After spending the remainder of the day after Henrietta left relaxing as much as possible, and having a restful night's sleep, the girls awoke and began gathering their things for the journey to Tarbes. During this task, however, Siesta noticed some things missing from her usual repertoire.
"Louise," Siesta began to ask, causing Louise to turn to her as she was buttoning her shirt up. "Do you know where Derflinger is? Or my staff?"
"I don't know… I didn't check you over when you came home, I was too distracted by you just being here," Louise answered plainly. Siesta, while touched, could not reciprocate affection at the moment as her thoughts were consumed by the missing items. Without another word she turned to leave the room. "Wait where are you-?" Before Louise could finish, the door had already opened and shut. Louise could not help but to feel a prick of both rejection and irritation at this.
Siesta, meanwhile, had stepped out into the academy grounds and scanned for Tif'narak, who was napping under the usual tree she had almost seemed to take residence under. As she approached, Tif'narak stirred and her eyes slowly opened. She owl-blinked a few times, stretched, and yawned before turning to Siesta.
"Sorry, I fell asleep," Tif'narak chuckled sheepishly.
"Hey, do you know where Derflinger and my staff are?" Siesta asked, ignoring what the groggy elf said. At the mention of those items, Tif'narak looked even more sheepish and began to turn red with embarrassment.
"Well… You see…" Tif'narak began, unable to keep eye contact with the now-irritated Siesta.
"'You see' what?" Siesta interrogated, placing her fists on her hips as she did.
"I forgot!" Tif'narak shamefully exclaimed. "Sorry, I left in a bit of a hurry and kind of… forgot, hehe." Siesta was growling with irritation at this, and as she was, she happened to be joined by her wife.
"What's going on?" Louise asked, confused.
"She left Derflinger at home!" Siesta exclaimed, thrusting a finger at the clearly embarrassed elf.
"It was an accident! I swear!"
"Really? How do you forget a talking sword?" Louise asked, incredulously. Her words cut Siesta deeper than she knew as Siesta remembered a certain incident in the forest of Albion.
Louise sighed as she handed Siesta the golden metal bracer that Karax, a Protoss phase-smith, had given her. Siesta made a small frown as she put it on, as her nostalgia for her old gauntlet still clouded her appreciation for the objectively superior bracer that now adorned her wrist. It sat very comfortably upon her, but felt… heavy, due to the lack of her Gandalfr powers not immediately flooding her mind with expert abilities and techniques associated with it.
Deciding she needed to test to see if she still could, she closed her eyes and attempted to summon her own psionic power into the bracer, just as she did when she trained with the training version of this. She was relieved, and delighted, that she did not have to exert much effort before the blade manifested by way of bursting forth from the bracer over the top of her wrist. A solid, blue, pointed, humming light that could cut through almost anything. Satisfied, she deactivated it, and turned to Louise, smiling.
The girls and a profusely apologetic elf were now ready to depart; they were stopped by two familiar figures.
"Where do you think you're going, brat? And with that… thing?!" a scowling woman in thin glasses that did not fully cover her amber eyes and a head full of waist-length wavy hair that matched Louise's in all but color (hers being a brilliant golden) demanded. She was flanked by a slightly shorter woman with similar hair, though pink like Louise's, with eyes to match, and a countenance that looked more soft and concerned. That woman's feet were orbited by three tiny, fluffy, white dogs furiously wagging their tails at the sight of people. Unknown to everyone else: Tif'narak gave the slightest wince and disappointed sigh at the way she was addressed, choosing to face away from the rest of them as they talked.
"Eleonore. Chii." Louise addressed them with concern and a look that matched. Eleonore, still scowling, reached out to give her little sister the usual vice-grip pinch upon her cheek, only being stopped by Siesta, who scowled back at her. Eleonore looked shocked for a second before huffing and yanking her arm away.
"Well look who came crawling back," Eleonore sneered, referring to Siesta. Louise could feel violent anger bubbling up within her as she clenched her fists, calmed, however, when Siesta lightly took one of her hands.
"Nice to see you too, Eleonore," Siesta said in a sarcastic tone she did not care to hide from the woman who had always looked down on her and Louise's relationship.
