Author's Note: Hello all. This is part two to Dat Booty. I was actually satisfied with the one-shot I had of the story, but I decided to add this part because I didn't get to put in Ira's dream about Ava. I took that section out since it didn't feel necessary. Ira telling himself he made the crush Ava had on him worse was a good closer, but I liked the bromance he and Aced shared in the movie and I liked how it was written here. I just didn't show much of it, and my original file had way more in it. So, basically if you're still with me, part two is just about Ira having a dream about Ava in response to her sort of dream about him. Aced pretty much has a field day when he hears about it because that's what bros do. At least that's what I think they do when girls aren't around or when they care the slightest bit. Enjoy! ;-D
He was so doomed.
DOOMED!
After Odie left his side to watch the wielders in his union, Ira was walking through the streets of Daybreak Town alone again to return to the Tower. He couldn't believe his plan made things worse. He could believe he scared Ava a little bit at first by stealing her first kiss it seemed like, and that's what he intended to do: scare her with his own desires. On his own, though he wouldn't admit it in front of anyone, Ira was a demanding person. Of course, he would never force himself on a woman, but if she was a willing lover then let's just say he had a few things in mind that could make the night interesting... for him. Ideally, his adventurous side in that area could be tamed by (or evenly matched with) the woman of his dreams, but who the hell would tell that to a child with a crush on him? That's terrible! Which is why he was back to square one when the master told him about the damn dream she had of him. Why did he need a glass of water anyway? Any other time he would just get his water in the morning after taking care of his personal hygiene or whatever. The one night he decides his throat is drier than a salty biscuit not to have water is the one night this bullshit happens. Why?
He just couldn't believe it. Well, no, he didn't want to believe it. If Ava was the pure, innocent little girl he thought she was, she would have detested the mere notion of desiring him. That's what a normal girl would do if some guy, who was older than herself, put himself on a platter and served her inappropriate options of a future together. So what gives? As Ira was trying to figure it out, his findings were becoming too inconclusive. He made Ava attracted to him more some kind of way. He didn't even know why she kissed him and ran away from him so happily. Dammit! As he was rushing down the street, he noticed Aced monitoring the citizens of Daybreak Town from the bridge overlooking the water. Luxu mentioned that he saw his crush feeding the fish there. Damn kids... Hoping to just nod in greeting to his comrade and keep going, Ira gained Aced's attention and made him turn to him to talk.
"Ira?" Aced questioned, noticing the man's flushed face. "What happened?"
"Nothing of importance," Ira responded a little too quickly.
"Don't give me that," Aced said, folding his arms and approaching his friend. "You look like you're about to bolt at the sound of a gun. What's going on?"
"It's nothing," Ira answered a little more calmly. When he saw that Aced was frowning and unconvinced, Ira sighed in frustration and said, "I think I fucked up to be honest."
"Oh, is it Tuesday already?" Aced questioned, smirking at Ira's short growl.
"Thank you and goodnight," Ira replied, waving a hand in annoyance while rolling his eyes.
"Well, let's hear it," Aced said, chuckling and unfolding his arms. "It can't be that bad. You're hardly ever upset."
"I - " Ira started but ultimately just stuttered for a couple of seconds before he noticed that Aced was beginning to grow concerned for him. He rarely ever stuttered a response to something. Ira then looked around to make sure no one was eavesdropping and said in a whispered tone, "I... I kissed Ava on the mouth."
"..." Aced was frozen for a good five minutes before he shouted, "WHAT!?"
