This takes place immediately following the events at Dundrasil and contains spoilers for events up until that point.

Note: Rhys is the name of my hero and thus that is what he is called in this fic.

I own nothing! Enjoy~

(Don't) Make like A World Tree

Erdwin's Lantern shone brightly in the night sky. With its deep red colour and strong pulsations, it stood out among the other celestial bodies. Each time Rhys tossed and turned, he ended back on his back, staring at it. The Star of the Luminary. It should be a comfort to him but tonight it simply seemed ominous. Suffocating. Rhys quickly closed his eyes, trying for the umpteenth time to fall asleep but to no avail.

The day's events ran through his mind- the ruins of Dundrasil, Rab and Jade's revelations... He couldn't stop thinking about it. Twice now it had happened. Twice now had so many people been killed because of him. Just because he had been there. Because they had known him - as Rhys the boy from the village or as the Prince of Dundrasil- it didn't matter what they knew him as. The fact was that he had brought ruin to them. Fear gripped him- who would be next? He opened his eyes to glance at his side where Erik was sleeping. They always slept close together though they did keep more of a distance now that they weren't completely alone any more. What if he caused him harm? Or Veronica? Serena? Any of them? They could have been caught and executed today. Erik had already been used as bait for him once before - it could happen again and next time it might not end so well.

They're safer without me.

And just like that Rhys made a decision: Luminary or Darkspawn - it was his burden to bear. No-one else's. So bear it, he would, and alone, far away from any he had come to care about so he knew that at least they were safe for now. There was no time for hesitation. If he was going to do this he should do it now but even as he tried to mentally spur himself on, he was reluctant to get up. I'm going to miss them.

Better that than to lose them completely. With that in mind, he slowly got up, as silently as possible so as not to wake Erik. The others were snoring away at a distance. He gathered his bags, making sure he had the Rainbough and the Orbs, and made to walk off.

He couldn't resist turning around one last time. He looked at Erik, fighting the urge to wake him, to confide in him, to ask him to come with him. The ex-thief had been with him since the start. If anyone could understand Rhys, it was him. Rhys tore his gaze away from his friend and let it glide over the campsite and his companions. Lastly, he came to Rab. The old man was sitting a little ways off and, Rhys noted, wasn't asleep after all. Having noticed his stare, Rab turned to him and once more Rhys could clearly see the raw emotion behind the man's eyes. That feeling of loss beyond compare. It was still hard to phantom that this man was his grandfather. It didn't feel right to him. He didn't know him and he already had a grandfather whom he loved dearly. So when Rab suggested he'd be called Rab still, it had actually been a relief to Rhys.

But that was something that would no longer be a worry if he left. Briefly, he wondered if the old man would stop him. Rhys gave him a respectful nod, looked in the direction of the ruins of Dundrasil, and back again. Rab gave a small nod back. Good. If Rhys was right, the old man would think he was merely going for a walk to clear his mind, pay his respects. That wasn't entirely a lie either.

It was time to go. After one last glance at Erik's sleeping form, he headed off towards the ruins of his birthplace. To the grave of the family he had never known.

It truly was a humble grave for the royal family of this once great kingdom. Now that he stood before it, Rhys had no idea what he was really doing there. He could still see the pain and sadness in Rab's eyes as vividly as when he relayed his family history, in this selfsame spot, earlier that day. No, not just his history- their history yet also not. This kingdom -he might have been born here but it was not his home. These people - Rab's daughter, the kind Queen Eleanor that Jade so adored, she might've been given birth to him but she was not his mother. The feeling of loss that had enveloped him as he learnt the truth was not his own - it had been Rab's, and Jade's. He grieved for the people of Dundrasil but not as their Prince, more like a stranger who hears of a great tragedy that happened far across the sea.

Yet when they comforted him, he dared not contradict them. He understood the feeling of losing everything you ever knew painfully clearly after all. Here it was not his but it echoed within him and when he closed his eyes he was once more standing among the ruin of Cobblestone...

"Hey." The greeting startled Rhys out of his thoughts. He turned around to find Erik standing there, his hands in front of him, wringing, debating between coming closer and keeping a respectful distance. Rhys wondered how long his friend had been standing there - watching him, the worry clearly evident in deep blue eyes. How had he even known he was here?

As if reading his mind, Erik answered his unspoken question. "Your grandfather told me you'd be here."

He's not my grandfather.

