FANFIC - A Favor

Feb. 12, 2025 - Originally posted Sep. 26, 2024

Quick Author's Note: I'm not particularly interested in uploading all my fanfiction here, but I'm posting this one here because there is a piece of fanart I WILL be posting to this site that's directly related to it. I'll see if I decided to upload other fics here in the future, for now that's not set in stone.

Fandom: Dungeon Meshi

Read on AO3

He honestly wasn't sure if Milsiril would even consider his invitation, much less accept it.

He wasn't sure if Milsiril ever wanted to see him, or step foot in Melini, again.

Laios shifted in his chair, trying to find a position to best soothe his aching back, as he quietly thanked and dismissed the fairy that had alerted him of the elf's arrival. Had he been even a decade younger, he probably would have made the effort to personally greet her as her boat anchored itself at Melini's shore. He was, however, more or less confined to the castle these days, as doing much of anything greatly tired him out, and he had become acutely aware of how Marcille would look at him when it became clear he was over-exerting himself. It would be fine. If not one of the castle staff, he was certain any of his children, or grandchildren, would be willing to escort her to the castle in his stead.

Gentle, cold hands brushing against his shoulders in their best impression of a loving caress, seemed to be trying to remind him that Milsiril adored them, and would be happy to see them. Maybe it was for the best he wouldn't be there.

He knew for certain, at least, that she wouldn't be fixing them with the icy stare she pinned him with the moment she stepped into the study.

Laios noticed that she didn't stop staring directly at him, either. He didn't catch her eyes wandering or anything, which meant that she probably couldn't see the presence by his side. He worried the ring in his hand, letting it gently tap against the one he wore on his finger, and wondered if that would make explaining things easier or harder.

Finally, she sat down in the chair adjacent to his, still staring, still saying nothing. He guessed that meant he was supposed to carry the conversation, possibly even entirely on his own.

Fair enough, he was the one who invited her here.

"Hello, Mil," he tried, "it's been a while, hasn't it?"

Laios was still not fond of small talk, but he figured it would be good to remind her that three years was a decently long span of time for tall-men. It seemed, at least according to Kabru, that long-lived races needed very constant reminders that time moved differently for other races. As he got older and the concept of a year became relatively shorter and shorter, it became much easier for Laios to believe. Three years didn't actually feel quite so long by his own standards at this point, but he knew that to someone in their late 200's, it would be virtually no time at all.

Definitely not enough time to let emotional wounds scar over, when the last time she visited was for the sake of attending her son's funeral. Unfortunately, Laios was becoming more and more aware that he didn't have much time left, himself, and what he had to ask of her was important enough to him that he'd regret it if he never took the chance. He'd prefer to die without any regrets weighing on his mind.

When Milsiril didn't respond, he continued, encouraged by another brush against his shoulder, "I know you're probably wondering why I invited you here. I need to ask a favor of you, but I think it would be easier if I explained things first.

My sister... has always had a talent for magic. When we were kids, it got her into trouble, because the type of magic she has a natural talent for scared the people of our hometown." He swallowed uncomfortably, unsure what to anticipate as the next sentence escaped his lips. "Falin can see ghosts, and I learned, when I started practicing magic, myself, that I could see ghosts, as well."

Milsiril, to her credit, only shifted uncomfortably at the revelation and what it implied. She didn't look angry or offended, though Laios was never good at picking up what others were feeling unless they were particularly close to him or expressing themselves very blatantly.

"I, uh... I know you used to be a Canary, so feel free to stop me if you already know all this, but ghosts typically move on pretty quickly if they don't have any unfinished business left. It's not very common for ghosts outside of dungeons to stick around for more than a year. Usually when they do, it's because they have a particularly hard time accepting their own death, and that's when they become a danger to the living, trying to latch onto their bodies," he paused to shiver, "but Falin told me, that a lot of ghosts will cling to their lovers for the remainder of their lives, waiting so that they can move on together."

