Differences and Changes
Fandom: Tales of the Abyss.
Characters: Jade, Luke, Asch. Mentioning of Mieu, Natalia, and Peony.
Dedicated to: ALynnL, for sharing in my verse and creating with me.

Notes: Set in the AU-verse I created and share with ALynnL, I make no apologies at all for the sappy fluff. Don't choke on it. -hearts-

Jade quietly stared down at the two sleeping figures curled up on either side of him, taking note of the way the similarly coloured, long strands of red hair layered out across the covers, some even draping across his own body to weave together in some spots.

He took note of the expressions on the sleeping figures faces. One had a more innocent expression, their face calm and gentle, lower lip slightly pushed forward in the subtlest of pouts. The other's expression was calm, relaxed in a way that they were not while awake; the normally drawn and tight expression was softened and even, though not nearly as innocent and carefree looking as the others, the lack of dark lines beneath their eyelids and the creases where worry lines used to be were no longer there told him much.

To be honest, Jade could spend all of his nights sitting up and staring at Luke and Asch's sleeping forms and mentally comparing and dissecting all their similarities and contrasts. It was both that fascinating, and also about the only time calm and stillness settled within the Curtiss Manor that gave Jade the time to think of such things.

Luke spent most of his time buried in his studies, and if not that, spent his time out of the Manor and doing all sorts of errands about town for the people or playing with the children. If he was not studying, he was always on the move in some fashion. Jade had at first found it odd, but had come to understand the why's-the boy wasn't purposely distancing himself, just trying to find a balance to his new found role in life.

Asch, on the other hand, rarely left the Manor if he could help it. Holing himself up into the fontech lab Jade had, the boy would devote most of his days to tinkering with fon machines and the like, taking them apart, figuring them out, or repairing others. The boy was content to be still and settle into a routine. Again, Jade understood the why's behind that, that Asch needed a form of constant stability and a routine gave him that sense of security.

While on the outside they seemed quite like night and day with the stark contrasts, when one bothered to look deeper between the parallels, Jade found they were not all that different, in all honesty.

Luke was a kind hearted person. Though he struggled to find the right way to deal with things, he did his best to handle problems and help others. He could be loud-mouthed and say things before he thought about them at times, he would still go out of his way to help anyone, would take the time to play with the children if they asked-he even would assist with things in the Palace if His Majesty Peony asked. But it was when Luke had time to think deeply, to analyze things to himself, he was incredibly insecure and could easily be overcome by worry. Luke was a child in many senses, but he was also more. Much more.

Luke held the very balance of the world on his shoulders, he was beyond just a normal human. He was no longer a replica, even. Luke was, for all intents and purposes, the new Lorelei. Jade understood well that Luke was changing and shifting on the inside and trying to keep a balance between who he was as a person and the side of him that was pretty much its own entity-the deity side of him. The redhead needed constant reassurance, and while the thought of it may have exhausted Jade some time ago, the man had long since become used to and familiar with having long discussions with the boy well into the late hours of the night while the other tried to come to a balance with his thoughts and fears.

Likewise, Asch was a soft-hearted individual underneath his aggressive and brash front. Although the boy did his best to hide that aspect and keep his shields up, there were times he would let them come down, just long enough to do something kind for someone or something, before reverting back into himself. If someone made a big deal of it, he yelled at whoever it was and clammed up tighter than His Majesty's treasure vault. He would always let that side of himself show to Natalia, but it was a surprising thing when he let anyone else view it. He wasn't without compassion or care, but he was much, much more distrusting and guarded than Luke. Jade didn't blame him, he understood what made him that way.

Also, Asch was a very insecure person on the inside, too. Although he was guarded and distrusting, he was filled with doubt and insecurity in himself. Part of him cried out for friends, for companions to reach towards. He was scared of large changes and upheavals. Jade also didn't blame him for that, the way his life became after Van had taken him away from the Fabre's must have been very hard. The boy clung to any shred of routine he could-he needed an anchor of stability to hold on to. His insecurities stemmed from the fact he feared he'd lose whatever stability he'd gained and that no one would want him around.

Jade also had many nights he'd stay up discussing things with Asch, when the redhead deigned to accept his company. The boy was burdened by many nightmares, more than even Luke, and Jade silently pitied and empathized for him.

And then there were nights, much like this one, when both of them were awoken by their own individual nightmares. It was no longer a surprise to him, merely another routine he'd become used to in the course of life and living with the two.

He'd hear the door to his room crack open, before he'd hear the shuffling of feet as they entered and then see the flash of sorrowful green eyes and brilliant red hair before the door shut and a body was soon pressed up next to him, shivering and shaking with contained distress.

Jade would react from instinctive memory to pull the covers back before the boy joined him, then fold it back over and let the boy roll into a cocoon and onto his arm before he'd fuss with the redhead's long hair.

