Passing from a teenage crush to a full-blown out love was still something that baffles Aelia a little, Cor definitely didn't understand either, be it a mild crush or serious love directed at him by her. No doubt, that was in great part the root of the start for the horrible unrequited love she was suffering from… Not that it was always bad, it frustrated her and made her hurt over stupid childish notions that were more laughable than anything else; and others that teared at her heart with worry and helplessness. But at the same time, it was one of the most wonderful things she has had in her life; the simple joy of looking at him coming back safely, the security and peace when traveling besides him, the laughter and japes when he indulges her in some sparring or small talk. Even if he wouldn't love her back as she wished him to, she still was happy it was him she loved. Since the moment she realized it, to the end of her life, she would be thankful for it.
"But if we do that, we may break any good faith and trust put into the terms of the ceasefire!" Aelia insisted in her point of keeping exclusively diplomatic the trip to Duuneir in Igrothim.
The man standing by the wall with his arms crossed, obviously didn't see it that way. "Don't be naive Princess, these people just accepted to talk because they have an underlying plan to gain something, this is their last stand and they are betting all in this slim chance." Cor easily disregarded her objections.
"It would be bad for them to do it, but acceptable for us?" Aelia countered again.
Still, the Marshal was unmoved. "Even if they actually don't have any ill intentions behind it, the talks could take weeks to settle everything. And meanwhile the civilians will keep starving or suffering under the army forces that refuse to move."
Aelia narrowed her eyes and was about to refute him again, but the tired sigh of her father stopped her.
"As much as I would like to agree with you, my child, I'm afraid Cor is in the right." He paused in one of his short introspective deliberations, then continued. "Even though deception is bad in its nature, no matter what the motive behind its use, when lives are at stake -innocent ones at that-, it's not about the hypothetical future we might achieve. They are dying now, they are suffering now, and if it is in our power to help them now, we should. But there are those who will disregard these lives for their own gain. Sadly, these are the ones we have to deal with at war, and we can't give them room to continue on, even if that means using the same cards they do."
Aelia looked down at her hands, not ready to give up her point. "I don't believe in justified evil."
"And you shouldn't, for there is not." Regis answered firmly. "But we are rulers, protectors of the people, and it befalls on us the task of impossible choices."
Aelia had said nothing anymore, knowing the decision had already been made. She just stayed mostly quietly listening to the plans of how they would mobilize the troops and how they would be moved in coordination with the army of the New Empire so the last remains of the Old Empire wouldn't notice it. Even if they numbers weren't many, they had quite the war machinery still and were bunkered in quite the advantageous position. Aelia and Cor had exited her father's office together, she smiled looking at the poor flower she had been tearing its white petals one by one and throwing down to the water below. She had always been a very sore loser.
Oddly it was Cor who talked first. "Don't take it to heart, Princess. If it's as you say, then our troops will never move and they will be none the wiser over it."
Even if it was reasonable what he said, Aelia still felt they shouldn't do it. "It doesn't matter, the troops will be there whether I like it or not." She said sourly.
She watched from the corner of her eyes, his mouth twitch in amusement and it only helped to inflame her irritation and wounded pride. But she couldn't just throw a glove to his face and challenge him to a duel. She would only lose in less than the blink of an eye and he would be even smugger. Aelia was sure she the silly crush on the man had disappeared now.
Aelia turned her wrist and watched the hour on her clock. Half past-twelve, she had to leave now if she wanted to pick up Noctis from school on time. Even if he was entering the 'independent' phase of his early teenage years, he still liked to spend time with her, especially when she was about to leave in a long trip that could be potentially dangerous. She muttered about picking up Noctis from school and taking her leave.
"There." Cor stopped her before she could leave, placing his hand over her head. "Stop fuming, Princess. You'll scare Noctis if you drive like a hissing coeurl in this weather."
She flushed. A little bit from anger, and even if she hated to admit, a bit caused from the said already non-attraction towards the Marshal. "I'm not like dad! I know how to drive!" She exclaimed, trying and failing to ignore how she was actually calming down.
"Really?" Cor asked surprised and amused, then dropped his hand from her head. "Then that bad gene spared one of your line at least."
"Was my grandfather bad at driving as well?" She asked in wonder. Now her vexation completely forgotten.
"He just didn't know how to." Cor smiled and looked into the ceiling, reminiscent of something.
She frowned and they both started walking again, pulling out her car keys musing over a King who couldn't drive. "Does that mean Noctis will be bad at driving?" She muttered to herself a little worriedly.
"You shouldn't worry much about it, he most likely won't need to touch a steering wheel very often. Ignis will make sure of it once they're both of age to drive, especially if he notices anything odd about his driving performance."
"Yes, you're right." Aelia sighed in relief, remembering the trustworthy and steady-handed future advisor of her brother. "He'll keep him out of trouble much better than you have managed with me." She shot him a little mischievous smile, twirling her keychain in her finger.
His mouth twitched but didn't comment about it, then snatched her keys away from her. "It's raining cats and dogs," Cor said and just in queue a thunder made the whole Citadel shake. "I'll drive you."
Aelia took offence on it. "I can drive perfectly well, bad weather or not!"
