Aelita watched the campfire as it burned, shades of orange and yellow reflecting in her sea green eyes. The crackle and pop of the flames was almost as enchanting as the way the flames moved and swayed in the wind. The wood at the base of the fire slowly shrank and blackened as it was consumed and Aelita, so fascinated by the spectacle, reached in to touch, to see what the substance of fire felt like. Ignoring the warming air as her hand slowly approached the flames, she gave a surprised and disappointed yelp as Jeremy snatched her hand away before she could touch the fire.
"Look, Aelita, but don't touch. It'll burn you and that's a sensation you don't want to experience," Jeremy commanded reproachfully. He looked down and sighed slightly, upset with himself for hurting Aelita's feelings. Thinking quickly enough, he took a long stick and dipped it into the fire to light the end.
Aelita watched curiously as Jeremy took the stick out of the fire and carefully brought it closer to her. Her eyes lit up as he offered her the burning piece of wood and she brought the flame end close to her face, feeling the heat become uncomfortable as she watched the end slowly get consumed by the miniature fire. She reluctantly moved the stick a little bit farther away as she stared into the mesmerizing sight. She knew what was happening to create the flame, an exothermic chemical reaction that combined oxygen with molecules in the wood. She recalled learning about the fire triangle, that fire needed for 3 things to continue the reaction, and she began to wonder. It ate food, generated heat and waste, needed air to survive and always tried to grow. In a way, it was sort of human. "Jeremy, is fire alive?"
"What? Well no, it's not."
"But it breathes air, needs food, wants to grow, and produces heat and waste. What makes fire any different than, say, Kiwi?"
Odd glared at the pink-haired girl while Yumi, Ulrich and Jeremy laughed. Perplexed as to their reactions, she looked at Jeremy and hoped he'd give her an answer. But concentrating on his face, on the way the dancing flames cast light and shadow over it, made her almost forget the question. His blue eyes, the color of the sky and of so much endless possibility wasn't what had her attention tonight though. The combination of light and shadow gave him a ghostly, spooky appearance and she quickly turned away from his face even as she subconsciously scooted closer to him, wanting his protection. When she had fully pressed against his side and realized it, she blushed bright red.
"Apparently fire isn't the only thing that creates heat." Odd teased, causing her face to become a deeper shade of red.
Her eyes looked from the stick, to Odd and then to the ground. Her flushed cheeks and desire to be anywhere but where she could be teased further overcoming her fascination with the miniature fire she held in her hand. "Owww." She yelped as she tossed the burning stick at the ground.
Jeremy immediately grabbed Aelita's hand and apologized for forgetting that he had given her a burning stick. Though turning what was probably a hitherto unknown shade of red and fearing that his cheeks were actually going to burst into flames, he brought her hand close to his face and inspected the small burn. Ulrich jumped up and stomped on the burning ember to stop it from igniting a larger fire while Yumi got up and headed to the tents to grab some cool water and a rag to tend to Aelita's burn. Odd laughed all the harder at Jeremy as he continued to stammer apologies. Aelita hissed in pain then relaxed as the water soaked cloth Yumi brought back cooled her skin. Embarrassed and feeling like an idiot for hurting his angel, Jeremy got up and stormed off, walking into the darkness.
Yumi dried and bandaged the small wound and told Ulrich to tend to Aelita for a moment while she went after Jeremy. Aelita kept casting worried glances in the direction he stalked off in and Odd's reassurance was helping her much. But more to the point, Jeremy was not the type that should be wandering around the woods alone, and that went double at night. She caught up to him quickly, her determination and longer legs making it easy to do, and put a hand on his back, cursing herself when she felt him jump. "Jeremy? Come on back to the campfire."
"I hurt her."
Letting her frustration show in her voice, Yumi answered, "it was an accident and Aelita's worried about you since you told her not to go off wandering alone in the woods at night and now here you are doing that very thing."
Jeremy sighed, stopped, and turned around to face the direction of campsite then looked up at Yumi. "I tried to prepare her for this little outing and all I could do was tell her how many ways things could go wrong and I imagined how much trouble we'd be in if XANA attacked and all the while she was going on about how wonderful it would be and how much fun Odd said she'd have and-"
Yumi listened and interrupted him, "Jeremy..." But as he paused and looked up at her, she didn't really know what exactly to say. Just before he started to continue she said, "you got the shortest end of the stick. Aelita's linked to XANA and you're the only one who can do anything about it. Aelita wants her family and Odd gets off at yelling at you for not being more understanding and looks like the hero. But he doesn't have to lift a finger to actually make it happen. He runs around Lyoko showing off and flirting while the rest of us pick up the slack and sometimes he pulls pranks while the rest of us clean up the mess he doesn't care that he's left behind."
