bewrightback | Overflow Post [Cerealia]

[That brings up a lot of memories, relating to a lot of the struggles they went through. And all of Trucy's sadness, some of which only Phoenix could see.

It wasn't always easy. So Phoenix gives a firm nod at that.]

Y-yes... She did. [No matter how much she tried to cover it with sunshine and silliness.]

So I did my best to try to care for her. And be the father that I wish she could have.

[Unlike Trucy, the sadness in Iris' smile was clear for all to see.]

She's very lucky.

Any child would be lucky to have you as a father.

Th-thanks. [He says that a little bashfully, but he's getting distracted from his fatherly pride by the look on Iris's face.]

Iris... Are you alright?

Hmm? [She glanced up and realized his concern.] Oh...no, no, I'm fine. Just...thinking, is all.

Now I understand why, when I asked who her mother was, she seemed to avoid the subject.

[Actually, she had insisted the position was wide open, but she wasn't about to admit that part.]

She... she did, huh? [He says, now looking concerned in a different way as he thinks about Trucy avoiding talk of her mother.

Thalassa...]

It's tough for her. Tougher than it looks.

But... Trucy's strong. She takes it all in stride - she even likes asking around for a new mom. [He gives a good-natured laugh at that.] It can get troublesome sometimes, but I want her to be happy.

[!!!]

[Iris' head shot up with a start. Surrpised.]

She..does?

You mean...she asks that sort of thing...often?

[How many other women had she asked?]

Well... Yep! [He scratches at his head sheepishly. He tries to address this all in a casual tone as he usually does to others, but he feels kind of embarrassed at the same time, to be recalling this specifically to Iris.]

I mean, a lot of the time I think it's just a joke. But sometimes she tries signing me up for dating services and everything...

...Heh... Kids these days, am I right?

[Iris...wasn't sure how to take that. At all. Not even a mixture of emotions. Only...]

I...suppose...

[But then, she offered a sheepish smile in return. I think it's just a joke, he said. Iris was pretty sure that little girl hadn't been joking when she'd mentioned the idea to her, but she also didn't know Trucy as well as Phoenix must have.]

...some children just want their parents to be happy, no matter what it takes.

[He smiles nervously and rubs at his head once again.]

R-right. It's a two-way street with me and Trucy. We both want the best for each other! And I guess we don't always have the best ideas... but I guess that's family.

But really... I'm glad you two got along. [He quickly shifts back to that notion.]

[We don't always have the best ideas]

[...Iris wondered what he could mean by that.]

Y-yes. I mean, I did like her. I do like her. Very much. And I hope she likes me as well.

[He's just tired of the dating services... and he's sure that not all of his own choices have been the best one, especially when Trucy still does not know the truth about her mother.]

I'm glad. [Phoenix smiles warmly.] You shouldn't worry. I can tell that Trucy must adore you.

[He gives a light shrug before he adjusts the flower crown on his head... and then he finds himself kneeling down in the flowers, picking at a few of them mechanically.]

[She watched him kneel down and began to collect a handful of his own flowers, but it was his words that had her most curious.]

You can tell? How?

Simple. I think that I know both of you pretty well. [He looks up at her with a smile as he tries to weave some flowers together in a very sloppy manner.]

And I don't see any reason why Trucy wouldn't like you.

[I think that I know both of you pretty well.]

[The way he said it...she still couldn't believe that, finally, after all these years...it really was true. He did know her. All those wonderful months spent together back during his University Days. The not so wonderful time up at Hazakura Temple, full of tragedy and sadness and secrets buried so deep within her heart that only he could possibly have unlocked them.]

You...do know me, don't you?

[He chuckles softly as he weaves some more of the flowers together.]

Of course I do.

[She's the Dollie of his university days. The nun who lived such a quiet life, separate from him. Who become an accomplice to murder, whom had lied to him...

...but she was also someone who proved herself as a caring person, who cared for him in a way that no one else had ever quite managed.

She's someone who, despite everything, he believes in even now.

Phoenix then raises his sad excuse of a flower crown, to try to rest it atop her head.]

You're Iris, aren't you?

[She didn't even care what they looked like. It was a hand-made gift from him, and she would cherish it. Hand coming up to check that it was secure...accidentally brushing against his in the process.]

I would never want to be anyone else.

[Never again.]

[He might not have done of his own free will, but he at least won't regret the fashioning of the flower crown, especially with how readily Iris accepts it. As their hands warmly brush together, there's just a little extra twinge of redness in Phoenix's cheeks.]

I'm glad to hear that, Iris. An Iris who's Iris... well, that's the best kind of Iris there is, isn't there? [He's not even sure where he's going with this anymore.]

A-and anyway... I'm just glad that you're here. [This isn't the safest place, but if our worlds really are destroyed... It's a relief that her life is now safe here.]

[Maybe it wasn't safe. Maybe nowhere was safe.]

[But right then, in that moment, there was nothing to fear. No giant lake monster. No shark in need of a hard pipe to the nose. No blackmail letters. No spirit channeling. Not even unpleasant weather; in fact, the sun was shining so brightly, she was actually starting to feel a little warm. And not just in her cheeks.]

Mmm. [She wasn't sure where he was going, but she had a hunch she was meant to agree.] And a Feenie who is Feenie...is also the best Feenie of them all.

[Most paralleling his compliment, but she truly meant it. Given everything. The time difference between them now. The things in his life he'd experienced. And yet...just as he'd been Feenie five years after University...he was still Feenie, yet another eight years after that. It gave her hope that he would always be Feenie, no matter what.]

I'm glad to be here as well.

I...was nervous, at first. About being taken from jail too soon. But I want to make the most of the time I have here. It's all so...new. But exciting.

[He couldn't help but chuckle warmly at her parallel. Even if he worried at the same time. But what if I'm not the best Feenie anymore...? Does she realize how old I am? And... what I've done.]

It's a new opportunity, Iris. Like an extra vacation... if not an ideal one.

A-and of course, I want to do everything that I can to help you make the most of this time. I'm here for you, Iris.

[She realized, yes. Somewhat. It had barely registered in the back of her mind. His age.]

[As for his past...well, his future, from where she was...she could only realize as much as she was told. Which, so far amounted to very little. Still, she highly doubted it could be anything as awful as what she'd done. What they'd already lived through.]

Thank you. That means so much to me.

I don't...even know what it's going to be like on the outside. I know this is supposed to be a game. Both times, it was only games, but...

Could you tell me?

[That's right... Iris still hasn't seen the world outside of these games.]

Of course I'll tell you. [He says with a light smile.] It's probably better to prepare yourself for it... but I'm sure it will still be a surprising sight either way.

We live in a giant, incredible city. It's advanced beyond any of the cities around at home. It's like the kind of place we only imagine existing in the far future. There are... robots, and everything.

[Her eyes widened. Hand rising to her mouth. Iris had seen pictures of the big cities from back home before, but she certainly had never been to one before. Would...she even be able to navigate? Would she get lost? Would--]

Robots?

Eheheh... That's right!

...You do know about robots, right?

[Umm...]

I...think so? Only in stories, though.

They're supposed to be little computers that walk and talk, right?

Right! That's... that's one way of describing them.

There are some back home, but the ones here? They seem to be a lot more advanced! It'll definitely be an unbelievable sight.

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