batb part two: electric boogaloo

[fearlessly]

[ alisaie is not afraid of the woods.

truthfully, alisaie is not afraid of much at all - not the things that most are afraid of, at least. she does not fear the dark, or wolves, or bandits. she does not fear loud storms or knives in the dark of faerie tale monsters stalking haunted forests. what she fears is being along. grieving. losing those she loves.

and that is why she is here. alisaie has ridden tirelessly through the night, driving baptiste hard over the hard, wintry earth, her breath frozen in her lungs, the frigid wind stinging her cheeks and ears and eyes. alphinaud is her entire world. he is all that she has, all of her family that remains, and the thought of living her life without him, moving forward alone..

she would rather not move forward at all.

and so she will find him, regardless of he consequence, heedless of the potential danger, for without him, she has no life at all.

baptiste remembers the way, and though she can feel the tension and fear in the body of the horse beneath her, still they press on, hooves slamming hard into the earth, empty branches pulling at her hair, whipping over their heads. the forest seems to go on and on, deeper and deeper into darkness and mist, until at long, long last the space opens up, and a dark castle looms ahead, its twisted spires climbing into the gray sky, its gloomy edifice frowning down as she approaches the wrought iron gates choked with decayed vines.

alisaie is not afraid of much, yet still the sight of it sends a chill down her spine.

what is this place? she's heard of no such estate as this - a castle, so close to the village? how have there been no stories? no history? she has ridden less than a day to find her brother, not far from home at all, and yet.. there is nothing in their books about this great castle, no tall tales, nothing at all. it is a phantom. still, somehow it feels familiar to her.. like a memory of a dream's dream.

exhaling a shudder, alisaie slides from baptiste's back, leading him to an icy, overgrown brook for a drink, looping the reins over a strong, bare branch before at last she approaches the castle. it's silent, sinister, but she.. she has no choice. if this is where alphinaud is, then she must press forward. the rusted gates groan, splitting the silence, and alisaie approaches the great doors, the old rotten oak swinging beneath her weight as she slips carefully into the great, dark foyer. ]

Comments

[fearlessly]

[ i was setting u up for the movie and u missed it, nerd!!

but now the bell tolleth for her.. alisaie had expected him to lose his grip on the giant snowball, so she had no real defense plan to speak of, and they are standing close enough to one another that there is no chance of escape.

she tries anyway, managing to scramble back a few steps but there's no avoiding it, the snowball hits her like an avalanche and she goes down with a shout, buried. she's dead now. rip. the curse will never be lifted. ]

[punshots]

[ Oh...I had to look up the scene to remember what you meant and now I feel like a sham...

Instead, Alisaie is dead now, buried in a grave of snow. Maybe he went a tad bit overboard with that snowball, but, look, look! she cheated and used magic, he was just using his advantage!!

Not even trying to restrain his laughter this time, he kneels down next to her once again, beginning to brush away the snow and offering her a hand up. ]

Alright there, my lady?

[fearlessly]

[ fake fan tbh..

how kind of him to dig out her body. alisaie is veritably covered in snow, much of which she shakes off like a dog, scowling directly at him. ]

Oh, take your my lady and shove it up your arse!

[punshots]

[ She's so very delicate. This reaction does nothing to stop him from laughing however, even as he helps her back to her feet, reaching over to thoughtless brush some snow from her hair. ]

S-sorry, you just — you just should've seen the look on your face...

[ Were their positions reverse, she'd be having a field day and she knows it! ]

I suppose our race ended in a draw, huh?

[fearlessly]

[ yeah ofc she would be screaming laughing, but that is not what is happening here okay!! she looks quite put out, but not.. furious, at least?? she's just a sore loser who has snow down her bodice, pay her no mind. ]

How kind of you..

[ she got in a few good ones but come on, there's a clear winner here. he's just trying to be nice!! ]

You can repay my for that egregious attack on my person with double hot chocolate.

[punshots]

I guess that's only fair...

[ He chuckles, his hand moving to rest on her shoulder as they move inside. He thinks nothing of it at the moment — it was, after all, a common sign of camaraderie among himself and his friends. Prompto used to be such a touchy-feely person, and while he doesn't want to step over any boundaries, they've grown close enough to allow for this, he thinks. ]

C'mon. Let's get you warmed up.