[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]the extended arm is a welcomed gesture. her hands wrap around to steady, legs struggling to right themselves without sending her flying. she still feels very much like bambi, confidence wavering against smooth ice.

and when she finally manages to settle, there's a stir in her chest.

she recognizes the sensation as something she thought lost, something snuffed out from childhood to now. it comes with a soft realization and a question from felix's lips.

his body turns toward her and she wants to freeze. her eyes widen when his meet hers and god, she feels so out in the open. exposed, vulnerable, fragile. and yet, it's not quite as... terrifying as it has been. she finds a smile creeping into her expression instead of fear.

and the response he gives? well... it's not exactly expected.

"do you really?" is asked softly, tentatively, as if she's afraid of the full answer.

Felix Gallagher

[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]by no means is it a confession. and yet, she stills at the confirmation all the same.

she thinks in terms she shouldn’t, in silly notions of romance and hope. a childhood feeling rearing its head with a vengeance is expected but… somehow, she would never let herself believe in the realm of possibility that he could return the feeling.

and in the end, she looks stunned, hopeful, and a little nervous.

”i,” she starts, stops, and flounders. eventually, after a quiet lull falls and she shuffles her feet forward a little on the ice, she begins again.

”i’m glad,” she murmurs. her grip on his hand tightens for a moment, squeezing affection into his skin. the laughter of the children nearby echoes softly behind them, white noise drowned out by the nervous trill of her heartbeat.

Felix Gallagher

[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]he smiles and even if it's small, even if it's barely there... it still exists and she swears it's for her.

a flush creeps onto her cheeks at the thought.

and when his hand rises to her hair, soft and gentle? it's unexpected, successful in stilling her. she lingers in place and leans into touch as if it's something she's never experienced before. not in this capacity, not this innocent.

the question makes her move again. her legs begin to glide once more and she drifts a little closer to him, the urge to tuck into his side overwhelming.

she resists as much as she can... for now, anyway.

"yeah," she murmurs. there's a slight droop to her shoulders, a weight he can't see. "all the time."

but it's not her home. not anymore.

even with the dangers of hoenn always knocking on her door, she isn't sure she'd leave. the people here are those she's come to cherish, to love. besides, nothing waits for her in sinnoh. nothing but a broken childhood and dreams she can make a reality here.

"do you ever want to go back?"

Felix Gallagher

[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]ruination can and does, unfortunately, happen everywhere. sinnoh or hoenn, it doesn't matter... the end is always the same.

more pain, more scars, more trauma.

and the sentiment he murmurs resonates somehow, burrowing into her skin and spreading. nothing left in sinnoh. nothing remains.

her eyes drift to the ice, to the carved marks from previous blades. faintly, she traces them as they go.

"nothing at all?" it comes from prying, from gently trying to pull back layers and unravel him. she has faint memories of his family, of his father and hers huddled close together and exchanging hushed whispers. most of her memories are of him, however. the good ones, anyway. the bad ones are left alone, untouched and dusty.

she's too afraid to reopen those wounds.

her hand squeezes reassurances into his. "it doesn't quite feel like home anymore, you know?"

and maybe sinnoh might never have the same feeling again but she's not certain if it ever did.

Felix Gallagher