Author note: Aaaaaaand here comes the final chapter of this trilogy! This is it, folks! This is the end! I thank from the bottom of my heart all of you who followed me, Meg and the guys all the way to here. I hope you enjoyed the story and…
Edwin *snorts*: Of course they enjoyed the story, I was in it! (How could anyone not like a story with the great Edwin Odesseiron in it? Foolish woman)
…Whatever you say, Edwin dear. Anyway, as I was about to say, you can see the portraits I created for Elvanshalee, Simimar and Lyanna in this chapter on Ao3.
Special mention goes to Nikoru Sanzo and Zhenta: thank you so much for having given me your support since the start of this journey, if I got this far I owe it to you too!
Many many thanks also to LadyFromFaerun, Blinck22, Late to the Party, Auriene, Kaisa Del'Armago, SarevokDothrakiDovahkiin, Dark Angels and Light Angels, Zireael07, anon4132, My Attict, bigwoof, Aydeen, sherndon86. You are all amazing! ^ᴥ^
oxoxoxoxoxo
Eight years later
The indomitable paladin struck again at the enemy, while the incredibly powerful archmage at her side weakened its defenses with his spells and his werewolf familiar tore at it with its paws and fangs. "Now!", the archmage shouted, taking down the last protective barrier surrounding their foe, "I have taken all of his defenses down, strike it now!". She struck a heroic pose, raising her holy sword, "Prepare to die, you baffos...Bussefus...", she frowned and turned to her companion, "Heya, what was that word again?". The archmage scrunched his face in thought, "Uhm...Buffoon?", he guessed. "No, it was longer". He suddenly brightened, "Oh, I got it! It's bufflehead!".
His comrade rolled her grey-blue eyes, "Kals, I'm a paladin, I can't call evil monsters buffleheads". He pursed his lips, "But aunt Imoen does it all the time and nobody complains about it", he noted. "Yeah, but she's a mage, so it's different for her", the girl pointed out, "It's just not paladinish at all to call evil monsters that". He threw his hands up in exasperation, "Oh, come on, Molly! I don't think Helm would smite you if you did!". "It's a matter of principle", she stated, planting her hands on her hips in a very Jaheira-like manner. Her companion sighed, "All right, all right. Hey, we can ask daddy: he's a knight, he must know".
"Good idea!", she smiled at him and then turned to their mortal foe, pointing her sword threateningly at it, "Your end will come soon, foul beast: I'll be right back and you'll feel the Boot of Justice on your backside!", she promised, then she ran inside the house with the archmage and the werewolf. The monster didn't even dare to draw breath, maybe because it was frozen with terror, but more probably because it was just a harmless bush.
"Daddyyyyyyyy!", the archmage called as he entered the living room, going straight to a dark-haired man who turned with a warm smile. "Yes, Khalid?". "Molly doesn't remember the word you use for evil monsters! I told her it's bufflehead, but she says it's not that". "Of course it's not that!", the female paladin replied with a huff, "It was something like bussefus and besides, no paladin would ever call an evil monster a bufflehead, right, daddy?", she added, turning to the man as the werewolf nudged the man's leg with a paw, letting out a soft whine.
Anomen Delryn chuckled softly as he regarded his six-year-old twin children with pride and love: Khalid, the boy, had the same chocolate-brown hair as his father and his mother's emerald green eyes and his dream was to become an amazingly powerful archmage like his aunt Immy and his uncle Edwin; Moirala, the girl, had her mother's blond curls and her father's grey-blue eyes and wanted to become a great brave knight like her dad. Of course, both children were determined to travel together when they would be old enough to take the road, as they wanted to form a band of heroic adventurers just like their parents had done.
"Well, sometimes your aunt Imoen has called evil monsters that, but I think the word you're looking for is 'blasphemous', my darling children", Anomen said, amused, as he leaned down to stroke their dog's head with affection and it barked happily and nuzzled his hand, wagging its tail. "Oh. Blafs…Blaffomus? Blassefuf…", his daughter tried, forehead creased in concentration, "It's difficult!", she then exclaimed, pouting. Her brother snickered, "Maybe you should stick to bufflehead, Molly, it's easier", he teased her and she poked her tongue out at him, but then joined his laugh. "It would surely be funnier", she agreed.
"What mischief are you two up to now?", Meg asked as she entered the room, an amused smile on her lips. "Mommy!", Khalid rushed to hug her, Moirala immediately following suit, "We're playing heroes! Molly is a paladin, I'm a great mage and Cookie is my werewolf familiar!", he said and their dog barked proudly in agreement. "A werewolf familiar, wow! You're even better than uncle Edwin then, he doesn't have such a cool familiar yet", the Ilmatari chuckled, ruffling her children's soft hair, "Now wash your hands, dinner is almost ready". "Okay!". The twins hurried to the bathroom as their father walked up to his wife and wrapped his strong arms around her. "They're so smart", he murmured, kissing her temple, "They've taken after you, my love".
