Work Text:
It all started a couple hundreds of years ago as I was doing my duties as priestess like I have done for countless years, the gatekeepers suddenly came and asked for my permission to let a stranger in. I was shocked because we’ve never had new visitors. It was always just people from the nearby village leaving their offerings, needless to say they never asked for a direct audience.
Not knowing how to answer I asked AO but all they said were.
"Do as you wish priestess”.
Before I could even respond I heard the door opening, as it opened, I heard a loud voice saying
“Elo there missy!, Hot day innit? How’s bout yew en me go out foh a wok?”
Strange I thought as I tilted my head looking at this strange woman in strange clothes and strange way of talking; an even stranger thing is she has this yellow hair atop her lip. She is a woman right? I wondered.
“Well now missy, I aint got ol day”
She said as she pompously bumped and held both her hands to her hips while looking at me with a smile.
"Interesting" I thought, I guess I’ll humor this strange one for the time being.
"Alright” I answered.
" Come, follow me I’ll give you a tour of our little island”
And in almost an instant the stranger stood up straight, the hair atop her lip gone, she then proceeded to remove her cap rotating her palms as she slowly bent down for a bow,
“I thank you for the honor M’lady, the pleasure is mine”
She then stood straight, placed her cap atop her head and soon after, arched her left arms to her waist leaving a sizeable space in the middle as she looked at me and gestured a nod as if signaling me to come over.
I tilted my head my head again, interesting I thought to myself. Very interesting. I couldn’t help but giggle with some sort of excitement at this stranger who suddenly arrived and asked me to walk with her.
And so with pep in my steps, I obliged and placed my arm at her care, she then proceeded to laugh in the silliest way I’ve ever heard.
"Shishishishishi, name’s Amelia Watson a travelling detective, nice to meet yah priestess watcha name?”
“My name is Ninomae Ina’nis dear stranger, if I may ask, what is a detective?”
“It’s someone who goes around looking for things that interest them and learn about them”
“hmm, I see. Then what brings you here? to this uninteresting island?”
“You priestess Ina, I find you very intersting”
“WAH!”
“shishishishi, its cute how those flaps on your head stood up at the same time”
“hush! They are not flaps! Inaway let's go ahead and proceed with the tour!”
I said in panic and embarrassment, I tried to walk but I suddenly got held back by this strange person. Annoyed, I looked at her, she was covering her mouth seemingly trying hard not to laugh.
"Why are you laughing? Did I say anything wrong?”
“No no, it was nothing priestess please forget about it. Anyway, Shall we?”
I pouted, I was slightly annoyed but never the less she was my very first visitor, So I indulged her.
Little did I know that this day would change my life. For better or worse, I don’t regret coming with her that day.
We went around the village, I told her about our specialties, showed her what I thought tasted good and she ate them all without any hesitation. We spent the entire day walking around and talking about our lives, Amelia who was filled with endless adventures, and I who was bound by duty and knew next to nothing about the outside world. Even then she listened to everything with a glint in her eye like it was the most amazing story she'd ever heard.
Night fall came, we went to the sea and without hesitation she took off her coat and shoes then threw them unto the sand and spun around as she splashed in the shallow water like a child under the night sky.
As I watched Amelia dance under the moonlight sparkling like a star in the night sky, I asked her.
"You know what I am don’t you?”
I clutched my left arm as I waited for her to answer. But did you know? That night... that night her answer changed my life. She changed my life as easily as she came in and barged through the doors that closed me out of the world. The way she smiled brightened and gave color to my world of black and blue. That night, she showed me what it was like to have someone I could be myself with without a care in the world. A friend.
That night Amelia told me,
“You don’t have to be afraid Ina, everything will be alright. I’ll always come back and hang with you, we can eat and play together again. In the future, we’ll have friends whom you can be yourself with, friends you wouldn’t have to hide anything from. Friends you can laugh and be together with. Trust me, I’m a time traveler after all”
Those series of unbelievable words and promises left me speechless as I stared at her smiling like a child in the waters as fireworks bloomed like ephemeral flowers under the night sky that perfectly reflected and illuminated our surroundings. A scene so dazzling I couldn’t stop myself from believing everything she told me, and so I did.
Next thing I knew tears were falling from my eyes. She came closer and wiped my tears away and told me
Hey now, that’s unfair. How can you be so cute even when you cry, if you don’t stop I might kiss yah”
She then patted my head treating me like a child, which surprisingly, I didn’t I hate at all. For some reason that night I wanted her to spoil me, and she did.
“Shishishishi, you don’t have to feel so alone now Ina, you don’t have anything to be worried about. I’m not afraid of you”.
