"Ash, are you listening?"
"Wha-?" Ash looked over at May, who was clearly annoyed. She shook her head in exasperation and continued to the others,
"See, told you; head in the clouds. Don't pay any attention to it Dawn, just keep going."
It was mid afternoon of the next day. Ash and the gang had decided to spend one more day hanging out before letting himself and Cynthia off to prepare for the final match. Usually, only a day would be given for the finalists to do so, however in this case an extra day was added because of preparations for the battlefield. Scott had mentioned that they were setting a slightly different stage for the battle, and Ash decided it was better not to ask. For all he knew, Scott was doing something even crazier than usual.
At the moment, they were all taking a tour of the southern reaches of Element City. Dawn, who knew most of the city by shopping everywhere, was acting as a guide for the group. She walked a little ahead of everyone, pointing out interesting places here and there along with important landmarks (clothing stores). Not surprisingly, Miranda, Cynthia, May, Misty, and Anabel were all completely following Dawn's every word. Ash, Brock, and Max were a little less than enthusiastic about it, but they kept up with the others. Out of desperation, Max began talking to Brock about aspects of training and breeding, for which Brock seemed quite relieved. A sudden burst of excitement rose from the front group, grabbing Ash's attention.
"Exactly. I couldn't have said it better myself," Dawn was saying. "I know you love what you do right now Gary, but it's too bad you don't have your own clothing shop. I know I'd be in there all the time." The others made general sounds of agreement. Gary however shook his head, holding up his hands, the image of modesty.
"You flatter me Dawn," he replied, "but I'm not saying anything impressive. Anyone can pick two things that look nice together; it's just a matter of taking the time to really give it some thought."
'Good god, I forgot he was here,' thought Ash, rolling his eyes at Pikachu, who returned the look clearly saying, 'Ugh don't remind me.' It wasn't that they disliked Gary. On the contrary, Ash was happy to see this unexpected guest. Still, he was Gary after all. As it happens, Gary had been in and out of Element doing work for his grandfather, Professor Oak. The day before he had brought Professor Oak and Ash's own mother, Delia, with him. He still hadn't gotten a chance to see either of them, but he knew he should soon.
The group continued to walk and Ash's mind returned to where it had been all day: Cynthia. Or more specifically, the time they had spent together the previous night while they looked at the stars. He had waited for her to do something; to say something. But in the end she had only said, 'It really is beautiful, isn't it.' That was it. What was going through her mind at the time Ash didn't have the slightest idea.
Above all, he was annoyed with himself for wanting something to happen; for expecting something to happen. When had become so arrogant to to think that she liked him any more than as a friend would? In the end, nothing had happened. Was Misty right? Was he overreacting? Reading too far into everything, not matter how small? Glancing over at Cynthia he thought of how close she had gotten to him and felt his pulse quicken. Did nothing really happen? And what about Miranda? His feelings regarding her weren't so simple either. When the hell did things get so complicated?
Mind overloaded with minor panic, Ash almost failed to notice a young boy standing almost directly in front of him.
"Wahh!" Ash veered sharply to avoid colliding with the small kid and lost his balance, landing to the side on his behind. Everyone turned quickly at the sound, also surprised by the sudden appearance of the child.
"Will!" came a cry from nearby. A middle aged man hurried over to the group, clearly after the kid. "Ah, I'm so sorry about that Mr. Ketchum, I guess he got a little excited." One hand resting on the boy's head to prevent him from moving, the man offered Ash his other, which he took, standing up.
"Don't worry about it, I should have been paying more attention anyway. And it's Ash," he added shaking the man's hand.
"Of course. My name is Issac, and this is my son, William," Issac said ruffling his son's hair. Will was looking at Ash is such a way that he couldn't tell what the kid might be thinking. "My wife and daughter are just behind us; we were out for a walk when the kids spotted you two and wanted to meet you," he explained, looking at Cynthia as well. "Of course, it is an honor to meet you as well, Champi- err, Cynthia." He changed what he was saying when she gave him a face. Ash knelt in front of Will so that they were about eye level. He was a young kid; probably six or so years old. Ash could see a woman and a young girl approaching from behind them. Probably the other half of the family.
"So, Will," he said to the boy, "what can I do for you?"