"And here I was about to say they've taken after you, honey", she replied, pecking him on the tip of his nose with a giggle, "They're a blessing". "They are. And you are", he cupped her face in his hands and captured her lips in a tender, deep kiss that took her breath away, "I love you". "I love you too. I'm so glad you were at the Copper Coronet that day". "That makes two of us, my lady", he closed his eyes and buried his face in her golden curls, floating on a cloud of happiness. They had faced many trials since their first meeting, suffered and struggled against strong terrifying enemies and their own darkness but now, finally, Anomen Delryn and his wife Margaret Dawn could enjoy the rest of their lives together.
oxoxoxoxoxo
Minsc and Boo finally got back to their beloved ladies in Rashemen and a double marriage was celebrated. Minsc was admitted into the Ice Dragon Lodge as he had dreamed of for years, while his wife Tabatha became the High Priestess of the House of Bhalla. They had two sons, Piotr (the eldest) and Ivan (four years younger than his brother). Piotr chose to follow in his father's footsteps and became a ranger with his own hamster companion Raph, while Ivan had inherited his mother's gift for healing and became a cleric of Chauntea. Boo and Mimi had a litter of seven puppies, four males (Mikey, Donnie, Leo and Raph, the latter becoming Piotr's animal companion) and three females (Luna, Susy and Mina), each one of them becoming the faithful animal companion of a ranger and starting a tradition that spread first to the entirety of Rashemen and then to other nations as well.
Thanks to the astounding level of power he had reached and the magical prowess he had displayed during his time as a member of Meg's party, Edwin quickly rose in rank among the Red Wizards as soon as he got home, going from being a simple Alakir to becoming one of the Voskirs of Conjuration, directly under the command of the Zulkir Nevron himself. His father, Aker Odesseiron, younger brother of Homen Odesseiron and one of the Voskirs of Abjuration, was more than pleased with his accomplishments, to the point that he allowed his son to choose his own bride instead of arranging a combined marriage. One day, while Edwin was at the market to supervise a trade of magical items for his family, he bumped into his soulmate: a half-Drow wizardess by the name of Elvanshalee, Evey for short, who had long wavy russet hair, lovely violet eyes and light grey skin betraying her mixed heritage (her father was a Drow smith who had fled the Underdark several centuries prior, her mother a Sun Elf priestess of Hanali Celanil). They were engaged for two years before getting married in the biggest ceremony Thay had seen in the last decade and a year into their marriage, they became the proud parents of a daughter, Ishtar, who grew up to be a powerful wizardess and three years later they had two twin sons, Ashur and Nasir, the former becoming the most capable assassin Thay had seen in centuries, the latter becoming an amazingly talented and powerful wizard like his father.
Sarevok and Yoshimo searched for Tamoko, knowing that she was still alive and wanting to restore their bond with her as respectively her lover and younger brother. They found her in a small village not far from Naskel and since she had built herself a new life as the assistant of a smith there, both men decided to stay as well and open a weapon shop. Sarevok earned himself Tamoko's forgiveness, they got married seven months after their reunion and a year and a half later, she gave birth to their son Loki, their pride and joy, a boy quick both in mind and body who became an astoundingly good swordsman and smith.
Yoshimo, for his part, fell in love with a red-haired half-elven lass named Lyanna who came into the smithy one day to have her damaged katana repaired. With her quick wit, her enchanting copper colored eyes, her beautiful smile and her kind heart, Lyanna stole the former bounty-hunter's heart while losing her own to him in return. Their wedding was celebrated in a warm spring afternoon and was blessed by the birth, in the following years, of three children: first the twin boys Shisui and Gaara and two years later, the little princess of the family Mikoto. Shisui, who had inherited his father's black hair and eyes and sharp wit, became a kensai; Gaara, an adorable redhead like his mother, chose to be a historian and Mikoto, who had a delicate face like her mother but had her father's black hair and eyes, became the new owner of the local tavern, which meant free drinks for her brothers whenever they stopped by.
Jaheira remained by Meg's and Anomen's side, helping them balance the joy/duty to raise their children with their role as respectively a Revered Mother at the local temple of Ilmater in the Slums and as a knight instructor at the Order's Headquarters. She took a few missions for the Harpers from time to time, but mostly enjoyed her new life as a grandmother, knowing that Khalid always watched over her until the day when they would finally be together again in Arvanaith.
Imoen, well, Imoen remained the mischievous troublemaker she'd always been from day one. With Cespenar as both her butler and her familiar, she became one of the most renowned archmages of Toril. She chose to live in a small estate outside Athkatla, painting the outer walls bright pink, putting a shield with a capital 'I' above the entrance and adding a tower to the building because "every cool archmage residence must have a tower!". Despite what everyone thought, even she eventually decided to settle down after her path crossed once more that of brother Cyrus of the Order of the Golden Cup. The Ilmatari knight had not forgotten the pink-haired beauty whom he had met in the Underdark many years prior and she had never truly forgotten the handsome curly-haired knight who had helped her and the others defeat a Balor and an entire lair of Mind-Flayers. Even with their differences, they were a perfect match, balancing out each other's characters. They got married and had a daughter, Maureen, who inherited her mother's impish disposition and her father's selflessness and who became a doctor.
Aerie moved to Rashemen as she had promised, but after five years, she felt the need to see the elven lands again. She first went back to her home in Faenya-dail, reuniting with her parents and living there with them until the day came when they passed away. Then, feeling that she had no ties left to her native land, she travelled to Suldanesselar, but her plans to only stop there for a couple of months were cancelled when she bumped into a talented young sorcerer who had once been Irenicus' pupil, a blue-eyed dark-haired man named Simimar. It was love at first sight and the more they got to know each other, the deeper they fell in love, until eventually he proposed to her under the moonlit sky. She of course accepted and a decade into their marriage, they had a daughter, Niameh, who had beautiful white wings with tips of a pale blue color and who grew up to be a sorceress like her father but also a priestess of Baervan Wildwanderer like her mother.
And this is where the story of the Bhaalspawn Margaret Dawn and her faithful companions ends, in happiness and love, like in all the best fairytales.
THE END