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"Sid... When we met, I told you there was something I was looking for." Fray sighed as he ran a hand through his blue-streaked raven-dark hair. The laughter that had been at his throat but moments before had died—faded at first and then gone all at once, just like the evening light so many hours before. "The truth is, I didn't really know what it was. There was... a piece of me, that felt empty, and even with you and Rielle there beside me, I was still missing something I couldn't name."
Sidurgu lowered his drink and looked at Fray with a spark of unease twitching at the corner of his eye. They'd been together all evening, sharing stories and woes, plots and dreams, just like they always did. After Fray's week-long disappearance, Sid had come to fear the worst—the Temple Knights were not known to be kind to dark knights, after all—so when he arrived suddenly at their haunt looking no worse for wear, all he could feel was joy and relief.
But now...
"Sid, I came to say goodbye."
Sidurgu's face sank like a stone. His brows creased tight, and though there were questions ready to burst from his lips, Fray kept going.
"The time I spent with you was precious," Fray said, "And I'll treasure those memories dearly. But, I found what I was missing." The smile on his face was fond, yet the look in his eyes was as firm and immovable as the very mountains that flanked Ishgard itself. "Don't mourn me too much; I'm not dying. I won't be far, but... I doubt we'll speak again."
With that, Fray rose; the sound of his mug settling on the table with the dull thud of wood on wood felt like a stamp of finality. "You were like a brother to me, Sid. You and Rielle both—you were the only family I thought I had ever known. Thank you." He paused. "When she wakes, tell Rielle... That I couldn't have dreamed of a better daughter."
And with no further pleasantries, he was gone, leaving Sid looking gobsmacked and alone at their table in the Forgotten Knight. When he collected his faculties enough to give chase, however, the only figure he saw walking away from those heavy wooden doors was a lone miqo'te, and nothing more.