Hi!! May I ask for 'Pulling you aside from an incoming force preventing you from colliding with said force.' with Vaxleth please? (Keyleth is canonically clumsy and Vax 1000% has to steer her out of danger all the time XD)
sorry it took me ten years to respond to this! and bc it's been ten years i don't remember which list this prompt came from lol
I set this in the Camp Cloudtop universe ^_^
Vax wasn’t much of a fan of the green market that sprouted in the center of town every Yulisen, but Keyleth loved it and, well, he loved Keyleth. It wasn’t that he hated vegetables or local artisans; there were just…so. many. people. He was used to staying to the sides, keeping an eye on everyone where no eyes could find him. Emon was safe enough, but the crowds at the green market were large and condensed, perfect ground for a smooth pickpocket (he would certainly know).
Yet, his girlfriend–his outdoor-loving, friendly, curious girlfriend–wanted to be down the center street every time. “There are new vendors every week!” She threw her arms up to emphasize her point as they walked toward the closed streets in the center of town. “I’d hate to miss out on one because we’re walking behind everything.”
Vax couldn’t quite argue back; his reasons of paranoia and safety would simply get an eye roll and a gentle squeeze of his hand, a promise that she wouldn’t let anything bad happen to him. He lingered behind Keyleth as they made their way into the crowded beginnings of the market. The long street was lined with stalls selling everything from farm goods to armor to weapons to crafts. The food stalls always had the longest lines; today a vendor selling hard candy had the customers’ attention, and Vax flicked his chin toward the curving line.
“Let’s come back to this one. The line will be shorter later.”
Keyleth nodded in agreement and continued walking, but her eyes stayed fixed on the stall where an older gnome was stretching long ropes of melted sugar, shaping and creating the candies right in front of everyone.
“Keyleth!” Vax’s eyes, never fixed on anything but her, reached out and pulled her back by the straps of her long dress so she bumped into his chest just in time to avoid a collision with a gaggle of kids running right at them.
His hands didn’t leave her waist where they had secured her even as the kids ran past, none the wiser to the crash they almost caused.
“Slow down!” Vax called after them–the camp counselor instinct ripe and quick–but his attention was brought back to Keyleth as she pulled his hands away. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” she breathed, cheeks flush with embarrassment. “I didn’t see them coming at all. Sorry. I should pay better attention.”
Vax shook his head. “They are the ones running through a crowd like a bunch of morons. And I’m happy to be your eyes in the back of your head.”
With a smile, Keyleth leaned down and gave Vax a sweet kiss. “Thank you. We definitely need to come back to this stall, though. The candy looks amazing.”
“Mm.” Vax finally looked over at the candy being made and he gave an agreeing nod. “It does look pretty good.”
He only looked for a moment before his eyes fell back onto Keyleth, their hands intertwined as she began to lead them forward through the crowd. She managed to keep her eyes on the heads in front of her for about thirty seconds before her focus was drawn to a stall with beautiful silk work. Vax simply chuckled to himself and started to watch for any other impending collisions.
From the intimacy prompts, 10. Sitting on the counter while they cook, with Vaxleth? :D
Intimacy Prompts
10. Sitting on the counter while they cook
This is set in the Camp Cloudtop universe!
“Okay, now add two teaspoons of cinnamon.”
Keyleth’s long, lanky legs gently bump against the counters of Vax’s white cabinets. The matching white countertops were not so white anymore, now scattered with dustings of cinnamon and brown sugar and flour. One of Keyleth’s hands holds the recipe book aloft, the page for cinnamon twists pressed open so it doesn't continuously try to flip over. The book was a gift from Pike on the last day of camp, a token to remember her by, she said (as if they weren’t all planning a trip to Whitestone together). Her other hand reaches for a bit of the cinnamon on the counter as Vax overfills the tablespoon.
“Don’t have your cinnamon fill now,” he says with a chuckle, the first tablespoon plopping silently into the bowl of other dry ingredients before he fills the second. “We’re going to be drowning in baked goods soon enough.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll never be sick of cinnamon.” Her lips curl around her finger as she hums, the spice warm against her tongue. “Once we whisk that all together then we can add the wet ingredients.”
“Isn’t we too many people in this equation?”
