Disclaimer: I do not own DanMachi or any of Omori's original characters, nor do I make any profit off of my writing.
Aiz plucked a loaf of bread from a stand in the market district, tossing the vendor a far too large coin purse as she went. She probably paid way too much but she couldn't find it in herself to care.
She continued on her way, not breaking stride nor straying from her destination.
Bell was standing beside the tall red headed man from his familia (what was his name again?) silently as the blacksmith negotiated with a vendor for materials.
Without stopping, she grabbed a firm hold of his sleeve and pulled him along behind her. He didn't so much as squeak out in surprise as she tugged him away from his familia member and into the crowds.
"Aiz?"
She hummed.
"What's going on?"
She cast a contemplative look back toward him as she shouldered through a thicker congregation of people. A singular golden eye peaking over her shoulder and scanning his face warily.
"You're upset."
Bell blinked. He knew that, how did she know that?
She turned back away before he could ask, the two finally spilling out into a more open street, away from the busy markets. Still, Aiz resolutely kept her grip on his sleeve firm and continued directing him toward the east, avoiding the heavily casted other arm of his.
"Where are we going?"
"Away."
Bell sighed and allowed her to lead him. He didn't have the energy for this today, whatever this even was. He hadn't protested when Welf had asked him to accompany him to the market, but he hadn't really wanted to go. Bell was certain the older smith had only invited him out so he hadn't felt cooped up in the house from his injury, certain the young boy was going stir crazy. He wasn't. In all honestly, all he wanted was to stay at home, lay in bed, and read the books his grandfather wrote for him.
Under normal circumstances, he would have been absolutely thrilled to spend the day with Aiz (even more so that she sought him out and paid close enough attention to know when he was having an off day), but his heart just wasn't in it today.
Bell sighed, deep and resigned, shutting his eyes and exhaling heavily through his nose. The warm air ghosting over the skin of his lips and parting over the top of his forearm, rippling the fabric of his long, black sleeves.
After several minutes of mutual silence, they reached their apparent destination.
"Aiz?
She hummed.
".. why?"
He didn't get it. If he wanted to see decrepit buildings he'd have gone to his and Hestia's first home, not some random compound in south eastern Orario. All he could really make out between the collapsing walls and long, creeping vines was the top bit of a metal plague inlaid on the brick wall.
'Stardust Gardens.'
The rest had been pretty damn well covered in either grime, tarnish, or rubble; he didn't really know nor care. He was just confused.
"I find this place calming, follow."
He did.
Past the gate wasn't all that different from what he'd already seen. Overgrowth mostly. But there was a certain.. he didn't really know, a certain feeling the place had. The gardens were beautiful even in their disarray. The flowerbeds had lost their edge, the soft grasses having long since encroached on the spaces normally reserved for the bushes and the perennials. The explosions of color that lined the walls had grown taller and more wild, Bell imagined they'd one been pristine, meticulously trimmed and cared for to show nothing but refined beauty.
There was a tree in the center, a large cherry blossom tree dotted with what felt like more clumps of white flowers than leaves. Occasionally, a petal would fall, twirling and spinning and floating through the air as it descended slowly.
Bell's ruby eyes watched as yet another petal fell, tracing its path through the air until it came to a rest on the surface of a small pond. The thinnest of ripples extended outward from the point of contact, barely even visible over the entirety of the water. Bell was silent as it moved, ever expanding, toward the stones that lined the banks.
A flurry of motion caught his eye on the other side of the water, far large ripples following in the wake of the most colorful duck Bell had ever seen. The crown of the bird's head was covered in brilliantly emerald feathers, feathers that shined and gleamed beneath the mid-days un. The greens faded easily into iridescent shades of muted purples and yellows and blues further back, all contrasting nicely against the bright yellow and red of the short bill.
The head was distinct from the rest of the body, cut off from the torso by sections of pure black and white feathers. A section of these black feathers curled down from the back of the duck's head, creating a crown of sorts that ended in a point just above the bird's furled wings.
His chest – and Bell was certain the bird was a he with that many colors – was a soft brown. If Bell had to equate the color with anything, it reminded him most of the mahogany finish of the furniture in the Hearth Mansion. Warm and inviting.
There were other colors mixed in with the bird's feathers too, a belly of tan, wings of blue and turquoise, eyes of the purest orange he'd ever seen. The bird was simply beautiful.
"He's the only who's remained."
Bell turned away from the bird to find Aiz kneeling at the edge of the pond, the loaf of bread that had gone unnoticed by the boy now opened with a slice between her fingers. Catching his eye, she nodded toward the solitary duck in the pond.
"There used to be more. A few brown ones and another colorful one like him."
Bell nodded. It only made sense; this one didn't look particularly young (from the little his grandfather had taught him of birds). If there had been more, it was unlikely they would stick around the same pond their entire life when they would need to find mates.
Still, he didn't say anything. It was odd, having their roles reversed, with Bell taking on the role of contemplation and silence and Aiz being the one actively pursuing conversation.
The swordswoman pats the spot in the grass beside her, a gentle smile on her lips. It was really only the smallest of curls of the lip, but it was enough to convey the message.
Bell kneeled down in the grass and accepted the proffered slice of bread in one hand without complaint.
They sat together in silence for a while, only occasionally broken by the soft plop! that accompanied the disappearance of a torn piece of bread by a fish. The duck was still wary, not coming close enough to eat any of the food but still growing closer.
Aiz hadn't been lying when she said the place was calming.
The only issue with that was it left more time for Bell to get lost in his thoughts, thinking about what had been upsetting him the entire day.
