Angela. Psh.

On lazy summer days when the sun was warm and the skies were a friendly blue, there was nothing that Akari enjoyed more than gazing out over the sparkling tides as her feet hung below her. When she had first moved to the island she would pass her afternoons sitting by the seashore, a fishing rod in her hand, but, as the months passed she had found a place far more tranquil than even the shore's of Waffle Town. Here, by the Goddess' Tree, she could see for miles out over the open ocean. She could see the shores of other lands, and the ships that cruised lazily across the vast expanses. On most days the waters were calm, brushing lightly against the cliff's edge below her, but occasionally the back of a great oceanic beast would break the surface of the serene waters.

This particular summer say all the work was done and Akari was out to enjoy the warm breeze that rushed across the ocean, spreading its good cheer with a whisper and a kiss before moving on to the mainland. It was very much the same day as any except for the fact that today she had decided not to do her normal tour of the island. Instead she had unloaded her rucksack and set off to the hilltop to watch over the world, her feet free from constraint as they dangled in the wind.

'What I wouldn't give for more days like this,' she moaned, falling back into the untamed grass. Her shirt had caught on her belt and now the sun was free to admire her clean, tanned stomach, rather in awe of its prior work. Winter always worked its ways on her, making her pale as milk, but as soon as the summer sun was unrestrained she blackened, running across the beaches and working with her shirt tied up to expose her strong stomach. The men of the town enjoyed it almost as much as the sun himself, but Akari did not think much of it. She had better things to do than worry about men.

One foot clambered up the side of the cliff, settling in the grass atop a small mushroom and quickly fleeing to the side. The breeze slid through her clothes cooling her off after a hard day's work. Her fingers ran through her short brown hair, still moist with sweat and sea breeze. She had been out on the pier earlier that day, fishing, and hadn't had time to wash off. There hadn't been anyone there, although had she seen Toby she would have spoken to him. She owed him a bowl of noodles. Maybe, streaked a little ghost of a thought, she could take a dip in the river. She had slipped into her swimsuit in the morning, knowing that it would be hot out and that wading in the waters would be inevitable.

A cloud that looked rather like a tomato passed by, and suddenly a bright blond head popped into her mind. 'Oh!' she huffed, remembering that she needed to talk to the mayor's son too. A strangled string of nebulous annoyance slipped out of her lips, floating away as softly as it had come on. Akari closed her eyes, allowing the sun to flush her sealed eyes, breathing all her silly troubles away.

'I thought I'd find you here.'

The voice cut through the shush of the waves below and broke into Akari's blind calm. Her eyes flickered open to the bright face of the sun, slashing through her dilated pupils with vicious colour. She winced, blinked, and rolled onto her stomach, yanking her foot from the cliff face.

'Gil. I was just thinking about you.'

Wild grass tickling her chin face and forearms Akari looked a bit like a wood nymph lolling beneath the summer trees. She smiled at him, her eyes hazy, still off in a distant dream as she waited for him to talk.

'Well,' he began, clearing his throat delicately. He raised a fist to his lips, pink like a little boys, and took a small step backward, trying to get a better view of the bright eyed sprite. 'My father said that I should speak with you. About the-'

'Have you been working all day, Gil?'

Slightly startled by the interruption, the blond batted his eyes. He slid one hand around the account book he had brought with him, and shifted uncomfortably where he stood, her saucepan eyes focusing solely on him.

'Yes, but that's not the point.' He redirected his gaze, tearing them from the kicking feet of the young farmer and onto the math and figures of the island. 'My father said that you had wanted to talk to him about your-'

'Come sit by me.'

Gil looked up, confusion splattered against his face making him look more agitated than usual.

'I beg your pardon?'

'Sit by me. You said you've been working all day. So have I.' Akari patted the grass beside her, making sure that it wouldn't be too terribly damaged if those plaid shorts made themselves comfortable there, and beamed up at him. 'You work yourself too hard, Gil. Take a break and then, I promise, we can talk about whatever you want.'

The serious young man frowned down at her, his eyebrows furrowed with contemplation. Akari watched, amused, as his foot twitched and his fingers tapped the cover of his book. Always so serious, she giggled, setting her hands on either side of her face while he decided.

At long last the boy gave in, taking a few short, cautious steps forward and then sitting pretentiously at her side. Akari smiled, turning back over and hoisting herself off the ground. It did not take long for her to lose her mind to the cleansing ocean coo. Her head fell off her shoulders and her eyes closed in serene meditation. At this angle her palms hurt a bit, but she didn't mind for the calm that the spot brought her. She kicked her feet once as she listened to the sound of discomfort.

'Akari, I really need to talk to you.'

She shushed him and after a moment reflection she opened her eyes, letting them fall heavily onto the blond at her side. Her smile was softened more than usual and she seemed glow with the natural beauty of the world around her. Gil felt a blush rushing into his cheeks like thunder.

