Work Text:
It was the eve of the first month following the creation of Elysium. The heroes of Alrest, a boy and his two blades, had just spent the last day traveling from their village of Fonsett to survey the new land.
They stayed in the temporary housing that had already been erected. Although it was mostly for refugees from the fallen Indoline titan, the combined efforts of the Ardainian and Urayan governments allowed for more than enough shelter to be built.
Special Inquisitor Mòrag of Mor Ardain, and their friend, made sure that their offer to spend the trip camping outside was rejected. And so, on a bright and sunny morning, the trio found themselves waking up to a home away from home.
Mythra was the last to rise, or rather, that’s what she had them believe. Truthfully, she’d gotten little to no sleep the previous night. Something had been bothering her ever since the day the world tree fell, it wasn’t as obvious then, the joy of reuniting with Rex did its part in covering everything else. But now, the closer they walked into Elysium, the more apparent her feelings became.
Mythra walked down the stairs with purpose in her steps. In the kitchen, she could see Rex busy chowing down on breakfast and Pyra humming quietly while washing dishes.
“We need to talk,” she said simply.
Rex, halfway chewing his food, looked up with his spoon still in his mouth. “I didn’t do anything!” he exclaimed like he’d just been caught red-handed. “I think?”
“Not you.” Mythra stamped her feet impatiently, pointing at Pyra. “Her.”
Pyra looked over to her, stopping what she was doing. She dropped the pan she was holding into the sink and walked over. Mythra could tell Pyra sensed something was wrong with the look she was giving her.
“What’s going on?” Pyra inquired.
Mythra grabbed her hand. “Come with me.”
Pyra blinked twice with a confused expression on her face but nevertheless began to follow Mythra as she tugged her along.
“Are you two going to be alright?” Rex called out from the side, concern genuine on his face.
Pyra turned back and smiled gently. “Yeah, don’t worry.”
Mythra offered no such reassurance, giving only a quick wave as they made their way out of the house. The road, or lack thereof, to where she was leading them wasn’t a long one. It was a straight shot through the forest next to the town market. She’d found the spot the previous evening on a stroll. For no particular reason at all, she decided to venture out further and was rewarded for her curiosity.
She began running the closer she got, ignoring the thicket scratching up her skin. This was her nerves, making itself more apparent in anticipation of the upcoming conversation, her heart pumping with renewed adrenaline.
“Slow down!” She heard Pyra call out from behind her. “Where are we going?”
By the time she’d broken through the forest line, Pyra was trailing from afar. She waited patiently, and in a few moments, she could hear the leaves rustling and being pulled aside.
Pyra poked her head out and brushed herself off before her eyes lit up. “My goodness…”
It was the same wonder that Mythra had when she came upon this scene. Elysium, their Elysium, laid before her eyes. An endless field of grass, a lone hill with a single tree, the blue sky filled with white clouds, nary a bird in sight.
“It’s beautiful,” Pyra said while walking up the hill. “It looks just like where we used to sit in our memories.”
“The only thing missing is that infernal ringing bell. To think that it used to drive me mad. And now… ” she whispered, “I kind of miss it.”
Mythra sat down in the shade, letting the soft grass brush up against her. She shivered a little, partially because of the breeze, partially because of how she felt. As if to protect herself, she curled up slightly, wrapping her arms around her legs, leaning her head into her knees.
“Mythra.” Pyra put a hand on her shoulder. “What’s wrong?”
She looked up and saw Pyra full of worry, making her feel just that much worse.
“Your eyes.”
“My eyes?” Pyra put a hand up to her face. “Oh, you mean the color changing?”
Pyra’s eyes used to be faintly gold, the red was sharp enough that not many would notice. But I did. When we returned, the gold faded, and was completely lost over the weeks.
Pyra continued. “Well, now that we’re separated, it makes sense they lost a bit of color. I always figured that glow wasn’t completely mine.”
“You knew?” Mythra asked in a whisper.
“That you and I were different?” Pyra sat down beside her, looking up at the leaves shaking in the wind. “I had a hunch. But nothing more than that. I knew as much as you.”
