Chapter Text
A giant statue of Balduran stood before the group, echoing with a poem that made Violet’s head spin.
Gods, she needed some sleep.
As the massive iron doors creaked open, revealing a cavern not unlike one found in the Underdark, she glanced over her shoulder at her companions.
Wyll and Karlach looked like they’d just met Balduran himself and not just his statue. Gale simply tilted his head slightly and smiled warmly at his partner.
They’d been together and had fought together for long enough that she knew what he was asking with that one simple look.
“You okay?”
Violet simply smiled back at him, knowing it didn’t quite reach her eyes, and, with a final deep breath, led the crew into the cavern. Large, beautiful blue-white crystals lined a dirt path. If she looked long enough, she might’ve thought she was back in the Underdark- the crystals, the stalagmites, and the same dirt path maybe a little more packed into the ground.
As they reached an outcropping, Violet skidded to a stop, her boots digging into the dirt underneath them just before they got to the stone that made up the outcropping.
Her heart sank. Behind her, she heard Karlach gasp.
“Hells,” Violet surveyed the corpse in front of them. “The great wyrm is nothing but bone and memories.”
Indeed, the skeletonized remains of who she assumed to be Ansur, Heart of the Gate, laid sprawled out on the grey stone. Only bits of flesh still hung to his wings and body. This body had been here for a while .
“He’s long gone,” Violet said, trying not to let her emotions get the better of her. She pinched the bridge of her scarred nose, counting to ten in her head. First, in Common. Then Undercommon. Then Goblin. Then Elvish.
As she was counting, a warm hand came and embraced her hand hanging limply at her side. Her eyes flew open, head jerking to the left where Gale stood, silently. He didn’t say anything. He simply held her hand and stood with her.
Her beautiful wizard was always going to be her partner. She never questioned that. He never told her what to think or how to feel. He simply let Violet feel her emotions as they hit, and be a support for her with whatever she needed.
Having that, in and of itself, felt like a miracle to her.
She was always grateful for Gale’s partnership…but she found herself even more so grateful as she tried her best not to fall apart in front of the giant wyrm.
Violet turned her eyes back to Ansur.
She didn’t need her training as a paladin to know that whatever became of Ansur had happened decades, if not centuries, before. Their last chance at getting an upper hand on the Elder Brain was lost.
The crushing weight of defeat settled on Violet’s shoulders.
The once golden dragon lay in a heap at their feet, now a sickly green.
Violet knelt down gently at the wyrm’s head. Gale let her hand go gently, letting her process this however she needed.
Quietly, Violet said a prayer over the wyrm’s head, asking Tyr to show mercy to Ansur’s soul, wherever it may be.
As she raked her eyes over the corpse, planning her next move, a giant flash of blue-green light burned her eyes as she’s thrown backwards onto her ass in the dirt.
Damn, if this ain’t familiar.
She’d had her fair share of falling on her ass. She was definitely over it.
As her companions rushed to her side, waves of the blue green energy ran down the wyrm’s back and protruded from its mouth. Then, suddenly, Ansur’s mouth moved.
Open and closed, as if he’d simply been asleep and needed to warm up the joints again.
“ Tyr’s grace… ”
The wyrm’s giant claws thudded on the ground, pushing the corpse up onto its feet once more. Its giant wings thudded as the eyes started glowing that same blue-green.
“By Ahghairons lost nose…” Gale wondered at the towering behemoth before seemingly shaking himself out of it and reaching a hand out to Violet. She took it and let her lover help her pull her to her feet.
There was once a time when she wouldn’t let people help her, even if she needed it. She had been used to pulling herself up when she got knocked down. It made her feel too anxious to admit she needed help, even with standing up. She’d insulted more than a few people without meaning to over the years.
My, how far she had come.
Sure enough, the skeleton introduced itself as Ansur, Heart of the Gate.
The dragon twisted its large neck as if wringing out a knot in it, shining eyes never leaving the group of four companions who were standing stock still, looking stunned.
They’d been traveling together for a while…but this was the first time they all stopped and simply stared . By all accounts…Ansur shouldn’t exist. He certainly shouldn’t be awake and talking to them.
Ansur growled, taking a step closer to the crew, “Answer me, faessi . Why have you come?”
“Ansur, I’m Violet. I’m terribly sorry to wake you, or disturb you…whichever it is, I do apologize. I mean you no harm. We are simply here to ask for your help. There is a threat to Baldur’s Gate- one bigger than the city has ever faced before, and we can’t defeat them alone.” Violet’s hands came out in front of her in a placating gesture.
Violet didn’t get nervous often. And she wasn’t necessarily nervous now, per se. But she was smart enough to realize that this dragon- or what was left of it- could destroy her and her entire team with one swipe of his tail if he so wanted.
“ Vrak . My words aren’t for you- they’re meant for him .”
Violet whipped her head around, searching for who the wyrm could be speaking of. She met eyes with Karlach, eyes wide and slightly panicked. Maybe there was someone else tied to Ansur that were in the stories that she hadn’t known about?
But Karlach simply shook her head, raising her large shoulders in a shrug. She was as completely lost as her drow best friend was.
That did not bode well for them.
Before Violet could open her mouth to ask Ansur who exactly he was talking to, the Astral Prism stirred from the bag attached to her belt. Glowing a bright red, it flew out of the bag, hovering in midair beside the group, before The Emperor seemingly walked out of thin air.
Violet took one single step back, with one foot.
There was a calm that settled over her, and she realized it was The Emperor's feelings…or what was left of them.
Calm. Curious. Detached.
“Balduran,” Ansur purred at the Mind Flayer, “Your presence has stirred me, as it ever did. I am awakened.”
“Because I’m sure that won’t end up being a problem…” Karlach mumbled only loud enough so her companions would hear her. Violet wanted to make a face at Karlach that said ‘ Not helping, ’ but her best friend was right.
This really did not bode well for them.
“ Ansur, it’s been too long. ”
Wyll jolted from his place on the other side of Karlach, “Balduran? No, I don’t believe it…”
Then what Wyll just said sank in.
Violet turned towards the Mind Flayer. Slowly . Not taking any steps forward or backwards, simply eyeing the Mind Flayer with her ever-present hesitation.
“Balduran?” She asked the illithid, who didn’t even turn to look at the drow whose head he’d been shacked up in for the gods knew how long at this point. “He called you Balduran?”
“A name I once answered to, a name I thought I’d never hear again,” Balduran said, once again sounding completely detached from the situation. “Least of all from the mouth of an old friend.”
Violet’s eyes bounced between the two. Her eyebrows flew upwards. “You two know each other?”
Ansur dipped his chin in an ever slight nod, “Friend, yes. And more. Until you killed me. Have you come to dance on my bones, Balduran? Was slaying me not satisfaction enough?”
“You killed your friend?!”
The illithid ignored the drow once more.
“ Satisfaction? No. You left me no choice. ”
“You had every choice. You were becoming illithid. I offered you a merciful death; you chose to fight. And now you bring your thrall before me. How far has the great Balduran fallen?”
The Mind Flayer simply stared at the undead dragon with a coldness only Mind Flayers could exhibit.
She didn’t correct Ansur’s description of them. He didn’t know any better that they weren’t his thralls. And, maybe, in a way, they were. They had been at the Emperor's mercy for so long…who knew how much he’d manipulated them into doing or thinking.
Violet’s stomach ached.
When she realized the illithid wasn’t going to answer, she took one step forward, putting herself one small step in front of her friends. Gale reached out for her hand, as if to pull her back, but he didn’t move her. He simply held onto her hand, as if he sensed she needed the grounding right now.
“Answer the question, mind flayer. Or so help me, I will smite you from here until the next ten-day. It is the least that you owe the both of us.”
Karlach let out a little laugh of surprise at Violet’s suddenly vicious tone. Perhaps she’d picked up a thing or two from Emma…
Still, Violet ignored her, too focused on the two men (?) in front of her and what this all meant.
