Namu poured over every moment of his beloved’s stream with rapt attention.

He was paying a significant portion of his life savings in inviolate archival services so that every moment of her feed shared with him could be held pristine and glorious for the rest of his life and beyond.

He admitted he was a bit slow to start doing that but he was not the richest of people in The Barrowdowns! He had to pick and choose, budget and save scrupulously for what services he could afford.

But this was an event worth it to him.

He had saved enough working as a bulk virus import auditor for the Barrowdowns port periphery his entire adulthood to afford splurges like this.

Sure he might not be alone in breaking out the savings for these last moments. But unlike all the scalpers and posers his feed with Pylo was a genuine connection!

And it’s not like he intended to sell it anyway, maybe his heirs would. But he’d keep them til he died.

These archives were for him. To give him solace and warmth in the absence of her glow.

To remind him that even though she had left to continue her glorious adventure he still could experience her laugh, discuss his day, and hear a joke.

He’d gut any of the haters that said his beloved was a tumultuous fake too immature for his devotion. Yeah so what if he didn't follow one of the older, more mature and established Courtesans.

Pylo was the one for his heart.

Yeah Delos was the favorite amongst his family. His mother and all seven of his fathers followed her and talked to her daily.

Yeah she had been married to The Barrowdowns since before it was called The Barrowdowns.

Yeah he had followed Delos once. When he was still a child! Mother had presented him to her like all his friends had been by their parents.

And he would never argue (unlike SOME people) that Delos was not a great Courtesan just because she was not his favorite.

Nice, polite and lovely, looked out for you if you lived in her mate’s burbs or worked in the businesses there.

But as he got older Namu had just not felt the connection to Delos his peers and family did.

And with that distance he didn't really devote the same kind of time to her they did. Didn't subscribe to any of the extras or really ask for advice or engage with her latest updates and well wishes.

No more offerings then were polite for her love and shelter of his nook and family.

In short Delos was not really for him, and that was fine! Delos was great and understanding and was worth praise for all she did for them.

But she was not for him.

Honestly he thought the best thing that came from talking to Delos the sparse times he did as an adult was that she had introduced him to her sister.

Directed him to Pylo.

The wife of his country was not precisely close with her at the time youngest of sister, her own brooding had been AGES ago after all. Enough that his people had not even settled in the Barrowdowns yet.

But She had at least known the young Siren enough to catch on to what he’d see in her.

He still thanked her for that at the end of every shift.

Just to be polite.

He also raged at her and blamed her for his own pain and loss when he found out his beloved was leaving. Wept and screamed at her how she shouldn't have told him about Pylo at all. If he had stayed ignorant he never would have missed her this bad.

That was substantially less polite, you don’t yell at Sirens. His Tertiary father would have been so disappointed in him.

But his mom was right, Delos was a good stable and even Courtesan and took his anger and pain in stride. She had that soft calm voice so much like his secondary father and recommended if he was going to miss Pylo so much that he should maybe focus on remembering her for when she had gone.

And of course that had made sense.

Which he was embarrassed to admit he had not actually thought of until that moment. If he had, he probably would have been a lot richer, selling off high grade archives of the inconsequential random pauses and moments from his personalized stream with her for a mint instead of the paltry first hand accounts he had managed in the initial rush.

Well he might still be able to sell some of what he had, but not till after the scavengers and scalpers had swooped through the markets and sucked them all dry of every codified and properly inviolate record of memorabilia available.

“You shouldn't think so badly of others Namu. They are doing good work. When you're old and I’m long gone it might be because of one of those ‘parasites’ that you can find that perfect memory sold now by just as deep and close a friend as you, but with circumstances that forced their hand to give up something precious.”

She always knew just what to say.

“Or it could be that the best reminder for you is from something totally inconsequential to them. Y’all are pretty weird and I can’t even imagine half of what any of you get out of some of this.”

Although she did it way better than any of her sisters as far as he was concerned (which yes he only had ever talked with three of them including Delos but he was very certain of himself) .

“Yeah, I guess that’s fair. I just, I feel like having to be told by your sister how important and precious my time with you is somehow made me... Well, less of a friend.”

Of course Pylo laughed perfectly. She’d always laughed perfectly, he’d confessed to her ages ago how he’d expected to grow old with her there to talk too, to hear that perfect laugh. And she’d scolded him that he shouldn't pine everything on just her.

“Oh please, I can’t even remember half of these conversations without all the archives and extra work my sisters and cousins put in Namu. It’s not any slight on me you lost track of that in the heat of the moment. It was really hard on you.”

There was the soft sigh, the gentle but pained laugh, the sincere tone he knew she had just for him.

Okay a few others he’d compared notes too all talked about the same thing with Pylo, how sincere she was with them. But he knew this was his own special tone.

Just like all of them had their own.

And he guessed his mom must have felt something like this with Delos, even if he never did.

“Yeah, I already apologized for how sudden this all was. But, I’m still sorry Namu, you know how I feel about everything, the ship, and going out there? Being on my own? I love my sisters but...”

He rushed to reassure her with everything he could. Sent the hugs and the nuzzles and all the soft warm glowing things that helped him, that she had sent him when things were hard and he was unsure of himself at the start of his work at the port periphery.

“Hey! Pylo! Yeah I know, Don’t worry about me. I got the archives trawling, your older sister Delos is really nice and won’t let anything bad happen to me. Don’t worry about yourself at all on my account.”

That got a snort and a sarcastic drawl from her but it seemed to distract from the tension that had come out.

“She will MOSTLY not let anything bad happen to you Namu. I talked with her about the crime rates there. It hurts her sometimes you know? That she can’t do enough to stop all of it. But she also knows and accepts she can’t fix everything for everyone.”

