“I love you, too,”Isaid again, a lump forming in my throat.Icaught her mouth with mine for a kiss.Justa quick one– we weren’t done yet.
“I spent the drive here on the phone withJen,” she said as we pulled apart. “It’llbe tight, but we should both be able to work there.I’llonly be part time?—”
I must have frowned, becauseChloelaughed and used her fingers to smooth the crease in my brow.
“Dafydd offered for me to consult with local businesses with the rest of my time,” she explained. “Helpthem do whatGwenynenis doing.”
It was the absolute perfect thing for her.Shehad so many ideas, and so much to give; way more thanGwenynencould ever hold on its own.
“So … we both get what we want?”Iasked, my voicetentative.Ididn’t want to misunderstand, but it felt like she was saying exactly that, andIcouldn’t help the heat that pooled in my chest.
“We do,” she said, nodding, a tear slipping down her cheek.Shepressed up onto her toes to bring her forehead to mine, her nose bumping against my own. “ButI’llonly be getting everythingIwant if you’re here, too.Soplease, stay.”
I nodded, shaking both of us. “Yes, of courseI’llstay,”Isaid, openly weeping now. “I’ddo anything to stay with you.”
“All you have to do is leave this airport and come home,” she said, kissing each of my cheeks, then my nose, then my mouth.Shestarted to pull away, butIgrabbed her face, too, and pulled her back in, kissing her deeply.Thewhole world melted away around me asIdid.
Home.
WhenIfinally let her go,Iheard clapping, and we both looked around to see people watching us, cheering us on.Eventhe people still stood around the gate waiting to be let in looked touched.Thegate agent made eye contact with me and smiled.
“Group three?” she asked.Ishook my head.
“Not today,”Isaid, smiling back.
I looked down atChloe, who stood beaming by my side.Shelaced her fingers through mine asIpicked my bag up from where it had fallen and heaved it onto my shoulder.Weturned and walked toward the exit together.
“How did you get through security anyway?”Iasked. “Didyou seriously buy a ticket?”
“Sure did,” she said. “Ididn’t have my passport, soIhad to go forNewcastle.Wecan go there instead if you’d like.”
I laughed and looped my arm over her shoulders, pulling her into me. “Ijust wanna go home,”Isaid.
And for the first time,Icould do just that.
Epilogue
CALAMITY
Bringing someone back to life was easy.
They were in theCapital– one could hardly move without running into a cleric, and theAdventurersGuildhad access to the materials needed to revive someone.WhilstYorick,Eden, andLiamhad been okay with simple healing spells,Morganahad needed a more elaborate ritual, which the clerics had been happy to perform.
But true resurrection?Thatwas much harder to orchestrate.Thematerials alone cost more than twenty-five thousand gold, which was a bit steep for theAdventurersGuild, especially sinceNashalahadn’t actually been a member.
ButNashalahad wanted to fight for good, andCalamitywas nothing if not stubborn.Soshe’d carefully swept what remained ofNashalaoff the stage ofThePandemoniumTheatre– something she knewNashalawould have found mortifyingly vulnerable– and kept her in a jar in her bunk.Afterthe rest ofTheTwelvehad been rounded up, andCalamityhad confirmed herself thatTrulnurothwas truly gone for good, she took on extra assignments, along with the other party members, and actually kept a coffer instead of stashing her gold in random places like she usually did.Nashaladeserved a bit more diligence thanCalamitywas used to.
Months later, after a particularly profitable barter with a bronze dragon,Calamityfinally had enough.Soshe paid a visit not to the fancy clerics in theCapitalbut to a remote monastery in theNorthernIsles– one where some ofNashala’skind had resettled, adopting a peaceful, cloistered life.IfNashalawere to find a new home away fromTrulnuroth, maybe this was a good place for her to start.Calamityhoped she’d get to fight alongside her again one day, but it wasn’t up to her, andNashaladeserved to choose her own destiny.
Some of the monks eyedCalamitywarily as she made her way up the path, their gazes catching on her horns and tail.Insteadof going into the whitewashed monastery, however,Calamitymade her way to the cliffside overlooking the sea.Anunassuming stone altar– just a single piece of flat stone, the same as that which made up the surrounding cliffs– was perched almost on the edge.Thebreeze was strong and salty, andCalamitybreathed it in deeply.Yes, this would be a good place to wake up.
A druid came out to meet her, their blue, translucent robes billowing in the wind, held against them with an intricately embossed leather belt.Theygave a knowing smile as they stood across the altar fromCalamity, asking whom she hoped to bring back.
WhenCalamityheld out the jar before her, the druid’s soft smile wavered slightly.
“I think we’d be better off starting from scratch,” the druid offered. “Herspirit will find its way back in whatever form feels right.”
Calamity hesitated at this– she wantedNashalato be able to come back exactly as she had been.Thescar that proved her mettle.Themuscles she’d spent decades honing.Everyspeckle on her green skin the same size and shape it had been.
