Counter Guardian Arturia @ Tower of Animus (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
no_longer_a_king) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
towerofanimus2013-09-02 12:16 pm
no_longer_a_king) wrote in towerofanimus2013-09-02 12:16 pm
ITP: Breakdown
Name: Saber Lily and OPEN
Format: Starts in prose, but I'll follow whatever the replies are in.
Setting: Various. The prompts mention some setups, but I would not mind if people make different ones instead.
Summary: Arturia found out that Shirou is really Avenger. Considering her slipping grasp on her sanity, she finally breaks down completely and decides to mindwipe herself on floor 96. Strangely, remembering her life again gives her some perspective on things.
Warnings: None yet.
Notes: This takes place over the course of two weeks. Other prompts may be added over the course of those two weeks due to me wanting to keep this contained to the one log.
• • •
[Closed toisthatashortjoke]
I've spent the night on the 96th floor.
Please pick me up.
I apologize if I won't remember you.
Please feed the cat in my room before coming to get me.
--Arturia
By all rights, she should be asking Lancelot to do this favor for her, but she had already asked too much of him. Between the swimming lessons, the chip placement, and the various things she (or some version of herself) had asked him to do over the years back in Camelot she owed him more than he realized. No, she would not go to him for such a selfish thing. He would likely lose respect for her as it was for taking this route. No sense in involving him in such a selfish endeavor.
But she couldn't take it anymore. The Tower, her life, everything. There was no escaping it. The person she had clung to in order to keep herself grounded wasn't who she thought he was and she had no idea what to think. None whatsoever. For a moment she had thought there would be no way out, but then she saw a post on the Network about someone losing their memory and it clicked in her mind.
How often had she spoken of lately about wanting to simply go to sleep and forget? It would not be permanent--Arturia doubted it would be--but it would be a break. She would still be stuck here, still have her responsibilities, and a lot of people likely angry at her for what she's going to do. The thought of suddenly being a burden did give her pause and yet....
....yet the part of her that wanted to give into temptation, the part that, perhaps, Kotomine had played off of so many years ago, kept whispering to her, tempting her, and she was so tired it was hard to resist. She was in her right mind enough to think to make arrangements. A pillow and blanket because she would spend the night. A letter pinned on Veigar's door. A note written in Welsh on her arm saying she would be fine, just stay where she is and Veigar would come get her. Just wait for Veigar.
And so she set herself up so that she would be just out of sight of the door. Her stomach twisted in guilt about how selfish this was, but she was just so tired of everything. It wasn't as if she would permanently forget everything and Amy would be fine by herself for one night. The main consequences would be how others would react, something she was completely willing to accept the consequences of. Everyone who kept her sane was gone now.
She dropped her pillow to the floor and curled up with her blanket. If she woke during the night she'd see the note on her arm and know to wait. It's written in her own hand, after all.
That's how Veigar would find her when he came for her in the morning, curled up sleepily out of sight wrapped in blankets, staring at the note on her arm. She would look up at him and ask in a voice with a childish inflection to it: "Are you Veigar?"
[A: Day 2-4; Adolescence, pre-kingship]
Veigar had done a decent job in explaining the Tower to her as well as the state of her memory. It was odd for Arturia to know she was an adult now, that something so bad must have happened in her future to make her want to forget. There was literally nothing she could picture that was so bad as that.
Then again, Arturia had always known she'd been one of the luckier children. Sir Ector treated her as his own flesh and blood, rather than a servant. She was getting an education, taught the ways of knighthood. Not many other foundlings could make the same claim. Not many other abandoned girls had such gifts given to them. Gifts Arturia had no intention of wasting.
So she did what anyone who was in their early adolescence--at least, mentally--would do: she snuck out. Arturia felt guilty about it, but figured if she came back before nightfall and only went on the floors Veigar had mentioned were safe it would be fine. This Tower was interesting and if she was going to be here for a long time she might as well take a look around on her own, right?
And the magic sword she could summon now was so amazing. Arturia could be found with a big grin on her face summoning and dismissing Caliburn repeatedly, completely and utterly fascinated by it and not caring if she were seen or not. Her body might be strange now, her mind might be in pieces, she might be stuck in a ridiculous dress and an awful tower, but she could summon a magic sword now. This couldn't be all bad, could it?
