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Sylvain is thirteen, now, so he can stay up as late as he wants.
Ingrid and Dimitri said their 'good night's and went to their chambers about an hour ago; stubborn little Felix finally relented 30 minutes after that. So Sylvain's on his own now, sitting in a big chair, off to the side of one of the many hallways in the Fraldarius estate, looking out the window and into the black night.
He is thirteen, so can stay up later than his younger friends, he thinks, rubbing at his eyes.
It's his decision, anyway. No one bothers putting him to bed.
His mother doesn't kiss him goodnight, his father doesn't check on him to see if he's being good, and Miklan... they don't share a room when they travel, anymore. Sylvain never told his friends why.
He yawns, and brings his knees up to his chest, resting his head on top of them.
The house is still mostly awake, only his baby friends go to bed this early, after all. The servants are still running about, but here... here it's quiet. Sylvain doesn't usually like the quiet, but right now, right here, it's okay.
He hears footsteps approaching, but he doesn't bother looking up. Plenty of people have walked past him already. No one cares enough to ask why the young Gautier heir isn't in bed.
And they shouldn't. Because he's thirteen, and he can stay up as late as he wants.
Glenn had finally gotten Felix all tucked in for the night—read him a story and everything, like a good big brother. Boy, that child was stubborn, but Glenn has no one to blame but himself. He was the one who spoiled him, after all. But who could say no to those big, amber eyes? It wasn’t his fault that he had the cutest baby brother in the whole world.
Then again, Felix had been extra clingy lately. Which more than likely had to do with Glenn not being around as often. He had been doing a decent amount of squire work lately. He’d heard, in passing, that he might be able to be knighted by some time next year. Which was exciting. But it meant Felix was extra sniffly and pouty due to how often Glenn had been away from home.
With Felix taken care of, Glenn carefully checked on the little prince and his... future wife, for lack of a better term. That was still... awkward, but he tried his best to seem like a suitable future-husband. Regardless, both were sleeping soundly and Felix was, too, so all that was left was Sylvain.
Who... wasn’t in his room. Huh.
As such, Glenn went looking. That nasty older brother of his was always up to no-good. Glenn wasn’t about to let something happen to Sylvain on his watch.
Glenn finds Sylvain sitting alone in a chair in a rather quiet corridor of the manor. He walks closer before putting his hands on his hips and clearing his throat to get the redhead’s attention. “Shouldn’t you be getting ready for bed?”
He jumps a little in his seat, not expecting to be talked to, not expecting Glenn . Ah, but of course Glenn's awake, he's even older than Sylvain.
Still, he hadn't expected him.
He looks up, meets Glenn's eyes... then looks away, out into the darkness once more, defiant.
"No."
“Ah, is your rebellious streak kicking in now that you’re a teenager~?” the older boy teases, smirk on his lips as he leans in closer, hands still on his hips. “You just gonna sit here and stare broodingly into the darkness, then?”
With a huff, Sylvain turns his head further, cheeks coloring a bit at the teasing. Hopefully Glenn won't notice, there's not a lot of light over here, after all.
"Yes." He says, short and simple, once again. He doesn't have to explain himself!
"I'm not a child, so I can stay up as long as I want." But he ended up explaining, anyway. He's a bit frustrated that Glenn doesn't get it, honestly.
Glenn stands back up properly and snickers to himself. “Sheesh, and I thought Fe was stubborn.”
Then he sighs and shakes his head and gives a dramatic shrug. “Well, I just wanted to know why you weren’t in bed. And now I do. I guess I’ll leave you to your brooding.”
He watches him, from the corner of his eye, pouting... truthfully, he doesn't want Glenn to leave.
He rarely gets to see him. He's always so busy, even more now, and Sylvain's childhood friends cling to him at all hours of the day when he visits. So they never get to talk like this. It's never just them. Just the two of them. But Sylvain wants it to be, for reasons that he's still trying to deny, and bury.
"... Wait. I'll stop brooding, so... can you stay, for just a bit?"
