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Celebrations could be heard through the halls of Alcamoth. The soft hum of laughter and clicking of glass, filling the city with much needed joys. Something the host herself seemed to be lacking.The night so far had been filled with any number of pleasures. From sweet drinks and rich foods, to an endless stream of companions to dance with.
Despite all of the excitement, Melia feels quite melancholy. Her smile never quite reaches her eyes. No matter the meal or the conversation, she cannot seem to enjoy herself. In stuffy meetings, it is easy to drown out anything but the necessary, but it’s a much harder task to act out a joy one doesn’t feel.
It’s her own coronation, yet she can’t muster up the same level of enthusiasm as her guests. So, she politely excuses herself, disappointing the minister she is speaking to. Instead, she slips out of a side hallway, heading for one of the many transporters. Ducking out of sight of partygoers when necessary; taking slow steps so as not to trip on her rather flashy ball gown (another element of tonight's celebration she is second guessing). Her body, mostly on autopilot, takes her to the sky terrace.
Stepping through the doorway seems to instantly lessen her anxiety. The cool breeze caresses her skin as she exhales softly. The sounds of merriment inside are drowned out by the endless sea now surrounding everything. The view in this new world is just as beautiful, though far less nostalgic.
Not just the view has changed either. Melia herself is no longer the same girl anymore than the city walls are the same brick. Lifting her ceremonial mask, she cradles it in her hands, running her fingers over the details. When this mask had been made for her, she hadn’t dared to imagine she would be here.
Thinking back on it, she always assumed Kallian would be heir. After all, he was the eldest. A child of an empress; not a consort. They had been raised under the assumption as well. After all, the late empress would never have allowed Melia to compete. They had both received a proper education and upbringing, but Kallian had been raised to be emperor while Melia was raised to be a princess.
She couldn’t help feeling woefully unprepared for the position. Lacking her brother's mind and unwavering determination, things felt rather bleak for her future.
Letting her hands fall to her side, she glances up at the stars. Whatever thoughts and fantasies she had for her own future, she had never expected it to feel so…lonely.
Inside, the music changes into a lively waltz. What would they be doing if they were here now? Her family. Would Kallian be proud of her?
“I thought I might find you here.” A familiar voice pulls her from her thoughts.
Turning, she finds Dunban strolling up to her, gaze locked on the sea. As neat and put together as ever, though she thinks she spots a few gray hairs. His own responsibilities have taken a toll on him. Yet he never seems to falter. He always rises to every occasion like the hero he would forever deny he was.
He glances at her as she offers a polite smile. “Dunban, my apologies for leaving my own celebration. I planned on only being absent for a moment…” she trails off as she spots his eyes narrowing. He sees right through her, so there is no need for white lies. He knew her state before he stepped over the doors threshold.
“It’s beautiful up here, I understand why you absconded this way.” He smiles at her.
“I just needed air.”
He says nothing, waiting for her to continue - in the annoying brotherly way he always does. Knowing she will come to him when she is ready. Never forcing the subject. Stern and yet caring all at once. She finds it a little cruel how similar he and Kallian are.
“When I was a child, sometimes my brother and I would view the sea at night. From the protection of the villa of course. I thought visiting it tonight would…help clear my head.” She holds back a sigh.
“It seems you two were far closer then I assumed you to be.”
“Yes we were, at least when we were younger. He would sneak away to visit me. I can only imagine the scoldings he must have endured for it.” She chuckled at the memory. “He was quite different as a child.”
Her laughter was short lived, replaced with a terrible aching. She opens her mouth to suggest they return to the festivities, yet her tongue feels like lead and her words falter.
Her grip around her mask was tightening until she was almost afraid it would shatter.
“As we grew we drifted…I wish we had been closer.” She wishes for so many things these days. If only she had an easy way out. If only she could go back in time.
Dunban crosses his arms. “I wasn’t always a picture perfect brother you know. In truth, I’m still not. Fiora will definitely prove my point for you.”
He glances at her before continuing. “I struggled to understand Fiora most times. I frequently upset her, more so than I pleased her. She would storm from the house - probably complaining to a certain mechanic for hours. She didn’t always think highly of me. Even recently, I’m sure she has wanted to pummel me.”
Melia could imagine such a scene herself. Her wonderful friend had a habit of being quite stubborn, so it didn’t seem that surprising she had always been that way.
“When I joined the defense force she was…livid. We barely spoke most days and when we did it was pointless bickering. I didn’t alway do right by her, or consider what she wanted. I’m sure I'll make similar mistakes in the future as well. There was only ever one thing I never doubted, that I loved her. She could hate me for decades, but she would still be my sister. Time is fickle, and things come and go, but Fiora has always been a constant in my life, no matter how far the rift. She is still there.”
