distressedude | 031 ~ [voice/action] | Forward-dated to Tuesday

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031 ~ [voice/action] | Forward-dated to Tuesday

[Filtered to Auldrant Folks]
[It was nearing the end of the year, and that meant it was almost time for the annual Auldrant New Years party at House One. There'll be more than a few notable absences this year, but so long as everyone else is still here, there was no reason they couldn't still celebrate being together. That was the real reason for the tradition -- since not everyone saw another year in Luceti as something to celebrate on its own.]

I know it has become something of a tradition by now, but for those of us who've arrived in just the past year, we usually hold a small dinner gathering at House One on New Years Eve. It's always been a nice opportunity to have everyone get together, and this year should prove to be no exception. After all, Luceti is always so peaceful this time of year. It would be a shame to let that go to waste.

And of course, if anyone has someone they would like to invite, they'll more than welcome.

[But it's only after he makes the filter and leaves the message that he realizes he probably should have left someone out of it... ah, well. It would take more than a Christmas Miracle for Sync to come and peacefully join everyone else for an evening. And with everyone all together in one spot, he'd hardly be stupid enough to try and start something. You know. Hopefully.]

--

[Action]
[And with that out of the way, Ion gets all set to go out for the day and get some much-needed errands done. With all the snow these past two days, he hasn't been able to go out much at all. But now that it seems to have calmed down a little outside, he's makes his way out into the village.]

[Of course, as soon as he reaches the plaza, his first stop is to the clothing shop to find a new winter coat, because he's starting to outgrow the one he's been wearing. And maybe he should look into a few new sweaters while he's at it -- he could never have too many warm clothes, after all! After that he goes to the library to drop off a few books while picking up some new ones, just in case the snow starts up again later this week.]

[After that, he finishes up in the item shop to look around and see if he can find something to give as Christmas gifts. They may not have the holiday back on Auldrant, but given this is his 4th December here in Luceti, he's more than used to it by now. But he might look a bit troubled -- choosing the perfect gift wasn't always easy!]

[After finishing his tasks for the day, he walks around in the snow for while, admiring how pretty the landscape looks when everything looks so white and fragile, before going to the tea shop to defrost for a bit. And once there, he'll be so nice and warm he might just doze off for a bit while reading a book. All in all, a pretty normal day.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[This monk is bundled up as well, complete with a goofy-looking hoodie hat. He's playing with the snow alongside Ion's route. With some waterbending movements, he starts to pull together a snowman, not yet noticing Ion's presence.]

[Ion stops when he sees Aang and almost calls out to him, until he sees when he's doing -- he's seen air bending and earth bending, but not quite as much water bending. Particularly as far as snow is concerned. So he just quietly watches from afar for a little bit, perhaps giving a quiet applause when the snowman is finished.]

[It will take a minute or two, but he has the snowman built up, and he smiles at his work. Then he turns as he hears the applause.]

Ion! ...Hey!

[He's glad to see his friend. ...And at the same time, he feels a tug at his heart; his most recent conversation with Arietta is fresh on his mind, after all.]

Hello, Aang. [He walks closer with a smile, turning his attention to the snowman.]

That was water bending just now, wasn't it? I didn't realize you could use it to control the snow as well.

It is! [He moves his hands around, collecting a ball of snow between the hands in demonstration.] Snow's like really cold water, so it all works out. How - how are you?

That's incredible! [His eyes are shining about as much as the snow is -- it's always so interesting to see the different powers people have here.]

Oh, and I'm all right. Though all this snow certainly came rather suddenly, didn't it? If I'm not careful, I'll catch my death of cold out here.

[Aang's eyes widen at the mention of death. His hands stop moving, and the snow falls lifelessly to Aang's feet.]

No! I... Ion, you have to be careful! [And now he's conjuring a flame quickly to heat up their surroundings.] Do you need to be warmer? Please, let me help!

[Well, that seemed a bit... over the top. He frowns.]

Aang, please calm down. It's just an expression, I'm fine... is everything all right?

Everything's fine. Really! [He says, letting the fire dim somewhat.

Behind him, the snowman is still starting to sag and melt.]

I'm just worried for you, Ion. Are you sure you're okay?

[Aang can insist he's fine all he wants, but his expression is too easy of a read. The frown on Ion's face stays in place.]

Is there a reason you think I shouldn't be?

[He definitely can't hide all his worry. He tries to speak and stammers a bit.]

I - I don't know. It's just... Maybe I'm letting something get in my head. And... jumping to conclusions! The reason is, it's...

[He takes a quick breath.]

Ion, you... you know that girl named Arietta, right?

