Ian Czasa had been trapped in the Prism Realm–or, as the local Atiin called it, Jhi’il-tar–for exactly five years now. Five years since he’d last seen another human being aside from his twin sister Alyssa and the other girl who’d been trapped here with them, Sasha Stevens.

Five years since the last time he’d seen Estela.

It wasn’t fair. It hadn’t been more than a day since the two of them had pledged their lives to each other in the heart of the Vaanti city of Elyys’tel… hardly a day that they’d been able to spend together before fate so cruelly yanked he and his sister away from Earth, probably forever.

No. Not “fate.” Fate hadn’t set up that impossible choice he and Alyssa had been forced to make. That was… well. Complicated. Some days, he thought about Everett Rourke, the man who’d been driven so insane with power and fear that he’d threatened to rewrite all of reality to suit his mad whims. Other times, Ian blamed his parent, Vaanu, who’d created him and Alyssa so long ago while knowing full well, given their power over time, that such a choice would eventually come to pass. That he and Alyssa would find love, only to have it cruelly snatched away from them at the last moment. Still other times, Ian found it easy to blame the Endless Ones: the alternate versions of himself and Alyssa, who’d orchestrated things behind the scenes across countless time loops, all because they’d faced the very same impossible choice and hesitated rather than commit to an action.

But mostly, Ian just blamed himself. If Ian hadn’t met her… hadn’t let himself grow close to her… hadn’t fallen in love with her… he wouldn’t have hurt her so badly when he was forced to leave Earth forever. It was his fault, in the end. He should never have… shouldn’t have… he just hoped Estela had moved on with her life. That she was happy. She deserved that. Deserved someone who… someone who was normal, and kind, and human, who wouldn’t suddenly vanish through a portal the day after their wedding. All the time power in two worlds couldn’t undo that. He hissed in frustration as he slammed a fist against the wall of the small dwelling he’d been living in, then slumped down to the floor, his head in his hands.

Ian was so lost in his own thoughts that he didn’t even hear his sister calling his name, until his door shimmered with time energy for a moment before abruptly “rewinding” itself open. He looked up to see Alyssa frowning at him, her arms crossed. “Hey! Are you deaf?” she asked.

“Nah, I was just… uh. Sorry.”

“Geez, I’ve been shouting your name for the past few minutes. Vaanu’s looking for us.”

“Oh. Okay. Guess I’ll… get ready.”

Alyssa softened when she caught sight of Ian’s red face and downcast expression. “Oh. Hey… sorry. Everything okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine…” He sighed and shook his head; there was no point in lying to his sister. “No. I’m not fine. You know what today is, right?”

“Of course: five years. Five years since…” She shook her head. “I was crying my eyes out earlier today. I miss Jake. I miss everyone. So, so much.”

She crossed over to him and pulled him into a soft hug. He sniffed once. “I… ‘Lyss, I should’ve done something. We could’ve… if we’d just…”

“Don’t you start that. This was not our fault. We were stuck with an impossible choice, and we chose–”

“I shouldn’t have ever met her. Shouldn’t have put her through–”

“No. No, Ian. You stop that right now. Understand? If you gotta be mad at someone, blame Rourke. Or Vaanu, even, if that helps… Lord knows I’ve done that enough already that they wouldn’t be too surprised.”

That got a weak chuckle from Ian: he remembered all too well Alyssa’s uncontrolled time-rage against Vaanu that she’d unleashed shortly after arriving in the Prism Realm. “I’ll pass, thanks. I just… I hope wherever everyone is, they’re happy. She’s happy.”

“I know. It’s not easy… but it is what it is. What else can we do besides just move forward?” She paused and smirked faintly at him. “Y’know, I think my brother might’ve said that to me more than once.”

He sighed and pulled back, letting out a soft laugh. “Ha. Yep. Time to start taking my own advice, I guess.”

She nodded toward the gleaming red-and-gold Armor of Perseus that had been stacked haphazardly in one corner. “Exactly. Now suit up, Hero Boy. Vaanu’s got a mission for us… and I get the feeling they think our armor might help.”

