"Please tell me the majority of them are Haribos!"
"So much has happened, like water flowing past in a river."
Protector of Silence
Chapter Ten – Past Promise
"So, Ponte" Verity sat down on the ground at the Eastern edge of Vientown, not giving a damn about whether her costume got dirty or not. The ground was dry and she couldn't see a reason why she would ever need it after tonight anyway. "How many people did your skeleton costume scare?"
Ponte groaned as he sat down also, counting the sweets in his basket. "Evidently not many. Thanks to someone, my blue-haired Gengar costume just looked a bit odd."
With this he glared at Liam who was attempt to slice open a toffee with his flick-knife.
"Don't take it too hard, it appears the classic vampire costume didn't work either" Nick swung an arm around Ponte's shoulder "And besides, Liam's costume just confused everyone."
"It's original" Liam countered, pointing his flick-knife in Nick's direction.
"Original my foot" Becs snorted, sitting down with everyone else in a small circle "You only came in that costume because you got the idea from Neville last year."
Liam opened his mouth to speak, then thought better of it and just started innocently staring off into space.
"Who got the most sweets?" Tamie asked, her black hair making her perfect for Cleopatra "I got about 20 I think."
"Beat that, 27!" Verity smiled, pushing a grey-white dread-lock behind her shoulder, her costume resembling the Grey Lady of Almia Castle.
"I can top that" Rhythmi smiled; her costume consisted of white makeup and a flowing white dress, so Kellyn could only presume she was some sort of ghost "How about 32?"
"What, Rhythmi too?" Tamie's jaw dropped.
"I have 34" Sami some-what bragged, she was a vampire also.
"Sami!" Tamie protested, looking really disheartened now.
"How come the female vampire got more than the male?" Nick complained, studying his 26 sweets.
"Because everyone prefers girls in costume" Sami smiled, making him scowl.
"35, so I'm winning" Becs smiled smugly, dressed as a well-suiting devil.
"I have 38 sweets" Liam smiled smugly "Anyone top that?" Silence resounded around the circle for a few heartbeats.
"41" It was Kate who broke the silence. Everyone had been stunned when she turned up in an ankle-length black dress and pointed black hat, her flame-orange hair just reaching her shoulders out of those spiky pigtails, in the best witch costume anyone had seen at Ranger School for years.
"Ha ha! I win!" Keith cheered "43!"
"Ahem, I think your forgetting someone" Rhythmi halted his celebration "Kellyn, how many do you have?"
Kellyn looked down at the ground, as if he was quite content with Keith being victor and didn't want to take the glory. He was perfectly content letting somebody else shine birth pride - he didn't need it.
"No, it's okay, speak up" Nick coaxed him.
"If Keith dares go after you for winning, he'll have to answer to my blade" Liam unfolded his flick-knife, as if he actually intended to use it against Keith.
"I can top that" Becs added "Keith has a choice. I can break his nose, give him a black eye, shatter a rib or two, or fracture his leg. However, if he wants, I'm capable of delivering all four at once."
Keith gulped tried to look as innocent as possible. He smiled sweetly at Kellyn. "Go on Kel, don't leave 'em hanging."
Kellyn ran a hand through his hair, dislodging some of the midnight-blue powder that completed his costume with some gathering on his hand. He rubbed the powder off his hand into the dirt and that traced a number in it. Tamie's jaw dropped again as she read it.
"46?" she cried, flabbergasted "Please tell me the majority of them are Haribos!"
Kellyn looked down at the ground, and even through his white make-up you could see his cheeks burning with embarrassment.
"46!" Keith cried, looking like someone was dangling a toddler by its pinky over a lava pool "46! As in 40 plus 6?"
Rhythmi gasped. "Someone get this down on paper! Keith just admitted he know how to add numbers together!"
Keith grumbled something inaudible, but Kellyn could tell it wasn't nice words about the blonde operator-to-be.
"Guys come on, be fair" Verity tried to call a cease-fire "Kellyn does deserve it. His costume's the best by far."
Murmurs of approval began to ripple around the circle. Kellyn shook his head and pointed at Kate.
"Don't you try to dump all the honour on me" Kate warned him "I may have put the costume together, but you were the once who trusted me to do so, not to mention you're the perfect person to wear it."
"It's true Kellyn" Nick told him "You look just like Lunick."
Kellyn smiled gratefully. A lot of people make take this comment as an insult, but to Kellyn it was a definite compliment.
"You petrified a lot of people with it" Ponte nodded "I thought poor old Mr Woodward was going to die of a heart attack."
"Yeah well, the old geezer deserves it" Liam snorted "Remember the time he threw apples at us just because we were marvelling his creations?"
"You were attempting to vandalise them" Nick pointed out.
Liam shrugged. "Same thing to me."
"Ignoring the Woodward comment" Sami went on "I think the best reaction was out of Kyle."
"Oh yeah!" Becs laughed "The kid totally fainted on us!"
"I think you scared all the little kids Kellyn, Mimi ran into the house and hid when she saw us coming" Keith agreed "You sister was even scared, and I mean, she grew up with you."
"Yup, poor..." Tamie broke off "What's your sister's name again?"
Kellyn sat up and folded his arms. He paused for a second before tracing a single letter in the dirt.
"M?" Rhythmi asked "Oh! Your sister's name begins with M!"
Kellyn nodded, letting them play the enviable little guessing game. He liked doing that - he always got a laugh out of their absurd suggestions. It was like charades but with letters.