The dragon turned its attention back to the drow, whose face had gone slightly pale. There was a stillness in him that radiated to her, as if the dragon was searching her, seeing all the parts of her she wrestled with to keep locked down.
“ Dear Ansur- ”
“Enough!” Ansur stomped one foot on the ground, causing the ground beneath them to shake. Violet held tighter to Gale’s hand, but otherwise didn’t show her cards.
As much as she was able to, anyways.
“I gave you everything, Balduran- and you repaid me in slaughter. It is time I returned the favor.”
Another stomp of his large, boney claw. Violet wobbled on her feet, but stayed upright. Behind her, she heard someone fall to the ground but her eyes didn’t leave the dragon and illithid in front of her.
“I am The Heart of The Gate. I am The One Who Roars.” The dragon let out a screech that bounced off the walls of the cave, sending a ringing through their ears at the sheer volume.
“Wait!” Violet called to the dragon, hoping she could stop this before it was too late.
But the dragon ignored her, and turned its attention to her group. The illithid, conveniently , disappeared.
Without a choice, the group fought the wyrm. It cracked a piece of Violet’s heart off every time she had to take a swing at the creature with her longsword. When Gale landed the final blows with his Artistry of War spell, the wyrm stumbled before falling to the ground once more.
“Balduran…what have you done?”
And then Ansur, the Heart of the Gate, laid his head to rest one final time.
Violet dropped her longsword, letting it dangle loosely at her side as she stared at the now-still skeleton.
Chest heaving, she barely noticed when Gale came up next to her, putting a hand on the small of her back. He knew better than to sneak up on her, but she knew her wizard’s touch anywhere. They both knew she wasn’t in danger of whipping her sword around to decapitate her lover.
She just…knew his body, like she knew her own.
“He’s gone, my love.” Gale whispered as Wyll and Karlach stepped away to give them a minute, messing with their weapons.
“I know…” Violet whispered back, eyes never leaving the slain creature. “And where is the justice in that?”
Gale tilted his head at her, as she fought back the tears pricking behind her eyes. She knew she wasn’t making sense. But she couldn’t find it in her right then to explain.
She’d grown up in that monastery, thinking she knew exactly what justice was and how to enact it. How to right wrongs, how to give people hope and happy endings when they had none left.
Yet, as she moved through her life, especially since the Nautaloid…she couldn’t help but wonder how much of what she had learned was simply wishful thinking.
The world wasn’t fair. She knew this.
Yet, she always felt as if she had some power in helping to enact some kind of justice.
Staring down at the skeleton of the infamous wyrm…she wasn’t sure what to believe, anymore.
“ Ansur- I never thought I’d see him again. ”
Violet and Gale spun around as the Emperor, conveniently, returned and stared at his slain friend on the ground with such indifference it angered Violet to her core.
She hadn’t felt a rage like this for some time.
“ Balduran… ” Violet said, voice full of disbelief as well as disdain. She shook her head, letting out a bitter laugh. “I should’ve known. I should’ve known there was more you weren’t telling us. Tell me, Balduran …how much more of your past are you hiding from us? And why in the hells did you conceal your true identity? That would be important information to know: that we have the founder of Baldur’s Gate stuck inside our heads. ”
“ My true identity is one you have known since the moment we met, ” The illithid said, unhelpfully.
“ Bullshit !” Violet spat.
“ I concealed nothing from you. I simply left out the details that were not pertinent to our cause .”
“And who gave you the right to decide what is and is not pertinent information? I’m sorry, as far as I’m concerned, I would’ve liked to know before it was dumped on me that the Mind Flayer that has been living rent-free inside my skull for the past months has been the very founder of the city of Baldur’s Gate itself,” Violet shook her head, “Lies of omission are still lies, Balduran. Some of the dirtiest ones too.”
Violet took a step backwards, arms outstretched to gesture at the dark, damp cavern around her. “Look around you, Balduran. You just killed your best friend, twice over. And you couldn’t even finish the job the second time- you disappeared and let us do it. That’s a constant theme, isn’t it? You let us do your dirty work. What’s stopping you from turning on us as you did Ansur when we are no longer helpful to you in some way?”
“I killed Ansur out of necessity. For the crime of becoming illithid, he would have killed me first. ”
Violet let out a single, high pitched laugh, prodding her tongue into her cheek as the illithid’s slimy words sunk in. She shook her head as he continued his disgusting excuse.
He went on to explain how he was exactly what he’d said- an adventurer, “just like them.” He spoke of how he went to Moonrise before the shadow curse took hold and got infected with a mind flayer parasite whilst there. He explained that it was Ansur who had pulled him from the Elder Brain’s clutches, giving him his free will back.
Ansur had apparently called on every healer he could find. Balduran said he nearly broke his spirit in the attempt.
Violet shook her head. All he was doing was confirming that she couldn’t trust this piece of shit. He’d let them wander around the wilds of Faerun, in search of a healer to get rid of the parasite, knowing damned well that there was nothing that could fix it.
Was anything he said to them truthful?
Violet’s stomach twisted.
Now, who does that sound like?
“ But he failed to understand…I wanted no healing. I was not sick. ”
“So… you murdered your best friend? You’re definitely sick.”
“You sound just like him,” Balduran narrowed his beady eyes at the pissed off drow standing before him. He continued on to speak of how he didn’t want to be cured- he was on the cusp of greatness and Ansur simply didn’t understand that.
Again…who does that sound like?
She bit back the bile threatening to rise in her throat.
“ But all he could see was a mind flayer. He came to me, as I slept. A mercy killing, in his mind. I saw the tears- I felt his grief .”
Violet started pacing back and forth. Her companions had given her the room to converse with the Emperor and were all wearing different expressions of confusion and worry, seemingly about her reaction to the Emperor’s story.
It was the first time any of them had seen her well and truly pissed .
She prided herself on her calm demeanor. Granted, she could get snippy if people were putting others in danger with no real regard for safety, but she was usually calm and collected.
That version of her was long gone.
That version of her was remembering what happened so long ago, in the Underdark. What made this story especially heinous in her eyes.
“ I had no choice but to kill him first. It was an act of self-preservation .”
Violet let out another laugh, louder this time. It tasted as bitter on her tongue as it sounded to her own ears. She stopped pacing, standing in front of Balduran, a mean glare in her eye.
The illithid hovered well above her 5’7” height, but Violet still found a way to glare down her nose at the being.
“Becoming a mind flayer was worth the loss of a friend? Your best friend?” She shook her head. “You disgust me.”
“Love,” Gale coughed from his spot behind her, seemingly to remind her that this illithid quite literally held all their lives in his hands.
“No,” Another shake of her head, a few pieces of ebony hair falling free from their characteristic twin buns at the nape of her neck. She didn’t move to brush them away. “No, he murdered his best friend so he could become an illithid. I have no respect for you. Because, you know what, Balduran? Some of us didn’t get to grow old with our best friends. My best friend was taken from me. She was murdered, right next to me, while we slept, by someone who had claimed to love me. She was ripped from my grasp when she was the only thing I had left in this godsdamned world.”
Her throat burned as the words she’d been holding in for two hundred years finally left her mouth. Sure, she’d told Gale that Vorn had murdered her best friend. However, he didn’t know the specifics. He never pushed for them either.
“ Do not think I am ignorant of what I have lost. I may not regret my actions, but I regret that they were necessary. ”
“You ignorant prick,” Violet snarled. “I regret that it was because of choices I made that cost my best friend her life. I regret that I brought that monster into our lives and allowed him to get to the person I loved most in this world. You say you don’t regret that you killed him…I have no respect for you. I am unsure if you were this much of a prick as a human as you are a Mind Flayer, but I can tell you one thing. We will defeat the Elder Brain. But, when that is done, I never want to see you again. It is not your appearance that makes you my enemy. Your actions are what make you appalling. I would never choose being an illithid over the life of my best friend. I would gladly give up my life to give my best friend a chance to live hers.
