A/N: Back with the last summer update! I'm sorry this is delayed, FFN held me back for twelve whole hours! As such, I'm not going to do too much picky revision. I like this chapter. And yes, the title is a Lindsey Stirling reference. Listen while reading if you wish. :)

[Chapter 17]: Take Flight

"This is the first time I've said it in years," Ayato mused out loud, "but summer is passing way too quickly."

It was mid-August now, on one of the busy days, so he and Yuri had met in the morning at the fork in the forest trail. From there, they'd walked to the local swimming pool, and now they were sunbathing in plastic chairs like a couple of middle-aged parents – Yuri's words, not his.

Her own chair propped up in a semi-reclining position, Yuri was able to peer meaningfully through her sunglasses at him.

"You're telling me," she said. "But that's what happens when you spend a lot of it on the couch."

"You're the one who paraded her massive movie collection in front of me," he scoffed. He was still having tornado and dinosaur dreams. "Tease."

"Nerd."

"Wench."

"Couch hog."

"You have two!"

Yuri rolled her eyes so hard he saw the whites of them above the rim of her sunglasses. "To be fair, I liked recording your reactions. Still, you have to admit that this is much better."

He wouldn't argue with her on that. During his past summers, most time was spent indoors. Workshop, store, or at home watching limited channels. Although Yuri's TV sang a siren song of free movies and more channels than Kimito had years, Ayato liked soaking directly in the sun. It was energizing, and yet so easy to fall asleep to the caress of heat mixed with the smell of chlorine and sound of splashes.

Even on their afternoons together, when Yuri didn't want to go to the pool because it would be too busy, they'd take walks. Longer ones than just back and forth to each other's houses. Nowhere too crowded or anything, but it helped him get a better feel for Akuma. The town was bigger than he remembered. Still small, but there was more going on around here. The arcade he used to visit when he was a kid had been remodeled and added onto in the last, what… seven to ten years?

But mornings, if he and Yuri were feeling outdoorsy, were prime opportunities for pool time. Plenty of kids were at school taking supplementary classes, and adults were at their jobs, so the pool wouldn't be packed until long after he returned to work. Yuri liked it that way – more pool chairs at optimal locations.

"I would've saved the movie marathons for the fall," Ayato mused, feeling pleasantly cooked under the sun, "but you know… that he'll change my schedule back, as soon as this is over."

"That's true." Yuri breathed in deeply, like a sleepy sigh. She side-eyed him. "And it's fine. Most of them are even better when you're watching with someone who's seeing it for the first time."

"All the same, I think we should make the most of these last few days." When Yuri hummed her assent, Ayato added, "That means actually going into the pool."

Yuri hugged her floral green towel, looking affronted. "We did! This is me drying off!"

"But the ratio of swimming to tanning—"

She whined at him until he gave up that argument. Then she adjusted her sunglasses and made a show of settling herself deeper into the seat.

Ayato scoffed and sat up straighter, gazing out over the water. Its unnatural blueness looked inviting. Usually, he didn't want to swim without Yuri as a social buffer, but now that he thought about it, this seemed a bit limiting.

He was a Naoi after all. From his experience, that was all the buffer in the world.

"Well, I'm going in," he decided, getting to his feet.

Yuri immediately grabbed for her music player. "Try not to drown, then," she said cheerfully while putting in her earbuds. "I won't be able to save you."

Rolling his eyes, he wandered over to a less occupied section and lowered himself into the pool. That was one more positive thing he'd learned from his father – if you acted like you owned or even ruled something, people wouldn't bother you.

After baking under the sun for half an hour, this was just what he needed. The sensation of chlorine and water jets relaxed him as he floated close to the walls, but still… every so often, he couldn't help sneaking glances in Yuri's direction.

And, well, it wasn't like that, but he wasn't the only one. He'd noticed that while sitting next to her today. Actually, he'd noticed it on quite a few pool days. It was mostly guys who were doing the staring – blatantly checking her out, which was initially what had irritated him. He doubted it was heat stroke that was making them red-faced with their tongues hanging out like dogs.

But then he started to get the feeling that there was more to it than random guys ogling her body. There were some people, many of them girls, who would do a double-take in his and Yuri's direction. They'd get this look of startled recognition on their faces, confusion but not quite gawking. They'd spare a moment to scrutinize.

