I'm getting ahead of myself. I think, "Ah, I successfully shipped Rief and Karis" and that somehow leads to me trying my hand at shipping, God forbid, Eoleo and Himi. Before you throw up, or click the X getting you the hell away from this demented pedophilia, let me make it clear that any romance beyond light flirting and a quick kiss between the two occurs WHEN HIMI IS EIGHTEEN AND THEREFORE OF AGE.
Even then, people will understandably look at the age gap, but Piers and Nowell have a much (much, much, much, much) larger age gap. I think this is one of the reasons I find this ship interesting: even if technically, Himi being eighteen makes this shipping legally fine (and, seeing as Golden Sun is based with at least a slight ancient timesy tilt, it's very possible the age of marriage in the games could be younger), there's just something slightly odd about it.
Because even though it's them getting together when they are legally allowed to, it means that the seeds of that relationship were sewn long before that. Obviously, in this case, that time would be during their journey to stop the Grave Eclipse. So, even if they didn't actually do anything romantic during that time-frame, it's that knowledge that they probably were thinking about it or wanted to that is very concerning.
Also, I think it's just hard to picture Eoleo and Himi together because, well, the images you will naturally picture the characters as presented in Dark Dawn, ie a really tiny girl and a really huge guy. It just seems off.
That being said, I've made this as un-creepy as I could. I'd also like to think it asks and tries to answer some really awkward question about love between two people who are divided by age. I will try to approach the subject tactfully. Point is: you will not see an underage Himi and Eoleo doing things of a sexual or deeply-romantic nature. Just putting that out there to ease anyone's worry over that happening. Okay, now that I got all the anti-pedophile disclaimer crap out of the way, I'm going to leave off until the end.
Chapter 1: Four Years Later
"Cap'n!" Garland, the first mate of the vessel The Brink of Dawn, shouted as he saluted. "We have reached the city of Yamata. What would ye have us do?"
The man whom he addressed, a hulking giant who was coated with more scars than smooth skin and whose red hair streamed down his back like a maroon waterfall, did not turn, but replied in a thick voice, "Go with two or three other men: let the city know who we are and that we are here in peace. I don't care how long it's been since we've plundered: people are never too happy to see us, are they?"
Eoleo turned now to his first mate, a wry smile painted on his harsh face. The king of pirates had been well aware that they had arrived, having been unable to sleep the night before and having been simply staring out his cabin's window for hours on end.
Despite his crew's insistence, Eoleo still felt bad about having such a large and cozy room. Indeed, he was a minimalist: he would have been much happier in a cramped room the size of his mates', rather than have all the space he now possessed, with a nice hammock perhaps, instead of the down mattress upon his king-sized bed. Of course, that mattress had certain memories that made him treasure it; it was the only piece of furniture from his father's old ship that he had transferred to the Dawn.
"Aye, cap'n!" The sailor replied, saluting once more. "Er… weapons?"
Eoleo bit his lip as he mulled his first mate's question over. Surely the Yamatains would not be pleased to see them, but they would be significantly less pleased to see them if they had swords strapped to their sides. "No swords. We come in peace. I'm not about to start a battle," Eoleo said in return, staring pointedly at his own axe. If worse came to worse, he was not afraid of the entire Yamatain army. Of course, that just wasn't going to happen. He would not let it, it would completely mangle the reason he was here in the first place.
"Aye, aye. Bad way to ask a girl out; by invading her country," Garland said, gulping as Eoleo gave him a steely glare. "Uh… that came out wrong. I'll just… go… set out the party." Before Eoleo could respond, his first mate scurried off, clearly worried he was in hot water for speaking his mind, and bringing up the true reason that they were docked at Yamata.
The Mars Adept sighed, and turned back to the window, dragging his rough and calloused fingertips across the gleaming wood frame. They had been worn from slamming his trusty axe into skull after skull of monstrosities, and from the numerous amount of rope-work he had done over the years. His hands were much too hard and bruised to be fit for the hands of a lady, in his mind, and yet here he was for that very purpose.
He sighed again, now letting both hands rest on the window-sill. Himi. What a pretty name. He had heard it for the first time on this very island, less than four years ago. And yet, it felt like so much longer. Of course, they had kept in contact; at least once a month they had shared letters via messenger pigeon.