"Siesta…" the voice of the one Louise identified as "Chii" said as she joined the group's conversation. Without another word, she stepped forward and took Siesta into a gentle embrace. "Thank the founder… We all thought we'd lost you."
"It's good to see you again, Cattelya," Siesta greeted with genuine warmth to the woman who had always shown great support for her and Louise.
Eleonore continued to stare disapprovingly at the former maid hugging her middle sister as the dogs circling Cattelya had now ran past the four women to the towering elf that was keeping her back to them all. Cattelya was the only one to notice, initially raising her brows ever so slightly, then giving a warm, amused smile when she saw the elf crouch down and, with great trepidation, take off one of her leather gloves and put her hand out for each of the dogs to sniff, in turn.
She must be a good person, Cattelya thought to herself. She would admit, the sight of an elf had made her as anxious as any of the other humans who had bore witness to her visage, but having seen this, and knowing her dogs were great judges of deeper character, she turned her attention to her sister and new sister-in-law with no more worry or prejudice clouding her heart.
"Now that you're finally up and out of bed, will you finally come home?" Eleonore interrogated. Louise, keeping her scowling face trained on Eleonore, shook her head in defiance.
"Maybe you weren't paying attention earlier, but the E'Claire d'Amour should be enough for you to know why that's not happening," Louise declared.
"So… you really mean…?" Eleonore's eye twitched with building rage at her sister's audacity.
"Yes," Louise, feeling a rush of bravery, proudly declared as she turned and planted a passionate kiss upon Siesta's lips. Immediately as she did, her face became a brilliant red and she instinctively shoved a flushed and dazed Siesta back before looking at her sister with a mixture of proud determination and deep embarrassment. "S-she's my wife! We're married!"
Eleonore looked as if she had been struck by lightning as her jaw, still swollen and bruised from the impact of Louise's fist, hung open and she stared, wide-eyed, at her audacious little sister.
"U-unacceptable! You are a noble! She is a commoner! And you're both women! This will not stand!" Eleonore shouted impotently at her sister, who found herself trembling and almost in tears while Eleonore thrust an accusatory finger at her. It was at this point that Tif'narak had turned around and approached the group, casting a shadow over them as she approached.
"Is something wrong, Louise, Siesta?" Tif'narak asked in a knowing, rhetorical tone. Feeling reassured both by her presence, oddly enough, and Siesta's hand still on hers, Louise mustered the courage to fight her childhood fears once more.
"T-the Cardinal himself married us! It's official!" Louise shouted as she clung to Siesta and gave her sister the most defiant look she could, causing Eleonore to grit her teeth.
"Eleonore," Cattelya's calm, soothing voice cut through the tension of this moment as she turned from Louise and Siesta to her enraged sister, causing Eleonor's face to soften ever so slightly. "Let us be thankful for our sister's joy. And for having a new sister, ourselves."
Cattleya gave her best disarming smile to Eleonore, which, at first, seemed to intensify her rage. In that moment, Eleonore remembered Cattelya's words. About Louise being her own woman.
Her anger began dispelling, but the new calm was being quickly replaced with fear.
Not for herself. But for Louise.
What would their parents say? Could they be convinced to accept this? She doubted it. And she knew it would soon put her in a precarious position between her own status (and duty) and her role as a sister. Deciding there was nothing more she could do, she heaved a defeated sigh and resumed her normal, light, scowl that always seemed to rest upon her face.
"Mother and Father won't approve," Eleonore began, with a hint of concern in her tone that Louise could detect, making her own defiant look falter.
"Then we'll just have to convince them," Cattelya declared with conviction as she placed a hand on Eleonore's shoulder. Eleonore wanted to give her a wry smile, but instead shook her head and looked up to the elf, trembling as her amber eyes met the elf's brilliant red ones above. She could muster no words for this terrifying visage as she resolved to about-face and walk away.
Cattelya waved the three goodbye as she summoned her dogs to her and began to follow her sister. Louise and Siesta both breathed sighs of relief as they looked up at Tif'narak, who gave them a small nod and reassuring smile before they all went to meet a very exhausted-looking Agnes propped up against a very inconspicuous-looking carriage.
"Agnes? Weren't you just here yesterday? Did you and the Queen stay the night?" Louise asked, confused and concerned.
