ignis fatuus, closed

[lurker2]

Summer was ending again, signaling the end of another vacation as it did every year before that. It meant that someone was going to leave Isshu soon. She flipped on her phone, sending a quick message.

Outside. The park.

Aurea tucked the phone back in her pocket and gripped on to the chain holding her seat. She kicked off the ground lightly and began to swing.

[daigo]

seems like it's been a while, the boy thought as he looked out the window. above him, the pidove were chirping, flying across the bright isshu sky. he ignored the vibrating pokénav on the desk.

one more darned message and he was going to throw it right across the room, preferably hitting the pillars of the four-poster bed and dying a horrible, mechanical death. daigo snarled, then snatched up the phone when it shuddered a third time.

"aurea? ..."

he felt no remorse, however. his father's secretary passed by his room, peering in. all she saw was him turned, back to the door, languidly scratching on the violin strings.

and then he was gone.

---

"aurea! how's the kling treating you?"

he ran towards her, jumping the last few feet and landing on the swing. his fingers curled around the chains, supporting his body as he swayed back and forth. he grinned at his friend, laughing at her messy hair.

[lurker2]

The swing swung much stronger and faster with him pushing them along. She looked up at him, laughing, "ignoring me and missing you as always. I don't know how you do it."

The teen focused on pushing them along faster. "Hope your 'vacation' hasn't been too stuffy." She joked. "Without me along during these summers, I get the feeling you'd die of boredom here."

[daigo]

"just like that. just keep calm, be assertive ... the steel type isn't that hard to understand," he said quietly, listening to the swing creak under their combined weights. "it's knowing what makes them tick that makes them fun. they're pretty systematic by nature."

"i can play the violin to annoy them. wing's been a great help, too," daigo glanced away, but nudged her back with his knee. "i can manage just fine without you."

he didn't want to admit it, but he started to look forward to going to isshu for the summers because aurea was there.

[lurker2]

"You make it sound so easy." She commented, though she took the advice to heart. Eventually, the steel type would warm up to her. The teenager was glad it decided against gear grinding her old things now.

She moved a bit forward, "Ow!" Aurea laughed. "I guess you don't need me around anymore, huh? Who's going to bring you to all the cool ruins out here?"

Leaning back and against him somewhat, she sighed. "You know, there was another reason why I called you here." She began. "You heard what Uncle Shoutaru and Papa said, right? About our futures?"

[daigo]

"that's because it is!" daigo insisted, laughing as the swing rocked harder. "well, then i think you don't need me to keep kling under control when it's trying to shred your thesis paper in a couple years' time!" with that childish comeback said, he smirked down at aurea. he knew his way around isshu fairly well already.

he didn't need to rely on aurea all the time, but it felt good to have someone who would go along with him on an expedition if he asked. he was about to make a comment, but his smile dimmed, then fell completely as aurea brought up the subject of his future.

"you're in college now, aren't you? we're getting older ... have you met anyone in college that you want to marry or ... or ... sleep with?"

he didn't want to talk about himself. he didn't want to face the truth. the further he was from reality, the better. the corporation seemed like a daunting task his shoulders could never bear.

[lurker2]

Aurea fell face first into the sandbox. She quickly recovered, twirling around to roll on her back and to the side, away from the path of the swing. Her face was completely red as she sputtered both sand and words around. She couldn't believe that he was the one, out of all people, to ask her about that.

"I can't - you. Tsuwabuki Daigo!"

Her face was still warm. She can't give a right answer, so she turns the subject back to him again. "And you? Has Uncle come up with any suitors?" It's a lot sharper than she meant it to be, and she covers her mouth the moment after she says the words. Yes, she meant it, but she didn't mean to say it aloud. "I'm sorry.

You're not looking forward to any of it, are you?"

[daigo]

he laughed, jumping off the swing and landing perfectly balanced on the sand. "yes?" he responded, voice saccharine sweet. it was hard to keep his laughter in check as he watched aurea flail around in the sand. "i've got better things to do than sleep around."

he walked over to aurea and extended a hand to help her up. "... no, can't say i am, but," he stopped abruptly, "i could probably say that i've got some inspiration here and there, and ..." he retracted his hand, turning away from the teenager.

his sigh was audible.

"who am i kidding, anyway?" he kicked, the sand spraying upwards violently. "i'm not like him. i've only got one path, and i ..." his hands balled into fists; his jaw was set tightly. "i'll never go to college, i'll never get to catch pokémon of my own, i'll never be anything but a tsuwabuki.

"happy? are you happy now, aurea juniper?"

