Asches to Ashes

[bloodyashes]

Characters: A surprisingly not grumpy redhead and YOU. Also, fire.
Setting: The lower forest floor, some way away from the stairs. Forward-dated to tomorrow.
Format: VAST MEH.
Summary: Burn out the old growth to make room for the new. OR, Asch one-ups Luke in the dramatically throwing away your old identity department.
Warnings: None, probably. Talk of past trauma? Identity issues? idek general Asch warnings.

[He started the fire small, but it wasn't long before Asch was throwing every branch onto it that he could find, wet or dry. It crackled, sending a spiral of smoke into the trees above, flames and glowing coals making a red glow that was probably visible from the staircase. By the time he's done, the flames are as tall as he is, the pile of branches up to his shoulder before it shifts and collapses down a few inches.

It's at that point that he undoes the clasps of his tabard - worn and familiar from years of use, years of living in uniform even before coming to the tower - and throws the heavy fabric onto the fire. The weight collapses the branches further, smothering the flames just enough to reduce the apparent amount of light. And Asch folds his arms and takes a seat on a fallen trunk, watching all the while.

If he had other clothes, he'd throw the entire uniform into the flames, but for now, this will have to do. It's not just cloth he's thrown into the flames, but an identity, everything he's been for seven years or more. All the covers, all the lies - "Asch the Bloody" is going back to the flames where he belongs, but it isn't Luke who watches. Just Asch. That's all he needs to be.

It's not long before the scent of burning leather and fabric fills the air, and he's still watching.]

Comments

[forhislegacy]

...what are you doing?

[She'd seen the smoke and the faint red glow of the flames from the staircase, and - being curious - had, of course, ventured closer to investigate. Asch might have heard her coming (she was on Tokunaga's back and the puppet wasn't exactly unobtrusive, and he did have good hearing, after all), or he might not have, depending on how focused on the flames he was.

She's not exactly close - she doesn't want to interfere, and she doesn't really know Asch that well anyway - but she's not exactly keeping her distance, either.]

[bloodyashes]

[Ohay Anise. How you doin.]

Making a fresh start, I suppose.

[It's a redhead. His identity is complicatede by definition.]

[forhislegacy]

Uhhh... okay. I think I get it.

[Well, she gets that he wants to make a fresh start. She doesn't really get why burning his clothes is necessary for that, but maybe it's just a symbol.]

So... lots of stuff has happened since you've been here, huh? Lots has happened since I've been here, and I've only been here a month. [Her brows furrow.] ...are you, uh. Okay? [It can be hard to manage when everything starts changing, even if you are really strong. Anise knows that from firsthand experience.

But she had friends to get her through it. From what she'd seen in Auldrant, she wasn't sure Asch had that kind of support.

...it made her sort of sad, just thinking about it.]

[1/2]

[bloodyashes]

You showed up at an eventful time. Not that I think it's ever truly peaceful around here.

[It certainly won't be, in the future. One year to go means that every moment matters, for both sides of this escalating little war.

And it is a war, with Ruana's declaration. This will probably be the first of many fires from it.]

I'm fine.

[bloodyashes]

[And, after a moment, he glances her way, wearing a secret-keeping kind of smile.]

In fact, I'm better than I have been in a long time.

[On Auldrant, it's true, he never had any support to lean on. But this is not Auldrant, and that's no longer the case. Here, he doesn't have to be alone.]

[seekinganswers]

[This isn't the scene Sheba expects to see when she stops in on this floor. The sight of Asch, seated in front of a fire while a piece of his wardrobe that she's grown so used to seeing smolders in the flames, is in fact so far from what she's expecting that she has to pause for a moment or two, just to verify that her eyes aren't playing tricks on her.

Even after she blinks and even after she rubs at her eyes, though, he's still there and so are the flames. She approaches him from the back and comes to a stop by the fallen tree trunk he's using as a bench, keeping a wary eye on the fire.]

Do you mind if I join you?

