happy jumilla day 2014! ＼(^▽^)ノ here's hoping i finish this before jumilla day 2015

Bzz-bzzt.

Jude reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out his vibrating GHS, flipping it open and reading the new text message it displayed.

Sender: Balan
Recipient: Jude Mathis
Subject: Meeting at Laforte

Just wanted to send you some last minute encouragement. Sorry I couldn't be there with you. I know we've come a way since we last talked to our good friends at the Laforte, but don't let it get you down too much if they're still hesitant about the whole spyrite implementation. They'll come around in time. And if they don't, they're a bunch of old fogeys and won't be around much longer anyway. lol

Jude gave a short sigh. As oh so humorous as Balan was, time wasn't exactly something that they - that Jude - had an abundance of. And the cool, crisp breeze of Fennmont's eternal night only felt like a stinging jab at that fact - the same, unchanging, nearly mystical charm the air carried. That in itself reminded him of her, as if it wasn't already enough that currently he was making his way across the research district to the Laforte Center.

He exhaled a rather longing sigh before starting to compose his reply.

Thanks Balan. I'll be back at Helioborg tomorrow. Can you

His GHS nearly fell from his hands as the wind suddenly picked up, whisking away the lights that lined the walkway with it. When it died down and Jude opened his eyes it was now quite dark, dark enough that it was hard to see anything more than a few feet in front of him. But that most certainly wasn't why his heart was racing now.

With a deep breath he quickly closed his eyes and held out his nearly shaking free hand. And while his heart pounded against his chest, he waited.

And waited. And waited. And waited.

He could tell from behind his eyelids that the lights around him had taken form again. Yet still it was several long moments later that he slowly lowered his hand and opened his eyes, sighing quietly.

Now he just felt stupid. What had he been expecting?

Well, of course he knew what he had been expecting. Or at least, what he had wanted.

He shook his head and looked back down at his screen. He couldn't even remember how he was going to finish this. Deleting the last two words, he sent the reply, before pocketing his GHS and resuming his walk.

In the year since humanity's passing of Origin's Trial, Jude the only thing that had really changed for Jude was the fervor at which he worked. Spyrite research was in ever increasing favor. The actual mass-production of spyrites had begun, largely due to the jump they were able to take since the summon of spyrite Maxwell - of course, another thing thanks to her help - but there were still people and places they needed convincing of their potential - particularly the areas Rieze Maxia that had been rather dissatisfied, to put it lightly, with the dissolution of the schism.

"You must be Dr. Mathis," the guard said as Jude approached the gate to the research center.

Jude nodded. "Right. I'm here to meet with the head researcher."

"Enter," the guard said, stepping to the side as the doors slid open.

Passing through, Jude made a swift pace toward his destination. His stomach was in a bit of a knot, and although it was for decidedly different reasons, it was not unlike his last time here, nearly two years ago. This time though he did not have anyone to put him at ease, anyone to still the erratic beating of his heart.

He gave a small sigh. He didn't even have a real reason to be nervous, he supposed. Balan was right. Things had come a long way since their last conference with the researchers at Laforte, back around eight months ago when they had come to meeting at Marksburg, and even if they totally shot Jude down today, life would move on. Plans would just have to proceed without the speed increase that would come from being backed by Laforte, one of the most high-end research centers out there. And they had time. The world had time.

Yet still each day that went by felt less and less like it had a point.

But there wasn't time to think about that, now.

The door to one of the labs slid open as Jude approached it, and with one last, deep breath, he stepped through.

Inside were three men, each in a white lab coat and seated at a rectangular table. Upon Jude's arrival, one of them stood. "You're Jude Mathis, right?"

"Yes," Jude said, holding out one of his hands. "From Helioborg. You must be Head Researcher Haus?"

"I'm Dr. Haus, yes," the man said, shaking Jude's hand once before sliding his back into his pockets. "I believe you were acquainted with my brother?"

Jude nodded. "He was one of my professors when I was studying at Talim. Actually -"

"Wonderful," Dr. Haus said, briskly turning back to the table and taking his seat again. "Now as you know, I regrettably wasn't able to be present the last time your people came to show us how far you had gone with these spyrites of yours. So I trust you to explain this thoroughly. Why exactly should we at Laforte help you with your spyrite research?"

Jude walked forward and reached into his coat, placing a small blue stone and a cube on the table. "I believe that spyrites can shape the future of this world."

