[Training] we had a marvelous time

and look for the stars as the sun goes down
each breath that you take has a thunderous sound

Maybe you're right, Amalia agrees with a whuff'd sigh, turning to rub her broad head against Remi's curls. I think... I need to talk to him. And be honest, like this. It's... it's terrifying, though, y'know? What if he doesn't like the person she's becoming? What if there isn't room for him? What if all her fears are realized, and she finds herself alone?

But she isn't alone, is she? Because somehow of all the people in the world Remi has seen her - truly seen her - and yet he is still here. They're mirrors in a sense, each feeling too deeply, each adhering too strongly to their responsibilities and desperately yearning to be free. The kinship she feels with the Alchemist in this moment is deeper than the friendship they had before, the flighty, warm, and surface thing that had to break in order to be rebuilt.

She lets the silence hang for a moment, comfortable to just be with him, feeling him through the Attuned bond as he feels her very soul. Eventually she grows uncomfortable enough to move, rolling over onto her belly and fixing him with a somewhat sardonic, but still adoring, look. You realize you're never getting rid of me now, right? You had your opportunity. Now it's too late. She's joking, of course, but there's sincerity in the statement, that constant anxiety as she searches his face for acceptance and connection in a dissonant world.

Amalia