He nodded. “Meet you there. I just… I need a minute.”

She nodded in understanding. “Take your time. See you at the Chamber.”

With that, she turned and left the building, leaving Ian alone with his thoughts. He crossed over to the set of armor and began putting it on. Whatever Vaanu needed them for, it was at least something to do… and he really needed the distraction.

~ ~ ~

“My children,” said Vaanu, their ethereal form briefly glowing the brilliant bluish-white that signified happiness. Around the three of them, dozens of other Atiin–showcasing an incredible array of different forms–moved to and fro, most of them ignoring the twins completely. Early on, the presence of humans would draw countless stares, but by now it had become so routine that Ian and his sister barely warranted a passing glance. “I have been in deep conversation with Tua’an and the others. The Fractures are increasing in frequency… and the outskirts are being overrun with the Dimensional Beasts’ emergence. Sasha is already assisting with one of them on the far side of the city. There is another rather large Fracture that has appeared roughly seven liree past the city’s main gate. I will need–”

“You want us to take care of it, I’m guessing?” interrupted Alyssa. “No worries, we’ve got this. Right, Ian?”

Ian shrugged and gave his parent a firm nod. Vaanu’s aura brightened once more. “Excellent. You both have grown so much… I have nothing but confidence that together, you will be able to handle this. Now, go… and may Time be ever at your side!”

Together, Ian and his sister turned and left the Chamber, heading out into the city proper… and beyond, toward the Dimensional Fracture they had been tasked with closing.

~ ~ ~

“Looks like we found our Fracture,” Alyssa remarked as they crested a hill and spotted the swirling vortex of energy in the valley beyond, with all manner of strange and violent beasts pouring out of it. At the far edge of the valley, another figure too distant to make out was already fighting off a few of the creatures. “Wait. They sent one warrior against all that?! No wonder Vaanu wanted us to help out.” She turned to look over at her brother. “So, any ideas?”

“Remember that mini-Fracture we took down in the Prism Forest? Same idea,” Ian suggested. “Fight our way down to the portal itself, then sandwich it between us and squish it away.”

“Works for me.” Alyssa took only a second to concentrate, summoning twin vortices of swirling time energy in her palms. Ian followed suit a moment later, then together, they turned to face the growing horde of Dimensional Beasts below. “Alright, let’s do this!”

Side-by-side, brother and sister charged down into the valley. At first, none of the Beasts noticed their approach; most of them were too busy mindlessly flailing at the dirt and rocks around them or were already battling their other opponent on the far side of the Fracture. But as the twins drew closer, several of the Beasts looked up and began charging in their direction. “Here they come!” Ian called out.

“No shit, genius!” Alyssa snarked back as she sent a net of time energy out toward one of the beasts, enveloping it completely.

One of the Beasts–a six-legged alligator-like creature–charged straight toward Ian, its jaw opening wide. Ian sidestepped at the last second, allowing it to barrel past him. Before the beast could reorient itself, he caught it in his own net of time energy, lifting it into the air–then was suddenly slammed from behind by another creature, forcing him to drop the net! “Oof!” he called out as he turned to face the new threat. This one was bipedal with a more dinosaur-like appearance, but with arms significantly longer and more muscular. It reared back and prepared to grab him, but he leaped out of the way, sending twin blasts of energy toward the ground to propel him higher. While still in mid-air, he sent out two energy nets that caught both the dinosaur and the alligator, then slung them together, knocking the two beasts’ skulls into each other with a CRACK! They fell to the ground, both unconscious, as Ian landed on a third creature’s head, knocking that one out cold as well.

He leaped off of the downed Dimensional Beast, casting his gaze around the battlefield–he’d become separated from Alyssa, who was still fighting her way toward the Fracture. He grunted, then charged straight toward her and the Fracture, tossing a few more Beasts out of the way as he did so. One of them, he even managed to sling all the way back through the Fracture itself. “Three points,” he muttered to no one in particular as he fought to rejoin his sister.