"Just wanted t' see you up close," he said shortly. Ash ignored the smothered giggles from behind him. Determined not to leave it at that he smiled and asked quickly,
"Do you want to become a Pokemon trainer when you're older?"
"I'm gonna be a Pokemon master, like Dad," he said proudly, puffing out his chest. At that moment, Ash thought he felt a small tug somewhere, but he couldn't place it.
"I see. He's strong?" Ash asked Will. Will, oblivious to all others, nodded.
"Yep, he's the strongest." Issac was scratching the back of his head, unsure how to respond to this. Ash however, was somewhat enjoying himself now.
"Well then, we'll have to battle sometime," said Ash, tilting his head slightly. Issac grinned.
"Absolutely. The next time you come to Element, swing by here and we'll have a match. Can't tire you out for the finals now, can we?" Cynthia walked over, leaving the other girls to their chatter.
"Yes, otherwise it won't be fun," she said nodding.
"Issac," called the approaching woman. The little girl stuck close to her mother at they drew even with the group. "Hello everyone, nice to meet you," said the mother immediately. "I'm Issac's wife, Lauren and this is our daughter, Samantha... who's already in heaven," she finished with a sigh, looking at her daughter. Samantha was completely enraptured by Cynthia, who from the look of it was used to such reactions. Spotting the small camera in the girl's hand, Cynthia said,
"Do you want to take a picture with me?" Samantha could only nod, bemused by this dreamlike day she was experiencing. While May took a couple pictures of the two, the parents turned to thank Ash.
"You really don't need to say anything," Ash said quickly, before they could. "To me, being a Pokemon trainer is one of the greatest things in life, so I'm always happy to advertise it, you know?" He laughed.
"Still," said Issac, "we greatly appreciate it." Lauren nodded, picking up where her husband stopped.
"And I must say, you've achieved so much even though you're still so young. Twenty years old and already on top of the world." She smiled. "Your parents must be very proud of you."
"My parents? Ahh. I mean, yes of course they are," Ash said, faltering slightly. Gary looked at him suspiciously but said nothing. The pictures were still being taken and the group was chatting loudly. Ash checked his watch. "I'm feeling restless so I'm gonna go on ahead. Gary, can you-" Ash trailed off, but Gary picked it up almost at once.
"Yeah, I'll take care of things here," he said, also checking his watch. Stepping on Max's foot to prevent him from saying anything, Gary moved to the family as Ash walked down the road with Pikachu on his shoulder. "Don't mind him, he's just probably hungry or something."
"Oh it's alright. I'm sorry to bother you all like this while you're taking the day to yourselves.
"Don't let it bother you one bit. We're all glad we stopped for a bit anyway. And plus, Ash always has his head in the clouds to begin with, so he probably wouldn't have realized it until it got dark."
After a round of thank yous and goodbyes the family of four continued on their way back home, as the group made their way in the direction Ash went. The moment that the family was clearly out of earshot, the silence evaporated.
"Why did Ash do that?" said Max at once, determined to get the first word in as Gary had stopped him earlier.
"Just use your head next time and read the situation better," said Gary flatly.
"Hey, don't be like that to my brother, he's not that bright to begin with," shot May, "and stop dodging the question."
"What is it?" said Cynthia, frowning. The others stared at him intently, waiting for him to clarify what had just happened. Gary said nothing, staring at the ground hard.
"It has to do with Ash's father, right?" asked Brock with a frown. "I thought he looked a bit off when they were talking about parents." Gary sighed heavily.
"You sure you want to know? You'll probably regret it," said Gary, continuing down the road, though now at a very slow pace. The streets were void of all life but them.
"I've never heard Ash mention his father before while I've been with him," said Miranda, sifting through her mind. "Even though we've been traveling around for four years."
"Honestly, that's not surprising at all," said Gary.
"Ash is our friend," said Dawn kindly. "I want to be able to support him, so please tell us." Gary looked at her a moment then nodded.
"Sorry, but I just need to make sure you guys understand how taboo this is around him. When I was a kid, Grandpa had rules that I had to follow always. Be kind to Pokemon, wash your hands a lot, don't leave the lab door open, and never under any circumstances mention Ash's father around him. I'm sure I missed a few there, but you guys get what I mean right?"
