The Binds of Fate

[Cards of Fate]

If one could peek into Vincent’s mind right about now, they would hear klaxons and all sorts of alarms going off. Every red flag had gone off, it was defcon one. His perfect plan to show her how much good they were going to be doing together, his plan to keep her in the Tarot had blown up in his face. Instead of blowing her away with joy, he’d blown her away in a different way.

The bad kind of way.

His mind raced to comprehend what had just happened. Sure she’d been mad at him for keeping a secret, he rage was nothing new to him, but he’d persevered so he could see the awesome conclusion at the end. Had he kept her waiting too long? Had the emotional whiplash hurt her somehow? Or was it something else? He racked his brain to try and knock and answer free from the spacious, empty, confines of his stupid fucking skull. It always seemed to end this way with her, he was always making some sort of mistake! It was like if he wasn’t nearly getting her killed left and right, he was stepping on landmines and unleashing some sort of emotional timebomb to fuck up every moment. It didn’t seem to matter that he was a hero, that he’d killed a forgotten one, with her he could just never seem to get it right!

A shove from behind set the scholar in motion. Staggering at first, the scholar took a couple slow, hesitant steps. Soon he was picking up some speed, increasing the length of his stride as he rushed to catch his friend, no, one of his closest companions on this world. She only had gone a short distance off, but for Vince it felt like she was worlds away. He had to make this right, but he had no clue what was wrong! Every ounce of his mind seethed with self-hatred, how could he have done this to her? What had he done to her? Suddenly he stopped and took in the warped landscape below, the hellish visage of dying fish and rotting plant life sprawling before them. He even saw a half melted carp hanging on a log, like some fucked up Salvador Dali painting.

Oh.

“God dammit Vince…” he muttered silently under his breath. How could he have been so oblivious? She was obviously distraught by this anguished landscape! He’d become so numb to all of the horrible things he’d seen in his adventures, that he’d forgotten how his friend would have reacted! Surely that was it! “Ray…” he called out as he got close to her. “I’m so sorry…” his voice trailed off as for once he didn’t have anything prepared to say. There was no speech, no snarky quip or comeback, just...emotions that defied his vocabulary.


“I should have realized my mistake…” finally his words came to him. “I should have realized I should have warned you about what we were going to see. I’ve just…” he paused. “I’ve just gotten so caught up in all of this hero business you know? All these shenanigans with destiny and fate, killing ancient evils and trying to protect everyone...I forget how sometimes stuff like this can affect people who aren’t used to it…”

[Rayleigh]

“What?”

Vincent stopped cold, the words he had prepared dying on his lips. Now, Rayleigh faced him, her jade eyes narrowed in confusion. He met those eyes, and held them, searching for the answers he suspected. Or, maybe the answers he did not, but he needed something. She offered him nothing, save for another word. “What?”

“I-I thought that was why you were upset,” he explained softly, wiping his sweaty palms on his hips. “All of this death, and this destruction.” His head tilted. “Isn’t that why you’re upset?”

His question was met with laughter. It was a short burst, mingling with the lingering sobs, but it was laughter nonetheless. It left Vincent dumbfounded, and unsure of how to respond, he simply stood where he was.

Once Rayleigh had finished, she crossed her arms tightly against her chest. “No, Vince,” she answered finally, her voice gentle. “It has nothing to do with that.”

The man deflated. “Well.”

Whether he was left entirely speechless, or merely waiting for her to fill in the blanks, Ray was not entirely sure. But the silence that pressed between them was expectant, and the feeling of John’s eyes on her back did nothing to put her at ease. So she loosed a small sigh, and added, “its complicated.” She paused, but when he had nothing to interject, she forged ahead. “I don’t really know how to say this. But, uh, I was thinking about leaving the Tarot.”

“I know.”

Now, it was Rayleigh’s turn to be rendered speechless. “You do?” she whispered.

Something in her reaction brought a ghost of a smile to Vincent’s lips. “Yes, Ray,” he answered, voice just as gentle as hers had been a moment before. “At least, I suspected.”

The young woman blinked up at her friend. “But how?”

“Call it a hunch,” he responded, shrugging. “I could sorta feel it, like the weird vibes you had going on. Maybe it was some magic, or fate, or maybe I just know you like that, but…” he paused for a moment. “I didn’t want you to go though.”

“Vibes,” she repeated, lips turning in the slightest of frowns. “Magic.” A piece of her wanted so badly to say something snarky, but she could not find the words, nor the energy, to spark another fight. Her emotions were already frayed, and she was unsure of how much more she could take. Besides, he had said he knew her, and that he did not want her to go. Maybe that was good for something.

But weeks of convincing herself to leave rattled in the forefront of her mind. She had made a choice, and for good reason. She thought of her mysterious black box, and she wondered if she would ever find her answers while she belonged to the Tarot. Why should she go back on her decision now, even considering Vincent’s kind words? In a voice even smaller than she was, “but why should I stay?”