Glenn cracks a grin. “Now, that’s better. Sure, let’s hang out for a bit. Then, when you get tired, I’ll tuck you in properly~”
"I-I don't need to be tucked in!" Again with the teasing, ugh! Sylvain can't stand it. He's the one always teasing the younger ones, and it sucks to be teased in turn, by the guy older than him.
"And I won't get tired! You will get tired before I do!"
Glenn snorts. “Puh-lease, Sylvain. You may be a teenager now, but I’m still older~ You’ll be knocking out soon enough. Maybe I’ll even have to carry you back to your room~” He looks so smug about it, too.
"I won't!" He retorts, weakly, lips pulled up in pout and cheeks more heated than before.
"Are you just going to stand there and tease me, or can we actually talk ?"
“Oh, lighten up. Like you aren’t running around like the cat that got the cream all the time with the little ones.” He waves a dismissive hand. “But whatever. Go on. Give me a topic to talk about.”
'That's different!' he wants to say, but he knows it isn't, and he doesn't really want to hear Glenn calling him out on his bullshit.
So instead, he tries to think of a topic. He shifts a bit in his seat, and fidgets with the cuffs of his shirt. The sleeves are long enough so that the cuff reaches his palms, which is good, and why he chose to wear it, because Miklan left a nasty bruise on his wrist. Ugh, stupid Miklan. A bruise like that is so hard to find an excuse for.
Anyway.
Come on, Sylvain. Come up with something good, something that will make Glenn want to stay and talk more.
"Umm... Felix learned a new sword move. We're all learning new moves, so you should spar with us again, soon."
“Sure thing. I can’t wait to kick your ass again.” Still smug. Still grinning.
“Anyway, let’s go... take a walk or something. Just standing here is so dreadfully boring.” His hands come up to rest behind his head casually.
He huffs, but doesn't say anything. He's far from Glenn's level, still, and showing false bravado now would only lead to more teasing when Glenn does, eventually, kick his ass.
Sylvain almost offers to share his seat with him, but figures that wouldn't make it any less boring for the other. So he nods, and stands up. "Where..?"
They can't exactly go outside, it's freezing. This manor is big, and Sylvain knows it pretty well, but he can't imagine anywhere else being more... exciting, for lack of a better term. Not this late.
A mischievous grin spreads across his lips. “You can keep a secret, right? You’re thirteen now, so you have to be able to keep a secret.”
Glenn has an interesting place in mind, but if Sylvain was just going to tell people about it, he definitely wasn’t going to share it with Sylvain.
His eyes widen, just a bit. Glenn's gonna share a secret with him! That means he's special!
"Yeah, I can! I won't tell anyone, promise!"
“Come on then.” He turns and motions for Sylvain to follow.
Glenn heads down the Servants’ staircase and then turns down a drafty hallway. He grabs two riding cloaks that are a little too big on both of them from the pegs they’re hung on and tosses one to Sylvain.
Once he has the cloak around himself, he heads the rest of the way down the hallway, makes a right, and pulls a key out of his back pocket to unlock the door. There’s a path that leads out to the barn. “We’ll take my horse. He’s big enough for both of us.”
Marrik was big and pitch black and absolutely nasty to just about anyone who wasn’t Glenn. Just a few years prior, he’d thrown Felix, even. But for some reason, he got along fairly well with Glenn.
Sylvain follows, excited and starry-eyed, taking the stairs two steps at a time. He wraps the cloak tight around himself, not really dressed for an excursion outside otherwise, but not too worried about it either. Gautier men aren't bothered by the cold!
That's what his father always says.
He wants to tell him that he has his own horse now, a proper big one! And he can ride it all on his own! ... But Brownie deserves a bit more rest. Yes. That's why he doesn't say anything. It has nothing to do with the fact that he wants to ride double with Glenn.
Marrik might be a pretty scary horse, but he trusts that Glenn won't let him fall off... even if he did end up falling, Glenn at least wouldn't leave him behind (unlike SOME older brothers).
So he nods, eager to get going.
Glenn has Sylvain help him get Marrik all ready to ride. Marrik seems a bit judgmental of the fact that he’s being made to go out this late at night, but it’s Glenn, so he doesn’t fuss much. His eyes follow Sylvain, though, as if suspicious of the redhead.
