Chapter Text
“I can’t believe they really were convinced that they had us all fooled. Wow. How stupid do they think we are?” Magni sighs, shaking his head like a disappointed dad as he joins the rest of Tempus at the front hall. As per usual, Altare is at his side, always stuck to Magni’s side like a lost puppy, and the alchemist wouldn’t have it any other way.
At the table, Magni takes the nearest empty space to him, which just so happens to be across from Flayon, who seems to be deep in thought over something. It steals Magni’s attention for a bit before he continues, “They could have at least made it more believable or something. Terrible actors, the both of them. It’s no wonder Bettel failed clown school.”
Well, Magni doesn’t mean that. He’s just a bit upset, and when he’s upset, he’s in his full right to make harmless little insults about his best friend who actually is more than decent at acting and even has a passion for film.
There’s a confused grunt at his side, and Magni turns to meet eyes with Axel, who furrows his eyebrows, like he’s trying to figure out a math equation, “Eh? What do you mean?”
Vesper lifts up a hand to cover his laughter as leans toward the gladiator, half whispering to him even though there is no need for it, as the front doors to the guild are still closed off to the public, leaving no one else to overhear his words except for the rest of the boys at the table, all except for Hakka and Bettel themselves who are off doing god knows what, “Axel, they were never dating.”
Pausing, Axel doesn’t move for a moment as he works to process the information. It doesn’t take long for a frown to form on his face. That’s hard for him to believe.
“But…” Axel starts, and his words trail off, like he isn’t sure how to start verbalizing his thoughts.
Altare scoots closer to Axel’s side and playfully digs his elbow into the gladiator’s side to get his attention, chuckling to himself, “So apparently, Magni’s theory is that they started fake dating as some kind of prank on us. And that it all began this week.”
Well, Axel can say that those two definitely have been acting stranger than usual this week. That, and they just so happened to always be together whenever Axel saw them or heard about them in passing. So much now that looking for one of them meant that you technically would find both of them. They come as a set, do not separate, that kind of thing.
Nodding simply, Shinri rubs his chin in thought and adds, “That checks out. They seemed a little…concerning on the first day of the week now that I think about it, but they mellowed out after that. I couldn’t really see much difference from the usual after that.”
The gladiator blinks at Shinri, fully turning his body toward him and waiting for him to go on.
Shinri catches the look on Axel’s face and chuckles gently, “There was one moment in the dining hall that morning that was a little bit off. That, among some others.”
Shinri hadn’t given it much thought to it then, and even now, it’s not like the moment sprung up in his head immediately, but it’s definitely a moment that stands out compared to the rest.
What was especially surprising was seeing Bettel awake so early. Hakka’s presence is one that, rather frequently, joins Shinri on his morning training sessions, so he wasn’t too caught up by the sight of seeing Hakka in the mornings, but Bettel?
Gavis Bettel, notorious for his horrible sleep schedule, one of the worst of the guild? That’s truly saying something, considering his competition includes a bunch of other fatigued and overworked men just like him, but somehow, Bettel always has them beat.
One time, Flayon suggested that perhaps it was the stress, and recommended that Bettel try to live a healthier lifestyle one step at a time. Eat a cleaner diet with less sugar and sodium, set some time aside to stretch or workout, things like that, and sleep may come easier to him, alongside with the other many benefits of living a healthier lifestyle.
However, Bettel just shrugged the pilot off, like he wasn’t even considering the suggestions as possible.
This got Flayon to blow up, rightfully upset at being brushed off so easily, “ You aren’t even trying! How can anyone help you if you can’t even help yourself, mister self destruction? ”
“ Look, I just want to figure myself out first. ” That’s all Bettel had to say about that. It caught Flayon off guard, that’s for sure, because usually, Bettel would make jokes to deflect or downplay his issues, but his answer had been serious that time. Too real, too honest, that it scared Bettel away from divulging too much information.
What was it that he wanted to figure out? For that, Shinri has no answer, but he can guess that Bettel’s feelings for Hakka may have played a role in the inner turmoil.
