Innocent Meetings

"Character counts most when duty calls."

Serilda woke up around dawn, as usual. She stretched in bed and gave Xiuhcoatl a good rub down, the wolf snuggling up against the woman and demanding attention. Her morning routine was not a terribly long one. She made her bed and changed out of her nightgown into her clothes for the day, letting Xiuh in the yard to go do her business. A quick breakfast was made of some eggs and toast with jelly, which she ate while scrolling through news articles on her phone.

It was a good day. Then again, every day had been a good one for her since Christmas. She felt light, like she was walking on air everywhere she went. Even at the guildhall a couple people had noticed she was a little more perky than normal. Serilda didn’t tell them anything, of course -- it wasn’t really anyone’s business, and she didn’t exactly need to be spreading details about her friend. Regardless, there wasn’t a whole lot she could do to hide the fact that she was feeling happier than she had in a long time. She would often catch herself smiling for no reason, and she was more social and chatty than she had ever been since joining Sabertooth.

It was love that was making her this way. She was all too familiar with the feeling, though truthfully it felt somehow… different this time around than it had with Hugo. Not better or worse, just different. She and Mythal connected on a different level than she and her late husband had, and Hugo’s death had been paying its toll on her for almost five years now. But lately, she was starting to feel a bit more like herself again, and it was all thanks to the god slayer that had stumbled his way into her life.

Finishing up her food, she cleaned the dishes and put them away. Then, she brushed her hair and teeth, and pulled on her boots. Whistling to Xiuh, the two of them left the house and made their way toward the small park nearby where they often trained together. They jogged side by side the whole way, warming up their bodies from the cool winter air. Her outfit that day was more for working out than anything else, not uniformed attire that spoke to a woman of duty, but rather simple clothes that she wouldn’t mind if they got sweaty or dirty -- though they were still clearly of a higher quality make than many other garments.

When they got to the park, it was already occupied. This was a surprise, but not a great one. It wasn’t often that others used this small park, but it wasn’t exactly unknown. It just wasn’t as popular as some of the bigger parks closer to the center of the city. Still, this would hardly be the time to do some real training with someone else present. The man appeared to be on the older side, his hood up to fight off the edge of the cool air. He had a thick beard and mustache combination that was peppered with dark and graying hair. In his hands was a book that he seemed to be enjoying.

If he happened to look up and make eye contact with her, she’d smile with polite acknowledgement and give him a nod. Then she knelt down next to the wolf, who wagged her tail happily from the pets she received. “Looks like it’s a play day for us, girl,” Serilda told the hound quietly. Stretching her hand over the ground, she called up a fist sized clod of dirt into it. As the clod lifted up from the ground, Serilda used her magic to shape it into a perfect sphere and adjust its properties until it was essentially the shape and weight of a tennis ball.

Xiuh immediately knew what was happening. Already her body was half turned away from Serilda, her big ears perked forward and her normally dopey expression turned instead to one of serious intention as she stared at the ball and waited for it to be thrown. After teasing her with a couple fake tosses, the mage finally launched the item across the park, and the wolf chased after it eagerly. It was like this that they spent their next few minutes, Xiuh chasing the ball and bringing it back to her, the two of them playing like any other house dog might with their owner.

"Character counts most when duty calls."

She was aware that the man started watching them at some point -- he wasn’t exactly trying to hide it. In any other circumstance Serilda might have considered the act a bit on the creepy side, but with Xiuh around she was honestly used to people stopping to stare. The wolf was a wonder to look at, with her thick glossy coat of the deepest black, the cream colors glittering the darkness like stars in the night sky. She knew that nine times out of ten it was her companion that was getting the drawn out looks, not herself, and that did not really bother her.

Eventually the man spoke up, choosing to engage in conversation rather than merely watch the pair. In a raspy but not unpleasant voice he complimented the wolf, delving into a small memory from his past of a time that he owned a similar dog. Similar, at least, in the sense that she was very playful. The animal apparently had not been much for listening except with him. He described how she’d lived a long life, happy even right up until the moment she’d passed. Serilda listened politely, pausing in the game of fetch with the wolf in order to give him more of her full attention -- though she did kneel down and pet the wolf to make up for the fact that she was no longer throwing the ball.