"No, no," Agnes began, her voice heavy with exhaustion, "I dropped her off, slept as much as I could, and came back by dawn." Agnes yawned as she said this, causing both girls to have to fight yawns themselves (Tif'narak was unable to resist it).
"It's fine, really, you didn't have to do that for us," Louise reassured the exhausted looking musketeer before them, which seemed to immediately cause her to get a rush of energy.
"Nonsense! Nothing is too much for my friends!" Agnes proudly declared as she opened the carriage door for them. As Louise and Siesta were about to climb in, they heard a familiar beeping and chirping approaching them.
"Khaydarin!" Siesta cried out as she ran to the source of the noises. It looked to be a golden ball with metal "fins" on each side and atop it with a "face" of a single glass circle in which a pink light glowed. It seemed to be making its noises rapidly, almost as if it was excited.
Siesta embraced the golden ball, rubbing her face against it. "Oh it's so good to see you!" Siesta exclaimed as she pulled back to meet its "eye". "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to leave you," Siesta apologized to them. Khaydarin seemed to give a few more beeps and chirps that, to Siesta, felt like forgiveness as she embraced the ball once more. Louise walked up behind them and gave them both a warm smile.
"Ever since that night they'd been almost powered off. I think they were depressed without you. Or maybe they miss Derflinger? I'm sorry, Khaydarin, but Derflinger isn't here yet, we're going to go get him right now." Khaydarin gave a few more excited beeps as they moved towards the carriage and, before anyone could protest, placed themself inside. The girls giggled as they went to go in with them.
Tif'narak, however, was unable to squeeze herself in, being at least two meters (six feet and eight inches) tall and a bit more… bulky than average. She whined with disappointment and embarrassment as she squeezed what little of herself she was able to fit in out and resigned herself to walking alongside the carriage as they took off.
The Protoss were winning every battle, but struggling to win the war. True, Terran armaments were no match for the advanced superweapons of the Protoss, but what they lacked in raw technology, the UED was more than making up for in cunning.
Aboard the Spear of Adun, a starship that was designed to be as grand and as large as needed to sustain interstellar wars on its own, with a pointed design that made it look more like a javelin than a spear, Artanis, the supreme leader whose title was known as "Hierarch" that was adorned in grand, golden and white armor inlaid with glowing jewels, felt a growing frustration as he went over the latest battle data. No matter how badly it seemed the UED would lose an engagement, they always seemed to have the production and defensive capabilities to make closing out the war an impossibility.
Hierarch, Zeratul's voice broke through Artanis' contemplation. It had been months since he had heard from his old friend, and the voice was a small comfort to him in these times.
My friend, it is good to hear your voice once more. I pray your situation has not further deteriorated, Artanis replied.
The opposite, in fact, Zeratul informed with a tone that felt… hopeful, which caused Artanis to perk up. Akhundelar Siesta has returned. Artanis felt a strong sense of joy in his heart.
That is good to hear, my old friend, Artanis replied.
There is something more, Zeratul continued, now with a certain gravity to his tone that caused Artanis concern. The one who returned her… was a Tal'Darim.
Alarak…
No, Zeratul denied, causing Artanis no small sense of confusion, this one looks to be a native of this planet.
How could this be possible?
It appears her people were long ago subjugated and made to be thralls of a Tal'Darim known as Ma'lash, Artanis felt that news hit him as though he were actually, physically impacted.
I would say it is impossible, Artanis began, after a moment of contemplation, and yet, here you and I speak as though you had not perished on Aiur.
Indeed. It is a matter well worth investigating, Zeratul confirmed.
Our enemies grow by the minute… Artanis solemnly thought to himself. As they have made no overt moves that you nor I have seen, I would suggest gathering information before we plan any course of action.
I concur, Hierarch.
And, Zeratul.
Yes, Hierarch?
Be sure to give the Akhundelar Siesta my warmest regards, Artanis requested.
I shall do so, Zeratul confirmed before the psionic connection between them was severed. For the first time since that fateful night where Siesta was lost, Artanis felt a sense of hope. And dread.
