Epilogue

[lesmodsalouette]

EPILOGUE

Your stopped time has restarted. Whether you were in the grassy field or fighting for your life on the castle grounds, you'll suddenly find yourself in an untouched area of the gardens. Ish is back, and so are the items, and the dead.

You return to Chateau Ambregris with the certain knowledge that come Monday, you will greet a new week, in a home of your own choosing. No longer will the chime of the clocks hunt you down, no longer will the oppressive scent of roses haunt your senses, no longer will you be forced to watch the death of those you've come to love and hate.

Parting is such a bittersweet sorrow, isn't it?

Make merry one last time, in this castle of illusions. Ironically, your memories of this stolen time that never existed are the one thing that will truly remain to you.

END NOTES

🔮 All dead are revived as tsukumogami! Congrats on your immortality(?)
🔮 Any other contracts made with Ish will be honored
🔮 Characters may choose to leave for any world they desire.
🔮 Time has not passed while you were stuck in this loop!
🔮 There will be no cross-dimensional world travel, except for on Samhain (Witches New Year October 31st/November 1st). On these dates, Ish will enable everyone to visit each other's world freely.
🔮 Universal Communication will be possible, courtesy of Manba and Ish. Everyone who wants one will be given a small fox that can communicate with other foxes through voice and video; the foxes can talk and are fairly simple creatures, enjoy them and give them fried tofu once in a while.
🔮 Powers are on for the finale, but Ish will step in and yeet anyone who gets too out of hand back to their homeworld, so play nice! (or relatively nice. )

[OOC: Welcome to your epilogue! The timeloop is ended, the evil has been defeated, and you have some time to catch your breath in the castle before the rest of your life begins! ]

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[siffriend]

[ It is rather cruel, but

Siffrin shuffles forward after a long moment of thought, placing a hand gently on Hwylryn's snout. Just that, though. Like a promise.

(You know Raha won't like it. But there's already a lot Raha doesn't like that you do anyway, so you... put it on a list and shove that list away. You're selfish, too. Selfish and a little relieved, that Hwylryn says what he does.

He might not keep to that word. But you'll cross that bridge when you come to it, if you come to it, since it isn't like you can die now anyway. Wouldn't be any different than fighting The King.) ]

... Sure. I'll be living a longer life than others anyway, so I guess I can keep you on the narrow.

[ That familiar aloof attitude from weeks before, the warmth of their hand the only difference. ]

Dunno if I can contact anyone until I'm done though. With my loop stuff. [ (You wouldn't want to anyway, more privately. You know you're only worsening.) ] But that'll be a blink to you.

[coldseep]

( "I guess," huh.

Hwylryn's eyes close in lieu of a human's smile, and he presses his nose into Siffrin's hand. Though the gesture is mild, the way the breeze ruffles Siffrin's hair, carrying with it a warmer sunlight than before, seems to say what he might lack the limbs and expressions to suggest - the clouds, gradually, carried away in the wind. )

Maybe. But I'll miss you. ( Relief colors his voice, as does missing Siffrin already (again, like in the Promenade). Clingy friend who misses you when you leave the room for like, ten minutes. ) Will it really only take a few hundred years?

( "Only." He's trying to estimate what a short amount of time to him is that's long to Siffrin... and that's probably a few hundred, right? (lucille bluth voice) how long could this loop business take, )

[siffriend]

[ ... This is why he wasn't scared of Hwylryn's larger, fearsome true form. The warm breeze feels nice, like a bunch of soft kisses against his cheeks, hands through his hair, eager to touch and hold. Siffrin scratches the dragon's scales idly, rolling his eye. ]

Way less. My family members don't deserve to be stuck there another "week", [ even if it doesn't technically pass, ] much less a century or three. And...

[ ... ]

I don't... want Raha to wait that long. Since he would, but... there's a lot he can miss, waiting. So I'd want him to... not wait, and to let himself accept those things even if it isn't me, but the thought-- makes me lonely, too. I'm glad he'd wait. But I don't want him to, that long.

[coldseep]

( Hwylryn chuffs softly, evidently quite pleased with the skritches. Siffrin's touch (undeserved, but unfairly accepted anyway) feels nice - and runs in sharp contrast to the rest of what they describe. )

... Could he go with you? I'm sure he'd want to.

( He doesn't know if that's how it works, but...

... )

I know if Ish had to do it again, I'd want to go with him.