“She is a Star Wolf,” Serilda told him when he asked, looking down at Xiuh and running an affectionate hand along the dusty spine of the creature. “They’re a fairly rare breed, and appropriately named. Most of them look like they’re covered in stardust, and they are capable of wielding limited magical properties in the forms of starlight and fire. My mother breeds them as hunting companions.”

Xiuh’s mouth was wide open, her tongue lolling out the side as she happily panted from her spent energy chasing the ball. As if she knew they were talking about her, the large wolf pup leaned her body against Serilda’s and snuck in a quick lick on the woman’s face before she could stop her. The Voidwalker smirked impishly down at the animal, wiping the slobber off her face. “This one happens to be a very silly wolf when she’s not on duty,” she remarked almost a bit accusationally at the wolf, though her tone betrayed she wasn’t mad in the slightest.

Serilda looked back up at the man. “Are you new to the town? I don’t often run into others here outside of a regular group of us that tend to make use of the space.” She wasn’t trying to pry or treat him suspiciously so much as making a genuine effort to be kind and social in return. The only other faces she usually saw around here were others that lived nearby that she saw fairly often. She was very good with faces and names, and he did not look familiar. A lot of people came to visit Ace of Spades, sure, but none ever found their way to this more remote and private little park.

"Character counts most when duty calls."

“She loves every minute of it,” Serilda told the man with a small smile when he commended her mother. “Her family has been breeding them for generations. It was actually how my father met her -- he wanted to try to get one when he was younger, but wound up getting a date instead.” She chuckled a little. Her dad had been so taken away by her mother when they first met that he’d forgotten about trying to bond with a pup entirely.

He answered her question honestly, telling her he was a bit of a wanderer but had at one time called this guild town home. Apparently he’d even lived not too far over from where they currently were. Serilda didn’t make any comments to confirm how close she lived or not -- it was never a good habit to give such information to strangers -- but it was still a nice coincidence to know that he’d once called this area home. He told her how he always liked to come to this secluded little area to read in the great outdoors, a sentiment that Serilda could certainly appreciate. More than once she’d come here to enjoy the fresh air while writing in her journal and letting Xiuh run around.

“It’s not a problem,” she assured him when he apologized for interrupting the pair’s time. Truthfully, Serilda was used to people stopping to ask questions about the wolf with the colorful coat they’d never seen before. The man went on then to ask about her magic, commenting on how she’d shaped the earth into a ball earlier. He even went on to tell her that he knew an earth mage once, insinuating he would have assumed them related if it weren’t for the fact that she didn’t look like the man he knew.

It was not a very personal question, as far as Serilda was concerned. As a mage, she got asked about her magic quite often. Xiuhcoatl wriggled against her a bit, making it clear she wanted to chase the ball again. “You are an ill mannered child,” she murmured teasingly to the animal with a smirk, though not so quietly that the man wouldn’t be able to hear the comment. Standing back to her feet, she threw the thing so the wolf could race after it.

“I wouldn’t describe my father as a brutish looking man,” Serilda told him with a hint of a smirk. “Though I’m sure he wishes he was an earth mage, or that I was one, because that would certainly help with the family business. My family owns the mines in Clover Town.” She added the last statement only to explain her prior comment as to why being an earth mage would be beneficial for her family. If he was a nomad like he said, he surely at least knew of the mines in that area, potentially would even be able to figure out her noble background depending on how much he knew of the social structure there, but as always Serilda never really directly told anyone she was an heiress; it was tacky and classless.

Xiuh brought the ball back and set it at Serilda’s feet, ready to run once more. Again, the woman threw the ball. “My magic is Voidwalking. It’s hard to explain, but to put it simply… between the molecules that make up all matter in this world, there exists empty spaces that gives those molecules room to move and shift. I can control those spaces of nothingness, and in so doing it allows me to manipulate the matter around me.”

"Character counts most when duty calls."

