Open Post // Overflow

[undyingflames]

 

Feel free to hit me up with anything!!  I'm honestly always down for anything ₍՞◌′ᵕ‵ू◌₎♡
I've finished the game so spoilers are totally fine, though be careful looking in here if you haven't beaten it yet!

Comments

[hellfury]

[ Clive guides Ambrosia to her new stall, but he can see Joshua from the corner of his eye. Every little shift and change in his brother doesn't go without notice... And he can see the guilt beneath diffidence. It puts him at ease that Joshua is still the sweet boy he remembers from when they were children.

For a moment, he focuses elsewhere, petting Ambrosia on the beak as she settles for her new rest stop. She chirps happily while closing her eye, nuzzling into Clive's hand and enjoying the pampering. In the short silence, he parses through the questions he had... Do they matter now? Ultimately, no, especially with Joshua alive and well. ]

A couple of times, I wondered why you kept silent in the shadows. [ Not with malice, or betrayal, not at all. Clive simply thinks he would have been able to keep the secret, still... ] You're safe. That's what I can see with my very eyes.

[ Joshua had his reasons. Whether Clive was a threat... Whether their communication could jeopardize his safety. There are a number of reasons and he trusts the Undying and Joshua for their ways of work, even though at times he questions the underground knights for their cultic devotion.

There's a small smile on his face as he runs his fingers through the feathers atop Ambrosia's head. There are childish desires of wishing they had more time together, that he didn't spend his years mourning over the person he swore to protect. With a gently swing of the stable door and a clink of the lock, chocobo are secure and free to enjoy their gysahl greens. ]

Long overdue indeed... I'm sure they would welcome you all the same. [ Even if the talk of souls and the dead are sentiments for the living, they can still pay these memories respect. Clive tries to soften the bittersweet taste in their mouths with something lighter. The long gone Eastpudlians wouldn't want to see either of them so gloomy. ] I hope over the years you've steeled your nerves some?

[ Or does little brother still get nervous at large gatherings where he's the focus. They can head toward the cemetery, which lays a bit outside of Eastpool. It's a short walk. ]

[undyingflames]

[ Clive doesn't say it as though he's hurt or betrayed, and Joshua knows it, knowing the tone of his brother's voice, knowing he wouldn't put that on him, but... it doesn't stop the guilt in his heart from taking hold of the words like a dagger and cutting at him. Because never had he been able to give a reason why he couldn't be with his brother, why he had to stay away, and for as much as he knew Clive was at least relieved to know he still lived, there was hurt too, sadness, that something, that Joshua was the one keeping them apart.

And Clive could only ever wonder why.

There's an apology waiting on his lips, but he's stopped as Clive continues speaking of his relief to see him safe. It does little to quell the ache in his heart, but he tries... he bites it back and swallows it down, because... he has to believe that truly is all that matters now, that they're both alive, safe, and together again. ]

Indeed. [ It's said softly, gently, lacking the conviction he usually has, but he's trying to fight his way past the guilt, and gives a small nod.

Then his own smile warms some at Clive's own, at his reassurance, and, after their chocobo's are secured in their pens, moves to follow him as they start to make their way towards the grave, letting him take the lead since Joshua has yet to visit it himself. He chuckles softly, almost sounding more like a small exhale, ducking his head a little, letting the air between them lighten again towards what it was. ]

I should like to believe I have. Lest all that I have done count for naught. [ Listen, he's faced Ultima, seeked an audience with Dion on multiple occasions (and forced his way into his tent), led the Undying!! But then, a pause, his smile sheepish ] Though, speaking with Father again was... nerve-racking.

[ Though more in wondering of how their father would see them now, if he would be proud of them, how they've grown, wondering if they've lived up to his image. And perhaps that'll extend a little as he pays his respects to the spirits here. ]