[B: Day 4-8; Mid-kingship]
As more and more holes in her memory filled in, Arthur began to wonder exactly what it had been to cause her to want to forget. Many awful things had happened to her in her life, but what had been the line in the sand? The thing that finally triggered her to do it? Surely this Tower couldn't have done it. All signs made it clear she had done this to herself, but just what had triggered it?
Part of her was afraid of when she would find the answer. There were still holes in her memory. Holes that were slowly being filled in as time passed. Some she didn't even realize were there until she remembered some detail about it: A face, a name, the scent of grass and rain in the morning, the ache of muscles after a battle. Little things that slowly built up a big picture.
Arthur imagined she would be more distressed by the situation if she didn't know she would get her memories back at this point. It was just a waiting game, as much as she hated it and the idea of it.
This was her own mind. Why would she do this to herself? Why would she turn herself into a liability like this?
More importantly: what was with this white dress and why was she wielding Caliburn of all blades? She had broken the blade so long ago there should be no possible way for it to be here. So how? What was it doing in her possession? Had it been repaired at some point she still could not remember? If so: then how? It was little things like this that frustrated her the most about the state of her memory.
....but being able to summon it at will was still amazing to her. She still had moments where she would summon it and dismiss it just to see that she could. Where had she learned to do that?
[C: Day 8-11; Grail Wars]
Oh, so that's how she learned.
Saber strolled through the stairs of the Tower, a purpose in mind to find any face from the Grail Wars. She had a better idea of just why she might do something like wipe her mind and began to slowly guess as to why she was in this white dress. The memories of the Grail War weighed on her, Irisviel and Kiritsugu and Diarmuid and their fates at the front of her mind. It was when she began to remember the Fifth that she faltered.
Of all the things in the world she had thought possible, falling in love if it was indeed love was the last thing she had expected to happen to her. The more she remembered the more she realized it wasn't for lack of trying not to fall for him. The boy had been kind to her. He'd had awful judgement, but he'd been kind and cooked well.
So what had happened to him? She knew it would have had to end. Loved him or not, she had still been a Servant fighting in the Grail War and she would never put him over her duties. Not when she'd made a promise to the world to fight in the first place. Not when there was an entire Kingdom counting on her to save it. Not when she needed to prove to the Rider of the Fourth War that she was indeed on the correct path for a king.
Arturia could be found in the cafeteria for most of these days, enjoying the food Riki had designed for them. She always did like good food. If she was going to be stuck in a place like this for a long time, then maybe it wouldn't be so bad if the food was always this good. It wasn't Shirou's cooking, but it came pretty close.
[E: Day 11-13; Counter Guardianship; Closed.]
As Arturia slowly but steadily began to remember the actual course of her duties, she retreated into herself and avoided people. Each death she remembered was like a piece of her heart was being ripped from her chest. It was only now she began to understand why she would want to forget in the first place.
[F: Day 13-14; Tower memories]
It was in the last few days that her memories of the last nine months finally came back; memories of being able to move on her own, of trying new things, of meeting new people, of fighting for a cause bigger than her own. She stumbled, yes, and made mistakes, but when in her life had she not made mistakes?
There were people she needed to thank. Arturia made a point of gathering some supplies then setting herself up in her room to write them. Zelda and Ruler and Legolas and Enoch and John and...
...and Shirou--no, Avenger--she took a deep breath before writing out the letter, then putting it in his mailbox. Just because many whom she cared for were gone and many more were nothing more than the shadows she occasionally saw scampering about did not mean there were not other people in the Tower who needed her.
And who she felt she needed. How many times had they tried to reach her only to backslide within a few days? How many times had people been kind to her only to keep them at arm's length? How much time had she spent feeling sorry for herself when this Tower had given her a gift most precious, a gift only Archer could have understood while he was here?
It would take work, a lot of hard work, and while she knew there was a good chance the year would end in death or returning to her duties, she had to treat this time as precious. Arturia knew she might not get a second chance like this, even if it would be brief in the grand scheme of things.
