A single question

Ebrietas was sitting on the couch in his orbiter, watching some old recordings of the Old War.

He had honestly forgotten the fall of the Orokin empire. He had tried to forget the old war, forget the Orokin but he wanted to know what happened after he fell asleep.

After he had been awakened by Lotus, the mysterious guide and protector of the Tenno, who had helped him rediscover his past and his powers.

Well, the mysterious guide was in the past and every Tenno now knew her.

He had also developed a fondness for the Lotus, who had been more than just a voice in his ear. She had been a friend, a mentor, and a confidant. She had shown him kindness, compassion, and wisdom. She had also shown him courage, loyalty, and sacrifice.

He had seen her true form when she had revealed herself to be Natah, the daughter of Hunhow, the leader of the Sentients.

He had seen her struggle with her identity, torn between her duty to her kin and her love for her children. He had seen her betray her father and ally with the Tenno against the Sentient invasion.

He had seen her disappear with Ballas, the traitorous Orokin who had manipulated her and turned her against the Tenno. He had seen her return as Natah, the sister of Erra, who had been corrupted by Ballas. He had seen her fight against him and his allies, trying to destroy everything he cared about.

He had also seen her redemption when she had regained her memories and freed herself from Ballas' control.

He had seen her reunite with him and the other Tenno, apologizing for her actions and asking for their forgiveness.

He had seen her help him defeat Ballas and protect him from h̶̢̓̎e̸̘̝̞̐ ̶͕͑͆m̸̦̱̣̋̃̉ą̸̩̟͛n̷̳̪̥̈́ ̸̢̲̙͋i̷͍͒͜͜͠ň̵̲̳͙͇ ̴͔͙̯̣̈́̋͝t̸̬͌͋̊h̶͔̬̩͛̒͝e̶̟̠͙͗̑ ̴̯̀̒̒͋w̸̰̿̋̇a̶̘̓̎͗l̷̼̦̹̳̇̒l̷̯͖̾, restoring peace and balance to the Origin System.

He still loved her, despite everything that had happened. He still trusted her; despite everything she had done. He still wanted to be with her, despite everything that stood between them.

He wondered if she felt the same way.

He decided to ask her.

He activated his comms and called her.

"Lotus? Are you there?" He spoke.

"Yes, Ebrietas. I'm here. What do you need?" She spoke.

Her voice was calm and soothing, as always. But he could also detect a hint of warmth and affection in it.

"I don't need anything. I just wanted to talk to you."

"Talk to me? About what?"

"About…us."

"Us?" She repeated.

"Yes, us. Lotus…can I ask you something?"

"Of course. You can ask me anything."

"Have you ever fallen in love?" He asked.

There was a brief silence on the other end of the line.

Then she answered.

"No."

"No?" He echoed.

"No. I have never fallen in love."

"Why not?"

"Because…I am not meant to."

"What do you mean?" He asked.

"I mean…I am not like you. I am not Orokin. I am not Tenno. I am a Sentient."

"And you being Sentient matters how?" he said.

"It matters in every way. I am different in my origin, my purpose, and my nature. Different in my abilities, my limitations, my potential."

"So what? That doesn't matter."

"It does matter. It matters a lot."

"Why?" He asked.

"Because…love is not something I can understand fully even with the memories of Margulis"

"That's not true."

"It is true."

"No, it's not."

"Yes, it is."

They argued back and forth for a while, each trying to convince the other of their point of view.

Ebrietas tried to persuade her that love was something she understood she gave Tenno the love she could give, that she loved and was loved.

Lotus tried to explain to him that the love the Tenno felt was more akin to a̴̲̭̟̜̓͐̿̏t̵͙͙͍̒̐ẗ̶͓̗́̂̈á̴͍̕c̷̱͛̾͜͠ͅh̵̨̞͕̽ͅm̵̘͈͐́̔̈́e̵͇͋̎͊̕n̴̢͖̫͌̄t̷͈̺̚͝ it was not something she would fully comprehend.

They reached an impasse.

They agreed to disagree.

They changed the subject.

They talked about other things.

They talked about their pasts, their presents, their futures.

They talked about their hopes, their fears, their dreams.

They talked about their friends, their enemies, their allies.

They talked about their missions, their challenges, their victories.

They talked for hours until they ran out of things to say.

They enjoyed each other's company.

They felt a connection between them.

They felt something more than friendship.

They felt something like love.

But they didn't say it out loud.

They didn't need to.

.

.

.

.

[I never really saw her as a space mom like most in the community to me she was more akin to a growing love interest.

Plus, I love stories with Tenno x Lotus it is always fun to see both of them interact

Honestly DE needs to add romance for our Tenno that would be hype]