Edit May 2010: FFN decided to eat all the scene dividers so I'm having to go back and add them all in again. I'm also removing the review responses. NOTHING ELSE HAS BEEN ALTERED; if you've read this story before, you don't need to read it again (although you're more than welcome to).

This chapter isn't quite the epilogue; the story isn't quite done yet. Here we have a number of conversations tying up loose ends; some are silly, some are uncomfortable, some are... well, take a look.

Eventually they had found a room in the palace that was still intact. There was a couch; Numair settled Daine onto it carefully, somewhat relieved. She wasn't particularly heavy, but he was very tired now. A velvet throw had been draped over the couch; he laid it over her and tugged his wet cloak out from underneath it. Kitten and Zek settled down by the girl's feet, watching him quietly; he spent a few moments stroking the dragon before standing again and shaking himself off like a dog. Lindhall had managed to get a fire going before leaving to find Kaddar and see what was going on; Numair didn't really care any more.

Wringing his hair out with his fingers, he peeled his shirt off and wrung that out for good measure before pulling it back on. He didn't have the energy to do anything else; he crouched by the fire instead, staring sleepily into the flames for a few moments before remembering why he needed the fire and fumbling in his pocket for the crystal that matched the one he'd given Alanna. Holding it in his fist, he pictured Alanna's face and murmured her name, sending a pulse of power into the stone.

She must have been either asleep, on deck being sick, or in the middle of a conversation with someone. It was almost ten minutes later before the fire turned purple and her voice reached him. "Numair? Is that you?"

"Hello," he told her wearily, his Gift turning the flames black as he answered.

"Hello? Is that all you have to say to me? We were informed of your execution three days ago!"

"The rumours of my death were greatly exaggerated," he replied after a moment, grinning, too tired even to laugh. She growled wordlessly in response.

"Start talking, laddybuck, or I'm going to come back there just to smack you."

"All right, all right. It's all over. I'm alive and well, and so is Daine. She's here with me, but she's asleep."

"Thank the gods. What happened?"

"You really won't believe me when I tell you," he said honestly. "This is definitely the strangest thing that's ever happened to me. I'll try and explain when I see you – you were planning to come back and pick us up, weren't you?"

"Numair."

"I'm sorry. It's been a very long few days. I don't remember being this tired before." He rubbed his eyes. "I'll tell you the full story when you get here, I should have been able to sort it all out by then. For now, you probably need to know that Ozorne's gone and Kaddar is now emperor – well, not formally yet, but he will be."

"Gone? Dead?"

"I don't think so, not yet. It's very complicated. Where are you?"

Her voice was sour. "Almost home. Now you're telling me we have to turn around and come all the way back?"

"Sorry."

"This had better be worth it."

"I promise you, you'll never hear a better story. This even beats your quest for the Dominion Jewel, I think. By the way, it's raining very hard here, so bring heavy clothing."

"Raining?"

"It's been an interesting few days. Oh, and when you see the palace, I want it very clearly understood that it was not my fault. Mostly."

"Numair, what have you done?"

"I haven't done anything. I swear."

"Damn you, will you give me a straight answer?"

"Yes. As soon as I have one." He relented and stopped teasing; he could have gone on in this vein all night. Or day, possibly; he'd lost track of time. "I'm sorry. I'm not trying to be annoying, for once. The last few days really have been terrible, and the last few hours have been so unbelievable that I might be in shock. I'm exhausted and Daine's collapsed completely. I promise, when you get here, I'll sit down and tell you everything, but right now I really need to get some sleep."

Alanna sounded cautiously sympathetic. "It was really that bad?"

I almost died. Then I came to the brink of a total breakdown, nearly lost my sanity and could have killed everyone in a two or three hundred mile radius. I have never been so afraid, so overawed, so coldly furious, so helpless. I feel very strange right now. He said none of this, merely smiled crookedly at the flames. "Yes. It was really that bad. But it's over now, and we're both fine. I've got to go, Alanna, I'm about to pass out."

"All right. We'll see you in a couple of days. Try not to do anything stupid – in fact, try not to do anything, please. I want the full story the moment I get off this damned ship. Sleep well."

"There's just one thing I need to say before I go."

"Don't you dare."

Numair grinned mischievously. "I told you so." He ended the spell before Alanna could respond, really too tired to laugh, and sat back. All but crawling across the room, he knelt by the couch to look Daine over; she seemed all right, as far as he could tell, just terribly exhausted. He sympathised. "Well, magelet, we survived after all," he told her wearily, smiling as he brushed her wet curls away from her face. "Try not to scare me like that in future, please. I'm getting too old to stand many more shocks like this."

He stretched out on the floor where he was, unable to move further even if he'd wanted to. "Kit, behave yourself for Lindhall when he comes back," he mumbled, yawning. "He's not used to dragons." She chirped softly in response, and he smiled, his eyes closing. "Good night, everyone."