And so Arturia could be found in the mailroom, putting letters in the boxes of those she cared for and actually saying hello to any who entered. Stupid as it had been, wiping her memories and regaining them had given her some perspective she'd been in sore need of. Would she do it again? No. But in her mind it had been good for her. She would just have to deal with the consequences now.
She still had no idea where the dress or Caliburn came from and had a feeling she never would.
Format: Starts in prose, but I'll follow whatever the replies are in.
Setting: Various. The prompts mention some setups, but I would not mind if people make different ones instead.
Summary: Arturia found out that Shirou is really Avenger. Considering her slipping grasp on her sanity, she finally breaks down completely and decides to mindwipe herself on floor 96. Strangely, remembering her life again gives her some perspective on things.
Warnings: None yet.
Notes: This takes place over the course of two weeks. Other prompts may be added over the course of those two weeks due to me wanting to keep this contained to the one log.
[Closed to
isthatashortjoke]I've spent the night on the 96th floor.
Please pick me up.
I apologize if I won't remember you.
Please feed the cat in my room before coming to get me.
--Arturia
By all rights, she should be asking Lancelot to do this favor for her, but she had already asked too much of him. Between the swimming lessons, the chip placement, and the various things she (or some version of herself) had asked him to do over the years back in Camelot she owed him more than he realized. No, she would not go to him for such a selfish thing. He would likely lose respect for her as it was for taking this route. No sense in involving him in such a selfish endeavor.
But she couldn't take it anymore. The Tower, her life, everything. There was no escaping it. The person she had clung to in order to keep herself grounded wasn't who she thought he was and she had no idea what to think. None whatsoever. For a moment she had thought there would be no way out, but then she saw a post on the Network about someone losing their memory and it clicked in her mind.
How often had she spoken of lately about wanting to simply go to sleep and forget? It would not be permanent--Arturia doubted it would be--but it would be a break. She would still be stuck here, still have her responsibilities, and a lot of people likely angry at her for what she's going to do. The thought of suddenly being a burden did give her pause and yet....
....yet the part of her that wanted to give into temptation, the part that, perhaps, Kotomine had played off of so many years ago, kept whispering to her, tempting her, and she was so tired it was hard to resist. She was in her right mind enough to think to make arrangements. A pillow and blanket because she would spend the night. A letter pinned on Veigar's door. A note written in Welsh on her arm saying she would be fine, just stay where she is and Veigar would come get her. Just wait for Veigar.
And so she set herself up so that she would be just out of sight of the door. Her stomach twisted in guilt about how selfish this was, but she was just so tired of everything. It wasn't as if she would permanently forget everything and Amy would be fine by herself for one night. The main consequences would be how others would react, something she was completely willing to accept the consequences of. Everyone who kept her sane was gone now.
She dropped her pillow to the floor and curled up with her blanket. If she woke during the night she'd see the note on her arm and know to wait. It's written in her own hand, after all.
That's how Veigar would find her when he came for her in the morning, curled up sleepily out of sight wrapped in blankets, staring at the note on her arm. She would look up at him and ask in a voice with a childish inflection to it: "Are you Veigar?"
[A: Day 2-4; Adolescence, pre-kingship]
Veigar had done a decent job in explaining the Tower to her as well as the state of her memory. It was odd for Arturia to know she was an adult now, that something so bad must have happened in her future to make her want to forget. There was literally nothing she could picture that was so bad as that.
Then again, Arturia had always known she'd been one of the luckier children. Sir Ector treated her as his own flesh and blood, rather than a servant. She was getting an education, taught the ways of knighthood. Not many other foundlings could make the same claim. Not many other abandoned girls had such gifts given to them. Gifts Arturia had no intention of wasting.
So she did what anyone who was in their early adolescence--at least, mentally--would do: she snuck out. Arturia felt guilty about it, but figured if she came back before nightfall and only went on the floors Veigar had mentioned were safe it would be fine. This Tower was interesting and if she was going to be here for a long time she might as well take a look around on her own, right?
And the magic sword she could summon now was so amazing. Arturia could be found with a big grin on her face summoning and dismissing Caliburn repeatedly, completely and utterly fascinated by it and not caring if she were seen or not. Her body might be strange now, her mind might be in pieces, she might be stuck in a ridiculous dress and an awful tower, but she could summon a magic sword now. This couldn't be all bad, could it?
