[X] Go see Remilia.
- [X] Bring Ilya.
- [X] Ask about Ilya's room.
"Ilya? Do you think you're up to another quick trip?" She frowns at you for a long moment, then puffs her cheeks, making you smile.
"I don't mind, Flan." You grin and swing around to give her a hug, carefully pulling her up as you turn back to Patchouli.
"Patchouli, do you know where my sister is?" Ilya, now properly in your arms, frowns again, probably thinking she knows what you're going to do. Patchouli tilts her head as well, and her hand sketches on the desk again. You wonder what's wrong with her - she hasn't used her own magic since you came up here, and Illyasviel said that she was acting strangely. Of course, Illyasviel doesn't really know what Patchouli's actually like, so she could be misunderstanding Patchouli's normal attitude ….
"Remilia is … in the entry hall." She sounds surprised, and she's probably curious, but if she wants to know more she can track you with magic. You float into the air and start to leave, then turn back to the magician.
"Thank you, Patchouli." Your tone is sincere and polite, but you leave before seeing if Patchouli turns or has anything to say. "It's not what you think it is, Ilya." She makes a suspicious noise.
"Hmm … how do you know what I think this is about?" You giggle and shake your head.
"I don't - all I need to do is think about what I want to ask Remilia, and then decide whether you would come up with that as a subject for discussion. Since you wouldn't, what I'm going to ask my sister isn't what you're thinking it is!" She tosses her head, flailing her hair across your face, and you catch some of it in your mouth, holding it with your lips. When she looks back to see why you aren't responding, her face turns bright red and she scrambles to rescue her hair. You giggle again as she pouts, then hum brightly as you fly through the library. She leans into you, relaxing, but you can't exactly dawdle - it wouldn't be fair to her. Soon enough you reach the entry hall and carefully open the door. The gazebo is still there, of course, and Remilia. You cock your head at the painting she's making - a ruin of a battlefield, mounds and carpets of corpses approaching a titanic black structure, so large it doesn't even fit on the canvas. Three tiers of defenses, siege weapons … even unfinished you can tell that the event portrayed would have involved many thousands of troops. It's too bad it only exists in her imagination.
"The defense of the Lady's Tower at Charm," Remilia says as she steps back. She yawns demurely. "It is rather better to create art with your hands and not with sorcery, even if magic is far more precise. No matter how perfect I make it, it never seems as alive as when I do it by hand. Good evening, Illyasviel. Come, Flandre, sit." She walks back underneath the gazebo and sits on a bench; you flick a glance at the gazebo before following suit and sitting across from her, keeping Ilya in your arms. Remilia's eyes gleam suspiciously and she taps her lips, leaning forward … memorizing the scene, of course.
"So … there was something I asked Sakuya about earlier, after we came back from Ilya's world. It was kind of an important project …." You trail off as Remilia nods, smirking sneakily. Ilya looks at you, frowning at the way you're dancing around the subject - but you don't want to spoil the surprise if it isn't finished yet.
"It's almost finished, I think - it needs a certain someone's approval, of course. A touch of life. Shall we see if it is suitable, or found wanting?" Her smile softens, her so-expressive eyes shine less brightly, but more purely.
"Flan? What is …?" You hug her more tightly as you nod to your sister.
"It's … something I wanted to do. And now it seems more important than I'd thought, so I'm really glad I asked about it. It's …." You trail off and Remilia smoothly slides to her feet; with a wave of her hand, the air next to her changes, creating a doorway to another part of the mansion. She makes a welcoming gesture, inviting you to lead the way, and you drift forward, carrying Ilya to what you hope will be a place she feels comfortable.
You arrive at the top of the stairs, looking down the hall that ends in a tall window - one that hasn't been covered up. It's a bit far from any of the doors, but …. "The window overlooks the front of the mansion; the hall ends there, but if you want access to the rest of the second floor, a doorway can be cut into the wall." Ilya goes still, apparently realizing what you're showing her. You take a few steps forward, testing out the solid stone floor and the dark red carpet that covers much of it. A few paintings adorn the walls - Berserker standing tall, strange weapon lowered; Sella and Leysritt standing shoulder-to-shoulder, almost identical as they wait calmly; you and Ilya sleeping together peacefully. Ilya sniffles and looks at the nearest door. Smoothly, as practiced as any maid or butler, Remilia glides past you and opens it for you to enter.
