So hi guys! I updated in nine days. It was originally going to updated three days earlier because that was when I had finished writing the chapter, but I was super busy with school stuff, and also friendship stuff. Now I feel that examinations are less stressful. I hope everything turns out okay.

Also on a happy and super excited note, Lodestar comes out in 10 days! It's so amazing how time flies past so quickly, and now I've been in the fandom for almost 2 years. You have no idea how much this series had changed me and my life. It taught me moral lessons, and taught me to love writing, find my ambition, and get much better at drawing. Whenever I think about Keeper of the Lost Cities, it never fails to brighten my day. And I'm so lucky to finally have a friend that appreciates it as much as I do! (That's you, HazardousDestiny!)

Anyway, the release of Lodestar is drawing near, that means that I'm going on a hiatus once November 1st is here-for a very simple reason: to avoid fifth book spoilers. I've been receiving spoilers on Fanfiction. net since last year, and since everyone likes to write fanfiction of the new book, I figured at least I can stay off of here, instagram, tumblr, and basically every social media platform that I use for Keeper of the Lost Cities. I really, really hate being spoiled, and I can only get the book 6-9 working days after the release date. I'll come back as soon as I finish reading Lodestar.

Thank you for a hundred reviews! I was seriously so happy that I squealed when I saw the three digits.

Guest: Yep, it was a filler alright, but this chapter isn't. Thank you and hope you like this chapter! :)

Kotlc 1 Fan: Wow, on Fanfiction. net everyday? That's really impressive! You must be really well-read by now. Yeah, yeah I know I was horrible ending Chapter the Eighteenth like that. Don't worry, it isn't the ending just yet! (I think this chapter is going to be the second-last chapter, if my instincts don't prove me wrong.) I will definitely read your story, can't wait for it. Thank you so much and hope you like this chapter! ;)

ThatsencenboyXD: Haha yes, a smiley face can definitely be a word! It totally deserves that title. Thank you and hope you like this chapter! :)

strawb'ryblond periwinkle love: Can I call you strawberry instead? Haha, it's just tedious to type out your username (I don't mean it in an offensive way, I love your username actually!) And thank you so much, it's comforting to know that I'm not the only one to experience hard stuff. Hope you like this chapter! :)

bookishgirl: Thank you so so much! Hope you like this chapter! :)))

Thank you to Eeveelutions Are Awesome for following my story!

Word Count: 4, 772 words.

CHAPTER THE TWENTIETH

Much to Evelina's surprise, it was Elliana Song—Myst's younger sister—who opened the sterling grey gates enclosing Hymn Manor for Evelina to come in.

She looked a lot like Myst—with her jet-black hair, almond-shaped eyes and pale blue irises, she was a splitting image of her eldest sister, except that she was much smaller. Her eyes also seemed to lack any spark in them, and they avoided Evelina's gaze intently as she murmured, "Follow me."

She turned back, her regal gown the colour of snowflakes swirling with the abrupt movement. Her hair was twisted up in an elaborate updo, and fastened with shimmering crystals that reflected into Evelina's eyes.

Evelina frowned as she stared at her, before following her into the large fenced area of the Songs' estate. She quickly glanced down at her own dress, and felt embarrassment rush through her veins. Compared to her, Elliana looked like a Councillor. It looked like the Song family took their dress code in a very formal, elegant way. At home, Sophie and Keefe didn't even bother with what she wore, as long as it was comfortable, suitable, and what she liked.

It was clear that things were different here.

Then she thought of Myst, and how she always looked so neat and pretty even in her Foxfire uniform.

Evelina gazed around her surroundings as the two of them slowly walked down a winding cobblestone path, set in the middle of a sweep of evergreen patch of grass, trimmed to the very precise, and peppered with bluebells and jasmine flowers, which sweet scent wafted into Evelina's nose, making her feel at ease. The mansion which stood tall and proud at the end of the path towered over Evelina. It gave Evelina the sort of Victorian vibes, but with a sweeping, silver crescent-shaped balcony, overlooking the whole palatial-looking place. Ivy vines climbed up the mansion walls until the halfway point, drawing much attention to the roof, which was in the same shape as the balcony—an intimidating, ominous silver crescent moon which sharp points gleamed golden in the setting sun.