“Do not speak to me unless it is imperative to the destruction of the Elder Brain. Whether you ever had a soul as a human, I cannot be sure. I, for one, am doubtful. But you sure as the hells don’t have one now. Turning your back on your best friend and murdering him in cold blood when mine was taken from me in the exact same way…that’s not something I can ever forgive.”
She hadn’t noticed the one single tear falling from her eyes as she spoke. When she did, she wiped at her face angrily, shaking her head. “Get the fuck out of my face.”
With that, the drow stormed away, oddly, straight back to the skeleton of the fallen dragon. She heard the Emperor tell her companions that they must move on…there is one netherstone left. Violet kneeled by Ansur’s head once more.
She wasn’t sure why she was so drawn to Ansur, but she did know that she had to sit with him for a while.
Maybe because she never got to sit with Elara after she’d been murdered. She’d been too busy running for her own life.
Did that make her a coward? Did that make her no better than The Emperor?
Violet yanked off her leather gloves, slamming them on her knees as she stared at the motionless body.
The emperor must’ve taken his leave as some part of her brain took notice of Wyll telling Karlach and Gale that he had failed and that they needed to inform Duke Ravengaurd of their failed mission. ‘
She’d deal with that fire later.
Right now, she had to deal with the fire that was burning her heart alive.
Violet simply wiped angrily at another traitorous tear that fell.
Gods , she’d been crying so much lately. She hadn’t cried for two hundred years, and then all the sudden, she was weeping at everything.
She knew that was okay…but the drow in her was so used to hiding away any emotion that could be seen as a weakness.
Perhaps she’d never get over that…and maybe that wasn’t completely due to only her drow heritage either. It had always been easier for her to protect her heart by hiding what was inside it.
It was the only way- before she met this group of chucklefucks- that she knew, for sure, her heart would be safe.
She couldn’t have been sure how much time had passed before the dirt crunched quietly under familiar leather boots that came to a rest next to her. Her beautiful wizard slowly lowered himself onto the ground next to her.
Once again, he didn’t say anything. He just sat with her, tucking his robes underneath him.
A quick glance over her shoulder told her that Wyll and Karlach had gone to the other side of the cavern. She couldn’t see what they were doing but she also didn’t particularly care at that moment either. Whatever it was, they’d obviously stepped away to give Violet, Gale and Ansur some time.
Violet reached out, laying a purple hued hand on the rough green-gold scales that remained on Ansur’s face. She shook her head. “I’m so sorry, Ansur…your only crime was loving your best friend. I do hope you know there is no shame in that.”
Gale rested a hand on her leather-clad knee, a silent anchor, a pillar of support.
“It wasn’t your fault,” She whispered, leaning forward slightly as if that would stop the tears from flowing freely now, but that was wishful thinking.
So, she sat, and cried, hunched over the skeleton of a wyrm that centuries ago made Baldur’s Gate into the city it was. The city that felt more like home than any other ever had.
Perhaps Ansur was more of a hero than The Emperor- Balduran - ever was.
What she hadn’t realized was her tears were falling off her face and onto the back of her hand which still rested on Ansur’s scaly cheek.
“It wasn’t your fault either, you know.” A soft voice said.
Violet’s heart dropped. She knew that voice. She’d never forget it as long as she lived. Blinking, Violet tilted her head up and just about fell over dead right next to Ansur with what she saw.
Standing there, next to the wyrm, in a translucent bluish-green glow, stood a tiefling. Short in stature, but not in personality. Bone white skin with red horns that curled back like a ram’s. Frizzy black hair tied up in a pouf on the top of her head. She was exactly as Violet remembered her.
Down to the purple and white robes of the Paladin’s of Tyr.
“E…Elara?”
***
“Elara?” This could not be happening. Certainly her best friend was not standing before her now, speaking with her. Her tears stopped, but only out of complete shock.
She never thought she’d hear her voice again.
Violet glanced beside her at Gale. He looked surprised, but not nearly as much as she felt. He didn’t say anything still, only just smiled warmly at her, urging her forward.
The tiefling smiled, big and bright. “Hi, Vy.”
Violet shook her head. Once. Twice. Once more before she concluded that this was really happening.
“I mean it,” Elara said, smiling sadly at her friend. “None of it was your fault.” The projection closed the gap between the two and sat down next to Violet, who was sure she looked like she’d seen a ghost.
Because that’s exactly what this was.
A ghost, a spirit, a conjured soul- whatever it was, this was her best friend speaking with her.
For the first time since her murder over two hundred years ago.
“How can you say that?” Violet turned towards Elara, tears running down her cheeks at a furious pace. She wasn’t sure they’d ever stop now. At Elara’s words, Violet’s shock vanished temporarily. “Of course it is. If it hadn’t have been for me and my shitty taste in men-”
“Hey!” Gale spoke up from behind her, but Violet could tell by his voice that he knew she wasn’t speaking of him.
Elara smiled warmly at Gale, bright red eyes saying more than any words ever could.
Gods…those eyes looked so full of life.
Life that was robbed from her.
“If it hadn’t been for that…Vorn never would’ve turned on us…we never would’ve gotten kicked out of the monastery…we never would’ve run away…and you never would’ve died.”
“Says who?” Elara challenged her best friend. “If I had survived that night, who’s to say I wouldn’t have just perished the following night? Or a tenday later? Or a few years later? You can’t know that the outcome would’ve been any different. Plus you sure as the hells are not responsible for the actions of your shitty ex.” Elara smiled wider as she said the last sentence.
“But, I…” Violet struggled to find the words. “I at least would’ve been able to give you a proper burial. With a plot and a grave marker. I would’ve been able to mourn your death, instead of taking off for the surface and running for my life because I knew I was next. His note said as much. And, even one more night with you would’ve been better than losing you the way I did. You deserved so much better than that.”
Elara tilted her head, “Just as you deserve better than living the rest of your life thinking my death was, in any way, your fault,” She reached out and grabbed Violet’s hand. Violet just cried harder. She could faintly feel the skin beneath her fingertips, but the haze of the figure showed that there was nothing there to hold onto. It was a slight pressure, but nothing more. “ No . That fault lies on that moron, Vorn. You were always too good for him anyways.”
Violet let out a single silent laugh. Elara did the same as her eyes darted behind her friend to the wizard once more.
“I cannot tell you how happy it makes me that you found someone worthy of your love,” Violet glanced behind her at Gale. She could see the faintest glint of silver lining his eyes as her best friend spoke with him. “ Thank you. For loving my best friend so deeply. For being there for her when I couldn’t.”
Gale grabbed Violet’s free hand and squeezed, turning towards the astral projection. “It is the greatest honor of my life to love her and to be loved by her.”
Elara raised an impressed but amused eyebrow, “Right answer,” She moved her eyes back to Violet. “You had to go all the way to Waterdeep to find your Happily Ever After, but no one deserves it more than you, Vy.”
“I miss you,” Violet cried softly, squeezing the glowing hand in her own, only feeling that slight give.
It was an obvious statement. Nor was it what they’d been talking about. But she wouldn’t be able to go one more second without voicing the one thought that replayed over and over in her mind as she took in her best friend sitting next to her once more.
Elara’s own eyes glistened now.
“I know. I miss you too. Even with your letters, it's not the same. Being stuck up there while you run around and girl-boss your way through Faerun. Like we always said we would do. Vy…you’re living our dreams for both of us. You didn’t have to do that.”
“But I did,” Violet said, shrugging one shoulder lamely. “That was the only thing that kept me going. Doing this for you, and for Mom and Dad.”
“They’re really proud of you, you know.”
Somehow, Violet’s tears came even faster now.
Gods. Mom & Dad. Talk about souls taken too soon.
“They are as lovely as you always said,” Elara smiled, sadness still pulling at the corners of her mouth.
Violet sat up straighter, “You…you’ve met them?”
Elara tilted her head back and forth, “The afterlife is complicated to explain, but yes. I have. They are wonderful.”
“Are…are they okay?”
Violet knew the odds of Elara being able to answer this question was slim to none, especially since she had no idea how Elara was even sitting here, speaking with her.
