Chapter Text
After Ike got himself cleaned up, he went to the tavern on the lower floor of the inn. A barmaid walked up to Ike as he walked into the crowded room, which silenced as everyone looked over to him. From the sounds of it, they had been loudly celebrating being freed from Daein’s control.
"Can I help you with something, hun?" She asked as she stopped near him.
"Just some food I can take up to my room, please, whatever you have." Ike looked around at the crowded room. He'd rather fight than eat down here with everyone watching him. "And some for Prince Soren as well. I'll take it up to him."
"You sure about that?"
Ike nodded. "Yeah. I doubt he'll want his meal down here." Ike had also meant to talk to Soren about their last fight in the war for some time, but there had never been a good moment.
"But you’re a lord, ain'tcha?"
"It's fine. I'd rather carry something myself than have someone else do it for me."
---
Ike knocked on the door to Soren’s room later, carrying two trays of food. Footsteps approached the door and then it opened. Soren quickly stepped to the side.
Ike walked in and put the trays on the table.
Soren closed the door behind Ike and locked it. "You're eating here too?" He asked as he walked over to the table.
"I wanted to talk."
A small smile graced Soren’s face as he exhaled through his nose. He lit a candlestick and set it down on the table, making up for the fading light outside. "What idle chatter is it today?" He asked as he sat down in a chair, looking down at the tray of food Ike pushed across the table.
"Are you all right?" Ike asked.
Soren’s eyes briefly looked up at Ike, almost glowing in the light of the candle. Ike felt his heart rise to his throat. "I'm uninjured."
"That's not what I meant."
Soren nodded, looking down at the food in front of him. "What did you mean then? I can’t really figure out what you mean."
Ike sighed. "We haven't really had a chance to talk in private since we left Melior. Are you okay? Fighting more Daein? And what that man called your mother earlier-"
“Don’t concern yourself over that,” Soren said quickly, before he stilled, in the middle of cutting up the cooked chicken breast, and kept his head bowed.
"Soren," Ike called out, his gut wrenching at the way Soren was almost trying to recede into himself.
Soren looked up at Ike, the light from the candle reflected off the wet tears gathered at the corners of Soren’s eyes. Ike didn’t know what to say to help.
"How do you do it?" Soren asked.
Ike blinked. "How do I do what?"
"Get everyone to believe in you? Is your charisma an innate talent? Or is it something you learned? This was the last town that had been under official occupation, everything else will be stragglers, so I'm sure I'll be leaving Crimea shortly. How do I earn the trust of those who will be suspicious of me when I return to Daein? I- My father ruled through fear and strength, and I- I don’t want to do that. But it’s all I have. How do you get people to believe in you so easily?"
Ike inhaled deeply and shrugged his shoulders. "I honestly don't know. With few exceptions, everyone in my father's company believed in me because I'm his son. With the laguz, I'm just myself and I treat them like people. I don't know if that's enough to deserve the trust they put in me. My nature amused Apostle Sanaki enough for her to give us a chance." Ike sighed, taking the last few bites of the food on his tray. "I guess, just believe in those around me and put faith in them to do their best, and I do my best for them. They respond to that."
Soren nodded. "Do you really think it's important to," he set his fork down on the tray and looked up at Ike, "To have those small wants you spoke of before?"
Ike nodded. "It's an important part of being a person. I don't know how much the people of Daein would like being ruled by someone who doesn’t act like a person does. Although, a leader serving their people and not being corrupt is also important."
Soren stared silently down at his empty plate, hands folded in his lap.
"Soren? Are you all right?"
Soren waved a hand dismissively at Ike. "I have a lot that I need to consider. Thank you for your insight."
“Don’t do that,” Ike said, reaching across the table to put a hand on Soren’s shoulder.
“Don’t do what?”
“Close yourself off like that.” He’d done the same thing. At the ball. After a dance, he suddenly blanched and excused himself.
Soren looked slowly up to Ike. “I’m sorry. I know you want to help. I know you care. I don’t- I don’t know how to accept that.”
Ike kicked his chair over to the other side of the table and pulled Soren into a hug and Soren slowly relaxed into Ike’s arms. Ike sighed. Maybe it would help if he could be open with Soren a little more.
I don’t want to talk about it, but it's not because you're Ashnard’s son. I just can't.
“Soren, about what you asked me before Nados.”
