#BF:LC

[rubisaurus98]

Post-St. Creek draft

(Working title: One of the Hardest Things to Say)

“Ren, hey. Hold on a second.” Lugina called out.

“What now?”

“Before we head back to the city, I need to talk to you about something.”

Ren turned and walked back towards him. “Yeah?”

“Uhm...” Lugina fidgeted; he crossed his arms and uncrossed them, put his hand on his hip and scratched the back of his head, hunching over and straightening his back, and tapped his foot frantically, done in no particular order. All the while, he did not even look at his coworker save for passing glances, and she was quickly growing impatient.

“Lugina.” Ren said sternly.

“Give...Give me a minute here!” He shouted. “I-I just lost what I was about to say, that’s all!”

“Well, hurry up and find it. We’re burning daylight.” She started walking away. “This doesn’t sound like an emergency, so you can tell me back home instead.”

“Shut it! Don’t make this harder than it already is!” When he heard Ren’s annoyed growl, he immediately pulled back. “Wait, shit, no. I meant--” He exhaled harshly. “Look. I just want to say I’m so--I want to apologize.” He said, slow and strained, clenching his fist and struggling to even look at her.

Ren turned around, crossed her arms, and raised an eyebrow. “Okay? For what?” Her eyes were trained on his, no matter how many times he averted them; critical and watchful, like her death-glares, but also patient, awaiting his answer.

“For...everything...Fuck, since...” He met her gaze again, and stayed. “Since Nebulous, I’ve been having these fucking thoughts...Shitting on you and Karl back then...That...” He closed his eyes and exhaled. “That was just fucking uncalled for. I regretted saying what I said then as soon as I got back to Elgaia. Right after...I just brushed that thought aside, but it kept fucking coming back. Every time I saw you two together, and every time I saw you pissed at me, what I said kept eating at me. It...It’s just that--Aw, gods, this is all gonna piss you off so much...” He groaned.

“You say that like you haven’t already before without even giving a shit. Go on.” Ren replied matter-of-factually. Her expression softened slightly. “I’m still listening.”

Lugina ran his hands through his hair. “It...pissed me off seeing that little--him already with a girl before me, and one who got her fame by fucking killing all the Fallen Gods no godsdamn less. He already has Old Man Grahdens, and nobody shuts up about how ‘great and perfect’ he is. Meanwhile, even though I’m so talented as fuck, I still had to work my ass off to get his level of recognition. So of course I’m gonna shit on him when something goes wrong in his life. And you’re his girlfriend, so I went after you, too. Before Nebulous, I thought all I would ever need are power and connections, and that’d be enough to get me anywhere and anything I wanted. But after, I’ve been doing a lot of rethinking: the Federation I grew up in taught me a lot of harsh lessons, but...I think that’s because of how much Rahnas controlled and influenced by the time I was born; gradually building itself into a war machine with the power to take over the Empire just to show that you fucking can. I saw his shit first-hand when I used to work under him, and I was still a teenager back then. But today’s people in Randall? They’re different. It’s not just power and connections that’ll get you noticed. So, I guess that’s why everyone likes your boyfriend so much; why you like him so much. It’s so clear as day how much you two fucking love each other.” He chuckled. “It’s almost too much to even look at. You deserve to be happy together.”

Silence fell between the two of them after he had finished. Ren had closed her eyes to process his apology, only to open them when she was about to reply.

“It’s nice to see you be actually sorry and full of regret,” Ren finally said, “but, I won’t accept your apology--”

“What the fuck? Come on, I’m shit at this stuff!” Lugina groaned. “I go out of my way to apologize for all the times I’ve been a fucking dick, and--”

“Oh my gods, let me finish!” Ren shouted back. They stared at each other until they both had calmed down.

“I won’t accept your apology until you apologize to him, too.” Ren said evenly. “Also, you’re an idiot if you really thought he was so perfect and had an easier life. I’ve known him much longer than you have, and he has his flaws, too.” She locked his eyes into hers. “He’s a sweetheart, but he keeps his distance with people he doesn’t know well, and has some awareness when people are trying to get close to him for...certain reasons. He can be emotionally dense, but he’s learning to get over that. When he wants to avoid a topic, he gets dodgy. You know that one. And...He saw from the sidelines what I went through when we were kids. Just by choosing to be my friend, it painted a target on his back. His saving graces were that he just is a good person to everyone, and that he had Grahdens, who everyone in our hometown knew was an Elder Summoner.”

Lugina rubbed the back of his head. “Yeah, I guess...i guess that’s fair.”