Elara nodded gently, “They’re okay. They love you, and are so proud of all you’ve accomplished. Your father told me to tell you that he especially enjoyed your reaction to bullywugs in a swamp…?”
“You know…I thought he might,” Violet let out a watery laugh. “How are you here, El?”
Elara’s glowing red teifling eyes darted down to the skeleton still laying in front of them. Violet and Gale’s eyes followed.
“Let’s just say, a friend helped,” Elara said, that smile losing it’s sadness.
And Violet’s heart broke a little more at the fact that this wyrm, who they’d been forced to kill a second time, did her the ultimate favor and brought her best friend back to her. Even if for only a moment.
“I can’t stay much longer, Vy,” Elara said, meeting eyes with her best friend. “But before I go, I need you to know that my death was not your fault. I want you to live your own life, unshackled by the horrors of your past by thinking they were your fault. They’re not. I promise you. I don’t blame you. Your parents don’t blame you. Forgive yourself. Please.”
“All I’ve ever tried to do was do the right thing and make you all proud,” Violet said softly. She would’ve been surprised if Gale had heard her, even though he was right behind her. “I am so proud to be your best friend. I’m so proud to be their daughter. And even though losing all of you like I did was not justice in any way…it pushed me to search for justice in everything. To make things right…better. I knew if I could do that…if I could change one person’s life for the better…then maybe your sacrifice meant something. Maybe it would mean that you all aren’t totally gone from my life. At the very least…it would keep some other kid from going through what I did…and that’s payment in and of itself. But I’m not sure I know what justice is anymore.”
“Yes, you do,” Elara said, without hesitation. “It’s just hard to see right now. Trust yourself, Vy.”
Violet blinked rapidly at her best friend, “...I’m scared.”
“I know. But, you are more than capable of handling anything this world throws at you. I know. I’ve seen you do it. Being scared doesn’t mean you shouldn’t do something. It just means that you care. And that’s a good thing. Not everyone can say that. You were always a better Paladin than me,” Elara laughed, smiling at her best friend. “This excursion with the Elder Brain only proves my point. You know what you’re doing. You’re on the right path. You know you are. It’s okay to feel lost, but trust me when I say: you are a wonderful Paladin. You create semblances of justice in a world that doesn’t always have justice to give. But you carve that justice out for others, by hells or high water. That is your legacy. Your heart is good, Vyreth. Don’t ever forget that. Drow or not. Paladin or not. Adventurer or not. Infected or not. So, don’t make yourself pay for a crime you did not commit. You did not cause my death, or the death of your parents. I promise.”
Violet’s mouth hung open just slightly, staring at the projection for a few moments before she was finally able to nod her head slowly. She still didn’t quite believe Elara. All three of them knew it would take Violet some time to get through her head that this wasn’t her fault. Just as falling in love with Vorn wasn’t her fault.
But, Elara had just given her permission to move on. After two hundred years. To move on from what she perceived to be her biggest failure, as a Paladin, as a friend, as a daughter.
For the first time since their deaths, Violet actually felt as if what Elara spoke was the truth. She couldn’t be blamed for the actions of someone else. She did all she was able to. And she needed to forgive herself.
The blue hue of the projection started losing strength, telling everyone involved that whatever magic or divine power had been used to create this reunion was dwindling. So, the tiefling turned to the wizard who looked just as stunned as Violet did.
“Take care of our girl for me, would you, wizard?”
Gale nodded, not trying to hide the silver rimming his eyes. He cleared his throat.
“Of course,” He squeezed Violet to his chest a little tighter. “Today and every day for the rest of my life, if she’s willing.”
Did he…?
Not the time, Vi.
Focus.
“We have to survive the Elder Brain first, love.” Violet let out a small nervous laugh, now for multiple reasons.
“If anyone can fell an Elder Brain…it’s my bestie.”
Violet physically jolted in Gale’s arms. It was as if the vote of confidence from her best friend was enough to cement in her mind that it was possible to defeat the Elder Brain, even without Ansur.
They’d come so far…she wouldn’t come this far to only come this far.
“You got this,” Elara nodded, certain. “I know you do.”
The sides of Elara’s projection were starting to go out, fizzle into the dark, damp air of the cavern. Panic gripped Violet’s chest. Now that she had her best friend back, she couldn’t bear to lose her again.
But she knew Elara couldn’t stay.
“I love you, bestie.” Violet tried to smile, but her sobs made it look warped. She did not care. She tapped the locket at her throat that she never took off.
Elara’s own eyes glittered as more of her projection faded into the damp darkness. “I love you too. Always and forever.”
“Always and forever.”
And then, the image was gone, and Violet felt that emptiness worse than she ever had in the past two hundred years. On a breath, her muscles slumped and she almost fell to the ground.
It was if her muscles all gave out at once when the image of her best friend disappeared once more from right before her eyes.
It was only Gale’s arms around her that kept her from falling the rest of the way to the floor. She didn’t even look up at her wizard. She knew what she would find on his face and she knew she couldn’t handle that.
Instead, she turned into his chest, sobbing into his padded armor, clinging to his shoulders like he was the only thing keeping her from joining Elara wherever she was in the eather. Her violet sobs wracked her body as Gale just cemented his arms around his beautiful drow, holding on as if he knew exactly how close she was to breaking apart past repair.
And she knew if she broke again…
This time, she wouldn’t be able to be put back together.
***
Karlach and Wyll gave Gale and Violet a few minutes to themselves, but eventually, Violet felt Gale lift his chin off the top of her head and dip his chin in a gesture telling their companions to come over.
Violet kept her face pushed into the front of Gale’s padded armor that she’d dyed purple for him, clasps surely making indents on her cheeks but she was past caring.
Boots crunched against gravel softly, before she could feel Karlach’s burning presence behind her. One of Gale’s arms slid down to her waist, allowing her the room to turn her head to look at her friends. Karlach’s own eyes glittered with unshed tears, as did Wyll’s.
Violet didn’t try to hide her tears.
Her companions had seen her tears before. She didn’t have the energy to try to hide the obvious from her friends.
It was Karlach that reached a hand out first, gently laying her hand on the Paladin’s shoulder.
It was a silent gesture. One that gave the drow silent comfort of knowing she had people around her that cared for her.
The tears that had slowed to a trickle picked up again as Violet took in the tiefling that had quickly become one of her best friends. Just like her and Elara, Violet and Karlach had connected almost immediately. Both strong women who could stand fearlessly toe-to-toe with the most evil of foes and come out on top, but still realize the small joys of life.
Karlach was never Elara. She wasn’t meant to replace her childhood friend. They were simply similar.
Karlach’s tears spilled over as Violet let go of her wizard and fell into the tiefling’s embrace. Both women cried as they held each other for a long moment. When Violet pulled back, she wiped a purple hand across her swollen cheek. Wyll stepped forward and offered the drow a hug. Shorter than the one she’d had with the tiefling, but warm and comforting nonetheless.
“She was lucky to have you.” Wyll said quietly as Violet pulled away.
Violet wiped at her face once more.
“I was the lucky one.”
As she reached for Gale’s hand, which he readily took, stroking his thumb along the back of her hand, a bright white light appeared down a long walkway deeper into the cave. It was gone as soon as it appeared.
Violet’s eyes tracked the movement, and her feet were moving towards it before she had a chance to think twice.
Down this stone walkway stood a stone table, holding an old but pristine helmet and an accompanying longsword laid out on the old stone. Violet dropped Gale’s hand, picking up her pace to a slow jog to inspect the items. It gave her something to focus on besides the tears still falling down her cheeks at a static pace.
She knew the helm as soon as she saw it. It was Balduran’s helmet, gifted to him by Ansur. The strange energy she felt from the reanimated corpse of Ansur seemed to also take root in this helm. She felt the dragon’s essence as she picked it up gently in her hands.
Take it. Put it to better use.
Violet would’ve jolted at the voice she felt more than heard , but this was lower on her list of crazy shit that has happened to her in her lifetime.