The power behind that voice was strong enough to startle a few Heartless away from ambushing them because a few Darkball Heartless politely went the opposite way of the bridge to attack other citizens. Even Invi heard it from another part of town, but her Chirithy appeared before she could run to the source of the screaming. Aced was a capable fighter, but who knows what could have happened for him to scream like that? Gula was in the middle of speaking to a wielder when he heard the noise in the distance, but he only shook his head and said something about crazy bears. Ava didn't hear the noise but she heard the rumble. She was busy purchasing a peppermint oil from an old man's shop and putting a sticker of a white horse on top of her bottle of scrub. Ira frantically slammed his hand on Aced's mouth and dragged him to the Tower where they could speak privately. Rather than climb all the way to the top, however, Ira just dragged Aced to the sitting room on the first floor. It was supposed to be for guests, but the master ultimately decided he didn't want any wielders disturbing them. When he shoved Aced on a long couch opposite of the one Ira flopped down in, he took off his unicorn mask and rubbed his temples again. He was surprised by Aced taking his bear mask off. Now, see, Aced was a nice-looking man. Why couldn't Ava fantasize about him instead? They were closer, right?
"Whatever it is you're thinking, the answer is no," Aced said, narrowing his eyes.
"You're too noisy anyway," Ira mumbled, covering his face with his hands. Damn closet mind-reader!
"I once thought you were too noble," Aced remarked. "And there's two keywords there. When I said self-control was the code, it wasn't meant for you but apparently it should've been."
"The master told me what the dream was about already. There's no need for a code," Ira said through his hands before screaming in frustration.
"So what? Were you that turned on by a teen having the hots for you?" Aced questioned.
"No," Ira said, putting his hands down. "The master said to get rid of her crush so she could focus on her role. She only liked me because I spoke to her after I got out of the showers. Since that was the case, I figured that if she knew about my sexual interests - mind you, without saying that they were - then she'd turn tail and run off. No more crushing and more focusing. It worked at first because she was confused by me changing my personality so fast and so much. Out of nowhere, she kissed me."
"WHAT!?" Aced shouted, making everything inside of the Tower shake violently. Luckily, nothing glass broke.
"Shh!" Ira hissed. "Will you stop that?"
Aced stuttered for a minute, unsure of how to respond, and then finally said, "Okay. Tell me as best as you can what happened."
"Okay," Ira nodded, thinking back to after he had spoken to the master. "That morning, after the master told me about Ava's dream, I thought of a plan to scare her - not traumatize her because that'd ruin us as the five lights that could protect the world - but just enough to no longer have a crush on me. She could instead have one on Luxu or Gula because of their age similarities."
"Right," Aced agreed, nodding his head and pinching the bridge between his nose and eye line. He had the same reaction Ira did when he first heard about Ava's dream. How does something so innocent as a dream destroy two men?
"Right, so I decided to tell her my dream massage and to make it as explicit as possible. I mean, a child wouldn't want to be that involved with an adult male, right?" Ira questioned, though more to himself. When Aced hummed and nodded in agreement, Ira continued, "But the master said that in Ava's dream that's exactly what I did and that's what led to it being... you know the story already."
Aced inhaled sharply and then sighed to exhale and said, "Yeah."
"So I scrapped that idea. Since I didn't want to just force myself on the girl, I settled with just having multiple personalities like an identity crisis," Ira said. "Most girls hate trying to figure a guy out, right?"
"I'm about to have an identity crisis right now if you don't get to the damn point," Aced said through a headache forming.
"Right. I went down to my old meditation area just to clear my head, and Ava showed up with my Chirithy in her arms. At first, I was worried because I thought she was going to tell me her dream, but she was just giving me the Chirithy. Right then, I remembered flirting with an old girlfriend of mine before I became a Foreteller, so I pretty much did the same thing to Ava. But I wasn't thinking and I kissed her since that's exactly what I did with my ex at the time."
"Oh my God!" Aced said, covering his eyes with the palms of his hands before pulling his hair back to look at Ira incredulously. "The one time you don't think is the one time you needed to think."
"I know!" Ira shouted in his hands to muffle himself. "But I thought it worked because she was trying to see if I was even the same person. And then I changed personalities twice after that. When I named my Chirithy, Odie, she kissed me."
