Closure

My father's body slowly began to glow gold as he laid on the broken deck. "Aya... That day, when I tested you, I felt you were good enough to be on your own, but never strong enough to beat me... That was the only lingering doubt plaguing me as I went out to sea that next morning. Today... you've finally eased that worry... Aya, you've become strong."

I began to tear up as I clutched my father's hand. "I could never shake the feeling you weren't truly gone, but regardless, I was saddened your body had to remain buried beneath the waves instead of besides mommy. You loved her so dearly, that being apart... ate at my heart."

"Your mother... I hope I can see her again, but I don't know. I committed sins, became a dybbuk, reclaimed my original body. Your mother was rambunctious, but a deeply devout woman of the Blintzian faith. I doubt I'll go to where she is."

"You will. I want you to. You have to..."

At that point, there was no stopping the tears from pouring.

"I have my doubts," a voice growled.

I turned to notice the admiral and the town priest floating down towards us.

"Samuel, by my authority as admiral, you're hereby stripped of all navy honors and rank," the admiral glared.

"Is that why you came all this way, you damn coward?"

"Yes. I needed to formally punish you for the record. Now, I leave you to the priest."

The priest then stepped forward. "Samuel LaNorne, you wish to be reunited with your wife above. Though you have sinned, I shall pray to the heavens to permit thee to enter," he nodded as he clasped his hands together and chanting a prayer.

Ami then hovered down next to me and stared at my father.

"So you're the great witch of the amethyst... You're in a party with Aya?" my father asked.

"Yes. She's an invaluable friend to me," Ami smiled.

My father softly smiled. "Then I really don't need to worry about her. Aya, whether this is the last time we'll meet or if we'll reunite up above when your long days come to an end, know that I am proud of the woman you've become and love you dearly. Just... when you visit me and your mother, give her the larger portion of the wine."

"I will," I tearfully smiled.

"Then Aya... I'm going to see your mother... I'll tell her all about you... I... love you..."

Slowly, my father's eyes closed as his body stopped glowing gold. The next thing I remember is crying, and crying, and crying.

...

I smiled as I finished pouring out the wine bottle over my parents' graves. "I gave her most of the bottle just like you asked," I smiled.

Following the battle, my father's body along with his prized concertina were buried alongside my mother. Most of the town gathered to pay their respects, along with Ami and even Mariamne and co.

"And now, you may rest," Ami nodded as she merged a gemstone into my father's gravestone.

The admiral gave a small salute. "This is not for you as a navy sailor, this is for you as a man of Bisochos. I hope you're ferried to where your wife is."

"My father was always good with directions," I chuckled as I took a sip of what little was left in the wine bottle.

"You said your mother was bad with directions, right?" Ami asked.

"Yeah. Unlike me, she'd never get it even if she walked the same route several times, or at least, that's what I was told by my father. I was too young to remember every little thing about my mother."

"I guess the two balanced each other out in you. So, wanna hang out here for a bit, or do you want to get back to the guild?"

I smiled as I stared out at the darkening sky. "I think tonight, I want to spend the night back here. You're welcome to head back if-"

"No, I'll stay. This is your hometown, the place that molded you into the woman you are now. I kind of want to experience more of what it's like now that the mission is over."

"So it leaves a good impression, huh? Then let's head to the guild. Everyone should be partying the night away."

"Well I'm there," Mariamne grinned as she suddenly inserted herself between us.

"And you're still here, why?" Ami glared.

"I uh... to thank you... This was originally my mission, but I botched it bad. Aya, I saw that entire fight... I'll never be able to do what you were doing."

"Are you serious!?" I gasped.

"Yeah. Those attacks you were doing... I can copy the motions, but not the efficiency. Though maybe if I trained for years on end like you... Nah, not worth it. Especially not with how busted this thing is," Mariamne sighed as she held up her bandaged hand. "Docs said it won't be a perfect heal, so that means I'm probably gonna need to slap an enhanced glove on it. Well, least the other hand healed up fine. Oh, and before I forget, the reward for this is going entirely to you along with all the credit."

"I've never seen you so humble before," Ami snickered.

"I welcome this kind of Mariamne," I added.

"Well, I am a knight at the end of the day, and knights have honor. Now if you'll excuse me, I gotta go modify this glove I found in that little cave here," Mariamne grinned as she held up a sparkly crimson glove.

