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He was busy.
[break][break]
When wasn’t he?
[break][break]
A carefully organised schedule, every working hour of his life perfectly accounted for, meetings arranged weeks in advance, and yet, the moment he received a text from Katherine Fairburne saying that she may have found someone who could tell them more about Azelf, all of that had been set aside.
[break][break]
’I’ll meet you there.’
[break][break]
Meetings were cancelled, his work for the rest of the day being left for the next, all of it because of the mere prospect of learning more about Azelf – about another of its prophecies and about someone else who may have been visited by the Deity of Willpower.
[break][break]
It mattered to him. He wanted to learn the truth behind this mystery, and clearly, so did Katherine.
[break][break]
Is that why he didn’t ask more about this over text messages before heading to the funfair? The fact that he trusted her when it came to all of this? Or, was it simply because he assumed she would just insist he came here in person? Either way, whatever the answer was, it didn’t take long before Mars arrived at the funfair – still clad in one of those perfectly-tailored suits he wore for work.
[break][break]
”Katherine. It’s good to see you.” He smiles, ever so cordial.



[break][break]

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[attr="class","textwtw"]

”You had to convince her? Damn, she must be really busy.”
[break][break]
In a way, this in itself serves as the first clue, or perhaps even the first warning, because yes: anyone who has experienced what they experienced during their respective encounters with Azelf would surely crave answers above all else – crave to understand the intentions of the Being of Willpower. If Martín del Mar himself can clear his day’s schedule for the sake of it, despite how busy he is, surely someone who works at a funfair can do the same, can’t they?
[break][break]
Still, Katherine holds onto his arm, and he allows her to guide him along without any more questions. That is, of course, until they reach their destination.
[break][break]
”...A fortune teller’s booth?”
[break][break]
Somehow, he manages to keep his tone neutral, free of all the disbelief he actually feels.
[break][break]
He had cancelled meetings and come all the way here for this?
[break][break]
”Katherine. You really don’t think a fortune teller can give us the answers we need, do you?” An eyebrow is raised as he turns to look at her, but then again, why shouldn’t she think that to be a possibility? They both had been granted prophecies, they knew what powers could grant glimpses of the future, and hell, Mars himself had even been named an augur at one point.
[break][break]
So, why not believe this woman has this sort of power?
[break][break]
Probably because, in all of his hubris, Mars thinks himself above most people, and would never imagine a normal person to be able to understand things like those.
[break][break]
He's much more likely to believe that Katherine is trying to prank him. Which he does, honestly.

[break][break]

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[attr="class","textwtw"]

This has to be some sort of joke.
[break][break]
The more Katherine insists that she fully believes in this stranger’s ability to tell the future even after he questions her motives, the more convinced Mars becomes of this. Granted, he hadn’t thought this friendship of theirs (or is it more of an acquaintanceship?) to be at the stage where they could just pull pranks on each other, but apparently it is, and that means he now has to deal with a damn fortune teller..
[break][break]
He could act annoyed, he could tell Katherine she’s wasting his time, but as Mars seems to do best these days, he takes it in stride.
[break][break]
Or, well, at least he seems to take it in stride.
[break][break]
”Alright, fine. Let’s do this.” Mars concedes, even going as far as giving her an overly exaggerated sight of defeat. However, a chuckle follows this, and when he sits by her side, he takes a moment to consider. ”Three questions, huh?”
[break][break]
The first question Mars asks when looking at the supposed seer is simple enough. The kind of question all of these scammers thrive in. He even gives the woman a smirk.
[break][break]
”My future and hers. What do you see?”


[break][break]

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[attr="class","textwtw"]

He already regrets this.
[break][break]
The more time they spend in front of this charlatan of a fortune teller (which, according to Mars, every fortune teller is), the more time Mars spends thinking about all the actually productive things he could be doing right now. The documents he could be looking over, everything he could have arranged, and most importantly, the meetings he had rescheduled to go along with the whims of Katherine Fairburne.
[break][break]
Not like he can blame her for it, honestly, but it’s also not like Mars would ever blame himself. Clearly, this is the fault of the fortune teller for being a waste of time, and although later on he might find the whole situation to be hilarious, at these moments, the cold stare he gives the woman is far from pleasant.
[break][break]

[break]
Could this get any more generic or vague? Sure, there might be danger in store for both of them, but in a place like Hoenn, something like that is almost like a given – especially with the sort of situation they both always seem to end up involving themselves in.
[break][break]
So, Mars doesn’t respond, instead doing no more than quirk a brow and watch the so-called “seer” as she considers Katherine’s question, in it not missing the way she looks at them – as if trying to figure out what their relationship is. After a short moment, her hands are placed over her crystal ball once again.
[break][break]

[break]
That last part sounds like something straight out of a fortune cookie, and chuckling quietly at the thought, Mars leans closer to Katherine, making sure to whisper just loud enough for the fortune teller to hear him.
[break][break]
”Kat, I think she’s telling you to settle.”
[break][break]
Then and only then does he smile once more, wickedly so.


[break][break]

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”No, you don’t, I don’t think you’d ever settle for anything, but you did earn yourself some teasing, didn’t you?” His response is given without shame, bearing no guilt or remorse, and as he speaks it, he holds her gaze, grinning in the most unapologetic of ways. She earned it for putting him up to this. They both know it’s all a prank, so she should have expected he’d retaliate in some way.
[break][break]
In fact…
[break][break]
”Alright, but remember you’re the one who asked for it to be spicy.” With that, he turns his attention back towards the fortune teller, and when meeting his gold-toned gaze, the woman looks nervous. How much longer will she be able to keep up this act? Should he ask something she can’t easily respond to? Or, should he perhaps see to what extent she’ll go with her stories?
[break][break]
”So, obviously there’s a universe out there where the two of us get together.” He says it with certainty, because both him and Katherine Fairburne are well aware that the multiverse is real – as should be anyone who reads the news. As for them getting together… Well, in this universe it’s not a possibility that even crosses Mars’ mind, having never thought of her in such a way and being well aware that even his friendship with Katherine is a danger to both of them, but who knows, the multiverse can be pretty crazy. The possibilities might as well be endless. ”Tell me about that world. What are our lives like there?”
[break][break]
Mars couldn’t care less about what his life is in other dimensions, he belongs here and now, but nevertheless, it’s a fun question to ask. What silliness will this woman make up?



[break][break]

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A loveless contract.
[break][break]
Mars is silent as the fortune teller speaks, paying close attention to what she has to say. Not because he cares about the lives of their alternate selves, of course (he still had asked the question as nothing more than a joke), but because much of what she says results to be surprisingly applicable to who they are here and now.
[break][break]
He is not the person she thinks him to be. In fact, he may just be the exact opposite. She is not someone he could ever love, not romantically at least. There is fondness there: respect, a degree of trust, and something akin to a budding friendship, but there’s no love like the one that is to be expected of a marriage.
[break][break]
Will he tell her all of that?
[break][break]
When Katherine asks her question, Mars smirks, and it’s without missing a beat that he gives her an answer, sounding as if he were completely serious about it:
[break][break]
”Well, Kat, you know me… I am a businessman. Rarely can I resist a good contract.”
[break][break]
He winks, and it’s only then that the sound of his laughter rises as well – not bothering to hide how ridiculous he thinks all this is.
[break][break]
”Are we done with this silly game yet? We might as well check out the other attractions while we’re here.”
[break][break]
He talks as if the fortune teller weren’t right there.




[break][break]

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