The final day of July began bright and early.
While the hospital bed wasn’t big enough for any of Shouri’s Resonators to share with him, just having them in the same room was a massive improvement over the past week’s sleeping arrangements.
He actually felt well-rested.
Though he couldn’t calm his heart.
After all, he had to face his past today.
It was around eight in the morning or so when the doctor came by and gave Shouri a clean bill of health (albeit advising he take it easy for the next day or so while the remainder of his rhythm was restored).
At least his hair was back to its usual sheen, with the color having slowly faded back in overnight.
With Shouri’s freedom from the hospital made official, he slowly woke the groggy girls scattered around the room.
Taika was first, having conked out in the chair next to the bed. She didn’t speak a word when awoken and the look she gave Shouri told him all he needed to know: the poor thing was completely exhausted.
The etude from her presence was nice, but there was still some turmoil in the girl’s heart – that much was apparent to the Maestro. A discussion for tonight when they could get some proper alone time.
Rebecca and Pacifica shared the couch, the smaller fire Resonator being held by her water counterpart.
“Come on you two, we’re being kicked out.” Shouri gently shook the pair awake.
“Uuuhg…” Rebecca groaned, coming to.
“Mmmrgh…” Pacifica similarly grunted, trying to shake off the grogginess.
After rotating usage of the restroom, the four took their leave of their temporary accommodations and headed out of the hospital. It was a quiet jaunt, none of them wanting to disturb the other recovering patients, but also because three out of the four members of the party were still totally exhausted.
Yesterday had been a long day for all of them, but only one got the luxury of a real bed.
“Let’s go get breakfast at the MA Office and then I’ll get you all a room to sleep in,” Shouri suggested as they made their way down the streets of Alspo.
“Sounds good,” Pacifica said through a yawn.
“Are you sure you’ll be fine bossman?” Rebecca asked, quieter than usual.
Shouri nodded. “Yeah, I’ll be fine,” he said with unusual confidence.
Pacifica and Rebecca both caught that but were just too tired to call him out on it. Maybe later after some food and real sleep.
Thankfully, Shouri was never checked out of his room at the MA office so they were able to slip past the front counter and head straight to the cafeteria where a few Maestros and their Resonators mulled about.
It was a peaceful morning. That was except for one of Shouri’s present concerns. He shot a sidelong glance toward Taika, who grabbed much less food than usual. She skipped some of her usual staples.
This thing about her ad-Lib was really getting to her. He held her tuner in his free hand, his banking app on screen.
Naiza Department of Maestro Affairs Office 25/7/2018
Damages -123.25♪
Naiza Department of Maestro Affairs Office 25/7/2018
Damages -245.75♪
Naiza Department of Maestro Affairs Office 26/7/2018
Damages -90.00♪
Naiza Department of Maestro Affairs Office 27/7/2018
Damages -41.50♪
Naiza Department of Maestro Affairs Office 29/7/2018
Damages -101.75♪
The assumption was Taika thought she could control her powers and failed. Multiple times. His itchy curiosity demanded to know what exactly she broke, but on the flip side of his logic, he knew such a pointed inquiry would only depress his poor fox more than she already was. Maybe he'd ask Emily later in private since she was caring for them at the time.
At any rate, breakfast was quiet. The quartet ate their food in silence, the hushed conversations of the other patrons being the backing track for their meal.
Once food was done, Shouri led his trio back to his room and saw them off to bed.
While Shouri was deciding which tuners to take with and which to leave, Pacifica grabbed his wrist.
“Just take them all,” she whispered.
Shouri opened his mouth to retort but was cut off.
“After the week we’ve had, we’re just gonna sleep, if we need you we’ll call – we’re right next to the common room,” the otter told him.
The Maestro smiled, ruffling the sleepy girl’s head. “Sleep well.”
“Be back soon,” she replied.
“I will.” He nodded.
And with that, he set off.
He walked through the MA Office alone once again. With a grunt, Shouri came to a stop. Taking in a breath, he spoke into the empty air surrounding him. “I get you don’t trust any of them, but can you leave me alone today?”
After a moment of silence, he nodded and continued into the front lobby.
Awaiting him was a face that made his heart throb uncomfortably.
Alone she sat near the door, her clothes still torn up as they were when they clashed only a week ago. Though the burnt nature of her hair and skin had vanished. The scars did not though.
He stared at her for some time, only breaking eye contact when she noticed him.
