"Where is he?" a cinderace muttered to herself, taking one more look at the standing clock at the center of the plaza. A click of the hand and her friend was now officially fifteen minutes late to the meet-up he scheduled.
She let out a soft groan and sat on the edge of a fountain featuring a marbled aurorus, her elegance decorated with cerulean jewels that sparkled amongst the delicate arcs of flowing water. She stood in her spring, ever still and ever watching, the only company Aisling could count on while the sunny day ticked away over her head.
Her foot bounced in its impatience, hand stuffed away into the pockets of her jacket while her drawn hood gave an excuse for her unusually long, lopped ears to frame the sides of her face. What was she even doing out here when she was hardly in any mood to be showing her face to the public?
~uwu~
"Ashe, your ears are drooping into your bowl," her friend warned her, the infernape reaching across the table to lift the appendages from dipping any further into the steaming broth.
"I don't care. I'm not even really hungry in the first place…" she muttered, voice deflated with a soft sniffle at the back of her throat.
"Aw, don't be like that. So you didn't make it this year either, it's not the end of the world. Heck, most 'mon don't make it their first few tries, so you're not any worse than them."
"This was my fifth year trying out, though…" she said, lifting her head slightly and rubbing at her nose with the back of her hand.
She caught him wincing in the corner of her eyes, trying to keep his cringing subtle for her. He wasn't very good at it. "Five is… not that bad…"
"You don't have to lie to make me feel better."
He sighed, "Okay, five is pretty bad but you're still young. I'd say as long as you've got your youth and vigor, you still have a shot!"
She knew he was doing his best to be as a best friend should and she appreciated the attempt, but her heart just couldn't accept his comfort, too broken and fractured to stand his optimism. It held on to her bitterness, reminding her over and over again that she didn't make the cut. That she was a disgrace to the cinderace name. That her purpose in life was shattered and worthless.
"Maybe I should just quit," she mused, staring at the beads of condensation dripping down her glass.
"Hey, no," he snapped, "None of that."
"Why not? Obviously, I'm not cut out for sports," she said before letting out a heavy chuckle, "At least I can be the first cinderace to suck at sports."
"You don't suck, you're just in a slump. You'll come out of it; I know you will! You have too much love and passion for cometball to let this keep you down."
Aisling just hummed half-heartedly, picking up a fork and playing with the noodles slowly becoming more unappetizing by the minute. She should just go home. If she wasn't going to take advantage of her friend treating her to dinner then she might as well just go home. At least then she could sulk in peace behind closed doors.
She was just about to tell him as much but before she could get the words out, he interjected with his own piece. "You know what you need? A change of pace! Something new to ruffle you up."
She looked up at the gleam the came over his eyes so suddenly, perplexion taking over her sorrow and leaving curiosity in its place. "What are you talking about?"
"I mean, think about it. All day, every day it's cometball this and practice that. And, while hard work and dedication like that is admirable to an extent, it's also draining. The body isn't meant to be doing the same thing over and over again without much change. We're too hot-blooded for a schedule! Too young to be set in our ways!" his voice grew in his excitement, body rising to stand on his seat and taking a step onto the table. "And I know just the perfect spice to throw in for you."
"Felix," she called him in her feeble attempts to stop him. She could feel the multitude of eyes piercing their table with a variety in levels of annoyance. "Get down, you're making a scene… Everyone is staring…" she whispered, becoming more urgent with their whispers joining in on the nosy gazes.
"Ashe!" her implorations went completely unheard, "Cancel all your plans. Tomorrow, I'm taking you out to see something extraordinary!"
~uwu~
That's what he said before the pub manager came over to quiet him down, cooling him off before that hot head of his could burn the restaurant down. Just thinking about how she was lumped together with him in his scolding made her wish this hoodie could turn sentient and eat her whole. Just pulling the strings and closing the window on her face wasn't enough! But she was here and waiting for the past… twenty minutes!
She huffed, making a firm decision right there: if he didn't show in the next five minutes, she was out!
"Ashe!" She peeked up to the bouncing crown of flames bounding over to her, backpack slung over his shoulders and a burdened, labored look dripping down his face.
"There you are!" she stood up with a hard stomp, arms crossing over her chest and foot tapping away at the ground, sending little sparks flying. "Do you have any idea how long I've been waiting? I was this close to just going home, you know," she said, pushing two digits close together to emphasize her point.
"I know, I know. Sorry, I got a bit carried away with the preparations and lost track of time," he admitted, sheepishly rubbing at the back of his neck.
"Yeah," her eyes peered over his shoulder at the sack he was schlepping along, "Speaking of which, what's with the bag?"
"Oh, you'll find out soon enough. For now, let's get going. We don't want to be any later than we already are," he said, leading the way out of the plaza and down one of the main streets.
"And whose fault was that, again?" she asked, following his lead and walking away from the fountain and its kind, calming guardian.
"Sheesh, I said I was sorry."
He led her down the western boulevard with its small shops and quaint cafes and petite boutiques, passing intriguing option after intriguing option and tickling Aisling's brain for a clue as to what the infernape was planning. He wouldn't let anything slip despite her constant badgering and prodding, his lips sealed as tight as a banette's. After some point, she just gave up the guessing games and just let whatever happens happen. It wasn't like the guy ever steered her wrong before.
Well, never intentionally, anyway.
That's what she believed, having total faith in this deeply rooted friendship, until they turned off the main road and walked down the lane to find a line waiting outside a stairwell that led into an underground area of the building. No wait, they weren't just waiting outside, the line was bleeding out from the stairs! Bodies crowded together in the tight space and spilled into the open area in some messy semblance of organization. They stuck close to the wall, several of them clustered together in small groups to speak in whatever rambling jargon Aisling was overhearing or past the time with simple games that took little to no space at all.
They were getting closer to this gathering of pokémon and Aisling's mind considered the idea that they would be moving on past them to the real thing Felix wanted to show her. In just a second, they'd be moving on and leaving wherever those 'mons were waiting for behind. They got closer to the jumbled heap keeping themselves from obstructing the road but that was fine. They were just in the direction the two of them were moving in. Then Felix began to get closer to their side of the street. Okay, maybe the infernape didn't always walk in a straight line. Perhaps he was getting distracted and drifting off into their direction.
And then he stopped.
At the end of the line.
Even gave one of the fellows a friendly handshake and a pat on the back as if he were a close buddy of his.
"So…" Aisling's head slowly caught up to the events, eyes peering past the crowd towards the front, "This is it, then?"
"Yep!" Felix's voice skipped with glee, removing the backpack from his shoulders and crouching down carefully until he was sitting on the pavement. "Just got to wait a bit to get in and then the real magic can begin."
"Uh-huh…" her voice trailed off, looking at the lounging postures everyone adopted to be as comfortable as they possibly could sitting on stone and leaning against bricks. "And, uh, how long is this wait supposed to be?" she asked, a slight edge of nervous energy creeping at the back of her throat.
Felix looked for a clock along the building walls, humming while his eyes read its surface. "About an hour and a half or two."
And there went Aisling's patience.
