Chapter Text
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In the distant past…
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"Aaaah, this is perfect!" Gula exclaimed as he let himself fall into the soft grass on top of a hill in the outskirts of town. It was indeed a lovely day, so Ava, Luxu and him had packed a basket to have a nice picnic for themselves far away from the gloomy tower.
The sun was warming their faces, a soft breeze was blowing and the food they brought was delicious. What else could they ask for on such a fine day?
"I really needed this…" Ava let out a happy sigh as she laid back on a blanket they had brought for the picnic. She was wearing her foreteller robes, but had left her mask in the tower along with her responsibilities. Her wavy cherry blossom coloured hair and green eyes sparkled in the warm sunlight as she was clearly enjoying herself.
"Same here…" Luxu agreed with Ava and smiled softly. His golden eyes were resting on Ava's shimmering hair and her pretty smile as he leaned against a tree that offered them shade. "Don't know about you, but the Master has been even weirder than usual. Getting out of the tower was the best idea."
"You can say that again!" Gula agreed as he reached for the basket and picked out a bottle of water. "He did say some really weird things… Did he give you guys roles too?"
"Gula!" Ava exclaimed with shock. "We aren't supposed to talk about this!"
"Ah, so he did~" Gula grinned at her mischievously, which made Ava blush an angry red and Luxu chuckled fondly of them two. "Just wanted to know if I'm the only one. You don't have to go into details, but… What do you think of your roles?"
"..." Luxu stayed silent first, not sure how much he should let shine through. "I don't really like mine, let's keep it at that."
"I'm… not sure if I'm the right person for mine…" Ava admitted, still wearing a slight blush. "Master said I can do this, but I'm not sure…"
"Hey…." Luxu looked at her with a supportive gaze. "The Master wouldn't give you a role if you're not able to deal with. And you're pretty awesome, so whatever he asked of you, I'm sure you can do this."
"Thanks, Lu…" Ava blushed even more. "It just… feels like a lot, is all. And the Master talking about the world ending… it's so scary!"
"M-hmm." Gula nodded and took a sip from his drink, starting to think about the little time they might have left and unfinished business...
Oh, he had noticed the looks Ava and Luxu were giving each other and how they always stayed close to one another when they spent time together. And don't think Ava gushing about how sweet Luxu was was lost on Gula either. His best friend had developed a serious crush on the pretty boy with the dark curls and it was his duty to help them admit their feelings before it was too late.
"All this talk about the end of the world really makes you think, huh? About having things left undone, words left unsaid… Crushes you never got to admit…" Gula shot a pointed look towards Ava who looked like she was about to faint.
Gula grinned smugly before continuing.
"Like, come on, Aced totally has a thing for Ira. It's almost painful how oblivious he is. Why wouldn't he just admit it?"
Ava let out a little sigh of relief. "I don't know… I guess it's hard to let yourself be vulnerable…" Could she ever be brave enough to admit her feelings for Luxu?
"Well, one of them needs to take the first step, cause I'm sure Ira returns Aced's feelings. It would be a shame if they never got to tell each other how they feel, right, guys?"
Gula emptied his bottle of water and got to his feet. "Buuut, enough about that! You know what we need to make this day perfect? Sea Salt ice cream! I'm gonna get us some." He declared and turned to walk towards the town. Maybe if he left these two lovebirds alone, they'd finally confess their feelings for one another after that little speech of his.
With that, Gula waved at them and walked down the hill and left Ava and Luxu to their own devices.
Ava laughed softly and moved to sit next to Luxu in the shade of the tree. Her skin got a little tan from staying in the sun all afternoon and Luxu noticed some new freckles on her cheeks. So adorable…
"I hope Aced and Ira get to confess their feelings to one another… I had no idea they felt about one another that way."
Ava snickered lightly. "Well, they do bicker a lot. But they still rely on one another and have each other's back and I heard Aced talk very nicely about Ira… I must admit, I would admire it if they got to be so open to one another..."
"I see what you mean…" Luxu agreed. "Being so… vulnerable takes courage."
He started to think… About how limited their time could be if worse came to worst. About words unsaid, about feelings unadmitted… How much could he tell her without causing her pain?
"Ava, I have to tell you something…"
Ava blushed a bright shade of pink. Was that it? After all the talk about crushes and confessing feelings, would Luxu do just that?
Her heart was racing in her chest as she looked at him with bated breath. "Yeah? What is it, Lu?"
Goodness, Ava looked so sweet and pretty, Luxu felt awful for what he was about to say… He didn't want to hurt her, but this had to be said…
Gathering all his courage, Luxu took a deep breath before continuing. "I'll… I'll have to leave. When the Master disappears. If he disappears.
I'll have to leave Daybreak Town on my own to fulfill my role."
