Wild Rose
The Emperor kneeled on the floor – a bit in pain from his battle with Firion as he looked ahead at the warrior.
"Firion!" he grunted, catching his breath.
Firion glared at him as he stood straight a few feet away and Lightning walked up to him, looking at the Emperor in silence. This was Firion's moment; his battle. She left everything to him for once, but still letting him know she was there by standing beside him.
There was so much Firion wanted to say right now. He wanted to yell; let the Emperor know about himself straight up. He was so angry he couldn't even figure out where to begin - he couldn't even think. He balled his fist again, slowly lifting it to his torso a bit…but, he didn't act on his thoughts or intentions. He suddenly relaxed; resisted – all for Lightning. He didn't want her to see him in a such a…complex moment.
He looked at the Emperor again, still hunched on the floor staring back at him – waiting for him to speak. He knew what he must have been thinking and was taunting him with his stare. Still, however…Firion resisted the temptation and looked at him calmly.
"You'll never learn, Emperor. So, I will continue to defeat you."
The Emperor only laughed at his words as he rose to his feet.
"I see naivety truly runs deep amongst the pawns." he said.
Lightning went to speak, but held back – remembering what she'd told herself moments ago.
"This is his turn." she thought to herself, as she closed her eyes for a moment.
She stepped back, but the Emperor had seen her reaction to the situation. He knew she wanted to say something and opened the opportunity for her – grinning as he spoke.
"Such recklessness you have, Firion. I wonder what it is that makes you so confident and brave, hm? Given your choice of actions prior to our struggle…I would be very much intrigued, I'm sure. Would you care to amuse me one last time?" he taunted.
Firion was only embarrassed by what the Emperor was referring to. He didn't know what had come over him. He'd just acted out of instinct – out of emotion. That was the only logic he could think of behind it. Leave it to the Emperor to put him on the spot like that – especially concerning a matter he had no business in. It only angered him a bit further.
Lightning too, however, had now gained interest as she looked at Firion silently. She had been curious as to what had come over him from the moment it had happened. Never in her life could she have imagined someone acting so on her behalf enough to save her life. Then again…she'd always stepped up herself so no one had ever gotten the chance. Really, it was a comforting thought when she dwelled on it, but nevertheless…she wanted to know just in case.
She saw Firion standing there, holding clearly to a specific thought – though what exactly was hard to say for sure. She could tell he wanted to say something, but he refrained – his fist balled tightly at his side. What was he waiting for? This was the perfect moment to throw it all back at the Emperor. If anyone knew about privacy…it was her. She couldn't understand his silence at all.
"What is he waiting for? What's going on with him?" she thought.
She glanced at the Emperor, whom was still looking at them in anticipation of a response from Firion – any response. That smirk on his face only serving to anger Lightning now as well as she finally broke the silence. She couldn't take it anymore from either side.
"Where's the rose?" she asked, angrily.
The Emperor scoffed at her words – completely unfazed by her tone.
"I figured as much. Such worthless coddling – nothing short of expected from the tools of Cosmos." he mocked.
Lightning only grew more aggravated.
"Well?" she asked, expecting an answer.
The Emperor's face went straight as he looked at her.
"You are sadly mistaken if you believe I hold it."
"What…?" Firion asked.
He'd been nearly certain the Emperor would have it. After all, he practically claimed to know everything about them and their allies – what drove them; compelled them tirelessly to seek an end to this conflict. He even clearly had known about the rose. How he didn't have it, yet alone seem to even know its whereabouts, was a bit surprising to him.
The Emperor only scoffed again at their reaction to his words.
"Just how reckless must you pawns of Cosmos be?"
With that, he left them – a faint laughter heard through the area as he fled.
"Grr..." Firion grumbled, his fist still balled tight.
Lightning stared up at the ceiling in frustration. This whole scene had made the battle they'd just been through seem so pointless. On top of that…there was still the matter of Firion saving her. She had yet to figure out what happened there.
She looked at him as he was already staring back at the floor as she approached him slowly, looking at the top of his head for a moment.
"Firion?"
He lifted his head to meet her eyes head on. He could tell what she was thinking, but he still couldn't even begin to go there. He himself was still wondering what had come over him. He hadn't thought about it: he had just done it. What had possessed him to take such action was something he couldn't express or understand. It was an entirely defining episode, and yet…he couldn't define it just the same. It was conflicting – embarrassing even, just a little. He'd never acted so rashly to anything before in his life. Something had compelled him to behave so and he couldn't ignore it at the time. It surprised him so much that he couldn't even bear to think of what the situation might be if he hadn't – just in case it could have ended undesirably.
"About what happened…" she said, quietly.
"Lightning. I don't…" he replied, cutting her off.
He choked on his words for a moment.
"I can't…"
This wasn't working. He couldn't even say a complete sentence right now. Really, in this moment, he'd thought for sure Lightning might put all the pieces together and finish the puzzle. He was amazed it hadn't come to that…yet.
He sighed as he slowly lifted his eyes towards her – mustering up his confidence to speak to her clearly.
"…Are you hurt?" he asked.
Lightning smiled lightly at him.
"No. I'm alright. Thanks….for saving me." she said.
He could detect the appreciation in her voice – it sounded so true and honest. Knowing she very well could have probably saved herself, as did she…her words still helped him feel a bit better about the whole thing.
He nodded shyly in response, still not quite sure how to react to her gratitude.
"…You're welcome. I'm sorry, by the way."
Lightning turned away from him with her arms folded again and Firion thought she might be brushing him off – until he heard her speak.
"Don't be."
He looked at her in surprise. She was truly unpredictable and he was finding out just how so through his travels with her – new things coming to light and a better understanding between both of them over time. He started to feel a bit more comfortable about the whole event. As long as Lightning didn't have a problem with it, everything was okay…right? He had to hope that was the case.
"Let's just get out of here. We've still got to keep looking." she said, her voice returning to its usual, serious tone.
She started walking forward as Firion stood still for a moment – watching her get further away every few steps. He smiled to himself in comfort as he reflected on the moment in question and her thoughts on it as his own now came to mind – the answer to all of his questions, struggles, and emotions finally becoming clear in this instant.
"Oh!" he gasped, recognizing what was going on.
He put his hand to his chest for a moment with a look of confusion and shock – then, looked ahead at Lightning.
"I…Could I?" he asked himself.
He stared at her as she kept walking - still unaware he wasn't behind her, as a smile formed on his face. Still not quite jumping to conclusions, he felt that, at the least…his struggle for understanding was over. Only one thing still stood to prevent him from acting on it now. But, that final wall, even he knew wouldn't be easily broken.
Taking a deep breath and choosing not to reflect any further on the matter, he hurried after Lightning as they carried on in their search. For some reason, he got the feeling they may just find what they searched for very soon.