The Innocent Tale of Ion
An Innocent Tale with Tales of the Abyss characters Luke and Ion. Taking place after Luke's return from the Qliphoth, and after they've rescued Ion and Natalia, and set while they're Keterburg waiting for the Tartarus to be repaired. There will spoilers, so be prepared.
(I don't own Tales of the Abyss)
Luke is sweating. He's clinching his blanket as he slept through the night at Keterburg's hotel. He's having a nightmare. The memories of Akzeriuth began flooding into his mind.
Luke stupidly believing he could naturalize the miasma by using his hyperresonance on Van's words, and accidentally destroying the Sephiroth Tree that supported the Mining Town. After which, everyone abandons Luke on account of his selfish behavior and refusal to accept responsibility for his actions.
On top of that, Asch revealing Luke's origin repeatedly haunted him too.
"You're a second rate copy of me! A mere replica! Mere replica… mere replica… mere… replica…" these words repeated themselves over and over and over again.
Grimacing as the images of events repeat themselves like a broken video tape, Luke starts to sob. Being abandoned by his only friends took its greatest toll on his mind.
"Luke… Luke…" a gentle voice called to him.
Luke was having a hard time trying to make out of the voice as it, what with the distort images and memories overflowing his mind.
"Luke…" the voice repeated itself. It's bring Luke closer to his comfort zone, and he soon felt much better at the sound of the voice. He eventually woke, and to his surprise, found a familiar green haired boy standing next to his bed side.
"Ion…?"
"Luke! Thank goodness you're finally awake." Ion exclaimed, greatly relieved that his friend is awake.
"What're doing here, Ion? It's pretty late." Luke said, a little bit tired. He sat up so he can better talk with the younger boy.
"I know. But, I heard you making strange noises, so I came over to check up on you." Ion said, "Are you alright, Luke? When I came in, you were sweating really bad. You were even crying."
"Oh, it was just a nightmare." Luke answered, turning away from the Fon Master, and wiping away the tears.
Ion had a good feeling about what's bothering Luke. He felt hesitant, but he decided to ask him anyway, feeling it best to get out in the open, "It's about Akzeriuth, isn't it?"
"Yeah…" Luke replied quietly, before falling completely silent.
"So, you still blame yourself for it, then…?" Ion felt bad for having asked the red headed boy such a question. Of course, Luke still feels bad about it. It was obvious by the look on his face.
"I was pretty stupid back then, wasn't I? Just going along with what Master Van said, and thinking selfishly… and it bit me on the ass, majorly. Especially when everyone gave up on me…" Luke lowered his head as he spook, feeling depressed. He felt the mattress shift slightly. Ion had sat down on Luke's bed.
Feeling Luke's angst, Ion put on a sympathetic face. He didn't like to see Luke in anguish, and wanted to cheer him up, somehow. "Don't say that. You don't need to torture yourself like this Luke. I'm the one who undid to seal on the door, and allowed Van to do as he pleased."
"But, you're not the one who destroyed an entire town full of people, and got everyone to hate him." Luke countered.
"But, everyone has forgiven you already. I'm sure of it." Ion tried assuring his friend.
Luke lightly chuckled in response, "I don't know about everyone." Luke thought back to Jade and Anise's animosity toward him. Their distrust of him is justified, though, so he figures he'll have to work hard to earn it again.
Speaking of trust, Ion seems to still have faith in Luke, even after what he did in Akzeriuth and what he said to him. He even remembered the conversation Ion had with Anise and Asch about Luke being their friend, and even stood up for Luke when Jade and Anise verbally bashed him after their reunion. Ion's kind heart and patience is amazing. These traits are what's starting to help Luke shed his depressed and anguished persona.
"Come to think of it, you're the only who didn't blame me. And here you are, trying to cheer me up. You really are a nice guy, Ion." Luke finally smiled, though it was a bit small.
Ion lightly blushed, "T-Thank you, Luke." this is actually the first time Luke complimented Ion in such a sincere way. It made him really happy, and a little embarrassed.
"That's not all. You're actually the first stranger to be genuinely nice me." Luke grin grew wider.
"Oh? Really? What about Tear?" Ion asked confused.
"No, she was pretty cold to me. Of course, she had every reason to be, since I was a big jerk back then."
"Oh, I see." Ion said. He thought despite Tear's cold surface, she had a growing soft spot for Luke. Maybe there's more to it than that. At any rate, Ion is enjoying his conversation with Luke, now that the redhead is in a better mindset. "But, weren't you nice to me too, Luke?" Ion asked, with his ever calm smile returning to his face, "You offered to take me along with you and Tear back in the Cheagle Forest. You even protected me when I was in danger."
