Will thy most esteemed reader give thee a full pardon for neglecting the particulars?
Translation: Sorry but I know some of the events are wrong, but I hadn't completely beaten Radiant Dawn yet so bear with me. I still think it makes sense even with a few things a bit out of place
You, Me, and Yune!
"This is so weird!!" Sothe thought for the hundredth time.
Ashera, an evil Goddess?! People being turned into stone. And on top of that was that little bird, Yune. Yune, a small, frail, little bird, a god?!
But what was the weirdest of all was Yune was Micaiah. Or something like that.
Sothe started to blush as soon as the word, "Micaiah," surfaced on his brain. He vigorously shook his head. What was wrong with him?! He had always saw Micaiah as a little sister he needed to protect. But lately, he kept seeing her as someone else. And it all started with that blasted Yune.
"Thinking of me aren't you?"
Sothe gave a yelp of surprise and jumped back as if he was stung. There standing behind him was Micaiah.
Sothe's face was probably redder than tomatoes by now. Micaiah was standing there with her hands on her hips, and leaning on one leg. She had a playful/mischievous look on her face.
"She looks really cute…" thought Sothe's befuddled brain. Instantly, he gave himself a mental whack. When did he, a warrior, a fighter, ever the use the word 'cute?!'
"O-oh, u-uh hi, Micaiah," he managed to stammer out.
Micaiah rolled her eyes. "I'm not Micaiah for the hundredth time. My name is Yune!" She gave a childlike stomp with her foot.
Sothe looked at her eyes and sure enough, they were red.
"Oh um, sorry Yune…" he muttered. It always unnerved him, when Yune used Micaiah's body. Maybe it was Yune's outright and childlike personality, or maybe it was he was unaccustomed to seeing Micaiah act a different way, but whatever it was, it still made Sothe feel uncomfortable.
"S'okay, Sothe," Yune said good-naturedly. "Your name is Sothe right?"
Sothe was about to ask why Micaiah had asked such an absurd question until he remembered who he was talking to.
"Oh, yeah. Yeah, Sothe's my name," he said quickly.
"Good, 'cuz Micaiah wanted me to check up on this person named Sothe. She wanted to make sure he was all right." Yune said matter-of-factly.
Sothe's heart skipped a few beats. "W-wait, Micaiah wanted you to check up one me?" Sothe asked disbelievingly.
"Well not so much as asked, more like thought. She was thinking about you and how you were and I said I'd go check." Her eyes glazed over for a second, and then they refocused again. "That's really strange, Micaiah seems all embarrassed now." Yune shrugged. "I will never get you humans."
Sothe was feeling light headed and suspected it had nothing to do with air. Micaiah, worried about him. Well, that was nothing new. She was worried about him when Tibarn threatened to drop him off the cliff. Still, it made Sothe feel warm inside.
He quickly cleared his thoughts out. Although he didn't have proof, he was sure that Yune could read minds.
"Well, anyway, where've you been Yune?" he asked, trying to sound amicable, and desperate to change the subject.
"At the mess hall. You bags of organs need to eat so much to sustain yourselves." Yune rubbed her belly. "You need food, you need to sleep, you need to talk and worst of all you need to po—
"A-ah, I'm sorry to hear of that," Sothe said, quickly interrupting her.
Yune wasn't done. When she wanted to do, she could rant about anything. She started to wave Micaiah's arms about. "Plus, your bodies weigh so much. Doesn't it feel heavy being trapped in so much flesh and blood?" she asked.
"Um, no?" Sothe said a little unnerved by the insight.
Yune gave him a look. "Really? Well I guess you mortals are used to it. Anyway, you mortals have so many unneeded things too." She held up her fingers. "I mean, who needs five fingers anyway? It's a waste of space."
Sothe felt himself slowly losing his sanity. "Um, okay…" he replied uncertainly.
"What's the worst is this thing," Yune said, pointing at Micaiah's chest. "I mean, they weigh so much, and most of the time, they get in the way!"
Sothe felt like he could've been knocked over by a feather. He couldn't tell what was more embarrassing, Micaiah pointing at her…you-know-what's, or being told by Yune that Micaiah's…you-know-what's were heavy. As a result, he couldn't get out one coherent statement. "U-uh, Ah, E-erm," he said stupidly.
"I mean c'mon! What's the use of these?" she said, indignantly poking at them. She looked up. "What are these called anyway, Sothe?" she asked innocently.
Sothe was in no position to give an answer. He looked like he had a fever. Plus, he was trying to tell Yune to stop poking at them but nothing was coming out. Finally, he managed to stutter out, "O-oh, I-I think I can hear N-Nolan calling for me, bye!"
Yune was not fooled. "Hey, I'm not stupid. You just don't want to talk to me!" she said, stamping her foot.
Sothe was already backing away. "N-no, no! It's not like that," he tried to say reassuringly.
Yune glared at him. "Fine, don't talk to me. But just wait until I tell Micaiah what you were thinking!"
Sothe stopped dead in his tracks. "What?!"
"Micaiah worried about him? Still it made Sothe feel all warm and fuzzy and wuzzy inside," Yune recited in a high falsetto.
"Yune, don't you dare tell Micaiah that," Sothe said direly.
Yune stuck out her tongue and used Micaiah's mouth to blow a raspberry. "Nah, nah, can't make me!" she replied vindictively.
Sothe put one hand on his dagger sheath. "Yune, I'm going to kill you!" he yelled, lunging after her. In truth, Sothe would never do anything to hurt Micaiah or her body in that manner. But hey, Yune didn't know.
Yune's eyes widened and she started running the opposite direction. "Waaaaaahhh! Sothe's angry at meeeee!!"
"Damn right I am!" Sothe growled. Inside, he was enjoying scaring the crap out of Yune.
They would've continued running and yelling around the whole camp until Yune remembered she was a goddess, and even goddesses have powers in a mortal's body. Reciting a quick incantation, she looked around and pointed at Sothe's feet.
Sothe last thought was, "Crap," before he was magically picked off the ground and did two complete flips in the air and landing on his stomach. Hard.
Yune giggled at first until she remembered that could've caused some serious damage. She quickly ran over to him to make sure he was all right.
"Oh my gosh, I'm sorry Sothe! I didn't mean to do that! Are you all right?"