It had admittedly been a massive relief when she told him. When Kabru's spirit manifested before him only days after the funeral, Laios was worried that perhaps he was still too weighed down by grief and trauma to move on, properly. When Kabru then immediately started possessing him, Laios believed his fears were confirmed, and at the time he had been mournful enough to give him what he believed he wanted. If Falin had not caught and separated the two, he'd probably have become a member of the undead. It was only when she started scolding Kabru's ghost (which was a surreal experience in itself) that it became clear he was attempting to embrace him, not claim his body as his own.

Laios wondered, grimly, how many couples doomed their post-mortem reunion by accidentally forming a ghoul. Perhaps it was easier to undo if the both of them realized the mistake quick enough.

A tender chill against his cheek pulled him away from his thoughts and he promptly brought his attention back to his guest. The wedding band he had been holding was now held out to her, an offering of sorts.

"I removed this from Kabru's body when I realized he was gone. He wasn't wearing anything else, other than his night clothes. If you don't mind, could you hold this and see if you feel his presence? I'm not sure, but I think his soul might be tied to it, rather than to me, because I took it off him after he had... died."

Milsiril looked horrified enough for Laios to recognize it, which probably wasn't a good sign. He at least had the sense to keep quiet about his own personal hopes that he wouldn't also die in his sleep, because if spirits could be tied to worldly possessions, he'd want the opportunity to wear his three-headed crown or his pelt when he passes. He already knew he wasn't getting the sky burial he wanted, he might as well get some say in the matter.

He leaned in, as gently as he could, as if approaching a fightened animal, "I'm sorry, I know it's a lot to ask, already, but I have a request to make that's entirely based on knowing this for sure, and I can't imagine anyone more deserving to see him again - or at least feel his presence again - than his own mother."

He held his tongue again. He wanted to tell her how impressive it was for a tall-man, specifically one who was never altered by dungeon magic the way he and Falin were, to reach their eighties. How Kabru was only ever able to live so long in the first place because Milsiril had saved him when he was seven. How it should be celebrated that the last remaining survivor of the disaster that struck Utaya would get to live such a long life and then die peacefully, and that she deserved credit for it. He wanted so desperately to thank her. He hoped this gesture would communicate what he would fail to convey verbally.

Sometimes Laios made good decisions in social situations. Perhaps this was one of them. Milsiril, however tense, nonetheless accepted Kabru's wedding band from Laios, and Laios felt tears of an emotion he couldn't place slip down his cheeks as Kabru passed through him and settled in front of his mother.

If the way her gaze adjusted itself to follow the position of his spirit was anything to go off of, she could see him, now. Laios belatedly hoped she wasn't expecting him to look youthful and lively - ghosts rarely, if ever, looked either of those things, much less both. If she was disturbed by his appearance, though, she didn't make it apparent. What she did make apparent was that seeing him again had filled her with an overwhelming amount of emotion. For the first time since entering the room, she'd opened her mouth, her son's name spilling from her lips as she sobbed and lifted her arms in an attempt to hold and stroke his cheeks. It was a fruitless, albeit meaningful gesture, and it was more than Laios had seen from her at Kabru's funeral, though he knew by now how private of a person his mother-in-law was. A large gathering for the late Prince would never be the appropriate place for a person like Milsiril to grieve openly and earnestly.

Kabru kept his distance arm's length, and Laios wondered if it was a hold-over from when he was alive, and very easily overwhelmed by Milsiril's physical affection, or if he was simply trying to refrain from accidentally possessing her. They both knew, in that case, that Milsiril wouldn't hold back if given the opportunity to embrace him with her entire being, to her own detriment. They understood the feeling, they were both parents, after all.

Laios waited until she was much calmer, her grief reduced to silent tears and steadying breaths, before he cleared his throat to get her attention. She looked at him, a little bewildered, but without any of the stony animosity she had greeted him with.

"It's... difficult for the living to communicate with the dead. The living have a hard time understanding what the dead verbalize, which I guess makes sense, they don't really have anything physical to verbalize with anymore, and I'm not entirely sure that the dead can hear everything the living say. Yaad was always really good at talking with the ghosts of the Golden Kingdom, but he had a thousand years of practice, and given how much faster I'm aging than Marcille, I don't think I'll have that kind of time."

