[The butterfly windchime is within proximity of the wizard and pauses to hover above his head. Sunlight shines through its glass wings and its metal tubes sing to Gale as if beckoning him to follow.
Meanwhile, Amelia had weakly laid herself on her sofa, eyes closed and breathing softly. Waiting. And much to her surprise, she didn't need to wait all that long. Her roof rattles and her other windchimes relay the message of the scout like a glorious choir. She bolts upright, eyes widened and her heart thumping against her chest.
Did I do it?
Adrenaline floods her veins and the magic in her hair begins to circulate erratically through every strand, giving her enough energy to stand up and drag herself to the door.
Will he be there on the other side?
One of her worst fears while trying to open a gate was the many obstacles that Gale had to face all while she was worlds away. There was the Orb, the tadpole in his brain, and so many other dangers that Faerun had to throw at him and his party. Yes, he was always more than capable even in his weakened state and yet the most miniscule of doubts remained like a scab in her mind, itching to be scratched so that it could grow and paralyze her even more.
But she didn't get this far only to stop now. The front door opens and she's greeted with a wave of coastal air washing over her face and through her hair. She struggles to regain her balance, but manages, staring at the city in the distance. There are many ships of various sizes and dots of people and other signs of life. And further ahead, she hears her lone windchime echo in the distance near a boat...]
... Gale.
[Amelia takes the first step and stumbles, falling to one knee before pushing herself up.]
Gale...!
[Her voice isn't strong enough yet and neither are her faculties as she almost takes a step on the edge of the makeshift island to tumble into the water. The witch swears and looks down at her feet surrounded by flowers, back at the small figures in the distance and back at her feet again.
She closes her yes and takes a deep breath and then a few steps backwards. She counts to ten. The Emerald Witch lets her magic pulse through her body, steadfast and enticing to the same forces that the wizard of Waterdeep uses towards her. She feels it respond and intertwine with her own being. Her mind clears itself of everything except for a singular image. A path to him.
And then she sprints forward. Earth, grass, and flowers burst to life beneath her feet with smaller ones of emerald green magic sparking with each step she makes across the water.
This wasn't the finish line. This is a new beginning.]
[Even at a great distance, there is no mistaking her. A flash of brilliant red, the unmistakable ripple of magic that stands apart from the Weave and yet remains familiar to him, the arcane pulse that may well be the Emerald Witch's heartbeat.
She had done it. He had toiled for months, intent on finding his way back to her, and for perhaps the first time in his life, he is truly glad to have been shown up— he had never doubted her, not for a moment; his heart had always been equal parts brilliant and stubborn.
He races towards her, water rippling in his wake as his spell breaks the surface tension and he leaves his companion behind, no longer bearing thought for anything but the woman running across the water towards him— that he is still alive to see her again, that they have conquered the divide between worlds to see one another are both miracles in their own right, and nothing matters but reaching her.]
Amelia!
[She calls his name, and he pushes himself forward; nothing else registers and time itself feels suspended. He is near breathless, momentarily lost for words when he reaches her, extending a hand to catch her arm and pull her into a tight embrace, twining his arms around her and burying his face against her hair. His heart beats fit to burst out of his chest before it catches in his throat; he inhales the scent of her for the first time in months and slowly, steadily finds his voice, holding her against his chest as they both hover above the water, and a laugh escapes him, amazed and half-startled.]
I should have known you would be the one to crack it, my heart.
[Her heart leaps as he becomes clearer in her view and it hastens her feet as flower petals and blades of grass fly all around her. When he calls her name her heart gets caught in her throat and there's almost a small fear of this being too good to be true and that there will be one last second mistake that would make this all disappear.
But Gale doesn't disappear. He extends his hand towards her and pulls her into his arms and her own automatically wraps around him. His warmth envelopes her in a way nothing else, no one else ever could and the witch chokes down a sob that threatens to escape her from all the sheer relief and the overwhelming success of hope that shakes her very foundation.
