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abitnotgoodiebag · 5 years ago

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Auditory Affliction

@ironstrangebingo square: Carol Danvers

@metalandfood prompt: from the tumblr prompt: Imagine Stephen’s phone going off a la Irene Adler style during inappropriate moments but it’s Tony’s voice that always comes out. The notification sound always changes from soft moans to a breathless, “Stephen”

AO3 link

Summary: Carol must put a stop to these inappropriate interruptions during avengers meetings.

5 times Stephen’s phone goes off and one time it does not.

The first time it happens, there is silence. Stephen pinches the bridge of his nose and pulls his phone from his robes with a put-upon sigh.

After a few taps on the screen of his hours-new personalized StarkPhone, Stephen looks up to see all of the gathered Avenger’s staring at him.

“So we’re just going to act like we didn’t hear Tony moan your name?” Clint asks with a smirk, his tone implying something rude.

Stephen’s jaw tightens a fraction and he swallows the urge to portal him somewhere unpleasant. He ignores the irritating archer and says, “FRIDAY, please let Tony know that I do not find his antics amusing.”

“Will do, Doc,” comes the reply in an amused tone, suggesting that boss would ignore the sentiment completely.

Apparently being crafted to adapt to the limitations of his trembling hands were not the only thing Tony had customized on the device.

The silence from the other members of the team stretches into something uncomfortable.

“What?!” Stephen asks defensively. “It’s not like I recorded it!”

Sam snorts “Suuuure.” under his breath. Clint snickers in response, while Steve doesn’t seem to be sure how to react to the whole situation.

Stephen rolls his eyes so far back into his head he fears they might get stuck. “I’ll be sure to mention how inappropriate this is next time I see Anthony. I’m sure he’ll agree and immediately do as requested to save me further irritation, knowing how much he enjoys decorum.” Stephen says, his sarcasm heavy.

Carol clears her voice to prevent further comments on Stephen’s unfortunate ringtone. “If we could get back to matters at hand?” she asks as she turns her attention back to the projection at the front of the room.

The meeting begins to drone on as it had before.

*Ooooh, Stephen!*

Stephen resists the urge to bang his head on to the table, having already been the recipient of enough stares today. Stephen opens a small portal and throws the phone through it.

“You were saying?” He asks with a frazzled smile pulling at his face.

---

Remembering that Tony is not only an Avenger, but also the world's foremost genius inventor is surprisingly difficult for Stephen. As such, whenever Tony’s presence is required for presentations, conferences and the like, Stephen tends to sulk.

Tony has been gone for 2 days now and Stephen is not happy about it. Wong has finally gotten tired of his moping around the Sanctum and has banished him until he can ‘get off his sorry ass and act like an adult, not a wounded puppy.’

Stephen finds himself wandering the halls of the compound aimlessly. After a minute, his wandering is no longer aimless as he smells something tasty coming from the direction that he is now headed in.

Approaching the communal kitchen area, Stephen notices Carol, Rhodes, Sam, Scott, and Bruce in various stages of cooking and setting the table.

“Strange! I didn’t know you were here.” says Sam while grabbing two pitchers of what appears to be pink lemonade from the refrigerator. “Are you staying for dinner?”

Stephen nods his assent, hoping that social interaction will cause the time until Tony’s return to go back just a bit faster. “What can I do to help?” He asks moving further into the room.

“Everything is pretty much finished, just waiting on the pasta for another minute or so. Make yourself comfortable.” Bruce stirs the pan of sauce that contains the source of the enticing scent. Stephen can identify spinach and other assorted vegetables simmering in a thick red sauce.

He doesn’t realize how hungry he is, and floats an extra place setting to the table.

The food is delicious and Stephen finds himself glad that he stayed for dinner. The wine and camaraderie is just the thing to drag Stephen from his funk.

“And then Telos said, ‘I’m not going to tell you again, man, it’s a fucking Flerken!’” Carol finishes, to the laughter of the group. She takes a sip of wine and continues, “Goose then thought it was the perfect time to eat the box in question, surprising the hell out of Rastur. I’ve never seen someone faint so fast.”

Stephen lets out another chuckle as he refills his glass. He is seriously contemplating stealing another slice of pound cake when a long, loud, breathy moan emanates from his pocket.

This time Stephen does let his head hit the table. “Fucking Tony.”

Scott can’t help but giggle. “Yeah, that’s what it sounds like, man.”

Stephen shoots him a glare. “Har har, Tiny Tim.”

Carol just sighs in resignation “He’ll never change it will he?”

Rhodes laughs softly, “Probably not. Not when everyone keeps getting all stuffy bout it. Rogers’ responses alone practically guarantee that it’s permanent.”

Carol just shakes her head in disapproval. “It’s unprofessional.”

“It’s Tony.” Rhodey replies with a shrug. “He does what he does when he wants to do it.”

Stephen looks up from his response to the intruding message. “It’s one of the joys of his life to cause as much trouble as possible.” Two more indecent cries follow.

“I-uh feel like we’re interrupting a private moment.” Sam says as he hurriedly reaches for the wine. Bruce motions for him to pass it down when he finishes, Sam complies.

