"Now to the last, but certainly not least, official item in today's program. I would like to present a very special medal of valor to two young men, for their courageous acts six months ago in service of the kingdom. It is, in fact, thanks to their honorable deeds that I myself am still standing here today! Please give a big hand to misters Osborn Woodsham and Knute Ferrel!"
The applause start again, as the two boys stand up from their table, Knute looking considerably more abashed than Oz, who is grinning confidently and waving to the people they pass. Being born nobility tended to make one turn out like that. They make their way up to the platform and bow down to the King, who nods his own head as acknowledgement. The applause scatter to a stop as they turn to face the crowd and the King motions for a servant to step forward. She has a pillow with two medals resting on it and she bows as she presented them to the King.
Oz can practically feel Knute shaking next to him. The poor boy is rather nervous, it seemed, and Oz nudges him carefully with his shoulder. Knute's eyes are wide when he looks over to the older boy and yep, he is very nervous. He is a country boy after all, there was no way he would be able to be calm in a situation like this. All of the most important people of the kingdom are staring at them for crying out loud!
"Try to relax, it's gonna be okay," Oz whispers and Knute swallows. Oz is trying to give him a reassuring smile but he isn't feeling terribly reassured. Easy for Oz to speak, he has been brought up in the midst of stuff like this.
The King steps forward and Knute tenses again. He moves to stand in front of Oz, who gives him another small bow of his head and then the medal is attached to his lapel. They shake hands and Oz smiles charmingly to the King, who smiles back brightly. Then he turns to Knute and repeats the process, although Knute doesn't feel nearly as smooth as Oz, and then the the boys bow again, this time to the crowd, who applaud.
The King gestures to the podium, clearly indicating that one of the should give a speech. Oz looks at Knute with a wide smile and nods his head towards the podium. Knute nearly has a panic attack and shakes his head enthusiastically. Oz lets out a small laugh and claps his shoulder, before walking over to the podium and clearing his throat.
"Thank you for your kind words, your highness. Ladies and gentlemen. It is with great honour that we accept these awards today. What we did six months ago, I like to think, was the least we could do. When one is facing a difficult situation, there are always three options. One is to quit, to tell oneself, 'I can't do this', 'this is not my problem', 'someone else will handle it'. The second one is to rush through, to make an halfhearted effort to put something together and leave it at that, no matter what the result may be. And the third one is to give it one's all, to not back down in the face of fear, danger, difficulty, but to push through regardless. To make sure that if one fails, one can always tell oneself 'I gave it my best shot, there was nothing else I could have done'. I understand that sometimes we have to face tasks and situations that we know from the start are going to be too much for us, and it is important to know your limits, but I believe that there is no task that we should walk away from if we are unable to say 'this is all I can do' without lying to yourselves.
"You might consider what we did six months ago to be brave, or honorable, but I consider it necessary. If I would have sat idly by, knowing that the King's life, if not the entire kingdom itself, was in danger, I would not be able to call myself good. I would not be able to look myself in the mirror and say 'I couldn't have done anything' without lying. If I hadn't even tried...
"It has been said, that the only thing evil needs to triumph is for good men to do nothing. I believe this to be true, and so I urge you, all of you, to make sure that you never do nothing. Because for the world to become a better place, we must all make the effort. Thank you."
The crowd applauds again as he finishes and he bows once more, and then he walks over to Knute, nudging his back to get him moving. Knute's knees don't buckle as Oz gently guides him off the stage.
At the bottom of the stage their friends are waiting, and Alica practically pounces Oz the moment he's not on the stairs anymore. She gives him a big kiss on the cheek and hugs him tightly, Oz returning the embrace, although perhaps with not quite as crushing a force as the girl had. After she lets go Gil steps up and gives Oz a hug of his own, though it is much more reserved than Alica's. He steps back quickly, but squeezes Oz's shoulder with the softest look Oz has seen in a while, before letting his hand drift down as well. It's the most they can do in public.
