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fandomweekly2021-04-18 10:13 pm
donion) wrote in fandomweekly2021-04-18 10:13 pm
Entry tags:
[#072] Unspoken (Pokémon XY)
Theme Prompt: #072, Unspoken things
Title: Unspoken
Fandom: Pokemon XY, Pokemon Masters
Rating/Warnings: PG/no warnings
Bonus: No
Word Count: 985
Summary: Malva meets with Lysandre on Pasio.
Arms crossed, Malva leant against one side of the rocky outcrop; she stared out towards Pasio's sea and not, pointedly, at where Lysandre stood nearby. They'd agreed to meet, but had said little; sighing deeply, Malva supposed she was going to have to be the one to break the silence between them.
"You're lucky I even agreed to this. I can't imagine we have much to say to each other anymore."
Lysandre turned his head and smiled (an action that made Malva frown on reflex). "Perhaps so. Although, I must admit that I would be lying if I said that I didn't appreciate your coming here anyway. To see you here like this, your manner upon our meeting... it's almost like nothing's changed."
"No? I think you simply don't have enough evidence to decide that, one way or the other."
"Then... have you? Changed, I mean?"
Pressing her nails into her upper arm, Malva closed her eyes as she fought off her first instinct - to react with anger, sharp and bare and too incoherent to put properly into words. Lysandre's question seemed laughable, but it seemed that he meant it sincerely. Taking a deep breath, Malva waited a few seconds before opening her eyes and glancing towards Lysandre, seeing him still looking at her, earnestly waiting for an answer. Indecision, she knew, was all she could give in reply.
"How am I supposed to answer that? It's been a long time, Lysandre. It's easy enough to die in failure, but that just means others are left to deal with the consequences. Have I changed? I wouldn't know. I've been too busy dealing with certain consequences. Your consequences."
"'Die in failure'... you never did pull your punches, did you?"
"You seemed happy enough to let us think that, at least. The end result is the same, regardless. And then, after everything, you choose to reveal yourself once more...?!" She ran her hands over her face in frustration. "I've spent so much time covering my tracks. Vanishing evidence, severing links. Then, out of nowhere, you ask me to meet with you - and to say what? 'Oh, sorry about what happened. My bad.' Is that it?"
"Do you still believe, Malva?"
That question caused the breath to hitch in Malva's throat. Again, too evocative a question for an easy, straightforward answer. Just to be asked that, by him, with that look in his eyes - she resented it, and she resented how quickly all of those old emotions bubbled to the surface once again.
"You don't get to ask that of me anymore."
"... I apologize."
"I believed so much...! Each and every day, I lived for what we were doing. What we were planning. What we were going to accomplish. More than anything, I suppose, I trusted you to accomplish what we had planned. You betrayed that trust, and... years later, here we are. Certainly, that part of me hasn't changed - but the plan failed, and I readjusted. Even if it took readjusting everything, I... did what I had to do."
"As you always did."
Malva pushed herself away from the rock, stepping forward to stand next to Lysandre. "You have Yveltal now, though. Would you start over?"
Lysandre faltered, his gaze falling and his expression troubled. "It may surprise you to know that I--... am unsure on how to proceed."
"Because there's a dreamy professor waiting back there to bat his eyelashes and wag his finger at you if you even look like you're about to step out of line?"
"I--... I wouldn't--... put it like that..."
"Am I lying?"
"... There are also--... consequences that I have to face."
"Hm. I suppose the more pertinent question is whether you think he's more important than the world." She gave a light shrug. "Almost sounds romantic, putting it like that."
"I--..."
"He knows, now. And if he'd burst into our headquarters all those years ago, 'Lysandre, stop this--!'... Would you? If it had been him asking?"
"... We were so close. It couldn't--... it couldn't have stopped for him. It couldn't have stopped for anyone."
"We were stopped, though."
"... Indeed." It seemed that Lysandre had no further follow-up to that line of thought; instead, he narrowed his eyes, looking once more towards Malva. "I see Diantha is here."
Another statement - not even a question - that caused Malva's fists to tighten. "... Of course. The Champions, gathered together on Pasio. She represents all of Kalos. Of course she'd be here."
"She always was... fond of you, wasn't she?"
"I don't know why you're asking me. I don't control what she thinks or feels."
"And did she ever... find out?"
Malva gave an incredulous expression. "What, like I was just going to blurt out everything to her? Obviously not. Don't forget, I have some pride in being one of the Kalos Elite Four, too - would I jeopardize that simply to share some gossip regarding some past-tense thing, something that holds absolutely no relevance...? I thought, at the very least, you'd know me better than that."
"That's a long time to keep a secret."
"And I'm good at compartmentalizing. There's no need for her to know. She won't know. That's the end of it. You being here doesn't change that."
"I see. Then, please rest assured: my lips are sealed."
"Thanks, I guess. My appreciation for you not making my life purposefully more difficult is boundless." Malva looked Lysandre up and down, still trying to discern his intentions. "Was there anything else you'd wanted to say, or...?"
Lysandre startled gently, as if that question came as a surprise. "Oh--... no, I suppose not." He hesitated, moving his hands to hold them behind his back. "But perhaps I'll have further questions for you in the future. Perhaps."
