Part III - Our Crystalline Summer

"… THREE!"

Cameron Callihan opened his eyes.

Cherry blossoms. A garden. Some kind of … castle?

He hadn't the slightest clue where he was.

In front of him, a woman he didn't know, holding a crystal. An … elf? No—a half-elf, maybe. Wearing the same robes Miyu had worn during Observance. … That summer … (When had that even happened …?)

When exactly was he right now? …

Nearby, another woman, another half-elf apparently—this one dressed quite shabbily, her hair a tangled, frizzy mess—was jumping in the air with joy, pumping her fists in some kind of celebratory dance.

"IT WORKED! IT FRICKIN' WORKED! … I'M A GENIUS!!! … I'M THE GREATEST MIND TO EVER WALK THIS—…" (And so on.)

As the eccentric half-elf continued raving, Cameron realized he was holding a crystal in one hand, and in the other … a crystal engagement ring. Kind of like the one he had made, all those years ago. (Again … When had that all been!?)

Then his eyes drifted back to the other half-elf woman standing in front of him. The one in Observance robes.

She was staring back at him. Studying his face, as though searching for an answer she couldn't quite grasp yet. … An answer hovering just slightly out of reach …

And Cameron, in turn, studied her.

That look in her eyes … Those expressions she was making … The way she moved … It wasn't her body, or her face, but it almost seemed like she was …

No, it couldn't be … Impossible …

Was that …

… Was she …

"… Miyu?" "Cameron?"

They'd both spoken at the same time.

They stared at each other, for what seemed like an eternity.

Then, each dropped what they were holding, and rushed into the other's arms.

He tightened his arms around her. She squeezed back.

"Miyu …"

He never wanted to let go.

"Cameron …"

As the two held each other, the frizzy-haired half-elf, who had stopped dancing, spoke in the background.

"… quite simple, really. I merely intercepted the same divine channels used for Apotheosis. Well, I say simple, but it's actually quite an involved process, see … Now, it was relatively easy for Nocturne here, but human boy? Oh, man …"

Cameron wasn't really listening. He didn't care where he was, when he was, or what was going on.

All he cared about was the fact that Miyu was here, in his arms. There was so much he wanted to say to her. The things they never got to do together … They had time now. They were together again. He didn't care about anything else.

She was back in his arms.

Miyu Nocturne.

His Miyu.

The frizzy-haired half-elf, clapping her hands: "Alright, alright. Don't wanna ruin the mood, but you need to listen up, because this next part is important. Pay attention now, kids."

Miyu and Cameron turned their heads toward her.

"Hi there. You can call me the Mad One. I'm an avatar of Aerya, just like you. I'm the one who brought you here."

Miyu, teary-eyed: "Th-thank you. So much. I don't know how to—"

She raised a single palm. "Stop. STOP. No, seriously, stop. You might not feel so grateful once you hear what I have to say."

A breeze blew through the gardens.

"Here's the catch."

Petals swirled around their feet.

"… The two of you get one day. That's it."

Miyu and Cameron exchanged glances.

"One … day?" repeated Miyu, frowning.

"Yes. Those bodies you're in? They're my apprentices. You probably have until sunrise tomorrow morning before you have to, um, let's say—vacate the premises. … After all, I may be the greatest practitioner of the arcane arts in all of existence, but even there are some feats too advanced for me to pull off. And there's a very, very specific alignments of the stars required for this to happen. … The next window of opportunity won't be for another 12,000 years. At least."

Miyu and Cameron, muttered together, as if in sync: "12,000 years …"

"… And no, before you ask—there's no way I could have brought your family or friends back along with you." Mo held up the book she was carrying. "You two are special, because there's a common memory of you two that has endured through millennia."

"… Heinrich and Elegia's book," muttered Cameron. "It's been passed down all this time!?"

"Oh, goodness, no. 12,000 years? That'd be ridiculous. The world has turned to literal ash a couple of times since you guys were last here. But you"—finger pointed at Miyu—"… let's just say there have been many avatars over the years, who had, um … bookish proclivities. So through them, the story's been re-told through the years. Your story's been kept alive. I mean, the names in it have changed, the setting, stuff like that. But the essence of you two—still intact. And that was enough to anchor you two, to bring you back. … For a day, anyway."

"Why do all this?" asked Miyu.

The Mad One scratched the side of her face. "I dunno? … Fun? Besides, this is gonna really piss off the Warlord, so that'll be fun to watch. He might have my head on a stick for this, actually. … Nah, on second thought, I'll probably just get chewed out. But I've been chewed out before, so whatever. … Oh, don't worry about him. I'll make sure to keep him busy all day today. You kids do what you wanna do."

Cameron: "I, um … I remember everything about my life. But, at the end of my life, I was …"

MO: "You're not you at any specific point in your life right now. You're more like … the total sum of you. The essence of you, distilled."

Cameron: "Oh. … Hey, wait, wait—12,000 years … Why are we talking in Common, then?"