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[lurker2]

Aurea winced from Daigo's outburst. She had been expecting it for some time, knowing that her friend never outgrew his dislike for following his father's footsteps. Helping herself up, she hugged Daigo from behind. "Why would I be happy seeing you like this?"

She pulled away from him, taking a step back. "And you aren't just a 'Tsuwabuki.' You're Daigo, steel type pokemon specialist extraordinaire." She grinned. "Steel pokemon whisperer. No one else I know knows them as well as you do. Just look at Wing and Klink!"

"Why don't you ask to have a clean break before all that to have a pokemon journey? I mean, Uncle isn't mean enough to stop you from exploring, right? Besides, he had his own journey with Uncle Juan."

[daigo]

"let go of me!"

snared by emotions, daigo shrugged aurea's arms off and glared back at her. "and you're in college, captured your own pokémon and you're going to accomplish something great with that research you're doing, and - and - and -" the words were caught in his throat, and he crossed his arms, furious at himself, at aurea, at his father, at the world.

"you know what? i'm never going to go on a pokémon journey, and i'll rot in that stupid building doing paperwork because it's the right thing to do. the only pokémon i'll be staring at is a skarmory this -" he gestured with his hands, "much taller than me and so what if father's been on a journey with uncle juan and met cool people like your dad if all i can do is listen to him?"

he stopped to catch his breath, and did not exhale. he kept the breath held, then threw his hands into the air.

"i give up. you go have fun sleeping around at college. i'll be in hoenn, seventeenth floor of that building i'm going to build, and you come visit me every summer. i'm tired of coming around to isshu. for one, it's too cold and i hate it," he snarled, teeth bared.

[/font][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[lurker2]

Her hands were shaking. It took all restraint she had not to hit him for those words. She wasn't going to tell him how college really was. The expectant eyes of all the instructors. The constant jealousy from her classmates. She worked hard to get where she was. She still was.

Then she snapped. A hand reached out to grab him. "You can say what you want about me, but don't ever say anything bad about Isshu." Her own teeth bared back in return. How dare he - How dare he insult her home? If he hated it so much, he could have just stayed in Hoenn with the rest of his servants in that manicured mansion of his.

"You really don't get it do you?" She let him go. "The only person really stopping you from doing this, isn't your dad. It's you. You're the one shifting your feet and not trying to make yourself happy. All you're doing is wallowing in your own despair.

"And you know what, I'm sick of it. I've tried. Honest to Arceus, I've tried, but all you keep doing is pussyfooting around the problem."

[daigo]

he felt himself roughly grabbed by the collar and pulled towards aurea, but he didn't resist. he kept his lips curled. a snarl rumbled through his throat as he reached out and shoved aurea back. "i can say whatever i want to," he retorted, "and whatever i say - is none of your freaking business. i said i hate the cold, not isshu, but i can say that i hate it, but i won't."

he was fairly certain that his heart wasn't lying to him. it raced within his chest as aurea released her grasp upon him. daigo ignored the rapid pace of his heartbeat, the brief moment of hesitation wherein he thought that aurea was about to strike him. his anger had turned into fury upon the other teen's continued provoking.

his previous words really hadn't made him the bigger, better person, but neither did aurea's words. there was a point where traded opinions and niceties dissolved into pure, venomous jabs at each other. "so what's being happy like? you tell me then," he spat, "you're the one being nice to everyone and smiling because you can and i don't know, hasn't anyone tried to stab you in the back at college, or take advantage of you and who you are?

"can you really be happy knowing that someone's out there, looking out for that one moment of weakness before attacking you? well, aurea, i've seen someone like that. you. fine, i admit it! i'm not happy, but that wasn't a ticket for you to assume you're me and tell me how to solve the issue!"

his steel blue eyes blazed as he walked over to aurea, knowing full well the sense of regret and hesitation that held him back. but he pushed through, brushing past her roughly as he stormed off in the direction of the summer house.

[lurker2]

Her mouth opened then closed. He was right. Of course, he was, and she instantly regretted bringing the topic up. She turned away, unable to look him in the eye anymore. Her stance alone was filled with shame and regret. For all the papers they made her do, she couldn't even work up a sentence for him.

Aurea winced when he'd passed her by. She kept still and took a deep breath, trying to calm her heart, and waited until he was just behind her. "I guess, this is good bye then." Her tone was surprisingly cool, contrary to her fast beating heart. "We've 'grown-up.'"

[daigo]

he paused and looked back at her, just for a moment.

"goodbye, aurea."

he turned, and walked up the stairs towards the summer house.