[It's a tale full of success and valor, certainly... But the part that stands out most starkly to Souji is the end. The pirates drank and celebrated, and when dawn came - just like that, a broken spell. The end of something, in a very finite way, even if they were all still alive.
(He's thought more here than he ever has before, about just how ill-suited he'd be to times of peace. How anything other than the life he leads would be lacking, nearly-painful.)
And beyond that even still, there's a sense of mourning for a great leader he'd never really known. All leaders carry burdens. The good ones have heavier burdens than they really ought to carry. It's part of what makes them good, after all. Souji's quiet for few seconds longer, absorbing the details - Gi-gan's valiance, the pirates and their bold truths, and Jae-ha's new home among them. The brave girl and her traveling band of misfits, and the good they'd done.
He reaches out, touching the back of Jae-ha's hand.]
I like that one a lot. [He has no smile to offer this time, but there's a certain softness in his voice that seems less fragile.] ...I'm glad that everyone was able to keep that city safe. Do you all still watch over it?
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(He's thought more here than he ever has before, about just how ill-suited he'd be to times of peace. How anything other than the life he leads would be lacking, nearly-painful.)
And beyond that even still, there's a sense of mourning for a great leader he'd never really known. All leaders carry burdens. The good ones have heavier burdens than they really ought to carry. It's part of what makes them good, after all. Souji's quiet for few seconds longer, absorbing the details - Gi-gan's valiance, the pirates and their bold truths, and Jae-ha's new home among them. The brave girl and her traveling band of misfits, and the good they'd done.
He reaches out, touching the back of Jae-ha's hand.]
I like that one a lot. [He has no smile to offer this time, but there's a certain softness in his voice that seems less fragile.] ...I'm glad that everyone was able to keep that city safe. Do you all still watch over it?