soggypastry | 030 [Action for Olivine Pokemon Center/Text]

[She doesn't think anything of it, at first. There's another three day hole in her memory and she assumes that he's just out of the city or dealing with something. It's happened before and she knows he'll call sooner or later. But when the call doesn't come, even after noon has come and gone, Lightning begins to worry. She tries to call his gear, but there's no answer other than what she's feared the most ever since people started to disappear on her. That cold, robotic tone telling her that he is gone and she wasn't even there when he disappeared.

That well known sentence that leaves no question he won't be answering her again, and he may not even remember her and everything they are. Still, she doesn't cry. Not even when Strike and Lucky pad into her room, Leon's bag in Strike's paws before she gives it to Lightning and goes to Sen, curling into his embrace as Lucky whines, putting her head on Lightning's lap as the woman digs into Leon's bag and comes out with his coat and a letter that she reads once, twice, three times over before it finally sinks in. Now she cries, one broken sounding sob that shouldn't come from a woman who is normally so strong, but when her world has just been rocked upside down...she's not sure what else to do.

Not sure what else she can do but slowly get out of bed and sit with her arms around Lucky, quietly ignoring the world around them for a long time. Those that come into her room will find her like that, Leon's jacket draped around her shoulders and Lucky's head in her lap. She's not likely to move anytime soon, either.]

Leon's gone. He said to tell you he was sorry.

[Private text to: Ventus]
Can you come by for a minute? I need your help with something.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

From:

soggypastry

[She'll find that Lightning's shoulders are tense under the leather jacket she has draped across them, like she's holding something back, but the "what" that something may be is impossible to tell.]

I think we all do.

Edited Date: 2012-05-30 06:13 am (UTC)

From:

colorsofthewind

Oh, Lightning. [ she continues to rub Light's shoulders for a moment, helping in whatever little way she can ]

Is there anything I can get for you? A tissue? A glass of water?

A hug?

From:

soggypastry

['anything I can get you' gives Lightning an idea, and while the hug is probably what she really needs, she finally looks up at Talim.]

A pad of paper and a pen. A pair of crutches, if you can get some from the nurses. There's something I need to do outside, but...

[A glance down at her ankle, still in its case, answers that. She's not walking anywhere on that without help.]

From:

colorsofthewind

[ Raincheck on the hug then, though she does give Lightning's shoulders a little squeeze before stepping away with a nod. ]

Let me see what I can do.

[ She steps out of the room, and after giving the nurses the best puppydog eyes she can manage, she returns with Lightning's requested items.

She holds the crutches out ] Here you are.

From:

soggypastry

[When Talim returns, Lightning is sitting on the bed instead of on the floor, and once Talim hands her the pad and pen, she slips them into a small pouch along with an empty glass bottle, before wrapping the strap around Lucky's neck so she'll full range of motion.

There's no smile on her face as she takes the crutches, but there is a nod of gratitude once she's on her feet. Time to see if she's any good at this...]

You may want to leave. The nurses aren't going to like this, and it's not pretty when they're angry.

From:

colorsofthewind

That doesn't bother me. I'd like to go with you, if you don't mind.

From:

soggypastry

If you want. But I'm not going to be good company.

[Talim probably doesn't mind the silence, but she deserves the warning after what she's done to try and help and so she gets it. She also gets a show as soon as Lightning's out of the room, because sure enough, the nurses are not happy and it takes a bit of manhandling and threats to get out of the Center, Lucky bounding off once they're outside. Lightning pauses in the sunlight for a moment, staring out at the ocean in the distance, before she seems to straighten her back and head off in that direction, determined to reach it despite the sand making it slow going.

Yeah...the not good company part? She really is being quiet.]

From:

colorsofthewind

[ Talim truly doesn't mind- in fact, she was expecting the silence. Lightning has just lost someone important to her, after all.

So she lags behind long enough to ensure the nurses that she will keep an eye on Lightning (though it does very little to calm them), and follows her out of the Center. She keeps her distance, and her silence, as they walk. This is a personal quest, and it's not Talim's place to get involved.

Paper. A bottle. The ocean. It's not hard to see where this is going. ]

From:

soggypastry

[Someone important was the simplest way to put it. The simplest, begging whoever hears to not ask questions way, too, but Lightning's not going over that. Instead she just continues on her way, knowing that Talim is keeping her distance and appreciating the thought. The younger girl isn't bad company, really, which is why Lightning turns to her when they finally reach the waterline and the older woman prepares to sit in the sand for a bit.]

You don't have to stay, you know. I'll probably be out here a while.

From:

colorsofthewind

I don't mind, if you don't mind having me, that is. If you want to be alone, I understand.

From:

soggypastry

[Does she want to be alone? Both yes and no. She'd prefer to be alone in case she actually does break down because she can't been seen as weak and still keep the Corps together, but human company also proves to that small part of her that she isn't alone. That she has people who care.]