Sothe looked up. Yune was leaning over, with her hands on her knees. Then, Sothe realized that Yune was a wearing a very loose shirt and he was being treated to a magnificent view of Micaiah's bre—
"No!!" Sothe yelled, scrambling backwards at an amazing speed. His heart was racing and his cheeks were extremely red. He desperately tried not to remember the image. Bad Sothe, Bad!! He did not just get a good look at Micaiah's…you-know-what's.
A change came over Yune. She straightened up and her eyes glazed over, and then suddenly, her irises turned into a golden brown color. Micaiah looked around confusedly for a second before she saw Sothe a few feet away.
"Oh my gosh, I'm sorry Sothe! She didn't mean to do that! Are you all right?" Micaiah asked, starting to lean over in her earlier position.
"No!! I mean, yes!! Yes, I'm all right," Sothe amended quickly.
Micaiah looked relieved. "Oh, I was worried that you had broken something in that fall," she said, reassured.
Sothe gingerly got up, wincing as his bruised ribs sent a wave of dull pain up his gut. "Wait, you are Micaiah right?" he asked, suspiciously. He was in no mood to be tricked again.
Micaiah giggled and Sothe's spirits rose. He always liked it when Micaiah laughed. It somehow eased his worries.
"Of course it's me silly," she admonished, although gently. "What made you think that?"
"I don't know. I just think that Yune's a bit tricky…"
Micaiah smiled. "Well, she is rather hard to handle."
"Wait a minute, how did you manage to take control again?"
Micaiah looked embarrassed for some reason. "Sheer force of will and… something else." She said the last part very quietly.
Sothe was about to ask her what that something else was when Micaiah changed the subject.
"Well, I'm glad I can talk with you again," Micaiah said cheerfully. "With so much going on, we have hardly any time for ourselves."
"Yeah, that's right," Sothe agreed. "It's just hard to believe…"
Micaiah looked over at him. "What's so hard to believe?" she asked innocently.
Sothe gave a dry chuckle. "I mean look at it! Five years ago, I was only a street rat in Daein. Now look at me! A respectable soldier in an army!" He shook his head. "Sometimes, I think the god's just like to mess around with our fates."
Micaiah looked down. "Speaking of Daein, how long has it been since we freed it from Begnion?" she asked, sounding forlorn.
Sothe was caught off guard by the sudden change of attitude. He wished he hadn't brought up the subject of Daein, still he answered her question. "Um, nearly a year I think," he said uncertainly.
"A whole year…" Micaiah repeated sadly. "Nearly a whole year and still the country is unstable. I think Pelleas picked the wrong person to help lead his country," she said, a heart wrenching look appearing on her face.
Sothe desperately did not want to see that face. "Hey, c'mon, you know that's not true," he told Micaiah reassuringly.
"No, it is true," Micaiah despairingly steam rolled on. "He entrusted me to take care of the people and now look what I've done! They're all stone!"
"Micaiah, there's no way you could've stopped the god from doing that."
"But I should have at least tried!" she nearly yelled out loud. "I should've tried to do something, anything!" her hands were balled up into fists, and she looked on the verge of crying. "I wish Pelleas would've given over the responsibility to someone else! I'm totally useless for the task. I bet Daein would've been in better hands if we left it to the Begnion Empire!"
"Micaiah, stop it." Sothe said forcefully; he put a hand on her shoulder to stabilize her. "I'm not going to let you torture yourself like this."
"But—
"No listen to me, Micaiah!" Sothe turned her around to face him. "You know in your heart that Pelleas gave the task to you, because he trusted you would do your best to help the people. C'mon Micaiah, there are a thousand other people Pelleas could've picked, but instead he chose you! He knew that your heart was kind and gentle and you would always do what was right. As for saying that Daein should've been ruled by Begnion, that is completely absurd! Your people love you, they don't hate you. You're the one who gave the people new hope for a better future. Not anyone else. Just you."
Micaiah had stayed completely quiet throughout his speech. She had a look of amazement on her face. Finally, after a long pause she whispered, "Sothe do you really believe that?"
"More than anyone else, Micaiah," Sothe said with absolute sincerity.
Micaiah remained silent for another moment. Then slowly, a humongous grin, the biggest Sothe had seen on her face, appeared on her face. She lunged towards him and gave him a warm hug. "Thanks for believing in me, Sothe!" she said with happiness.
Sothe smiled as soon as Micaiah's mood perked up. He warmly embraced her back. "Everyone believes in you, Micaiah."
Micaiah looked up. "I'm going to do the best I can. For you, for Pelleas, for everyone!" she said with enthusiasm
"Just don't hurt yourself," Sothe said with mock sarcasm.
For some weird reason, this comment made Micaiah double up in laughter. After she was done whooping she managed to get herself under control. "Thanks for cheering me up, Sothe," she said warmly.
"Anytime," Sothe replied.
Micaiah looked away for a second. Then she turned back to him, all levity gone from her face. She was serious now. "Sothe can I tell you something?"
Sothe sensed the urgency in her voice. He knew something serious was going to come up. "Yeah, sure."
Micaiah looked down again and when she looked back up, her cheeks were red. "S-Sothe… I'm n-not sure but I-I think…" she stammered.
"Think what?" Sothe asked.
She took a breath to steady herself. "P-promise you won't laugh?" she said earnestly.
"Micaiah, if it's coming from you, I swear I won't laugh," Sothe said with pure honesty.
Micaiah's face was a fiery red now and she was anxiously wringing her cloak. "I-I think…" she said after a pause. Then she shook her head, "N-no that's not right, I know."
"Know what?"
She looked him dead in the eye. "I-I… I-I'm… in l—
There was thunderous crack causing both of them to jump in surprise. Sothe instantly drew his daggers, thinking they had been ambushed.
There was another crack, only it was coming from above. Sothe looked up to see some vicious storm clouds in the sky. They were dark and huge, each holding deluges of water.
"I guess you'll need to tell me another time," Sothe said, sheathing his daggers. "Right now, I think we should go back to our tents."
Micaiah looked immensely relieved, although there seemed to be a little disappointment mixed in with the relief. "Okay," she said happily. "Well, I guess I'll see you later," getting ready to leave. Just as soon as she was about to leave she turned around. "Um, Sothe. About my heart being kind and gentle. Do you believe that to?" she asked nervously.