My eyes bulged. "Th- That's one of the rarest drops in the dungeon!"

"Yeah, as soon as I got here with the professor, I got bored and decided to check out the supposed dungeon here with the girls. Shit was so effortless I could beat it with my feet alone. Well, at least I got something useful out of it... Er, you don't want it as a reward... do you?"

I smiled and shook my head. "No, I've got better gloves," I smiled as I flashed the gloves Ami made me.

"Whelp, no takebacks then. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna enjoy that party you mentioned."

Once she was gone, I turned to Ami. "Still a bit of an ass, but at least a little nicer now."

"Yeah, if she's showing respect for you, that's a welcome change. Now, let's go party," Ami smiled.

...

Once the partying at the guild was over, me and Ami made my way back to my house.

"Surprised the place isn't a dust fest," Ami huffed as she plopped down on a bed.

"The neighbors have been taking care of the place since I left. They're really good people," I smiled as I laid down on my own bed.

"Really is a nice town. Shit's overpriced, but the atmosphere is nice. Though I gotta ask you, if you were to be granted the title of hero by the king, that would probably lead to a lot more people coming here. Would you be fine with that?"

"Hmm? Oh, you don't need to worry. I doubt I'll be getting an honor like that any time soon. That's the kind of honor only reserved for a select few. Not even Slavena or the captain, or even you have that title, so there's no way I'd get it."

"Then just think in hypotheticals," Ami mumbled.

"Hypo-what?"

"Ngh, imagine you're a hero. People want to come to your town and it gets bigger!"

"Hmm... I wouldn't want the town here becoming a loud bustling place, though don't get me wrong, I want it to prosper. It's just, I want it to keep it's calm atmosphere, you know."

"Then how would you deal with more people wanting to come here?"

"Well, when we got the navy, we cleared out some of the forest to the north east. I guess if we wanted to expand, there is some forest directly south west or a little north west. However, we'd need to go to the margrave for that, and... the one here in Soletreo is a giant slime ball."

"Hmm, the coastline here doesn't really have many counts, viscounts, or barons, just the margrave..."

"That's part of the reason Mary wants to become a baroness, since it would give us a bit more self-control and make it harder for the snobby nobles that hate us to encroach on the town."

"How good a leader is Mary?"

"Before she was appointed mayor, she was head of the guild and already helping out her father with his mayoral duties since he was starting to get older."

Ami tapped her finger for a bit before sitting up and creating a pen and paper with magic.

"What are you doing?"

"Sending a letter to the king recommending he appoint Mary as baroness."

"You can do that!?"

"It's just a letter of recommendation, nothing more. Most of it will be on Mary to prove her worth. Though at the least, I can give her a nudge since she wants to protect the place you grew up in."

"Thanks Ami."

...

The next morning, we gathered everyone in the center of town as Ami constructed a large amethyst crystal. "People of Bisochos, I impart upon thee this fine crystal of amethyst. With it standing proud in your town, you are now under the protection of Blintz's great witch of the amethyst!" Ami proclaimed.

Everyone erupted in cheers.

"So what does it do?" a kid asked.

"It protects this town with a giant barrier should it ever be faced with attack. It also serves as a sign that I've been here and not to mess with this place, otherwise they face my wrath," Ami smiled.

Everyone applauded some more.

"Now, sadly, I must depart with Aya in tow."

A collective, "Ahhh" rang out.

"Fear not, we both shall return for occasional visits. Now Aya, any fine words?"

"Yeah. Nice seeing everyone again! I'll visit again soon, so keep everything nice and peaceful. Oh, and watch over my house and the citron tree!" I waved.

And with that, me and Ami were on our way back to Traditsye.

"LaNorne, you really were amazing there. You were a trembling wreck when you first got the news your father had returned, but you confronted everything head on and saved the day. I wish... I wish I had that kind of strength. If I did, maybe Pompi wouldn't have gotten away, maybe I could've done more in the fight against Floda. LaNorne... Aya... I want to be stronger," Ami mumbled.

I smiled as I clutched Ami's hand tight. "Don't worry, if I can be strong, surely you can too."

"Naive to a fault... but it's grown on me," Ami smiled.