“Hey, slowpoke! What are you doing way over there? You’re missin’ all the fun!” Alyssa called out even as she sent a large yeti-like creature sailing over his head, landing on top of another Dimensional Beast. “You ready to help close this thing, or what?”

Ian sent another Beast sprawling with a prism-enhanced kick. “Yeah, if these things would leave us alone for five seconds, that’d be great,” he remarked as two more Beasts came at him from either side. “This is getting ridiculous!” He caught both of them in time energy, then sent them ‘rewinding’ backward until they seemingly moonwalked themselves straight back through the Fracture.

“Think we should switch to the old divide-and-conquer? Worked last time,” Alyssa suggested as she performed a Prism jump straight upward, then came down on another Dimensional Beast and sent its face slamming straight into the dirt.

Ian lifted another Beast with his powers, then gestured palm-out at the suspended creature, sending it flying into a group of its fellows and scattering them like bowling pins, forming a momentary clearing in the battle. He glanced across the way for a moment, where the other fighter was still holding their own against the Beasts. “Not yet, ‘Lyss, I was thinking we should–”

Then for just a brief moment, he caught sight of the other combatant at the far side of the valley… and his words caught in his throat.

He was vaguely aware that Alyssa was shouting his name, even while she fought off another wave of Dimensional Beasts, but she could’ve been screaming in his ear and he wouldn’t have noticed. Because, for just a brief moment, before more Dimensional Beasts had obstructed his view again, he’d recognized the other fighter. Not just in appearance, either: at that distance, with all the chaos of battle, any vaguely human-shaped figure looked the same as another if he was being completely honest. But the way that she moved, the way she fought… the fact that she was using spears at all rather than some fancy powers or A’atenic weapon… it all pointed to one obvious conclusion.

But it was too good to be true. Wasn’t it? He had to be sure.

“...Alyssa?” he asked, barely recovering his senses in time to throw up a Prism shield, blocking a charging rhinoceros-like Beast.

“Yes, that is a big angry rhino, thanks for noticing,” Alyssa snarked. “Glad you’re done staring at nothing. Help out, would you?”

She kicked another creature in his direction; he caught it in a Prism field and used it as a club to slam into the rhino creature. “Alyssa,” Ian said, with all of the seriousness he could muster. “This is important. Can you get a good look at… the person over there, helping out? Tell me I’m not crazy? It’s not a hallucination, or another test?”

She spared a moment to look over at him, confused. “...What?”

“Just do it, would you? Please. I have to know–”

Alyssa rolled her eyes and sent a series of tiny biting lizards scattering in all directions like the world’s strangest whirlwind. “Fine, whatever,” she sighed, taking advantage of the momentarily cleared “launchpad” of open space around her to perform another Prism Jump. She alighted on a nearby spire of rock and crystal before performing another Jump from there.

With Alyssa gone, the Beasts all began converging on Ian. He lifted one and slung it in a wide arc, momentarily driving its fellows back, then sent the captured beast soaring through the air to fall neatly through the Fracture. He watched his sister out of the corner of his eye. He had to know. If he alone had seen her, he could chalk it up to wishful thinking… but if Alyssa saw…

Alyssa slammed down into the center of a large cluster of Dimensional Beasts, kicking up purple dust in all directions and momentarily obscuring everything around the twins. As the dust cleared, Ian looked over at his sister… who was staring at him, her eyes wide and her mouth agape. “Holy… holy shit,” she said. “Ian, you’re not crazy. I saw her. That’s Estela!”

At that moment, he knew. Had Estela been another Prism illusion, a test for the two of them like the countless others they’d faced since being trapped in the Prism Realm, Alyssa would instead have seen Jake in her place. The fact that she, too, saw Estela… “She’s real,” he gasped, barely recovering his senses in time to join forces with his sister, the two of them working together to send a massive sluglike creature soaring high into the air in an arc that would carry it back through the Fracture. “It’s her. I can’t… I don’t…”

A thousand emotions seemed to flicker across Alyssa’s face, something which was no doubt reflected on Ian’s own face at the same time. Then she glanced away for a moment, taking a deep breath, before returning her attention to her brother. “Well, what are you waiting for?” she asked him. “Go help her out!”

