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Zacharias wakes up to something wet falling on his face. He opens his eyes and sees that the sky is filled with dark clouds and it is raining. His body is aching from laying on the ground but he has to get out of the rain before he freezes to death. Speaking of death…
He sits up and brings his hand to his throat to feel it. He feels nothing out of the ordinary. He retreats his hand and looks at it. No blood. Zacharias remembers the Blue Knight slitting his throat. He’s sure that happened and yet… It appears the Blue Knight is not only one of them capable of surviving by some miracle.
Zacharias gets up on shaky feet. Around him the battlefield is scattered with bodies. The surviving forces must have left him behind. He will figure out if they have won once he gets back to the capital. Now he must find shelter.
There should be a cave on the other side of the field if Zacharias remembers correctly. He stumbles between the corpses, almost falling to his face more than once. Once he gets closer to what he thinks is the correct direction, he sees a light coming from nearby. Someone else must be keeping from the rain there already. Zacharias hopes it's an ally rather than an enemy, but he will take either right now. And if it turns out to be someone from the Blue Kingdom, hopefully they are willing to share the shelter for the night without either of them ending up dead.
Zacharias has to bend over as not to hit his head on the roof. The person sitting by the fire lifts his head as he enders. His arms are outstretched towards the fire and a blue gem hanging from his neck is creating a faint light that colours part of his face blue. An enemy then.
“I didn’t think anyone else was alive out there,” the stranger says.
“Me neither,” Zacharias answers, “May I join in?”
He’s still aching all over, but Zacharias is still ready to fight to the bitter end for shelter. However, he doesn’t need to do that, because the stranger looks him up and down and shrugs.
“Alright. You better not stab me while my attention is elsewhere.”
“I could say the same to you,” Zacharias says as he settles on the other side of the fire. He removes his armour eyes staying on his companion. He keeps his eyes on Zacharias as well as if waiting for him to attack. He must have recognised him already. People are supposed to. He’s the Purple Knight after all.
After removing his armour, Zacharias settles by the fire. It feels nice after being out in the cold. It isn’t enough though, and he trembles with cold. He meets eyes with his companion and he wraps the blanket tighter around himself.
“I only have one,” he says and after a short pause he continues:
“But it could fit two. If you come unarmed that is.”
“How could I trust you not to try anything if I do that.”
“You can’t. Although I think we would have killed each other already if we were going to. But do as you please.”
Zacharias thinks of refusing, but he is really cold. He makes a show of displaying he doesn’t have anything in his hands before making his way to the other man. He unwraps himself from the blanket somewhat and holds it open for Zacharias. He sits right beside the stranger and wraps his side of the blanket around him. It’s slightly better than without one. And the person beside him is a warm presence at his side. They sit in an awkward silence for a while.
“I might regret this later on, but…” the other man says, “My name is Alfonse. What about yours?”
“Zacharias,” he answers truthfully. He has no doubt that Alfonse gave his real name so he can tell his as well.
“Not to open a fresh wound, but… Do you know which side won the battle?” Zacharias asks. He feels Alfonse tense at his side.
“I have no idea. When I woke up, everyone had already left.”
“Interesting. Why did they leave you behind then?”
“I could ask the same thing about you.”
An awkward silence falls between them again. Zacharias takes a moment to look around them where the light from the fire can reach. He notices what must be Alfonse’s discarded armour. It looks kinda like...
“What are they like? The Blue Knight, I mean,” Zacharias asks suddenly. He feels Alfonse shift to see where Zacharias is looking.
“Not that impressive in my opinion. He’s too focused on fighting to spend time with people he cares about,” Alfonse answers as he retreats to lean on the wall instead. Zacharias turns his gaze to Alfonse.
“You know him well then?” Zacharias baits.
“You could say that,” Alfonse says without missing a beat.
A silence falls between them again. They stare at the crackling fire. Zacharias wonders if he should ask about how he survived the fall.
Last time they had directly engaged with each other had been six months ago. The Blue Knight had been after the same artifact than him. Zacharias hadn’t meant for him to fall. He had wanted to drive the sword through him himself. The victory had felt shallow. Some months afterwards he heard that the Blue Knight had survived. They had been avoiding each other after. Until today that is. And he had gotten another opportunity and lost. And now he is chatting with his worst enemy over the campfire while they both are taking shelter from the rain.
“Have you noticed anything strange about them?” Zacharias asks instead.
He waits as Alfonse thinks for a moment. Zacharias expects him to deny noticing anything.
“If you mean people thinking he had died, but then him appearing unscathed months later, then yes I have noticed something strange.”
Zacharias hums. He wonders if he dares to ask more about the matter, but Alfonse changes the subject before he can.
“I have never been to your country. What is it like?”
Now is Zacharias’ turn to think about his answer. He thinks his home is quite normal, nothing special in a way or the other. He has never been to the Blue Kingdom, so he isn’t sure how similar the two are.
“I guess it is a little bit like yours, and also not. Or so I have heard that we have gotten influences from both the Red and the Blue Kingdoms being in the area between them,” Zacharias answers vaguely.
“That’s not an answer.”
“You should come and see for yourself,” Zacharias says without thinking.
“Maybe, but I guess then I should invite you to mine as well,” Alfonse says in return.
“I’d like that.”
The silence that falls between them is slightly more comfortable. Outside the rain shows no sights of stopping.
“What is it like to be the most renowned knight in your country?” Alfonse asks suddenly.
“Not that great to be honest. Everyone expects me to basically win the whole war by myself. It gets tiring.”
Zacharias is little surprised by his own honesty. He has never told that to anyone else before. Alfonse seems to have a strange power to make him tell what he’s really thinking. Zacharias probably should stay quiet for the rest of their time together just in case.
“I understand how that feels. People think you can do just about anything, but when you are incapable of providing, they are disappointed in you even when they don’t say it out loud.”
“Exactly.”
Alfonse gives him a small smile and Zacharias returns it. They sit in silence until they fall asleep.
In the next morning, Zacharias jolts awake, hand reaching for a weapon, but he relaxes as he remembers where he is. He’s alone and someone has placed the blanket on him better. Zacharias sits up right before Alfonse appears again.
“Breakfast?” Alfonse asks Zacharias showing what he had gathered while he was away.
They prepare breakfast together. Partly because neither trusts the other enough. They are still able to find some sort of rhythm and soon they are eating together what is quite a tasty breakfast considering their limited resources.
“Why didn’t you kill me while you had the chance?” Zacharias asks. The fact has bothered him the whole morning.
Alfonse sighs. He sounds tired.
“What difference would it have made? You have seen me fall in battle and I have seen you fall. Yet here we both still are.”
“Huh.”
They finish their breakfast in silence. Afterwards they start to prepare for departure, both to their respective homelands.
“Could you help me out? I can’t get all of the armour on by myself.”
Alfonse gives him a confused look, but comes over to help anyway. Zacharias keeps an eye on Alfonse while he works just in case. They get Zacharias dressed without incident and Zacharias helps Alfonse in return. Once they are both ready, they leave the cave together. Alfonse gives him a nod.
“I guess we will meet again on the battlefield.”
“I guess so,” Zacharias answers with a nod of his own.
They go their respective ways after that...
“...And that’s how Alfonse and I met. We ended up teaming up later on, and so here we are today.” Zacharias is met with confused faces of the customers that asked how the two of them had met each other.
“Please enjoy your hot beverages,” He says and strides back behind the counter. Alfonse gives him an amused smile.
“Enjoying yourself?”
“Of course not,” he answers with a smile.