what would a friend do?

He was late and that was somehow was not strangest thing you take away from this.

Usually, he was quite punctual, well both of you have to be with your kind of jobs, but him even more so than you were at times.

But maybe it was somehow due to the broken pocket watch you now held in your hand. The trinket was nicked and weathered with age and use. The hands of the mechanism still tick and move correctly despite displaying the wrong time.

You had seen it on him occasionally. He left it on your table the other night after forgetting he had something to do in North Wall. He rushed out with a thumbs up and plans to see you today.

You feel the etchings of his name on the back with your thumb. The engraved lettering worn with time yet still lovingly carved into the metal. You wonder if he had carved it himself or had someone else did. You pick at some dirt stuck to the beginnings of his last name as you wait.

A couple more minutes pass. You tap your feet with slight impatience for a while. You scan around, the area around the Pillar sparse in the middle of the day.

You don't expect him to get lost at this point, but maybe he thought the other side of the Pillar was the meeting spot. Maybe he stopped to chat with that newspaper kid, Arn, again.

Maybe something had happened.

You wait a moment before sighing and moving to walk to the other side of the Pillar.

The second you walk past, there is a ripple, the slight twinge you get when the now more familiar Esoteric Strings are being pulled near you.

It makes your ears twitch, and, looking down at the pocket watch, it made the esoteric trinket in your palm glow. You are mesmerized by it for the briefest of seconds, but something, no, someone catches your eye.

The shine of a metal helm in the daylight, heading towards the park above Goblin Garden.

You try to catch up to him.

"Cleric!" You call, but he doesn't even turn.

Did you confuse someone in your excitement to see your friend?

The man you are trying to reach is wearing a mantle you have never seen your companion wear before. It swishes with his step, the warm green of the inner lining catches your eye against the autumn colors of the mantle and the stones of the houses.

It feels familiar to you somehow, like you had seen every stitch in your mind's eye, or maybe in a dream.

Despite such differences however, you could recognized that helm of his anywhere.

That is your best friend.

You try your luck and call again. The pocket watch seems to glow even brighter, but you are more focused on the person in front of you.

"Ragn! Hey! Ragn Hemlin, I know that its you!"

He halts in his stride.

He eventually slowly turns. The familiar "face" of his helm looks back at you.

His posture is first of surprise. That little jolt, a startled movement of his head when he fully sees you.

He tilts his helm at you like he is taking in your presence, like he hadn't just saw you the other day laughing into your couch pillow at his cheesy jokes.

Your friend looks at you and steps closer.

Seeing him more clearly, he wears more armor than you had ever seen him in before. An armor of half plate under his mantle, the garment's chain clinking against his chest-plate.

The gold ring in the middle reminds you of your earring.

Is this what he wanted to show you then? You flushed a bit out of embarrassment despite being so pleased at this gesture and that he might've cleaned up a bit to see you.

He is less than an arm's length away when he moves his left hand towards the side of your face.

His hand hovers a few inches, as if asking for your permission.

Confused but used to his quirks, you let him. You take his arm to guide it closer to you. The clock's light starting to bathe the both of you in blue.

He gingerly holds the side of your face, you feel the warmth of his hand even through his glove. He was shaky with a softness that you had only seen with...

You look up at him.

"Ragn?"

He stops caressing your face. You didn't notice how much you had leaned into his touch.

You see him take a deep breath.

"Snell..."his voice warbles, "You... can't see my face, can you?"

Now, you are starting to worry.

You didn't expect that. He doesn't feel comfortable yet showing his face. He is willing to eat near you lately if you turn your head away, but something is odd about this.

"You are wearing your helm... Aren't you?"

His shoulders droop a little, but he nods.

"Yeah, I-I am, wearing my helm. T-that... that might be for the best for now..."

Before you could even parse what he meant by that, he starts to move closer. He brushes a stray lock of hair away from your eyes, the act already making your face heat up more.

A little distracted by his actions, you let Ragn press his helm against your forehead.

You quickly look down preparing to feel slightly warmed metal.

But its not metal you feel.

Soft.

Soft and warm.

His beard tickles your forehead and his lips while a little chapped were gentle, a tenderness in his actions you have seen more and more of as the days went by.

Ragn has never been so close like this before.

His warm breath against your skin makes you catch yours. You are scared that the moment you look up will break the magic. That this feeling that you had in your chest that finally bloomed into something tangible the moment he kissed you.

The first kiss he had given you.

You, are in love with your best friend.

As he pulls away, he stumbles a bit back as if he realized what he had done. Your first impulse is to pull him back for more, but he stays your hand.

"No, Snell. I... I have-I already taken more than I thought I ever would."

That makes you pause. "Taken? Ragn, what do mean?"

Instead of responding, he looks west. He briefly stares into the distance before looking back at you.

"He's almost here."

Who is almost here? You were only waiting for him?

Before you could even ask, Ragn takes your hands in his. The pocket watch held between you began glowing even brighter.

"Could you be patient for him? He might have some trouble about being so… forward with what he wants."

"Ragn, what are you-"

"You don't have to promise that- just… Just promise me you will live a full life, Mo Anam Cara."

Mo what? You don't know what that means. He just tilts his head at you.

The light was growing to be almost blinding, you start to only see the outline of his face.

The outline of his face outside of his helm. He was looking at you fondly.

He mouths something to you, but the light flashes and whatever esoteric event that occurred finishes.

You look around franticly.

He is gone.

"Ragn?" You call, "Ragn! Where did you go? RAGN!"

You make a move to start searching around, but someone suddenly turns the corner.

Ragn turns the corner, almost crashing into you.

He steadies you, "Snell! I heard you starting to yell. Did something happen?"

You look at him.

He is just wearing his chain-mail under an orange tunic. His helm the same as usual with Meek hanging around his shoulders. The mimic waves at you with its tongue.

Oh, esoteric bullshit.

You sigh, disappointed, "Yeah, there was a esoteric event."

"Just now?" He asks, "And I missed it?"

"Yeah, it made your pocket watch glow and everything."

"My watch?" he starts, "Oh! I left it at your place? I have been trying to look for it everywhere."

You nod at him, "Well, I brought it with me to give it back, so…"

Your ear twitches as you give it back to him. He stares at it for a long moment. The clock ticks as the seconds go by. You hear him make a small gasp.

"You… got it fixed. For me?"

You did?

Looking at it, comparing the watch to the position of the sun. It was in time with the day. He probably had it broken for a while.

You have a feeling that it won't go out of sync anymore.

Ragn suddenly scoops you up into a hug.

He catches you by surprise. You falter for a moment before tentatively hugging back. You take in the person you realize you love in your arms.

It was warm.