Stalwart Soul ((Story Post - Complete - Comments Welcome))

[Talathar Khalynn]

He looked over the papers carefully, making sure everything was in order. After all, these were his birds, his pride and joy - trained for those recruits that the Order of the Twin Adders deemed had proven both their loyalty and battle prowess. He wouldn't let them go to just anyone. He was also a man who staunchly believed that each chocobo should be matched with the proper rider. So as he reviewed the paperwork, he took a moment to study the young woman standing before him, trying to size her up against the birds under his care.

 

She was a tiny woman -- tiny even by lalafell standards -- with youthful enthusiasm shining brightly in her blue eyes. And something else, too. A quality that put him in mind of a particular bird.

 

Fierce determination.

 

He hid a grin behind his usual dour mask.

___

 

"Bloody hell... where is that pipsqueak?" the Hyur growled at the young Miqo'te woman, who politely rested the filled wheelbarrow on the ground for a moment. She was busy mucking out the stalls, but if the boss wanted to talk, she could use a short break.

 

"New recruit needs a chocobo, and she's a shorty - we need to make sure he's trained and ready," he explained. "Of the shrimpy ones we got left -- where did all these shorties come from all of a sudden, anyway -- he's farthest along, but... where is he at?"

 

The assistant chocokeep shrugged and pointed a thumb upwards, over her shoulder. The man wordlessly looked towards the top of the stable, and slapped a hand over his own face in exasperation. And tried not to laugh.

 

"How in the..."

 

His assistant merely shrugged again. "Dunno, boss. He just keeps getting up there, no matter what we try."

 

He sighed. “At this rate, we’ll never have him ready.”

 

“I dunno, boss,” she disagreed. “I mean, sure, he’s kinda crazy sometimes. Likes climbing stuff, and jumping ‘rround. But, you know, he’s pretty smart. And he doesn’t give up, for nuthin! And, you said yourself, he’s got...”

 

“...a good heart,” he finished, rolling his eyes. “Yeah, he does. A good heart, and a brave one. He’d make a fine companion for any recruit - if 'tweren't for the crazy. But as he is now... who'd put up with him?” He shook his head. “Just why, why are all the wee ones so... so...”

 

“Spirited?”

 

He snorted. “Pig-headed. Anyway, lets see if we can get the buggering birdbrain down from there.” He turned his attention back to the diminutive bird atop the stables. “HEY! Shorty! OFF THE STABLE!”

 

The bird looked at him curiously, blinking. “Kweh?”

 

“Don’t you ‘kweh’ me, ya daft bird! You heard me! OFF!”

 

His assistant grinned. “I’ll go get some feed - maybe that will help.”

_____

 

He knew he wasn’t as tall as the other chocos. Or as strong. But he was smart. And he knew he was different for a reason. He didn’t know what that reason was yet, but he knew there was a reason. There had to be. So he waited.

 

But that didn’t mean he was idle while he waited.

 

Because he was smaller, and not as strong, sometimes he felt intimidated by the bigger, stronger chocobos. And he knew that would not do, for whatever was out there, waiting to be found. So he knew he needed to be braver than the other chocos. And even though he wasn’t as big or strong, he thought he could be as fast - or faster.

 

So he challenged himself. Constantly. To be ready.

 

He jumped. Jumped a lot. Jumped everywhere. Even when it annoyed all the bigger chocobos. Because he made him feel stronger. And taller. And he refused to be afraid of the bigger chocos.

 

And he ran. Ran everywhere. Always racing, always challenging, always trying to be faster, faster, faster! And he refused to let the bigger chocobos outpace him.

 

And he climbed! On top of everything, anything! Whenever he could, he’d look up at tall things, and try to figure out how to get atop them. And once there, he’d look down from high above, at all the other chocobos, and not be afraid of how high he was. Because he wasn’t like the other chocobos. He knew that.

 

He had to be better.

_____

 

The Lalafell followed the Elezen to the stables out back, where the chocobos were housed. She was slightly nervous, but excited as well. Her own chocobo! She wasn't a complete stranger to the birds, of course -- Mam was an herbalist and sometimes traveling merchant, and kept a pair of chocos for her wagon. But those had been big chocos, not meant for riding. At least, not by tiny Lalafells.

 

But this chocobo would be sized right, the man had promised. "We breed 'em for every race, from Lala to Roeg, and everything in between."

 

There was a little commotion around the corner, making her curious. As the stables came into sight, she saw a Hyur man and a Miqo'te woman looking upwards in apparent frustration. The little Lalafell turned her gaze upward, and blinked in surprise. "Ummm mister? Why is there a chocobo up on the roof?"

 

The Elezen groaned, hand over his face, while the bird in question looked down at the newcomers curiously. "Kweh!"

_____

 

He looked down at the two-legs below him, and blinked in surprise. One of them was short - so very short! He was amazed. Not even the ones who had trained him had been so small!

 

The small one looked back up at him, her eyes blue and clear. Shining with purpose. He felt the pull of a kindred soul.

_____

 

“Sorry, girly,” the burly Hyur said, rubbing the back of his neck somewhat sheepishly and laughing. “As you can see, he’s a bit rambunctious, that one. Rather fearless, he is. Spirited, too. None of the other Lalas who came through here could handle him”

 

The Lalafell glanced at the man in askance. “Why? ‘S he a bad choco? One ta cause problems?”

