KOTLC After Stellarlune-A Sokeefe Story

The Match

Keefe decided to accept the Empathy Mentor position at Foxfire.

"This way, the real Keefe Sencen legacy will live on," he told Sophie. School was about to start back up, and they were enjoying the last few days of leisure before they began Sophie's last year in school and Keefe's first year as a Mentor.

"The one where you're the most powerful Empath I've ever met, or the one where you play pranks and wreak havoc on the school? Oh, or the one where you make fun of me every time I end up needing to see Elwin?" Granted, those kinds of visits had decreased greatly once they finally defeated the Neverseen.

"All of them," he said with a smirk.

The evening before school started, they invited all of their friends over to Aeternum for a big dinner. Fitz would be the only one not returning to Foxfire in one way or another.

Fitz had been offered a position as an Emissary. He had accepted immediately. Not many elves were offered such a high position in the nobility straight out of school, but apparently the Vacker name still meant something--and Fitz' work ethic and talent spoke for themselves, regardless of his name.

And it was very good to see Dex and Biana rejoin the group at last. They stayed very close to each other and shared a lot of very sappy looks when they thought no one was watching.

Conversation flowed easily as everyone sat comfortably by the pond, eating and watching Linh make different animals and shapes out of the water. Something about the way Fitz kept in constant physical contact with her—a hand always at the small of her back, or on her knee, or flipping her hair over her shoulder—told Sophie that their relationship was getting more and more serious.

"This break from school has been so nice," Linh said quietly after a while. "I'm glad to be starting back to school, too, but I'm also sad that we're all going to be so busy again after getting a chance to be nice and lazy."

"Speak for yourself," Dex said slyly, winking at Biana. "Some of us have been very busy."

Fitz gagged on the handful of prattles he'd just tossed into his mouth. "Dude, that's my sister you're talking about," he choked out.

But Keefe roared with laughter and gave Dex an approving high-five. "Welcome to the club," he told Dex gleefully. "It's going to be fun not being the only married people in the group."

"Fun for you, maybe," Maruca said with a massive eye roll. "I have a feeling more and more of us will be pairing off and getting married as time goes by though."

Sophie stole a glance at Fitz and Linh, and then at Tam and Rayni—Tam's hand firmly clinging to hers as he whispered something in her ear—and thought Maruca was probably right.

And she marveled at how they weren't kids anymore.

"How do I look?" Keefe asked with a smirk the next morning.

"Like a grown-up, respectable person, ready to guide and direct a new generation of Empaths."

"And that's all?" Keefe pouted.

Sophie slinked towards him. "Only you could look that good in a bright orange cape."

"Yeah?"

In response, Sophie wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him.

Keefe pulled Sophie even closer, reaching for the hem of her tunic as he continued to kiss her.

But Sophie pulled back. "It'll have to wait," she said reluctantly. "We don't have time. We'd be late."

Keefe pouted again. "Some things are worth being late for," he argued. "And I couldn't bear the shame of being on time my first day as a Mentor. Someone might mistake me for a mature, responsible person."