Munetsuchi

[Bloodedge]

"Yeah, I'm not sure how that even happened either," said Charlemagne regarding Ganelon's relationship with Roland's mother. Frankly, it was one of the weirdest things he'd ever seen. Maybe that could be understood eventually, whenever they encountered Roland's mother again. Maybe something else in that meeting could even explain how Roland became what he now was. . .

Reminiscing aside, Charlemagne was advised about the eventual appearance at her... or perhaps their headquarters. Terrawyn was the name of a blind nun who guided Jeanne. Something about that made Charlemagne recall something else. Rarely did he see a nun outside of churches, but he'd seen one in the past 24 hours or so. That had to be some strange coincidence. "Terrawyn? That's an unusual name, but I'll keep that in mind. Thanks," he said with another sip of... wine, if it could actually be called that. What was the grail's liquid? It was something sweet, but he wouldn't call it alcohol. He did know, however, that one could become drunk from it. How strange.

It seemed both Jeanne and the Nexus understood something Charlemagne didn't. That came as no surprise; that sort of thing kept happening lately. "Fine, fine. I'd rather not talk about much right now anyway," he said with surety. "That's the spirit! Have another," said the Nexus, who immediately refilled Jeanne's grail while adding more to Charlemagne's as well. "I'll uh... pass. I don't need to be drunk today," Charlemagne deflected.

[Apollymi]

Jeanne's mind had been a bit caught on the idea that Ganelon had somehow managed a relationship with the mother of Roland. Actually, it was a bit outlandish, that woman was a top tier French Lady... Ganelon didn't even hit the radar of most regular people. It was a suspicious. "Might be sorcery... at the risk of sounding like a Knight of the Round Table. Tell Roland to check on his mom, whenever you see him again..." she added still drinking. That little bit aside they were still talking about other things as well, including but not limited to the advisor that Jeanne used while her sister was away. "Yeah, it's a bit odd, but she's great. I also don't think she's actually blind or anything. She showed up after my sister first went missing and is usually around to do the extra kind of stuff she would do while she's gone," she said in a strangely upbeat manner. "Given my sister is with me, she might be showing up again and if she is... you should definitely use her expertise," she said with a firm bit of belief in that woman specifically.

Moving on apparently Charles would rather not talk very much right now regardless. Jeanne couldn't commiserate. So as her cup was refilled she began drinking again without missing a beat. Yes, she understood it was intoxicating and no she didn't much care about what was going on with her spirit or her body. She was safe where she was in both case, she'd relax. "If he won't take it I will~ Life's too short not to have a good time~" she listed the first rule in the life of the Hoshimi women, that she'd been spreading around her friend groups since her first life. Moving on, it seemed the little make-out and the subsequent whispers between Sakura and Angelica had come to an end and both would be appearing on either side of Charles's chair. They were still holding hands behind it and were more than ready to be part of the rest of the conversation. "See like that... it's one of the rules!~" Angelica mentioned, which seemed to make Sakura's eyes sparkle a bit. "Oh? You still remember that huh? Been putting it to good use I assume~" said Jeanne with a casual eye flicker over Charles.

[Bloodedge]

Jeanne presumed sorcery could be behind the relationship they spoke of, and truly, Charlemagne agreed. It made no sense whatsoever. Having Roland check on his mother, however, was something he didn't intend to have necessary. "The way things look, Roland won't need telling. If Ganelon is still siding with Father An when we get back, Roland's mother will be a widow," Charlemagne stated. Such a claim was a bit dark for him, as a few other things had been recently. No matter; someone of Ganelon's ilk could not be allowed. Currently, he had faith only in those who confirmed their trustworthiness, and those they trusted as well. This Terrawyn Jeanne spoke of would be trusted if met, but anyone from Aincrad outside of a few people were on a list of the suspicious.