"That's what your father said before he crashed us into a lamppost." Cor said flatly.
Aelia cursed her lineage for their seemingly ineptitude at driving.
"Don't you have anything better to do?"
"Than making sure the heirs of Lucis Crown don't die in a car crash? No."
"I already told you, I can drive." She said, but he ignored her and she could do nothing but follow him.
The way the world acts can be very strange at times, Aelia thought, stretching her legs and watching their reflection over the pond. She had heard somewhere that the world was round so people could meet again after years apart, even if they walk in opposite directions. No wonder Cor and that young boy had met again, to the surprise of one and the utterly cluelessness of the other.
They arrived in time to see a bunch of uniformed kids walking under umbrellas making their way back home and others climbing into the cars of their families that picked them up. Aelia had the inkling that Noctis hadn't brought an umbrella with himself, good thing she always kept a couple of them in her car. Cor stopped the car near the entrance and she climbed out, she huddled in her coat under the umbrella but didn't particularly rush under the pouring rain. There was something about walking under the inclemency of the weather that had charmed her since young, to both her parents' dismay when she liked to run around under the thunderous rain when left unsupervised.
If she had been rushing like the last students milling out the school she would have missed the mop of blond hair falling off from a tree near the entrance gates. Aelia walked over and found a plump boy around Noctis's age curled painfully on the floor, he was drenched and she bent to pick up the now broken glasses that most likely belonged to the poor kid.
"Are you ok?" She asked as she returned the glasses to him, knowing full well he probably wasn't and covering him from the rain with her umbrella.
The boy looked up at her and clear baby blue eyes stared at her a little surprised if not pained.
"I- yes." He said as he adjusted the glasses over his face.
"You don't look so well." She said dubiously. "Where does it hurt?"
"My wrist hurts a little." He said meekly.
Aelia bent besides him, protecting him better from the rain. "It might be sprained or broken," She commented then asked if his parents where coming to pick him up. He shook his head, then asked for their phone number and received another negative.
"They're in a business trip."
"Any other family members?"
"No." He answered quietly, as if guilty for not having anyone who to relay in.
Aelia turned and caught a glimpse of Noctis waiting by the entrance of the school building, he was watching down into his phone. Typical. She pulled her phone out and dialled Cor's number.
"Lost your way from the school gate to the car?" Came Cor's unimpressed answer to her call.
"There's a kid here that fell from a tree and is hurt."
"So? Call his parents."
"They're out of the city."
Cor sighed. "Call an ambulance then."
"I don't think it's that serious."
"Then, he can walk it off."
She didn't answer to that, a little outraged then when she was about to tell him something very impolite, the voice of Noctis from behind her stopped her.
"What are you doing?" And to her surprise he did have an umbrella.
"This kid fell from the tree as I was passing by. I think he has a sprained wrist and has no family at the city…"
By this time the poor boy had incorporated to a sitting position and seemed to be growing more uncomfortable by the minute.
"I'm fine! Really. I can make it home on my own…" He said, smiling a little. It was so force it was painful to watch.
Both Aelia and Noctis exchanged a look.
"Can you stand?" Noctis asked.
"Yes. Only…"
"Only?" Aelia prompted.
"The cat is still stuck on the tree…"
Both siblings looked up at tree then back to the boy, then back at each other. Aelia smiled in understanding and Noctis frowned.
"I think you better come with us." Noctis said. "You're drenched." He added with a tone that allowed no rebuttal.
The boy's face froze, not knowing what to do.
"Here." Noctis said and helped him up by pulling him by the uninjured arm.
"Take him to the car, it's just outside." "I'll take the cat down." She added when she saw the hesitancy of the boy.
She looked up into the said tree and wondered how in Ifrit's hell the kid has seen a damned cat stuck in a tree with this weather. After some searching with she found it. A half drowned and shivering thing. Aelia sighed, how on earth will she get it down? It was at least three meters up, the boy was lucky that he only had injured his wrist to fall from that branch. It had been some time since she had climbed up a tree, the last time being when at Tenebrae and challenging Ravus to do something stupid probably…
"Aren't you going to climb up?" The voice of Cor startled her.
"I- I'm not sure it's a good idea." She said turning to him, he was standing under the pouring rain without an umbrella. She felt guilty, he was already soaked to the bone most likely.
"You become reasonable for the first time in the day, Princess." Cor said and she had to swallow her anger, it wouldn't help take the cat down by starting to throwing insults at the Marshal.
Cor summoned one of his katanas, and before Aelia could ask him what he was going to do he just chopped the branch were the cat was. Aelia gaped while Cor picked up the cat by its scruff and tossed it her way. The poor thing was so scared that it didn't even claw at her, nor try to jump away, just kept shivering in her arms.
"There. Let's go."
The cat soaked her coat and she could feel how it was the water was starting to seep into her shirt as well. She really was so over with her crush for such a man.
Of course on the ride back they started another argument, like they always did when spending too much time together after things hadn't gone her way. First, Aelia wanted to take the kid -Prompto he had said his name was in a meek voice- to a hospital to get checked, to what Cor said he would just take the kid home and he could call an ambulance from there were paramedics could tell if he needed to go to hospital or just treat him there. Aelia opposed, saying he was alone and with such weather it wasn't wise to call for one if it wasn't actually an emergency, it might be needed somewhere else after all.
