Part II - Epilogue (Final)

The elf girl walked hand in hand with the human boy through the village of Lazumere. Headed for the cottage on the edge of town.

"What if he doesn't like me?"

"He'll like you just fine, Matty."

"You've really known this guy since you were little? He must be ancient by now."

"He's not that old. Well, but then … I mean, they did used to call him, 'Old Man Callihan' all the time. … Ah, don't say that around him. He hates that name."

"Right … Got it."

When they got to the cottage, they knocked on the door.

After a while, the door opened, just a crack.

The man behind the door peered at them. Graying hair at the sides. Bald on top. Face lined with wrinkles. He looked at the young couple.

"… Yuki-chan?"

The door opened all the way.

"Yuki-chan! You're back from Crystal City!"

"Hi, Mr Callihan!"

"… And who's this?"

"I'd like you to meet my boyfriend … Matthias."

The boy bowed. "H-hi … Pleased to meet you, sir."

The old man eyed Matthias up and down, as if sizing him up.

Then, after a long period of assessment: "Yuki-chan, I don't think this guy'll do. He's too much of a dweeb."

*

Yuki and Mr Callihan sat across from each other, at the latter's breakfast table. Cups of tea in front of them.

Outside the cottage, Matthias was busy playing with Mr Callihan's dog, a golden retriever he'd adopted a couple years ago named Corgi. (… She'd always wondered how he came up with that name.)

"So … You and him, huh?"

Yuki blushed. "… Yeah." Then, defensively: "H-he's really sweet. He's studying literature. He wants to write the Great Crystallian Novel one day."

Mr Callihan chuckled. "Yeah … I knew someone like that, once."

A long silence.

Then, Mr C: "So … When did it happen for you?"

"… When did what happen?"

"Apotheosis."

A look of fear in her eye. Like she'd been found out.

Mr Callihan laughed. "Don't worry! I'm not going to tell anyone. … And if you're serious about starting a family with that guy someday, you'd better not think about telling anyone either."

Yuki blushed … again. She brought her cup to her lips, to try and hide her face.

The man shook his head in disbelief. "Imagine that. The daughter of an avatar ends up becoming another avatar. For a different deity altogether."

"Well … My father is Lazumerian."

Mr Callihan drank his tea.

"You know, Miyu once told me, that you inherit all the emotions and memories of all the avatars who'd come before. … Is that what it's like?"

Yuki thought for a while. "Kind of? But not really? It's more like … a vague sense of all the avatars together. In one … kind of … avatar-y blob. (Man, I am no good with words.)"

"Do you feel …?"

He didn't finish his sentence, but Yuki knew what he was getting at.

"Yeah. You know what, I do. For sure, Miyu Nocturne is in there, too. I … I do feel her there. Maybe I can't pick her out individually, but … She's there."

"She's your namesake, you know."

Yuki smiled. "Yeah. I know."

A long silence.

Yuki: "Will it be okay?"

"Will what be okay?"

"If I don't … do what I'm supposed to do? As an avatar?"

The man smiled. "You know what? This is something I've had a lot of time to think about. Miyu always took it seriously. Too seriously, at times, in my opinion. But lately, I've been thinking—and mind you, this is just my thoughts as an outsider, looking in—but I've been thinking that, Princess Aerya will be okay. She'll be just fine. Even without all the rules they tried to enforce on the priestesses. The 'Rite of Crystallization'. All this dogma—I think Princess Aerya … if she exists … will be fine. As long as the people of Lazumere keep her in their hearts … I think she'll be just fine."

*

Yuki and Matthias saw Mr Callihan a lot over that summer. They would drop by unannounced, or invite him along for long walks. At night sometimes Yuki would cook dinner, while Mr Callihan talked with Matthias out in the garden, Corgi chasing his own tail nearby.

A human boy, and an elf girl, spending their summer away from Crystal City. The entirety of their lives ahead of them. A future not yet written.

He watched the two of them together that summer. Hoping that they might succeed, where he had failed.

"Yuki-chan, listen to me."

"What is it?"

"If Matthias ever runs out in a huff, because you guys have a dumb fight, you have to chase after him."

"I, uh … Okay?"

"I mean it. If he tries to get away in a carriage, you better damn well chase after it."

Yuki rolled her eyes, and laughed. "Okay, Mr Callihan. I promise if Matty ever tries to run off in a carriage, I'll go after him."

When the couple left that summer, they promised to return soon.

And they did return, the next summer.