“That’s not what I mean,” Axel shakes his head, confusion still written all over his face, “The hand holding is new, sure, and they’ve been a little more touchy with each other, I guess, but…” He still can’t seem to get the words quite right, and Axel groans in frustration.
Shinri remembers the weird morning where Hakka and Bettel walked in holding hands and then ran away as quickly as they’d came in.
Hakka and Bettel made their appearance in the front hall, hand in hand, with two way too eager grins on their faces. Those expressions were ones that were clearly up to no good, and it just shows that Shinri has gotten accustomed to feeling dread whenever he sees those get all smug and excited out of nowhere. As the father figure of Tempus Vanguard, he’s gotten enough bonding time with Hakka and Bettel to definitely be able to sniff out when something is up.
Because Shinri knew something wasn’t right, that’s the very reason why he didn’t give into what they clearly wanted, and avoided staring directly at their linked hands. Even if it wasn’t anything suspicious or with bad intentions, Shinri just didn’t want to be disrespectful and look so obviously at their hand holding. The last thing he wants is for them to feel uncomfortable.
The same was probably true for Flayon, who Shinri knows was in a similar boat as him and never paid attention to their hands like Bettel and Hakka wanted them to, unless it was to call them out on it.
“They both wanted a reaction out of us, I’m guessing,” Shinri blinks across the table at Axel who nods to agree with the claim, so Shinri turns to look at Flayon, who currently has his eyebrows knitted as he seems lost in his own head, clearly too preoccupied with pondering over his own thoughts to comment on the situation.
Out of everyone, Magni has been the most involved with the whole Hakka and Bettel situation.
He’s had the most exposure to them this week, alongside Altare, and even has the added months of pining that Bettel relayed to him as well, so Magni would like to argue that he has the right to be loud and complain about it.
They seriously need to get together already, fuck this fake dating bullshit and just make it real already because they all know that this is what they’re both yearning for, and most important of all, finally end Magni’s misery. Knowledge is a curse and a burden, and he knows too much about both sides of this situation to be happy about it.
The alchemist rolls his eyes, wondering if his guildmates have gone blind, “I mean, have you seen them? They’re both so whipped for each other that I bet they’re too scared to do anything about it.”
Axel keeps on his innocent frown, challenging Magni with a pout like that of a kicked puppy, “It’s just…I don’t get it. You’re saying that this has all been, like, them pretending to date , right? But the way they’ve been acting this week isn’t much different from how they usually are already, who what makes it so different now?
Axel keeps thinking back to the moment back on the field when Shinri had brought the Xenokuni bows for them to try.
Look, Axel has never claimed to know any better when it comes to people making decisions, nor is he qualified to do so in a situation like this, but with the way that Hakka and Bettel look at each other when they think no one else is looking…Like come on! They act like boyfriends already, and Axel knows that Bettel and Hakka weren’t faking that look that they were giving each other. Why would they, when they didn’t know that Axel and Shinri were watching them? And even if they were aware, it doesn’t explain the times that they stared so affectionately at one another before this week started.
People call Axel thick headed and oblivious sometimes, but even he can catch a hint like that. Bettel and Hakka are crushing so hard on each other, and Axel’s picked up on that way before this week even started, to be honest.
“They can call it whatever they want, pretending to date or bottling up their feelings, it doesn’t matter in the end, because it’s not like they can ignore it forever,” there’s disappointment wrinkling Axel’s face, as he sighs, shaking his head in pity, “They like each other and want to be together. I think it’s pretty obvious what they should do.”
Altare chuckles softly, a sorrowful smile on his face. He can see both sides of the argument here, as someone who likes to share his feelings and be honest, especially when it comes to romantic feelings, but he first hand understands the reluctance to do so.
Out of the corner of Altare’s eyes, his gaze is naturally drawn toward Magni. He has always been like that, constantly yearning for someone who has always been at his side yet still felt so out of reach. Back then, it seemed impossible to ever have what he actually wanted with Magni.
