Time to start a new story? Why, yes, I believe it is time to do so! It's been pretty much a year since I wrote anything that wasn't a oneshot for Golden Sun, so I'm happy to say that I'm back :). While this will only be a threeshot, I'll finally be starting on the WiH parallel after this, so I'm guessing that sometime before the start of March is when that will begin (Fun Fact: WiH ended at the end of February last year, so it'll be like I jumped one year into the future and continued where I left off :P).

Something to note with this one: it could be considered semi AU, I guess. I didn't want to specify any sort of time or even a location, so you can kind of take this one simply as a story – nothing more, nothing less.

Anyway, I know Droory has been kinda waiting for this one, so I'll just get to it now.

Disclaimer: I do not own Golden Sun. All rights go to its respective owners, Camelot and Nintendo.

Under the Maple Tree

~Past: Seed~

What happens to the wind when its journey comes to a halt? Does it become one with the air or simply cease to exist? Can that without being meld with the harmony of the world? Unseen, unfelt, unnoticed; that which once was becomes that which never existed…

Cherry blossoms. A pink flurry of silky petals, the blossoms danced along the gentle spring breeze, fluttering down upon the greenery that painted the scene. Small ripples were left in their wake as each blossom descended onto the large pond, fashioning themselves into small, flowery boats.

Standing alone at the edge of the water was a man, wearing only a simple set of clothing and a cape to add some personal flair. His long, dark hair fell loosely behind his shoulders, with only a low ponytail to merely assist in keeping it together. Holding out a gloved hand, his dark irises examined a single cherry blossom as it fell perfectly into his palm.

It was beautiful, and yet it saddened him to see. Within a week, this untainted flower would wilt and disappear without a trace until this time in the following year. What was the point? What purpose did this beautiful cherry blossom serve? To be seen and marveled at for its pleasant qualities, only so that it could perish soon after…

He sighed as another gentle breeze blew by and carried the blossom atop his hand along with it. Allowing his hand to drop to his side, his attention was stolen by the presence of another.

"O-Oh, I'm sorry, Felix," the approaching woman said timidly, keeping her eyes averted from his. "Did…you want to be alone?"

"It's fine, Mia," the man, Felix, responded to her gruffly. Turning his attention back to the blossoms on the pond, he hardly even noticed as his shy companion silently moved to stand beside him.

The two stood in silence as they watched the pond ripple with each new flower. Mia brushed a few petals from her aqua-coloured locks, running her pale fingers through to comb them out. Felix watched her from the corner of his eye, also using the reflection upon the water to his advantage. He was hardly uncomfortable in this situation, but found it odd that Mia should wish to stand with him. They had hardly spoken to each other over the entire course of knowing one another, and he was rather indifferent about establishing any sort of relationship with the demure woman beside him.

"Have… Have you spoken to Jenna yet?" Mia asked shakily, the words coming out in a jagged manner that contrasted the serene atmosphere.

Felix said nothing at first, only continuing to watch the water with his stern gaze. Without a word, he slowly shook his head, grunting as he did so. Speaking to his sister now would only give her reason to worry unnecessarily. She had enough going on in her life, what with her upcoming wedding, and did not need something to bring down her spirits.

"I see," Mia said with an understanding tone. The two fell into silence yet again, neither sure whether an exchange of words was necessary at the moment. Despite the calming atmosphere of the pond and cherry blossoms, both adepts felt the tension within themselves.

Unspecified amounts of time passed as the two stood in tense silence, and the sky was soon painted with an array of reds and oranges to replace the blue: a watercolour painting in the sky. It was certainly beautiful, more beautiful than many of the sights Felix had had the luxury of experiencing in his life, and yet each memorable moment only added to his pessimistic outlook. No matter how beautiful the sunset, it only served as a reminder that another day had gone by, and that these blossoms were that much closer to disappearing.

"It'll be sad when they're gone," Mia spoke for the first time in a while. Felix cast her a rather uninterested look, to which she continued speaking, "The cherry blossoms, I mean. They're wonderful to look at. It's such a shame that their lifespan is so short."

Felix watched as a few petals lightly brushed past Mia's face, fluttering about as they came into contact. Her skin seemed so smooth, almost as she herself were as delicate as a cherry petal. Looking away, he roughly crossed his arms as he stared blankly into the distance.

"I hate them," he growled, not bothering to take in his companion's feelings. "They're just a reminder of how quickly things come and go. I can't stand having to put up with something so weak. It'd be better if they didn't exist."

"Felix…" Mia began, but stopped herself, knowing that anything she might try to say would only hurt both of them. It was clear he wasn't only referring to the cherry blossoms; in fact, it made more sense to assume that he hadn't been thinking about them at all, given the circumstances. She wished she didn't know the reason for his pain, wished she hadn't been the one to discover it herself, wished that it wasn't real, but it was. It was as real as the man standing before her, and nothing she could say or do at this point would help.

Another silence ensued as a starry blanket cast itself over the sky, illuminating the pond at which the two adepts stood surrounded by cherry trees. The light of the moon reflected itself off of the petal-covered waters, and the absence of wind left the scene in an eerie stillness.