A few moments passed.

“You know, Lugina,” Ren said, “you could use more positive reinforcement when you decided to actually swallow your pride and not be a complete asshole. So, I’m proud of you for going out of your way to apologize. Verbally.”

“Yeah. You’re...being a lot more mature about this than I was expecting. You’re not making any jokes...innuendos...bullshit.”

Ren shrugged. “Give me immaturity, and I’ll give it right back.”

“Yeah, that’s also fair. Explains a fuckton, now that you actually said it. Uh, you’re not like this with your students, are you?”

“Of course not. Only with peers, because my peers ought to know better. Students don’t, that’s why they’re students. And in training. Not everyone’s a born prodigy, you know. You’re gonna have to buck up and slow down if you ever decide to take on a trainee.”

“Yeah, I get it.”

Ren raised an eyebrow. “Do you?”

“I don’t know? I’ve never...taken one on before. I left behind all that ‘Zelban’ shit and thought I wasn’t gonna pass on anything. I only take the best and brightest from your Academy; ones who seemed like they already know how shit goes.”

“Oh, and one more thing.” She waited to have Lugina’s full attention, her eyes full of severity. “Just because you apologized doesn’t always mean you’ll be forgiven, especially if whoever you’ve wronged doesn’t think you’re worth it. Getting angry makes you seem less genuine to anyone who doesn’t have a critical eye like me.”

[Author’s note: Fuck, this is getting long. But the next scene after they return to Randall is that Lugina does offer to treat her to a meal, since they got back around dinner. It turns out, he’s offering a home-cooked one back at his place. They talk about this and that while he’d cooking, one of which being how neither really accept kitchen help, but Ren is starting to change that with Karl. She also offers to make him something in return and also so he can try her cooking.]

[rubisaurus98]

Really need to stop looking at Menon scenes before bed, otherwise I get too caught up in measuring out how unstable Ren has truly gotten the more she travels to Karna Masta with The Assholes and how she reacts to certain shit being said. None of her Summoner peers catch on and think she’s just being moody and obsessing over losing Lachesis (Yes, even when she very violently reacted to being called “useless”) while Tilith got more preoccupied with trying to keep her at some base level of “sane”, and then Grahdens had to (partially) spell it out for them, Owen supporting him shortly after this:

Grahdens: “The poor girl’s been out of sorts because you’ve all made her feel like she can’t rely on you all enough to help her shoulder this daunting task. It’s not that she wanted to do it alone or doubted your powers, but after your actions in this world, she believed she had no other choice if we’re to succeed. Isn’t that right, young lady?”

[rubisaurus98]

Storybook Data: Alric Grahdens Crux-Walker

Basic Info:

Full name: Alric Grahdens Crux-Walker

Age: 16

Birthday: November 28, 284 AIE

Sign: Sagittarius

Height: 177 cm (5′ 9���)

Weight: 69 kg (152 lbs)

Affiliation Post: Member of the 31st Demon Slayer squad “Sun Cuore”

Voice (JP): Ryohei Kimura (Role: Tartaglia/Childe--Genshin Impact)

Voice (EN): Zeno Robinson (Roles: The Golden Guard/Hunter--The Owl House/Hawks--My Hero Academia)

Hobbies: Parkour, giving people nicknames, looking cool, training

Likes: Being dramatic, strong opponents, a good joke, traveling to new places

Dislikes: Clowns, being compared to my sister, getting too much grime on my clothes

Family: Father (Karl), Mother (Renata), Older Sister (Marena), Grandfathers (Grahdens and Barion), Grandmother (Lachesis)

Respected Person(s): My parents, their friends and family, Roy, Wallace, Hansu.

Stats:

Theatrics: 9/10

Nickname creativity: 7/10

Sense of style: 8/10

Ability to evade capture: 10/10

Moodiness: 7/10

Intro Paragraph:

Alric had already shown great promise in the Academy before departing for Ishgria. His first two greatest achievements were surviving Ishgria for one year and eluding any attempts to retrieve him with only his Academy training, minimal aid from his mother’s guardian spirit, and the immature powers that flow through his bloodline to rely on. It is only recently that he regained control over his powers, and Akras is interested to see what more he is capable of.