“If only. Wong is regaling me with the tale of the newest novice to accidentally stick themselves in another dimension.” Stephen says absentmindedly, putting the phone back in his pocket.

“Wait a minute, you’re telling me that’s not even Stark?” Scott asks bursting into giggles again. “It does that for everybody?”

“Yup.” Stephen replies, lips popping on the P.

“Fucking Tony.” Says an amused Bruce.

“Fucking Tony.” Stephen agrees.

---

Steve Rogers and his merry band of pardoned rogues enter the common room as Stephen is meditating.

They pause momentarily, debating whether or not interrupting Stephen is the wisest course of action, but Clint rolls his eyes at his teammates and continues into the room.

“It’s my turn to pick the movie and I am not letting you dipsticks put me off again!”

Natasha rolls her eyes fondly and heads to one of the couches, curling on one side as Sam and Bucky bicker over who gets the other prime viewing spot on the couch. “You always pick the shittest movies, Clint. Don’t try to deny it.”

They settle in to various positions while Clint fiddles with the Blu Ray player.

The title screen for Sharknado: The Fourth Awakens appears on the television and a chorus of groans rings out, Natasha’s the loudest of the lot.

“Really, Barton? Why do you hate us?” Sam gripes as he decides that in order to sit through this, beer and popcorn are needed. He gets up and heads to the kitchen to collect the snacks.

Clint replies with a smirk, “This is cinematic excellence, you heathens.”

“What exactly is a ‘sharknado’?” Bucky asks, dreading the answer. “Tell me it isn’t exactly what it sounds like.”

“But it is exactly what it sounds like. That’s the beauty of it!” Clint looks absolutely gleeful.

Steve and Bucky look at each other, each wondering why this even exists and why someone thinks that four of them are necessary.

As they munch on popcorn and pick apart the absurd stupidity of the film, they forget the sorcerer’s presence in the room altogether. When they find out that April is actually alive, but mostly machine (several jokes are thrown Bucky’s way) and that she seems to be part human, part iPhone they are startled by a powerful cry of Stephen’s name drawn out in the most salacious tone yet.

Stephen is jerked from his meditating with a curse and would have fallen to the ground if not for the Cloak of Levitation keeping him off the floor.

He opens his eyes to the blush of Steve Rogers and smirks and leers from the rest of the ex-rogues.

“May I help you?” Stephens asks, one eyebrow raised.

“Sounds like you get enough ‘help’ as is!” crows Bucky trying unsuccessfully to hold back laughter.

Various sounds of amused agreement from Sam, Clint and Scott follow the statement. The phone moans again, omitting Stephen’s name this time. Steve’s face is almost completely red when he manages to tear his gaze away from Stephen’s amused one.

“Why? Why would Tony do that? That is not for everyone to hear!” Rogers looks ready to combust from embarrassment.

Flying sharks dance across the screen in the background completely forgotten as Stephen tries not to crack a smile at Steve’s obvious discomfort.

“I think he was trying to embarrass me. He wasn’t aware that it was an exercise in futility, but your reactions do give him some small measure of satisfaction.” Stephen gets to his feet carefully and stretches.

Steve is still blushing and Clint is throwing popcorn at him chuckling.

“In any case, Everything I’ve tried to change or silence it has ended in failure, so I have to hope that he’ll get tired of everyone’s reactions and give it a rest. Eventually.” With that, Stephen opens a portal and steps through to the Sanctum.

“I just don’t understand it.” Steve groans as he closes his eyes and thumps back against the couch, hitting Bucky’s leg.

“Well Stevie, when a boy and a boy love each other very much-” Bucky begins.

“And one of them is a shameless slut!” Clint interrupts, tossing more popcorn, this time into his own mouth. Bucky collapses into laughter unable to finish his lesson on the bees and the bees.

Steve drops his face into his hands and wishes the floor would swallow him whole. “I hate you guys.”

---

Stephen is still unsure how exactly they’ve ended up at this point.

Somehow during a routine training exercise (in which Clint is not a part of, yet is there for), Steve Rogers acquires two serrated arrows. Said arrows are sticking out of the affectionately dubbed ‘America’s Ass.’ At Stephen’s gesture, the Cloak of Levitation lifts him with as little movement as possible and floats him quickly to the medbay.

Stephen opens a portal to Metro General in search of Christine. After he locates her, they step through to the medbay and she appears to be just as baffled as he is.

“Why do you people even have an archer? What is the actual point?” She mutters to herself as she slides her hands into a pair of latex gloves.

Stephen finds it difficult to find a positive answer to her question. He floats several instruments and supplies over to the cart next to the bare-bottomed, Captain America. Steve’s teeth are gritted and his fists clenched in discomfort.

Bucky is standing at the head of the gurney trying pathetically to rein in the snickers at the sight Steve makes.

“As you can see, the arrowheads are serrated, so yanking them out would not be ideal. I came straight to get you, so I haven’t determined whether or not they’ve lodged into any bone matter.” Strange offers his observations as the cloak floats back to settle on his shoulders.