You're going to be bored. There's not much to do out here.

[Other than watch Lightning sit on the sand in what can only be called a graceless tumble. There's a reason she gave the bottle to Lucky.]

From:

colorsofthewind

I'll welcome any opportunity to sit outside, Lightning. Please don't worry about me.

[ She takes half a step forward, surprised by Lightning's tumble to the sand ] Are you okay?

From:

soggypastry

[If Talim is sure, then Lightning won't mind the company. She may appreciate it later on, too, when it's actually time to get up. For now, however, she's just settling in.]

Fine. Had to sit down somehow, and that was just the fastest way.

[She's got sand on her side how, sure, and her nearly healed sprained wrist has started throbbing again, but she's sitting at that's what matters. Well. Once Lucky responds to her whistle and she can collect her things, anyway.]

From:

colorsofthewind

Please be careful. I don't want to think about how the nurses might react if you hurt yourself.

[ She remains standing for a while, just in case she has to chase down the Arcanine. ]

From:

soggypastry

I'll be fine. This is nothing compared to that tree.

[Still, for the sake of not having the nurses lock her in the Center for another month, she'll take it easy. A little. Easier than if Lucky had bolted because that is one well trained Arcanine, one who settles down and lets Lightning remove the bag from her neck to get at the things within and start writing. This is probably going to be a very long letter, from the looks of things.]

From:

colorsofthewind

[ Talim sits down, then. She watches Lightning a moment, but, not wanting to pry, she soon turns her attention to the ocean. She just wants to be here in case Lightning needs her- what she does in the meantime isn't her business.

Eventually she closes her eyes, letting a light breeze play over her face and in her hair. She offers up a silent prayer to the wind- a prayer for her friends, and for the friends they all have lost. May they find peace, all of them, and whatever happens in this place, may they never be forgotten. ]

From:

soggypastry

[It takes Lightning nearly an hour, four pages, and more than one scratched out word or sentence to finish the letter and say everything she never got the chance to before. Nearly an hour before she's satisfied enough with what she's written to put the pages in the bottle and cork it before rising from the sand with a nudge from Lucky that allows her to forsake the crutches and limp to the waterline. For a minute, it seems that she's going to just drop the bottle in and let the tide carry it away, but she doesn't. Instead, she throws it as hard as she can, letting it fly without hesitation.

And though it nearly knocks her to the sand, the motion sends the bottle soaring into the water, where it disappears beneath the waves for a moment before reappearing, bobbing as it floats away on the current. All of Lightning's hopes go with that letter, and it shows on her face as just stands there, watching the waves long after it's gone. This is the best she can do. Maybe a reply will never come, but...it's something. It's the only thing left to them now.]

From:

colorsofthewind

[ At some point during all of this, Talim is roused from her little reverie, and she stands, quietly making her way to Lightning's side. She murmurs one last little prayer, for the little bottle, and for all of the hopes it carries.

She's quiet a moment more before she glances up at Lightning, studying the look on her face. ] I wouldn't think less of you if you cried.

From:

soggypastry

[It seems, for a moment, that Lightning hasn't heard Talim speak. She's still focused on the bottle even though it's long out of sight, and that look on her face doesn't ease until she finally sighs, looking to the girl beside her.]

I don't have the time to cry, Talim. Besides, he wouldn't have wanted me to.

["Don't let this bring you down," his letter had said. He wouldn't have wanted her wasting time with tears. He'd want her to go one and keep her head up. The question is....can she?]

From:

colorsofthewind

[ She's getting it more and more now- Lightning is the strong, silent type. She can respect that, to a point. At least Light's not in outright denial, like some people she knows. ]

If you don't mind my asking, who is it?

From:

soggypastry

[Lightning's learned the hard way that denial doesn't change things. Denying feelings doesn't make them go away, it just makes them come back to bite you harder later on. Sure, she's not going to go screaming how she feels from a rooftop for everyone to hear, but she can admit she hurts. ...Or rather, let it show on her face as she looks back to the waves as if they hold all the answers.]

Leon. He...he was my boyfriend.

[Fal'Cie, it hurts to refer to that in the past tense.]

From:

colorsofthewind

[ Ah, now she understands. She reaches over and rests a hand on Lightning's arm. ] I'm so sorry.

From:

soggypastry

[Under Talim's touch, Lightning's tenses, shivers, then sighs and shakes her head. Why are they talking about this like he's dead and not just gone home? He could come back...right?]

Don't be. He might come back someday.

[If he remembers, she'll be fine. If he doesn't...well. She'll deal with that later.]

From:

colorsofthewind

That is true, but it still doesn't make his leaving any easier to bear.

From:

soggypastry

It never does. [A pause as she takes a deep breath, trying to ground herself in the here and now instead of the what might have been.] But I'm used to it. He's not the first one to leave.