He still gets hit with the memories on occasion before sleep can come to him, the many times he rehearsed the confession to himself before he was finally able to work up the courage and admit his feelings. It didn’t go as planned, as most things usually turn out for him, but in the end, he gets to call Magni his boyfriend. What else could Altare ask for?
“That’s going back to what I said about how they’ve always acted like this. So who’s to say this is even a prank? Maybe they actually are together.” Axel shoots a pointed look at Magni again, more aggressive than he genuinely feels but it’s way too fun to pass up an opportunity to bully Magni, so he does it anyway.
“Magni’s right,” Flayon speaks up out of nowhere, resting his cheek on his fist as he meets Magni’s tired eyes with his own, looking disinterested but clearly he’s just good at hiding it, because if he truly didn’t care, then Flayon wouldn’t have added his input at all, “This was their idea of a joke.”
Pleased, Magni just tips his chin toward Flayon, gesturing at the pilot to back up his argument, to which Flayon begins to ramble, “I was talking to Bettel yesterday, how he made up his mind about something. I wonder when he’s finally going to do something about him and Hakka. I haven’t seen either of them yet, so…I can’t really be sure.”
“You can never really be sure when it comes to those two. Who knows what goes on inside their heads,” Vesper mumbles to himself, speaking the comment more to himself than to Flayon. He folds his hands together and perches them beneath his chin, stuck in deep thought over something.
“Other than the most ridiculous case of mutual pining I’ve ever seen?” Shinri laughs to himself, barely masked fatigue in his breathy chuckle, “It’s going to be a miracle if they ever get past the hand holding stage. Kissing to them must feel like a commitment, as if that’s marriage or something.”
“That’s not saying much at all. Those two are already married, aren’t they?” Vesper grins at Shinri, his fangs flashing, and he reaches out to grab his cup of tea, “They went through marriage counseling and everything too. Truly the workings of a dream couple.”
Dr. Hakim must be a miracle worker to get these two to stop ignoring their repressed feelings for one another for more than a minute. Who knows where Bettel and Hakka would be today without their walking and talking marriage counselor, who just so happens to be a book?
“Speaking of…” Altare trails on, peering up at the clock on the guild hall walls, “Where are those two? It’s almost lunch time, they should definitely be up by now.”
And perhaps it’s just an ironic coincidence or this simply had just been another spotting of Altare’s ridiculous shounen protagonist energy at work, but in walks in the very two boys that they had all just been busy gossiping over, holding hands just like they had been on the very first day of the week.
Vesper watches them intensely over his cup of tea, a small smile playing on his face, “Ah, speak of the devil…”
It’s not surprising to see a grin so bright that it’s blinding on Hakka’s face, a boy made of pure sunshine, who is of course found at the side of a certain jester.
If Hakka is the sun, that would make Bettel the moon, constantly in rotation together, a dance they’ll spin together in for eternity if neither one of them gets the balls to confess, Magni scoffs.
“Good morning, boys! Did we miss anything?” Hakka beams brightly, acting like everything is all normal, as if he didn’t just go missing for an entire day and Bettel spent the whole time running across the guild in a panic in between his periods of sulking and yearning.
This is absolutely ridiculous, they can’t just cause a commotion and then pretend like everything’s all good again! Magni is going to pop a blood vessel at this rate, and Altare seems to sense the anger radiating off him, as their leader lays a comforting hand over Magni’s.
And though Magni is now blushing, he is still preoccupied with his annoyance and simply wants to stew in it for a bit. His love for Altare is great, but his eternal hatred for people can trump even that.
Do Bettel and Hakka really think that if they don’t mention yesterday and just walk into the front hall holding hands, the two of them glowing like elated newlyweds, that everyone’s just going to go along with their little act?
No, not after being subjected to an entire week of some fake dating bullshit. The guild Tempus, or rather, Magni Dezmond, refuses to allow Bettel and Hakka to stir up even more trouble.