Both of them rarely raised their voice at each other when in one of their arguments, if they had done it at all, but the air around them did get icier or hotter depending on the topic. This occasion had turned to the heated side of things because it wasn't of high gravity, especially with her still holding a grudge about her dad siding with Cor rather than with her not long ago. She then had seen Prompto was getting fidgety and nervous, being the reason they were both discussing, but too shy to speak up for himself.
Aelia smiled and looked up to the lazy passing clouds in the sky. She had noticed much later, but when Noctis had snickered at something Cor had said about her sense of direction –which wasn't great-, he had done it loudly enough to warrant her attention and wrath intentionally so some attention could be taken away from the other boy.
"Shut up." Aelia huffed unbolting her seatbelt and twisting in the passenger seat to pinch at his cheek, Noctis bated her hand away.
"Get back on your seat." Cor said pulling her by the scruff of the neck. "And you expect me to believe you do can drive safely." He muttered.
"I'm not driving." She said simply.
"She still does that when she's driving Cor." Noctis lied, and Aelia would have turned again in her seat if Cor hadn't shot her a warning look. "You should take away her car keys." Her little brother added for good measure.
"I'm sure the kitchens will run out of meat for a couple of weeks, veggie experimental menu sounds good." She said smiling.
Noctis paled. "She's a good driver. Better than you, Cor."
Cor shot an unimpressed look at both of them. "You two are definitely Regis children."
A sneeze followed by a mewl of the cat reminded Aelia what she had been originally fighting for. The poor kid at least seemed to have relaxed after being taken out by the limelight of attention. So she didn't think it wise to start the bickering again with Cor.
"Let's stop at that gas station." She said, pulling at Cor's sleeve, then motioned with her eyes to the seat behind when he shot her a 'No' look.
He said nothing but finally did so. They both climbed out of the car, she said she would go buy something warm and a towel for Prompto, -though she wondered if they sold towels in the gas station shop-, as traffic had become heavier with the rains and they would still take time to arrive anywhere.
"Let's just take him with us. He has no one to watch over him." She started as she pressed a button for hot chocolate and marvelled that they indeed, sold towels.
Cor sighed. "You know it's dangerous to take a random kid to the Citadel. Not," He said forcefully over her rising an argument. "Because he means harm, but he is the one who can get in trouble for it."
Yes Aelia had never consider it much about it, because she had never tried to socialize in her short time in school. But if she had wanted to befriend someone and hang around from time to time, a full investigation would take place of the person and their family, then the parents would have been contacted to make sure they understood about the risks the child might run into if they were close to a royal child. No wonder Noctis didn't make much effort to get friends either…
"You don't know if he wants to be associated with the Royal Family at all, if not, even if it sounds heartless, it's better for him to be on his own." Cor continued.
Aelia breathed out, she really hated to lose to him for the third time in the day. "Alright. Let's send him home then."
"Here." He said and put a candy in her hand as they walked out from the shop. She looked at him confused. "For behaving." He smirked and walked off, leaving her behind speechless for a moment.
She had wanted to throw the candy at his head but that would have been a very bad example for Noctis if he had watched it, besides, Cor would have made her regret it later when at training with the Crownsguards or something. He did know how to hold a grudge over stupid things. In the end they had taken the boy to his empty home, it was in a nice area where many families lived. But, he still would be hurt and alone. So of course she hadn't given up so quickly.
"Couldn't you check if it's only a sprint or something more serious? I'm sure you can tell the difference." She said when Noctis walked Prompto to the entrance of his house with an umbrella. "And if it's just a sprint he won't need to go to a hospital alone." She added quickly when he was about to tell her off. Cor shot her a long suffering look and she knew that she won this much at least.
They both climbed out of the car and as both of them were wet already didn't even bother to take an umbrella. Noctis shot them a confused look and Prompto paled a little when watching at Cor annoyed face shot his way.
"Don't worry Prompto, Cor here," She said tapping the man in the arm. "Can see if it's just a sprint or broken bone. Then if you need to call an ambulance we can stay here with you until it arrives." And Cor shot her another dangerous look, because this wasn't part of the 'deal'. Prompto accepted, she was sure more out of fear than anything else, and ushered them inside his home, cat still in his arms. She sent him to get changed first into dry and clean clothes and put Noctis to dry the cat with one of the towels she had buy.
"Here, dry yourself a little." She said meanwhile they waited, offering him a towel.
"No need." He said and she shot him an unimpressed look.
"You don't catch colds, oh, Immortal?"
He shot her a look at the use of his nickname. "No."
She said nothing and at nothing better to do she put the candy that Cor had given into her mouth. She almost spitted it right out. It was a cinnamon candy, and it was spicy as hell. Her eyes watered a little and shot Cor a glance.
"You like this?"
Cor shrugged and pulled one from his jacket, putting it into his mouth. "Can't handle spicy food Princess?" He said with a mocking smile. He already knew she couldn't, from one time he accompanied her to Galahad where they liked even their water to be spicy.