Luke chuckled, "Hehe, at the time I thought you were kinda scrawny and pale, so of course I had to protect you."
"I suppose you're right. But, whatever reasons you had, I was sure you were a nice person, and had a kind heart, Luke." Ion a sincere smile appeared on Ion's face.
"Thanks Ion. For checking up on me, and cheering up me." Luke thanked Ion, finally feeling better about himself.
"Anytime, Luke. As a friend, I'll do all in my power to help you." Ion promised.
"That's alright, Ion. I'm sure I'll be okay on my own. But seriously, thanks. I needed a good talk."
"Well then, it's my pleasure. As long as you're feeling better, I'm happy for you." Ion replied, preparing to leave the room, but Luke stops him.
"Hey, there's one more thing, though…" Luke said.
"Hm? What is it?" Ion asked.
"Could you maybe stay you here with me 'til I fall asleep?" a blushing Luke asked, "I'm kinda nervous about going back to sleep again."
Being technically a teenager, Luke is embarrassed to ask for company during the night. He's clearly scared of having another nightmare.
"Sure." Ion smiled.
"Thanks." Luke thanked again, and laid down on his bed, while Ion sat patiently. He didn't mind waiting for Luke to fall asleep. The night still seems pretty long so there's no need to rush out. Soon after some time passed, Luke finally fell asleep, with a peaceful expression no less.
Ion smiled to the pleasant expression on Luke's face, before something totally unexpected happened, to his surprise.
(-The Next Morning-)
"ION! ION!" Anise cried as she ran through the halls, in a frenzy.
"Anise, what seems to be the problem?" Jade asked, having caught up with Anise and had her stop what she was doing. Tear and Natalia were with him as they were on their way to breakfast. "Where's Fon Master Ion?"
"That's the thing! I can't find him anywhere!" Anise said frantically.
"What? Wasn't he with you last night?" Tear asked, growing as concerned about Ion's whereabouts as the rest of the party.
"He was, since we shared the same room, but now I can't find him!" Anise answered, still in frantic rush.
"Calm down, Anise. Let's look for him together. Hopefully, nothing has happened to him yet." Natalia suggested.
"Hey, what's going on?" Guy casually greeted his friends, before noticing the troubled faces on the girls. Jade remained as calm as ever.
"Guy! Have you seem Ion anywhere?!" Anise recklessly, and aggressively approached Guy, causing him to scream and jump a feet away in fear. "This isn't the time to scream in terror!" Anise yelled.
"Anise, getting angry won't get you any closer to finding Ion." Jade lightly scolded the young girl.
"Uh, I'm gonna go on a limb here and guess that Ion has gone missing, right?" Guy asked, calming himself down.
"Yes. Anise has been looking for him since this morning." Jade explained.
"Oh, if that's all, don't worry." Guy smiled.
"And why not?!" Anise asked, getting irritated by Guy's nonchalant behavior. Ion might have kidnapped by the God Generals again, or those Dark Wings bandits they keep running into. This is not the time to be smiling.
"Eep…" Guy stepped in fear of Anise's furry.
"Choose your words carefully, Guy." Jade smirked.
"W-Well…" Guy started, trying to calm his nerves, "He's with Luke."
"Luke?" Natalia asked, "Come to think of it, where is he? I haven't seen him at all this morning."
"Follow me and you'll see." Guy said, and led the way to his and Luke's room. The party stood before a bewildering, and equally heartwarming sight.
Luke and apparently Ion were asleep together in Luke's bed. They held each other close, with Ion's face buried in Luke's chest, while Luke had his arms wrapped around Ion's small body. They had peaceful and content expressions on their faces as they slept, especially with no hint of nightmares for Luke.
"Well, would you look at this." Jade smirked.
"So Ion really was with Luke." Tear said, staring widen eyed.
"Through the whole night it seems." Natalia smiled, "They look so cute together."
"That's what I thought too, so I let them sleep a while longer." voiced Guy, "Though, I have to say, I was surprised to see Ion asleep with Luke like this. I came to wake him up, and there they were, sleeping like kids."
"Tch…" Anise remained silent. Ion had her worried, and it turns out he slept with Luke of all people last night. Naturally, she was not pleased about this.
"Anise, Ion is safe at the moment, especially with Luke. I know you still have some bitter feelings towards him, but I'm sure you can trust Ion's safety with Luke. Let's leave them alone for a while, okay?" Tear tried to coerce the younger girl.
