Alpa Christmas Visit
@inklings-challenge Beep beep it's me I think I'm ready to toss this thing in the fire! It could probably keep going but I'm tired :') Maybe I'll continue it someday idk.
~
The sweet scent of cocoa drifted in the air. Elyse took a deep sigh, leaning back against the couch. Memories zapped through her mind like lightning. Her hands shook. After her adventures were over, she never could quite relax. She stared aimlessly at the ceiling, wafts of steam drifting up from her cup. She tried to relax. Tell herself it was Christmas. Relax. Relax. Your journey's over. As she went to take a sip of cocoa though it all came flooding back. The cold of Mamo's ice on her fingers. A cacophony of commands and desert sand. So much desert sand. What came next almost made her choke on her sip. Was it normal to... Who was she kidding? What other group of... She shook her head. She suddenly understood Kokuen's smoking habit all too well. She couldn't seem to calm down. Was Pyramid really gone? Even after two years, full Tamer's journey dead and gone, the thought still lingered. And so did the memories. She hadn't controlled Mamo... He was different now. Things had changed. But it wasn't the same... She sighed hastily, letting the scent of her mother's cooking filter through her nose. Was she really home? Was it all dead and gone? Was Pyramid just a memory now? She squeezed her eyelids shut against the memory as she took another sip. I hadn't told him to do that, the old thought repeated. Ice... Ice... Her hand shook. I didn't tell him to do that.
~
“Alpas. Always the Alpas.” Kokuen trudged up the hill. “Could have had a Christmas party at my place, but noooo. Apparently, that wasn’t good enough!” She tossed her mittened hands up.
“Awww, come on. There’s nothing like an Alpa Christmas party!” a tall man with curly hair said next to her. “What would you have done, anyway? Hung a couple of Christmas lights and called it good?”
“W-well, I—” Kokuen sputtered. “I would have… tried to bake some cookies from a recipe book, hopefully not burning them…” She could cook a mean barbecue, fry a mean egg, but baking? That was her weakness. But she could learn! If she could learn how to get a single Centokin to keep her from burning to a crisp in a lava tunnel she could figure out baking, too!
The curly-haired man grinned. “Trust me, Kokuen. No one wants to eat your burnt baking. They call you Blacksmoke for a reason.”
“Hey!” Kokuen shoved him. “That is not where I get my pseudonym from!”
“Why don’t you tell the class then?” He gestured behind them to a shivering young adult and a couple of teens following at a distance. Among them was Kokuen’s younger brother Drew, rambling on about the latest and greatest Lumikin Fighter Z game, which, in Kokuen’s opinion, kept getting cheaper and cheaper with each game. They just didn’t make the old handheld ones like they used to.
“It’s obvious, isn’t it? It’s my name…” She looked back in front of them, crossing her arms. “Kokuen. That’s literally what it means.”
“But Kokuen isn’t your real name either, is it?” the man beside her said.
“Shhh!” Kokuen shoved him again. “No one’s supposed to know that either!”
“Aww, come on. They have to know by now that’s not what your parents named you. Who names their kid Blacksmoke?”
Kokuen looked away. “Eccentric people.”
“Hmmm… I guess it could be a Prairan name, but it sounds kind of ominous. I could see White Smoke, or Fragrant Smoke, but Blacksmoke? That’d imply disaster.”
“Yeah, well! I’m not Prairan!” She shoved him.
“Hehehe.” The tanned man backed up a little at her shove, rubbing his arm. “What is it then?”
Kokuen looked off. “My last name. You know that.”
“So you’re literally named Blacksmoke Blacksmoke?”
“Yes, okay!” Kokuen tossed up her arms. “I am!”
“Hmmm.” Okay then. “Sorry to pry.”
Kokuen huffed and looked away. “Are we almost there yet…?”
Taffy looked up the hill. “Yep, just about!”
