King Joel of Mezalea, Emperor of Emperors, turns around and nearly stabs his wife.
“Oh,” he says. “It’s you. Whoops.”
“You nearly killed me!” says Lizzie, offended. “And to think I was here to apologize.”
Joel blinks several times and looks over Lizzie. “…what for?” he asks. He doesn’t put down his sword. It’s bloody. He’s been stabbing a lot of things today. Like chickens. And horses. And anyone who approached within like, a meter of his person. He likes his personal space these days, as well as reminding people he can stab them. Still, Lizzie’s his wife, so he definitely, definitely shouldn’t be stabbing her.
“Well, I was going to apologize for planing to kill you,” she says, and Joel blinks.
“Last Life,” says Lizzie.
“Oh. That’s okay then,” Joel says automatically, but his body takes three steps back and he grips his sword harder. “I mean, I definitely killed you twice two. I was pretty good at killing people, wasn’t I?”
Lizzie laughs. It’s strange, and it hurts Joel’s ears, for some reason. “You were, weren’t you?” Yeah, that sounded weird too. Lizzie’s being weird. Joel takes another step back for good measure. His knuckles are white on his sword. His teeth are still sharp here, right? Back on Last Life, his teeth had gotten very sharp. It had been one of his better traits. It made him all scary, and it meant he had a good way to fight back when he needed to.
And… oh. Joel’s being weird, too. He has to say, he’s not a fan. Normally it’s everyone else being weird.
The two of them stare at each other, Lizzie coiled, Joel with sharp teeth and a sword. He’d killed her. She’d killed him. He’d killed her again. She’d planned to kill him again, but died before she could. And now they’re both here, and Joel thinks they could probably kill each other all they wanted, but it would be just a little bit pointless, and even if Joel doesn’t care, he really doesn’t want to deal with Pixlriffs being all judge-y.
They stand a meter and a half apart and then Lizzie laughs, breathless. “Oh, Joel, we really got messed up,” she says.
“Speak for yourself. I’m as normal as always.”
Lizzie comes closer. Joel tries not to back up. She is his wife, and he loves her, and she can stand as close to him as she wants. So they can hold hands. And cuddle. And kiss. And all the good things wifes and husbands do. But it feels weird, having anyone stand that close and not wanting to kill them just a little. Joel had even wanted to kill Grian, just a little, he’d just wanted to be lonely less.
Lizzie puts her hand on Joel’s sword hand. Joel pauses. Lizzie pulls her crossbow out and tosses it on the ground, along with her axe and sword. She looks at Joel.
Then, bit by bit, they both peel Joel’s fingers from his sword. Suddenly furious, Joel tosses it as far away from himself as he can and hugs Lizzie as close as he can.
“We’re not red anymore,” Lizzie says.
“I’m not,” Joel says. “It feels weird. I don’t like it. I should like it but I don’t. I miss you. I’m sorry.”
“I am too. I know. Me too,” Lizzie says. “I love you.”
They stand there, together, for quite a while. Hugs are nice, Joel thinks. He’d missed them, being red. That is something he knows for certain. He may miss the pointed teeth, and the way people had been afraid of him, and the certainty, and the haziness, but the hugs? He won’t miss the way he didn’t get hugs, back then, and he won’t have to miss Lizzie anymore, either.
“Don’t die again,” says Joel.
“Well, jeez, maybe don’t kill me?” Lizzie says, and Joel laughs.