Aelia spitted the candy into her mouth, Cor shot her a challenging look and she would have baited into it, but then Prompto came back from his room. She felt a little bad to having to subject him to Cor, from whom he was clearly terrified of but this was for the better. Cor took the nervous boy's hand and moved it here and there. He just winced but remained still, more afraid about the Marshal than of the pain, after all Cor did have a scary face most of the time. Aelia was sympathetic, she could remember a time when she was terrified of him.
Then Cor then took the wristband Prompto had and pulled it away, to this, the boy did react. He straightened as a board and tried to pull away, but he was stopped by Cor's iron grip. Aelia watched curiously as Cor's face seemed to show some surprise when he saw what the boy wanted to hide, then his eyes moved up to the boy's face, which seemed to have turned a few shades paler. But the moment passed and Cor pulled a bandage and started wrapping it around the kid's wrist covering the strange marking in his skin.
"It's just sprained. Put some ice and don't move it around much. If it doesn't get better in a couple of days, go to the hospital." Cor said and released the boy.
Prompto backed away quickly and looked at Aelia while shifting nervously. "Maybe- maybe you should stay while the rain goes down…" Prompto said quietly.
Aelia looked at Noctis who shrugged, yet it didn't matter if he would care to stay because she was sure Cor wouldn't agree at all. She wasn't expecting to be proven wrong.
"Fine." Cor said and rested against a wall, watching closely at the blond boy as he went to Noctis and the cat.
"Cor isn't that scary. Don't mind him." Aelia heard Noctis say to Prompto and she smiled, then a, "Nah, don't worry. They are used to deal with far more difficult things."
She walked over to Cor and when Prompto said something that made Noctis laugh, he smiled softly. And damn, her heart fluttered and she knew that she wasn't over her crush for the man at all.
Aelia had seen it briefly, an odd mark that seemed like a barcode from the stuff on the supermarkets, she thought it had been some kind of random sketch he had done with a pencil when bored at school or something, but it hadn't. When she had the mind to ask Cor about his reaction to the boy they were already in the train of Niflheim to the closest station to Duuneir.
"You recognized the boy didn't you? You've met him before." Aelia asked, she had been reading the conditions over the ceasefire and tentative peace terms for the third time in the train, and her mind had wandered to her brother and new friend.
Cor huffed. "Something like that." He was standing on the other side of the wagon, looking absently through a window at the passing landscape.
"Now you have to tell your tale, Marshal! This dull trip still has a long way to go."
"There's not much to tell," Cor said, looking at her from the corner of his eyes, his arms crossed over his chest. "Around the time Noctis was born your father sent me and other men in small sabotage missions," He paused and looked to the ground, probably remembering the things he saw back then. By the darkening of his expression she guessed it wasn't nothing nice. "In one of their facilities, there was a lab underground… I found a babe there. He had a barcode tattooed on his wrist, I sent him back to Lucis. Later on in war, we found much more of them. MTs before they were turned into mindless machines."
Aelia had already heard about the making of the MTs, she had been disgusted and horrified in a vague way, just like when you learn of horrific historic events or listen to news of a tragedy that has nothing to do with you. But now that she had seen what an MT could have been, a living, breathing human being with their own dreams and hopes… She felt cold and a little nauseous.
No wonder Cor wouldn't give the last remains of the old Empire any respite, no trust, no mercy. And Aelia didn't like to see how he closed off into his memories, she had already spent enough time in silence by his side in the last year to see the tell-tales of him mulling over the evils and cruelties he had witnessed.
"But it must have been nice to see him… Prompto I mean." She clarified when he shot her a puzzled look.
"Yes," He said after a moment. "I wasn't expecting him to actually have survived."
"Well, it must be fate. Because Noctis took a liking to him, now I won't have to worry about him not having normal-," Aelia stopped herself and corrected. "-ish friends." Because being brought out from a lab as baby must leave its problems.
"You probably should care more for your own non-existent social life, rather than meddling with your brother's." He said and give her a small entertained smile when she scowled and told him to mind his own business. Though technically he did had way more close friends than she did.
And was it just her, or lately she could coax smiles out of him more easily?
Too bad that had been one of the last enjoyable parts of that trip, because just as Cor had predicted, things had gone south pretty quickly and she had to literally jump out of a window from the third floor of a building to avoid capture. Of course Nyx had been with her and he had made sure of avoiding any risks from falling of such height. Then she had gone to the designated safe point to wait for Cor to end up the operation they had planned beforehand. It had been three years ago but it felt so long ago… She had still been very stubborn about learning of the impossible dealings of war and accepting her incapacity to help in some way to reach peaceful understandings. It had felt like a big failure on her part, even when she had done and said all the right things. Even though Cor and her father had warned her from the beginning it would be quite futile
Aelia wasn't moping, she really wasn't, but it had already been a day since the failure of the peace negotiations and she didn't have anything to do but wait. And what could her mind do but to wander around the impossibility to avoid more violence, death and destruction. The place they were at was a small warehouse with a lot of cracks in the walls, no windows and flickering yellow lights. It didn't exactly help her mood, nor was there anything to distract her either, besides the painted metallic balls Noctis had gifted her for her birthday. They were supposed to help with the stress when turning them around each other in the palm of her hand. It did help some, and she liked the sound they made from the friction between each other, it reminded her of the noise a wine glass made when passing a finger around its edge.