Sheer exhaustion had given him a day of solid, dreamless sleep; he suspected that Lindhall had been standing guard and preventing anyone disturbing him. When he woke, his teacher had been there to talk to him; there hadn't been much to say, really. Numair couldn't care less what was going to happen in Carthak now, frankly, and he'd decided he wasn't really suited to politics. There hadn't been much to discuss, and wouldn't be until Numair had managed to sort out how he felt about everything that had happened; he had, however, asked Lindhall for one last favour.

The direct consequence of that favour was that several hours later the door to the room where Daine was sleeping was thrown open so hard that it rebounded off the wall. Wincing, Numair glanced up, knowing who he would see. "Hello, Varice."

He had never seen her look so furious. Storming across the room, she glared down at where he was sitting, then drew back her arm and slapped him – hard. "You bastard!" she spat.

"I know. I'm sorry," he replied quietly, recovering his balance and gingerly touching his cheek.

"Sorry? Do you have any idea what I went through? I went to him and begged for your life, and in return he made me watch! You didn't think to tell me it wasn't real? Don't you trust me?"

"I didn't tell anyone except Lindhall, and I wouldn't have told him if I hadn't needed his help." Numair rubbed the back of his neck. He'd never enjoyed this sort of conversation. "It's not you, Varice. I don't trust anyone any more, really. I'm not Arram any more."

"Obviously!" she snarled. "Arram was never cruel."

"I had no choice," he answered tiredly. "The more who knew, the greater the chance that Ozorne would have found out."

"I can't believe you'd put me through this again! And to send Lindhall to explain? You couldn't even tell me to my face?"

"He's better at explaining things than I am," Numair replied honestly. Still, there had been an element of cowardice to his request; he had hoped that Varice would be too angry to speak to him. Rubbing his eyes, he looked up at her. "I'm sorry. It was the only way."

She glared at him for a long moment, before staring around the room, her lip curling as she saw the still-unconscious Daine. "All this for a girl. A child. Was she worth it?"

"Varice," Numair said warningly, standing up slowly. "Don't. This isn't about her." Sighing, he ran his fingers through his hair. "I didn't want it to end like this," he muttered.

"No, you wanted to sneak off and leave me wondering what happened!"

"No, I didn't." He truly had no idea what to say. It seemed pointless to try too hard to fix things, when in all likelihood he would never see her again, but he had never wanted it to turn out like this. Sighing, he closed his eyes for a moment. "I'm sorry you were hurt, Varice. But this wasn't about you, either. It was about protecting myself and my friends... My life is in Tortall now, not here. You knew that." That could have been phrased more kindly, but he'd never been good at this.

The anger was still in her eyes, but less intense now. Finally she sighed. "Yes, I knew that." They stared at one another silently; they stood only a couple of feet apart, but it might as well have been miles. He had no idea what else to do; there didn't seem to be anything left to say.

"I wish it had been different," he offered finally. It was all he could say. Let her see whatever she needed to see in his words; it was the least he could do.

"So do I," she said quietly. After a long moment she asked softly, "Do you... regret it?" It had obviously cost her a great deal to ask. Numair didn't hesitate in his reply.

"No." That was a lie, if he was honest with himself. But it was a lie she had needed to hear; he at least owed her that much. And in those bright years that seemed another lifetime away, she had been what he needed. It wasn't much, but it was all he could give. She nodded slowly, then turned and left without another word.

Left alone, Numair carefully touched his cheek once more; it had been a hell of a blow, he'd give her that. He would have a splendid bruise tomorrow. Then again, he surely deserved it, after his behaviour over the past fortnight. I'd better be careful when Daine wakes up. She can hit a lot harder. Automatically looking towards his still-unconscious student, he found both Kitten and Zek watching him intently.

"You're lucky," he told them both wryly. "Dragons and marmosets don't let themselves get into such stupid situations."

That afternoon another familiar voice greeted him from the doorway. "I came to ask how it went, but seeing your face, I think I can guess."

Numair smiled crookedly at his former teacher. "Yes," he admitted quietly. "It could have gone better."

"You should try and get something cold on that. It's starting to swell."

"It's only a bruise. I'll live. I think I got off lightly." Gently tracing the edge of the bruise, he shrugged and looked up apologetically. "I'm sorry for involving you. I thought you'd be better at breaking the news than I would be."

Lindhall shook his head, smiling. "All these years, and you still don't seem to know how to fix your mistakes when people are involved."

He laughed softly. "That's one thing you never could teach me, Lindhall. At the moment I'm just hoping that Daine and Alanna have both forgiven me; they can do a lot more damage than Varice, if they're still angry."

Lindhall came to sit beside him, greeting Kitten as she scrambled into his lap. "I always knew you'd end up as someone important, if you didn't kill yourself first. But sitting here listening to you talk about the Lioness as though she's your sister... It's hard to adjust. I close my eyes and see the stubborn twelve year old boy arguing with me over the correct pronunciation of Thak runes or protesting the need to stop work for the day, then I open them and see one of the most famous mages in the world. It's confusing, I must admit."

Pleased by the compliment, Numair smiled hesitantly. "It still takes me by surprise sometimes, too," he agreed quietly. "My life is very strange, but I'm happy." He stretched his legs out in front of him. "On that subject, my offer still stands. Have you thought about it?"

