noctis lucis caelum (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
cess) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
avalononline2020-11-12 01:20 pm
cess) wrote in avalononline2020-11-12 01:20 pm
Entry tags:
video
[ the video starts with a little black nose attached to a blue-furred face snuffling at the camera. ]
Carbuncle, no. I want you to hold it, like this -
[ there's some shuffling that goes around before the camera is rotated, and there's the sound of teeth closing on plastic. then the camera is turned to show noctis lucis caelum, from the waist up. he's a young man of twenty, with dark hair; he's wearing a black shirt with a skull pattern, with black pants and a black jacket. (there's a theme here in his clothes). ]
...Hey. I'm Noctis.
[ he waves the hand that has a glove on it, painfully awkward, but continues on. ]
I dunno how the rest of you feel about coming here, but I'm not too excited about it. It seems pretty clear if you wanna make it back home, though, we have to help save this place. The way to do that is learning how to use whatever magic you were given.
So, for those of us whose magic is more practical - like mine, which is Light - I'm gonna be hanging near Brocéliande Forest, to train. Not in it, I'd rather not get stuck in another time loop, but it's got some pretty open space between the city and it.
[ he steps back so that the camera can see the spot he's indicating. ]
... I'm also not like, the master of combat or whatever, but I can help with weapons training if you don't have any. So, yeah. Just... hit me up or show up here, whatever works.
Carbuncle, no. I want you to hold it, like this -
[ there's some shuffling that goes around before the camera is rotated, and there's the sound of teeth closing on plastic. then the camera is turned to show noctis lucis caelum, from the waist up. he's a young man of twenty, with dark hair; he's wearing a black shirt with a skull pattern, with black pants and a black jacket. (there's a theme here in his clothes). ]
...Hey. I'm Noctis.
[ he waves the hand that has a glove on it, painfully awkward, but continues on. ]
I dunno how the rest of you feel about coming here, but I'm not too excited about it. It seems pretty clear if you wanna make it back home, though, we have to help save this place. The way to do that is learning how to use whatever magic you were given.
So, for those of us whose magic is more practical - like mine, which is Light - I'm gonna be hanging near Brocéliande Forest, to train. Not in it, I'd rather not get stuck in another time loop, but it's got some pretty open space between the city and it.
[ he steps back so that the camera can see the spot he's indicating. ]
... I'm also not like, the master of combat or whatever, but I can help with weapons training if you don't have any. So, yeah. Just... hit me up or show up here, whatever works.
no subject
Your parents were convinced you'd be a "star", were they...
[Thanks, years of Latin!!]
"Edgeworth" is fine. We can continue this in person; I've nearly arrived.
[And indeed, he's on his way, following the road sedately until it starts to wind out of town — so at around the same time that Edgeworth spots Noct and his Carbuncle idling near the edge of the woods, they will be regaled with the sight of an elegant man and his extremely fancy dog.]
no subject
but noctis holds off on defending his poor overwrought name as he looks up for someone approaching. he actually stands a bit straighter when he spots the elegant man and his elegant dog. he sheathes the sword so he doesn't look too scary, and walks over, the carbuncle trailing after him. ]
Nice to meet you, Edgeworth.
[ he raises his hand in greeting again, but his gaze is drawn to the dog. she looks extremely fancy which means he wants to pet her instantly. ]
She friendly?
no subject
[He pronounces the word like it doesn't fit quite right in his mouth at first, unaccustomed to the casual familiarity. Surnames would be easier, probably, but this Noctis seems none too interested in that sort of emotional distance.
Still, his interest in Pess gives Edgeworth a second or two to size him up — a pursuit made easier by seeing him in person, rather than over a tiny screen. There's a softness to Noctis Lucis Caelum's features that gives the impression that he's younger than he probably is in actuality; it's hardly any different than Edgeworth's own careful stylistic choices to help make himself look older by comparison. At first pass, he would've guessed him to be about Franziska's age; on second thought, he recalibrates that to add a few years on and accommodate for the deceptive youth his appearance skews towards.
The sword is another interesting touch. He'd mentioned weapons training in his initial video, but what type of profession would even lend itself to something like that? Stunt coordinator for a television program? Hmmm.
Well. The more he's able to observe, the more he'll be able to figure out, assuredly.]