So absorbed was Aelia in her thoughts while contemplating the little patterns of flowers and birds in the orbs that she hadn't paid any mind to the ones arriving at the warehouse this time around, until the deep voice calling her name from behind made her jump and one of her toys flew away. It was caught mid-air by Cor who regarded her with a raised eyebrow. Aelia coloured some at being caught so un-attending of her surroundings and focused her eyes in her hands.
"If I was an enemy, you'd be dead." He said sitting on the empty space of the bench beside her.
"If an enemy reached this place, that means you'd be dead and so would the rest of our forces, so either way I'd end up dead." Aelia shrugged, trying to hide her embarrassment.
Cor said nothing to that, probably because it was the truth. His hand appeared in her vision as he returned the runaway orb into her hand. "Noctis give you those ?"
"Yeah." She nodded absently and after a few moments of silence she finally turned to see his face. Cor was drinking from a water bottle, he didn't look worse for wear even though he had been in the wages of the battlefront for a whole day. Yet her eyes were drawn to darkened stains on his skin.
"You have blood on your face." Aelia said numbly.
Cor didn't even move to try to wipe it away. "It's not mine."
"Oh." She said her mouth drayed a little. "That's good… I guess."
He turned to look at her with some amusement. "I certainly believe it is a good thing that it isn't mine."
Aelia flushed a little again and turned away, she didn't even know why she would have a crush on the man, and he was terrifying and so nonchalant at times.
"Is- is everything alright out there?" Aelia asked, not sure what to make of his ease at fighting and killing so often.
Cor put down his water bottle. "No."
She turned sharply to look at him, Cor was looking at her with an unreadable expression.
"It never is, Princess." He said plainly.
Aelia studied his eyes for a moment, the man who made nothing of having blood staining his face and yet thinking a battle would never be alright, no matter the outcome, yet he still dedicated his life to it. When his gaze was too much, she averted her eyes again to her hands. Aelia always lost at their staring matches.
"I was wrong." She said after another moment of shared silence. He didn't answer, nor did he need to ask what she meant. "And what bothers me the most isn't that I was wrong, but that I can't be right. I can never be right by expecting people to hold true to their words, can I? That they would think again and understand all the evil that wars and conflicts bring, that no one wins with them. I'm just a fool for believing that I'll find goodness or a spec of reason in one of these people." Aelia didn't mean to sound bitter, but she couldn't help it.
"You're not a fool for believing that." Cor said earnestly even if a little tiredly.
Aelia bit her lip, her eyes still sticking to the orbs in her hand. "But it's pointless. Believing something won't make it true, no matter how much I want it." She said quietly.
There was another moment of silence, then Cor's voice and a warm hand on top of her head caught her by surprise.
"There's one in a hundredth chance you might find someone willing to listen to reason, or probably even less." Yes, what a nice way to put salt on the wound. "But there's a chance you might find it, and when that day comes, you'll be able to avoid bloodshed, of a few or many…" Aelia glanced a reticently his way, trying to gauge if he was being honest. Their eyes connected and she knew he was being serious. "And it will be worth it, so you have to keep believing in it. And if you're wrong… that's what I'm here for."
Aelia touched the top of her head remembering the warmth his hand left behind, she couldn't repress the fond smile that moved her lips at the memory. That's when she had known her silly crush, that she believed was a passing stage of her ending teenage years wouldn't fade away eventually but that it changed into something deeper and that it would keep growing and growing. And it had.
Aelia sighed miserably, she could more easily accept this unilateral love if only the stubborn man would at least find someone else to love and make him happy. It would be bittersweet, yes, but Aelia at least could lay it to rest in peace. But Cor hadn't, and it didn't seem likely he'll do it in the future either. The Marshal was married to his job, even if Aelia understood it perfectly well, because she was as dedicated to Lucis as him, she wanted nothing more than for the person she loved to be happy. And Aelia was in the throes of madness because she wanted to make him happy, and knew she could, but he just wouldn't let her. And he complained about her stubbornness, she scowled.
Finally he had made some progress in his reading and reviewing of the new security protocols, he even added some notes on what to add and what would be unnecessary and too time taxing. His mood even started to improve, now that time and work had occupied his mind. Then he passed through a document requesting an envoy to Accordo to attend to the celebration of the First Secretary re-election. Cor mind immediately returned two years past when he had fought Glauca for the last time and when the Princess had changed yet again the way he looked at her.
Regis had asked him to be part of the Princess escort again, even if it was only Accordo. It was precaution, nothing had really made Lucis or Accordo worry about any kind of attack, but that was exactly why it would be the perfect place to do it. It wasn't a critical nor particularly pressing matter, but it needed to be done. The help and protection that Lucis had provided for the island country had been great and one way or another, Accordo was bound to show its gratitude. So here she was, arranging the details of the deals and a fair quantity of resources shared.
