The Sylvan Fay

Fall was just around the corner, but even in the early days of September, the cherry blossom trees within Sakura Alley were as pink and beautiful as ever. Atani smiled wistfully at them as her fingers ran over one of the runes carved into a trunk. She breathed in the last dredges of the warm summer air and exhaled a quiet sigh. Now that she was back from Talaz Lagaar, things felt different-- Things were different, and unfortunately she didn't think they would be returning to normal. Not anytime soon, at least. It was hard dealing with it alone, but everyone was gone-- dead, missing, out of contact. Whatever the case, they were gone. She had hoped being part of a guild would change that, just like it did for Kerii, but it didn't.

Not at all.

She didn't feel abandoned, just... lost. As much as the elf wished that was a new feeling for her, it wasn't, but it's not like that made it any better. For now, she just tried to find some peace and serenity among Hosenka's nature. As she strolled alongside the trees, footsteps completely silent, she passed a man with light blonde hair and even fairer skin. She paused and wrinkled her nose from the scent of his cigarette, then continued leisurely on.

The Sylvan Fay

As Atani passed the blonde man with the cigarette, she heard his voice speak up. He apologized for his abruptness, then proceeded to call her by name, almost as if he knew her-- or knew of her, at least, though she couldn't for the life of her imagine who in Hosenka would when she had hardly spent much time there.

Curious, she turned on her heels to face the man. Now standing up instead of leaning against the wall, he appeared much taller than what she had originally assumed walking past at a glance. After a brief study of his pierced face, she concluded she hadn't met this man before. One like that would be hard to forget, but still, she had to ask.

"I am... And I'm sorry, but do I know you?"

If he were someone she was supposed to have known from her past, he would have called her Kerii, but that was clearly not the case. She couldn't help but wonder then if perhaps one of her friends had reached out, or if this man required some sort of assistance. If it was the latter, she hated to disappoint, but her once revered healing abilities were rather depleted at the moment.

The Sylvan Fay

Atani looked at the man skeptically as he took a moment to gather himself before answering what seemed like the rather straightforward question she asked of him. There should have been no apprehension. But then, as he spoke, it all made sense.

"It's me... Lee Nakamura."

Upon hearing those words, Atani felt her heart drop.

"... What?"

Her voice was breathless. She slowly shook her head as he listened to him further explain himself. Her eyes were wide in furious disbelief and her stomach had begun to twist in knots. She took a cautious step back from the man who claimed to be her once closest, but now deceased friend.

"No... LeeAnn is dead. I- I saw her grave."

This had to be some sort of cruel, twisted joke. She wished she could say it was the first time someone had made light of those she lost, but it wasn't. But something didn't quite sit right with her. If it was a joke... why? For what purpose would someone have to drag up hers and Lee's past? She furrowed her brows as she tried to make heads or tails of it, knitting them even tighter as she felt a headache from Yuan begin to brew.

'Come on...' she said to herself as she could feel her reins on the goddess begin to slip.

The Sylvan Fay

"I... had to fake the death. Otherwise, he would have hurt you and everyone I loved."

He?

Who was he?

And why would she have been in danger?

This man-- Lee or not-- nothing he said made sense. Atani frantically looked over his figure, trying to read his facial expressions and body language as best she could. She wanted to find some fault in it, some sign of deceit, yet everything screamed LeeAnn. She wanted to say it was impossible, but she knew in this world of magic it wasn't. No, it wasn't the drastic change in appearance she was hung up on, for even she could tell that either Lee or someone who had mastered the mannerisms of Lee existed beneath the guise of this tall, pierced, and blonde stranger before her. No...

It was the deceit.

She listened to 'Lee' explain what had happened, how his true body had been burnt beyond repair, and how he had only survived thanks to Ragtime and his spiritual prowess. Of course, one would think a fire mage could not be burnt so easily, nor as severely. A Dragon Slayer no less! But Atani had seen an eerily similar thing happen to Daiko. He too once had his body reduced to ash, and he emerged from it a new being... Not unlike Lee.