The sword lying next to it was dark black and red.
Balduran’s Monster Slayer.
Again, the feeling appeared.
It’s yours. Use it to fell a real monster for once. For your friend, and for me. Thank you, Child of the Dark. Thank you.
She handed the helmet off to Gale, who inspected it curiously as she reached for the longsword and held it up. It still glinted in the low light of the cavern despite the many years it must’ve lain here.
Then, the stone table sunk into the ground beneath them, opening a door hidden in the stone wall directly behind it.
With one last look over her shoulder at the wyrm, Violet sent up a silent prayer.
Thank you. I won’t ever forget you. Either of you.
Karlach helped Vi strap the new sword to her back before depositing the helm in their bag of holding.
“Let’s get out of here.” Violet said, motioning towards the semi crumbling stone steps. She could tell from the sounds drifting down the stairwell that it led back into the dungeons under Wyrm’s Rock.
Gale took Violet’s hand, handing her the leather gloves she’d forgotten about, and holding her other hand tight in his own. Pressing a kiss to the back of it, he motioned to the stairs.
“After you, my love.”
***
It was funny how life worked.
If you’d told Violet a year ago that she’d be sitting on a pristine gold beach a few blocks walk from the Elfsong Tavern in Baldur’s Gate, watching the sun sink beyond the waterline and pain the sky shades of orange, pink and yellow…she wouldn’t have believed you.
She’d done a lot of extraordinary things in her life as a Paladin of Tyr.
Aside from a few adventures, this one with the Elder Brain was definitely the one that she knew she would remember for the rest of her life. It changed her life the most.
In the best and worst ways.
When the four had returned to the Elfsong, Violet had quietly joined them to tell Duke Ravengaurd about Ansur and how there was no great wyrm coming to help them. To that, The Duke was surprisingly unfazed, saying if they could fell Ansur, they could fell the Elder Brain.
They were stronger than the Great Wyrm!
It would’ve been inspiring, and it was, if her heart hadn’t been shattered into pieces. As soon as the news was delivered, Violet quietly excused herself, shucking her armor and leaving it in the trunk at the end of her and Gale’s bed they’d been using.
The vibes the drow sent off kept everyone at a distance, even their resident Bard. Nobody said anything, but turned their concerned looks to Wyll, Karlach and Wyll, as if the companions would fill in the others on what happened under that dungeon. Violet tucked a dagger into her waistband and headed for the door, saying she needed some air.
No one followed her, but Shadowheart did stop her on her way out. She was sitting in the descended living space taking up the middle of the giant room with her parents.
Violet didn’t say anything as the cleric stopped her.
With one look, the half-elf smiled sadly.
She’d known what Violet hadn’t said.
With a hug and a promise to keep everyone off her back for a bit, Shadowheart gave her friend a hug and let her go on her way.
Violet had wandered the cobblestone streets for a bit, but the sheer number of people was too much for her to take and any social decorum was long drained for the day.
Luckily, not many people wanted to approach the one drow walking around Baldur’s Gate.
So, somehow, she ended up here. Sitting in the sand, staring out at the Chionthar as the sun set past the horizon line. Her longsword, the one Ansur had just given her, felt heavy on her hip, so before she’d sat down, she unbuckled the weapon from her belt, sticking the sheath of the weapon into the bright granules of sand so it stood straight up like a marker.
She wasn’t sure how long she sat there.
Luckily, this part of the beach was deserted. Everyone seemed to be at all of the surrounding taverns or closing down their shops and stalls.
Only a lone fisherman at a dock several yards down was the only one who occupied the beach with Violet. At first, he’d been surprised to see a drow. His jump when he’d seen her said as much. But, when she didn’t even look in his direction more than once to make sure he wasn’t a threat, the man confusingly went back to packing up his small boat for the day.
“I was told I’d find you here.” A bubbly voice broke her silence. Violet turned and connected eyes with her other new best friend.
Emma nor Karlach would never replace Elara. The three were so different, and she never wanted Elara to be replaced. But, Emma and Karlach did give her the female companionship that she’d so longed for since the night of Elara’s death. She, the barbarian and the bard had their own, unique bonds.
It wasn’t the same. It was different, but in a way that healed her more than she realized.
Emma smiled as she came and sat down next to Violet in the golden sand. She was wearing her normal sleeveless corset top and matching leather pants in a deep red Violet knew Astarion had dyed for her. Her sandals were identical to Violet's. The only difference was their color. Violet's were purple. Emma's were that deep red.
Violet huffed, only half-serious. “I should’ve known someone would rat me out.”
Emma shrugged, pulling her knees to my chest. “Shadowheart tried to stop me, but a little birdie told me. And they should all know that I don’t listen to anyone besides you.”
Violet rolled her eyes, letting a small smile escape. “That’s the truth,”
Although, sometimes the bard didn’t even listen to Violet. The only thing Violet could be absolutely sure Emma would listen to was herself.
Given the circumstances, it was either a good or a bad thing.
Violet’s eyebrows scrunched as the middle of Emma’s sentence registered. “So, either Halsin or Jaheira. And considering the two and how much they like to stick their noses into my business, I’m going to go on and guess it was Halsin.”
Emma grinned over at her friend, “I can neither confirm nor deny.”
Violet smiled softly, shaking her head.
That freaking druid.
Emma let a few seconds of silence pass, before coming straight out with the reason she had surely sought her out to begin with.
“How are you?”
Violet stared at her sword still stuck in the sand in front of her. The setting sun over the Chionthar settled a calming orange glow onto the glistening water. If Gale was to be believed, the sunsets in Waterdeep were even more spectacular.
Violet wasn’t sure how that was possible.
A rogue wave of sunlight bounced off the shining steel of her sword.
“I don’t know…” Absent-mindedly, she reached up and took her locket in her hand. “The last thing I expected today was to go searching for an ancient wyrm out of some storybook, only for it to be real, and then have said wyrm- somehow - let me talk with my best friend who was murdered two hundred years ago. I…I don’t know how I am.”
Emma smiled sadly.
“Gale filled me in on what she said. I’m glad you got that closure.”
“That’s the thing,” Violet shifted on the sand. “It doesn’t feel like closure. I said all the things I wanted to say, but when she disappeared…it was like I’d lost her all over again. I may have been able to speak with her, but she’s still gone. And she’s not coming back. I…I don’t know how to deal with that, I guess. I never thought I’d see her again, let alone speak with her.”
“Do you forgive yourself for her death?”
Violet started, “ What ?”
“You heard me, Paladin. Do you forgive yourself for her death? Sounds like she made it very clear it was not your fault.”
Violet’s bottom lip quivered despite her best efforts. “But…it was .”
“It was not .” Emma’s tone left no room for argument.
Violet tightened her fist around the locket that hung around her neck. The locket she’d never taken off since Elara had given it to her at their swearing-in ceremony as Paladin’s over 200 years ago.
A simple silver locket with a blue background, housing Tyr’s symbol of the level scale in the middle. At the top and bottom was the phrase, “Justice, even in darkness” written in Undercommon.
“For the past two hundred years…I’ve blamed myself. Truthfully, I honestly believed that it was my actions that cost my best friend her life.”
“There’s no way you could’ve known Vorn would come after you. Not in the way he did, at least.” Emma picked at her nails, mirroring her lover as she looked seemingly uninterested in the conversation, but Violet knew better.
She knew Emma cared about what she had to say. That’s why she was sitting with her on the beach right now, instead of in bed with said lover. “All I gotta say is, he better not show his bloody face around you ever again. Or I will add him to the list of people I need to flay alive. And he’s landed himself on the top spot.”
“Em,” Violet cringed slightly, knowing the odds of Emma actually doing this were slim… but not zero.
“What?! He killed your best friend and he hurt you in ways a human being should never hurt another human being.” Violet tilted her head at her friend, looking obviously confused at the word human . Emma nodded, pointing at the drow’s long, purple ears. “Ah, right. Well, figuratively, anyway. You know what I mean, Vi.”
