A Place to Call Home,

by WickedSong.

Notes: Yes, I know these games are kinda old now, and there's like a non-existent fandom for them, but I just recently played them and these two are absolutely everything good, pure and interesting about them (along with Miu and Yulie) so hells yeah, I'm gonna write fic about them!

Kara smiles as she watches her friends celebrate. Their victory has been long overdue, and with the evil of the Yshrenian empire defeated, there is finally a chance for peace and stability to return to the world.

Whenever she thinks of Setti, her brother, she feels a pang of sadness, but she can't help but also feel a measure of relief as well. Ledom led him down a dark path, one without any of the redemption she herself had been offered, and she is glad to know that he is no longer suffering.

It also feels like a weight has finally been lifted from her own shoulders.

Even when she returned to life she had felt strangely incomplete, without the Black Knight. She supposed that was to be expected when something was so much a part of you for ten millennia.

Both Queen Cisna and Archduchess Miu give speeches to commemorate their momentous victory, and afterwards Kara finds herself slipping away from the crowds of people celebrating, desperate for some quiet in order to reflect on the events of the last few days.

They had been a whirlwind.

"Now, how did I know I'd find you out here?"

Kara does not turn towards the voice but she smiles to herself.

Truthfully, she's quite glad he's followed her out here. Yet, there's a nervousness in the pit of her stomach when she thinks of the prospect of the future.

There'd barely been any time to think about the immediate threat of Yshrenia before they were thrust into the final battle. She'd imagined she wouldn't even make it out of the battlefield alive.

Now that she has, she has the feeling that a lot of things are uncertain, most of them with the man who now stands beside her at the fountain.

She steals a glance at Caesar, and from the corner of her eye, watches as he stretches his arms, and then places his hands on the marble in front of him.

"Not enjoying the party?" he asks her.

Kara shakes her head.

"Just needed some fresh air, that's all," she replies honestly. "And to clear my head," she adds, because dragonsight or not, she has the distinct feeling that Caesar still has the innate ability to see right through her.

He's changed, in the year that she's been away. Not too much, she'd been glad to realise, but she could tell that the impending threat of war, as well as the challenges of being ruler of Greede had had an impact on him.

She thought that he stood much taller for all of it.

"I get that," he muses quietly, as he looks up at the moon.

This must be a rare moment of peace for him too. She knows that before she can even blink, he'll probably be off to Greede again.

Subtly, she shuffles a little closer to him, recalling how they'd stood under this exact same sky, in this exact spot, for what seemed like hours only a few nights ago.

It hadn't gone beyond her head on his shoulder, and his arm around her waist, but it had been like a moment frozen in time: the perfect escape from the harsh realities that had waited for them at the time.

Now all that was gone; for the time being, at least, there were no huge battles to be fought and won.

Caesar must pick up on her closing the distance, because he smirks a little. Kara expects him to say something, and is surprised when he doesn't.

"I imagine you'll be heading back to Greede soon," she says, instead of commenting on it, and she notices that he seems to fidget a little when she brings up his city.

It's not like Caesar to be nervous.

"Yeah," he laments. "My people need me." He sighs, probably from stress, and then turns to her. "What are you planning to do anyway, Kara?"

The question catches her a little off-guard.

While she hasn't really thought about it, she knows that she at least has options now.

She can stay in Balandor, but there's still too many who distrust her, and there isn't much that interests her in this kingdom.

She could return to Albana, but there's something about that that doesn't quite feel right. Besides she's still not entirely sure if what she remembers of her past there are her own memories and not ones implanted by Yshrenia in an attempt to use her power.

Then there's Faria. In the year she's been disguised there, as 'General Scardigne', she'd come to view the nation as her new home. It was a beautiful place, and she'd been of real use there.

"I'm not sure," she admits, breaking the silence. Looking down at her reflection in the water, she tilts her head. "Miu said I'd be welcome to return to Faria. I could see a life there."

She supposes she doesn't sound too eager about it. She'd appreciated Miu's gesture, of course, but there was something about it that didn't feel quite right.

Caesar seems to stiffen beside her, as he straightens up a little.

"Faria, eh?" he says softly. "Kind of far, isn't it?"

"Hmm," Kara murmurs, and this time she notices that it's him who's shuffling closer to her.

"You know, there's kinda a reason I followed you out here tonight," Caesar says, and then he chuckles a little. "That didn't sound right, did it?"

"Not really," Kara replies, with the hint of a smile in her voice. She nods. "But continue."

"Well, when I couldn't find you earlier, I panicked a little," he explains. "I knew it was stupid, but I thought that maybe because you'd helped us beat Madoras, you'd disappear." He looks down, and she notices his fist is clenched at his side. "I thought maybe Father Yggdra would take you away, that your 'role' had been fulfilled."

Not quite sure what to say to that, Kara places a hand on his arm.

Caesar turns and looks at her, at this display of affection. She knows it must be strange; before, when they'd travelled together she'd been nothing but cold and stand-offish to him because of what she had to do and how it had forced her to act.

Now, there was nothing holding her back. It was a liberating feeling, but also just as terrifying, in her opinion.

"I realised that I didn't want to – that I couldn't – lose you again, Kara," he tells her, softly. "I'm going back to Greede in a few days, and I'd really like it if you'd come with me."

"Caesar…"

Again, he's left her lost for words. He shakes his head.

"You can think about it for a few days," he clarifies, quickly. "I'm not expecting an answer straight away. And if you choose Faria, and you want me to visit- "

She cuts him off, by standing on her tip toes, and kissing him. It's sweet and tentative, some might say the opposite of their tense and heated relationship before her death. But, for what they have now, something new and real, it seems perfect.

Kara can tell he's taken aback, but only for a split second, before he's kissing her back. He deepens the kiss, and holds her close.

When they pull away, Kara blinks her eyes open to find that Caesar's are still closed.

He smiles, as if savouring the moment, and then opens them.

Kara folds her arms, smirking at the look on his face. The same look she'd grown quite fond of – not that she would have ever told anyone – during their journey together.

She'd meant it when she'd said she was glad they'd met.

Kara laughs, lightly nudging him in the gut with her elbow, and wiping the expression off of his face, replacing it with his own look of amusement.

"I thought you were done being mushy?" she teases, her voice lighter than ever.

She can't remember a time when she's been happier.

Caesar stutters a little, nervously rubbing the back of his head. And then he breaks into a smile, and shakes his head.

"I guess you just bring it out in me," he concedes, taking her hand, and pulling her a little closer. He looks down at their joined hands. "I'm not asking you to marry me, or rule Greede with me. I'm just asking you to be with me."

He's not asking those questions, but Kara finds she wouldn't quite mind, if somewhere down the line, he did.

He tugs her a little closer to him, and stares at her lips, but she knows he won't kiss her until she's answered his question.

And it isn't hard to find an answer at all.

"Yes."

Caesar grins, and seems to light up in response. In his joy he lifts her up and spins her around the courtyard; just about managing to not accidentally fall into the fountain beside them in the process.

Balandor continues to celebrate on, as the well-earned laughter of young lovers rings around the courtyard.

WKC2: how dare you give me Kara/Caesar returning to Greede together in a credits slideshow and not a 100% voice-acted cutscene telling us how exactly they came to this decision. I guess this is what fanfiction is for, but for shame!