He shook his head a little, he was rambling, "But Kabru and I had talked about this when he was still alive. Many, many years ago, when our youngest came of age, he traveled with our kids, at their request, to the remains of Utaya. I think it helped them understand him a bit better..." he sighed softly, "I couldn't go with them. I wanted to, but because of my curse, I'd end up putting Melini in danger if I left for too long. Plus, none of us knew what my presence would end up causing in Utaya, since there's a barrier surrounding it that would prevent monsters from fleeing."

Laios licked his chapped lips uncomfortably, "Kabru knew I could see ghosts. We talked, sometime after, a few times about it. He wondered, if I were to visit Utaya, if I'd be able to see the ghosts of those who didn't become monsters when they died - er, the ghosts of those who weren't still 'somewhat alive', so to say. He wondered if he'd recognize any of them based on me describing them to him. He... he mentioned that his birth mother was one of the 'lucky few' - in his words. I think... he was hoping somehow that I'd be a sort of go-between between him and her, if he'd be at least able to talk to her again if only I was there with him."

Laios needed to adjust himself in his seat, again. "Like I said, he brought it up a few times. We both knew, logically, that it couldn't happen, that we'd never even get the chance to learn if it was possible or not. But I don't think it stopped him from hoping for it, in the back of his mind." He fixed her with his own stoic gaze. "I know I'm asking a lot, but I also know I'd regret never asking in the first place. There are things I'll never be able to do for him. Not just because of the curse, but also because I'm nearing the end of my life, myself. I'm not as fortunate as my sister, I didn't get to return to my human form with as many left-over monster parts, and if I'm lucky, I'll have a decade left - if I'm lucky." He already knew Milsiril believed Kabru should have outlived him, and Laios understood, because he selfishly wanted the same.

"Kabru's a ghost, now. Nothing can hurt him unless someone tried to dispel him, and Falin told me ghosts reform after being dispelled, anyway. He'll likely be stuck among the living until I pass, myself.

If it's not too much trouble... I want you to take him back to Utaya. Not permanently, but... take as long as you need to. I can no longer ask him directly if he wants to see the spirit of his birth mother, and I was always afraid to ask him in certain terms when he was still alive. But the least I can do is give him the opportunity to do so, if he wants to, if I have the means to. Maybe it'll help her pass on, too, if she can. I know I've never met her, but I'd like that for her. She deserves to be at peace just as much as Kabru does."

He let that hang in the air for a while, his confidence a little deflated, as it usually was the more he spoke to someone, but his resolve remained, "If you need a boat, I'll charter one for you. A-anything that you need, I'll make sure you have it. My family would be indebted to you if you did this," he saw Kabru whirl around to stare at him when he said that, his hollow gaze just as piercing as would have been when he was alive. It was clear those words had set him off. Laios knew he'd be in deep shit if the circumstances were any different - being a short-lived person indebting your bloodline to a long-lived person was a deeply significant and often dangerous thing to do. He just hoped it was understood that because it was Milsiril, because she was family, that he felt okay saying something like that to her. And maybe it'd show her how serious he was.

And it seemed as though they both had granted him mercy. Milsiril stared for a while, her gaze shifting between Kabru and Laios, before taking a deep breath, willing the remainder of her tears away, "You're always so eager to display your devotion to my son. I'll admit, I like that about you." She wasn't smiling when she said it, but Laios chose to believe her, anyway. "I wasn't looking forward to this visit, but I am glad I came. You let me see Kabru again, even if I can't touch him, even if I can't hear his voice, this is more than enough reason to follow through with your request, no debt is needed."

She stood, so commanding and intimidating in her presence despite being so short, at least by tall-man standards. "Please arrange for a ship to take me southwest, and all the necessary provisions for the trip. And because I like you," for once, she gave a slight smile, though Laios still found it rather unnerving on her otherwise gloomy face, "I'll try not to take too long."

And so, with Falin's assistance, Laios was able to see Milsiril off properly at the docks of Melini, and wish her well on her journey, as his husband left his life for the second time.