“No. Watch. Grab the whisk.”
Vax does as requested and, seeing where this is going, places the utensil into the bowl with his hand on the handle. Keyleth puts the book down to her side and turns on the counter, one leg now perched just in front of the bowl. She leans forward and puts her hand over Vax’s, and he stretches out his fingers so hers can slide in between them. Slowly, the two start to move the whisk, incorporating the ingredients together while trying their best to not accidentally throw them around the kitchen.
“See? We are whisking.”
Vax’s eyes crinkle as he smiles, leaning forward to press his lips to Keyleth’s, where he can taste the remnants of the cinnamon powder.
At first, the whole auditorium went silent. Everyone froze, hearts in their throats, eyes locked on the red head now slumped against the front of the stage. Then, in a blink of an eye, the beat of a heart, chaos ensued.
“Keyleth!” Vax and Kash, both screaming her name, charged forward with Pike quickly following as she heard the commotion from backstage where she had managed to successfully uncharm all the kids under Delilah's influence. Vex turned around and shot an arrow straight at Delilah, causing the sorcerer to cry out in pain as the arrowhead pierced through her shoulder. Gilmore followed with a strike of purple magic, binding Delilah's hands and feet. He pulled his gold sash from around his waist and used it as a gag, which quickly became soiled with the Lady’s tears.
“You will answer for your crimes,” Gilmore growled, shoulders visibly shaking in anger. Vex remained next to him, another arrow trained on Delilah’s head, unmoving.
“No!” Korrin, who had been standing outside with the campers and other counselors, ran through the hole in the auditorium wall toward his child, his only child, knees sliding roughly on the carpet as he landed by her feet; Kash and Vax had already moved her to a more comfortable position, simply lying on the floor. Her eyes were still wide open, but there was no light behind them. Zahra was quick to direct the other counselors to do their best to keep the kids from seeing what happened, pulling them all further into the parking lot.
“What happened?” Pike asked, already pulling a diamond from the satchel she had slung around a shoulder.
Vax and Kash couldn’t speak, each one holding one of Keyleth’s hands. Vax had tears rolling down his cheeks, and he couldn’t pull himself from looking at her. Kash was more stoic, his anger just barely contained in his still form.
“Boys!” Korrin’s voice snapped them out of their trances. “What happened?”
How naïve, Vax thought as he swallowed back his tears and sat up a little straighter, looking over at Keyleth’s father. This man was a widower and now sat with his child, dead on the floor, and yet he wasn’t crying. He was alight with fear, of course, but he was present, not ready to claim defeat. How dare they be less put together than him?
“Delilah hit her with something,” Vax finally choked out, voice rushed with his pulls of air. “It was dark magic. I’ve never seen it before.”
“We can heal her,” Kash said, quieter than Vax had ever heard him, even quieter than the night at the diner after he’d been attacked. Kash looked at Pike. “We can heal her.”
It was a statement, but the question behind it was clear. Pike simply nodded. “We’re gonna heal her. I’m gonna need your help, okay?”
Kash nodded, and Pike took his hands and placed them on the diamond with her own.
“We need to talk to her spirit. Urge her back into her body.” Pike spoke calmly and directly, and it made Vax wonder how many times she’d done this before. “We do need to do it kinda quickly. Before the spirit fades.”
“Keyleth.” Korrin didn’t need to wait to go first. “Your time in this world has not ended. You have so much more to do, to see. You’ve barely begun, and you are meant for so much. I cannot lose you. Not now. I am the one who is supposed to go first. This is not the way. Please, come back to me.”
A golden light started to build within the diamond, and Pike smiled.
“Good,” she said. “Kash?”
“Me?” His hands stayed steady on the diamond–he wouldn’t dare move–but he looked at Pike, unsure. He’d never done this before, and the last thing he wanted to do was mess it up.
“Just say what comes to you. There’s no wrong way to do it.”
Kash glanced over at Vax, then Korrin, who gave him a warm smile. Kash shook his head, hair flopping over his headband.
“K, I…this is crazy. This whole thing is crazy, but you know what? This crazy talent show thing worked. You raised the money. You did what you said you were going to do. You can’t not be here to see it. This can’t be what happens. Don’t let that bitch get the final blow. Don’t give her the satisfaction.”