“Are you sure?” asked Ian, kicking another Beast into Alyssa’s path, which she caught neatly in a Prism field before catapulting it clear out of the valley. “What about you?”

“Geez, you waited five years, Ian. Just do it! I’ll shut the Fracture, then come help you two mop up the stragglers.” She turned and gathered twin swirls of energy in her palms, before flinging them outward, sending multiple Beasts flying and creating a small open area of ground in front of Ian. “There. One launchpad, ready for business. Now go!” She paused for a moment, smirking at him. “Say hi to my sister-in-law for me, would ya?”

He paused for only a moment to smile gratefully at his sister, nodding once before turning back toward the makeshift ‘launchpad’ she’d provided him. Concentrating, gathering Prism energy to a level he’d never done before, he focused and unleashed it all toward the ground below him, sending him soaring high over the battle, straight toward Estela. As he descended, he saw that Estela had been backed against a rocky, crystalline spire. Two spears of high-tech steel flashed in her hands, bringing Dimensional Beasts down one after another, but more kept coming. He targeted the center of the pack of creatures at the edge of his jump radius, gathered Prism energy in his palm, and struck true. The Beasts were sent flying in all directions. Ian picked himself up from the ground… and then he and Estela caught each other’s gaze.

For a moment, time seemed meaningless. He couldn’t have said how long he and Estela simply gazed into one another’s eyes, their mouths agape: it could have been seconds, or hours, or heck, another five years for all he knew. Somehow, despite no words passing between them in that moment, they both understood. It was Finally and I’ve missed you and Thank God and You’re beautiful and countless unspoken questions and phrases between the two of them, all at once. For that moment, for just a brief moment, it felt as though nothing could come between them.

Then a giant angry scorpion decided to come between them. It lashed out with its tail, and Ian caught it in a prism-field and angrily shoved it aside. He’d waited five years. All the Dimensional Beasts in the multiverse weren’t going to keep him and Estela apart any longer. A flying reptilian creature dive-bombed him, and he leaped aside, ducking and rolling. As he came up, he briefly caught a glimpse of Estela again: she’d charged back into battle with renewed fury, battling Beast after Beast like they were nothing. Slowly but surely, the two of them fought their way toward one another, Ian’s powers and Estela’s spears carving identical paths through the melee.

A large reptilian creature lunged at Ian with its massive jaws, and he threw up a Prism shield to block it–and at the same time, Estela deflected the same blow with a shield projected from one of her spears. At long last, after all this time… they were side-by-side once more. Without any need for words, Ian and Estela locked eyes, then shut their eyes tightly… and when their eyes opened again, the battle-bond forged over thousands of looping timelines on La Huerta activated once more. For the two of them, it was like water for someone dying of thirst, oxygen for a drowning sailor, food for someone on the verge of starvation… they’d been deprived of the bond’s sensation for so long that to experience it again was pure euphoria. As one, they faced the reptile and the hundreds upon hundreds of its fellow Dimensional Beasts.

Less than five minutes later, it was all over.

Every last one of the creatures had either been driven back through the Fracture or were lying dead or unconscious around them. Ian and Estela looked at each other, both panting heavily, as the battle-bond dissipated. Ian was vaguely aware of his sister finishing her task of shutting the Fracture in the distance, but that didn’t matter to him at the moment. One hundred percent of his attention was focused on the woman beside him.

She was panting heavily, her skin and clothing scratched and torn from battle in dozens of places. Her hair was a mess, held back haphazardly by what looked like a makeshift hair tie made of some kind of plant material. She was completely drenched in sweat, and had clearly not had access to deodorant or a shower in several days. She was limping heavily on her right leg.