Felix coughed a couple of times as the nightly chill began to set in. Balling his hand into a fist, the leather scrunched as it was rubbed against itself.

"I want to grow something."

Mia was caught off-guard, and looked at the man with confusion. He continued to gaze straight off into the distance, his dark eyes focused on nothing in particular. His odd statement was accompanied by a forlorn, melancholic expression, though she could tell that he was attempting to mask it with his natural face. Despite his best efforts, Mia knew that he was fighting internally with his mixed emotions. It was only made worse by the fact that she knew she could do nothing for him.

"Wouldn't something of that nature be a trifling task for you?" she asked, choosing to ignore his expression and the randomness of his statement. "You could grow something without batting an eye."

"No," he responded simply, keeping his gaze locked on the nightly horizon. "That would defeat the purpose of growing it. I want to plant something that will grow to be strong, something that will serve as a reminder that hard work can pay off in the long run. I'll do it by hand, the way nature would intend."

While his words sounded uplifting and full of resolve, Mia could not help but feel saddened by his proclamation. What he said was only a sad metaphor for what he could not do, could not be. She knew it as well as he did, but she also knew that to dissuade him would do more harm than good. His determination was what she wanted to see, wanted to feel, wanted to know firsthand. If this was to be his goal, then she wanted to assist him in this endeavour and any other he may wish to fulfill.

"If you'd like," she began slowly, keeping her gaze down as she pigeon-toed in slight embarrassment, "I-I could…help you…"

Felix glanced over to her as a small feeling of guilt washed over him. His intention was not to make her feel responsible for being the one to discover his cause for pain. There was no one to fault, for it was unforeseeable and nothing could be done. He wanted to let her know that she didn't have to worry about him and that everything would be all right, but he couldn't. Those were the words of powerless reassurance, and they meant nothing when he knew that things would not be all right. She knew better than he did, in fact, and his false bravery would only serve to show his own weakness.

"You don't need to feel obligated," he responded after a while, speaking in the same gruff manner he had been for this entire time. "Just because I-"

"It's not that," Mia cut him off, giving him a serious look. She cowered back a bit, however, when he turned to face her as well. "I thought that…that maybe it would be helpful if I assisted, that's all. You might have a natural green thumb, but growing things is easier when you have direct control over the water supply."

Felix paused, taking in her words as he determined the best way to move forward. Her help would be appreciated, but this was something he needed to prove to himself. This was how he would find salvation from his own inadequacy, his own lack of strength. He had to believe that his will was still strong, even if his body could not prove itself to the feats of his mind.

"You don't have to be alone," Mia spoke before he could make up his mind. "In fact, you're not alone, Felix, not anymore." With her lips curled up in a bashful smile, she nervously took his hand in hers, only gripping tight enough to keep them from falling from each other. "I'll help you see this through, not because I feel that I have to, but because I want to. I want to know you. I know the leader of the adept heroes, so now I want to know Felix, as a man and as a friend."

A chill ran up his spine as he listened to her words, forcing a cough out of him. He hardly knew Mia, but he knew enough to know that this was an extremely bold move coming from her. She genuinely wanted to help him, not just because the others could not, but because she really wanted to. There was no sense of obligation or guilt in her voice, and the grasp of her hand was so gentle that he would not have noticed her touch through his glove if he could not see it for himself.

"Okay," he said plainly, nodding slightly as he shut his eyes. "We'll grow something…together. Something strong and lasting: a tree." Holding out his free hand and concentrating, a greenish-gold glow began to emanate from his fist. His muscles tensed, and the blood vessels in his arms began to bulge on the surface of his skin. He was exerting more psynergy on this than would normally be required, but that knowledge only spurred him to continue. Just as the strain in his arm muscles began to give out, Felix relaxed his mind and opened his palm to reveal a pair of helicopter seeds.

"We'll grow this: a maple tree."

Gripping his hand slightly tighter, Mia smiled as she looked at the pair of seeds in his hand.

"Yes, we will. Together."

Where goes the soul of a flower after it has wilted and gone away? Can a being lacking in sentience truly have a soul? To have a soul is to exist and to exist is to be. Can there exist a soul without being or a being without a soul? What must truly be pondered and questioned, though, is simple: Is a soul not simply an existence without being or rather a being that lacks existence…

Well, it's short, but I wasn't planning on this having long chapters or anything. So there it is, chapter one of three. I think partway through it lost what should have been the artistic value that I was going for, but that's probably because having dialogue kills that a bit. Not to say that artistic stuff can't include dialogue, but it's a little easier when there isn't any. Even monologue can kill it a bit… Either that or I just thought it did while I was writing.

Anyway, not much to say, all the chapters will follow this format (though I haven't decided if each little italicized section will be about existence or if it'll be something new each chapter). Lemme know what you thought, and don't hold back on pointing out any issues (pacing, descriptiveness, etc.).

Thanks for reading and please review!

-GengaJupite