"...And that's all." Jude turned off the booster had laid on the table, subsequently stopping the flow of mana into the spirit fossil and causing the small spyrite that had started to take shape to lose its form back into the stone.

There were a few moments in which the room was quiet, save for the mumbles of the men at the table as they spoke to each other in hushed tones, glancing and pointing at notes they had taken while Jude was speaking.

"So you want us to help you research spyrites in order to produce them faster. Even though in Elympios, they're already starting to be mass-produced," Dr. Haus eventually said.

"If Laforte were to help us, we could find a more efficient way to produce more spyrites," Jude replied. "If that happened, then it would make them more readily available to the public. And the more spyrites that we have in common use, the more mana is conserved, and the more spirits are able to thrive."

"That's all well and good for Elympios," Dr Haus said, tapping a finger on the table, "but here in Rieze Maxia we don't have a need to save mana. You're basically asking us to change what we do just fine in order to help a bunch of terrorists who tried to use all of us as a power source."

Jude shook his head. "Spyrites would benefit Rieze Maxia as well. Since the system for spyrite conjuring follows the same basic formula as spirit channeling -"

"That's what I mean. We're just fine the way we are, without all of this…" Dr. Haus paused a bit, making a vague hand gesture at the spirit fossil and booster. "...excess baggage."

"Furthermore, the researchers of Laforte have more pressing matters than helping that doomed world," another one of the men said, stroking his white beard. "Just two days ago we received confirmation of reported spirit disappearances, no doubt some side effect of having to share our air with those Elympios filth."

"Disappearing spirits?" Jude's gaze snapped to the man, his tone hurried. "What do you mean?"

"There've been numerous reports of failed channelings lately," the man explained. "Some people are even saying that after they channel a spirit, it vanishes a second later."

"Then that's all the more reason to consider spyrites," Jude said quickly. "If we can work with them, it might help us find out -"

"That's enough, I think," Dr. Haus said, standing up. "It sounds as though Elympios is going to be able to handle their problems just fine. Furthermore, as we've said, we at Laforte have our own research to pursue. Good luck to you and your friends at Helioborg, Dr. Mathis."

Jude's eyes cast down to the table, and after a moment he picked up the booster and fossil, slipping them back into his pocket. "Thank you for your time," he said, and without waiting for a reply he exited the room.

Within just a few minutes he was back outside of the research center, his pace fast despite his feet feeling like lead. Eventually he slowed down, coming to a complete stop as he came to the center of the bridge.

He sighed heavily. He hadn't walked in there with high expectations, exactly, but he certainly hadn't anticipated being shot down that fast.

His feet slowly carried him to the bridge's railing, where he leaned over it slightly, his gaze cast down to the water.

This changed nothing. Things would continue on a steady upward scale. It was true that the help of Laforte was not vital. But it of course wasn't speeding things up. And speed is something they - is something Jude needed.

The faster spyrites became commonplace, the faster mana could be conserved and saved. And if that was able to happen while they were still thriving off the mana from the schism, then maybe -

His grip on the rail tightened. There was no guarantee. In fact, it was unlikely, if anything. He had things he had to do, and she had things she had to do. And they were connected, they were together. They always would be. He had come to peace with this fact a year ago - yet still, here he was, his chest tight and his stomach in a knot over it. He couldn't dwell. He had to keep moving forward - for the world's sake and for hers. There were things he had to do; there was a duty he had to fulfill.

He bit his tongue as he remembered the researcher's words. Disappearing spirits. What did that even mean? Jude hadn't heard of anything like that lately. Was it just a brief phenomena around Fennmont? Was the spirit clime changing? No, that didn't make sense. Was it actually a result of spyrites? Was there some kind of flaw in all this work he had put in? If there was, how was he going to fix it?

His chest felt like it was caught in a vice, constricted so tightly around him it was making his breaths shallow. Everything seemed like a problem. He felt lost. His eyes moved up a bit, catching site of one of the floodgates that lead into the basement of the research center. The bars of it were still bent and disfigured, not yet fully repaired completely from back then.

Had anything really changed? Even now, it was as if he was still relying on her for motivation, for guidance. At his worst, he was still lost and alone, and even everything went according to plan, he would never be able to see her again. Anxiety crept up his body. He would never have his worries assuaged with that same gentle ease again, either.

Jude's gaze dropped back down.

This time he remained motionless as the wind picked up again, harder than before, and once more the lights dimmed down to nothingness.

