Happy Birthday to SJ~
As the subject says~<3. It's archangelunmei's birthday, and I was determined I was going to mark the day somehow. ^w^ So, a little gift for you - *bows*
Title: Vision
Rating: PG/K+
A/N: Everytime Eagle, Lantis and Hikaru come up in conversation with SJ, little lovehearts and cries of 'OT3' do as well. Aside from it being incredibly amusing and rather adorable, it's terribly informative as well. X3 So - here, your OT3, SJ. It's not terribly obvious, and could be taken as friendship as well, but it's my first time playing with these three, and I was getting the hang of them. ^^;; *might come back to this canon/world again*
Set in the TRC-verse, in Infinity (long) before the main cast arrive.
The quiet whirr of mechanical wings is audible the moment Lantis sets foot through the great greenhouse doors, the balmy warmth inside a perfect contrast to the sleet currently raining down from the grey, smoke-filled skies over Infinity. The imported trees inside are lush and growing, the metal-winged birds commissioned to make the place feel more ‘natural’ flitting from branch to branch, occasionally voicing a synthetic string of cheeps, trilled melodies that are set to play at random. It’s a peaceful jumble of sound, layer upon layer peeling back as Lantis winds his way through the arched pathways of the greenhouse, pushing aside the rich foliage to the paved pavilion at the greenhouse’s heart.
Infinity doesn’t really know it, but the pavilion really is the heart of the country in so many ways. Tucked away behind walls of glass, in a capital of brick and steel and stone, with a literal army of machines that can wipe hundreds out in the dark back-alleys the country is famed for, muffled gunshots, knives slid sweetly through the ribs. The Vision family - puppeteers and strings both for all of Infinity, scheming, strategising and manipulating all ways of life.
(The country should just be thankful the family head was such…a pleasant young man.)
The wrought iron table is set close to a bank of gorgeous red flowers, an embellished fence beside dividing the pavilion from a pool where silver fishes swim - they’re made of metal as well. (It’s been a terribly long time since anything lived in Infinity save sallow-eyed humans searching for some way to while away their time; even the rats have long since fled the sinking ship.) Little splashes occasional flick up from the pool’s surface, drawing an absent smile from the sandy blond seated at the table watching the antics in the water, his chin perched idly on the back of his hands.
“Eagle,” Lantis draws to a halt a few steps away from the table and the youth seated there glances up at him, smiling a little more definitely, but raising one finger to his lips, a shushing motion.
“You’ll wake her.” A nod from the head of the Vision family in a certain direction draws Lantis’ attention to the wicker couch not far from the table, shaded by leafy palms so that the one resting on it may sleep sweetly, without the glare of the greenhouse’s artificial lighting in their eyes.
“Hikaru -” Lantis takes in the girl’s relaxed form, the slight smile gracing her features, the comfortable sprawl of her body along the couch, blanket draped lovingly around her tiny frame. He frowns slightly, glancing at his employer from the corner of his eye. “…I thought she had patrol duty this afternoon?”
“I kidnapped her.” Eagle looks wholly unrepentant.
“All afternoon?”
“Indeed.”
Lantis restrains a sigh, too used to the blond. “And what did you tell Ryuuzaki-chan, when she undoubtedly inquired where her patrol partner was?” There is a brief pause. Lantis eyes his employer a little more pointedly. “You did tell Ryuuzaki-chan you were taking Hikaru, didn’t you?” If he hadn’t, and Umi had grabbed hold of Fuu, the world is likely to be ending - painfully - for someone somewhere in Infinity. (The two girls take their adoptive big sister responsibilities seriously, and are forces to be reckoned with even when they aren’t holding sharp swords in their hands.)
Eagle tilts his head and dimples, and it’s all too easy to envision the proverbial butter refusing to melt in his mouth. “I sent Geo.”
…It’s little wonder then, that Geo regards Eagle as a demon sent directly from hell.
Eagle, with the air of an angel, docilely offers Lantis the teapot on the table before him, his eyes alight with that glitter of amusement most people who know him have come to fear. Eagle lives, apparently, to make sure others curse him. “Would you like something to drink?”
If Lantis were a weaker person, he would dearly like to dump the teapot over his employer’s head. (That would, however, make a noise, and probably wake up Hikaru - who really needs to rest more.) So Lantis sits, and lets Eagle pour him tea, and tries so very hard not to think about how Geo will rant later about Eagle’s tricks yet again later that evening.
It’s peaceful, for a little while, and Lantis knows why Eagle had the greenhouse built, this pretence at the natural world that Infinity has lost. Eagle’s regained just a little of it - even if it’s all a lie it’s a sweet one, a vision of the future that the country’s uncrowned king will forcibly take everyone towards. Eagle is young but Eagle is determined, stepping through the shades of grey to drag Infinity out of the black. This is Eagle’s world, and he - alongside those who faithfully love and serve him - will make sure it’s a good one.
Outside, the sleet finally stops coming down, and the sky clears a little. Looking up through the greenhouse’s panes, cup of tea in hand, Lantis fancies he can see the evening stars.