Bardmage except it's actual 1980s Dustin and El that accidentally stay behind when the UD is being destroyed, and they both get isekai'd into a DnD world where magic is real.
Dustin learns to be a Bard after being teleported right next to a group of adventurers. El shows up in a palace, uses her powers to defend herself and is immediately hailed as a powerful Magic User.
The language is different here, wherever they are. They know they are not speaking English—it sounds different to the ears and on their tongues—but whatever it is, they can speak it and understand it without issue. Dustin can still try to speak English, but he has to consciously move his mouth to achieve the pronunciation; there's way more effort now, like it is a second language he hasn't practiced in a long time.
They don't meet for years, having to get used to their new lives in a new world. They lose all hope of finding each other—until Dustin travels to a kingdom where El is revered as the most impressive Magic User of the region, on the day of a big parade where the entire royal family is supposed to attend.
He hears the tales, and her name, and dares to hope. She calls herself Elle Jane here, it would be too much of a coincidence, right? He has to attend the parade. He has to try and see for himself if El is somehow here, too.
He gets a vantage viewpoint by climbing a lantern pole, above the hundreds of people crowding the streets. There's several entertainers and foot soldiers walking in the middle of the street, and after what feels like an eternity, Dustin sees her. She's with the King and Queen, dressed in the richest gown Dustin has ever seen since he got here, and she doesn't look up, but it's her. It has to be her.
Dustin calls her name as a final test. He calls El, no response. He calls Jane, no response. He almost takes it as him making a mistake, but then he hears the crowd around him—they're all shouting her name as well. He will never call her attention like this. So he changes tactics.
He casts a spell (he knows how to do that now—easily one of the best parts of this new world) on himself that will amplify his voice. He focuses on the word, in English, before speaking. He takes a deep breath, and when he says it, it resonates through the street as the car where the royal family stands gets farther and farther.
"ELEVEN!"
He watches as El raises her head, and turns around, wide-eyed. He waves desperately at her with one arm, while the other secures him to the pole. El—his El, she has to be his El—throws herself against the back part of the car that is taking her through the streets.
"Dustin!!" He hears her voice shouting in the distance.
It's her. It's his El. She's alive, and she's here, she's been here the whole time and she's safe. Dustin is so relieved, so happy he nearly colapses from the lantern pole over the people below him. The Queen tries to reel El back to the front of the car, and there seems to be an argument. Dustin doesn't see the end of it, since the car has reached a bend on the street and disappeared. It's okay, however. He's found her. He knows where she is now. All he has to do is get himself an appointment in the castle and then he'll be closer to talking to her.
His plans are cut short. After a few moments and the rest of the parade following the car of the royal family, two guards appear by Dustin's lantern pole, having cut through the crowd in record speed.
"Sir, we are here to escort you to the castle. Please accompany us."
Dustin obliges, getting down from the pole and being all but dragged by his arms towards the castle.
He is taken to the throne room, and the guards keep watch so he doesn't take anything that doesn't belong to him. He waits impatiently until the parade is over and the royal family returns to the castle. Eventually, the big doors of the throne room open again, and El bursts through them, causing Dustin to shoot up from the bench he was sitting on. They lock eyes, and immediately run towards each other, meeting in the middle and crashing into a hug. They end up kneeling on the hard marble floor, clinging to each other like they'd die if they let go. El pulls away just enough to hold Dustin's face in her hands, and touch her forehead to his.
For the first time in years, they feel close to home.