"To be honest," said May, "I never really even thought about it before. I mean I know about Ash's mom, but I never really thought about his dad at all. It's not like it ever came up."
"Is there something wrong with his father?" asked Miranda a split second before Cynthia, making the question sound like a discordant harmony.
"You could say that..."
XxxxX
Ash finally came to a rest in a small park somewhere. He had no idea where he was, but the random groups of bushes and trees that were close together in this park were just the isolation he was unconsciously looking for. He lay on his back, staring up into the lower branches of the surrounding trees. Pikachu was sitting on his chest, providing him with the kind of support that only Pikachu could do: shock therapy.
"Alright! I promise I wont run off randomly like that again without warning you first. Ouch..." grumbled Ash, still staring straight up. "I just... didn't know what to do, you know?" Pikachu's face appeared in front of his own, his ears twitching slightly. Ash didn't need aura to know what he was thinking. "You sure you want to hear about it? It's not a good story. Geeze, never thought I'd ever be explaining this to anyone." He sat up, Pikachu jumping down to his side, and tapped four of the pokeballs at his waist. At once he was surrounded by the Pokemon who had been battling at his side for years.
"What's wrong, Ash," asked Lucario, taking charge as he was looking around at the enclosure they were in.
"Ah, I was going to tell Pikachu a story but I guess he thought everyone should hear it?" Ash replied, unsure how to go about doing this. Pikachu nodded, sitting down. What was he supposed to say? That he just wanted to tell them about his sorry excuse for a father? There wasn't any point to this at all.
"That's not true, Ash," came a soothing voice from behind him. He turned to see Gardevoir standing o few feet away from the group, approaching slowly. Ash blinked; it was not often that he ever saw Gardevoir purposely walking on the ground or speaking aloud for that matter. She took a seat between Lucario and Zangoose, who nodded in agreement at her words.
"Yeah, we all want to know things about you. We want to share them with you..." Ninetales draped herself across his lap like an oversized cat. Behind her, Armaldo was sitting in silence, waiting for it to begin. He was always like that.
"Alright then," said Ash, seeing that he had everyone's full attention, "This won't be long or anything. It's more or less a little info on my life from when I was a kid- err a while before I became a Pokemon trainer," he corrected, feeling the slight time confusion from the group. Ash sighed and took a breath.
"The thing is, I never actually had a father."
"Never had...?" repeated Miranda, clearly troubled. "I don't understand, isn't that impossible?" Gary put his face in his hands. Sometimes this girl could be extremely unhelpful when it came to social tact.
"Well, obviously he had a father for him to be born in the first place," Gary said shortly. Seeing that she was about to say something else he continued quickly, "You see, the guy just wasn't around after the fact. As far as I know, only Gramps and Ash's Mom know what he even looks like. Apparently, he was a trainer who traveled all over the place for long amounts of time. That's what I was told... by Ash."
"I remember telling Gary and the others about how my dad was supposed to be this amazing Pokemon trainer who went all over the world and had dangerous adventures and so on and so on. In short, I wanted to be just as great as he was. I was about four years old at the time, I think." Ash took of his cap and ruffled his hair briefly. He was surprised at how easy it was to talk about this. "It wasn't just a story to me. I fully believed every word I said. I'm pretty sure that my mom and Professor Oak said the same kind of thing to the other adults if it ever came up; I mean, those two are the ones I heard about him from to begin with. But..." Ash paused, frowning as he remembered, "as time went on, I began to doubt. Not seriously at first, but enough that it stayed in the back of my mind. And then," Ash clenched his fist unconsciously, "I found out the truth."
–
Pallet Town, Oak's Lab, approximately 14 years ago.
Two small boys chased a Rattata across the yard. Apparently it was tired of playing with them because it quickly made an exit into the brush near the house.
"Aww man, I almost had it," said a young Ash, finally coming to a stop and sitting on the soft grass. Footsteps made him look around.
"Too bad Ash, better luck next time," said Gary. He sat down as well. "Maybe next time you should try something slower, like a Caterpie." Ash stuck his tongue out at his friend who was laughing.
Ash looked up at the sky. It was late in the evening, darkness falling over the quaint town. "I'm thirsty, can we get some juice?" Ash said after a second.
"Yeah, I'll ask Grandpa, come on." They walked into the house looking for Professor Oak. After a second they heard soft talking. "I guess your mom and Grandpa are still talking," Gary said.
