Verdurous Seas, Cerulean Skies

Second Chance

For the first time in these last few weeks, Ledo was afraid.

Ledo had felt fear before. As a member of the elite Galactic Alliance of Humankind, he had been trained to suppress that fear in the farthest regions of his psyche. Fear was unacceptable during war, and those who could not conquer it would be subject to the destruction of the Hideauze and, therefore, an encumbrance to humankind. He had faced hundreds of those creatures back when the only thing on his mind was the exterminating of those blood-thirsty monsters.

But facing the commander of the Gargantian fleet and her second-in-command was a totally different kind of fear.

At least with the Hideauze, he could anticipate their attacks and he knew the consequences of one slight misstep. With the Hideauze, it was do or die, and dying was most definitely not an option. With the Hideauze, he had Chamber, who was there to back him up with counterattacks, infiltration plans, and information he would not be able to obtain while he was on the battlefield. He had stared danger in the face plenty of times before his 13th birthday, the day he was first appointed as an ensign. But now, as he stood with the posture of the perfect soldier he used to be, Ledo would've preferred staring a full-fledged whalesquid in the face than endure this moment.

Fear probably wasn't even the right word to describe how he felt; dread, insecurity, and shame seemed like more appropriate variations, but his gut told him it was fear and nothing else. Fear that his betrayal would deny him citizenship on Gargantia; fear that he would never be forgiven despite his heroic actions and Chamber's sacrifice that day; but most of all, fear that, no matter how hard he tried to become a part of this world, he would always be the outsider everyone had come to dread and, in Amy's case, love.

But as these powerfully doubtful thoughts had come to pass, they quickly dissipated as soon as Amy's sunny expression appeared in his mind. It was her idea to make a formal apology to Ridget and her second-in-command in the first place.

"I'm sure once they see how sorry you are, they'll let you stay. They owe you and Chamber their lives, too, and they may not realize it, but you've been a part of Gargantia ever since you came to Earth!"

He chuckled lightly at her optimism. It was amazing how fast Earthlings bounced back after such catastrophes; it was just another thing he admired about them. "I don't think that will be enough to convince them, Amy."

"Well, I don't care what they think!" she huffed. "You should be able to stay, and I can think of a few others who would agree with me!"

Ledo looked down at his hands, which were clenched tightly together with tension. It had only been a day and he felt extremely lost without his Machine Caliber. If Chamber were here, he could tell him what to do, how to make things right…

"Hey." She grabbed his hand with both of hers and, as if she were reading his thoughts, squeezed reassuringly. Ledo looked back up into those cerulean eyes he'd come to adore and his chest tightened at the sheer determination and affection in them. "You're not alone, Ledo. I know you miss Chamber, but you'll always have me and Bebel and all our friends to help you out! If you get nervous, just remember I'll be right outside. Okay?"

And with that reminder, Ledo steeled himself in front of the officers. He knew this was something he had to do for himself and no one, not even Amy, could tell him the right words to say.

"I know that some of you may resent me for what I've done," he began. "There are many things I wish I could've done differently before leaving Gargantia. If I'd known…"

"Ledo." Ridget stepped forward as if to stop him, but he raised his hand, making her pause. He had to say this.

"I know I wasn't very trustworthy to begin with since I was never from Earth, and killing the Hidea—uh, whalesquid, has probably reawakened many skepticisms. I don't want anyone to feel as if they owe me their lives just because Chamber stopped Striker. He did it because he knew it was the right thing to do, and I did it because I've come to care about Gargantia and all of its inhabitants very much. And now that Chamber is gone, I think it is time that I started learning about this planet myself, and I would like to start here, in Gargantia."

As he began to bow in front of them, a gentle hand rested on his shoulder, making him stay erect. "There's no need for that, Ledo," said Ridget. "You've proven to be a great asset to Gargantia. It's true, we do owe you our lives, and on behalf of the Gargantian fleet, I'd like to thank you and Chamber." Her second-in-commander nodded as if he agreed with her. "I'm sure you feel very… vulnerable, without him." Ledo appreciated how sensitive she was being about Chamber's absence, but it still made him feel insecure. "Pinion told me what you found when you infiltrated the whalesquids' nesting site and seeing as you're familiar with the Yunboros and the whalesquid, I'm sure there is a place for you on Bellows's excavation team."

What felt like a heavy weight suddenly fell from his shoulders, leaving Ledo feeling as light as a feather. This must've been what closure felt like.

"Thank you very much, Commander."

With a humble bow, Ledo turned to leave, feeling anew. He couldn't wait to give Amy the good news!

He soon discovered that would be unnecessary. As soon as he opened the door, Amy, along with her friends Melty and Saaya, tumbled into the room, looking sheepishly guilty and earning amused glances from the occupants of the room.

Commander Ridget crossed her arms and tried to look serious as she reprimanded the eavesdroppers. "What do you girls think you're doing?"

Amy laughed nervously and rubbed the back of her head. "We just… wanted to be here to support Ledo in case you kicked him off of Gargantia."

"And why on Earth would I do that?"

It only took Amy a second to understand as she gasped in delight. As soon as she squirmed her way out from her under her friends, she immediately crushed Ledo into a big hug. "See! I knew they'd let you stay!"

Suddenly, Amy felt a pair of strong arms around her waist up and she cried out in surprise when she realized Ledo had lifted her up and began spinning her around, laughing in joy. It was the first time he was openly expressing himself, and it seemed Amy was not the only one stunned by this as the others watched them, completely shell-shocked. But the jolt was replaced with elation as Amy joined in Ledo's contagious merriment, laughing to her heart's content. She could hear Ridget explaining the situation to her friends and Melty saying something or other about a celebration, but Amy didn't care at the moment.

Seeing Ledo's happiness spread, the light in his eyes and being in the warm jubilation of his embrace, Amy didn't know what she would do without him. Now she would get to watch as Ledo continued to grow out of his shell, discovering new things and having new adventures, and she would be there to have those experiences with him. But for now, she was perfectly content being in his arms and never having to let go.