#I suppose I'll just have to try again! woe. misery :)

[galaxacious]

Had an idea for a painting. Took these references

[trans-peridot]

FFxivWrite Day 19: Taken

Tayfun and Alphinaud have a talk in the week between 2.55 and Heavensward. Sort of an in-universe, in-character explanation for his VA change. With this I think there are only two Scions I haven't written about? Yes I'm counting Tataru as a Scion.

Tayfun and Alphinaud sat together in what Haurchefant had so endearingly dubbed the “Falling Snows.” It had been over a week since... the events of the banquet. Tayfun didn’t love to think about it, and Alphinaud would be taken by waves of despair if it was brought up. And sometimes it didn't have to be brought up. He would bring it up himself just so he could wallow in the guilt.

“My friend... Tayfun, I am so sorry for what happened because of me and me alone. My singular pride and hubris has done this, and now you all must reap my consequences.”

“Alphinaud, please...” Tayfun was just trying to savor some hot chocolate, practically her one indulgence since the world she'd built as the Warrior of Light had come crumbling down around her. She felt for his grief, but it didn't have to be all the time, did it?

“I suppose we should count ourselves among the lucky ones, should we not? We at least find ourselves alive and accounted for. O woe, O woe, that I, solitary instigator of such misery, should be spared the worst of it!”

“There, there, it's alright. It's always darkest before the dawn, or something. Every rose has its thorn, and so on.” Tayfun was truly not without sympathy. But it had been days, and she had to repeat this routine at least once a day with him.

“Before the dawn... Before the Scions of the Seventh Dawn, you mean.” Shit. Word choice. “All slain, practically by mine own hand.”

“Alphinaud, you know for a fact that isn't true. Urianger is at the Waking Sands right now. Tataru is right outside, getting us some soup! The two of us are alive right here and now, and your sister wasn't even in Ul'dah at the time!” Tayfun took some deep breaths. Best not yell at the boy, he was already going through it as it was.

“My sister... Heavens, how could I have forgotten my sister...” False. He had brought up Alisaie in at least a third of his wallowing sessions. “How long until she, too, comes to bear the consequences of my foolishness?”

“Shut up! Alphinaud, shut up! Stop it, stop talking! The Scions aren't dead, they're missing. Your sister is fine. We're going to figure this out and clear our names, and it'll be fine. Teledji was going to have the sultana killed eventually, so you have no blame in that. It's fine. I get that you're sad, I get that you blame yourself, but actually it's literally whatever!” Tayfun half believed what she was saying, maybe three-quarters believed it. But if it would get Alphinaud out of this funk then she would believe it with her whole heart for the moment.

Alphinaud did not escape his funk. Alphinaud started crying. “I'm sorry Tayfun. I'm so stupid and childish, I'm sorry for acting like I'm the victim here. I'm so so stupid.”

“What! No no no, please don't cry! I'm sorry, shit, sorry!” Tayfun reached over and hugged Alphinaud tightly. “That wasn't what I was trying to say, Alphinaud. I was trying to say... You are a child. You put on that voice like you're 40, you take all the responsibility you can handle and then some, you insist you can do all this alone... But you're still a child. Pretend to be an adult all you want, and you're still just a child overwhelmed by an adult's responsibilities.” Tayfun finally began to understand what Momodi meant, always mourning how young Tayfun was.

“You...” Alphinaud sniffled and wiped his eyes. “You could tell the voice was fake?”

Tayfun couldn't help but laugh. “Alphinaud, you're 16. Everyone could tell the voice was fake.”

Alphinaud cleared his throat, and for the first time while Tayfun had known him he spoke like a child, “Alright, Tayfun. I'll do my best. We'll face down what happens next together, and when we meet up with our missing comrades again they'll all be staggered by how much I've grown. By not pretending I'm grown already.”

“And who knows, maybe by then you'll also have had your actual growth spurt.”

“Tayfun, stop! I'm sensitive about that!”

Tayfun smiled. That was more like it. A kid his age should be touchy about being short, not bearing responsibility for every death in Eorzea.