Certainly not. She's a menace to society who's claimed the lives of no less than three men already.
[Pess, sensing she's being talked about again, boofs proudly and shakes her head to make her collar jingle.]
...That was a joke. She's very friendly.
no subject
although a name like noctis lucis caelum certainly doesn't seem normal from the outside.
of significant note might be the slight limp that he walks with, an old injury that he already unconsciously corrects for. he kneels down to pess's level, and when she boofs he smirks, reaching out a hand. ]
Nah, she seems pretty vicious. I'll have to be careful.
[ but he sounds amused. he looks up at edgeworth as he lets her sniff his hand, his gaze assessing. honestly, edgeworth could have passed for any member of his father's council, sans having some overwrought fancy robe, and being far too young for it. he wonders what kind of job the man had before this. ]
How long have you had her?
no subject
About three years, now. She's my second dog.
[A normal human being might have naturally gone on to elaborate about the first one, but that sort of goes by the wayside in favor of watching Noctis interact with Pess. It's immediately apparent from her behavior that she's very well-trained; she's wagging her tail and daintily sniffing at the hand offered to her, but she's not pulling her leash in the slightest, as though she just knows where she's supposed to stay and isn't straying from it.
After a minute, she smoothly ducks her head and pushes her snout against the palm of Noct's hand, inviting attention. What a ruthless knave, indeed.]
Are you fond of all animals, or just dogs specifically?
no subject
She's a cute one.
[ noctis doesn't ask about the first one. he waits for her to duck her head and then stretches his arm to pet her head and scratch behind her ears. if there's one thing people imparted on him, it was the importance of letting an animal invite your attention first. ]
I actually like cats the best, but dogs are pretty cool too. I never got to own anything as a kid.
[ the unspoken explanation: it's kind of novel for him, because it's something he never had. ]
Animals in general are all right, I guess?
[ he sounds like he's never really thought of it, and beyond chocobos, he really hasn't. ]
Am I wrong in guessing you have cognition magic?
no subject
[Not that he really made it a huge secret, either. Still, it's nice to know that there are evidently people around here who can pick up on subtleties without having to be spoon-fed every last detail in perfect linear order.
It's interesting, though, the words that Noctis chooses when he talks about his childhood. He never got to own anything. Not a lack of desire, but a lack of approval. Constraints, perhaps. A strict set of rules to live by.
Not unlike, perhaps, all those years he'd spent under the roof of the man who'd — who'd —]
Your parents wouldn't allow you to have pets?
no subject
[ for his own self goes unsaid. it'd probably make sense to research all the types of magic, admittedly, but since edgeworth had mentioned that specifically, noctis had made the guess. ]
You had a point, though. Maybe when I'm practicing illusions you can try to see through them - stretch your brain.
[ noctis may be trying not to outright admit he's a prince, but he can't change the facts of how he was raised. no pets for a prince who was generally confined to the citadel, and not even allowed outside the wall. he sighs, trying to find the words without admitting his status outright. ]
I grew up with a lot of responsibilities and... conditions. Having a pet didn't really work with the lifestyle. Also, I'm pretty sure my dad thought if I had one my retainer would have just ended up taking care of it anyways.
[ his dad wouldn't have been wrong exactly, either. he finishes petting pess and stands up, carbuncle having trotted over to peer at the large fancy dog curiously. ]
no subject
[Case in point: he doesn't need magic powers to notice the way that Noctis is dodging around the particulars of his upbringing, or the fact that he mentions having "a retainer" — not exactly a typical thing to hear out of an average, everyday person.
And there's still that business of the sword...hm.
Yeah, he can wager a few educated guesses about fathers and upbringings, can't he.]
He was strict, then. With high expectations. Perhaps even lofty ones.
[There's a quiet finality in the way he says it; it isn't precisely a question.]
You're an only child? No siblings?
no subject
I had magic back home. It's not as odd for me to command a different type of magic, now. It's almost easier.
[ because he's limited in what he can command. and edgeworth is correct; no commoner would speak of a 'retainer' in his command. when edgeworth makes his statement, though, noctis snorts gently. ]
High expectations is one way to put it. He was only strict because he had to be; there were a lot of rules both of us had to follow.