She soon turned around after ruffling my hair.
“Well Ina, I’ve gotta go for now, I’ll be back soon with more stories to tell yah, and maybe even have a gift for yah. Take care alright?”
“When will you be back?”
“Can’t really say, but I promise I’ll be back. Look forward to it!”
And so I did.
For years I waited, I waited as I thought about that night by the sea and fireworks. I didn’t ever want to forget that night, so do you know what I did? I picked up painting, I learned to paint the vibrant worlds that she told me about, the sides of the world I hoped and yearned to see together with her.
And just like that 5 years had passed, as I was painting by the cliff atop the sea slowly losing all my inspiration and motivation, as the colors started to disappear again, as the doors that Amelia busted open all so easily; slowly started to close again. A familiar voice called out from behind me,
“InaInaInaaaaaaa~~ How’ve yah been? That’s a nice painting you got there needs more color tho shishishishishi”
As if right on queue the winds started to blow and the birds started chirping and flying, I turned around and saw her again, smiling like the gullible idiot I met 5 years ago. I was dumbstruck, seeing her as she giggled while she held her hat atop her head so the wind wouldn’t blow it away, watching her stand there as her coat flowed by the wind, my world started to gain color again.
After my initial shock, I stood up and immediately ran to hug her and she caught me but since she had to let go of her hat it got blown away, without second thought I summoned a tentacle to catch it and placed it back atop her head. I was shocked so I immediately pushed her away, afraid that she might now be scared of me just like everyone who saw them in the past. I couldn’t look at her. But do you know what she did?
Amelia gave me a pat in the head and ruffled my hair again just like she did that fateful night, and then she said,
"Thanks Ina. So that’s what they look like. Cute, I like em. They suit you a lot, you should bring em out more often hehe”
And just like that, she made me accept the part of me that I’ve always tried to hide. Tried too hard that I ended up hiding myself from outside world, In fear what they might think of me, in fear of what I would be able to do to them if I lost control.
How do you do it Ame? How do you do it with those simple words and small actions. How can you change a person’s outlook in life within a span of a few seconds; with all my thoughts racing, and with all the excitement I felt, I went in to hug her again and as she caught me with one arm atop my head and one unto my waist, I then asked her.
“Where have you been Ame? What took you so long?”
“Sorry bout that, been busy a lot lately. Preparing for our future together, you know”
Our? I repeated to myself. I felt my face turned red and my entire body’s temperature slowly rise. I bashfully hit her shoulders and turned around before she could see my face.
“Oh uh ok, anyway. How long will you be here for?
I asked her as I walked slowly back to the edge of the cliff with hands behind my back, still trying to hide my embarrassment.
“I can stay for a few days”
I gasped the moment I heard it and she saw it, she didn’t plan on letting it slide.
“Got excited did yah? Those flaps of yours look cute when they suddenly perk up shishishishi”
“Anyway, I’m hungry. Got anything to eat?”
“Help me bring my stuff and we can go have lunch at the village”
"Your wish is my command” as she bowed in an elegantly exaggerated manner.
I couldn't help but cover my mouth and giggle at how adorable she was.
The days went by fast as she told me what she's have been doing after all these years, and how it felt like only a few weeks for her as she kept on jumping from timeline to timeline looking for mythical places, beings and monsters that the world has never seen before. Worlds that I couldn’t wait to paint out and be lost in within my canvas.
Every night she would ask me to lay by the beach and look at the stars in the sky, Amelia would asked me how I’ve been after all the time she were away. She asked me what I did, what I saw, where I went and why I did these things. I obliged and told her about my yearly trials from the ancient ones, how hard and how painful each and every time was. I told her about how every couple of years I would have to dive down deep under the sunken temples and ruins to calm the creatures that lurked within.
Like a kid she immediately sprung up and looked at me with a glint in her eyes again, asking for permission to one day bring her to see the sunken cities deep within the sea’s, and promised her I did. The fourth day came and Amelia told me she had to go again, There were places to explore, monsters to investigate and unknown beings to discover out there in the huge world, with a tear in my eye I hugged her again from behind; wishing internally that she would stay or bring me with her. But I couldn’t so I bid her farewell and whispered to her ears,
“Come back to me”
And along with that goofy smile and laugh, she gave me a thumbs up and said,
“I will, wait for me Ina I’ll have plenty more thing to tell yah about the next time I come back”
And as she started tweaking her clock, Amelia flinched and looked at me then said,
“AHH! I almost forgot, Keep up the good work Ina! I love your paintings. I expect to see more next time shishishishi”
Oh Ame, why are you such a gullible idiot but so much of a sweetheart at the same time? I thought to myself.
