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When Ala Mhigo was finally freed, and Aurelia stood at the top of the steps of the palace with Lyse and her fellow Scions, all the Warrior of Light could think of was a very stiff drink and, conversely, a soft bed.
Yet, it was not to be. Once they descended from the gardens, the group was paraded around the entire Ala Mhigan Quarter for hours, before the crowds began dispersing into homes and taverns. The edges of the roads remained dotted with people too inebriated to find their way home or too excited to get to bed.
As their victory procession mercifully thinned out, Aurelia slipped away into a deserted alley, with only darkness to greet her. She could feel the sheen of sweat across her body that made her clothes stick to her. What I wouldn’t give for a shower, she thought, or even a dive in the waterfall at the Reach.
A change of clothes would have been a good start, but it was then her feet saw fit to begin protesting the day’s labor, aching from the bottom up, eliciting from her a sigh as she claimed a seat upon some haphazardly stacked crates barricading a long abandoned storefront.
She pulled her legs underneath her, taking a deep breath. The forgotten street was blessedly quiet, sectioned off with tall, sandy-colored walls that blocked most of the sounds of celebration.
Aurelia had no desire to celebrate. In the still silence of the corridor, a bitter look crossed her face as she thought back upon the fight on the rooftop– to the way Zenos had dared to compare them, as if she took pleasure in all the violence that surrounded her.
Yet, I am a liar and hypocrite all the same. A rueful smile spread across her lips for a mere second before flitting away again as she reminisced, remembering the disappointment that filled her as she watched Zenos rise again, knowing she hadn’t struck the final blow.
“Farewell, my first friend. My enemy.” The words chilled her to the bone as much now as when she watched the crown prince draw the blade across his own neck.
And then, he was dead.
But the unease never left, sinking deep in her heart and taking root.
Even so, fate was not content to let her brood alone, as her head whipped toward the sound of footsteps echoing in the alley, tracing the path she had come.
“Did you simply come here to bask radiantly in the moonlight, or are you truly already tiring of parties held in your name?”
It was an innocent enough question, one asked purely in jest, but it too weighed heavy on Aurelia’s mind, turning about in her nook to face her pursuant. Thancred stopped short of her hiding spot, armed with a full bottle of whiskey in one hand, and two glasses in the other.
She merely raised an eyebrow in greeting as he set the cups next to her. “Am I to believe you found those just lying around?”
“Of course not, my lady. I acquired this through completely honest means!”
“So you simply stumbled upon me, then?”
Thancred scoffed, “I watched you slink in here looking rather grim, so I thought you could use some company. And maybe a drink that hasn’t been shared by at least half of the city.”
She eyed the bottle apprehensively as he held it toward her, but it was easy to spy the cork seal still unbroken at the top. “I assure you, I went out of my way to find us a fresh one, lest you wonder why I wasn’t here sooner to ease your troubles.”
Aurelia’s eyes were abruptly torn from his to the ground, her face growing hot. “You didn’t have to do that,” she said meekly, wondering how long he had noticed the errant quirk that had burdened her since Ishgard.
“I know,” he replied quickly, though his voice stayed gentle. “But I wanted to.” There was a heavy tension in the silence that followed, broken once again by the rogue. “Would you do me the honor?” he asked, gesturing toward the bottle he still held.
Her gaze drifted back his way, and finally a real smile graced her face as she nodded. “It would be my pleasure.”
Thancred pulled a knife from his belt and jammed the tip into the cork, wiggling it back and forth until the stopper was free. He flicked his wrist, sending it bouncing haphazardly across the sand, replacing the blade in its holster and poured liquor into each of their glasses.
They both took one, the bottle taking their place on the makeshift table. Thancred raised his glass, and Aurelia followed suit. With a somber smile, Thancred said, “To those we have lost.”
“And those we can yet save,” Aurelia added, her voice quiet.
Thancred’s glass was drained before Aurelia’s even reached her lips. She winced at the burn as it went down, letting out a sigh.
“Would you care to unburden yourself of your woes? I am more than happy to lend an ear,” Thancred offered.
“I suppose, but only if we have more of these,” she answered, thrusting her glass in his direction.
“That’s my girl!” he answered, happily obliging her with another generous pour from the bottle. After refilling his own, they gestured again in a silent toast, and Aurelia found it went down much smoother the second time.
Setting aside their cups, Thancred couldn't help but stare at Aurelia as she fixed her eyes on the starry sky above. Her mind was clearly somewhere far away, the anguish written plainly on her face.
“You and I are one and the same.” The notion made her feel sick.
“You’ve been awfully quiet since we left the palace. What's on your mind, Aurelia?” he prodded, knowing she would keep it all to herself unless she was convinced otherwise.
Her brow furrowed, her eyes squeezing shut. “You’ll think me silly for dwelling on it, I’m sure. But it’s driving me mad…”
Thancred leaned forward, taking her hand in his and tracing his thumb along her knuckles. “You needn’t fear telling me anything. I would never admonish you.”
Aurelia released a heavy sigh, and then the brilliant turquoise of her irises was revealed once more to his one uncovered eye as she caught his gaze again.
“Something Zenos said has left me… unsettled. I know I should put no stock in the words of that madman , but I can’t help but feel…” She paused for a moment, trying to find the right words. “Violated, I supposed?”
Thancred’s eyebrows shot up at the confession, though she could only see one. He stayed silent, however, and she paid no mind to his reaction as she continued.
