It was the look on his face that pierced her heart. Like the very depths of his soul had been torn to pieces, sliced open and bare for all to see. Corrin approached him slowly, studying the pain in his eyes, as he stared across the courtyard. He didn't say anything, not a greeting, not giving any indication that he had seen her at all.
"Leo?" Corrin sounded out his name gently and caught the infinitesimal flinch he made. "What's wrong?" Something flashed over his eyes. A glaze coloured the warm hazel of his eyes turning it cold, so very, very cold.
He huffed, the pain vanishing from his features, replaced with a frown. "Not now, Corrin." His voice was gruff, words curt and short. It had Corrin pausing, her heart sinking in her chest.
"What's the matter?" she tried again, stepping closer. He turned his gaze from her, his fringe shifting and blocking his eyes from her. "I know something's bothering you. Why won't you tell me? I might be able to help."
She was so earnest, so honestly wishing to help, that he almost told her. But he swallowed that feeling, the desire for something more, and clenched his hands into fists at his sides.
"…Could you please just leave me alone for a while?" He had to force the words out. He had to force a rough tone to cover the quaver in his voice. The silence that rang out weighed on his heart. He knew what he was doing by pushing her away like this. By hurting her.
He was doing it to save himself, to save face, to bury these feelings where she'd never find them.
"You… don't really mean that… right?" She drew back from him, worrying her bottom lip. He didn't look at her. He couldn't, or his façade would crumble.
"You're the last person I want to see right now."
"Oh." It was a gasp, a broken sob, that tore from her throat. And she fled without another word.
He told himself it was for the best. He repeated that again and again until it lost all meaning, until the words swirled around his mind, following him even in his dreams. She followed him into his dreams.
And those dreams did nothing to heal the wound on his heart. He would hear that sound again, that sob, that gasp, as she cried. And he hated to see her cry. He wanted nothing more than to embrace her, to brush away those tears and tell her that he was wrong.
That he loved her.
That he was sorry.
The next time he saw her, she was in Xander's arms. He could hear her crying from where he stood, each wail, each sob cutting into his heart. She clung to Xander for dear life. As if he was the only thing solid in the world, and he held her in return. His fingers in her hair. On her back.
A vile poison reared up Leo's throat at the sight. His fingers burned to tug her out of Xander's arms. To pull her into his own. But he'd had no right. He'd lost that, thrown it away gladly, as he pushed her away.
To see her in the arms of another was the worst kind of torture. To see her in the arms of his brother was like death itself had taken hold on his heart.
Xander met his eyes for a single moment, before Leo tore away.
Leo made himself scare after that, spending hour after hour in the library, drowning himself in books. The candle light burned low, dousing the room in a fuzzy orange glow. Leo thumbed the page, turned it, only to realise he hadn't read a single word. It was like that as of late. Staring at books. Unable to see the words, to see the appeal in solitude.
It was for the best.
But those words now carried no meaning.
When the door to the library clicked open, he barely had the energy to raise his eyes. He saw her standing there in the doorway, not yet fully inside, and he couldn't breathe. She'd stolen his breath simply by being there, and he'd known she'd taken his heart as well.
She'd taken it a long, long time ago.
"Leo…" He had to repress a shiver at the way she said his name. He hadn't heard her speak in so long, hadn't heard the way his name sounded on her tongue. It lit him aflame from within, sparking a desire, a feeling, he'd tried so desperately to bury.
He snatched his eyes from her, forced himself to focus on the text. The words blurred. He stiffened as footsteps sounded in the room, as the door clicked shut. All he could hear was her. She shifted closer and he wished to flee.
"I haven't seen you in a while," she said, coaxing him to look back at her. There was a soft smile on her face. Soft, questioning, cautious. She was treading carefully around him with her words and her gentle steps. Her hand brushed across the wooden desk, his eyes following its movement. He wanted to capture her hand. To brush his thumb against her skin, against the pulse at her wrist. Would it thrum as quickly as his? Would it jump beneath his touch?
Leo had no words to say. None came to him and all he did was nod. The warm light of the candle cast deep shadows across her face. Shadows that made her eyes look red and raw.
"How are you doing?" she continued as if he'd answered her. As if he still wasn't desperately trying to push her away. "Are you studying a new text? What's this one about?"
She came closer and he stiffened with every step she took. He caught the faint whiff of soap and tea, and when she leant down to study the book her hair dusted his shoulder. The strands of her hair glowed silver in the low light. They almost sparkled. Like moonlight.
He wondered if he took a strand to his lips and kissed it, would it feel as cold as the night air? Would he be able to taste the stardust that coloured her hair?
He wanted to kiss her hair. He wanted to kiss her.
She met his eyes, and she was at the perfect height to kiss. There was but a breath of distance between them. A question in her eyes. A heat on his cheeks and a warm glow on hers. He straightened, shattering that moment.
"You wanted to help me," he said, studying her eyes. That beautiful crimson. Warm and bright like a flame, like the very fire magic he wielded. There was a fire burning on his cheeks that was a different kind of magic.
She nodded silently. Waited for him to speak again.
