Arkay was clearly rather stressed out currently, despite the fact that he had been planning all of this for a long time. Set up on the little floating platform to one side were various tiny drinks and treats, and the platform itself was on the beach of Savepoint’s strange lake, ready for its two passengers.
“Are you well, Arkay?” Retvik asked as he and Litvir approached.
“You seem very nervous!” Litvir exclaimed.
Arkay nodded weakly. “Yeah. I’m alright, but I am also nervous. Do you both mind joining me on this platform?”
“Of course. What is it made of?”
“Pykrete. An idea I borrowed off Akah. Ice and mulched wood are easy for me to make. Sure, I can mimic Life Goddess stuff, but summoning complicated items out of thin air has always stressed me a little. Anyway, please, join me, won’t you?”
Litvir smiled. Retvik shrugged. Arkay held out his hand and helped them both on board, despite neither of them needing it. Once they had sat down, Arkay telekinetically moved the ship across the water, until they were in the middle of the lake.
“So…”
“So?”
Arkay was still obviously stressed. He shuddered a little, then frowned, then sighed.
“So… Uh… I’ve been… putting this off for a while…”
“Is this a promise?” Litvir immediately asked.
“Yeah. It’s going to be a promise…” Arkay started explaining. “I know I made a promise to you. I wrote it on Wyvern and we mentioned it over voice chat a few times. Somehow, miraculously, I managed to keep that promise to you, despite being to close to breaking it. But since I got back here, I’ve been very cautious with my words. Because I want to make a new promise to you both.
“I could just be blunt and promise you both some forevers or some impossibilities, but promises, from my point of view, are both dangerous and painful. And after so long being bound to existence and pain via a broken promise, I… I need to be very careful. I can’t put myself through the pain again…”
Arkay trailed off, then sniffed a few times.
“I still want to make a promise to you both though. A proper promise. One that won’t break me, but also lasts a long time. I was just going to say the promise out loud, but I realised I can write my promise down and practice it before actually making it. And I want to say the promise, because, uh, I don’t know, but it feels right. It feels better and more real if I say these words out loud.”
Retvik and Litvir glanced at each other briefly.
“Arkay, dear, you seem like you do not want to make this promise,” Retvik grunted. “You do not need to make a promise to us.”
“No, that’s the thing, I WANT to make a promise. I WANT to say something that will protect you and prove my unending desire to be with you both. I’m just… struggling with the details. And being oddly nervous.”
Litvir patted Arkay on the shoulder. “You are stressed. Take a few deep breaths, and take your time.”
“You’re absolutely right…” Arkay did as he was told, and he did settle down somewhat.
“Eighty percent of the time, I am right one hundred percent of the time!” Litvir smiled. Both Arkay and Retvik snickered at the silly joke.
“Alright…” Arkay took a couple more deep breaths, then fell silent for a moment.
“You are not alright.”
“Actually?” Arkay smiled. “You know what, I am actually thinking, maybe I am alright for once. Retvik, Litvir, I want to make a promise to you both.”
“Go ahead, dear.”
“So… Retvik, Litvir, my angel and my demon, today, I want to make a promise to you both. I am bound by my promise, and I will do everything I can to keep it. I promise that, for as long as I live, I will protect you both from harm. I will remain by your sides, helping you, guiding you and protecting you. I promise I will love you both forever. We are three-in-spirit. Together forever. I swear.”
Retvik smiled, then glanced at Litvir. Litvir nodded, and Retvik put his hand on Arkay’s shoulder.
“Arkay, we accept your promise. And in return, Litvir and I, we will protect you too, however we can. You will not be alone, not any more.”
“We promise to be by your side Arkay, to help, guide and protect you, the same way you have promised to us!” Litvir added. “We will share our burdens and overcome pain and sorrow together.”
“We love you, Arkay. We all swear that we love each other. We promise that we will share our pain, but we also share our love and joy.”
Arkay looked up at Retvik and Litvir, tears forming in his eyes. “You… you have been considering this for a while… As long as I have…”
“We have, yes!” Litvir smiled. “The three of us, we are bound together. Three-in-spirit, as you said.”
Retvik nodded in agreement, then pulled both Arkay and Litvir into a massive, overly warm hug. Arkay and Litvir hugged Retvik back, and Arkay couldn’t help but let the tears flow.
“Thank you… Thank you so much…” Arkay muttered between sobs. “You have no idea how much this all means to me…”
“You do not need to thank us, Arkay. The three of us are equals, right, Retvik?”
“Indeed. We are all in this together…” Retvik paused. “And that was technically a partnership proposal.”
“We can have a wedding or whatever some other time!” Arkay managed to stop crying. “Just let me settle down a bit or something… Sorry, I had no idea all of this was going to be so emotionally draining on me.”
“It is fine!” Litvir beamed as he reached for the snacks on the side. He picked one that looked nice, then playfully fed it to Arkay. “Come on now, my dears, let us have something to eat and drink, while we are on this little raft. And, maybe, if you both feel like it, we can snuggle and gaze at the void for a while.”
“I’d like that…” Arkay murmured. “I love you two.”
“We love you too, dear.”
“Forever?”
“Forever.”
“And also forever.”