𝐖𝐄 𝐀𝐑𝐄 𝐅𝐀𝐌𝐈𝐋𝐘, 𝖺 𝗀𝗅𝖺𝖽𝖾𝗋𝗌 𝖺𝗅𝖻𝗎𝗆

we finally made it home

The wind carried the sound of bells, soft at first, then swelling into a roaring chorus that echoed across the battered cliffs of the rebel stronghold.

They were home.

The Iron Lion returned, sails patched and torn from battle, its hull scorched in places and the flag barely clinging to the mast. But it sailed.

It returned.

The moment the lookout sounded the call, the entire city came alive.

People flooded the streets. Kids climbed onto crates and shoulders to catch a glimpse. Old rebels limped toward the gates with tear-glossed eyes. Medics stood ready near the docks. Lanterns were relit in daylight. Someone began playing a fiddle.

And in the very heart of the crowd, standing just behind the front line:

Bea.

She looked different. A little paler, tired around the eyes, but her curls were tied up, fresh bandages wrapped around her arms, and a small, trembling smile played on her lips.

She didn't run.

She didn't need to.

Because the moment Nico stepped off that ship, still wearing the ragged coat she'd mended for him before the journey, glasses slightly askew from the storm — they saw only each other.

Nico froze halfway down the ramp.

And then he broke into a sprint.

The crowd parted instinctively, a tunnel of breathless silence between them.

Bea took a single step forward and suddenly Nico was there, wrapping his arms around her, pulling her into his chest like he was afraid the sirens would steal her next.

She didn't cry. 

But her hands were fisted in his shirt, her cheek pressed to his collarbone, her legs weak beneath her. He smelled like smoke, salt, and sea but he was here.

"You're late," she whispered shakily.

"You look too good to be real," he breathed back, kissing her temple, then her cheek, then her lips — quick, desperate, alive.

The crowd erupted.

Cheers. Laughter. Applause. Somewhere, Frypan yelled "Get a room!" and Thomas, from the crowd, smacked him upside the head.

Nancy rolled her eyes with a smile, arms crossed, standing next to Gally and Sonya. Luke and Hugo whistled obnoxiously. Harriet screamed "YEAH NICO!!!" while Minho and Vicky offered more restrained nods of approval.

And Bea?

Bea whispered into Nico's ear, "You're home. That's all that matters."

He kissed her again.

And even with the crowd pressing in, the wounded crew returning, and the storm clouds still forming in the distance,

for a moment, there was only them.