Faith - Kain Highwind x Reader (FFIV)

VII. Reality strikes again

While Kain pushed his lance forward and threw himself into an immediate physical battle, you were still standing in one spot, the magic at the end of your short staff growing larger. Perhaps in a normal situation you would've feared to not be fast enough to cast the spell. However, having seen how much faith Kain had had in your abilities before, empowered you to a completely new level. A much higher one. The self-confidence shot through your body, lending you even more assurance that both of you would be fine. Deeply exhaling, you finished mumbling to yourself and adjusted your weapon in order for it to be directed at the black spirits in the air that were right above your companion. Now!

Quickly releasing the gathered power an extremely bright light shot towards the darkness, promptly dispelling it at first contact. Every person beneath your magic, including Kain, naturally went to cover their eyes, ceasing the fight for a moment. The divine power then exploded into several shards, as the brightness soon faded away. The Dragoon, as calm and composed as he was, instantly made use of the last bit of distraction to elegantly finish the rest of Cerinn's residents off. Meanwhile, you felt a wave of pain and exhaustion pierce through your body, whereas you slightly groaned and held the side of your waist. With your other free hand you covered your mouth, afraid of blood spilling out due to your lack of strength to hold up your body any longer. It had happened in the past, not very often, yet sometimes your body reacted in the strangest ways to the holy magic.

Apparently Kain had witnessed your weird behavior, hurriedly jogging over to your side, his weapon already on his back again. As you were partly bent forward, he knelt down onto your height level, holding out one hand, without touching you though. "(Y/N) are you all right? Can you stand?" His voice was still as chesty as ever, however, now it carried a tone of worry. It kind of made you happy to be honest, despite your situation. Gulping your pain down, you forced a smile onto your lips and let out a deep breath. "Yes, it's fine. I need to head to the orb now." You emphasized, straightly standing up again. Kain withdrew his hand, shortly looking off to the side, before facing you once more. "Tell me if something is wrong. Otherwise I won't be able to help you." It sounded like an offer and a warning at the same time, leading you to believe that perhaps he genuinely cared for your well-being. That alone gave you back some strength. "Thank you." You softly replied.

Stepping forward, you approached the dark sphere, a shiver running down your spine. It looked exactly like the one in Demno, so how was it so much more powerful to even decoy evil spirits? It made no sense to you. Kain stood right behind you, also gazing up at the object. "This seems to remind me of..." He mumbled to himself, almost inaudible. You curiously raised an eyebrow at him, looking over your shoulder. Sensing your stare, he sighed to himself. "The crystals of this world." His voice sounded bitter and sad, causing you to automatically wonder why. Nevertheless, you didn't have the time to persist on it any longer, directing your (E/C) eyes back at the orb. You had only seen the crystals in pictures drawn onto paper so far, yet there was a certain similarity. You made a mental note to mention that fact to the monks here later on.

"Well, please step back during the ritual. The light will be almost as bright as the one before and I'm not too keen on you turning blind." You jokingly chuckled while addressing Kain. He simply nodded and took a few steps back. At the same time, you stretched out your arm that was holding the staff and started speaking the words of the same ritual some days ago. With one swift movement, you raised your short staff, made a circle with your left foot and gestured around with your free hand on the same side. Continuing your dance to reinforce your focus and gathering your magic in circles surrounding the orb, you gracefully stepped around the dark sphere. One more sentence and another one followed. Your whispering turned louder until you were speaking in a normal voice instead of a hushed one, slowly leading your ritual to an end. You felt the warmth of your divine magic close to your body, right next to the center of the darkness. Pointing your staff at the orb you took a deep breath as you stopped talking and went over to placing your left hand on the orb. Instantly, more pain shot through your body, causing you to cringe. Nonetheless, you did not withdraw your hand. As heat appeared at your fingertips, you bit onto your lip, enduring everything uncomfortable without one complaint. This was your job. You had dedicated your existence to cleansing and conveying your holy magic to others. As you reached the peak of the ritual, the circles of magic tightly bound themselves to the orb and you shakily jumped a step back, out of the way of the force of the holy power. Within one second, the sphere shattered and your legs simultaneously gave in underneath you.

Once more your vision was blurry. Even though you had had Kain with you this time, you were still completely drained. If he wouldn't have volunteered as your bodyguard, you most likely would've failed your mission. Feeling a presence next to you, you dizzily whispered, "I have to thank you for helping me out today. Otherwise this orb would still be standing." Something unexpected then happened: The Dragoon next to you chuckled a little. As if your senses were gradually returning to you, you partly turned your head to look at him, eyes wide open. "You truly are the only one able to say that at the point of outright exhaustion with a smile on your face. Well, that definitely is normal." The sarcasm dripping from his voice, mixed with his adorable laugh, caused your heart to flutter. You feared it would immediately jump out of your chest, as your cheeks were colored in a bright red.

To top everything off, he suddenly took your hand in his, whereas you quietly squealed. Was this just imagination? Had you perhaps fallen asleep at some point? You didn't know but as much as you were embarrassed, you also enjoyed your closeness to Kain. He was such a quiet person, never clearly showing his emotions, which was even enabled further because of the fact that his face was constantly hidden due to his helmet. However, on the inside, it was easy to see that he possessed a kind heart, filled with genuine warmth. Having noticed that over your time spent together, despite it not being that much, you started yearning for seeing more sides of him. You wanted to know why he looked so pained sometimes, wanted to discover what he took interest in or simply what he was thinking. It was like he occupied your mind even more each and every second. All those thoughts weren't just because you were not used to being close to the other gender. It was because you had become infatuated with him at some point of the journey.

"(Y/N), are you still with me?" Worry from his voice woke you up from your daydream. You blinked a few times, already having forgotten about the most part of your tiredness. Seeing how you hadn't imagined Kain holding your hand, deepened your smile further. That was until you realized why he was grasping your hand. Your cheerful attitude promptly dropped, as you stared at your fingertips in disbelief. Quickly, you tore your hand out of his gentle gripe, scared you might infect him in some way. Panicking, your (E/C) focused on your skin again. It had turned dark. Pitch black even. You gulped, starting to shake. You were a Holy Priestess, how was this supposed to work?! Your body was protected by divine magic!

Shaking your head, you dropped your short staff, a loud noise appearing once it hit the ground. Covering your left hand that had touched the orb and now turned black, with your right one, you spoke a few words, focusing your magic on your skin. 'Please work,' you internally prayed. After you had finished casting your spell, a short light emerged and afterwards, your skin returned to its natural color. Your shoulders dropped, as you heavily exhaled. It was all right. You weren't tainted. It was fine.

"(Y/N), it's all right. You are not alone." The reassuring voice of Kain, filled with so much kindness, made you realize that he was indeed correct. You had the person you had learned to treasure that much by your side. He offered you his support. Besides, the darkness was gone again. You were fine. Noticing how Kain had placed his hand on your shoulder, you took a deep breath and laid your own, the right one just in case, over his. Gently smiling, you faced him, realizing that he seemed taken aback. "I'm starting to ask myself where I would be without you at this point." You couldn't help but chuckle, as you forced yourself to retrieve your fingers and once the Dragoon had done the same, you got up. "Let's go report to the monks now. That was your destination in the first place anyway, was it not?" You asked him, tilting your head to the side. Kain nodded but went to kneel down once again before leaving with you. When you understood what he was doing, your heartbeat slightly increased, a warm sensation spreading through your body. Holding out your short staff that he had picked up from the ground, Kain nodded at you. Gratefully, you accepted it and stored the weapon at the side of your belt. "Then let us depart." He said, turning around and walking away. Somehow, the sentence had become something of a habit to you.