"Let's go listen!" said Ash excitedly, and crept off.
"Wait Ash!" hissed Gary, following. He caught up to Ash at the end of the hall. "Ash we shouldn't-"
"Shhhh, Gary, shut up! I can't hear them."
"Who cares, this is stupid. I thought you were thirsty!"
"Shhhh!"
Earlier that day, Ash had celebrated his sixth birthday at the Oak Lab, courtesy of Professor Oak. Much of the remnant party decorations had already been cleaned and now the Professor sat at the dinner table with Delia, talking softly over coffee.
"But I really have to thank you again, Sam, for letting us have the party here," Delia was saying. "I wouldn't have asked normally but the house..."
"Looks like a couple of Tauros played tag in it, right? Not a problem, Delia, not a problem," said Oak shortly. "You have a lot on your plate. Running the restaurant and raising a child by yourself is no small feat."
"You seem to be managing alright," added Delia wryly. Oak chuckled softly, pouring himself another cup.
"Yes," he said, "but Delia, remember that I routinely deal with small creatures that have the ability to level houses."
"And how is that any different?"
They laughed in good humor. Gary shook his head, still uninterested, but Ash wasn't moving for anything. Professor Oak continued the conversation as the laughter died away.
"Now tell me, what's been bothering you lately? I know we haven't been able to talk decently for a while now because it's been so busy these past few months."
"It's about Ash," Delia said after a moment. Gary quickly glanced at Ash who had stiffened, looking worried. "Recently he's been bringing up his father a lot more than usual. He wanted to know why he hasn't come home yet at all, even for his birthday. How long am I supposed to keep doing this, Sam? I hate it; lying to my only son." Ash clapped a hand over his mouth before he made a sound.
What? Lying?
"Delia, your voice," Oak warned softly then continued, "To be honest I'm not sure. I feel that it is far too early to tell him, but I know we can't keep this from him for his whole life."
"That's just it though!" Delia's voice rose again, slightly hysteric. "Even though I have to tell him, just how do I tell my son that his father left us before he was even born. I don't want him to go through that like I did... when he left with E-" A thump from the hallway drew the conversation up short. Ash had fallen to his knees, his balance momentarily off. Gary was speechless, unable to move, staring at Ash.
No way.
"Did you hear that?"
Dad... left?
"It came from the hall, but aren't the kids outside?"
Before I was born?
"Don't get up, Delia, I'll check it."
No way.
Ash ran out of the building, the door bouncing against the frame.
"NO WAY!"
XxxxxX
Glancing around, Gary was already regretting that he had said anything to begin with; and from the look of it, they were regretting they ever asked; just as he said they would. He took a breath and instantly all eyes were on him.
"Grampa came to the hallway and found me standing there. That plus the door being slammed pretty much gave us up. Ash's mom ended up running out after him and I stayed inside. Grampa obviously wasn't going to tell me anything else. I asked if it was true, and he said yes. That was it." Gary stood up with a slight groan; he felt so worn out for some reason. "Satisfied? If you want to know any more then ask Ash yourself."
"I didn't run that far. Mom caught up with me pretty fast anyway. Long story short, I made it through the night, but I was totally different for a while; you know, moody and whatnot. Sure I was angry, beyond angry, but what could I do about it? I was a little kid after all. So I made a vow to become the most powerful and famous Pokemon trainer alive. A Pokemon master so great that no matter where that guy was in the world he would hear about me and see what a bad decision he made to leave; make him see what an amazing son he could have been the father of."
Ash looked around at the faces surrounding him and smiled. "But you know," he continued to them, "it's pretty silly to begin with. I mean, I practically forgot about the whole thing the day I got Pikachu from Professor Oak. It would come back to me occasionally, but the more people and Pokemon I met, the more friends I made, the less and less my reasons actually mattered. It was more about just doing it." Ash looked at his watch. He didn't really want to get back to the others just yet, but he was becoming restless just sitting around. In any case, his story was over.
It took a while to convince Ninetales that she couldn't just lay there forever. Even then she didn't want to get back inside her pokeball, so Ash decided to let her walk with him. It wasn't like he was trying to hide any of his Pokemon anymore. Gardevoir vanished as usual and the others were recalled, Pikachu taking his place on Ash's shoulder. "Well, how about a little walk before we find the others?"