"Wait," Aced said, holding up his hand and getting a good look at Ira. "Why did you name your Chirithy Odie?"
"It's short for daffodil," Ira answered. "Ava and the Chirithy were looking at my journal of the flowers I found in the area. Daffodils make me smile when I look at them, and the Chirithy said he wanted to make me happy."
"Why were they looking in the book?" Aced asked.
"I used to study geology in the area. I know how to make scrubs and oils from scratch, so I was gonna teach Ava how to make her own. Cheaper than buying one anyway," Ira replied. "There was nothing special behind it."
"What flower did Ava choose?" Aced asked.
"I don't remember the name of it, but it was a wild orchid. Butterflies love the thing," Ira said.
"How did that orchid make you feel when you saw it?" Aced asked, placing his hand on the coffee table between them.
"Adventurous. It smelled like a jungle berry, so it inspired me to want to go exploring," Ira answered. "What are you thinking of?"
"I'm thinking you're fighting a losing battle," Aced sighed, leaning back in the couch. "You said Odie picked the daffodil as an oil fragrance to make you happy, right? Why do you think Ava chose the wild orchid?"
"To be honest, I thought it was the butterflies," Ira replied with a flat look.
"Fair enough," Aced said, chuckling lightly. "You said that orchid made you feel adventurous, right? Let's link adventurous to something you're more familiar with. Let's say she chose that flower to make you more life-like."
Ira took a moment for it to settle in and finally he felt his headache from this morning kicking in to full gear. He then mumbled, "Oh no..."
"Yeah," Aced said, rubbing his temples. "Oh no."
"No. No. No. NO. NO!" Ira shouted, though it just sounded like muffled screaming as he belted it out into his hands.
"Yup, oh no," Aced repeated, sighing and then putting his mask on to return outside in a fouler mood than before. "You may as well stay in here and take a much-needed breather for now. You're in no condition to go patrolling. Drink some tea and try to focus on anything else. Read the book the master left us or some shit. I'm gettin' a beer."
"Thanks, man," Ira grumbled, hearing a grunt with a similar tone matching his own. Dreams will kill a man apparently.
Ira was in no mood for tea, though, and going in the kitchen to make it is what got everyone in this mess! With the master out patrolling like everyone else, he really had no one else to talk to about this. The most he can do is just sit there and concentrate on something else. He didn't feel like reading, but Ira begrudgingly picked up his mask, replaced it on his head, and went upstairs to read the Book of Prophecies. He hadn't completely finished it yet and the Chirithy had just been given out. Odie was about probably talking to the other Chirithy now. He seemed shy. Ira wondered if his comrades named their Chirithy like he did, but he was sure he was the only one who cared enough to do so. He didn't even see Aced's little helper nearby. Unfortunately, by thinking about his comrades, his mind returned to Ava and his lips twitched as though they were missing her lips.
Ira froze up at that with wide eyes in disbelief. With a deep breath, he completely ignored the Foretellers' Chambers and went straight to his room to pace through it with his growing headache. He missed Ava's lips? What? Yeah, no, he was in no condition to concentrate on anything taxing. He needed to clear his head again, and the one place he usually did that in was out of the question because that's where this mess truly started. If he bumped into Ava, who knows what he'd do? Or what she'd do for that matter? Ira completely stopped in his tracks at that point. He's afraid of what she'd do to him? Well, shit, nice going! Now, there's a possibility of him having a crush on Ava!
"What the fuck did I just think?" Ira questioned, feeling his face heat up.
"Sounds like you need a nap, stallion," a familiar voice said before Ira went unconscious.
His lips weren't so lonely anymore when he woke up. Through blurred vision, he could see someone's face. When he could clearly see that someone, there was Ava pressing innocent kisses to his lips and he was subconsciously and instinctively responding to them with his own smooches. It was right about then that he realized he was kissing Ava for the third time that day. She looked happy to wake him up this way - a little too happy - and she was dressed in something non-Foreteller-like but he couldn't fully see it. So, when Ira backed up only slightly and saw that Ava was wearing next to nothing from his perspective since he could actually see the curve of her ass being defined by her legs folding at the knee and what looked like a pair of panties crossed between being briefs and a thong, he was well passed the point of being shocked with disbelief.
