"Because through watching you both..." A pause—brief, but meaningful. "Through watching you be this solid, unwavering couple, with no regard for who holds the better cards, who has more power, who might dominate whom..." He shakes his head, his silvery hair catching the firelight, strands shifting like woven starlight. "It has taught me that between two people who truly, absolutely adore and love each other—power imbalances are meaningless." His voice is calm but firm, steady but vulnerable. "Only love is what matters." A soft chuckle slips past his lips, his fangs barely visible in the glow of the fire. "Of course", he continues, leaning into the man behind him a tad bit more, "it was through Tav's constant reassurance as well—his relentless, frustrating, wonderful reassurances—that he didn't care that I was 'just' a vampire spawn, that I wasn't even a full vampire. That I lacked the explosive power he wields in battle. That my strength was different, but no less important." He exhales, his gaze dipping for a brief moment before returning to Aodhán, the edges of a knowing smile curling at his lips. "But what really made that wall come crashing down..." His fingers tighten just slightly around Aodhán's wrist, a subtle but silent show of trust. "Was when we were on one of our hunts." The memory unfurls, clear as day in his mind, etched into his thoughts with a clarity that refuses to fade. "When the two of you, still in animal form, thought I wasn't looking." Astarion tilts his head slightly, a playful glint flickering in his gaze, but beneath it lies something deeper—something warm, something profoundly understanding. "When Halsin closed his jaws around your nape and for the barest flicker of a moment, I thought he was going to bite your head off." He breathes in, slow, deliberate. "But you..." A soft exhale. A smirk—small but knowing. "You purred."
His smile deepens, the warmth in it unmistakable now. "You leaned into him, pushed yourself into the touch. Trusted him, completely, without hesitation, knowing—without a single doubt—that he would never, ever wield the power imbalance between you against you." His voice drops, gentler now, reverent. "And paired with the fact that I know someone you once loved did use their power to cage you..." His fingers tighten once more, just briefly, before releasing, his hand falling back into Tav's hold. "It made me realize that such deep trust must be a deliberate choice." For the first time, he lifts his gaze fully, looking over his shoulder and meeting Tav's mismatched eyes. And his smile glows—soft, tender, something unguarded, something meant for only one person. "And I chose to trust him."
3) I wrote about this in this chapter of #SymphonyOfShadowAndLight
archiveofourown.org/works/596132...