“Which question?”
“If I was all right or not. If the others ask me. Why I can’t be honest with them. I- It's- I'm supposed to be leading them. Protecting them. It's hard to answer them honestly."
Soren was quiet for a moment before sitting upright to look at Ike. "You don’t want them to think you can't handle being their leader?"
Ike inhaled sharply and then shook his head as he shrugged. "I was never ready for the position. I know they know that. But I don't want them to worry. I want them to feel confident in me, like they were confident in my father. We all believed that he could keep us safe. That we’d never lose anyone as long as he was in charge. And- and Shinon and Gatrie left because they weren’t confident in me. They were right too. But I didn’t- I didn’t want the others to lose confidence in me and leave too. I didn’t want to be alone. So I don’t- it’s hard to be weak in front of them. It’s hard to- to talk about this kind of stuff."
There was a heavy lapse of silence as Ike and Soren stared at one another. Ike simply watched Soren’s face as the prince studied Ike. Ike felt his body tingling under the intense weight of Soren’s gaze.
As a person who could see so much in the battlefield, it dawned upon Ike that Soren probably saw just as much in conversation. Everything about Ike's posture and gaze had to be signaled as obviously as a fire spell in the dead of night to Soren.
That had to be how Soren had cut through to what Ike had been hiding most from everyone else, even himself.
"I'm sorry," Soren whispered.
"For what?" Ike asked.
"I- Your father. He sounds like he was a good person. And I- I just wanted you to know that even back then I- I didn't think he should have died. That you should have had to deal with that." Soren's eyes fell to the floor. "I realize because of my position back then, I have no right to offer you condolences, but I-" Soren squeezed his eyes shut for a moment before opening them and looking up at Ike. "I'm very sorry for what you've had to suffer through because of my father."
Ike shuddered and closed his eyes. "Thank you, but it's not your fault. You don't have to apologize for what your father and the Black Knight did. I've never seen you the same way as them."
"No?"
"No. I wasn't really sure what to make of you when you left Gebal Castle, and Nevassa confused me even more."
"I can see that. For all my talk of wanting to kill you, but never being able to manage it because of my own emotions. To be in your position must have been truly perplexing."
Ike chuckled. So close to the point. And yet so far.
He put a hand on Soren's shoulder. Soren’s head snapped up to face Ike. "And now that I understand you better, I couldn't hold what your father ordered against you. You're a victim of his as much as any of us."
Ike felt Soren’s shoulder tense as he bowed his head. "You're too compassionate. Has anyone ever told you that before?"
"A few times, but I'm not any good and pretending to be someone I'm not." When Soren grunted noncommittally, Ike used his left hand to raise Soren’s face up by the chin. "And I think you're also pretty bad at that too."
"And what am I pretending to be?" Soren asked in a breathy voice, his eyes locked onto Ike's face.
"Some kind of emotionless tool. Your face is pretty good at the act, but you're really bad at acting the part when push comes to shove."
"My emotions are a liability. I shouldn’t- shouldn’t feel things. I don't have the right to experience things like people do."
"You're a person, and you do."
"I-" Soren averted his gaze, his face tinging pink. "I'm sorry. I meant to- to offer- to try and help you like you've helped me, but I- this isn't something I have any understanding of and you- I apologize."
Ike's hand tightened on Soren's shoulder. "I appreciate it. I don’t think I have anyone else I could have admitted that I'm not okay to. It helped, being able to acknowledge that."
Soren looked up at Ike, his brows furrowed.
"Running from Daein, losing my father, taking over the company, being made General, I-" Ike sighed deeply. "I honestly have no idea how I kept it together. I was so overwhelmed with everything, all the time, but I had to keep going. I couldn't stop for anything, or I might not ever have started back up again." Ike moved his left hand from Soren’s chin to his other shoulder. "And I think you're the only person I could say that to."
"I understand. You have no need to protect me, to inspire my confidence in you."
"Well, there is that, but I also trust you."
"You trust me that much?"
"Do you think I leapt off a flying wyvern in mid-air without trusting you?"
A wry smile crossed Soren’s face. "No, I don’t suppose you could have without some element of trust." He looked up into Ike’s eyes. "And I wouldn't betray that trust. I can’t cross you."
"I know." Ike leaned forward, resting his head against Soren’s shoulder.
Soren leaned his head against Ikes. “You’re so- so warm,” he mumbled eventually.