The alchemist opens his mouth to speak his thoughts, glaring at the other side of the table as the last two members of the guild slide onto a bench together, of course taking the seats beside one another, but Flayon suddenly leans into Magni’s side to whisper, “Magni, wait, look! Do you see what I’m seeing?”
His voice sounds shocked, and from his tone alone, it’s like Flayon’s just seen a ghost.
“All I see are two cowards so obviously in love yet they won’t get their shit together—“ Magni starts, about to fully launch himself into a rant, but Flayon reaches out to grip his arm in an attempt to silence the alchemist, which ends up successful, as Magni turns to glance at what Flayon is gawking at.
If it were anyone else, there would be nothing to notice. It’s just Bettel and Hakka being their typical selves, but no, to Flayon and Magni, there’s a sense of uncertainty that tenses their bodies, an instinct that tells them that something is different today.
The changes are subtle, Magni can’t lie about that, but they’re there.
This week has been full of situations where those two were constantly trying to prove a point and feed into their dumb prank, moments where they’d be caught in a precarious position together, or they’re holding hands, or they’re spending nights in the same room, but all of that is gone this morning. Even the heavy cloud of tension that follows those two, making everyone in their vicinity silently plead for them to stop the banter and just kiss already, seems to have dissipated.
What the hell is going on? Magni has no answer for any of this, and he isn’t used to feeling so ignorant.
The alchemist peeks at the faces of the other boys who have started to tease the two about waking up late after a long night together or something, Magni would love to join in the bullying but he’s too preoccupied with the subtle shift in the air around Bettel and Hakka, like the world and all of its burdens have just lightened.
It’s simultaneously both difficult to watch them but at the same time, it’s as if Magni can’t look away. What a beautiful train wreck that the pair makes, truly. Every little thing that they do just has the other’s eyes shining with such a fond look, and now Magni is starting to sweat because if this is how he and Altare comes off looking like, then he’s going to throw up.
“They’re not holding hands or being obvious with their flirting or just anything anymore…What happened to them trying so hard? This is just them being them,” Flayon exhales slowly, like he’s trying to process it all too, and when the pilot verbalizes it that way, something clicks in Magni’s head.
Bettel and Hakka are not trying anymore. Is that because they don’t need to?
The only thing about that is what would get them to stop the fake dating stuff? Last time that Magni checked, the week isn’t over. They have less than 24 hours to keep up their shtick before they call it quits forever.
Unless…
“Holy fuck.” Magni whispers beneath his breath, nearly choking on his own saliva out of sheer shock.
Of course, no one hears him. Everyone else is too distracted anyway, much too entertained by the couple who just walked in together looking like they’re on top of the world, a happiness even more pure and somehow feeling more genuine than it has before.
Something is off with them. Not in a bad way or anything, but just…Different. Is Magni going fucking crazy right now?
The pilot’s shoulders drop just as Magni murmurs to himself, the realization fully slamming into Flayon and robbing him of all his energy at the same time, “Wait, they’re…” Flayon’s mouth snaps shut, unable to finish his words.
He doesn’t know if he should say it aloud, too nervous to jinx it and also to make a wrong assumption, but there’s that best friend instinct deep inside him that knows Hakka and Bettel so well as their teammate that is just too confident in this new theory. Flayon is more often right than he is wrong, and even more so when it comes to the boys in Vanguard.
All Flayon can muster up the courage to say is, “Do you think they…? Like, for real this time?” He directs the questions at Magni, because no one else can understand where he’s coming from with these assumptions except for the alchemist, who is going through the exact same thought process.
They meet eyes, and through their similarly dazed looks and furrowed brows, both Flayon and Magni know that they’re thinking the same thing.
Bettel and Hakka don’t need to pretend to date anymore, because they are dating now.
And this isn’t them acting, no, they’re too relaxed like this, and most of all, they’re not taking enough enjoyment from the rest of the world. Isn’t that what motivated them to do this prank in the first place? To get some reactions out of the guild Tempus?