For once, a miracle didn't go wrong for the Emerald Witch.
She takes a deep and shuddery breath as she finds her voice.]
You're... You're alive.
[Amelia doesn't even care that her words come out raspy or about her lack of composure in her tone. Her hands find their way to his face and she only draws back enough to look into his eyes while her thumb traces his cheek.]
[He laughs again as he turns his face into her touch; there is genuine joy there, but something else, as well— disbelief, perhaps, that this has truly come to pass, at all that had come before this.]
You almost were.
[There's a faint smile as he makes that particular confession, and his hold on her tightens just slightly, as though if he doesn't hold on tightly enough, she'll slip away as suddenly as she'd appeared— something he absolutely cannot risk, and the weight of his gaze as she meets it is broken only by the threat of tears that has begun.]
Then I remembered I had something to fight to live for— a promise to keep. This once, I am overjoyed to have been outdone.
[It didn't matter which of them found the other first, only that they had.]
[If she was more collected in the moment, she would have admitted she needed a push in the right direction via the Witch King, but that's neither here nor there. Gale in front of her and being in each other's arms, is all that matters. His admittance and the intensity of his gaze causes unavoidable tears to well up in the corner of her eyes. Amelia defiantly rubs them away with the back of her fist]
Well... [Hold on, she'll reach up catch any tears from her beloved's eyes while holding his face.]
I think you'll be pleased to know you were always going to be my most pressing matter. Home itself isn't in any dire straits compared to... Well, I'm here now anyways.
[The witch glances back and forth and behind Gale, noting that there is a boat with someone witnessing their reunion.]
Should we go back to shore? There's a lot to catch up on and... Oh, god. How long has it been for you?
[Probably not years, thankfully, but it had been at least three months for her.]
[His smile crooks fondly to one side as her thumb gently swipes away the tears that threaten to fall— she, too, had been his utmost priority, once he had been free to pursue it, and he can only pull her into another tight embrace for a moment, unable to truly express his gladness in words. It was not often that Gale of Waterdeep found himself unable to articulate something, but some moments were too big for even his vocabulary to sufficiently capture.]
If I weren't holding you right now, I would hardly believe it— even so, it almost feels too good to be true, but—
[She draws his attention to the boat he had left behind; he looks back just in time to see Shadowheart raise a hand to hail them, and he exhales another peal of awed laughter, shaking his head.]
You're quite right. We've much to talk about, and we would be better served by having our feet on dry land. [He turns just enough to gesture broadly towards the docks, his smile blooming wider.] Welcome, my love, to Baldur's Gate— the Sword Coast's 'Halfway to Everywhere.'
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sunfloras2024-11-22 08:40 pm
no subject
Meanwhile, Amelia had weakly laid herself on her sofa, eyes closed and breathing softly. Waiting. And much to her surprise, she didn't need to wait all that long. Her roof rattles and her other windchimes relay the message of the scout like a glorious choir. She bolts upright, eyes widened and her heart thumping against her chest.
Did I do it?
Adrenaline floods her veins and the magic in her hair begins to circulate erratically through every strand, giving her enough energy to stand up and drag herself to the door.
Will he be there on the other side?
One of her worst fears while trying to open a gate was the many obstacles that Gale had to face all while she was worlds away. There was the Orb, the tadpole in his brain, and so many other dangers that Faerun had to throw at him and his party. Yes, he was always more than capable even in his weakened state and yet the most miniscule of doubts remained like a scab in her mind, itching to be scratched so that it could grow and paralyze her even more.
But she didn't get this far only to stop now. The front door opens and she's greeted with a wave of coastal air washing over her face and through her hair. She struggles to regain her balance, but manages, staring at the city in the distance. There are many ships of various sizes and dots of people and other signs of life. And further ahead, she hears her lone windchime echo in the distance near a boat...]
... Gale.
[Amelia takes the first step and stumbles, falling to one knee before pushing herself up.]
