"It's just a little further guys to the path that'll take us to Dotrun!"
Meliodas exclaimed to the group as King muttered to himself.
He was not happy with this arrangement at all. Neither him nor Elizabeth knew how to get to this mysterious place and had to rely solely on Meliodas for directions. The two had no way of knowing if they were going the right way nor if they were being led into a trap. They just had to trust him, trust a demon to get them to a place to find a magic scroll that would seal away demons. Including the one helping them!
It was just too easy, too simple, and too selfless of an act for a demon to do without some sort of catch. Even if that same demon had used to be a very dear friend...
"Ready or not here I come!"
The little girl said as she started looking for the blond boy "hiding" conveniently around a bush so the little five year old (in fairy years) would be able to see him.
Harelquin smiled at the scene. Since his parents were on a diplomatic trip to the Giant realm to congratulate them on their new daughter, the responsibility of taking care of his baby sister landed on him. Something very stressful indeed as she had an endless supply of energy.
After about two hours of games like tag and races, the boy was exhausted. However his attempts to sit down were met with tears as he started to panic. Only for a blond around his age the fairy hadn't met before to walk up and talk to the crying child.
"Hi little one! What's wrong? Why's your face covered in tears?"
"M-My b-big b-brother won't p-play with m-me.. *sniff*"
Embarrassed and about to explain the situation, the blond just nodded knowingly and crouched down to her level.
"Well I'll play with you if you want! Do you like hide and seek?"
Her eyes instantly brightened happily as she nodded.
"Yeah? Okay, well how about I hide, and you try to find me, kay?"
"Mhm!"
Watching as the two played for hours, King was in awe at how well he got along with the small- sometimes difficult- girl and how much energy he himself had. In fact, after awhile she fell asleep as the blond carried her back over to her brother still watching from his seat.
"She's tuckered out and should probably get to bed soon. I'm assuming this is your little sister?"
The fairy nodded, still feeling slightly embarrassed at how he didn't know how to properly handle her compared to the mysterious blonde who had stepped in.
"I see, she's very cute you know. Got a lot of energy too! You're lucky to have someone like her, I never had a sister."
"Really? H-How are you so good with kids?"
"Oh, well sure I never had a sister, but I have two little brothers I take care of that are just as rambunctious as her. I'm used to dealing with meltdowns and such myself so I figured you could use a hand. I'm Meliodas by the way. What's your name?"
"Harelquin, and that's Elaine."
"Harelquin huh? Does that mean you're the Fairy King's son?"
"Yes, I am."
"That's so cool! Must be a lot of responsibility though. Knowing so many people rely on you."
That stunned the fairy. He was used to people fawning over him, but never had someone acknowledged the price that goes with it. The responsibility for so many lives... Even at his young age, he knew the impact everything he did was. It was suffocating, and very unfamiliar for someone to acknowledge that.
"Y-Yes, I suppose i-it is.."
"Well, if that's the case. Wanna be friends? I'm sure someone like you already has tons of friends and fans, but I just think it'd be nice to have someone to rely on instead for a change instead of the opposite. What do ya say?"
Intrigued by the boy and the cheery smile he wore, Harlequin agreed, having no idea at the time how close their friendship would be, nor how it would end..
Shaken from the memory by the sound of Elizabeth's voice, he looked to see Elizabeth next to Meliodas in the front, talking quietly and unaware he could hear.
"I'm sorry King has been so harsh to you.. Just know that it's not just about you, I'm sure he still cares about you deep down, but he has to put his kingdom first. Besides... it isn't easy for him to trust people anymore."
"I know. He's always been a bit more reserved. Even when we met. I have to earn his trust back. And besides, I'm gonna get sealed away anyway so it doesn't really matter if he cares about me or not."
He didn't sound stressed when saying that, indifferent even, however the words themselves hurt the fairy because of how he truly did still care about his friend, in fact, that's why he was treating him this way. Because although he wanted- truly truly wanted- to believe the boy was the same? He couldn't. Because although the smile was the same and he still had the same tone, his eyes weren't what they were then... They were different, and he knew regardless of how much it ached, that he would be the one that had to take down Meliodas if the time came.. Because as smart as Elizabeth was, she let her heart think for her sometimes, and he knew she didn't just care for Meliodas as a friend.. She loved him.
