his face softened as he saw the Delilah coming out of their shops and homes. They clapped for him, rushed him, and patted him on the back. They congratulated him and thanked him, and he found his face flushing with all of the attention.
“Are you okay?” Lily asked as the Delilah grabbed his arms and lifted him above their heads, cheering him on. He closed his eyes and smiled.
“I’m just happy.”
“Oh,” Lily giggled. “Well, you should experience this feeling more often. I like it.”
“It’s certainly different,” he said, glancing down at the crowd below. Maybe siding with the Delilah wasn’t so bad after all.
* * *
“So, are you going to absorb me now?” Catherine asked as her multi-colored eidolon pierced through James’ chest. “Huh?”
“No,” he whispered as he grit his teeth and kicked her off of him. She landed on her feet and summoned the eidolon back into her hand. James started closing the wound in his chest. New white fabric appeared to close the rip in his white Sage robe.
“Then what makes you resort to that tactic?”
“It’s others,” he said, climbing to his feet slowly. He was surprised by how tired he felt. “I’m not Bastion. I don’t go insane when my survival is threatened. I care about the people around me most of all. If you were in danger, I’d do anything in my power to ensure your safety.”
“Then I’m the one that has to get stronger,” she said. “Or leave you altogether.”
“You’re not going to do that.”
“I don’t know,” she said, staring into his eyes coldly. “I would rather know that you were okay than see you turn into something that you’re not. Let’s try again, and this time, we’ll fight while you’re in your Quietus form. You might have to already be in that form for you to feel the urge.”
“No, I won’t.”
“We have to train, James.”
“No, it’s…it’s the kids. I don’t want them to see me in that form. It will scare them, and they don’t understand what the Quietus are yet.”
“Keeping them in the dark won’t save them. Not from war.”
“But isn’t that what we’re doing? Hiding? Shielding ourselves?”
“I don’t get you,” she sighed in exasperation. “You want to etch out this life for ourselves one moment, and then you want to fight in the war in the next. We have to make up our mind and stick to it.”
“I just don’t know what the right decision is.”
“Either way, a decision will be made for us. It’s weird. I thought with you absorbing others, it would turn you into a ruthless killer, but it’s actually the opposite. You’ve lost so much confidence and drive.”
“We’ve been through so much together, Catherine,” he said, approaching her with his hand outstretched. She looked at it, then she let her eidolon disappear. She reached out and took his hand and he pulled her to his chest, holding her head tight as she rubbed her cheek against his robe.
“And we’ll be through a lot more,” she said.
“I feel like…I feel like we never got to become who we were meant to be. The world around us won’t allow it.”
“I’ve heard this before,” she said, pushing him away gently so that she could look into his eyes. “You and your ‘what if’s.’ What is it now?”
“I wanted a family,” he said. “If I’m to be honest.”
“A family?” she asked, her eyebrows raising. This was new.
“Kids to be exact,” he said. “I was thinking that we would have some after you took the throne back in Allay, but we were busy then too. Then Lakrymos appeared and the Collision happened, and we were separated for so long. And now…now we can’t even have them. I would have liked to have a little girl with your eyes and freckles. Maybe a little of my curiosity.”
Catherine didn’t say anything. But then she stretched her neck out and kissed him lightly on the forehead. He felt a blanket of sorrow come over him
“Are you okay?” Lily asked as the Delilah grabbed his arms and lifted him above their heads, cheering him on. He closed his eyes and smiled.
“I’m just happy.”
“Oh,” Lily giggled. “Well, you should experience this feeling more often. I like it.”
“It’s certainly different,” he said, glancing down at the crowd below. Maybe siding with the Delilah wasn’t so bad after all.
* * *
“So, are you going to absorb me now?” Catherine asked as her multi-colored eidolon pierced through James’ chest. “Huh?”
“No,” he whispered as he grit his teeth and kicked her off of him. She landed on her feet and summoned the eidolon back into her hand. James started closing the wound in his chest. New white fabric appeared to close the rip in his white Sage robe.
“Then what makes you resort to that tactic?”
“It’s others,” he said, climbing to his feet slowly. He was surprised by how tired he felt. “I’m not Bastion. I don’t go insane when my survival is threatened. I care about the people around me most of all. If you were in danger, I’d do anything in my power to ensure your safety.”
“Then I’m the one that has to get stronger,” she said. “Or leave you altogether.”
“You’re not going to do that.”
“I don’t know,” she said, staring into his eyes coldly. “I would rather know that you were okay than see you turn into something that you’re not. Let’s try again, and this time, we’ll fight while you’re in your Quietus form. You might have to already be in that form for you to feel the urge.”
“No, I won’t.”
“We have to train, James.”
“No, it’s…it’s the kids. I don’t want them to see me in that form. It will scare them, and they don’t understand what the Quietus are yet.”
“Keeping them in the dark won’t save them. Not from war.”
“But isn’t that what we’re doing? Hiding? Shielding ourselves?”
“I don’t get you,” she sighed in exasperation. “You want to etch out this life for ourselves one moment, and then you want to fight in the war in the next. We have to make up our mind and stick to it.”
“I just don’t know what the right decision is.”
“Either way, a decision will be made for us. It’s weird. I thought with you absorbing others, it would turn you into a ruthless killer, but it’s actually the opposite. You’ve lost so much confidence and drive.”
“We’ve been through so much together, Catherine,” he said, approaching her with his hand outstretched. She looked at it, then she let her eidolon disappear. She reached out and took his hand and he pulled her to his chest, holding her head tight as she rubbed her cheek against his robe.
“And we’ll be through a lot more,” she said.
“I feel like…I feel like we never got to become who we were meant to be. The world around us won’t allow it.”
“I’ve heard this before,” she said, pushing him away gently so that she could look into his eyes. “You and your ‘what if’s.’ What is it now?”
“I wanted a family,” he said. “If I’m to be honest.”
“A family?” she asked, her eyebrows raising. This was new.
“Kids to be exact,” he said. “I was thinking that we would have some after you took the throne back in Allay, but we were busy then too. Then Lakrymos appeared and the Collision happened, and we were separated for so long. And now…now we can’t even have them. I would have liked to have a little girl with your eyes and freckles. Maybe a little of my curiosity.”
Catherine didn’t say anything. But then she stretched her neck out and kissed him lightly on the forehead. He felt a blanket of sorrow come over him
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