Gale...!
[Her voice isn't strong enough yet and neither are her faculties as she almost takes a step on the edge of the makeshift island to tumble into the water. The witch swears and looks down at her feet surrounded by flowers, back at the small figures in the distance and back at her feet again.
She closes her yes and takes a deep breath and then a few steps backwards. She counts to ten. The Emerald Witch lets her magic pulse through her body, steadfast and enticing to the same forces that the wizard of Waterdeep uses towards her. She feels it respond and intertwine with her own being. Her mind clears itself of everything except for a singular image. A path to him.
And then she sprints forward. Earth, grass, and flowers burst to life beneath her feet with smaller ones of emerald green magic sparking with each step she makes across the water.
This wasn't the finish line. This is a new beginning.]
GALE!!
no subject
She had done it. He had toiled for months, intent on finding his way back to her, and for perhaps the first time in his life, he is truly glad to have been shown up— he had never doubted her, not for a moment; his heart had always been equal parts brilliant and stubborn.
He races towards her, water rippling in his wake as his spell breaks the surface tension and he leaves his companion behind, no longer bearing thought for anything but the woman running across the water towards him— that he is still alive to see her again, that they have conquered the divide between worlds to see one another are both miracles in their own right, and nothing matters but reaching her.]
Amelia!
[She calls his name, and he pushes himself forward; nothing else registers and time itself feels suspended. He is near breathless, momentarily lost for words when he reaches her, extending a hand to catch her arm and pull her into a tight embrace, twining his arms around her and burying his face against her hair. His heart beats fit to burst out of his chest before it catches in his throat; he inhales the scent of her for the first time in months and slowly, steadily finds his voice, holding her against his chest as they both hover above the water, and a laugh escapes him, amazed and half-startled.]
I should have known you would be the one to crack it, my heart.
no subject
But Gale doesn't disappear. He extends his hand towards her and pulls her into his arms and her own automatically wraps around him. His warmth envelopes her in a way nothing else, no one else ever could and the witch chokes down a sob that threatens to escape her from all the sheer relief and the overwhelming success of hope that shakes her very foundation.
For once, a miracle didn't go wrong for the Emerald Witch.
She takes a deep and shuddery breath as she finds her voice.]
You're... You're alive.
[Amelia doesn't even care that her words come out raspy or about her lack of composure in her tone. Her hands find their way to his face and she only draws back enough to look into his eyes while her thumb traces his cheek.]
I thought I'd be too late.
no subject
You almost were.
[There's a faint smile as he makes that particular confession, and his hold on her tightens just slightly, as though if he doesn't hold on tightly enough, she'll slip away as suddenly as she'd appeared— something he absolutely cannot risk, and the weight of his gaze as she meets it is broken only by the threat of tears that has begun.]
Then I remembered I had something to fight to live for— a promise to keep. This once, I am overjoyed to have been outdone.
[It didn't matter which of them found the other first, only that they had.]
no subject
Well... [Hold on, she'll reach up catch any tears from her beloved's eyes while holding his face.]
I think you'll be pleased to know you were always going to be my most pressing matter. Home itself isn't in any dire straits compared to... Well, I'm here now anyways.
[The witch glances back and forth and behind Gale, noting that there is a boat with someone witnessing their reunion.]
Should we go back to shore? There's a lot to catch up on and... Oh, god. How long has it been for you?
[Probably not years, thankfully, but it had been at least three months for her.]
no subject
If I weren't holding you right now, I would hardly believe it— even so, it almost feels too good to be true, but—
[She draws his attention to the boat he had left behind; he looks back just in time to see Shadowheart raise a hand to hail them, and he exhales another peal of awed laughter, shaking his head.]
You're quite right. We've much to talk about, and we would be better served by having our feet on dry land. [He turns just enough to gesture broadly towards the docks, his smile blooming wider.] Welcome, my love, to Baldur's Gate— the Sword Coast's 'Halfway to Everywhere.'