"I guess…" Anise muttered. She still wasn't convinced however, after how Luke treated Ion before the whole thing with Akzeriuth, she lost any affection she had for him a long time ago. Now Tear is asking her to trust Luke again, and with Ion? That won't be happening, not for a long time.
A moment later, Luke let out a loud yawn, catching everyone's attention. The redheaded boy rose from the mattress he slept comfortable in. No nightmare to have been had. It was a wonderfully peaceful sleep. Luke noticed and turn to his friends, "Hey guys, what's up? Why are you all in my room?" he asked, before noticing Ion sleeping soundly next to him, "W-What's Ion doing here?"
"That's what we'd like to know." Anise said.
"Huh?"
"Ion evidently disappeared from his and Anise's room last night. Come this morning, and here he is, with you." Jade explained.
"Oh, well…" Luke began, "I had a bad dream last night, and Ion came to check up on me, and fell I asleep after we talked for a while. I don't know how this happen, though."
"Is that so…?" Anise asked, with suspicion in every word.
"Yes, ma'am. It is so." Luke said. The glare she was giving him did not make Luke comfortable at all.
"Hmm…" Ion murmured, as he stirred. He was waking up.
"Ion!" Anise gasped.
"Oh, good morning, everyone." Ion said, as rose up. "Wait, why is everyone here?"
"Uh, hey, Ion." a nervous Luke said.
"Huh? Luke?" Ion's confusion grew even more.
"Fon Master, Anise was looking for you. We found you together with Luke, sleeping in the same bed." said Tear.
"With Luke? Huh..." Ion started thinking, before realizing what's going on, and remembered last night, "Oh, that's right. Last night I came to check on Luke because he was having a nightmare. After we talked, he fell asleep soon after, and then, all of sudden he-" Ion was cut off by Anise, who grabbed the Fon Master by the shoulders and clasped down them, in worried fashion.
"Ion, are you alright? He didn't do anything weird to you last night did he?"
"Hey! When did I become the bad guy in all of this?!" Luke reproached.
"You be quiet!" Anise snapped at Luke, and turned her attention back to Ion, "Ion, please tell me what happened to between you two last night!"
"U-Um, Anise…" Ion began, "I'm fine. Nothing happened last night."
"But, you said you came in and Luke did something, right?!" Anise asked, "That can't count as nothing, and its probably not good either!"
"If I recall, Anise, you interrupted the Fon Master before he could finish." Jade countered.
"That's right. You should wait for Ion to give a proper explanation before jumping to conclusions." Natalia said.
"You're being impatient, Anise." said Tear.
"Hey! Why am I the bad guy here?!"
"DOn't ask me..." Luke said, snidely, earning a glare from Anise.
"Please, everyone, just calm down." Ion said, not wanting a ruckus to be caused by him and his predicament with Luke.
Guy, who had remained quiet for a while, was thinking about something. As they both explained, it seems there's only one way for both Luke and Ion to end up in the position they were in.
"Say, Ion, when Luke fell asleep after your talk, did he suddenly cling to you in his sleep?"
"Huh? Oh, yes. When I was about to leave, Luke suddenly grabbed my hand, and pulled me into bed with him. He wouldn't let go, and I couldn't fight the need to sleep either, so I eventually fell asleep as well."
"Hey, what's this about clinging and not letting go? Guy?" Luke turned to his best friend.
"Don't you remember, Luke? You had a habit of clinging to things while you're asleep when you were little." Guy explained, "It was tough work getting you to let go of the things you had your hands on."
"What?!" Luke yelled. He couldn't believe what he had just heard. Of course that particular memory he couldn't remember, being so little and all.
"Oh, I remember that, too!" Natalia exclaimed, "One time when I was coming visit, I found you and Guy in the most improper-"
"AHHHH! Stop right there!" Luke and Guy yelled together. Even if he had gynophobia, having a sleeping Luke cling onto him and not letting go wasn't a very pleasant experience for Guy. As for Luke, even if he didn't remember it, something like what Natalia just mentioned is beyond embarrassing.
"Well, isn't that an interesting story." Jade smirked.
Guy lightly chuckled, "I figured as Luke grew older, the habit went away, eventually. I guess some habits are starting revisit, huh?"
"Anyway, if what Ion said is true, then that doesn't help my case at all." Luke complained.
"I'm sorry, Luke. I made everything worse with what I told them." Ion apologized, with an apologetic face.
"N-No, don't worry about it, Ion." said Luke to Ion, noting wanting to his friend downhearted, "You were just speaking the honest truth. No need blame to yourself."
