome saying that noct himelf wasn't exactly a lesser spirit—so...?]
[ah. . . that's right. she never explained to him the difference, did she? her nose wrinkles as she searches for the words]
Yes, the difference is mostly based on power. Lesser spirits are very common, while very few achieve Great Spirit status. Artes cast by channeling Great Spirits are far more powerful than those cast by channeling lesser spirits.
[he catches on pretty quick, because it's a simple enough explanation; he's not stupid, after all. even if noct doesn't yet know the finer points, it's a pretty easy concept to grasp.]
They were saying I wasn't a "lesser spirit," so, uh. What... does that make me, exactly? [is there some middle-ground between lesser and great spirits? he's curious to know.]
[and at that question, she stops walking an inclines her head to look at him curiously. unlike the Four, she hadn't super paid attention to anything else but the fact that he was here (and the fact that she was glad to see him after ten years). so she hadn't really thought about it until now]
[there's a pause. she's scrutinizing him carefully, before she lifts one hand to pat his cheek a few times]
Hmmm. . .
. . . I suppose that makes you the spirit realm's newest Great Spirit.
[talk about a response he wasn't at all expecting—and it shows.]
Wait, seriously? [not that he disbelieves milla, of course. but there's no way noct was actually expecting that she'd deem him to be a great spirit.
but hey, she's the lord of spirits so... if anyone gets to make that call, it's milla, right? he knows he has to trust it, but he's still undoubtedly pretty shocked by the revelation.]
[pinches his cheek some more, like she's TESTING SOMETHING, before she finally withdraws her hand. his surprise doesn't go unnoticed, but. . .]
But I wonder what that makes you the Great Spirit of?
[he's expressing said surprise at a being who made herself the Lord of Spirits because that is what she wanted to be. she doesn't seem bothered or even fazed at the idea of his wish causing him to show up in Rieze Maxia as one]
[he couldn't even know what she was trying to test... aside from maybe his pain tolerance to pinching, which may be higher than expected.]
I... have no idea. Kind of new to this spirit business, so I'm not even sure where to start.
[it's probably light, since does aska even exist in the prime dimension? who knows, but there's no sign of him, luna, rem or gilione (why are there so many major light deities in tales?), it's probably his closest element... as the king of light, or whatever.
That so... and here I thought something like that would be a pretty big deal.
[it's kind of a big deal to him, but honestly? he's still pretty tired (mentally) from everything he's been through. it's pretty hard to be that incredulous about things after making a noble sacrifice to save the world.
but apparently, not too tired to still be a little sarcastic—teasing smile on his lips as he leans into her touch. he's fine with all of this, honestly.]
It can be, in some ways. But in others, it isn't at all.
[how does she explain this. . .]
Take the Four, for instance. It doesn't necessarily matter who the Four Great Spirits are, as long as there are four of them. When they die, four others will eventually take their place.
[her hands drop from his cheeks to his shoulders, then down his arms, and then to his hands. her fingers twine with his again]
But for someone who never expected this, then I can see how it would be. . . "a big deal."
[to that, he can nod in understanding—it's different than anything he knows, but it's not particularly difficult to understand.]
Can't argue that. Definitely wasn't expecting this to end in me being one of these... Great Spirits at all.
[but it's a responsibility he can accept. ten years ago, that would have been a difficult thing to accept, but here and now? it's much easier for him. just like it's easy to claps her hands and lace their fingers together, and how easy it is for him to smile at her this way—it's pretty easy for noctis to accept this responsibility, even if it's something entirely new for him.]
It is what it is, though. Not gonna say I have any complaints about it, either.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
no subject
I broke the natural order of things by being here. Makes plenty of sense why they'd be confused by it.
[though it raises a bit of a question, one noct is sure must be important.]
Is... that gonna mess anything up? For you, or for this world?
no subject
Not at all. You may be an anomaly, but your mere existence won't keep the cycle from continuing.
[pppppause]
You're also not the first one in this world to be reincarnated outside of that cycle.
no subject
...Gonna guess that you were like that too. [she died once, after all—in this world. so the fact she still has those memories would make her an anomaly too, wouldn't it?]
no subject
[she says that evenly, like the fact that she. you know. died doesn't bother her]
When I first passed, the Four managed to retrieve my soul from the River of Souls before it could be purified. But. . .
