1stknight | PSL (closed)

[That was the question, wasn't it?

Here was the thing: Atsushi wasn't the type to take survivor's guilt well. As if anyone had an easy time with survivor's guilt, but Dazai would rather that no one troubled themselves in such a way on his account. In fact, it was one of the criteria he had for a beautiful death, and why he hadn't explicitly mentioned the death match aspect of the grail war to Kunikida and Fukuzawa.

So yeah. He calmly ate his breakfast as he figured out how to answer Bedivere.]

I won't stop him from following us if that's what he wants, but neither will I give him all the details. As unexpected as my participation in this conflict is, I'd rather not let him get caught up in this in case things go south.

Something like this can't be the end for him.

[Ah. So Dazai had a soft spot for Atsushi.

Bedivere could understand not wanting to get anyone else caught up in the Grail War, given the high likelihood of death. Atsushi did seem young too. Was it Dazai's desire to protect him that led Dazai to not want him to get involved?]

It's alright, I understand. We won't get him involved.

[Dazai nodded. Exhaled.

Part of him was grateful that no one had yet asked him what his wish was. Atsushi knew where Odasaku's grave was, had guessed correctly that he was Dazai's friend - but speaking about the man still was too personal of an affair.

Really. Dazai thought that Atsushi shouldn't get caught up in a a foolish man's bid to dream.]

What was your king like?

My king?

[The sudden change in topic was an effective distraction from Bedivere's thoughts on how relived Dazai had sounded in that moment there.

How could he even start to describe his king? It would take forever to paint even an adequate picture of him. But perhaps being succinct was alright too. It wasn't like Artoria was there to get offended or anything.]

He was very quiet and reserved. Actions spoke louder than words, he lived by that. He was a very good king, and England lived in a time of prosperity under him. But I think he was burdened by the responsibility of it all. I can only hope that those of us at the Round Table were able to ease that burden.

[Dazai nodded. He wasn't that familiar with Arthurian legends and the political context of Arthur's court, but it was a shame that a mythical golden age crumbled because of jealousy, betrayal, and a whole host of other things. And for Bedivere to speak of a king's burden, a hint that he'd seen the person under the crown...

Well.

Equally significant was Bedivere's omission of King Arthur's final days, though Dazai figured it had to do with Bedivere's own regrets.]

Ideals can be difficult to translate into reality, and there are some who don't know how to live without conflict. [Dazai gathered rice to the bottom of his bowl and scooped up a mouthful with his chopsticks. Mulling over his dreams about Bedivere's loyalty was easier to focus on compared to his memories of the Port Mafia.] It's admirable he even tried.

What the King and the Round Table accomplished even for such a short period was hard to pull off. I believe it's one of the main reasons his legend still lives on to this day, at a time when replicating such a feat has its own complications.

[Bedivere nodded in agreement. His loyalty made him biased, but it was still good to hear someone else recognize the efforts his king went to for the sake of his country. Even if things had ended in tragedy, his intentions had always been good.

Good intentions...Bedivere was suddenly reminded of a time, in another world, with another king. One where good intentions had turned to authoritarianism, and then to mass executions...

Bedivere's stomach was in knots, and he swallowed down those memories.]

Why do you ask? Curious to see if the legends live up to the king?

You can say that.

[Dazai propped his chin on the heel of his hand, giving Bedivere a thoughtful look.]

You glow, you know, when you talk about the King. [Aaaand moving on before he could dwell on the nature of loyalty -] I'm sure this won't come as a surprise, but people still kill each other to find their slice of utopia. Yokohama isn't any different.

In a world where gentlemen's agreements are upheld only half the time and the chivalric code doesn't exist, what would King Arthur do to get different factions to work together? Especially if one party considers serial homicide as an acceptable measure to control the spread of power.

[Because that was one way to look at Dostoevsky's plan of action. Dazai didn't get how eliminating ideas would purge the world of sin or some bullshit like that - ugliness was part of man. Abilities merely made it easier to express that fracture of their nature.]

