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Mydei does not say "I love you" in the more conventional ways.
He's not the kind of man who would feel the need to repeat it incessantly, for he has always found it easier to express himself with his actions rather than his words. It's obvious, he thinks, that the way he carries himself, the things he does for you, all stem from his care for you.
Concern for your needs turns into a quiet utterance while passing you a plate at the end of a long day. He's careful to hold it from the bottom so that you've no chance of scalding your palms when you do accept.
"Eat. You need food to properly fuel your body."
His dislike of seeing you inconvenienced leads to him dealing with whatever he deems to be unnecessary stress or work before you're given a chance to. Need to make a grocery run? Mydei will simply make a stop at Marmoreal Market before coming home.
There's no mention of it- only a neatly scribbled Shopping List at the top of a blank note where you usually keep your grocery list, and a pantry that won't need to be restocked anytime soon. When you inevitably notice and offer to pay him back, he'll tell you quite firmly not to bother, and nothing more.
If you press him further, asking to at least compensate him for the extra items he bought you, he'll scoff and say:
"You should have had them on your list anyway. I don't understand why you won't simply get things when you want them."
It's hard to take his criticism seriously, when it's coming from the very same man who you have never once seen purchase anything solely for himself. He too found it difficult to accept what was willingly offered; you'd once bought him a pomegranate, which he'd held onto for several days- occasionally simply staring at it like it was some vexing puzzle- before awkwardly asking if you'd eat it with him.
The commonality between it all, every one of his actions, is that he simply will not verbalize his reasoning for doing them.
He won't say that he knows you don't usually eat the healthiest because he pays attention to you and your habits- he won't tell you that he'll spend hours cooking for you because the thought of you not being properly cared for feels wrong- he won't say that he has an urge to do things for you because he loves you.
There is no explanation when it comes to Mydei. It is only "You haven't eaten much. Why?", or "There's something on your face, be still", and "Don't bother. It's been dealt with".
The Prince of Kremnos has always deemed doing and noticing to be the actions of assigning importance. If he's doing things for you, if he's noticing every little bit of you, then it must be because he feels that you're worthy of his efforts.
To Mydei, that is love.
He's so sure that you know this, in fact, that his very first admission of love had been an accident born out of confusion.
You'd only been teasing, something about how he might love you if- he couldn't remember, only that it had managed to bother him more than he would have liked.
Might love you- you spoke as if he did cook your meals, as if he did not come home to you every night, as if he didn't allow himself to linger in your presence like he did no other.
"What are you talking about?" His brows were rigid, harshly set like you'd said something completely incomprehensible.
"Of course I love you."
It had come out so simple, so sure- you'd thought you misheard him.
He knew then, from the way you looked at him, lips slightly parted, and all too silent, that he hadn't been quite as obvious as he'd initially thought.
"Mydei..." you hesitated just a moment, "you don't have to say it if it's not true. If in any way I've pressured you-"
He shook his head.
"I would not have said if it weren't true."
And then, quieter:
"I thought you knew."
The words have always come easier to you. Mydei hears your whispers in the early hours of the morning, when he runs his hand over your shoulder- just one more touch, one more look before he leaves. He does his best to be quiet, not to wake you, but you always know- always wake just enough to greet him before rolling back over with a low groan.
He hears it in the evenings, when the night comes to a close- in moments that you two alone share. It’s soft, it’s earnest, and it makes the world seem just a little easier, even if only for a moment.
Of course, the prince does not simply leave you waiting when you do profess your affections for him.
A nod, a hum- they come with a lowered tension in his jaw, the softening of his expression. As dismissive as it may sound to those outside of your relationship, you’ve come to know that it is really an acknowledgement, an acceptance and appreciation of the love you so freely give.
If you’re going out, these actions will be accompanied with an earnestly soft “be careful”, or “come find me if you need something”.
As your relationship progresses, these slowly turn into a more telling “you too”.
He finds it to be the easiest compromise. It’s casual enough that he has little trouble saying it, and yet meaningful enough that you will not mistake his feelings for less than they are.
It feels right to tell you, early in the morning after you’ve mustered up enough energy to murmur the words. He adjusts the covers back over you with particular attention, all too careful not to leave you cold.
“You too…” he’s not sure if you’ve heard him, or if you’ve already fallen back to sleep. “Rest well. I’ll return later, during the parting hour.”
It was not as though he was entirely averse to the thought of speaking the full extent of his feelings out loud; Mydei values open communication in your relationship. If you need something from him, he’d rather you just speak it aloud than bottle it up.
The issue is that he himself is not used to speaking of such things. There was no mention of love in the sea of souls- no discussions of sentimentality on death-stricken battlefields.
Sometimes he simply does not know how to say it, as simple as it may theoretically seem. Mydei is blunt in the most indirect ways. That is to say, he will not try to hide his thoughts and feelings from you when asked, but he will not always verbalize it on his own. Especially not when he himself is not always sure exactly what he’s experiencing, nor where it came from.
It may be a slow process, but you’re learning the ways of Mydeimos. You know he loves you in what he does say, and just as equally in what he does not.
You know what to expect when he’s come home after weeks away- closeness, a quiet intimacy that needs no explanation. The journey of the Flame-Chase keeps him busy, and consequently such reunions are not uncommon between the two of you.
He’s quiet when he reaches you, when he kneels on the floor and drops his head in your lap. In return, you say nothing, for silence and nearness may be the gentlest things you could offer him in a moment like this.
For a while, you simply run your fingers through his hair, tug lightly on the strands, and massage his scalp where you know he’s sure to have felt headaches.
You nearly miss it when he does speak, the words muffled against your clothes. But you know.
It’s just three words, and yet they mean everything when he is the one to say it.
“What was that?”
When he doesn’t answer, you trail your hand lower, rubbing slow circles against the knots you’re sure have formed in his shoulder.
“I did not know such words were a part of the language of Mydeimos.”
You laugh when he grunts at your tease- he knows you mean it in good fun.
“It’s alright.” You think you’d like to stay like this forever.
“I love you too.”