On Halkeginia, the sun was beginning to hang low as the group had finally arrived at the point in the road that overlooked Tarbes. Near to it could be seen the gleaming, golden pyramid-shaped form of a Protoss Nexus that Louise had ordered built during that fateful battle here. That was not the direction the group was headed, however, as they followed the road into the village itself.
I shall commune with the local Protoss warriors to become apprised of the situation here, Zeratul informed the group as he uncloaked himself and began heading towards the Nexus.
Despite the proximity of the Protoss, none mingled among the villagers, who seemed completely unbothered by the nearby alien structure. The children still laughed and played. The normal, laid back version of village hustle and bustle hummed along as it ever did.
Though, the sight of the towering, black-clad elf did start to draw eyes and murmurs, causing Tif'narak to experience a growing sense of self-consciousness at her size and shroud her head beneath her hood once more. She was grateful for her psionic training that blocked Siesta from feeling this immense discomfort.
Thankfully for her, it was not long before they arrived at their destination. Tucked into the edge of the village was a two-story, plain-looking, box of a house with bare wood walls and a roof that… looked better than Siesta remembered it? She opened her side of the carriage and stepped out, and as soon as her boot hit the dirt road, she could hear a few gasps come from the nearby villagers.
She looked up to see they were staring at her, shocked.
The murmurs intensified, but Siesta paid them no heed as she rushed to the other side of the carriage to let Louise out before she could let herself out. Louise, giving a playfully defeated smile and sigh to her as Siesta succeeded, held out her hand for Siesta to take and help her out. They then stood, hand-in-hand, before the Sasaki household, and Siesta suddenly found it impossible to step forward. Louise, sensing this, gave her hand a light, reassuring squeeze, with a matching smile for extra effect. Siesta smiled back at her before turning to Tif'narak.
"Stay with Agnes for now, okay?" Siesta requested. Tif'narak held up her hands as her way of confirming and accepting the request, and tried to lean against the carriage to soothe her aching feet. She stopped, however, when it began to tip, causing her to scramble up and once again grow red with embarrassment.
The girls gave a small giggle at this before stepping forward to approach the front door.
Within the house, Lucy was chopping vegetables for tonight's stew. As she did, she took a moment to toss some of the loose strands of her silver-streaked brown hair from her face as her tired, hazel eyes looked up for a moment. She could swear she saw a carriage stopped out front. This momentary distraction led to her barely missing her next cut and slicing her first knuckle.
"Ah! Fuck!" She hissed as she dropped the knife and began sucking on the wound. Then, registering what she just said, she scanned for the children.
"Fuck!" she heard the voice of her youngest, Trinity, repeat. She looked down into the innocent face of her youngest daughter and frowned.
"That's a bad word, Trin! Don't repeat that!" Lucy admonished as gently as she could.
"I hear papa say it all the time," Trin plainly retorted with a childish voice that clearly still had trouble with proper enunciation as she rubbed her belly and coughed, as smaller children are wont to do. Lucy couldn't help but frown even harder at that thought.
Of course… I'm gonna have to talk with him about that… Lucy thought, unamused and exasperated as she went to rinse her hand off in the newly-installed sink.
Henrietta, most likely out of guilt, had been showering the Sasakis with money and services to improve their lives. The roof was now fixed, any holes or cracks in the walls were sealed, they now had functional plumbing… they felt quite more well off than they used to, and it occasionally provoked jealous eyes from the neighbors.
Not that they should be. The Queen seemed much more interested in investing in public works ever since the war ended and they were all receiving the same improvements to their homes. Throughout Tristain she was using her power to provide more and more public services to commoners. Much to the chagrin of the nobles. And, for some reason, much to the chagrin of the so-called revolutionaries who wanted to "end her tyranny".
What tyranny? She wondered.
Her political musings were interrupted by a knocking at the door. So that carriage WAS for us, she thought, dread beginning to creep into her heart as the last time an unexpected carriage came… so did the worst news she'd ever received. Though she felt her heart be gripped ever tighter by fear with each step she took towards the door, she continued to it, and, after taking a deep, shaky breath, turned the knob to open it.
What greeted her was something that made her lose her comprehension and command of language all together, as her eyes met a pair of familiar black eyes and a raven-haired bob-cut.
"Hello, mama," Siesta greeted her with a warm, almost bashful smile, "I'm home."
