After the War's End

Chapter 38

Aloy woke up feeling a flutter in her stomach. This was the last morning before they left, as they would head straight to Meridian the next day. She sighed. Yes, she was nervous, that was undeniable. Deep down, she felt uneasy about knowing Teersa's answer regarding whether she could return to Nora territory after completing her mission. There was a possibility that her access would be restricted if she refused to stay with them again. Although she had never felt like part of the tribe since she had been an Outcast her whole life, she was worried about having problems with the tribe or with the Matriarch, since what little she had was from there...

But if given the choice, she would clearly leave Nora lands. She valued Teersa, Teb, and other Braves she had met, and she would like to keep in touch with them even if it was only occasionally. She wished to visit Teb's workshop or the sacred mountain, and even have Avad accompany her. Her thoughts drifted to the Carja. If her access to Nora territory was permanently restricted, Avad would feel bad. Surely, the last thing he wanted was to take her away from the place where she had grown up, but she would not allow those rigid customs to separate them. At least Rost's house was outside the Nora villages, so she could always visit his grave.

Still, if they never had that conversation, she would never know the answer.

"Avad... wake up..." she called affectionately, stroking his face. He began to stretch and slowly opened his eyes.

"Mmm... What's up?" he grumbled, still half asleep in a way that seemed very endearing to Aloy.

"I didn't tell you, but... I arranged to meet Teersa today at dawn." she replied, trying to conceal her nerves.

"Why didn't you tell me?" he asked, sitting up, confused.

"I didn't want to worry you, I'll tell you when we get there." she said, getting up. "We need to leave quickly, it's almost time."

They left the house, closing the door behind them, dressed in Nora clothing. The sky was partially covered, indicating that it might snow. With a whistle, Aloy called her mount, a Strider that came running towards them. Seeing it approaching at great speed, Avad was frightened and stepped back a couple of steps, but she put a hand on his shoulder, reassuring him that there was no danger, causing him to relax. Then, they mounted the machine and rode towards the Sacred Mountain, the agreed meeting place. When they reached the village, they dismounted the machine and climbed the hill leading to the meeting point. There was still no one there because it was quite early, so they waited patiently. Then, Aloy decided it was a good time to tell him why they had come.

"Is something wrong?" he asked, concerned.

"No, well, I don't know." she replied. Then, she looked at the Sun-King. "On the day of the party, there was a moment when I stayed talking to Teersa, and... I told her... I told her that we are... together." she began. When the words reached his ears, the king's stomach flipped.

"And... What did she say? Did... Did she disapprove?" he asked, somewhat insecure.

"Not really... I'm not sure... I went to ask her to let me have the freedom to enter and leave the Sacred Lands without problems with the tribe or its regulations... I told her I wanted to see the world and... be with you, and that it wouldn't mean exile. It seemed like there wouldn't be a problem, but she said we had to talk about it here."

"But if they named you Seeker, doesn't that imply that you can enter and leave Nora lands without consequences?" he pointed out. "Doesn't it?"

"Yeah, but it was with the goal of curing the corruption... When the mission ends, I don't know if... the appointment ends." they fell silent for a moment, unaware that the Matriarch had appeared between the doors of the sacred place.