Meanwhile Knute gets hugs of his own from Tauria and Laelia, who also look a bit bashful to even be there, but are very happy on the behalf of their friend. Tauria, sweet Tauria, even gives Oz a quick hug, while Laelia settles for a glare and a handshake. She still doesn't like him very much, and Oz doesn't blame her for it.
The King has started on a speech and the six of them realize they should probably get back to their seats and quietly shuffle back to the table they are seated around.
"Now that all that is done, I have one more announcement to make. It has been an important 6 months regarding the future of this country. 6 months of trials and heated debates and many, many, hours of rephrasing, but today, on New Years Eve, it is finally, after 30 years, my pleasure to announce that magic is once more legal in our Kingdom!"
A huge roaring wave of applause crashes over the room, much louder than anyone had expected. The King motions his hands for silence, and then continues:
"I can understand if some of you are doubtful about how, or if it will work, but I can assure you that the laws we are passing now will make everything more fair to everyone, and will no longer discriminate against people for their heritage. And while magic itself is no longer illegal, I do want to stress that any and all crimes committed with the help of magic will face harsher punishments than the same crimes committed without magic."
Oz was grinning and glancing around the table, his eyes meeting with happy faces all around. Especially happy were the faces of those of them who had magic. Knute was smiling widely, his cheeks red and Laelia next to him was practically jumping in her seat. Percy looked incredibly relieved, almost like he was about to cry, and Zeze was flying around in front of him in a concerned manner, while Eclaise and Cole were exchanging happy conversation in hushed tones (Oz didn't bother to try and hear what the two men were saying, it's not like it mattered to him either way). Sharon on the other hand was the very picture of regalness, sitting on the chair with her chin held high and a soft smile on her lips and eyes. She wasn't surprised in the least, she had been a crucial member of the committee in charge of changing the legislation after all, along with Cole. She was rather proud how well things had turned out, in fact. The title of "Grand Sorceress" truly garnered a lot of respect, even in a country where it had until now been technically illegal to be one.
The Jacobs-Feathers trial had also been a crucial part of making the country see that the current laws had been wrong and unfair. After the army had dug Feathers up from a small town on the Southern border the two men had been put on trial for their crimes, which true to Oz's word had been fair. The court had listened to both of their testimonies as to what happened 30 years ago, and a number of other witnesses, including Cole and Sharon, who had both done extensive research into the matter. Eventually Jacobs was tried for desertion, lying to the authorities, and aiding a jail break, while Feathers' sentence was for inciting civil unrest, falsifying official reports, and for generally ruining the life of so many people you huge jackass. The last part wasn't actually an official charge, no matter how hard Sharon had tried.
The grandness of the Jacobs-Feathers trial had overshadowed the preceding trial that was held for the crimes committed by Viper. It was wrapped up as quickly and quietly as possible and the boy had been declared non compos mentis and taken to a facility for mentally ill people where a group of medics had tried to help him gain his wits. Sharon had taken to helping out as well, whether because of the pureness of her heart or for a twisted sense of responsibility on behalf of Geltoech, she hasn't elaborated. She likely isn't entirely sure of the "why" herself.
"Without further ado," the King's voice rings across the room. "It is time to feast!"
The King walks off the stage while a stream of servants comes through the side doors with plates and plates full off food fit for, well, kings. They are set down on the dozen round tables dotting the large hall in the King's castle and soon the room is filled with happy, idle chatter as the banquet guests start to eat the dinner.
"So, Percy, how have you been? After graduating, I mean," Oz asks as a large roasted boar is set in the middle of the table. It had been precut, thank gods. Percy looks surprised to be addressed the first thing and rubs his neck.
"It's been good, I guess," he says with a shrug. "I thought you'd heard though. I've been traveling around the country with your aunt and Arren. After he was released from the facility a few months back we've been reintroducing him to society while going around and reintroducing society to magic. Mrs Sharon is truly a magnificent sorceress, and we've yet to receive a large scale negative reaction."