[ a clarification, more than disagreement. ]
Yeah, only child. My mom passed away not long after I was born.
[ it doesn't hurt to speak of her - at least, not in a factual sense. ]
Are you one too?
no subject
[He's quiet a beat, but it's not like there's anything particularly secret about his relationship to the von Karmas, even to a complete stranger who may or may not be some kind of circus charlatan wizard (???). So.]
I have a sister, but we're not related by blood. She's younger. ...Eighteen.
[Which is a lot of clarification, but there's a note of warmth that creeps into his tone when he talks about her. For all their own individual faults, they have each other. That's something.]
Her father took me in as his ward when I was nine years old. It was a...rigid environment to grow up in.
[He doesn't go so far as to suggest, so I understand. He leaves it between the lines, to be read if Noctis so chooses, or ignored if he chooses not.]
no subject
[ he reaches up to fiddle with carbuncle, conveniently not having to look at edgeworth as he asks the question. he thinks maybe ignis and gladiolus were like his siblings, except not quite. they were never on the same level. ]
I mean... [ here he finally sighs. ] My dad was the ruler of where I grew up, and I was his heir. So there were a lot of rules he and I had to follow.
no subject
[And which would be worse, he wonders idly. To know that one's father could have changed things at any time and simply didn't, or that he was just as powerless as everyone else? Food for thought, indeed.]
You're a prince, then. Yet you don't insist on being regarded as such?
no subject
[ noctis turns back to look at edgeworth, expression serious and tone sincere. he only knows one person who grew up in a perfectionist household, and... yeah, he thinks he can see some similarities between edgeworth and ignis.
when he asks about being regarded as a prince, noctis wrinkles his nose a little. ]
My dad never wanted to raise me like one - and it's tradition that the prince know the matters of the working class. [ which in modern day, translated to noctis working at a sushi joint for a period of time while living alone. ] Not a lot of people know who I am back home, and it matters even less here, so - why pull rank?
no subject
[Except that then he — pauses a beat, and abruptly looks embarrassed, having suddenly realized just how carried away he'd gotten without realizing it.]
Apologies. It's — something I've thought a lot about, lately. I shouldn't have pontificated.
[YOU KNOW WHAT LET'S JUST TALK ABOUT ROYALTY THAT'S EASIER AND SAFER HELL YEAH.]
I'm no sovereign, but your method seems a logical one. Certainly superior to the types of kings and princes that allow themselves to get out of touch with their subjects, and rule without ever really knowing them.
ps i keep laughing at his bailiff post and all the xv's popping in
instead he shakes his head. ]
You're fine. It's important to you, right? Pontificate away. I agree, for the record. Just because you fail doesn't mean you should give up... even if continuing is a little hard after that.
[ he's been guilty of just giving up, in a sense, after things went to shit. but he has a lot of guilt about people sacrificing themselves for him. about his father getting him to safety before his people, not accepting that he was more important because of the means of his birth.
he doesn't tell edgeworth that, but there's a little furrow of his brow as he thinks over that before he realizes they're talking about him again. ]
Ah - yeah. It's not a perfect solution but... it's what my father did before me, so he wanted to make sure I had that experience as well. It was.. eye opening.
[ his expression turns a little grim. he's not sure how to explain that a lot of what he learned came after his father died, after his crown city fell to ruins, and he felt like a prince of not much at all. ]
Anyway, uh, that's why I wanna help people here. Back home we're involved in a war so, I guess I can relate to needing to help others like the King of Camelot must have to.
what a way to meet the entire cast in a hilarious conga
[Unlike Edgeworth, who just sort of YOLO'd into this mess, but you know what, that's what you get when a weird flaming bird presents you with a batshit nonsensical request and you call its bluff because you're certain it's kidding and then it turns out it's not.]
Ah. Speaking of assisting with the circumstances here — did you want to try an illusion, after all?
he's so genre-savvy
[ he already knows he'll pay with his life to save his home. he hasn't quite come to terms with it but it's something he now has to deal with. taking some time to help someone else is almost nice. even if it's a world-ending kind of deal.
anyway, flaming bird nonsense aside, noctis blinks a little bit and then nods after a moment, considering. ]
I've never really done illusions before so don't be surprised if nothing happens. You good to go - er, observe?