Yumi stopped there and grasped his shoulders then turned his body so that it was facing hers. "But as much as Aelita likes that, do you honestly think she doesn't see through it? Odd's someone she can rely on for a laugh, for a break in all the responsibility she feels towards us. Or perhaps the guilt over the risk we all face and the work her presence forces on you. But she knows that that's all it is, that she's like every other girl who's ever crossed paths with Odd. A game, a source of amusement and nothing more."
"How... How can you be-"
"So sure?" Yumi finished for him. "Because you aren't the only one Aelita talks to and for as clueless as she can sometimes be about earth, she has a real ability to understand people." Yumi's voice brightened, "now if you want to salvage this situation I suggest you grab the supplies for smores, which I hid in my bag so that Odd wouldn't eat them all before nightfall, and show Aelita how to make one." With that Yumi headed towards the fire and Jeremy headed towards the tents.
"Umm, Yumi..." Jeremy started hesitantly after walking a few steps.
"Oh, don't tell me you don't know how to make smores." When Jeremy sheepishly nodded she said, "When Aelita is free of XANA, we are seriously getting you out more. Graham cracker, chocolate, Roasted marshmallow-"
" Chocolate and graham cracker," Jeremy finished, now feeling stupid as Yumi nodded.
"See, not so difficult. Go, get food and save the night."
He came back shortly after Yumi and silenced all questions by announcing that he had the stuff to make smores. While Jeremy handed out some marshmallows, Yumi elbowed Ulrich and whispered something to him. Ulrich pulled away and silenced Odd before he could tell Aelita about smores and thus steal Jeremy's glory. Aelita looked between Jeremy and Odd but was surprised, and pleasantly so, when Jeremy sat down beside her and explained what a smore was and how to make one.
She followed his instructions precisely, and in the end, had a hot, gooey treat that she bit into hesitantly but then devoured quickly. The taste was extraordinary as the smooth texture and sweet flavor of the chocolate combined with the crunchy graham cracker and cooked marshmallow in her mouth. Making a only half serious note to eat the next one more slowly and actually savor the taste, she reached for the bags of food but spied an easier alternative and made an attempt to snatch Jeremy's smore out of his hands. He laughed and dodged, surprising her at first then disappointing her by taking another bite. She pouted, not entirely certain that it would have the same effect in the flickering light but hopeful nonetheless.
Apparently, the quality of the light made no difference to her persuasive powers and she smiled happily as Jeremy yielded his smore, or rather the slightly less than half of it that was left, before reaching to the bag of marshmallows and spearing one on the stick he'd used to roast the first one. Aelita enthusiastically finished what she had stolen from Jeremy, drawing a giggle from him. Stifling outright laughter, he commented about her eating as badly as Odd. Not being one to let such a comment slide, she lunged for his second smore the instant he finished making it and succeeded in stealing it from him.
Holding it close to her body for a moment, and knowing full well that Jeremy wouldn't risk hitting her accidently while stealing his treat back she smiled wickedly at him until he lowered his hands a bit. Pressing her advantage, she teasingly took a bite from the smore. But her smile fell as he flashed a look of indignation over her theft then turned his attention towards the stick in his lap and the bag of marshmallows nearby. Before he could attempt to make himself another smore, she cleared her throat to regain his attention.
Smiling apologetically, she watched all the negative emotion wash off of Jeremy's face, replaced by a smile as he shook his head no. Marveling at how such a simple gesture could affect him so deeply, she shyly pushed the treat she'd stolen into his hands and reached for her own stick so that she could make herself another one. But she kept her eyes on Jeremy, noting that Jeremy was simply staring into hers and wondering why that made her feel slightly off. Not exactly comfortable but not uncomfortable either. In fact, she was starting to enjoy the way she felt.
As Jeremy slowly took a bite from the returned smore, Odd shattered the moment. "We're witnessing Jeremy's first kiss." Laughter echoed through the forest while both Jeremy and Aelita's cheeks burned a luminescent shade of red. The speed with which the two teens snapped their heads away from each other to look into the dark forest inspired yet more laughter. Despite it however, they managed to slowly turn back towards one another, not daring to look into each other's eyes but knowing that this was something special, and that it could well be only the beginning of something even better between them.
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A/N: This takes place sometime in season two.
Commando Wolf: How exactly your comment on having Nicholas almost burn down Kadic resulted in this, I'm not sure. But it did. Thanks for the inspiration.