Atani hesitated as she watched him drop to the ground-- she still felt as if she were in some sort of shock-- but after a few moments more, she gave in and knelt to his height. Her lip twitched as she listened to him apologize, as she watched him break down before her in a way she only knew LeeAnn Nakamura to do. But staring into his green eyes, not even seeing the friend she once knew, all she could feel was numb. And if Atani knew herself, she knew it would only be a matter of time before that numbness imploded into something visceral, and she couldn't allow herself to do that. Not in the middle of Hosenka. Not with Yuan on the brink of emerging.

"Lee..." Her voice was soft. She hadn't felt the name on her tongue in so long. It felt strange saying it to someone new. "We can't do this here... I can't do this here."

She put a gentle hand on his shoulder and urged him to rise back up with her-- Slowly. Cautiously.

"Not out in the open." She was tempted to offer going to the place she was staying at in Hosenka, but if this really was Lee, if he really was in as much danger as he said, he likely had a safe place of his own. The mage didn't want to suggest someplace that would compromise his safety, not something as unguarded as her room at the inn.

The Sylvan Fay

As expected, Lee had someplace in mind for where they could go to speak in private. He called it the 'Quiet Room.' Where he had learned of this in Hosenka, she did not know, but she followed him anyway without question. For now, she let him believe that it was because she wanted no one to hear of their conversations, but in reality it was so much more than that... Which he would have known if he was in Talaz Lagaar with her, but he wasn't. She had to suffer through that one alone. Despite the promise they made to one another.

Atani trailed behind Lee as he showed her to the Quiet Room. She did her best to keep her focus off of him. She needed to if she were to maintain the integrity of her physical appearance, but it was hard. It took nearly every ounce of her willpower to keep Yuan at bay. There would be moments where she would get a searing headache clustered right behind her eye. She'd bring a hand to it, partly to subside the pain, but mostly to hide any potential shift in color from Atani-green to Yuan-gold.

Eventually, they had made it to the room. Lee sat himself in a chair, but Atani remained firmly standing. She crossed her arms and angled herself away from his body such that he wouldn't be able to see her face, save for its faint reflection in the window. She stared out of it as he told his story, all the while just trying to focus on her breathing to keep a level head.

She already knew about Solomon and his views. Likewise, she already knew about what he had done, turning her family into puppets and putting the remaining Nakamuras in jeopardy. This was all information LeeAnn had shared with her in Stella. None of this was new.

With a sudden shift in energy around the room, Lee's story began to change, as did his voice. She furrowed her brows. She knew that voice; it was Ragtime's. She glanced over to Lee who more or less appeared the same, but there was a certain look in his eyes now, one that undoubtedly reminded her of the spirit. But that meant... If Ragtime was here, this was LeeAnn Nakamura. There was no doubt about it. But somehow that only made Atani that much more heated.

"So you see... why I had to fake my own death and keep everyone safe?"

Atani tore her eyes away from Lee. She clenched her fists behind crossed arms.

"No, I don't," she bitterly said. Her chest became tight as she realized she might have been coming off harsh, but she couldn't just bury her feelings and lie to his face. "Everyone else, sure, I get that, but you didn't have to keep it all from me." She let out a shuddered breath as she closed her eyes. When they opened, they were no longer green, but instead took on a distinctive golden hue.

"Didn't we tell each other, all the way back when we made the guild, that we would be there for one another?" Even after hearing about what Solomon had done to her family-- no, especially after hearing about that-- Atani told LeeAnn that she didn't have to go through it alone. If anything were to happen, all she had to do was call, and she would be there, no questions asked.

"You had an entire family you could have relied on. But even if you were too afraid to get them involved, you still at least had me."

She, of course, was not referring to the Nakamuras, but rather the guild. Even if it was disbanded, they were still loyal to their guildmaster. At the very least Atani was; there were no doubts in any of that. It was Lee's own words that a guild was essentially a family, and even Atani who had no concept of what one was had finally been able to feel like Lee was becoming part of hers. But then, almost a year ago, that had all been ripped away when she got word of his 'death.'