A/N: My favourite ship got its debut together in the latest MKX trailer.
He would take his hat off and give a slight bow, a smile tugging at his lips although she knew it was because he was trying so very hard to keep himself from laughing. But he would manage all too well and with a voice so rich and so vibrant declare his salutations to her.
"Milady!" was what he said for the first time and it prompted her to lift a brow. Yes, she grinned as well because she could not even fathom the gall this man had; if anything, he was the one that looked like the fool. And yet, appalling as it was, there was something so amusing in the way he swayed his arm in an exaggerated fashion, in the way he deepened his voice when he uttered the greeting, in the way he would catch himself midway into a chortle.
He had a different title every time.
"Your Highness!"
"Your Majesty!"
"Your Holiness!"
"Your Graciousness!"
And when he had exhausted his vocabulary, he would make up new ones.
"Your Princesslyness!"
"Your Royalness!"
"Your Beautifulness!"
"Your Niceness!"
When their last day had come and she stood at the gates of her world, receiving farewells from friends she vowed to treasure in her memories and in her dreams, he removed his hat, made an impressive bow and exclaimed, "Your Remember-us-in-your-prayers-ness!"
She knew that he had finally run out of words.
So then the day came when the gods decreed yet another battle, yet more bloodshed, bringing an end to the quiet peace that seemed only fleeting within all those years gone by. They met again, he with hair now silver, a face now marked with creases, a gait now slightly hunched and a voice now soft and hushed. He made no haste as he took off his headgear, now worn and blunt, gave an elegant and boomed the words, "Your I-have-missed-you-very-much-ness!"
The laugh that had risen from her lungs turned into a sob once it left her mouth. She tried to grin, truly she did, but the sadness and the happiness that fought to overwhelm her made the task that much more difficult. So she stood, shaking, face wet with hot tears and a broken smile on her lips. And through her muddled vision, she saw his aged eyes glimmer as well, gripped by the very emotions that were plaguing her.
And like the laughter he had once fought hard to retain, so he held back his tears.