A sky within the night -KHR

101. Freeze, Warm, Fear

1025 Words excluding (A/N)~ I no own KHR~

Written October 13 2020
Posted October 14 2020
NEXT UPDATE October 28 2020

Ie shivered, unable to hold back the automatic response to the chill that seemed to be penetrating his very core. He was regretting going with the storm arcobaleno, because he was now pretty sure that Fon was trying to kill him. The young lightning couldn't move now, limbs too stiff to do anything worthwhile. The odds of him falling into the icy waters if he tried to take a step were too high, at least standing under the icy waterfall, he wouldn't drown. Probably.

'I thought that standing under a waterfall in nothing but your underwear was just some silly thing that was always done in anime... This can't possibly be proper training'

At least the cold had dulled a bit in its sharpness, though it'd taken a while. It was still painful, very painful, but at least it was starting to feel warm to him, as if the water was somehow getting warmer. Though the way his breath misted in the air told him otherwise, the warmth was just his body playing tricks on him.

'I never want to go to another mountain ever again'

Ie shut his eyes, trying to ignore the water as he started to focus on his own breathing. It was the only thing he could think of doing to occupy his time. He was stuck here until Fon fetched him. The teen couldn't move from stiffness, couldn't hear over the water's roar, he couldn't even feel anything past the mixture of numbing cold and deceptive warmth, and now with his eyes closed, he couldn't see. So he breathed, because he could.

*

Fon eyed the teen from his place beside a fire pit, sensing something shift in the teen's flame. He let out a breath, relieved, it was working. Since the teen's thoughts were almost guaranteed to be distracting, he'd decide to take some drastic measures by bringing Ie here. To force the other's senses to be numbed, without the intention seeming obvious.

'With everything that has happened, it'd take a long time to get Ie's mind to quiet. It's only natural considering the circumstances'

He may want to teach the other at a steady pace, but at the same time, he needed to give a strong push to hasten Ie's improvement. The world was cruel and would not slow down for Ie to play catch up comfortably. Doing it this way, gave Ie the chance to focus solely on himself, even if it was just breathing.

'It's good to know that I won't need to drag him out'

The teen had started to become dangerously hypothermic, but thankfully, if the soft green glow was anything to consider, Fon no longer needed to watch Ie carefully. The teen's unconscious flame use would prevent any more damage from being dealt. This was good, it strengthened the core's base. The core was a vital part of anyone with awakened flames, it was stabilizing.

*

In out, in out, in and out. Ie was tired, so tired, he needed to move. His whole body felt warm, that was bad, really bad. Warmth from cold was dangerous. He just couldn't bring himself to fight against the warmth, it was comforting, safe. He wanted more of it, to wrap himself into an even warmer cocoon. There was a pain in his chest, dull, yet throbbing, like it was timed with his pulse. Ie wanted to avoid the odd pain, but he couldn't help but grasp at it. It hurt yes, but it also added to his warmth.

'It's dull, it's fine, I don't want the cold to come back'

He tugged, a bit at a time, savouring how the warm feeling of safety grew with each tug. Ie wasn't aware of how long this went on, it wasn't important. Though he couldn't stop his eyes from snapping open at a sudden influx of heat. He gasped, hands clutching at his chest as he fell to his knees. Panting, he took in his surroundings, shock filling him. The world was tinted with different shades of green. He was also no longer under the waterfall. Glowing green eyes narrowed in on the person in front of him "Fon?" His voice was raspy.

'What happened?'

*

Fon offered the confused teen a calming smile "You're currently using your flames" Ie's flames were sparking wildly, yet at the same time, they were wrapping around the teen protectively. The density of them was so high, that Ie's skin looked almost white if not for the green light cast over it.

'Seeing his flames like this, unrestrained, it's marvellous. It's different than when I saw him consciously using them'

The arcobaleno watched as brief fear flashed in the teen's eyes. Lightning forking out wildly, almost aggressively before trembling and sputtering out.

"Cold" At the absence of his flames, the cold air felt all the more harsh after his warm respite. Ie huddled down, trying to make himself as small as possible.

"Warm yourself" Fon put a reassuring hand on the teen's knee "You were doing well before, your flames don't have a mind of their own"

'I don't want to have to help him warm up without flames, it'll lower the lesson's value'

Ie was now trembling, conflicted "But" His flames were so wild, what if they caused too much damage?

Fon met Ie's gaze "They may look wild, but you're the one who controls your flames" He offered a soft smile "You are no longer being controlled, just try it" He showed off his own undamaged clothes "Your flames were strong, but even though I was close, do I look harmed?" He tilted his head to eye the waterfall "I pulled you out, touched you, yet I'm not hurt" He turned his gaze back to Ie "You are Sawada Ieyoshi, you're not a malicious puppet" Not anymore, never again "Do you want to hurt me?"

'He needs to understand'

"No" Ie shook his head, he never wanted to harm anyone ever again.

"Then use your flames, they won't cause harm unless you want them to" Fon's tone was calm.

Would it really be that easy? Could he go from hurting to helping just like that? Brown flickered green for a moment "I'm scared" When he trained with Tsuna, he hadn't used such large amounts of flames.

Me: Even with the proof that he can do it, Ie's low confidence and fear is still a problem

Sadly no Tsuna, but at least we have Fon~

Hope you enjoyed~