"Rustyn…!" Sand repeated.
He knew his tears would spill in a few seconds, and that everybody would see them, but he couldn't care less.
Khelgar looked at him dumbfounded. Sand's features seemed to change in front of his eyes. His narrow eyes, with that constant shifty look, widened and in them he could see nothing but honest joy; the only smile that until then could be seen on his lips was a sarcastic, wry one. But now it was a shy, but happy one, he didn't seem to be ready to give out all his emotions at once. And were those really tears that glittered in his eyes?

Words from long ago echoed faintly in Rustyn's mind.
You truly are an abomination…
You MONSTER!
Then, suddenly, an even older memory of a voice emerged.
You're the most attentive student in the world, Rustyn.
Falmarin? Nymph?
You're my apprentice as of today…
The memory suddenly shattered into pieces, as the picture in front of her finally came into focus.

The other three members of The United Faiths, however, got an even bigger shock than Khelgar did a few seconds before. Rustyn's eyes widened, their lovely color shone, and it did not seem sinister as before; her perpetually evil smirk turned to a bright, full smile. Then she spoke, in a voice much higher, lighter and natural than her usual low, scary mutters and mumbles.
"Father!" she said "oh, sorry… I mean master!"

Sand threw the bouquet away, the fragile flowers fell apart as they collided violently with the Knight Captain's high throne.

Solemn silence filled the room as Sand and Rustyn embraced, as a few white petals fell around them. He cupped her face in his hands, barely seeing her through the veil of tears, but knowing it was her, the one he used to miss so much for the past 102 years, while she held on tightly to his shoulders, looking up with adoration at the man who first taught her how to use her arcane talents.
Falma skipped across the room to Jaral, who at first eyed her suspiciously, but a few moments later the two small pets were already happily playing, chasing each other.

Khelgar staggered back to the throne, but in the end simply leant against it. He had never seen Sand cry, especially like he did then, tears soaking his face. As for the other three adventurers, only the svirfneblin managed to whisper something after a few minutes.
"Whoa. I was sure she could cry only ice…"
Then, a million unanswered questions arose from everyone.

"He used to teach me when I was a little girl!" explained Rustyn, standing beside Sand.
Sand just stood silent, his fingers holding her hand so tight as if he'd never want to let her go.
"And no" the elven girl added, still smiling happily "he's not my father!"
Sand pulled her hand gently.
"Why, of course I'm coming! Didn't yet have a chance to take a better look at that library…"
Instead, Sand took Rustyn to his own room, ready to show her his own, personal collection of books.
To his surprise, Rustyn smiled and said she had already read almost all of them.
"Rustyn, where? Darromar, maybe? Here, on the Sword Coast? Where have you been? You're so real and so…" he felt a little awkward saying it, but in the end finished the sentence "so beautiful."
"Thank you… and, well…" she frowned "it's a long story."
"We have all the time in the world" he smiled, looking at the lovely woman his little wonder had became.
"Um… I…" she seemed nervous "please, master… maybe another time… is it alright?"
"Well… fine then" Sand scratched his head "oh, and remember this?"
He reached into his drawer and pulled out the medallion.

Until that moment, the single hour he had spent with Rustyn seemed to bring back the old days, when the two of them were so close, and Sand felt as if it was all a dream come true. But when he handed her the symbol of Mystra, the first cracks already began to show.

She reached out for it, but pulled back her hand with unexpected haste as she was just about to touch its silver surface.
"What's wrong?" asked Sand, somewhat disturbed.
"Nothing!" she blinked several times, a strange fear in her wide open eyes "can't we… take another look at your books instead?"
Sand decided to forget it, maybe the medallion of Mystra just brought back painful memories.
"Sure thing, here are the ones about magic practices…"
Rustyn finally found a tome unknown to her, and sat down to read at Sand's desk, smiling at the beautiful white flowers.
"Quiet, Falma!" she told her bunny as she kept on hopping around.
"Wasn't it Falmarin?" asked Sand, a little surprised "to name a rabbit wave is…"
"I found it more fitting, and easier" Rustyn didn't even look up.
Sand preferred to leave it, again.