"I have a problem, and for the life of me I can't figure out a solution." He sat back, folding his arms, and finally, finally, gave her the slightest smile.
Her lips quirked in return. "There's something even the great Leo can't figure out?" Corrin jested lightly. Her eyes sparkled with beads of joy. Leo wished he could ignore the flutter of his heart. "What could it be?"
Leo mulled over his words before he spoke. "There's something I want. Something I desire, and yet I don't know how to go about obtaining it." He met her eyes as his heart thrummed in his chest. He no longer held back the heat in his eyes, though she didn't notice. "I've never had a problem I couldn't think my way out of. I know it would be foolish to act without proper planning… and yet, I don't think I can hold myself back any longer." His voice lowered as he spoke, reaching a deep timbre, and Corrin straightened.
She blinked at him in surprise, eyes flicking from his as if she had trouble holding his gaze. Leo stood, trailing his hand across the desk casually, so that it rested inches from her own. She was looking up at him so innocently he couldn't help but want to tease her a little.
"Leo…" A knot built between her brows. "If it means that much to you, you have to go for it! What is it you want?" She tilted her head questioningly.
Leo slipped his hand over hers. She glanced down at their hands, back at him. Her hand was soft. He gently turned it in his hand, so that her hand sat in his own. He brushed his thumb across her palm. He caught the small gasp she made, his heart soaring at her reaction. He leant closer now, saw her eyes widen, her lips part, as he pressed his mouth to her ear.
"Do you want to know what it is I desire?" he asked, before purposely trailing his lips across her cheek. She shivered and when he pulled back, she cupped her cheek with her free hand. Her cheeks were burning as brilliantly as her eyes, a perfect scarlet.
The only sound she made was a tiny squeak. He could draw this out for longer, but his heart ached, the weight of the ring in his pocket heavier than ever. The devious grin on his face faded to a gentle smile.
"Perhaps this will make things clear," he said and placed the ring in her hand. It was a simple silver ring with a single inset diamond. Corrin stared down at it, cupped it in her hand, before staring at Leo in turn.
"Wait… this is a ring," she said, frowning.
Leo almost laughed. "Keen as ever, I see."
"I-I don't understand…"
He knew she did. He knew she wanted him to say it, to finally speak those words that had burned in his throat for so long.
"As you might have surmised, this isn't just any ring," Leo said. Corrin couldn't meet his eyes now. She stared down at the ring, holding it tightly as if it might slip through her fingers and pass through the floorboards beneath her. "It's an engagement ring."
She swallowed. Leo followed the movement with his eyes, raised a hand and dusted her neck with his fingers. She raised her head now, he cupped her cheek. Her eyes glistened with tears.
"I've been battling these feelings since I first learned we aren't blood related. But, as I said, I cannot hold them back any longer."
"Does that mean…?" Her voice was as light as a whisper. A question only loud enough to bridge the gap between them.
"Dear Corrin…" He loved the way her eyes widened at the sound of her name. The way she was looking at him now. He could have been dreaming. He would never wish to wake again if only to spend another second with her. "It seems I've fallen madly in love with you."
"L-Leo…" Corrin ducked her head shyly, but Leo lifted her chin with his hand to meet her eyes again. "I… don't know what to say." She was smiling. Her lips twitching as she struggled not to break into a stupid, giddy grin.
Leo found himself flushing under her smile. "I know– it's just… you're all I ever think about. I love you so much, it's agony."
Corrin flustered, unable to turn her head as Leo cupped her cheek. Any words she could have said died in her throat.
"I'm sorry… that was probably the last thing you expected me to say." Leo dropped his hand and took a short step backwards. "But I couldn't continue pretending I didn't have these feelings for you. Now that it's out there, I must know… do you feel the same?"
Corrin exhaled sharply, a breath of relief, of wonder. "Yes. Yes, I love you." She laughed now as Leo's mouth dropped open. "I'm so glad you said something. I don't think I ever would have had the courage to tell you."
"R-Really?" Leo closed the gap between them, no longer caring that his voice wavered, that he stammered, that his cheeks were burning. He took her hand now, the ring she held, and slipped it onto her finger. "I've hidden my feelings for so long… I can't believe you felt the same way all this time." He pressed a kiss to her cheek as she breathed a beat of laughter. It wasn't enough, and he kissed her other cheek.
"Leo…" she turned to capture his lips with her own but he ducked his head, kissing her chin.
"Yes, my dear?" She squawked and jumped as he ran his fingers teasingly up her sides. She swatted his hands and he took the moment to press a kiss to her forehead. "Leo!"
Corrin pouted, cheeks puffed and red, lips pressed together in a hard line.
"Do you want a kiss that badly?" Leo teased. He raised a hand up slowly, pressing his knuckles to her lips. She moved her lips against his hand, sending a jolt of electricity through his body. She kissed his knuckle, teasing the skin with her teeth and tongue. He yanked his hand back as if her touch had burned.
She laughed, and he knew she'd beaten him at his own game. As much as he loved her laugh, he loved her more, and kissed her fully, properly. She smiled against his lips and his heart soared.
He never wanted to be apart from her again.