The man was quite entertained by the story of her parents’ meeting. He also seemed rather relieved when she assured him that he hadn’t annoyed her by striking up conversation, going on to explain that he often got himself into trouble from being too nosy. Serilda chuckled softly at his use of terminology about his social habit.

Her mention regarding her family’s business did seem to strike a chord of recognition with him. He frowned slightly in thought before asking if she was a Sinclair. “I am,” Serilda told him, graciously nodding her head to him. “The duke and duchess are my parents. I’m their eldest, Serilda.” Once more, she refrained from using titles for herself. There was hardly a reason to herald herself as an heiress in this conversation, but she did still speak enough to claim her family name with pride and humility.

He commented on her magic, drawing another small smirk from her. “No, not quite earth magic.” She looked down at the wolf who was sitting at her feet again, waiting patiently to be acknowledged in some form again. Xiuh really was a glutton for attention. Serilda could sense the curiosity radiating from the furred creature, who had taken notice of the fact that her mistress was spending more time talking to a new person rather than throwing the ball. Or, more realistically, who wanted to know why she had not been allowed to greet this newcomer yet.

Serilda snorted softly, and looked up at the man. “She would like to meet you. If you’re not opposed..?” She assumed he wouldn’t be, based on the interaction so far, but it was still more polite to check first. He had not been anything but friendly with her, so she saw no reason not to let Xiuh socialize as well. Presuming he agreed, she would look down at the wolf and say, “Til lethed.

Xiuh wasted no time in trotting over to the man at the bench, her ears perked forward with interest. She’d stop in front of his legs, sniffing over basically any part of him that her nose could reach without jumping on him. Her fluffy tail twitched with each new scent she picked up from him, and if he wanted to she would let him pet her. Serilda picked up the ball, but did not throw it. Instead she walked casually over to stand near the bench so she wasn’t as far away while talking to him.

“She does enjoy working alongside my magic. I use it a lot in her training, as well as when playing. I have more traditional toys for her at home, but it’s definitely convenient that I can often just shape something for her from the space around me. She’s never complained at least.” Shaking her head a little in amusement, she asked, “So what brings you back to Ace of Spades? Do you travel for work?”

"Character counts most when duty calls."

Well, he did seem to keep up with nobility. A look of recognition crossed his face and he smiled, even bowing his head as was respectable to a woman of her station. In other situation she might assure him not to worry about that, but at the moment she was here as herself, not representing the guild. It would be both silly and ungracious to insist otherwise, particularly for such a quick gesture. Instead, she simply returned the respect by offering him a firm handshake. “It’s a pleasure, mister..?” the question hung in the air, giving him a chance to introduce himself however he wished.

The man was open to being introduced to the wolf, a bit of eagerness in his eyes as he sat forward a bit to engage her. Xiuh audibly sniffed his hand, tail wagging. “Oh trust me, she’ll be more bothered if you don’t pet her.” Serilda smirked at the wolf. Xiuh was so friendly that often times people had difficulty believing she was actually a hunting and fighting companion. As he leaned toward Xiuh to pet her, Serilda took silent, casual note of the outfit he wore beneath his cloak. It was a rather regal looking get up bearing a symbol that she had never seen before, but did commit to memory.

As he adorned Xiuhcoatl with much desired attention, he explained to her that he worked for the Magic Council, if through what seemed third party kind of means. Apparently, he traveled around the continent gathering intelligence for them in exchange for money. Right now it seemed he had some free time though, and decided to take a little rest at his old stomping grounds.

“Few jobs of importance are glamorous,” she replied with a small smile. Being a noble, she would certainly know -- her father took care of most of the ins and outs of maintaining Clover and its citizens, which often involved rather grueling tasks, but since she was next in line to inherit his title she was often assisting him with such tasks. “Sounds a bit like Rune Knight work, which is where I’m ultimately hoping to end up.” The way he’d worded it made it seem as though he wasn’t actually working for the Rune Knights, since he was based off a contract, but it was still very similar to what they did. Biggest difference probably was that he wasn’t tied to Fiore like the Knights often were.