Once Marrik is ready to ride, Glenn climbs up first. The horse won’t throw Sylvain if Glenn is already on him. Then Glenn offers his hand to Sylvain to help him up.
And Sylvain is definitely eager to help, hoping to impress Glenn with all his new horse saddling skills.
Once or twice, he meets Marrik's stare, and he tries not to feel intimidated, or at least puts up a front that he definitely isn't. It's just a horse .
He looks at Glenn's hand, offered to him... and takes it after staring at it for what is, perhaps, a moment too long. With the older boy's help, he settles in the saddle.
"Are we allowed to do this..?"
It's probably too late to ask, and the answer won't deter Sylvain either way, but he's curious.
Glenn’s reply is a snort. Which means of course they aren’t. If they got caught, they’d get lectured. But if Sylvain kept his mouth shut, they’d be just fine.
“If you’re scared, you can go back inside and go to bed like a good child.”
"I'm not—!" He shut his mouth, and then continued, quieter. "I'm not scared. I just wanted to know."
The fact that they're not allowed only gets him more excited. He's sneaking off with Glenn, while his baby friends are all sleeping! Hehe. Oh, he can't wait to tell—ah, except he can't! He promised he wouldn't. So he won't, but he'll always know. He'll know that Glenn took him, and only him, out on an adventure, late at night.
“Good,” he replies, then clicks his tongue and gets Marrik to walk out of the barn. Glenn steers his horse just off to the side so he can lock the gate behind them.
Once that’s taken care of, he starts Marrik on an easy trot toward the northwestern corner of the Fraldarius estate. They reach the perimeter wall and Glenn steers Marrik through another gate, which he pauses to unlock before they exit and lock back up after they’ve exited. From there, Glenn has Marrik switch to a gallop as they head further west along the edge of the forest.
He clings a bit to Glenn, as they pick up speed, holding onto the back of his cloak. The wind's cold against his nose and cheeks, but he refuses to do something embarrassing, like burying his face in the warmth of Glenn's back.
So instead he looks around. It's dark, but the moon's out, at least, and the snow reflects the light, making it a bit easier to see. Still, he's not sure where they're headed.
After a good half hour of riding, the pair arrives at an old military lookout tower whose walls were in disarray, showing that it hadn’t been used in a long time. Glenn slows Marrik and they partially circle the tower before coming to a stop.
“Pretty cool, huh?” Glenn asks, looking up. “It’s abandoned. So we can climb up and look out over Fraldarius. It’s a really nice sight. I haven’t shown anyone else, yet.”
That was a longer ride than he expected... more tired than he'd let Glenn think, Syvain had eventually slumped a bit against him, and closed his eyes.
He blinks them open again, as he realizes they've slowed, and sits up properly when Glenn speaks. He holds back a yawn, rubs his eyes, and hopes Glenn hadn't noticed.
Lifting his head, Sylvain takes in the sight of the tall tower. "Whoa..." That is cool. And Glenn hasn't shown anyone else! He really is special! His tiredness is quickly forgotten, as his heart picks up speed again.
"We can go all the way to the top?!"
Glenn peeks back over his shoulder. “I mean... if you’re not too tired.” There’s an obvious teasing edge to his voice.
... Damn it. He crosses his arms, and scoots back a bit in the saddle.
"I-I'm not! I wanna go up there! That's what we came all this way for, right?"
A scoff. “Duh. But I’m not gonna take you all the way up there if I’m gonna be stuck carrying you down because you’re too sleepy to get down on your own.”
Still, Glenn dismounts and leads Marrik over to a post so he can tie his horse up. Marrik makes his displeasure of having a human that isn’t Glenn on his back known, but doesn’t throw Sylvain. Glenn pats the horse, once he has him tied up. “Good boy. Yes, that’s my grumpy good boy.”
"You won't have to do that!" Huffs!
Sylvain stays put, as Glenn ties Marrik to the post, but he knows enough about horses and their body language to know that he is definitely overstaying his welcome... So when he's secured, Sylvain quickly jumps off, landing with a soft 'oof'.
Glenn breathes out a laugh. Sylvain got so pouty when he was teased. He could dish it out but couldn’t take it. That just made it more fun.
