[Field of Mars] The horizon has been defeated. [Motya]

One thing Timofei had yet to grow accustomed to was side-along apparition. It always made his stomach turn; he had always been told he would grow out of it, but it had been something he did frequently for years, and he had yet to see any results. While most of his classmates were approaching the time that they would be able to do so on their own, the sixth year typically just kept quiet whenever such discussions  arose. It wasn't much of a secret that he had almost no wand magic abilities at this point; what little he had long gone once he began his elemental training six years ago. He was actually quite magically talented in that sense, but the amount of people he could  talk about these skills with were very limited. Honestly, the only real use that the boy would have for apparition was getting back and forth between Russia and Inverness, so he wouldn't miss it too much. He planned to eventually make his way west. He had gotten along alright so far with just his brother and the occasional Floo Powder. It was stressful trying to arrange it without anyone else in his family knowing, but it was definitely worth it.

With a pop, his sister Nadezhda was gone, leaving her brother in Saint Petersburg until their predetermined time to meet in the very spot they were in - an alley behind a muggle locksmith. As he stepped out of the shadows and into the sun, Tima silently thanked himself on his decision to wear pants over shorts. While it certainly wasn't cold enough to make him uncomfortable by any means, the lower temperatures were a sign that the Russian summer was going to be ending soon. Timofei had been hoping for a bit warmer weather, but Motya had surely spent enough time in Russia to know to dress for the weather. He retrieved a map from his pocket, and quickly scanned it until he found the spot he had told Motya he would meet him, and quickly set off in that direction.

It would not even take all of the fingers on his left hand to count the number of times he had been to Saint Petersburg, so the map was very necessary. After reaching out to the older boy through owl mail for the first time in months and after he agreed to meet him, the Field of Mars presented itself as an obvious choice to meet: it was in the central part of the city, Motya was bound to know where it was, and Timofei, who had never been there, could easily find it on the map. His sister had taken him only a couple of blocks away, so he folded the map up, though did not return it to his pocket, just in case.

While the fact that Motya had agreed to meet him was a positive sign, Timofei still was unsure about how the meeting would go. Except for the letters they had only exchanged within the past couple of weeks, the two had not talked since the two left Durmstrang for the winter holidays last term, a day they had intended to go much differently. While he spent much time in Inverness this summer, he had yet to run into the fire elemental. Part of him was happy about this; he wasn't sure that he wanted to have to think on his feet when the first meeting happened. The last words the two had spoken were very heated, and that argument was still one that Timofei thought about a lot. He wasn't mad - he was definitely not the one who had any reason to be. He had wanted to offer an apology long before now, but he just wasn't sure how to go about it. Thankfully, the council provided a link to him, even if it wasn't nearly direct enough. The two had planned to travel to Neroli; since he had not heard any bad news from other members, he just assumed the venture on his own was successful. But he should have been there with him, or at least given him more notice that he wouldn't be able to. It would have surely made it much easier.

Without the distraction of Durmstrang, his questions had finally reached a climax during the break and he sent an owl to Italy with simply Motya's name and Neroli as an address, unsure if the letter would ever reach him. When he told Tima he would be returning to Russia to visit his family, he had suggested he visit the city and the two meet up to talk things out, mostly so he could apologize. Timofei had read the letter in which he agreed several times over, making sure he wasn't misinterpreting. Lost in thought and anxiety, Tima hadn't realized how quickly he would reach his destination. There wasn't anywhere to sit in the park, so he began to circle around, halfheartedly taking in the scenery while searching the slight crowd for a familiar face.

He'd missed the circus. It was all very well trying to go off around the world and 'find himself', but maybe he'd lost a bit of himself in the process. He was a performer and doing small tricks on the roadside in Neroli for a few coins just didn't cut it. He missed the low lights of the circus ring, the roar and gasp of the crowd, the applause for him... he missed Fedya and performing with his brother. He'd told himself he would come back to Russia only for the summer, so that Fedya and him could resume their double act for the holidays, as usual... but he was starting to wonder if he should stay permanently, or at least until the weather changed.

The temperature in Saint Petersburg wasn't too bad at this time of year, although Motya was wearing a sweater, having been used to the Italian summer heat. That was the problem with coming home. It seemed too cold. Italy had been perfect. Why couldn't their family circus travel to warmer climes? With his hands stuffed in his pockets, Motya walked through the Field of Mars, looking out for a familiar face, although he had a feeling he'd sense the other elemental before he saw him.