“Either way, it’s necessary work that benefits the country as a whole, as well as its individual provinces. I know that Clover has benefited numerous times from information that has trickled down from the Magic Council, so as a citizen, a wizard, and a representative of the Sinclair house, I do thank you for your services to the country and our people.” She meant it, too. Without informants like him, they would be much worse off as a country.

"Character counts most when duty calls."

“Well, Ignacio it is then,” she told him with a slight smirk to his joke, as he confessed he much preferred the full name over the shortened version.

She did nod when he confirmed that the Knights, though a great organization with a lot of potential, had greatly waned over the last several years as their ranks were quite low. What little they had was spread thin. When he followed it up saying that he’d be sure to drop her name if he had a chance, she raised a hand. “Thank you, but you don’t have to do that. I actually already have the qualifications they want, but I came to Sabertooth first to hone my magic. I haven’t had it very long, and I knew a guild would help me grow my magic faster than the Knights would. My hope is that focusing on mastering my spells will make me a more desirable asset for them.”

He graciously took her thanks, though assured her it wasn’t needed. Shortly after that, he pulled out a watch and checked the time, stating it was time for him to get back to business. Xiuh stepped back to give him space to stand as he thanked Serilda for her time and for humoring him. “Not a problem at all. If I never run into you again, I wish you luck with your work.” It was a silly thing to assume she would never see him again, though she wouldn’t realize that until after he had almost gone. Serilda had almost gone back to fully paying attention to Xiuh when she heard Ignacio’s voice from across the small park asking her for a favor.

Her head snapped up so fast it was a wonder it didn’t break. “Excuse me?” she asked, her tone a mixture of confusion, concern, and defensiveness. He disappeared around the corner and she was already bearing down on him when she heard the thunder. By the time she got through the arch, there was nothing but a scorch mark -- though she’d already known he was gone by then. He had disappeared completely from her Void Sense.

Panic started to wash over her. Xiuhcoatl felt it too, though she didn’t understand what had set Serilda off. The man had been so nice. The wolf couldn’t understand. But the Voidwalker began to question everything that had just happened. She stood in confusion for only a moment before calling to Xiuh and making her way home. She needed to contact Mythal, from a safe place.

Once she was home, she pulled out her iLac and dialed his number. “Mythal?” she said when he answered. He’d probably immediately be able to hear the tinge of fear in her voice. “Do you have a minute? We need to talk. I just ran into someone I don’t know, a stranger here at the park I usually go to… I didn’t think anything of it, but he brought up your name and then disappeared…”

"Character counts most when duty calls."

As she had expected, he sounded just as concerned about the fact that someone who knew him had approached her. Mythal immediately questioned her for everything she could tell him. “The name he gave me was Ignacio, but who’s knows if that was real or not.”

She took a moment to gather her thoughts. Luckily, small details were something that Serilda had trained herself a lot on remembering over the last few years, to the point where she almost had a photographic memory. “Okay, so. Appearances. He wasn’t very tall for a man. Only a little over five and a half feet or so. He was older, probably in his fifties or so. His hair was covered by a hooded robe he wore, but he had a thick black beard with a lot of white and silver in it, and a mustache that was all white. Angular face, dark eyes. He was very brawny, practically all muscle. It was hard to see beneath the cloak, but I did catch a glimpse. He was wearing a blue and gold uniform of some kind with a symbol on it that I’ve never seen before. Almost like… the head of a trident, but with five spokes?”

That was the best way she could think to describe the icon. “We talked for a bit. He said he worked for the Magic Council, but not as like a Rune Knight or anything. He works as a contract intelligence agent that supposedly gathers information outside of Fiore and sells it back to the kingdom to benefit the country. He was already at the park when I got there, and the place is usually abandoned. We got to talking a little, and he told me that he used to live in Ace of Spades shortly after it was founded -- not far from where I live. He knew who I was, or at least seemed to figure it out after a bit of conversation, but that’s not all that uncommon…” It was much easier for people to know who she was because of her status, so the fact that he knew her really wasn’t much of a concern. She was used to it.