[B: Day 4-8; Mid-kingship]
As more and more holes in her memory filled in, Arthur began to wonder exactly what it had been to cause her to want to forget. Many awful things had happened to her in her life, but what had been the line in the sand? The thing that finally triggered her to do it? Surely this Tower couldn't have done it. All signs made it clear she had done this to herself, but just what had triggered it?
Part of her was afraid of when she would find the answer. There were still holes in her memory. Holes that were slowly being filled in as time passed. Some she didn't even realize were there until she remembered some detail about it: A face, a name, the scent of grass and rain in the morning, the ache of muscles after a battle. Little things that slowly built up a big picture.
Arthur imagined she would be more distressed by the situation if she didn't know she would get her memories back at this point. It was just a waiting game, as much as she hated it and the idea of it.
This was her own mind. Why would she do this to herself? Why would she turn herself into a liability like this?
More importantly: what was with this white dress and why was she wielding Caliburn of all blades? She had broken the blade so long ago there should be no possible way for it to be here. So how? What was it doing in her possession? Had it been repaired at some point she still could not remember? If so: then how? It was little things like this that frustrated her the most about the state of her memory.
....but being able to summon it at will was still amazing to her. She still had moments where she would summon it and dismiss it just to see that she could. Where had she learned to do that?
[C: Day 8-11; Grail Wars]
Oh, so that's how she learned.
Saber strolled through the stairs of the Tower, a purpose in mind to find any face from the Grail Wars. She had a better idea of just why she might do something like wipe her mind and began to slowly guess as to why she was in this white dress. The memories of the Grail War weighed on her, Irisviel and Kiritsugu and Diarmuid and their fates at the front of her mind. It was when she began to remember the Fifth that she faltered.
Of all the things in the world she had thought possible, falling in love if it was indeed love was the last thing she had expected to happen to her. The more she remembered the more she realized it wasn't for lack of trying not to fall for him. The boy had been kind to her. He'd had awful judgement, but he'd been kind and cooked well.
So what had happened to him? She knew it would have had to end. Loved him or not, she had still been a Servant fighting in the Grail War and she would never put him over her duties. Not when she'd made a promise to the world to fight in the first place. Not when there was an entire Kingdom counting on her to save it. Not when she needed to prove to the Rider of the Fourth War that she was indeed on the correct path for a king.
Arturia could be found in the cafeteria for most of these days, enjoying the food Riki had designed for them. She always did like good food. If she was going to be stuck in a place like this for a long time, then maybe it wouldn't be so bad if the food was always this good. It wasn't Shirou's cooking, but it came pretty close.
[E: Day 11-13; Counter Guardianship; Closed.]
As Arturia slowly but steadily began to remember the actual course of her duties, she retreated into herself and avoided people. Each death she remembered was like a piece of her heart was being ripped from her chest. It was only now she began to understand why she would want to forget in the first place.
[F: Day 13-14; Tower memories]
It was in the last few days that her memories of the last nine months finally came back; memories of being able to move on her own, of trying new things, of meeting new people, of fighting for a cause bigger than her own. She stumbled, yes, and made mistakes, but when in her life had she not made mistakes?
There were people she needed to thank. Arturia made a point of gathering some supplies then setting herself up in her room to write them. Zelda and Ruler and Legolas and Enoch and John and...
...and Shirou--no, Avenger--she took a deep breath before writing out the letter, then putting it in his mailbox. Just because many whom she cared for were gone and many more were nothing more than the shadows she occasionally saw scampering about did not mean there were not other people in the Tower who needed her.
And who she felt she needed. How many times had they tried to reach her only to backslide within a few days? How many times had people been kind to her only to keep them at arm's length? How much time had she spent feeling sorry for herself when this Tower had given her a gift most precious, a gift only Archer could have understood while he was here?
It would take work, a lot of hard work, and while she knew there was a good chance the year would end in death or returning to her duties, she had to treat this time as precious. Arturia knew she might not get a second chance like this, even if it would be brief in the grand scheme of things.