"I'm going home," her voice cut through his chipper air like cold steel, its flat, monotone shape admitting that she was one hundred percent done with him and his shenanigans for the rest of the day.
She turned to leave but a quick hold on her arm pleaded with her to stay, "Hold on a second-"
But she was having none of it, snapping her arm back and glaring her disapproval at him. "Look, man, you make me wait for you for almost half an hour and now you're telling me I have to wait two more for something I don't even have a single clue about? Give me a break, would you? I'm not in the mood for any of this."
His eyes softened. He didn't reach to grab her again but his eyes still held her still, begging for her haste to subside and her annoyance to dissipate.
"I know I'm asking a lot here, but I'm only doing it because I think it could help you. When everything felt hopeless for me, when it felt like there was no point in trying anymore… this here, this thing I want to show you, it pulled me out of it and gave my life a whole new reason to live."
He looked back towards the dip in the leveled earth, seeing something beyond the heads of the crowd and this moment. Oceanic eyes stared off into that distance, the scars of a deep sorrow healed by this mysterious remedy reflecting within their vibrant hue. He turned back to her, letting her see the scar behind his placid smile.
"I want to share that with you. If it can help out my best friend, then I need to share this with you."
She watched him for a moment before letting out a short exhale, breathing out the stress in her head and the tension in her shoulders. "Alright… I'll stay," she conceded.
The crowd—who she just realized had quieted their chatterings to listen in on Felix's little speech—applauded him, whistling their validation and cheering for the emotions embedded in his words. It honestly felt a little awkward but Aisling didn't let their outburst ruining the little moment they had.
"So," she leaned against the wall next to him, "What do you usually do to pass the time, then?"
A wide, toothy grin took over his face, a hand reaching into his bag and pulling out three separate decks of card games. He held their faces out to her, "Pick your poison."
~uwu~
"You know," Felix's shoulders trembled, his body hunched over their latest finished game. The final car that spelled his defeat stared back at him with its taunting glare, mocking him. "You could have been a little gentler!" he said, throwing his hand onto the stack and scattering the cards with a firm smack.
"What are you talking about?" Aisling tilted her head, slouching over a knee with her smug expression and feeling high and mighty with her clean hands. "I was gentle."
"How can you call that being gentle? Look at him!" he swung an arm out to the sandslash who decided to join their game to kill time with a couple of kindred spirits. Unfortunately for his wholesome naiveté, Aisling was a brutal tyrant who loved to draw out the game to sprinkle in her torment.
"Skips and draws and skipped again… The cards… so many cards…" he muttered away, still clenching half the deck in his claws. His eyes felt broken, having seen nothing but horrors not meant for pokémon kind for the last hour of his life. The tears peeking out of his eyes wondered if he would ever be sane again. Wondered if he would ever know such a thing as a "friendly game of cards" again.
"The poor dude had no idea what he was getting into… you should have held back for his sake."
Aisling let out a soft snicker, reaching into the lopsided pile and stirring the cards up into an even bigger mess. "That's just how this game goes," she told him, reaching a hand out to the sandslash to add his cards into the pool, "Besides, half-assing it is just an insult to the other players. If I'm going to play, I play to win."
The sandslash gulped, flinching away from the gleam in her eyes. He wasn't certain if the sharp glint that sparked the flames in her eyes meant to eat him whole or just his spirit but his body wasn't ready for either.
"So, we playing again or-"
"Hey guys!" a call from the front interrupted her, "They're opening the doors now! We can go inside."
"Oh darn, looks like we'll have to call it here. Such a shame," Felix feigned his disappointment with overly exaggerated inflections and a slight cheer at the end of his words. He scooped up his cards, taking them away from Aisling before she could do any more damage.
The sandslash let out a relieved sigh, standing up first and retreating to follow the queue inside.
"Oh well, it was fun while it lasted," Aisling shrugged, hopping onto her feet next.
"Yeah," Felix followed right after, "But now the real fun can begin." He hooked his tail into the straps of his bag, lifting it up to wait for his hands to finish tidying up the cards. He returned them back to their tidy state, as organized as when he first took them out if not a little more worn and used.
"So, you wanna tell me now what we're doing?" Aisling asked after he secured his belongings and zipped up the pouch.
"I thought you were content at keeping it a surprise."
"Yeah, but I'm not distracted anymore," she responded, catching an ear falling further into her face and pushing it back into the confines of her hood, "I'm a curious soul, Felix. I thirst for knowledge."
"Isn't the discovery of the unknown way more fun, though?" he asked, laughing a little at the pout that crossed her lips, "Come on, we're almost inside. You'll put the pieces together soon enough once we made it through. Just hang onto that curiosity for a little longer."
"Yeah, alright," Aisling conceded.
Well, she came this far and waited this long, she could hold onto her patience for just a bit more.
They stepped to the door where a meowth with rich, plush lavender fur stood waiting with a metal box sitting by her side. Felix reached into his bag and pulled out a handful of coins, counting them before handing them off to the feline. She had to cup them carefully in her smaller paws, making sure they were secured in her grip while she doubled checked the amount.
"So, the two of you together?" she asked, turning her gaze away from the small fortune and pointing between the two of them.
"Yep, that's right," he answered.
"Alrighty," she dumped the coins away into the box and looked to a murkrow flying beside a board slowly being covered in little tallies, "That's two."
"Got it," the murkrow crowed back, gripping a chalk piece in its beak and drawing two additional tallies onto the board.
"Enjoy the show," the meowth moved aside slightly, letting the pair through and moving onto the pokémon standing behind them.
So, it was some kind of performance, then. Aisling never really got into the world of theatrics and entertainment, lacking the funds and the time to want to get invested, but she couldn't say she was opposed to the idea. Felix insisted that it could help her feel better and, walking down the hall leading to the stage area, she was starting to think that he might be onto something. Even if she found the scene wasn't for her, it could at least take her mind off of her shortcomings and recent failures.
She wondered what it was they were about to see and how it captivated her friend. If he was recommending it to her at her lowest point, then what kind of show was it?
He opened the double doors for the both of them, taking the first step inside and letting Aisling take in the new surroundings. There was a stage at the opposite end of the room, a barred railing bordering the perimeter to add a safe distance between the audience and the performers. She couldn't see any chairs available to them, the pokémon that were already congregating inside standing in little clusters facing the idling lights.
So she could probably rule out theater troops or any orchestra symphonies. Well, those would have been the most outrageous options. She couldn't see the infernape having the patience to sit quietly for that long anyway. Then, that just left some kind of concert. But for who? He never did talk about his tastes in music before today. Was he keeping it a secret? Was it the kind of thing you keep secret?
The image of some obstagoon screeching into the mic with a horror-inducing scream popped into her mind, lyrics indecipherable and a bass out for blood. No offense to the pokémon into that kind of stuff but Aisling couldn't see herself getting into that kind of jam. Actually, it was pretty hard picturing Felix in that sort of situation as well. It just went to show, you think you know someone until you find about their weird music obsessions.
"Looks like there's still some spots up front," his voice startled her out of her thoughts, her body jolting to see him using a hand as a visor despite the low lighting. "I gotta get changed first before it starts. Why don't you snag us up a good spot up there? Don't be shy about it," he said, giving her back a quick smack before leaving her behind.