The thought sprung up in his mind but was left unspoken as well. It felt wrong to say it out loud. Mean and unfair to the man who had already lost so much. And yet- acknowledging Rab as such felt like a betrayal to his Grandpa -to Chalky- as well.

"I mean- the old man, Rab, did." Rhys' eyes widened slightly at the correction.

How did Erik do that? Had his expression revealed his inner thoughts?

Erik sighed, a hand instinctively going into his wild spikes as it always did when he felt unsure, or uncomfortable. The sight of him suddenly made Rhys' plan to leave them and continue on his own seem even less appealing than it ever had. Rhys wanted to confide in Erik more than anything, wanted to be comforted by him just as he had been before- did that make him selfish? Did he even deserve to have someone like Erik to rely on when all he seemed to do was cause misery to any that had loved him? What if- what if something terrible happened to his companions simply because they were his companions? Hendrik and Jasper had made it clear that any foolish enough to side with him would pay the price. Was he ju-

"It must be strange."

Rhys blinked, his train of thought completely lost by Erik's sudden interruption. The other had moved closer; standing beside him now, his gaze aimed at the grave instead of the man he was addressing. How long had he been zoned out for?

Rhys nodded, waiting just a fraction of a second before adding, "It's my homeland and yet it isn't." She's my mother and yet she isn't.

A hand pressed softly against his arm. Rhys looked down into Erik's worried gaze. The former thief's voice was barely a whisper as he spoke, "You were thinking of Cobblestone, weren't you?"

Rhys was shocked. Erik understood. Of course he did, if not him then who ever could? He had been there. And yet still, to hear the words spoken aloud, it somehow made it impossible to deny his grief any longer. Something in him broke then and there, the dam that had walled off his emotions cracked and the floodgates were opened. Not once before had he cried - not even at Cobblestone but now he felt the salty tears slide down his cheeks and try as he might he couldn't stop them. He tried to speak - to apologize for breaking down- but nothing came but sobs and hiccups.

"Hey, hey, it's okay, it's okay." Erik stepped closer and pulled his head down on his shoulder. "Just cry- let it all out. It's okay."

And he did. For the first time, he cried and cried and cried until his throat went sore and his tears were spent. All the while, Erik held him tight, running comforting circles on his back, yet not saying a word. In the end it was Rhys who broke the silence.

"It's all my fault." He breathed out when his frantic breathing had calmed enough to let him. "Cobblestone, Dundrasil,... it's-"

Erik pulled away, and caught his gaze, "Stop that! This is not your fault, you hear me? You didn't do this. Any of it." His tone was stern yet soft. Rhys felt his insides contort- what had he done to deserve Erik? He didn't deserve his reassurance. He didn't deserve any of his companions.

"But it is. Dundrasil was destroyed because I was born there. Cobblestone was destroyed because I was raised there." He could see Erik open his mouth to protest but he ignored it and quickly rushed on, his need to admit his guilt having grown too great to bear any longer. "My mother, Gemma, everyone... they're gone because of me! Rab lost his daughter, his family, his kingdom because of me! Jade lost her Eleanor- and her future...all that death, all that suffering..."

A moment of silence followed his rush of words. Erik simply looked at him and waited, his hands still on Rhys' arms. Rhys took in a deep breath and slowly let it out. "Sometimes... I think I really am the Darkspawn." Oddly enough, he felt lighter, having finally voiced his greatest fear. Erik's eyes softened.

"You're not. How could you be? Would the Darkspawn ever feel guilty? Or empathy? Regret? Of course not." Erik reached out a hand and softly touched Rhys' cheek. He gently wiped away a stray tear. "But you do. You feel all this and more. Even if you don't show it that often." A sound between a sob and laugh escaped Rhys. Erik smiled softly, "You could never be anything like the Darkspawn. You bring light to m- to the world. You are the Luminary."

A warmth spread through Rhys at Erik's words but with it soon came that cold fear of loss. When he looked at Erik, the fear grew. He didn't want to lose anyone else that he loved ever again nor make them suffer the loss of those they loved. Erik tilted his head a little, "There's more, isn't there?" His voice was soothing. Encouraging. Rhys took another deep breath.

" I- I am scared." Rhys admitted, "I am scared that everyone that associates with me will suffer." He placed a hand over Erik's, still on his cheek, torn between wanting to lean into the touch and pulling away from it. In the end, he just kept it there, doing nothing. "It would be better if I had never met any of them..." For a fraction of a second, Erik's gaze flickered to their joined hands before returning to Rhys' eyes. Then, with a conviction so strong it made Rhys recoil, Erik answered, "I will never regret meeting you. Whatever the outcome of our journey, I am lucky to have been at your side through it all."