"Wow," breathed Evelina, taken in by the incredible beauty of Hymn Manor.

The sudden sound made Elliana glance back at her. Her pale silvery blue eyes turned steely as she whispered, "They don't like anyone commenting on their house. You're lucky they can't hear you from here. Just make sure they don't hear."

Evelina frowned at her for the second time. "Who are they?"

She found it both puzzling and interesting that Elliana didn't refer to Hymn Manor as "our" house. Instead, she'd kept on using the word 'they' and 'their', as if she didn't consider the house to be her home.

The steely quality from Elliana's eyes vanished as fast as it came, and she opened and closed her mouth, suddenly looking unsure, as if she was deliberating on whether to reply or not. But turning back and seeing that they had already reached the obsidian black double doors of the mansion, she turned her back abruptly on Evelina, lifted the knocker on the left door and rapped sharply on the door three times.

Evelina felt extremely quizzical and at a loss at Elliana's strange and peculiar behaviour, but she decided to pay it no attention and wait silently until the door opened, letting out a buzzing sound—like a bee. Then the two of the slipped inside the mansion.

The interior of the mansion was just as stately as the exterior of it, if not even more. As the sound of Elliana's heels clicked on the smooth marble floor, Evelina couldn't stop herself from staring at it all. A humongous chandelier hung from the high ceiling of the first floor, its candle glow reflecting on the floor and casting blurry shadows everywhere. The narrow hallway they were walking down was very well-lit, thanks to the multiple balefire torches lining the two sides of the path.

She was amazed at how silent it was. Only the sound of two pairs of footsteps rang through the air as they made their way down the hallway. A single door was waiting at the end, and Elliana pushed it open to let them into the great hall.

A royal stairway swept from one end of the great hall to the other end of it. The walls were lined with great portraits of Tam, Cyrilla, Linh, Dex, Myst, Hywel and even little Elliana and Erina. The photos were framed with gold and silver, glinting in the dim light of the great hall. And on the middle of the royal stairway, stood none other than Myst's mother, Cyrilla. The last time Evelina had seen her was during the Celestial Festival, and she still looked as stern as ever. She looked exactly like what a Councillor would look like, tall and regal, but there was a blizzard in her eyes, as if she was incapable of feeling any warmth. And those eyes now scanned Evelina from head to toe, making Evelina feel vastly uncomfortable, especially when she wrinkled her nose like Evelina had a bad smell to her.

Evelina instantly didn't like her one bit.

But nevertheless, she still had to curtsy to Cyrilla, and murmur a polite greeting, following what Elliana had did. She wanted to comment on their stately mansion to break the ice, but one look at Cyrilla's wintry face made her decide against it. Besides, she still hadn't forgotten Elliana's strange warning.

They don't like anyone commenting on their house. You're lucky they can't hear you from here. Just make sure they don't hear.

She assumed 'they' referred to Cyrilla. After all, she didn't seem like the friendly type.

"Elliana, your father is waiting in his study with his sister and her husband." Ignoring Evelina completely, Cyrilla turned her head to show that her eyes were only for Elliana. "And take Miss Sencen along with you, in accordance with his request."

Well, at least she acknowledged her presence—despite the fact that she was trying to make it a point that she didn't like her here. It was probably only because Tam had requested her to come that she was tolerating her. Evelina tried to keep a blank face, smothering down her annoyance at Cyrilla as Elliana nodded and said, "Yes, Mother." With another curtsy, she turned to Evelina, expressionless as she signalled for her to follow her lead.

Cyrilla turned to leave, and the two of them started up the stairs quickly. Evelina shivered a little, goose bumps prickling her skin as she realised it was much colder on the staircase. She wondered where the coldness had come from—she wished she had brought a thicker cape.

Elliana glanced sideways at her and saw her shivering. She offered Evelina an apologetic smile. "She's a Froster," she whispered, running her fingers across the pedestal of the staircase and drawing Evelina's attention to the little trails of frost that had appeared on the cold surface. "She likes making things as cold as her heart. But Father knows how to resist her, and secretly encourages me and Mystie to do the same."