For a moment, it looked like Kash might have had more to say, but he simply leaned down and pressed a gentle kiss to her cheek. The light within the diamond brightened.
“You did great,” Pike grinned at him before turning to her left. “Vax?”
He looked up at the cleric who simply encouraged him with a gentle nod. He swallowed again, licking his suddenly dry lips as he tried to think of what to say.
“Keyleth, you are amazing. You stopped Lord Briarwood with that sun beam–I didn’t know you could do that. I’m not sure you knew you could do that. You are so much stronger than you know, both in power and in spirit. You lift everyone you touch, everyone you meet. People are better for knowing you. I am better for knowing you. You deserve to continue shining your light, and…and I’m not sure how I’m supposed to do this without my partner at my side. The only partner I want is you. So, please…Please.”
He squeezed Keyleth’s hand and lifted it to kiss at her knuckles, her skin gray and cold. The golden light grew even brighter, the diamond quickly turning into a beacon of warmth, hope. Pike closed her eyes, head dropping as she prayed to Seranrae. Vax did the same, as did Korrin and Kash.
The diamond slowly turned to dust under Kash and Pike’s hands, the former’s eyes opening and fluttering up and down Keyleth’s body, looking for a sign of life. The golden light washed over her, blinding, and once it faded the four sitting around Keyleth’s body just waited. It took a couple moments, agonizing moments, where Vax could hear everyone else’s breath, his own caught somewhere in his chest. Then, Keyleth’s chest began to rise.
Korrin was quick to crumble, his head falling to touch Keyleth’s feet, the relief washing over him in waves. Kash and Vax leaned forward as Keyleth began to blink, her green eyes gaining life once again. She blinked, eyes dry and uncomfortable, squeezing both their hands before she even realized it.
“What…”
Pike leaned back as Keyleth started to sit up, and both boys reached over to help her. Keyleth glanced at Kash and Pike first, giving them a bit of a smile. “Hey.”
“Hey,” Kash nearly started to laugh, looking over at Pike like an excited child. “I can’t believe that actually worked.”
Keyleth then saw her dad at her feet, brow furrowing as she started to piece together that she was missing something. “Wait, did I…”
“You’re alright.” Finally, Keyleth turned to see Vax who was holding onto her hand so tightly his knuckles were white. “All that matters is that you’re alright.”
Keyleth’s heart pounded against her ribcage as she gathered what must have happened. She remembered Sylas crumbling, she remembered something cold, and then she was here, surrounded by her friends, her dad.
“Are you guys okay?” she asked, and Vax shook his head.
“Far better than okay.” Her partner looked both elated and exhausted, and Keyleth pulled her hand from his and Kash’s so she could pull him in for a hug. He matched the embrace, both their heads resting on each other’s shoulders.
“Dad.” She reached for him from behind Vax and Korrin was quick to join, wrapping himself around his daughter as best he could.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I’m really sorry.”
Pike stood from her spot. “I’m going to go check on the uncharmed kids. Make sure they’re okay.” She patted Kash on the shoulder. “Great job.”
Kash, while he very much appreciated the compliment, couldn’t take his eyes off Keyleth and the hug pile she was in, the hug pile he was not in.
“Thanks.”
By the time Keyleth got to her feet and the mood significantly lightened, Emon police had arrived and were quick to take Lady Briarwood into custody, the sorcerer screaming through her gag and thrashing against the now physical restraints that replaced Gilmore’s magical ones. Gilmore was now focused on the campers, making sure everyone was reunited with a parent or guardian, and everyone was unharmed.
Vex was one of the first to talk to the police, happy to give her rendition of the events of the whole summer, culminating in this crazy day. As soon as she was done, however, she went in search of Percy. He wasn’t hard to find, his stark hair and lanky frame easy to spot through the crowd as he and his sister stood just outside the destroyed auditorium, taking in a bit of fresh air. It didn’t seem to be helping him, however; Percy’s arms were wrapped tightly around his chest, eyes staring blankly at the grass in front of him. Vex approached slowly, Cassandra offering a polite smile.
“How…are you two alright?”
Percy shook his head for a moment before Cassandra confirmed with a simple, “No.”
