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"...You've got to be kidding."
The words had come out before Revenant had even stopped to think about the situation he was in.
"I'm not kidding, friend!" Pathfinder replied cheerfully from down where he knelt on one knee in front of Revenant. In his outstretched hands, a small steel box; inside it, a tasteful silver ring with a jet-black stone set in it.
It was beautiful.
"Bloodhound helped me pick it out. I hope you like it!" Pathfinder continued, wiggling a little with excitement. "I've actually had it for a while, but I was waiting for just the right moment! I wanted to be alone with you."
It was true, alone time was hard to come by with all the legends living in one housing area together. Just the thought of getting asked this question in front of everyone else made Revenant shudder inwardly. In addition, as legends, their lives were already basically one big public spectacle, and Revenant hated cameras and reporters almost as much as Bloodhound did. Dealing with the other legends wasn't nearly as awful as dealing with the paparazzi, but some of them were just as snoopy and loud-mouthed. Sometimes Revenant just wanted some goddamn privacy with Pathfinder.
Which is how they had ended up sneaking into the empty arena on their day off, the only place that no other legends or media would be. They had gone for a long walk across World's Edge, sometimes talking idly about nothing at all, sometimes just enjoying the silence together. They'd been walking through the snow near the epicenter, holding hands, when Pathfinder had abruptly stopped, and to Revenant's surprise, dropped to one knee and asked Revenant if he would marry him.
"Robots don't have the right to marry in the Outlands," Revenant reminded him. "Not even simulacra." This, of course, was due to IMC's influence over the Outlands. The idea of robots being thought of as people who deserved human rights was far too dangerous--MRVNs like Pathfinder were only designed as products to be bought and sold, after all. Hammond Robotics had never accounted for any of their creations to become self aware. As for simulacra--it was generally a crapshoot as to whether any given entity regarded them as human or not. Corporations like Hammond stood by their stance that simulacra were merely copies of humans--the real ones being long gone, and therefore no longer qualifying for such troublesome things as human rights. It all infuriated Revenant beyond belief, and served to fuel his grudge against Hammond further.
"I don't care about that, friend. No one's going to tell me I can't love you." Pathfinder's tone was earnest yet firm. "Even if we can't get legally married, we can still have a wedding. We can still make vows together. We can still stay together for the rest of our lives."
The rest of their lives? Revenant's head spun at the idea. He wasn't even sure how long his life was going to be--he'd lived hundreds of lives already, dying over and over only to be brought back again and again. However, if he did die again, it might be the last time--unless he was brought back yet again. He inwardly shuddered at the thought. He was tired of being effectively immortal, and at this point he simply wanted to live out the remainder of his life--however long it may be--and then rest at last.
And that was to say nothing of Pathfinder's expected lifespan--there was no shortage of MRVN parts on the market, or engineers and mechanics to repair him if needed--meaning that he, too, could live an indefinitely long life.
The thought of being with Pathfinder for hundreds of years, maybe more, was slightly overwhelming, but not in a bad way. They'd only known each other for a few years now, but he loved Pathfinder more than he'd ever loved anyone in any of his lives. He felt safe with him, he felt...happy. He felt like maybe being alive wasn't such a bad thing.
"What do you think?" Pathfinder asked. He was still gazing up at Revenant, the face displayed on his screen uncharacteristically serious. "You don't need to answer right away, friend. But you need to know...this is what I want. I want to stay with you. I want to keep loving you. I want to live our best lives together."
"I--" Revenant felt like he was choking. "This is all happening really fast," he confessed, "No one has ever asked me this before." It was true, despite living for hundreds of years, Revenant had never had a relationship get this serious before. Working as a hitman, he had found he couldn't form deep emotional bonds with other people, lest they be put in harm's way because of his job. So he had resigned himself to living the single life, never allowing any relationship to progress further than casual friendship.
"Well, I've never asked anyone this before, so we're even," Pathfinder's screen glowed brightly, displaying a happy face as he continued to kneel in the snow.
Revenant couldn't argue with that. "You can stand up," he mumbled, shifting his weight awkwardly from one foot to the other. "You don't need to...ugh, just get up here, please," he groaned.
Pathfinder got to his feet, holding the small box close to his chest. "I apologize if I've been overwhelming. I understand that it's a very serious question to ask."
"You're not...overwhelming. I mean, you are, but..." Revenant hedged, scratching the back of his head awkwardly and sighing. "It is a serious question! But I...I think about you every day, and I think about how with you around, it's easier to just...live. You've shown me all these things worth living for. You've been my...my friend, when I wouldn't let anyone else in." He took a deep breath, and took one of Pathfinder's hands into his own, bringing it up to his chest and holding it there gently. "I always want to be with you. How could I not?"