"I see," said Evelina after a while, not really knowing how to answer to that. She had never heard Myst mention that her mother was a Froster at all. But now she knew when Myst had reminded her of her mother. It was the time when they had fought. She had been as cold as ice to Evelina then, and Evelina really had to try to get her heart to thaw. She couldn't imagine herself spending close to a lifetime in this sullen, stiff place. Even Sophie's past cold treatment to her hadn't been as bad as this. This was a never ending snowstorm, raging furiously, but so silent at the same time. Myst really was brave, not to succumb to that. Evelina now understood why she'd always stuck on stubbornly to her friends, and insisted that Evelina couldn't come over to her house.

And she didn't know Elliana—not at all—but she knew it really was a nightmare to her as well.

"You and Myst are really brave. Much braver than anyone else. Even my mum." She hesitated for a while, before adding, "You can come over whenever you feel like it."

Elliana turned away from the pedestal of the royal stairway, her lips drawn in a taut line—and Evelina wondered if she had gone too far. After what seemed like an eternity, Elliana finally opened her mouth to speak, and when she did, her voice hid a tremor. "I'm not sure whether I'm braver than Sophie Foster¸ or even my father or my aunt, but thank you. And I'm only ten—not even eligible to attend Foxfire yet. I can't go out of the house without my parents' permission, and my mother doesn't like your mother. Or your father, in that matter. But yes, I'll love to some time."

"How do you know so much about me?" Evelina asked, slightly perturbed as they climbed up another wind of stairs and walked down a hallway of doors.

"How?" Elliana forced a choked laugh, as if she couldn't believe what Evelina was asking. "You're the daughter of two fearless heroes who changed my father and my aunt's lives. You're smart, witty, brave, and thoughtful. You're Mystie's first friend in school. You're practically a star. Of course I know about you. I've always wanted to meet you, but I'm forced to act as cold and emotionless as my mum and thus I always leave a bad impression on strangers. And I daresay it's going to be the same with you."

Her voice had grown louder and louder as she let out her outburst, leaving Evelina stunned as she stared at her in shock. Elliana shook her head, muttering something incoherent under her breath. Then she pointed to the second last door in the hallway, avoiding Evelina's eyes as she said softly, "This is my father's study. He's waiting with you along with my aunt and my uncle-in-law. And…" her voice dropped to a complete whisper, "they're nicer than what my mother would ever be."

Evelina bit her lip, not sure what she should say to that. In the end, she just replied, "Okay…tell Myst I said hi."

"That's what she told me to say to you too." Elliana hesitated for a split second, an indistinguishable emotion flashing across her eyes before it winked out like a fire being put out. Without another word, she brushed past Evelina's shoulder and walked down the way they had come, leaving in her wake nothing but a speechless Evelina at the door of Tam's study.

Both of them had failed to notice the dark shadow, camouflaged against the black carpeted floor, listening intently and thoughtfully to their conversation before it slowly inched back through the gap between the bottom of the door and the floor.

Evelina stared at the walnut-coloured door with a golden doorknob, her mind remembering why she came here in the first place.

She was looking for the answers to more questions.

She held her breath as she knocked softly on the solid wooden door, trying to steel her nerves as the door swung open by itself, making her jump in shock. She stifled a shocked scream as she walked into the room, trying not to mind the four pair of blue eyes that had suddenly landed on her.

She was surprised to see that Elwin was one of them, and she blanched when she remembered that she had escaped the Healing Center without his permission to go to the museum. Her heart leapt in her throat as she tried to swallow her nerves down. This meeting was going to be more difficult and more awkward than she wanted it to be.

The four adult elves were sitting on two leathered sofas facing each other—Tam and Linh were sitting in one of the sofas together, while Elwin and Dex had taken the other. There was an empty space on the sofa next to Dex, and Evelina gratefully took the seat, lifting her skirts up slightly to sit. It felt more welcoming with Uncle Dex here. She didn't really talk to Lord Song or Lady Dizznee, and she'd always secretly felt intimidated by the presence of the two of them—especially when she thought about how they showed off their amazing talents during the Celestial Festival. Even she, the daughter of Sophie Foster, couldn't match up to them in any way. They were in a completely different league from her, and she didn't feel like challenging them—not that she was even up for a challenge.