Christine approaches the gurney containing the super soldier. “Captain? I’m going to have to get a quick X-Ray to make sure the tip isn’t lodged in your ilium or sacrum, can you hold tight for me while I check?” Stephen is already pushing the XRay machine over to her. She aims the beam and takes 2 images. Seconds later, the images are displayed as a hologram above the XRay machine.

“Good news, Captain, No tips lodged anywhere. That will make extraction much simpler.” Christine smiles at him.

The doors open and Carol steps into the medbay with a stern look on her face. She catches the gaze of both Stephen and Bucky and quirks an eyebrow. “I am not happy to reset the critical incident counter in the training area again, gentleman. Why exactly am I unhappy this time?”

Bucky ducks his head and swallows his laughter while Stephen just shrugs and replies, “Barton felt left out, I guess.”

Christine is dabbing the punctured area of Rogers’ backside with betadine, concentrating on the task at hand. She picks up the forceps and places a hand on Steve’s lower back. “This may pinch a bit, Captain.” Steve lets out a breath. “I’m going to remove the tips now.”

Steve grunts in response and a fist shoots out to grab Bucky’s forearm. Bucky looks down at Steve and his gaze softens a bit at the discomfort on his face. “Just a tick, Punk, the Doc will have you good as new.”

Christine maneuvers the forceps into position and is able to get the first arrow out with little more than a grimace from Steve. She places the arrow on the cart and turns to the second arrow, inserting the forceps into the puncture gently.

*Oh Yesssss Stephen!*

Christine jerks at the sound, causing the arrow to tear into Steve’ glutes. Steve’s grip on Bucky’s arm veers into painful territory. Barnes and Rogers both cry out simultaneously.

“GODDAMMIT, TONY!” Steve shouts, face colouring in pain and mortification.

Stephen fights with every molecule in his body, but is unable to stop the “Language!” admonishment from leaving his lips.

Every single person in the medbay levels a glare at the sorcerer who raises his hands in a gesture of contrition. He is only moderately certain that his smirk is no longer on his face.

---

Stephen is hard-pressed to admit it, but he absolutely loves spending time with Peter. He knows that he still isn’t quite as close to him as Tony is, but Stephen has grown fond of the Spiderling.

They are in Tony’s lab, Peter doing his homework and Stephen analysing the molecular structure of a relic discovered by the master of the newly rebuilt London sanctum. Once stephen is assured that it is in fact magical and not some alien detritus, he joins Peter at the workbench.

They quickly fall into a discussion on microbiology when a filthy moan stretches out for much longer than necessary.

Stephen whips his head to his pocket before hearing the sound of a pen hitting the metal worktop. Strange turns back toward Peter, scandalized. Peter’s face turns bright red and he looks as if he has no idea how to respond to the noise that just came from Stephen’s direction.

“Uh, Mr. Doctor? Is everything alright?”

Stephen exhales slowly, counting to ten before retrieving his phone and glaring at it. No matter how hard Stephen has tried, there is no changing or silencing the embarrassing notifications. Tony refuses to do it himself and while Stephen initially found it irritating at worst and amusing at best, Peter is now being subjected to Tony’s ridiculousness.

“How upset would you be if I murdered Tony? Scale of Lang to Banner.” Stephen asks mildly, rubbing at his temples.

Peter doesn’t seem to have heard the question. His gaze is set resolutely forward, avoiding Stephen’s eyes. After hearing his pseudo father like that…well, Peter needs brain bleach. “Erg…I just. Can’t.”

Unfortunately, Carol chooses this moment to enter the lab. She frowns at the look on Peter’s face and opens her mouth, no doubt to ask him the matter.

Stephen’s phone picks that same moment to literally scream his name. Everyone in the room is struck by a powerful urge to be somewhere else.

“Strange! This has to stop immediately!” Carol barks as she throws her hands in the air.

Peter hurriedly throws his work in his backpack and flees the lab muttering under his breath about therapy and neuralizers. Stephen experiences a wave of disappointment at his time with his Spider child being cut short. Stephen feels the first twitch of serious ire at Tony’s foolishness. “Major Danvers, I assure you I will speak with Tony about this idiotic phone.”

“See that you do, Strange. Peter is going to be confounded for days.” Try as she might, Carol can’t help but feel the tiniest bit amused at the expression on his face as the boy bolted. She turns on her heel and exits as Stephen opens a portal to the penthouse.

---

Carol steels her resolve as she heads down the hallway towards Tony’s office. These interruptions and interjections cannot be allowed to continue. Amongst the Avengers it’s an annoyance, but now Peter is being harrassed and Carol must take action. She knows that Dr. Strange has nothing to do with it, that Tony is the one behind the many disruptions, so Tony is who she’s going to dress down. She reaches his office door and turns the knob.

“Tony, we need to-”

Carol freezes.

Tony is spread over his desk on his back with his shirt ripped open, head hanging down so she can see the blush on his cheeks. His eyes are screwed shut and he is huffing out little breaths. He’s covered in a light sheen of sweat and he looks utterly wrecked. Strange jerks from the other side of the desk, his hands gripping Tony’s hips tightly, eyes closed in concentration or ecstacy, Carol can’t quite tell nor does she want to.

Carol has never appreciated the necessity of knocking as much as she does in this moment.