"Bullshit!" Ira exclaimed out of nowhere, startling Ava and running to his balcony with a completely flustered face. "Ava would never wear a thong! Who are you?"
The sight he was blessed with almost made him reconsider going back to sleep. Ava was dressed in a sheer gown that was short enough to be a shirt, the same panties around her small hips, and some small heels with furry accents on the big toe. It was sexy to say the least, but Ava was still a child compared to him. Whether he wanted this to be his fantasy or not, Ava walked towards him like she would if they were speaking in the Foretellers' Chambers about something important like the Book of Prophecies. Yeah, that thing that he was supposed to be reading. Good job, brain. Now, we're being seduced by this cutie of a -
"Why am I thinking like this?" Ira questioned, ruffling his hair into an undignified mess.
Ava just giggled at the man's reaction and said, "Well, you said kissing me wasn't the only thing you were going to do to me earlier. I figured that meant you like me, too. I thought women your age dressed up in stuff like this. Invi wears nice gowns and slippers sometimes."
"But you're not my age," Ira complained, wanting himself to stop staring at the body being handed to him on a platter. He turned to the side and said, "And I just said that to scare you."
"Scare me?" Ava questioned, tilting her head to the side cutely. "Why?"
"Because we need to focus on our roles and not... each other," Ira explained, focusing on Ava's eyes. Pretty hard to do when she's so short because his eyes were aching to wander elsewhere. Ira cleared his throat and successfully managed to be serious before asking Ava, "Now, will you please dress in your proper attire?"
"I'd love to, but there's one problem," Ava said, holding up a finger.
"Oh, for fuck's sake!" Ira shouted, throwing his head back. "What the hell is it now?"
"I'm not leaving this room until you tell me why..." Ava started, walking over to a small bouquet of wild orchids tied by a ribbon. With her being turned around, Ira pretty much stared right at her butt until he realized his mistake and looked the other way in annoyance. She lifted the bunch of flowers out of its vase, walked over to Ira, and then continued, "this particular flower makes you feel adventurous. I think you just said that word to make it less obvious for what it really ignites within you."
Ira narrowed his eyes visibly, took the flowers from Ava, and said with some growling in his voice, "You have no idea what kind of trouble you're getting yourself into, little girl."
Ava smirked shrewdly and lowered her voice to force Ira to hear the sensual tone laced within to say, "Would I dress myself up like this if I didn't?"
"You're a child," Ira hissed, showing his angrier side. He was becoming more true to his name now. "What could you possibly know about pleasuring another male?"
Ava leaned into Ira's torso, fluttering her eyes to a half-lidded state, and gently rubbed at Ira's crotch to tease him before whispering, "What can you teach me, boss?"
Ira remained silent as he looked into Ava's face. He tried to sense her power to make sure she wasn't some figment of his imagination, but much to his dismay Ava was there and seducing him in ways she shouldn't be. Okay, the girl wants to use him to get out her desires? Fine. Let's see how this goes, brain. Possessively, Ira grabbed Ava's butt tightly like he was going to squeeze the air out of her throat through her left cheek and walked forward, leading her to the bed they once occupied while he was unconscious. He roughly tossed her onto the bed and then took a single flower and broke the bulb at its base to release a purple cloud of pollen and two drops of nectar on his fingers. The face that Ava saw when Ira took off the mask was one of many things: hunger, desire, longing, and mischief. She watched Ira hover above her before pressing two fingers at her entrance. Gently, he gave a long, deep kiss to distract her from his fingers sneakily pulling up the band of panties and rubbing her clitoris with the nectar on it.
