Faith - Kain Highwind x Reader (FFIV)

XIII. A hand to take

Your shining (E/C) colored orbs were focused on the stony and steep path in front of you, as you hiked up the mountains. Deep inside of you, the idea of going upwards was something you disliked, yet you hurriedly shook it off, as you were not directly confronted with anything unpleasant yet. Instead, your mind went over to the state of your body. Even though you were used to wandering around for a long time, the exhaustion of practically climbing up an elevation like this was nibbling at your limbs. Your shoulders dropped a little at said thought, an ounce of helplessness running through your body. It was as clear as the day that your prior fight was partly the cause for this issue, since you had only rested one day. However, how did you have any right to stop your journey considering what state the world was in? Out of stubbornness you shook your head, determined to not let yourself fall back too much.

Lifting your head up, you stared at Kain's broad back in front of you, focusing on how his arms moved along every step, falling into a seemingly comforting rhythm. Seeing how much you appreciated this man, made you realize what kind of strength he woke in you. Just by being right next to him, a wave of conviction rushed to your head, taking it over. For his sake too, you needed to continue your efforts. Automatically, you had to smile to yourself, recognizing that truth. With another step, you deeply inhaled the fresh mountain air and never interrupted your steady march up the hill.

It had been almost a day since you had departed from Ternes, whereas you assumed it would be about one to two more days until you would reach your final destination. The thought of how grave the situation would be over there was something negative, always lingering in your mind, however the teachings of Holy Priests were telling you to remind yourself of rather the light in your life. After all, it was your main source of power and that quite literally. It wasn't too often that you directly went over what you had learned previously in your life, as it usually turned out to be much more of an indirect thought process, constantly in the back of your mind. With a new origin of light now though, which was clearly Kain at this point in your life, you felt the need to remind yourself of your past once more. He had changed so much in the past weeks, causing your life to take a very drastic turn. Nevertheless, you appreciated it. Kain had unwittingly shown you what love meant in this world and what power it carried. Before, your life had merely consisted of work, offering yourself to others without even a spark of hesitation. Yet now you started to see so much more that this world held for you - you wanted to imagine a future; a blissful life besides someone you loved. Of course, this was not to necessarily turn into reality, however one point was evident: Kain had taught you how to dream. Something that provided you with a lot of hope.

Your eyes fell onto the Dragoon in front of you again, pondering what he was thinking about. Your mind unconsciously returned to the conversation you two had had before leaving the prior village. So besides Cecil, there had been another important person in his life. Rosa. Someone he obviously held deep feelings for. Seeing how Kain had told you how his best friends were married now, you concluded how the Dragoon must have undergone fairly a large amount of pain. You learned to understand what love looked like, not only in your thoughts but through your own actions as well. So it was easy to tell, from the way his voice had softened at the mention of her name, what kind of sentiments Kain connected to Rosa. Realizing however, that his two best friends were in love with each other, leaving him and his own romantic feelings aside, must have been a torture to go through. Even though you had not witnessed it yourself, your heart ached at the mere idea of it. You wanted to comfort Kain and show him how much he meant to you, yet it appeared inappropriate to pick up that topic another time after he had obviously wanted to drop it.

You wondered what kind of conversation you could start with the man and as if on cue, he started speaking up, his voice naturally calm, however simultaneously kind. "(Y/N), you seem rather tired. Do you want to take break?" It warmed your heart to know that he somehow managed to pay attention to your well being, despite having his back to you. At the same time, you wished he would have mentioned something different. You knew Kain was simply worried, which was not unnatural for someone with a cordial heart like him. Nonetheless, you did not wish to slow your travels down in any possible way. Thinking of something positive, you answered him, that sentiment reflected in your words, "I'm all right. Honestly, this silence is partly dejecting though. I was hoping we could talk a bit..." Your words trailed off, your mind immediately going back to what was lingering there. His feelings towards his friend Rosa. It frustrated you how you could not let go of the topic, after all, it really was none of your business. Expecting Kain to find a matter to discuss however, was not very likely either.