A loud cry interrupts her mortification and she turns and flees, not remembering whether or not she closed the door behind her.

She nearly collides with Rhodey a few meters down the hall, still bright red.

“Mmm, Stephen!”

Rhodey frowns. “Tony still won’t change Strange’s ringtone?”

Carol manages to flush even deeper and squeaks “S-Something like that!” She speeds down the hall away from Rhodey, who shakes his head in exasperation and continues in the opposite direction.

He reaches the cracked door of Tony’s office and pushes the door open, about to scold Tony Stank for embarrassing Stephen and ignoring Carol. The door is abruptly jerked closed and Rhodey quickly heads in the direction Carol went muttering curses at Tony Stank.

Back in his office, Tony and Stephen have not slowed down in the slightest. Tony is gripping the edge of desk for dear life while Stephen rails into him. Tony is past the point of caring about keeping quiet and lets out a low stream of curses scattered with the sorcerer’s name.

Stephen groans and shifts his hips slightly finding Tony’s hot spot. Tony throws his head back hard enough to hit the desk. Stephen moves a hand from Tony’s hip to grasp his erection, rubbing his thumb along the slit. Three twisting strokes later, Tony is undone. His legs tighten around Stephen’s waist and he comes with a loud cry covering his stomach and chest with his seed. Stephen is not far behind him, coming with a strangled cry, eyes popping open to look at Tony.

Stephen drops forward onto Tony’s chest, huffing at the feel of Tony’s spend on his exposed skin. Tony brings his head up and tangles his fingers in Stephen’s hair.

Stephen pulls Tony off the desk and falls backwards into Tony’s chair, ending up with a lapful of sated mechanic.

“They still giving you shit about your phone?” Tony asks with a sly grin.

Stephen rolls his eyes and kisses Tony to shut him up. The genius knows perfectly well how the Avengers feel as Tony gleefully has FRIDAY send him the more amusing reactions.

“At least they’ll just think it’s your phone when we sneak off in here.” Tony quips.

“I hate to disappoint you babe, but both Carol and James barged in here not 10 minutes ago. I think we’ve scarred them.” Stephen nuzzles into Tony’s neck breathing in his scent.

Tony shrugs, “Well, that’s one way to guarantee knocking in the future.”

Soon after there are no more lascivious interruptions from Stephen’s phone. Tony’s office door also now sports an unnecessarily large ‘Knock, please!’ sign in hot-rod red. It doesn’t seem to be necessary as no one approaches that hallway anymore unless it is absolutely vital.

#ironstrange #strangeiron #supremefamily #stephen strange #ironstrange bingo #Winebuzzfics #5+1 fic #Tony is a little shit #ironmagic

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yume-x-hanabi · 6 years ago

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Fractured Lives, ch.2

four years overdue

Title: Fractured Lives Characters: Gaius, The Chimeriad, others Pairings: Gaius/Wingul Chapters: 2/? Summary: It won’t be like last time, Elle thought, looking at the king’s friends. They were already dead in the prime dimension, so why couldn’t she give them a second chance?

aka my “let’s save the Chimeriad” (well, at least one set of them) fix-fic, which until now I’d been unable to update because LIFE and MOTIVATION and, well, if you’ve followed me for long enough to even know this thing exists, you probably know why it took so long. Anyway, I haven’t forgotten about it, and am finally in a good place to start working on it again. idk if people are even interested anymore, i mean it’s been so long But anyway, here’s chapter two! I’d recommend viewing on external sites because Tumblr formatting is bad :p

→ AO3 (French here) → FFnet (French here)

Just like every afternoon at this time of the day, Triglav’s central station was crowded. Gaius was sitting on a bench, observing the comings-and-goings while eating a delicious chocolate croissant he had bought at one of the station’s food stalls. Now was the time school ended on the fifth day of the week—Elympions called it “sylphday,” he recalled—and the main hall was packed with students hurrying toward the platforms or taking the elevator down to the subway station. They were all impatient to go back home for a two-day break that Elympions called “week-end.” Students in Rieze Maxia also had a two-day break, which covered the first and last days of the week—in other words, the period of time when spirits’ influence changed. It was apparently Dr Howe who had proposed this tradition in his treatise on spirit artes education. According to Presa, the aim was to cut down on channeling at a time where spirits were weaker, to reduce the risk of accidents. Gaius had not immediately understood why, as he had never had any trouble channeling, whatever the day, but Wingul—who had listened to their conversation from a corner of the library—had explained that it was because he was always emitting too much mana, but that normal people, on the other hand, could feel the difference if they paid attention. At the time, he had thought that Wingul was simply making fun of him, but a recent remark from Musee seemed to indicate that he had been right after all. Unlike his two subordinates, Gaius had never really cared about the theory of spirit artes and had always trusted his instincts when he was casting spells. His artes may not have been as refined as Presa’s or precise as Wingul’s, but he had never had anything to complain about.

Gaius finished eating his snack with a smile. He often thought about his old companions. At first, remembering them had been painful. His castle seemed empty without them. His room, in particular, where he had enjoyed so many intimate moments with Wingul, now felt cold and lifeless. He had not slept well there ever since he came back from the Temporal Crossroads. But life was going on, and, with time, he was now able to think about them with a smile. He missed them all terribly, but these memories were now something he cherished.