And so Arturia could be found in the mailroom, putting letters in the boxes of those she cared for and actually saying hello to any who entered. Stupid as it had been, wiping her memories and regaining them had given her some perspective she'd been in sore need of. Would she do it again? No. But in her mind it had been good for her. She would just have to deal with the consequences now.
She still had no idea where the dress or Caliburn came from and had a feeling she never would.
no subject
"I'm not a blasted servant! Why do I need to feed some cat?!" he grumbled to no one in particular, but that was because that was what caught his initial glance. Reading it over again, the Yordle remained silent and deep in thought.
Why would she sleep on that particular floor... Won't remember?
That's when something in the back of his mind urged him forward. While he wasn't keen on helping others, the connection he had built with this particular person was... one could say, unique. Especially for someone like the Tiny Master of 'Evil'.
Once he grabbed his things, he made his way up the floors with haste... Only to have to return halfway because he forgot about the blasted cat! Grumbling over, he
overfed the cat and began his journey once again towards the mentioned floor.It was there that he came upon his ally, on the floor and looking similar yet different. It was when she spoke that he realized his previous worry was certain...
Narrowing his eyes, Veigar sighed and remained silent before simply nodding.
"Yes, I am Veigar -" He had to stop himself from continuing his usual egotistical ramble this time around considering it woulnd't be worth it.
no subject
"Do you know why my body's so weird now? And where are we? This isn't Papa Ector's estate."
There was a beat as she thought for a moment further.
"An' how do I know you? You look funny."
no subject
He paused before twitching at the last comment and closing his fist tightly. "I'm not funny looking! I'm your ally woman!"
no subject
"My ally? Oh! So are you a fairy? And why am I here?" She knew fairies could lie. However, she literally had no other point of reference but Veigar. She had no choice but to trust him.
no subject
"A fairy?!?! WOMAN! The great and powerful Veigar is no FAIRY! I am the most powerful spellcaster to ever live! And you are here because..."
Wait, did she mean literally?
"You are here because you fell asleep somewhere you weren't supposed to woman! Now," he said as his voice returned to normal. "We should get out of here and get you somewhere safer." Because actual safety didn't exist in this place.
"Err... come on now." he said as he reached for her hand. Even though the majority of his memories are dark, twisted and rageful, he still had a few of his younger days... the last fleeting happy days of his previous life.
no subject
As a knight, she needed to be brave, which meant she took Veigar's hand without hesitation and let him lead her out. She certainly did not hold it overly tight because she was nervous about being in a strange place and even her body was alien to her. No! She would be brave.
"Why would I do that if I was not supposed to be there?" she asked as they headed out of the room and only sparing it a glance over her shoulder.
no subject
"Not just any magus! THE BEST magus mind you." he said with his usual egotistical flair that sometimes simply came off comical.
Once she grabbed his hand, he began, awkwardly at first, to make their way to the dorm rooms.
"There was something you seemed to need to do. It made you forget so," so? Why would... Of course. "I suppose there were somethings you just needed to relearn. I suppose it'd be a way to look at history through a new perspective." he said thoughtfully, gripping her hand a bit tighter but not painfully so. Unconciously trying to be reassuring? Maybe.
no subject
"So soon I will remember being an adult?"
If what he said was true, she hoped so. This place was strange and made her nervous. Strange as Veigar looked she had never seen a place made out of metal as this one appeared to be.
no subject
If there was something that made Saber stand out was her incesant desire to keep going no matter what. Odd how it was through the games in the lobby that she showed that determination to Veigar the first time.
Veigar did note that she seemed nervous, how odd. The stalwart knight he knew was vulnerable in this state... He'd make sure no harm would come to her, even if he had to obliterate anything that got in their way.
"We're almost there, don't worry... I err... I'll keep you safe." he managed to say in a low tone. Because come on! Veigar didn't care... Or so he'd say.
no subject
"I just have not been so far away from home before. Not by myself. Usually Kay or Papa take me with them."
no subject
"I am sure your adult self felt the same in a way... But fear can also be used as a weapon of incredible potential to boost ones abilities past their limits. Think of how far or how much stronger you'd become or would be willing to go if you feared your loved ones were in danger? It's ust another boost, another double edged sword. It's up to you to let it make or break you."