"Uh," said Evelina, feeling like she should say something to break the tense, awkward silence that had stretched for a long time now, "hi. So…you called me here?"

She wanted to cringe at her maladroit words—but instead blinked rapidly, trying to look natural as she watched Tam's shadow stretch over everyone except her. Soon, they seemed to be immersed in a deep discussion that involved throwing secret sideway glances at Evelina and thinking that she didn't notice. Evelina began counting the seconds to distract herself, and squirmed uncomfortably in her seat as she tried to coax herself into being a quiet, docile girl, who would wait patiently until the adults were done.

But she knew very well that she was anything but cooperative, and so soon her curiosity got the better of her. She shot up from her seat abruptly, folding her arms across her chest and making Tam, Linh, Dex, and Elwin look up at her as she stretched out her consciousness and transmitted to each and every one of them, Please tell me why you've brought me here.

Tam sighed deeply, and opened his mouth to speak out loud. He said, "First things first, we should make the fact clear that this whole mess doesn't have anything to do with me. I'm just here because Linh, Dex, and Elwin needed to consult another person for advice on how to proceed when they heard what you'd done in the Forbidden Cities."

Evelina turned her questioning gaze to Dex, Elwin, and Linh. They looked immensely strained and apprehensive, like there was something big they were hiding from everybody. And that was when she suddenly remembered what she'd heard during the Celestial Festival.

". . . What about Ailill? Does he remember you?"

"You don't have to worry . . . he doesn't remember me, or Linh. Or Erina."

When she'd heard it at that time, she didn't understand what they were talking about at all. But now that she knew they were hiding something, she could tell that the big secret had something to do with Ailill.

And then she remembered the letter from Fitz, tucked inside the secret compartment of the breakup ring that he had given Sophie ages ago.

Dex and Linh have already done us a very great deed.

This must be the reason why. Dex and Linh must have done something related to Ailill for Sophie and Fitz, and now that everything was unraveled, their consciences were starting to bother them. So that was probably why they called her here all of a sudden. To talk to her about this deed.

"What did you do to Ailill?" she asked quietly, swinging her legs back and forth from the sofa, her heart starting to pick up speed as she gave them a long hard stare to purposely unnerve them. Her voice grew louder and louder by each word, and she had to take a deep breath to calm herself down. "What did you help Sophie and Fitz with?"

"I told you she was smart enough to figure things out on her own." Without even looking at him, Evelina could sense the smugness and a tinge of pride in Elwin's voice.

She gave him a small smile, and he returned it. It comforted her to have someone who believed in her here.

Linh shivered as she rubbed her upper arms gently, a curtain of jet-black hair shrouding the expression on her face. Evelina watched her carefully as she said, "It was a simple deed, in the real interest of helping them. But surely you can realise that helping them meant taking their side—and we very well know that they were wrong. However, we didn't do it for their sake. We did it for Ailill."

Silence.

Evelina frowned. "What do you mean, you did it for Ailill? I still don't see how he's linked to this." Her mind was spinning, the gears in her head whirling too fast for her to process her thoughts, and she placed a hand to her forehead, trying to get her mind to slow down.

This whole thing was a mess.

"That was around a decade ago." Dex exhaled a shaky breath, like he didn't find the past being able to reminisce at all. Evelina couldn't blame him. "At that time, Sophie and Keefe were already married for nine years straight, and you were three years old. They only had you after a long time. But I remember that Sophie always stayed at Crescent Path for quite a long time—and nobody had really seen her outside of her house before. She wasn't accepting outside visitors as well. It drew everyone's attention and became the main topic of gossipy discussion. But I recall that Elwin made frequent trips there and soon almost everybody knew something was up."

Elwin bit his lip nervously at the mention of his name—something Evelina had never seen him do before. "The truth was…Sophie was pregnant with a second child—whom you know as Ailill Vacker in the present. However, Keefe had actually thought that it was their child, and was very happy"—his voice cracked—"Sophie knew it wasn't his child, but Fitz's, and wanted not to tell him because he was so adorably excited, but I reminded her of what happened to Fitz when she had purposely kept secrets from him. So she relented and told him—thankfully, he didn't tell anybody. But he was always quite upset about it—although he tries to hide it."