Sothe instantly regretted saying such a cheesy phrase. But still he had truly meant it. "Yes, I do," he said, trying to keep his cheeks from turning pink.
Micaiah looked ten times happier than before. 'Well thanks again," she said warmly. She gave him a quick hug before turning back.
Sothe was left feeling immensely happy. He couldn't help grinning. But then there was a new emotion mixed in with the happiness. It was something new he had never experienced before. Still it didn't matter. He had managed to cheer Micaiah up.
Turning around, he made his way back to the tent. He walked with a spring to his step, despite the weather being an exact opposite to his mood. As soon as he was near his tent, he heard another loud bang and a few drops of water hit his face.
Ducking into his tent, he hurriedly closed the flap and tied the cover.
"Hey Sothe," Nolan greeted, not looking up from the book he was reading. "So, how was the view?" he inquired, still not looking up.
Sothe was confused for a moment by the question. Then he realized that Nolan was asking him about Micaiah's—
He whipped around and delivered a swift punch to Nolan's forehead. He let Nolan roll a bit on the ground before he sat down on his own cot.
"Okay, bad question," Nolan said, rubbing his face. "What I meant to ask was how big were they?"
"Nolan, you are a sick, perverted, old man."
Hey, now, there's no need for that," Nolan said indignantly. "Now I'll proudly agree to the sick and perverted part. But I am wounded by the use of the word old!"
"Nolan, your priorities are a bit screwy," Sothe said truthfully.
"Hey, I'm just asking how were Micaiah's b—
"You don't want to finish that sentence," Sothe said menacingly, putting a hand on his daggers.
Nolan took the hint. "No, I don't."
"Good," said Sothe. He lay back on his cot.
"But c'mon, Sothe! As a man, it's not like you didn't enjoy it!"
Sothe turned a bright red. "Shut up, Nolan!" he growled, throwing a dagger at him.
But Nolan was ready for him. He held up his book and impaled the dagger in there. It quivered as it set in.
"Ah, I think I sense a crack in someone's armor," Nolan said gleefully. "Does my peerless warrior harbor feelings for a certain person?"
"Nolan, stay out of my business," Sothe cautioned. "I have plenty more daggers than just that one, and all that's between us is your book."
Nolan shrugged. "Well it is none of my business. But Sothe, I have to warn you, try not to fall in love with her."
Sothe was too stunned to deny Nolan's statement. "What?! Why?!" he asked disbelievingly.
He shrugged again. "It's just that, there are plenty of other people who love Micaiah, probably more than you. Heck, I bet Pelleas was even one. They have more things to offer her than you do. You have to sacrifice yourself if you're willing to love her." He looked at Sothe seriously. "Are you prepared to sacrifice everything, for her happiness?"
Sothe's answer was immediate. "Of course! I would be prepared to sacrifice everything and more for her happiness. She's all that matters to me," Sothe said truthfully.
Nolan grinned. "Now that, my friend, is true love."
Sothe was lost in himself for a moment. "True love?" he repeated to himself quietly.
"And now, I can die happily," Nolan said with infinite calm.
This was odd thing to say, even from Nolan. "Why's that?" he asked him confusedly.
"I finally made you admit your true feelings for Micaiah without you denying it!"
It took a second for the statement to set in. Then…
"You bastard! You tricked me!!" Sothe cried, outraged that he had been hoodwinked into saying his feelings for Micaiah.
"Define tricked," Nolan said as he took the dagger out of his book.
"Nolan, make your peace with the goddess," Sothe said direfully drawing knives out of various places.
Nolan saw the knives and decided quickly to intervene. "Whoa, slow down," Nolan said hastily. "What I said before was straight from the heart. That was no trick. I'm just making sure that Micaiah is going to be happy."
"Huh, why do you care about Micaiah's feelings so much?" Sothe asked, still not believing him.
Nolan smiled sadly. "Micaiah's like a daughter to me. Heck, she reminds me so much of my own daughter. The Dawn Brigade is my family and as the Dawn Brigade's father I want to make sure my family is happy."
Sothe was amazed at Nolan. He could be a deceiving scoundrel at one time, but a kind intelligent man at the next. Plus, Sothe had never heard about Nolan ever having a family. He certainly had a few well kept secrets.
"Well, alright I guess I'll believe you, for now," Sothe said wearily.
Nolan chuckled. "Doesn't matter if you believe me or not. Anyway get some sleep. Were going to move out soon and you'll need all the rest you can get."
"Well, fine," Sothe said, although he doubted if he could've fallen asleep with all the thoughts whizzing around in his head. Still he laid his head down and somehow, he instantly fell asleep.
"Hey Sothe, get up," said a voice, shaking him.
Sothe reluctantly turned over and wearily rubbed his eyes. He felt like he had only slept for ten minutes.
"How long did I sleep?" Sothe asked, stifling a yawn.
"About ten minutes," said Nolan.
"What?!" Sothe yelled furiously.
"Yeah, I could hardly believe it myself too. You fall asleep amazingly fast. Anyway, were about to move out soon."
"Nolan, I'm going to…" Sothe paused thinking it over. "Okay, I don't know what I'm going to do, but when I do you're going to lose your share of body parts in tender spots."
"Right, in the meantime, I suggest you go find Micaiah and tell her that the soldiers are ready to move out."
"Why can't you go?" Sothe asked wearily.
"Because it's raining."
"Even more of a reason that you should go!" Sothe retorted.
"Ah but I know you won't resist a reason to go see Micaiah," Nolan said waggling his finger.
"Bastard," Sothe grumbled. Still he got up and went outside.
He was drenched as soon as he put one foot out of the tent. Cursing Nolan one more time, he ducked his head and started running to the fort.
Since she was one of the commanders, Micaiah got to sleep in the fort. Sothe didn't envy her one bit. Forts were too dreary for him. They were always hot when you wanted them cold and cold when you wanted them hot. Still forts provided better defense in case of an attack and Micaiah had reluctantly agreed to her advisors pleas to stay in the fort.
Sothe slowed down as he neared the fort. He found some relief from the pouring rain. Remembering the directions he had been given, he set off looking for Micaiah's room.
After a few minutes of walking, he found it. He knocked on the door. "Micaiah?" he called.
"No."
Sothe was confused for a few moments. Then he remembered. "Yune?" he called wearily.
