Keeper of the Lost Cities: Elysian

[50K] Bonus Chapter 76

Elysian's soft breeze swept past the small weeping willow, gently swaying the branches and the smooth, silky strands of hair of the girl seated beneath.

The wind felt cooler with every passing day, reminding Sophie that time, ever fickle, was continuing to race.

Youth was something she'd been taking for granted. She glanced down at the boy resting with his head in her lap. Keefe, who was obviously pretending to be asleep, looked as young and handsome as ever.

He was real and completely himself.

What about her? Was she living in a dream, trying to hold onto this beautiful moment and never wake up?

She almost wanted to lean over the water to catch a glimpse of her reflection, but brushed the train of thoughts away.

She realized that she was being unreasonably and stupidly poetic at the present moment.

Perhaps it was due to the beautiful and diverse scenery in all directions that accompanied the majestic River of Life.

Or maybe the influence of Merida's writing was rubbing off on her.

As if Sophie's thoughts had struck a bell in the universe, she suddenly saw the girl jogging across the meadows toward her, her raven hair billowing in the wind.

A smile tugged at Sophie's lips as she saw the soft orange ball of fur in her arms.

"So adorable, right?" Merida gushed as she held up the beautiful tabby cat, who meowed in response.

Sophie's heart almost melted.

"Thanks," Keefe said with an obnoxious smirk, peeking out of an eye.

"Not you, nitwit," Merida retorted playfully. "She showed up yesterday at dinner, and the instant she took a bite of the imitation fish Elysian made, we couldn't get rid of her. We're still deciding on a name, though. What do you think, Sophie?"

"Hmm," Sophie answered absently, still gazing at the cat in admiration and wonder. "I don't know."

What would be a good name?

"I was thinking Sunset, but Elysian thought Sunrise was better. I guess we're both biased based on the time of day we typically wake up at. It's still a bit of a debate, but at least we can agree we're not naming her something ridiculous like Hairy Orange Furball."

"How are you doing, Hairy Orange Furball?" Keefe said with a yawn as the cat dropped onto the grass and prodded his leg.

"Aww," Sophie said, beaming. "I really like the name Sunset."

Merida raised an eyebrow at Keefe before adding, "Part of me was thinking of deeper names, like Peace and Joy, things we could use a lot more in our lives, but I also don't want to put so much burden and expectation on one cat, you know?"

Nobody knew how long the beautiful but fragile peace, the peace they had all endeavored to protect, would last.

In reality, "peace" was putting it nicely. The absence of a war did not mean that they weren't on the brink of one. Disharmony was present in every aspect of Sophie's work- there were constant disputes with Council members, tensions ran high involving political affairs with the other Intelligent species, and there were frequent debates and dissent among her friends and the Black Swan.

"You're being overworked again, aren't you?" Merida accused. When nobody responded, she added, "Keefe, be helpful and do something. Say anything. Anything."

"I completely agree, please proceed and listen attentively to Merida's wonderful lecture about work-life balance," Keefe said in a monotone.

Sophie ignored the two of them, reaching a hand out to stroke between the tabby's ears and smiling when she licked her hand gently.