But, it just wasn't the same as being face to face. Of course, he was scared as hell to meet her face to face, but he was also extremely excited. Himi had claimed to have grown in her most recent letters, and he was looking forward to seeing said growth. As much as he had loved conversing with her, making eye contact by tilting his head downward at a forty-five degree angle had gotten really painful really fast. He was still trying to work out a few of those kinks (along with some new ones… he was nearing forty, after all).
He imagined her figure had filled out a bit more as well… more of the hourglass shape, with her hips a bit more pronounced. Of course, she would look perfect no matter what. It wouldn't hurt though, if her… er… chest had gotten a bit more oomph either.
Eoleo slapped himself, hard, and swore at his own perversion. None of that mattered, and he was a buffoon for thinking about it. As long as she herself hadn't changed (and he knew she hadn't from their letters), she could look the same for all her cared. Well, he would prefer to look a little older, if only so no one would think badly of them.
He wondered if Himi remembered his promise… today was her eighteenth birthday, and all that time ago he had promised he would be there to attend it. He recalled her saying something about her father, Susa, wanting her to get married on her eighteenth birthday. He gulped, and hoped that wasn't true. Perhaps she was indeed… betrothed, but it was possible neither were the case.
It probably would have made sense to ask her that before showing up at Yamata, but Eoleo had always held a certain rashness that stuck with him no matter how hard he tried to use logic or reason. He had wanted to surprise her, and as such hadn't mentioned his visit in their letters.
But, to be truth, he didn't know what the hell what this visit was: he knew what he wanted it to be. He wanted it to be telling a Himi who was now of a mature age that his feeling for her were much greater than that of friendship, or some kind of a pseudo-parental nature. But, of course, he would be happy just seeing her again, getting to spend some time with her. He would take it as it came… he had never been able to determine exactly how she saw him.
It had been so confusing and conflicting, when he had spent those long four months of his life with her on that journey. She had been so young, but so wise, so beautiful, but so young, so serious, but so innocent and lighthearted. Everything about her had been a contradiction, and as a pirate who had saved the world, Eoleo could atone to knowing what being a walking-contradiction was like.
He smiled as he recalled the first time they had introduced themselves with each other, and truly spoken. It had been a day much like this one, slightly foggy and windy…
He wrinkled his nose as he stared at her; she seemed so frail, so delicate, so young. And even though Matthew had been extraordinary clear that her welfare was directly on his shoulders, Eoleo couldn't help but disagree. It was his ship, and he did not want to see anyone else dead upon it. For this reason, he disliked the fact that she was on board. If something happened to her… well, he would blame himself. The last thing he needed was having to worry over a young teenage girl.
A stray breeze lifted off the sea's surface and onto the ship, throwing her pigtails backwards. He smiled; they were quite cute. She was quite cute, rather. Her face was very soft and innocent, but laden with the gravity of old-age nonetheless. Her ruby eyes were piercing, but glimmered with serenity. Somehow, her entire body seemed to hold some kind of mysterious and foreign majesty. Dreamily, he reached out his hand, becoming lost in watching her hair and her dress flutter.
"…Eoleo, are you alright?" Karis's words came crashing down upon him, knocking him back to reality.
"Er, yes, fine," Eoleo replied somewhat shakily, rubbing the back of his head. Karis raised an eyebrow, and looked in the direction he had been staring.
When her eyes landed on Himi, she raised the other eyebrow as well. "Why were you reaching your hand out to Himi?' Karis asked pointedly, and Eoleo sighed. While it wasn't anywhere near the level that Amiti harbored, Karis clearly had intense dislike, or at least distrust, of him. One would think that giving up your ship to the cause, or fighting valiantly might be a valid way of proving one's self, but Eoleo still felt very clearly judged whenever she or Amiti was in the same room as him.
"I was just daydreaming. She… kind of looked like Venus," Eoleo finished lamely, expecting another hard question or scolding.
Instead, Karis giggled. "So, you like her then?" The Jupiter Adept asked, absentmindedly manipulating the wind in front of her with a twirl of her hand.
"Hmmm? Like her?" Eoleo responded, wondering what on earth Karis was talking about.
"You know," She replied, having formed a small ball of air in her hands and spinning it on her finger tips. "You're fond of her; it's kind of cute, really. I could tell from the moment you first looked at her. You started acting more proper, standing up straight… I think I even caught you trying to pat down your hair a bit."
