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It had been about a week since Ace first summoned his familiar. He was sure he would get used to all the staring and whispering eventually. But it was keeping him up at night, thinking about all the things people could be saying or wishing he didn’t have all this attention on him.
Ace still wasn’t used to the bird that perched on his shoulder now or a small blond teenager following him around. Nor was he used to not sharing a room with Sabo and Deuce. He wondered how they were faring with their familiars.
Ace hoped he was doing well with his familiar. But at least he was attempting to learn about the Phoenix. Figure out everything that made him tick and how best to make this partnership work.
Ace learned quickly that his familiar was more than capable of being a little shit. On one occasion, he has antagonized the professor just to make a boring class a little more exciting. That was fun to wake up to when he had suffered from one of his narcolepsy attacks.
Another thing he learned was that his familiar was quite calm compared to him. Ace could cause the biggest ruckus and his familiar would just be standing there. But the moment it became more than just yelling, the Phoenix was there. Ready to aid his mage.
He learned that his familiar always had a sleepy expression on his face. Ace was sure he had never seen so much as a twitch of a change. He was entirely unfazed by everything and it sometimes scared Ace.
Finally, Ace noticed that the Phoenix never spoke. Which was worrying. Especially when Ace was having a conversation with him. Or at least trying to have one. Even when it was just them, he was dead silent. It was weird and made the bonding process more difficult. It had even kept him from learning if his familiar had a name. He couldn’t just call him Phoenix.
Ace knew he must be capable of some speech. Even if his clues to that were just the trills and peeps he would sometimes hear while he was in bird form. The mage had even heard him hiss once. But a single word had yet to leave his mouth. Sometimes he would communicate with gestures. Which worked sometimes.
Ace was determined to get him to speak to him. He would be satisfied with just one word. Just one!
Ace was pulled out of his reflection of the past week when he saw a ghostly hand snatch away the sausage on his plate. “Hey!” He shouted at his little brother, who just gave him his signature grin. Ace glared for approximately five minutes, huffed, then finally set to finishing his plate of food. It was his fifth for the day. Sabo, who was sitting right across from him, just shook his head at the pair.
“What do you and your familiar plan on doing today, Ace?” Sabo asked as he looked between mage and familiar. The Phoenix was patiently waiting for Ace to finish, his own food already gone.
It took Ace a moment to think about it, his eyes wandering to his familiar. The Phoenix was dressed in some of his old clothes. Now that Ace was thinking about it, he needed a proper set of robes for class and casual wear for anything outside of that. He at least knew that his familiar hated boots. The mage had given him a pair that no longer fit and the familiar refused to wear them. Choosing to go barefoot instead. The teachers hated it. “I think we are going to go into town today.” He finally decided.
“Really? Because I think — “ Sabo started.
“Nope! That can wait. I gotta show him the town! He can’t stay locked up in this stupid school forever!” Ace quickly finished the rest of his breakfast, jumped up, then dragged the Phoenix along with him to the entrance of the school.
Sabo groaned as he watched the pair go, putting his face in his hands. Getting Ace to do his schoolwork was like pulling teeth from a lion’s mouth.
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If he was asked, Ace would say that it was a pretty successful trip into town. He had bought some clothing for his familiar using the allowance the school gave students for familiar care. Some needed more attention than others, and not all families could afford the extra mouth to feed.
Ace had to fight with his familiar to get him to pick something, at least. Though it was mostly Ace talking and the Phoenix making vague gestures that were really getting on Ace’s nerves. Was it too much to ask for a simple yes or no?! Maybe he should look into getting him a writing board if he didn’t want to talk to him. At least they had reached an understanding after a little while.
Ace glanced at the shorter teen walking beside him, taking in how much better he looked in something that actually fit his scrawny frame. At least he had actually gotten him to pick out some shoes that he seemed to like better than the boots. His clothing was relatively simple considering Ace did not know what his tastes were other than his clear disdain for shoes. But at least he seemed happier.
But even as he looked at the tunic and cloak that his familiar now wore, Ace couldn’t help but feel that something was missing. He didn’t know what it was, but he was determined to figure it out. The mage grabbed his familiars hand then hurried towards a shop he had spotted that was focused on jewelry and other accessories. Once inside, he set to looking around. The Phoenix simply followed him. Like a duckling that had decided that he was its mama.