"It really seems like the general population is more than okay with magic," says Sharon while piling bread rolls on her plate. "But since no one dared to speak about magic in fear of punishment no one knew that no one else minded either."
"That is one twisted cycle," Oz says with a shake of his head.
"It's kind of sad if you think about it," says Tauria. "So many people thought they were all alone because no one wanted to talk about the fact no one actually minded. Sad, lonely.. scared. Isolation truly is the worst..."
Gil's hand automatically takes Oz's seeking hand under the table and he squeezes it for a moment. The others don't notice. Percy fiddles with his ring with a frown on his face, because he knows that is exactly what happened to Arren, and Knute glances away because he knows it could have happened to him. A heavy silence falls over the table until Percy of all people breaks it.
"So, what about you? What's been going on at the Academia since I graduated?" he asks, feeling only a little awkward but considering it necessary to get the conversation onto more pleasant tracks.
"I had to repeat a term..." Knute says with a long sigh.
"Yeah, but that means you're now on the same term as I am, and that's awesome!" says Laelia and Knute huffs in amusement. "If you're gonna feel sorry for someone feel sorry for Tauria who's all alone now."
"I'm not alone, I have plenty of classmates," Tauria laughs. "I don't really mind though. And now I can help you two with all your schoolwork since I've already done all of it."
"That's true," says Laelia.
"And if Tauria ever has problems with anything, she can come to us. Anytime," says Alica with a grin and winks. Tauria's cheeks heat only slightly and Laelia's scowl has nothing at all to do with jealousy, of course not.
"As for us, I suppose it's been the same old," Oz says. "I was kinda sad at first, now that the mystery I've been working on since the beginning on my first term is solved, but I found that working shifts in the library really helps with boredom." He flashes a huge grin when Percy's eyes light up.
"You work in the library now?" he asks.
"Yup. Someone's gotta look after that precious book collection, eh? And I mean, I spent most of my time there anyway, might as well get paid for it."
"We pay the students for working in the library?" Eclaise stage whispers to Cole.
"Only in credit," says Cole, not taking his eyes of his plate. "Not that mister Woodsham needs extra credit to graduate. Technically he has enough credit to graduate right now, if he didn't have mandatory courses left."
"What can I say, I'm trying to get a new credit high score," Oz says with a smile and a shrug. Cole rolls his eyes.
"Oh, what about you professor Cole?" asks Knute. "I haven't seen you at the Academia at all this term. Where have you been?"
"I have been doing some extensive research and finishing off my book on the true events of the Battle of Kalehar. Mrs. Rey has been so kind as to let me study the material she's gathered of the event, and allowed me to take lodgings in one of her family's summer houses."
"You've been living in our summer house for the past four months?" asks Oz while Alica slaps him on the arm and says: "You have a summer house and this is the first time I hear about this???"
"Essentially, yes," says Cole. "There were so much material it made no sense to start moving it anywhere. Don't worry, your housekeeper knows I've been living there. In fact, Mr. Shuddon is delightful company."
"Oh. Alright then," says Oz. He's not entirely sure how he should feel about information like this.
The rest of the dining goes by accompanied by general chatting and good food. While the food at the Academia is very good, it is really nothing compared to the food served in the literal King's court, and by the time the servants clear the tables everyone has eaten almost too much.
"Ohhh, man," says Alica as she slumps her head on Oz's shoulder. "If the food will be this good after we get married I fear for my figure." Oz laughs.
"This is a special feast hosted by the King, the everyday meals really won't be quite this good, I'm afraid," he says. "And sit up straight, that's not how a lady sits."
"I know, I know," she says and pulls herself up slowly, tucking her wavy hair back behind her ears. Half of it is pulled up in an elaborate swirly bun, which really looks like it should be impossible but there you have it.