Charlemagne had no intention of drinking a third grail, so he leaned forward to pour what he had into Jeanne's grail. In doing so, he thought about what she had to say... and how much nerve she had to say it. "Didn't we grow up together, I dunno, over a thousand years ago?" he questioned. Life was no longer short for people like them. Regardless, he finished pouring and fell back against his throne. Something felt strange when Angelica and Sakura each took a side to him. What was it? He couldn't quite tell, but it could be attributed to Nexus weirdness. While Charlemagne brushed off what should have been obvious, the Nexus glanced at the trio in front of him. "That's a nice sight," he said casually, only for Charlemagne to have no clue what he meant.

[Apollymi]

According to Charles, Roland's mother would likely be a widow again so the point of warning the lad was moot. Still it was a rather dark thing for him to say, enough to bring a gentle pause to Jeanne as she looked at the lad. Perhaps he'd have fit in better than he understood. Still she had no comments to make about it. Angelica on the other hand seemed to think about it at least a little. "That's a bit dark for you..." she commented wondering if he was really okay after his more literal fall. Ah, but it was fine.

They'd moved on in conversation and with both of the girls standing around his chair, Charles leaned forward to pour his remaining grail liquid into Jeanne's cup which she gladly accepted. Still his words made her chuckle just a little, as he seemed to think her words a bit audacious. "Living a long time is more of a reason to make sure we have fun, not less Surely, you've figured that part out by now, Chuck." she countered. Yes, she thought like this even as her darkened self. "Besides, that one was mom's rule, I keep all of them pretty close, but that one feels the closest to normal for me," she admitted. Well, Jeanne d'Arc was a party girl in her previous life, good tempered and full of life, there was no reason her more death-bringing form would be very different. At the core she was still the same person after all. The Nexus commented on the sight and both girls smiled pretty widely. Jeanne saw this and looked to Charles. And here she thought the oddest thing she'd see in life was her sister with feelings for a man. This magical world was still kind of fun. To Jeanne's point of the rules, Angelica nodded. "Yeah, I've been using them... You haven't led me astray," she said confidently. "Sakura said her big sister isn't here yet and she wants one too, but I think the explanation is best from you," Angelica mentioned seeming to think that Jeanne wouldn't say no to such a thing. "I also want a hug," Sakura mentioned which made Jeanne laugh. "Yeah, yeah... I guess you can have one too. It'd be unfair otherwise," she mentioned for whatever reason.

[Bloodedge]

After his words about Roland's mother, Angelica was the one to speak. She claimed that line was a bit dark for his norm, but how could it be? At this point, taking Ganelon down alongside An was only a sensible solution. "What do you expect, Angie? I watched him turn on me ─ on all of us! There I am with a knife in Father An that I didn't put there, and there he is ready to call me on attempted murder before it even happened! And I can't avoid realizing 'old helpful Ganel' wasn't on the list of people helping you. He's not one of us!" he declared. The way he saw things, An had to be taken down. Ganelon was no different, or perhaps even worse for taking the old god's side after everything he'd done.

Leaning further into the throne, Charlemagne heaved a sigh. A bit of residue remained in his grail, so he poured it into his mouth. Thinking too much about that fall was not good for his state of mind. Regardless, he calmed himself enough to accept Jeanne's reasoning for the earlier statement. She kept her mother close even in this darkened form; that was respectable. In fact, that sort of thing only added to the hope of her proper return. Ah, but Jeanne had more to say. The next words out of her mouth were an acceptance of Sakura's request... for a hug? It would be unfair to tell the girl no, she said. Of course. Everyone would be getting that sort of reception but him, who remained covered in burns that came with no apology. That was fair. In his mind, Charlemagne called this... a shitty reunion, in spite of the underlying hope for a better future. "And me too! We're basically done here, so that question's still in the air," said the Nexus.

[Apollymi]

Charles had an interesting set of things to say after Angelica pointed out how dark his commentary was. She was left looking at him after his rather fuming tirade and wondered if he was really okay. It was technically a very bad job he was doing pretending to be alright if he was having that sort of outburst. But it was more confusing than anything else. "Not getting any lighter there, Chuck!" she mentioned seeming to find his words to be way harsher than they needed to be. True, Ganelon wasn't on the list of people helping Angelica, his other friends though him sketchy as well. So the plan concerning her safe keeping didn't include him, but that changed nothing about Charles disposition. A gentle squeeze of Angelica's hand would occur as she aimed to give the lass a bit of comfort. Jeanne watched him lean in his chair and wondered if this was what other people saw her like, as she had pretty clear memories of Charles and he wasn't like this. Ah, that was a problem for a different time, right here right now, Jeanne stood up draining her phantom grail and sitting it where she had been in her throne.