He was pulled back from his thoughts by the ringing of his GHS. He took the device out of his pocket and opened it. The screen was showing a notification for a new message from Leia. Careful not to press on the wrong button, he opened the text message, and immediately frowned upon seeing its contents.

cya @ Luds apt asap !!!!!1!1 =O =O =O

At first, he thought that his GHS was broken, but then he recalled all the times Alvin had complained about Leia’s “text speak.” She must have sent him a coded message. If Wingul had been there, he would have most likely enjoyed trying to decipher it. Unfortunately, he was gone, and Gaius had no idea where to start. He considered calling her to ask her what she meant, but he realized that he had never called anyone by himself—Rowen was always dialing the number for him. His frustration must have been obvious, because the young Elympion who was sitting next to him while waiting for her train asked him if everything was all right.

“It’s just that thing…” he said, pointing to his GHS helplessly. “An acquaintance of mine sent me a message, but I cannot read it.”

“Let me guess… text speak, isn’t it?” she asked with a compassionate look. “Maybe I can help,” she proposed. Gaius felt she was kind of laughing at him, but he nevertheless showed her his GHS. After all, what mattered was understanding Leia’s message. Perhaps a girl her age was better suited to deciphering it.

“Oh, that’s not hard,” she told him, “It says ‘see you at Lud’s apartment as soon as possible.’ I guess Lud is someone’s name? It looks important, given the smileys…”

Lud… That was probably Ludger. And if it was important, it was probably about fractured dimensions. He hoped that nothing bad had happened. He got up and fished out a few candies from his pocket and offered them to the girl as a thanks, then walked out the station. Ludger’s apartment was fortunately not far from there, a mere 30-minute walk. On the way, he got a text from Rowen, repeating Leia’s message in correct spelling. He must have realized that letting Leia handle GHS communication was not the best idea if he wanted the message to be understood.

When he knocked on Ludger’s door, it was Leia who opened. But instead of letting him in, she went out and closed the door behind her.

“Hi Gaius. I mean, Erston. I mean…”

“Leia,” he nodded in greeting.

She looked worried and as though she did not know what to say. She was leaning on the door, her hands behind her back.

“You and Rowen texted me about an emergency. What happened?”

“Ah, well, actually… I think I should explain before you come in and…” She gestured toward the door and shrugged, an uncertain smile on her face. She took a deep breath and started talking. “So here’s what happened: Ludger and the others went to a fractured dimension. There, everything started like usual, looking for the catalyst and so on. But then, at the end, it was the same as with Milla. I mean, the other Milla, not our Milla. Do you follow me? Elle brought someone back again, except this time, it was… well…”

She did not finish her sentence and looked at him hesitantly, as if she was not sure whether she should go on. That was enough for him to understand. His heart racing, he pushed her aside and opened the apartment’s door. When he entered the room, all conversations died down.

He had gotten used to seeing them again in fractured dimensions. However, he knew that these moments were fleeting, and that they would not survive the destruction of their world. But now they were here, in Ludger’s apartment, in the prime dimension… He did not know what to think. The situation seemed so unlikely that he was expecting the world to shatter at any moment and to be pulled back to reality. But this was reality. He was not in a fractured dimension. They were there, alive, in his world. In a world that would not disappear.

Presa was lying on Ludger’s sofa, her leg bandaged. Agria was sitting on the armrest next to her, holding to her shoulder. Jiao was sitting on the carpet below them. And Wingul… Where was Wingul? Gaius looked around the room, but his right hand was nowhere to be seen. Had he not come with them?

Before he could ponder about it, Agria broke the silence.

“No way.” She started shaking Presa’s shoulder and continued in a small voice. “Presa, I think I’m dreaming. I’m seeing His Highness right there, in front of us.”

They were all looking at him with wide eyes, as though they could not believe it was him standing here before them. In truth, he probably had the same expression on his face. To his left, in the kitchen, Rowen, Ludger, Elise and Elle were looking at them awkwardly.

He wanted to speak. Say something. Call their names. Make sure they were real. Maybe laugh and cry too, but it would be unbecoming for a king to cry in public. But no word came out.

Eventually, it was Leia broke the weird mood. “I’m hungry!” she announced loudly. Everyone turned to look at her, and she reddened a bit under their gazes, but did not sway. “I’m hungry,” she repeated, giving her friends a meaningful look.

Rowen understood and sprang to action. “Oh my, it’s almost dinner time! But there are too many of us, and I doubt poor Ludger has enough ingredients in his fridge to feed us all. Come with us, Ludger, let’s go grocery shopping. I will help you cook us a little something, like one of those soups you excel at.”

“Ah, well…”

“Are you coming with us?” Leia asked the other girls.

“Oh course!” Elise answered a little too cheerfully. “Come, Elle. Let’s go shopping!”

Rowen turned to Gaius. “Please stay here and take care of our guests while we are gone. We probably won’t be back for a while,” he added with a wink.

Elle stopped before him for a moment and looked like she wanted to tell him something, but Ludger grabbed her hand and they went outside, the others following closely. When the door closed and the room was silent again, Gaius got a chair and sat down in front of them.