The Mad One tapped the side of her head. "You two don't understand just how comprehensive the scope of my Apotheosis was. I'm a one-in-a-million, baby. I have lived every … single … one of Aerya's avatars' lives. So speaking your tongue is nothing more than a triviality for me. … And yes, Nocturne—that means you're in here, too. I've lived your life in full. I've seen everything—everything—you two have done."

Cameron and Miyu blushed.

Then, they were quiet for a while, as if taking all of this in.

Miyu, unsurely: "I dunno, this all seems kinda … profane. Somehow."

"Ugh. I forgot how pious you were, Nocturne. Alright, look—if Aerya-chan's got a problem with this, then may she strike me down right now. This very instant."

The Mad One held her hands out, and closed her eyes, and waited.

Nothing happened.

"… See? She's fine with it. … Now, then—I'm sure you two have a lot to get to. So … I'll leave you to it."

The Mad One turned her back to them, and waved her hand as she walked away.

Once she was gone, the first thing Cameron did was pick up the crystal ring he had dropped. They didn't have much time. Better get through all this as fast as possible.

"Miyu?"

"Yes?"

Cameron dropped down on one knee, and presented the crystal ring to her.

"Will you marry me?"

"Of course!"

He slid the ring on her finger. Then he stood back up, and they kissed.

"I now pronounce us, man and elf. … Or, man and half-elf, maybe."

A smug, teasing smile spread across Miyu's face.

(He'd always loved that look on her. … Who cares where it'd come from anyway, originally?)

"Maybe you should take a look in the mirror sometime," she teased. "You're a half-elf, too."

Cameron touched his ears. "… Huh. You're right."

They smiled at each other. They stayed like that for a bit.

After a while, Miyu looked around them. "This is supposed to be Lazumere? I don't recognize any of it."

"I guess a lot's changed since we were here."

"I wonder … if the hidden glade is still there."

They looked to the nearest mountain.

If it was the same one, they couldn't tell.

"… I guess it doesn't seem likely, huh?" asked Miyu, a bit sadly.

"… Yeah."

Silence.

The two of them suddenly didn't know what to say.

There was just so much to say, they didn't know where to start.

A single day … That's all they had. One day to spend together.

He took her hand.

She turned to face him.

He pointed at the cherry blossoms. "You know, Miyu, it's spring."

"Yeah?"

"And you know what that means."

"What?"

"… Summer's just around the corner."

"… Yeah."

"There'll be a lot to do. Let's see … We'll have to go fishing by Old Logan's Creek."

"… What?"

"Oh, and we should go bug-catching again. That was a lot of fun, wasn't it? … Hmm, what else?"

Miyu nodded, understanding. Then she answered, through the tears welling up in her eyes: "… And Mama can make us some barley tea, while we sit by the engawa."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah! We can stare out at the garden while we drink it. I'm sure Papa's Lazublooms will be looking so pretty by then. … We'll play all day, and when we go home at night, Mama's soup will be waiting for us."

"And, of course, we'll stop by Embervyl! Let's stroll through the shoutengai again. I can already smell the taiyaki."

"Dalton must be all grown up by now. I wonder if he'll still have a crush on me when we see him. You won't get jealous, will you? Hey, maybe we can have another water fight. Win me back properly this time, okay? You two came to a draw last time."

Cameron felt tears stinging his own eyes. "Of course. I'm not letting anyone steal my wife away from me. … Speaking of which, we'll have to check in with Yuka too, in Summergrün. I still haven't been there, all this time."

"Yuka-tan … Sure … But that means we'll have to invite Heinrich, too. She needs her punching bag! And Elegia can come along as well, if he wants. If he's not too cool to hang out with us."

The two of them laughed, through their tears.

"And Alma! … You never got to see Alma grow up. You'd be so proud of how she turned out, Miyu. You know, she even has a daughter now. Yuki-chan. She named her after you. What you did for her."

"… I'm glad."

Then, Miyu walked to the crystal she'd dropped, and picked it up. "And … of course …" She idly thumbed its surface, staring into it as she spoke. "… Archie will be waiting for us there, too. … I'm so happy you'll get to finally meet him, Cameron. … I can't wait for summer. I can't wait to do all of that with you. We'll have so much fun."

Cameron tried to steady his breathing. "But we still have today to get through, before all that. … Hey, what was it we used to say back then? … 'What are we doing today'?"

At those words, Miyu choked back a sob. Then, she answered: "… 'Anything we want to do!'"

Cameron bent down to pick up his own crystal. "Yes. … Yes, we have all the time in the world today, Miyu. … So let's make the most of it, okay?"

He smiled at his wife.

Tears streaming down her face.

Cherry blossoms blowing past, behind her.

Her head tilted slightly, the crystal glowing blue in her hands.

She smiled back. Eyes closed in the most radiant joy.

"... Yes!"

[ A Crystalline Summer - END ]

Feb 2025 - May 4 2025

Thank you for reading.