Epilogue xxxxxxxx

It was a night with a lovely full moon at the end of spring and Lina was standing on her balcony, taking in the breeze which was perfumed with the flowers that had opened over the past few weeks. The events of the past year were going through her mind, and she smiled as she snuggled into Gourry's arms as he hugged her from behind. "Just think!" she said. "In another month it will be one whole year since we were at that cruddy little inn in Zephielia, where we had our misunderstanding and you left. Oh what a year this has been, but maybe it had to be that way to bring us to this time and place." "Has it been so long already?" he asked dreamily as he kissed her hair. "Doesn't seem like it I know." she replied.

But their year had been full enough. Sylphiel's wedding was a fairly simple affair by royal standards but the young couple couldn't have been happier. And of course Zel and Amilia did come to visit for that event. The wedding was timed to match with the midwinter festival, a great time of feasting and celebrating was had by all, and it was an affair where laughter was more common than speech it seemed, thought there was lots of that and of song and dance and, well, happiness in general. The year had also seen Lina and Naga start to work on the Tablets of Thoth, and, though they had a long way to go, the two minds working together, laughing together, even fighting together, had started to make some progress on understanding the mysteries of the magical device better. Of course Naga got her powers back, and so the great fight to finally settle it all between them was on, um, when they could find the time that is, somehow it hadn't happened yet...

Suddenly, Lina gave a start. "What's the matter?" asked a concerned Gourry. Lina didn't answer, instead she tipped her head back and kissed her husband. And as she did so she moved one of his hands down so Gourry could feel.

The baby was kicking!