"You're going to get married?" asks Percy, amused but also kind of confused and just a bit hurt.
"After graduation, one day, sure," Alica says easily.
"But I thought that..." Percy says with a frown, his eyes flicking to Gil, who gives him a wide smile. He opens his mouth and then closes it, bites his lip and then lets out a small "Ohh."
The rest of the table look on, very confused, with the exception of Laelia who is studying her nails in a very uninterested, and frankly unimpressed, manner.
"I think he got it," Oz laughs, leaning back and towards Gil on his chair.
"This... certainly explains things..." says Percy, more to himself than anyone else, his mind still reeling.
"Yup, he got it," says Oz. "Good for you, Perce."
"But... how are you gonna..." he starts, leaning across the table but then stops himself. "Never mind, I don't want to know."
Zeze snorts but doesn't say anything when Percy gives her a glare. She goes back to eating off the edge of his plate instead.
"Oookay, I'm not entirely sure what we're talking about here," says Knute after a while. Oz is still leaning back on his chair with a selfsatisfied smirk. "But we should probably get up, everyone else is moving to the ballroom next door."
"Oh, right you are, my boy," says Oz, purposefully ignoring Knute's glare. "It's dancing time!"
The party stands up and starts to move with the crowd.
"I think I'm going to take my leave," says Percy before they've gotten far. Cole and Eclaise have already gone, but the others turn to look at him. "I, uhh, Arren is kind of all alone at the inn we're staying at and I thought I'd go keep him company. I'm not much in a dancing mood either way."
"Right, right," says Oz, nodding. "How is he, by the way? Doing better, I hope?"
"Yeah, much better," says Percy, a relieved look on his face. "The first two months in the facility were pretty intense I hear, and once I went to see him after I graduated he was much more reasonable than before. He felt bad for what he'd done. I went to see him every day after that and in a few weeks they let him out, under the supervision of Mrs Sharon of course. And like I said before, we've been traveling the country ever since."
"He is really a sweet boy," chimes in Sharon. "After you got the genocidal maniac out of him. He still has some bad days, but he's getting there."
There is a short silence and then Percy clears his throat again.
"Go on then," ushers Sharon. "Off you go. Can't leave your friend alone on a night like this!"
"Haha, yes ma'am," says Percy with a not-so-hard laugh. It's not easy but it's getting there. They're both getting there. "I'll be taking my leave then. Tell my regards to the professors."
They exchange goodbyes and then Percy leaves. The others watch after him for a moment and then make their way to the next room where a waltz is already in full swing. Sharon immediately disappears into the crowd only to reappear in the middle of the dance floor with someone who undoubtedly is a very rich and powerful man. Oz rolls his eyes, but then Alica is pulling him onto the dance floor with her. After them come Knute and Tauria, and, after a glance and a shrug, Gil and Laelia. Oz is leading and swirling Alica expertly across the floor, while Gil and Laelia dance... not badly but with very basic steps, and Knute has to watch his feet only a little. It's been a while since he's been dancing.
"What's the real deal with your relationship?" asks Laelia when Gil pulls her close again after a spin. He blinks and then smiles.
"I assume you mean Oz and me," he says.
"And Alica," she clarifies. "I remember what you told me back when we were riding for Cerise six months ago. About the fake marriage and a valet thing."
"It's not a fake marriage," Gil says with a frown. "Oz truly loves Alica and she loves him back. It only makes sense for them to marry."
"Doesn't that bother you though?" says Laelia and she's frowning too. It's almost as if she's offended. "You love Oz, don't you?"
"Oh yes," says Gil with a soft smile on his face. "And he loves me back. And I love Alica, though not in the same way as Oz."
"But..." Laelia starts but Gil cuts her off.
