Once upon a time...

[timefather]

[ For the residents of Märchenstraße, and all the land surrounding it, the eighth of December was a day to look forward to. Looking at it from an outside perspective, strangers and travelers could easily assume it to be a holiday. At the very least, a day for a festival, if a modest one. A day that shopkeeps spent all morning preparing for, that all manner of creatures spent days traveling to the city to witness. They'd heard the talk that passed around, the rumors from those still left. But would it work? No one knew for sure, no matter how confident the stories seemed to be. But hope was very quickly becoming all they had left.

They had decorated the whole town. Streamers, banners, wreathes and garland made of autumn flowers, plus whatever the Fairy Godmother had cooked up. Oh, she was just giddy. No skepticism could be spoken around her, not if you wanted to escape the wrath of her wand! Rumor had it that she had caught wind of a few piglets squealing about the likelihood that their magic would fail, and that they were subsequently transformed into the band of musicians who could be found performing in the park.

Well, at least the music was festive.

Of course, the decorations weren't for the newcomers alone. Autumn was coming to a close in just a few weeks, and Old Man Winter would take the reigns like he did every year, and their weather would turn cold and harsh. The chill was already there, cool and biting when the wind picked up speed. Lady Autumn was much preferred to the citizens of the city with her gentle nature, even if she failed to show up, finishing her work in the orchards instead. That was what they liked about her.

It was mid-morning when Father Time was found outside of his tower, checking one of the numerous pocket watches he kept on his person. "Unnecessary, but comfortable," he called them, and closed the watch again. It was twelve o'clock in the afternoon, and where empty space had been just seconds before, now they were. Sitting on benches, lying in flower patches, scattered about the city and outside of the gates in peaceful slumber. They would awaken to the bells of the clock tower. Some, to many friendly and relieved faces all around them, some to grateful ones carrying gifts of food and clothing and magic, and some to fearful, cautious faces. Regardless of how the town treated them, they would awaken to a celebration of their arrival, and choices to be made, and the books. Each and every one. ]

Comments

[twitchery]

Why wouldn't you look like a prince? And I could kill a giant. [Maybe.] Hey, pass me a quill.

[andrarrrgynous]

I dunno. Usually people don't get pirates and princes confused all that often.

[She speaks as she digs around in the bag until she finds the quill that came alongside the mysterious journal. It's a fancy looking thing, like it should belong on the desk in someone's study instead of shoved in Faris' bag.]

I'll be wanting that back, by the way.

[twitchery]

I'm a-

[He was going to say 'a prince' and point out that he doesn't exactly look the part either, perhaps argue his point further with his uncle and mom as examples, but then again casually mentioning royal blood was generally a faux pas in mixed company. Not even touching the time paradox issue.]

Thanks.

[And he drew a really bad picture of a bear before handing the quill back to Faris.]

I've got my quill somewhere...I'm Owain.

[andrarrrgynous]

[She's just about to tell him her name when she catches sight of his artwork.]

...What's that supposed to be?

[And why was it so important to draw that he had to borrow her quill?]

[twitchery]

A bear. [Wow, he feels kind of embarrassed now.] I know. It's really bad, but it's the first thing I thought about. Frederick serves it all the time at dinner, and...uh, well. I thought it might do something if I wrote in it. [Oh well. He'll solve the riddle of the books later.]

[andrarrrgynous]

[Before he can stop her, she reaches out, snatching the book from his hands and turns it one way, and then another. Well, at least he know's it's bad.]

What were you thinking drawing a bear would do?

[It's an honest question, she's seen enough strange magic things in her life, and in the last day or so, that she wouldn't really turn her nose up at a magic book of all things.]

[twitchery]

I don't know, but if you've got a journal and I've got an identical journal, and both of ours calls us things that we're not, then there's obviously got to be some kind of reason for us bearing them. Some sort of clue, perhaps, to whatever wayward spirit had called us here from our respective places or whatever no doubt heroic quest we have been charged with. [...but that's not answering the question, is it?] Perhaps it would summon a bear from the ether?

[andrarrrgynous]

[She gives the bear one last look before snapping the cover shut and handing it back to Owain with a shrug.]

Doesn't look like anything but a bunch of paper to me.

[Maybe good for kindling, of nothing else.]

The name's Faris, by the way.

[twitchery]

[Accepts it and puts it away to go over later.] Yeah, but how many relics of infinite legend and power have you owned?

[andrarrrgynous]

Just a handful, I guess,

[A handful of shards from the wind crystal, that is, but from Faris' tone, it's hard to tell if she's just being facetious.]

I dunno about you, but I don't plan on stickin' around long enough to find out. I dunno how we got here, but there's gotta be a way to get home.

[twitchery]

I know. I have to get back. My friends were about to fight the ultimate evil! [And now he's sort of freaking out at the reminder. (He'd be freaking out more but 1. his cousin Lucina's incredibly capable 2. time travel means that maybe it would be possible to warp back in time for the fight...? It's the difference between "Ah!" and "AH!" Still not chill, but he won't start seriously panicking until he knows for a fact he'd miss that fight.)]

[andrarrrgynous]

The "ultimate evil", huh?

[She quirks an eyebrow up at him; again with the Warrior of Light kind of stuff.]

You mean, the thing that's destroyin' the crystals?

[twitchery]

Cryst- they looked more like gemstones to me. [Since the pirate is talking about the rocks in the Fire Emblem, right?] I mean, I guess they kind of could look like crystals but I think of those more as big, pointy things. The sort of things you'd find in ancient caves, not some heirloom passed down in families across generations.

[andrarrrgynous]

...Have you ever even seen one of the crystals before?

[Because it sounds like they're talking about entirely different things.]

I'm talking about the crystals, the ones that keep the wind blowin' and the tides from going out of whack.

[They're pretty hard to confuse for some bauble passed down in a family.]

[twitchery]

The ones I'm thinking about are... [He gestures, indicating a small, round orb that could be shoved onto a shield.] They're legendary gemstones that, when united, empower the Fire Emblem - a legendary [...wait, 2x legendary. Crap.] object of great power that grants its wielder with immense power and immense abilities. [...] Dunno if they keep wind blowing and the water normal.