Vex reached forward and snaked her hand between Percy’s arms until she found one of his hands, intertwining their fingers.
“We’ll get through it together.” She smiled up at him and Percy managed a nod, squeezing the hand now in his.
X.X.X
Keyleth, after speaking with the police for about an hour and checking in on everyone, finally went to find Kash. He was sitting with Zahra on the edge of the stage, feet dangling over where she had just laid dead an hour prior. They both looked exhausted, heads slumped and eyes droopy, and there were bruises here and there, but as a whole they didn’t seem too worse for wear. Both of them looked up as Keyleth sidled up, giving kind smiles.
“I’m glad you’re alright,” Zahra said.
“Yeah, you too. Um, can I steal Kash for a minute?”
Zahra’s smile softened and she nodded, hopping down from the stage and walking away to give them space.
“Hey.” Keyleth stayed standing in front of Kash, hands crossed together behind her back.
“Hey.”
“Thank you for helping save me.”
“Yeah, of course. As if I wouldn’t.”
“No, I know, but still.”
“Yeah, you’re welcome.”
There was a moment of silence that followed, and Keyleth looked down toward the ground. “This is probably the absolute worst timing, but–”
“You know, Zahra and I have a couple job opportunities in Vasselheim.” Kash cut Keyleth off, finally hopping off the stage to stand next to her. He did his best to seem nonchalant, arms folded loosely, but his eyes didn’t quite meet Keyleth’s.
“Oh. That’s great.”
“Yeah. I think we’re going to go see about them. Try something new. And I don’t know if long distance is the thing for me.”
It might have seemed that Kash was being too blunt, cold even, but Keyleth could tell by the way he cleared his throat and how his eyes still hadn’t reached hers that he didn’t like what he was saying. If anything, he was being too kind.
Keyleth, eyes growing wet with relief and appreciation for Kash, for him taking the awkward break up bullet for her, nodded and smiled.
“I think that’ll be great for you guys. I’m really happy for you.”
“Thanks.”
Keyleth extended her arms for a hug and Kash, chuckling softly, allowed himself to be pulled in.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered.
“Nah, don’t be. You deserve better, anyway.”
“No, stop that.” She pulled back to look at him, and this close he couldn’t not meet her gaze. “You’re a great guy, Kash.”
“It sucks I couldn’t be your great guy, but hey. You’ve got to go with your heart.”
Keyleth couldn't help but blush, and she hugged him again. “Thank you.”
“Yeah.” He pulled away, running a hand through his hair. “I think I’m gonna get out of here. I’m beat.”
“Yeah…Are we coming into work on Miresen?”
Kash shrugged. “Hell if I know. I’m sure Gilmore will fill us all in.” He glanced across the room where Zahra was standing, gave a thumbs up, and she gave one in return. “Either way, I’ll see you. Don’t die again, please.”
Keyleth had to laugh and waved to Kash as he started to walk off toward Zahra. I wonder if he’s going with his heart too.
“Keyleth!” Korrin waved to his daughter. “Are you ready to go?” Korrin had made it very clear that Keyleth was not going home without him tonight, and that he was turning his day trip into a weekend visit. It was fair enough, she figured.
“Give me two more minutes, okay? I need to find Vax.”
It was late into the night–or early into the morning depending on your preference of wording–and once again Percy found himself unable to sleep. Those dark circles under his eyes were not by choice; ever since the accident, he found it nearly impossible to get a full night’s sleep without some kind of aid, and since he was now working with children five days out of the week he didn’t think drinking himself into unconsciousness was the way to go. Instead, he simply endured the long hours; this time, with no Vex around, he remained in bed with his laptop, the bright light making him squint behind his glasses.
He had been scrolling through forum after forum for the last two hours, trying his best to scrounge up any more information about Whitestone and the Briarwoods. Most of what he saw he already knew: Whitestone residents discussed the quick ascent the Briarwoods took in their city-state, wondering what their intentions were, where they came from. Many lamented the loss of the majority of the de Rolo family, and while some expressed pity and understanding for Percy and his sister and their decision to stay in Emon for the rest of their schooling, many called for new leaders, ones that didn’t run from their claim of leadership.