He turned a corner and could see they were almost there. "I believe you have the ability to be much more than what you originally were. And even now, the journey of re-learning is the opportunity you might have been looking for."
no subject
She looked down at Veigar as he mentioned being more than she was. What was he talking about? What was her adult self like? And more importantly:
"Were we friends before?"
no subject
The latter question caught him off guard as he arrived at the door and he flailed and fidgetted and fumbled with the door.
"Err, the great and powerful Veigar has no friends woman! We were... Err, we were, are allies!" he began, opening the door to her room this time without fumbling about. "You are... One of the very diminutive amount of people I... That I trust." he said finally as he walked in with her.
no subject
Once in the room she looked around and kept her hands to herself as Ector and his wife often told her to when a guest in someone else's home. That and her body still felt strange to her: too gangly and too tall and heavy in a way. Arturia kept stumbling over her own two feet every few steps because she was still not used to the added height and, mentally being a child, did not really care too much about it.
"This is where you sleep?"
no subject
When they entered the room, he looked around to make sure no one was here and immediately locked the door behind them before walking over and sitting on her bed.
"No, this is your room. My room isn't safe for you at the moment and I... I believed you might have wanted to make sure I did not harm your feline companion." Or more like he thought maybe her child-like self would enjoy the company of her pet... He certainly enjoyed having Chompimus with him when he could.
no subject
It was way less disorienting to be sitting than trying to walk as she looked around the room.
"Does anyone else stay here?" She hadn't thought to check the nameplates on the front of the door. "And why would you hurt her if we're friends."
She braced herself for the inevitable shout of 'allies'. This was fun. Now she started to understand why Kay tended to wheedle people sometimes.
no subject
"I'm not sure who your roommates are, I never bothered with them for I have been too busy with more important things. But as far as I know, everyone has roommates. From one to three others." And he himself could get quickly annoyed of his own so there was that.
Veigar was about to speak again when te latter comment made him sputter his sentence as he shook a fist in the air. "hdsakljhkljhfda pf, What is with this firend's nonsense! The great and powerful Veigar has no friends!" It took a second to recompose himself before huffing and looking away. "And it's because one never knows what might happen in this place. It is usually best to see with ones own eyes and even then, there's times that even that can't be trusted."
no subject
Her mind being that of a child's, she focused on only one thing he said. When she was closer to her mental age, she would realize she should ask about the danger and not trusting one's own eyes. But for now: she laughs. Laughs in a way that feels good for reasons she cannot understand right now, like she hasn't laughed in this way in millenia.
"Because you're funny when I call you my friend!"
no subject
"Of course I'd react in a perfectly sensible manner!" Veigar, that's not what she said... "I am Veigar! The most powerful and dangerous being ever! I'm not supposed to have these friends woman!"
Though... maybe he was just being a bit too rough? She was a child at the moment... mentally anyways.
Veigar sighed and looked away before huffing. "I suppose you could call out alliance kind of a... f.... fr.... friendship." Wow that was harder than he had thought.
no subject
(Why, oh why, does it feel like she hasn't even smiled in a hundred years?)
She clapped her hands together and went to her knees in front of him to be able to look him in the eyes. Arturia knew she hated it when people talked above her so she refused to talk over Veigar and how short he was.
Plus, it was less weird to be sitting than trying to walk with her too-long legs.
"We must be an amazing team: a great wizard and a great knight! Like something out of a story!"
"Since we're friends, what are you like?"
no subject
"Of course we're a great team, nothing can stand in Veigar's way and you're a capable knight! If there was anything out there that could even come close, I'm sure we'd overcome it anyways!" Because Veigar never loses...
At the latter question, even as he twitched and sighed at the word, he remained quiet for a few moments.
When was the last time anyone asked him that question? Even the great and powerful Veigar didn't know.
"What do you mean what am I like?"
no subject
It was a simple question, but that was the main impression Arturia got of him: funny and flailing and trying way too hard to be impressive when it sounded he was impressive as is.
no subject
"Ahem..." he cleared his throat and looked serious again. "No, I am a powerful entity. Nay, the most powerful entity. And had this place not found ways to nullify my abilities through wicked machinery, I would have gotten us out ages ago!"