Even if she had strong willpower, Mila couldn’t move.
Shouri’s hand dropped to his side and gripped the black tuner at his waist. Finding his conviction, he properly approached her.
“Mila,” he said.
“Shouri,” she replied.
Silence.
“I didn’t abandon you,” Shouri said.
“I know you didn’t.” Shockingly, she grinned.
He didn’t know what to say, he stared at her his mouth agape.
“They convinced me you did,” she admitted, her eyes fleeing from his form. “And I believed them. It was convenient.” There was a shame to her voice as she spoke.
Shouri nodded slowly, a hand remained wrapped around Taika’s tuner, trembling.
“So, what did you want?” Mila asked.
“I just… wanted one day.” He paused, refusing to meet her gaze. “I wanted one day as your Maestro. Just to see what they took from us.”
Mila stroked her chin in thought, humming as she processed the request. “Okay,” she said simply.
“What then?” came her next question. “I don’t got a Maestro,” she pointed out. “Back to being a stray?” she queried.
“No!” Shouri barked (and startling the morning desk attendant). “You’re never going back to the street.”
Mila’s eyes didn’t meet his, instead, they were on the hand clutching the black tuner. “I’ll letcha surprise me then, my Maestro~” she sang through a toothy grin.
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“So where are we going first?” Mila questioned her current Maestro.
The pair walked through the streets of Alspo. Being on the edge of the desert, the landscape had very little in terms of greenery. It was interesting in Shouri’s mind considering he could smell the ocean nearby. Probably if they walked north enough they’d hit the West Trimare Sea.
“Shouri.” Mila lightly shoved the boy.
“Huh? What?” Shouri looked around before his attention returned to the Fire Cat by his side.
“Where are we going?” She repeated her question.
“Oh right, uh…” He looked around.
“Pfft… hahaha!” Mila couldn’t help but break down in a giggle-fit.
“What?” Shouri glanced at the laughing girl.
“You really haven’t changed in all this time, huh?” She wiped a tear away.
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Shouri sighed. “I guess not,” he mumbled.
Mila’s laughter faded as she frowned at him. “C’mon, it was a joke.”
“I know,” he replied.
Before she could question what he was on, her hand got grabbed. “Come on,” he said, pulling her into a nearby shop.
“W-wait!”
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“You really haven’t fucking changed,” the cat hissed, hiding behind the boy as she nervously glanced around their new surroundings.
Given the many outfits, racks, and stacks of clothing, it was clear Shouri had taken her to a tailor. Of course, given who she was with, this wasn’t an ordinary clothier, but a tailor of the highest prestige. The shop had that rich smell to it, you know the one. The pair began to look around at all the fancy outfits on display. The price tags made Mila ill.
Everything was so expensive!
Given how Mila had to scrounge together scraps off the street for her entire life, seeing outfits priced at values she had only dreamed of made her feel underdressed even being in there. No, she felt plain naked with her filthy peasant rags!
“Neither have you – relax, you’re with money,” Shouri reassured her.
“If you say so,” she muttered, hiding behind her present Maestro.
“Hello! How can I help you?” A shopkeeper practically materialized out of thin air from how quietly they had crept up on the pair.
The cat jumped but didn’t give the tailor the satisfaction of a yelp.
Shouri stepped out of the way to reveal Mila. “I wanted to get some new clothes for her,” he told them, whilst the Resonator in question tried to look as small as possible.
“Hmmm...” The tailor stroked their chin in thought. “We can get her in something more suited to her style.” They looked the shabby cat over. “She could use it,” came the biting commentary.
Shouri chuckled. Mila was definitely in for it – she still had somehow managed to keep her clothes from eight years ago together. But it was obvious the already scavenged clothes were on their last legs. She could do better, maybe something like what Rebecca wore? He shook his head. “Please. Whatever she wants,” he told the tailor.
And with that, Mila was taken into the fitting rooms.
Shouri took a seat to wait. While Mila got dressed, he checked his text messages. A smirk rose on his lips. “Good,” he chuckled. “You need to make a good first impression,” the boy whispered to himself.
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Mila stared at herself in the mirror. Her blue eyes wide and shimmering as she fought to suppress the tears that wanted to spill.
Facing her in the mirror was an unrecognizable figure.
Ultimately, she decided to keep her palette darker, with her top and shorts being black, though an orange line highlighted the button line that made up the sleeveless top she wore as well as the collar’s edge. Over her top was a hooded capelet, entirely orange to match the line on her top.
