Questioner

By: Aviantei

[Twelve Shots of Summer: Another D8 10-I/12]

[Parameters: "The Will of the World"]

"You know, I've been wondering—what does 'Aviantei' mean?"

Ivy looked to Lyserg, a little bit of surprise in her expression, and he gave her a moment to catch her bearings. Lyserg had been pondering the question for a while, it flittering in the background of his mind ever since he had heard Hao call her that for the first time. As it were, Lyserg didn't care much to ask him for the answer, and Opacho, who was the only other person who used the name, didn't know the meaning, either.

It made the most sense to just ask the one that name referred to.

"Well, I suppose you wouldn't know," Ivy said, leaning back to prop herself up on her arms. It was a nice day outside, and they'd chosen to enjoy the Tao's garden—though Ren was much more enjoying his meditation time instead. Opacho, interested, was trying to imitate him, though with minimal success as she was squirming in her seat. "It's my Elemental Name." Lyserg blinked, and Ivy's lips quirked into a small smile. She held out a hand, a leaf zipping over to spin above her palm. "Most onmyoji connect enough with the elements that we can hear them speak—well, it's less words and more impressions, but that's not the point."

"And they give you names," Lyserg said, following along well enough, Ivy's nod confirming it. "Does it have a meaning then, or…?"

"Elemental Princess." Ivy said it without any inflection, but it still caught Lyserg off guard. She flexed her fingers, flashes of the other elements dashing through the air before they all faded away. "Or, well, that's a vague impression. For onmyoji, our names tend to be indications of our affinities, but mine is…something we call the Royal Powers."

"That sounds…important."

"Not really." Lyserg raised an eyebrow, and Ivy sighed, running a hand through her hair. He worried that he might have touched a nerve, but Ivy continued before he could backtrack. "I mean, it kind of is? People with these names can wield a lot of the elements without much trouble, which means they have the potential to have a lot of power. You can guess how Xin-He reacted whenever he found out my Elemental Name."

Bitterness had seeped into Ivy's tone, her expression twisted in distaste. Lyserg reached out, resting a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Sorry," he said, "I didn't mean to bring up any bad memories."

After Ivy had taken a few deep breaths, Lyserg could feel the tension drain out of her shoulders. "No, that's not your fault. I just don't like acting like I'm so special just because I happened to get a fancy name from the elements. I mean, I still like it, but…"

"Don't worry." Lyserg gave her a smile. "I know that you've put in a lot of work to get to where you are. Maybe the elements gave you that name because they felt that you'd use it well."

"Maybe." Though she was trying to sound nonchalant, Lyserg had been around Ivy long enough by now to tell that she was pleased by the praise. "But, yeah, that's what it means. Just something fancy, but…"

"But it's important to you anyways." Ivy nodded, and Lyserg decided against asking any further questions. He knew that Hao had used the name for her, but he didn't feel like souring the mood, not on such a nice day. "Are onmyoji the only ones with Elemental Names? Or is do other people have them?" He could admit to being somewhat curious to what his would be.

"I've…never considered that." Ivy closed her eyes, her breath easing into a more relaxed pattern. Lyserg recognized her focus, and amused himself with watching the clouds above while he waited. A few minutes later, Ivy let out a more pronounced exhale. "It looks like the answer was yes." She smiled. "Did you want to know yours?" Lyserg wondered if he'd been that obvious, but he still nodded without hesitation. "Ihu."

Lyserg blinked. Of course Ivy had sought out his name without even being asked. "Ihu?"

"Ihu. It's…something close to a gentle fire, if I had to put the words to it? It's like you're a warm place to go back to, somewhere filled with kindness." Lyserg processed the information, a strange feeling settling over him. Considering that his place among the Five Warriors was that of wielding the Spirit of Fire, it shouldn't be that surprising, but… "It's different from Hao's, you know."

Lyserg startled. "I—"

Ivy's smile was enough to cut off his protests. She wasn't judging him for being worried about sharing an affinity. Lyserg knew that holding a grudge wasn't going to change anything, not with Hao as the Shaman King and the battle against him over. But he couldn't erase that wound inside him just yet, so the concept of maybe sharing a similar Elemental Name with Hao wasn't something that Lyserg could handle well, as if the world itself would be saying they held something comparable in their hearts.

"Hao is a Royal Power, too," Ivy said, continuing her explanation. "I mean, fire reached out to him first, like wood did for me. But his power makes him King. So, no, you two are different, if that helps."

It did help, even if it was in just a smaller way. It was also nice to know that his name was a source of kindness, something that Lyserg still wanted to try and embody, even after everything. That felt like part of what he needed if he wanted to try and improve the world, even just a little. "Thanks," he said, unsure of what else to add.

"Anytime, Lyserg." Ivy bumped her shoulder against his, and Lyserg tried to return her smile. "I listened for Lián's, too. Wanna hear what it is?" Happy for the change in topic, Lyserg agreed. "It's Riga," Ivy said, unable to hold back a giggle. "It's—it's Proud Lightning, snrk—"

Lyserg was much less successful in suppressing his chuckle, and the two of them snickering side by side made it even harder. "How—" Lyserg said whenever he could catch a breath, "How on point can you get?"

"R-right?"

"Something you two want to share with me?" Ren asked, standing over them with a twitch in his brow. Lyserg tried to hold it in, but Ivy just snickered again, and it only escalated from there. Opacho mistook the ensuing chase for a game of tag, which didn't help anyone calm down in the slightest.

Whatever the Elements or anything else might have decided to name any them, Lyserg still felt that moments like this were a sign that he'd made the right choice to stay.

[Author's Notes]

I never got the chance to explain Hao's Elemental Name in the main story because translating it never seemed to fit the flow of any of the scenes. I hope this side story explanation (along with some extra names to boot) helps out.

Thanks to She Who Loves Pineapples and AnimeLoverKenzo3 for the favorite and review!

I actually wrote two separate shots for this week since I felt I had better ideas for the prompts individually than together, so keep an eye out for that updating soon!

-Avi

[08.07.2021]