Rhys was at a loss for words. He had known Erik had a lot of faith in him but he'd never known the other felt so strongly about him. "Erik..."

The fire in Erik's eyes subsided and he pulled his hand away from Rhys, his gaze darting to the side, refusing to meet Rhys'. "I mean- I'm sure that's how we all feel." He took a deep breath looking up again, "What I mean is, don't you ever again dare to say we were better off without you. How do you think the people of Cobblestone would feel if they heard you now?" Rhys made no reply. There was no need for one as Erik seemed to read it in his eyes anyway and immediately carried on, "Would you betray the kindness, the love, they showed you by now cursing it?" Rhys stared at Erik in shock but the former thief was not finished yet. "And don't even dare think of carrying on alone and leaving us behind!" How could Erik possibly know he had been planning to do that? How?

"It would be for the best." He managed to get in-between Erik's monologue but all he got for the effort was a snort and an angry glare. "Really? So you would leave us and take away Rab's only remaining family? Jade's newfound hope? You would crush Sylv's dream of a world of laughter? Deny Veronica and Serena their sacred mission, their duty, after all they went through to find you? You would-" He stopped short, his voice, which had been rising steadily as he spoke, lowered to a whisper once more, "You would leave me without a destiny? Without- without my partner?"

Rhys had no time even to formulate a thought as the words had barely left Erik when, as if on cue, a bright light erupted from his bag. Rhys took out the Rainbough and was promptly thrust into a vision of the past. The events of the past months came flashing by - beginning with Jade rescuing him from Hendrik, Rab's tale and his deep sorrow, Sylvando saving them with the Salty Stallion, his persuasion of Prince Faris, Serena making the birdsong nectar, Veronica blasting away a group of monsters who had crept up on them, Serena healing their myriad injuries, and then Erik. There was so much of Erik - meeting him in that dungeon, escaping together too often already to count, fighting side by side, spending countless nights together, sleeping peacefully in the knowledge that the other was right next to him, all the affection shared between them and the firm comforting embrace as they stood alone amid the destruction of his home town.

And then, finally, the image of the inhabitants of Cobblestone waving him goodbye and wishing him good luck on his journey. In their faces shone affection - love for the simple boy they had known as Rhys, and honour - pride for the Luminary they knew would rid the world of darkness.

The vision faded and he once more stood in Dundrasil before the grave of his birth parents. The Rainbough had grown dull again.

"What did you see?" Erik asked as Rhys put the branch safely back into his bag. "Was it another clue?"

"I think," Rhys started, pausing briefly to allow himself to sort his thoughts a bit, "I think that Yggdrasil just agreed with you."

Rhys had never thought about it like that before; had never considered that his absence could cause misery just as much as his presence could. Erik stared up at him, confused but hopeful; determined yet still fearful - all in one. Rhys knew he was right; that Erik meant every word he'd said and Rhys could not deny the truth in them. Even the World Tree was taking the trouble to make as much clear to him. How could he think of betraying them after all they'd been through? After all they'd done for him? He wouldn't be who he was nor would he have ever gotten this far if it hadn't been for them.

He had been a fool to ever consider leaving. The realisation must've reflected on his expression or his eyes or something because he could see Erik visibly relaxing: his eyes radiated relief, his shoulders lost their tenseness. It was clear that somehow the thief had guessed that Rhys had changed his mind and would stay. There was no need for Rhys to tell him. Erik simply knew and Rhys loved that about him.

"Remind me to thank the World Tree when we finally meet Her face to uh- "Erik paused, twirled his hand in a 'you-know-what-I-mean' motion and simply shrugged the rest of his sentence off as he turned around to head back. He stopped short however when Rhys reached out and gently took his hand. Erik looked at him, startled, but didn't pull away.

Rhys smiled and brought Erik's hand up to plant a chaste kiss on it, then whispered, "It wasn't Yggdrasil who convinced me."

For once it was Erik who was stunned into silence and without another word, and with their hands still joined, Rhys began heading off back to the camp. Another smile gracing his face when he heard Erik mumble,

"... kiss on the hand...? Really? What are you some noble prince or hero..."

No. He was the Luminary and he had the luck to be graced with the best adventuring party any hero could ever hope to have.

It has been ages since I wrote humans wow.

At any rate, thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed!

Chibiscuit~