"That's right, Ion. Don't you go blaming yourself. Blame Luke for having such a weird habit."
"Hrmm…" Luke didn't respond, but he definitely made note of his disapproval of Anise's comment.
"Actually, I didn't find it strange in the slightest. I was surprised at first, but I quickly found myself comfortable like that, and went to sleep." Ion innocently said, earning surprise from everyone in the room, expect probably Jade.
"Aw, geez!" an embarrassed Luke grimaced. Why'd he say it like that?
"Huh? Did I say something wrong?" Ion asked Luke, naively. He maybe Fon Master, but Ion has a certain childlike innocence that makes you forget his position in the Order of Lorelei.
"N-No nothing, really…" Luke stammered.
"In any case, the Fon Master is safe, so there's cause for alarm." Jade said, "As fun as this would normally be, I suggest we all get breakfast. Or, perhaps you'd like to stay in bed like lovebirds?"
"Colonel!" Tear and Natalia gasped.
"Don't be stupid! Like we could be lovebirds!" a blushing Luke yelled at the colonel.
"I-I must agree. It would go against my vows as Fon Master." Ion said, though with visible blush of embarrassment in his cheeks, like Luke.
"That was a joke." said Jade, "If there's nothing else to do here, I'll be down in the dining hall." the colonel soon leaves through the door.
"A joke, huh? For a joke that was over the line." Guy said.
"I'm sorry for having everyone worry about me." Ion apologizes.
"It's alright, Ion." Natalia said, with an assuring smile.
"Yeah, no harm done, right?" smiled Guy.
"Just as the colonel said, you're safe." Tear said, "Although, you should give Anise a little more warning. She was the most worried out of all of us."
"I know. I'm sorry Anise." said Ion to Anise, with an apologetic face.
"Hmmm…" Anise examined her charge's face. She knows when the Fon Master is genuinely sorry, and thanks to that, she can hardly stay mad at him, "Well, if you say it like that, I forgive you."
"Anise." Ion smiled.
"I still won't forgive Luke, though." Anise frowned to Luke.
"Gee, thanks…" Luke frowned.
"Well, enough of that. Let's go down and get breakfast. I'm sure we're all starving." Guy suggested.
"Yes, let's." Natalia agreed. The rest of the group left Luke's room, and went to the dining. Luke and Ion stay for a bit just for long last talk.
"Hey, Ion, sorry about that thing last night." Luke started.
"About pulling me into bed with you?" Ion asked, "Don't worry. Like I said, I didn't find it strange, or disliked it."
"Y-Yeah… lucky me." Luke said awkwardly, "You really are a strange kid, Ion."
"Hehe, I suppose I am." Ion chuckled.
"Ion, let's go!" Anise called to the Fon Master.
"Luke, you're gonna miss out!" Guy called to Luke.
"Oh yeah! We better go."
"Yes."
The two walked out of the room and join the others, with clearly bright smiles on their faces as they walk side by side.
As they walked, Luke becomes lost in thought.
"Ion, you're the only one who was openly friendly with me. I guess that's why I've always had a soft spot for you. I don't know where it disappeared to when I in my "Chosen Hero" and freedom seeking persona, but I'm glad you didn't hate me because of it. You kept saying I'm nice or I have a kind heart, even though I kept denying it. I just thought you were strange and said the strangest things, but somehow, that drew me naturally to you. Thanks for being there for me, Ion."
Meanwhile, Ion lost himself in thought, as well.
"Ever since I met Luke, I've felt that he and I are similar. Not just in the way we were created as an individual person replica. Before I met him in Engeve, I was rather lonely. I enjoyed my job as Fon Master, and Anise was always there supporting me, but a part of me felt like I didn't belong in the Order of Lorelei, or anywhere for that matter. I guess it's to be expected, being a replacement for a deceased person."
Ion looks Luke's way.
"But then, I met you, Luke. You didn't know who I was, nor did you care. You offered to help find the Cheagles, and protected me. You may not have realized it at the time, but I knew you had a kind heart, even when you wished to deny it. Even after the trials you've faced, your kind heart remains alive. I only wish I wasn't so careless and had more backbone, you wouldn't have been hurt like that. In fact, I think I made more mistakes then just that. I was so naive, thinking it was best that you didn't who or what you really are. I'm sure there's more I need to answer for. Well, I'm going to make up for that, by staying by your side and helping you as much as I can. Even if it costs me life."
BW: Thus ends the Innocent Tale of Ion and Luke. If I wanted to though, I'd make this a romance Luke/Ion fic, but that's a tale for another day. I do hope you enjoyed that as much as I did.