Roland shakes his head when Inigo meets his eye. The fog over Inigo's past, finally lifted from his eyes. No piece left unturned, or at least, enough for Roland to fill in the gaps with his own sense. The halidom of Ylisse has long suffered, death no longer an escape. And Inigo, with the Brand clear in one eye, the Prince of a fallen world, carrying part of the heaviest burden. Always out of Roland's understanding, but now the parallels are clearly drawn in the sand. The son of a king. The gatekeepers of the past. Then when the deed is done, what next? For Inigo, never anything but that. Nothing.
After that, there would be no use to me existing.
He can't imagine it. A world without an Inigo. It's like being forced to imagine a day without the sun. When was the last time Inigo had that to himself? Him, Gerome, and all of his friends left behind to finish the task their forefathers and parents could not accomplish? Making flower bracelets in the forest, laughing and crying over the silliest things...Standing by someone's side when they're in pain, holding their hand and giving them an embrace they might not have known they needed; this is what Inigo's future must be. Roland can't see any other way but his happiness, the bright yellow higgledy's influence aside.
It's why he promised him to stay by his side. If this he cannot fulfill, then in this world, he's failed his task too. Though he knows he can only do so much, Roland digs deep in his pool of misery for the line to save Inigo, at least to offer him another way out.
"I kind of know what that's like, not having something to go back to." Roland's voice comes through, clear and calm. His watchful gaze never once leaving Inigo's face. "I guess in a way, you and I are standing in between worlds at all times. Trying your best to save the one you left behind, but not knowing what's actually going to happen after you do it. That's not dumb. Getting scared because of war...that's natural, too, Inigo. There's nothing wrong with how you feel, or how you're acting because it's so far from what you know. Believe me."
Nothing is wrong with you. Nothing is your fault.
Roland keeps going. Prays that somewhere out there, he's doing Inigo's family the greatest of respects by trying to lift their precious son back into the warmth of the light, where he belongs. Where he must stay, now and always.
"You're right. When you go back, and the deed is done, the future will change. All of you won't return to what you know. The tides would have swept it away. But...it doesn't stop there. It doesn't have to. Your life is a gift, Inigo. Even after all is said and done." Roland takes Inigo's hands - both of them this time - and squeezes gently. Something about how he speaks is more meaningful than before. More than sharing wisdom, Roland is trying to connect one wounded heart with another.
"You can exist just as you are. As this Inigo, the one here, the Inigo I'd know even in a crowd of a thousand. In a void. In another world. In another time." The slight shake of his head reveals eyes glazed with emotion. "And whatever chapter unfolds for you next, it'll be yours. So, take it. Don't let go of it. After all, the future's never been something we wait to happen to us, it's always been something we make for ourselves. You have to want it. And something tells me that you do."
One hand lets go of that grasp and nudges Inigo's chin, softly. Jumblie begins to glow brighter, so much brighter than before.
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Roland shakes his head when Inigo meets his eye. The fog over Inigo's past, finally lifted from his eyes. No piece left unturned, or at least, enough for Roland to fill in the gaps with his own sense. The halidom of Ylisse has long suffered, death no longer an escape. And Inigo, with the Brand clear in one eye, the Prince of a fallen world, carrying part of the heaviest burden. Always out of Roland's understanding, but now the parallels are clearly drawn in the sand. The son of a king. The gatekeepers of the past. Then when the deed is done, what next? For Inigo, never anything but that. Nothing.
After that, there would be no use to me existing.
He can't imagine it. A world without an Inigo. It's like being forced to imagine a day without the sun. When was the last time Inigo had that to himself? Him, Gerome, and all of his friends left behind to finish the task their forefathers and parents could not accomplish? Making flower bracelets in the forest, laughing and crying over the silliest things...Standing by someone's side when they're in pain, holding their hand and giving them an embrace they might not have known they needed; this is what Inigo's future must be. Roland can't see any other way but his happiness, the bright yellow higgledy's influence aside.
It's why he promised him to stay by his side. If this he cannot fulfill, then in this world, he's failed his task too. Though he knows he can only do so much, Roland digs deep in his pool of misery for the line to save Inigo, at least to offer him another way out.
"I kind of know what that's like, not having something to go back to." Roland's voice comes through, clear and calm. His watchful gaze never once leaving Inigo's face. "I guess in a way, you and I are standing in between worlds at all times. Trying your best to save the one you left behind, but not knowing what's actually going to happen after you do it. That's not dumb. Getting scared because of war...that's natural, too, Inigo. There's nothing wrong with how you feel, or how you're acting because it's so far from what you know. Believe me."
Nothing is wrong with you. Nothing is your fault.
Roland keeps going. Prays that somewhere out there, he's doing Inigo's family the greatest of respects by trying to lift their precious son back into the warmth of the light, where he belongs. Where he must stay, now and always.
"You're right. When you go back, and the deed is done, the future will change. All of you won't return to what you know. The tides would have swept it away. But...it doesn't stop there. It doesn't have to. Your life is a gift, Inigo. Even after all is said and done." Roland takes Inigo's hands - both of them this time - and squeezes gently. Something about how he speaks is more meaningful than before. More than sharing wisdom, Roland is trying to connect one wounded heart with another.
"You can exist just as you are. As this Inigo, the one here, the Inigo I'd know even in a crowd of a thousand. In a void. In another world. In another time." The slight shake of his head reveals eyes glazed with emotion. "And whatever chapter unfolds for you next, it'll be yours. So, take it. Don't let go of it. After all, the future's never been something we wait to happen to us, it's always been something we make for ourselves. You have to want it. And something tells me that you do."
One hand lets go of that grasp and nudges Inigo's chin, softly. Jumblie begins to glow brighter, so much brighter than before.