Personality/Characteristics:

Since he came back to Elgaia, he was filled with resentment and anger over his powers’ sudden disappearance and the disappointment in his parents’ eyes over what he assumed was him returning after a year with nothing to show. In reality, it was simply because of the fact he had run away from home without telling anyone and evaded any attempts to retrieve him, making everyone he knew greatly worry about him. What drove him to run away to Ishgria was the inadequacy he felt comparing himself to his parents and his sister, even though he trained every day. While in Ishgria, he fought many demons in order to test his strength and inflate his ego, earning both respect and fear, partially due to his bloodline being that of the Dragon Demon Barion’s. Upon actually fighting Barion, however, Barion easily found that inflated ego to be a key weakness in the foundation of Alric’s powers once Barion mentioned Marena, which greatly angered Alric. Between his defeat at Barion’s hand and his return to Elgaia, Alric ignored Barion’s words and continued to pick fights with demons. It wasn’t until after his return and his comrades were in great danger that he accepted that he doesn’t have to compare himself to his family in order to feel adequate, and his powers returned to him with greater force. He now lives to be the best support for them that he can be. He is best known for his theatrics, which are met with either amusement or annoyance, but at the end of the day, they are largely an act. Underneath that, he is a spirited young man who can be calm when he wants to be. Though it may only be a rumor, it is said that he has been developing certain feelings towards his closest childhood friend.

Birth/History:

He is the son of Elder Summoners Karl and Renata, and has known about the origins of both parents for a long time. As a child, he was often found in the company of his older sister and their childhood friend. Much like his sister, he was surrounded by the influences of many great Summoners. His aspirations are such that he wishes to surpass his own parents in strength, a feat not easily achieved by any normal Summoner.

Meeting Jonas and Rin:

Both he and Jonas took part defending Imperial Capital Randall from the mysterious army’s attack, but he only formally met Jonas in Sama after the attack, and Rin when he first entered Philarm. Though he did genuinely want to help the young knights, he was also selfishly obsessed with recovering his suddenly lost powers until they were put in great danger in the Demon Castle. With newfound confidence after the incident, he became an even stronger support for them.

Quote:

"I will be the one to surpass the legends!”

Trivia:

A page from Alric’s journal of his year in Ishgria:

A.I.E. 299 Month: 7 Day: 15  Sunny

I entered a land blanketed by snow as far as the eye can see. I remember that such a place is known as “Estria”. Of course, due to the blood of my father, the cold doesn’t bother me. Though, this one floating base at the edge of the ice is quite warm.

I was approached by a woman, a demon, with vibrant magenta hair, shortly after entering this stark land. Upon locking eyes with her, I was able to conclude two things: One, that she must be the ruler of this land.  Two, I feel she is the force that has been watching me closely ever since I had set foot in Lem many long months ago. I introduced myself in the usual way: The most infamous scion of only the most fearsome beings; a curious and grand mix of devils and divines; only the latest in a long line of warriors, demons, and royalty!

...Or at least, I tried to before the demon told me to shut up. She offered to aid me in my most noble quest to surpass the greatest legends if I break this seal that had been placed on her powers many years ago...but, I felt that she had some other ulterior motive in mind, so I declined. She didn’t like that answer and then attacked me.

Long story short, I left and I’m not going back in there for a while, okay?

Comments from Others:

Karl: “I’m relieved he came home safe. My wife and I were worried sick about him. But...Enough of playing the ‘tough parent’! When we both have time, I want to know what you think of Ishgria, if that’s alright. What did you do? What did you see? Who did you meet? How are the dragon-demons?”

Roy: “He reminds me of myself when I was younger. I worried about him a lot both as his teacher and his captain, but I’m happy things turned out okay. He’s found a greater reason to fight and grow stronger. I’m proud of him.”

Tilith: “My favorite nephew! He’s a good kid, honest! He can just be a little moody sometimes, like Renny, his mom. Otherwise, he takes after his dad, Karl, a lot more, including how he looks. Oh, he was such a cute baby back then! When he was little, he always used to follow Marena around and they and Sasha were almost inseparable.”

[rubisaurus98]

Sneak a peek

[rubisaurus98]

I know there’s dialogue quotes out there where an NPC asks the BF1 Protg what will become of Akras and them after X happens. I just like to imagine Ren with the most unamused face ever going all, “Do you just conveniently forget that I have a teaching license/degree that can easily be applied to other schools around Randall?”

And I also think I’m gonna have Ren lampshade that a lot. She still has job security if Akras were to dissolve one day, plus not just anyone can be an Akras Academy Instructor/Assistant Instructor; no one in the Academy Faculty is a pushover in a fight.

