Epilogue: The promise of dawn

In the early morning hours Elize left Castle Gaius while the moon was still hovering in the faintly glowing sky. She opted for the simple dark wool robes of her ministry. It was easier to move inconspicuously in them as opposed to the finer garments her attendants suggested she wear in the castle to denote her rank and status.

As the cable car was not yet in operation she took the long way down the side of the mountain, past the temple, and into town. Finding the correct house, she knocked on the door of a residence off the main street of the capital.

An old woman opened it and gave her a near toothless grin. A younger man joined her.

"Good morning. I came as soon as I could," smiled Elize.

"Thank you for coming personally, My Lady. We are honored."

"No need for that," she said as she stepped inside. "How is my patient today?" The old lady responded she was well in a croaked voice.

"And the coughing?"

"It's not nearly as severe after you gave us the first vial," he answered in relief. "Grandmother was actually able to sleep through the night this time."

"This illness is particularly severe to babies and the elderly this time of year so you need to watch that her fits aren't so violent that it constricts her airway or causes bleeding in the lungs. Once in the morning and again in the evening will suffice at this dosage," instructed Elize. "Send word to me at the castle immediately if you discover any adverse reactions to this new formula."

"I'm so grateful that you considered Grandmother's allergies. None of the other doctor's could help since we don't have much money, but you're giving it to us for free."

"Consider it compensation in exchange for you contributing to my research on princessia extract. Since I created the formula to begin with, it's not a problem for me to revise it. They've given me my own lab in the castle, after all," Elize smiled courteously. Having checked the old woman's vital signs and finding them within normal range, she turned to go.

"Such a nice young lady," crooned the old crone. "Won't you stay for breakfast? My grandson made a fine roast and he's unmarried to boot."

Her grandson only sighed resignedly, "Grams, how many times do I need to tell you not to try to matchmake for me? Besides, this is Lady Elize. She's already engaged - to King Gaius, no less."

The old woman patted Elize's hand. "Well, isn't he lucky?" she smiled. "However did a stern man like that find such a kind, gentle lady to be his wife?"

Elize only blushed but gave no response. It wasn't the first time she had heard it and she supposed it would take time for people to reconcile that despite their outward differences, she and her fiancé were well matched.

-000-

He woke up groggy and with mild headache. Gaius vaguely recalled the dream that lingered like a memory. He had been in the Silent Caves years ago when he was still leader of the Chimeriad. He and Wingul had been finishing off stragglers from Merad's forces but just as he was following his companion out, he thought he heard the light, silver laughter of a child and the voices of her parents carried by a breeze.

"Ooh, so pretty!"

"It's cold, dear, let's not dawdle."

"Come along, Elize."

When he asked Wingul if he had heard it as well, his friend merely laughed it off and told him the locals had warned the caves were haunted with the laughter of a little girl.

"No one lives in the Silent Caves," Wingul had dismissed.

"Elize…" he called out and looked up towards the carved and vaulted ceiling of his chambers until his blurry vision cleared. In the pre-dawn hours he recalled drinking with Rowen late last night. The details of their conversation as well as the bet he made with "the old man" were a bit foggy. He wasn't usually one to get drunk. After all, he had drunk his soldiers under the table countless times after numerous victories in the past. A scowl came across his face as he remembered that his prime minister knew his weakness with potato based alcohol.

"Let me present you with a glass of the finest spirits that Elympios has to offer," Rowen had said, bringing a bottle out from nowhere last night. "Consider this a toast to you and my dearest Elize for your impending nuptials."

"You're fine then, with all of that?" Erston had asked tentatively.

"Did you ever ask me for my opinion when you stole her heart away from her devoted mentor and guardian? No? Then why ask now?" Rowen asked with a unsettling smile.

He's obviously not happy about any of it, Erston had thought with a sigh at the time.

What transpired afterwards had to do with a bet. The nuances of the game were that if he was able to play a round of chess with his Prime Minister and win, then Rowen would not seek to deter them, but if he could not, then Rowen would kidnap Elize and spirit her away to a place where Gaius would never find her.

"Wily old man," he grumbled as he ran a hand through his tousled hair. He couldn't immediately recall how the evening had ended but he felt something was missing. His hand fell to the empty space beside him, vaguely warm from when she was there. He furrowed his brow and conjured up the image of her coming into the study during end of the game, just as Rowen was about to wipe the floor with him, and how she admonished her mentor for being so mean. The old man only responded with an evil chuckle.

He remembered Elize then ushered him to his room where she began the gentle ministrations of giving him water and pills, their names and purpose escaping him now, along with a head towel. A flush came to his cheeks as he remembered the feeling of her hand on his chest as she loosened his necktie and undid his shirt buttons to make him comfortable.