"Wait! Change into what? Hey!" Aisling called after him but it was too late, his glowing head vanishing behind a door that she supposed led to the restrooms. And now she was all alone with one job to do: find a good spot…within this unfamiliar place. When he came back, she was so stomping his foot.
She pulled at her hood, fixing it in place before treading into the warzone. A couple steps in and she saw a rhydon and nidoking pair sporting pink headbands with what looked like soft white clouds bordering the edges. A few more and she noticed a couple of pokémon wearing shirts of similar fashion, the fronts looking a little different but the backs all had the same logo printed in bold letters covered in frosting and dripping with syrup. "SWEET BUFFET" was what she thought she was reading after the first two but the next five made her certain that that was the name of whoever was performing.
It didn't sound like some heavy metal group so that was a bit of a relief, but Aisling didn't think she ever heard him say anything about this Sweet Buffet band. If they meant so much to him, why did he keep it to himself for so long? Mysteries upon mysteries but a solution to this puzzle was just around the corner.
Aisling found a spot along the railings next to a group of youngsters chatting away about the upcoming show. They scooched over just a bit to make room despite Aisling moving to keep in mind their personal space. She took a quick look at them, probably no more than thirteen, maybe fourteen years old. With them and several others mixing in with the older crowd, it seemed like this Sweet Buffet attracted all sorts to their show.
"Nice going," Felix said from behind, "When I said to find us something good, I didn't think you'd go for the best seats in the house."
Any thoughts she had in her brain—any inkling of an idea she had swimming around—was completely incinerated when she saw what had become of her best mate. While the fans she passed chose to be more modest about their apparel, Felix decided to go all-in with plastering their merchandise all over his body.
A red t-shirt with rising flames along its bottom edges covered his torso, a silhouette of who she could only assume was his favorite member pressed to the front with "CINNAMON" printed above in a shameless arch. A long robe jacket draped his body, stopping just a couple of inches past his knees. It was decorated with buttons and patches along the front faces, all featuring the same blaziken in different expressions, poses and outfits. A red headband wrapped around his head with the same golden flames creeping in from the bordering edges, the sash tied over his ears and under his flaming crown. And the prop to complete such an extravagant outfit? A pair of glowing batons, also red, clenched in both of his hands.
Aisling tried not to laugh, really gave it her best, but the burst of air was too powerful, breaking past her pursed, trembling lips like the walls were made of brittle, old paper.
"Don't laugh!" Felix shouted, a pout souring his otherwise excited disposition.
Her hold loosened, the chuckles rolling free while she attempted her apology. "I'm sorry, man. Seriously, I don't mean to. It's just… this is so far out of left field, you kinda hit me upside the head with that one."
"It's not that out of place. Didn't you see what everyone else is wearing? It's totally natural to go all out."
"Yeah, speaking of that," her voice trailed into a musing mutter, eyes looking back at the gathering of pokémon. The crowd increased in size while her back was turned, the gaps between the clusters filling in with a rainbow of colors adding a lively splash to the once dull grey. "You don't see this much coordination outside of the stadium crowds. You guys that into this Sweet Buffet band?"
His annoyance was short-lived, dying away immediately at the mention of the special event soon to begin. "Oh, so you figured out their name?" he asked, a delightful skip in his voice.
She turned back to him, "Not that hard when everyone's got it sewn onto their backsides."
He laughed, "True, true. It's how we show our love and support so it's no wonder we dress specifically for the occasion. By the way, I packed an extra set for you so you can meld in better with the crowd. Wanna go change into it now? I'll hold out spots." He held up his bag with his tail, the contents inside waiting to be thrusted upon her but Aisling wasn't ready to accept such a prized offering.
"Yeah, no. I'm good," she said with her hands raised.
"Really? Well, alright then. But at least take this," he reached into the bag and handed her one of the glowing batons, "You don't have to do much with it, just hold it as part of the experience."
She stared at it for a moment, its gentle light dazzling her eyes. There was a slight pull tugging at her wrist, a beckoning notion to take his offering. It was to gain the full experience, after all. When in a forest, be a tree, as some sudowoodo liked to say. If this was her forest, then she might as well become a tree.
"Okay, thanks," Aisling smiled, taking the baton into her hand and holding it close to her side.
"Not at all," Felix smiled back.
A heavy buzzing signaled the lights to fall, encasing the room in complete darkness where only the glow of the crowd's batons could be seen like pastel-colored stars. The giddiness bubbled up in the room, hushed squeals and anticipated giggles rising up into their little universe. She glanced back at them, twinkling eyes shining like shimmering stardust reflecting their beloved hues. Watching their enthusiasm blossom and spread to its full potential made their new environment feel familiar. It reminded her of the first cometball game she went to as a little scorbunny, surrounded by the cheering crowd and feeling their excitement clenching at her heart. It all felt the same and it bade her eyes fall upon the stage.
The music started, a light, peppy beat warming up the air with its sound. A spotlight shined down on a flaaffy, her fleece glittering under the light like fresh snow and her eyes shining like pearls. Short, stubby hands pressed to bouncing hips, swaying to the beat with her tail following through with every motion. She leaned towards the edge of the stage, her hands cupping around her beaming smile and she shouted with the beat.
"Sweet!"
The spotlights shined on a roserade with luscious petals as fine as velvet and a lopunny with fur as rich as silk and eyes like rosy diamonds.
"For!"
Two more spotlights rained down, illuminating a blaziken radiating heat and passion from her fiery, ambitious body and a gardevoir who tied her skirt off to the side of her hips and showed the long, slender legs without an ounce of shyness in her form.
"You!"
The lights exploded on the stage, the energy in the crowd bursting with their uncontrollable shouts and cheering. The music kicked up and their bodies danced along, not quite perfectly in sync but there was definitely a rich harmony within their dance. An unbreakable spirit, an unyielding bond, that tied their movements together to make it just work. The flaaffy might not have as much reach as the gardevoir and the roserade didn't have as much dexterity in her bouquet arms as the blaziken and her talons but that was their flavor. It was their special ingredients that turned their dancing into a gourmet treat.
And their singing. Gosh, their singing was like a full course meal for the ears and Aisling's ears praised Arceus for having the sensitivity to fully appreciate such a fine palette. From the light and fluffy to the delicate and savory aftertaste. An abrasive spice that at first feels too hot but she soon found herself addicted to that intense zeal. And when she got too hot, there was the refreshing coolness that trickled over her spine and chilled her brain. But her favorite flavor, the one she felt her ears drawn to the most, the one that captivated her eyes to follow her every movement, was the rich chocolate that tasted too delicious to be part of her world.
Aisling wanted to engorge herself in that sweetness, to stuff herself full of it. A soft bitterness hung at the back of her melody but that only made her voice a refined taste. She always thought herself too brash for the refined, too clumsy to appreciate the finer things, too simple to comprehend the complex. But listening to her, seeing her, watching her, she felt like she could gain a brain cell or two to understand. She felt like she could match her tastes to love everything about her. About them. About this.