And then in all the cool darkness around him, there was the warmth of a hand on top of his.

"The last time I was here, we made a wish together. I didn't think mine would come true so soon."

Jude turned so fast that the returning lights became blurry, only adding to the ethereal effect of the person who stood next to him now.

"Milla," he said, nearly breathless, his heart frozen and his legs almost shaking.

She smiled, the same, soft smile she always had for him.

It could not be said who moved first, but before a second passed their arms had woven tightly around each other, their bodies pressed together. Jude's mind spun as he struggled to process this at all, tried to make sense of it, tried to find a reason as to why this wasn't just a hallucination or a dream. It was too real for that, however - the sensations were rushing back and hitting him like a tidal wave, the sound of her voice, the comfort of her embrace, her warmth, her scent.

"I can't believe… I don't understand," Jude finally managed to say, still holding her close, as if scared she'd vanish if he let go. "Why… are you here?"

For a moment she was quiet. Jude pulled back just enough to meet her gaze, but after feeling her body tense just a bit and seeing her side-cast eyes, he almost wished he hadn't asked.

"I can't stay here long," she said quietly. "There's something I need to investigate."

It was like the knife was just plunged anew into the ever-bleeding wound he seemed to bear.

"I didn't expect you to be here," Milla continued, almost inaudible. Her eyes met Jude's again, and despite the fact that her lips were still curved into a small smile, something about the way her eyes were nearly shimmering made Jude's heart drop. "It almost feels like fate."

"Milla," he said, barely able to hear himself over the pounding of his heart. There were so many things he wanted to say, wanted to ask her, so many things he wanted to tell her. In the year that had passed, not a day had gone by where he hadn't thought of her. Not a day had gone by that he hadn't wondered if someday, he could see her again. If he was sure that one thing had not changed, it was his feelings for her.

But those were things that he had to keep to himself.

Like last time, she could only be here for as long as needed, and no more. And to speak any of those thoughts would only make the inevitable harder for her.

She understood this as well. And that was why they simply stood there, silent, their arms still wrapped loosely around each other.

"Let me help," Jude eventually said. As he smiled gently at her, some phrase about how we can force our bodies to do just about anything for the one we loved popped into his head. "What did you come here to investigate?"

Milla gave him a small smile back for only a brief moment, before it faded and her eyes cast away from him again. "Before that…" She paused, and Jude just barely felt her fingers curl tighter into his coat. "Jude… I -"

Riiiing ring ring riiiing ring -

One of Jude's coat pockets vibrated in time with the chiming, and only when Milla slowly stepped back did Jude reach his hand in and pull out his GHS. "It's Alvin," he said in a somewhat surprised tone, before sighing shortly and picking it up. "Hello?"

"Heeyy, Jude! What's going on? You're in Fennmont today, right?"

"Uh, not much," Jude said, glancing to Milla and then back away again. "And yeah, I am. Why?"

"Great! Then you should come over to the inn ASAP! I'll be waiting for you!"

"Wait, what? Alvin, what's -"

Click. Beepbeepbeep…

Jude only sighed as he closed his GHS and slipped it back into his pocket.

"Let's go. I can explain on the way," Milla said. Jude looked over at her - of course, she was the same, collected, assertive Milla. And as they made their way out of the research district, mixed feelings churned in Jude's stomach, smatterings of nostalgia, both comforting and melancholic. This time, however, he sped his pace to match hers, walking at her side.

hooo boy well is this a mess if i ever saw one. um where to start. i don't really have an excuse for the quality other than "i really wanted to at least start this on jumilla day, but i can't work on it during the actual day since i'm too busy so i'll just post it the night before but i didn't plan ahead at all so i had to plan at least a vague idea of the whole fic and then write this in about an 1.5 hours." but uh yeah. so. that's what it is. so i do know where this is going but only.. really... vaguely, haha. so if this seems like it has excessive extraneous details or events i promise it will! be revealed later... and all that... i also didn't want to get too info-dumpy with this so... yeah... um... i know the pacing is weird... especially how it just cuts in the middle w/ jude's speech and all (but who wants to hear jude explain spyrites tbh)... please trust me i know... but uh... i promise it'll get better. yeah. totally... idk, expositions are? whatever. whatever this is why i don't write multi-chapter fics. i think the last time i did one was five years ago? also the guy is prof. haus's brother because i didn't want to make him a random dude's name. anyway, sorry if you sat through all my talking here, and also thank you. ciao