“Sorry, I’ll-”
“Not- I mean, you are warm, but I wasn’t-”
Ike sat up straight, looking at Soren, whose face was flushed.
“Your heart is very warm,” Soren mumbled.
“My- my what?”
“You’re heart. I- you-”
“That laguz thing? Like what Rajaion talked about?”
Soren nodded.
“You have that too?”
Soren nodded.
“Are- are dragons like herons? Can they read people’s hearts?”
“No. Herons can read the heart of anyone they’re near. Dragons can- they’re very well attuned to chaos and order, as much as a heron, but chaos doesn’t make them ill. However, they’re only able to read the hearts of-” Soren hid his face and mumbled the next part so quickly and so quietly that Ike wasn’t able to make it out.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t catch that.”
Soren huffed. “Their family, those they view as family, and those they are in love with. Like Rajaion and Ena.” He was quivering.
Ike blinked. Brows raising. “But you can read my heart?”
Soren nodded. “Not perfectly. I- the mind can trick it. Ena viewed my mother as family, and yet believed she was dead so- so- didn’t feel her for many years. Rajaion was the only one she couldn’t give up on. I suppose the bond she had with him was that much stronger.”
Ike felt his face flush. Soren felt that strongly? His throat felt dry suddenly. “How long have you- I-”
“I realized it sometime before Nados,” Soren muttered, still looking away from Ike.
“Soren,” Ike called out, putting a hand on his shoulder. “It’s all right.”
Soren turned in his seat. “It’s ridiculous- I-”
“It’s fine. I’m glad to hear it. Honestly. I feel the same.”
Soren smiled softly at Ike. Then his face twisted in pain, and he looked to the side.
“What’s wrong?”
Soren shivered. “I look forward to our conversations, and I'll miss them when I return to Daein. I- You-"
"I will too." Ike focused on how Soren’s shoulders seemed to relax in Ike's hands. "I guess we'll have to promise to meet again."
Soren nodded. "I would look forward to it. Of course, that will be difficult to arrange for some time but-"
"I'll see what I can do," Ike breathed.
Soren nodded hesitantly. There was so much heat between them. Ike began to feel lightheaded. Soren’s lips parted as if to speak, but he said nothing, his face turning red.
Soren would be leaving soon, and Ike didn’t know when he would get the chance to be alone with Soren again without prying eyes. Ike moved his hands, loosely cupping the sides of Soren’s face in large calloused hands. Soren inhaled sharply.
"May I?" Ike asked.
Soren nodded, his pale skin felt so smooth under Ike's thumbs, but so much warmer than Ike had expected. Ike leaned forwards, catching Soren’s lips with his own in a rough, perhaps too eager, kiss.
He moved one hand behind Soren’s head, fingers tangled up in Soren’s hair, which was softer even than his lips. Ike’s other arm wrapped around the back of Soren’s shoulders.
Soren pressed his lips against Ike's before he pulled back a little, tilting his head to the side and kissed Ike again. Soren’s hands moved up between their bodies, and clasped around the back of Ike's neck, fingers digging into the skin and short hairs at the nape of Ike's neck.
---
The next morning, Ike was awoken by the sound of knocking on the door to the room he had been given.
"General Ike!" A familiar voice called out.
"Lucia?" Ike called out, feeling groggy and blinded by how bright the sun was as it poured in through his window. Why was she out here?
"Geoffrey, Titania and the others are downstairs." There were footsteps as she walked away.
Ike rolled out of bed and got dressed as quickly as he could.
When he left his room, he saw that the door to Soren’s room was open and a quick glance inside showed that it was empty.
He went cold suddenly. Lucia might have come here with word from Begnion.
Ike continued downstairs and saw Geoffrey, Lucia, Titania, Mist, and the other mercenaries in the tavern.
"Rise and shine, Ike," Shinon grunted from his table. "Guess the little lord doesn't rise like the rest of us."
Ike scoffed. "I had to fight for the rest of you yesterday. Couldn't be helped, but there were only the two of us."
"Were you hurt?" Mist asked.
Ike shook his head. "It was just a lot of fighting."
"Well, of course nothing could take down the boss," Mia called out, "If the Black Knight and the Mad King couldn't, a buncha common soldiers wouldn't stand a chance."
"And I'm sure Prince Soren would have healed Ike if he had been hurt," Rhys said.