“What else…” She racked her brain trying to remember any other details that she could. “He mentioned knowing an earth mage a while back… and was very interested in Xiuhcoatl, which is also not very uncommon.”

Realizing that she was pacing madly through her living room with worry, she sighed and forced herself to sit down on the couch. It was only once she was holding relatively still that she even realized she was shaking. Like him, she was worried that this man was someone in Faera’s court trying to use her to get to Mythal. “All in all it was a pleasant conversation pretty much the whole time… He never pried for personal information or said anything cryptic or off color. He was very personable, and I wouldn’t have thought anything of it at all. But just before he left, he asked me to say hi to you for him. You never even came up in the conversation, so he already knew who I was and that I know you. I tried to chase after him when he said that to get answers out of him, but as soon as he was out of my sight there was… a sound, like a loud clap of thunder and he was gone. Completely disappeared.”

She rubbed her forehead. A little quietly, told him, “I didn't know what to do so... I came home immediately and called you."

"Character counts most when duty calls."

By the time he reacted, Serilda would be glad she was already sitting. Mythal spoke her name softly, but she could still hear the emotion in his voice as he told her that Ignacio had been his adoptive father’s middle name.

Her heart stopped.

She said not a word as he summed up his father, everything about him perfectly matching the description and interaction with the man she’d just been talking to. It was like the entire world around her had been put on pause, like she was watching herself from someone else’s eyes in her own house. “B-but…” Her mind almost instantly went into denial, but before she could even finish that Serilda recalled that the authorities had never found Gren’s body in the aftermath of the fire.

“Gods…” Her voice was almost a whisper, and trembling just as much as his was. Mythal’s father. She’d actually been talking to Mythal’s dad just now, face to face, and Serilda was entirely uncertain of what to think about that. “Mythal…” Her voice trailed off. She wanted to say something, anything, but she was totally and utterly speechless -- more so even than times in the past.

All at once, a million horrible thoughts burrowed into her mind. If Gren was alive, where had he been all these years? Had he just abandoned Mythal? Let his son believe he was dead, and allowed him to live with grief and guilt? Mythal had spent the last twenty years having to fend for himself on the streets, struggling to survive on his own as a young boy with a terrifying history that haunted him actively. He had grown to the point where he despised humanity, saw them as a plague, didn’t let anyone even touch him until Serilda had quite literally forced her way into his life -- albeit not intentionally. Twenty years the man that she loved had spent being alone with no one there to care for him or help him fight back the darkness.

And now he just suddenly shows back up? Not even to his son, but to her? Scaring the daylights out of her for one thing, but putting him through this even further trauma of having to find out that his father had been alive this whole time? Of making her be the one to reveal that to him unknowingly, to put him in that place of pain, instead of owning up to the truth and facing his son himself?

Unlike Mythal, Serilda found tears of anger quickly dripping down her face. She was silent for a long time as she’d struggled to comprehend the reality of what had just happened, and when it finally hit her the next sound he’d hear from her would be shuddered breath through a running nose as a very real rage assaulted her in the form of crying. “How dare he…” she whispered, more to herself than to Mythal but he’d surely hear it. How dare Gren put both of them in this place. Even if his intentions had been honest ones, there was absolutely no excuse for this.

She cried in earnest over the phone, unable to stop herself. “I was so scared that it was one of Faera’s men trying to get to you,” Serilda said, her anger evident in her voice even through the sobs of heartache over everything. Such was her rage over this revelation that her entire body was trembling. “All this time… You should be hearing this from him, not finding out through me. Mythal, I’m so sorry…”

Serilda felt absolutely terrible for putting this on him, for being tricked into crashing his entire world down around him. Her gut physically wrenched as she thought about how much he must be hurting, about how much more painful all these revelations had to be on him. All she could do was weep over the phone as she wrestled with the anger in her heart over all of this. Xiuh hopped up on the couch and wormed her way onto the woman’s lap, laying her head down and trying to be a warm, comforting weight on her mistress, who was too busy trying to wipe away tears with her free hand to pet the animal.