[siffriend]

I don't want him to.

[ For

so, so many reasons, heavy on their tongue. Their hand resumes the skritching it had paused on, long lines on his head. ]

... Even once was too many. And... mine is only two days long at max. Not a week, like it was here. Raha doesn't get a choice in that.

[coldseep]

Two days? That's so little time...

( Hwyl says to the timelooper in question, but he's shocked. He thought a week was bad, but two days? What can you even change in two days that matters?

His tail (way back there) fwips, agitated. )

Ish needed the power of a wish to push through, right? I don't exactly have that to offer, but I'm pretty handy, you know? Would some of my power or a piece of me help?

( A [key item]... Or maybe like super premium gas in the tank... let siffrin go terminator and maybe that will fix everything (???) (he doesn't know if that's how it'd work but from the look in his eyes and his tone of voice, hwyl seems Distressed siffrin is going back into that tiny little loop alone) )

[siffriend]

[ (It is, isn't it. Raha had been shocked too. Shocked more still at the amount of time that it added up to with all their loops, even in the double digits as they were.)

The offer earns him a small huff of laughter, just the ridiculousness of it. Part of his power, a piece of him. Would it keep? Or would it disappear, like everything else does? ]

... Um. Call me sometime. There's no guarantee that anything I get right now'll stick through my next loop, so I don't wanna waste your gift. But... talking, would be nice. I think. Good enough.

[ Probably. ]

[coldseep]

( Siffrin's logic is sound, but he huffs (in that big dog way) when Siffrin says it, clearly upset - not at Siffrin, but at their situation. Doing all this loop stuff alone without any help... He's frustrated for Siffrin.

Despite that, or, perhaps, because of that, the weather feels a lot nicer as they talk - he can't help Siffrin on their journey beyond here, but he can at least give them nice weather to rest in, before they eventually have to proceed. )

Sure. As much as I can. ( A promise (and a threat). He pushes forward, nosing Siffrin's hair like an affectionate animal. ) But would a call interrupt you? The way Homura described the whole thing to me made it all sound really delicate.

( All those little nuances, all those little cogs and wheels... )

[siffriend]

[ Oh-- that startles him a little, hand moving up to pause the dragon a moment reflexively before dropping to... let it happen, he guesses. Hm. Are dragons catlike, actually, Siffrin might try scratching under Hwylryn's chin now. ]

Not really. I'd take it before I went into the House, so at the start of the loop, or after if I managed to break the cycle. I don't think it's safe... to bring the fox in, though, so...

[ ... ]

Oh. I guess I can leave him with Loop. They might not mind petsitting.

[coldseep]

( Ohhhh wait he likes that....... He's usually not this size, so he doesn't really get scratchies? Presses into it, the deep echoes of that huff churning into a continuous chuff... )

Loop is... a person named after loops?

( why! (prrt) )

What's the House...? Does Loop live there?

[siffriend]

[ Oh.

Oh!!! Okay. Both hands now, hello. It sounds like a purr, kind of. ]

Loop chose their name, so since they're helping me out with the loops... They're Loop. And no, the House is where the King is, but only because he took it over. My family members and I have to beat him to save Vaugarde. Loop stays under the Favor Tree.

[coldseep]

( sorry siffrin give him a few extra long moments that was important lore but hwylryn's brain has temporarily evaporated beneath the might of siffrin's dual-wielding skritch combo mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

His eyes are very contentedly shut, the dazzling sunlight as much for Siffrin as it is a reflection of his present contentment. )

... Is it just a matter of killing the King...?

[siffriend]

I could do that with my eye shut now.

[ Been there, done that. A lot. With Hwylryn's eyes closed, they let a fond look settle as warmth settles across their skin. An embrace, almost.

(Maybe you should try this on Raha sometime.) ]

... I'm close, probably. I have leads, at least. And... as long as I do, then there's something to try. That's what Loop says. It shouldn't be long.

[ Just another month and a half's worth. ]

[coldseep]

( Mmmm content with the skritchies, and yet, so at odds with the excitement he feels for Siffrin... they really sound so sure. )

The~n, if you're that close, you're practically there, right?

( He doesn't worry about advocating letting it get to Siffrin's head - they seem too cautious and determined for that! But Siffrin sounds certain, and he would very much like Siffrin to succeed, and didn't Hwylryn learn to use magic by believing his feelings with such certainty that they becomr true?