“So you’re from a fractured dimension…”

“Yes,” Jiao answered, “Well, at least, that’s what we were told. I must admit I don’t understand much about that dimension stuff.”

“They explained everything, but it’s a little hard to accept,” Presa told him. “We’ve lost all our marks.”

“Everything is different,” Jiao added.

“Which is proof that we are in another dimension. But I think we will need some time to adapt.”

“I understand. I imagine it must not be easy for you to be thrust into such a situation.”

Agria, who until then had stayed silent, suddenly spoke. “Is it true? Is it really you? You’re not a dream or an illusion from the bi—I mean, from Musee?”

Gaius smiled. She looked a bit shaken, but she was without a doubt the Agria he knew.

“It is really me. From the way you are addressing me, I suppose I was also your king in your dimension?” They nodded in response. “Good. This will make things easier.”

A tense silence fell over the room once more. He had so many questions for them, about the circumstances of their arrival, about their dimension, about the reason they were still alive… And they must have had many questions for him as well. After all, being taken from one’s world must not have been a fun experience. Should he tell them that they would not risk running into this world’s versions of themselves? How would they feel if they learned that they were dead in the prime dimension? Should he wait for them to ask? He did not dare speak, for fear of losing control of his own emotions. And they probably did not know what to say either. However, there was still one question he could not help to ask.

“Is it just you three, or…” He did not dare finish his sentence.

“Wingul is with us,” Presa replied at once. “He… There was a fight before we came, and he… He’s there, in the other room. That Ludger guy lent him his room. He’s just resting.”

Without a word, Gaius got up and crossed the room in a few strides. He hesitated one second before he opened the door, then entered Ludger’s room slowly, trying to calm down his pounding heart. He immediately recognized the blond strand in the mass of black hair, sticking out from under the covers. He felt joy fill his heart at this sight. The man laying on Ludger’s bed was definitely Wingul.

He silently walked to the bed and knelt down. Wingul’s face was gaunt. He was terribly skinny and so, so pale. With a shudder, Gaius recalled the year that had followed the implantation of his booster. “What happened to you?” he whispered, brushing a strand aside from his face.

Jiao, who had followed him, was the one to answer. “He had a rough year. Erm… You know, his booster. And then… Well, anyway, he’s seen better days.”

Gaius frowned. “Does he still use it?”

“Yes, sometimes. We try to limit it, but you know him, he never listens.”

That was bad news. The Wingul of the prime dimension had died because of his booster. If this Wingul kept pushing himself too far, he might end up meeting the same fate.

No, Gaius decided. Not twice. Not here.

The possibility broke his heart. It had been difficult for him to overcome the death of his partner, even if he had been expecting it in a way. And though tragic, destroying other Winguls in a fractured dimension was one thing. But watching one die here in his world was another, and he swore to do everything he could to prevent it. Even if this was not his Wingul, he was still precious to him, and he swore to protect him, whatever may lie in their future. Him, and the others too.

He would have to find a solution, but now was not the time. This Wingul needed rest. Besides, he admitted to himself, he did not really want to have to explain how fractured dimensions worked. It would be better to let the others do it. He went back to the living room, and Jiao followed him. Presa and Agria were looking at them with a questioning look.

“What happened to your leg?” he asked Presa to change the topic.

“Oh, that?” she said, pointing to her bandages. “It’s broken. I fell…”

“Yeah, right!” Agria exclaimed. Seeing Gaius’ curious look, she went on, “She flew through the air during the last battle.”

“You too, actually,” Presa retorted, irritated.

“Yeah. But I got back up no problem, unlike you.”

“I just hit the ground at a bad angle, that’s all. It’s not serious,” she told Gaius. “Leia’s a nurse—ex-nurse, apparently, Agria interjected—and she looked at it. She and Elise healed it with spirit artes. They said that Jude Mathis will come and have a look tomorrow to check if everything healed correctly, but it should be fine. I just need to rest a bit, that’s all.”

“I see.”

Gaius sat back down on his chair and decided to start addressing the main issue.

“I imagine that you would like to know how different this world is from yours, and I would like to learn more about it myself. Let us start with the bases: I am king in both worlds, and you are my Chimeriad. Is it correct?”

They nodded.

“Good. Let’s see how similar our circumstances are. Could you summarize what you know about how I rose to the throne of Ajur and how you came to work for me?”

One after the other, they recounted events from their pasts and told him what they knew of Wingul’s. As he thought, their stories were identical to his own experiences. They must have come from a dimension that had followed the prime closely for many years. He would have to ask Ludger more details about its coordinates and the catalyst they had fought. The divergence most likely lied in recent events, after their meeting with Milla and Jude, as they seemed to know them. History must have started changing during the battle of Fezebel, he thought while looking at Jiao. The big man had been the first of the Chimeriad to sacrifice himself, and his presence here today was proof of the difference between their dimensions.

“What happened during the battle of Fezebel?”

“Well, like we just said, a tsunami totally swept over the battlefield.”

“I think he means the most recent one, Agria,” Presa corrected, “the one against Nachtigal. Is that right, Your Highness?”