"Yep."
Sothe frowned. He would've preferred to tell Micaiah rather than Yune. Still he asked, "Can I come in?"
"Sure."
Sothe opened the door.
"Oh hey Sothe," Yune said calmly on the bed, clad in only her undergarments.
"Wauughh!!" Sothe cried out as he leapt back in surprise. His heart was galloping like a horses and his face was hot enough to boil water. Where were Micaiah's clothes?!
"Hey, what's wrong, Sothe? Are you ill?" Yune asked worriedly, getting off the bed and running over to Sothe.
"Y-Y-Yune, w-where are y-your c-clothes?!" Sothe stammered out, trying desperately not to look at Micaiah's body. He might have been trying to tell the earth to stop spinning. His eyes were drawn back like magnets. Micaiah's skin looked so smooth and unmarked. It was nearly enough to cause Sothe to faint.
"My clothes… oh yeah, they got wet in the rain so I took them off," Yune said simply.
"B-but you can't j-just take them o-off!" Sothe yelled, still avoiding eye contact.
"But there wet!" Yune whined.
'Well, at least she remembered to keep the bra on," Sothe thought with some relief.
Unfortunately, Sothe forgot that Yune could read minds. "That's what it's called, a bra?" Yune asked, while fiddling with the back of it. "I don't know how to get it off." She turned around, "Sothe can you help me get this thing undone?" she asked innocently.
"NO!!" Sothe yelped, backing away a few more paces.
"Huh? Why?" Yune asked, confused.
Sothe had to do some quick thinking. "Er… we beorc… we like to wear clothes because… we catch colds really easily…and um, maybe you don't feel it but Micaiah's body does so keep 'em on!" Sothe babbled.
Yune remained unconvinced. "Well, fine at least let me take off this thing," she said, starting to slip off the bottom part.
"NO!! NONONONONO!" Sothe yelled, desperately covering his eyes. He was going to have a heart attack if Yune kept doing things like that with Micaiah's body!
Yune was starting to look annoyed now. "C'mon Sothe, why can't I take my clothes off?" she asked, peeved.
Sothe had another quick thinking session before he came up with a good answer. "Okay Yune, I'll tell you the truth. The reason women wear clothes is because, beorc men are severely weakened if we come in too close contact with woman's … um bra. In fact, I could be dying right now." There was a grain of truth in that outlandish statement. Sothe's head was as light as feather and his knees threatened to collapse.
Yune's eyes widened in horror. "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry I didn't know! No wonder you look so feverish!"
"I-it's okay, j-just p-put something on," Sothe stuttered, relieved that his outlandish ploy had worked.
"But I don't have anything else to wear!" Yune said truthfully.
"Oh for— here, just cover them up! I'll let you wear my cloak," Sothe said, tearing off his cloak and handing it to her. Although it was wet on the outside, it was completely dry in the inside.
"Thanks Sothe," Yune said graciously. She draped it over Micaiah's small frame. It was way too big for her, the bottom touched the ground. Still, it managed to calm Sothe down. He was still way too young to see things like that. Another 20 years and he might have been ready.
"Well now that's over, what did you come here for?" Yune inquired, adjusting the cloak around on Micaiah's body.
Sothe had nearly forgotten what he was sent here for. "Oh yeah, Nolan asked me to come here and tell you that the army is ready to set off."
Yune cocked her head confusedly. "What? But we can't march in this weather. We're going to march tomorrow, when it lightens up."
It took Sothe a few seconds to realize that he had been tricked again.
"DAMN IT!" he swore, banging his head against the wall. How could've he been so stupid?!
Yune giggled at his predicament. "You mortals are so weird," she said good-naturedly.
Sothe ignored her and instead, grumpily sat down on the edge of the bed. He didn't want to go back into the rain, plus Yune had his cloak and nothing else. He might as well stay here.
"Well, as long as you're here, you might as well tell me a story," Yune said happily, kneeling beside him.
"I didn't know god's liked stories," Sothe replied, a touch grumpily.
"Oh, I've been asleep for nearly a thousand years. I haven't heard of a good story for a long time."
"Well, I don't have any stories to tell."
Yune knocked him gently on the head. "That's not true, silly. Everyone has a story. How about telling me the story of your life?"
"That's personal," Sothe said.
Yune pouted. "Well fine. Tell me the story of when you first met Micaiah."
This caught Sothe off guard. "What? Why do you want to know that?" Sothe asked incredulously.
"Well, Micaiah always speaks so fondly of you. I kinda wanna know why," she said naively.
Sothe was quiet for a moment. Then he opened his mouth and started talking.
6 years ago
"Give it to me!" commanded the boy.
"Not likely," replied Sothe, clutching the bread. "I stole this fair and square. It's mine."
The boy's face redden with anger. "You're on our turf now. Everything you have belongs to us!" he said obnoxiously.
"That's one stupid rule. Whoever made that is an idiot," Sothe said calmly.
The boy's complexion turned from red to a light shade of violet. "Hey are you calling me an idiot?!" he demanded heatedly.
"Ummmmm," Sothe said, pretending to think. "Yeah."
The boy pulled back his fist and punched. Fortunately Sothe was ready for this and he ducked the blow. He countered with a swift punch to the stomach. Obnoxious boy went down, rolling on the ground with pain.
"Arrggghhh! Don't just stand there!" he yelled at his stunned companions. "Get him!"
Sothe was already halfway down the alley. With a few powerful jumps, he was on the rooftop. A few bounds later and he was 24 rooftops away, scotch free.
"Suckers," said Sothe. He pulled out the bread and began eating it. He nearly dropped it when he heard a scream from the alley below
"Hahaha! C'mon you stupid half-breed, change into somethin'!"
"P-please j-just leave me a-alone. Ow!"
'I wonder who that poor fool is,' Sothe thought nonchalantly. He had seen this sort of thing before. A couple of rowdy kids would trap down a laguz in an alley and beat them up. Sothe looked over the side.
He was surprised and outraged at what he saw. A couple of boys had surrounded a small girl. They kept pushing her around and punching her. She was clearly frightened out of her wits.
'Now this is underhand, even for these guys," Sothe thought angrily. 'Picking on a girl who can't even fight back.' He continued watching, his anger slowly rising at each punch they made.