Percy rolled his eyes at the banality of it all, those who didn’t know what they were talking about talking anyway. It happened his whole life, gossip and rumors and assumptions. He had every intention of claiming his role as sovereign once he finished school, but he had zero intentions of telling the whole world that. It was none of their business. Besides, if he changed his mind it would be much easier to explain if he hadn’t announced it in the first place.
After a few more threads theorizing about Professor Anders and the group currently watching over Whitestone, Percy stopped at something significantly more interesting. The title of the thread simply read, “Is Lady Briarwood crazy?”, and when Percy clicked on the link, a distant but decently clear picture loaded on the first post. It was a picture of Delilah just outside the castle walls, stepping out of her carriage. A second picture zoomed in closer to her arms; while normally the woman wore long sleeves and equally long gloves, this picture showed her putting her gloves on, the skin on her forearm visible. Percy leaned in to try and get a closer look, zooming in on his screen, and found several symbols scribbled into her skin. Not onto. Into.
“What the fuck–”
He immediately saved the photo to his computer and opened a photo editor, doing his best to get a sharper image. Once he couldn’t get it any better, he ran the photo into a search engine. The first few results were nothing but gibberish, but toward the bottom of the page he found a website not updated in years talking about an old figure he had never heard of.
“The Whispered One?”
Even if there had been a chance he’d fall asleep prior to this, Percy threw that out of the window as he sat up, reached for his notebook, and started delving into whatever–or whoever–this Whispered One was.
X.X.X
Melodies from Scanlan’s lute reverberated out from the stage where he sat in front of a swarm of young kids, singing songs about farm animals and–if Keyleth heard correctly–poop covered farm land. She and Vax sat on the floor toward the back of the room, both of them with their legs crossed, piles of decorations and flyers in front of them. Pike and Grog were with them, their kids with Scanlan too; Pike was busy organizing flyers by neighborhood for people to pass out after work, while Grog was doing his best to cut out some stars out of yellow construction paper, but with office scissors in his big hands the stars came out looking more like deformed blobs.
“How are things going with Kash?” Vax looked up from the little flowers he was busy gluing together, dark eyes landing on Keyleth’s wide-eyed look of surprise.
“What?” She glanced over at Pike and Grog who tried very hard to act like they were minding their own business. “Oh. Things are fine,” she shrugged. “Nice.”
“That’s good. I hadn’t seen you two around each other the last couple days. I wanted to make sure you were alright.”
Keyleth smiled softly at his care, her shoulders raising a bit as if she were a turtle trying to hide in her shell. “Thank you. Yeah, I’m okay. We…he had asked me to become official the other night. After we met at the diner.”
There was a brief lift of surprise in Vax’s expression, but he was quick to school himself, his hands busy with some brown construction paper he seemed to be folding into a ring. “Oh. And did that not…?”
“I told him I wasn’t ready. There’s a lot going on, and I wasn’t sure–”
“You don’t have to justify your reasoning, Kiki. If you’re not ready then he should respect that.”
“He did. He does. But I think I hurt his feelings a little bit anyway.”
Vax nodded. With the ring now glued together, he started gluing the little flowers around it. “Male pride is a funny thing. I’m sure he’ll come around, though. I doubt he wants to lose you.” He looked like he was going to continue, but Vax simply cleared his throat, smiled at her with an ease she wasn’t quite sure how he managed, and leaned forward to place the now completed flower crown gently upon her head.
“Oh.” She reached up to touch it ever so slightly, her smile blooming. “Thanks, Vax. It’s beautiful.”
“Like I said,” he sat back on his hands. “I doubt he wants to lose you.”
“Hey, Vax!” Grog turned to Vax like an excited puppy. “Can I have one of those?”
The group chuckled, and Vax leaned forward again, tapping Grog’s shoulder. “Sure, big man.”
sdhashda I saw the miscellaneous sentence prompt list, and set a mental reminder to send you one, but then I forgot... wait, I forgot, right? I don't think I sent you a prompt, did I?
ANYWAY.
"Glad you think I'm hot... I guess." or "I wouldn't say no to getting lost with you." for Vaxleth.
Would it be too much to ask for it to be set in Camp Cloudtop world? If it is too much, it's fine. I'll gladly read any setting, to be honest. <3
sdashdahs OKAY BYE
this took a very long time, but i hope you like it! the prompt came from this list!
