vatheon | Living in hope

Who: Sola and anyone
Where: Plaza, in front of the coral
When: After his network post
Status: Open to all

[Sola isn't stupid. He's naive and gullible, yes, but he isn't plain stupid. Somewhere, deep down, he knows that sitting here in front of the coral and wishing or hoping or even praying won't bring Link back. It hadn't brought Ion back, or any of his other friends who'd been tossed back to their own worlds.

But what if, this time...?

He'd sat with Darkleer for a time before, watching the coral, and not too long after Signless had returned. He'd sat in front of the coral for days after waking up and finding Johnny had died and his matesprit had come back to him. There's just as much of a chance that Link could return.

Right?

He has to hope. Because without hope, what else is there? Maybe he's stubborn, maybe he even knows it's futile, but he has to hope.

So here he is, sitting on the ground in front of the massive edifice of undersea polyps. Waiting. Watching.

Hoping.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Whoever is listening will listen to you just as well as me, little one.

[Sufferer stops touching Sola's hair for a moment to get the bag of stardust Gamzee gave him out of his sylladex. For whatever reason--maybe seeing the clown's simple, unwavering devotion--it helps him concentrate while praying these days, although he doesn't doof himself in the face with it, more just holds the bag and works it between his fingers. A little stardust falls out and lands on Sola's hair, shining softly.]

Hello, to whoever is listening. We're here on behalf of some friends of ours, Link and Ion. We miss them, and it would make us, and probably them, very happy if they could return to us. And if they can't [he spares a glance at Sola], then let them be happy and at peace, wherever they are, so that they are ready to greet us someday when we all dance together in the neverending light. Amen.

[The dust in his hair either unnoticed or unheeded, Sola takes a breath and lets it out slowly, eyes closed again. He thinks for a long moment about what else to add, what he can say to the coral to convince it, but everything his trolldad has said stands on its own. He nods with the amen, simply adding his own silent prayer to back Sufferer's words.

Though there is one thing...]

Do you really think they can go to the neverending light? I mean, Link's probably in the spirit realm, but Ion...

[Ion, and Sola for that matter, don't have a soul to go anywhere after death. But the last time Sola had tried to explain that, Sufferer had rejected the notion and he doesn't have the energy to try and explain again. Especially not when the idea of going somewhere nice after death, somewhere peaceful where he can be with his friends, is so comforting.]

Well... do you really think he'll be there?

[Sufferer knows the issues Sola has with this, and knows what he's implying when he trails off after mentioning Ion. He also knows they might never see eye to eye on this issue, and stays quiet until Sola speaks again.]

Yes. If for no other reason than because you love him enough to put him there.

But don't different worlds have their own different places? I'd never heard about the neverending light until I met you, just the spirit realm.

[And then Gamzee had gone on about messiahs and a circus and Johnny mentions a place called Heaven sometimes. Each world must have their own, right? He doesn't really understand the difference between belief or religion and hard fact. After all, the spirit realm is taken as hard fact by nearly all of Hyrule.]

The worlds might have different names for it, but it sounds like the same place to me.

[Sufferer taps Sola's chest gently, right over his heart.]

Ask yourself: do you think they're different places, or one place with many different names?

[It'd be nice if it's as Sufferer says, if it's all just one big connected afterlife where people can see each other as they please regardless of origin. If he had a soul to pass on after he died, it's what he would want. So why not? There's nothing that says the spirit realm can't include the neverending light, or vice versa.

Sola smiles gently at his mentor.]

I think they're the same place, and everyone can see whoever they want if they're dead too.

[Sufferer smiles back.]

I think so too.

[Sola stays like that, with his head in Sufferer's lap, for awhile longer, eyes drifting back to the coral and his mouth moving a little in silent prayer that the coral bring back his friends so they don't have to be dead... with one addendum.

That if the coral can't, or won't, it at least makes sure that they're happy in the spirit realm or the neverending light or heaven or whatever the coral wants to call it. Even if he has his doubts of if Ion is really anywhere after death, he still prays. He still hopes.

At length, the Hylian shifts and sits up, turning his head to look up at his trolldad again.]

How long should you pray before you know if it'll work or not?

[Sufferer just smiles at that and brushes Sola's hair off his face.]

It already is, little one. Can't you tell?

[He thinks for a moment, then shakes his head.]

No, I can't tell. I thought the coral would glow or something.

[He's... not terribly used to waiting for results.]

[Sufferer gently touches Sola's chest, over his heart.]

With prayers, there usually isn't a physical sign. It's something you have to feel, something you have to trust in your heart.

[He moves his hand to cover Sola's eyes.]

So ask yourself, son... did your prayer work?

[He knows that his dad just wants him to be happy, that his heart should tell him that yes, it worked but he really doesn't know. Even with Sufferer's hand over his eyes, all Sola can feel is that the coral at least heard. It had to, he was sitting right here for a very long time.

And maybe that's enough.]

I think... I think the coral heard me.

Good.

[Sufferer removes his hand and smiles down at Sola. Even with his own faith a little shaken, he wants his adopted son to feel okay about what he's doing, and to have faith in something beyond himself.]

I think it did, too. Now we'll just have to wait and see what it answers.

How long do I have to wait?

[He hopes not long, but he has a sneaking suspicion it'll be something like 'as long as it takes'.]

I don't know. Prayers can be asnwered very quickly, or very slowly. We just don't know.

[Sola let's out a sigh. Everything is always "wait and see" or "maybe" or even sometimes "when you're older". It's frustrating, but there's not a lot of help for it.

He indulges in leaning against Sufferer's knee for another long moment, managing to fight down his frustration from turning into any sort of tantrum, then gets to his feet.]

Did you still want to have tea?

[Good boy, Sola. Sufferer likes seeing how he controls himself and simply accepts that some things have no answers.]

I would like that very much.

[With a small smile, Sola offers his hand to his dad to help him up off the bench, though should he take it he won't simply let go after that. He'd prefer to walk back to Sufferer's hive hand in hand, glad for Sufferer and the others that are still here in the bubble.]

Living in hope

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