Grandpa Winks still had his trademark smile on his face. He looked outside the window. From his room he could see James taking a stroll in the garden with Morgana's beautiful hand in his. "Hehe. Tired my ass. Immediately he gets the chance to leave he goes straight to her. Should have kept him here longer." He said softly, speaking to no one in particular. "Well, at least his feelings for her are genuine." He smiled, still watching the pair of lovers with affection.
"Old friend, what is it you want from me? Your new master is gone, so why are you still here?" The eternal throne that remained, even after its partner had disappeared, was covered with a brilliant light. One that shown so brightly that the inhabitants of the castle and all who were in the vicinity, beheld its glory.
James looked up. His gaze was fixed firmly on the origin of the blinding light, the light that had caused some servants to start crying out that the 'god of Kelan' had descended. Of course for James who knew that no such thing was true, he was curious. He wanted to know what was going on.
"Pay it no heed." Morgana orated. She gently turned his head away from the light and looked into his eyes with her big beautiful eyes. "It's from your Grandfather's room. Whatever he's doing, he would be fine. What could possibly harm him on this planet." She continued. Her words did soothe him. She was right. No matter how queer the situation seemed, his guardian should be more than enough to handle the situation. He would be shaming his title if he wasn't. "Besides, I feel a familiar energy from the light. One of warmth and affection. Whatever it is, it isn't an enemy. It is more likely a friend."
Her subsequent words caused his heart to bubble with curiosity, "Oh? No recollection of what it is?" She smiled and shook her head. James sighed faintly, suspicion filling his tone and adding to its charm "First a strangely precise gust of air rushes through the window, and now a few moments later, this. What on Kelan is going on?"
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"Are you done unnerving every resident of this castle?" Grandpa Winks asked. Though his words may seem harsh, his tone and his signature smile said otherwise. "But even I must admit that it feels good to talk to you properly, old friend. What a rare moment Reiki, speaking to you face to face." He finally took his eyes off the couple that were now walking away from his direction, and fixed his eyes on the stranger that sat on his bedroom floor, the same place that the eternal throne formerly stood. If Maia was here she would be stunned, for the handsome gentleman that sat in its place was Reiki, the sentient eternal throne.
"I don't really like this form. However, it is good to experience change once in a while." The newcomer stretched his arms and stood up, causing Grandpa Winks to frown in annoyance. "Have some dignity, would you? You are the eternal throne. A powerful sentient artefact capable of so many humanly impossible feats. The least you can do is put on some clothes." Grandpa Winks' eyebrows twitched as he stated snappily. He turned his eyes away from the naked white haired man who stood in the middle of his room.
"You humans sure are strange. You are born this way, yet you try your hardest to cover it up." Although the man didn't care for his appearance, he still obliged upon seeing the uncomfortable look on the Cold Emperor's face. "What's the big deal anyway? You've seen me naked hundreds of times." He asked with a look of bewilderment on his snow white face. He snapped his fingers as he spoke, his actions producing a soft light that covered his body.
"That just means I have been uncomfortable hundreds of times." Grandpa Winks returned his gaze to his visitor who was now dressed in coveralls. "Now old friend, mind telling me why you are still here?"
Reiki picked up an empty chair and sat down. He twisted and turned a few times, clearly not comfortable with his seating position. Grandpa Winks smiled broadly at the divine artefact's antics. Reiki was clearly not used to having something else bear his weight when he was the one that normally bore the weight of others. Only, unlike this regular chair, not just anyone could use him.
"Nope. The floor is still better." After trying to get comfortable for the past few seconds, Reiki abandoned the chair and sat down on the floor, a comfortable smile on his face. Grandpa Winks smiled wryly at the sight. For as long as he could remember, Reiki was always like this. Whenever he took on the form of a human, he would always sit on a chair first before commenting on how uncomfortable it was, before moving to sit on the hard floor. Actions like these served to remind the Cold Emperor that Reiki was still a child at heart.
"You would have to leave at some point, so you better start talking Reiki. Why are you still here?" Grandpa Winks asked again for the third time. The eternal throne who was in no hurry to leave finally seemed to remember that he had to leave and return to his master before she got suspicious.
"I want to know why you didn't tell her the truth?" Reiki asked, curiosity filling his handsome face. Grandpa Winks looked outside the window upon hearing the question. His grandson and granddaughter-in-law were nowhere to be seen. They had surely left the castle grounds to the city that surrounded it, possibly to do some shopping.
"It is better this way. I had no choice but to. The Universe Will was watching us." He calmly stated. "Huh. Aren't eternals born of the Will, just like many other beings? And not only are you born of the Will, you carry its orders directly. Why would you want to hide from it?" Reiki asked.
"Things have changed Reiki. The Universe Will is not what it was." He explained, causing the curious throne to ask, "How so?"
Grandpa Winks' lips curled downwards into a frown, he looked at Reiki as he orated, "It has sided with the dark sword."