"It may seem weird from the outside, I'm sure, but it's not as bad as you seem to think it is," he says. She frowns and nods, waiting for him to go on. "I only like men, I've known this since I was a child. Oz doesn't care either way, for him it's all good. But Alica... Alica is different, I suppose. She doesn't have a lot of... physical needs, you know, and in fact she can't take much at all before it becomes too much for her. Normal dating was absolutely terrible, because someone always wound unsatisfied, when her too much was too little for them.
But see, there's three of us. Now Alica gets all the emotional support she needs, and her occasional physical needs are met too, while the rest of Oz's needs are taken care of by me. As it is now, Oz and I can't be open about our relationship, so having Alica also shields us from the judgement of the society. Of course we're hoping this will change too, but right now, and right here, this is the best solution to all three of us."
Laelia is quiet for a moment, taking it all in and they spin around in the ball room. There is a crescendo in the music and she looks back up at him.
"Aren't you jealous?" she asks. "If... if the person I loved was married to someone else I'd be jealous, even if I could still be with them on the side. It's like you're having an affair!"
Gil lets out a small chuckle. "No, I'm not jealous. I told you, I love Alica too, just not... the difference between my relationship to Alica and Oz's relationship to Alica is that ours will never be physical, simply because I don't find her sexually attractive. Everything else is still there, the love and the caring and the intimacy... just not physically. And I know that Oz loves me just as much as he loves Alica. It's not two relationships, it's one relationship, just... with three people."
"I... think I get it," she says after a while again. "I still think it's weird, but hey it's your life. No skin off my back." She looks away and Gil smiles at her, giving her one last spin before the music swells to an end. He bows and she curtsies and then Alica is jumping to his back.
"Dance with me, Gil!" she laughs. He extracts her arms from his neck, turns around and bows.
"May I have the next dance, miss?" he says and Alica changes her posture to mimic a regal woman.
"Why, of course, good sir!" He takes her hand and she giggles before pulling him off. Oz walks next to Laelie who side-eyes him.
"Good job with those two, I guess," she says, nonchalant.
"Haha... thank you?" says Oz, feeling like he's missed the beginning of the conversation, though he has a pretty good guess what she talked about with Gil. Knute and Tauria take that moment to appear from the crowd getting ready for the next dance. "Should we switch partners as well?" Oz grins and then bows down deep extending his hand towards Tauria who blinks in surprise. "Might I be so bold as to request the next dance, dearest miss Tauria?"
She giggles. "Definitely pretentious," she says but takes the hand offered, letting out a surprised laugh when Oz twirls her around on the spot. He gives the other two a wink and then leads Tauria off into the crowd. For a moment Laelia feels like she should be jealous but finds that after the discussion with Gil she can't. So instead she takes the hand Knute is offering her and leads his friend into the next dance.
"How is your memory?" asks Oz after a moment of spinning Tauria around the dance floor. "Still not fully recovered?"
Tauria smiles up to him, just a hint of sadness underneath. "I do remember most people now," she says. "Your aunt's potion really does help, and I do remember new things everyday. I haven't really found a clear pattern to their reappearance though, which is very inconvenient sometimes. I remember half of my classmates, but not the ones I was the closest to, and I remember some of the teachers but not all... The first people I remembered were Knute and Laelia, luckily."
"Those two really are good friends," Oz says with a laugh and then pauses. "Or perhaps... something more..?"
Tauria laughs, surprised but not unaccustomed to the insinuation. "Knute and I are just friends, nothing more," she says, like she's done many times before, she remembers now.
"I wasn't referring to Knute," says Oz with a glint in his eye and Tauria stops, or would stop if Oz wasn't leading her through the dance. "You don't have to hide it, not from me. Although if you wish not to speak of it, I will not pry."
Tauria blinks, and her eyes flicker into the dancing crowd for a second, searching for someone specific, but by chance landing on Gil instead. Her eyes widen a little and she lets out a breathy laugh.
"I remember you," she says under her breath, turning her eyes back to Oz, who tilts his head. "Just now, I remembered our meeting on that day. You complemented my eyes."