Since he'd dropped out of school and been living with Memphis, Motya's elemental training had come on in leaps and bounds. He had a mindless job at the runes shop to bring in some cash, but aside from that he had dedicated himself to his elemental studies. He'd spent a lot of time at the shrine, and also meditating and morphing alone in the small flat in Neroli. His languages were also coming along well. All of it made Motya wonder why he hadn't dropped out of Durmstrang a lot earlier. He didn't even carry a wand these days, so the years of struggle and frustration had largely been for nothing at all - just as he'd always known it would be. He wondered if Timofei was regretting deciding to stick at Durmstrang.

They hadn't parted on good terms, and Motya felt deeply guilty about the argument that had shattered their friendship. It wasn't that Motya didn't understand Timofei's choice - leaving behind family was not a decision that Motya had come to lightly - but it was the fact that Timofei had broken his word. He'd felt betrayed by the younger elemental. A promise was a promise, was a promise. Timofei had broken that and he'd destroyed Motya's trust in him.

With hindsight though, Motya had perhaps overreacted. He couldn't help it - controlling his temper was still something that was a struggle, no matter how much the Harbinger told him he had to get a grip on it. He'd said things that he now regretted. He could have handled it more maturely. Apparently, Timofei felt the same way, or so it seemed by the owl that Motya had received from the younger boy. Motya was glad that Timofei had contacted him - glad to find out he was doing ok and glad that they could meet up again.

Spotting the younger elemental, Motya waited until their eyes met and raised his hand in greeting, starting to head towards the other boy. "Hey," he said, as they finally approached each other, feeling a little awkward as he looked up at the taller boy, "So you found your way here ok?"

As soon as the sixteen year old had sensed the older boy, his head began to swivel. Tima knew that he was definitely here, but where was he? It took him only a few moments to find him, and he held eye contact with Motya for several seconds before he was truly able to process that it was indeed him. He stopped walking for a moment, and just stared straight ahead at him. After so many months, the once very familiar face almost seemed too foreign to recognize. Forcing himself to snap out of this trance, he returned the wave with a small smile, and closed the distance between the two.

The awkward silence only hung in the air between the two for a moment before it was broken. "Yeah, it was actually a lot easier than I thought," he told him, lifting the flag briefly before letting the hand fall back down to his side. "Nadezhda brought me just over there, and for some reason I thought it would take me a lot longer to find it than it actually did, though I don't know why this place is pretty big." The last few words trailed off as he gave the fire elemental an apologetic look; his nerves were taking over, and Tima realized he was ranting to avoid the silence.

His face skewered, still facing Motya, deep in though. The sixth year had spent so much time thinking and over thinking about all of the things he wanted to say to him, but at the moment he couldn't remember a single word. The results of that night had spawned a wide range of emotions over the last few months, and the thoughts from all of them had jumbled together. At first Tima had been mad at him for being so upset, but that faded when he cooled down and was finally able to look at the situation objectively. If anyone had been wrong in what they had done, it was him, and Motya's reaction didn't change that.

"I'm sorry," he told him, not immediately following the apology with anything else. Yes, that was a good place to start; throughout everything, his guilt had never come and gone like many other feelings. Timofei had been hoping to start out with a little more small talk, but he just couldn't control himself. These words had been in his head for far too long now, and they were ready to come out. He wasn't really sure where to go from there, but once he opened his mouth everything started spilling out on its own. "I'm sorry for not writing to you for months. I didn't even make sure you had made it to Italy in one piece." It felt good to get that off of his chest, but this was not even the tip of the iceberg when it came to what he felt he needed to apologize for.

"That argument... that entire night... that was my fault." It hurt, but he maintained eye contact with Motya, trying to allow it to give him the confidence to continue. "I know I tried to pretend like it wasn't a big deal, but it was; it wasn't fair that I kept telling you I would go with you, when I knew I wasn't. I just... I didn't want to disappoint you. Leaving Durmstrang was all you ever wanted, and I think it is what I want too, but I just couldn't leave then. I wasn't ready. And I broke my promise, and I just want you to know that is what I am most sorry for."

