Somewhere in the between was a life of which we all dream

[riderofcharlemagne]

Who: Astolfo! and Izunia, and some prompts for everyone.
What: He's back from his trip to the Holy Grail War!
When: June 25-30
Where: All around Keystone
Warnings: Talk of death and your standard Grail War stuff.


CLOSED: To Izunia, 6/25

[Lying on the beach, Astolfo blinks at the sun as he slowly comes to. It takes him a moment to register where he is, informed by a pervasive feeling of familiarity and of something close to home long before an assessment of his surroundings.

How strange it was to return to Trifas again, and leave once more, and end up back in the same place. He supposed it made it's own kind of sense, and wouldn't complain with the way things had gone.

He didn't know how long he'd been gone for, whether this could be the same Keystone he knew, or what might have happened in his absence. Getting to his feet, and running towards the station with eagerness and urgency, he only has one priority.]

Master?!

6/25, ft. Izunia, not too far away cause he's gay

[Having been gone for a few days, no doubt his Hippogriff missed him. He spends some time (joined at the hip to Izunia) in the stables, for an emotional reunion and brushing session, and is, for the rest of the day, found mostly around the common area and viewing deck, likely being cute with his Master who isn't going to be leaving his side anytime soon.]

6/26-6/30

[For the rest of his time, Astolfo can be found...pretty much everywhere. From hanging about in the kitchens offering to help anyone in their culinary attempts, to spending some time in the greenhouse, trying to tend to some of the plants (whether he's actually helping or hurting them is...debatable), to heading out to fight club with a shield in addition to his sword for once. He lingers in the library sometimes, browsing the MAGIC, HISTORY, AND MYTHOLOGY section. At night, he is also on the viewing deck, or straight up on the roof, fondly watching the sky.]

Comments

closed prompt obviously

[founderinglight]

[Oh yes, that familiar tingle, the magical power subtly different from that of the mages (and one not-mage) in Astolfo's own world...

And of course the mental feeling of being slammed into an embrace, immediately.]

You're back! Where are you?!

[Master's priorities are very obvious.]

[riderofcharlemagne]

[Comfort and relief wash over him at the sound of Izunia's voice.]

Thank goodness... [He hadn't thought that there would be the risk of no response until he got one.] I'm on the beach, I'm on my way.

[Going as fast as his tiny servant legs can carry him.]

[founderinglight]

Don't bother, I'm on the roof.

[It'll be way faster for him to get down to the beach than it will be for Astolfo to get up - as the near-immediate flash of blue indicates. Warping down is a very fast way to cover ground.

Initiate tackle?]

[riderofcharlemagne]

Ah-

[He sees that flash of light, and doesn't need to brace himself for impact. He's ready for this, a stupid grin on his face.

INITIATE TACKLE]

[founderinglight]

[TACKLE. Quite probably right into the sand.

And for a good long moment Izunia holds him there, just... holding on.]

...Welcome back.

[riderofcharlemagne]

[Astolfo holds him back, practically clinging.] Happy to be here. [He buries his face into Izunia.] We did it, together. We won. [His voice trembles with a whole cocktail of emotions, but pride shines through them all.]

[founderinglight]

You - what?

[LAST HE KNEW YOU WERE DYING Astolfo you are very senseless but you can't just drop this bomb on him with no context.

He's also clinging tighter now. They are going to end up coated in sand.]

[riderofcharlemagne]

It was Sieg, he- he did it. [He shakes his head, stopping himself.] We did it, together.

[Sorry if you wanted a clearer answer out of him, Izunia.]

[founderinglight]

[And Izunia just holds him close, burying his face in Astolfo's hair.

They did it. He's not sure how to express how that makes him feel, but - ]

I told you, didn't I? It's your unmatched strength of heart that truly matters.

[riderofcharlemagne]

[A light laugh escapes him.]

Sieg said something like that too.

[Despite them being his parting words, Astolfo can't help but smile at the memory.]

We weren't alone, either. Even the other side helped us - Rider even gave me his shield, I don't know what I would've done without it.

[He didn't need to know, though he's sure he would've thought of something, because everything happened as it was meant to. That he knew.]

6/25 stables

[nojohnyouare]

[Mai came for the animals, but she stops when she sees the people in there too, bowing and looking away.]

Am I interrupting something.

[founderinglight]

Not at all, Mai.

[Said while probably hovering just outside of cuddling range as Astolfo does his Hippogriff Things.]

[riderofcharlemagne]

[He waves over to Mai, covered in a mess of hair and feathers. Summer moults...]

Come in!

[nojohnyouare]

[She bows again and steps in.]

Cute. Animals. ...You're back.

[riderofcharlemagne]

[He makes some attempt to dust the dander off of himself, but succeeds more in spreading it over the uncovered parts.]

Yep! Just got back today.

[He makes it sound like he was merely on vacation.]

[nojohnyouare]

Oh. [She seems to take this well enough, approaching the animals carefully and watching him with the hippogriff.] So people really can reappear. ...It's nice.

[founderinglight]

[Astolfo, dear... Don't worry, Izunia's got your back and he'll give you an actual effective brushing-off.]

There's been a handful of others, but I'm very grateful for this one.

[riderofcharlemagne]

[He appreciates being saved from all the fluff. What would he do without you?]

I was bound to come back eventually.

[Whether or not this is factually true, he believes it.]

[nojohnyouare]

Because you're close. ...Then that's good. Is the hippogriff-san all right?

night of 6/26, viewing deck

[dubiouslychthonic]

[Jetshard comes out a little while after midnight, lunch in hand, although when she sees Astolfo she grins and captchalogues her plate and soda can with a quick wave of her hand and flurry of incorporeal cards.]

I'd been wondering why Izunia wasn't hanging around the medbay like a lost wiggler, this evening. Welcome back.

[riderofcharlemagne]

[He lights up with Jetshard's appearance.]

Happy to be here!

[Clearly she put what she was carrying away so he could hug her, right? He's going in for it, regardless.]

Ah, he was wiggling? I thought he might miss me, but...

[It's a very bizarre mental image.]

[dubiouslychthonic]

[Look sometimes it's good to be proactive about not dropping things, especially when Astolfo's around.

She returns the hug, although she's still got enough of a mildly over-developed personal bubble that she doesn't linger.]

Ah. Troll slang for a very young child. [She chuckles.] He does have a bit of a tendency to fidget, though.

[riderofcharlemagne]

Ah, I see. [He supposes babies could be described as wriggly, though he wonders just what troll babies look like...] Was he particularly fidgety?

[dubiouslychthonic]

A little at loose ends, let's say.

[A bit of a mess, she means, but honestly less than he could have been. She shrugs.]

Anyway, I'm not only happy to see you back for his sake. How are you? The last guy to disappear and return came back in rough shape.

[riderofcharlemagne]

In better shape than that guy, at least.

[Thanks to magic, he's recovered from his numerous injuries. As for his mind, well, he's Astolfo.]

There were plenty of close calls, but I made it out in one piece. Saved the world, too.

[You know, no big deal.]