The room is luxurious, but sparse. Several low couches sit against two walls, one near the door and the others by the windows. A table set forms as much a centerpiece as exists in the room, although it is currently unadorned. A fireplace burns warmly to your right, and a small cabinet is on the opposite wall, next to another door. A mirror hangs above the cabinet, but the paneled walls - dark, but not oppressively so like most of the mansion, particularly with the windows - are otherwise bare. The room is largely empty, but it's not a bad compromise, and this way it's easier to see that the table could seat four copies of Berserker, and that the room is high enough for him to stretch tall and not reach the ceiling. Ilya doesn't say anything, and you carry her through the room to the other door. Unsurprisingly, it leads to the bedroom. A large canopied bed sits in the far corner to your left, and the large glass doors to the patio - large enough for Berserker to walk through them without stooping - are in the center of the wall to your right. On the same wall as the door, across from the bed, is your portrait of her, properly framed. A cabinet, a wardrobe, a dresser, and a desk all sit on one wall or another, and a small round table sits in the middle of the room. Remilia walks past you to open the door to the patio, and Ilya inhales, taking several deep breaths as she leans into you. You look at your sister, head cocked curiously, and she nods - 'nature' can enter through that door, then. It likely can't get into the rest of the mansion, and it can probably only enter the suite when the door is open judging by Ilya's reaction … but it's something that will help a lot. It's also probably why the suite is stone-based instead of wood, like the rest of the mansion. You take Ilya through the door so she can see the patio and the gardens it overlooks. After simply looking, she turns to Remilia and tries to say something, but your sister holds her hand up.
"There are a few other rooms I want you to see, first." You frown, despite Remilia's gentle tone, but Ilya swallows and nods. You follow your sister back into the suite, leaving the door outside open for now. The door nearest Ilya's leads to two more doors, splitting into Sella and Leysritt's rooms - comfortably but not lavishly furnished. The next holds the washroom, including a bath easily as large as the one in her castle. Another has a dining room, with a usable kitchen through a door in that room, which itself has a door to a storage room. Another has a large sitting room. And finally, at the end of the hallway, Remilia has Ilya place her hand on the wall and imprint a passphrase; the resulting doorway takes you to a well-stocked magical workroom. "It's underground, of course, and the physical entrance opens into the library, but it's much more convenient for you this way. It also functions to let you into the library quickly, if you want. If you want anything changed or added, or if Sella requires anything particular for the kitchen, inform Sakuya and she will see to it." Ilya nods haltingly.
"Thank you … but … why?" She seems bothered about it, for some reason, upset, and you frown worriedly at her. Remilia simply tilts her head curiously. "Why … go through all this for me?" You squeeze her tightly, reminding her that you exist, and Remilia nods.
"Because Flandre wanted you to have a room of your own, rather than have to stay out in the open in the library, or simply have you stay in a guest room. Because you deserve hospitality. Because you are Flandre's friend. Illyasviel von Einzbern, this workshop, the suite upstairs - they are yours. Whether you choose to live here with us, or if you choose to live elsewhere and visit, these rooms belong to you. You are an individual with equal standing to Patchouli - no one here can order you to do anything, no one outranks you. You are no mere guest, Illyasviel von Einzbern; as much as anyone else here, this place is your home for as long as you wish it." Ilya stares at your sister, almost in shock, then turns her head to stare at you. You smile happily and nod, give her another hug - and then her eyes fill with tears and her arm clutches your shoulder as she begins crying. You hold her close, and Remilia walks up to you, joining the hug, wings wrapping around you comfortingly … and then she withdraws, leaving you to hold Ilya in privacy, a swarm of bats silently flying through the closed door.
What do you do?
[ ] Ilya will want to rest when she calms down, so take her back to her room.
- [ ] Bring Sella and Leysritt, too.
[ ] Play some music for her.
[ ] Other?
