[When the tale is finished, he pauses. Amal may notice how his hand goes to his chin in an oh-so-familiar way, pondering over what he's heard. There is a brief moment of silence, before he looks straight at Amal, and eases his posture.]
I believe you. [As if he could ever choose otherwise.] And... to know that there is a life where I do not live with the fear of being someone's shadow, nor expected to follow after him– [He pauses again, exhales, then smiles.] To know that my words hold meaning is something I don't believe I had actually thought much about, beyond simple literature. But if that was who I was–
Then it's obvious the memories will return with time, won't they? The lessons I learned, the journeys we had together. [His hands hold the chai as he looks to it once, then back up. He is older than his counterpart here, of course, but it is still him, beneath all that.]
All I ask, then, is that you don't give up on me. Or what we went through once before. [Because if he'll get those memories back, Alphinaud will remember. He may have a life here, but he will not forget or neglect any others that may have touched lives, too.]
[Amal is almost afraid to look at Alphinaud for fear of finding something there like fear or distrust, but to his amazement, he finds only acceptance and comfort. For a brief moment he's wide-eyed and completely open, almost boyish in his surprise, but then it's chased away by the tears forming. He squeezes his eyes shut and rubs away the tears on his gloves. He must look so stupid right now, but... but it's Alphinaud... and Alphinaud has cried freely and been no weaker for it.]
Sorry—sorry, I just... hahah, a few weeks ago, you were the one worried about losing someone, and...
[He clears his throat. When he smiles again, it's brighter and more honest.]
Alphy... you've always had the ability to walk your own path. No... Not just to walk it, but to pave the stones as you go, so that you can lead others to a better future. That's something I admire about you. Even here, with a completely different life, even if you're not aware of it, I know you have that quality. It has nothing to do with elf ears or magic or tales from other worlds—you just have a gift. Once you realize that, you become unstoppable. I've seen you turn people away from the very brink of hopelessness and learn to live, again and again, and it's incredible every time.
[He lifts a hand, hesitates, and then decides fuck it and plops his warm palm right on the top of Alphinaud's head.]
I'll never give up on you. Never. Even if you forgot me and never remembered a damned thing, I would go on all those adventures all over again with you, because... because you and Ali, you're home for me.
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I believe you. [As if he could ever choose otherwise.] And... to know that there is a life where I do not live with the fear of being someone's shadow, nor expected to follow after him– [He pauses again, exhales, then smiles.] To know that my words hold meaning is something I don't believe I had actually thought much about, beyond simple literature. But if that was who I was–
Then it's obvious the memories will return with time, won't they? The lessons I learned, the journeys we had together. [His hands hold the chai as he looks to it once, then back up. He is older than his counterpart here, of course, but it is still him, beneath all that.]
All I ask, then, is that you don't give up on me. Or what we went through once before. [Because if he'll get those memories back, Alphinaud will remember. He may have a life here, but he will not forget or neglect any others that may have touched lives, too.]
no subject
Sorry—sorry, I just... hahah, a few weeks ago, you were the one worried about losing someone, and...
[He clears his throat. When he smiles again, it's brighter and more honest.]
Alphy... you've always had the ability to walk your own path. No... Not just to walk it, but to pave the stones as you go, so that you can lead others to a better future. That's something I admire about you. Even here, with a completely different life, even if you're not aware of it, I know you have that quality. It has nothing to do with elf ears or magic or tales from other worlds—you just have a gift. Once you realize that, you become unstoppable. I've seen you turn people away from the very brink of hopelessness and learn to live, again and again, and it's incredible every time.
[He lifts a hand, hesitates, and then decides fuck it and plops his warm palm right on the top of Alphinaud's head.]
I'll never give up on you. Never. Even if you forgot me and never remembered a damned thing, I would go on all those adventures all over again with you, because... because you and Ali, you're home for me.