She was the most beautiful being Ian had ever seen.

For several moments, neither of them said a word. Then, finally, Estela looked him up and down, nodding approvingly. “You’ve… upgraded,” she said, smiling softly at him.

He smiled back. “So have you,” he said, gesturing to her new spears.

Then they pulled each other into a tight embrace that quickly turned into a deep kiss, that turned into an even deeper kiss… five years’ worth of heartbreak and loss and desperation and desire all wrapped into one moment.

~ ~ ~

Somewhere between a few minutes and an eternity later, Alyssa coughed. “A-hem,” she said. “You two gonna come up for air anytime soon?”

The two of them broke apart in a flash, looking at Alyssa with matching deer-in-headlights expressions. Alyssa couldn’t help laughing. “Oh, man, you should see your faces! Seriously, though, keep kissing. I don’t care, you two have earned it.”

“Well, this just got way more awkward now. Thanks, ‘Lyss,” Ian said sarcastically.

“I mean, I was gonna help mop up the rest of the Beasts, but… seems you two had that covered already.” She gestured at the dozens upon dozens of dead or unconscious Dimensional Beasts littering the valley before turning back and awkwardly waving at Estela. “Hey, sis. It’s been a while.”

“Alyssa!” Estela hugged her briefly. “It has been a while. We… we all have a lot to catch up on, it seems.”

“You got that right,” Ian said.

Alyssa was looking this way and that around the valley, apparently searching for something. Ian quickly put two and two together. Frowning, fearing the worst, he asked Estela gently, “Uh… ‘Stel? If you’re here… where’s Jake?”

Alyssa’s eyes went wide. She stared at Estela, awaiting her answer with bated breath and clearly fearing the worst. Estela noticed her expression and smiled reassuringly. “He’s fine. He’s okay,” she informed her, and Alyssa let out the breath she had been holding. “That portal I came through… he’s keeping it open for us. Long story short, Rourke has control over the Earth side.”

If Ian had been drinking anything, he would’ve spat it out at that moment. “Wait, what?!”

“Oh, come on!” groaned Alyssa. “Everything we went through, and he’s still not in prison?!”

“Well, he was,” Estela clarified. “He escaped. And now he’s got an army of nearly-invincible robot people and… well, whatever he’s trying to do, it can’t be good.”

“He has what now?” asked Ian. “How did you manage to–”

Estela shook her head. “Wasn’t just us. We had help. If it hadn’t been for the superheroes and elemental wizards and the other robot helping us out–”

“Wait, the what?!”

Estela laughed in spite of herself. “You two have… missed a lot.”

“You don’t say,” snarked Alyssa. “Even with five years, we didn’t expect–”

“Wait. Five years?” asked Estela.

Ian looked at her. “Yeah… that’s how long we’ve been stuck here. Why?”

Estela frowned. “That’s not right. It’s only been a year since… since the top of the Celestial.” She held onto Ian tighter as she said this, as though afraid that simply by talking about that night, she might lose him again. “Actually, today marks exactly one year since…” She hesitated. “Since it happened.”

Alyssa and Ian exchanged a glance. “Prism time,” Ian said, breathing a huge sigh of relief. “So it wasn’t as long for you… thank God for that. I was so scared… I thought I’d left you alone for… for five years…”

He shut his eyes tightly to ward off the tears. Estela took hold of his head and made him look at her. “I know. I know… but listen, Ian. We’re here. We’re together. And nothing, not Rourke, not any Prism being, not any force on Earth–or off it,” she added quickly, “nothing is ever going to separate us again. Not like this. Do you understand? I will personally fight whatever tries to–”

Her last statement had the intended effect: Ian couldn’t help but laugh. “I don’t doubt that for a second, Estela,” he told her sincerely. He kissed her again, shorter this time.

“That’s great and all,” Alyssa said. “You two may be able to survive on love alone, but I am still a being who requires food and water and stuff. Can we take this someplace else? Like, not a barren valley filled with dead Dimensional Beasts?”