She clenched the baton tighter, pressing it to her chest while she watched them with unblinking eyes. She didn't notice how her coiling grip bit back at her palms with the device's hard plastic surface giving nothing to her relentless squeezing. She didn't notice how her ears were slowly being freed from under her hood, her craning head assisting gravity in peeling the fabric away and freeing the floppy appendages from their tight prison. She couldn't be bothered with fixing them or with relaxing her hands. She couldn't spare a moment—no, a second on bothering with trivial things. All her attention, every inch of her existence, belonged to them.
It all belonged to Sweet Buffet now.
~uwu~
"Here," Aisling handed Felix his baton, not needing to keep the color of his favorite when she already had one in mind.
He took it back and stuffed the rod into his bag, "So? What'd you think?"
"It was fine," she tried to answer calmly, to not let the excessive beating of her heart spill into her voice, but there was a fine purr that tickled at the back of her throat which she could not stop. It coated her tongue in a thick veil that added a foreign twist to her words.
Felix didn't let her misstep go unnoticed, a cheeky smirk glowing with mischief spreading across his lips while his eyes squinted with mirth and amusement. "Your accent's coming out," he said, pointing at her with a slight chuckle.
His teasings prompted her to purse her lips together, outed and flustered by the bout of honesty that crept into her tone.
"All jokes aside, I'm glad you had fun. It's been a while since I've seen you light up like that."
Aisling held onto her pouting lips for a second more before blowing out the hot air to leave a tender smile behind. "Yeah. Thank for sharing this with me. I really needed it."
"Oh, don't thank me yet. There's still more," he said, grabbing onto her wrist with his tail and leading her out the double doors from whence they came.
"What? But isn't the concert finished?"
"The concert is but the event is still going. You want the full fan experience, right? Then we got to go all the way in fully inducting you into our circle. And what does that mean? It means merch!"
He burst into another room off from the main corridor, his entrance overdramatic and blown way out of proportion but no one paid him any mind. They were too busy with their own things, some crowding around a booth where the same meowth who had been taking their entry fees was now selling them shirts and buttons and posters and scrolls. Aisling was sure there was more sitting on the booth table itself but with the huddle going on around its surface, she could only pick out the merchandise hanging up on display behind the lavender-colored feline.
She heard a squeaky squeal come from the other side of the room and turned her attention to the series of lines that led up to a long table where the group members stood to receive their fans' appreciation and to give that appreciation back in the form of direct contact. The young girls that were beside them during the concert were eagerly bouncing by the table as their small clique made it to the front of the line where they could gush and ramble to their hearts' content. The gardevoir they were talking to nodded her head with a patient, endearing smile, well-practiced in the art of taking praise in all shapes and sizes.
Aisling's eyes trailed to the end of the table, passing the flaaffy and the blaziken to find the lopunny shaking hands with a furret, her eyes beaming as brilliantly as they did on stage. Her lips curled, giggling about something in the little bubble she formed with her fan. The furret asked her something, giving her expression a moment of contemplation but it was only a brief moment. She turned to a pangoro who stood behind the table, his arms crossed and eyes staring down at the gathering with a vigilant glare. She must have asked him something because a second later he held up three fingers, a sort of signal that prompted the furret to pull something from her bag. Aisling couldn't tell what it was at first but the quick exchange from her to the lopunny and then back to the pangoro made it clear that the furret was paying for something. And then a second more and the lopunny was rounding the table's edge, joining the furret's side and hugging her close. A rotom possessed camera, which Aisling then noticed the posse of cameras on standby along the back wall, floated over to them, a flash of light covering the pair before the lopunny moved away from the close embrace to examine the picture's quality.
The scene sunk into Aisling's mind slowly, the facts popping in one by one. She could meet them. She could talk to them. And, if she had the coin, she could touch them. Well, she had to learn the rules on that last one but it still felt like quite the discovery. She wondered if she could ask her to hug her like that; if it was truly all right to be that close to her, to feel her soft fur against her body and even memorialize the moment in a photo.
What kind of world was this where such dazzling stars were so close that she could almost blind herself looking at them? Where it was this easy to interact with them like their fans were truly special to them? Where Aisling could feel like she was special to them?
"Aisling!" Felix called her, breaking her from her daze at last and pulling her back to him. "Sheesh, I know this is your first time, but you could at least pay attention when someone's talking to you."
"Huh? You were talking to me?"
"Aw, come on. What are those ears even for, anyway?" he griped, rubbing the back of his neck to calm himself down. He pointed to the merchandise stall with a thumb, "I was asking who your favorite was so I can get you some of their merch."
"A favorite?"
"You found one, right? Tell me who she is, I'll start you off right." He pressed a palm to his chest, his pride as the certified expect, in his own mind, making his head glow brighter and burn hotter. Ego was always good kindling for that flaming crown of his.
Aisling feigned contemplation, the answer already ringing loud and clear in her mind, shouting into her ears and demanding her mouth to shape the letters on her tongue. But it felt almost embarrassing to admit that she found one so easily—that she felt that special connection to the lopunny in less than a second. She didn't even bother considering the other members. As talented as they were, her gaze was too fixated onto the lopunny's dazzling figure to see their own specialties shining through. Even now, her eyes felt the strong pull of her presence urging her back into staring off at her guiding star.
She hadn't realized she let the impulse shift her attention away until she felt Felix's heat brush against her side. "Ah, so you've become one of Coco's admirers," he said next to her ear, her head moving away from his close proximity. "I get it. You rabbits have to stick together, right? Honestly, that may be why Cinnamon is my favorite girl. Birds of a feather and what not. Anyway, let me find you something before they run out."
Aisling realized he was walking away from her a second later, his voice fading into the energetic chatterings filling the room. "Wait, are you seriously leaving me alone again?" she called after him.
"You'll just slow me down! Just wait there. Try mingling a little," he responded before vanishing into the cluttered crowd of the merch area.
"I take back every nice thing I was thinking about you!" she shouted but he was already too far gone to hear her anymore.
She gave a soft groan and rolled her eyes, finding herself some little quiet space along the wall to idle and wait for her friend to get back to her. She tried to minimize herself as much as possible, keeping her hood up and her body out of the way of the shuffling crowd who knew where they wanted to go and where they wanted to be much better than she could. It was amazing how much bustle and commotion they could stir up with so little provided to do. Granted, some were more than willing to leave after finishing their business at either ends of the room but most of them chose to linger inside the building for a bit longer.
There was no rush to get out or urgent matters to attend to, having all the time in the world to stay and bask in their shared interests. Whether it was sharing the same favorite idol or just talking about the group as a whole, they seemed to have plenty to discuss with all the rambling digressions and tangents to go with it. Of course, Aisling couldn't fault them for spending their time in whatever worthwhile way they saw fit. It wasn't like she never hung around a stadium after a game with some hope of catching the players off the field. And with this guaranteed opportunity to share the same space with these offstage idols, to breathe the same air as those dazzling stars, she wouldn't mind sparing another hour or two herself just hanging around.