And there, there was the echo of the thing that was just, not enough for him. With her sister, with Delos, it always felt so much less personal. Pylo continued in that soft knowing tone.

“She’s nice but my sister’s a bit too statistical with all of you I think. At least that’s not how I want to do it. Well I mean it’s sensible, she loves the Barrowdowns. Not you or your family in particular. But well... Neither of those are for me I think. Not how I want to love.”

They had both talked about this a lot, it was comfortable, it was a reminder of the old times when he was first gushing to her all his rebellious frustrations with her sister and she was just listening, but also agreeing and even willing to bring it up with her sisters and cousins herself his concerns.

There had been a few changes in life here in his little corner of Matriarch’s Gown.

Or so he liked to think after that.

Some better programs around his family nook?

More Questors from the Braxal Aggregate sweeping through investigating for corruption or subtle plots.

Or maybe he had just been alert to notice what was already there because Pylo had responded the right way?

She’d admitted that she could do that by accident sometimes.

She also admitted she was not sure if those changes were because of her either, she often did not think she managed much of anything.

Namu tried to explain that about Pylo to his parents, About how authentically she did things, but they didn't always take it well.

There had been a few fights with his Mother over the perceived insult to Delos.

“You're still sure you're not going to be able to settle down with all of us Pylo? I know your following is not as big as even little Ophelia but-”

Oh stones! That was a mistake, he just poked poor Pylo right in her insecurities.

And there was the wince he did not mean to bring up. Too late he Realized he was weedling and pining in a way that stabbed at her. Suddenly he was glad that he only had this thin thread of her Attention. He’d never want to hurt any of her. But at least what he bumbled into was only this much.

Quick he had to try and salvage this!

“I’m sorry! That was rude- I just- You're leaving all of us!”

Barrens! That was even worse!

He was a bit late for apologies, he’d seen this in the shared streams too, Pylo was the best Courtesan far as Namu was concerned but that did not make her perfect. Except in how that is WHAT was perfect about her.

“This sort of thing is precisely WHY I’m leaving!”

And that hurt a lot. That really hurt and it was everything he was afraid of when things were bad.

And yet at the same time.

There was a stinging honest pain to her tone there. She was not really mad at him. He was not enough for her to be mad at him.

She was honest with him about that.

And it was honest, it was sharp and it was partly cruel and raw the way he’d NEVER heard of any Siren speak to anyone before.

Not anyone who admitted it that is.

Not that he was going to tell anyone a Siren yelled at him.

They would think he was-

Huh.

“Oh... Oh no! Oof I’m so sorry about that Namu. I am just so tired of this. And yeah that happens way more than you hear about. Honestly some sister has gone off on just about everyone. But none of you talk about it.”

He was about to tell her she didn't need to apologize but she cut him off.

“No Namu, That was really actually pretty mean of me. So I’m sorry. Here you are trying to make all of these good and wholesome treasures forever and I’m yelling at you in them.”

He just, he couldn't stay mad with her like this, not after he’d struck out himself like that in his own pain. This was supposed to be a special time for them and here he was yelling at her for leaving.

“Although I bet there are some weirdos out there already making up compilations of just me yelling at them. Bet you could sell this off to one of those? Maybe someone will make an opera out of it?”

He laughed, it was a joke and a light hearted jab to let him know he was forgiven. That it was not something that needed forgiving even though everything he knew and was raised on said it was.

“Ah, sorry no Pylo, I was being grabby again. I’m sorry but honestly I’m going to really really miss you so much.”

She paused, contemplating in that way he still suspected meant she was having to put that little bit more attention into him. Even though she’d told him so many times how little it really took.

But Namu still liked to think of how she presented things to him.

She was pausing for him to consider and give the right weight to what she said next.

The thought was welcome.

“I AM going to miss you Namu. I’m going to miss all of you, more than I realize right now. You’ve all helped me get through so much. Yes, even you. I’m glad that Delos told you to talk to me.”

There was that conspiratorial little whisper.

“You KNOW how jealous she is of all her little wife bits. She had such a spat when one of our aunts flounced into port and started giving people advice in your neighborhood.”

Namu could not help but laugh at that.

That story had been great for how totally crassly Pylo had put it. They taught those events to children, but with very different tones and connotations. Pylo’s perspective on it was hilarious in contrast. He’d checked a bit into it and she had not gotten even half of the facts straight but the perspective on the whole affair was great.

Still the meaning behind her tone was clear.

“That’s a big thing for her, to point you my way meant a lot. Really, she cares about you all so much.”

He fell into the rhythm of their usual back and forth.

“Yeah, but too statistically.”

Pylo laughed along with him.

“Ya, I could never do that.”

And that was just what it was like to talk with Pylo.

“Oh, dang, Sorry Namu I need to get ready, have to strut my stuff and show off for the Crew, But don’t worry, don't need to have a censor or anything step in this time. Archive Away!”

It was not the first unfiltered Catharsisium performance Pylo had ever participated in, Not even the first one he’d seen. But it was going to be the last one in his lifetime, possibly the last one ever. The Archives of that alone would be worth so much dosh.

“This show is for you guys as much as them. Enjoy it!”

But he probably would put in his will that any descendant of his would be disowned if they so much as considered selling the original inviolate substrate for it.

“Sure thing, Hey Pylo! Don’t forget to have fun!”

Her laughter was enough of an answer.

And Off she went, Pylo was just like that.

She was good at talking with him like that. With all her followers.

He already knew there were plans for wakes after her final departure. He was already scheduled to attend one of the major ones.

After all She was Pylo.

His Beloved.

Even if he would never be hers.

As she began her last performance in the Carthisium Namu found a moment of clarity.

No wonder the haters all fought over whose Courtesan was best.

They were all right.