Ivanka Wallis Wants to Get Closer
2031 Words
The 15th of Ricemonth, 1017 CE.
The midst of summer break. Around 3:45 ante meridiem.
While in the middle of my otherwise peaceful sleep in the room Yulissa and I share back in our hometown...
I dream of something vastly diverging from peaceful.
It's a duel amidst the flames.
And I... am trying to reason with a girl as I cross blades with her, even as that reasoning out is increasingly becoming futile.
And as that futility is becoming more and more inevitable, she subdues me.
“Why?! Why'd you have to do this?!”
“It is all for the clan! They should rule this land! They represent the one shining straight path!”
“No! You're sorely mistaken! You're just tricked by them! Come on, snap out of their brainwashing!”
“Why would I subscribe to the words of an agent of the kingdom like you? And now... you will die!”
She prepares to raise her bayonet for her coup de grace.
As I am down on my knees, waiting for the inevitable, I stare at her eyes that are glowing with crimson vehemence as she starts swinging.
And then...
I suddenly wake up from that... whatever that is, heavily breathing.
Man. That won't be a good way to start the second year, that's for sure.
My sister also wakes up, as she also heard those grumbles of pain I released during that.
“Brother, what happened to you?”
“It's... it's nothing. Maybe I've just had a little indigestion, that's all.”
“If your tummy doesn't feel good, I'll gather some herbs from the medicine box!”
“No, thanks. I'll just sleep that away.”
“Alright, brother. But don't overexert yourself, you hear me? We have the second year and all.”
“OK, my sister. Nighty-night.”
The rest of the toward-morning period is spent in deep sleep without incident.
And thus, I wake up feeling refreshed and free of whatever bloats in my tummy.
And of whatever lingered in my mind that time.
It's a bright and sunny day, and we siblings start it with our usual morning rituals.
Over a bowl each of non-grain fruity chain cereals, we exchange words on whatever hot topic is being discussed in the kingdom.
Like that one dark fantasy novel that shot up in popularity because of its many quotable quotes.
The novel is about an angry young man who suddenly ends up in another world, and likes to spew out lines about destroying the thing called “chaos”.
“Keenan, looks like there's a letter addressed to you”, my mom declares.
She hands the envelope to me, and...
“It's from Ivanka?”
Yulissa reacts, “Maybe she wants to have a date with you. Laika won't mind that, by the way.”
And speaking of Laika, she's currently training inside her own home, befitting her dignified and committed personality.
“Alright, I'll go read the letter once we're done.”
“OK, brother.”
As Yulissa and I are done with our breakfast, I whisk straight away to our room.
I read the letter as I'm slouching in my bed.
To Keenan...
Hope this letter finds you in great standing, because I've been missing you ever since the end of the freshman year.
I've been wanting to meet up with you, simply to learn more about you. A few small talks back at the military school don't suffice, right?
if you agree (and I hope so), please meet me in my hometown of Sumsy, Slatberg Prefecture.
I pray that you'll have a great time with me!
Yours hopefully,
Ivanka
Slatberg Prefecture? That's in the western side of the kingdom, right?
That means I'm gonna spend a couple of hours commuting in a carriage.
I then say to my sister...
“Indeed, it's a date with Ivanka. Sucks that you're not invited.”
“Yeah. I really want to know more about her, too.”
“Alright. Be a good younger sister and maybe hang out with Laika too while I'm gone, OK?”
“Sure, brother!”
After changing into my best casual clothes, I give my sister another wholesome headpat before heading off to the carriage that leads to the western prefecture.
As the carriage steadily makes its way from the east to the west...
I gather so many thoughts in my mind.
And they are all related to the identity of the woman who dueled me in that dream.
I'm sure the woman ain't Laika, because her fiercely loyal personality prohibits her to do a 180.
I'm sure the woman ain't Hershey, because she doesn't have cat ears like the feralkin does.
I'm sure the woman ain't Ivanka, because...
“We're now at Sumsy. Next stop, Triyala. I repeat... We're now at Sumsy. Next stop, Triyala.”
Oh, I'm already in Ivanka's hometown. Time to get myself off the carriage.
And as expected...
“Keenan!”
The short-haired lass waves at me.
And darn! She looks so stunning in that sleeveless one-piece fluffy chiffon dress!
“Nice to see you again, Ivanka.”
“Yeah. Come, let's not dilly-dally.”
She guides me towards her house, which is just two crossroads away from the town's carriage stop.
“Your house looks so gorgeous.”
This house's construction definitely used more modern building techniques and employs more simplistic yet functional designs.
“Yeah, my family's quite well-off. Come, I'll introduce you to my mom.”
Once we're in, I don't hesitate in introducing myself.
Ivanka follows, “This is my mom, Varyana.”
“Hi, Keenan. Nice to meet a classmate of my only child.”
I then ask Ivanka, “Where's your father, by the way?”
“He's out on a business trip in the capital.”