“He said I should understand him. That he and I… were one and the same. That we could be friends.” She shuddered at the thought. “That binding a primal to his will would seem so alluring to him… How could he ever think I’m the same? Is violence truly all I’m made for? Do I only leave death in my wake?”
Though the answer seemed all too obvious to Thancred, it was clear by the tears beginning to sparkle on her lash line that the very idea was tearing Aurelia apart. He only allowed a few brief moments of silence to lapse before he said, “Would you like to know what I think?”
She stared at her lap, where he still caressed her hand idly, and nodded.
“On one hand, we had a man– a very, very, mad man, who wished to bind and take control of a primal, for nothing more than his own amusement and lust for power.”
Aurelia merely nodded again in response, afraid if she spoke, she would lose all her composure.
“Well, on the other hand, we had a very bold and very beautiful bard who so selflessly fought with all her might to not only free two nations from said madman’s tyranny, but who was also willing to give it all to stop him from wreaking havoc upon the land and peoples with his monstrosity,” Thancred said, not-so-subtly beaming. “And if that’s not enough proof of your dissimilarity… You, evidenced by your profession, have the most melodious voice, as well as an uncannily keen sense of navigation. I wonder if your knowledge of the stars is the cause, or the effect of that?”
He pulled his hand away to bring it to his chin in a dramatic show that he was contemplating the sentiment quite thoroughly, the move jolting Aurelia from her sad reverie. When she looked up and witnessed his display, she couldn’t help but to crack another smile.
“You’re quite the smooth talker,” she lightheartedly accused, though it wounded him slightly when she added, “I can see why women so easily fawn over you.”
He didn't let his surprise stun him for too long before he defended himself. “I could never have so much to say about any woman living as I do about you, nor say it so passionately.”
She laughed at that, bewildering him further, though he could tell there was no malice in it. “Oh, please, Thancred! I've been in the Rising Stones after you've had a few too many, let alone when F’lhaminn is tending the bar.”
“Now, that's just not fair,” Thancred pouted, and now it was his turn to blush, as he poured out two more drinks and slid one over to Aurelia.
She took it eagerly, and their glasses briefly met before once again being emptied. After setting them back down, Thancred realized how much he had drifted into her space, leaning on the crate that served as their table, close enough to smell the alcohol on her breath as she let out another sigh, one much lighter than the others.
Aurelia either did not notice, or she simply didn't care; she made no move to distance them. His hand almost too easily found a place to rest on her thigh, and he thought he felt a shiver run through her.
“To answer your question…” Thancred began softly, unable to help but cut short the silence. “I think there is endless potential to what you can achieve, even through the simplest acts. You are so much more than whatever bad things you may or may not have caused.”
“Thank you,” she breathed, her voice carrying a near imperceptible tremble. “It’s a great comfort to hear it from someone else… from you.”
A small chuckle escaped him. “I’ve done nothing but speak the truth from my very heart. I would never dream of telling you anything less.”
Aurelia cocked her head to the side innocently. “Is that so? What other truths might your heart hold, I wonder?”
This time, Thancred was the one to avert his gaze, her facetious inquiry doing little to calm his nerves. The mischievous smile on her face sent his heart racing, and his fingers pressed into her skin as he took a deep breath. “The truth…” he said, forcing himself to look at her. “The truth is… I quite enjoy your company. Not to mention its benefits… such as admiring your form, or hearing you sing. The truth is, I… You are…” he trailed off, his silver tongue failing him when he needed it the most.
Aurelia could only stare, biting her lip so hard she feared she may draw blood, while Thancred’s free hand drifted up toward her face, the back of his fingers brushing her cheek as he tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. He couldn’t help the way his finger traced the curve from tip to lobe before letting his hand fall back to his side.
“Thancred…” Aurelia sounded breathless, and he could no longer resist.
His mouth was on hers in an instant, earning him a surprised sound that was easily muffled as Aurelia raised her hand to card her fingers into his hair at the base of his plait. Although he could taste the bitter liquor on her tongue, when his lips glided over hers, Thancred thought there was nothing that tasted sweeter.
He could have savored that feeling for hours, and he had a mind Aurelia would have agreed, were it not for the smattering of familiar voices that drifted ever nearer.
“One of them must be around here somewhere!”
“I’m telling you, I saw Aurelia come this way ages ago!”
Lyse and Alisaie were not particularly hard to discern from the bunch, and Thancred was not much in the mood for the interrogation that would follow should the other Scions discover them. He fixed Aurelia with a steely look before he asked, “How would you feel about going for a swim?”
She rose from the crates, nearly stumbling as she shook out the pins and needles beginning to form in her legs, and said, “I could take a dip.”
“If you follow me, I’m sure I could get us to the Lochs without being seen,” he elaborated, pointing down the alley opposite from where they entered. “But we’d best be quick about it.”
“By all means, lead the way!”
Aurelia did not neglect to snag the near half-empty bottle of whiskey as Thancred claimed her other hand, whisking her away down the path and out of sight just as their friends rounded the corner.
“I thought I heard voices back here!” Lyse exclaimed in frustration.
“I admit, I too thought I sensed someone in the area…” Y’shtola echoed, a hint of disappointment in her words. Alisaie’s sights landed on the crates piled against the building, with two empty glasses upon them. She looked down toward the end of the corridor, but found only darkness to greet her.
With a shrug, she huffed. “Well, they certainly aren’t here now. Let’s look somewhere else.”
As they turned to leave, Alisaie elected to ignore the giggles and soft shushing that she heard behind her.