"…Karis, I know you aren't fond of me, but accusing me of being romantically interested in a… hell, I don't even know how old she is, er, young teenage girl is quite low," Eoleo said in return, crossing his arms.
Karis's mouth opened slightly in surprise and confusion, before her brow narrowed and she sent the ball of wind smashing into Eoleo's face. "You idiot! That's not what I meant!" She retorted angrily with a frown. "I just meant that you like her, in a friendly sort of way. I overheard you and Matthew talking, and it seemed to me like you consider everyone on this ship to be under your protection."
"Aye, that is how the conversation went," Eoleo replied uneasily, still suspecting he was going to get a tongue lashing or angry look in the near future.
"Well, then, you recognize that she is a little young and weak, and so you are interested in protecting her. That's very noble," Karis said, turning to look at the young Venus Adept. "She's fourteen and two months, by the way. I asked. If you're so interested in her, you should talk to her."
Eoleo raised another eyebrow, and spoke slowly, as he tended to do whenever addressing a volatile topic. "Karis, why are you being so amiable? You and Amiti have been trying to glare me into dust the last month. It's not that I mind the change, but I'm finding it hard to discern a reason for it is all."
Karis bit her lip, and shrugged. "Well, I actually feel a little bad about how unfriendly we've been toward you. I will admit I wasn't completely sold on you, Eoleo, but after hearing you talk with Matthew, I felt bad. I never really gave you a chance. I talked it over with Amiti as well; we're going to try to be less… condescending."
Eoleo grinned heartily, and gave Karis a good thumping back pat. "Argh, glad to hear it!" He shouted as she coughed from the force of his friendly gesture. "I was getting a bit worn of being looked at so harshly, to tell the truth. One more thing, though; why are you so interested in how I feel for Himi?"
Karis, after coughing once more, shrugged, and replied, "Well, I've kind of realized that you haven't really found a member of the group to bond with yet. I mean, Amiti and Rief are close, I'm close to both Tyrell (Eoleo noted her voice rise a little as she said the other Mars Adept's name) and Matthew, Matthew and Sveta are very (she smiled) close, and while we all are, I'd like to think, friendly amongst each other, you seem to be… more distant. I thought it would be nice if you decided to bond with someone on board."
"Er… I guess… I mean…" Eoleo said awkwardly, before receiving a hard shove in the back.
"Great! Then go talk to Himi! She seems to be a little distant herself, and you can make her feel more welcome!" Karis encouraged, giving him another light shove, and Eoleo sighed and indeed began to walk in that direction.
He halted when he was beside her, but remained silent, the only sound among them the light howl of the wind. After an awkward minute of continually scanning the sea (which he never really got tired of, but preferred to do when the weather wasn't so foggy) he shifted his eyes slowly toward the girl beside him.
To his surprise, he saw two distinct lines of moisture running from her eyes down her face. He bit his lip; if the poor thing was crying, she may want to be left alone. But, perhaps she would prefer to talk about it as well. "Are you okay?" He tried hesitantly.
Himi, having ignored his presence previously, showed no sign that she had heard him speak, until several moments later a tiny whisper that was nearly swallowed by the wind sounded. "I'm only crying because of the wind." It held a certain defiance to it, and also seemed to function as a warning: she didn't want to talk to him.
Still, for some reason, he decided to push forward, and replied, "I've used that excuse before." She turned to him then, the wind pushing her hair slightly in her face, but not enough to hide her expression. It was cold and hard, despite the tears continuing to pour down her cheeks, but held at least some minor interest. As she remained silent, he continued.
"When I was young, and my father would leave me at the shore when he went on a voyage, I would always cry. But I lied through my teeth, telling everyone around me that it was just the wind. They knew I was lying, but never said anything, even though I wanted them to. I secretly craved someone's understanding, but was too proud, even at that age, to admit it. Not saying that your reasons have anything to do with pride. But, if you do want someone to talk to, I'm here."
Eoleo finished quietly, turning his attention back towards the sea, his mind lost once more with thoughts of his father. He didn't even try to stop the stream of tears that soon followed, and hoped that Himi did not see them. At times like this, as foolish as it sounded, all he really had left was his pride.