~
Lico watched as they approached the houses. The color and pomp of the displays only served to magnify his unease where they impressed Kokuen’s little brother, Drew. Lico had intended this to be a personal visit, but when Taffy got wind of what he was doing, he had to go and call everyone else… Lico sighed. Oh well. Elyse should still be happy to see him, right…? Right…? What if she wasn’t? His eyes wandered towards the colorful light displays without really seeing them. What would she say then? The thought made him stop in his tracks. Had he come all this way for nothing, then…?
~
“Elyse…?”
Elyse flinched. She looked up. Where was she? What day was it? She looked around before her eyes settled on her mom. “Oh.” Haha… She must have really been in a daze. She stood up and stretched. “How’s dinner coming?” she asked in her most chipper voice. Her mom wasn’t buying it, though. Even without looking at her, Elyse could feel her mother’s concerned gaze on her. “So, stew?” Elyse asked quickly before her mother could ask what was wrong. She lifted the lid of the pot and let the steam hit her face. “Mmm, smells good.” She still didn’t look at her mother, though. She put the lid back on the pot and walked around her towards the table. “What else are we making, just this?” She reached her hand in the cookie jar. Anything to get her mother’s attention off the topic at hand…
“Elyse—” At last her mother walked up and cleared her throat, glaring sternly.
Elyse couldn’t help but smile slightly. It worked… “Sorry. I’m still—”
There was a loud knocking at the door then. Her father suddenly raced down the stairs, throwing open the door. “Heyy!”
Elyse’s smile felt like it would crack. They were here? Way to give her a heart attack!
“We’ll continue this later,” her mother said, giving her a look, and then looking off long-sufferingly.
Elyse nodded shortly. They had the worst timing. Maybe the best, but also, the worst!
“Boris!” The tall curly-haired man at the door, Taffy, said, coming in and giving her father a hug and several hearty pats. “Good to see you!” he said at the same time his gaze landed on Elyse.
Elyse wasn’t sure how to react.
Taffy smiled at her with his eyes closed. “Good to see you, too!”
“Yeah…” Why was he here again…? She looked past him at a shorter woman with dark hair and a ponytail. …. “Hi Kokuen,” Elyse said, trying not to sound very tired.
Kokuen pulled back at her greeting. Elyse sighed. She guessed Kokuen hadn’t wanted to see her much either, but then, why did she come…? Taffy must have talked her into it. She shifted, and tried to see who else was behind her. She gasped softly at the sight of a familiar sea urchin of hair in the back. Kokuen’s reply fell by the way side. Elyse stepped forward. … “Lico?”
Lico looked to his left, then his right. “Hi…” he said.
A scarf was draped about his shoulders. He wore his usual dark coat with its pointed shoulders, making him look even sharper than usual. His voice was muffled, like always, and he had his hands in his pockets. She smiled, straightening a little. Well… It’d been a while, huh?
“Not gonna stick around?” Taffy’s voice broke into her thoughts then. She saw Kokuen heading out the door.
“Um…” Elyse looked at Lico, then at the retreating Kokuen.
Elyse’s father cleared his throat.
Her mother stepped forward. “Um, would you like anything before you go? Coffee, perhaps?” she asked, wringing her hands and giving Elyse a look.
Elyse smiled apologetically. Sorry…? Well, she guessed it was good though that she’d held it in. She might have been bawling by the time they came if her mother had her way…
There was a pause. Kokuen came back in, eying the others. … “Coffee, yes.” She shook the snow off her boots and walked in, giving Elyse a look too.
Elyse smiled uneasily. Well then… She looked at Lico and smiled back at him. “Glad all of you could make it!” she said, walking towards the kitchen. It’d gotten off to a rough start, but… she was glad to see everyone again. She wrung her hands. Just… with all of them here, she had a feeling what the topic would come around to. She just hoped she could keep it together and forget. The past was in the past now, no need to remember anything… She pushed away the lingering sensation of Mamo’s ice on her fingers. The look in his eye… No, no no no, focus on the present, Elyse. She shook her head. She sighed slightly under her breath. Why was it so hard to keep it together lately…?
“You feeling okay, kiddo?” Elyse focused her gaze on Kokuen, who was looking at her with something like concern. Oh… Elyse put on a smile.