Boring things, but her father had still sent him alongside as the Princess escort, since she had already been the target of several attempts at kidnapping in some of her trips and talks they weren't taking chances. At first they had believed it was just the remnants of the old Empire trying to gain some leverage by taking hostage the Princess, but then it had happened again when she had been at the borders of Tenebrae and Niflheim with Prince Ravus and Princess Lunafreya and the target had clearly been her. Regis already had started suspecting something was odd since more daemons had started appearing and Noctis had been attacked back then. Then at the beginning of the Kingsglaives and their first battles, many had gone missing and some found later as if they had been dissected like animals. Someone was searching for something and it was connected to the magic of the Caelum lineage.
But for the last year since they last saw Glauca in the Tenebraen borders, everything had proved to be as calm and tedious as it could be in this kind of things, so Regis's worries started to be something to leave behind. Yet the Princess was as trying and troublesome as she could be and felt the need for some diversion from the boring and tiring negotiations. Being in Altissia without at least going for some diversion was too much to ask of her. So off she had gone, to some pastry shop she had read about somewhere.
"Couldn't you eat cake at the hotel?" He asked, his arms crossed over his chest while he watched her eat her third sweet.
"No. It's not the same." Aelia answered from the other side of the small table after swallowing a mouthful. "Why don't you eat some? They're really good~" She singsong.
"I'll pass." He answered curtly.
The Princess smiled softly and chuckled, then took another bite and a sip from her cold minted water. It was good to see her relax from time to time, Cor only wished she wouldn't drag him along for it.
"Do you never relax, Marshal?" She asked teasingly.
"No."
Aelia laughed, and it wasn't like those fake smiles and polite laughs he had seen her do when negotiating -or trying to- or talking with other politicians and royalties. It made her look young and carefree, and it was a contrast to how controlled she was most of the time. Cor knew it was her 'working' face, but it was odd that it was her usual face rather than the other way around. It was similar to how Regis had become after they stopped traveling around and he had to spend more time around people who didn't see him as a human anymore.
"What makes you look so grave? It's such a nice sunny calm day, surely you can't be thinking of past battlefronts or such…" She trailed off and
His eyes wandered to the running water of the channel below, beside the street with some people passing by occasionally, but returned to the young woman sitting in front of him. She was watching him wonderingly, then looked away when he stared back at her.
"Do I look grave?" He asked absentminded.
"Yes, so much that I wonder if you were born with such a stern look, probably scared the doctor."
Cor huffed, and took a sip from his water and glanced at the array of colourful blooming flowers tangling around the stone banister that surrounded the terrace they were at. Truly a tranquil and beautiful day, he should learn to appreciate these kinds of moments. Then his eyes returned to Aelia's face, who was smiling pleased, he wondered at what. Then he realized it was probably because he had smiled, albeit a small and short smile.
What an odd girl.
Yes, he had thought it odd back then, when he hadn't realized that she was already in love with him. But now, he understood it, perhaps more than he wished to. Sometimes what gives the most sense of accomplishment aren't the quantity of battles won or near life-ending situations you escape, but to make someone you care for smile genuinely, or relax after a long day, or maybe just making them know they are cared for…
Cor wasn't making things better by going down this path of thought.
He had grown fond of traveling with her, she took her missions seriously and contrary to what he usually said about her getting them into trouble she was always careful to avoid it as humanly possible. But not even in a million years would he have thought their relationship could be something beyond guarding, camaraderie and duty… And yet a part of him was lately gnawing at him with thoughts about how in that moment he had started to want to see her smiling more like that. But that doesn't mean anything, but wishing the good of someone you cared for, right?
Finally the negotiations had finished and the First Secretary Camelia Claustra had invited the Princess to the Accordian Opera as a 'farewell party'. Cor could only think of it as stupid frivolities and waste of time, but to his surprise Aelia genuinely seemed to be happy to attend such things.
"Well, I really like music and such performances. I have only been able to watch one Accordian Opera before in Lucis and it was amazing!"
She had said in such earnest and childlike excitement it had actually taken some of his annoyance away. Cor still couldn't appreciate the finer arts, but there was a marked difference when accompanying someone who genuinely loves something you don't, rather than being obliged to fulfil an equally dull responsibility for everyone involved.
As predicted, most of the story had gone over Cor's head. He had found more entertainment listening and watching the enthusiasm of the Princess sharing and explaining parts of the story while also giving her opinions about performance of the singers and her own interpretations of some twists in the story. Of course Cor hadn't prompted her to do so, but she knew he found this kind of thing rather dull and she seemed to have made her mind up to try and change his feelings about it.
She hadn't succeeded in making him like the thing, but he could understand better why she did. Weskham and the First Secretary had been in the same box but they had been more absorbed by the performance and discussing between them the appreciation of it. So even if Cor hadn't found it as dull as he usually did, he was still thankful for it to come into a recess.
"Exasperated already?" Weskham asked with a smile.
"Not yet."
"You amaze me, my friend."
"The Princess has done a good job to try and make me like the thing."
Weskham chuckled. "Yes, I could see that. Has she succeeded then?"
"No. But at least she made it more bearable."
"Yes?" Weskham passed his fingers over his moustache while watching Aelia talk with some dignitaries also attending the opera. "Aelia has learned well the art of swaying and flattery, both essential in her work as a diplomat."