"That I did," says Oz with a lopsided grin. "And they are very beautiful eyes."
"And I remember you introducing me to Gil. Your... et cetera," she continues, a knowing smile on her face. Oz's own smile grows too.
They are silent for a moment, twirling amidst the other dancing couples. They don't need to say anything, because they both know.
"I do like her," says Tauria finally. "But I don't know if she likes me back. I guess I'm scared of what she might say, or do."
"I wouldn't worry about that," says Oz easily and spins her around, the hem of her dress wrapping around her dark legs. "I really, really wouldn't worry about that. It's kinda obvious. At least for me, but apparently I have a weird magic vision that helps me deduce stuff." Tauria laughs. "In either case, I'm pretty sure she likes you back."
"Thank you," she says.
"Anytime."
They dance in companionable silence until the music stops and then she curtsies and he bows, and they go off to find the rest of their friends. When Tauria locks eyes with Laelia across the floor she can feel her cheeks heating. She's had a habit of sneaking glances at Laelia for a while now, but after hearing what Oz had to say about it she tries to decides to try and understand the way the younger girl looks at her. There's a softness in her eyes and she smiles in a way she doesn't smile to anyone else, and Tauria looks away, suddenly shy.
Laelia notices this, of course, and her smile widens, a happy flush raising to her cheeks as well. They'll have a lot to talk about once they get some privacy.
They switch partners once more, Tauria going happily with Gil, Alica making Knute only a little nervous, and Laelia being not as uncooperative as Oz had assumed she would be.
Alica is the one leading the dance, and she is also the one leading their conversation. Or trying to. Knute is being almost annoyingly unresponsive as Alica tries and fails to keep a dialogue going.
"What about that Ray girl," Alica tries, changing the subject for the fifth time. "How's she doing? Have you seen her?"
"I went to visit once," says Knute, focusing more on his feet than the conversation thread. "She's still working at the herb shop, although I think she's applied to study in the Academia. I don't think her dad liked the idea though."
There is silence as Alica waits for him to elaborate. He doesn't.
"Well, what about your parents?" she asks. "They came by after Midsummer, right? You never told us how that went."
Knute doesn’t answer right away, but his face goes dark. He's frowning now.
“I don’t really want to talk about it”, he says after a moment.
“Oh,” says Alica, looking down. “Are you… sure? If something’s bothering you, I would be happy to listen.”
“Bothering isn’t quite the right word,” he says, not looking her in the face. “It’s more that… They knew, and they hid it from me all these years, and they made me forget about it. They forced me to be someone I’m not. They’re my parents, and they forced me to be someone I’m not.”
Knute is shaking a bit while he talks, and grows noticeably stiffer. It doesn’t show, though, in the way they dance, but Alica can feel it where she's pressed against his chest.
“They knew about your magic?” she asks, softly. “I’m sorry… That must have been hard to realize.”
“Oh, it wasn’t news to me they knew,” Knute says simply.
“Have they been hiding a lot of things from you?”
“I don’t know,” he says, voice oh so quiet. “I didn’t think so. Now I don’t know what to think.”
“I’m sorry…” she says again, because right now there's nothing more to say. The pause for a moment again.
“I was four,” he says, finally. “When my magic first came out. They guilted me into forgetting. I forgot I ever did magic. I forgot what it felt like. I forgot I ever had it. And it stayed forgotten, for fifteen years. And then I remembered it all, and it came rushing back.”
“That is terrible,” Alica says, frowning. “Making you feel so ashamed of yourself you forget such a big part of you, that’s…” She sighs and leans a bit closer, averting her gaze back on the floor. “I’m really, really sorry you had to go through something like that.”
“You know, I really…” he draws a shaky breath. “I really don’t want to talk about this more. Not yet at least.”