Ava's heart sank at that and her face showed how much of a shock this revelation was to her. All thoughts about her crush were forgotten immediately as she processed what Luxu had just told her. "Leave? But why?" Her head understood, but her heart felt confused. "Why would you have to go away? Why leave your home? Your friends and family?" Me…
She felt tears welling in her eyes. The thought of losing Luxu was too much to bear for her soft and kind heart.
"I'm sorry…" Luxu couldn't look her in the eyes. Her pretty eyes… "The Master instructed me to… It's vital to my role." He felt terrible for hurting her like that … maybe it would be kinder to just disappear without a word and leave her in blissful ignorance until then, but he just couldn't bring himself to do this. If he told just one person, he wanted it to be her. She deserved to know.
Still, looking at her sad and shocked face with tears threatening to fall down her cheeks, he wanted to at least try and bring her some solace. "Hey, think of it that way. Maybe the Master never disappears! This is just a worst case scenario."
He felt the urge to hug her, comfort her and tell her it's gonna be alright, but that felt so intrusive right now. Instead, he gently nudged her shoulder and smiled. "So cheer up, cheeky fox."
"Oh Luxu…" She sniffled lightly as she wiped her tears away, but she smiled at him nonetheless. "I know this will only be necessary if the Master should disappear… but thinking of you leaving… it just makes me sad…" She looked away as she blushed lightly, feeling rather vulnerable all of a sudden, and placed a hand over her heart. "I… can't stand losing you. Not even the thought of it." Her little confession was a mere whisper, as soft as the breeze around them making Dandelion seeds fly.
"Ava…" Luxu's heart felt like an invisible force squeezed it tight, making him feel like he was choking from emotions, and he was lost for words. They couldn't do justice to what he felt right now anyway… Regret, sadness, gratitude for having such a sweet and caring friend, a wish to keep all harm from her…
And love. Luxu didn't know it then, but in time he'd realise that the sweet little crush he had developed for Ava had grown to be a deep love. The sweetest and most innocent kind of love you can only feel when life's cruelties hadn't demanded their toll yet.
He carefully moved his hand to lay it on top of hers and squeezed it gently, making her look at him.
"I can't bear the thought of leaving you either… You're… You're my best friend, Ava… I'd never leave you if it weren't for a good reason…"
"Luxu…" Her free hand moved from above her heart to his hand and she held it protectively. "You're one of my best friends too… How could I ever let you leave on your own? Can't … can't someone go with you?"
Luxu could only shake his head. "The Master was very strict about this. I shouldn't even have told you, but you deserved to know."
"I see…" Ava looked pensive as she looked down at their connected hands. She had subconsciously started to stroke his thumb with hers, but although this realisation sent a warmth to her cheeks, she didn't want to stop. It felt nice…
"Well… Maybe I can't join you in person, but…" She freed one of her hands to rummage a pocket of her robes and visibly lit up when she found what she was looking for and presented it to him. "Here! A little companion for you!"
Luxu's eyes went wide as he saw Ava's "companion": It was a small plush fox, not bigger than her hand. It's fur was a soft shade of pink and showed clear traces of being very loved. "Wait, isn't that…"
"My lucky fox, yes." She smiled and blushed lightly. "It has given me company ever since I got here… whenever I've felt lonely or sad, this little plush made me feel better." Her hand moved to offer the little fox to him. "You'll need it more than I do, I think."
"But… you love this fox! It's your favourite!" Luxu couldn't believe Ava was willing to separate from her precious plushie for him.
"I love it, that's true…" But I love you more… "But you're more important to me and you might need a friend. That way, I'm always with you in a sense." She offered it to him again, more insistent this time. "Just… promise to bring it back to me." Promise to come back…
Luxu blinked back some tears as he accepted this precious gift. His hand carefully wrapped around the plushie which was still incredibly soft despite its age and brought it to his heart. "I'll take good care of it… and bring it back to you if we ever get separated."
"Thank you, Luxu..." Ava smiled and felt relieved and pleased with his answer. Maybe it was silly to believe in things like lucky charms, but knowing Luxu had something like her precious fox with him made her feel a lot better. "I know it's not much, but… "
"It's perfect." Luxu was quick to reassure her and squeezed her hand one more time. "I'll keep it safe…"
He promised with one last gentle squeeze of her hand before slowly letting go. He wanted to say so much more. How much he cared about her. How he wanted to keep her safe. How his heart broke because he had to leave her without admitting his feelings. But with the disappearance of the Master looming in the future and them having to fulfill their roles, there was no room for such sentiments…
"It's such a nice day…" Ava finally spoke up and leaned against Luxu. "I'd like to enjoy it to it's fullest."
"Me too…" Luxu smiled and leaned against her as well. He'd enjoy the time they had left, no matter how short…