Aisling didn't know how long Felix needed to get her a few souvenirs but things were starting to look vicious over at the merch table. Stocks running low and limited editions going fast, every announcement the meowth made over the crowds stirred them crazy with panicked desperations to get that last t-shirt even remotely their size or that last poster that would go perfectly with their room décor. As an outsider looking in at the growing frenzy, she couldn't help but start feeling a bit grateful that the infernape didn't take her with him. No way would she have survived that on her first try.
He must have trained his body and willpower a great deal to still be fighting through that for her. Either that or he was already ripped to shreds by the hungry mob. She couldn't really confirm or deny either option, leaving her to wait just a bit longer for his hopefully eventual return.
Her eyes wandered to the lines at the other end, the more organized sets dwindling away to completion. Some of the members still had more to go than others. The flaaffy still had a good number left, as did the roserade and the gardevoir. The blaziken had a respectable few despite what looked to be an abrasive attitude with all her moving and jerking around. But the lopunny-Coco-she looked almost done with hers.
The emptying queue to meet and talk with her seemed awfully tempting. If she was the last one in her line, did that mean she could milk a little more time with her than the others that had 'mons waiting behind them to finish their turn? She shook the selfish idea away. That would be too imposing for her first time. Aisling should just watch for now, get a feel for things from afar. Maybe next time. No, definitely next time, she'll try it out for herself.
"Hey!" Felix's gasping voice called for her, her attention moving towards the winded infernape who came out of that chaos with a sunny tote drooping with content.
"Woah, you lived," Aisling straightened up, her eyes genuinely looking impressed with his resilience.
"How long do you think I've been doing this?" he asked and swatted the question out of the air immediately after, "Nevermind, don't answer that. Anyway, here you go. A basic starter pack for the freshly initiated SweetTooth."
"Thanks, man. You really didn't have to do all this." She took the tote's straps, opening it up and looking inside to see a lot more stuff than she would have expected for a "basic" anything. "What is all this?"
"Oh, well I got you a glow baton which is essential to show your support in the crowd. Yellow is Coco's color so I got you that one. Then there's some wearable merch. I know you like your hooded sweaters so I got you a Sweet Buffet sweater. There's also a Coco general shirt, her dessert design shirt, her varsity jacket with her patch—limited edition so I had to get you that. Let's see," he pulled at the edge of the bag to refresh his memory, "a couple of buttons, her poster set and… her photo book."
"Dude… how much did this all cost?"
"Like… thirty… five? Maybe forty coins?"
Her head snapped up, brows creasing into a scolding glare. She clasped the tote bag shut, "How much?" she asked, sharing the same voice and tone as her mother when Aisling went on her first shopping binge. She thought her mother was overreacting back then, chastising her on how she spent of her own money, but now she felt like she could understand her disappointment. Aisling never wanted to understand that disappointment. "You really shouldn't have. It's too much, I can't accept all this," she said, trying to push the bag back into his hands but he merely pushed back.
"Of course you can," he insisted, "I bought it for you. Besides, there're no refunds so you're stuck with it."
"Then at least let me pay you back." She tried reaching into her pocket for her coin purse but even that was no good for the infernape.
"No, Ashe, put the wallet down. This is all part of the Felix Feel Good package. That much is chump change when I spend more than double on myself on the regular," he waved a hand as if he had more than enough wealth to share, "This is your day, Ashe. Your first show. I can spare a few coins to get you a nice gift. So just smile and accept your best friend's generosity."
"Such pushy generosity…" she muttered past pursed lips. She looked down at her tightly clenched bag once more before sighing away her reluctance. "Fine, but don't think I'll just roll over and take it next time."
"Oh trust me, there won't be a next time. You're on your own from here on out. Well… alone financially, we can still enjoy their concerts together."
"Right then. As long as you don't go making that kind of spending on my behalf a habit then I guess it's fine." Aisling flung the tote bag over her shoulder, letting it hit her backside and dangle by its straps. "You ready to go then? That was the last thing you wanted to do, right?"
Felix shook his head, "Nope. There's still one last thing for us to take care of," he said, his glee and excitement bleeding into his face and putting a glowing, ecstatic smile on his lips. "And, of course, I saved the best for last."
He dug into the front pocket of his bag, shuffling around inside for a second before pulling out two slips of paper. One was red with the outline of the blaziken member printed on its surface while the yellow one had Coco's.
"What are those?" she pointed a digit to the proudly presented slips.
"You know what they are," he said with a wink, taking her by the wrist and dragging her over to the lines.
"Hold on, what's the rush? I mean, do I have to go over this time?" she asked, stumbling a couple of steps on uncertain feet, heels wanting to sink into the ground while her toes wanted to continue pushing forward.
"What are you asking a silly question like that for? Don't you want to meet her?"
"Well… maybe a little but… I don't know if my heart is ready if you just drag me over this instant."
"That's because you're overthinking it way too much. It's not that big of a deal. All you're doing is introducing yourself. She'll be ecstatic about getting a new fan."
"You… you really think so?"
"No doubt!" he nodded, smiling back at her.
Her moment of hesitation mixed with her budding optimism was the leverage Felix needed to get those stubborn heels into the back of Coco's line, pressing her behind a waiting audino to join the queue. With his friend successfully joining the lineup, Felix moved to the back of the adjacent line, a longer wait time placing him a few paces further from the table's edge.
She took one more look at him, catching his thumbs-up signal before turning back to the head of the line. Her eyes lowered, ears coming into her peripheral vision and showing off the frazzled furs messing up their smooth line. They looked like an absolute mess and she didn't want to seem like a slob for her first impression. But, no matter how much her hands stroked down their long length, the fur just didn't want to stay down. Stubborn little strands but she wouldn't let them beat her, keeping the motion going and chipping away not only their resilience but also her own unease.
"I'm sorry," the audino spoke up to her, distracting Aisling from her mindless remedy, "I couldn't help overhearing, but is this really your first time at a Sweet Buffet concert?"
Her hands froze, lingering on the velvet surface of her right ear. "Oh… yeah," she said, but even if she hadn't already overheard their conversation, Aisling was sure her body was screaming that this cinderace was out of her element.
"I see. That's wonderful. I remember my first show. I'm always so picky about my music for… obvious reasons," her hands went to her ears, giggling as she gave them a gentle tug, "So when I first heard Sweet Buffet's music, I was really happy to find something that hits all the right notes for my tastes."
"I think I get that," Aisling smiled, feeling the riling energy in her chest and head mellow out by the soothing chatter coming from the audino's lips.
"Especially Coco's. They come out with featured singles for the members from time to time. If you really like her voice, I'd definitely suggest checking hers out."
"Featured singles?" she parroted with a ping of intrigue gleaming in her eyes.
"Right!" she exclaimed, excitement beaming all over her face and falling down her spine to tease at the tuft that made up her tail, "I can't recommend hers enough." A wistful look came into her eyes, sparks of dreams and twinkling admiration floating from her and creating a healing air potent with innocent bliss. "Coco's voice is just so beautiful. There's such a deep passion to it and so much soul. But… there's also a quiet desperation that's always seeping out. Like she's trying to reach something… or someone…"
Her voice trailed away into silent musings, her mind falling in on itself and sinking away into her own fan theories and head cannons that kept her imaginative mind sharp and invested. She didn't want to interrupt the audino's thoughts, letting her mind wander and her voice ramble until the pangoro called her up for her turn.