XxxxX
"Hey, do you think that Ash just left?" suggested Max.
"Left? As in back to the hotel?" asked Cynthia, frowning in thought.
"Somehow, I doubt it," said Gary, scratching his head. "I mean, sure he wanted his time, but he's not exactly a kid anymore."
"I still don't think that there's any point looking around for him," repeated Miranda with a small sigh. "Gardevoir can take him wherever he wants so he'll come back when he does; and I know he will, that's just how he is sometimes," she added with a nod. The rest of the group exchanged silent glances. Sure they were all Ash's friends, but the Ash they had been reunited with recently was certainly far removed from the Ash of the past that they knew so well. Even after nearly a month, there were still plenty of occasions where he did something that caught them all off guard; though usually it was an attitude thing.
"You've said that, Miranda, but where's the harm in looking around?" Misty said, being patient for a change. To the others she continued, "Let's just ask someone if he's been around this way."
"That's if we actually see anyone else," said May. "I thought this city was supposed to have a ton of people living in it. So where in the world is everyone... oh."
May stopped short, unprepared for the abrupt change in setting. Within a matter of seconds, the small, seemingly isolated street they were following had suddenly opened up into a large plaza which was filled with activity. A burst of water drew everyone's attention to the large fountain that dominated the center of the area. Trainers and other people sat around the edges of the fountain watching the various water Pokemon that swam around inside it. Closest to the fountain were a number of small tables with seats, as well as the occasional snack vendor. People moved about here and there, going into shops that lined the perimeter and coming out laden with bags. A group of giggling teens passed right in front of them, absorbed in the outfits they had just bought.
"Dawn, you never mentioned this place when we were walking earlier," said May, giving Dawn a look of pure bewilderment. "Why...?"
"Don't look at me like that, I've never been here before!" she said quickly, putting up her hands in defense. "Seriously though, shops aside, the people in this city sure do love their fountains."
"What ever gave you that idea," joked Cynthia, watching as the water Pokemon let loose another round of vertical water guns. "Miranda? Where are you going?" Everyone looked at Miranda, who was starting to walk off to their right.
"I thought we were going to go ask someone about Ash, am I right?" She looked from the group to Cynthia, then continued walking.
"Uhh, why don't we just split up here and relax?" said Cynthia quickly, already moving to go after Miranda. "Just keep an eye out while you take it easy," and she was off, calling for Miranda to wait up. The others traded looks then shrugged.
"Searching and shopping? Works for me. Why don't we try..."
XxxxX
"I said wait, dammit!"
Miranda turned to see Cynthia hurrying over, her face disgruntled. "Sorry about that, Cynthia. Didn't hear you," she said as Cynthia came level with her. They continued walking along the perimeter of the plaza.
"Somehow I don't think that was the case," Cynthia said, irritated by the obvious lie. "Ears like a-"
"N-no!" Miranda stammered, biting her cheek at her sudden loss of control. "I meant I didn't hear you because I was lost in thought..." She glanced up into Cynthia's glare before looking at the ground and finished, "...about what Gary just said." At that, Cynthia's anger subsided. She looked at the depressed girl in front of her, suddenly giving the impression of being much younger than she actually was. Cynthia gave the immediate area a quick scan before finding what she wanted.
"Come on, let's get a coffee or something."
Five minutes later, the two of them sat in a pleasant cafe which was situated between a flower shop and an equally small clothing shop. Cynthia and Miranda were the only ones in the place apart from the middle aged man who sat behind the counter and the young waitress, who from the resemblance was most likely his daughter.
"Here you go," she said cheerfully, placing two identical mugs in front of Cynthia and Miranda. Miranda pulled her mug close and inhaled deeply, drinking the aroma. Before she could take a sip however she stopped, eyes darting between Cynthia and the waitress.
"What?" she said defensively, looking at them with suspicion. "You aren't tricking me or anything right?" Cynthia shook her head quickly while the waitress merely smiled, amusement in her eyes.
"I'm sorry, I don't mean to be rude or anything," the young girl said politely, "I've just never really met anyone who didn't know what hot chocolate was."
"Rin, I know you're having fun, but..." her father pointed at the front door, where two new customers had just entered.
