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musefic2019-10-13 08:21 pm
mistressofmuses) wrote in musefic2019-10-13 08:21 pm
Kingdom Hearts fic: Fractured Moments - Day 13 - "Ash"
Summary: Riku is supposed to catch a firebird.
[Set during the enormous unwritten fic, very shortly after "Ring".]
“I will grant you passage without a fight, if you do me one favor. Go to the castle in the neighboring kingdom, and help the queen. She is grieving, and I cannot comfort her, because I cannot cross the border.”
That was what the wolf had told him to do, and he’d agreed. Seemed better than trying to fight with her. He should probably be beyond the point where talking animals surprised him, but he wasn’t, and it made fighting seem like an even worse idea. So he’d gone to the queen and asked how to help her.
“Stay awake, and catch the firebird that comes to steal from my tree.”
That was what the queen had said. Riku had had just about enough of the “stay awake and solve a problem” thing, but at least this time he wasn’t doing it on threat of death. Apparently the tree had been planted for the queen’s lover, who had vanished. And now every night, a firebird was coming and taking apples, which was an insult on top of injury.
The tree was impressive. The apples looked like genuine gold, gleaming in the low lantern light, though he knew they weren’t really metal. It was certainly different from the fruit trees he was used to. Don’t think of star-shaped fruits on a palm tree. Don’t wonder how they taste, don’t despair that you won’t ever know, don’t picture two other people sharing one…
And what did a firebird look like? He had to hope he’d know it when he saw it.
He settled in on a bench along the courtyard wall, where he could see the tree, but could also blend into the shadows, and waited.
The lanterns had started to burn lower, light dimming though not going out, when the firebird came. It flew down from over the wall, coming directly in front of Riku’s face, as if it wanted him to see it, before swooping upward and landing gracefully in the tree.
It was quite literally breathtaking, as Riku gasped when it appeared. It glowed with its own light, a gold that put the apples on the tree to shame. He’d seen a dress and a ring that glowed like that, once. The bird was fairly large, with long, delicate looking wings, and a long tail sweeping behind it.
From its position in the tree, the firebird eyed him, as if it were waiting for him to do something. Rather than trying again to cast the spell, he stood on clumsy feet, and started toward the tree, eyes fixed on the beautiful creature. It seemed like something out of a dream, somehow more magical and strange than any of the other things he’d seen.
The bird hopped onto a higher branch. It broke eye contact to reach its beak toward one of the apples, and he remembered what he was supposed to be doing. He ran the rest of the way to the tree, reaching toward the bird, even as he realized that was never going to work to catch it.
The firebird took flight as soon as he grew near, and his hand closed briefly on a feather from its tail. It burned like he’d grabbed a coal, forcing him to let go. The bird soared away, over the wall. Riku looked at his hand, expecting it to be a blistered mess. But the pain had already faded, and his palm was smeared with ash.
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[Set during the enormous unwritten fic, very shortly after "Ring".]
“I will grant you passage without a fight, if you do me one favor. Go to the castle in the neighboring kingdom, and help the queen. She is grieving, and I cannot comfort her, because I cannot cross the border.”
That was what the wolf had told him to do, and he’d agreed. Seemed better than trying to fight with her. He should probably be beyond the point where talking animals surprised him, but he wasn’t, and it made fighting seem like an even worse idea. So he’d gone to the queen and asked how to help her.
“Stay awake, and catch the firebird that comes to steal from my tree.”
That was what the queen had said. Riku had had just about enough of the “stay awake and solve a problem” thing, but at least this time he wasn’t doing it on threat of death. Apparently the tree had been planted for the queen’s lover, who had vanished. And now every night, a firebird was coming and taking apples, which was an insult on top of injury.
The tree was impressive. The apples looked like genuine gold, gleaming in the low lantern light, though he knew they weren’t really metal. It was certainly different from the fruit trees he was used to. Don’t think of star-shaped fruits on a palm tree. Don’t wonder how they taste, don’t despair that you won’t ever know, don’t picture two other people sharing one…
And what did a firebird look like? He had to hope he’d know it when he saw it.
He settled in on a bench along the courtyard wall, where he could see the tree, but could also blend into the shadows, and waited.
The lanterns had started to burn lower, light dimming though not going out, when the firebird came. It flew down from over the wall, coming directly in front of Riku’s face, as if it wanted him to see it, before swooping upward and landing gracefully in the tree.
It was quite literally breathtaking, as Riku gasped when it appeared. It glowed with its own light, a gold that put the apples on the tree to shame. He’d seen a dress and a ring that glowed like that, once. The bird was fairly large, with long, delicate looking wings, and a long tail sweeping behind it.
From its position in the tree, the firebird eyed him, as if it were waiting for him to do something. Rather than trying again to cast the spell, he stood on clumsy feet, and started toward the tree, eyes fixed on the beautiful creature. It seemed like something out of a dream, somehow more magical and strange than any of the other things he’d seen.
The bird hopped onto a higher branch. It broke eye contact to reach its beak toward one of the apples, and he remembered what he was supposed to be doing. He ran the rest of the way to the tree, reaching toward the bird, even as he realized that was never going to work to catch it.
The firebird took flight as soon as he grew near, and his hand closed briefly on a feather from its tail. It burned like he’d grabbed a coal, forcing him to let go. The bird soared away, over the wall. Riku looked at his hand, expecting it to be a blistered mess. But the pain had already faded, and his palm was smeared with ash.
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