Far From the End

Without a word Alara pivoted and awkwardly ran back to their room. Thalia looked at her with puppy dog eyes as she slammed the door. She shoved Heda off and ran after Alara.

Heda smiled to herself, satisfied that she had created some turmoil between the couple. She knew that this was inconsequential though because true mates were said to have a bond that transcended even life and death. Her mother told her that true mates were those that loved each other so much that after they died they were reborn to search for their missing half. 

That's why once true mates met the attraction was almost impossible to ignore and they gravitated towards each other instantly. She assumed that it was that way for Alara and Thalia. The two had only known each other for a few days at most and had a closer bond than Thalia and Heda ever had over their 40 years together. With a heavy heart, Heda accepted this reality and accepted that there would be no romantic future between her and Thalia. It still felt good to irritate Thalia's lover though.

Thalia tried to push the door open but it wouldn't budge. Alara was sitting on the other side of the door with her back leaning against it.

“Alara move out of the way.” She banged on the door. “Come on. Why are you mad at me?”

Alara dried her tears. For some reason that she didn't understand she was overcome with jealousy and the tears fell from her eyes. Why was she feeling this way? Nothing wrongful had been done. Maybe it was about something else. Like seeing the closeness of people who grew up together for example. Since no one in the royal family was close to her she hadn't experienced closeness like that before and was worried it would impact her ability to feel that with Thalia? She wasn't sure, but slowly got up and opened the door. 

Thalia embraced Alara as if she hadn't seen her in years. “I'm sorry Alara.”

Alara squeezed her back. “I'm not mad, I just got jealous for a second but I'm over it now.”

Thalia looked up at her with the cutest puppy dog eyes she had ever seen. Alara's face immediately became red due to the cuteness. “Why did you get jealous?”

“I just am not used to having someone care about me so if you give affection to anyone else I feel like I will lose you.”

Thalia gave Alara a kiss on the cheek. “There are different kinds of love. The one I have for you is much different than what I have for Elias or for Heda.”

“What do you mean?”

Thalia grabbed Alara by the waist and pushed her down on the bed. “For one, I would never want to do this with them. Or kiss their lips. Or touch their bodies this way.” Thalia rubbed over Alara's chest all the way down to her hips, and gently tugged on them. “You see the main difference is that I desire mental, physical, and spiritual connection with you.”

The couple looked affectionately at each other. The fact that they loved each other was obvious. This affirmation was enough to prove to Alara how much she was desired by Thalia. The couple slept well after that and woke to the gentle scratches of Yotaro on the bedroom door. Heda was nowhere to be found but just as the pair had decided to search for her she burst through the front door carrying a basket of many fruits and veggies.

Heda scoffed, “You two look like you saw a ghost.”

Thalia frowned, “We are just surprised you came back, and with food at that.”

“Well it suited me so I did it. Don't expect anything else from me!” Heda set the basket on the counter and stomped off, out of sight. 

Alara grabbed the veggies and started washing them off with her magic. “I promised I would cook a meal with you here, so how about we start now?

Thalia was suddenly filled with excitement. “What should we cook?”

Heda peaked out around the corner, “Make vegetable soup and keep the racket down!”

“That actually sounds like a good choice.” Alara chuckled.

“What's so funny?”

“Heda is really dishonest. She pretends to not care but actually does huh?”

“Yeah something like that.”

The rest of the scene played out just like Thalia's premotinition. The women smiled at each other while cutting ingredients. The two looked like a real couple which pissed off Heda, but they paid her no mind.

“Thalia?”

“Yes?”

“Can I stay with you forever? Even after we find out what's going on with the corruption?” 

“Of course. I want to stay by your side and live in peace until the end of time. That will be far from now though because our quest is far from over.”

Alara looked grave for a second. “Yes, we still have so many questions and so little answers.”

“One can never predict how things will go, but no matter what happens, it will be alright, because we will be together.” 

The two faced each other and grabbed each other's waist for a gentle shared Kiss. 

To be continued…