Not much later, he'd hear the slightest pause behind the door of his room, before being pushed open and dim light filter in again, before another body shuffled into the room, another flash of haunted green eyes and dull red hair before the door closed behind them and Jade would once again pull the covers to the side on his free side wordlessly, and let the other slip in silently before feeling their back press against his side and he'd lay the covers over them, and feel more than see the way they'd draw them completely around themselves and tuck in like a shield before reaching for his arm, drawing it down and cling desperately like a frightened child.

Neither of them would speak, but sometimes noise escaped-quiet whimpers, sniffling, quiet exhales that sounded like broken 'why's'. Jade would give what he could for them by letting them draw what comfort they could by being close to him. He understood the want to seek assurance and be close to someone when distressed, it was an instinctive thing in most humans.

At one time, he would've scoffed and sent them back to their own rooms. But things change. Circumstances change. People change.

He'd grown tolerant-no, fond-he'd grown to be fond of these two, despite their differences and similarities. While he felt there wasn't much he could offer the both of them aside from the roof over their heads, both accepted and if anything, surprised him with their own little additions to the house.

The Manor had never been real home like to him, he was rarely ever there anyway in his younger days, it was always a sort of sterile place. After Luke, Mieu, and Asch moved in, that changed. Luke's little infusions of things he'd make or find-trinkets and the like, little colourful but cheerful things that seemed to brighten the room gave it a new feel. Asch's own adjustments-the far side den being suddenly redecorated with new furniture and rug, new drapes that nearly matched the shade of said boy's hair, to the small corner nook with new books and his fontech repair kit.

Suddenly it had gone from something cold and sterile to something warm and personal. It no longer felt alien in a sense whenever Jade stepped into the foyer from the front door. It was a foreign sensation, but the house itself felt alive now, infused with energy and, as odd as it even sounded to Jade in his own mind-a soul.

Mieu did his best to keep the place tidy-a feat in and of itself for the small cheagle with all of Luke's own energy undermining his efforts and when Asch decided today was the day he was going to kill Luke-but somehow the cheagle always managed to have the place mostly picked up and livable in by the time he got back from his work.

But honestly, while the differences between Luke and Asch could be physically defined, Jade had come to find there was a much, much easier way to pinpoint just how different they were.

It was a simple, if not surprising thing.

A small, amused grin made its way onto the colonel's face as he continued to gaze down at the two still asleep, moving slowly enough to not disturb them and let his fingers twine into the long, red locks of hair of either and let the strands cascade through like a stream of silk.

The easiest way to tell all their differences?

It was in their kisses.

Luke was like raw, blinding light and flame, it was consuming and warm, nothing could be hidden and if you didn't know how to handle everything at once from him, it would scare anyone off.

Luke's kisses were innocent; filled with everything that Luke thought and felt-he hid nothing, expressed everything. There were times the boy would get so drawn into his own thoughts he couldn't express himself with words-that had been the first time Jade had ever experienced one of Luke's kisses. Face flushed in unrestrained emotion and frustration at his inability to communicate his thoughts with words, the redhead had grabbed him, leaning up and fusing their lips together in a startling kiss.

Thoughts, feelings, all the words the redhead was trying to convey flowed out with the contact of their lips, he felt and understood everything in that one action before the redhead pulled back, face flushed to a new shade of red, before fleeing out of the room in embarrassment. While it took him several long moments to recover from the shock and surprise, Jade felt he could understand Luke to a better degree now with that sudden defined connection.

Luke's kisses had a weight that could crush with the earnest feelings he put into them, all the affection and care he held. It was certainly an intimidating thing even to Jade at times, to feel the depth of how far Luke's care ran, but it was something he accepted, however unnerving it could be. Because that's how Luke was.

Asch's kisses, however...

There's a very thin, fine line between hate and love, and it's easy to mistake one for the other when the feelings are very strong to the point of being nearly consumed by said sensations. Asch was someone who held onto anger, and let it rule him. It was easy to believe it all stemmed from hate, but Jade knew better. It was obvious. If it all were hate, Asch wouldn't show such care and concern for Natalia.

Asch had been having one of his tirades as usual, how it started or why, was long beyond any of them, and Jade was getting a headache trying to placate the boy. Sending Luke off and away from this in an attempt to diffuse some of the tension, Jade attempted to talk the other down from his rage.

Only the redhead didn't want to listen and proceeded to direct his anger towards him. Jade knew, from his own experiences, that the other was merely putting up their own defensive walls, and if he was going to get through to the other at all, would have to figure out how to get past that blockade and soon.

It had been a calculated risk, the chances that he could be wrong in his assumption were there, but it was one of the few options he had left.

Closing the distance between the two of them and dodging swings from the Sword of Lorelei, he disarmed the boy and grasped both of his wrists to keep him from escaping.

The look of sheer shock, terror, and the smallest sense of pleading only confirmed Jade's notion. Asch didn't know how to break out of his own walls. Part of him screamed for someone to free him from the cycle, but he was too scared to let anyone come that close.

When he'd leaned in and brushed his lips against Asch's in a kiss, the other froze stock still, eyes widening, all sense of anger leaving his body and left instead, the confused, and scared child that remained underneath the anger. It took three more simple, light kisses before they responded.