"Speaking of him, do we know what he's doing now?” Ike asked, trying to keep his nerves from exposing themselves in his voice. Soren hadn’t left already, had he? “Are we still waiting on word from Begnion?" Ike asked.
"No," Lucia said, "We received a response for him in Melior, and I delivered it to him this morning."
"I believe he's waiting for us to confirm a few things with him before he goes back to Daein," Geoffrey said, "Something about your prior arrangements with Queen Elincia?"
"Right," Ike said, "Titania, come with us."
"Yes, Commander," Titania said as she rose from her seat, following Ike out of the inn with Geoffrey and Lucia close behind.
They walked around to the back, where Allani had been resting. Ike hopped over the fence easily and strode over to where Soren was. Nathalie, Geoffrey, and Lucia walked around towards a gate.
"How is she?" Ike asked.
Soren glanced over to Ike and then he focused back on the straps of the saddle as he tightened them on Allani. "A full recovery. I'll be able to get to Daein with her rather quickly."
"That's good, I didn’t want to hurt her." Allani moved away from Soren as soon as he finished with the saddle and nudged Ike in the chest with her snout. "Oh, uh, hey?" Ike asked looking down at her, blinking in surprise.
The wyvern purred, rubbing the side of her face against Ike and then moved back to Soren. Soren crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow at her, as if in disapproval. She curled around the ground at his feet. Soren rolled his eyes and turned to face Ike.
"So what did Begnion say?" Ike asked as the others walked up within the yard, with Marcia close behind with her pegasus.
"They're making things difficult, as could be expected. Apparently they heard from a close friend of my father that my mother wasn’t faithful to him, so they doubt the legitimacy of my claim. But, my father wasn’t one for friends." Soren's brows furrowed together. "As to what you had previously asked when I joined your side in the war, I believe I have dealt with the Daein troops still occupying Crimea's lands to the best of my ability. You may find some stragglers hiding around, and you should deal with them as you deem appropriate."
"We'll send back whatever ones will surrender," Ike promised.
"If that is what you choose. Now in regards to your second request, I'm afraid Begnion is making that as difficult to fulfill as I had forecasted."
"Well, you can't help Crimea rebuild without a throne," Titania said, "Do you see any way forward to reclaiming the Daein throne?"
"I do, but it will take some time."
Geoffrey sighed. "It wouldn’t be so much of an issue if they hadn't dropped us as soon as Ashnard was slain. Now all the additional help we have is from Gallia."
"Gallia has plenty of resources, although I understand your people and nobles will be reluctant to accept help from laguz," Soren said, "And Begnion is using Daein to recoup their losses in the war, so it's expected they won't help Crimea rebuild."
"What losses?" Lucia asked heatedly.
"Their troops that died and the money they lost as a result. But I will find a way to convince them to leave Daein. There must be an understanding we can come to. If Crimea still needs aid rebuilding after that time comes, I will do as much as I am able to."
"We're grateful for all the help you've provided so far," Geoffrey said, "I don't think our citizens would be all so safe now if it weren't for your assistance."
"Well, I did promise to help with that, and I do not make lukewarm commitments."
"We can see that," Lucia said and then gestured to Marcia and her pegasus, "Marcia will escort you to the border, Prince Soren, and ensure you arrive safely."
Soren nodded and climbed into the saddle on Allani’s back. The wyvern rose and stretched her wings out.
"Good luck," Ike called out. "Soren."
Soren looked down at Ike. "You as well in your future endeavors, Ike." He looked over at Geoffrey and Lucia, "Please give Queen Elincia and Count Bastian my regards and let them know that I do not forget my promises."
"I will, Prince Soren," Lucia said.
With a curt nod from Soren, Allani leapt into the air and was quickly followed by Marcia on her pegasus.
Geoffrey and Lucia left Ike and Titania behind, as Ike watched Allani disappear into the clouds. Lucia and Geoffrey went on with their business, leaving Ike alone with Titania in the yard.
"Are you all right, Ike?" Titania asked. "I know how you feel about him."
Ike turned to look at Titania. "Yeah, we'll see each other again."
"You're sure?"
Ike quickly glanced back at where Soren had disappeared and then looked back at Titania, a small smile on his face. "He promised."
Titania smiled warmly at Ike. “I’m glad to hear it, Ike.”