Soon, they started getting bored of just mistreating her. Now, they really did want to see her morph. One of them went up to her and slapped her on the cheek, leaving a mark.
This was the last straw for Sothe. Even though he didn't like laguz, this was still wrong. He leapt over the ledge and dropped down, in between the girl and the boys.
The rascals were surprised at someone just dropping from the sky. Then they slowly started to grin. "Hey, you gonna help us out here?" asked one.
Sothe looked back behind him. The girl gave a whimper and slowly edged away from him.
Something akin to pity swept in replaced all his former discrimination to laguz. He tried reassuring the girl by giving her a wink before turning around to face the gang.
"You guys are pathetic," spat out Sothe. "Going after a girl, who can't even fight! Yeah all of you are going to be great people when you grow up."
They were clearly stunned. They had expected this boy to help them and instead
he was mocking them. There surprise quickly turned into rage.
"Look, if you're not going to help us, get outta the way," one demanded angrily.
"So then you can continue having your fun? I don't think so," Sothe said, with equal venom in his voice.
The boy's eyes flared. "Fine then, I guess were going to have to clean up two bodies from the streets then," he growled. Then he tackled Sothe.
Although Sothe was smaller than all the boys here, he was nimbler and quicker on his feet than all of them. He jumped away from the tackle and delivered a kick straight in the boy's face.
This caused the other's to attack and soon there was a humongous mob around him. Luckily for the Sothe, he had been raised on the streets and skilled in these types of fights. He darted in and out of the ring, delivering a swift kick or punch here or there. Soon, the boys were just trying to stop hitting themselves. Finally, they fled, calling out insults back to him while trying not to anger him again, leaving Sothe alone with the girl, in the alley.
Sothe turned back, breathing heavily. The girl still looked afraid of him, but it had lessened somewhat.
"Hey, you okay?" asked Sothe. He knelt beside the girl.
She gave a slow nod, still staying silent.
"What's your name?" Sothe asked. He made sure to make his voice sound soft and gentle.
There was another pause, then, "I-I'm Micaiah," she said softly.
Sothe was about to ask another question when all of a sudden, Micaiah burst in to tears. She fell forcefully into Sothe, nearly knocking him over and, burying her head into his chest.
"Waaaaah!! I was s-so s-scared!" she cried, almost childishly, tears pouring down her face. She clutched Sothe tightly, sobbing into his chest.
From that moment, Sothe didn't see her as a barbaric laguz. He saw an innocent girl that needed to be protected from the harshness of the world.
"Hey, whoa, calm down, Micaiah," he whispered soothingly. "There gone, remember, there gone. Nothing can hurt you now."
Micaiah continued crying, but after a while she managed to calm herself down until she was just whimpering quietly.
"Okay, first things first, where are your parents?" Sothe asked. The girl should be returned to her parents as soon as possible.
Micaiah looked down again. "They're… They're not…"
Sothe mentally hit himself. "Oh… I'm sorry," he mumbled shamefacedly.
The girl looked ready to cry again. Sothe quickly decided to intervene before she could start again.
"Hey, c'mon now, no more crying, you're getting my shirt wet," Sothe chided, although gently. "How old are you?" he asked.
"T-Ten years old," she replied.
"Huh, your just one year younger than me. And look, I don't cry," he gave her a small smile. "Be strong, Micaiah. You're not alone."
"Really?"
"C'mon, I'm here now. In fact since you have no one to hold onto, stick by me. I'll protect you if anything like that happens again."
'Y-You'd do that for a-a branded person?"
Sothe was thrown off by the question and by the other statement. But still, this changed nothing, whether she was branded or laguz. "No, I'm doing this not for the branded person, I'm doing this for the little girl who needs my help," he said sincerely.
"I'm not a little girl," Micaiah said defiantly.
The childlike defiance caused Sothe to grin. "That's the spirit."
They were quiet for a few more moments before Micaiah spoke up again. "What's your name?" she asked quietly.
"You can call me Sothe."
Another silence, then…
"Thank you, Sothe," Micaiah said happily, as she gave him a warm hug.
"And that's how I first met Micaiah," finished Sothe.
Yune had miraculously remained quiet throughout the whole talk, an enormous feat considering she had the personality of a 7 year old. "Wow, see? You do have a story to tell. And it was pretty nice too!" Yune said admiringly.
Sothe coughed; embarrassed that he had told her such a private thing about himself. "Yeah, well, there, satisfied?"
"Hang on; Micaiah would like to thank you for helping her out that time."
Sothe's mood brightened. He turned around thinking he would able to talk with Micaiah…
And instead was treated to a kiss on the cheek.
"Yow!!" Sothe leapt back in shock and amazement. His cheeks had just turned fiery red and his heart was pounding like a drum.
"What?" Yune asked, surprised by his sudden reaction.
"YOU— I— what was— Yune, what did you do that for?!" Sothe asked, completely and utterly stunned.
"Well, Micaiah just had this sudden urge to do that so I said I'd help her."
"But you— I can't," gabbled Sothe. This was his first kiss ever! And his heart felt like it was going to explode. Finally he got out, 'Look, can I just talk with Micaiah?"
"All right, fine," Yune said peevishly. "But I don't understand you. I thought you'd be happy from getting a kiss."
Before Sothe could reply, she closed her eyes. When they opened they were Micaiah's.
"Ah! Sothe! I— Um…" Micaiah had turned just as red as Sothe. Inside Sothe's befuddled brain he thought, "Wow, she is really cute when she's flustered." This earned him another mental whack.
A very, very, awkward pause ensued. Sothe was trying to look away but his eyes kept being drawn back to her like a magnet. Micaiah was looking at the ground, extremely red and fidgeting with the cloak, looking extremely torn.
Finally, Sothe coughed, startling Micaiah. "Um… If it makes you feel any better, I'll just pretend that never happened," he said embarrassedly.
Micaiah looked up hopefully. "P-promise?" she asked earnestly.
"Promise," Sothe said with full sincerity.
Micaiah's face split into a wide smile. "Thank you so much Sothe!" she said, completely relieved. Then she realized something.
"Um, why am I wearing your cloak?" asked Micaiah uncertainly.
Now it was Sothe's turn for his face to turn extremely red. "Ah… Uh… It's sort of complicated…" he said sheepishly.
