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Before she can see Seraph, Alisha can’t help but notice the way Sorey looks at the open air beside him. It’s curious, she thinks, how close they must be. Sorey had explained that they’d grown up together, but Alisha has seen brothers and she has seen childhood friends, but none of them seem to quite match the air between Sorey and Mikleo. It’s not quite deep enough, not intense enough, and it doesn’t leave her with the same feeling of near-breathless jealousy that’s also so heart-warming at the same time.
So once she gains the power of a squire, she starts to ask questions.
“Sorey and Mikleo…?” Lailah looks up from her careful perch on one of Ladylake’s many walls where she watches humans pass by. “I didn’t think I’d ever see a human and Seraph so close without a contract.” She smiles gently and brings her hands together in front of her chest. It’s a wistful gesture, one with a hint of hope for something she’d always longed to see come to pass. “I almost feel like the sub-lord sometimes.”
Before she is able to work up the courage to ask Sorey or Mikleo themselves, they are forced to part, and the lingering guilt of burdening Sorey without knowing it keeps her from pursuing her curiosity.
The next time they meet, Sorey looks happier, calmer, and much healthier. He has a new squire at his side, but rather than jealousy, Alisha simply feels relief. Relief that he and the Seraph are not alone, and someone else is able to fight by their side and help shoulder his burdens. The remains of her guilt drain away and she is able to talk to everyone easily again, even if she cannot hear their voices.
Rose, the new squire, is bright, kind, and full of energy and passion. They meet only briefly, but talking isn’t hard, and soon, her questions from before bubble out.
“What, seriously?” Rose laughs when Alisha brings her hands together uncertainly, as if her question is prying into something that is to be left unspoken. “What kind of question is that? You just have to look at ‘em and it’s totally obvious.”
A brief pause follows Rose’s response and she gasps, thrusting her arm toward the air with a frown. “Dezel! That’s just rude. She’s only asking a question. I mean, it’s not like she’s been around to see it.”
When Alisha insists on knowing what was said, Rose tightens her expression and furrows her eyebrows with a deep frown as she crosses her arms. Her voice deepens and Alisha can only assume she’s mimicking the Seraph beside her. “You don’t have to read the wind to see that. Moron.”
The statement is slightly baffling, but when she takes the others she’s received into account, it starts to make a little more sense.
Later, she meets a new Seraph, albeit only briefly. Sorey is helping her pursue her beloved teacher for the truth, and there isn’t much time for introductions. Still, she’s pleased to be able to finally hear the voices of friends new and old once more.
“I feel gayer just watchin’ ‘em!” Zaveid, a wind Seraph as she’s been told, is overzealous in his answer, quickly having to duck to avoid an umbrella colliding with his head. “Heyheyhey! It means happy! Happy! I totally meant happy!”
When Edna steps forward, she rolls her eyes and scoffs before turning to look at Alisha. The small body of rock and earth is no less brutal with her honesty than the day they met. “If you can’t see it, then you’re as blind the rest of the humans.”
Every answer brings forth more questions, but answers so many at the same time. But the eyes of others can only offer so much. As they start to travel again, Alsiha makes best of the time she has to use her own, and it’s like looking through a window cleaned for the first time.
She sees the way their eyes soften when they look at one another. The way Sorey’s smile grows just a little wider whenever he looks at Mikleo, and the subtle smile that only he ever seems to receive in return. She hears the way Sorey’s tone warms and his hand gestures grow more passionate, and the stern, but gentle way Mikleo retorts. Touches linger longer than necessary, and gazes that meet only seem to sparkle. Every gesture, every action and word, is smooth and easy, as natural as the air they breathe.
Just before they part again, Alisha calls out and pulls them aside. She doesn’t want to assume, but her curiosity and hope burn. Her hands come together, wringing nervously before she forces her fingers to hang still and laced together. She fumbles over her words, trying to force doubts away, but it takes her more than one try before she can ask properly. She doesn’t want to lose heart once more, and the moment she regains her proper voice, she asks. "Do you....love...each other?"
Mikleo scoffs, crossing his arms tightly. “Why wouldn’t I?” He frowns, as if the mere doubt of his feelings and their genuine existence is an insult.
“Huh…?” Sorey, at least, looks confused, then starts to laugh, the backs of his fingers ghosting over Mikleo’s arm in comfort as he brings up a hand to rub the back of his neck. “Well, yeah.” He smiles, warm and carefree, like someone not knowing the nature of their relationship is amusing. “Of course I do. More than anyone.”
Watching Mikleo’s pale cheeks colour is a delight, and the playful banter and pokes that follow are a familiar sight that calms Alisha’s worried nerves. Her duties might be far from where being a Shepard will take him, but seeing those two together, she no longer has doubts. The two of them can face anything that might come their way, and the friends they’ve gained will support them all the way.