Memory

[gaiages]

Memory

Fandom: Final Fantasy XIV
When you're forced to slow down, what will your mind wander to?

Rating: General Audiences

587 words
Relationship(s) / Characters: OC / OC
Tags: Post-Endwalker (no spoilers) ; injury recovery ; memories
CWs: none

Poor Kris has nothing else to do while he's recovering but think, and boy, does he hate thinking lol

Other links: Tumblr | AO3

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"Memories are a fickle thing, don't you think?"

Laurent looks up from his book to gaze at Kris. "Yes, they are… but what is suddenly bringing this up?"

Kris gives an annoyed sigh and waves at his bandages—his wounds from fighting the Endsinger. "I can't very well do anything else other than sit around and think, my love."

"There is plenty you can do." Laurent chuckles, setting down the book and settling in next to his fiance. "But since you're not trying to sneak off for once, 'sitting around and thinking' will do."

Kris tries to cross his arms in a show of annoyance, winces when he lifts them too high, and gives up. "Yeah, yeah, I get it already…"

Laurent gives Kris a peck on the cheek. "What were you thinking about, Eir?"

"Just…" Kris looks down at the rings on his hands. "I was just thinking about the day we became Wood Warders."

"Hm. That must have been over a century ago by now."

Kris nods, flexing the fingers on his hand. "Of all the things to think about, I didn't think it'd be that day…" He laughs bitterly. "I honestly didn't think I'd live through it."

Laurent frowns, staying silent, and Kris continues. "By all the village's metrics, I was an awful Warder. I wasn't strong or skilled in combat, nor could I hear the voice of the jungle all that well. And if a male is deemed unfit to be a Warder, they were useless, after all. They can't protect the village, and their 'bloodline' was weak and poisoned… nothing but a liability that needed to be dealt with."

"Eir…" Laurent places his hand on Kris's thigh, gently squeezing. "It worked out, though, in the end."

"Yes, it did… It was a stroke of good luck that the previous Djt-Bidit had been badly injured by a beast in the jungle just a few months before our training ended." Kris scoffs. "Or at least, it seemed like it."

"It was good luck, Eir…"

"That's not quite what I meant, Reyna… and I could always tell when you were lying. That beast did not come upon him by accident." Kris takes Laurent's hand in his own, interlacing their fingers. "I never thanked you for all the times you protected me in the village, and for your companionship… but it meant everything to me."

"You don't need to thank me for things like that…" Laurent sighs. "Besides, it appears I was helping the future savior of our star, after all."

Kris tsked. "Who would have thought…" He turns slightly to look out the window. "Sometimes I wonder what would have happened if I awoke to the Echo sooner. Would the village have accepted me if I was as strong as you were?"

"...I don't know, Eir." Laurent gently lays his head on Kris's shoulder. "Maybe they would have, but… would that even be for the best? The village didn't care about us, and… it wouldn't have changed who you were. You still wouldn't have killed that boy."

Kris squeezes his fiance's hand. "I mean… you're right. Nor does it matter what might have happened a century ago." He gives Laurent a small, albeit conflicted smile. "All that matters is that we're here now, together. Though it would be nice if I could leave the room…"

"You're not going to get out of resting that easily, Eir."

"Fine, fine…" Kris sighs dramatically. "Still… I'm glad you're here, Reyna."

Laurent smiles. "And I'm glad you're still here."

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