He recalled that in his alcohol induced state he did not ask her to leave, which would have been proper. He fell asleep with the distinct feeling that she had curled up beside him.

Now she was missing. In his haze, his grogginess prevented any chance to reason why that would be. Had she gone back to her own room? Or, had Rowen kidnapped her as he had threatened? Gaius needed an immediate explanation for her absence. He couldn't let Rowen take her, after all. He stumbled out of his chambers and without his coat headed towards the castle entrance.

Just as the sun was rising he caught sight of her coming back up the steps and through the doorway. Her golden hair caught the morning light, framing her angelic face, and he stood there in both awe and relief.

The sight of him surprised her. His striding forward to wrap her securely in an embrace left her puzzled. Gaius was not one for public displays of affection but at this hour they were still alone in the entrance hall.

"Erston?" she said. "What's wrong? Why are you up so early?" She had taken up the habit of calling him by his real name when they were alone, and he never liked his name so much as when she said it.

"Shouldn't I be asking you that question?" he countered. "The thought of Rowen kidnapping you did come to mind when I awoke. For my part I needed to confirm if a search party was necessary." She laughed that he was actually being sincere. She kissed his cheek if only to thank him for his unfounded concern.

Elize brushed back a lock of hair from his sleepy face. "You know he was just kidding about that, right? I was out treating a patient."

"You can never tell with Rowen Ilbert, wily old man that he is," insisted Gaius.

"Seriously, Erston?" Elize sighed.

He relented and held her tighter. "Though I commend you in taking to your duties as Minister of Healing so thoroughly, I must admonish you for going out alone without your guards. Your connection to me will always put you at risk. Though I know you are an adept arte user it would ease my mind if I knew they were shielding you in my stead when we are apart."

"I'm sorry," she apologized and hugged him back. "I'll keep that in mind."

Knowing that he would be absurdly busy as soon as his assistants woke, Elize asked to spend a little more time with him, a request he usually found ways to accommodate without hesitation. When they sat down to an early breakfast in his private dining chamber a messenger happened to stop by and drop off a package.

"It's from Jude," she remarked excitedly and opened it immediately.

Had he been a petty man he would have commented on how irksome it was for her to be so excited at the simple mention of another man's name, but since he harbored no ill will towards Jude and the young man had single-handedly saved the woman he cherished, Gaius held his tongue.

It was a spyrite, with a note saying it was redesigned to replace Teepo's booster. The thought of being able to speak with her alter ego again in the open sent an immediate giddy expression to her face. But she looked tentatively towards the man sitting next to her. How would people react if his betrothed walked around talking to a floating doll?

She thought back to how Gaius used to walk around with Muzét floating along behind him so perhaps those in the castle were accustomed to seeing strange things. Still, she waited for his response.

He only gave her a gentle smile in return. "If you have missed him, I see no reason why you can't turn him back on. As much as I cannot sever Gaius from Erston, I cannot expect you to sever Teepo from yourself." He paused. "But please refrain from having him chomp on my head, at least in public," he added with tentative apprehension.

Elize giggled at the thought and agreed. For now, she would only turn Teepo on in her lab and remind him of the new 'no chomping on the king' rule.

"He did say you tasted like a Gaius dumpling," she teased.

"As if I would know," he sighed. His stern expression only made her laugh more.

Finis.

Author's note: This was a fun challenge. If you read the first four chapters when they were first published, they may look a bit different now and I hope I smoothed out all the choppiness from the extreme re-writes.

This wasn't just another romance but the story of a girl who was struggling to be free of her dark past, and in the process of going through that gritty mire she found her OTP. The concept of "intertwining fates" was something Milla had said in the game and I borrowed it as inspiration to draw their connections by bringing Wingul, Jiao, Labari, Rowen and Jude to the forefront. Finally Gaius' dream/memory in this epilogue was just more icing.

Surprisingly when I peeked inside Gaius I found he has A LOT of feels, just like Elize. I based their relationship on the premise that his stern exterior had softened over time while her cheery exterior was a shell for something more morose. That gave them a chance to meet in the middle but there needed to be catalysts and tons of character development, which I was giddy to invent and had help from the other Xillia characters.

Gaius' powers are referenced to light and the sun while Elize's powers are all rooted in darkness. These are two complicated people who would at first seem to be polar opposites, and a very unlikely couple but by their differences they draw out their true selves and accept each other wholly.

The princessia flower, a plant that glows in the darkness despite the extreme cold in which it grows, becomes the symbol of their relationship. I know it's weird but I ship it. I ship it badly. Feel free to disagree.

Let me know what you think via PM and/or please RxR.

Until next time,

-Kero (7/26/15)