Title: Strangers
Fandom: Star Ocean: Second Evolution
Characters: Rena/Noel
Challenge: Secrets
Rating: SFW
Word Count: 1300
Summary: Noel tries to apologize for his silence after the assault on Phynal.
Content Notes: References to blood and injury. Spoilers for the second half of the game.

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Noel's head was throbbing by the time he had a decent chance to rest. He stumbled to his locker and rummaged for some dried black berries, the borrowed uniform rough against his skin. He didn't bother to chew them; the motion would've hurt his head even more. He just swallowed them whole with a swig of lukewarm water, and stood there resting with his head against the cool metal until the worst of the pain stopped.

How many days had it been since their trip to Phynal? He had lost track; he might not have been injured as badly as some of the others, but he was the second-most powerful Symbological healer at the facility, and he'd been working around the clock to get the ones who were gravely wounded back on their feet. It still felt strange, trying to heal people when he was so used to animal anatomy, but was fast learning that the only real difference was how differently people and animals tried to hide their pain.

He hadn't spent as much time with Rena and the others as he would've liked, either. Rena had been his first patient, but as soon as she could stand she had insisted that she was fine and that she needed to help the others immediately. No one had stopped her; they were in a bad state too, and not just physically. How could anyone be okay after what they'd just witnessed?

It had hit Claude the hardest, of course. Noel might not have been very close to him, and they might not see eye to eye about a lot of things, but seeing him fall to his knees after watching his father and friends die... Noel had understood why he'd charged ahead, even after seeing how powerful the Wise Men were. The Wise Men had crossed a line. He just wished they could've won. He was all right so far, and the others stayed near him, the nurses had said. They took turns. Even Chisato had gone in to sit with him... but Noel had barely seen him since they'd arrived back at L'Aqua. He should go and see him, he thought. He just... didn't know what to say. But he still should.

He would, later. He just... wanted to see someone else at that moment. If she wanted to see him, at least.

He found Rena quickly, sitting on the break room floor with her back against the wall. She wore borrowed fatigues, like Noel's, except that hers were so big that they nearly swallowed her. She lifted her head from her folded arms as she heard him walk into the room, and even managed to smile a little. He hadn't been sure if she would want to smile. "Hey," she said softly.

"Hello, Rena." He tried to smile back as he made his way through the dark room; she hadn't turned on the light yet, and hopefully she wouldn't mind if he didn't. His head was still unhappy with him, expending so much mental energy with so little rest. He picked his way across, finding a chair that he could sit in. "Are you okay?"

"I think so." She sounded every bit as tired as he felt. "Thanks for the help, earlier."

Noel couldn't help but think of the fight. She'd stood up to Zaphkiel, only to have him toss her across the room like nothing. And then... well, Noel didn't remember too clearly what had happened next - he had run to her, shouting her name, already going through the motions of the strongest healing spell he knew. He'd taken a hit of his own for that, but what else could he have done? "Of course. You're welcome."

She nodded, still curled up on the floor, her arms resting on her knees. He could hear her breathing, slow and steady and calm, as if she were waiting for something. Maybe she was waiting.

"I'm so sorry, Rena," he finally managed, saying it quickly so that he couldn't get nervous and take it back. He'd wanted to say it since before they'd ever set foot in Phynal; every time she'd talked about Expel, every time he'd heard her encourage the others to stay strong, that every step took them closer to their home. But he couldn't wait any longer, not with the Wise Men after them. He didn't know if he'd get another chance. "I should have told you the truth. I'm so sorry."

For a few minutes she didn't even look up at him. He saw her eyes slip closed, and wondered if he should leave, if she was too polite or too choked up to ask him. But just before he was about to stand up, he heard her speak up. "Why didn't you tell me, Noel?"

He had wondered if she would be angry. It might've been easier... but no, she just sounded sad. Disappointed, even. "Mayor Nall contacted me when he sent you to North City. He said that you might need to see me if the imprinting didn't work, and that I shouldn't tell any of you what had happened to Expel. I thought it was wrong keeping you in the dark, but when I said that... he said not to worry. He promised he'd tell you when the time was right."

"You trust him a lot, don't you?"

"Everyone on Nede does. He's our leader...." He trailed off, shaking his head. That was a cop-out. Rena deserved better. "Yes, I trust him. He was like a father to me. Not that I really know what a father's like, since I never knew mine, but... he helped raise me, helped me find a purpose here. I think he's a good man."

She nodded, still not looking up. "We have... I mean... I knew someone like that back at home. He helped my mother when my father died. He was the one who told me I was an adult, when I had my last birthday... he said that I'd learned everything he'd tried to teach me, and that he trusted me to make my own decisions." She finally tilted her head back, her eyes still closed. Had she been crying? She didn't have any tears in her eyes now, but Noel thought he could see where they'd been before. "If you had been a stranger in Arlia, and he'd told me not to tell you about something... I think I would've listened, too."

"I still don't think it's right. I should've...." He stopped. What difference did that make now? "I'm sorry," he said instead, even though it still felt empty.

"I... I understand. I think." She looked up at him. "It's... kind of weird, isn't it? I was thinking about it on the way to Phynal. I'd been travelling with everyone for a month or so before we came here, and I've only been here a few weeks. But we've been through so much together that it almost feels like we're all old friends. And then, when something like this happens, and I realize we're not... we're still strangers in a lot of ways."

He nodded, looking back at her big blue eyes. "I think I understand, Rena. But...is it weird that I hope we don't have to stay that way?"

She slid away from him; it took him a moment to realize that she was making room for him. "No," she said. "I don't think it's weird at all."

Noel slipped out of the chair and onto the floor, sitting with his back to the wall, shoulder-to-shoulder with Rena. He felt her against him, small but strong and reassuringly solid, and couldn't help but smile.

He was glad she understood why he hadn't told her the truth about Expel. He wished he could say that was the only secret he'd been asked to keep. But the truth about Energy Nede was still in his head, and he didn't know if he'd be able to keep it to himself if she ever asked him.