Now Keefe's sarcastic remarks towards Ailill the previous day made even more sense than before.

"He was actually the one who thought of asking us for help, actually," agreed Linh, finally pushing the strands of her black-and-silver hair behind her ears to reveal her sad, wistful facial expression. "He told us about Sophie's predicament and even knelt down before me and Dex to beg us to agree. Even though he was so emotionally hurt by Sophie's actions, he still loves her so much that he would do anything for her. It was so heartbreaking to see him this way, so in the end, me and Dex agreed to help him. Thus Ailill Vacker's birth was a complete secret, unknown by the Council as he was born without a birth fund or registry pendant, and after he was born, he was hidden away in Slurps and Burps, disguised by the multiple appearance potions Dex had concocted."

"We seriously had no idea for how long we would keep Ailill in our house," Dex added as he looked at Evelina's shocked expression. "There was no way we could hide him forever. He's always sleeping in his own room, but sometimes Hywel and Erina would go and visit him—talk to him—which really scared us because the more contact with him, the more dangerous it is—"

"Wait." Evelina couldn't believe anything that she was hearing anymore. "You're saying Hywel knew about this? All this time, he knew and he didn't say anything?" Needless to say, she felt a little hurt and betrayed. Her head felt like someone had trampled on it a million times. Hywel had never shown any signs of knowing anything about this.

Linh and Dex exchanged a secret, worried glance at each other.

"Well…we're not exactly saying that he knew," said Linh slowly, like she was trying to find the right way to phrase her thoughts into appropriate complete sentences. "Sophie and Fitz had forced us to erase our children's memories of Ailill occasionally so that they won't suspect anything in the aftermath. And the same thing applied to Ailill as well. I really wish I could have stopped that from happening—and I wish I had approached Tam on this earlier—but what's done is done." She let out a deep, heavy sigh as she squeezed her eyes shut in something like stress and opened them again. This time, her pale silvery blue eyes were shining from her tears. "I can't live with what I've done—and I honestly don't know why we have all become…like this."

Evelina shook her head slowly, trying to absorb all the huge chunks of information that was sending her brain into overload mode. Inwardly, she was angry at all of the adults for deceiving them, putting them under an illusion of smoke and mirrors, and for erasing their memories as they destroyed their childhood.

But underneath it all, she actually somewhat understood why they had done it.

Sure, they had done it in reckless ways, but they had done it all for love.

Just that they didn't express it in the right way.

That was when she finally realised that the four adults had reverted back to staring at her, and she sighed for what might be the millionth time this day. They were waiting for her to say something, but she had completely no idea what they expected from her.

She wrung her hands together, staring at her tightly intertwined fingers before she mumbled, "So what do you all want me to do?"

Elwin, Tam, Dex, and Linh all traded looks with one another, and Evelina tried her best to stifle another sigh. She really had nothing to say to how they always seemed to exchange glances with each other before they decided to open their mouths and speak out their minds.

"So we've heard what you've done in the museum," Tam started, his voice sounding a little wary, as if he was treading on thin ice and he had to be careful of his every step. "Along with Fitz's family, and…that guy who still calls me Bangs Boy. And I just wanted to say, you did a good job. Just a few hours ago, Sophie and Fitz came to visit me and Linh for our advice—I have no inkling of why everyone seems to come to me for advice, but that's not the main point here. Sophie and Fitz told us everything that went on in the Forbidden Cities, and they told us that they were at their wit's end and didn't know what they should do next. They had conflicting feelings, they said. One part of them wanted to ignore your actions and continue being together…but another part of them wanted to stop hurting everyone around them and start anew."

"And you told them about Exillium," said Evelina carefully, not sure if that was a sensitive topic with the twins. Sophie's words sounded in her mind.

That's why I'm here now, trying to get back your permission to work for redemption. And that's the message that Exillium had taught me when I attended their school long time ago, when it was still a school for wayward elves and not a rehabilitation and cultural centre like it is now.