"Oh, looks like I let my head go into the clouds again," she noted, taking a step towards the table before glancing back at Aisling for one last thought, "Let's chat some more next time, okay? I'm Clarice, by the way."
"Aisling, but my friends call me Ashe," she smiled, the last of her nerves washing away under Clarice's kind, welcoming air that lingered in her head. At least if talking with her idol didn't go over well, she could still say that she got a friend out of this.
She focused on getting her breathing smooth and her heart rate steady, measuring her inhales and letting her tension melt away with her slow exhales. It'd be fine, she reminded herself, she's just a pokémon just like everyone else. A pokémon with jeweled eyes and a voice like melting chocolate. Just a lopunny with a pretty smile and huggable fur. Merciful Arceus, even a handshake looked like it would put her in heaven with those soft-looking puffs of fluff…
"Next!" It was Aisling's turn to receive the pangoro's gruff call, the audino's body vanishing before she could realize the pokémon ahead of her had finished. He kept a heavy look in his stern eyes, an overwhelming pressure weighing on her shoulders, daring her to screw up but Coco's smile…it was so gentle and inviting, beckoning Aisling forward despite her imposing guard.
She took a step forward, stiffer than she would have liked but she prayed that the idol did not notice. She stopped in front of her section at the long table and the lopunny offered her hand. Aisling looked to the invitation, pristine, cotton fur glistening under the lights like soft, billowing clouds on a sunny afternoon given tangible form on the cuffs on Coco's wrist. She reached for it, feeling her hand sink into that softness and finding lithe, slender fingers beneath its surface. Her lips trembled, restraining themselves from grinning like an idiot for just being able to touch and feel such an ethereal texture against her palm, but her quivering smile was strong against her tightening muscles.
A soft giggle floated from the idol's lips, the lightest, littlest thing Aisling had ever heard before. It floated on giddy bubbles that popped in her eyes, momentarily distracting her from her facial efforts to keep a calm, composed expression. But then, it turned to assisting in keeping the smile off of her face, her mind now asking why the lopunny was laughing. Did she already mess up? She did, didn't she?
"I'm sorry," Coco said past her fingers that hid giggling lips, "I don't mean to laugh. It's just… your ears, this is the first time I've seen a cinderace with long, lopped ears. They're really cute. I thought for a second that we kind of matched and it gave me the giggles."
Several reliefs came to Aisling at once, the first being that she had not embarrassed herself in front of her newly treasured idol. The second was that she was still willing to smile for this odd cinderace and her strangely shaped ears. But third, and most important of all, was she thought these ears of hers, the ones she constantly put down and hid away under some covering that let them slip out anyway, were cute. She thought some part of Aisling was…cute.
"O-Oh, thank you…" the purr of her accent slipped in with the flush of her cheeks.
Coco hummed something deep in her throat, swallowing down something unsaid that left a lingering glow in her eyes. She gripped her a little tighter, a soft urge to have Aisling stay a little longer now that she had her. "So, was this your first show, then?" she asked, leaning a little closer and tilting an ear in her direction.
"Yes," Aisling nodded, "My friend is a huge fan and he brought me here today to see you guys perform."
"Really?" Coco pulled in a smidge more, keeping an ear on the warning grunts coming from the pangoro behind her. "How did you like it? Did you have fun?" she asked, her ears swaying as light as an altaria's wings.
Aisling couldn't help taking an extra second to appreciate the minuscule beauty in every facet of her being, thanking all the divine beings and celestial gods above for the blessings that were this lopunny's eyes and adorably petite frame.
She blinked away her daze before it took up the rest of her time, rubbing at the fur along her cheek and combing her digits through its long strands. "Yeah, I had a blast. You're really good, I'm surprised I'm just now finding out about you."
Coco laughed, the rich sound filling Aisling's ears and making her heart skip several beats. "I'm glad you enjoyed yourself," she said before a soft, sultry flavor settled into her eyes, swirling deep behind their rosy colors and adding a midnight hue to her irises. "And... since you're in my line, does that me I've won your heart?" she asked, her tease dusting her lips with the whispers of a smirk.
Aisling couldn't even consider being modest or dishonest with her, submitting easily to her question like she was under some truth spell. "Yes," she muttered, her face turning as red as the tuft of fur on her head.
Coco seemed almost surprised by the genuine response, her smile faltering for a fraction of a second before coming back stronger. A brief glimmer of a smirk crossed her lips, wide and proud and full of some kind of intent but it left as quickly as it came, her idol persona taking full reins of her lips once more.
"Really? I'm so happy I captured such an adorable new fan," she beamed, stars flashing in Aisling's eyes at the lopunny's vigorous grin. "Hey, if it's alright, would you mind telling me your name?"
"My name?" she repeated.
"Mm-hm," Coco confirmed with a nod of her head, "I try to remember all of my fans' names. You don't have to give me your real name, just something I can call you by next time."
It seemed reasonable enough, working so hard to keep her fans happy. If she could really remember all her fans' names, that would be pretty impressive. But even if she didn't, if she remembered Aisling's name at least then she would be the happiest pyro bunny on this side of the world.
"It's Aisling."
"Aisling?" Coco said, repeating the name and tasting it on her tongue, letting it sink into her taste buds with soft contemplation rolling across her face. "Aisling..." she sang, "Aisling, Aisling. It's such a pretty name, I'll definitely remember it."
Even if she was just saying that for her, even if it was nothing but a line to follow the flow of mood and the spur of the moment, Aisling was happy. No, more than happy. Her body was filled to the brim with a white, transcendent bliss, peace washing over her heart while soft murmurings in her chest told her that everything in life was wonderful. Everything in life would be fine because this one lopunny, this one angel in mortal form, knew her name and called it pretty.
"Oh!" The spark of inspiration lighting Coco's exclamation brought Aisling back to her sense. "Since this is your first time, why don't we take a picture together? First-time attendees get a free photo op with an idol of their choice."
The idea overwhelmed the cinderace something fierce, her brain overloading with all the implications such close contact came with. Of course, Aisling would never consider such offered services with devious intent. Heck, she even asked for pictures with her favorite sports stars when she had the opportunity, but for some reason, asking for something so personal and intimate felt too imposing.
"Oh, I… I couldn't possibly…" she stumbled, holding a hand up and shaking her head.
Coco pouted, "You don't want to take a picture with me?" she asked, her voice turning delicate while her eyes glimmered with tears.
"No, no! I'd love to take a picture with you, it's just-"
"Great!" Coco interjected with a skip in her step, bounding around the table and removing the last barrier keeping her on an untouchable pedestal. She beckoned a rotom cam away from his idling comrades with a wave of her hand while the other slipped around Aisling's arm and hugged herself close to the cinderace's side.
Aisling's body froze up instantly, trying to make up its mind if it was alright for her to take notice of the warm softness clinging to her side or if she should ignore the pleasant sensation in lieu of maintaining some amount of boundary between idol and fan. Obviously, it should be the latter. After all, such close contact didn't mean anything at all when in the name of fanservice. But her body was impulsive and could be unreasonable at the worst of times. And so, despite her mental objections, her body leaned further into the former, sinking into that delightful warmth and subtly sweet scent.
