Happily ever after with a little flavor

[missrecalled_mods]

Sponsors for the ship? So... Sponsor'ship?

Rare had an hour seemed so long on the Isle, or carried so much hope. The King and Queen spoke to all who wished to speak with them, and to Yen Sid. At one point they even opened the barrier enough to go back to the ship where they conferred inside a silence spell with Sylvando. And once more for the King and Queen to return a few minutes later. Then back on the Isle they pulled a few individuals aside once more. Oddly, not those from the Isle this time. Aqua first. Then Lea. Then Æn'kae.

Finally the hour came to an end and the King and Queen called for everyone's attention. Mal stepped forward to address everyone.

"Alright, so here is how this is going to work," she told them without preamble, once she had their attention. The wind pulled at her purple hair, pulling it like a banner behind her. "Here are the terms by which we will take the people we will name to Auradon. Each person will be assigned a sponsor. If you want to change sponsors you may let us know once we are back in Auradon. Your Sponsor will be watching out for you. You need to check in with him, her, or them, regularly. How often that will be will be between you and your sponsor, but the sponsors will report to King Ben and myself. Behave and you'll get to stay in Auradon, and we will let you know when your probation is over and you no longer need to check in with your sponsor. Break the rules of Auradon, hurt anyone, steal.... depending on how bad the act and how many were harmed, we may, with your sponsor decide to give you a warning... or you may wind up back here. This is a chance to prove that the sorting magic was wrong, that you are good people. Or can become good people given the chance." Mal looked and sounded like she was clearly waiting to make her own judgments.

"As I list each name, please go to your sponsor if he, she, or they is here. If not, come stand with the king and I."

She took a deep breath. "Xion, your sponsor is Lea." she pointed to him, suspecting that she didn't actually have to, but it was good to set a pattern.

"Utau, you are with Sylvando, who is on the ship so come join us." Then a bit of a wicked grin. "He's also keeping an eye on Nadeshiko and Nagihiko, why not let him keep an eye on all three of you," she said, knowing she was throwing fuel on an explosion waiting to happen. But she trusted Sylvando to sort out which of the kids actually belonged on the Isle.

"River you are with Æn'ki. Hope you like animals," she said with a grin that wasn't all that softer than her last as she gestured to him.

"Morgana and Emporio, you are with Aqua," she added nodding to the woman with the blue hair. "Of course we understand if any of you want to stay..."

She turned to the Headmaster. Doctor F.... We're aware of you, and your efforts, I assure you. We'll be speaking with those heading to Auradon. But for now, stay where we can see you while the rest of you, those coming with us? You have ten minutes to get your stuff if you have any and say goodbyes to anyone if you want to. Goodbyes with the headmaster will be supervised so we can make sure he is being as good as he claims these days. Alright. Ten minutes, starting now!"


**************************************************

The gathering of belongings and saying of goodbyes was accomplished in the allotted ten minutes without much trouble. Getting everyone onto the boat, then equipped with lifejackets- thankfully the boat's owner was a bit over prepared so there were enough for everyone, if only just-, and reasonably settled for the trip back took a bit longer, however. The boat was a large catamaran, painted mostly in blue and purple pastels. The life jackets however, were the standard safety orange, and so stood out as sharply as they were meant to. The water was still rough so once everyone was equipped, Sylvando advised those unused to boat travel to settle down somewhere until they were in calmer waters.

Getting back to the mainland took time as well, though not quite as much as getting there had, as the tide was in their favor for the return trip. Still, there would be plenty of time for conversation, awkward silences, or angry glaring during the trip. And Sylvando himself wouldn't be adverse to conversation, provided it didn't interfere with the steering of the vessel. Those without their sea legs would also want to be careful walking around, as the boat-while large for a catamaran- wasn't large enough to prevent it from rocking.

Once they'd reached the harbor and the Bibbity Bobber had been secured in her berth, her passengers and crew disembarked and began the trek back up to the school. There seemed to be an inordinate amount of junk that had once been clearly blocking the road before the path to and from the harbor had been cleared. All of it was the sort of things one might expect to find in a modern city- cars, sign boards, fallen trees and lamp posts, etc- but there seemed to be too much of it for the simple vanishing of the populace to account for it all. Very odd.

Once they arrived at the school, they were led past the pretentious sign and statue of King Beast and directed into the lobby. There, they were issued phones and information sheets. On account of everyone being exhausted, no formal welcoming ceremony was planned for that evening, and those staying were directed to the dorms to get showered and settled in. Since that was sure to be a process in itself, Ben, Mal, Sylvando, the other sponsors, and anyone who still had the energy would likely be around for all that as well until everyone got settled. Thankfully the exhaustion had been anticipated, and it was announced that there was soup in the kitchen's refrigerator that had been premade and portioned out and needed only to be reheated for supper at each person's leisure.