“Yes. In this world, we fought against Rashugal’s army and took control of the Lance of Kresnik, which Milla Maxwell wanted to destroy. Is it the same for you?”

“It is so far, but after the fight against Maxwell, strange things started happening.”

“Was the Lance activated?”

“It pierced a hole in the sky!”

“Then Elympion soldiers invaded and attacked our troops,” Gaius concluded. It was what had happened next that he was curious about.

“I can’t believe it. It really feels like we are talking to our Gaius. All our memories are the same,” Jiao said with emotion in his voice. Gaius did not comment on that, as he knew what he would eventually have to reveal to them.

“How did you overcome their assault?”

“You know Ivar, Maxwell’s handmaid or whatever? That moron created a diversion to allow her to flee, and we took the chance to get away too. Foolish bastard. But at least he was useful.”

“Agria, show a little more respect. He gave his life to save us.”

“Ivar sacrificed himself?”

That was unexpected. So it was Ivar who had saved them that day, instead of Jiao. That was a big difference, but it seemed that history had not really changed its course immediately afterward.

“We met with Maxwell in the Xailen Woods Temple… Ah, did Elympions take control of Khan Baliq here too?” Jiao asked.

“Yes. We cooperated with Maxwell’s group to take it back, then launched an attack against the enemy HQ.”

With Ivar, without you, he did not add.

“Then we fell into a trap.”

“And Maxwell sacrificed herself as well. Was it the same for you, Your Highness?”

“It was. We landed, and then had to face Musee’s attacks. She wanted to keep the schism’s existence a secret, even if that meant killing anyone who knew about it.”

“Wait a minute,” Presa interrupted. “Musee attacked you here too? I thought…”

They all looked surprised. And yet, both stories had seemed to match.

“What do you mean?”

“Well, Rowen and Elise seemed to consider her an ally, so I thought she was on your side in this dimension.”

“She is on my side. She eventually joined us. Is it different in your dimension?”

“Yes, completely.”

They were looking at each other meaningfully, but none of them seemed ready to talk.

Musee… Her behavior was always hard to predict, which was probably why she was often a catalyst. If she had not joined him and shared her power with him in their world, what differences could this have caused? Had he not been able to go to Elympios? What about his conflict with Maxwell? Was the schism still intact? Had Milla reincarnated anyway? His head was filled with many questions, but he could not get any answer now, for the apartment door opened and interrupted their discussion.

“We’re back!”

The group entered the room carrying many grocery bags. The kitchen soon turned into a battlefield, with young troops that Rowen was directing brilliantly, delegating the various tasks needed to make tomato soup for eight people (plus a special eggplant one for Elle). Agria and Jiao joined the fight as well, but Leia forbade Presa from moving from the sofa. Elle entrusted her with the guard of Lulu to make her feel useful and prevent the cat from stealing any food. Gaius chose to peel potatoes with Ludger, jumping on the occasion to ask him about the fractured dimension. Ludger confirmed his suspicions and explained what had happened.

“Where is Musee now?” he asked when Ludger finished recounting the events that had led them here.

“She’s resting at Leia’s place,” Rowen answered him. “Since the Chimeriad are currently viewing her as an enemy, she’d better stay on the low for a while.”

The image of Musee lying low was rather amusing, but Rowen was right, she should avoid showing herself for now.

Agria cried in surprise when Ludger turned on the stove. This was obviously the first time they’d seen a household spyrix. There would be many things to explain… They had been ripped from their world and were now lost in a country they knew next to nothing about. At least, they were not alone, and Gaius was sure that Rowen and the others would do everything they could to help them get used to their new circumstances. They would also have to think about what to do once they were more familiar with the place. But those questions were a little premature. The priority right now was to help them feel at ease. Starting with a good meal.

“Enjoy your meal!”

“Mmh, that smells good.”

“Not as good as my daddy’s soup!”

“Really?”

“But it’s still good! You’re number two, Ludger!”

“Do you like it, Agria?” Leia asked, trying to include their guests in the conversation.

“Why are you talking to me? Last time I checked, we weren’t so chummy with each other.”

“You’re as charming as ever, I see.”

“Are you looking for a fight?” Agria cried, rising up on her seat.

“Agria!” Presa immediately reacted. “Table manners!”

Agria turned to her, a mean retort ready to leave her lips, but her eyes fell on Gaius and she froze. Blushing, she sat down and apologized in a small voice, which surprised Leia, who had never seen her act so meek before. Gaius felt his heart ache. How many times had he witnessed such a scene before, when his Chimeriad were still alive? He thought of the other Milla, who had been so different from Milla Maxwell. These Agria, Presa and Jiao, however, were identical to those he had known. It almost felt as if they were never gone.

“…us? Gaius!”

Hearing his name brought him back from his thoughts. Rowen was looking at him with a slightly worried look.

“I’m sorry, I was lost in thoughts. What did you say?”

“We were wondering where the Chimeriad could stay. Our dear Ludger doesn’t mind lending them his apartment tonight, but we should probably look for another long-term solution.”

“Indeed, we should not abuse his kindness.”

“Don’t worry about us,” Presa spoke, “we’ll find a place to stay on our own. We’ll leave as soon as Wingul wakes up.”