“Yeah. Just fine. Nice to see you again…” She looked back. “Where’s Drew?” she asked, looking at Kokuen again.
“At Dustin’s house… He insisted.” Kokuen was looking behind Elyse towards the door. “I kinda wanna check on him to make sure he’s okay, but… I guess he is older now, like Taffy said.” She crossed her arms and sighed through her nose. “And Dela and her family have Lumikin, so…”
Elyse nodded. “I would have liked to have seen him…” She guessed Dela’s house was right down the hill though…
Kokuen bit her lip, looking deep in thought for a moment. “Well, I could call him on his TD maybe…”
“Hmmm…” It felt kinda silly with him so close by though…
“I knew I should have dragged him up here to see you,” Kokuen said, smiling. “Alright, how about I be right back and bring him here? I’m sure you wouldn’t mind if Dustin came too if they’re inseparable?” Kokuen asked, directing her latter question towards Elyse’s mother.
Her mother looked up from getting Taffy something. “Oh.” She came forward, then stopped, looking about. “Well, let me get you your coffee first.” She went to do just that.
Elyse startled when she felt a little poke near her hand. She turned. Lico backed up a bit, eyes wide. “Sorry, did I startle you?” she asked, holding her arm.
“Um—no, not at all…” he said, looking away.
Elyse smiled. He was lying. But, well, that made two of them… She sighed.
She felt a reassuring hand on her shoulder and looked over. Kokuen was walking by, on her way to find Drew. She finished her mug of coffee, steam wisping up from it as she set it on the table near the door. “Come on, Taff.” She waved to the man still in the kitchen.
Taffy headed out the door with his drink, chugging it down and setting it down as well, though nabbing a candy cane on his way out. “Be back!” he said, leaving.
“Okay, let’s see, who likes Unopoly?” Elyse’s father said as he came shuffling out of the back with a bunch of board games. “Oh, are they not staying?” he asked.
“They’ll be right back,” her mother said. “Kokuen’s going to pick up her little brother Drew from Dustin’s house.”
“Ohh, do they know where his house is?” he asked, going towards the door.
“You can go help them if you’d like,” she said. With how her father was, Elyse could only guess her mother was trying to direct his boisterous energy elsewhere.
“Okay. I’ll be back too!” He headed out the door with his hat, smiling at the others.
Elyse waved. She sighed. Phew… The house felt so empty now with only three of them in it. She headed for the kitchen. Now… was she about to be pincered by two concerned people or would both of them concede for social politeness’s sake?
Her expectations of the latter were immediately dashed when she saw her mom give a mischievous smile. “UM!” she spoke up loudly before her mom could say anything. “L-Lico, would you like some stew? Mom made some great stew, isn’t that righ…?” Elyse opened her eyes. In the moment she’d taken her eyes off him he was standing in front of her. …
Lico looked back at her, seeming confused.
“Um…” She looked beyond him to see her mother giving them an amused look. “Ahaha…” What was so funny…?
“Alright, I see I’m not getting anything out of you today…” her mother said, amused but almost… saddened?
Elyse looked at them both. … Should she fess up? She sank back a little. “Um… sorry…” she said, rubbing her arms. “I didn’t mean to scare you, Lico…”
“You… don’t have to apologize,” he said, still sounding rather confused. “I think…” He looked towards her mother next.
Elyse tensed, looking at her mother. What would she say?
“Was I too forceful?” her mother asked, looking directly at her.
Elyse bristled. What should she say…? “I’m sorry for interrupting you so many times,” she said, looking away and holding her arm still. … “I know that was out of line…”
Her mother sighed. “I didn’t expect you to interrupt me so many times… Usually we can talk things out.” She looked at her, and then at Lico, as if to ask ‘is it because of him?’
Elyse smiled apologetically. Yeaaah. He might have had something to do with it… She looked back at him.
Lico stepped back, looking at her inquisitively.
She didn’t want him to leave either though… She frowned. Maybe she should have found a way to deal with this before he came. Not that it was that easy… She sighed. “Come on. Get some cocoa or whatever you’d like. It’s a long story…”