"I'm the Big Sis around here now, so I guess I'll give the advice I was given and you can make use of it as you will. I don't know the equivalent for number two for Chuck, but I'm sure he'll figure it out~" she teased gently. "Rule number 1, Mom's rule... Have the second drink. Life is too short not to have a good time. Well that is the human side of it. Life is now too long for it to be boring. That's an amendment but she'd agree~" she said. As she began taking steps towards that throne, strangely she felt a bit more like her old and motivational speaking self, maybe it was the Nexus drinks, maybe it was something else? "Rule number 2, Rie-nee's rule. Wear the cute panties. Always be ready for someone to see them, regardless of why you set out today," she said finally making her way to Sakura's side she opened her arms to the girl and Sakura would walk into them, giving a pretty nice hug with a nice warm set of back pats. Strange, this girl was really good at being comforting. "Rule number 3, Eri-nee's rule, If you want something dead, twist the knife. No half-assed or half-hearted murders. Commit," another slight amendment but she was sure her sister wouldn't mind that one either. At the end of her hug with Sakura she felt strangely better about a lot of things, but she couldn't have put them all into perspective if she wanted to. "Rule number 4, is my rule. If there's something you really want to do and it makes you happy. It really makes your soul sing... and it's not hurting anyone. Do it. It's your life to live, don't worry about how it looks, no regrets." she said yes that was the end of her little speech and she would be found standing in front of Charles. "In the spirit of living by my own life rules... I'm sorry I fucked you up so bad after our first meeting in a thousand years..." she offered Charles feeling strangely truly apologetic. "And yes, you can have a hug... both of you I guess. If you want," she said of the Nexus and Charles himself. Over the course of her speech she realized it was less like her to be so standoffish around friends. And they were all practically family now, she would have hugged her brother, it would be a bit unnecessarily weird not to give hugs to the other two. She was still a bit tsundere though, so there wasn't really any getting around it.

[Bloodedge]

Of course his words weren't getting any lighter. The way Charlemagne saw things, he had no reason to go easy on someone like Ganelon. He was right to be angry from time to time. That particular man had deceived them all, and he didn't even know how long it had been going on. Beyond being furious with Ganelon, Charlemagne remained angry at himself for not seeing the betrayal coming. "It's just upsetting, okay? A lot happened, and I'm still processing it all. It'll be alright," he assured. The Nexus, however, eyed both Angelica and Sakura upon hearing those words. This was only the start, and indeed things would be alright... with a bit of intervening necessary along the way. Perhaps now wasn't the time, but the Nexus knew Charlemagne would be taking an atypical path soon.

Jeanne stood, and she spoke. In spite of her current form's rowdiness, she had some advice to give. There was the rule from her mother about taking the extra drink. A rule from her eldest sister involved panties, which Charlemagne surely couldn't apply to himself; he even wondered why she bothered listing that one. What he most resonated with currently was the rule from the middle sister, which involved certain killing. A final rule from Jeanne herself was something she always preached: following one's own desires. She listed those four things while in contact with Sakura, then spoke to Charlemagne directly. An apology was offered for the assault, and with it came a hug offer to the Nexus. Ah, but Charlemagne was included in the latter this time. How strange. Charlemagne continued sitting in place, thinking back to her original reason for not hugging him. "I'm still a guy, you know? If you've got a 'no touching' thing, I'm not going to be the one to break it," he said, rejecting the offer sent his way. The Nexus, however... "Well I'm not a guy! Last I checked, I was a disembodied voice. Bring it in!" said the Nexus, who immediately stood with both arms spread wide.

[Apollymi]

According to Charles, he was still upset and processing. Angelica understood this, she didn't think she would have been particularly friendly a few moments later had she shown up. Even so... The look given by the Nexus to both girls was registered. Sakura understood his emotional state was her own responsibility so she noted this weird point of his and she'd talk to him about it. Perhaps his elafia friend would be able to give a bit more context as well. Angelica could do nothing really for now, but sighed just the same. "If you say so, Chuck..." she murmured.