"Hm. Well, let me know." (The inevitability of her response annoyed Malva more than anything else about their exchange.) "... You know where to find me."
Title: Unspoken
Fandom: Pokemon XY, Pokemon Masters
Rating/Warnings: PG/no warnings
Bonus: No
Word Count: 985
Summary: Malva meets with Lysandre on Pasio.
Arms crossed, Malva leant against one side of the rocky outcrop; she stared out towards Pasio's sea and not, pointedly, at where Lysandre stood nearby. They'd agreed to meet, but had said little; sighing deeply, Malva supposed she was going to have to be the one to break the silence between them.
"You're lucky I even agreed to this. I can't imagine we have much to say to each other anymore."
Lysandre turned his head and smiled (an action that made Malva frown on reflex). "Perhaps so. Although, I must admit that I would be lying if I said that I didn't appreciate your coming here anyway. To see you here like this, your manner upon our meeting... it's almost like nothing's changed."
"No? I think you simply don't have enough evidence to decide that, one way or the other."
"Then... have you? Changed, I mean?"
Pressing her nails into her upper arm, Malva closed her eyes as she fought off her first instinct - to react with anger, sharp and bare and too incoherent to put properly into words. Lysandre's question seemed laughable, but it seemed that he meant it sincerely. Taking a deep breath, Malva waited a few seconds before opening her eyes and glancing towards Lysandre, seeing him still looking at her, earnestly waiting for an answer. Indecision, she knew, was all she could give in reply.
"How am I supposed to answer that? It's been a long time, Lysandre. It's easy enough to die in failure, but that just means others are left to deal with the consequences. Have I changed? I wouldn't know. I've been too busy dealing with certain consequences. Your consequences."
"'Die in failure'... you never did pull your punches, did you?"
"You seemed happy enough to let us think that, at least. The end result is the same, regardless. And then, after everything, you choose to reveal yourself once more...?!" She ran her hands over her face in frustration. "I've spent so much time covering my tracks. Vanishing evidence, severing links. Then, out of nowhere, you ask me to meet with you - and to say what? 'Oh, sorry about what happened. My bad.' Is that it?"
"Do you still believe, Malva?"
That question caused the breath to hitch in Malva's throat. Again, too evocative a question for an easy, straightforward answer. Just to be asked that, by him, with that look in his eyes - she resented it, and she resented how quickly all of those old emotions bubbled to the surface once again.
"You don't get to ask that of me anymore."
"... I apologize."
"I believed so much...! Each and every day, I lived for what we were doing. What we were planning. What we were going to accomplish. More than anything, I suppose, I trusted you to accomplish what we had planned. You betrayed that trust, and... years later, here we are. Certainly, that part of me hasn't changed - but the plan failed, and I readjusted. Even if it took readjusting everything, I... did what I had to do."
"As you always did."
Malva pushed herself away from the rock, stepping forward to stand next to Lysandre. "You have Yveltal now, though. Would you start over?"
Lysandre faltered, his gaze falling and his expression troubled. "It may surprise you to know that I--... am unsure on how to proceed."
"Because there's a dreamy professor waiting back there to bat his eyelashes and wag his finger at you if you even look like you're about to step out of line?"
"I--... I wouldn't--... put it like that..."
"Am I lying?"
"... There are also--... consequences that I have to face."
"Hm. I suppose the more pertinent question is whether you think he's more important than the world." She gave a light shrug. "Almost sounds romantic, putting it like that."
"I--..."
"He knows, now. And if he'd burst into our headquarters all those years ago, 'Lysandre, stop this--!'... Would you? If it had been him asking?"
"... We were so close. It couldn't--... it couldn't have stopped for him. It couldn't have stopped for anyone."
"We were stopped, though."
"... Indeed." It seemed that Lysandre had no further follow-up to that line of thought; instead, he narrowed his eyes, looking once more towards Malva. "I see Diantha is here."
Another statement - not even a question - that caused Malva's fists to tighten. "... Of course. The Champions, gathered together on Pasio. She represents all of Kalos. Of course she'd be here."
"She always was... fond of you, wasn't she?"
"I don't know why you're asking me. I don't control what she thinks or feels."
"And did she ever... find out?"
Malva gave an incredulous expression. "What, like I was just going to blurt out everything to her? Obviously not. Don't forget, I have some pride in being one of the Kalos Elite Four, too - would I jeopardize that simply to share some gossip regarding some past-tense thing, something that holds absolutely no relevance...? I thought, at the very least, you'd know me better than that."
"That's a long time to keep a secret."
"And I'm good at compartmentalizing. There's no need for her to know. She won't know. That's the end of it. You being here doesn't change that."
"I see. Then, please rest assured: my lips are sealed."
"Thanks, I guess. My appreciation for you not making my life purposefully more difficult is boundless." Malva looked Lysandre up and down, still trying to discern his intentions. "Was there anything else you'd wanted to say, or...?"
Lysandre startled gently, as if that question came as a surprise. "Oh--... no, I suppose not." He hesitated, moving his hands to hold them behind his back. "But perhaps I'll have further questions for you in the future. Perhaps."
"Hm. Well, let me know." (The inevitability of her response annoyed Malva more than anything else about their exchange.) "... You know where to find me."
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