Ghost Roots

[MadEmperor]

Zephyr smiled, but his bright blue eyes were full of concern. "What will you tell your family? They won't understand leaving for Serendipity, even if you tell them you're going with me to be with my 'father'."

He wondered if she could really be happy cutting ties with her family, even if they had betrayed her trust so irreconcilably.

[DragonSong]

Abigail's expression went stony. "I don't have to tell them anything," she said firmly. "I will set my affairs, collect my things, and we will leave. I am nothing but the spinster daughter they never wished for--it will be no great loss to them."

Her hands tightened around Asta's. "And I can never forget or forgive what they've done to us. To you."

"I-I'm alright," the shapeshifter found herself stammering, though she knew it wasn't true. She didn't like seeing Abigail this way--not because she didn't think her mother deserved to be angry, but because it made her chest hurt to think of the life she might have had.

"Oh, my darling." Abigail drew her into a hug, and though Asta was nearly exactly the woman's height, she felt suddenly very small in the embrace.

Over her head, Abigail said to Zephyr, "Just give me a few days to get things in order. Asta and I shall have to support ourselves somehow, but it will certainly be easier to start off with my stipend from the family coffers."

[MadEmperor]

"Where should we wait for you? Perhaps an inn on the outskirts of town?" Eloping was so far out of his experience that he had no idea what to do.

[DragonSong]

Abigail nodded slowly. "That should work. I know a place--The Dancing Dove. Give them my name, and you will be treated well. I can meet you both there three days from now; I should have what we need by then."

[MadEmperor]

Zephyr nodded, giving her a hug. "Promise me you'll be careful. If anything happened to you because of me, I'd..." The very idea made his chest tight.

[DragonSong]

She smiled and returned the hug. "I will. I promise." She pulled back to hold him at arm's length, eyes holding his. "Now you promise you'll take care of our girl."

Asta rolled her eyes a bit, but she was smiling behind her. Though she was pretty convinced she could take care of herself, it was...still nice to hear.

[MadEmperor]

With eyes as vast and as blue as the sky, he gazed back into her eyes. "I promise." Something about the way he said it made it feel like a contract. It was a promise he meant to keep.


Three days later...

It felt like rain. That was the thought running through the elemental's head as he sat in the tavern of The Dancing Dove. He idly picked at his meal, too anxious to eat.

[DragonSong]

Asta was similarly picking at her food, occasionally managing a nibble or two.

"Do you think--" She trailed off, worrying at her lip. Then she sighed and tried again, "Do you think she's...alright? If her family wanted to--to throw me away...what if they find out she's leaving with us?"

[MadEmperor]

"I'm worried too. But it's too early to presume the worst." Zephyr uncertainly took her hand and gave it a squeeze. He was trying to be reassuring, but he wasn't very good at it.

He found himself glancing at the door, hoping that this time Abigail would be there.

[DragonSong]

A hooded and cloaked figure ducked into The Dancing Dove, looking around for a moment before she spotted Zephyr and Asta at their tucked away table. Abigail hurried toward them, meeting Asta when she stood with a warm embrace.

"I'm sorry I took so long," she said as she pulled back. "Andre was...troublesome. I had to distract him somehow."

[MadEmperor]

Zephyr stood as Abigail approached. He smiled at her with relief until she mentioned her brother, reminding him of the precariousness of their situation. "And you're sure that you weren't followed?"

[DragonSong]

Abigail nodded. "He doesn't even know I've left the house—he thinks I'm still in my study. It's not uncommon for me to disappear in there for days at a time."

Asta wrangler her hands together in front of her body. "We should probably still get moving soon, right?" she murmured, glancing around like a nervous doe. "Just in case?"

[MadEmperor]

Zephyr nodded. "I agree. The sooner we're away from your family, the better."

"There's a roadside inn that we should be able to reach before it gets too dark."

[DragonSong]

Abigail nodded. "We should be on our way, then. I didn't bring much in the way of supplies, but I took everything from our coffers that was meant to be my dowry--and then some." Her normally bright eyes went momentarily flat with anger. "No amount of coin can make up for what they did, but it can at the very least ensure we don't starve."

[MadEmperor]

And so the trio set out on the road south.


The next day, Zephyr led them on a short detour into the forest. He wanted to show them something but had yet to say what. Eventually, he stopped in a secluded clearing.

[DragonSong]

The first few hours were...a little awkward, honestly. Asta constantly felt like she should be saying something, but she didn't know what. Abigail seemed to be of a similar mindset, occasionally opening her mouth, but then closing it again and frowning at her feet.

But then she caught sight of a cluster of wood violets by the road and stopped to stroke the petals in a seemingly habitual way, and without thinking Asta said, "Those are my favorite."

Abigail looked up at her, startled for a moment, then smiled. "Mine, too."

Conversation was easier after that. By the time Zephyr led them on his detour, the two women were walking arm in arm, heads tucked together like lifelong companions rather than two people who had met less than a week ago.

"And just what are you showing us, He--Zephyr?" Abigail asked with a small chuckle at her own slip.

[MadEmperor]

He turned to face them. "There is something you should both see before we go any farther. Something very few mortals have seen outside of pre-Fell civilization."

He took a breath to calm his nerves. "You both deserve to see me as I really am."

[DragonSong]

Both women paused, then exchanged a glance.

"Are--are you sure?" Abigail asked hesitantly. "If you're uncomfortable--we don't expect anything of you, you know."

[MadEmperor]

Zephyr hesitated. "I... as much as I fear that you might become afraid of me... I need to know if you can truly take me as I am. And, also, Asta should know what half of her is."

He gave them both a hug and stepped back. "Whenever you're ready."

[DragonSong]

Both Abigail and Asta returned his embrace, then stepped back to give him some room. Asta nodded with a small smile, and Abigail murmured, "We're ready when you are, Zephyr."

She reached over to take her daughter's hand gently as they waited, making Asta's smile soften even further.