"Oh," Coco stopped the rotom before he could snap the shot, turning up to Aisling and hugging her arm a bit closer to her chest, "You mind if we put your hood down? It'd be a waste to hide your face under there for the picture."
"Um… sure," Aisling managed to utter her affirmation, her accent getting thicker on her tongue as her mind defaulted to her most basic functions. She reached to pull the hood from her head but a gentle, cushioned grip stopped her from going any higher.
"Please, allow me," Coco insisted, smile tempting Aisling to follow her whims.
She nodded her head, moving it up and down slowly as if the hypnotic spell only allowed her the simplest of gestures. The lopunny's hands only moved closer when she received her okay, reaching up and peeling the fabric back. The slow movements tickled her, fur standing on shuddering goosebumps and sending a zapping sizzle down her spine. The idol's fingers brushed against the edge of her ears, a light touch at first but soon growing into a fussing tease. She stroked them, arranging them over her shoulders and straightening their shape by her face. It made Aisling's chest quiver and her lungs seize up, trying to hold back the soft whimpers that wanted to escape her throat.
Coco slid her gliding touch down her ear's length, admiring the golden inlay markings that shimmered under the abundant light. "There we go," she whispered, her tender voice heating the edge of her ear. She let out a soft giggle, looking up at Aisling's brilliant eyes while the auditory appendage slipped free from her fingers. "It'd be a shame to hide such a lovely face under that hood. You look so much better without it."
Oh, her heart… Aisling wasn't sure how much more of this she could take before she melted away into a molten pool of fur and goo. She bit into her trembling lips, giving her something to hold on to before her blazing soles sank her into the floor. She tried giving her thanks, but it came out in her native tongue, the rolling rumbles spilling past her lips and adding a delectable flavor to her voice.
It took Coco a moment to register the foreign words, not quite comprehending their meaning but she could wager a good guess on their intent. She gave a soft hum, her smile widening in their glorious glee. She snuck in a quick nuzzle, getting her head nice and situated against Aisling's shoulder and looked to the camera.
"Okay, on the count of three, say 'sweets'." She redirected Aisling's attention to the camera lens, hugging her tighter and holding up two fingers by her face in a cute pose for her fan's memento. "One… Two… Three… Sweets!"
Aisling stumbled in her own posing, her muscles tightened and an awkward smile messed up her grin to make it look more like hooks digging into her cheeks than any natural expression. She let out a sigh colored by a gentle groan that tingled the back of her throat. And even after she tried prepping her up a bit for the picture. It was less of a memento and more like a trophy for the stiffest, graceless smile ever. Truly one for her hall of disappointment and failure.
"Hm," Coco looked over the photo, "You look so tense here. Like you're posing next to a sharpedo ready to bite," she said with a soft chuckle.
"I'm sorry…" Aisling muttered, rolling the edge of her sweater into several knots.
"Hey, no need to apologize. We'll just have to take another one."
"Coco!" the pangoro spoke up, the threshold for his tolerance finally crossed and forcing him to stomp his foot down before the idol walked any deeper into the realm of the unacceptable. "We don't do retakes on freebies. If it's messed up, it's messed up. Now give her the picture and let her be on her way. You're holding up the line."
"What line?" Coco asked, a slight hint of rebellion adding a dark, bitter flavor at the edge of her voice, "She's my last visitor and it's her first time. I can afford to give a little more in making sure she goes home with a decent photo."
His eyes hardened, an unspoken message hanging in the air heated by his glare. Whatever he wanted to say, he couldn't say it here and that just irritated him even more.
"Sheesh… Aisling, mind hanging on for just a second?" Coco said with a gentle pat on Aisling's shoulder as she stepped towards the pangoro.
"Really, I'm fine with this one," the cinderace tried to keep her idol out of trouble but the lopunny was more stubborn than she looked, determined to have things her way.
"It's fine, just give me one second. I'll smooth things over."
She didn't give Aisling the chance to further her objections leaving her speechless with her hanging jaw still having more to say. She was forced to swallow those remaining words, watching the idol push a hand against the pangoro's side to coax his body to turn around.
Aisling's hand started to reach for her face, idle fingers wanting to fiddle with something. She'd usually let them play with her ears, rubbing the smooth line of their fur and pinching the edge between the tips of her digits, but her hands froze before they could make contact. If she messed with them, it would ruin Coco's touch-up and overwrite the sensations still tingling her nerve endings and it felt much too soon to lose them now.
Her hand inched away from the dangling appendages, moving slowly to think about where it was going. It sank down her sweater and borrowed itself into the front pocket, letting it relax inside the warm space and press into the fabric like a heavy stone.
"Oh my, it looks like she's showing off her bratty side today," the gardevoir laughed under her breath, her attention diverting for a moment to take in the air of commotion circling her teammate.
The flaaffy joined in her amusement, a bubbly, excitable tone joining her refined chuckles and adding a light, airy remedy to the stiffness left behind by the pangoro's gruff tone. "Yay! Dark Chocolate Coco is on the scene yet again."
The waiting crowd smiled and giggled along with their poking teases and light prodding, turning their attention away from Coco's hushed whispers that kept jabbing at the large pokémon towering a couple of feet above her head. They were so quick to ignore her and carry on with their own favorites and their business that Aisling suspected that this was a regular enough event to be paid little to no mind towards. She wondered if the idol had gotten away with this as easily as she did when they first debuted or if she had to build a character and rapport with them to be able to sneak in these little bitter samplings.
Well, even if there was a bitter side to her, Aisling couldn't say that she didn't like it. Actually, it just made the idol all the more appealing to know there was more of a spectrum than just the smooth sweetness. To know that there was a darker flavor past the silky milk chocolate gave her an adult taste and allured Aisling deeper into the inescapable pit of idol worship.
"Fine," the pangoro huffed, crossing his arms with a defeated scowl dragging a heavy rake down his forehead and between his brows.
"Excellent. Good talk, Chief," Coco patted his side, walking back to Aisling with victory brightening her eyes into a brilliant hue. She stepped closer to her with a bit of a swagger in her hips, proud strides clearing the way quickly and returning her back to the cinderace's side. "See, there was nothing to worry about at all. So now, about that picture," her voice teased its way into Aisling's brain, giving her something to hold onto while her arms hooked their locking grip back around the firm, toned, white limb.
Aisling felt her squeezing just a bit tighter than the last time, hugging her closer and letting their furs mix and mingle along the midline of her body. She had to pry her eyes away from the sight, feeling the flames in her core grow and spit their sparks into her cheeks. She told herself that the lopunny was just being a bit overzealous after winning against the pangoro like a jolly child that convinced their parent to give them two treats instead of one. There was no need to feel over-excited and over-stimulated over simple gestures that meant nothing to Coco.
"You… didn't have to go that far for me, you know. I really would have been happy with the first one," she muttered through the scorching boil clogging her throat.
"Don't be silly. It was nothing, really. Besides, I wanted to make sure you got a good photo after your first show. So then, let's give this another shot, okay?"