Every summer the entirety of Camp Cloudtop went on a field trip together; one year it was to a water park, another year it was to a museum, and this year it was to the zoo. The zoo staff didn’t know what was coming as the front gates were flooded by a sea of purple shirts and the high pitched squeals of excited children. Vax and Keyleth had gone over the plan with their kids the day before: everyone had a zoo buddy that they were to stay with the entire time, and the group as a whole was to stay together the entire time. The last thing they needed was for someone to get lost.
It was just after lunch time, and the 7-9 age group had settled at a small animal show. Vax and Keyleth sat behind their kids, and a finger moved through the air as she counted the heads in front of them. Her brows furrowed and she restarted her count, finger moving slower this time.
“Vax.”
“Hm?” Her co-counselor turned to her, Simon sitting on his lap. “What is it?”
“Someone’s missing.”
His shoulders immediately pressed back, but he wasn’t quick to panic. “Did you count Simon?”
“I’m here!” the little boy raised his plush snake in his hand.
“Yup, got Simon.” Keyleth offered him a quick smile, but immediately went back to counting again. “We’re missing two.”
“Oh, shit.” Vax stood and put Simon in his seat. “You stay here, alright? And pretend you didn’t hear me say the word I just said.”
Simon giggled and nodded, and Vax used his long legs to drop down the bleachers, getting in front of their group. He started to call out names, and Keyleth checked them off two by two on her roster.
“Clemyn and Tyne,” she muttered to herself as the last two names became clear on the roster. “Of course it’s Clemyn and Tyne.”
“Twins,” Vax shook his head, coming back up to stand in front of Keyleth. “We’re always a nuisance.”
“Vax, this is serious! You stay here and I can go look for them.”
Keyleth started to stand, but Vax put a hand up, stopping her in a half-standing squat position.
“No, no, let me. You stay here with the good ones. I have a knack for finding people.”
“O…kay.” Keyleth sat back down. “Tell me as soon as you find them! Use the sending stone!”
Vax patted the pocket where his Camp Cloudtop provided sending stone was tucked away. “You got it, partner. I’ll be back as soon as I find them.”
Vax made his way down the concrete steps and out of the little amphitheater, beginning his search. Keyleth’s eyes never once left the tiny heads of their group in front of her, not even as the show started and beautiful animals were introduced, not even as a baby owlbear was brought through the audience so everyone could get a closer look. Every minute that passed without an appearance from Vax and their missing campers had Keyleth’s mind racing faster and faster. What was Gilmore going to say? Would she and Vax get arrested for child endangerment? Child abandonment?
After a final trick of a hawk flying above the audience, the show came to its end. The audience clapped, Keyleth half-heartedly, and as the rest of the people started to file out, Keyleth lingered.
“We’re going to sit tight for just a sec, guys. Mr. Vax should be back in just a second.”
“Where did he go?” Simon reached up for Keyleth’s hand.
“You don’t want to know.”
Just as Keyleth took Simon’s hand, Vax came around the corner with both gnome twins in tow. They looked rather guilty, their clothes a bit dirty and hair disheveled. Keyleth raised an eyebrow and Vax rolled his eyes from the bottom of the amphitheater.
The group finally left their seats, reuniting with Vax and their missing group members. They started to head for the bird enclosure, Vax and Keyleth lingering at the back of the pack.
“Where did they go?” she asked, leaning in to keep voices quiet.
“A dumpster behind the gift shop.”
“A dumpster?”
“In the parking lot.”
“What?”
“They were looking for toys that were…heavily discounted.”
“Oh my gods.” Keyleth shook her head, but she couldn’t quite stop the smile that formed at the same time. “You have to applaud them for their creativity.”
“And they did stick to one of the rules. They stuck with their buddy.”
Keyleth nodded. “Yeah. I’m just glad you found them before we had to call in the cavalry.”
“I definitely earned my paycheck today.”
The two chuckled together and kept walking, watching the kids run toward the thick glass between them and a bunch of penguins swimming in their enclosure.
“If I ever get lost,” Keyleth mused, “I hope it’s with you.”
