Title: Castles in the Sky
Author: virande 
Pairing: Raimundo Pedrosa x Kimiko Tohomiko
Fandom: Xiaolin Showdown
Rating: E
Theme: #11 - Forget
Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing and make no profit out of these.
Warning: None.

The sun beats down hard. The air is heavy with the salty, fishy smell of the ocean breaking on the beach nearby. If he opens his eyes, he’ll see dazzling white sand and palm trees, straight as rulers, and if he looks a little higher he’ll see the Pão de Açúcar rising out from amongst a thick belt of trees-

“Ooh! Lemme!”

He felt an annoying little yank in each ear and, just like that, the image (along with his music) had vanished to someplace beyond his reach.

Well, not exactly. The headphones, along with his MP3, were a couple of meters away. In Kimiko’s ears and hands, respectively.

“You know Kim, it’s not that we don’t know you’re a let’s-invade-everyone’s-private-time junkie, but did the urge have to hit you now?” He’d get up and wrestle them back, but the mat was a tad too comfy and the effort too pointless. If Kimiko wanted them, she’d keep them until their use was through.

 The girl in question held one of the headphones out of her ears, scoffing at him. “Pshh, you’re one to talk. Besides, I’ve been wanting to listen to one of those songs Clay doesn’t understand and whatever other tribute to bad taste you have in here” She listened a little more carefully, her head beginning to bob in time with the music “Though this one is kinda catchy.”

“Yay. Princess Tohomiko approves. Can the lowly peasant with bad taste have his MP3 back now?”

She ignored him, beginning to dance artlessly to the music. “Hey, I know this, its samba! It’s one of the typical 3 or 4 songs that get played along with shots of Rio on every travel documentary.” She hummed the rest of the song to herself, just a little off key, before returning the little device to its exasperated owner.

“That’s odd.”

“That I listen to music from my homeland?”

“Hey, don’t get all snappy at me! I meant that particular song. It’s probably the most typical travel-to-Brazil song ever. You know, the kind anyone can mumble along to and everyone’s secretly fed up with?”

 “Huh. Well…to tell ya the truth, that’s the idea.” He popped the left earphone in and restarted the track, letting the familiar lively tune start up again with eyes closed. The notion of palm trees swaying in the breeze and being able to open his eyes and see the familiar sights returned, a little less vividly with the distant noises of daily life in the temple coming in through his other ear.

“Oh, is it? And what is the idea, if I’m allowed to ask?” He could envision Kimiko smiling that I-don’t-really-believe-you’ve-thought-that-through smile she put on whenever she just knew Omi was going to pretend he did know what she’d meant by visiting the big apple (and fail spectacularly). The image chased out the palm trees and the beach in a second.

“Well?”

“…it makes me feel like I’m in Rio.”

“Wha-is the bulletproof, nonsentimental Raimundo Pedrosa admitting he gets homesick?”

He nodded, opening his eyes to her smug expression, resigned to the loss of the daydream.

“Yeah Kim, you can pinch my cheeks and call me adorable now.” What was it with girls and vulnerability?

 But Kimiko’s face had dissolved in a sympathetic smile.

“You don’t have to get all defensive. I do get where you’re coming from sometimes.” She prodded his side and he moved, allowing her some room on the mat. “We’re all pretty far from home, you know. Clay makes those huge all-American breakfasts when he misses Texas, and I might kinda sorta get up early to e-mail dad.”

“Those mails with lots of ‘Dad, I love you and I miss you and I hope you have Mr. Teddy safe’ in it?” The remark was too well-timed to waste. Kimiko lost all air of sympathy and seized his ear viciously. “Whoa whoa, easy on the goods!”
“Tell anyone at all and you’re dead!”

“Alright! Just let me keep that ear, will ya?!”

“Fine.” She let go, allowing him to sit back and put the song back on for the third consecutive time. Maybe the volume was a bit too high, maybe they were sitting a little too close, but she leaned in to listen, as intent on following the song as he was. And maybe that was just the most comfortable position, maybe she really did make him feel less adrift, but he stretched an arm behind her back, against the wall, and let himself imagine that she was on the beach with him.