“Fine, fine, let’s go. I’ll show you an incredible sight.”
He rushes to Glenn's side, cheeks red from the cold (and embarrassment). He eyes his hand, just for a second, before looking away.
"I've been at the top of a tower before. Is it really that special?"
His father has taken him to the northern watchtowers multiple times. The view didn't really strike him as anything special, then, as he looked out at the snow-covered, desolate landscape while all his future responsibilities were listed.
Sylvain wonders if Fraldarius is nicer to look at than Gautier... and figures that it probably is.
Glenn rolls his eyes and heads over to the door. He moves the chain on it, which was only set up to look like it was still locked, and opens the door. He expects Sylvain to follow and he goes ahead and starts heading up the large spiral staircase.
Hey... no answer is even worse than a sarcastic one. He watches as Glenn opens the door, and follows him inside.
... That's a lot of stairs. He rushes to catch up with the other boy, when he realizes he's not gonna wait.
Glenn leisurely strolls up the stairs, hands folded behind his head and whistling a tune. It’s a bit of a walk, for sure.
Sylvain's panting lightly, having to climb the steps a bit faster to keep up. Damn Glenn and his slightly longer legs. Just wait until his growth spurt hits!
He recognizes the tune, and... that's nice, at least.
When they reach the top, Glenn undoes the latch keeping the door closed and pushes it open before climbing up through it. He offers a hand to Sylvain, once again, to pull him up and into the observation deck of the tower.
Once they’re both up there, it becomes obvious as to why Glenn is so fond of this place. There’s a 360° view of the night sky, lit up with stars. Back to the east, they can see the Fraldarius Estate. And then beyond that, the village nearby. There are a few lights still on out there, both in the Fraldarius Estate and the village. The pond on the grounds of the Fraldarius Estate reflects the moonlight. The village on the other side is much the same. In all the darkness of the night, however, everything almost blends into each other. The land and sky are one.
“Humans are kind of incredible, don’t you think?” Glenn asks, head tilted back, eyes cast upon the sky. “The lights in the sky are natural. And humans find ways to generate light, as well. When the lights are left on at night, the world of humans almost mimics that of the world of the celestial bodies. Don’t you ever wonder what our world looks like from way up there?”
Well, since it's offered... and he is kinda tired... Sylvain takes the hand, and once again allows Glenn to help him. But he quickly retrieves his hand, after that.
He gasps, in surprise and awe, as he takes in the view. It really is nicer than Gautier. It's... mesmerizing.
He looks to Glenn when he speaks, stares while he's busy keeping his eyes on the stars above them, and admires how he looks in the pale moonlight.
... He wishes he could see the world the way Glenn sees it. He doesn't find humans all that incredible, and he doesn't see the poetry in candle lights. But the way Glenn describes it all... that's nice. That's beautiful.
When he realizes he's been staring for too long, he quickly turns to look upwards, as well.
"Not really. I've never really been interested in flying.” A pause. “...I imagine we all look pretty small, though."
“We are small,” he corrects. “Every single individual human being is so small. We don’t live as long as stars do. Our children and their children will look up and see the same sky that we and our ancestors saw. But it’s so vast and beautiful that they’ll still gaze at it in wonder and awe.”
Glenn finally looks at Sylvain. “If stars could blink, every time they did, when they looked at our world, it would be entirely different from the last time. Our world is constantly changing.” He gives a casual shrug and then looks back up at the sky.
“In the greater scheme of things, every single human being is so, so small. But to us, our lives are everything. The connections we make and bonds we form are our everything . And, unlike stars, the actions of humans impact all the other humans around them, as well as everything else alive in this world. We are so insignificant to the world beyond our own but so significant within our own world. That’s what it means to be human. So we may as well live a life worth living, don’t you think?”
It's... a lot to take in, and it's even harder to fully grasp.
As he listens to Glenn go on and on about the stars, and the world, Sylvain just finds himself thinking that... he really is amazing.
A life worth living, huh... Sylvain's eyes fall down to the lights in the distance, again. Then, he takes a few careful steps forward, and looks over the edge of the tower, down to the ground below.