Estela and Ian exchanged a glance, then both started laughing. “Sure, ‘Lyss, how about the city?” said Ian, still laughing.

“I don’t even know why we’re laughing,” Estela remarked. “It’s just… I never thought this day would come. I’m… I’m just… so happy.”

The three of them began walking back in the general direction of the Atiin city when a thought occurred to Alyssa. “Hey, you two,” she said. “I’ve got something that’s… well, either adorable, hilarious, or really weird depending on how you look at it. Estela, you said today’s exactly one year from the day… that happened, right?”

“Yes…” said Estela, clearly unsure where her sister-in-law was going with this.

“And that happened the day after our handfastings, right?”

“Yes…” Then it hit her. She gazed at Ian in wonder. “A year and a day.”

“No way,” Ian gasped. “It really is.” He squeezed Estela’s hand as they continued toward the city. “‘A year and a day…’” he muttered, quoting the words that the Vaanti had spoken to them at their handfasting.

“‘...And from then, ‘til forever,’” Estela finished.

And at that moment, Ian Czasa didn’t care what awaited them in the future. Whether it was Rourke, or ten thousand Dimensional Fractures, or some other unknown threat… he knew that with himself and Estela working side-by-side, they could overcome anything. For the first time in five years (to him, anyway), his future felt… hopeful.

————————–

Note: At long last, it's the reunion story I've been wanting to write for ages! The actual story once I get around to it in the CIU proper will be written from Estela's perspective, hence why I decided to tell it from the twins' perspective here. And yes, Alyssa does reunite with Jake later that very same day, once they dive back through the portal to the other side!

“You know what you must do to end this.” Vannu’s voice rang in her mind, and it felt like a thousand tiny needles pressing against her head, it was agonizing, the visions of her home planet filling her mind.

“I can’t.” She pleaded, crying, staring at Jake. The last thing he’d said to her before time froze was, “that look in your eyes telling me that I’m gonna lose you, Princess.” He was right, Vannu wanted her to return with him, to make him whole again, just as she had done for her friends and Jake had done for her, Jake made her feel whole, not Vannu.

“It is your decision, but you know what you should choose.” She turned back to Vannu, an idea crossing her mind.

“I’m a part of you, surely you can sense how much Jake means to me. Please, I promised him a year and a day, at least let me fulfill that. I can’t just abandon him.” Taylor could sense Vannu thinking, could tell that he was torn up inside as well, sensing the pain radiating off of her.

“There would be no more time resets, no more loops, no more anomalies, if something happens to one of your friends or to Jake that is the end, there is no turning back.”

“Fine, just let me fulfill my promise.”

“Very well.” Taylor covered her eyes from the flash of blinding white light, time beginning to move around her again, Jake rushing forward and enveloping her in his arms.

“You can’t leave me, Princess.” Taylor could feel Jake’s heart practically beating out of his chest.

“I’m not going anywhere, Jake.” She couldn’t look him in the eyes, so she pulled him flush against her, feeling the tension leave his body. Rourke’s outburst broke them from the moment.

“No! I don’t understand!” His omega mech had shut down, allowing Estela to escape, the rest of the group subduing the crazed man as he looked pointedly at Taylor.

“What did you do!”

“I sent Vannu home, it’s over Rourke.”

“No! There will be consequences!” He snarled, lunging for Taylor but it was no use, the others hold on him was too strong and they dragged him down to the dungeon where he could be locked up until they figured out what to do with him. Time in the outside world wouldn’t be completely reset until Taylor left, and Vannu had returned, no one would come looking for them until then. The group celebrated their victory for days, no one seemed to notice that something was haunting Taylor, not even Jake who was just so relieved that his wife was still here with him. She couldn’t bring herself to tell him the truth, that with each day that passed their time together got shorter and shorter. She knew Jake wanted to start a family with her, and she wanted nothing more than to have a family with him too, but deep down she knew that wasn’t possible, she knew that she would never be able to completely give him what he desired. Those first few months, they hardly left their room, Taylor wanting to enjoy every second she had with him, Jake lost in marital bliss, they had been so careful, until one day they weren’t. The day she found out she was terrified, the baby would only be a few weeks old when she left, assuming she did her math right. Jake would be left to raise the baby on his own but he had no idea that was going to happen, she hadn’t had the guts to tell him, to ruin his happiness.