"Malory?" suggested Nick. Kellyn shook his head.
"Millie?" offered Verity. Again Kellyn shook his head.
"Minnie?" Sami tried. Once again, a wrong answer.
"Mackenzie?" Ponte asked. And again.
"May?" suggested Liam. You get the idea by now.
"Maria?" offered Becs.
"Mary?" tried Kate.
"Misty?" that was Keith.
"Minty?" Tamie.
"Mona?" Verity tried again.
"Mel?" asked Ponte for a second time. Kellyn gestured with his hand for him to build on that. The now turquoise-haired boy just looked confused.
"Melanie?" asked Nick. Kellyn shook his head, gesturing to say 'nearly'.
"Melissa!" Rhythmi cried a split second before Kate did. Kellyn turned to Kate and clapped, nodding and smiling.
"Hey! No fair!" Rhythmi complained "I said it first!"
"Don't bother Rhyth" Keith sighed, smiling knowingly "We all know Kellyn would choose Kate to win any day."
Kellyn frowned and wrote something in his notebook, then handing it to Keith to read.
"Can't read it, not enough light" the ginger informed him.
Sami snatched it and read it. She swallowed a laugh.
"What is it?" Liam asked.
"'What's that supposed to mean?'" Sami read.
There was a moment of silence before everyone accept for Kellyn and Kate burst out laughing. The two aforementioned ones just exchanged some confused glances at what all the humour was about.
She slunk forwards, silent as a cat, her belly-fur almost scuffing the grass. She dipped lower to enter the bushes, stopping to give her paw a lick after a branch brushed it as she slunk forwards. She brushed some leaves aside with her tail and let her blue gaze sweep over the rangers-in-training. Her main focus was on the boy who had his back to her. Midnight-blue hair, broad shoulders and a near silent attitude.
'Is it really him?' She thought 'Either that, or someone so similar. How old must he be now, if he were alive? 25? Older?'
She narrowed her eyes slightly as she called his name. "Lunick?"
The boy turned and She shuffled back slightly. He looked at the bush She was hiding in, his eyes never blinking, before turning back to his friends.
She gave a sigh, half-relief half-disappointment. It wasn't him: blue-green eyes had replaced the aqua. But those white pupils - now those got her attention. And his striking resemblance to her old friend was also something to be marvelled at. She narrowed her eyes again.
'Is this him?' She thought 'Is this the child Lunick referred to?'
She crept silently into the clearing. Warmth washed over her as She approached the roaring fire in the centre. On the edge of the clearing, a blue-haired girl was asleep, clutching a five-month-old baby. The one She had really come to see though was awake. He was feeding sticks to the fire, keeping it going to bring light and warmth. A spiral of smoke rose between the branches of the trees into the black starlit sky.
"You'll attract unwanted attention with that" She informed him.
The boy looked at her. His broad shoulders and wild midnight-blue hair signalled his Fiorian blood, but his soft aqua eyes were those typically of an Almian.
"Who cares?" he shrugged "Lots of people camp out here. Smoke won't be that unusual."
"You need to stop taking risks Lunick" She told him with a sigh "This last week has been almost disastrous. Kellyn was almost captured, you were almost killed!"
"But I haven't yet" Lunick responded, throwing a thin stick onto the fire "No, my death is not upon me yet."
Silence enveloped the clearing.
"Have you seen when it'll come?" She asked.
Lunick sighed as the fire slowly started to die. His eyes flickered to a blue colour that was almost white and the fire grew again. To make sure it stayed that way, he fed it another stick.
"Yes" he answered "A month. Maybe two."
"A month!" She stepped back in shock "Only a month! That's not enough time for Kellyn to learn to control his powers! Even with Solana's help, you think too much of him Lunick! He's just a hatching!"
"That may be" Lunick nodded, his eyes still trained on the flames. That fire must be very interesting for him to stare at it so much "But I know it's not my destiny to be the Hero of Almia."
"And you think it's Kellyn's?" she asked.
Lunick sighed and his gaze followed the pillar of smoke to the night sky.
"Maybe" he said "That's why I asked you, my friend." He lowered his gaze to meet hers "Please, if anything happens to Solana or I, protect Kellyn."
"Why do you hold this child above your own life?" She asked.
"Because I must" was his answer "Promise me."
"But why?" She asked "I don't understand."
"Please!" he aqua eyes had a begging look in them now.
She sighed in defeat. "I will, I promise. I don't know why you treasure this child, but if it means so much to you, I will watch over it."
Lunick's worry dissolved into a smile. All he said though was "Thank you."
Almost equally silent, She flicked her tail and headed for the bushes.
"Wait." Lunick's voice halted her and she turned around to face him.
"We have been through much together, haven't we?" Lunick commented.
"Of course" She nodded "We've seen so much; the rise of the Go Rock Squad, the fall of Ringtown Base, the fights against the three great beasts, so much bloodshed in this pointless war..." She sighed "So much has happened, like water flowing past in a river."
"More water will flow before we meet in Giratina's realm" Lunick told her "And soon, Kellyn will join us on that river bank." He narrowed his eyes "Know this, my friend - your destinies are intertwined. No matter how far you run, you will find yourself beside him again."
"I will keep that in mind" She flicked her tail as a goodbye "Farewell, Lunick Kazuki."
And with that She slunk away into the darkness of the forest.