[Right away, that sends off alarm bells in his head. But he doesn't want to just jump to conclusions either. He nods.]

Yes, of course I do. She and I come from the same world. I didn't know you two were acquainted.

Well, we met on Val- in February. [He narrowly tries to avoid a different can of awkward worms.] I didn't know she knew you at first, either. But I... I saw her when she was older, too. And... she sounds like she really missed you.

[He's quiet for a moment -- trying to figure out just what it is that Aang knows, and whether it was possible to explain it without revealing the truth. But Aang was his friend, wasn't he? And if he was Arietta's friend as well, there were certain topics that were going to come up, whether Ion would want them to or not.]

[At the very least, there were a few he didn't mind explaining.]

...the situation between her and I is rather complicated. I'm not the same person she remembers back on Auldrant... or rather, I wasn't who she thought I was until she arrived in Luceti.

[It sure sounds complicated already. Aang raises an eyebrow in confusion as he tries to work through that thought.]

What do you mean by that? Are you two from... different points in time?

[He knows he's had plenty of complications with his friends from that kind of thing. And he knows that Katara's considered the person she's become in Luceti to be like a different person compared to the Katara whom Aang was dating back home. So he starts to wonder if it's just something like that. And that, hopefully... whatever Arietta seemed to think about Ion dying must have been some misunderstanding.]

No, it's not that. [If only it could be so easily explained.]

...do you know what a "replica" is?

A... replica? [He shakes his head.] No, I'm afraid I don't.

In my world, replicas are copies of things created using a technology known as fomicry. You can use it recreate almost anything, right down to the individual letters of ink in a book.

[It's strange to think that it was over a year ago now where he gave this very same example to Toph after she found him wandering around in the snow -- Arietta had been a catalyst to her finding out back then as well.]

And it's what I am. A replica of the original Fon Master Ion.

[Aang frowns and blinks as he tries to take it in.]

What? You're saying you're... copied? From another person? Is - is that possible? Or... do you mean like, reincarnation?

[Ion just shakes his head.]

No, it's different from reincarnation. The original Ion died young, and there was no one to succeed him as Fon Master. So they used fomicry to create a replica who could replace him without anyone knowing the truth.

Even with the time I've spent in Luceti, it hasn't even been 5 years since I was "born."

[He gives a gasp and steps back a moment as he says it. It's all clicking in, but it's so weird. Ion looks as old as Aang - older, even. How could be so young? How could he be a copy person?]

Ion... I - I don't understand. I didn't think it was possible for people to be... made like that.

[Too bad he can't meet the one who started it all.]

It is possible. There's someone else in the village who was born under the same circumstances as myself. And if not for the mask he wears to hide his face, I'm sure we'd be mistaken for one another far more often.

[But that was another topic all together -- and it wasn't Ion's right to divulge Sync's circumstances. He didn't like people to know what he was, after all.]

[He doesn't leave much room for a reply before continuing.]

Before the original Ion died, Arietta was his closest Fon master guardian. I'm sure whenever she mentions "Ion" that's who she's really talking about... it wasn't until she arrived in Luceti that she learned the truth about what happened.

[It's a lot to take in. Aang grips at his head for a moment.

Perhaps later he could piece together that Ion must be referring to Sync, whom Aang had already confused with Ion once over the journals.

But now he focuses on that.]

So... so that must be why she thinks that you're... gone.

[Maybe he misunderstood everything. It's Arietta's confusion about the deceased original Ion that she speaks of. Maybe this Ion is still alive and well back home.]

[It shouldn't surprise him, given the way the topic came up, that that was what Arietta told Aang. For his part, he manages to keep the reaction off of his face. Though he does fall silent for a number of moments, silently debating whether it would simply be for the best to allow Aang to go on thinking it was just a misunderstanding.]

[He can't help but think back to Luke on the day Ion had to explain what happened to him, and how angry he was. I would've wanted to know something like this, Ion!]

[Or in contrast to Anise and the tears she cried, mourning someone who was sitting right beside her.]

...I see. So that's why you reacted like you did before.

[Ultimately, he decides on what would be easiest for him, selfish though it may be.]

Arietta still has trouble understanding the differences between a replica and the person he was created from. She doesn't entirely understand that I'm a different person from the Ion she knew, even after I've explained it to her.

That's right. I'm sorry that I misunderstood.

[But he feels relieved, too. Very relieved.]

That is why I - I was worried about you. Now I'm sad about what happened to the Ion who's not you, but... I'm glad that the Ion who is you is okay. [He lightly smiles at Ion, but with some concern still on his face.]

I'm just still worried about Arietta, too. She seems to think that... that revenge is the best way.