As the sinking sun set the sea ablaze, everyone gathered on the beach. Sam and Jin splashed in the surf, laughing in delight, while Ryllis stood back with her arms folded but an unmistakable smile softening her face. Theo and Zenith joined them for a little while, but the water was cold and Theo couldn't keep up with Sam's endless energy.
So he headed back up to the beach to flop into one of the chairs Meg had set up. Zenith went to sit down beside him.
"You can go join the others if you want to," Theo said. "I just need to rest for a bit."
"It's all right." When Zenith smiled, Theo's heart flipped around. "I'm fine here."
Facing the sea, he took off his hat and rested it in his lap. Since the sun had set, Lodo probably wouldn't bother making him keep it on. If he even noticed, since he was busy tending to the grill on the deck. The aroma of grilling meat and roasting corn drifted through the air, mixing with the sea's salt scent.
Theo closed his eyes and leaned back. No, their troubles were far from over; soon the Enson parents would come back raring for revenge. But they wouldn't be able to accomplish much with the prisoners gone and crystal out of their hands.
From behind, Theo heard footsteps crunching in the sand. Turning around, he saw Darian approaching with a soda in hand.
Zenith immediately stood up and bowed, sweeping his arm at the chair. "My liege."
"It's fine, sit back down." Darian waved her hand. "Beautiful, isn't it?"
She turned toward the ocean, gazing upon it with eyes just as deep and blue. The breeze picked up, stirring her short hair and the hem of her sundress.
Wait. Theo blinked, once, twice. He'd never seen Darian in a dress before, but she wore it with the same confident ease as her usual male getup.
The sound of a throat clearing. Theo looked down the beach to see Ryan staring at Darian with his mouth wide open.
"Uh...hold on here. You're a chick?"
Darian smirked. "I'm a prince."
Ryan just blinked in response, looking like he'd been clubbed in the back of the head. Theo almost felt a little sorry for him. Almost.
Paying Ryan no heed, Darian turned toward Theo with the warmest smile he'd ever seen from her. "I have to thank you again, Theo. Without you, we never would have gotten Sir Zenith back."
Zenith bowed again, lower, but heat crept into Theo's face. "It – it wasn't just me. Everyone helped…."
"Of course." Darian nodded solemnly. "Still, there's no need to sell yourself short. Truly, I'm honored to have you by my side. With comrades like you, I really do think my mission is possible."
With that, she swept off down the beach. Theo watched her go, his heart pounding. That was right. Her mission to defeat her father and take the throne of Miria. It still seemed so distant, something he couldn't even begin to imagine. But someday….
His hand drifted down to his pocket and brushed the crystal shard inside. As if in response, his Levia pulsed.
He would have to face this too. What this crystal was, what it had to do with his mother.
When the chair next to him creaked, Theo turned to see Zenith getting back up. He gazed after Darian too, his expression strangely distant.
"Zenith?" Theo ventured. "Is something wrong?"
"Ah." Zenith jerked a little. "Forgive me. It's nothing."
So he said, yet Theo didn't miss the furrow between his brows, the stiff set to his shoulders. As the minutes slipped by, Zenith remained standing. Shouts and laughter rang across the beach, but Zenith might as well be in a completely different world.
Theo's heart pounded harder and harder. Finally, he made his decision. Taking a deep breath, he stepped forward and grabbed Zenith's hand.
Zenith jerked, almost yanking his hand away. Theo reeled back, an apology already on his lips, so it startled him when Zenith's grip suddenly tightened.
"Theo?" he said, tilting his head and blinking.
"Um." Theo swallowed, unsure why he suddenly felt so nervous. "Let's take a walk, okay?"
"A walk?"
"Yeah." Despite the cool breeze, sweat prickled the back of Theo's neck. "Down that way, there's some rocks and tide pools. Maybe, maybe we can find some, uh, interesting things there."
Zenith jerked his head in a short, sharp nod. "By your will."
Relief bloomed inside Theo. He cast one last glance at the brightly lit beach house, the people lounging about and enjoying themselves, before setting off in the opposite direction.