Linh flinched at the word 'Exillium', but nodded all the same. "Exillium had never been something that we favoured, but deep down inside our hearts we'd always known that it was trying to teach us something that we will never learn in the Lost Cities—redemption for the wrongs people have committed. And I was actually appalled that Sophie needed a reminder of that—because she was the one who actually guided the Coaches and the Waywards to see the real meaning of fighting for redemption. But seeing my dear friend so lost in the blinding oblivion of mistakes, I knew we needed to be the ones who remind her and Fitz of it. I'm glad that they are now on the right track to redemption."

"Payback and redemption are usually linked with each other," Tam added quietly, holding Evelina in his thoughtful stare. "When people who have made mistakes get their payback, they are usually compelled to work towards redemption. And we should support them in their journey towards the correction of their mistakes."

"We all have made mistakes before," agreed Elwin as he sat up straighter in his seat. "Like the saying goes, we're all human after all. Not in a literal sense, but that means that we make mistakes like humans do. There's this misconception that elves are perfect in everything that they do, and that's not true no matter how much we try to deny it. Look at how Orion Vacker and you contracted influenza—something only humans should have had. This proves that we are not as different from humans as we want them to be. We make wrong decisions in life, too."

"But, like one elf once said before, it takes a special someone to see darkness in a person and not condemn them," Dex sighed, running his fingers through his strawberry blond hair. "And that's what we should be. That special someone."

Evelina sucked in a sharp breath as the words 'special someone' resonated in her head. She remembered at that time, the night before the museum incident, when she knew deep down in her heart that she wanted to be a special person in Sophie's life, whom she could confide in and put her trust in. But how, how could she be that special someone if she kept on condemning her for everything that she'd done?

Sophie was in the wrong, she knew that. But everyone deserved another chance, and Evelina finally knew for sure that she was ready to love her mother a second time.

When she finally reached home from Hymn Manor, Sophie and Keefe were waiting for her at the dining table, which was already laden with bowls of steaming hot soup and scrumptious-looking food, making Evelina drool.

"Where were you?" Sophie inquired, looking up and giving her a questioning look.

"From the giddy emotions radiating off of you, it's probably that Vacker boy whom you visited this time," Keefe said dryly, rolling his eyes as he sipped a spoonful of soup peacefully.

Evelina laughed—for once he was wrong in his empathy interpretation. "No," she replied, shaking her head. "I went to visit Hymn Manor."

"Tam?" Sophie asked, the same time Keefe said, "Bangs Boy?"

They looked at each other and laughed loudly. Their sounds of happiness rang genuinely pleasant in Evelina's ears, and she couldn't help but join in with them.

"Yeah, along with Lady Dizznee, Uncle Dex, and Elwin," Evelina confirmed. "They're actually quite nice, you know. The Songs, I mean. Even Elliana, and especially Myst. Well, with the exception of Cyrilla, they're really great. Myst and Elliana might come over some time, to hang out with me, Terrentia, Hywel, and Gandalf. Hmmm, maybe Elmira even. Who knows?"

Sophie's face looked supremely shocked, to say the least. The fork in her hand slipped out of her grip and clashed onto the porcelain plate, causing a loud clattering sound of metal ringing against china. "Elmira?"

"It's awesome that you're trying to make friends with everybody," said Keefe calmly. "Maybe next time I could reintroduce you to Kristen. You know, Iorgo and Perona's daughter—one of the Empaths whom I teach."

Now it was Evelina's turn to roll her eyes. "We'll see about that. And of course I remember who she is. Photographic memory, remember?"

"Which you inherited from me," Keefe said proudly, tapping his head like he was a genius.

Sophie's face twisted into a scowl, but her voice was joking as she said, "Hey, don't forget, I have a photographic memory too. She probably inherited it from me, don't you think so, Evelina?"

Mother and daughter smiled at each other.

Evelina took one look at Keefe's mock-distraught face, and let out a laugh. "You can say that," she said, unable to keep her voice even.

She finally felt like she was a part of her family, like everything was all right. She finally felt like she was loved; she finally felt accepted by the person she'd always wanted to get close to. And with a smile on her face, she wished that it would stay like that for as long as it could.

A/N: Can you feel the end of this story drawing near...? ;)