Micaiah looked at him confusedly. "How is it complicated, Sothe?" she asked naively.
"Well… it's like… When you came back, you were Yune and um… your clothes were wet and she um… she sort of…." Sothe said awkwardly.
Micaiah looked ready to faint in embarrassment. "She didn't… did she?" asked Micaiah, her voice barely above a whisper.
"She did," Sothe said simply.
Micaiah was starting to look like a human red pepper. "S-Sothe," she stammered. "D-did… did you s-see me in m-my—"
CRACK!
Both of them gave a cry and jumped up in surprise. Sothe's already strained heart was threatening to shut down on him. Outside, the rain started falling with a greater fury.
"Oh, it's just the thunder," Sothe said, unable to keep the sound of relief out of his voice. Thank the goddess for sending in a distraction at the right time!
"O-oh, right! J-just t-thunder!" said Micaiah quickly. She gave a laugh that sounded forced.
Sothe looked worriedly at her for a second, wondering why she was acting so oddly. Then he remembered.
"Micaiah, are you still frightened by thunder?" Sothe asked.
Micaiah opened her mouth as if to deny it. Then, she closed it and hung her head shamefacedly. "Yes, after all these years, I'm still scared witless by it," she said, looking ashamed.
"Hey c'mon Micaiah, being afraid of thunder is normal," Sothe said reassuringly. "Everybody is scared of something. I'm scared of Nolan!"
Micaiah gave a small giggle. "I think everybody is afraid of him," she said.
Sothe was about to reply when there was another loud bang. Micaiah jumped again, looking even more frightened than before.
"Oh, come over here," Sothe said exasperatedly. Without thinking, he grabbed Micaiah and gently pulled her closer to him, putting a reassuring hand around her head. She gave a small squeak of surprise.
Inside, Sothe was surprised too that he had done something so forward. He took a quick glance at Micaiah. She looked just as astonished as he felt.
"Remember that chant I taught you to make the thunder go away?" Sothe asked.
Micaiah looked confused for a second. Then a small smile found its way on her face. "Thunder, thunder, go away, come again another day," she recited.
"You got it!" Sothe said, smiling.
Micaiah giggled. "You know the only reason it worked was because we kept saying it until the storm was over or until we passed out from saying it nonstop," she said, still smiling.
"Hey, it worked anyway," defended Sothe.
Micaiah giggled again, "That's true."
There was another loud bang and Sothe felt Micaiah tense up. Then, she seemed to draw comfort from Sothe and relaxed. After a while she spoke up.
"Sothe?" she asked timidly.
"Hm?"
"Can you stay with me for a little longer?" she asked nervously, as if afraid of a rejection.
"As long as you want," he said.
She smiled at him, "Thank you," she said warmly. She leaned her head on his shoulder.
Sothe was left to muse. His thoughts kept going back to his conversation with Nolan. Although it seemed crazy, Sothe saw some truth in his talk with him.
'Should I tell her?' Sothe thought. 'If I do, how do I say it?' He started thinking up ways to say his emotions to her.
'Micaiah, my sweet, sweet Silver-Haired Maiden… Ugh, way too cheesy. I sound like a cheap romance book.'
'Maybe I could tell a poem of my love.' He mulled the idea over. "Micaiah, roses are red, violets are blue, and I think I am falling, in love with you.' He shook his head. 'No way am I saying that. I'd rather say I'm gay than that. Well actually no, strike that.'
'Micaiah, will you marry me? WHOA, where the hell did that one come up from?!'
Sothe then realized that Micaiah's breathing had slowed down to a slow rhythmic pace. He looked over at her. She had fallen asleep on his shoulder. A small smile graced her lips; it seemed she was having a good dream.
'She looks so peaceful when she's asleep,' Sothe thought. Her pale skin looked like white marble and his heart seemed to flutter every time he looked at her. All of a sudden, he had a fierce urge to lean over and kiss her.
'No don't,' thought his good side. 'She may not want it. Plus what happens if she wakes up? It'll look like you're trying to—'
'Do it,' thought his bad side. 'What're the chances of her waking up? Anyway if you make it a good kiss she'll be to busy smooching back to care!'
'Agh! You disgusting pervert!' said his good side.
'Oh shut up, you pious prick,' said the bad side.
'P-prick?!' said his good side, spluttering indignantly. 'I'll have you know—'
'Oh shut up, both of you!' thought Sothe, irritated that his brain was talking to itself.
'Oh hell, she's asleep, I might as well leave her be,' thought Sothe. Gently he disengaged himself from her arms and laid her back onto the bed. Quietly he got up and started to leave.
Unfortunately, Micaiah woke up at that moment. Her eyes snapped open and she grabbed his hand, "Sothe wait, I want to tel—"
Whatever she was going to say was cut off short. When Micaiah grabbed his hand, it caused him jerk back and slip on the loose carpet. He fell to the ground dragging, Micaiah with him.
"Whoa!"
"Eek!"
Sothe then hit his face full on with the edge of the bed. He closed his eyes in pain.
"
Ow, wow wow, that smarts," he said rubbing his sore face. "A warning next time, okay Micaiah?"
Micaiah was silent.
"Micaiah?" Sothe called out, wondering if she was hurt. He opened his eyes.
And was greeted with Micaiah's golden pupils.
Sothe felt the breath leave his lungs. He was so close to Micaiah's face, closer than he had ever been before. She was looking at him with wide eyes.
Sothe thought he heard the word Micaiah escape from his lips, very softly. But he didn't notice, he was too mesmerized by her face. He could feel his heart beat getting faster and faster, almost able to hear it.
'Now would be a good time to kiss her,' thought his bad side. Good side was uncharacteristically quiet.
"Sothe… wha-what are you doing?" Micaiah said her voice barely above a whisper.
Sothe then realized that he was lying directly on top of Micaiah.
Even worse was, Sothe's cloak had fallen off of her. It looked like Sothe was trying to—
"AAAHH!!" Sothe fell back in horror. 'Oh my god, she thinks I was trying to do it!' his panic stricken brain thought.
"Micaiah I— I didn't— it's not—!" Sothe babbled in sheer terror.
Micaiah continued staring up at him, not saying a word.
"I… I…," Sothe was at a complete loss of what to say. Finally he yelled, "I'm sorry!"
He whipped around, wrenched the door open and ran straight out of the room, never looking back.
