With Gardevoir's abilities, she had noticed someone outside long ago. But that person was Akira's mother, the second most familiar person to her, someone who would never harm Akira, so there was no reason to stay on guard.
Akira clearly realized this as well and secretly decided that next time he would first ask Gardevoir where his mother was, to avoid being caught off guard again. He had many secrets and even more things he could not bring into the light. Even with the mother who depended on him and whom he depended on, he did not want to tell them.
He tested the waters weakly. "Mom, you already know?"
"I know. I've always known," Akemi Aki said. "You going out at night every so often, the presence of Cursed Spirit in the village, and how you deliberately never wipe them out completely, leaving a bit of a spark behind."
She closed the door, knelt on the tatami, and motioned for Akira to sit as well. Since she had chosen this moment to confront her son, there was no reason to keep hiding things.
"Don't forget, I was able to marry into the Kamo Clan. My training as a sorcerer is not lacking," she continued. "That person sent us here not just to exile us, but also to have me keep this area clean and stop Cursed Spirit from causing trouble."
Akira let out a short laugh that did not reach his eyes. "As expected of the head of one of the Three Great Clans. He never leaves loose ends."
Akemi Aki's eyelids twitched slightly, as if she wanted to say something, but she changed the subject instead. "You said you wanted to lay your cards on the table with me. What cards?"
"Moving," Akira said. "This place is remote and empty, with no future. The young people have all left, and the elderly have either moved away or passed on. Before long, it will become nothing but the past. With no people, there will be no new Cursed Spirit, and now that they are basically gone, there's no reason for us to stay. The weather's been good lately, perfect for…"
He stopped mid-sentence. As he spoke, Akemi Aki's expression had grown more and more serious.
"This was your father's decision," she said. "The decision of the head of the Kamo Clan. Have you thought about the consequences of defying it?"
"I have," Akira replied. "The most likely outcome is that they don't even know. The agreed five years passed long ago, and it's been three extra years. No one watching us has come back.
"And even if they do know, there's a good chance they'll just look the other way. Eight years have passed. What needed to be decided has been decided, and what needed to be buried has already been buried."
"And if the Kamo Clan take action?" she asked.
That was the Kamo Clan, one of the oldest sorcerer families in the country, with deep roots and vast power.
"It's fine," Akira said calmly. "I'm not who I used to be. Even if that cheap father of mine comes in person, it's nothing serious. With Gardevoir here, as long as we don't run into a special grade, there's no problem."
At that moment, the softness on Akira's face vanished completely. In its place was a sharp edge that Akemi Aki had never seen before, a blade hidden for eight years, no, sixteen years, finally showing its tip. Even that slight edge was enough to make one's heart tighten.
Sensing the change in her trainer's state of mind, Gardevoir let out a cry different from before. It sounded like "sha," yet also like "kill." She favored beautiful emotions, but loyalty was her creed, and at a single command she could become the sharpest sword or the strongest shield.
Eight years of understanding meant Akira did not need to say more. Gardevoir already knew what to do.
She remained kneeling, unmoving, as an invisible force swept outward. It was her specialty and the signature ability of psychic-type Pokemon, telekinesis.
Using mental power to interfere with the world and manipulate objects, she lifted everything in the room. Tables, chairs, the computer, the bed, the bookshelf, every object rose off the ground under her control.
"This is…?" Akemi Aki's pupils shrank.
"Mom, excuse me for a moment," Akira said.
As soon as the words fell, Akemi Aki herself was caught by telekinesis and lifted into the air. She was startled at first, then immediately exerted herself to break free, using both physical strength and cursed energy, but no matter what she tried, she could not cancel out Gardevoir's power.
"This is only the tip of the iceberg," Akira said. "If you want to see more, we can fly outside and let Gardevoir attack at full power."
"That won't be necessary," Akemi Aki replied. "The land and the plants have done nothing wrong. There's no need to destroy them."
Though she was not an especially powerful sorcerer, she had fought on the front lines when she was young and had seen many battles. The enemies she had faced, including near first-grade and first-grade Cursed Spirit, did not possess power anywhere close to that of Gardevoir.
With strength like this, it was no wonder Akira was so confident. Seeing her shake her head, Akira did not push further and signaled to Gardevoir. She immediately returned everything to its place and released her telekinesis.
"Mom, please trust me," Akira said. "I can protect you."
"I believe you."
Hearing this, Akemi Aki felt both relieved and uneasy. There was comfort in his words, but also a faint sadness she could not fully suppress.
"Akira," she said softly, "tell me honestly. Have you ever thought about going back to the Kamo Clan, taking back what you lost, and becoming that person again?"
"No," Akira answered without hesitation. "From the day we left the Kamo Clan, we had nothing to do with that name anymore."
"Then do you still hate the Kamo Clan?" she asked. "Do you want revenge?"
Her eyes looked straight into his, as if trying to see through his heart.
"It would be a lie to say I don't hate them at all," Akira said. "But revenge is unnecessary. The child you care about most is still there, and sooner or later he'll become the head. My biological parents are there too, and before that incident, they treated me well. Cutting ties with the Kamo was my own choice. As long as the Kamo Clan don't come provoke me, I won't go looking for trouble."
"You are also the most important child to me," Akemi Aki said.
"I know."
Just as Akemi Aki believed Akira was not lying, Akira believed her as well. Eight years together were not fake, and Gardevoir's sensitivity to human hearts was equally real.
"But Mom," Akira continued, "if that's the case, you'll suffer one day in the future."
"Why do you say that?" she asked, confused.
"Do you remember what Kenki said when you left home?" Akira asked. "That one day, he would come and take you back."
His words made her eyes waver. A scene buried deep in her memories surfaced clearly, as if it had never faded.
It was the season of falling leaves, a long sloping path, and a boy about Akira's age. His eyes were red from crying, one hand clutching her clothes while the other wiped away tears as he asked in a choked voice, "Why? Why does Mother have to leave?"
She cried as well and bent down to hold her biological son tightly, with all her strength, for the last time. "If I stay here, I will become an obstacle for Kenki."
At the final moment before she left him, she heard his hoarse yet firm voice. "I'll become stronger. One day, I'll bring Mother back. Please wait for me."
To put him at ease, she nodded, but she did not look back. Dragging her suitcase, she walked along the long path and out through the ancient mountain gate.
Outside the gate stood another child, expressionless, like a wooden doll being pushed along. She looked at this child, unable to hide the complexity on her face, anger, resentment, and a shared sense of misfortune, until at last it softened into gentleness.