Asch's kisses were filled with the same insecurity, a sense of being lost, now that the anger was diffused, the fire left was that of a gentle flame, exposing the core of emotion that the redhead had. It was easy to mask love for hate and vice-versa, but at the rawest depth of it, you could tell what it truly was. After Jade had finally pulled back and let the other go, he mildly worried the redhead would never let him come near again when they'd all but bolted like a doe.

It did take some time, but it was surprisingly Asch who came to him. Words were said, but Jade couldn't even really bother to remember what they were about, simply because, when the redhead closed the distance between them again and kissed him this time, whatever rationality of sense from the subject was gone-all there was, was the drawing warmth from Asch's kiss, a quiet, tempered sort of fire. While still filled with some insecurity, the longing for acceptance was there, as was the same sense of innocence and purity he felt from Luke's. It hid nothing, but was still reserved. Reserved, until something ignited that flame into a full-blown, unrestrained inferno. The intensity of that fire was also something Jade had been mildly intimidated by. He was not afraid of being burned, oh no, that wasn't what scared him. It was what those flames represented and how hot they could burn depending on how he reacted-that's what scared him.

Because it meant he'd become more than he ever had tried or hope to be towards Asch. It had been a hard enough revelation with Luke, feeling his emotions and sense of affection he held, feeling just how fondly he thought of him, but this...

He supposed in a way, it was his own doing. He'd taken those steps, he'd brought all of this on himself. It terrified him, truthfully. To know he meant something, something important to these two beings. That he was considered something invaluable, irreplaceable.

And yet...

Here he was.

Here he was, setting up mildly against the headboard of his bed, staring down at said two sleeping soundly, looking as if they had no cares in the world.

It had become quite easy to tell all the differences and similarities between the two since then, and the changes they were going through.

But when it came down to it...

Jade himself was the one who'd changed the most.

Perhaps not on the outside, with the way he still carried on and egged at people and said his usual quips, voicing things with his typical deadpan snark, but if one studied him hard enough when he was not doing any of that and saw how things changed the minute he stepped into the doorway of the Curtiss Manor, greeting Mieu and letting an unguarded smile come to his face as he'd follow the sounds of music down the hall or the smell of food cooking to the kitchen, that in itself is one of the biggest changes.

But it's the way he laughs when Luke launches himself from the piano in mid-key, tripping and stumbling over himself before winding his arms around him, beaming like he were the sun itself, or the way he leans over Asch's form and reaches to steal a bite of whatever it is the boy's cooking and the resulting threat of 'don't you dare' that makes everything worthwhile.

Change isn't always forced, it can some quite unintentionally and sometimes goes unnoticed until one stops to really think things over.

Jade didn't feel like things had really changed, not at all. It had been as natural as breathing. While it seemed like Luke and Asch had done the most drastic of changes, the reality was that it was Jade himself that had really changed.

"...Are you ever going to stop staring at us?" A sleepy voice pierced through his thoughts. Looking down, to his right, he saw a single, half-lidded green eye staring up at him.

"You're always telling us to rest, you need to take your own advice, too, you hypocrite." The voice came from the other side of him.

Looking to his left, Jade peered down at fluttering eyelids and the sleep-glossed emerald eyes that peeked out from beneath them.

"Yes, well, you'll find with old age even if you're tired your body will refuse to let you sleep and what better way to keep resting without sleep than to stare at you both?" Jade murmured faintly, a small amused smirk tugging at his lips.

Both of them let out a loud snort and as one, reached up with a free hand and all but pulled the man down.

"Shut up with your excuses and sleep, you can stare at us another night." Asch mumbled.

"He should just take a picture, it'll last longer." Luke added on with a snicker.

"Only if I did, I fear I'd never tear my eyes away." Jade snarked.

"Like hell, no picture's better than the real thing." Luke whined.

"If that happens, we get to set him on fire, at least." Asch murmured, sounding vaguely pleased with the thought of getting to set someone aflame with his fonic artes.

Jade started chuckling . "My, my. You two are so cruel to your elders."

"Considering the fact you have as much vitality as Asch and I combined, I call bullshit on your elder claim." Luke huffed before he scooted closer to Jade and rolled into him, burying his face into the man's chest.

Asch let out an accompanying snort and made a noise of agreement, letting his eyes close and body relax once again.

"How flattering," Jade hummed.

Before he could say anything more, Asch leaned up on his elbow, glared into his eyes with half-lidded sleepy green ones, before leaning in and pressing a hard kiss to his lips. "Shut up and sleep before I knock you out myself."

Jade stared back at the redhead, brow arched, an all too amused grin on his face before he let out a heavy mock-sigh. "If you insist." He replied.

Leering a moment longer, Asch let himself flop back down and let his eyes close.

Luke had already dropped back off the moment he let his body fall still against Jade.

Still grinning faintly, Jade let his eyes close.

Things had changed.

But if anything, it was a change for the better.

Jade wasn't going to wish for anything different.

-End-

End Notes: -gurgles and flops about- My GD OT3, halp. I'm dead. Just leave me here to drown in my feels. -foams at the mouth-