“I do,” Violet murmured, letting the bard’s words sink in. “And you’re right. That bastard deserves to rot. I just…I’ve blamed myself for so long. I’m not sure I know how to handle her death if I don’t blame myself. How else do I heal from that?”
“I can’t answer that for you,” Emma shook her head, “You know I can’t. Nobody can answer that for you. Not me, not Gale. Not Halsin, or The Emperor or even Withers. You have to decide how you are going to let her death affect you. How you’re going to let it strengthen you. Or, how you’re going to let it slowly destroy you. But you and I both know Elara wants more for you than for her death to be the reason why your soul dies prematurely.
“You lived , Vi. You lived. Don’t let Elara’s death also be yours as well. Trust me, a person’s soul can die long before their body follows.”
Violet stretched her legs out in front of her on the sand, staring at her sandals. Thinking aloud, she said, softly, almost to herself, “Vorn did so many things. Bad things. Horrible things. To me, to the church, to Elara. But the worst thing he ever did was take her away from me, knowing she was the one bright light I had left in this world…I hadn’t had much light to begin with when I arrived at the monastery. He made sure he snuffed the rest of it out by the time I left.”
Emma tilted her head, straightening her own legs out to match her friend’s. “Do you want me to find him and kill him? It sounds like he deserves it a few times over. Astarion and I would be happy to rid the world of a piece of shite like him.”
Violet smiled softly at her best friend.
“No killing,” Emma pouted, visibly. Violet reached out, putting a hand on Emma’s knee. “Unless he shows up. If he shows up out of the blue- which, he might - you have free reign to do whatever you’d like to the bastard. I just don’t want to be a part of it. I’m not sure I’d be able to, to be quite honest.”
Isn’t that just a kicker? After everything Vorn had done to Violet…all the ways he’d violated her and harmed her…and she still knew if it came down to it, she wouldn’t be able to deliver a killing blow.
And what kind of Paladin of Justice did that make her?
“Deal,” Emma grinned, somewhat wickedly, but it came across mostly goofy to the drow. “I know I broke away from Bhaal, but I have no problem bringing my killing skills out of the trunk for that asshole.”
Violet grinned, despite herself.
Never before had she had friends who were so willing to go to war for her.
Nobody besides Elara.
Gods , did she love these loveable idiots.
Truth was, she had no idea if Vorn would ever find her. She hoped to Tyr that he wouldn’t.
But, she knew him. He was sneaky and resourceful and merciless. He was proud and he never let someone get the best of him. The fact that she’d gotten away from him 200 years ago and has stayed off the radar had to be fueling his fire to find her.
He was a petty man.
Petty and dangerous were not a good combination.
If he did somehow find her, she didn’t know what she’d do.
But, she supposed, there were just some people you’d never quite get over. Even if they deserved it.
“I thought I might find two beautiful ladies down here.” Violet and Emma turned at the sound of the gentle, soft voice. Gale walked towards them on the beach in his normal camp clothes of a plain purple tunic and plain black slacks.
“Halsin?” Violet narrowed her eyes at her wizard.
Gale grinned as he reached the girls. “A man never tells on his inside sources.”
Emma snorted from beside Violet.
“I’m gonna have to talk to that man about the sanctity of privacy.”
“ Halsin ?” Emma cackled, good-naturedly. “Good luck with that one, sweetie. That man would walk around camp naked if we let him. The beauty of nature's gifts and all that shite. Not that that wouldn’t be absolutely delicious …just a little impractical. Besides, all that whittling he likes to do by the fire would have me concerned for the package.”
Gale stared down at the bard as he reached them, looking like he wasn’t quite sure what to say to that. Violet wasn’t quite sure either, to be fair. Violet and Gale shared a look, even if they both seemed to be fighting smiles.
Finally, Gale shook his head, seemingly deciding whatever it was wasn’t worth it, and nodded his head towards a spot in the sand next to Violet, “Mind if I join you ladies? Or is this girl talk I can’t be involved in?”
Violet didn’t say anything, just reached up and grabbed his hand, threading their fingers together and pulling him into the sand next to her.
“You can join us, wizard. I’ll allow it. Only because I know it’ll help Vi feel better.”
Gale pressed a kiss to Violet’s forehead. She leaned her weight onto his side, resting her head on his shoulder. The weight of the day finally hit her, coming down like a boulder.
“I assume Emma asked you how you were doing?” Gale asked gently, wrapping an arm around Violet’s waist to keep her from falling over completely into the sand.
The bard flipped her long light brown hair over her shoulder. She’d left it out of her characteristic messy bun tonight and left it flowing around her shoulders. Her hair was thinner and a bit shorter than Violet’s, only coming to the bottom of her shoulder blades. It was also straighter than Violet’s ebony waves, but still beautiful all the same. “Babe, what do you think I was doing down here?”
Violet glanced up through her eyelashes at her wizard who simply raised a single eyebrow, thumb brushing on her waist. Violet fought back the shiver that coursed through her as his callused thumb brushed against the sliver of skin left exposed by her peasant top.
“It’s you, Emma,” Gale said, with a dry but amused tone. “I never know what is going to come out of your mouth. I figured you’d come down here to speak with her about today’s events but…its you . You could be talking about literally anything .”
Emma wiggled her ass in the sand, spine straightening, looking proud of herself. “That’s true. I thrive on chaos. Good chaos.”
Gale rolled his dark brown eyes at Violet’s best friend, but she knew he meant it with love. He adored the bard as much as she did, he just didn’t show it as often.
Violet grinned into Gale’s neck, “ Good chaos. That’s a good slogan for you, Em.”
The bard struck a little pose, causing both Gale and Violet to chuckle softly.
Emma’s ice blue eyes bounced between the wizard and the paladin in front of her. Her goofy eyes gentled around the edges.
“I’ll give you two your couples time,” Emma said, gently. Violet knew that her best friend knew that what she really needed right now was Gale and his touch, and the bard was sweet enough to notice that stating that outright would embarrass Violet.
She still hadn’t gotten used to being so openly sexual with another person. Emma saw the same thing in Astarion.
Violet smiled at her friend, “Thank you, Em. For everything.”
Emma laid her hand on Violet’s outstretched thigh. “That’s what family is for. Love you, girl.”
Violet’s eyes dipped slightly as the fatigue slammed into her harder.
“Love you.”
Emma gave Gale a wink before pushing to her feet and starting to walk away. Gale’s thumb never stopped rubbing on her back. Before Emma got too far away, she stopped, and turned to look back at the couple. She kept her eyes on the drow sitting slumped in the sand, however.
“Are you going to be okay?” Emma asked, sticking her hands in her pockets.
Violet opened her mouth to reply, but stopped herself, actually thinking about her answer before she said it. Finally, she nodded once, a sad, tired smile on her lips.
“I will be. Eventually. Just not right now.”
“And nobody blames you for that, babe.”
“Thank you,” Violet said, sincerely.
Her best friend smiled at the drow. “No need to thank me. That’s what friends are for. Watch out for those sahuagin! They smell like shit!” Emma called the last bit over her shoulder as she headed up the beach, towards the Elfsong.
Gale laughed, shoulders shaking slightly.
“Gods, she is such a bard , isn’t she?”
Violet let out a sigh, “Yeah…but I love her like that.”
Gale pressed another kiss to her forehead. “We all do. We all do.”
The two just sat in comfortable silence for a few moments, watching as the sun dipped lower, the oranges and pinks making way for purples and dark blues.
Violet focused her eyes on the water, but could feel Gale’s chin tilt down so he could try to see her face. He was probably only able to see part of it since she was looking straight ahead at the water. A few seagulls dove into the water, searching for supper, but the water was otherwise quiet.
“I feel as though asking this would be redundant given our current circumstances, yet, I will ask it anyways. How are you feeling?”
“Tired,” Violet mumbled, staring out at the glistening water. “Drained. Confused. Grateful.” She added a small shrug to the end.
