One Between the Stars

Chapter 45

 Carson dreaded today.

He woke up feeling like the dead, groggy and in dire need of a cup of coffee. He supposed the one great thing about staying in a palace on a planet was that he need only to look to one's breakfast table to find one every morning.

As he ate breakfast in silence, he went over the plan for today. Nimue had sent a servant with a message that he and Ionia were ready for their audience a few hours after breakfast, and that was when he realized that he was dreading it. It did nothing to help the situation, but at least he knew why.

And he hated thinking about it, because it made him sound ungrateful and completely disregarding of Ionia's wishes. But he kept being reminded that as soon as they got the location of the Wealthy One from Merlin, it was the first step to the end of them.

The end. He couldn't even fully believe it. In these months with Ionia, she had become so much to him; a best friend, a second brain, and after last night, the day was that much more difficult to face.

Carson shook his head, scolding himself. This was the moment that these months had been leading up to all along; and anyways, if he truly cared for Ionia, he wanted her to save her people. Because that was what she truly desired, and who was he to revoke the sufferings of an entire nation in favor of the suffering on one heart, especially if that heart had decided its fate long ago?

He heard a knock on his door, and pulling on his boots, he answered it. Ionia stood, smiling timidly, on the other side. She was dressed once again in the simple cotton robes that were normal wear on this planet, her hair tied up in a bun. She seemed a bit startled by the kiss he gave her in greeting, but said, "I thought you'd like to join me in a walk, before the audience.

"That sounds lovely," he said, taking her hand, and together they walked one of the paths in the enormous winding gardens, a different section to the one near the ballroom.

The path here was lined with cobblestone, rough under the light shoes on his feet, strewn with petals of many colors that were ripped from the trees on the windy day. Their scent wafted all around him, sweet and hinting at the previous evening's events. Remembering it was like tasting honey.

Ionia's hand was small and soft in his, and when he looked to her, she had this look on her face that was completely at peace. They passed by a few people - a mother, child or another young couple - who would glance at Ionia and Carson's entwined fingers and smile warmly, and then move on.

"Do you wonder what it must be like to live here?" Ionia asked, breaking the silence. "To grow up around magic, around a people who regard it as commonplace?"

"Must be really nice," he said. "This place has been a secret for generations...I wonder if they ever think about what it's like to not live where magic is commonplace."

"Hmm..." Ionia chewed on her lip, thoughtful.

Finally they reached a large fountain, its center a depiction of the man and woman that Carson had by now realized where all over the gardens, their hands cupped together, water jetting up from their outstretched palms. The two stopped to watch a little ways off, giving the children who approached it space. Ionia smiled as they dropped pebbles and single units into the crystal water.

Then she turned abruptly to Carson. "I don't want this to end."

He startled, blinking, and then said, "Yeah?"

Ionia seemed to be struggling with words, as she was often in the habit of doing. "After we finish this quest...I don't want it all to be over." She gestured between them. "I don't want this to be over."