Ava gasped, pulled her head back and called out, "Ira! What are y - ?"
"Teaching you how to be my woman," Ira said in a husky, primal voice. "Where did all that confidence go? You seemed so sure about having me."
"I do want you, but I hate the finger thing," Ava replied, blushing shyly. "It's uncomfortable and weird when someone else does it."
"Who the hell touched you like this?" Ira questioned, shooting back in disbelief.
"I'm not telling you one word," Ava said, turning to her side in defiance. "Wha - ?"
Without saying anything else, Ira stood up and walked to the room's door to try and open it. Hot or not, Ava couldn't stay in here and he needed to have a word with Gula if he put his hands in a place he shouldn't know about until he was... Oh, wait, how old was he again? Ava's like 15 or something, right? So he'd be either 15 himself or 16 to 17. Well, if that's the case, then he would be of proper age to be curious. But it's AVA he's curious about. She's supposed to be the cute, innocent one, and Invi's supposed to be the one to ignite certain flames in older men because she's older. So why is Ava trying to bang him? Why?
"The door locks from the outside, Ira," Ava said, tapping his shoulder. When the man smashed his forehead against the door, Ava hummed in question and then rubbed his shoulders gently. She then said, "We don't have to do anything, Ira. I'll wait 'til you're ready."
Ira took a deep breath, smashed his head against the door again, and then said, "Why was it me?"
"Huh?" Ava questioned, trying to see the man's face.
"Your dream," Ira said, not turning away from the door. "Why did you dream about me?"
"Oh, I don't know," Ava responded, embracing Ira from behind. "I just wanted to know what your dream massage was. When I never got an answer, I thought that maybe you didn't want to tell me because it was too sexual. I didn't mind. I only wanted to know if you trusted me with the information, I didn't care about the content of the dream. After me and Aced went in your room to see if you'd tell me what the hint was, we saw you were sleeping so we left and went to ask Invi what her dream massage was. She said she liked the magic stone idea you and me had. I asked Gula and Luxu, too. They liked the parlor idea, but... you weren't with us drawing up the plans. I have a blueprint of the parlor in my room on my wall. It's the first project we came up with as a group that's not related to our roles as Foretellers. The master even framed it. Aced said that my dream was a subconscious desire to be closer to you. He was right. I didn't mean for the dream to turn out sexual. I just wanted to be your friend. After the master told me to give you the Chirithy, I thought maybe I could mention the blueprint to you so you could be part of it, too. You were acting really weird, but there was something else about you that I caught but just couldn't describe. When I finally got to see the sweet, smiling Ira, I was happy and sad. I got to see the kindness you truly possessed, but it wasn't for me. It was for Odie. I knew I'd never see that side to you ever again, so I kissed you just to remind myself that even my leader has this genuine side. I should be thankful that I got to see it. I'm sorry for troubling you so much, Ira."
When Ira turned around then, he watched Ava release him from her embrace and glow a bright pink and yellow color before her Foreteller robes reappeared. She smiled at him brightly as if nothing happened and nodded with determination before slapping her face to focus. She put her fox mask back on and then put a magic spell on the door to open it. The door popped open like it was never locked and she scurried off in the darkness at the other end of the hall. Ira wanted to stop her, but he was frozen with his hand outstretched to her until he dropped it with sadness creeping into his chest. That was all she wanted. To be friends? And through a simple, harmless question, she got her answer. No. He didn't even think there was a deeper meaning behind the dream. Sure, Aced told him that Ava didn't feel trusted, but to feel so unworthy of anything - his affections, his real personality, his dreams - made him feel hurt. Guilt was child's play.
"I'm so sorry, Ava..." Ira whispered to the darkness. "I'm sorry."
"I'm sorry..." he said aloud.
"Sorry for what?" a familiar voice asked.