Vax looked over at her, one hand now occupied by Simon who switched counselors as things became a bit more excitable around them. There was a moment where Vax’s brain didn’t provide any good responses, just a dumbfounded smile and bright eyes that couldn’t look away from his partner. His buddy. It wasn’t until Keyleth looked away from the birds to look at him that he managed to find something to say.
“I wouldn’t mind getting lost with you.”
Keyleth smiled back, and she leaned over just enough to bump shoulders with him before she quickly jolted forward.
The sun was starting to set over Camp Cloudtop, and everyone who was left finally started making their way to the front parking lot, all tired and sore and ready for the best sleep of their lives. Percy, Cassandra, and Vex joined Keyleth, Vax, and Korrin on the grass, all huddled together with arms over each others’ shoulders.
“Ready to go, brother?”
“Actually,” Keyleth raised her hand like a kid in class only to very quickly pull it down as Vex started to chuckle, “I was going to ask if you wanted to come join us for dinner. We’re just going to my apartment, nothing special.”
Vax looked to his sister who nodded and pushed his shoulder. “Go, you dork. You don’t need my permission.”
With a quick lean in to kiss his sister’s cheek, Vax brought his attention back to Keyleth. “I would love to.”
Keyleth extended a hand, which Vax took without hesitation, and the three started walking toward the side of the building where her tree still stood, completely unphased by the trials of the afternoon.
“Hey Keyleth.”
As they reached the base of the tree, Keyleth turned to find that Percy had actually been following them instead of heading to the parking lot’s teleportation circle like usual, Vex and Cassandra lingering behind him.
“Yeah?”
“What made you choose this tree?” His eyes didn’t leave its pale bark and sprawling branches, a few just starting to reach for the roof of the building. “Anything in particular?”
Keyleth gave a shrug. “I don’t know. It’s one of the only trees at the front of the campus that’s big enough for the spell to work, but it does have a good energy. It’s warm and inviting.”
“I bet it does.”
Cassandra stepped forward to give Percy a questioning look, brows furrowed. “Percy, what is it?”
“That’s a sun tree.”
“What?”
“A baby sun tree, but a sun tree nonetheless.”
“Oh.” Keyleth turned to it and placed a hand on its bark, that warmth she mentioned flooding her senses. “That’s cool.”
“No, no, you don’t understand. The only other sun tree I know of is in Whitestone.”
“Your hometown?”
“Yes.”
“Where the Briarwoods settled?”
“Precisely.”
Everyone was staring at the tree now; it couldn’t have been more than five or six years old. If Keyleth thought it was big now, she would be astonished in another five, ten, fifteen years as the tree would grow to swallow the parking lot it paralleled.
“Do you think the Briarwoods wanted the land for this?” Vex asked. “For the tree?”
“I don’t tend to believe in coincidence.”
There was a pregnant pause as everyone stared up at this now astounding tree, wondering what it might mean, what the Briarwoods might have wanted for it, before Vex broke the tension with a scoff.
“Honestly I'm perfectly fine never knowing as long as we never hear from the Briarwoods again.”
The group all mumbled varying words of agreement, and Keyleth, with her hand still on the tree, bowed her head slightly, and a shining green portal stretched from the tree’s trunk.
“After you guys,” she gestured to her dad and Vax, cheeks just slightly beginning to blush. The two of them passed through the portal and after a wave goodbye, so did Keyleth.
It was only once her feet touched the sun-warmed grass of her apartment’s tiny backyard that Keyleth realized how absolutely exhausted she was. Her eyes started to feel heavy in her skull and her shoulders curled forward as if her bones couldn’t keep their upright posture anymore. An arm lifted up and she gently placed her hand over her heart, her beating, blood-flowing, alive heart and took a deep sigh.
The large arms of her father wrapped around her shoulders. “How about you let us make dinner tonight?” His eyes shot a look at Vax who was quick to nod. “You’ve done enough for today.”
“For several days,” Vax agreed, offering her a smile that Keyleth couldn’t help but reciprocate. Her nod was slow and sleepy, but she couldn’t have been more grateful. Her father’s hug switched to a hand holding hers, and he led the two younger half-elves into the building.
“Vax’ildan, do you have any skills in the kitchen?”
Korrin made it clear that two minutes was all Keyleth had; he was ready to get her out of here, back to the safety of her apartment despite the fact that the danger was now sitting in the back of a police truck with a power dampening collar around her neck.