"... Hey, Glenn? Why did you... take me here?"
Glenn breathes out a soft laugh, unlike his usual, more mocking one. This one is genuine. “To get you outside your own head, of course. You think too much.”
A pause. “No, that’s not right.” His nose scrunches up and he brings a hand to his chin, gaze now settled on nothing particular in the distance.
“People give you too much to think about. It’s not your fault. You don’t overwhelm yourself on purpose, so saying it’s a ‘you’ thing is wrong.” A sigh and a casual dismissive wave of his hand.
“Anyway, I wanted to give you a new perspective. Since you were so content to just stare at empty darkness, I figured you’d enjoy a darkness full of light much better.” He flashes a grin in Sylvain’s direction.
Sylvain looks back at him, just in time to see that grin. That blinding, honest, wonderful grin. And he immediately has to turn away.
His eyes burn, and he feels his throat tighten up. There's a sniffle, and maybe he could've blamed it on the cold, but then he makes this pathetic little high-pitched sound, and—damn it. Damn it! He bites down on his lower lip, in an attempt to stop any further noises.
This is stupid. He's stupid! Glenn took him out here to show him this, and have a nice time, and he starts crying like a baby? Way to fucking embarrass himself in front of the guy he admires!
But it's just—it's been so long, so damn long since someone's said something like that to him. Done something like this, for him. He doesn't know what to say.
Glenn looks at Sylvain for a moment after the noise. Ah, he hit that sensitive little heart that Sylvain tries to keep buried in that chest of his. With a sigh, he looks away and brings his arm up to wrap it around Sylvain’s shoulders and pull him against his side.
“Go ahead... I don’t see anything...” he murmurs into the darkness, giving Sylvain the permission to cry that he won’t allow himself.
No... no, no, no. He doesn't want to cry, not like this, not in front of him. He can say he doesn't see anything all he wants, but that doesn't make this any less... humiliating.
Hah, if his father was here, right now...
But he isn't. It's just him, and Glenn.
And as much as Sylvain doesn't want to cry, he just can't stop it. It's like a dam just broke, and everything's pouring out, in the form of big tears, and loud sobs.
Frantically, he dries his wet cheeks with his sleeves. They're even colder now.
Glenn stays quiet and holds Sylvain against him, his hand rubbing up and down the younger boy’s upper arm comfortingly. Glenn knew it well enough, after all. When you’re everyone else’s big brother, there wasn’t anyone there to take care of you. And there was a refusal there, too, to burden those younger than you with your own thoughts and emotions. So Glenn decided that it was his job. That was his burden to shoulder. Not Sylvain’s. Sylvain had enough on his shoulders and a shitty older brother, who should be the one caring for him. But Miklan was a piece of shit, through and through. Glenn wondered if he’d ever stop getting into fights with the older boy. Well, so long as he kept winning, he supposes he doesn’t mind kicking Miklan’s ass over and over again until he learned his lesson. If it was for Sylvain’s sake, Glenn didn’t mind.
Fuck, it burns. This sucks . He's taking in sharp breaths now, trying to catch his breath.
But it's also kind of nice. It's kind of nice, to be able to let it all out, and he feels safe. He feels safe with Glenn.
But he also feels like a massive burden, his father's and brother's words echoing in his mind. Men don't cry. Men don't cry.
It's a whole whirlwind of emotions, really.
Eventually, he feels like he can speak again, and he tries. "I'm... s-sorry."
“Nah, you don’t need to apologize. Gotta let it out sometimes, you know?” Glenn shifts a bit to look at Sylvain again. He brings up the edge of his own cloak to wipe away any stray tears so they don’t freeze on Sylvain’s cheeks.
“The other good thing about places like this,” he states, “is that... you can shout your frustrations into the wind and no one is around to hear. It’s just you and the stars.” The smile on his face is tinged with sadness. Glenn speaks from experience.
His breath hitches, and he can't help but lean a bit against the gentle touch.
There's a loud sniff, and he wipes away the snot with his shirt sleeve, careful to not get any on the cloak, because that'd be gross. This is borrowed.
"Really? Y-you're sure no one will hear..?"
