Journal 19: Kisses

Winning the PA made my day, especially since Elincia picked Begnion Square's Christmas Festival as our trip. I was so excited; we were going to Begnion in two weeks! It was indeed pretty far from Crimea, since we had to cross either Daein or Gallia to reach it. Eliwoood was quite skeptical at first, but he noted that we were going to be with tough-as-nails Vaida, along with Jaffar, Louise and Serra. Serra had some knowledge of first aid, so she was allowed to come along.

Note that I said "allowed"…she begged (and even tried to bribe!) Eliwood to let her accompany us. I was in the Academic office that day, waiting for a gate pass to be signed, so I heard the whole thing.

Flashback:

"Two of my students are in there," she smiled sweetly; "surely you wouldn't deprive me of encouraging them and seeing them at their full potential?"

Eliwood sighed, and, since he had lots of paperwork to do, just nodded and said, "Well, just make sure they're safe. Since you're a part-time nurse, bring your first-aid kit along in case something goes wrong."

"YAY!" Serra screamed, clamping down on Eliwood's neck, nearly cutting off his oxygen supply. "Thanks a lot, Red!"

As she skipped out the door, Eliwood rubbed his neck and mumbled, "My name's not 'Red'…what kind of faculty members do we have nowadays?"

End Flashback

I placed the permission slip on my study desk to remind me to ask my mom to sign it so that I could go. Hopefully, Elincia's father would allow her to go, too. I settled on my bed and opened my Biology book. Even though we were allowed to go on that trip, it still didn't give us an excuse to miss tests and lectures. But a one day trip would be worth the stress.

I rolled over and stared at the ceiling. Perhaps that trip away from all this chaos was all Ellie and I needed to rekindle our relationship. After all, it wasn't anyone's fault, we were all so busy with schoolwork, and laying low was an added difficulty, even with our guise as "friends." I didn't spend as much time as I'd hoped to with her lately. I was really impatient for the Christmas break so that we could at least enjoy another day together before being with our respective families. With corporate bigwigs as parents, being together under one roof was rare, so having family time was really special to us.

My train of thought was interrupted as Geoffrey materialized in the doorway. "Oh, good, you're awake," he said, "I thought you were asleep."

I wisely kept my mouth shut. He was already my opponent over Elincia, and if he knew that we were on opposite sides—him being with the Chosen while I with the Silent Rose—it would cause me more, unnecessary trouble. "Did you need something?" I asked him, watching him carefully in case he began pawing my private stuff. He paused a moment, as if he momentarily forgot why he came here in the first place. "Uh, yeah, I needed your old report in Manners Class. Your teacher was sir Lucius too, right?" Wow. Nice save, Geoffrey.

"Yeah, let me get it for you." I said, getting up from my bed and looking through my old notes. "So, how's Elincia?" Geoffrey asked. With my back toward him, I was glad that I didn't see the smirk I heard in his voice. "She's doing fine." I replied. Keep it short and to the point, Lucia, I thought to myself. He doesn't need to know any more than he already does.

"Hah! You should know!" Geoffrey remarked. "What's that supposed to mean?" I asked, turning around and handing him the report. "You're her girlfriend, right? Shouldn't you like be keeping in touch with each other?" he said. I winced, noting that each word he emphasized carried a double meaning. This conversation was turning ugly, and I was thinking of a way to end it quickly. "Listen, Geoffrey, just call a spade a spade* OK? I'm not catching on." I sighed.

"What happened to my normally intelligent sister? Is Elincia all what's inside your mind now?" Geoffrey taunted. I was about to tell him to step out, but suddenly, something on my study table caught his attention. And that something was my permission slip. "Hey, what's this?" he asked, picking it up and scanning it.

"Geoffrey, you only came here for my Manners Report, right?" I rolled my eyes, trying to keep my patience in check.

"What? That's where principal Eliwood allowed you to go?" he sounded shocked as he continued to read the form.

"Yes, he did." I answered. "Here, take the report and go. I have to study for my Biology test tomorrow." Geoffrey took the file without saying anything else, but as our eyes met, I saw a mixture of jealousy, anger—and sadness.

I sighed again as I returned to my forsaken book.

Even if we didn't see eye to eye, he was still my brother. But why was he making things so difficult? Perhaps unrequited love brings out the dark side of your psyche. It twists and changes your personality until you have something way different that what you've started with. Hey, perhaps I should be a philosophy teacher in the near future!

