Broken Wings
N.W. 41
Loss of a Lover

It was time.

Lloyd could feel it in his wings, odd as that sounded. But really, to so closely entwine himself to Lilia, to allow the mana connection between them to strengthen... Perhaps it wasn't so strong as between an elven couple, but the connection was there, Lloyd's angelic mana bridging the gap that Lilia simply couldn't.

It was flickering, now, even as Lloyd shot up into the air, away from a conflict that could have ended very badly had he not stepped in to clear things up.

That connection had been growing weaker and weaker as Lilia did. A part of Lloyd wondered if maybe it had been a bad idea to forge it, only for the greater part to deny it.

And now... now, it was on the verge of breaking.

Lilia was out of time. And even flying at top speed through the higher parts of the atmosphere, easily outstripping any of the other angels, and putting even the rheairds to shame, he was barely going to make it in time.

He wanted to be there when she died. She'd been through so much, and pulled him through when all he'd wanted to do was give up. She'd been willing to do the very same thing he'd have been willing to go through with Colette, and stayed by his side even as she aged and he remained frozen...

He owed it to her to stay by her side, now.

What would have been an eight-hour trip by rheaird was cut down to a six-hour flight, and Lloyd dropped out of the sky in a dive aimed straight for the center of Iselia.

Somehow, fifty years free of Desian activity had turned the little farming town into a city that was now larger than Triet.

Not that Triet had been all that large to begin with. Still, increased traffic had done wonders for Iselia... And still no one said anything about him and Lilia.

Well. Nothing negative, at least.

Paul was waiting for him when he reached the house, his adoptive son's eyes downcast.

"Elise?"

"Pulling through. She's nothing if not a fighter," Paul replied. "But Mom..."

"I know."

A sigh, and Paul shifted. "I need to go get the kids, make sure they've got their homework... Are you going to...?"

Lloyd nodded. "I'm going to go sit with her. Are they handling it alright?"

"As well as preteens handle anything they don't want to hear," Paul said. "I'll be back in a little bit."

Another nod, and Lloyd shifted, opening the door and stepping in. Lilia was asleep. Not gone, not just yet, but she was sleeping, and he wasn't going to interrupt her rest right now.

Paul's kids would probably do that soon enough, anyway...

So he settled into a chair next to her bed and pulled out a piece of wood he'd been carving, humming to himself as he worked. He'd only been at it for a few minutes before Lilia shifted, though.

"...Lloyd?"

He stopped, laid the carving on the table next to her water glass, and reached out, one hand wrapping around hers. "I told you I wanted to be here for the end."

Lilia's blue eyes, faded with age, were still just as warm with love as they'd been decades ago when he'd first started to see her as more than a friend. "I know. I'm glad you haven't been around for most of this, though."

He shifted, ever gentle with his touches. "A part of me wishes I had been, but..."

"You know it's easier this way. We both do."

Lloyd was crying, even as he smiled. "I know."

"Paul?"

"Went to get the kids from school."

"Mm..."

Lilia didn't say it, but she didn't have to. Lloyd could feel it.

They weren't going to get here before she was gone.

"I love you, Lloyd Irving. Don't you dare linger over my grave, you hear me?"

He couldn't help the laughter, his hand cupping her cheek. "I love you, Lilia. I promise I won't linger... But I won't forget, either."

She seemed amused, even as her eyes closed again. Lloyd traced the wrinkles on her face, every laugh line speaking of decades of happiness, and waited...

The door was just opening when he felt the weak mana tie break, and though Lloyd still couldn't keep all four of the kids' names straight, he was just as grateful to them as he had been to Paul and Lilia all those years ago when they crowded in around him and held on tight while he let the tears flow freely.