[bloodyashes]

[He glances up at her with the smallest of starts - the fire keeps away the beasts of the forest, after all, so zoning out was actually pretty safe for the moment. He hadn't even heard the sound of her footsteps, he'd been so lost in thought.]

Of course not.

[And this with a gesture at the log next to him.]

[seekinganswers]

[She takes a seat on the log, and once she's seated, toes at the ground for a moment or two. She finds it hard to believe - the ground beneath their feet, the log they're using as a chair, it's all a lie.

But it looks so real...

Just like the fire. It's not real, but they're still watching a symbol of Asch's past burn in front of them. She pulls her gaze away from the flames and looks to her friend.]

...time to let go... right?

[bloodyashes]

Exactly.

[The nod drops a few strands of bangs into his face - for once, Asch doesn't bother pushing them back into place immediately. Another little change. They all add up.]

There's nowhere to go but forward.

[No home to go back to, so why hang on so tightly? Better to make a home here, no matter how briefly.

(There's a brief, sudden flash of wishing that Guy was here, a sudden click of understanding... But this is what he has. He'll work with it.)]

Even if I could go back, I wouldn't. There's nothing to be gained back there.

[sageprincess]

[It's the smoke that draws her in at first. It's the figure sitting before the fire, watching a piece of his clothing go up in smoke that gets her to stay.

... Should she says something? She's... technically his liege now, but that doesn't mean she knows a thing about him beyond the story he told before swearing his loyalty. Does he even care to talk to her outside of business related to the resistance effort?

After waffling for a bit, she decides on something simple and neutral: his name.]

Asch...?

[bloodyashes]

[He glances over his shoulder - and the serious expression on his face slips a bit. His best seated bow isn't very good, but hey, he tried.]

M'lady.

[It's not even said ironically - this might be the first time he's gotten a real look at her face, but that doesn't really matter. He swipes a section of the log clear for her to sit.]

[sageprincess]

[She blinks at the address, but doesn't say anything. Over time, she's gotten used to "Your Highness" and "Your Majesty," but "m'lady" is new. She nods in return to his slight bow, and moves to take the offered seat.

He doesn't seem to mind her presence, at least.]

... May I ask what you are doing?

[Purely curious. The tabard looked fairly militaristic, but it's not as though she knows the significance.]

[bloodyashes]

[He's not exactly one for titles of royalty. Kind of comes with the territory when you're one yourself and have been hiding it for years.]

Just putting some things to rest.

[It doesn't really explain much of anything, whoops.]

Honestly, I'm a little late handing in that particular resignation letter. I should have done this a while ago.

[culbutiri]

[Nesir had had a similar idea, except she was planning to bury her stuff, because she didn't want to make a fire. She was dressed in the white suit she had arrived in, with the cloak Chidori had made her.

Even if it was a fake cloak she had decided it could stay. It had always been fake, made in this tower yet it was still the same cloak she had been given unlike her things from home which had once been real.

Anyways she knew she would regret it come winter, if the last one was anything to go by. She held her dress and her training uniform bundled in her arms, she saw the man by the fire and the burning clothing.

She wasn't the only one who wanted to get rid of the past] Do you be needing more fuel for that?

[bloodyashes]

[The last thing he expected is an offer to burn something else - Asch looks up at the surprise guest, but after a minute, he shakes his head. It's not hard to guess what she means, but...]

It's kind of personal.

[If she wants to destroy her clothes, she could feel free to make her own fire, but his needs to burn down to ashes on its own.]

[culbutiri]

[She shrugged wondering why she even spoke. It was a thing Nesir would do, and she had made the decision not to be Nesir anymore. At least not more than the mask she needed to wear to get by.]

I do be understanding. [She shrugged again]

[bloodyashes]

I bet you do.

[This with a meaningful glance at the bundle in her arms, the white suit she's adopted in its place.]

Even if it's not for the same reasons.