Her mom concludes, “Alright, now that we're done with introductions, please have a seat. I'll get some snacks ready.”
We silently wait for the snacks, which are simply some club sandwiches and orange juice, to arrive.
As we three start to snack, the mother has this opening remark.
“You know what, Keenan? My daughter has the potential to become a leader. Whether at home or at school, she's always dependable.”
Her only daughter jests, “Oh... now you're just flattering me. You know I've told Keenan many times how straight-laced I am, right? I got that trait from you, mom.”
“And I still remember the day I personally saw you at the Royal Academy, making some guys do 30 push-ups.”
“Ah yeah, that was when those guys took sphaeramnis clips of me without my permission, and you were then summoned to the principal's office.”
I cut in.
“Speaking of that, besides you, Ivanka, Laika was also the heartthrob of many other guys in the campus... mostly for all the wrong reasons.”
“Yeah! Even with us girls' magically-enchanted skirts in place, those pervs were still at it, trying to get their fill of what's inside them. Using pocket mirrors and stuff... urgh! They really have no self-control! Good thing I always take action against them by making them confess and do 30.”
We're eventually through with the snacks as we're also through narrating what happened to the mirror-wielding pervs of the campus.
Long story short: They were being made to look at nauseating pictures as punishment.
“Mom, Keenan and I will visit the bookshop. We'll be back in roughly an hour.”
“Alright then, sweetie. Have a good time.”
A bookshop? Now that I think of it, I've always wanted to buy a new novel.
Good thing I have extra pocket money with me in case I get to buy one on impulse.
Ivanka guides me along the street to a bookshop three blocks away.
“This is The Godmount Fantastic Bookstore, owned and operated by a famous novelist, Todd Oghayon.”
“To be honest, I've never heard of him or his works. Guess I'm lagging behind in terms of newly-released novels.”
“Well then, great news! He's now inside the store, and he's accepting autographs at any time, too!”
“Sweet! Let's get in, then!”
Inside the bookshop, we can see a huge sign that reads...
The Dragon of Bravery
The latest from Todd Oghayon
Grab a copy now!
Ivanka declares...
“By the way, I have a copy of it in my bag, and it's ready to be signed by the man himself!”
“Now that you mention it... it's all the more reason for me to grab one myself and have it autographed, too.”
“Nice!”
With no hesitation, I grab a copy of the novel, which has a snazzy illustration of a dragon clad in armor and fighting vile monsters, and then pay for it at the check-out counter.
We then meet the author himself, who is nothing but all smiles as we offer our copies to be signed.
There. All signed and ready to go.
So what now?
“This bookshop also has a mini-cafe. You know the thing... reading a novel on a comfy seat, sipping on some Rasta Blue Mountain coffee or something...”
“Yeah, Ivanka. Let's.”
We lay our somewhat tired bodies as a waitress offers us some samples of today's special: frothy cream Americano.
As we casually sip on the samples that are served on shot glasses, she relays to me something more ephemeral.
“You know what, Keenan? Of all the topics I've been wanting to discuss to you so far in our conversations inside the campus, I've been constantly forgetting this – my childhood dreams.”
“Yeah, simply because other hotter topics occupy our minds. That's just how our brains work. You try to remember something, and poof! Next second, you forget it.”
“But now, in this fortuitous time... I can finally tell you what I've always wanted to be... or not.
“For starters, I've been switching my dream job several times when I was a kid.
“I first wanted to be a chef.
“I then wanted to be a writer like Todd here.
”I then wanted to be a singer, as a female bard or a band vocalist, maybe.
“I then wanted to become a detective or private investigator.
“And ultimately, I found the one. I wanted to become a soldier, and that job best underscores my strongest qualities.”
Yes. From what I see of her so far, she's always all smiles when she praises someone for excellence, and she's stern when she calls out someone for incompetence.
“As for me... you know the drill, my childhood promise with Laika and my sister and all that.”
“It's good that there's a few number of people who are pursuing their childhood dreams right into their teens and then into adulthood no matter what. Not many people have the luxury of that. The future is in flux, and even a small incident will pressure one to scrap their childhood dreams and switch to something... more realistic.”
And the next sentence unexpectedly gives me quite the shock.
“And that's why... I admire you.”
My heart... skips a beat.
And then...
“T-Thanks for admitting your feelings for me. But you know, I have Laika and Yulissa. Maybe... you wanted me to have a harem or something?”
I blurted that out just to defuse that tension.
“A harem? In our military school? Tee hee... it's more likely than you think. Besides us three, there's Hershey, too.”
“Yeah, not even rooms can divide us cadets now. A little exchange of room numbers, and more and more harem bonds are formed. Pretty natural.”
We chuckle the rest of the hour away at this quaint little bookshop.
And as we go home, carrying with us copies of the hottest new novel signed by the gracious author himself...
We can tell ourselves that this not-date is not yet over, even as the day is nearing its end.
- Writer