"I have," Lindhall replied slowly. The silence between the two men stretched out; Numair felt no impulse to break it. Silence with Lindhall had always been surprisingly restful; the older man gave the impression of endless patience. Finally his friend turned to look at him. "Kaddar will be sorry to see me leave, but he says I have more than earned the right to move on, if Tortall will have me."

Numair grinned, overjoyed. "That's wonderful, Lindhall. Really. You'll be invaluable in Tortall; they need more scholars, instead of insane mages constantly racing all over the country on missions most people only half believe."

The two men laughed, and Lindhall shook his head. "I won't be returning with you, though. I need to sort out my affairs here. It will be a month or two before I'm free, I expect."

"I'll do my best to be there when you arrive, but I can't promise anything. Harailt will look after you if I'm not around; he's a good partner to debate with, you won't be bored. And if we're not out on the road, you can talk to Daine; she should have woken up by then," he added dryly, glancing affectionately at the still-sleeping girl on the other side of the room.

Lindhall followed his gaze, a thoughtful expression in his blue eyes. "She is almost exactly what I expected. You described her very clearly and at some length... more than any of your other friends," he said slowly. "Numair..."

"Yes?" He looked back at his teacher, and after a moment frowned, puzzled. "What?"

His friend hesitated, then shook his head and smiled. "Never mind. We can talk about it another time. We have time, now. Although at this particular moment I have people to talk to, so I should leave. I'll see you again before you go, I hope; if not, I'll see you before winter."

By the time the Tortallans arrived a day later, Numair and Daine had been relocated and were now at the university. It was probably just as well; the skeletons had been very thorough, and most of the palace was structurally unsound even if it was nominally still standing. She had slept through the move and was still sleeping now; Numair wasn't too worried, given the Hag and the badger had both said it was normal, but he'd still like Alanna to take a look at her.

For his part, he felt more or less his old self once more. Still tired, and his dreams at night were extremely unpleasant, but he felt in control of himself again. He had no interest whatsoever in the future of Carthak; the others were diplomats, they could sort things out with the new emperor. All he wanted now was to go home. He spent the time in Daine's room, playing with Kitten and thinking about everything that had happened, or talking with Lindhall.

Numair was standing outside to greet his friends when they arrived. It was still raining; not the cloudburst of two days before, but a steady, soaking drizzle. He was smiling when he saw them; part of him had wondered whether he'd ever see them again. It seemed the feeling was mutual; Alanna actually hugged him, surprisingly.

"Welcome back," he told Duke Gareth dryly over his friend's head, hugging her back before letting go. "Do come in out of the rain. I'm afraid your quarters won't be quite so luxurious this time; we're a little pushed for space. His Imperial Majesty, Emperor Kaddar will be pleased to see you when you're settled."

"So you say," Gareth responded equally dryly, "but you're a notorious criminal and therefore untrustworthy in the extreme." The two smiled and shook hands. "It's good to see you alive. Alanna, go with him and get the whole story out of him, please. We'll see you later."

As soon as they were alone, the Lioness rounded on him. "What did you do to the palace? We saw the remains on our way here."

"I told you, that wasn't my fault," he defended himself, grinning. "I swear, I didn't do anything to the palace."

"Then who did?"

"Daine." Numair took a moment to enjoy the shock on Alanna's face.

"Daine did that? How, why?"

"Remember the vulture?"

"It's proving very difficult to forget."

"Well, think larger. Did you ever see the Hall of Bones while you were here?"

"The Hall of – Mithros and the Goddess both, Numair! Are you telling me that Daine raised dinosaurs from the dead and got them to tear half the palace down?"

"Yes," he answered succinctly. "I did tell you it was difficult to believe. Come on, I'll take you to see her, then I'll try and tell you everything. She's still asleep; could you take a look and make sure it's just exhaustion?"

"Still asleep?"

"She's been very busy recently," he replied dryly, opening the door to Daine's room.

"Clearly." The Lioness examined Daine carefully; she still didn't wake, or even stir. "Just exhausted, from what I can tell. She's not hurt." Sitting down, she glared up at Numair. "No more stalling. Tell me what happened."

He sat next to her, Kitten climbing into his lap. Petting the dragon absently, he took a deep breath; it was going to be a very long story.

I have to admit, this chapter was quite fun to write. I have a feeling that our hero would almost rather go another round with Ozorne than have to face Varice. I tried not to bash her too much, but I still have a lot of problems with her as a character, and I'm very glad that I don't have to write her again (unless I manage some stories about Arram, I suppose, but that will be a very long way off).

Look, more silly Numair/Alanna conversations! We're not quite done with those yet. And this is probably the last time you'll see Lindhall for a very long time, since he's not in Realms of the Gods at all. It's going to be a long way in the future before we reach any other stories involving him, sadly.

This chapter was pretty short, I admit. The next chapter will be even shorter, since that will be the final chapter of this story and one of my trademark fluffy epilogues. And after that, we start the final book of the quartet, and I'm certain it's the favourite book of almost all of you. So, the more you review this, the sooner we get there!

Loten.