One shot of Molly and Wizard. Slightly based off the Harvest Moon roleplay(hmmasterlist) on tumblr. I suggest you check it out.

She smiled at him. The same smile he had come accustomed to seeing from her for the past seventeen years. His eyes looked at the few wrinkles that had formed on her face, the laugh lines that had developed as the years had past. She was still as beautiful and energetic as ever, her spirit being the one thing that attracted him the most to her.

They sat in silence, her eyes flickering around as she tried to come up with something else to talk about. She let out a small sigh, the familiar one he had heard everyday from her. The sigh that indicated she was about to leave.

"It was nice talking to you Wizard." She spoke softly, standing up from her seat and taking the empty thermos into her hands.

"Yes…like always…Molly." He said to her, noticing the sad smile that had come onto her face.

He knew as well as she did that things between them had changed, their friendship hanging by awkward strings for the past seventeen years. It hurt him to see her everyday, hoping they could talk without that dead silence that always seemed to find its way into their conversations…if you could call them that.

He stood up as well, walking her to his door and opening it for her, watching as she past him.

"I'll see you tomorrow I guess." She said, biting her lip, a habit of hers he had noticed when their friendship had first blossomed. But that habit wasn't meaningless. He knew what it meant. Maybe she didn't consciously, but subconsciously, it was a sign that she still held those feelings she had for him those many years ago.

He nodded his head, waiting until she disappeared on the pathway back to her home before closing his door and letting out a sigh.

He sat down at his table once again, his head resting in his arms as he recalled, his crystal ball flickering with the memory as he watched.

She was at the ripe age of twenty-two, having admitted to him that she thought of him more than just a friend, holding a romantic interest in him. It hadn't really taken him by surprise, having had an idea by her subtle hints and such.

He had no problem with this; in fact, he himself had taken interest in her, the two noticeably closer than friends, yet not at the point of a relationship.

But there she was, admitting her feelings, asking if he was interested in a romantic relationship as well.

It was at that moment, when things had changed.

He had asked her for time, time to reflect, time to think about a relationship with a mortal. It wasn't rejection, rather, a pause, a maybe, a sign that there was possibility, yet also doubt.

He was old, old enough to be her grandfather, her great grandfather, her past ancestor from thousands of years ago. But this wasn't what troubled him.

What troubled him was the fact that fifty, sixty, maybe seventy years from now, should they ever become more than just romantic interests, she would leave him, leave him with pain, grief, and a broken heart that he would have to bear for years after.

He did not want to be a burden on her, and yet, he was also afraid. Afraid of dealing with that pain, afraid of getting close to her, knowing that one day she would unwillingly have to leave him.

In all honesty, he would have rather see her pair herself off with another mortal, so she could live a normal life. But there was that weight in his chest, that warmness he felt each time she smiled, each time they touched.

She had agreed to give him his time, and although clearly upset, she accepted it, telling him she would wait, no matter how long it took.

Molly continued to visit him day after day, never bringing up their conversation that fateful night, however as time passed, their conversations had become brief, almost lifeless and forced, like a heavy curtain blocking them from coming together and being as close as they once were.

He sat up, bringing a hand to his head. He had never given her an answer. Seventeen years, and still, she had never brought it up again.

She had never married. Never taken a lover. Never dated anyone after that night.

He knew one of her biggest fears in life would be ending up alone. She had always been ridiculed about it, being told there was such a slim chance of it happening.

And yet, he couldn't help but blame himself for making this slim chance happen.

Review please. :D