DEEP END // Harry Styles

Epilogue

No one knew where Maggie went. She'd left the bookstore for Ezi and disappeared without a trace. Ezi didn't blame her; there was too much risk now that her identity was no longer a secret, at least to a few of them, but Ezi liked to think that Maggie had moved to a seaside town where she could be near the ocean again and perhaps, again, fallen in love with a sailor.

Dawson and Harry no longer bickered all the time, and no matter how much they denied it, Ezi could tell that they had grown to appreciate one another more. Niall's career as an influencer blew up after he'd featured both Ezi and Harry on his podcast so they could tell their made-up story about how they had started out fake dating but ended up falling in love for real. One thing Ezi had learned about humans was that they adored a tragic romance with a happy ending, so Harry and Ezi were once again welcomed back by the public with open arms. Harry finally sat down with his mother to talk about his frustrations in trying to live the life she wanted. The woman apologised to Harry for not realising all this time how much music meant to him. Ezi couldn't forgive her mother, but she was glad Harry decided to give his another chance.

As for Ezi and Harry, they still lived together with their cat Chilli, and well, they were actually...

"Engaged," Ezi said as she slammed the pile of books down on the table, sending dust flying and causing Harry to sneeze. "What kind of sister would I be if my sister wasn't one of the firsts to know I'm engaged!"

Harry rubbed his nose with a finger. "Well, it's not like it's easy to just go visit your sister, dear."

Ezi circled the table to come sit on his lap. It was a Monday afternoon, so the bookstore was almost empty. Otherwise, they wouldn't be having this conversation in public.

"She's a queen now," Harry went on while playing with her hair. "She has...queen duties. You know, ruling over the seven seas isn't easy."

"I know..." Ezi frowned. "I just feel bad that I cannot break this news to her. And...well...I do miss her."

"You see her every year on her birthday. I know it's not a lot, but you have no other way to communicate with her unless she comes to the surface. Her birthday is coming soon, though. You can break the news to her then. We'll take Chilli with us and spend a whole week at the beach house?"

The doorbell rang, and Ezi knew it was time to end the conversation. "You're right." She sighed and got up. "I just hope I'm not a bad sister."

"Actually, you are."

Ezi paused right as she turned around. Koa waltzed in and picked up a random book to scrutinise the cover, unimpressed. She was wearing a sundress with her hair falling neatly down her back like an actual human girl.

Before Ezi or Harry could mutter a word, Koa said in accented English, "Don't worry. No civilian was harmed. I did steal these clothes from a cruise ship, though. Hello, Harry, didn't see you there."

Harry only lifted his hand awkwardly to wave. He probably still believed Koa resented him for taking Ezi away. If only he'd known Koa was the one who had 'banished' Ezi from Ginevra, just so Ezi could have this life with him.

"Koa. I missed you." Ezi strode towards her sister and pulled Koa into a hug. Surprisingly, her sister didn't protest it.

"You're disgusting, with all these human emotions," Koa drawled. "But I missed you, too." She brought her hands to Ezi's back and tightened the hug. "Now, let me see that ugly giant rock on your finger."

THE END.