Do I?

[Bedivere's eyes widened in a momentary surprise. Was he really so enamored with Artoria that he glowed even from the memory of him? How embarrassing.

But then Dazai continued with another thought, and the embarrassment was brought down to a more realistic thought. What would the king do in this situation? How would he unite everyone?

There was only one answer, and Bedivere said it carefully.]

He wouldn't. Getting seven factions at once to work together would be impossible even for him. He would pick one or two allies that have goals aligned with his and make an alliance out of them.

[Dazai didn't say 'yes,' but his expression was enough of an answer.

As was his sigh when he heard what King Arthur's possible plan was.]

Of course.

[Well, at least he tried looking for an answer.]

What would he do with the others? Ease them out politically? Give them a distant corner of the kingdom to manage so they don't pester him? [The second one sounded iffy as he said it - granting the opposition a power base could fuel an uprising... well, maybe that was part of why Camelot crumbled. Resentment was hard to deal with when it added fuel to the fire.] Have someone else deal with them?

If you're looking for honorable solutions in a Grail War, then you may be disappointed. Even the king himself would fight dirty in a situation like this.

[He could see what Dazai was trying to do, and he did appreciate it. It was just that it wouldn't help them here.]

Let's focus on finding a couple allies first? Then the next course of action can be chosen.

...of course.

[He wouldn't mention that his concern about the general state of affairs in Yokohama had slipped in. Dazai wondered if this counted as improvement from before.]

To the forest, then! At least someone picked the scenic route this time.

[When they left after breakfast, Dazai brought along his Agency ID just in case there were still regular investigators onsite.

Perhaps unfortunately for Bedivere, the long travel route meant Dazai circled back to teasing him while having that interesting dream from this morning on his mind.]

So, Ellis! Given your tastes, what kind of steamy dreams do you get? Did handholding for an extended period of time provide enough inspiration?

[At least they weren't on a train when he asked?]

[Bedivere had thought that the trip would be a quiet one, and that Dazai would be thinking his own thoughts. But nope, apparently it was tease Bedivere hour, and he did his best to keep a calm face.]

There was nothing steamy about my dreams. I don't even sleep. I just 'rest'.

Oh, that's even better! Five hours of lying down is a long time, and even a room's shadows might give way to fanciful illusions while the mind doth wander. Have you used your imagination at any point during your "rest?"

[Have an exaggerated eyebrow waggle.]

Not even once.

[Conceal, don't feel, don't let him know. Especially considering that his thoughts had wandered to 'fanciful illusions' just the previous night.

His words might not have been convincing, though, not with the slight tint of pink that appeared on his cheeks. Even a dignified act couldn't survive that betrayal.]

Sure?

[Sorry, Bedi, there was no hiding that blush with your skin tone. Dazai poked his cheek.]

You know, there's a reason married couples traditionally place their futons side-by-side. I wouldn't be surprised if you had someone else in mind when you "woke up" this morning.

[Bedivere tolerated the poking, but it was with all the grace of a cat that had accepted its lot in life as a bedraggled pet. The frown was there, but controlled.]

The only thing on my mind is how to best serve you, Master.

And I've known people who focus on duty too much, to the point that it weathers them.

[If his finger lingered on the curve of Bedivere's cheek for a second too long before he withdrew his hand, well. Maybe it wouldn't be noticed.]

Humor me in the quest for the spice of life, Ellis.

[God help him, Dazai was going to be the end of him.]

Y-your concerns and requests are noted.

[Then he started to walk faster, trying to get some space between him and Dazai. It wasn't because he was mad, though. No, it was quite the opposite. He had to wrestle with his own thoughts on all of this, and when he was a few steps ahead, he reflexively reached up to touch the cheek Dazai had just touched.

He would deny it if asked, but that had stirred some kind of emotion in him. He just didn't know how to put that emotion into words.]