 

“Oh no,” he assured her, even as his assistants continued to try their best to tempt the bird down with some choice greens. The bird ignored them both, continuing instead to study the small woman intently. “Not exactly. He’s just spirited. Always wants to be the best, see? Run the fastest, jump the highest...”

 

“...climb ta the top of stables?” she finished, one eyebrow raised, trying not to grin.

 

“Yeah, that too,” he admitted. “But he’s a brave soul, is Shorty. And true. He just needs a chance to prove it.”

 

“...and he’s the only small chocobo we got," added the miqo’te woman softly. "The rest are still weeks away from being ready.”

 

“Yeah, that too,” her boss agreed reluctantly. “Maybe a month, give or take.”

 

Tilting her head to the side a moment, she considered her options. Wait a few weeks -- maybe a month! -- or take her chances with this maverick of a bird. Who was still gazing down at her seriously, blinking as if in consideration himself.

 

“Here, why don’t you see if he’ll come down for you,” he urged, handing her a whistle. “They’re trained to answer their master’s whistle - and each whistle is unique, hand-carved for that chocobo alone. Try blowing on this, see if he’ll answer to you.”

 

After a brief hesitation, she took the whistle from him and studied it. It was a simple thing of polished wood, with two finger holes. He showed her the easy sequence of notes - easy enough to remember. She looked back up, meeting the little chocobo’s gaze, and blew the whistle.

_____

 

He watched as she blew on the whistle, and started a little. He knew that whistle - it was his whistle. The one meant to call him to his master.

 

Was this his master then? He wondered. She was so small - smaller than he was! If she weren’t careful, if the bigger chocobos came running at the whistle, they could step on her, squish her flat.

 

No, he couldn’t let that happen!

 

Resolutely, the small bird went to the side of the stable and jumped down, careful to avoid any obstacles. He quickly made his way to the one holding his summoning whistle.

_____

 

“Well, seems he likes you,” the chocokeep chuckled, as he watched the young Lala pet the little chocobo. “So, what do you think? Willing to give him a try?”

 

She continued to pet the bird, trying to think. There was something. Something in that look. In how he had just stood there, looking down, unwavering in his attention. Or maybe some feeling she was getting from him, some aethyric pulse of connection. Whatever it was, she nodded.

 

“Alright, ‘m willing ta give him a try.”

 

“I can promise you, he’ll not let you down,” the chocokeep assured her, motioning for his assistants to get the saddle and bridle ready for the new rider.

 

“But ‘m not liking the name ‘Shorty.’ I’ll need some other name fer him.”

 

He smirked. “Well, how about…”

_____

 

“...Stalwart Soul?” the Elezen repeated somewhat incredulously, after the pair had rode safely away. “That little birdbrain? Really?”

 

The miqo’te scoffed. “You really dun have no clue, do you, big-ears? The boss knows his birds, and he’s right - that one is brave, as little as he is.”

 

“Brave or not, I could punt him across the ‘yard in one kick,” the Elezen countered.

 

“HAH!” their boss barked, coming back from the gates. “You’d try, anyways. But he’d be too quick, I think. And his little master would probably hit you with her staff, before you could even try. Now," he paused a moment, voice becoming stern, "Why are you two gabbing, instead of working?"

 

The pair scurried off, suddenly remembering other tasks that needed attending.

_____

 

Newly renamed, the chocobo ran, following the directions of his new master. There was in his heart a new feeling, a warm feeling of purpose. She was smaller than him, his little master. Smaller, and to be protected. And that was what he’d do, no matter what. That was his purpose.

 

He was Stalwart Soul. And he’d keep his master safe.

[L'kalya Vanih]

Your story made me smile! I wasn't expecting a slice-of-FFXIV-life esque tale like this, but I enjoyed how it turned out. I liked how you wrote from different perspectives throughout the story; from the Chocobo's point-of-view was especially interesting since you changed your writing style to shorter bursts of thought and what I felt was a more simple vocabulary.

 

At first, it was a bit difficult to place who was what in the story, particularly which character was the Stablemaster and which were the Stablehands. I managed to figure it out after a few quick glances, though. Other than that, it transitioned from one part to another quite smoothly and had a fitting conclusion. You could stop there and it would feel complete, but will you be creating more stories about Stalwart Soul and his master in the future?

 

What was your inspiration to write this? Was it based-loosely around when you acquired your first Chocobo? Also, thanks for the read! I'm looking forward to your work in the future!

 

[Talathar Khalynn]

Thanks - Glad you liked the story!

 

I know it gets a little confusing at times, because none of the 2-legs have names. Originally I was going to grab the name of Gridania's Chocokeep, and a few other names from the game, to make it easier to identify. But this story isn't really about them, or about the Lalafell - it's about the chocobo, and his name really is the only one that matters. So I left it without the names - hopefully isn't not too confusing.

 

Stalwart is Talathar's choco. My inspiration is when I first got the choco, and was riding around. I found myself constantly being an idiot, and hopping all over the place while riding around - hopping over other people, jumping onto rock formations, leaping from tall places, stuff like that. When I stepped back for a second and realized what I was doing all these inane things with my supposedly IC persona, I came up with the explanation that it was the choco's fault - *he* was the crazy one, not Tala.

 

You should see her with a Carbuncle... >_>