A/N: Reuploaded as the last upload had some funky text going on. Thank you for letting me know in the reviews. :)
Chapter Three
It felt like being dropped in a pool of ice-cold water, every nerve fired at once. The way she said his name, the same way he'd heard it a thousand times before but didn't think he'd ever hear again. The book nestled in his arm suddenly felt heavy.
She was actually here, standing in the centre of the library- wearing her leather, her boots, and her dark green cape with mud clinging to the bottom.
"Fallon," that was a shape his tongue had not taken in quite some time.
Energy filled the silent air between them. It felt like minutes before Gale snapped back to his senses. He shook his head, snapped the book shut and gave her lop-sided smile.
"It's good to see you Fallon," he smiled down at her and placed the tome on the table.
He approached her and held out his arms for an embrace. It wasn't until she embraced him back that he realised how long it had been since he'd had physical contact with another person. The warmth of her body sent an ache through his. He felt himself melting against her– despite his mind begging him to compose himself. He squeezed her a little tighter before finally forcing himself to let go. Damnit to Hells, I need to get out more.
When they pulled back, he felt his frame stiffen, as though he was standing on a stage at the circus with hundreds of people looking at him.
"Tea! I'll make us some tea!" the wizard snapped his fingers and hurried away, breaking from Fallon's eyes. Had she said anything? He realised the blood was pumping so loudly in his ears he wasn't sure if she'd actually been talking. Was that a long hug? Was it too… eager? He fumbled with a kettle and conjured a small flame. A hand gripped his shoulder, electricity shot through him.
"Gale" her voice was gentle. He turned to see a worried look on Fallon's face. It was a look he'd become all too familiar with on their adventure. Her eyebrows would knit together over her pleading eyes while her mouth hung open ever so slightly– he'd seen this look for the first time the night they met, he was describing ceremorphosis to her.
She took a deep breath and dropped her hand, she looked away, not at anything in particular.
"I'm sorry to drop in like this," she looked back at him and shook her head, "I… I wasn't prepared…" she nibbled her bottom lip, "Tea is a good idea."
Gale's hands hung frozen in mid-air, as though awaiting command. He autonomously began preparing the tea. Yet his chest ached, like something swirled within it. It was comparable to the orb- less intense but somehow more painful. As he prepared the cups and the kettle he glanced at Fallon as she stood by the window pinching the bridge of her nose– another one of her giveaways, she was terribly bothered. What is she not prepared for? He focused on the feeling in his chest, like his body remembered something that he didn't.
The desire was familiar, an ache to consume and be consumed by her. The excitement– the novelty of an unexpected appearance. Sadness fused these emotions together– to know there was an ending to it all. She had left once before and she will leave him once again. But deep in the cracks he felt it– fury. Like hot lava seeping through the stone, consuming slowly but defiantly.
What is she not prepared for?
He placed the cups on the tray with the kettle. Every step he took towards her caused the ache in his chest to throb. When he placed the tray down and poured out the tea, a realisation struck him. Suddenly the swirling of emotions halted and icy coldness began to form in his chest. He calmly poured out the tea and placed a cup in front of Fallon. She didn't meet his gaze.
"You didn't know I was here, did you?" he said. Fallon shook her head slowly, the ice stung when she did.
"So if you're not here to see me," he poured the tea out into his own cup, "then why are you here?" Silence hung in the air, Gale could feel the tension tightening with each second. The anger swelled.
"Why are you in Lorroaken's tower?" she said quietly, still not looking at him.
"No!" he snapped. He took a deep breath to compose himself.
"You're going to sit down, drink your tea, and answer my questions. You owe me that much." he said coldly. Fallon slid into the seat and wrapped her hands in each other– he'd never seen her like this. Compliant and nervous. He had watched this woman face against commendable foes and beat unbeatable odds. Now she looked… pathetic almost.
"Who were you expecting to meet here in the library? And why?" He stood at the table, his fingertips touching the wood. He looked down at the crown of her head.
"Nine-Fingers told me to come here, I had no idea who I was meeting. I knew it couldn't be Lorroaken, but I thought you were in Waterdeep." He hated when she did that– answered without answering. No, he loved it actually– loved it when he got to watch her run laps around their enemies, confusing them, giving them the illusion that they controlled the conversation, but he hated it when she did this to him.
"Please speak plainly, Fallon," he said exasperated.
"I am speaking as plainly as I can," she looked up at him. Her forest green eyes were glassy and veiny. He realised that she was as much an emotional wreck as he was– the ice cracked a little.
"This is why I'm here. This is why I came back," she rummaged in her hip bag and handed him a letter. He skimmed over it. He read it five times, each time noticing something new. But certain words stood out The Dead Three… I urge you… only I know where you are.
"Who sent you this?" he turned the crinkled paper over in his hands.
"I don't know, Nine-Fingers seemed to think it was you."
"I assure you, it wasn't me," he handed the letter back to her, "I hadn't the faintest idea of where you were all this time."
"No one did. I didn't want to be found." Her face went taunt. Gale thought he'd seen fear in her eyes before. He sat down and reached for his cup, staring at the steam swirling from it.
"Why did you leave so suddenly?" He asked. Fallon stirred the spoon in her tea mindlessly, entranced by the motion.
"I realised what I'd done, and who I did it to," she spooned out some tea, then let it drip back into the cup, "I angered a lot of powerful people, Gale. We all did."
"Exactly, we. We could have faced it together. Whoever or whatever came after us."