Pathfinder shivered as his hand was pressed to Revenant's chest, and he gripped the little box tightly in his other hand. "You've brought so much joy to my life. My best friend," He said quietly, gazing at Revenant with adoration. "I love you so much. Please don't ever let me go."
"I won't." Revenant stepped forward and took Pathfinder into his arms, pulling him close. Pathfinder slid his arms around his waist and rested his head on Revenant's shoulder as snowflakes softly fell over them, melting quickly as they hit warm metal. They stood there for a while, a glow seeming to settle over them despite the cold and snow.
Then Revenant chuckled to himself, and Pathfinder pulled back to look at him. "What's so funny?" he asked curiously.
"This whole thing is gonna really ruin my reputation as a heartless killing machine," Revenant mumbled, resting his forehead against Pathfinder's and lifting his hand to stroke the side of Pathfinder's head. "Never thought I'd get engaged. And with such a goddamn cute fiancé."
Pathfinder seemed to light up with happiness, his optic glowing brighter and an ecstatic face with heart eyes displaying on his screen. "Is that a yes?"
"Of course it is. Moron." Revenant gave him another, stronger headbutt, and Pathfinder giggled. "Let's see if this thing fits, huh?" Revenant untangled himself from Pathfinder, gently plucking the ring from the box that Pathfinder held, and slid it onto his finger.
It was tight around his joints, but when he pulled it down to the base of his ring finger, it fit comfortably. He admired it for a moment, then looked back at Pathfinder. "It's...nice," he mumbled, spinning it around his finger with his thumb. It was subtle, not too flashy, and the stone complemented his silver claws beautifully. "...Thank you." He took Pathfinder's hand in his own, lacing their fingers together.
"You're very welcome, best friend," Pathfinder replied softly. He stashed the ring box away and took Revenant's other hand, bringing it to his face and bumping against it, then did the same with their clasped hands. "I love you so much," he said solemnly, the face on his screen surrounded by hearts, but with a serious expression.
Revenant looked away, embarrassed. "...Love you too," he mumbled. Then something occurred to him. "Wait, should I get you a ring, too?" he asked, eyes wide. He had no idea how to shop for jewelry--or even how to walk into a jewelry store without the employees thinking he was going to either rob or murder them.
"Oh, you don't have to!" Pathfinder exclaimed hurriedly, but his screen told a different story--the ecstatic face with the heart eyes was back.
"I want to," Revenant said firmly. Maybe he could ask one of the other legends to help him, the way Pathfinder had gotten help from Bloodhound. Gibraltar had gotten married last year--he might be a good choice?
"O-okay," Pathfinder said shyly, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. "I--I'd like that very much, friend."
Revenant cursed the fact that he couldn't smile, because the sight of his boyfriend--no, his fiancé--being so damn adorable brought him actual, genuine joy. He settled for pulling Pathfinder in for another hug, nuzzling his cheek against the side of his face. "Why are you so goddamn perfect," he muttered.
"I would ask the same of you, friend!" Pathfinder laughed, and then he abruptly hoisted Revenant into the air by the waist.
"Hey now--" Revenant began as Pathfinder picked him up, then let out a yelp as he was spun around gleefully, only for Pathfinder to fall backwards and send them both tumbling in the snow.
Revenant made an offended noise and grabbed Pathfinder's wrists, straddling his waist and pinning him to the ground. "I'm gonna kill you," he grumbled, shaking his head to try and dislodge the snow that was sticking to him.
"Yeah?" Pathfinder prompted, a smug grin displayed on his screen. He didn't seem to have any kind of problem with his predicament. "And just how are you going to do that, friend?" The face on his screen blew a cheeky kiss to Revenant.
"Like this." Revenant let go of Pathfinder's wrists and scooped up a giant handful of snow, dropping it unceremoniously on Pathfinder's face.
Pathfinder sputtered, pushing Revenant away and trying to clear the snow off his optic. "Not fair!" he protested, half-blindly reaching around for some snow and shoving it in Revenant's face.
Revenant just cackled and jumped to his feet, already busy making a giant snowball and hurling it at Pathfinder. The MRVN squawked indignantly and returned fire, and soon it had escalated into an all-out snowball fight.
It was a good half hour later that they finally collapsed into each other's arms again, covered from head to toe in snowflakes and laughing breathlessly. Revenant grabbed Pathfinder's waist and pulled him in for another kiss, and Pathfinder sighed happily.
"This was very fun," Pathfinder remarked. "I can't wait to get married."
Revenant had to agree with him.