"What… was that?" the other three adventurers still failed to figure out what had happened.
"Pinch me, am I asleep?" asked Jyissi the svirfneblin.
"Aye" was all Khelgar could say to pretty much any question "me needs time…"

A while later Sand and Rustyn happily walked into the hall hand in hand, and exited into the garden, seemingly not noticing anybody, sealed off in a world nobody but the two of them could understand.
As they walked past the Merchant Headquarters, the second unusual event took place. Volo, standing outside scribbling in his notebook, let out a terrified scream as soon as she saw Rustyn, and ran back inside to hide somewhere, even forgetting his papers and his quill.
"Why is he…?" Sand never liked Volo too much, but this seemed out of character for such a daredevil bard.
"Still afraid that I'd drown him, I guess" Rustyn said nonchalantly.
"Drown?"
"Sure, as that is Umberlee's wish. If he writes such ridiculous things again, that is…"
"Wait… but Rustyn! Umberlee…"
"She saved my life" she said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world "if she wanted to kill me, I'd be lying at the bottom of the ocean now, or something."
"But… sorry, I heard there were sharks…"
"No!" Rustyn tore her hand out of Sand's "no, please…"
"Oh… I see. I'm sorry."
Sand was sure it was the painful memory of being attacked by sharks.
If only you knew, thought Rustyn, as she shyly took his hand again.
The two found a bench, and sat in the sunshine, never letting each other's hand go, talking about philosophy, history, arcane spells… anything but Rustyn's past. She always changed topics, if Sand would ask any questions.
"Rustyn!" Arlian, the ranger, walked up to them just when they were engaged in a mild debate about sealing glyphs "we are departing again…"
"And…?" she blinked at him.
"Well, we need a magic user… I suppose…"
"Go" she said "maybe I'll be joining you later…"
"Um, fine…"
"I told you she sure needs some time with her friend" Kelly, the priestess said to Arlian "I agree we need a magic user, but…"
Only Sand noticed how Rustyn's stare darkened for a split second. He could also swear he felt a whiff of icy cold wind. A moment later it was gone, though, and Rustyn picked up the thread of the conversation again.

Night came before they noticed.
"Aaaaaaah!" Volo, who dared to walk out again, immediately panicked and rushed inside as Sand and Rustyn approached the Merchant Headquarters.
"Oh, poor boy…" she grinned evilly, somehow Sand did not like it at all "guess I'm going right after him now…"
"Rustyn, but…"
"But what? I have my room here, at the Merchant Headquarters."
"Rustyn…" Sand pulled her close "please, come to sleep with me… or maybe we could continue, and we'll have time to discuss everything all night long… and remember that time, when you were so tired?"
Yes, of course Rustyn remembered it. When she fell asleep as she was reading a book with Sand, both of them in his large bed. He had woken her up with a fatherly kiss the following morning…
"I won't, Sand."
It was the first time she had called him by his name, not teacher, master, or even – Gods! – father.
He pulled back and looked at her. As he slid his hands down her arms when she let him go as well, and his hands came to rest on her hips, he realized why.
Oh, I was so blind.
Sand smiled at the beautiful, mature woman the child he once knew had became, and gave her a kiss on the forehead.
"Goodnight."
Sand, his heart flying, literally ran up the steep slope to the door of the fortress itself, then across the throne room and back to his own study, where he threw himself on the bed. He was sure he wasn't going to sleep that night, afraid that he would wake up and Rustyn would slip away from him again.
Never again.

Rustyn retreated to her room (of course waving to Volo on her way, just to chuckle when he went as white as a sheet), Falma happily hopping after her.

Once inside, she turned the key and leant against the door, sighing deeply. She knew she would have to tell her past to Sand one day, but at least for a while she wished to hold on to this beautiful illusion, this impossible dream that someone actually cared for her. She firmly knew nobody did, and was sure even Sand would immediately leave her if he ever found out. Not that she kept it a secret, she even told that stupid goody-goody priestess when she called her a monster; but those three fools didn't take her seriously.

She took an old, slightly tattered tome out of her magic bag – the only book she always kept close.
Fall of House Lae'raien, it said in golden letters.
The tragic history of one of the most famous elven families of Evermeet, written a few years after the vicious murder that left the whole society of the kingdom shocked.
Rustyn found the book by accident, when the waves obediently carried her some artifacts from a ship that had sunk near her small island. She already knew she had some strange power over the sea waters, but never actually realized why.
She pulled on her light blue nightdress adorned with Umberlee's symbol, and slipped under the covers.
Tiny ice crystals fell from her eyes as she re-read the most crucial passages again and again.

I am a monster.