"You don't understand. I killed Orin, I pissed off Raphael. I dethroned the Chosen of the Dead Three. And I couldn't save Orpheus." She finally looked up at him with wild eyes.
"People will want revenge. I wasn't afraid of them, until I realised… who they could hurt."
"So you valiantly ran away and left us to protect ourselves? How is that a solution, Fallon?"
"Because if I wasn't here to witness your death… then it wouldn't be satisfying for them. If I'm gone, you can't be used against me. You get it? If a dear friend is murdered and I'm not around to hear their screams, then it takes the fun out of it. I know how these monsters think."
She wasn't wrong. While they all played a role and made their own enemies– Fallon was the leader. She made the decisions, she led the group, and she created the plans that led them to victory. When they'd met, Gale couldn't imagine following anyone else– Fallon was the one with the instinct. Being their leader drew her a lot of scorn.
"The only reason I came back is because the letter mentioned my allies. While they don't say it as much, I took it as a threat. They know where you all are and they certainly knew where I was. I didn't really have much choice."
Gale lifted his cup and took a hesitant sip. What a day it had been. Seeing Fallon again sent him reeling into the past, thinking about memories he swore to forget.
A map was sprawled out on the ground, all of them stood in a circle around it, watching the ranger analyse it.
"There's the coast, these are the ruins we found the map in, we walked west which puts our camp somewhere here," she motioned to a spot on the map. To Gale, the map was useless, it didn't show any landmarks except a marking of the ruins the treasure hunters were looking for. No towns or cities– just rivers and forests.
"This river here is our best bet, if there's a town nearby, it'll be near it."
She was right. They followed the river, saw a group being chased by goblins. When they followed, they found refuge in the Grove. She had been so self-assured, unafraid and determined. Despite the crash and the tadpole, she kept moving. She was the reason any of them were alive, her tenacity and inability to let go. And it shined again and again. Whenever Gale felt certain that they'd reached their limit, she proved otherwise. When he accepted the instructions Mystra had given him, she assured him there were still options. No– she ordered him to ignore Mystra's wishes. The relief he had felt that day was unsurpassable– to know someone cared enough.
"Gale?" her voice brought him back.
"I want to apologise. I know I hurt you by leaving without an explanation. I want you to know that it wasn't anything you did, it was me. I am to blame for my own cowardice. I just… I know nothing I can say will undo the hurt I've caused you and I know my word means nothing to you right now… but I'll stay this time, I won't run away. No matter what comes for me." she held his gaze with her narrowed eyes– he saw a glimmer of her old conviction. He couldn't help the smile that formed on his lips– despite the sadness and anger. It seemed no matter how much his mind hated her, his heart couldn't.
"I thought about our reunion many times. I thought about what I'd say to you. Scenarios played out in my mind, over and over. In some of them I screamed at you, in some I banished you, and in some I kissed you…" he sighed deeply, "you've made me feel many things Fallon… conflicting… irritatingly… hypocritical feelings. I'm not even sure Mystra achieved that and we both know what a number she did to me."
All those conversations he had imagined played out in his head, all the thousands of words he had recited and all the emotions that came with them, passed through him once more. And yet none of them felt right in the moment. He hated how reality was always so complicated.
"I've abandoned once before, completely and utterly abandoned. And just as I was healing from that… just when I thought I had found home, I was abandoned again. To be abandoned once made me think destiny must have a morbid sense of humour… the second time however, made me question myself. My very being."
Fallon didn't interrupt, but he noticed the pools forming in the corners of her eyes. She gave him rapt attention, always did when he spoke. He wanted to say more, to tell her about the anger, the emptiness, the self-hatred. But it all seemed unimportant now. She was back, and he realised now how badly he wanted that all along. Even if she never spoke to him again, he needed to know she was alive, because he was still alive.
"I forgive you.. I think…" he pondered for a moment. His heart lurched whenever he glanced at her subdued eyes– the greying afternoon sun that poured on her, somehow, made them look brighter.
"I forgive you."
"You don't have to."
He smiled, "Oh but I do. It's hardly a choice."
"Thank you, Gale," she said.
A bell tolled in the distance. Thick, bruised clouds gathered outside the window– threatening an evening storm. Fallon wiped her eyes with her sleeve.
"I should get back to Elfsong, before this storm hits." Fallon rose to her feet, she looked down briefly at the full, cold tea, "Thanks for the tea," she smiled.
"You could stay– The night I mean. The tower has space enough," he punished himself internally for how eager he sounded.
"Thank you, but I promised Alfira and Lakrissa that I'd join them this evening. You should come. I'm sure they'd love to see you."
"I can't tell you how enticing that sounds right now. It's been a long, terribly long time since I've properly socialised," he sighed and led her to the portal, "but nobody knows I'm in Baldur's Gate, except Rolan, Tara and now you… and Nine-Fingers apparently."
Fallon cocked an eyebrow.
"And I'd like to keep it that way, just for a little while," he put his hands on each of her shoulders and squeezed, "but please come back in the morning. I'll explain everything, I promise. Oh, and we'll get to the bottom of your little mystery letter". He winked instinctively.
She had that look on her face, the look when the cogs were spinning behind her eyes. She was processing everything he was saying. She always had the uncanny ability to hear what he didn't tell her, to read between the lines.
"Ok, I'll come tomorrow," she leaned up and kissed his cheek, "I hope you remember how I like my coffee?" she said as she approached the crackling portal.
"As black as the soul of a Dark Justiciar," Gale replied. Fallon's face blossomed into a smile. As she disappeared into the portal, Gale could still feel the heat of her lips on his cheek.