[Even if he's burning a part of himself, it's still himself. He would rather don Asch the Bloody - may well don that self again, before all is said and done - than wear the Tower's white.]

[fragileprophet]

[Seeing as Ion was fairly sure the forest in the Tower didn't host any cheagle tribes, it wasn't the sort of place he was in any particularly hurry to visit. Especially not alone, without any notable protection.

When he begins to pass by the floor on this particular day, however, the faint gleam of fire and the accompanying smoke draws his attention. He stops and begins to walk toward it before he can second-guess himself, even if he feels the powerful urge to cough the closer he comes to the source of the burning.

The Fon Master couldn't say he was expecting anything good to be there, but when he does see what's causing the fire, his expression twists. He isn't sure exactly...how he should feel.

Or even if he should be surprised. At once, he both is and isn't.

For a long moment, Ion simply looks at the fire along with Asch. He doesn't sit down yet, even when he tears his eyes away to stand beside the redhead, unsure if it's even in his place to do so. His green eyes are far from unkind just as they're far from judgmental. There's something a small measure less soft, however.]

I...admire your courage, Asch.

[bloodyashes]

[And at the sound of that voice - his head tips as Asch moves his attention away from the fire. His own expression is a bit unsure, and an honest question comes to his lips.]

Why?

[At least he can ask these questions geniunely when it comes to Ion, without feeling stupid. Asch doesn't understand at all why people think these things of him, and that applies to replicas most especially.

Asch glances back at the fire before brushing some of the log clear.]

Here, sit. Avoid wearing yourself out if you can, you might need the energy later.

[That, at least, is standard Asch - doing his best to teach Ion to manage himself, instead of just doing it for the kid.]

[fragileprophet]

[Ion gives his thanks softly as he takes the seat offered to him, turning his eyes to the fire once more, as well, as he explains.]

I don't think I could do something like that. [He doesn't even realize when he brings his hand up to wrap around his necklace.] I couldn't throw away something that defined me.

[He smiles ruefully.] Though, I suppose it's different for you and I. [Asch wasn't a replica. He could afford to start over, as a human being. He could be whoever he wanted to be. He didn't have to be Luke, and he didn't have to be a God-General.

Ion wasn't sure he could ever be anything other than the Fon Master. It was what he had been made for. There were no other options for him--only replacements.]

That is, if I haven't misunderstood the meaning behind your decision to burn your uniform.

[bloodyashes]

It was a definition given to me by other people.

[He doesn't have to name those other people - Ion already knows, he was defined by someone else's purpose for him, too. It always comes back to Van in the end.]

Giving it up isn't easy, but it isn't exactly brave.

[No braver than leaving Van's side in the first place, anyway. That was a lot harder than this - the first step, not crossing the finish line.

He tilts his head forward, to be sure of catching Ion's green eyes with his own. There's some harshness there, yes, but first and foremost, honesty.

If he can't tell the truth as he believes it, then he doesn't have the right to claim that anyone else should follow it. That's the person he's chosen to take, the from ashes of the fire in front of him.]

It's no different for you or anyone else.

I am laaaaaate.

[alae]

[Dark Pit frequents this floor anyway. So when he sees the glowing of the flames, he heads towards it.]

[... He's a little surprised to see Asch, and his tabard on the fire, but he doesn't say anything at first. He just moves to stand near Asch, trying to figure out what's going on.]

[bloodyashes]

[Well, he might not say anything, but Asch hears the footsteps anyway, turning to look at Dark Pit and that "what's going on" expression.

Oh boy, kid, you have no idea.]

Hey to you too.

[alae]

[... Asking if he's okay would be stupid, he's obviously not - but he nods.]

Hey. Uh...

[... What would Pit do? Aside from be an overly optimistic weirdo.]

... You need anything?

[bloodyashes]

[Actually he's pretty okay, all thing considered. The fire is a sign of okayness, honest.]

Not unless you have a way of convincing them to put the illusions back on the nutrition bars.

[Because monsterflesh is the only other option and it's bad for you.]