Centuries came and passed, and kept her promises she did, Amelia never forgot and always came back for me, with stories and gifts from the places she'd been to. Her visits were all random, at times she came after a few weeks sometimes months sometimes years and even decades, I waited and I waited and it always felt worth it every time I heard her voice call for me. Of course there were times where I thought she wasn't going to come back anymore and there were times when I wanted to end my life because I was getting sick and tired of my duties and the trials were getting harsher and harsher but she always came at the right time to calm me down and comfort me, to tell me everything was going to be alright. That I wasn’t alone. That she will always be with me.
“Beware priestess, we have kept silence all these time but you are getting too attached, this will only lead you to ruin. You have been warned priestess. Take this warning to hearth”
Then came a night I would never forget, Amelia came knocking on my door wounded, bloody, and dying. It sent shivers down my spine at how I instantly thought I was about to lose her, at how I thought I would never be able to see her again. I got up in a rush and caught Amelia with the tentacle I summoned as she fell down to the ground.
“I’m sorry Ina, I messed up”
She told me as I cradled her close to me, unfathomable anger burned within me. WHO DID THIS TO YOU! I'LL...... I'LL MAKE THEM SUFFER! Rage there was nothing but rage until she cupped my cheek. In an instant my senses came back to me as I looked at her smiling but soon after she coughed out blood and fell unconscious.
It was then that I remembered, remembered that I was taught healing spells. Spells I never thought I needed so I never took them seriously. I was hoping, hoping and praying that this would work, that I could save her. "I need you Amelia Watson! I need you! please don’t leave me alone". I begged and I cried as I tried my hardest to heal her wounds.
It took me awhile before I realized that It was slowly working, Amelia's wounds were closing up but she wasn’t moving, she wasn’t breathing. WHY! WHY! WHY! WHY! WHY! WHY! WHY! WHY! WHY! I lashed out in anger as parts of the temple crumbled to pieces and shattering in every way, huge tentacles slamming at the ground, the walls and towards the sky breaking and smashing everything that came near us. When suddenly I heard her cough again. A surge of relief flowed all over me as I saw Amelia open her eyes and said,
“Good morning dummy, quiet down and let me sleep”
She looked at me with half closed eyes and a smirk at her lips. Next thing I knew I saw myself crying as I hugged her and cried at her shoulders. I felt Amelia brushing my hair like she always would when suddenly she squeezed at my head fins. Shocked and a bit annoyed I stood up and tried to look at her angrily then before I could even process what happened, our lips met.
“Thank you Ina, you saved my life. I don’t know how else I should thank you so I gave you a kiss”
I looked at her in shock as I touched my lips relishing the feeling, wanting more the more I thought about it, and so I did.
A kiss. Another, and another, and another. The more I kissed her, the deeper it got which fueled me more and more as she kissed me back and held my nape and my cheeks and without realizing it, I did the same hoping she’d feel the same as me never want to stop, to keep this moment forever frozen in time. Bliss, it was pure bliss as we held each other all through the night, feeling each others breath and every heartbeat we made till morning’s first light.
I woke up the next morning with Amelia's coat over me but no sign of her. I stood up as I held her coat relishing her scent as I was looking for her when I heard something fall to the ground. A paper? I opened it not soon after I sighed with a smile of defeat, It read,
“Sorry for leaving on short notice Ina,
Thank you again for saving me last night.
I’ll come back again soon.
Take care of my coat for me while I’m gone.
-Love, Watson”
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
I could’ve made you mine, but I didn’t. I knew you that you were made for me, but I also knew that I wasn’t made for you. This I realized that one time you and I laid by the beach laying in the warm sand under the summer sky as we listened to the sound of the calm waves and the chirping of the birds as they passed us by.
I was looking at you, admiring your beauty as you looked at your hand; palms open aiming up the sky smiling like the gullible idiot you always were. Smiling as you looked at the ring she made for you, after a few more moments you suddenly said “That stinky idiot, isn’t she precious shishishishi?”.
I was jealous. I wanted to scream and throw a tantrum to see if you would call me precious too. I wanted you to compliment me. I wanted you to notice me more. I wanted you to look at me again. If I wasn’t bound by duty, would you have taken me with you? Would you have brought me into your adventures? Would things have been different?
But do you remember what I replied instead?
" Yeah, she is isn’t she”
As I smiled and listened to you giggle. As we laid by the beach in the warm sands of summer. My precious idiot of a detective.
I thought to myself
“Oh Ame, How I love you so”
You wonder who “she” is? Wonder when this happened? Wonder how it got to this point? Well, that’s a story for a different time~~