In an instant after she said this, it looked as though Lucy were going through stages of grief, but for joy. Once her mind had caught up with her other senses, she burst into tears as she cried out in disbelieving relief and tightly embraced her once-lost daughter, with Siesta gently crying into her mother, as well.
"Mom! What's wrong?"
"Are you okay?"
"Who's that at the door?"
The voices of Siesta's siblings were each going off with confusion and concern as they came down the stairs. One in particular, however, was already by her mother's side and immediately cried out.
"SIESTAAAAA!" Trin screamed with joy as she joined in the tearful reunion, sprinkling it with tears of her own. As each and every sibling joined this huddle, the tears and laughter and smiles of relief grew. Even the boys did not pretend to be above this affectionate display, having missed their sister so much.
The back door of the house opened, revealing Takeo limping in as hurriedly as he could. The family began to part away as they recognized his presence, revealing Siesta to him. Would that he had both his legs, he would have sprinted to his daughter, but there was no need. Siesta sprinted to him, and took him into a tight embrace.
"Papa, I'm home," Siesta announced to him, hoping that it would immediately reassure him that this was reality. It worked. Takeo crumpled, taking Siesta with him to the floor, both sobbing.
"Oh my babygirl! You're really here! Oh, Founder, you're really here!" Takeo was struggling to be coherent, his joy and relief were so overwhelming. As they embraced on the floor, Siesta began to look around and saw, on the stairs, looking down on them and looking like she felt left out-
"Juliette!" Siesta cried out, as she waved her over. Juliette beamed as she ran down the stairs (normally forbidden in this household but an obvious exception was being made for this moment) to nearly tackle Siesta.
"Mama Siesta!" Juliette cried out, exuberant, as she squeezed Siesta with all her might. Once she let go, she looked up to her expectantly. "Where's Mama Louise?"
"Right here, Juliette," Louise answered as she pushed through the crowd of joyously weeping Sasakis to greet the excited light blue-haired girl that was in a much more plain dress than she wore before.
Mamas? Would that make me a… Lucy thought to herself as she overheard Juliette. Now that she thought about it… Juliette did have a habit of calling her "gram-mama". I don't think I'm ready to be a grandma just yet, Lucy thought with exasperation, even as new wrinkles borne of extreme joy were added to her face that day.
Some of the children, after calming down, turned to Louise, falling upon her as well, much to her shock.
"Thank you, big sis Louise!" Jean was the first one to exuberantly say, before more Sasaki children began to cling to her one by one with the same declarations of thankfulness.
"I-It's alright! I-I didn't do anything!" Louise stuttered out, awkwardly laughing as she did.
Lucy walked up to her, shaking her head as she gently pushed by her children to take Louise into a kind of warm embrace that, due to Louise having not felt one like this in so long, she did not have the words to compare it to anything.
"You've done more than you know, babygirl. We missed you so much," Lucy clung to her tighter as she said this, and Louise heard a sniffle in her ear that provoked smiling tears of sympathy from her. She closed her eyes and embraced Lucy back.
"I missed you all, too," Louise confirmed.
Once their emotions had all settled, Siesta and Louise began setting the table with the rest of the family. Though, they did feel a pang of guilt as they looked at the door and remembered Agnes and Tif'narak outside. Heaving a small sigh, Siesta decided to do what she felt was only right and went to invite them in, with the family members who noticed her do this raising an eyebrow at her. She stepped into the twilight outside and saw the two. Agnes, snacking on her packed rations, and Tif'narak, giving her a pleading look.
"C'mooooon, I haven't eaten anything all day!" Tif'narak whined.
"That's your own fault, elf," Agnes jabbed.
"I only packed enough to get Siesta back home and maybe for the trip back but I didn't know it was gonna take this long, c'mooooon," the elf whined once more. Siesta could see and feel a bit of amused exasperation from Agnes. It was clear Tif'narak was nothing like she would expect an elf to be like.
"Umm," Siesta began, interrupting and causing them to look at her. "Perhaps you'd both like to come inside for dinner?" Tif'narak once again looked like she had stars in her eyes as she rushed forward and kneeled before Siesta.