Ira was startled by his friend's deep voice. Aced was scared for a second. After he returned to the Tower to talk to Ira, he found the man on the floor mumbling in his sleep. Even Odie, Ira's Chirithy, was afraid that his master was hurt when he tried to shake him awake. When he rushed over to him, he just heard Ira mumbling about dreams and apologizing over and over again. When the master came in to lay a hand on Aced's shoulder, he waved to Ira and held out a hand to help him up.
"You must've had some dream there, stallion," the master with some amusement in his voice.
Ira blushed as he rose to his feet and looked to the side to say, "I guess it could've been much worse."
"Perhaps," the master said, shrugging. He turned around to walk away as he was saying, "If you wanna take a nap, though, you should aim for your bed and not the floor. I doubt it's that comfortable."
Ira blushed redder at this before scratching his cheek in embarrassment. Well, it's not like he expected to just black out. Someone else was in the room beforehand and he... wait... Ira straightened up and questioned the master's nickname for him. He asked, "Did you just call me stallion again, master?"
The master turned around at that and replied, "Yeah? You're my prized stallion, remember? Ladies are startin' to flock to you now. You've got that shapely butt and all."
"Women actually care about that feature on a man?" Aced questioned, watching Ira's Chirithy float to land on Ira's shoulder. The noble Foreteller merely turned to pet the creature before turning back to the master.
"Some do, but you've got all those muscles and perfect teeth, Aced," the master answered, flexing as a demonstration of Aced's prowess. "And a 5 o'clock shadow. Women dig that, too."
Ira frowned a bit and thought back to his dream again. Ava was too... real to be a dream. Her body, her scent, her clothes. He could remember the texture and feelings of it all. She was seducing him too expertly. Then, the ending of the dream came to mind. Was the blueprint a real thing or part of his dream? Should he even ask? He sighed before asking, "Master, does Ava have a blueprint in her room?"
"A blueprint?" Aced questioned, putting a hand on his hip. "You mean, the parlor blueprint? You dreamt of it?"
"Yes," Ira admitted softly.
Now, Aced was confused but intrigued. Ira was asleep when they came up with the plans for Ava's dream parlor. He wouldn't have known anything about that unless Ava told him about it when she apparently kissed him earlier. There was a chance he woke up when they made all the commotion about Ava's parlor idea in her room. He and Gula did have a heated argument over what Ava should wear as a uniform. Aced was thinking something short and sexy because his dream massage involved legs, but Gula didn't want some weirdo trying to feel up his friend. The master was all chuckles then. Invi and Luxu were more on the professional side like a silk shirt and some cotton pants or leggings. Regardless of all that, Ira was sleeping through their group talk. Hell, the only people who know about Ira's dream massage was Ira and Aced. Ira doesn't talk about sex because he's too scared of being called a pervert. What the hell is going on between these two? Right as he was thinking deeply, the master started snickering. Both Foretellers watched as the master slowly loosened up from his more playful seriousness to full-on hysterics. His entire body was trembling as he desperately tried to hold in his laughter, but it was getting harder by the second. When Aced and Ira waited on the man to give an explanation, they both began to regret having reasonable expectations from their teacher.
"I take it this dream wasn't really a dream, was it?" Ira questioned, fear creeping into his chest.
"Oh, it was," the master replied through fits of giggles. "But I can smell a hint of fear from you, Ira. I don't think you're ready to hear the truth. What do you think Aced?"
Ira turned to look at Aced and noticed a mischievous smirk and dark chuckle coming from the man. So, there was something that Aced knew or at least realized after putting the puzzle pieces together. He then shouted with widened eyes, "You knew something about this whole thing?"
"Actually, no," Aced replied. "I just took a wild guess. The master just said that I was right and told me to be here when you woke up."
Ira gulped, looked between the two men, and then asked, "What did you guess?"