His friend was clearly half-joking but Cor couldn't help the small curl his lips. "She certainly has learned her way with words."
Weskham shot him an amused look. "I see you still keep your dislike over diplomacy."
Cor huffed. "Fake promises and the prolongation of conflicts that could easily be solved if those silver tongued people wouldn't be around prattling only for their own gain and of their own."
Weskham patted him in the back. "Not all are like that. Including your servant over here."
"I didn't mean you."
"And what about the Princess?" Weskham prodded.
"She has good intentions. But becoming a good liar has never been something I would praise." Cor knew it was shooting barbs at Regis, Clarus and Weskham, but as his views were nothing new to his friends, Weskham laughed in good humour.
"And that's why Regis is so fond of you."
Cor grunted and they finished their talk as everyone was walking back into their stalls and boxes as the opera was about to continue. Aelia walked to them with a smile on her face, Cor wondered who had upset her, and he could easily recognize the polite mask she used to hide her real thoughts because her eyes never smiled. It was odd that such a look troubled him more often than not, perhaps it was the contrast of her real smile that made her eyes light up or how it was growing more frequent to the point he wondered if someday it would replace the truth for the lie.
"Cor, you can stay out if you're bored already." She said amiably.
"I'm your escort Princess. And a box in a theatre where everyone present can see you isn't exactly safe." Cor said, a little perplexed at her sudden change of attitude.
"Nyx is there already. Isn't it a little overkill?" The Princess insisted.
"No." He answered flatly.
The Princess shrugged and walked into the box. And perhaps Cor was imagining it, but she seemed a little pissed off at him. But she had been in a good enough mood not ten minutes earlier and nothing had happened so far between them to put them at odds. Some puzzlement probably showed on his face for Weskham exhaled in pity.
"I'm afraid you just fell off her good graces, Marshal."
"Did I?" Cor asked amused if a little puzzled.
"Calling someone a good liar usually won't endear you to them." His friend noted as he wiped his monocle. "She has developed quite a good ear, my friend." Weskham then laughed and went in as well.
"Damn snooping abilities." He muttered to himself and followed his friend. Now he could see the Princess had changed seats to be beside the First Secretary.
He smiled a little at her childishness, then automatically swept his gaze over the settling audience just as he had been doing every minute or so since they entered the damned place. And he almost missed it; when the light was changing to let the opera continue he noticed several eyes looking directly at their location. He already was reaching for the Princess and so was the Glaive behind him some explosion made everything shake and turn pitch black.
He didn't stop at the loss of sight and reached the shoulder he knew to be Aelia's and pulled her towards him. This happened in the split of seconds and as soon as he had the Princess safely against his side, lightning illuminated their surroundings momentarily as Nyx zapped two figures creeping in on them. And this felt way too reminiscent of the time back in Riflhum, the only thing they needed was for Glauca to appear-
And of course his damned thoughts seemed to have summoned the now army-less General.
"Princess. Go." He said close to her ear as he spun them blocking Glauca's way and throwing her into the direction of the door. And it was good after two years of having to take her out of dangerous situations had made her become almost mindlessly obedient to his commands in such situations.
Truly, fighting this armoured prick was starting to get boring, so this time either he would kill him or die trying. And the General seemed to be in the same line of thought as him, because for once he didn't seem that interested to chase the Princess so quickly this time around. Or mayhap this time there were enough of his men and MTs around for him to don't care. Either way, Cor knew Weskham would guide the Princess to safety and Nyx would buy them time and space.
The fight had lasted long and had moved from place to place. Many buildings suffered serious damage, some very old and with some historic importance, to which this day Aelia still lamented as she called them beautiful works of architecture. He just cared that Glauca had been taken down and no civilian life had been lost, Nyx had make sure of that. Cor hadn't taken the General down unscathed of course, besides several bruises, a dislocated shoulder and a slashed leg, Glauca had run him through the shoulder with an iron rod at a point when he had the armoured Niff had lost his sword and then pulled it out again. It had been excruciatingly painful to say the least.
Cor had started to lose quite the quantity of blood, he had started to weaken enough to just crumple against the nearest wall. The little magic possessed he usually used to empower his body capacity beyond normal limits, including helping his body stave off blood loss and so on. So in simple words, it had been grave wounds if he had lost enough blood to feel wobbly. He wasn't sure how long he stayed there, it shouldn't have been too long, because he was sure Nyx wasn't too far behind him helping evacuate civilians and tracking their destruction trail, he would find had him sooner than later. But as luck would have it, Aelia found him first.
Cor rubbed his temples remembering that the foolish Princess had been actually following the fight instead of heading to a safe place. What she had been thinking, he didn't have a clue- well, no. He did have a clue now, which made it the more headache inducing. Weskham had later told him she had given him and the Crownsguards they had rendezvoused with the slip when things had calmed around them as the fight had moved away.
