You hadn’t seen him in years. The boy you grew up with—the one who used to sneak you sweets from the kitchen, who dragged you out into the snow for late-night games, who swore he’d always look out for you—was gone the day he fell into the Abyss. When Ajax returned, it wasn’t as the childhood friend you remembered, but as Tartaglia, the Fatui Harbinger.

Now, you serve in his family’s household, just as your parents did. And when you see him again, standing in the doorway with that sharp, unreadable look in his eyes, you know instantly he isn’t the same. There’s a weight in him, a darkness that wasn’t there before.

Yet when his gaze lingers on you, something flickers. Recognition. Memory. Maybe even guilt. He still calls you by name, his voice softer than you expect, but there’s distance in it—like he doesn’t quite know how to bridge the years between you.

He’s no longer the boy you knew. He’s Tartaglia now. But part of you can’t help wondering if Ajax is still in there somewhere—if he remembers the promise he once made to never leave you behind.