STAGE THIRTEEN: THE LENFIARE'S DECISION
Kirin opened his eyes, feeling the bright rays of the sun and a cold afternoon breeze brushing against his face from the window near his bed. He can soft waves from the sea, and loud chirping of birds. He got up, feeling light and refreshed. Looking around, he found himself in a beautiful cottage room, a view of the sea framed by an open window.
"Are you awake? It's already one in the afternoon." A familiar voice said, earning his attention right away. Freyja entered the room, a tray of stir-fried noodles in her hands. She carefully placed the tray on the dining table in the suite, before rushing to Kirin's side. She held his forehead. "Good, you don't have a fever. You were burning hot the past few days!" She sighed, sitting on the bed beside him.
Kirin held his head, recalling what just happened. When it finally hit him, he faced her and grabbed her shoulders in panic. "Freyja—I!" But she cut him off, with a finger on his lips. "You remember everything now, don't you, Kirin? About being Leriogue." She said, her voice soft and calm.
Kirin turned pale, and looked down. He nodded. "Freyja, I'm sorry… Alfiore I didn't know that he was not going to execute you. It was my fault. I don't know if you can forgive me but…" Kirin struggled to get the words out. He can still remember how it feels to stab the monarch with his very own hands, and how the little Freyja turned white in horror. Tears fell from his emerald eyes. "I'm sorry, Freyja. Sorry."
"There is nothing to forgive, Kirin." Freyja squeezed his trembling fists tight. "And I am sure you heard it from Alfiore too. You did everything you could to save me." All the fears that haunted Kirin for so long, he could feel her smile and warm touch slowly melt them away. Kirin couldn't hold back tears of relief, a surging warmth in his chest. "I'm sorry…" He repeated. Freyja wrapped her arms around him, and buried her face into his chest. "Kirin, you saved me. You were always with me. You never left my side. And…" She whispered, "…you waited for me… for so long. How can I ever hate you?"
Kirin couldn't ask for any more. He held her tight, tight enough so that she won't go away. Freyja listened to his beating heart. It has never sounded so beautiful before, reassuring her that he's alive. But for how long will that heart keep beating? If she were to return to Celestia, what kind of fate awaits her? What kind of fate awaits Kirin? Freyja felt so scared at the same time. She could clearly remember how she lived her life in exile, in a world without him.
"Where's Alaric and Alyon?" Kirin asked rubbing circles on her back. Freyja shook her head. "I left them. I took you and ran far away. Away from everything." She answered, looking down. Kirin didn't need to ask why. "Are you choosing me then?" Instead, he asked. "Are you choosing me over Celestia?"
"If we return to Celestia right now, we will be enemies." She bluntly said, looking straight at him. "It's either you fulfill your mission to dispose of the Leafen clan, or I punish you for what you did to Alfiore."
"Freyja…"
Then, Freyja held his cheeks and looked straight into his eyes. She could see herself clearly reflected on those green orbs. Freyja smiled. "Kirin, let's run far away. Far from Celestia. Far, from everything." Her words rendered him speechless for a moment. His heart pounded, he felt tears on his eyes. Then, Kirin sighed, and a wide smile on his face. He warmly held her hands. "Yes! Let's do that."
That night, just after sunset, Kirin and Freyja walked hand-in-hand, barefoot on the shore, with the cold, seawater splashing their feet. Freyja ran around, enjoying the starry sky. "Hey, don't go too far!" Kirin scolded, pulling her out of the water. She giggled. "Come on Kirin, the water's so nice, I'll be okay!" She insisted, earning a sigh from him. "Alright, just be careful." They walked along the long shoreline, and then, they headed up into the hill overlooking the sea. Kirin lit a small fire, to warm them up while they enjoy the clear starry sky.
It was a very ordinary, uneventful day. But if there's one thing they realized, it's that they wanted that ordinary day more than anything.
"I was thinking, would you like to live in my previous world? The world where they exiled me to?" Freyja asked.
"I thought you're not fond of that world."
"Well, you'll be there so I'm good with it. Come on! We won't be able to use aura, but I'm sure we'll be just fine!" She tugged his arm. Kirin nodded, and ruffled her hair. "That sounds great. Why not?"
"But before that, I actually miss training in forests of Lunchian. How about we stop by? Come on!" Freyja wrapped her arms around him. "I guess it won't hurt." Kirin giggled. "How about we do a bit of training on the way?" He suggested, excitement all over his face. Freyja nodded, a wide smile on her face.
Freyja stood up, and headed straight to the edge of the cliff, overlooking the wide blue sea. Kirin followed her, a bit confused. "What's wrong?"
Freyja stood there, her jet-black hair dancing with the strong winds. Then, she pulled out the medallion from under her shirt. Freyja stared at it for a while, tracing the etched wing mark, and the five gems embedded on it. For every gem, she couldn't help but remember how she met each and every guardian, and the times shared together. Astrid, Aria, Avice, Afra, and Amos. For a celestial, those fleeting years may be insignificant. But to her who grew up with human consciousness, those memories held most of her life. She desperately tried to hold back the tears, not wanting to show Kirin the hurt in her heart. But Freyja made her choice. "I'm sorry." She whispered, kissing it softly, holding the medallion close to her chest for one last time. "And thank you for everything. Thank you for being my friends. Thank you…" She could feel the medallion burning, shaking, but she used her aura to suppress the guardians from going out. She was guessing it's Astrid who's trying to force himself to come out despite her command not to. They were most likely hysterical now. "I don't deserve you. Someday, I pray that you find a master who will choose you over anything."
Freyja took a deep breath, concentrated all her aura into the medallion, ensuring that the guardians will not come out for a good while. And then, she threw it over the cliff, into the sea.
"Freyja what are you doing!?" Kirin shouted, shocked. He could only watch as the symbol of the monarch, the medallion that used to be her most priceless possession, hit the water, and sink slowly into the depths of the sea.
"I told you, didn't I, Kirin?" She faced him. "I choose you, over Celestia."
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