Jake was overjoyed, scooping her up off the ground and spinning her, chanting over and over. “We’re having a baby. We’re going to be parents! I’m going to be a dad!” The look of pure unbridled joy on his face broke something in Taylor, she began crying and Jake wiped her eyes, kissing her until she stopped crying.

“What’s wrong? Aren’t you happy? He whispered, she could hear the edge in his voice.

“Yes, I’m so happy Jake, I love you.” She rested her forehead against his, she couldn’t let him see how scared she was, she should’ve been as happy as him, but it just made the inevitable truth that much closer for her. He went through the hotel, banging on everyone’s door to tell them the good news, they weren’t amused at first, but once they’d all had their coffee, they were happy and congratulating them. It put Taylor’s mind at ease just a little because she knew that Jake would have a village to help him raise the baby once she was gone.

Every day that passed, she could swear her belly got bigger and bigger as if it was some kind of sick joke, of Vaanu’s way of saying “this is what you wanted, there are always consequences for choices.” Jake and Taylor couldn’t agree on a name, for a boy or a girl, it’s not like they had any way of finding out on the island.

“I think we should name him Jacob McKenzie junior.” Jake teased, kissing her large belly, she looked like she would burst any day now, and she was due any day now as well by Michelle’s count.

“And what if it’s a girl?” Taylor raised her eyebrows. Jake chuckled and pulled her close, protectively wrapping an arm around her belly.

“I’m sure it’s a boy, but if it is a girl then she’ll be just as beautiful as her mother and we’ll try again so we can give her a little brother.” He teased, gently nibbling her ear, making her squirm under his touch. He was already thinking about another kid, and she would never be able to give that to him.

“So, you want a son?” Taylor prayed to Vaanu that their child would be a boy, that she could give him at least one thing he wanted before she left him forever.

“I just want a healthy baby with my beautiful wife, Taylor.” He could sense that something had been off with her, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it. Their beautiful baby girl was born that next week, Michelle helping her through the process and keeping her from breaking Jake’s fingers.

“It’s a beautiful baby girl.” Michelle held up the screaming baby for Taylor and Jake, Taylor cried as she held her, admiring her. She looked just like Taylor, a small patch of platinum blonde hair, crystal blue eyes curiously shining up at them.

“She looks just like you, Princess.” Jake kissed the top of her head and Taylor pulled them both close, refusing to let go until she was so exhausted she couldn’t hold on anymore, she wanted to treasure every possible moment she had left with them. She would be up in the middle of the night to feed or change the baby’s diaper, they had resorted to calling her Baby since they still hadn’t come up with a name. Despite being exhausted, constantly up with Baby, she couldn’t sleep, she would lie on her side facing Jake, memorizing his sleeping features. He looked so much younger and relaxed when he was sleeping, his breathing even and deep, his heartbeat strong and steady, reminding her that for now she was still alive and still had some time with her family left.

On their year and a day, Taylor refused to leave Jake and Baby’s side, she knew that this was their last day with them and she wasn’t going to waste a second of it, not knowing when Vaanu would be coming for her. They took Baby for a walk, having lunch with everyone to celebrate their anniversary and Diego and Varyyn’s. Taylor stood, clearing her throat to make a toast.

“I, I just want to thank you all for sharing this special day with us and to let you know that you’ve all become such a special part of my life. I would not trade anything for the time we’ve had together, I love you all so much, especially you Jake. I couldn’t have asked for a better partner on this crazy journey. Cheers.” Everyone raised their glasses and Taylor fought tears in her eyes.