“I understand,” she says. “Better than you might imagine, really. My parents always made me feel ashamed of myself too, you know, although for very different reasons.” She gives out a small laugh, which really isn’t as amused as she wants it to be. She thought she was over this. She is over this. “That’s what it’s like, I guess, living in a family that is only concerned with making you as pretty as possible and shipping you off to marry someone wealthy.”
“Well I guess your family succeeded much better than mine did, since that’s what you’re doing.”
Alica barks out a laugh. Very unladylike, really. “That is definitely not why I’m gonna marry Oz,” she says with a smile.
“How do you know? Maybe you wouldn’t be marrying him if your family hadn’t told you all your life you have to marry someone rich.”
“Oh, sweetie,” she says, giving him a small pat on the cheek. “Oz is different. He is so, so different. He is the first person who has ever understood me, and loved me for who I am. I don’t care if he has money or not, I don’t care if his own family disowns him when they find out he’s… well. All I care about is him. And Gil, but... you know.”
“I’m not saying you’re doing what your family wants intentionally,” Knute says. “Or that you consciously care about the things your family wants you to care about. Or that you don’t actually love him. I’m saying it makes you wonder, maybe your family’s thinking is so deep in you, you’re following it without meaning to. And him being different just gives you a way to snap your family while technically doing what they want you to do.”
“Don’t you psychoanalyze me, boy,” says Alica with another laugh. “That’s my job.” She pauses for a moment and then grins. “I didn’t know you were actually capable of talking this much.”
“That’s because you don’t actually know me,” Knute says, smiling a little.
“Well, if it’s all the same to you, I think I would like to change that,” she says, smiling back.
They continue around the dance floor until the music is coming to an end, at which point she takes his hand and spins him around. He is surprised but he laughs, and then he bows while Alica curtsies. Gil and Tauria walk over to them and so do Oz and Laelia.
Knute and Gil both opt out after that, retreating to the side of the room to talk about something or other, while Alica goes off to find someone new to dance with. A couple of young men (brothers from the Russosi family, Oz recognizes) come over to ask both Tauria and Laelia for a dance and the girls go to dance with them, if a bit hesitantly. Oz has only a moment to wonder what to do next when he is tapped on the shoulder by the youngest daughter of the King, who tells him that he had apparently promised her a dance at the last ball he'd attended. He indulges her, of course, but after that final dance he leaves the dance floor to find the King himself.
Oz finds him easily, and to his surprise he also finds Sharon, chatting happily with the King. The Queen is also there, as is one of the high counsel men, and it really amazes Oz how in her element Sharon is. Though he probably shouldn't be surprised, she was born a noblewoman after all.
"Your highnesses," says Oz as he approaches and bows to the royal couple. "Counselor. Aunt Sharon."
"Ah, young master Woodsham!" says the King and shakes Oz's hand. "Your lovely aunt was just telling us about your world saving plan six months ago. I've heard it, but my dear Morgwen and counselor Racan haven't."
"Why don't you tell them, dear," says Sharon to Oz, putting her hand on his shoulder. "You were the one to come up with it!"
"Really?" asks the Queen. "Oh, what a brilliant mind you must have, able to come up with a plan to save the whole kingdom."
"Oh, it was nothing, your highness," Oz says, suddenly bashful. The Queen may be well into her forties but she still has a girlish charm to her, and she smiles sweetly at Oz. "Once you have all the data on your allies, your enemies, and other important external matters, it's really just about finding the most logical course of action in the situation. After finding out when and where Viper was planning his attack, I just went through all the skills we had at our disposal and realised what we had to do."
"What exactly was is that you did?" counselor Racan asks, taking a sip of the glass in his hand. "It included a dragon, somehow, didn't it?"
"Oh, yes, that would be Stevie," says Sharon. "He's my friend. Occasional steed, although he doesn't appreciate the association to horses. He really doesn't believe in being owned."
"Stevie was very important, because with his help, aunt Sharon was able to travel to all corners of the kingdom in just a few days."
