route_1065 | Don't fake yourself into ever, ever thinking about yesterday

Entry tags:

Don't fake yourself into ever, ever thinking about yesterday

Who: Firion, the Warrior of Light, Cecil Harvey, and Squall Leonhart
Where: Cherrygrove City
When: Saturday Afternoon
Summary: Firion and Light finally make it back to Cherrygrove to meet up with Cecil and Squall.
Rating: PG for possible language
Log:

It had been a long trip back to Cherrygrove. Firion had still been rather reluctant to battle ever since that incident with the Qwilfish. He wasn't afraid of Pokemon or anything like that, and his Pokemon were much stronger than the ones on this route, but it still worried him, in general. He knew the Pokemon seemed to enjoy battling, but he truly had thought he would lose Leila. Besides, Light should have more time to give his own Pokemon experience.

Finally, they crossed into town, the music changing once more to a familiar sound. "Should we start at the beach?" Firion turned to Light and asked.

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"Very well." the warrior said, hefting his bag and nodding at Firion. "We never agreed on a place within Cherrygrove that we should meet." His two pokemon were in their pokeballs as was Light's tendency when they were traveling. Thanks to Firion's reluctance to call on his own pokemon, Bartz and the ~~unnamed~~ Drifloon had been getting valuable experience. He was glad of it, and about not being forced to rely on Firion's pokemon for protection from whatever wild creatures they encountered, but the young man was too worried about his pokemon. Light did not find that concerning- instead, he was concerned about Firion himself.

He could only hope that seeing Cecil, even if the paladin was ill, would help Firion get over this challenge he was having. He certainly didn't know what to do in order to fix things.

He led the way toward the beach, keeping an eye out for the familiar form of Squall, as well as the no longer familiar sight of Cecil. Hopefully it would not take long to find them within Cherrygrove.

Luckily for them, Cecil was indeed on the beach, still hoping to sell his unwanted dress. Cleffa was playing around nearby, tracing 'v' shapes and 'o' shapes in the sand. Both of them looked rather relaxed, as if everything was alright.

But then Cecil turned toward the newcomers, and that impression was destroyed. His movements were slow, as if he was fighting against a great weight with every step. The emotions on his face were muted, as if he were nothing but a doll. Only the tiredness on his face showed that he was truly there.

He raised his hand weakly toward them. The last week was starting to catch up with him, and it showed.

Further off in the distance, Squall stood guard, arms crossed as he glanced over toward Cecil and the approaching duo. He wasn't that close to where they were and he was dressed in the alternate clothes (http://archives.bulbagarden.net/media/upload/thumb/8/84/HeartGold_SoulSilver_Blue.png/165px-HeartGold_SoulSilver_Blue.png) he found in his backpack (which was much better than what Cecil had).

If either the Warrior or Firion recognized him or not, it didn't matter. Occasionally, his gaze drifted toward Cecil but he mostly stayed away. His Cyndaquil sat on the sand next to his feet. The (pathetic) Magikarp he caught was currently swimming in the water.

Edited 2010-09-04 23:58 (UTC)

Firion smiled as he spotted Cecil, though it faltered slightly at Cecil. The man was much older but that wasn't the disconcerting part. It was the way he moved and acted, which was hardly anything at all. It was nothing like his peaceful, calm self from the Void. What had happened?

Despite the change of outfit, Firion also recognize Squall. "Cecil, Squall. I see the journey has treated you well."

And since they were near the lake again, Firion let out Wild Rose. The times they were near water were few and far between, so he let her out as much as possible. She was the strongest out of all his Pokemon, so his worry for her was lightened in Cherrygrove. The Pokemon would be too weak here.

He nodded to return the greeting, appearing friendly though not exactly happy to see them. His attention sharpened when he took in how Cecil looked, though. He had seen before that something was wrong with Cecil, but now, he understood how much. This was a shade of the Cecil that he knew. The sudden difference in age was made far too apparent by how tired and frail the paladin seemed now.

After a moment he followed suit and released Bartz to go and play in the water, but as soon as that was finished, he turned his attention back to his comrades. The pokemon could take care of himself. This was important to deal with, for the moment.

"Did you face any difficulty in getting here?" he asked. It was hardly a diffucult journey to make, but with the condition Cecil seemed to be in, that might not be altogether true. They would probably have to pause for some time before Cecil was fit for travel again, if the way he was tired out by the three-day trip was any indication.

Cecil's attention was first caught by the two water pokémon. First, rats and birds; then, living plants; and finally, aquatic beasts. Truly, these monsters were as varied as the ones back home. And yet, humans in this world lived in harmony with them, working together as partners. It was all new and confusing, but he found he didn't mind.

Secondly, Light's question registered in his mind.

"...No..."

The local beasts had been weak and easy to defeat. Cleffa had been more than up to the task. Also, the road was simple, with easy terrain and no slopes. There was little food available, but the grass and berries were sufficient for such a short trip. Besides-

"...Squall. Marluxia."

-he hadn't been alone.

Uncrossing his arms, Squall strode over at a slow pace. His Cyndaquil whined, keeping close to the brunette's strides without being trampled on, wary of the newcomers and ready and willing to jump into Squall's arms at any moment. For some reason, his starter had its confident days where it didn't mind company and other times, it was flinched and hid from almost everything unless he was there next to it.

"It wasn't too bad," Squall answered, approaching the trio. "Warrior. Firion." He nodded slightly at the both of them in greeting. They looked almost the same as he remembered. Though the fact the Warrior was without his armor didn't look right.