Keyleth scanned around, turning back and forth as she looked for Vax. He wasn’t in the main auditorium anymore, nor was he backstage or in the hallway. Oh. There.
She felt silly not checking outside first–there he stood plain as day, one of the first people in clear view once she stepped out the big hole in the wall. He and Gilmore were talking to a couple of officers, and while his arms were folded across his chest like he was trying to hold himself up, his smile was as easy and charming as ever, even from across the grass.
Keyleth didn’t want to interrupt their conversation–and wasn’t going to–but just as she was making the decision to turn away and find him tomorrow, the officers turned and left them alone, allowing her to dash forward before she could stop herself.
“Vax,” she called and he turned, still just as relieved to see her alive as he was the moment she took a breath again.
“Hi.”
“Hi.” She could only smile at him before she remembered, Oh yeah, Gilmore is still here, and she turned to smile at him too. “Hey Gilmore. I’m sorry for all the destruction.” She turned back to look at the hole.
“Don’t be sorry, darling. I’m the one who caused it. And it was damn well worth it.”
“It shouldn’t be that hard to fix, right?” Vax asked. “With magic and all?”
Gilmore shook his head. “Not terrible, no.”
“Do you think the fighting is going to ruin next year? All the parents were here.”
“And all the parents saw how our staff protected their children. The Briarwoods were…an anomaly. I think anyone with sense will know something like this is very unlikely to happen again.”
“I hope so.”
“Keyleth!”
Her eyes shifted to the left where Korrin stood just inside, lips pursed as he continued to grow impatient. She turned back and eyed Vax, wanting to say something, anything, but with Gilmore there–
“Oh, I think an officer needs me. Excuse me, you two.” Gilmore, with the most mischievous of grins, gave the two a slight bow and headed off, leaving them alone.
Vax simply stood, waiting. He was in no rush, and he didn’t want to add to the pressure Keyleth surely felt from her father behind her.
“Hey, partner,” she ended up saying, causing Vax to laugh. A hand reached over to cup his side where he was sure a nice bruise was forming, but he didn’t bring it up.
“Hey partner,” he mirrored. “How are you feeling?”
“Good. You?”
He nodded. “Good.”
“Good. Well, I just wanted to–I needed to tell you–Are you staying in Emon after camp’s over?”
“Well, I wouldn’t be surprised if camp ended tonight, but yes, I believe I am. You?”
“Yeah, me too. I think I want to take a gap year before starting anything. Figure out what I really want to do.”
Vax’s eyes lit up and Keyleth felt her heart stutter. “That’s great.”
“Yeah.” There was a beat of silence before Keyleth bursted out like a kid unable to hold a secret. “Kash and I broke up. We broke up together. Not, like, you know–it was mutual.”
“Okay.” Vax’s foot shifted just slightly closer, and Keyleth willed herself to pretend she didn’t notice.
“And I know this timing is absolutely wild, and I know what you said about your sister before–”
“Do not worry about my sister.”
Keyleth’s eyes widened. She felt like she should always worry about Vex. “No?”
“It is unnecessary.”
Keyleth bit at her bottom lip and nodded, taking him at his word. “Heh. Okay. Well then I was wondering–and you can take time to think if you need it–I know this timing is, again, wild, but…do you maybe want to keep being partners? After camp is done? And that doesn’t have to be anything you don’t want it to be; it could be friends or–”
Thank the gods, Keyleth’s ramblings were cut short by Vax using that closed distance to reach over and pull her in for a kiss, a bit shorter than the one at the lake, but one just as important.
When they pulled away, his hand remained along her hip, squeezing ever so gently, and he gave a little shrug.
“I hope that suffices as your answer.”
Keyleth was quick to nod, her cheeks growing warmer and warmer every second. “Yeah. Yeah, that works.”
Vax’s eyes shifted ever so slightly behind Keyleth’s head and he let his hand fall as Korrin started to approach.
“Your dad,” he mouthed and Keyleth swung around, whole face now matching her cheeks.
“Hi dad. Ready to go?”
“Very,” he sighed, but he reached a hand out to shake Vax’s. “Thank you for everything you did today.”
