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Rivayn sat with a sigh, craning his neck up at Lakeland's sky. Lakeland's blissfully blue sky. No more glaring light. No more sin eaters. No more Emet-Selch. No more struggle.
Slim chance of that, he thought to himself with another deep sigh. He'd be lucky if he could even get five minutes of peace.
"Rivayn?" The meek voice floated toward him as if on cue. He resisted his natural urge to sigh once more; Ryne didn't deserve that.
Instead of responding, Rivayn patted the ground next to him. He'd taken refuge under one of Lakeland's many rose-leafed trees, hoping to enjoy a few moments of fresh air on his own before deciding what to do next. As much as he had been hoping for some solitude, Ryne's presence certainly wasn't unwelcome.
The girl hesitated before finally accepting his invitation. "I'm sorry if I'm disturbing you."
"You're not," Rivayn assured her with a chuckle. "What brings you to this neck of the woods?"
Ryne laughed lightly in response, prompting a smile from Rivayn. Finally, someone on this star who gets my jokes, he thought to himself.
"I thought you might have returned back home by now," Ryne explained, the subtlest of frowns replacing her smile, "but the Exarch told me you'd gone for a walk."
"Please, you know I'd never leave without saying goodbye."
Rivayn could see a blush rise in Ryne's cheeks, as if she hadn't expected him to give her such consideration. He had to admit... Ryne reminded him a lot of her.
"But don't you have other friends to return to?" she finally asked.
Rivayn hesitated before he answered. "I do. But I'll miss you all when I leave, so I want to make sure I've got everything in order first." Even me? She didn't say it, but he could see it written on her face. "Especially you."
"I didn't..." A smile crept on to her face, though she left the thought unfinished.
"You know, you remind me of someone," Rivayn told her with a smirk. "She's a lot like you."
"Really?" Ryne seemed excited by the prospect of a story from home.
"She lived with someone else's name too," he explained. "And once she finally accepted herself for who she is, she struggled to find her own place in the world."
"Did she manage...?"
"Eventually," Rivayn confirmed with a nod. "With help from her friends, once she let us in."
Ryne seemed to be considering his words. "I think I understand."
It was a moment before Rivayn noticed her staring at him. "What?"
"You care for her, don't you?" She posed it as a question, but Rivayn knew it wasn't. "The way you smiled when you mentioned her..."
"I miss her," Rivayn said after a moment, staring off into the tree line. The sun was beginning to dip toward the horizon; it was a sight he had taken for granted until he arrived in nightless Norvrandt.
"You love her?"
Rivayn's gaze immediately snapped back to Ryne. She was bold, alright. Just like Lyse. "I... yeah, I do."
"You should tell her," Ryne suggested matter-of-factly, keeping a perfectly straight face.
"How did you–?" After the momentary shock had past, Rivayn found himself laughing. "You can read me like a book, can't you?"
A grin spread across Ryne's face. "For a Warrior of Darkness, you certainly wear your heart on your sleeve."
"That's a relatively new development," Rivayn explained, his smile not fading. He really would miss her when he returned to the Source.
"It's a good thing," Ryne assured him. "I'm glad to see you finally smile."
Rivayn could feel a blush rise in his cheeks. It was time to change the subject.
"You know, I ought to scold you for coming out here by yourself," Rivayn told her, grinning in amusement as the girl's smile immediate transformed into a pout. "The sin eaters may be gone, but there are still other nasties out here."
"I can take care of myself!" she protested.
"It wouldn't do to have you eaten by a carnivorous plant or stepped on by a triffid," he continued, ignoring her growing scowl. "What would I tell Thancred?"
Her features softened at mention of Thancred's name. "But you let Alisaie and Alphinaud wander about on their own."
"Only because I can't stop them," Rivayn replied with a shrug. "But with you, I might still have a chance to teach you to be reasonable."
Ryne immediately turned her gaze away from him. "He hasn't told you, then."
"Who hasn't told me what?"
"Thancred," Ryne clarified, still not looking at him. "He hasn't told you our plans to venture beyond the edge of the Flood."
"You want to do what?" She seemed to wince slightly at the intensity of his rebuke. Understandable, since Rivayn found himself just as surprised. "Well if you're doing something that reckless, I'm coming with."
"What?" Ryne asked with a surprised blink. "But... I thought you wished to return home."
"Are you going to leave right away?" Rivayn countered. "I do want to go back, if even just briefly."
"Well, there are preparations to make..."
"Perfect," Rivayn declared. "Then you'll wait for me to get back before you venture into gods know what."
For a moment, Ryne looked as though she might object, but finally she just smiled. "Of course we'll wait for you."
"Good," Rivayn returned with a grin. "And I'll make sure when I come back to bring you a souvenir."
Ryne's eyes once again lit up, and her smile grew. Sometimes it was easy to forget she was a child, but other times it was clear as day.
"But only if you stop wandering off without an escort."
Ryne rolled her eyes in true teenaged fashion. "Fine."
Rivayn laughed. "You are just like her."
"I hope I can meet her someday."
"I'm not sure how I feel about that," Rivayn countered with a smirk. "The two of you would tag team me for sure."
Ryne giggled before leaning over to wrap her arms around him in a tight hug. The gesture initially surprised Rivayn, but soon enough his arm found its way around her shoulders. I really have changed.
"Don't worry, I'll be back before you know it."
She released her embrace and looked up at him, the expression on her face stony and serious. "Promise?"
"Cross my heart," he assured her, making a gesture over his chest before patting her on the head. "You're family now."
With a smile she leaned back into him, and the two of them watched together in peaceful silence as the sun sank beneath the trees and brought the blissful serenity of night to the First once more.