"That dream that Ava had wasn't hers at all," Aced responded, shocking Ira enough to make him gasp and shut up immediately. "Ava doesn't think about sex on her own or in dreams. She's pure. In fact, after the master spoke to you in the library, I went back to my room to find Ava there. She was too scared to tell you anything, so she pleaded for a different way to handle her situation. I asked her for some details about this disturbing thing she called a nightmare, and she said something that seemed too coincidental. She described your dream massage in exact detail from the atmosphere you prefer to the scent of the oil you like. I know for a fact you never told her anything about it, so I guessed that someone else told her. I didn't tell her. Only you could have told her your secret and you didn't, so I guessed that the master showed her the truth through the dream."
"You what?" Ira shouted in disbelief. "Master, why?"
"Ava was disappointed when you weren't with us," the master said with that playful seriousness. "We tried to cheer her up, but she started wondering about how you felt about her. That's when I noticed she felt mistrusted, so I gave her a Chirithy early and let it show her the truth. You see, the Chirithy is a Dream Eater. It makes sure you have pleasant dreams when you're sleeping. Whatever makes you happy is what it wants for you. Right, Odie?"
Odie's ears perked up at the sound of his name. He was starting to feel left out as the two men tortured his master with their secrets, but he felt better now that he was getting involved in the conversation. He wiggled his nose a bit before nodding and saying, "Yes. Oh! My daffodils!"
Ira watched the Chirithy hop off his shoulder and then scurry to the forgotten flowers on the floor. The little creature picked up each one and ran back to Ira to hold them up so the man could take them. Ira knelt down to take the four daffodils from Odie and smiled before petting him. He then said sweetly, "Thank you, Odie."
"Your welcome, Master Ira," Odie said, closing his eyes with content as Ira scratched under his chin.
"Just like that, the Chirithy can enter your dreams and make them as pleasing as you want them to be," the master continued to explain. "Ava's Chirithy noticed that her master wasn't happy, so she entered your dream and isolated the truth from it to give to Ava. Upon my command, of course."
"But... you said the Ira in her dream was like me to a fault. That means she wasn't in my fantasy the way I pictured it just now. If her Chirithy took out the truth from me and placed it in the dream Ira, why did she react the way she did?" Ira asked, turning to the master with some confusion.
"Ah, but that's where it gets interesting," the master said, walking back to Ira and leaning down to speak again. "Ava froze up after dream Ira's confession. That was the real Ava's reaction to your fantasy, but I wondered if her reaction would surprise you or not so I told the Chirithy to give you her reaction through your own dream. Whatever happened afterwards could be given back to Ava. I assumed that you would just tease her about her curiosity and agree to be friends because you're the noble, cool-headed type. Besides, that's all she wanted. But imagine my surprise when Ava's Chirithy was too afraid to show Ava your dream."
"No..." Ira whispered, shaking his head lightly in disbelief.
"I didn't look at the dream myself. I only told the Chirithy to give Ava your reaction," the master said, standing up straight again. "Who would have guessed my prized stallion actually had a mind so dirty it throws himself off-balance?"
"Who indeed?" Aced questioned, grinning darkly as he left the room.
"Welp, I've got to teach you five about these new bangles I made," the master said, clapping his hands in one booming motion. "I'll leave you alone now. Don't be so gloomy, Ira. On the bright side, now you know the truth about Ava's feelings... and your own, big butt."
With that, the master stopped talking altogether and watched Ira flop on the edge of his bed in complete shock. So, Ava's wet dream was really his dream? That's impossible! He never thought about Ava or Invi in that way, even when they weren't Foretellers. Only Aced has thought about Invi as a potential girlfriend. Ava was like half his age! He wasn't that desperate for a girlfriend or a mate.
After a moment of silence, Ira finally spoke up again, "But... whose dream was that just now?"
"Yours," the master replied, interested in Ira's attentive reaction. He then said, "Well, up until the last part. That's why Odie's here with you now. He gave you Ava's truth. She's taking a nap. Weird night and all. Whatever was going on in your dream before that is all you, stallion."