Almost immediately Aiz noticed the downward turn of his mood.
"You know," she began, smirking inwardly when Bell's wide eye stare moved over to her (gotcha!). She spared the boy another small smile as she tossed another piece of bread toward the water. "I think we should name him."
"Name him?"
She hummed, nodding toward the wood duck floating at the surface. Its head ducked under the water as they did, sending rivulets of water spiraling through the air as it shook its head free from the moisture. "He deserves one."
Bell nodded. He supposed he did.
Still, he didn't offer any suggestions, so Aiz was forced to take control again, no matter how uncomfortable and awkward she thought she was being. She didn't really know what she was doing. This wasn't her element. Point her at a monster and she'll be more than happy to slay it, but this? This was hard.
"Bell Junior?"
He raised an eyebrow at that but didn't so much as lift his lips. She thought it was funny but whatever.
"Fish."
No such luck with that one other.
"Feathers?"
It felt weird to name a duck 'Feathers' but she supposed it kind of it. More so than duck at least.
Bell pursed his lips. "I think that's more of a girl's duck name. Maybe one of his sisters."
Aha! She got something!
Little Aiz did a few cartwheels in her mind in her excitement, something Aiz would have joined in with if she wasn't– well, Aiz. Instead, she merely scooched closer to the despondent boy and waved her hand through the air in an effort to get him to explain further.
When he didn't, she sighed. So much for her success. This sucks. Bell was the happy one of the two of them, this was so hard. How did he do this all the time – be so talkative and cheerful – it felt like she was talking his ear off right now. She was practically rambling with how much she was speaking; it was mortifying!
"How do you know that?"
His face fell and Aiz immediately backtracked, trying to recover all of the ground she made up.
"N- no, wait! I- I mean, I– uhh.. you– you don't have to answer that! Just– I– don't– eugh!"
She sucked at this! Why did she think she could make him feel better? She was no good with emotions, all she was doing was making things worse.
Bell was silent for a while longer, something Aiz just couldn't forgive herself for.
I should have just gotten Tiona. Or Tione. Or one of his familia members, the smith was right there for heaven's sake! Even Lefiya would have been better at this!
Bell sucked in a long, shuddering breath and Aiz recoiled, expecting him to stand and leave her after her blunder.
Instead, he just looked away, staring listlessly over at the vibrant colors of the flowering bushes.
"My grandfather told me."
Aiz glanced over, not entirely sure if what she'd heard on the wind had been words or not.
"What was that?"
Bell sighed and turned to look over at her, giving her a weak smile. "My grandfather taught me about birds."
Aiz cocked her head to the side. "He did?" Aiz had always just assumed Bell's family had been like hers, a loving mother and father who showered him with care and affection, reading him plenty of hero books, just as hers had done. Was that not the case?
Bell nodded. "He liked them."
Aiz hummed. "Tell me more about him."
His eyes flicked over to her nervously and the fingers of his one good hand fidgeting in his lap. Still, he only gave an uneasy laugh before nodding. "Well, he was old. He liked heroes more than anything, he'd write and draw these books for me because he said the common copies never quite got the stories right." He shrugged. "He raised me my entire life, for as long as I could remember it was just us."
Aiz nodded, her eyes sad but not pitying as she listened.
"We'd do lots of things together. I'd help him till the fields at the start of the growing season and he'd help me water the plants after. We'd hike a lot too, walk over to one of the clear springs that descended from the mountains around the village."
Bell nodded softly to himself, the bread in his hands completely disregarded as he began idly plucking blades of grass from the ground and twirling them between his fingertips. "He told me lots about birds, the different kinds, their songs, the weird little dances some did, even how they named their young."
"How did he know all that?"
Bell smiled ruefully. Sadly.
"He was a weird man, I'm not even sure half of what he said wasn't in his imagination."
Aiz didn't agree or disagree. She didn't know that man so she couldn't really say. Instead, she asked a different question.
"So.. what would he have named him?" She pointed toward the duck in the center.
Bell regarded the creature for a few moments and smiled. It wasn't much, but it seemed all that more steady this time. "I think he would have called him Ramfos."
As if understanding his words, the duck moved closer, coming nearly to the shore in front of them.
Aiz smiled and let out a faint tinkling of laughter. "I think Ramfos agrees."
Quack!
Bell too smiled, discretely wiping a tear from his eye as he nodded in agreement. It would seem so.
It'd been five months now since his grandfather had disappeared, passed, left him. He didn't know which was true. All he knew was that the person he had relied on his entire life, the one bit of family he had in the world was gone. He didn't know how or where; he wasn't even really sure he trusted the village elder's words when he said the old man had been killed by goblins.
All he knew was that his grandfather was gone and he might never see him again.
And it was hard. He pushed the thoughts out of his mind most of the time, not allowing himself to think to much on how he was the last of his line. Not giving himself the time to grieve.
It'd gotten better over time – the aching in his chest, but it still hurt to remember. He wasn't sure if he really wanted it to end though, because if it did wouldn't that just mean it was because he'd stopped caring for the man?
He didn't know.
He never really had to mourn his mother or father, whoever they may be, nor anybody else he may have called family in another life. He never knew them, but he knew his grandfather.
Today had just been a low point, another anniversary of the day passing by like it was nothing. He hadn't wanted to burden anybody with his down mood, so he kept it all tucked away inside.
Bell glanced over at Aiz.
Maybe he should stop doing that.
"Thank you, Aiz."
"Anytime, Bell."
Leave a comment with any ideas you have for the next chapter!