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Right.
An eternity away or no, wedidstill have some matters to settle today … and perhaps I shouldn’t try to settle them with seed stains on my clothes and limbs.
‘So what do you suggest?’ I lazily stretched out, squinting at the waterfalls in the distance. ‘Find a brook and freshen up a little before we leave?’
‘As I was saying,’ he dryly said, ‘there should be hot springs on this island somewhere. I have faith we can find one that allows for more pleasant bathing than mountain creeks.’
I stared at him.
He was already rising to his feet, holding out his hand to me, mud- and seed-stained wings unfolding, without further ado.
We found a cluster of pools at the foot of the nearest mountain’s ridge – six smooth, round basins feeding into each other, nestled snugly in between the irregular quartz formations that surrounded them. The first two were too hot for comfortable bathing, too close to their bubbling source. But the third was just right, and the crystal-clear surface rippled invitingly as I dipped in my foot; I couldn’t keep down a sigh of relief as I lowered myself into the balmy water and its soothing, comforting warmth enveloped me.
Welcome home, it seemed to be telling me.
And I could see it then, the dozens and dozens of late afternoons we would retreat to this spot, rinsing the stone dust and chalk from our hair as the ruins on the distant cliffs slowly grew into a home again …
Could see it, and couldn’t stop smiling.
We spent a few minutes scrubbing sweat and mud from each other’s skin, then curled up in the water together, exhausted and quiet in that most content of ways. Above us, the sky was a palette of pastel hues now, pink and blue and some lingering purple. The minty scent of eucalyptus drifted along on the morning breeze. I lay dreamy and drowsy in Creon’s arms and watched the steam twirl from the water’s surface in elegant wisps, my mind empty, my heart at ease, my eyelids growing heavier and heavier …
‘Em,’ he whispered breathlessly.
I jolted from thoughts that may have been dreams.
‘Shh.’ He rose a few inches, lifting his hand from the water with unusual caution. Against my back, I could feel his heartbeat quicken a fraction; his wings tensed on either side of us. ‘Shh, Em –look.’
And only then, following his outstretched finger, did I see them. Mere feet away, rummaging around between the gleaming rocks …
Two fluffy, snow-white doves.
Zera’s blessing.
My breath caught.
The birds lingered for a few more moments, preening their feathers, cooing softly, as if to offer us every opportunity to notice them. Then they swept out their snowy wings and took off, back to the west, towards the continent and Zera’s woods – two inseparable dots of white, flying side by side, blending seamlessly into the lustre of a brand new day.
The End