Some would hesitate, open their mouths as if to say something, maybe turn to the person they'd come with and say something. Some would look like they wanted to walk over. But they didn't. They'd keep walking. They might get as far as a couple steps, but they'd change their mind, or someone else would say something, and they'd keep walking.

And Ayato was starting to wonder if he might be the problem.

"Don't go over there!"

"Can't you see who she's sitting with?"

He could just hear them saying something like that. It was partially the reason he'd made the decision to go in the pool without her. With him being who he was, sharing DNA with the biggest bastard in Akuma… Though some might guess, they didn't know what went on behind closed doors. But the rumors were there, the bad vibes, and they were contagious. Maybe he'd passed them onto Yuri.

He hated to think that maybe, his presence was keeping people away from her. Socially dragging her down into a pit.

From the pool, he snuck more glances now and then. Nobody approached Yuri while he was gone, but that could have been because she was listening to music. He was still suspicious, but he calmed down. He let himself swim.

Some time had passed and his lazy drifting had carried him to the other end of the pool, nearest to one of the entrances. Ayato was braced against the wall, eyes barely open, when a familiar voice registered in his brain. His head snapped in the direction of the voice, dearly hoping for anyone other than the troublesome trio.

To his relief, it was a trio but it wasn't troublesome. Among the trio was a classmate with a head of purple hair.

"Hey, Masuda," he said, and nearly followed up with a look of bewilderment meant for himself. Maybe he had it all wrong – instead, Yuri was slowly but surely turning him into an unrecognizable extrovert.

Masuda flicked a glance towards the pool at him, slowing slightly.

"Hello, Naoi," he returned, but his greeting was swallowed up at the end – lost among his one friend's excited chants ("Swimmingswimmingswimmingswimming! Swimming!").

They both eyed the kid with mutual raised brows, while Masuda's other friend stopped and face-palmed. The latter was the tallest of the three, a big lime-haired guy with bulky headphones around his neck. He looked kind of dense, but reasonably more mature than the enthusiastic one, who was shortest and buzzing with energy.

Masuda walked to the edge of the pool and bent down as if to whisper something conspiratorially.

"Since I respect you as a person, I'm going to pass on some words of warning." He jabbed a thumb over his shoulder at Short Kid. "Get out of the pool before Hachihama goes in."

Ayato did a double-take at the kid, who it turned out might just be a very young-looking teen with a childlike sugar rush. Hachihama was either headed toward some chairs or the vending machines.

"Good idea," he replied.

Masuda nodded and rejoined Headphones Guy, yelling something at their third friend as they hurried after him.

He'd had his fill of swimming anyway, so he took the stairs out of the pool and walked briskly back to rejoin Yuri, letting the wind air-dry his skin. She still had her sunglasses on and her earbuds in. He flicked water from his hands onto her stomach purely for the joy of being a pest.

Yuri squeaked in dismay and swatted at his legs as he walked by, prompting his satisfied smile. Ah yes, there was the joy of that too.

Luckily she was over it by the time she took her earbuds out and put away her music player. "Have fun?"

"So much, I tried to bring the fun back to you." Sitting down at his chair, he grinned into his towel as he started to dry off.

"Hmm, how considerate." Yuri picked up her own towel and held it protectively to her stomach like a blanket.

"Still…" Ayato scanned the swimming pool vicinity carefully. "Not as much fun as that one guy…"

"What guy—"

"CANNON-BAAAAAAALLLLLLL!" Hachihama screamed, jumping into the deep end.

The impact was catastrophic.

Well, fine. Maybe it wasn't doomsday in Akuma, setting off a tsunami wave that swallowed the entire town. But a notable amount of water crashed against the edges. It was enough to get a little bit of a hazy soda pop spray in their direction.

Yuri, who had sat up to hear where the shout was coming from, had gotten droplets on her lenses. Now she was finally lowering her sunglasses in disbelief.

"Damn!" she said, watching Hachihama kick to the surface. "Still hard to believe such a little guy could make such a big splash."