“I promise,” he states confidently.
No one had ever heard Glenn, after all. Except maybe Marrik. But Marrik really didn’t care. And if he did, well, he was a horse. Who was he going to tell?
If Glenn hadn't spoken with such conviction, Sylvain probably wouldn't dare. It's... terrifying, after all. If someone else heard... if word somehow got to this family... he shudders just thinking about it.
He also realizes that Glenn probably speaks from experience. Which makes him a bit sad, but then again... he's only human. He needs to let things out once in a while, too.
With a shaky nod, Sylvain turns to face the view once more.
"I'm..." he takes a deep breath, "I-I'm... I'M SICK OF MY BROTHER TREATING ME LIKE SHIT ALL THE TIME!"
Glenn stares out at the view and scrunches up his nose. He pretends that he can’t hear, but still. He’s going to have to kick Miklan’s ass, yet again. Goddess, when will that guy fuck off?
More importantly, Sylvain had gone and done it. Glenn is proud of him. He may as well take a turn, himself.
“I’m... I’M SICK OF HAVING TO ACT LIKE A GROWN-UP ALL THE TIME!”
Sylvain startles a bit, and looks up at Glenn. He didn't think he'd go ahead and yell something, too, and he finds himself... happy, that he did. Happy, knowing that Glenn trusts him with this.
Another deep breath, "I'M SICK OF MY DAD CONTROLLING MY LIFE!"
It was relieving to shout into the empty air with no one to hear. But... maybe it was nice to shout something into the empty air. Knowing that someone could hear and actually cared was a different kind of relieving.
“I LIKE TO WRITE POETRY AND CAN NEVER SHARE IT WITH MY FAMILY BECAUSE THIS COUNTRY SUCKS AND DOESN’T APPRECIATE ART, ONLY FIGHTING!”
Well, maybe Glenn could share it with Felix, one day. Felix would probably appreciate it.
Sylvain would love to hear it, once. Would love to hear more. If Glenn's poetry is anything like the beautiful things he said about the night, stars, and the lights, then it's something Sylvain would surely enjoy.
"I... I-I WANT..." This one was hard. He holds onto Glenn's cloak for support, grip tight on the fabric. "I WANT TO BE LOVED FOR WHO I AM!"
Glenn inhales deeply and sighs just as deeply. Sylvain’s words hit hard. Glenn’s hand comes up to ruffle the hair on the back of Sylvain’s head. “I love you, Sylvain. All of you guys... Dimitri and you and Felix and Ingrid. I can’t stop your father or brother from being complete asswipes, but I can love you. And I do. Simply because you’re you.”
He squeezes his eyes shut, feeling them water again. His head hangs low, and his shoulders shake as he tries to steady himself, once more.
"I l-love you, too. You and everyone. Fe, D-Dima, Ingy." Words like that aren't often said in the Gautier household. In fact, he's not sure he's ever heard any of them say they love anyone, much less him .
"Thank you. Thank y-you, Glenn, I—" a sob cuts him off, "I-I don't know what I'd d-do without you guys."
Glenn pulls Sylvain into his arms and to his chest. Geez... it was like when Felix cried. He was just overwhelmed with that Older Brother Sense. Felix, of course, got special treatment. Dimitri, too, sometimes. But he’s pretty sure that he’s never hugged Sylvain before. Still, he holds Sylvain. Simply because Sylvain needs to be held. And he does, in fact, love Sylvain. They’re all his precious little siblings.
And Sylvain loves Glenn, too. But it's... it's different, with him. It's different, and scary , because it's a really powerful feeling, and Sylvain doesn't know how to handle it.
He wants to run away from it, never talk to Glenn again and pray to the Goddess that it goes away.
But he doesn't. Instead, he wraps his shaking arms around him, as he's pulled closer, and lets out another sob against his chest. He doesn't run, because this is nice, and it makes him happy, and he needs this.
He's sure, too, that this is the first time that Glenn's hugged him.
And Glenn keeps Sylvain there and rubs his back until he stops crying. Sylvain had been holding in so much for so long. Glenn is really happy that he took Sylvain out with him tonight. Sylvain really did need some light in the darkness.