"I must be strong," Himi said suddenly, drawing him away from images of his father's wounded and mangled body bleeding out on this very ship. She turned, and glanced up at him; he returned the favor by glancing down, though it was at quite a harsh angle. Her eyebrows rose suddenly, no doubt at viewing his tears, but she held her tongue on the subject.
"I must be strong for Yamata, for my people, and for all of Weyard. I know what this Third Eye represents; it is a burden, and I must be strong in carrying it. But here I am, showing weakness in my tears. My father, mother, and the Gods would be ashamed."
"There is no weakness in tears," Eoleo replied firmly, his mind drawn back to the night of the Eclipse once more. "I watched my father die, and when I did I cried. At first, I was embarrassed: I had never seen him cry, and knew how much he valued strength and honor. I thought I was breaking both right in front of him. But, as I looked down, there were tears in his eyes as well. We didn't need to speak; he let me know, that night, that crying shows no weakness. It only shows you have something worth fighting for."
Himi remained silent for a few moments, mulling over what he had said, and then began to make complex motions with her staff, twirling it and seemingly carving letters into the air. After a few moments of this, she took it and stabbed it firmly onto the ground. "I am sorry for your father's fate," She whispered, raising her hands in prayer. "That was a Yamatain blessing for those deceased. I know many of them; when I am older, I will take my good mother's place as Yamata's priestess."
"I'm sure you will make her proud then, as well as now," Eoleo said, putting patting her gently on the back. Even while trying to pat softly, his hands were about three times the size of her shoulders, and she bounced forward a bit.
"I am more worried for now," Himi replied. "This Third Eye hums of ballads of victory and mutters of nocturnes of despair. I have not yet seen the black death that sweeps all of Angara, and I am afraid to do so. Afraid to fight creatures of evil. Afraid to fail. Afraid to know that the world is in my hands. Afraid to… afraid to d… to die…"
Her face wrought of stone cracked, and the tears truly began to flow, the previously hard and determined countenance now vulnerable and full of complex emotion. Eoleo kneeled down and pulled her in close, embracing her and giving her a shoulder to cry on.
She sobbed for a minute, and in that minute he remained silent, stroking her jet black hair with one rough hand, and patting her back with the other. After a while, Eoleo whispered, "You are on my ship. Once I let someone on my ship, I see to it that they stay alive. I promise you, Himi, that we will conquer the Eclipse, and that you will survive. For my father's sake, and for your peoples'." He felt something small knock onto his chest, and assumed it was her nodding.
After another minute, she pulled away, her eyes somewhat drier. "Please, Eoleo," Himi whispered, wiping the last of her tears away as he stood up. "Would you tell me about your father?" Eoleo smiled and nodded, and they both sat down on the deck as he began to tell of Briggs.
He had no shortage of stories to tell of his father and his numerous heroic (and not-so-heroic) exploits. He started off with the classic story of Briggs meeting Felix and his party, and how Briggs had single handedly saved Chama from starvation and famine. Himi clearly had some objections to Brigg's piracy based off her constant frown, but lightened up when Eoleo relayed that Briggs had indeed repaid every nation he had stolen from in the end.
She began to lighten up more when Eoleo told her stories of Briggs more humorous moments, such as accidently dying all of his crew's clothing pink, or mistaking an alligator for a younger Eoleo while incredibly intoxicated, or (Eoleo's particular favorite), when Briggs and Chaucha had been engaged in a romantic moonlit dinner on a remote cliff-side, only for a mudslide to occur causing Briggs to think on his feet and ride their table down as a make-shift sled. Chaucha had called it the best date Briggs had ever taken her on.
Eoleo had told these stories numerous times, always eager to speak of his father, so he was a master of them by this point, and it showed. After her initial hesitancy, Himi became very clearly engaged, laughing, smiling, sighing, and frowning at all the right times. They stayed that way for a good hour, at which point Eoleo indicated that he was about done with storytelling. He had to preserve some material, after all.
Himi smiled as he finished, and said, "Your father sounds like he was a very interesting man. I would have liked to meet him."
Eoleo nodded, and replied, "He was a great man. A little bizarre at times, and at others certainly not the model-fit for a hero, but when it came down to it he did what was necessary for his nation, his family, and what he believed was right. I'll always be proud to call him my father." Himi nodded, her mind shifting to thoughts of her own parents. On cue, Eoleo asked, "What of your life, Himi?"