Ayato couldn't help but agree, as the guy emitted a shrill yell of triumph and raced to the edge where a drenched Masuda and Headphones Guy were waiting for him with impatient looks on their faces. But then, he had a strong feeling that was big sister talk right there. The way her voice held cool, encouraging pride? She might've been thinking of her little brother just now. Toweling his arms, he turned to check if a memory was bothering her.

At first she looked okay. Busily wiping droplets off her sunglasses so she could put them back on.

But then she glanced back up, towards the pool. A little farther out. And the strangest expression took over her face. A flash of recognition in her eyes followed by panic, coupled with the distance he recognized as her "sibling memories" gaze. Frozen in place but lightyears away. She clenched her jaw and swallowed hard.

"I want to leave," Yuri said, pulling on her shirt. Panic had thawed into desperation. "Can we leave? Right now."

"What?" He tried to follow where her eyes had been, all the way to the entrance gate. He only got a glimpse of long auburn hair before he felt himself being tugged by the arm. "Hey! I haven't even finished drying off—!"

A minute or so later, Ayato and Yuri were out of the pool area and were strolling the sidewalk.

Well, Yuri was strolling. Ayato had just finished hopping into his other shoe. Only partially air-dried, his trunks and shirt were still trying to stick to his skin. At least Yuri had been thoughtful to grab both her things and his during their daring escape.

Or, whatever the hell that was.

"Are you going to tell me what that was all about?" he asked, uncomfortably adjusting his shirt. He wasn't going to bother with the trunks.

Yuri peered back at him, towel casually thrown over her shoulder.

"Are you going to tell me what your mom was supposed to hide for you?" she returned, raising an eyebrow.

He hesitated. The mug wasn't a huge sore spot anymore, he supposed. But he'd made such a big deal over it back then, it would be kind of embarrassing to confess the truth now. Too much buildup for a homemade birthday present.

"I see. So it's somehow related to that deal we made," Ayato observed.

Yuri nodded. "Mm-hm. No questions asked."

But what had she wanted him not to ask about on her side? Something about…

"I see you trying to connect the dots," Yuri warned, side-eyeing him. "You know, I can try to look deeper into your thing too."

Laughing, Ayato held up his hands in surrender. "Fine! But mine's not even a big deal."

"You're just making me more curious!" she singsonged.

They dropped it after that. Sometimes it was good to be on a "no questions asked" basis with someone. If Yuri didn't want to think about it, he'd cut her a break for the time being. So he and Yuri left the pool far behind them, agreeing on the park as their next destination.

Lightly dipping tree branches passed overhead. Compared to sunscreen and shrieking kids, shade and a light breeze gave this part of town a charm all its own. More room in his head for thoughts to breathe. There was no one else but him, Yuri, and a few chattering birds.

"Can I ask you something?" Ayato eyed her thoughtfully after a long-held silence.

She coaxed him on with an eyebrow flick. "Hmm?"

"Am I… taking up your summer?" He held his composure carefully, but couldn't help a nervous head scratch. "Hogging you from your other friends, I mean."

"Of course not," Yuri replied almost immediately, confusion vanishing from her eyes. "We spend maybe an average of five hours a day together, which is about as much time I'd expect to spend with my best friend."

Ayato slowed significantly, blinking at her.

Turning so her gaze found his, she offered him a vague half-smile. "Don't worry about it, alright?"

Encouraged, he fell back into step beside her. The official title of "best friend" pretty much obliterated every other thought in his head – so yeah, they were good.

He just hoped the metaphorical tail wag wasn't too obvious.

The park was in sight now, and they had a couple of hours to kill before he'd have to recalibrate into work mode. Until then, he liked the feel of the world right now. Summer felt more like it belonged to him. With most people at work, or the beach, or the pool, the roads and sidewalks were his and Yuri's to roam as they pleased. Also, he'd developed a taste for pool leisure time (that is, swimming outside of school) and he intended to get more of it.

When idiots weren't making tidal waves, of course. For now, he was content with laying claim to drier pastures.

He and Yuri were idly discussing when and where to switch out of their swimsuits, when he heard voices that weren't their own. His wandering eyes returned to the park entrance, just in time to catch movement. And then he recognized the people walking straight in their direction.