The next morning however, proved that Auradon was still Auradon and couldn't really go without some kind of official welcome, as those who came down to the lobby would find a simple but tasty breakfast of muffins, fruit - provided by Malia-, tea, and coffee waiting for them along with the eternally chipper Sylvando, ready to answer any further questions they might have.


****************


Professor Yen Sid and the Headmaster stood and watched the ship through the barrier until they could no longer see it. Then the headmaster, looking bitter, turned on his heel, stalked back to the school, muttering under his breath about needing to speak with someone. He did not say who, but it did not seem like it was likely to be a pleasant conversation.

Yen Sid, on the other hand, turned to those who chose to remain. “Shall we get these supplies in before the humidity destroys them?” he asked, gathering his things into his bag before grabbing it and one of the boxes.

Comments

[elvendryad]

"Mm...." He continued moving the last of the supplies to the shelf, though he'd slowed further, clearly enough debating with himself as he did, having to figure this out. How did he even begin to explain what, to him, was self-evident?

But he was going to try anyway.

"...If someone steals," he started, hesitant, unsure if that was quite how or where he wanted to start with this, "What do you think ought to happen?" Maybe getting an idea of where the other man's understanding was first would help.... "If someone takes another's... only cooking pot? There was no permission given, and they had no intent to return it. But they were caught. And they already had one of their own. Their theft was an act of greed. What then?"

[misery_called_npcs]

"There are a lot of possible ways to resolve the situation.. among the options are bringing the issue to the proper authorities, or speaking with the one who stole it to inform them they are to return it to you."

[elvendryad]

"The... 'proper authorities'?" Blink, blink... That look of confusion? Yeah, so uh. Yen Sid was probably going to just have to get used to seeing that on the tree guy here for a while. "...Do you mean to imply that someone else might be a better 'authority' on how they were wronged and how to make it right again, than the person who has been stolen from?"

[queen_butterfly]

"Mm... meet them, and be sure to ask what they'd needed and not had, food in general aside, back on the Isle... and what they might still need here, that they haven't found yet?" A slight pause. "I don't suppose you've any idea on particulars about either of those that I ought to be sure to make a point of asking after as well?"

[seacub]

"She seemed...really certain that she'd stop existing for Sora to be conscious. ...No, worse than that, that even though her friends said they'd seen her again, that it wasn't 'her'. I tried talking to her about why that wouldn't necessarily happen but..."

Well, Xion can be pretty set in her ways he's found.

[seacub]

"....Er...if it didn't you wouldn't have been so keen on not getting them?"

At least the devil is amused.

[misery_called_npcs]

"I did not mean to imply, I meant to say it outright, I apologize."

[aquawayfinder]

"Clothing, from what I have seen. You can't use your power to create it for them, but you can help them find what is available. And kindness also seemed to be in short supply there. So they probably would appreciate if that was offered..."

Though she should warn her friend.

"Though with Xion specifically, the one in the black coat, I suggest being more cautious. She takes the word shy to whole new levels, and it takes her a while to get used to new people sometimes. Lea would be someone good to check in with to get an idea how to approach this version of her."

[elvendryad]

Paaaause. "So, hypothetically, if someone were to attack and injure me...." He eyed the wizard, trying to pick his words carefully to be sure his point was made, "Some third party would know better than I would, how my attacker should make that up to me?"

CW: KH info dump

[aquawayfinder]

She sighed gently. "I can understand how she would see it that way, given who she had been surrounded by. Hopefully I will be able to help calm that fear. I will say that Anything done to her to try to wake Sora is... not what Sora would have chosen if he was awake to have a say, and the people claiming to be helping in him really ought to know better. A few of them are as much a kid as the rest of them, but at least one of the people involved is old enough to know better..." she shook her head. "But that is aside from the point. The reason I asked about Sora is because of his open and kind heart."

In the realities I am from, the Heart is not just the physical organ in our chests, it is more like the seat of self... our souls, if you want. When Sora was very young, my brother, one of my best friends, Ven... he was injured. His Heart was weakened badly and the trauma forced his Heart from his body. His heart found Sora, and Sora welcomed Ven into his Heart, and Ven rested there, healing. Later, when Darkness came to Sora's world, one of his best friends came under attack, and her Heart also was pulled free. And it came to rest in Sora's Heart as well. Sora welcomes any and all who need his help, and would do anything for others... even strangers. But in time Ven was able to be awoken without harming Sora. As was Sora's friend Kairi."

A small find smile, she missed all of the people she was discussing, and loved them, of course.

"Roxas and Xion are... a special case. It is very complicated to get into when we are all this tired, but they are both made out of part of Sora, and there were people who wanted to hurt Sora, or use his power for their own that did things to Roxas and Xion that caused Sora to need to sleep - his memories pulled apart and scattered. He had to rest while the links of his memory were found and reconstructed. And so he entered a magical sleep. But some of those memories are core to Roxas, and some of them were actively used to create Xion."