Just the same Jeanne had a bit of a speech to give despite being a bit on edge in her current form and by the end of it Sakura's eyes were shining. This lass had a strange ability to be both comforting and knowledgeable in a way that was just inspiring. If she was going to consult someone on speech giving, it would be her. Moving on from this point, Charles apparently wasn't giving any hugs because of her no guy rule. This was fine with Jeanne but she did offer, he really did seem like he was in quite the bad mood for him though. The Nexus on the other hand, claimed to be a disembodied voice and held his arms open for the lass. She walked into them meeting a hug with a good fatherly figure. It was strange, she hadn't had one of these in quite a while. And she seemed to remember something rather important. "Shit, I forgot two rules, don't tell them okay, they'll think I forgot about them," she mumbled immediately though she kept her hug with the Nexus just the same. "Rule number five is dad's rule, And it's essentially be careful who you share yourself with, not in the simple way, but in the all information kind of way. Basically don't give away your secrets. Cards close to the vest, until you need them," she added. "And rule six, Kei-nii's rule. Be unapologetically yourself... whatever that means for you, even if it means you're the weirdest person in your group," she said. "Those, are the rules to live by..." she said looking up at the Nexus. "Thanks, by the way..." she mentioned seeming to feel strangely emotional for the time without really knowing why. It was after all nice to know she'd not been completely abandoned.

[Bloodedge]

There would be no hugging between Charlemagne and Jeanne d'Arc today. Perhaps such a thing existed in a future neither of them could see, but at least one of them strove for. Whatever the future held, the present contained two additional rules from the men in Jeanne's original life. Strangely, they contradicted one another. Where one preached reservation, the other spoke of openness. What a strange family they were, but perhaps there was something deeper there. Charlemagne would internalize those things whether he wanted to or not.

Meanwhile, the Nexus embraced his... technically adopted child, with a warm firmness. It had been a very long time since he could make physical contact with anyone, and he would soon enough be rendered incapable again. As such, he'd enjoy the moment now. Only a few additional words were shared with Jeanne. "Oh! I should give dad advice then, huh?" he asked rhetorically. Upon releasing the Dragon Witch, he tapped her forehead gently with a single finger. "You, little miss, are in a pickle right now. Tell your sister to check her pockets. While you're at it, remember: once a dragon, always a dragon. That goes forward and backwards. Did you know places of Mystery and old magic are the best for making dragons appear? Just food for thought."

He wasn't done there. In a technical sense, the Nexus had advice for everyone present. He looked next to Angelica. "Ang, you're doing great out there! Don't forget everything you learned recently. And remember, the person looking after you isn't automatically qualified to be a parent. Real parents will always be there for their children. A father is not a dad. It sucks that you've never had a real heart-to-heart with your dad," he rambled. "Sakura! Tell that awesome lady I'm sorry for stepping on her toes ─ she's doing great, but I should tell you right now that internalization doesn't have to be the whole of something. Sometimes, if you really want to take it up a notch, you can evolve something even after it's become part of you," he explained. Lastly, there was Charlemagne. What was he to tell the lad he finally made eye contact with? "And you... don't let yourself forget what you decided to do, yeah? Sometimes the hard part is letting go and taking a chance. Maybe things get worse... but maybe they work out exactly as you hope, King of Faith."

With all that said, the Nexus banished all existing thrones within the area. The visual of Angelica's floor in Aincrad was beginning to fade, but he stopped it from doing so just before it was too late. "Hmm. Actually, I'll keep this for a bit. Sorry Ang, but I really like it. You can come take it back later if you want. Anyway, that's all. You kids have a rockin' good time, alright?"

[Apollymi]

The words Jeanne ended up sharing last were ones which made a decent bit of sense to both Sakura and Angelica. Sakura from a standpoint of wisdom she could see the point of being yourself while also not sharing too much with unnecessary people. And Angelica could see the goodness of caution to temper impulsivity, though she was a bit impulsive herself.