And again, eventually, he stops.
"Thank you." He mumbles, repeating it a few more times, because he doesn't know how else to express his immense gratitude.
“Mm, yeah. Of course.” Glenn waits until Sylvain pulls away to lower his hands. “I’m always here, when you need me.”
"Mm... but I can't exactly travel to Fraldarius on my own..." He pulls away, letting his arms drop back to his sides. "I wish I didn't have to leave."
“I mean... you kind of could. You’re thirteen and you have your own horse. Like, you’ll probably—no, definitely—get in trouble, but you could very much ride by yourself to Fraldarius.” He laughs lightly. “But you probably shouldn’t. Maybe I can make a solo trip up to Gautier, one day.”
A pause. “Ugh, but then I have to deal with Miklan and his bullshit and you still will, too. That doesn’t work.” His nose scrunches up. “Damn. Maybe we can just hide you somewhere and convince your father to just leave.”
Sylvain laughs, really laughs, and feels some of the tenseness in his shoulders finally leave him.
"Yeah, it's not worth it. You don't have to go through all that trouble for me..." And his father would never just leave without him.
"I'll, umm... I can write you letters?"
“Yeah, sure! Just make sure you write something for Fe every so often or he’ll get jealous and might smother me with a pillow in my sleep.” Another light laugh. “Also, my replies might take a bit, sometimes, when I’m away. But I’ll always write back to you~”
"Yeah, yeah. I know! I already write to him as often as I can..." With a nod, his smile returns, at long last.
"There's one more thing I want to yell."
“Yeah? Go for it.” He gestures toward the wall of the observatory deck.
Nodding, Sylvain looks back to the lights in the distance. His hands clenches into fists at his sides, and he takes a big breath.
"FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK!!" Cheeks tinted red, and with a grin on his face, he turns back to Glenn. "I've always wanted to do that."
Yeah, he's picked up his brother's nasty habit of swearing, but he's never gotten to scream it like that.
Glenn is positively in stitches. He’s doubled over in laughter. He hasn’t laughed this hard in forever. It’s the enthusiasm behind it, really. Sylvain was seriously just dying to shout ‘fuck’ at the top of his lungs.
Sylvain smiles so wide it makes his eyes squint a bit. This was nice. He's glad Glenn brought him here, and shared this experience with him. This place, and this secret.
It’s not long after that that Glenn leads Sylvian back down the tower and fixes the door to look locked again and they climb back on Marrik, who absolutely isn’t judging them, regardless of whether he heard them shouting or not. They make the trip back to the Fraldarius estate and sneak back in the way they snuck out. Glenn has Sylvain help get Marrik put away for the night to make it go quicker and to avoid rousing the other horses in the stables, and Marrik watches Sylvain just a little less. Marrik can see that his boy is in high spirits after tonight’s outing, after all.
It’s sneaking back into the manor that’s the hard part, because everyone, including the servants, have absolutely gone to bed for the night, and every little squeak or creak sounds so loud in the dead of night when everyone is asleep and silent. The only people awake are the few guards on night rotation Glenn very clearly has their patrol patterns memorized, as the boys never cross paths with any guards.
They get to Sylvain’s room and Glenn pats Sylvain’s back as he turns to head off to his own. “Goodnight~” he singsong whispers. “Pleasant dreams, partner in crime~” A wink is thrown over his shoulder before Glenn is off skipping down the halls. This was their little secret, now. And Glenn felt lighter for having shared it with someone.
Sylvain yawns more on the way back, but he keeps insisting he's really not that tired! He doesn't even fall asleep on the ride, just leans a bit against Glenn and smiles to himself.
His heart beats pleasantly fast as they sneak back inside. He's always been a fan of sneaking around, of breaking the rules, even when it got him into trouble, and he's gotten pretty good at it in his own house. But here, he follows Glenn's lead carefully.
"Goodnight," he says back, still smiling, though his eyes are visibly tired now. He flushes at being called his 'partner in crime'. Heh, that sounds exciting... and special.
"Thank you, again... s-see you in the morning."
Their little secret... Sylvain will never forget this day. It will stay with him for the rest of his life.