And the next.

And when they finally graduated, the two of them returned once more—for good this time.

"Why not?" said Yuki. "It's great for Matty's writing. No distractions. He can go for long walks and think. Perfect environment! And besides … I really wanted to have the wedding here."

Yes, the wedding. Which later turned out to be an even larger affair than Yuka Yuuni's had been.

Matthias invited his friends and family from Crystal City—all humans, most of whom were visiting the Elfen Lands for the first time in their lives—and Yuki's side was pretty much the entirety of Lazumere.

"Yuki-chan … Make sure you don't let anyone see you in between dress changes. Very important."

Yuki, laughing: "Okay, Mr Callihan. I'll make sure of it."

And not long after the wedding, just a year and a half, Yuki was busy taking care of children of her own. Twins, in fact. A boy and a girl.

Mr Callihan always loved it when Yuki and Matthias brought the twins over. They grew up even faster than he could've ever imagined, and soon they were walking on their own. Talking. Getting into trouble.

"Grandpa Callihan, look! I caught a frog!"

… He wasn't really their grandpa, but he liked being called it anyway. Sounded a lot better than 'Old Man Callihan'.

Life was good.

Seeing the love between the elf girl and the human boy deepen even more with each passing year. Seeing their half-elflings grow up. Seeing the village continue to thrive.

Life was … good.

And even when his body started to fail him, even when his memory began to falter—Yuki and Matthias first noticed this when, during Heinrich's final visit to Lazumere, Mr Callihan had asked him when that 'picture book' he was writing with Elegia was finally coming out … the very same book that had been sitting on his shelf for decades—all he could think was:

Life is good.

It was around that time, that Mr Callihan started referring to Yuki as Miyu more often. Always apologizing after the fact, when he realized what he'd done.

"—ki. Miyu-ki. Of course. Not … Miyu. I'm sorry, Yuki-chan …"

"No," she'd say, shaking her head, "don't worry about it."

Sometimes he would start telling Yuki about how he had made a crystal ring, because A) they didn't make crystal engagement rings, and B) he certainly wasn't going to ask his dad for the money, so it only made sense to make it himself. Because, after all, he was going to—

"—ask her to marry me, Yuki. This summer. She comes from a place called Lazumere, you see … in the Elfen Lands."

"That sounds lovely, Mr Callihan," she'd say, holding back tears. "I'm sure you're going to make her very happy."

"But oh, I'm afraid. I don't know if they'll like me there, since I'm a human. I know they're old-fashioned, so I'll have to ask her father for permission first. … Oh, we're inviting my roommate too. He's a good friend. Really. He can say some weird things, but he's a good guy."

Near the end, Yuki and Matthias brought Mr Callihan over to their house for good, where they could keep a closer eye on him. Help him with a lot of things he couldn't do at this point.

Mr Callihan didn't mind. It was nice to be around others. He'd been alone, for so long.

Ah, but he wouldn't have to be alone for long!

Because he had a plan.

He was going to marry Miyu Nocturne after this summer.

"The job market's really good for engineers right now, you see. I'm going to work, but Miyu doesn't have to if she doesn't want to. I'll take care of her. And our family. I have this dream, you see—it's the weekend, and we're on our way back home after a long day, and the sun is setting, and ahead of me, there she is, Miyu, the mother of my children, walking hand in hand with my son. A-and in my arms, my daughter … she's already asleep, and I … I'm happy. We're happy."

"That sounds really lovely, Mr Callihan," said Matthias. "But it's very late, okay? You shouldn't be up at this hour. Come on, let's get you back into bed, okay?"

"… Bed? Oh, yes. Yes, long day ahead. Need to study, you see. Have to pass my exams. Crystalline Circuitry. A tough one. I need to pass the exams, so I can go to Lazumere this summer. I'm visiting her hometown. A place called Lazumere. Oh! Lazumere … The crystalfires are still burning. I have … I have to help … rebuild …"

Yuki was crying too much to say anything. She took the old man's hand, and pressed it to her cheek.

Matthias helped Mr Callihan back to bed, and pulled the covers over him. "It's time to rest now, Mr Callihan. Don't worry about Lazumere, okay? We'll take it from here. You just rest now."

"Yes … I think … that would be nice. Don't … want to keep her … waiting."

And then Cameron Callihan closed his eyes.

One last time, he dreamed of Miyu Nocturne.

He dreamed of Miyu Nocturne, and the summer they had spent together in a village called Lazumere.