"Oh you are so generous! As expected of the partner of the legendary Void Mage!" Tif'narak gratefully praised Siesta.
"I'm not sure…" Agnes replied, hesitantly. Siesta raised an eyebrow at this, prompting Agnes to elaborate, "I was here once before… with Henrietta… to deliver the news of your…" Agnes' voice trailed off as she shamefully looked away from Siesta. Siesta put on a reassuring smile as she walked forward and placed a hand on one of Agnes', causing her to meet her gaze.
"It's alright, I promise," Siesta said with the most reassuring voice possible. Agnes, moved by this display, smiled and nodded as she dismounted the cart. Khaydarin, who had been busying themselves with frantic scanning of their new surroundings, was interrupted by Siesta tapping on them. "C'mon, I'm sure my siblings would love to meet you, too!" Khaydarin gave some chirps of acknowledgement, and the four went back into the home, where at least two of the new visitors received immediate gawks. Siesta, thankfully, was the perfect liaison.
"Everyone," she began as she motioned to elf and golden orb known to the Protoss as a "Probe". "This is Tif'narak and Khaydarin." At first there was an awkward silence, especially when it looked like the family, after getting over her enormous height, noticed Tif'narak was not quite human. Siesta lightly elbowed Tif'narak, prompting her to awkwardly step forward and lower her hood to reveal her status as an elf.
"H-hello! I'm Tif'Narak, thank you for having me in your home," Tif'narak said with an anxious, shaky voice as she took a small bow.
She braced herself for the usual prejudices that befell her but, thankfully, they didn't come. Instead, the littlest human she'd ever seen wandered up to her, much to the visible dismay of the Sasaki parents. Tif'narak looked down at her, feeling an overwhelming urge to crush this most adorable little creature in her embrace, but resisting.
"Tiffa," the Trin said as she pointed at Tif'narak. It was positively the most adorable thing she had ever experienced and her eyes lit up.
"Yes! You can call me Tiffa!" Tif'narak exclaimed excitedly as she smiled at the little girl.
"I like your hair," Trin commented as she reached up for it. Tiffa, sensing her intent, knelt and handed the girl her one mid-back-length, braided, golden lock that her hair was styled into, which the girl began stroking gently, just as she remembered being taught when she did this with Louise.
Whatever this feeling was was radically foreign to the elf. She felt as if she were about to cry. Before she could, the other children began approaching her with trepidation.
"Woah," one of the boys, Geofferey, commented as he looked over her. Tiffa began feeling that usual heat of self-consciousness creep within her once more as she felt she was being gawked at. "You look so cool!" the boy suddenly exclaimed with stars in her eyes. This was, truly, the happiest Tiffa had been in so long.
"Hey, are you an elf?" one of the older girls, Donna, asked. Tiffa immediately felt self-conscious again as she nodded. "I've heard some scary things about them…"
"I-I bet," Tiffa's gaze became downcast as her heart braced for the interaction to turn sour.
"But you don't look scary at all," Donna commented as she walked up and scrutinized her. Tiffa's eyes went wide as she met the child's gaze. After a moment, Donna gave her a wide smile "You look beautiful." Tiffa was finding it impossible not to cry as the two other girls approached her.
"Yeah yeah! I hope I can look like you when I grow up!"
"Yeah! I wanna be as tall as you! Those stupid boys won't mess with me then!"
Tiffa gave an awkward giggle at these comments as she stood back up, her head almost touching the ceiling as she did.
"Well, then," she began as she towered over them, raising a finger, "eat your vegetables! Always remember to get plenty of sunlight! And don't forget to practice your leaping strike technique every day!" as the words left her mouth, and she saw everyone's face turn to a kind of mildly concerned confusion, she felt that sense of anxiety build up in her once more.
Uh oh, I think I said something weird, Tiffa thought to herself as she tried to break the tension with a forced, awkward laugh that, thankfully, seemed to be echoed with genuine joviality by everyone else. Tiffa breathed a sigh of relief at this. She did not have much time to recover, however, as a plate and some utensils and a cloth were shoved in her direction by one of the boys, Julien.
"Here, if you don't help, you don't eat, that goes for you too, Agnes," Julien said with a smirk, which Agnes returned.