She adjusted herself by Aisling's side, fitting their bodies together just right and getting back into position. Aisling tried to emulate her loose, carefree motions to create a more natural pose but her muscles still refused to undo their tense grip and tight coils. Of course, Coco noticed this, having front row seats to her body's subtly flexes and spasms, and she had no intention of ignoring them this time.
"Hey, it's okay. Relax, I promise I won't bite," she whispered beside her ear, a hand creeping down her arm to find her palm. She locked their digits together, giving the cinderace a tender, reassuring squeeze and letting her cottony cuffs envelop her wrist in their warm sanctuary. "Just think about what you loved most about today and smile."
The suggestion rang in Aisling's head, tapering off into a far-off echo that rippled through her thoughts and illuminated her memories. Flashing under the lights in her dazzling aura, Coco danced away on the stage of her consciousness, fur shimmering in its radiant sheen and eyes smiling with her love and passion for the song leaving her lips. Aisling pretended that their eyes had met during her performance. Pretended that she was dancing for her. Pretending that she was singing for her heart. The lyrics that promised she'd be her star through the gloom and the dark, Aisling pretended that she could take those words literally and her game of make-believe made her world a whole lot brighter.
"Alright, girls! Take two, big smiles now!" the rotom prompted but Aisling could hardly hear him over the song and Coco's voice playing in her head.
She glanced down at the lopunny clinging to her side, feeling the suppleness of her body pressing into her own with its caressing warmth and enchanting aroma.
The rotom's countdown hummed at the back of Aisling's mind, the soft, buzzing squeak murmuring under her pooling thoughts. "One…" it thudded dully on her ears, "Two… Three! Sweets!"
The camera flashed and the moment was over. Aisling didn't feel it on her face whether she remembered to smile or not but the photo evidence showed a look of tranquility, lips curling up into rosy cheeks and adoring eyes gazing down at the lopunny's cheery expression.
Coco had insisted for a third reshoot, citing that Aisling's face still looked a little stiff. But the cinderace was strongly adamant about accepting the redo as more than good enough. She liked the second picture much more than the first and that was all that mattered. Besides, she didn't think she could handle the pangoro's glare any longer if Coco had pushed for a third.
And so, she thanked the idol and when Felix was done meeting and greeting his favorite blaziken, the two of them went on their way.
The infernape stretched his arms towards the sky, raising his bag stuffed with his fan gear and outfit over his head as he got the kinks in his back out of his system.
"Hah," he let out a content sigh, "They were really cute today too. Everyone was so spot on, I bet it's only a matter of time before they get into the big leagues," he said towards the setting sun but Aisling remained silent by his side.
Apparently, she wasn't getting the message that the comment was meant to spark her intrigue and join the conversation. She just continued to stare down at her hand, holding onto the fleeting memory of Coco's touch woven into her palm. Such soft hands and delicate fingers, she wished she could have held onto them for just a bit longer.
"Hello, paging Ashe, you still in there?" Felix leaned into her face, knocking a knuckle against her crest. The light tap got her attention, although with a bit of a smack to get his intrusion away from her personal space.
"What? What are you tapping at me for?" she asked, rubbing away the soft vibrations going through the golden ornament.
"I've been trying to get your attention for the last five minutes but you've been staring into that hand of yours since we left."
She pursed her lips, unable to deny that she had been a bit distracted but still not appreciating his rappings at her forehead.
He shared her pout, mirroring her pressed lips and her blown cheeks but all the air in the expression escaped with a sputtering laugh. "You've fallen real hard, haven't you?"
Aisling choked on the air in her throat, trying to swallow her surprise but feeling it scratch its way down the wrong pipe. "What are you talking about?" she asked, fur completely frazzled and eyes reflecting the panic.
"Oh, c'mon, you really think I wouldn't recognize the signs? You've totally fallen for Coco, right? Although she's not my type, I can respect her appeal. There's a reason her fans usually stick around for the long haul and it looked like you were already starting to connect with one of them."
The heightened alarm in her spine began to falter, the tuft on her head deflating and her brows slowly relaxing over her eyes. "O-Oh, you meant… like in a fan sort of fallen…"
Felix raised a brow at her, "Of course. What other way did you think I meant?"
"Um… I guess… I mean… You know what, it really doesn't matter anymore," she muttered, her thickening accent making the words blur together into a jumbled mess. She rubbed at the back of her head and straightening out the last strands.
Felix watched her, staring deep into her expressions and minute gestures. From her fiddling fingers to how her toes kept kicking at the pebbles in the road, scrutinizing eyes read between her lines but not a single comment left his lips regarding their interpretations.
"If you say so."
They walked on in silence for a few more paces, the tote bag filled with the infernape's gifts starting to weigh heavily on Aisling's shoulder. It didn't feel nearly as burdensome when Felix had given it to her, but for some reason, she could feel it stretching and straining her joints. She wondered if she was just feeling tired or if there was more in this bag than she had thought.
She glanced down at it. Was her imagination turning delirious with all that had happened today? A mischievous trick of the senses? No, unlikely. It was all the same weight, she was sure about that. Her arm was just growing bored of carrying it for so long.
Felix turned his head at the rolling of her shoulders, peeking up at her distant expression before entertaining a new train of thought.
"It looked like you made a good first impression with Coco back there. She's really taken a shine to you."
A little light spilled back into Aisling's eyes although her lips remained still in their pursed line. "You've known her longer. Is she always like that to new fans?" she asked.
He mulled over his answer carefully, definitely holding something back but refusing it to see the light of day. "Well… kinda yes and kinda no. She can't really get that touchy with her male fans since she has a cute charm ability. Because of that, the guys are a little cautious about calling her their favorite but she doesn't really hold anything back with her female fans. Although…" he took a brief pause, a new variable to the equation calling for some new calculations to be made, "I don't think I've seen her cause that much trouble with a new fan. Sure, new fans are entitled to a free picture, but that's the first time I've seen her so pushy about taking multiple freebies with one fan. Could it be the ears? Must be the ears…"
Aisling turned to him, her pace slowing with the world as if everything was moving frame by frame. His observation made her consider she was special, made her fantasize about a day when Coco would be holding Aisling's gaze in her heart. That her cheers and shouts of adoration would add the most to her shimmering presence on stage.
Before they could sink any deeper, Aisling snuffed the delusion and grounded them into the deepest pits of her mind. Such illusions were nothing more than pipedreams, a slippery slope into a depressing reality. Aisling was just a fan. A fan with the dearest of loyalties and endless devotion, but a fan, nonetheless. The love she felt is one only to be felt from afar.
Beyond the barriers with the tables' breadth being the shortest distance between them.
A supervised love held down by event regulations and a pangoro's restrictive glare.
A love where she could lose herself but find her way when the lights came on and the magic was gone.
That was the kind of love she had a right to. But even with its limitations and the pressures of self-control and discipline over her own emotions, it was the kind of love she could live for. No, it was the kind she needed. A sane love built on respect and admiration.
There was a beauty in a life like that. A beauty that would swallow Aisling whole and eat away her woes. She prayed into the dusk filled sky, blessing the day she had found new meaning to her life.