"Ahh, sorry! Let me know if you need anything else, okay?" she added to Cynthia and Miranda. "Enjoy!"
The two sat in silence for a time, though the hot chocolate helped to warm them up. Miranda was staring into the bottom of her mug. She didn't know how to say what she was thinking; so much had happened in the past few days, it was like she didn't know anything again...or what to believe now.
"You..." began Cynthia, and Miranda looked up. "You really didn't know anything, did you," she continued after a pause. Miranda shook her head slowly.
"No, he never talked about his family really. Just that he lived with his mom... no siblings. I guess at the time it didn't really matter," she said softly. She sat up a little straighter. "Well, in a way it still doesn't. Ash is Ash."
"Yeah..."
"But you know," Miranda leaned forward and, as if there were others listening in to there conversation, lowered her voice, "I'm pretty sure we didn't get the complete story from Gary."
"What do you mean? You think he lied about something?" Cynthia said, frowning at the idea. Miranda shook her head.
"No, not lied, just not all the truth." Cynthia considered what Miranda had said.
"Well, I mean it's definitely possible. What makes you think that he intentionally left something out anyway?"
"I don't know, just a hunch," said Miranda with a shrug. "My hunches are usually right too so-" She stopped talking suddenly, completely still.
"Miranda, what-" but Miranda put up a hand to silence Cynthia who obeyed, sensing her seriousness.
"I heard the word 'aura'," she said softly, relaxing back to a more natural position. "The two women at the other table. Listen, you should be able to hear them fine actually." Cynthia gave Miranda a surprised look.
"Eavesdropping? Seriously?"
"It's a hunch. A hunch."
XxxxX
"You okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. Seriously, Gary, I'm fine." Ash was leaning against the side of a building at the edge of the plaza. Gary stood in front of him, looking uneasy. "And would you stop looking like that, you're making me nervous." Gary shook his head.
"Look Ash, I-"
"You told them all, right?" Ash said, cutting him off. Gary met Ash's eyes then nodded stiffly. Ash sighed in relief. "Ahh good. Well, that takes a load off my mind." Gary blinked, unsure of what he just heard.
"I just broke the biggest promise I've ever made with you and the first thing out of your mouth is 'ahh good'. You're taking this rather well, considering the subject matter," he said flatly. Ash pushed off the wall and clapped him on the shoulder, looking off into the distance.
"Gary, a good friend keeps his promises and knows when to break them," he said with false bravado. "But seriously though, it's cool. I mean, I haven't thought about that guy for a really long time anyway."
"Yeah, yeah, alright I got it. Paws off Ashey Boy," Gary said with an attempt at the younger version of himself, shaking off the hand. Ash grinned.
"So where's everyone else?" he asked, resuming his loitering position. Gary smirked.
"By everyone you mean Miranda and Cynthia right?" he said coolly, inspecting his finger nails innocently. Ash sighed, shaking his head.
"If you knew I meant that then why are you asking me such a pointless question?" he shot back. Satisfied with Ash's response, Gary shrugged. "Your guess is as good as mine. The whole group split up in this place and all I know is that those two went off together that way." He pointed to the other side of the plaza. Unconsciously Ash switched on his aura radar, looking for the two. Being so close, he found them instantly, and true to Gary's word, they were on the other side of the plaza. From their proximity and lack of movement, it appeared they were sitting somewhere together. "What is it?" asked Gary suddenly.
"Huh?" said Ash, confused by the question.
"You look like something's bothering you," he explained. They began walking across the plaza, Ash leading the way.
"Oh, nothing's wrong," said Ash thoughtfully. "It's just there's two other people right near Miranda and Cynthia, and one of them has an interesting aura... well both actually, but that's on a different level so never mind that. I feel like I kind of know one, but I wonder who it could be."
"Okay..." said Gary, shaking his head at the last bit. "So explain to me how you found them so quickly. Gimmie a break, it's actually pretty interesting." They started walking in a direction. Gary had no idea where they were going but Ash seemed very sure of himself.
"If you say so," said Ash, amused. "Well I'm not really sure how it works but it's more or less a radar for aura. So if I closed my eyes I could still tell you where everyone was. But that's pretty much it. I might be able to tell that there's someone fifteen feet in front of me, but that person could easily be behind a wall, or in a building or whatever."
