Poppin' Arms ~ Cafeteria

[Flyg0n]

"Yeah!" Koa replied enthusiastically. He smiled, happy to see her cheer a little. A silence fell, and he busied himself with a few bites of his food, trying to ignore the darker thoughts nagging at his mind.

Finally, he spoke again. "I'm sorry, Cynthian," he murmured. He stared at his plate, not looking up to meet her eyes. "I never meant to keep anything from the team, things just happened too fast and..." he let his voice trail off and sighed. What did it matter? There would never be an excuse for what he did. He'd screwed everything up for the team.

A bitterness gripped his throat. It was never supposed to happen like that.

 

[Adamhuarts]

"It wasn't your fault," Cynthian said with a sympathetic look. Ever since the meeting she'd tried not thinking about the whole situation, and for a time it worked.

"They told you not to say anything and you few should keep it known to your circle only," Cynthian said with a faint grimace. She sighed. "I get why they did that and that a lot was going on, but I'll be honest I still feel betrayed a little. We were all in this together and this whole spy stuff was an all hands on deck thing and even I, though with little to show for it, did what I could to help out."

Cynthian looked away with a frown, vines strangling the hotdog till it started looking unrecognizable. "Again, none of it was your fault. I wouldn't have known the best decision to make in your position either. It's just that... it hurts you know. Maybe I just haven't earned that trust..."

"Sorry for the rant. It really wasn't your fault, Koamaru," she reiterated and forced a smile. "Try not to let it discourage you too much."

 

[Flyg0n]

Koa sighed, the pit in his stomach aching. "It wasn't... It's not that..." he sighed. How had it gotten this bad this fast? Leaving the Dojo, telling Brisa everything. Then just a couple days later, that Mewtwo attacked the tower.

"I didn't disagree I just... It is my fault. It wasn't meant to turn out like this. We had to figure out a way to tell people without everything getting messed up but then..." he sighed. Maybe he shouldn't have brought any of this up. He could just forget about it, or leave or change the subject.

"We do trust you and I do trust the team but it was..."

What? Too much? Too soon? Dangerous?

His stomach churned. He'd screwed it up, and messed up everything for the team and. He'd trapped Maple in there. He left the sentence hanging. It didn't matter why he'd failed... that was the cold truth.

 

[Adamhuarts]

"You guys did the right thing by not immediately telling everyone about Soda. Some of the team wouldn't have taken it well if they knew he'd been working against us this whole time even if something influenced his behavior, something we didn't know then." Cynthian noticed the mutilated hotdog in her vines and dropped it back to the table with a groan.

"It wasn't an easy situation to be in and no one should have to bear such a heavy burden. In the end you only did what you thought was right..." Cynthian's mind blanked on what to even say next. She shouldn't have responded to his apology like that. What the boy needed was assurance and comfort, but she only made him feel miserable. What would Icetales have said in such a situation?

"We can't change something that's already happened. To learn from it and adjust our sail with the wind is the way forward."

 

[Flyg0n]

Koa nodded absently. "Yeah, hat's true," he said quietly. Blake had said as much to him before, that the most one could do was to learn and try to do better next time.

Except you just keep screwing things up, you never learn.

"I really am sorry though. I just... I didn't want you to think I didn't trust you. I do. I trust a lot of people on the team." Well maybe except Vix, considering how she'd reacted, but that was different.

 

[Adamhuarts]

"It's okay, Koamaru. I believe you. You don't strike me as a mon who'd want to hurt anyone," Cynthian said, smiling gently. A waiter arrived and brought two smoothies to them. One simple and the other which looked rainbow colored. Cynthian was going to call Ivy, but couldn't find her anywhere in the cafeteria. She must've wandered off.

"Oh by the way I didn't get a chance to give you this before." Cynthian slipped a bag into her vine and withdrew a scarf with dark blue and orange-yellow wave patterns. The letters "TS" were embroidered in the middle in a fancy, but not outlandish font. She presented it to Koamaru with a nervous smile. "I wanted you to have this as a way to welcome you to our team, but you evolved shortly after arriving and I had to make a new one. It was fun practice however."

There was a lingering scent of flowers coming off the scarf, and it was clear Cynthian made it herself and enjoyed every moment of it.

 

[Flyg0n]

Koa was ready to protest when she produced the scarf. He slowly reached out, running his paw over the scarf. It was soft, with a beautifully woven pattern on it. His throat tightened as he stared at the gift, a mixture of confusion and a strange happiness flooding him.

Why would Cynthian give him this? After how he'd messed things up? She really believed in him. Believed that he wasn't a monster...

"I..." he stared down at the object, momentarily lost for words. "Thank you, Cynthian," he said softly. "It's beautiful."

 

[Adamhuarts]

"I worked hard to make it look right. I'm very glad you like it." Hearing his words of gratitude made her flowers exude a sweet tangy fragrance, and she couldn't help but smile.

"I know things can be hard and sometimes life can feel like you're walking through a fog filled with grass knots," Cynthian began, extending a bouquet with a smile, "but as long as you're here with us you'll always have friends to help you back on your feet. So, promise me that you won't lose hope. You're not alone, Koamaru."

 

[Flyg0n]

Koa swallowed, then carefully slipped the scarf over his head. Some of the knot in his stomach faded a little, and he found himself smiling genuinely. Even if he had no idea what to do when it came to the rest of the team, her words eased the ache inside him somewhat. He also couldn't help but a chuckle a little inside. Icetales was rubbing off on her.

"You're right," he admitted. "I'll try. Thank you for... for believing in me."

 

[Adamhuarts]

Cynthian chuckled with a nod. "I always will."

She flinched when her badge chirped from her bag. Upon retrieving it, she gasped when she saw the reminder on her screen. "Uh oh. It's almost time for Sword's match in the colosseum. I should get going. I said I'd be there to watch."

She glanced at Koa. "Wanna come with?"

 

[Flyg0n]

Koa perked up. That was Brisa's match! A colosseum match would be the perfect thing to get his mind off things, and hang out with Cynthian a little.

"Yeah, that sounds great!"

Koa followed Cynthian as they headed to the colosseum, a little more vigor in his step. Thoughts and doubts still lingered in his mind. He wasn't sure how to face the team, or... anything. But for now he was content to relax and watch a good fight, and unwind. Whatever else had happened, Cynthian was right. He had to keep hope, and try to put the past behind him. And no matter what had happened, he still had friends on Team Spectrum.

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