Laphicet was deep asleep. It'd been a tough day for him, but the fever was finally going down. Artorius' duties as an exorcist and the need to protect their small hometown kept him busy from dawn to dusk almost daily, but whenever he had a chance, he'd sit close to Laphicet and watch him through his struggle; the boy's bad days were starting to get even harder on him, and it wasn't a secret anymore now that they both knew the reason behind it. They also knew time was short for many, many reasons, and the final moment was coming as fast as the Scarlet Night.
And yet, Laphicet wouldn't give in. He was still trying to fly with his own wings in any way he could — and probably the only way left for him — because it was what he must do. The relaxed muscles on his sleepy face were very different from the determined boy Arthur had faced just a few days before. The one who had already decided to fly with his own wings, even though he thought they were weak, when they were in fact anything but that. It was what he must do, where his wings led him to along with his strong will, and he'd already accepted it without showing doubts or worries. He knew what his sacrifice meant, and it was his time to embrace the skies as he'd dreamed for so long.
Would his sister be able to understand any of it, though? No, probably not… Although Laphicet was sleeping quietly, Artorius could imagine Velvet turning around in her bed while worrying about the money for his medicine. Laphicet had asked for his secret just as he'd asked to be the sacrifice for the revival of Innominat himself, and it was without a doubt because he knew his sister probably wouldn't be able to understand or even just accept the simple facts in front of her eyes.
Her eyes… even when facing simple foes, they burned with emotion in the heat of battle. Anger, fear, confidence, even the joy of winning a fight and living to see another day, it was all so foolishly on display when she was so easy to read. He'd already told her again and again, and yet, there was no changing Velvet.
Don't despair… no matter what. That's what he'd told her that horrible night that felt like a lifetime ago. Artorius probably understood the meaning in those words better than anyone else, and it was exactly because he didn't want to look at Velvet and see the depth of that despair burning in her eyes and flowing through all of her being that he decided to go as far as he did. Because he knew that feeling too well.
He knew that pain better than anyone else, and he was just a simple fool. Another fool who just wished he could save everyone, and yet, those most precious to him were the hardest to reach. A fool who'd lived through too many broken promises, and who made himself keep going no matter what to see the day when humans wouldn't need to be in pain anymore, only to learn that none of that changed the irrefutable truth of the facts in front of him. None of that would change as long as humans continued to be slaves to their own emotions.
Would Velvet be able to see that, though? Would she be able to understand it, or would she have to face it with her own eyes to realize that will and reason ultimately prevail in the face of calamity? Her will was strong, undoubtedly, but she still relied of emotions too much for her own well being.
Meanwhile, Laphicet was still asleep, as calm as only someone who understood the weight of this undeniable truth and the consequences of his own choices could be. The siblings both had very strong-willed wings to fly, and yet, the ways they chose to use them couldn't be more different. But seeing Laphicet so in peace with his own decision, Arthur couldn't help but wonder… Was this peace what he was striving for? Was this calm the reason why he decided mankind must be suppressed and deprived of its emotions?
It made things easier, right? Making the pain go away? Wasn't that the reason why "Arthur" was also lost that night?
Maybe his pain would finally have an end as well.