He shrugged, "You two finally made it." Wonder where Zidane is...

While he didn't know who this Marluxia was, it was relieving to know that Cecil had not been alone when traveling. Firion nodded to Squall. "Yes, we have. My apologies for the wait. Has Zidane arrived?"

"The journey cannot be made in less time than a week. We came as soon as we were able to." he told Squall as he approached. He crossed his arms over his chest. Without the armor, he seemed to be less like the "leader" of the warriors of Cosmos, and more like a normal person, or at least as close to normal as he could pass for. The change was not just visual. Without the overhanging threat of Chaos, he had begun to lighten up some, though that was not readily apparent.

"Who is Marluxia?" He asked, focusing on the next thing that had caught his attention. He hadn't heard mention of another travel companion before this. "Still, I am glad that the journey was without mishap for either of you." He wasn't about to mention what had happened to Firion with the Quilfish, but it sufficed to say that he did not entirely trust the safety of the routes any longer.

Who was Marluxia? That... was a pretty good question, actually. Cecil knew very little about his travelling companion. To some, this would cause suspicion, but to him it mattered not. Over the last few days, he had come to realize that his group back home had included people he had never seen before in his life. To be honest, he was starting to wonder why he had never talked to them. Had he truly been that isolated from the rest of the world? Needless to day, having actually talked to Marluxia was an improvement. But how to explain this?

"...Newcomer."

A fellow newcomer, who had not mentioned any friends who could meet up with him. That was a good start.

"Thought Zidane was with you," Squall supplied with a glance toward the water. He wasn't going to admit that he was worried about the thief but surely, he would have been bothered by Zidane over the network, right? Better enjoy this while it lasts.

Shaking his head, he thought of how he should answer the Warrior's question. There was something about Marluxia that made him suspicious of the pink-haired male but, it could be nothing. Could be just an effect of learning that he reminded Marluxia of another person, of someone named 'Leon'. Even now, the idea that he had a double (possibly someone older than him) still didn't feel right.

Considering the last double had tried to kill him, it was probably justified.

"A new arrival. He was with Cecil when I caught up with him," he jerked his head toward the paladin.

Firion nodded. It was common for the newcomers to travel together until they have figured out what they would do. Speaking of the paladin, Firion turned to Cecil. "When you have rested from your travels, would you like to continue on to Violet City?"

"I do not know where he is. He was close to Cherrygrove, last we had heard," the warrior said. He would have expected for Squall to know, since he was the one Zidane was closest to. He thought that the thief would have at least shown up to see the others, but it seemed that he was not around for the reunion.

He nodded at the explanation of Marluxia. At least Cecil hadn't been traveling the route alone, even if his companion had been a stranger. Nothing had happened, of course, but it was better for the others to travel in groups. The insistence of that was one of his leadership qualities left over from the time fighting Chaos and his minions.

"...Saw him. ...Not alone."

Yes, back when he first arrived, on his Pokégear... Zidane had said that he was in Cherrygrove at the time, and that he had friends from home with him. Perhaps they had gone on ahead.

He considered Firion's question. Go to Violet City? That could be useful. He hadn't seen anyone from home in Cherrygrove; if anyone was there, they'd be somewhere further down the road. Besides, there seemed to be very little to do in this city. But...

"...Currency. Supplies."

He wasn't too surprised by Firion's question or that it was directed to Cecil only. It was natural that Firion would ask Cecil, his former travel partner, to go with him and the Warrior. (Assuming the two were travelling together, that is.) Firion probably already knew that Squall had been reluctant to travel with anyone in the beginning of the Conflict. For the second half, it was necessity for all of them to travel together.

Still, although he wouldn't admit it, it did hurt somewhat not to be asked. Not that he cared if he was asked to travel with them. He didn't.

Squall shrugged, shaking his head when his Cyndaquil whined at him. Either his starter was wanted more attention from him or it was knew something it should. Staring at the fire-type for a moment, the SeeD glanced back toward the water.

"He's probably with this... 'girl'," Squall muttered, rolling his eyes. "Zidane mentioned something about her the last time," the only time, "we talked."

Now was probably a good time to take his leave. Cecil would probably be taken good cared of by the Warrior and Firion. It's not like they needed him anymore.

Edited 2010-09-06 21:26 (UTC)

Firion gave Cecil a reassuring smile. "Do not worry. Light and I have enough money to get you some supplies for the trip."

He looked to Squall and nodded. He remembered Zidane mentioning a princess during their travels, but he was not aware that she had arrived here as well. Firion could only hope they were doing well and that they were safe as well. "I am sure we will inevitably meet again, then."

Then, he hesitated slightly. Firion knew that Squall liked to travel alone. His reasons were his own and he would not push them, however...

"Would you like the accompany us as well?"

Light nodded in agreement. There was not much that he had spent his money on, and he would not at all mind giving up some of it in order to buy things for the group.

When Firion asked Squall if he would join them, the Warrior glanced up, a bit startled. He had simply assumed that Squall would be joining them as well. He knew that Squall liked to travel alone, of course. It had once worried him, because he had not been sure that Squall would be able to take care of himself if he traveled on his own. "We would be glad to have you travel with us," he added.

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Don't fake yourself into ever, ever thinking about yesterday

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Jumping in here now. Is that okay?

More than ok, I was waiting for you to tag first.

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