Mythra’s lips trembled as she stared at Pyra. “I just… I don’t really know anymore.” The gates to herself slowly opened, and she couldn’t stop herself from rambling. “All this time, I thought we were the same person. I let you carry my burdens, hid behind you, only to steal a part of the person you love when all of it was over.”
“Mythra…”
“Milton, the people I killed in Torna, all my fears and nightmares.” Mythra’s voice hitched, letting out a shaky breath. “You didn’t deserve that punishment.”
Still staring into the ground, Mythra felt Pyra hug her. Pyra’s hands were shaking and warm from uncontrolled ether, which always happened when she was nervous. Pyra paused for just a moment before her hands stopped shaking.
“And yet I would’ve chosen to carry it all the same.”
Mythra froze. “Why?”
Pyra seemed to have sensed her distress, and gave Mythra a gentle squeeze in response. “Because sharing a body isn’t what’s important,” she said quietly. Mythra almost dared not to meet Pyra’s gaze as she spoke, but was surprised by the intent stare filled with a steely resolve that rested in Pyra’s eyes. “Maybe we are two different people, maybe not, I don’t know. But I do know that no matter what happens, we are of one soul.”
“But—”
“Even if we aren’t. It makes no difference.” Pyra smiled. “In the end it’s my choice, because I love you.”
Mythra blushed ten different shades of pink, emotions ranging from embarrassment to warmth swirled like a hurricane within her. It was impossible to pick out what she truly felt, but at that point, she knew it didn’t matter anymore.
It must’ve also given Pyra the wrong idea because she also blushed before backtracking. “Not in that way!” Pyra exclaimed. “Like… sisters.”
“That’s not what I was thinking either!” she sputtered in protest and looked away. “I’ve just never heard you say it.”
In the end, relief was the final emotion that won out, and Mythra felt a wave of it wash over her. She leaned back, resting her head on Pyra’s lap and closing her eyes.
“Like sisters, huh?” Mythra whispered. “I think… I would like that.”
She couldn’t see Pyra, but she could tell there was a smile on her face. “Then it’s settled.”
Sisters. What a foreign concept to her. All her life, the only sibling she’d known was an asshole brother who was hell-bent on making her life as miserable as possible. Now everything has changed, there was someone who cared about her, someone who loved her unconditionally.
For a while afterward, all was quiet. Pyra took advantage of that to run her fingers through Mythra’s hair, brushing gently through her golden locks. It felt nice, and both of them decided to stay in the moment for a while.
That was until Mythra got a boop on her nose. She opened her eyes to see Pyra with a curious expression on her face.
“Do you really think that Rex doesn’t love you as much?” Pyra asked.
She winced and sat up, not forgetting about that part of her outburst.
“No, I mean—” She stumbled around trying to find the words. “It’s just, he’s always so reserved around me.”
“He’s a little dense, he thinks it’s his way of respecting your boundaries. I’m sure if you told him how much you love him, he would understand you better.”
“Yeah, well, I’m not sure how I can express that, y’know?”
Pyra shook her head. “Honestly, maybe you’re both a little dense.”
“Hey!”
“Besides, I told you, we share a soul.” Pyra tapped her core crystal and then tapped Mythra’s. “If he didn’t love you, he wouldn’t love me either.”
“Pyra…” Mythra stared at her before breaking out into a small chuckle. “Thanks.”
With that, Pyra stood up and yawned. “Speaking of Rex, we better head back before he gets too worried and starts to look for us.”
“Yeah,” said Mythra in agreement. “Wouldn’t want him finding us here, this is our secret spot now and I’m not sharing.”
“You better hope he shares,” she giggled while stretching out her arms. “I made seafood scramble this morning, and we left him alone with all of it.”
“What?!” Mythra cried out. “You didn’t tell me! I have to go get some right now!”
“If there’s any left. You know how much Rex loves his crustips.”
Mythra bolted up fast, she knew she’d smelled something delicious when she woke up. Being too preoccupied to care was one thing, but now that she was free, she was damn sure she was going to get a taste of Pyra’s cooking.
Down the hill and into the forest, she ran and made sure to pull Pyra along. Mythra’s laughter flew into the distance, letting nothing impede it. After all, she was finally happy with how everything turned out.