[Cards of Fate]

“I…” Vince trailed off. He’d known this conversation was coming from miles away. He’d had all the time in the world to prepare for this, but instead he had tried to run from it. He’d flailed about with stupid schemes and plots, instead of standing and facing it like a man. “Because we need you. Not just the Tarot...the world...no.” He locked eyes with her for a moment and clenched his fists. “They do need you, but I think my reason is a little more selfish…” he paused and took a deep breath. “Because I need you…Ray…” his heart was racing. He didn’t really know what he was saying at this point, it was like all communications between his brain and mouth had become scrambled. “You just...you help me in a way no one else in the Tarot seems to. I get all wound up and ready to go off on these crazy adventures, and I seem to have my head stuck up in the clouds...but where you’re around...you help ground me.” He found himself staring at his hands. “You remind me that even with all this power, and with all of my magic, I’m still human.” He looked up and met her gaze again. “And I think that I’m really scared to see what would happen without that…”

“Oh.”

There was enough emotion in the single word that Vincent nearly fell to his knees. He was wound so tightly, each muscle rigid with anxiety, and he had hoped for more from her. When it became clear she was not going to continue, he shakily found his voice. “Oh? Is that all?”

Rayleigh held herself tighter. “Yes.” His face fell, and the disappointment was not lost on her. “Vincent,” she began again, lines of pain crisscrossing her face. “You have to see it my way. You’ve been…” she paused, trying to find the right description. Aloof? Distant? Completely and totally self-centered? “Distracted. You’ve been that way for a long time. You take me along to fiddle with machines for you, or search for something, or talk with locals. And you ask me to do all this magic, even though you know how much I hate it.” Her eyes grew pleading as she began to speak more quickly. Rayleigh was losing her grip on her final threads of control, but it was too late to turn back.

“I wanted to see the world. I still do, and so I used that to rationalize how things were going. But I don’t know if I can keep going like this. Instead of the freedom I thought I’d find here, I feel… trapped.” The word surprised even her, but the moment it left her lips, she knew it was the truth. She had just been denying it for so long. “You keep secrets from me. I know, I’m not a high enough member of your council, but I’m your friend, Vince. And you’re mine. You’re my best friend. I need to know what is going on before I keep doing things for you. I need you to promise me that things are going to be different.” Her eyes closed, and she concluded, “you need me, and I need this.”

[Rayleigh]

“Fine.” Vincent surrendered. “I’m sorry, I should have never kept secrets from you.” He felt John’s eyes boring a hole in the back of his head. For some reason, he figured the giant was enjoying this dramatic show. “I didn’t know what I was doing. One day, I’m just a scholar who researches things. Next thing I know, I’m the Emperor, and everyone is looking at me to have the answers and... I just let it get to me.” He could feel tears beginning to well up. "I had so much responsibility, and Leona vanished, and Alyssa is nowhere to be found and... just so much was riding on me that I built up these walls.” He stopped for a moment, hesitated briefly, and then suddenly pulled Rayleigh into a hug.

“I’m sorry.” He whispered. “I shouldn’t have pushed you away, but I didn’t want to heap everything on you either... after all of the mistakes I’ve made.”

She pressed her face against his shoulder, drawing a deep, shuddering breath. The urge to cry also overwhelmed her, though it was as much the sight of his tears as it was her own emotional turmoil. She could feel his heart galloping against his chest. If Ray had ever doubted his sincerity, this confirmed things. “We’ve needed this,” she mumbled into the thick, rough fabric of his shirt.

“The hug?” he asked, somewhat startled by the comment.

The girl snorted. “The talk.” Then, snaking her arms about his waist, and giving it a weak squeeze, she added, “but the hug is nice too.”

Vince nodded in agreement. “Hugs are nice.” He stood there in silence, his arms wrapped around Ray, and for a moment all of his turmoil was gone. He was at peace. Then John opened his mouth.

“Are we going to build a water purifier or should I book you two a room?”

Ray pulled away from the embrace, taking a step back, and giving Vincent’s arm a quick, friendly squeeze. Then, feigning disgust, she turned back to John. “Please, don’t book me a room with this guy. He snores.”

Vince’s eyes widened, horrified. “What?” Then, those same dazzling blue eyes narrowed accusingly. “How would you know that?”

Rayleigh was still laughing as she brushed past John, giving him a good-natured punch on the arm that did not move him in the least. He was grinning as well when he turned to escort the brunette back.

“Oi!” Vincent called out. “You’re going to need to pay a visit to my office after this!” He ran to catch up with the two of them. “This conversation is not over! Not by a long shot! I got mushy for you, I’m holding you responsible.”

“Add it to my ever-growing list of wrongdoings,” Rayleigh told him, reaching up to wrap an arm around his shoulders. She went to reach for John’s shoulders, but, upon realizing there was no way she would reach them, she settled for hooking her arm in his. Together, the giant, the magician, and the mechanic walked back toward the waiting townspeople.

[Philomel]

Name of Thread: The Binds of Fate
Type of Judgement: Writer's Workshop Submission

Rewards:

Rayleigh receives:
975 EXP
105 GP

Cards Of Fate receives:
1215 EXP
105 GP

Rewards are calculated along with the 0.2 extra GP that Cards gets, and shared out with some judge's discretion as advised by Cards.

[Shinsou Vaan Osiris]

All rewards added!