The cat glanced over at the remaining clothing items she had yet to put on. She already felt perfect in these clothes. What more could be done to improve her look?
A foolish question.
She slipped on a pair of black leggings and slid on the accompanying black and white shoes to complete her look.
“Huh…”
The cat that stared back at Mila was a creature she was wholly unfamiliar with. “Me…” She blinked twice.
Her mind was entirely overstimulated at this point – she had never felt this good in her own skin ever. It made her heart race but numbed her all at the same time.
Until she was standing in front of Shouri.
“She is complete,” the tailor spoke with pride.
Mila was lost for words. What would he even say?
“Beautiful,” was the word he decided on.
“Sh-shut up! Idiot!” she barked. “Have some lead up! You can’t just say that to a girl without warning!” the cat roared, only earning laughter from the “idiot” in question.
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“So now what?” Mila asked.
They had since departed from the tailor’s and were once again walking the hot streets of Alspo. Thanks to the two fire Resonators he was currently linked to Shouri had no problems with the sweltering temps of the mid-day Alspo sun.
“I’m your Maestro for the day. I should act like one.” Shouri shrugged.
“What’s that even mean?” Mila raised a brow.
“Isn’t it obvious?”
The duo stopped before a huge building, a small stadium in size. Stepping inside revealed the purpose of the large structure- it was a battle court. Many Resonators and their Maestros hung out in the lobby, chattering amongst themselves.
Even if the streets were empty, the courts were anything but. It probably helped that the building was boasting an impressive temperature control system – it was hard to believe that the desert was just outside the doors with how cool it was inside.
At any rate, Shouri and Mila weren’t here to leech off the AC unit – they were here for what the building was designed for: battling.
The Maestro strode up to the counter, his Resonator for the day right behind him. Had he walked in with his usual trio he no doubt would have commanded some attention from the locals. Mila even in her striking new outfit was still just a cat, a common breed seen everywhere in the world. Even a couple of cats were chilling out around the lobby itself.
“Welcome to the Alspo Battle Court – do you have a reservation?” the attendant asked.
“I do not, but we’d be down to face anyone who is waiting for a battle,” Shouri told the attendant.
“Certainly. I’ll put you in the queue – what battle style are you looking for?”
Shouri hummed in thought. He wasn’t familiar with what was available at venues like this. A quick glance around showed there were many Maestros with squads of up to three Resonators. That must have been what the attendant meant.
“Just a one-on-one, I only have her today.” Shouri motioned back to Mila, who had stopped paying attention and was scoping out the competition.
“Certainly, I can get you registered please scan her tuner in here.” The attendant pointed to a scanner embedded into the front counter.
Following the instructions, Shouri pulled Mila’s red tuner from his side and checked her into the system.
“Thank you, Maestro Shouri. We’ll call you up when we have a battle ready for you.”
Mila and Shouri took a seat, completely disregarded by the other Maestros in the lobby.
“So what have you been up to all this time?” Mila asked, leaning back on the bench.
Shouri leaned forward, considering that question. “Well, I spent seven years in depression,” he began.
The fire cat frowned, shifting her gaze back and forth as she tried to figure out how to respond to that.
“Met Taika in April and got chased from home a month later.”
“Why’s that?”
“Dad caught us in bed together.”
Mila started gagging, sitting up suddenly. “The fuck?!” she barked.
“Right? He and Mom threw a fit so we ran,” Shouri replied.
“No no, you were sleeping with her? Like sleeping sleeping?” Mila asked.
It took Shouri a moment to piece together what was going on but when he did, a wicked grin rose on his lips.
“Oh Mila, I didn’t realize you were so chaste,” the boy tittered.
“What the fuck does that mean?!” the poor flustered cat shrieked.
“I guess I just have more experience than you now, little girl.” Shouri’s shit-eating grin only served to further ruffle the cat’s proverbial feathers until she snapped.
“Shut-up! Shut-up! Shut-up! Shut-up! Shut-up!” the cat yowled, repeatedly hammering the stupid smug Maestro with her fists.
“Shouri Tomoshibi!” The loudspeaker broke up the play fight. “Please report to Court 3, your opponent is ready!”
The Maestro looked to the Resonator glaring at him. “Ready my little kitten?” he snickered.
“Shut the fuck up,” she growled, unable to suppress her smirk.