[rubisaurus98]

I just had a realization:

So, early on, Paris’ impression of Akras Summoners is that they’re all basically inferior to someone in the Imperial Guard like her; a bunch of brutes one way or another. Granted, Lugina being the first of the Mains that she meets did nothing to give her a different impression/opinion, but still. But, of course once she’s interacting directly with Grahdens, she’s not as haughty.

Thing is, there’s supposed to be a break between the end of Mirvana and the start of Lanara, and that hang time contains Karl’s and Seria’s GQs. There’s still a bit of time where Paris has a bit of her initial attitude.

What I’m trying to say is that Paris most likely hasn’t actually interacted with Summoners older than the Mains until actually talking with Grahdens in Lanara. And, I’m planning on including certain OCs in Ren’s GQ as well as all the Mains. Mainly Zura and Alastor will serve to give her an entirely new perspective on Akras’ so-called “brutish” Summoners.

[rubisaurus98]

Elise semi-consciously imitates Ren in this scene from Sera's GQ:

Lin actually asks her if that's what she was going for and when Elise gives some confirming indication, Ren wonders aloud whether she should be flattered by Elise's apparent perception of her or not. And then in classic Ren fashion, she throws this line at Elise:

"Although...if that's what you're looking for in a lady lover, that can be arranged~"

Elise, after getting out that she doesn't swing that way (Ren immediately backing off), says that both Lin and Ren are bad influences on her.

[rubisaurus98]

Behold, a draft!

[rubisaurus98]

The appearance of post-soul-rip Ren haunts the minds of the Asshole Brigade for a bit.

[rubisaurus98]

BF2 Spoilers under

So, you know that water element greatsword we get from Gerald’s ghost after we get back from that time travel sequence? Well, after the Seltavia Arc, Jonas gives it back to Hilda and Rune, saying that it rightfully belongs to them. Eventually, the sisters accept it after much arguing over their self-perceived worthiness to carry it. Afterwards, Hilda starts using it in combat.

In the Good Demon Sisters AU that I have sorta developed, Jonas does try to return it after the sisters are saved from Melfel and Shaia, but Hilda vehemently refuses to take it back at that point in time, saying that she isn’t worthy to wield her father’s sword after everything that’s happened since his death. As the sisters learn to forgive themselves and go through their Redemption Arcs, they take the sword back.

[rubisaurus98]

During the Big Akras--Empire Company Picnic/Dinner/Gathering that happens after BF2, Theodore nearly grabs a seat next to Eriole, only to get heavily verbally peer-pressured into sitting at the Offspring Table instead by the inhabitants of said Offspring Table, where he rightfully belongs, and they all cheer when he changes his mind.

Meanwhile, the rucks has caused a big scene and the adults were just staring.

[rubisaurus98]

Ren in Menon, with a shade of Kaleidoscope (RenxTilith) Shipping if you listen closely:

[rubisaurus98]

In addition to Frozen’s Elsa being a big inspiration for Marena, the relationship between Marena and Sasha takes inspiration from Elsa and Anna’s: Loving someone so deeply, but then accidentally causing them grievous harm with powers you thought you had under control, but apparently don’t. Scared of and unable to forgive yourself, you force yourself to isolate from that person, even though the other person doesn’t think negatively of the incident and tries to reconnect at any chance over the time of separation.

[rubisaurus98]

Me: So, about yesterday? Monika and Rayla?

My brain: Yeah. Settled on them being identical twins. Need to change the initial portrait we made of Monika.

Me: We need to update everything about the Academy Faculty.

My brain: We do.

Me: Long ago, we...had Monika use polearms, right?

My brain: Yeah.

Me: And Rayla uses a sword.

My brain: Also yeah.

Me: And Rayla died fighting gods.....

My brain: Yep.

Me: And if you look at things a certain way, Rayla was the one who “ascended” first, gaining the Summoning power, while Monika never got it. Then, Monika carried on her late sister’s work and will.

My brain: Uh huh.

Me: .......

Me: I’m getting the bat. Start running.

[rubisaurus98]

Needless to say, Karl and Ren are the godparents of Lin and Haruto’s kids.

[rubisaurus98]

Approximations of the Speed-Demonspawn at the time they were caring for their respective BFR charges.

Marena sports a pair of goggles and has grown her hair out since the pictures I had of her when she was chronologically in her 20s and she keeps it in a  ponytail. Still wears darker colors.

Alric’s more or less the same since his chronological 20s pictures. He’s cut his hair just a bit and stopped tying it back. Wears a red cloak/cape and bears his midriff. And yes, he does add those red flecks in his hair to his new default appearance.