Tima didn't pause for long before launching straight into an apology, which caught Motya a little off guard. He'd expected them to go somewhere, maybe sit down or get a drink or something first. But maybe this was best, getting the negatives out of the way. "It wasn't completely your fault, I... I blew up. Y'know, downfall of the fire elemental." He chuckled and winked at Tima, trying to lighten the mood a little. "Seriously, it's no big deal... I was annoyed at the time, more than I should have been... and I've had time to realise that I overreacted. I shouldn't have expected you to give up everything.. I know how difficult that is." It had taken him long enough to convince himself. "And you're younger than me too, so I should have been more responsible."

"Anyway, it worked out fine. I met up with Memphis, an air, and stayed with him for a while. Worked shifts in a shop, got my stuff together." He smiled. It had been good. Durmstrang had suffocated the fire elemental. He felt like his flames were starved of oxygen there. "I'm not really sure what I'll do next but... in a way that's kind of exciting." Motya had always been a planner. Going with the flow was a lot easier than he thought it would be. He felt comfortable in Neroli and in Memphis' presence, but he also liked being able to come back to St Petersburg and spend time with his family. Maybe he'd move on somewhere else? Explore the world? He couldn't apparate, but that hadn't been too much of a problem so far. He just had to make use of muggle transport, which in itself was a bit of an adventure.

"So... let's go somewhere a bit warmer?" he suggested, starting to walk, "There's a restaurant/cafe near here with a heated patio area which is nice. Warm but not enclosed." Feeling trapped was a dislike that Tima shared, the fire ele knew. "How have you been?"

When his rambling finally stopped, he realized he hadn't been breathing for a few moments afterward  before he had to physically make himself inhale. For some reason, when Timofei had imagined this moment in his head, the thoughts had presented with much more tact than the speech he just gave did, though that is usually how things went with him. Logic always seemed took a backseat to his emotions. Even if it wasn't how he would have liked for it to have happened, he was happy it did. The argument had affected his life since it had happened, and hopefully this would be the end of that weight on his shoulders.

The fact that the fire elemental was not only taking blame from Tima, but placing it on himself. More than anything it was confusing him; he wasn't the kind of person to ever go into something with a Plan B. In fact, typically a Plan A wasn't fleshed out too much to begin with. So when he had some sort of idea of how something might happen, and actual events don't follow that, it throws him off for a few moments and he has to stop and think about everything. "But you weren't the only one who knew all those things. I knew too and I still kept going, still kept promising I would do it. And you don't have a responsibility to watch out for me, Motya. Maybe as a friend, but my decisions have to be my own. I knew the circumstances just as well as you did, if not more."

Despite feeling a bit of tension as he continued to listen, the elemental couldn't suppress a smile. The plan had actually worked, Motya had actually made it to Italy. His doubt had been more of him worrying than anything; he knew that his friend could make it. When he heard the name Memphis, he racked his brain, trying to put a face with the name. While he had a feeling that he was someone that he had seen a few times at Inverness, he wasn't someone he had any prolonged exposure to, so he couldn't no for sure."I'm really glad to hear everything worked out, and that our plan worked out, at least for you." While Timofei wanted to get away from the school too, for his friend, it had become a need by the time he had left. During their conversations, he got the sense that Motya's constant exposure to the cold was similar to when Tima was kept away from land for too long. He couldn't imagine living like that.

It wasn't until the cafe was mentioned that he realized just how empty his stomach actually was. With his attentions clearly elsewhere that morning, breakfast had completely skipped his mind. "Wow, did they make that place for us?" The place being described sounded like a perfect setting for the two to catch up, accommodating both of their preferences. He walked alongside the other elemental, allowing him to lead the way. "I've been alright. A lot better these past couple of months not in school. Just being able to spend more time at Inverness alone makes it infinitely better. I did have a lot of fun this past spring though. I needed a distraction from worrying about you." For a split second he regretted the last sentence, but just shrugged it off. He had never been good at hiding at how he was feeling, so he had long since given up even trying to deceive anyone. He decided to wait to mention the End of Term Feast; it was something else that had been weighing heavy on his mind, and something he wanted Motya's advice on how to handle, so he would certainly make sure to bring it up at some point once they got settled at the restaurant.