'Er... I-that is-I... um.'

The divine young goddess fell back into the grass, giggling lightly at the poor boy. She reached her hand out after a moment, pulling the flustered chap into the tall grass alongside her.

'Gil,' she laughed delicately, 'You need to relax. Can't you just enjoy a beautiful day?'

'But,' he said, trying to push himself off the ground, 'there's work.'

When he saw her there, curled happily in the grass, her large brown eyes twinkling at him through the grass, the stalks cutting through her, just small blurs against a masterpiece... he fell back into the grass, a long sigh puffing from his lips. He could feel his cheeks burning under the sun, but he couldn't tell quite what was causing it. Whatever it was, he wasn't about to look at the girl next to him, instead closing his eyes against the sun and falling into the waves.

'It is nice,' he said, somewhat grudgingly. But she had been right. The waves, the warm air, the grass... it was all very peaceful.

A low laugh gurgled from Akari's throat, catching his ear. 'I'm glad you like it,' she said. Her voice was very close to him, he realized, and she was probably facing him. He didn't want to turn his head, in fear of how close he might be.

'I like to come up here,' she breathed, sliding her head back into the warm hands of the sun, 'after I've done all my work and if the weather permits...' her voice dropped off, lost amongst the churning waters. She pulled her hand through her short hair, dragging a stray blade of grass into her wavy locks. Her hand sprang up into the air then flopped carelessly at her side. Gil nearly jumped when her childlike fingers grazed against his. His eyes shot open, but he managed not to do more than flinch his fingers away. Akari tried not to laugh.

A long, torpid moment passed over them, full of the ocean's breath and the shimmering whispers of the trees and the grasses. The two were much in their own worlds, but were somehow united in their solitude. The sky was bluer with Gil there, Akari noticed, and the smells more potent. Everything she had felt before was more present. Next to her, Gil felt as though it were the first time he had truly seen the world. He had watched the sun, seen the ocean and the sky, grass was all around him; but now, lying breathless in the looming stalks, everything seemed fresh.

At long last Akari broke the silence, flicking Gil's hand, which was still within reach, and boring her eyes into his skull. He broke from nature's trance and turned to her lazy smile. 'What did you want?' she asked, her voice airy as the summer day.

Gil started, quickly trying to remember why indeed he had come.

'Well,' he began, still clinging to serenity, 'my father was wondering about… rainbows?'

'Are you sure,' Akari asked with a sly smile. 'I just spoke to him the other day about them. I told him that I had just revived another. My fourth, I think. I apologized for being so slow, but I'd been so busy on the ranch that I hadn't had time to focus on the Island. I think I almost have the fifth though.'

Gil worked his way up, holding his upper body on his elbows. He could see more of the ocean like this. He turned his head quickly to Akari, who was smiling cordially at him, and said quickly, 'Good, very good.'

'But that isn't it, is it?' she prodded, wondering just what had gotten into the boy who was usually so frigid and stern.

'Well,' he said, trying to huff but ending up with a whiny noise that he covered with a light cough, 'what do you need? Can I help you at all?'

At this point he was trying to cover up his momentary lapse of memory. He couldn't believe he had forgotten. But lying in the grass with her… he had never noticed so many things. It was too much for him to handle.

'Well,' Akari giggled, 'I'm pretty lucky, because I have most of what I need. I just haven't had time to go mining.' Her gazed had been focused intently on the open cerulean sky, but she pulled it back to the bashful blond, letting him squirm a bit. 'All I really need,' she said with a friendly smile, 'is a piece of lapis lazuli. I've sold all that I had so I could upgrade my house.'

'L-lapis lazuli, eh?' he said, rubbing his cheek to hide the redness of it. She wasn't normally so pretty, he thought to himself, and not so friendly either. She was kind enough, but they had never been alone together so long. There always seemed to be something else…

'Mm-hm. I was going to get that tomorrow but… if it's urgent…'

'Whatever you want,' shrugged the boy. 'As long the island is restored… oh! The chickens!'

'Chickens?' giggled the girl, propping her head up on her hand.

'Yes,' muttered Gill, sitting fully up with legs crossed. 'Chickens. My father wanted to know if you would be competing this year. He wanted to apologize because no one had spoken to you and asked me to talk to you.'

'The festival? I forgot about that… hm… it's tomorrow though, isn't it? Can I still enter?'

'Yes, of course. After all,' he said with a large, uncharacteristic smile. Akira bolted up, shocked by the show of affection. 'It was our fault.'

'Oh… yes. I… yes, I would like to enter,' she said, regaining her composure and smiling back at him. She rocked forward, gaining the velocity to get herself off the ground. She spun around once, giggling childishly before bending slightly, resting one hand on her knee and holding the other out to Gil. 'Are you coming?'

After a moment's hesitation Gil took her hand, falling into the sky.