[she shakes her head]
They were unable to retrieve me as I was. I lost. . . my memories. My name. My sense of self.
no subject
[well, he knows she did. That's obvious enough, because milla is milla—but she also very obviously is herself and has all of those memories.
there's obviously a story here that she hasn't yet told him—and of course, noct wants to know it all.]
no subject
. . . I did, yes.
Perhaps my memories and my sense of self were gone, but my heart. . . that remained. I remembered things as I traveled across the spirit realm and saw familiar landmarks of places I had visited in the realm of man. When I slept, I dreamed of Jude. I remembered meeting him. I remembered traveling with him. I remembered. . . how much I wanted to be the Maxwell he adored.
[her hand clenches into a fist]
With the help of the Four, I received an ancient arte from one of my predecessor's specters-- concentrated forms of his consciousness that he could send out to various parts of the world in order to carry out the cycle of purification and reincarnation. Origin purifies the souls of the departed now, but back then, before the Schism was destroyed, my predecessor used those shadows to monitor the process himself.
With this arte in hand, I climbed to the top of the Nia Khera Hallowmont, which was the only entrance to the Temporal Crossroads-- the door between the realms of spirit and man-- from the spirit world. From there, I saw my comrades. . . I saw Jude. . . engaged in battle with my predecessor.
Seeing his determination, his unwavering will, and his desire to keep fighting. . .
[a deep breath]
That, in tandem with the ancient arte, brought back to me my memories and everything that made me. . . Milla.
[notably she is just using "Milla," not "Milla Maxwell." because back then, she wasn't Maxwell, was she? not officially, anyway. she was Milla, the woman who made herself Maxwell through sheer determination and heart]
no subject
some of it goes over his head a bit—locations and artes, and other things that he can only recall from the stories she told him a decade earlier. but he still follows the general idea of what she's saying.
and hough there's something strange and melancholic about it, noctis finds a faint smile on his lips.]
...Sounds like you. Even losing everything about yourself, you kept going forward until you found a way to get it back.
[it's something she credits jude for, and noctis won't deny that he was probably part of it; he knows well enough already that jude is someone important to her, someone who has motivated her to be better and stronger, and hearing this story...
well, he definitely understands it a little more than when she'd first explained it to him.]
Bet even without that, you probably would've found a way to keep going until you were you again.
[but. noct is glad for it, because... he's glad the milla he met is someone strong enough to face that and conquer it. it's what made him like her to begin with and help motivate him so much to live up to the title that had been decided for him.]
no subject
I would have tried.
[and she tilts her head towards him now]
But I suppose that memory stands out to me as an example of the profound effect people can have on each other, even in such short periods of time. Of course. . . it's only one of many.
no subject
Yeah. I guess... that's how people are a lot.
[he looks to her with a small smile. sounds familiar?]
...Probably wouldn't be here now if it wasn't for that, you know.
no subject
I'll explain to the Four and Muzét why your circumstances are special. I think they'll take a liking to you rather quickly.
Please excuse my sister, though. She has a very unique personality.
[Milla is fond of Muzét but BOY is Muzét a trip and a half. also there's that history of Muzét trying to kill her a couple of times so you know]
no subject
and definitely the one he was most unsure of, because for all that noctis has grown... he's still noctis. that's enough to fluster him at least a little when she gets like that.]
She... seemed like it. But I think that's just what sisters do. Or siblings in general. [coming from his... experience of dealing with people who have sisters.]
I'm sure... you'll fill them all in just fine, anyway. [please make sure muzét doesn't flirt with him too much, he is not ready for this life.]
no subject
I suppose it is. The only experience I have with sisters are with Muzét and Yuna, and they're both very different from each other.
[one was tiny and spunky and cute and determined, and the other was A MENACE]
no subject
Never had siblings of my own. But I've been around 'em. Seems like you got a little of both type with those two.