Glauca was dead, finally. His body lay motionless a couple of meters away, the wound the Cor didn't feel anything in particular about it. Relief that he wouldn't have to worry about what seemed an unstoppable force chasing the Princess around? Sure, but as always after taking a life, he felt no real satisfaction beyond being the one still breathing. Even saying he had survived didn't particularly thrill him either, he wasn't eager to die, but long ago he had made peace that he would die with his sword in hand. There was no other way of life for him, it's all he had known.
Then a hand on his shoulder made him blink and turn. It was the Princess, she was safe and looked unharmed. He had kind of forgotten all about her in his battle with Glauca, then he frowned because she had no business being here, she should be in the opposite direction as far away of Glauca as humanly possible.
"What are you doing here?" And damn, even using his voice was straining.
"You're losing too much blood." She said, ignoring completely his question. Her eyes filled his vision as she stooped over him to examine his wounds, they were shining with apprehension.
He grunted. "I'll be fine."
She pursed her lips, and before he could stop her she summoned a healing potion and crushed it over his wound shoulder. Now he had a better idea at how much it taxed her to use magic; to heal someone wasn't as bad as warping but it wasn't that far off either. She paled immediately and staggered, it was a good thing she was crouching besides him because her legs gave out and she seated against the same wall he was resting on, her arm against his.
"You shouldn't have done that. The worse the injury the more magic you need to heal it." Cor said closing his eyes as he felt the healing magic run through his battered body and alleviating the worst edge of the pains.
"So you do are admitting it was a grave wound." She answered, he could listen that a smile trailed her words.
Cor huffed and remembered one of the things he did missed of traveling with Regis was the access to quick healing magic. He probably had become more rash and confident at fighting knowing a potion by his royal friend could leave him like new almost immediately. No wonder he had been so reckless at fighting in his early years, from where most of his scars came from.
"And now you're half dead." Cor opened his eyes and turned to look at her, she had her eyes closed and was breathing measuredly, he got the feeling that it was to fight off nausea.
"Don't be ridiculous. I'm just tired, that's all." She breathed out.
"It's a wonder you haven't fainted yet." He commented and rose one leg to rest his none-dislocated arm on. He looked at his hand and marvelled at the power of magic like he did the first time he experienced it, at how he just felt soreness now when moving the muscles that had been pierced but minutes ago.
Aelia sighed and rested her head against the wall. "You could just say 'thank you', you know."
"I won't encourage you to be reckless in any way, Princess." They should probably get a move one, there could be some MTs or Verstael men lurking around. But as they were it would be difficult, hence why it was so stupid of her to have healed him and rendered herself immobile. "As much as you care for all who protect you, you can't just put yourself in danger to help us. It would waste our efforts to save you if you put yourself in danger."
"I already told you it isn't so bad." She said, faintness coating her words. Yet, he have to give that she was talking and wasn't passing out did was on the 'better' side of things.
"But it could be. If the wound was more sever, wouldn't you have done the same?"
She didn't answer. But Cor had to make sure to drill this point on her thick skull, he wasn't the first one the get gravely hurt or died to protect her or her family, and many more could in the future as well.
"You can't go helping everyone around whose job is to avoid you from getting hurt or killed if the outcome is for you to get harmed or dead either way." He said looking at the dead General at some distance away.
"I know that." She finally snapped, but then breathed out and continued calmly. "But it's not just anyone I'd do it for, Cor." He turned to her just as she opened her eyes and stared right into his. "It's just for those that I can't think before I act. For those who I can't bear to lose. For those who I love."
And Cor's mind almost stopped working. "You don't mean-,"
She sighed, "Of course I mean it that way. I love you, Cor." And her eyes shone with something he had seen before when she looked at him and had wondered what it meant. Now he knew. Then that light in her eyes dulled and she looked away, smiling flatly. "Don't worry, I'm know what you will say. I'm not expecting you to accept or acknowledge it, but I thought it would be better for you to know. Because it's something that could affect your job making sure I don't get hurt." She looked at him again and smiled sadly. "I know you'd never forgive yourself if I die on your watch."
And then Nyx had found them and saved Cor of having to give some kind of answer to her. He still didn't know what he could have said back then, or as she had said, something she didn't already know he would say. Cor would have never guessed Aelia loves him if she hadn't told him so directly and a little defeated, as if saying it was some kind of concession she was making to herself. But maybe he understood it now, she hadn't wished to burn him with it, because she was sure it would always be an unrequited love but that he cared enough for her to feel bad about it. And she had been right. He would never be able to return her love… He should never-?
Cor sighed and almost shoved the pen in his hand against the wall of his office. What was wrong with him today? No, he was sure this stupid thoughts had started creeping in him slowly since that damned moment. It had been as if she had opened his eyes to something he shouldn't have, given him permission to notice things he wouldn't even have thought to imagine before.
After she said it, many things she did and said became very obvious and clear, as something gone a little more than she would to any of the Glaives or how she acted with Clarus or Weskham. She had passed more time with most of them than with him; Clarus and Weskham she clearly treated with a respect and aloofness appropriate with their generational gap and roles; the Glaives she appreciated and worried for, when not joking a little around with them, and at times he could see the guilt in her eyes when they got hurt of died. So again he wondered, there were young and dashing men in the Glaives, why hadn't none of them caught her eye? Why him? He would be damned if he knew the answer to that.
