Hello. I'm supposed to be retired... but I felt like doing a little bit of writing again, so here ya go.

As for why I wrote this fic, well, after seeing all the supports, Lapis became my first choice for Alear. However, I was kinda already shipping Lapis with Alcryst. I had other ideas in mind, but I went with this one.

Enjoy...

Despite the upcoming final battle against the Fell Dragon Sombron, the atmosphere around the Somniel remains as calming and peaceful as ever. Even with the threat of death in the battle that is yet to come, just being on the Somniel provides a sense of comfort for everyone on it.

Lapis can attest to that.

She stands all by herself at the orchard, constantly thinking about what's coming up next, but she doesn't feel as worried as she expected. Maybe it's hope, her faith in her allies, her ever-growing confidence in herself, or maybe the Somniel just has that kind of magic. Whatever it is, it is strange yet relaxing to feel this way after everything that has happened since she met the Divine Dragon.

"Hello, Lapis."

Speak of the dragon, there he is - The Divine Dragon Alear.

At first, Lapis expected to be just another soldier under the Divine Dragon's command in the battle against the Fell Dragon. What she didn't expect was to develop a deep bond with the Divine One. All the praise, all the compliments, his unmatched kindness, all directed at her, it was so surprising yet so inspiring. The more time she spent with him, the more confident she felt. She has always lacked confidence in her own abilities because of her roots, but he has helped her build up the confidence that she needed.

"Can I have a moment of your time?" Alear asked.

"Sure, Divine One," Lapis replied. "What can I do for you?"

Alear closes his eyes and takes a deep breath, preparing himself for what he needs to say. He opens his eyes and holds out his hand. On his palm is a ring - gold and silver bands with a sparkling blue gem.

"Well… I want you to have this," said Alear.

"Wow," Lapis said in awe as she looked at the ring. "The metalwork is beautiful. It looks all fancy and expensive…" She stops and gasps. She recognizes the object. "Wait, is this the Pact Ring?"

"It is," Alear confirmed. "Look at the back side."

Lapis takes the ring from Alear's hand and takes a closer look at it. What she found on the ring shocked her.

"Why is my name engraved here?" Lapis asked.

"I carved it using the crafting tools you gave me," Alear answered.

"What?!" Lapis reacted, shocked. "You did this yourself, using the tools I made for you?!"

Lapis looks at the engraving again. It's so surreal. Her own name, carved on the Pact Ring itself. She almost dropped the ring due to the shock, but she steadied her hands to take a longer look at the engraving. Alear did this, and it looks wonderful.

"An engraving like this can't be removed. Why did you do this?" Lapis asked.

"I have no intention of undoing it," Alear said with that endearing smile on his face. "I carved your name into it because I want you to have it."

Lapis gasps again. "Me? But… but why? The Pact Ring is supposed to be given to someone very special to you, someone you share a deep and meaningful bond with. Why would you… why me?"

Alear looks away for a few seconds, eyes down at the green grass, looking hesitant to respond. Lapis tilts her head and looks closer at Alear's face. She could see his cheeks turning red a little bit. What could it mean?

Alear closes his eyes, smiles, breathes calmly, opens his eyes, looks back at Lapis, and says…

"Because I love you."

"What?!" Lapis exclaimed. Never before has she ever felt this shocked in her entire life.

"I've been meaning to tell you for a while now," Alear said. He was blushing again. "You say the Pact Ring is for someone very special to me. Well, you are very special to me, Lapis. I treasure our bond, even more than you could imagine."

Lapis couldn't say a word, but she did let out another gasp.

"The more time we spend together, the stronger my feelings for you become," Alear continued. "At first, I thought it was just that feeling when you get when you become very close with someone. But lately, I've come to a realization. My feelings for you, they're more than that. Every time, I'm with you, I feel different… the wonderful kind of different."

Lapis looks at the Pact Ring in her hands again, and then back at Alear.