"There is nothing quite that rush you get when you land a dragon in the middle of a village square. Ohh, the looks people have..." There is a wistful look on Sharon's face and Oz decides to just ignore her, she's in her own head now, and continues on with the plan.
"We needed her to go to every village and town, to tell that we needed the help of all magic wielding people in the country to defeat Viper. The bo- Mister Ferrel's magic is based on nature, see, and he's able to draw power from the plants and trees nearby, and also the ground." Oz smiles conspiratorially and leans closer. "We told all the sorcerers in the land to focus their magic, to focus all their energy, to the ground on Midsummer's day at noon. Thousands, if not tens of thousands of people did it, all at once. All that magical potential stored in the ground, and Mister Ferrel, whose powers were already at their peak due to Midsummer, was able to gather it all up and blast it at Viper, catching him off guard and knocking him out cold. By the time he came to, the potion he'd taken to strengthen himself had worn off and he could be restrained normally. Or with normal magic, I suppose."
"That is quite exciting!" says the Queen. "How did you know it would work?"
"Because it had to," Oz says, matter-of-factly. The Queen seems a bit taken aback by the answer, but smiles anyway.
"I knew it would work when I heard it," says Sharon, apparently returning to the conversation at hand. "I do know something or other about magic and how it works, so... It was also in the interest of the gods that we succeed there that day, which I always count as a good thing."
The five of them laugh, some more awkwardly than others, but after that the King speaks up.
"I must say, young master Woodsham, we could really use a mind like yours in the court, if not the high council. So if you don't have anything else planned after you graduate from the Academia, I think we would be able to find something suitable for you here."
"Thank you, your highness, that is too kind," says Oz, bowing again. He's been doing that a lot today, hasn't he? "Do I get to influence the matters in this country? Because making the world a better place is definitely something I'm interested in."
"Of course!" the King laughs. "I would be a very bad King if I didn't listen to my own council, now wouldn't I?" Oz laughs too.
"Indeed, your highness. A wise King is one that adapts to meet the needs of his people, is what I say. There is actually one thing I wish to speak to you about right now, if that is alright with you."
"Really? Well, let's hear it then, what's this about?"
"It's about love."
________________________________________________________
HEYOOOOOOOOOOO. DONE. AND. DONE.
I can't believe how long it took me to write this ugghhhh, I was seriously planning on writing this on the following week but now it's already the first of
But yeah, this monstrosity is finally behind us, thank gods. 50 parts and an epilogue. Hooo boy. I tried to wrap up all the things I thought were unclear in the ending (like the actual plan they had), and tell a bit about what happened after the story, y'know with the trials and the law stuff, and I also apparently blabbered on about Oz, Gil, and Alica's beautifil polyamorous relationship even though I didn't mean to. We had written a scene earlier with Mutu, where they talk about this with Laelia but it got cut for reasons. The first half of the conversation did get published tho (in part 49).
Idk I just love my little babies and wanted to talk about what the relationship is like bc I think it was a little unclear at times? Like I'm pretty sure everyone knew what kind of relationship Oz and Gil had but idk if anyone understood Alica's role in it. And to be honest this conversation Laelia with Gil went mucchhhh better than the one she had with Oz earlier, I mean that got real ugly real quick.
Haha, btw that ending is Oz bringing up same-sex relationships in case u didn't get that. And yes, my Royal couple is called Merthur and Morgwen isn't it great. (cookie to everyone who gets where the names come from(which is probably most people))
ANyway, that's all from me for now, tune in tomorrow when we launch another epic tale of something or other. See you on the flip side!
Pie out.
P.S. I've marked the publishing to be on the 11th of September when this was supposed to come out and because I don't want this in the "October" menu. So no, your blogspot isn't acting all crazy even though you didn't see this until the 1st of October. Anyway I'm going to bed now bye.
EDIT 2.10.2015: I added some stuff into the middle there. A few more discussions during the dancing. Tied up some ends I forgot existed haha....
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