“Okay Taylor, it’s not like this is goodbye or anything, I don’t know that I can follow that emotional speech.” Diego teased when the group began chanting, expecting a speech from him. She forced a small smile, if only they knew, this was goodbye. That night, Taylor and Jake returned to their place with Baby and set her down to sleep, Taylor crashing her lips onto his the second they were in their room. Jake was caught off guard but responded to her instantly, sensing the passion and desire rolling off his wife. At first, it was rushed, desperately clawing, trying to bring the other closer, to feel the other pressed against them completely; but then it was slow and sweet, taking their time, savoring the moment, pouring all their love for the other into it. As they laid there tangled up together, breathing heavy, Taylor traced idle circles on Jake’s chest.

“I’m not complaining, but what’s gotten into you, Taylor? You haven’t jumped me like that since our honeymoon.” She turned, her chin resting on his head, staring into his blue eyes. He could sense some swirling in the depths of her ocean blue eyes, it’d been there for a while, but he still couldn’t figure out what it was.

“I just love you so much Jake, I wanted our year and a day to be special,” she whispered, she couldn’t let him see the fear she felt boiling up inside her, the strength it took to fight back the tears and keep her heartbeat in time with his.

“I love you too, Princess. We’ve got plenty of years and days ahead of us.” He sighed and fell into a deep sleep with her wrapped in his arms. She carefully snaked her way out and began writing him a letter.

Jake,

My love, my husband, my one true love, Top Gun, if you’re reading this then I’m gone. I’m sorry, and I know that doesn’t even begin to make up for it, but I had to do it, and I hope you can understand. It was the only way I could save you all, to make sure that you had a chance at a real life, I promised you a year and a day, and so when Vaanu came to me, I begged that he let me fulfill that promise. I wish I could have given you all my years and days, but at least we were able to have one together, and let me tell you, Jake, it was the best year and a day of my life. You gave me the chance to be a mother, to have a real family, and I will forever be grateful for that. I know that it might not make sense, but I promise it will all work out and you will be the best father to our baby girl and name her something absolutely beautiful. Now you both carry a piece of me with you, and I will carry with me a piece of you both. I didn’t tell you because I knew that you would spend our time together searching for a way to undo it, and I didn’t want that for you, for us. I wanted you to remember the happy times together, to enjoy and savor every moment, like last night. I couldn’t have asked for a better parting gift. I hope you understand, I will love you forever Jacob Lucas McKenzie.

Love your princess,

Taylor

Jake sobbed, falling to his knees as he held the note to his chest. His heart was completely broken, his wife was gone, she’d made a deal without him knowing to save him and their friends. Now he was left alone with a newborn, this is what he had seen in her eyes, what she was so afraid of, it all made sense now. The only thing that broke him out of his downward spiral was the cries of Baby. He rushed to her side, worried that Vaanu was trying to take her too, but it was just him and Baby. He picked her up, rocking her gently, to soothe her, whispering sweet nothings. She finally calmed down and when he pulled her away from his chest he saw that she was sleeping peacefully again.

“Aurora Taylor McKenzie. Named after your mother, my princess. Mommy isn’t here with us anymore, but she’s out there, waiting for us to find her, a sleeping princess.”

“It’s beautiful Jake.” He swore he heard Taylor’s voice and whipped around, but there was nothing other than a slight breeze, carrying the scent of her perfume to his nose.

******************

Jake’s little girl came bounding into the room, jumping onto her Daddy’s lap and wrapped her arms around his neck, staring at him with her large ocean blue eyes.

“Daddy, tell me about Mommy again!”

“You’re supposed to be in bed Squirt.” He carried her back to her room and laid her down in bed, pulling the covers up once more.

“Please, just tell me the story about Mommy one more time.”

“Okay, but then it’s bedtime.” The little girl eagerly nodded and settled in for her favorite story.

“It all started when the most beautiful princess in all the realms woke the dashing knight up from a nap in the front of the carriage.”

Find Part 2 here!

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