"Those who know this drew the seemingly logical conclusion that the only way to gather and return the last of Sora's memories so he could awaken was to take Roxas and Xion apart. Even without traveling realities, they had access to a better way. But they failed to see it, which caused much mischief for the children."

"In the realities where Roxas and Xion did return to Sora, however, he kept them in his Heart, and he protected the Hearts of their own that they had begin to grow. And within his Heart, theirs grew full and complete. In time it was possible for them to be granted bodies of their own. So in most realities it is considered a happy ending. However there are ways, if I can arrive into the timelines early enough, to awaken Sora without them having to return to him. Now, they were not harmed being in his Heart, in fact they might be better for it, all that time resting within the warmest love any reality has ever known, but that should be their choice. There is another way, and Roxas and Xion should be given all the information and a chance to make an informed decision. I'll ask you not to bring this up with anyone for the time being, until I can speak with her and Lea myself. But since I can tell you love her, I wanted you to be assured that I will do all I can to help and protect her."

[utauhoshina]

"Oh just shut up! Ugh, this is why children are so annoying!"

[misery_called_npcs]

"Exactly. When one is the injured party - literally or otherwise - they lose objectivity. More, from the outside, it is hard to tell where justice ends and revenge begins. This is why we form societies, to help each other find what is closest to a balance of fairness and mercy. Discipline without losing kindness. Too much pain and a lesson is lost, after all. But most importantly having a third party that both sides can trust to adjudicate."

[elvendryad]

Judging by the distinct lack of anything resembling an immediate agreement, bets were that they were likely not on the same page about this.

But, after a good pause, a slow nod. "...I see."

Another little pause, still eyeing him as he considered. "It sounds much like the way a parent would decide things for children, to teach them how to mediate their own conflicts. From your line of questioning, would I be correct in assuming that the adult populace of many places here need to be treated so on a regular basis?"

[misery_called_npcs]

"This is not treating adults as children, this is working together as a society. Tell me, have you heard the phrase that begins 'an eye for an eye'?"

[queen_butterfly]

"The one in the black coat....?" She frowned a little, considering it. She'd seen the little figure the other day, during the trip, certainly... but she hadn't really approached anyone then, let alone that child. "Understood... I'll be mindful of that."

A little pause again, peeking down at herself. "....Do you think I ought to keep like this for the time being, for anyone? I know sometimes it's easier to speak to children as one of them...." And there had been at least two, that she'd seen, she'd thought...?

[elvendryad]

He didn't look like he did; a second's consideration, then "Humor me...?"

[aquawayfinder]

"Yes, her. As to how you should look, you should choose what ever appearance feels most honest for you in the moment. Be yourself, that's wonderful. They'll see it too."

[queen_butterfly]

She made a little sound, smiling again more finally. "...Well... I could very well take my first shape, but I don't know how productive that would be...." She shook her head, setting the thought aside. It was a joke, more than anything... whatever that joke was. "...It might be fun, though, sometime."

[misery_called_npcs]

"The full saying is that an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth shall leave us all blind and toothless. The root of it is that revenge is not a single retaliation for a harm done, it is a cycle that does not end before it is too late for all involved. And one of the biggest tragedies of such situations is the inevitable escalation."

He ran a hand through his beard. "They harmed you, or someone you care about. So you feel you have the right to hurt them. Now you've hurt them. So now they feel they have the right to hurt you..." He shook his head. "Does this sound ideal to you?"

[aquawayfinder]

She gave a small chuckle. "You never know. That might be exactly what someone needs."

[elvendryad]

"No. But neither does it sound like my kind's way to begin with. If it is the humans', perhaps it is no wonder that they need be treated as children, and incapable of solving their own disputes." Honestly, he wasn't sure how much either of them was getting from this conversation; none of this seemed to paint humans in a particularly good light, to him. Perhaps it was just a misunderstanding. He hoped it was a misunderstanding.... But it would make so many of the past incidents make a bit more sense.

Perhaps he'd been naïve, giving certain humans far, far more respect than they'd deserved. Perhaps he'd erred in thinking they were capable of learning at all, if it was so accepted that they could act as such self-centered, thoughtless brats because their society would treat them as large children.

But actual children were capable of learning.

He made a quiet sound of his breath, looking down just slightly as he thought it over a moment. "...You bring this up why, though?"

[misery_called_npcs]

"I am sorry that you feel that way, and that you needed to ask," he said softly, shaking his head. "Let me match your question with another... What do you think is the purpose of the King and Queen's jobs?"

[elvendryad]

"Here, you mean?"

[misery_called_npcs]

"Or elsewhere if you prefer."

[elvendryad]

He shrugged. "Enlighten me?"