Gale tilted his head at his beautiful drow, looking stunning even if she was bruised, scratched and exhausted from the long day. She had a nice big purple bruise starting on her cheek from the damn Water Elemental from one of Balduran’s stupid tests inside of Ansur’s den.
She’d had worse. The scar on her nose was proof.
Violet could feel his head move, but she didn’t move her eyes from the water, as if something were keeping her eyes there.
“I never thought I’d see her again. That, in and of itself, was a blessing. I am still unsure how Ansur managed that.”
“I do not know. Something tells me there’s more to that Wyrm than we will ever know.”
“I’m grateful…for him . For what he gave me today. Despite us having to fight him. He didn’t have to bring Elara back. But, he did. Fuck what the history books say. He’ll always be my hero, Baulderan be damned.”
She wasn’t sure if the illithid could hear her, but she didn’t particularly care.
Gale scrubbed his free hand over his scruff, “Yeah, Balduran being the Mind Flayer that’s been keeping residence inside our heads this entire time was certainly a shock…I don’t think I’ve been that shocked since I figured out what the Orb could do.”
Violet nuzzled her face into Gale’s neck a little more, knowing damn well that she wasn’t going to get any closer but wanted to try all the same.
“I must say, I never thought of him as an ally, but he certainly acts more and more like a Mind Flayer the more we learn about him.”
“I don’t trust him.” Violet said, simply.
“Nor do I, love,” Gale agreed. “But I worry about our fate without his protection from ceremorphosis.”
Violet shook her head slowly, not moving it from his shoulder, eyes staying on the bright ball of light hanging in the horizon. It dipped lower and lower at a pace all its own.
“To which he never ceases to remind us that he’s the only reason we haven’t turned,” Violet lowered her voice. “I knew somebody else like that once. He murdered my best friend. He used every good thing he’d done for me against me, in order to keep me in line to do his bidding. Trust me, they’re not good people if they hold the good things they do for you against you. That’s just an abuser.”
Gale knew of Vorn. Violet had finally broken down back in the Shadow Cursed Lands and told Gale what she’d yet to tell another living soul up til that point. She told him of her ex-lover and how he was responsible for her banishment from her monastery, as well as the murder of Elara and the reason why Violet had so many issues with her sexual confidence.
Nothing will kill your confidence like a partner who thinks you owe them sex, and if you can’t give it, then you’re no longer worth it.
Gale let out a single, bitter, knowing laugh. “Reminds me of someone I know of as well.”
Violet frowned, dipping her chin into his neck to press a kiss there. Just one. Nothing sensual or sexy about it, just a point of contact to remind the other that they were together, they were there. They were safe.
“Mystra is on my shit list.” She grumbled.
It wasn’t the first time she’d stated this sentiment, but it was worth repeating in her mind.
Gale glanced back down at her, then seeing the serious look on her face, let out a light laugh. “How would Tyr feel about you going after a goddess?”
Violet shrugged her shoulders, “It would be an act of justice to remove that goddess from the plane after what she did to you and so many other young wizards.”
Violet thought back, tilting her head.
“I might add Shar to that list as well.”
Gale stared at her to make sure she was serious, then let his head fall back on a loud laugh. The fisherman stopped rolling up a rope to glance over at the couple. Violet could hear the tendrils of something murmured in Elvish with her drow hearing but she didn’t pay attention to what exactly he said.
“You have a list? ”
Violet finally smiled, “An old friend of mine had a list. Oddly effective, at times anyways. Besides, it's better than a Shit Pit...those are much worse and exactly what you think they are.”
Gale shook his head, still smiling, “You will have to tell me more about this. It sounds both oddly fascinating and insane all at once.”
“My life story…” Violet quipped, glancing up at him through her eyelashes finally. The grin he sent her as he met her eyes made her stomach come alive in the best way.
This man brought her back to life, in all the ways she’d thought were impossible. It wasn’t his job to fix her, but it was simply by him loving her that he fixed a part of her she hadn’t realized was still so broken.
Love did that.
Love fixed her.
But did she ever even need to be fixed in the first place? What had happened to her and her family was a tragedy. But, she’d taken that tragedy and turned it into a career of saving children from droves of wererats, eliminating serial killers of Bhaal, and helping charmed hyenas destined for a horrible, painful death into worgs to rest peacefully. She’d turned her tragedy and made it do some good.
She still wasn’t quite sure what justice was, or if it was even attainable.
But, looking back, she knew that she’d tried her damndest to find some justice for all of those she came across. And in doing so, that gave her peace and purpose. Carrying on her parents’ and Elara’s memories in the best way she knew how.
She blinked back at the burning behind her eyes once more.
“ I miss them .”
“I know,” Gale’s scruff scratched gently at her forehead as he pressed his lips to a kiss there. “I am so sorry, my love. I would bring them all back, if I was able. Unfortunately, not even Mystra’s Chosen would have that power.”
“I’m glad you got to meet her. I knew she would approve.”
Gale threw his head back, laughing loudly.
“And I am truly honored that she does approve of me.”
“I knew when I first met you that she would approve…she never liked Vorn. She only tolerated him because he made me happy…sometimes I wonder what would’ve been different if I’d listened to her the first time she said something about him. But, I was too caught up in his beautiful lies.”
Beautiful , they were. But those lies destroyed her life.
The beauty quickly melted into ruin.
Gale nodded, solemnly.
“Beautiful lies are the easiest to get caught up in,” Gale agreed. “Take it from someone who also fell for too many beautiful lies.”
“Beautiful lies and ugly truths,” Violet let out a laugh. “The irony of that would be funny if it wasn’t true. All the truths I’ve ever had to confront in my life have been ugly, in one way or another. Even when I fell in love with you, I tried to talk myself out of it because I was too damn scared to do anything about it on my own. Too afraid of losing you before I even had you.”
Gale’s hand ran up and down Violet’s back gently as she took a deep, long breath.
“My ugly truth was that I almost cost us the best thing that’s ever happened to me.” She let her eyes hang onto Gale’s hazel ones. Something flashed in them, but she was too tired to pinpoint it before it left his eyes once more. Instead, he grinned and leaned down, pressing his lips to hers in a firm, steady kiss.
Not sexy, not seductive. Just a kiss to say, “I’m here. And I love you.”
In case Violet hadn’t gotten the message, he pulled back and smiled warmly down at her, “I love you. We each have our own ugly truths and beautiful lies that we tell ourselves…and that we tell others. That just makes us human… er , well…you know what I mean.”
Violet laughed then, loving the smile that grew on his face at her sudden burst of laughter. After a few moments of silence, Gale tugged her closer to his side, just a bit.
“He reminded me so much of her.”
Gale tilted his head at his beautiful drow.
“Ansur,” Violet amended, “El would’ve done anything to cure me of the terror that was left with me after my parents murder.”
Violet stretched her feet out in front of her, staring down at her scarred feet inside the sandals. A small smile, both sad and fond, grew on Violet’s lips.
“I was afraid of the dark, you know. When I came to the monastery after my parent’s murder,” She let out a bitter laugh, “ A drow afraid of the dark. Who’da thunk? Father Dorbin did what he could, but all adults looked like possible suspects to me. I still didn’t trust him yet. But Elara and I were thick as thieves from the moment I stepped into that monastery. She would sleep in the bed next to me if I woke up from a nightmare, screaming. I used to relive my parents’ murder over and over again. Sometimes, I wouldn’t be able to sleep, so she’d stay up and simply talk with me. She didn’t have to miss out on rest too, but she did. Just so I wasn’t alone in my fear. She would leave a candle lit all night, even if the light kept her up, because the light helped me feel safe enough to sleep.
“She was…the best thing that I’d had in my life up until that point. Remains one of the best things in my life, even though she’s gone now. Trying to move on after her murder was almost impossible. There were days where I just wanted to crawl into the grave next to her.”
“She wouldn’t want that, though.”
“No. No, she wouldn’t.” The side of Violet’s mouth kicked up. “She’d kick my ass for even thinking of it.”
Gale let that hang in the air for a little, then he tilted her chin up slightly so she had to look at him.