Himi smiled, but it seemed to hold melancholy to it. "My life has been… the exact opposite of yours, I'm afraid. For the first ten years of my life, I was very sheltered because I was so frail. I was born prematurely, and barely survived. My body was simply weak; my parents prayed, and prayed, and prayed, but it was only when a mysterious man appeared to them and blessed me with holy water far from the North that I was truly healed. The last four years I have grown to be more independent and free, but my parents were still very wary of letting me… live. I understood their concerns, so I held my tongue. But I always wanted to leave Yamata, or at least have more freedom. Still… I can't help but hate how it had to come to pass. My poor honorable mother and father have to send me away barely a year after my brother Takeru left as well. They must be so fearful, and so worried."
Eoleo nodded, understanding that feeling. He replied, "Aye. My mother be the same; she always hated Briggs for how often he was forced to travel the high seas, and only grew more bitter when I began to as well. I was worried she had heard of my capture, as that would worry her to no end, but now with his death… I just hope she hasn't heard of it yet. If anything, I or one of my fellow Champa should be the one to tell her." Himi nodded, imagining how she would feel if a stranger brought a rumor to them of Takeru's death.
"Himi," Eoleo continued, wrapping his arm warmly around her. "You spoke of how your life has been dull; I promise you, that in this journey and perhaps another, I will show you the world and let you experience its wonders."
"Thank you, Eoleo," Himi replied, a warm smile spread across her tiny face. "That would mean a lot to me." She leaned her head onto his arm (she didn't quite reach his shoulder), and they stared out onto the open sea; while they had shared stories, the weather had cleared, with the fog dissipating and the sun beginning to shine through the clouds. The breeze was still intact, but now the salty air running across their faces was more pleasant than aggravating, and it certainly wasn't causing any tears.
They would stay that way for some time, until the sun would fall behind the line of the ocean, and lady Moon gazed down upon them from high up in the sky.
"CAPTAIN EOLEO!" Came a shout, breaking Eoleo out of his thoughts. He turned to see a panting member of his crew, Doldric, the helmsman. "The, the party we sent forth, they've been captured!"
Eoleo sighed; he had feared this. "Should, should we—" Doldric continued, before being silence by Eoleo raising his hand.
"I was afraid this might occur: have no fear, I will settle this matter myself," Eoleo said commandingly, making his way to the door.
"Er… Captain? Yer axe?" The helmsman suggested, and Eoleo turned to look at his bladed beauty.
"Sigh, no, I will not take a weapon with me," Eoleo replied, none too pleased about the situation. "Well, at least not one they can see." With a wink, he briefly glowed red with the power of Mars, before walking out of his quarters headfast into both love and war.
Okay, so, one down. I kind of hate myself at this point: I clearly can't keep up two multi-chapter fics, so what do I do? Start two more. I mean, I have more than that started, but at least I had the sense not to post them. Unlike now. I like to have stuff built up, but I also am a fan of the "when it's done it's done it's done" policy, meaning you put out whenever you finish. Which is the case here.
So, not creepy? Cute, kind of? This ship is also interesting because it features the two most criminally under-developed characters in the game. Which is sad, because as I write them, I realize Himi and Eoleo both have a lot of interesting aspects to explore and play with. It's sad. Very sad.
The basis behind this was Himi and Eoleo can be very easily made as a kind of non-parental guardian kind of deal, but in this case I wanted to push that further and see if it would, well, go farther. It's kind of multi-faceted cuteness: in the flashbacks (there are a lot of them in this fic, BTW; it's kind of a parallel fic between them now and them on the quest), they are more of that pseudo-parent relationship, with hints of things to come, and them dealing with those feelings, while in the present it's kind of reversed.
I appreciate anyone who gives this fic a chance despite the obvious potential controversial nature to it. Next chapter should be more Himi focused in real time, and then a sharing of them in the past once again.
Next on my list is a More Than Just a Third Eye update and then A Gentler Steam. From here on out I am going to be aiming for a two updates per week, or at the worst one. Three? I'll shoot for it. I hate having any fic I'm NOT able to update weekly, but I've moronically put myself in that position. So, my goal is for none of these four fics to go more than two weeks without an update here on out. Let's see how that goes, heh.
Thanks for reading, expect the next chapter within two weeks!