Moving on, Jeanne was eventually released from what had been a rather calming embrace and tapped upon the forehead with a single finger. She almost pouted at such a thing, but it reminded her a bit of home so she couldn't actually be upset. His advice was strange enough, but also clear enough to be internalized. He wanted her sister to check her pockets, she'd ask which one, but it was Eri who was always forgetting to take things out of her pockets. "Sou ka... well, I'll do that I guess. And that makes a lot of sense of my sister too, I suppose," she said about the dragons and their evolution. She didn't know when the rest of that would come into play but figured when she needed to, she'd remember it.

Angelica was told she was doing great, which was comforting considering she was out on her own for the first time. He had some rather cryptic things to say about what made people parents. "Alright, I'll keep it in mind," she said seemingly please though she still looked at Charles and then back to Sakura hoping the other girl would be able to help with his mood a bit. To Sakura he mentioned an apology to be delivered to his daughter in the Void. He also gave her the information concerning her potential to develop further. Had she not done everything she could? "I'll pass it along, and think about it more and let you know what I come up with!" she she said seemingly pleased. Of course she was like that in general and always happy to show anyone what she came up with. His message to Charles was interesting and pointed. The details of it were unknown to the women present, but it seemed to be alright. With all the thrones banished the hand holding of Sakura and Angelica was something obvious well, more obvious and made Jeanne chuckle just a bit. And the Nexus decided to keep the look of Angelica's floor. Her face flushed and she was immensely flattered. "No, no... it's fine. I'm glad you like it enough to want to see it," she said truly happy someone would get to enjoy it as even she wouldn't be able to anymore. "Aww..." just that slipped out of Jeanne for just a moment. And then she turned ready to slip out of this place again... it'd been so long since she'd been here last, it was nice.

[Bloodedge]

The Nexus gave all necessary information and advice. One message was delivered to each was about enough to set things in motion. Even Charlemagne seemed to be internalizing the advice he was given, though it seemed infinitely concerning. Well... it should have been. "Groovy! I'll be keeping tabs on you crazy kids. Go out there and make your dreams come true!"

With that, each person would be transported to their original location... somewhat. Jeanne would see her consciousness returned. Angelica, too, would be capable of waking in her hideaway. For the other two, they'd be right back to the Zen Pavilion that originally sent them to the Nexus. Perhaps he thought to save them a trip, or perhaps there was another purpose. Well, there was hardly a point in trying to figure out that man's intentions. Charlemagne knew that face. It was he who created the franchise Age of Eternity, which spawned even the trading card game he once enjoyed to no end. He'd always been a very unpredictable individual. Moving on from matters of the Nexus, Charlemagne found himself flopping onto a mattress upon spawning. Luckily enough, it was the perfect short answer for mental exhaustion. "That was... a lot. At least Angie's alright. I guess there's no point in finishing the map now, since we can just go straight to HQ and start from there. This is going to be such a pain," he groaned.

[Apollymi]

And with that, all returned to where they should have been. Sakura was particularly pleased by her outing today, aside from Charles's obvious change in disposition over the course of their outing. Interesting that all which happened seemed to be both good and bad. She didn't have any way of quantifying his actions but she was at least happy that he got to see Angelica. At the same time, she was also happy to have gotten to meet Angelica as well...

Charles was soon summing up his points, that at least Angelica was okay and that they didn't need to finish the map since they could get directly to the Holy Knights Headquarters and work their way out from there. "Hai, she's fine. I'm really happy I got to meet her..." she said of Angelica of course she was very informed of that lass and her current mental and physical state. Technically speaking Sakura was very aware of everyone's physical state. Since he'd collapsed on the bed she crawled in as well, settling herself in to place his head into her lap. He seemed to be quite restless and she was not at all. As such... she'd help him relax a bit more as he thought over the situation. "It might be a pain. But I'll be with you, okay?" she asked him still so freely offering herself to go along. "You can rest now... " she said patting his head gently. Sakura was perhaps coddling Charles just a bit, but he'd been through a lot today so she figured he wouldn't really know immediately how he wished to start. All would be fine eventually, she was sure of it.