“I can see why you love her so much,” He said. Violet didn’t miss the present tense he used of ‘love.’ Because even though Elara was gone, Violet still loved her best friend. She always would. Just as she would always love her parents. No matter how long they were gone physically from her life, they would always live on in her heart. “I only lament that I am unable to get to know her more. Your parents, as well. But, maybe you can tell me about them? It’s not the same and I know it’s not…but I still want to know who they were.”
Violet simply blinked at him.
“ Thank you.” She finally whispered.
Gale looked amusedly stunned, “For?”
“Loving me so fully. And for letting me continue to love them so fully, even if they’re gone from this plane of existence.”
“Well…it’s like I told Elara…Today and every day for the rest of our lives, if you’ll allow me to. It's my honor to love you so fully, and to be loved so fully by you as well.”
“Gale, I’ve cried enough the past few tendays for several centuries, are you trying to make me a blubbering mess again?”
“I apologize. It was not my intention…but it’s not unwelcome. I’m glad to see this side of you. That you feel safe enough to show me this side of you. That’s the best gift you could ever give me, that gift of your trust.”
Violet’s eyes darted back and forth between his, not saying anything, before finally sliding a hand up into his hair and pulling his mouth down on hers. This time, it was made to seduce as well as to say ‘I love you.’ It was as if the love between them had come to a boiling point, and they needed the connection of their bodies to keep it from overflowing.
The two only pulled away when they had need for air.
Violet’s eyes never left her wizard’s.
“Is anybody using Duke Stelmane’s room tonight?”
Gale, panting heavily, scrunched his eyebrows, thinking back. Astarion and Emma and Violet and Gale had taken turns using Duke Stelmane’s private room on their floor of the Elfsong after the Flaming Fist gathered all the evidence and cleaned the crime scene.
How horrible to know it was really the Emperor- Balduran - who had killed the Duke.
Another thing the illithid lied about. His lies weren’t even beautiful, Violet thought.
“Not sure, let me check.”
Gale and Violet’s bed in their joined room did have ties to make it private, which they did take advantage of…it’s just that the drapes did not block out the sounds and she was pretty sure Shadowheart might kill them if Violet’s cries woke her up one more time.
She tries her best to keep them quiet, but Gale just knew his way around his drow too well.
It was no use.
And Gale’s magic was usually gone by the end of the day, so casting any spell to help with sound was almost always out of the question.
Though, she was pretty sure Wither’s put one on their bed on a particular night when they couldn’t get enough of each other.
She never could quite figure out that skeleton.
The tadpole wiggled behind her eyes and she squinted. She’d never gotten used to that sensation, that movement of the tadpole behind her eye. Gods, it sent a shiver down her spine every time. And not in a good way.
“Does anyone have use of Duke Stelmane’s room this evening?”
It didn’t take them long to receive an answer from their companions.
“I believe it was Astarion and Emma’s turn…” That voice that responded was definitely Wyll.
Violet bit down on her bottom lip as she looked up at Gale.
She didn’t want to kick her best friend out of bed with her vampire, but she also knew that she needed to feel Gale close to her.
“Darling, by all means, please take the room for tonight. I would much rather sleep peacefully tonight in our bed in the shared room than having to listen to everyone bitch about how Violet’s screams kept everyone up all night. Well done, by the way, Wizard. I am impressed.”
Violet blushed furiously, hiding her face in Gale’s shoulder once more, hands covering her face. Gale chuckled, dropping a kiss to the top of her head.
“Besides, Emma and I know how to be quiet.”
Minthara’s scoff came through the connection next, “ So you think. You don’t have to sleep in the bed next to yours.”
“Ugh, doesn’t someone just have a Scroll of Silence to keep both of the happy couples’ moaning to themselves?” That was Shadowheart.
“ Well, sure, ” Emma joined the chat. “ But where’s the fun in that? ”
“ Typical bard, ” Lae’zel grumbled into the connection, adding her two cents.
“Oh please! Like we haven’t heard you and Shadowheart going at it at least once. You all are the quintessential enemies-to-lovers.”
Gale and Violet exchanged an amused grin, because they too had certainly heard the githyanki and the half-elf going at it more times than one since the beginning of their journey.
“What is this speak of enemies-to-lovers? Boo wants to know what this means,” A pause from Minsc. “Alright, alright. Minsc would like to know what it means, but Boo says Minsc will learn when Minsc is older.”
Violet covered her mouth as a loud laugh escaped her lips. The lone fisherman had finished packing up for the night, had a pack over his shoulder and a bucket of fish in his hand. He’d been heading off towards the city when violets laugh caused him to jump. Again, her drow hearing picked up something in Elvish, and from the tone she knew it was something snarky, but she again didn’t pay too much attention to the words themselves.
She was too busy laughing at the way life had taken her.
“I, for one, am unsure how enemies can become friends. Minsc does the kicking of the butts of enemies into the ground. He does not do that to his friends.”
“Depends on what they like.” Emma sent back, completely serious.
“Tyr save me,” Violet laughed into Gale’s shoulder. “Elara would’ve loved this conversation.”
Gale laughed along with her.
“Minsc still does not understand. Enemies and friends are not the same thing.”
Emma returns to the line of communication, snorting, “Says you. It can be rather… exhilarating .”
“Oh my gods,” Violet laughed, then introduced her own tadpole into the discussion. “Please don’t confuse poor Minsc any more than he already is. Gale and I would like to request the private room tonight if Emma and Astarion don’t mind.”
“By all means, darling. From what Emma told me, you need a little stress relief. Wizard…make sure you take advantage of the privacy.” Astarion practically purred through the connection.
Violet rolled her eyes. She knew Emma would be all over that. Their companions would be disrupted tonight regardless, it seemed.
Gale shook his head, pinching the bridge of his nose despite the smile on his face. “Dear gods…”
“Try not to kill each other tonight, yes? I think we will have a much better chance at defeating the Elder Brain if our entire party is still alive to help fight it.” Gale snarked over to the group.
A pause, then Wyll’s voice. “Jaheira says she’ll keep an eye on everyone and to go have fun, Vi. You deserve a night of rest…or…whatever else it is you have planned.”
“Whatever else indeed,” Violet didn’t need to see Shadowheart’s face to know she was smirking. She buried her face deeper in Gale’s shoulder, knowing her companions were blocks away at the Elfsong and couldn’t see her blushing face, but she hid her face all the same. She could also acknowledge that she did so because she simply felt at home there. She could put her face in his neck and let his scent wash over her, calming every frayed nerve and anxious thought.
“Um, I do apologize for interrupting, but is there a way to take our tadpoles off this group connection? I do not wish to judge but I also could’ve gone the rest of my life without knowing this conversation took place.” This was Duke Ravengaurd, causing Violet to snap her head up, mouth dropping open in an O.
Gale’s eyebrows flew up. He seemingly also had forgotten that the Duke was also infected.
“Oh, hells. Sorry, Father.”
“Funny, isn’t that just what Emma said to Astarion the other night?” Karlach quipped.
Violet covered her eyes with her hands now, absolutely mortified. She loved her bestie, but whatever her and her vampire did in bed was none of her business.
“...sometimes I do wonder if you all should have left me to drown…” Duke Ravengaurd said after a moment of silence, but Violet didn’t miss the slight bit of humor underlying the comment.
Gale pulled Violet closer, pressing a kiss to her forehead.
“Alright, enough of this conversation. Violet and I will be in Duke Stelmane’s room if anyone has need of us…but please, try not to have need of us. Go bother Jaheira or Halsin, or Withers if you need adult supervision.”
Violet couldn’t help the snort that came out at Gale’s comment. He simply winked down at his drow before standing, helping her to her feet. As she stood, Gale gently removed the longsword from the sand, the sun now almost completely gone behind the horizon, leaving the water an inky black color as the moon started to peek out from behind the clouds.
It was Astarion's quip that came through the connection to finish off the conversation, in a way that only the vampire could pull off. He giggled, “It’s like you don’t even know us at all, darling.”