The master was surprised by Ira's eyes suddenly welling up and the look of pure disgust on his face. The Foreteller then said to himself, "I'm a disgusting cretin!"
"No, you're n - " the master tried to say before he was interrupted.
"Yes!" Ira said, a look of helplessness in his eyes now. "Yes, I am. Ava's pure and my selfish desire is to destroy that. This darkness is terrible! I'm a monster!"
"No, you're not," the master said sternly. "Your dream isn't a subconscious desire to have your way with a child. It's just a projection of what you feel for her deep down. Aced said he told Ava that she just wanted to be your friend. I think that's what you're responding to. You said sorry over and over again in your sleep. That means you never wanted to push her away. You do want to be her friend. Sure, the dream got a little too friendly, but it's not that bad."
Odie looked up into Ira's face and saw that he was slowly accepting the Master's words. He then whispered softly, "Don't cry, Master Ira. I'll get more daffodils, okay?"
Ira turned to Odie and embraced him with a growing smile. He then said, "These were enough for me, little Odie. Thank you. I guess a friendship between us is something we both want, but I don't understand why intimacy came to mind."
"You know..." the master started, putting a finger under his chin. "Ava does have that outfit you saw in the dream."
"What!?" Ira shouted, hopping to his feet. "S-s-since when? Why does she have that? Why do you know she has it?"
"She wore it," the Master said, shrugging the question off like it was trivial. "Quite a few times even."
"Who saw her wearing it other than you?" Ira questioned in shock.
"Everyone except you, stallion," the master replied, waving a hand in the air. "You were sleeping. She said she just bought it two weeks ago. A wielder recommended it to her. I think Luxu might've died a little bit when he saw it, but Gula and Aced were cool about it. Invi got a gown as a present. Aced died a little bit then. Funniest shit ever."
"But you can see her!" Ira argued, face as red as a cherry-flavored candy.
"Oh my," the master said, chuckling at Ira's face. "Did you see the booty?"
"Please stop..." Ira said, covering his face with his hands and feeling that headache from this morning coming back. "All of this bullshit happened over a parlor idea?"
"Yup," the master answered. "Too bad you missed it. C'mon, I'll show you where she stashed the lingerie."
"Master, I've heard enough!" Ira argued, turning the other way.
He was beyond confused now. He missed like a million things within the span of a few hours in one night! Ava wearing sexy lingerie, the group making her dream parlor, her wet dream that apparently was really his dream, and Ava's whole nervousness in this secret fantasy she had. The Master even knows where Ava keeps her lingerie! Why does he know that? Why does everyone know that? Is nothing sacred among the Foretellers anymore? A thought then crossed Ira's mind and he asked the cloak-wearing man.
"Wait, what was I wearing in Ava's dream?" Ira asked. "Is it something that I actually have?"
"Yeah, that green linen pajama suit in your closet," the master responded, making Ira turn with a raised eyebrow. That's all? That's not nearly as sexy as what she wore in his dream. The master then said, "You know, the one with no buttons. She saw a lot more of you than usual but not like you saw her. I think it was a good thing you were asleep because your reaction right now tells me you're not ready for Ava."
"I think I died on the inside," Ira commented, making Odie worry. He sat back down on his bed and said, "Why is all of this happening now? I don't understand."
"Meh," the master replied, shrugging. "This is pretty boring stuff actually. You both just want to be friends in the end, right? That's really not that exciting. Unless... deep down, you don't really want to be friends, Ira."
"I'd rather keep it on the friend level," Ira said in a rush to end the conversation. Anything that'd end this conversation would be enough for him.
"Good. We'll be in the meeting room discussing those neat, little bangles I made," the master said, walking out of the room this time. Before he completely disappeared, the master shouted through the door, "I'll tell Aced to keep his trap shut."
Ira flopped on his back and grumbled at the notion that Aced would never let him forget about this whole scenario...