"I admire you, Lapis," Alear said. The tone in his voice, it was so soft and so loving. "You're strong, very skilled, beautiful…" Alear closes his eyes as he feels his cheeks burning hotter.

"Divine One…"

Lapis stopped herself immediately.

"What do you say, Lapis? Will you wear the Pact Ring?" Alear asked.

Lapis was speechless. She couldn't give an immediate answer. It sounds like Alear is proposing to her. She knows it's not really a proposal, but it feels like one. Alear is confessing his true feelings for her, and all she can do is listen. The love and sincerity in his voice, it stunned her so much that she could barely speak. How could the Divine Dragon fall in love with her, of all people? What had she done to make this happen? All she did was be nice, respectful, train with him, and teach him how to craft…

He engraved her name on the Pact Ring, not just because he cherishes their bond but because he harbors strong romantic feelings for her.

"Divine One, I…" Lapis stopped herself again.

Lapis closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. She stops and thinks. To Alear, she looks worried. Her facial expression changes a few seconds later. She now looks like she wants to say something and is racking up the courage to do so.

"Divine One, I care about you. You know that. The bond we share, it means a lot to me," said Lapis. "But I can't accept this ring. I'm sorry."

Alear's smile drops. His eyes widen, surprised by her response.

"Huh?"

Lapis takes hold of Alear's hand as she returns the Pact Ring to him. She closes his fingers around it as she closes her eyes. She didn't want to make eye contact, not yet. She turns away from his direction as she rubs her shoulder. After another deep breath, she opens her eyes and looks at Alear.

"I value the times we've spent together, Divine One," said Lapis. "And while I will always care for you, fight for you, fight with you, that is as much as I can do for you."

"I… I see," Alear replied. He was trying to be respectful of her answer. "I'm sorry if I overstepped. It's just… with what's about to come, I wanted to be honest with you, to tell you how much you mean to me."

"I understand," Lapis said as calmly and as steadily as she can. "It's just…"

Lapis stops herself and sighs.

"What is it, Lapis?" Alear asked.

Lapis looks down and scrunches her eyebrows, hesitant to say more.

"It's not that I don't appreciate our bond, Divine One," said Lapis. "It's just… when it comes to love, well, I… um…"

"Oh, I see," Alear realized. "You're in love with someone else. Is that it?"

Lapis is struggling to maintain eye contact with Alear at this point. Of course, the quick turn and the red on her cheeks confirmed his guess immediately.

"I hadn't even considered," Alear said sadly. "If I had noticed before…"

"You don't have to feel bad about it, Divine One," said Lapis. "I do my best to keep it a secret."

"Still, I feel awful now," said Alear. "This must be upsetting for you. The words I've said to you… you were hoping to hear them from the one you truly love."

Lapis says nothing, but the not-so-subtle expression on her face says enough.

"I must apologize again, Lapis," Alear said. He sounded sad and ashamed. "I shouldn't have"

"No, you don't have to apologize, Divine One," said Lapis. "If anything, I feel like I'm the one who should apologize. The engraving on the ring… my own name… I can see you worked hard on it. I feel awful for rejecting your proposal, but…"

"You don't have to force yourself to say yes if you don't feel the same way about me," said Alear.

"All the effort you went to give me something truly special, and I wasted it for you," said Lapis.

"I made the choice to do this for you," said Alear. "You don't have to feel responsible."

"It's just… I know you've already confessed, but I still don't understand. Why me?" Lapis wondered aloud.

"I can't really explain it. I just know that I feel this way about you," Alear said sincerely. "I felt I owed you the truth, after everything we've been through. I thought… I thought that I…"

Alear pauses as he closes his eyes and lowers his head. He couldn't say any more. He didn't want to risk jeopardizing the bond they have forged. He confessed, and she didn't reciprocate his feelings. He repeats those words in his mind until he feels more relaxed. But right now, he feels only sorrow and heartbreak.