Well, why now, all of a sudden, have they stopped caring about what the boys think? Usually, those two would be stealing glances at everyone else after doing something that can be described as intimate or romantic just to check if they drew some attention to themselves, but now, all they can stare at is each other. That’s nothing new to Hakka and Bettel, of course, but this is just too blatant. It’s starting to get embarrassing.
Neither Flayon or Magni dare to speak it out loud, not as the rest of their guild members are innocently laughing together and poking fun at the new “pretend couple” who they don’t realize are probably actually together now since only god knows how long, but Flayon and Magni refrain from speaking up and ruining the moment.
Those two idiots can live in their peaceful little bubble for at least one more day, incorrectly thinking that they’ve gotten the entire guild fooled. It’s too bad that they’re both not the great actors they thought they were. Either that, or their painfully obvious affection for another was simply too great and spilled out despite their best attempts at pretending.
How can they even think to ruin this moment when Hakka and Bettel finally look so content with themselves, existing as they want to and loving each other as proudly as they always have, especially now without the direct guise of a prank?
As much as they don’t tend to show it (especially in Magni’s case, look, being affectionate and vulnerable isn’t part of his brand, cut him some slack here), all they both really want is just to see their best friends be happy and get what they want. It’s just too bad that it took a week’s worth of pure emotional damage for them to blow up from the stress and somehow get together, and though the prank was meant to be played on the guild, Magni would like to argue that Bettel and Hakka themselves were more the victims in this than anyone else.
Magni and Flayon heave a sigh, biting their tongues and saving the conversation for another day. They have a long list of questions that they’re going to direct to the new couple when they can get them alone, that’s for sure.
Whatever, Magni and Flayon sigh, matching fond smiles on their faces. As long as their best friends are happy, then so are they, even if they did have to use such a stupid prank to get them this far.
Beneath the shade of a sycamore tree, the breeze blows softly.
It’s a sound that Bettel had once associated with Banzoin Hakka, as the wind always seemed to follow him, ready to sweep beneath his wings and glide him up into the clouds when he needed an escape, or to pick up in speed and violently shake the trees whenever he wanted to stay quiet.
The wind, and nature in general, had always been by Hakka’s side. They’re inseparable, two things that can only exist together as a pair.
And Bettel can’t explain it, not entirely, but somehow, a year after their first day beneath this tree, the wind has come to be associated with him as well.
Him, a jester who has grown up in the paved streets of Elysium where nature is muffled by industry, and even despite it all, the winds have found a reason to stick around Bettel.
At first, he had assumed that it was all a product of his imagination, that constantly being at Hakka’s side for the past year, of course, meant that he would also be at the mercy of the breeze that follows the exorcist all the same. And perhaps that was the truth at first, but now, Bettel cannot be so sure.
Hakka has a complicated relationship with nature. This is a fact that the guild are all well aware of, the boys who are closest to him, who know Hakka’s story and the darkness that stirs within him alike.
This is true for Bettel especially, who has witnessed it before his very eyes upon occasion, because being as devoted to Hakka as Bettel is, it means seeing him at his worst and at his best, when he’s afflicted with a corruption so angry that he can’t even remember his name or singing on a stage so passionately that the world can’t help but slow just to admire him, and Bettel has never been happier in this life, where he gets to exist alongside a bouncy songbird who laughs just as loudly as he cries.
There’s a shift at Bettel’s side, a warmth engulfing his body that feels like sunlight despite him being bathed in the cold shade of a tree, and the jester doesn’t even need to open his eyes to know who has snuggled even closer to his side, nuzzling his head into Bettel’s neck and hugging their bodies together.
A second later, Hakka begins to snore again, and almost as if matching the slow rise and fall of his chest, the wind whistles like a soft tune, nature’s lullaby that Hakka has listened to for the past 23 years of his life.
So far, Bettel has shared a year and some change at his side, and he’s starting to think that maybe, just maybe , the breeze has turned its eye to him upon occasion.
Just as nature is with Hakka–acting almost with no rhyme or reason, kind only when it wants to be or cruel when the time comes for it–the breeze has been acting the same with Bettel.
