Chapter Text
Starry skies, moonlit seas, and the feeling of Alphinaud’s hand in hers is really all she could ask for. As they walked down the pier, her gaze fell to the way that their hands connected. More familiar, less stiff, everything that they haven’t had the time for. Everything she happily admits she likes.
The two settle on a bench, shoulders brushed against the other. Despite her earlier musing, she believes that she can ask for a bit more – especially when it’s him.
“Alphinaud?” Amaris’ voice cuts through the comfortable silence as gently as the waves crash against the pier they sit upon.
“Hm?” He hums as he leans into her.
“When did you realize that you loved me?” The question is earnest and vulnerable, and it serves to prompt Alphinaud’s face to morph from serene contentment, to surprise, and back to that very same contentment in a matter of moments. “No flowery words either. Specifically when.” She adds with a bashful smile.
Alphinaud laughs – her favorite sound – and it pulls a laugh from her own lips. She’d be happy to laugh with him for the rest of time, but the nature of her question has her steeling herself against his unintended charms.
“Alphinaud…” Her voice trails off, a teasing chide in her voice. His hand cups at her cheek and she lets herself melt into it.
“Apologies, it is just…” He muses on these next words for a moment before settling. “...I’m afraid it is not quite as romantic as I would prefer it to be.” His words are not meant with malice, rather they are just as vulnerable as her question. His hand slips from her cheek to grasp at her hand. “The truth is that I realized I loved you after spending an entire evening in Kugane rolling in my sheets over the notion.” Alphinaud confessed, a subtle embarrassment in his voice and a soft grip on her hand.
“And what brought that on?” Her question is bookended by a soft laugh as she attempts to catch his gaze that is distinctly focused on the distant horizon. His eyes are pensive yet there is a soft smile on her lips.
“It was after we had met with Hancock and he gifted you that Allagan coat you love so much. I remember how you twirled in the mirror like you had not a single care in the world and how I wished that I was the one that made you feel that way.” He explains. “I spent the entire day painstakingly trying to understand what it meant, as humorous as that may sound. When I finally figured it out, it hit me like a bolt of levin so much that I shot straight from my futon.” Alphinaud let out a breathless laugh causing Amaris to do the same.
He turned his body towards her ever-so-slightly, his eyes still on the horizon. “One moment I was content to stand by you as a friend as I always had and the next, I found myself unable to even meet your eye at the thought you may see right through me.” He admitted. “I did eventually fall asleep, but to my surprise and for the first time in ages, I overslept. Not even our most complicated of trials had caused me such an uncharacteristic evening.” His words are fond — like the way someone speaks when remembering a favored childhood story.
Amaris leans her head into the crook of his neck, a smile on her lips. “Is it bad that I feel a little flattered?” She laughs, her fingers poking at his thigh.
“Mayhaps so, yes.” Alphinaud mused. “I wish I had realized sooner.” His words are vulnerable yet again, a coating of longing drizzled across the sentence.
She feels the way his hand loosens its grip on her own — intentional or otherwise. Determined, she holds his hand with practiced familiarity. With love.
“Do you wanna know when I realized I loved you?” Amaris cuts through his internal quiet with the temptation of knowledge that he did not yet quite know. He nods and as anticipated, she feels his hand hold hers firmly yet again. “After the fight with Lahabrea inside of the Praetorium, I remember how you were the first one to check on me. I was so scared for Thancred and while everyone fussed over him, you fussed over me.” She continued, her free hand covering their intertwined fingers. “I don’t know how I would have reacted if you didn’t turn my attention away from it all.”
Alphinaud is speechless – a rare occurrence. Amaris can see the way he searches for words to reply, but she beats him to the punch.
“I know that you didn’t mean anything by it at the time but it made me realize that my feelings for you were waaaaayyyy more than just a crush.” Amaris says, her head tilting up to his with a smile. He sighs, his smile and posture melted by her.
“Hard to believe I did something right back then.” Alphinaud chuckles, the phrase in mostly jest with a hint of honesty. She flashes him a mix of a pout and a smile before pressing a kiss to his lips.
“Be nicer to yourself, okay?” She whispers against his lips, her hands finding purchase against the shoulders of his coat. “I know you try to make it sound like some sort of joke, but I fell in love with the boy you were back then and continue to love the young man that you are now.” Amaris kisses him again as a punctuation.
He replies in turn with soft kisses and gentle touches against her waist. The sound of the waters below seem to match in time with those kisses.
“I’ll endeavor not to forget that.” He presses his forehead against her own, a smile on his lips. The two are silent for a moment before Amaris pulls away, a pensive hand brought to her lips. Alphinaud meets her pensiveness with his own. “Is something wrong?” He asks with soft furrowed brows.
“Oh no it’s just…” Amaris begins, her voice soft before turning to cheek. “...do you suppose I owe Hancock a thank you for more than just the coat?” The words were barely able to slip from her lips before Alphinaud’s arms pulled her into him.
“Not a chance.” He replies as the two share laughter – lighthearted in a way that brighted the quiet Tuliyollal night.