"Should I… leave you alone, Divine One?" Lapis asked awkwardly.

"No need. I'll just return to my room," said Alear. "I have to, uh, prepare for our next battle."

Lapis can tell that Alear was trying his best to sound as normal as he could. She can still hear the sadness in his tone, and it's triggering the guilt inside her. It was one thing for him to confess his love for her, but to engrave her name on the Pact Ring… she can only imagine how hurt he must feel right now.

"Okay," Lapis said. She tried to sound as professional as she can. "But if you fall asleep, I'll be sure to come and wake you up."

"I would appreciate that," said Alear.

The two can only nod at one another as Alear turns around and walks back to his room.

Lapis remains where she stands as she turns around to avoid looking at Alear. Before their conversation, all she could think about was the final battle against Sombron. But now, all she can think about is Alear's feelings for her and how it makes her feel.

It's true, she wishes that she could hear Alear's words coming from… him… from Prince Alcryst. It's what she's dreamed of since he first vowed to protect her. Even though she has repeatedly tried to convince herself that it would never happen, she couldn't stop dreaming of the day it would happen.

The Divine One loves me. Alear loves me.

Lapis is unsure of what to do with this. She respectfully returned the Pact Ring to him after he attempted to give it to her. She had tried to reject his feelings in a manner that wouldn't stain their bond.

Once Sombron is defeated, what happens between her and the Divine Dragon?

Do they just pretend that his confession never happened? Can they ever act normally around each other now knowing that he loves her but she doesn't feel the same way? Will they be able to hide this tension between them from their friends?

"Nothing I can do about it now," Lapis said to herself. "But I can do this for him. I will protect him."

Alear slowly walks back to him room, all the while avoiding his allies so they don't see the sorrow on his face. The last thing he wants right now is everyone seeing him in the state he's in and making a big fuss about it. He wants everyone focused on the battle against his father. He did run into Yunaka, but she was too busy muttering something about Seadall to take notice of his current mood.

As he enters his room, he looks at the Pact Ring in his hand. He then puts it down on the drawer and walks towards his bed. He then lies down, but he doesn't go to sleep. He just wants to lie down to relax and recover from the conversation he just had with Lapis.

He glances at the Pact Ring, thinking about the engraving he put on it. Her name. Lapis' name. The name of the woman he loves. Even if there was a possibility that she would reject his feelings, he wanted to be honest with her, to tell her how he really feels and how much he wants her to be right by his side.

What he didn't expect was that she was already in love with someone else. It made him feel foolish that he even tried to confess to her. It hurt him so much when she rejected the ring and his feelings. Even though he is trying to be understanding of her feelings, that does little to mitigate the pain in his heart. This is the first time in his life that he has fallen in love with someone, and that someone was a very special person in his eyes.

As he lies there on his bed, he starts to wonder who it is that Lapis is in love with. As he looks back at all the memories he has of her, one specific moment comes to mind.

His army's first battle against Hortensia at Brodia. He thinks back to the words Lapis had said to a certain prince and how she sounded…

"I will protect you both," Alcryst said to both his retainers.

"So brave," Lapis said with awe and admiration in her tone. "But, uh, as your retainers, it's really our job to protect you."

Looking back, the awkwardness in Lapis' voice at the moment makes so much sense now. Alear wonders how he did not see it before. This only adds to the shame he feels for attempting to confess to Lapis. If he had known right away that Lapis was enamored with Alcryst, he would be trying to help them get together rather than attempt what he just attempted right now.

Alear wishes he can erase the past few minutes from his memory or even erase that embarrassing moment from existence, but he knows he's gonna have to live with it. He can only hope that this doesn't ruin his friendship with Lapis.

"Nothing I can do about it now," Alear said to himself. "But I can do this for her. I will protect her."

I'm not sure if I feel proud of this, but it feels good to be writing again. I hope you liked it... in spite of what just happened...