My train of thought was interrupted when my bedside phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Lucy! You're not going to believe this!" Just the sound of my beloved's voice brought a smile on my face and made me forget about Geoffrey's sad face...at least for a while.

"What is it, Ellie?" I asked, playing along for her although I already knew the answer.

"My parents allowed me to go!" she exclaimed. "How about you? Did they allow you?" "M-my parents aren't home yet, but I'll call you as soon as I get my permission slip signed." I sighed.

"Oh, I see. I won't keep you long, then, I know we have a quiz tomorrow." Elincia replied, "But I'll be expecting that call. Sometime tonight, I hope."

I could hear the smile in her voice. "I promise I'll call you back later." I said, "The moment I get that form signed."

As soon as I hung up, I heard the family car approaching the driveway, and a few moments later heard my mother's voice asking Geoffrey how his day was. I snatched my permission slip from my desk and hurried to greet my mother.

"Hello, Lucia," she smiled, "and what have you got there?" "Oh, uh, the modern dance club just won this month, so Principal Eliwood allowed us to go to the Christmas Festival in Begnion. I was hoping you would allow me to go." I explained.

"Is that the permission slip?" she asked.

"Yes, mom." I answered, handing it over. Her eyes read over the fine print as meticulously as Geoffrey did a few minutes ago. After a few tense moments (for me, at least), she pulled out her pen and signed it. My sigh of relief was audible. "Now," my mom said, turning to me, "promise me you'll take care of yourself, and don't get into any trouble. Call me when you get there."

"T-thanks, mom!" I exclaimed, hugging her tightly. "I won't forget!"

I barreled down the hallway and ran back to my room, quickly dialing a now familiar number. "Ellie, we're going to Begnion!"

The Christmas Festival was one of Begnion's biggest events. As soon as we arrived into Begnion territory, snow began softly falling. "It's perfect!" Mia whooped, "it's like something right out of a storybook!" "Now, keep your head on your shoulders, girl!" Vaida ordered. "Don't tell me you left it behind in Crimea!"

We all laughed as we piled out of the bus, eager to stretch our legs after the long drive. "OK, gather around for our schedule, everyone." Louise announced. "It is now 11 AM; our first performance will be at 2 P.M. You have more than enough time to check out the bazaar and have your lunch. Be back before 1:30 P.M., and always stay with your partner."

After a few more precautions and rules, we were finally free to do what we pleased—at least until 1:30. "Hey, Lucia," Elincia said, snuggling closer to me, "do you remember what Sephiran told us to look for when we arrived?"

To be honest, I totally forgot. I was just too excited to spend some alone time with her.

Elincia laughed at the cluelessness written all over my face. "He told us that if we look at the archway before the Mainal Cathedral, we would see a peculiar decoration of leaves and berries in the shape of a ring which is called'mistletoe.'"

"And what is so important about this 'mistletoe'?" I asked.

"You'll see when we get there." She replied.

I sighed. If there was one thing about her, she loved keeping me in suspense.

We walked in silence for a few more minutes, until she suddenly stopped and pointed at the archway. "Do you see it, Lucia?" she asked. I squinted a bit, and walked back a few steps. "Oh, yeah, that ring of leaves…that's the mistletoe?" I asked, looking at her. Elincia nods, still smiling. "OK, I see it now. So, before I go crazy with the suspense, what in Ashera's name is so good about this mistletoe?"

Elincia didn't say anything, but took my hand and we walked until we were directly under the mistletoe. She looked into my eyes, placed both hands on my cheek, and leaned forward. I returned her kiss, and in that instant, it felt like we had our first kiss all over again. I felt the same passion as I did back then.

After breaking the kiss, I held her close as she whispered, "Sephiran told me that when lovers meet under hanging mistletoe, they are obliged to kiss. I don't know why, exactly, but the feeling I had when I kissed you under it was special, as if we had our first kiss again." So she felt it too! I thought happily.

Hugging her tighter, I whispered, "Merry Christmas, my princess. I love you." To which she replied, "I love you too, my swordmaster. Merry Christmas."

MS Notes: I'm aliiiive! Well, I have no excuses. It's not Christmas, but story-wise, it is. Heheh. I have absolutely no good reason to explain my lengthy absence except that I was struck by laziness + writer's block. But I hope that this satisfies my patient readers and reviewers (I love you all, thanks for not giving up hope!), and that this not the last chapter before I vanish for another 2+ years.

Again, I love you all :P

*"Calling a spade a spade" means to speak honestly and/or directly about a topic.