GAISCE (At Our Best, Book 3, Part 2 in Baile Series)

Chapter 14 Rest in Peace

Alick

I was far too tired to open my eyes when I woke from a night of little sleep. I rolled over in bed, faintly recalling the plush bed April and I had found in a secluded cabin not to far away from Asuka's temple. My hand touched skin and I cracked my eyes open a little, widening them at the glorious sight that was April Byrne. Her bare back faced me, speckled with red freckles.

I leaned forward and began kissing her shoulder gently, marvelling at the softness of her skin.

April stirred, sighing at my touch.

"Good morning." I leaned on my elbow as she rolled over to face me, her sapphire eyes dark and doughy. "Baby."

She smiled and my heart warmed. "You are so weird." She reached out to prod my chest.

"That's not what you said last night." I moved her hand down my chest.

"Mhm." She snuggled closer to me.

I kissed her softly on the lips, pulling back to brush my thumb over her cheek.

The longing in April's eyes slowly shifted to sadness and she looked away.

"What's wrong?" I questioned immediately.

"What are we going to do?" She rolled to lie on her back. "I'm going to live forever, and you're not." Her forlorn eyes slid back to my own.

"We can work something out."

She shook her head wordlessly.

"I could find a way to share part of your immortality, like a bond thing or something." I proposed.

"I couldn't let you do that." She didn't say it wasn't impossible though, I noted.

"I could do it for the time we date and if it doesn't work out then I'll drop out of it."

"There's no going back Alick, not for any of us."

I moved so I lied on top of her, unable to bear her sadness any longer. "I'd do it for you."

She frowned. "Why?"

"Because you're the girl for me baby. Now, why don't I show you why I should become a professional pole dancer."

"There is no pole." She pointed out, a smile returning to her face.

"Stripper it is then."

Isla

"Have you seen April and Alick?" Callum asked with a mouth full of noodles.

"I've been kind of busy." I replied. "I was able to free Charlotte's body and I wanted to take us all back to Ireland to rebury her." I explained.

"You have been busy." He understood.

I looked to the door as April waltzed in, wearing a silk black kimono and the warmest smile I had seen in a long time.

Callum and I both stared as she took a seat on a cushion by the end of the low sitting table.

"Where have you been?" Callum asked with a frown.

"Nowhere." Her smile only broadened.

Through Gwyn I had seen how the night and all nights afterward had unfolded for everyone, I knew exactly why she was happy.

I chewed away at my noodles for a little while before Alick showed up.

April made a point of giving Callum a look before turning to greet Alick.

"Hey." He approached her.

"Hey." She leaned up to meet his lips, engaging in a deep, lingering kiss.

Callum dropped his chopsticks, his mouth hanging open in complete and utter shock.

Devon entered the room next, fully engulfed in his bowl of noodles until he spotted Alick and April. "I sense a disturbance in the force." He referred to the tension that was bouncing around the room.

Alick sat down next to April at the end of the table, the couple radiating joy and love as April pecked Alick on the jaw for effect.

Devon's mouth dropped as confusion marred his expression. "How did I not see this?" He gestured between them with his chopsticks.

"Because you were too busy worrying about your own lover." I put forward.

"I don't know what that means." He lied; he knew exactly what I was on about.

"I think I'm going to be sick." Callum's face had drained of colour.

"What's wrong Callum? I thought you liked public displays of affection." April made a show of rubbing Alick's chest.

"Not like this." He looked seriously ill.

"Somebody's jealous-Ah!" Devon ducked out of the way of a fireball thrown by Callum.

"I don't get jealous, become get jealous of me." Devon's eyes were flaming.

"I think I've heard that before." Alick turned to April and she shrugged in response.

"Well, when you've all finished breakfast we'll meet out in the courtyard." I changed the topic, getting up from the floor to meet everyone outside. I only had to wait five minutes for everyone to gather around me.

"Where are we going?" Devon questioned.

"Home." 

With a dash of my magic we were teleported to Uisneach. We all took a moment to take in the sweeping landscape, comprised of verdant fields and pockets of forest. It had been a long time since we had been back to where it all began.

I led the group to the cemetery, right back to Charlotte's disturbed plot. Faded police tape had been strung about trees and tombstones, conveying just how long ago her body had been missing for.

Using my powers I allowed Charlotte's body to levitate, gently floating her over her grave plot before lowering her inside. It wasn't everyday a group of friends got to bury a friend twice.

An icy breeze cut through the quiet landscape, howling while I smoothed over the dirt with the wave of my hand.

"I don't like the sound of the wind." Devon remarked quietly, reflecting our group's solemn mood.

"Our enemies approach." I looked to April knowingly. "We must ready ourselves for war, again." 

I transported us back to Japan in an instant.