He glances down at his injured arm. “Which is why I was so broken by her loss. With time, any rift can be restored, or a bridge rebuilt. Once someone is gone, no bridge can fill the gap.”
Melia bites the inside of her lip, trying to mask her pain. Due to everything, his grief for his sister had been in vain. Yet, he had grieved her anyway.
“I failed her then.” A storm passes through his eyes as he speaks. Though his voice is as even and calm as ever.
She shakes her head. “You didn’t fail her, there was nothing you could have done.”
The story has been repeated to her numerous times now. There was nothing in Dunban’s power to prevent what happened to his sister, even if he wished there was.
“That didn’t change how I felt…how I sometimes still feel. I imagine it doesn’t change how you feel either.”
“I…” Melia didn’t have the strength to deny it. She did feel guilty, and complicit. Her inaction hunted her, even if she couldn't have changed Kallians fate. She could have done more, or at least tried. It wasn’t fair she got to stand here, and he didn’t. If anyone should be standing here it’s him.
“I feel you should know that your brother treasured you, whether you feel there was a rift between you or not. Maybe he didn’t say it out loud, but it was in the small things. Small actions to speak when words could not.”
“Like looking at the sea though he had no real interest,” Melia whispers.
Examining the memory, it was always impossible to tell what excited her brother more: the view or the fact that she was so overjoyed herself.
“I wish I could have done more. Showed him I cared more for him than he knew. That I still do…”
“I think you already are, Melia. What your brother wanted more than anything was for you to live.” Concern laces his voice, though it is still soft.
“How can you possibly know that?” her words come out harsher then intended, bitterness leaking into her words.
“Because that’s what all brothers want,” Dunban responded unaffected by her ire.
But she knew that already, didn’t she?
When they were children, Kallian had regularly risked getting scolded to see her. Playing with her and sharing elaborate stories. On special occasions, he would even sneak her around the palace, showing her more than the small world she was confined in. His own face only ever seemed to light up when she smiled, as if her happiness was the most important thing. He never once worried about himself.
Even in his last moments, he had been thinking of her. Not of the suffering or pain he was facing, but her. Using his last words to bring her courage and hope.
“He wanted you to be safe and happy, regardless of whether it disadvantaged himself.”
“I know that, and I want more than anything to be happy; truly Dunban, I do. However, I cannot help that he hangs heavy on my mind often.” She lays a hand over her heart, which had seemed to ache nonstop for nearly two years now.
“Grief isn’t something that goes away, Melia. It is a constant partner; one that sometimes feels all consuming.” Dunban shakes his head.
“That’s unhelpful…” she mumbles, feeling discouraged.
“Yet true. After all, grief is the absence of love. The bigger the love, the larger the grief. To be hurting as much as you are, Kallian must have loved you very dearly.”
Melia could picture his face, smiling softly. That same smile that had never faltered, even at the very end. He had so much love and trust in her. That she would stand tall and follow the right path forward. No amount of pain and despair could change that.
“So,if I am not being too forward, let me offer you some brotherly advice.” Dunban places his good hand gently on her shoulder.
Melia blinks back tears, nodding at him to continue.
“If your grief gets to be too much, then lean on others. Your grief may be large, but the people who love you are countless.”
Many faces flashed in Melia’s mind’s eye. Her friends, her people, Shulk, and Dunban himself. Though she had lost much, she had gained even more.
“You’re right. You always seem to be.” She wipes tears from her eyes.
“Hardly, I wish only to remind you that you are not alone here.” He smiles.
This time, the ache in her chest didn’t feel as overwhelming. She flashes him a small smile.
“Apologies, it’s hardly appropriate for a Queen to cry in front of her guest.” She sniffs, trying to compose herself.
“Nonsense, you are no less alive than me. If you need to cry, then cry.” He swiped away one of her stray tears.
“No. I think I have had my fill of crying tonight. My brother can hardly rest easy with me this upset, can he?” She shakes her head.
“If you ever need me, you only need ask. Any of us would come running to offer you a hand.”
“That’s what family is for after all.” She smiles, this time brighter with more sincerity.
“Yes, you are family.”
“We best get back to the party. I can only imagine the scandal if someone realized I was skipping my own celebration.”
She starts walking forward, but turns when he doesn't follow.
“Is something the matter? “She looks over her shoulder.
He blinks at her for a moment. “No, not at all. Let’s return then.”
“Let’s.” She keeps walking.
“Truly no one else could call themselves hope of the High Entia,” he mumbles to himself, before following her back into the revere.