[Bloodedge]

It was good to confirm Angelica's safety, and good to have Sakura meet her after being so excited to do so. Charlemagne could relax for the moment. "You two seemed to get along after whatever you were talking about," he said, though the image in his mind told him there was no talking at all. It was best to silence that. He was on his back, and the physical signs would be obvious ─ especially once Sakura slid herself under his head to once again have her lap as his pillow. His legs lifted at the knee slightly, a natural inclination to hide the signs. As he did so, Sakura reiterated that she'd be with him during the coming annoyance. That was a relief, if anything.

"Yeah... thanks," he said while looking up at the lass. She said he could rest, but he really didn't intend to. Well, he'd take the moment at least. This was no time for sleeping or anything of the like, though. "I should call the others. They'll know to meet us in the throne room whenever they can," the lad murmured. His hand rose a few moments after, and a streak of glittering light mana spread out from it. That streak burst like a firework after extending several meters. Visually, the remnants of it disappeared, but it would travel the length of an average city. It was something his comrades could sense from nearby ─ something used within their group to call for rendezvous. Wherever they most recently were as a group, they were to meet again at everyone's earliest convenience. "There. I wonder how long they'll take. I just need to let everyone know the plan."

[Apollymi]

Charles seemed to be relaxing at least a little. At the very least, he also seemed pleased that the pair of Angelica and Sakura got along, though the lad himself didn't seem to want to think too much about what that would actually mean. Sakura did hold a bit of wonder about that, but she also knew that Charles wasn't exactly intune with his own urges. Beyond that he wasn't exactly as certain as everyone else. "We were talking about life, fun and you..." she said seeming to think the better of fully explaining. "Oh, and Jea-nee," she said seemingly pleased by the information. Besides all of that there was their actual understanding of each other and the part that Charles likely wouldn't understand so it went without mentioning. Actually, the lad had been rather dark all day, perhaps Sakura should help. Strangely he only took a moment or two of rest, nestled in her lap before he stood and spread strange light claiming to call the others. She assumed this had something to do with Anais and Astolfo. What would come of such a thing. "Oh? That's interesting," she said finding the method to be oddly magical given Charles own strange aversion to it.

In the meantime where was Anais? Well, the young elafia was still in the middle of her day of exploration and lessons. Right at the moment she was having a lesson. And it was being presented in a rather direct manner. She was accepting it into the depths of her person from her core. Her legs extended upwards in a slight 'v' as her mentor was capable of pushing himself into her depths from her for. She knew and understood that magical light and was confused by it as it glittered by. "Oh? Charlie is calling us. He never calls us," she mumbled as she soon lost focus just for a second given her own activities.

[Bloodedge]

Sakura went on to list the topics addressed between Angelica and herself. They included him, concerning though that was. Charlemagne became immediately curious as to what sort of conversation between them involved him. Was it something incriminating? It easily could have been something he didn't want out in the open before the right time came. Ah, but that surely couldn't be the case; Angelica had shown no animosity or suspicious leanings after their conversation ended. Perhaps there was something else regarding him? Whatever the truth was, he couldn't bring himself to ask even a single question; that would be far too obvious where his mind was going."Oh. Cool," was all he said.

Ah, they also spoke of Jeanne d'Arc, already affectionately referred to as 'Jea-nee' by Sakura. How strange. Well, Jeanne did have a habit of being adored with neither plentiful time nor effort invested. Even her current form seemed to retain that ability when she wanted to express it. "Jea-nee, huh? Y'know at this point, I'm surprised she even became friendly at all," he stated. It did seem for a while as if Jeanne could only know hatred. Discovering the tsundere tendencies underneath was quite the boon.

Shortly after Charlemagne relied on an old calling card, the elafia of his group had something to say. The elf calling himself her mentor loomed over her body, their lower halves clashing repeatedly. Upon hearing her claim 'Charlie' was calling, his thrusting came to a gradual pause. "Ah? Is that what that is? It's quite interesting that you'd use such a method to keep in touch with one another. Do you need to address that immediately? Should we be stopping?" he wondered. "We are mid-lesson, but if you really must. . ."