The air grew cooler as the sun slipped under the horizon, leaving behind a trembling band of fiery red at the edge of the sea. Theo walked slowly, wanting to bask in not just the sunset, but everything else. The soft whisper of the surf. The wet sand beneath his feet. And Zenith's hand, tight and secure around his own.
By the time they reached the rocky area, it was almost completely dark. Theo could barely hear the others. Just the way he wanted it.
Unfortunately the tide was coming in, covering most of the rocks. That didn't stop Theo and Zenith from poking about the ones closest to the beach, admiring the barnacles clinging to their surfaces, the seaweed gently waving beneath the water. Once or twice, a tiny crab scuttled away from their inquisitive eyes.
They didn't talk much, aside from Theo sharing whatever random facts he knew about tide pool creatures. Upon learning barnacles were animals, Zenith crouched down low and wouldn't take his eyes off a particularly crusty patch, just as transfixed as he'd been at the aquarium.
It made Theo smile a little. But after a while, Zenith straightened and glanced back at the distant beach house. "We've gone quite far, Theo. We ought to return."
"I know." Theo swallowed. He saw the logic in Zenith's words, yet he still didn't want to leave. The furrow was back in Zenith's brow, that distant look back in his eyes.
"Zenith." Theo grabbed his familiar's hand again. "How are you feeling?"
Zenith blinked, looking alarmed. "What do you mean?"
"You know...I mean, you've been through a lot. Losing your contract, having to obey Oliver...there's no way it was easy. I'm just saying, uh, if you want to talk about it, I'm...I'm always here."
Theo trailed off, his cheeks burning. It sounded so stupid when he said it like that. What could he do, anyway?
The worst thing was Zenith didn't even reply. He just kept staring at Theo, his expression unreadable. Beneath his scrutiny, Theo blushed even hotter.
Squirming, he babbled, "S-sorry, that was a little – well, you don't have to – I'm sorry. It was my fault."
"Your fault?" At last Zenith spoke, though his incredulous question didn't make Theo feel any better.
"You know." Unable to meet Zenith's gaze, Theo stared down at the seafoam swirling around his feet. "If I hadn't fallen for Oliver's trap, none of this would have happened."
"Don't say that." An uncharacteristic sharpness entered Zenith's voice. "The fault is mine. You said it wasn't, but I – I can't accept that so easily. When I think how close I came to attacking my liege, I…."
He lowered his head, his free hand curling into a trembling fist. "I vowed to always protect her. Instead, I broke that vow."
Theo's heart twisted into a tight knot. Without thinking, he stepped closer to Zenith and squeezed his hand tighter. Like this, he had no choice but to stare into Zenith's eyes, hard and cold as shards of ice. None of the fury in them was aimed at him, but that didn't make him feel any better.
"You didn't break your vow," Theo said quietly. "Darian's fine, isn't she? And so are you. It's all in the past."
At last, Zenith broke eye contact. "I still...I would have. If it weren't for you…." His voice came out quieter than Theo had ever heard it.
"But you didn't. That's the important thing."
"In...in the future…." Zenith gulped in a breath, his throat convulsing. "I will never allow myself to lose control again. I promise."
"Don't say it like that," Theo said fiercely. "Like it's your responsibility only."
"It is," Zenith didn't say so much as mumble. "As a knight, as your familiar – "
"Don't I also have responsibilities? As your wizard? Then let me help you. Don't take on everything alone."
Just like that, Zenith was staring at him again. But now all trace of hardness had fled his face, leaving his eyes wide and innocent. So painfully young-looking.
"Is that...an order?"
'No!' But Theo forced back the furious shout, understanding that it wouldn't help Zenith right here and now. Instead, he made himself meet Zenith's gaze, and said as firmly as he could, "Yes."
Zenith blinked. Then the corner of his mouth twitched – not quite a smile, but it made Theo's heart soar.
"Then I'll obey, Theo. By your will."
He said it with a familiar stern resolve, and that was enough to loosen the pressure gripping Theo's chest. So much lay before him, so much he didn't understand. Darian's mission. The crystal. His own feelings. But at least he had Zenith.
And Zenith him.