Swearing under his breath, Ayato acted quickly but blindly. He grasped Yuri by the shoulders and leapt off the sidewalk, ducking between the trees. His urgent steering stopped when her back met the hedged metal fence with a sudden jingle.

"What the—" Yuri started, but he made a few flustered shushing gestures. She pursed her lips and tried to peek over his shoulder.

The smaller trees near the sidewalk shielded them from view, while the ones above their head kept them in shade. Besides that, Hejjiguchi was whistling with his eyes closed, walking ahead of Ami and Kurimu. He had a faster natural pace than the two girls, but that didn't deter them. Least of all Ami, who looked determined to keep up at ear range.

"You're so stubborn!" she groaned, looking severely put out. "Buying a chili cheese dog and eating it right in front of us just so you don't have to swim?"

Hejjiguchi stopped whistling and put a hand to his heart in deep offense.

"I'll have you know it meant more to me than that!" he said impassionedly. "But you know the rules. Can't swim on a full stomach."

"That's what I told you when you bought it!" Ami slapped a hand to her forehead. Kurimu was absolutely losing it behind her. "When you said, 'can't swim on an empty stomach' and I tried to explain to you very specifically why that was not the case!"

"Whoops?"

Ami put her hands on her hips. She had an air for drama, that one. "Well, when that hour's up? Just know that one way or another, I will get you into that pool, Souma Hejjiguchi."

"Ami, he said he just wants to tan!"

"Thank you, Kurimu." There was a touch of amusement in his voice as well as gratitude. "I'm counting on you to be my bodyguard, alright? Ami's dangerous today."

Kurimu linked her arm with Ami's. "I'll keep her in line."

Their voices faded as they traveled farther down the road, ending with Ami's indignant cries of helping friends overcome fears. Although Ayato had been intrigued enough to eavesdrop, he sighed in relief and turned to face Yuri. She was staring at him curiously, back still pressed against the fence. It occurred to him that he'd left very little space between them, and that maybe he'd been a bit rough in his haste.

"Sorry I pushed you." He withdrew a step, rubbing his neck. "I was just—"

"You didn't want your girlfriend to see you," Yuri said cheekily.

"Exac—" He glared at her. "Hey!"

Yuri laughed, patting him on the shoulder as she returned to the sidewalk. "Oh, come on. They sounded like they were having such a good time together. Do you really think they would have stopped to bug you?"

Ayato considered her words for a moment, but he was steadfast.

"Ami would've," he insisted. "Kurimu was siding with Hejjiguchi instead of her, so she would've pointed me out as a distraction. Or Hejjiguchi would've used me as a sacrificial lamb to get Ami off his back."

"Oh, come on." They rounded the corner and started their trek through the park. "Hejjiguchi's a bigger person than that, isn't he?"

Ayato gave her a meaningful look. She met his eyes contemplatively. Then they both broke into laughter.

"Still. Would you really jump into the ocean to escape them?"

He grunted something inaudible. He wasn't scared of them, if that was what Yuri was implying. That was ridiculous, and irrational. Maybe he'd push Hejjiguchi in, but… Shaking the thought off, he side-eyed Yuri for a second. There was a distinct flashback playing in his head of the pool and their speedy getaway just fifteen minutes before.

"You have your things you want to avoid, and I have mine." He turned his gaze back down the path, drinking in the park's peace. "Let's just leave it at that."

Yuri closed her eyes, regarding his words. Then she looked to him and gave a small nod. "Fair enough."

Silently, Ayato took a moment to revel in his victory with a grin. If all went well, he could get through another couple of weeks free of any more mentions or close calls with the troublesome trio. For the time being, he'd start by making the park his own.

"But really," said Yuri, as they headed toward a food vendor. "It's been half a summer vacation, and they've had better things to do since then."

"You might have a point there," he said, rubbing his chin.

Yuri hummed with certainty, holding her head high as she led the way to the grilled corn stand.

"Mark my words. By September they'll have forgotten all about it."

Preview:

"All your suitors have to go through it."

"Seriously, what is she playing at?"

"Steer into the skid!"

"I must have just missed you."

"I'm not sure how she'd feel about that."

"Fresh term, fresh start, am I right?"

"I suppose I can keep this going a little bit longer."

[Chapter 18]: Test the Waters.