"Woah, what's that?" Jean asked, pointing to Khaydarin.
"That's my familiar, the great and powerful Khaydarin!" Louise proudly declared. Various sounds of awe came from the children as they crowded the probe.
[WARNING! Our Probes are under attack!]
[Retaliate? Executor friendly with hostiles]
[Escape? Impossible. 360 degree surround]
[Mineral walk? No minerals available]
Khaydarin gave a small whine of defeat which caused Louise and Siesta to giggle at the dramatic little ball.
As they ate, with Tiffa needing to take her food over to the living room area as there was no chair big enough for her (much to her self-conscious dismay), the family began to talk of the goings ons that Siesta had missed. Juliette was getting along well with everyone, and even expressed the same kind of sibling rivalry that was to be expected of natural siblings. Lucy told Siesta about how Henrietta was splurging on fixing the house up and providing them with extra money (this warmed Siesta's heart), and also told them about how the recent Protoss presence has made crime both in and around the village completely plummet. As Louise and Siesta took these details in, they took each other's hands in front of everyone, unconsciously, which called immediate attention to them.
"I'm glad to see you're still both going strong," Lucy said with pride in her tone. Louise and Siesta awkwardly laughed as Siesta gave Louise an imploring look.
Wait, you want to tell them? Right now? Louise thought in a panic.
I know it's a bit awkward… but I don't know when I'm going to see them again, so this is a good chance, Siesta pleaded, psionically, to her wife. Louise, after a moment's hesitance, let out a defeated sigh as she gave Siesta a reassuring smile and nod, which Siesta returned.
"We have an announcement, by the way," Siesta proclaimed, making the whole table go quiet. Everyone, even Tiffa, looked at her. Siesta, her wife's hand still in her own, began to stand, which caused Louise no small amount of embarrassment. She did not know they were going to make a whole show of it, after all, but Louise stood anyways, her face reddening and her heart racing with anxiety.
"Everyone," Siesta began, "Louise and I are now married." There was a moment of stunned silence, immediately followed by cheers from her family.
"Great job, sis!"
"Yeah! You got a cute one!"
"Ah, I hope I get to have a lovely wife someday!"
The girls were much more enamored with this than the boys, who seemed to roll their eyes. Except Julien, who smacked each of his brothers on the back of the head and shook his own at them upon witnessing their disrespect to his sister and new sister-in-law.
"Well, aren't you a little… young?" Lucy asked with a bit of hesitation in her voice. Siesta was unbothered, knowing her mother was coming from a place of concern, not judgment.
"I know it seems sudden," Siesta began, "but back there… in Albion. We had no idea what was gonna happen to us. And, if that was going to be our last night? Then I didn't want another second to go by without calling her my wife."
Siesta… Louise thought to herself as she looked, dreamy-eyed, into the eyes of her wife and they instinctively kissed.
"Ew!" Juliette, Trin, Alice, Geofferey, and Jean all said in harmonized unison as they stuck their tongues out.
"Hey now! Seeing a married couple in love is a beautiful thing! Isn't that right, pookie?" Takeo said flirtatiously to Lucy as he puckered his lips.
"Oh my, yes, my big strong papa bear," Lucy replied as she planted a big, wet, passionate kiss upon her husband's lips.
"EW!" the same group of children said once more, with more feeling, at witnessing this, causing everyone else to laugh at their playfully exaggerated disgust. Siesta and Louise needed this. This warm sense of family. As Siesta looked out to her now expanded family, she felt her soul become as revived as her body.
Outside, unbeknownst to the happy family, however, was a figure covered from head to toe in a long cloak with their face obscured by the cloak's long, loose hood. Beside this one, their face indicating a numbness and determination at their distasteful orders, stood Tabitha.
"You understand, of course, the price for failure?" the figure asked with a tone that carried both warning and concern. Tabitha gave a small, curt nod in response, causing the figure to smirk as they raised their hand to reveal a certain ring, which had a glowing purple gem embedded within it.
The Ring of Andvari, Tabitha noticed with a small amount of shock. They had wondered what had happened to it since they relinquished the ring to Tristain. The figure clenched their fist once their hand was raised before them, causing the ring to flash. Not a moment later, the ground began an ominous rumbling.