[he can see similarities in her relationships with yuna and the way muzét teases and compare it easily enough to everything he remembers from gladio and iris and how they behaved with each other. it's similar, so he figures it's just gotta be a Thing.]
no subject
Then that makes me extremely lucky, to have a little of both types.
[that is the way she's interpreting it and nothing will change her mind]
We're coming up on Nia Khera-- ah. Well, the spirit realm version. [a pause] You're likely to run into several lesser spirits here. Don't be alarmed if you perceive them as human. Most new spirits reborn from humans do, although sometimes that impression of them fades over time.
no subject
but he'll get used to it, probably.]
Got it. I think I can handle that... makes enough sense, anyway. [though, there is one important question.]
What's the difference, anyway. Just a power thing, or whatever? With... lesser spirits and great spirits.
[he knows the four are great spirits, and milla obviously as well. but he did catch gnome saying that noct himelf wasn't exactly a lesser spirit—so...?]
no subject
Yes, the difference is mostly based on power. Lesser spirits are very common, while very few achieve Great Spirit status. Artes cast by channeling Great Spirits are far more powerful than those cast by channeling lesser spirits.
Does that make sense?
no subject
[he catches on pretty quick, because it's a simple enough explanation; he's not stupid, after all. even if noct doesn't yet know the finer points, it's a pretty easy concept to grasp.]
They were saying I wasn't a "lesser spirit," so, uh. What... does that make me, exactly? [is there some middle-ground between lesser and great spirits? he's curious to know.]
no subject
[there's a pause. she's scrutinizing him carefully, before she lifts one hand to pat his cheek a few times]
Hmmm. . .
. . . I suppose that makes you the spirit realm's newest Great Spirit.
no subject
Wait, seriously? [not that he disbelieves milla, of course. but there's no way noct was actually expecting that she'd deem him to be a great spirit.
but hey, she's the lord of spirits so... if anyone gets to make that call, it's milla, right? he knows he has to trust it, but he's still undoubtedly pretty shocked by the revelation.]
no subject
But I wonder what that makes you the Great Spirit of?
[he's expressing said surprise at a being who made herself the Lord of Spirits because that is what she wanted to be. she doesn't seem bothered or even fazed at the idea of his wish causing him to show up in Rieze Maxia as one]
no subject
I... have no idea. Kind of new to this spirit business, so I'm not even sure where to start.
[it's probably light, since does aska even exist in the prime dimension? who knows, but there's no sign of him, luna, rem or gilione (why are there so many major light deities in tales?), it's probably his closest element... as the king of light, or whatever.
and because his name is nightlight.
or.
something?]
no subject
[LIGHT WOULD WORK ASKA PROBABLY WOULDN'T. . . MIND??? aska in the fractured dimensions is dead by now anyway lbr]
[but she laughs and disentangles her fingers from his so she can bring up both hands to cup his cheeks]
It isn't something you have to decide right now. You have time to think about it. There's no rush.
[oh Milla, acting like becoming a Great Spirit is no big deal, no big deal at all]
no subject
[it's kind of a big deal to him, but honestly? he's still pretty tired (mentally) from everything he's been through. it's pretty hard to be that incredulous about things after making a noble sacrifice to save the world.
but apparently, not too tired to still be a little sarcastic—teasing smile on his lips as he leans into her touch. he's fine with all of this, honestly.]
no subject
[how does she explain this. . .]
Take the Four, for instance. It doesn't necessarily matter who the Four Great Spirits are, as long as there are four of them. When they die, four others will eventually take their place.
[her hands drop from his cheeks to his shoulders, then down his arms, and then to his hands. her fingers twine with his again]
But for someone who never expected this, then I can see how it would be. . . "a big deal."
no subject
Can't argue that. Definitely wasn't expecting this to end in me being one of these... Great Spirits at all.
[but it's a responsibility he can accept. ten years ago, that would have been a difficult thing to accept, but here and now? it's much easier for him. just like it's easy to claps her hands and lace their fingers together, and how easy it is for him to smile at her this way—it's pretty easy for noctis to accept this responsibility, even if it's something entirely new for him.]
It is what it is, though. Not gonna say I have any complaints about it, either.