“With what gald?” Jiao asked her. “We lost all our belongings with our world. Besides, we don’t know anything about Elympios.”

“We should go back to Ajur as soon as possible…”

“No!” Gaius interrupted, startling them. He continued more calmly: “It would be better to stay in Elympios for now.”

What would the citizens of Khan Baliq say if they saw them stroll through the city as if nothing happened? He would have to think of a way to tell the news to the population. The list of things to do was getting longer and longer. This situation was sure to give him a lot of extra work.

“Don’t worry about that,” he added. “Taking care of you is my responsibility.”

“Your Highness…”

“We don’t want to impose…”

“It’s my job,” he insisted. “I will find us an apartment nearby.”

“Us?” Rowen pointed out, his eyes twinkling. The old man had tried to convince him to acquire a permanent home in Triglav for months. He personally did not see the need, as the city and surrounding areas were full of cheap motels—they were admittedly a bit seedy, but much cheaper than having to pay rent. However, he could not impose such a life to the Chimeriad, especially since they were so disoriented. Besides, this would enable him to stay with them.

“I will start looking first thing tomorrow,” he added.

“Don’t forget your business brunch,” Rowen reminded him. “You are to meet representatives from the Skylark Exchange tomorrow morning. I will handle the apartment hunt.”

“All right. I am counting on you.” To be perfectly honest, he would have preferred to let Rowen handle the meeting instead, but he could not go back on his word. These kinds of business talks could have an impact on the relationship between the two countries.

After dinner, he went to see Wingul one more time before leaving. The man was still in a deep sleep and looked like it would be a while before he woke up. “Convalescence doesn’t suit you,” he whispered, touching his face lightly with his fingertips. “Get well, Wingul. I want to talk to you.”

He bade the others goodbye and promised he would be back as soon as he was done with his engagements. When he went out of the building, he noticed that Elle was out as well. She was sitting on one of the little park’s swings, looking down.

“Is there anything wrong, Elle?”

She looked up at the sound of his voice, and her eyes teared up. She quickly wiped her eyes and looked down again, avoiding his gaze.

“I’m sorry,” she murmured faintly.

“Why are you apologizing? You did nothing wrong.”

“Ludger told me that what I did was ‘irresponsible’ and that I caused you lots of problems. He said I should have thought about what happened to Milla before I acted…” She let her tears fall freely this time. “But I thought it would be different than with Milla. I just wanted you to meet your friends again…”

So she had deliberately brought them back. It was not an accident like had been the case for the other Milla. That was something he had wondered. She must have gotten the idea when she witnessed his painful reunions with other Chimeriads from other fractured dimensions. He had always been careful not to show any emotion, but her childish eyes must have seen through the façade and noticed his distress. He crouched down before her and delicately wiped away her tears.

“Do not blame yourself, Elle,” he told her gently. “I know you only had good intentions.”

“You don’t hate me?” she sniffled.

“Of course not! On the contrary… I would like to thank you. It’s true that there will be some problems, but we can overcome them. It’s nothing compared to the chance to see them again.”

Elle’s face brightened immediately.

“Oh, good! I was afraid you’d be mad. You’re scary when you’re mad.”

He laughed softly. It was true that his strict look was intimidating to children—and even to most adults, in fact.

“I’ll never be mad at you. Not for this.”

“Pinky swear?” she asked, presenting her little finger.

“Pinky swear!” he agreed.

She giggled, happy with her new promise.

“I must go! Ludger is going to worry. Good night, mister king.”

“Good night, Elle.”

He went back to his hotel, his mind full of doubts and hope. Whatever happened, Elle’s choice would probably have unexpected consequences. But all that mattered to him now was to make sure that these Chimeriad could find a place in their new world, at his side.

As he expected, his business brunch was extremely boring. Skylarks’ salespeople were going on endlessly about their company’s successes, and all he had to do was nod and speak a few words of acknowledgement from time to time. He would have much rather gone apartment hunting with Rowen. He wondered what his councilor would find. Nothing too grand, he hoped. The old man sometimes had very fixed ideas on how a king should show his influence. He just wanted something neither too big nor too small, where he could help the Chimeriad get used to their new world. The businessmen were now congratulating themselves on their victory against a competitor. He felt his GHS vibrate in his pocket and had to resist the urge to take it out and check what it was about. Had Rowen found something? What district would they move to? He hoped it would not be too far from the station… though the port district might be good too. They would then have easy access to the ferries bound for Marksburg, from where they could quickly reach Rieze Maxia. Although, it would be best to avoid Rieze Maxia for the moment. He really needed to come up with a way to explain the Chimeriad’s return to the population.

To his relief, the meeting finally came to an end. The Skylark executives looked very satisfied and were already promising to organize another one. In his mind, he already made the decision to send Rowen to the next one in his place. When the last man left, he sat back down and took out his GHS, curious about the message he had received earlier. Surprisingly, it was not from Rowen, but from Elise. It only contained one single sentence, but that was enough to make his heart flutter.

Wingul woke up.

#yume fanfiction #tales of xillia #king gaius #gaiwin #the chimeriad #i liiiiiiive #tales of xillia 2

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