Send 🎤and my muse will tell yours what they think of them!

“Oh by all means, won’t hurt my feelin’s.”

“Boss, havin’ trouble with this crossword. What’s a six letter word for ‘facillitator’?”

“It’s…really hard not to worry when you say shit like that.”

that sure is a statement

“Mnn, nah…” Shey grunts, flexing her fingers as magic crackled across them. Weary though she was, she was well aware of the cues of the job. If Aelis didn’t have time to explain something, something needed doing. And she’d be the one to do it, if she could help it. “Lemme just get changed…” She muttered, radiating a white hot glow tinged with red.

The magic surrounding her became brighter and brighter and until she could scarcely be seen in it. When it finally died down, Shey’s appearance had changed, her normally wild and unruly locks wrangled into an unkempt braid, meanwhile her dark red sweatshirt had been traded for a dark red blazer with a black shirt and slacks.

“Let’s get it done, boss. Tell me where ya need me.”

“Have I ever mentioned I adore having you around...?”

The devil chuckled, turning about face to begin her walk through the castle’s throne room. She could see the Queen was already speaking with her staff, beginning the process of pulling her kingdom back together, so Aelis saw no reason to bother her much more. They’d exchanged a few words already, so she would answer other questions later.

“First, we’re on detail to aid in the royal family visiting this world,” she began, summoning her ledger and handing it off to Shey. She was busying herself with opening a new portal, which would open in to her temporary quarters, which was nestled just outside of the Grey Kingdom.

It didn’t hurt like she’d expected it to. Her senses were fuzzy and dull, hearing static and head swimming.

Until finally, like clouds parting at the end of a rainy day, it was over. And when Shey opened her eyes, it was clear she was not the same Shey that closed them. 

“The hell’s goin’ on here…?” She sounded annoyed, as if being awoken from a brief nap. “Aelis, was that you I heard just now?” She turned around and sure enough, her boss was standing right there, arm outstretched. “Where’re we at?”

Finally.

“Just a bit of a ways from home, is all. We’ve got some work to do, and I need your help.”

Aine must’ve been millions of lightyears away, too far for Shey to ever be able to reach. And yet, the warmth she felt from her words was palpable. As if by magic, she felt the disquiet in her heart grow still, as a small, genuine smile returned to her features. 

Of course. Of course she’d say that. Yet even as cliche’d as her assurance sounded, Shey believed it, coming from her. “Thank you…” She whispered again. 

Putting her hand on Aine’s, or as much so as she could with the portal separating them, she gave her a lasting look of longing, but also of acceptance.

“Okay…I’m ready…forreal this time…” 

“...goodbye.”

And with one final movement, it was over. The projected memories, the false history Aelis had constructed decades ago, melted away, breaking the locks on Shey’s true past. Bit by bit, the former was pushed away to make way for the woman Aelis knew.

And as the thief faded, so too did the portal, leaving behind only a brief silence.

Shey though surprised at first, did her best to suck it up, more aware of how pathetic she looked than ever. 

“Aine…y-you clean up good, for a god an’ all…” She said, forcing a smile. It didn’t last. In fact, Shey was so overwhelmed that she could scarcely look at Aine for long. 

“I-I…just wanted to say thank you…f-for everything…and goodbye…” 

She couldn’t pass through the portal, though she reached out all the same. Aine’s eyes were filled with a great sorrow, but there was something in her face that felt like a familiar smile. As though she were hoping to cheer Shey up one last time.

“And I thank you, Shey. I got another chance, and you made my time worth every second. And...” She moved closer to the portal, her ethereal form trembling as she pushed her limits with this world.

“I didn’t get the chance to say...but...you’re real, Shey. Whatever you were before, and what you will be, you’re a part of that. And now you’re a part of me, too, and we’re something...new, and wonderful, and it’s going to outlive the both of us.”

Sheyon gasped, her head shooting up, eyes searching the devil’s for any sign of deceit. 

“B-but why…?” Don’t question it, she thought. Better to accept it now before she changed her mind.  

“Thank you…I’ve said my goodbyes already, I just…I wanna see her before I go…”

With a sigh and a snap of her fingers, Aelis conjured up a small portal.

“Don’t say I never did anything for you,” muttered the devil, only just barely hiding a pang of jealousy and contempt. Nevertheless, as promised, at Shey’s eye level appeared Aine’s form, just inches from the portal.

Well, Aine’s new form, anyway. Resplendent and body bursting with stars, the beginnings of new life within her. Aelis knew she would go on to live for many ages, her body giving birth to unique life forms taking safety within her. She was as close to a goddess as one could get, though few if any at all would know her name in the eons to come.