Ace looked at bracelets. He looked at necklaces. He even looked at fancy hats, but he found nothing that seemed to suit the Phoenix. The freckled teen turned away from a ridiculous assortment of belts just to spot something that seemed to speak to him. A rack of beautifully crafted circlets. He quickly approached it, then began his search, looking for something that suited his familiar.
Aces grey eyes landed on a simple gold circlet with an odd stone in its center. It ripples through different colors depending on which way it was being looked at. Ace likely looked like a weirdo as he moved back and forth just to watch the colors change. It was the coolest thing he had ever seen. After a few more moments, he glanced at the bored-looking teen beside him, who was just waiting for him to be done. He wasn’t even paying attention.
It was perfect.
Ace took it off the rack. “Hey. I’ve got something for you.” He waited until the Phoenix had turned to look, then set the circlet upon his head. He took a quick moment to adjust it, then nodded to himself. Just as he thought. It was perfect. A smile formed on his face. “I think it looks good on you. What do you think?” He gestures to one of the nearby mirrors.
But Aces smile slipped when he saw the expression on his familiars face. He looked so lost. As if he had never been given anything in his life before. How had his previous mages been treating him? It was a train of thought he quickly abandoned. He could not go back in time to torch those that had mistreated his familiar. The Phoenix was a friend. Not just some tool for a mage to use.
“It’s a gift. From one friend to another.” Ace explained, trying to put a smile back on his face. For his familiars sake. He didn’t need to think that he had somehow upset Ace. He saw realization dawning in those blue eyes. “I’ve still got to pay for it so — Hey!”
The Phoenix had run off deeper into the shop. Which was a relief, but he was not entirely sure where he was going. If he was going to look in a mirror, why didn’t he just use the one that was nearby? But Ace relaxed as he saw that he was returning with something in his hands. Ace couldn’t quite see what it was. Once he got closer, the mage realized it was one necklace from the displays.
The stone was like the one in the circlet. But it shifted between warm colors rather than cool.
The familiar gestured for Ace to stoop down so he could put the necklace on him. Once it was secure, Ace looked at himself in the nearby mirror. He found that he quite liked it. It reminded him of a wild untamable, blaze.
Ace looked at his familiar, noting that his expression had shifted into one that bore a lazy smile. A wonderful change from the usually so blank expression. “A gift. From one friend to another, yoi.” The Phoenix said.
Aces mind stopped right there. His familiar had just spoken to him. Called him a friend. After days of silence, he had finally heard his voice.
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When they returned to school that evening, the pair set to putting all of their obtained goodies away. His familiar had continued speaking to him through their whole adventure. Out of everything they had done, that one thing had made Aces day. He would be lying if he said he did not wonder if his familiar hated him before. Which wouldn’t make much sense considering he had chosen him to bond with. No one would stay with someone they despised.
Ace fiddled with the necklace around his neck as his eyes wandered to the Phoenix. “So… you wanna tell me your name? I can’t just call you Phoenix, you know.” Ace let go of the necklace as he leaned forward and propped his head in one of his hands. He did not miss the way the blond paused what he was doing.
The Phoenix seemed almost regretful, but the expression soon faded. “I’ve never been given a name, yoi. You can just call me Phoenix, like the others.”
“No way. I’m not calling you that.” Ace insisted. He straightened up, then crossed his arms as he tried to think of the perfect name for his familiar. A smile formed on his face as soon as he figured it out. “How about… Marco? I what do you think of that one?”
There was that lazy smile that made his stomach tie up in knots. “Marco? I like that name, yoi.” His familiar tested it out a little more than nodded, clearly satisfied with the first proper name he had ever been given.
Ace then asked something that had been on his mind for a while. “Hey… Why did you even choose me in the first place?”
Intense blue met stormy grey. Ace felt as if Marco was looking right into his soul and beyond him. He could not hold his gaze for long, too overwhelmed by the intensity.
Bare feet padded across the stone floor. Then Marcos’ hand was pressing against his chest. So warm against him. He hoped Marco could not feel his pounding heart. His familiar was so close.
But he did not need words to know why Marco had chosen him. His heart led his familiar to him.