He didn't stop running until he was far away from her room. When he was out of breath, he turned to the stone wall and started banging his head against it.
"Stupid, stupid, stupid!!" he yelled, cursing himself.
Edward and Leonardo came walking around the corner and stopped when they saw Sothe breaking his head on the wall.
"Er, why is he doing that?" asked Leonardo to Edward.
"Dunno," came the uncertain reply. "D'you think we should try and stop him?"
All of a sudden, Nolan appeared out of nowhere behind them. "Now, now boys, leave him alone," he said sheparding them away. "Sothe is going through a little phase in which I like to call puberty."
"Wow, looks dangerous," remarked Edward.
"It is," Nolan said simply.
And the three of them walked away.
"She must hate me by now," Sothe thought despairingly, staring into the rain.
After his head cracking session, he had run through the rain and back into his tent. Thankfully, Nolan was out, leaving him all alone so he could keep replaying the incident in his mind and keep hitting himself. Finally, he fell into a troubled sleep. Now he was awake and glumly staring into the rain, cursing himself for being such an idiot.
Behind him, he heard Nolan yawn and start waking up. "You are a disgusting little scoundrel, and I wouldn't be surprised if she hates you," he said matter-of –factly.
Sothe whipped around. "What?! How did you know what I did?!" he asked in complete shock. First Micaiah, then Yune; now Nolan could read minds as well?!
Nolan blinked in confusion. "Um, Sothe, if you haven't figured out already, I say that to everyone I know," he said uncertainly.
A moments pause, then…
"(Insert censored word of your choice in these brackets)," yelled a completely pissed off Sothe.
Another pause, then a nervous cough from Nolan, "Ooookay, judging from your use of language I think something must've happened while I wasn't here. Care to share?"
"Go harass another poor soul," Sothe angrily rebutted, already heading to the exit.
"Whoa, whoa, slow down their, lad," Nolan said hastily, grabbing Sothe by the shoulders and turning him around. "Now, I can see your upset. Let's all take a deep breath now and tell uncle Nolan your problem."
"I doubt even your twisted logic could help what I did with Micaiah," Sothe mumbled quietly, so as Nolan wouldn't hear him.
Unfortunately, Nolan had the ears of a rabbit. "What, did I just hear right? You did something to Micaiah?" he asked gleefully, a merry glint in his eyes.
Sothe immediately turned a shade red. "T-that's none of y-your business!" he said quickly, trying to hide his embarrassment.
"Oh c'mon, Sothe!" the axe man said well naturedly. "I mean, it's not like you did something that I would do, right?" Nolan said, grinning half-heartedly.
"……." Absolute silence from Sothe.
Nolan's eyes widened with recognition. "Oh… That bad?" he asked, disbelievingly.
Sothe silently debated in his head whether to trust Nolan or not. Past experience told him no, but heck he was desperate for some help. Even if it came from Nolan.
He gave him a quick nod.
Nolan pondered over it for a second. Finally he said, "Nooope, no hope for you sonny boy. You're screwed. Might as well commit suicide and get it over with."
"Nolan, seriously if you have any straight advice, give it to me!" Sothe nearly yelled.
Nolan quickly noticed how agitated his friend was and decided to get serious. "All right, all right, settle down before you give yourself a heart attack," he said in calming voice. "Now, if you did something really bad, the only thing you can do is go over to her and apologize for what you did!"
"I can't!"
His eyebrows went up. "And why can't you?" he asked with disbelief.
Sothe's hands were balled up into fists, "Because… because what I did, I don't think she'll even want to talk to me!" he said, ashamed.
Nolan sighed. Kids these days were so secretive. He could remember the times when he would have boasted to other men about his activities with women.
"Sothe, listen up, would you have Micaiah hate you for the rest of your life. Or, would you like to try to apologize and at least mend your friendship?" Nolan questioned seriously.
Sothe opened his mouth up to say something, when Nolan's words started to sink in. He closed his mouth and thought about it. No he didn't like the prospect of having Micaiah hate him for the rest of his life. But he didn't feel like he could handle a rejection either. Still he could try and still maybe salvage some of their friendship.
"Nolan if this actually works I will never ever put horse piss in your beer again, for the rest of my life," Sothe said, getting up.
Nolan, who had just taken a swig from his hipflask, (obviously filled with beer), gagged and spat it all out on the floor, "Sothe, you did what?!" he yelled, outraged.
But Sothe was already out of the tent.
He ran to the fort in record timing. When he reached Micaiah's room he opened the door, without knocking. He had to tell her quick before he lost all of his confidence.
The room was empty.
'Huh?!' Sothe thought stupidly. Where was Micaiah?
"Are you perhaps looking for our most esteemed silver-haired beauty?" asked a voice behind him.
Sothe turned around to see Bastian, the arch-sage, standing in the doorway with his hands on his hips. A small roguish smile graced his lips.
"Bastian, did you see where Micaiah went?" asked Sothe not bothering to greet the sage.
"But of course."
There was a pause as Sothe waited for Bastian to tell him. Bastian just looked at his nails. Finally Sothe said, "Well?"
"Fine thank you, but I fear that my ring finger has an ingrown nail."
"Not you idiot, I meant where did she go?" Sothe asked, not caring if he was being rude.
Bastian put a hand to his forehead and struck a dramatic pose. "But alas, my young acquaintance, thy commandant had forbade anyone to spake of where she meandered off to," he said theatrically.
Sothe grabbed him roughly and pulled him close. He did not have time to be dealing with an overly dramatic sage. "Bastian, just tell me where Micaiah went before I make you a pin cushion!"
Bastian, without looking shocked, said simply, "The temple."
Sothe was surprised; Bastian had actually stopped speaking like he was in a play. "Uh, wow, so you can speak normally!" he said, amazedly.
"Of course I can. I can also count numbers and recite the alphabet," he said with a straight face.
Sothe blinked, a little disturbed. He couldn't tell if he was being sarcastic or truthful. He let go of Bastian and said, "Uh, well thanks for your help."
Bastian's devious smile returned. "I was most happy to be of service. But please do not tarry. Me thinks the commandant will not reside in the place of sanctuary for long."
Sothe was already five paces away and hadn't heard a thing Bastian said. His mind was set on getting to the temple.