"So, life detection," Gary said shortly.
"Yep," Ash nodded. "Oh, and it also doesn't tell me who or what a person is. I can only tell where specific people are if I know their aura in the first place. So if I don't know you I certainly won't be able to find you. And here we are," he finished, drawing their attention to the little cafe next to a flower shop. "Cute."
XxxxX
Oblivious to the pair of eavesdroppers mere feet away from their table, the two women carried on their conversation in good spirits. Suddenly, the younger of the two gave a start.
"Wah! Nel, did you feel that?"
Nel raised her eyebrows. "You mean when you kicked me just now?" she said with a smirk, her long platinum locks quivering slightly with suppressed mirth.
"Right. Been over this. You can't sense aura at all."
"Quite so, Em. So what was it? Looks like you got hit with ice water," said Nel.
"More like a pulse than anything," said Em, rubbing her arms like they were numb.
"You're right, even your hair looks a little charged," said Nel, looking at the younger woman's hair. Instantly Em's hands shot to her short, jet black hair. Seeing that Nel was just playing with her, Em dropped her hands and continued,
"Alright, you win. Anyway someone with a lot of aura just sent a big wave of it over the area, and now I can tell he's getting closer." Em closed her eyes for a second then said, "Actually he's heading right at us, give or take a shop," she added with a shrug.
"If you only knew how paranoid that just sounded..." Nel mused.
"Do I seriously look worried in the slightest? If something does happen then I'll take him out, no sweat. Jeeze, you don't have to look that disbelieving, it was a joke." Em grumbled a bit, making Nel smile.
"How do you know it's a him?" asked Nel, changing the subject. Em folded her arms across her chest.
"Well it sure as hell isn't a girl. Girls are more, uhhh, gentle?"
"Gentle like you, or gentle like me?" said Nel slowly, grinning to show teeth.
"Like the waitress," Em chuckled then finished off her drink. "Joking aside though, now that he's closer I can tell he's definitely Guardian level but doesn't seem like much more than that. Aura's a little strange though... it kinda flickers..." she faded out, lost in thought.
"I guess we'll find out who it is when he get's here then," said Nel lazily, leaning back in her seat and looking at the door.
"Huh? Oh yeah," Em said quickly, looking at the door. "He's here."
XxxxxX
The first thing that Ash saw when he entered the quaint cafe was Nel. She was impossible to miss sitting against the far wall in a booth, staring directly at him, trying to make out his face through the afternoon glare of the sun. She was sitting with a young woman who he figured was a little older than himself. A quick glance around the cafe showed him that the place was otherwise practically empty, with the exception of another couple a few booths down. Cynthia and Miranda were watching the door as well.
"Good afternoon. Shall I set up a table for two?" The young waitress startled him but he kept it hidden.
"No, thank you," Ash replied, "we're actually meeting up with them." He gestured to the back tables and said softly to Gary, "Just go sit with Cynthia. Tell her to get ready to leave." Gary hesitated, clearly wanting to ask questions, but he decided against it. As Gary was making his way to Cynthia and Miranda, Ash quietly continued to the waitress, "We're all about to leave so where can I pay for their tabs?"
"Oh, of course. At the counter with my father," she said, confused.
After paying for the two tables, Ash walked casually over to Nel's table, stopping a foot away. Nel's companion had glanced at Gary as he went to the other table before returning her attention to Ash.
"Hello, Nel, remember me?" Nel's grin widened in apparent delight.
"All grown up and an Aura Guardian to boot. My how the time flies," she said, her voice hard to read.
"So you've heard about me? I'm touched," Ash matched her tone. He leaned over placing his hands on the table and continued, "So tell me, when did you get your memory back?" Nel laughed lightly.
"Damn, and I was hoping you wouldn't notice, too. Some girl who was helping me brush my hair seemed to pull a bit too hard. Made everything snap right back," she said with a shrug. Ash shook his head lightly at the ridiculousness of the scenario. Suddenly her tone became much more normal, all playfulness gone. "It's been so long and so much has changed since I last... saw the world this way. Pull up a chair, Ash, there's so much to catch up on."
Ash stood up, shaking his head. "You know, I was just thinking the same thing but I can't sit. You see, we were actually all just leaving."
And they vanished.