[Bedivere sure got away.

Shrugging, Dazai followed at a more sedate pace, slipping his hands into his pockets, and told himself he wasn't disappointed. Anyway, Bedivere was probably in love with his king, wasn't he? A dream wasn't a good basis for any sort of conclusion, but he saw how Bedivere's features softened when he spoke of King Arthur.

Ah, well. He supposed he'd enjoy this partnership while it lasted.

(Shame that his greed might undermine even that later.)

As they neared the forest, Dazai quickened his pace to catch up with Bedivere.]

Sense anything?

[Bedivere's feelings were far too complicated for even him to understand them. He also thought that the Grail War would be too short to sort them out, and was determined to just not think about how that touch to his cheek made him feel warm.

It wasn't the same blinding loyalty he felt towards Artoria, but it was something. And he didn't know what to think about it.]

Not yet. The residual magic from the summoning is too weak for me to pick up on it. This circle was likely destroyed, just like the others.

[But unlike with the other circles, this servant was still in the area. And Bedivere had missed seeing a trap on the path ahead. They were about three steps away from setting off a tripwire and finding themselves in a precarious position.]

Shame.

Think they left the catalyst?

[That tripwire would be a clue that, no, this new Master wasn't as careless. How visible was it along their path? Dazai might be looking past Bedivere, but he'd only see the metal if there was enough light streaming through the forest canopy.

Admittedly, this was one of the reasons why he tended to walk a few paces behind Chuuya back in the day, and it showed up as a habit in the present. The pipsqueak made holding out a branch or something to search for traps and other forest things redundant.

In any case - if he could see the light glinting off the wire just so,] he'd tug Bedivere back by the shirt. If something came shooting at them, he'd try to dodge and roll.]

They might have-

[Dazai absolutely could see that trip wire glint in the sunlight, and he caught Bedivere just in time to avoid Disaster. Bedivere was surprised by the sudden movement, though, and he cast Dazai a confused look.]

Master?

Shhh.

[Dazai pointed at the wire with keen interest. Good to know someone else here wasn't relying on magic.]

Here, take three steps back with me - one, two, three. Now, let's see if we can go around where it's tied to.

We'll need to take a tree branch with us or something; I doubt you'd want to use your sword to get through the foliage. Hopefully the actual area where the summoning circle is has doesn't have a lot of traps.

[Deliberately tripping a wire was as good as dialing that other Master's number. Something to keep in mind for later.]

[Ah. Now there was something interesting.

Bedivere nodded, and he stepped backwards with Dazai. There was no telling how close the other Master and Servant were, but if they were setting wires up like this, then they expected people to investigate the area.

The Assassin, maybe? But no, an assassin's trap wouldn't be so obvious. It had to be someone who could be summoned as both an Assassin and another class, and they were summoned as their other class this time. That would explain the obvious trap.

Bedivere did get a long stick, though, and used it to search out the path they took around the tripwire. Dazai's plan was a good one, because Bedivere found a second, harder-to-see tripwire in the bushes. He silently indicated to Dazai and pointed to that one, so Dazai would see. Since it was in the shade of the trees and bushes, it was even harder to notice. This person had made traps upon traps.]

[Ugh. This was going to be a pain. It also meant that these were setup before yesterday sundown, unless this Servant had unusually good night vision.

Dazai exhaled and couldn't resist a mutter.]

Well, they've been here for a while. Terrible blow for wildlife conservation.

[After catching Bedivere's attention, he tipped his head up at the branches and raised an eyebrow. Anything up there? Because short of indiscriminately blowing stuff up, mayyyybe the path up on the canopy was free, and Bedivere could either carry Dazai up there or navigate the forest alone while Dazai waited.

Preferably the former if it was possible, and Dazai would suggest as much if Bedivere confirmed he didn't spot any traps way up in the branches. Getting split up in unmapped enemy territory was a terrible idea.]

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