Bastian, not in the least offended at being ignored, chuckled and shook his head went Sothe was out of sight. "Ah, to be young and foolish again," he said wistfully, crossing his arms.
Up ahead, Sothe was nearing the temple. As he was getting closer, a sudden bout of nervousness hit him. What if something went wrong and caused her to hate him even more. The prospect seemed pretty grim. Sothe wondered if he should have prepared something to say.
He shook his head. 'No,' he thought. Whatever he said would need to come from the heart, not from his brain. Hopefully his heart would know what to say.
Finally, he was at the door of the temple. Imposing statues of gods seemed to rise and look down on him, giving him a look that said I-hope-you-packed-shorts-'cuz-it's-gonna-be-hot-down-in-hell sort of look. Along with the look of eternal damnation, everything else seemed fine.
Sothe ignored the statues. He walked over to the gigantic doors and steeled himself for what yet to come. He took a deep breath and began slowly to open them up.
'The inside seems far happier than the outside,' Sothe thought as he stepped inside. Inside the temple, the frightening statues were gone, replaced by many candles, all of them lit. The candles threw a warm light on the dull grey stone and provided some warmth. Murals of happier times were depicted on the walls. Some, oddly enough, had pictures of laguz and beorc standing side by side. All in all, it almost had a homey feel to it.
And down at the end of the aisle, was Micaiah. She was kneeling down near the altar and her eyes were closed but she hadn't clasped her hands in prayer. She hadn't heard the doors opening up.
Sothe's mouth instantly dried up and his heart started to beat faster. An absurd notion came to mind, that he should leave and never look back. He instantly quashed it. It was now or never.
For some reason he couldn't explain, he walked quietly over to her. Quietly so as not to cause her to open her eyes and look at him.
Soon, he was standing beside her. With only a second's hesitation, he opened his mouth and said, "Micaiah."
Her eyes shot open and Sothe was dismayed to find that the irises were red instead of golden brown.
"Oh, it's you Sothe," said Yune, in a voice that was neither angry nor happy. More like flat and emotionless.
Sothe didn't come all the way to speak with Yune. "Yune, I need to talk with Micaiah," he said.
Yune shook her head as she got up. "No," she said simply.
Sothe's heart fell and he started to feel hopelessness. "B-but why n-not?" he asked despairingly.
"Because of what you did to her," Yune said, a note of reproach creeping into her voice.
"But, I didn't mean to do that! Yune you've got to believe me!" Sothe was on the verge of yelling now. He was starting to lose hope.
Yune angrily turned her back to him. "Micaiah doesn't want to speak to you."
The words struck Sothe like a blow. Now he knew he really blew it. If Micaiah didn't want to speak to him, she must've started to hate Sothe.
"B-but— I didn't…" Sothe gabbled uselessly, trying to say something. But nothing would come out.
"Just leave Sothe. You've done enough trouble already." Yune said angrily.
Sothe tried to think of something, anything, to say to make the situation better. But nothing would come out. Finally, he hung his head, despair gripping him in a vise. He gave one last shot.
"Yune, I know you're angry at me, but please, just tell Micaiah this. I'm sorry," he said in a defeated tone.
Yune still wouldn't turn around.
"I'm sorry," continued Sothe. "I'm sorry, but I would never have done this deliberately because… because…I…I…"
"Because what?" Yune snapped, causing Sothe to jump.
"Because… because I love her!"
Sothe was stunned. Had he just said that?! What, by the goddess, had possessed him to say that?!
'But it's true," said something, not in his head but in his heart. 'You do love her.'
In front of him, he saw Yune stiffen in shock and surprise. Slowly she turned around, amazement written all over her face. Finally after a pause, she stuttered, "Y-you… W-what did you say?"
Sothe took a deep breath and said it again. "I love her," he said it with conviction and sincerity.
Yune closed her eyes. Slowly she walked over to him and buried her head into Sothe's chest, surprising him.
"I-I love you too, Sothe," she said.
Sothe was confused, but all he did was sigh. "Yune, I love you, but more as a little sister. Please just tell Micaiah what I said."
A moment's pause, then, "It's not Yune."
Sothe whipped his head down, so fast he nearly cricked his neck. Looking back at him were Micaiah's sweet golden-brown eyes.
And she was smiling the biggest Sothe had ever seen her smile.
"W-wha… y-you… Micaiah…" Sothe was stunned. He felt like the world could have gone up in flames and he wouldn't have noticed. Now this time, shock was written all over his face.
Finally, he managed to mutter, "Micaiah, did-…do you really…?"
Her smile grew even wider and with that, Sothe started to feel something in his chest. A warm feeling that flooded his entire senses.
"I do, Sothe, I do," she said softly. "I've been trying to tell you but I was always too scared."
"B-but, Yune said y-you were mad at me," Sothe whispered.
Micaiah kept smiling. "Silly," she chided Sothe gently. "I could never be angry at you and I knew it was all an accident. But Yune didn't think it was an accident. She got really upset and took over. She wouldn't listen to a thing I said."
"T-then…you forgive me?" Sothe asked.
"Of course."
Sothe was quiet for a moment. Then a flood of emotions burst out of him. He began to smile. He was ecstatic! He was overjoyed! He felt like he could laugh and cry and scream in joy all at once. But instead, he did something far more appropriate.
He kissed her.
She quickly kissed him back and they held on for what seemed like eternity. Finally they broke apart looking into each other's eyes, both of them smiling serenely at each other.
Sothe didn't know what to do or what to say. So, he said the first thing that came into his mind. "I love you, Micaiah."
Micaiah whispered back at him, "I love you, too, Sothe."
And they happily held each other in a warm embrace.
Edward, Leonardo, and Nolan stuck their heads around the church door, unknown to Sothe or Micaiah. Edward looked up to Leonardo. "Think this has something to do with puberty?" he asked
"Dunno," came the unsure reply. Leonardo looked up to Nolan. "Does it have to do with puberty?"
Nolan shook his head. "Nope, it's something completely different." The two boys were surprised to see that Nolan was actually crying, although the tears seemed to have no affect on his voice. "Today my boy becomes a man!" Nolan said proudly and with pride.
The two boys looked at each other confusedly and shrugged their shoulders. 'What the hell,' they both thought as they dragged a sobbing Nolan away, leaving the two lovebirds to enjoy their solitude together for a long time.