To be honest, it wasn’t difficult to adjust to. Being with the wind felt like being with Hakka, the ups and the downs alike, so that wasn’t anything new to Bettel. If anything, he welcomed it.
It’s whatever to him, Bettel can deal with some rushes of air every now and then. If that’s the price he has to pay in order to be with Hakka, then Bettel doesn’t mind.
“ That’s what a partnership is–your lives blending together, both the good and the bad. ” That’s how Shinri described it once, when he noticed how withdrawn and terrified Bettel seemed one day, buried deep with doubts that he knew were all false, but he can’t help but worry about them anyway, “ Sometimes there’s more good than bad, or more bad than good, but if the person is worth it, then you’ve got your answer. ”
Flayon scoffed across the table then, his tail whipping in amusement from behind him, “ Besides, it’s not that much different than how we are as Vanguard, right? Don’t let love stress you out, Bettel, it’s an advantage. You and Hakka both have enough of that to go around. ”
Bettel turns his chin up to the blue sky that peeks through the branches and leaves above him, arcing over him and his boyfriend like a cozy shelter.
That week when they had their prank, and unknowingly were sorting out their feelings for each other, they had spent a moment or two beneath this same tree. Back then, they used the thick trunk to hide themselves and the affection they held but thought they couldn’t show, but now?
The jester doesn’t even have to think about it much as his hand sneaks into Hakka’s, and even in his sleep, it has become second nature to the exorcist to intertwine his fingers with Bettel’s. The same with hitting his funny bone and causing his leg to kick up, have Bettel’s palm press against Hakka’s and his fingers will immediately lock in to keep them together.
…He could really fall asleep like this, and falling asleep easily is a rare commodity to the jester.
Bettel can’t think of the last time when he had been this content in life, where he had felt so warm and safe and secure that he didn’t have a single thought in his head to stress out over.
Right here, right now, at Hakka’s side, listening to the soothing sound of a whistling breeze and the soft breaths that they draw in and out together, their chests rising and falling to a gentle rhythm, Bettel smiles.
He knows it now, a fact that has been slowly sinking into him for the past year that he’s spent with Hakka, and more before that as well, ever since they first met, Bettel knew that there was something about that songbird that always had them dancing around each other like leaves caught in the wind.
He just knows it now, that this is something he wants to keep forever, a love that he would risk it all for, and the jester squeezes Hakka’s hand tightly, as if trying to express those exact words through the most simple and quick touch, but even as Hakka is deep in slumber, he hums anyway.
Bettel scoffs, because he knows that Hakka couldn’t possibly have read his mind or anything, but he likes to think that some things happen for a reason. And that stupid prank that they did for a week? Maybe that was one of those very things.
His soft thumb rubs calming circles into the rough skin of a cursed hand, and here, beneath the tranquil shade of a tree that has seen the blossoming of their hidden affections come to life first hand, a memory surfaces in Bettel’s mind—a time when life was a bit more complicated for reasons that seem ridiculous when looking back at it, with Hakka’s arms wet as he scrubs at dishes and Bettel at his side, wiping it all down with a rag, as they poked fun at each other’s secrets.
…Is this the feeling of peace that Hakka mentioned? This pure contentment and serenity, all the while spending the days with someone that Bettel would never complain about talking and singing and laughing together with?
This is what Hakka wanted, it’s what he mentioned that night when they got stuck with chore duty. Banzoin Hakka, an object of chaos and corruption and disaster, wants nothing else but to one day retire to a lifetime of peace.
“Banzoin Hakka would like some peace in his life for once.”
And suddenly, Bettel feels a squeeze back at his hand, one that he was sure that he imagined, but then the jester glances down at his lover laid on his chest, and the little smile on Hakka’s face is unmistakable. Bettel could almost feel the words through his fingers.
Hakka’s happiness is infectious, and before Bettel knows it, he’s smiling back as well, and he sends back another squeeze through their linked hands, speaking his reply through their touch.
“A life of peace with you, huh? Yeah, I could get used to that.”