To some, it may seem like a jinx to speak as if it were decided fact - but, to Hwylryn, he imparts a good luck charm. )

When ( when! ) you succeed, and when you've had a million celebrations with your family and your dearest loves, ( g'raha ??? loop ?? belle besties ?? all of them!!!! ) you have to tell me, too, and you have to tell me all about it, and when I see you... we can throw you an even bigger celebration. I'll tell Ish all about it, and we can prepare... A departure from the past and a greeting for the future. You've worked hard enough.

( he just wants to throw siffrin a huge party, they deserve it, )

[siffriend]

[ (Oh no.) ]

Um. I'm not good with being the centerpiece. So a small departure for the future would be fine, Hwylryn.

[ Please do not throw them a big bash. ]

I... think I would like that, though. Saying goodbye to the old and welcoming the new. I'll tell you when I'm out.

[coldseep]

( Amidst that pleased chuffing, there is a distinct huff - like an animal huffing when otherwise contently asleep on Your cozy bed, mildly inconvenienced. )

Not even a medium departure?

( He says in a sort of fiiiiiine tone, his eyes opening half-lidded. )

... But... okay. If it has to be something small, we can go somewhere fun to celebrate. And I'll make sure it's just as fun as a full festival.

( He has no particular idea of if this means he visits Siffrin's home or they visit Hwylryn's (new) home or this will be a celebration somewhere else entirely, but it doesn't matter all that much to him. He'd like to see where the wind guides them when the time comes.

Until then, he rolls his head, pressing a big cheek into Siffrin's little palm, his eyes squeezing shut in the process. Rubrub!! )

It's a promise.

[siffriend]

[ Such a large dragon, and yet so careful to make sure he doesn't overstep where it comes to weight and strength. Siffrin closes their eye to hide the softness that fills their gaze (Hwylryn doesn't deserve it so soon, but you can't help but feel it among the rest of your emotions,) and rubs their hands against his large cheek. ]

... I'll, um. Look forward to it. And... seeing you again, too.

[ ...

Siffrin lifts Hwylryn's head up a little -- or tries, let him do this, just to sort of be eye-level. ]

Do your best for Junior and The Witch, okay? Listen to them. And don't assume you know what's best for either. That's... how people get hurt.

[ How G'raha has hurt him, in some small ways. How many people get hurt. How Siffrin might hurt others in the future. ]

[coldseep]

( Ah... A vast great silver gaze, the color of an arctic sea, meets Siffrin's own. The breeze ruffles their hair, and the flare of sea-mane that runs along his ridge. )

... Okay.

( A simple answer, almost childish, but it's one he decided on after much thought. To say that he promises or that he'll try, to Hwylryn, feels a little weak - and to say he doesn't want to hurt them is redundant, as he's already shown himself quite capable of hurting those he loves.

Besides, Siffrin's words don't feel like accusation, though there'd be a rightness in them, even if they were. "Okay" sounds most sincere on his tongue, for what could be portent or advice; for someone who, despite the injury he's done, wants to see him again. It's not a warmth he deserves, maybe, but it's one he'll return. )

I love them more than anything... and I'm really lucky they love me as I am. You can go thousands and thousands of years without finding people like that. ( Long enough, that sometimes you wonder - was that it? Was that the last chance I had to love and be loved, forever? ) ... It's trickier to figure out how to live for someone than it is to die for them, but I'll figure it out.

( Death is easier than trying, he's figured. Trying to make up to Junior for what he's done will be a task far more complex than falling upon some sword in apology, and seeing that he doesn't bring harm to Ish or Junior - or these others he cares so deeply for, Siffrin included - will be a far more vigilant effort than finding some battlefield to die upon in grief.

It's part of what scared him so much about choosing to live. )

... I'll look forward to seeing you, too. We'll both probably make mistakes before we meet again, but I hope you'll be kinder to yourself for yours.

( As for Hwylryn's... well, he'll let Ish and Junior be the judge, jury, and executioner. He's all right with that. )

[siffriend]

[ ("It's trickier to figure out how to live for someone than it is to die for them," almost makes you laugh. Ahhh, isn't that the truth. It is so much easier to die.)

... Siffrin will pet him very gently again, truly actions speaking more than words in every case. ]

... I'll try. [ Sincerely. ] I... am not really kind to myself, but... I'll try. Since you're going to figure out something hard, I guess I could, you know. Figure out something hard too.