“Mirara…” whispers the Queen, “you have…”

She stops for a moment and clears her throat. Projecting her voice has never come easily to Aina, but she wants everyone to hear this.

“You have given me a reason to live. You have given me the strength I needed to carry on when I was at my lowest. Thank you… for choosing to stay with me.”

The main hall of the Royale Palace is decked out in all the colours of the rainbow, with plants of all kinds bought in from the park and painstakingly arranged. Beautiful flowers, fragrant herbs, and plenty, too, of the little plants that go under the notice of most. Aina is dressed… well, like a princess, really. A long, flowing gown in white, paired with elbow-length gloves and the royal crown atop her head, with a newly-made silk cloak hung over her shoulders and down her back. Mirara is in a soft, pastel pink, with a skirt seperated into four panels and a crown of beautiful flowers.
A bee. It is a public occasion, after all.
Their fingers are wrapped into each others, held tightly. It is plain from the looks on both their faces: This is the happiest day of their lives.

“I promise…” starts Aina, “that I will spend the rest of my life by your side. For as long as you'll have me.”

Mirara smiles. “And I promise that I'll spend the rest of my life by your side. I'll want to be with you always, Aina.”

A moment passes. For just that precious instant in time, nothing matters to either of them but each other. The whole world seems to fade away, and…

They lean into one another, and share a kiss.

---

Life has returned to something normal once again for Mirara, and so she is back to her routine of foraging every morning. A calming experience. Once upon a time this was a task she did solely alone, but eventually Hedara entered her life (or didn’t depending on how one reflected on memories that never happened) and then, Aina. Both often joining her on her trips to the once swamp, now park. Today though, she is alone, enjoying the peace and quiet.

It is funny how times can change and yet somethings remain the same. In her memories, when Mirara first came to Ytic it was to become an adventurer. To learn to fight to protect people. That failed, but Mirara never gave up on helping people and learned firsthand how much help people in pain truly need. Everyday she faced her fear of being attacked and injured again or worse. Now though, she has so much less to fear from the monsters in the park. That dream, once gone, of being able to fight to protect people had come true. Even more incredibly it came true alongside new hopes and dreams to realize. It had come alongside love.

Mirara had only chosen to learn to fight again because she could see how dangerous life in Ytic was becoming and working to prevent pain seemed more helpful then just treating it. She never imagined falling in love in the process. Love was not something she had imagined for her life. But then she met Aina. First entranced by the graceful way the warrior princess could fight, then enamored with the kindness and care she showed for everyone. Far from a perfect person, but Aina’s convictions and compassion is truly what Mirara fell in love with.

Now, every day she wakes up next to her wife and then goes out foraging. After she gets to help Aina run the kingdom, runs her own apothecary, and trains Hedara in the art of healing. Life is busy but it is also wonderful. Old dreams fulfilled; her new ones are dreams of love. Raising kids with Aina. Expanding the size of her little family. Celebrating all that they did to fight for a world that can grow and change and move forward. Love multiplying into more love.

As Mirara forages, she thinks of all this and thinks of the way life is like foraging. It has to be treated mindfully with the consciousness of how your actions can either cause a plant to wither and die or continue to grow and flourish. A forager can take what they need from a plant in a way that helps the plant thrive. Mirara can live her life in a way that allows everyone she cares about to thrive.

Right now, she enjoys the peace and quiet of her morning alone. After, she’ll go back home and enjoy the chaos and absolute joy of her life. Her life that is now about love. ¹⁾

---

Heavens only know how long it's been since that day.

A lot has changed. Little half-elves born, and grown, and flown from the nest. Not far from the nest, though - Aina and Mirara still see them at least once a week. More, often enough.

Aina sits on the edge of a hillside path, looking at the skyline of the new city of Ytic in the middle distance. She still wears her royal blue cloak, but its fabric shows the weight of centuries. Not tattered or torn, but… quietly weathered, the blue faded from its original vividity to a more muted tone. She could have it replaced, of course. She and Mirara want for little, and there are plenty of tailors in Ytic who would be all too happy to be of assistance. It's the Queen's stubborn pride that's kept her from doing so as much as anything else. “This cloak,” she'd say, “is proof of what we won. Proof that this world lives!”

And then she'd pause, and laugh a little at her own dramaticness, and add “And it works just fine. I don't need a new one.”

Mirara walks up along the path, a wicker basket filled with herbs gathered from the wilderness slung under one arm and a rapier hanging from her opposite hip. She goes out to gather most days, but their lives are organised much as they want them to be. Some days Aina comes with her, some days she goes into Ytic to teach new students, or to help the Guard with something out of the ordinary. Sometimes - like today - she just stays at home. Maybe she wants to get a head start on dinner, or do some cleaning, or just…

Or just sit out here, surrounded by the world, and let the feeling of grass beneath her fingers quiet her thoughts.

Mirara diverts from the path, and comes to sit next to Aina. No words are exchanged between them. Aina leans into Mirara's shoulder, and Mirara returns the gesture with a light kiss on the cheek.

“Are you alright, my love?”

Aina thinks for a moment before responding. A smile grows across her face.

“I've never felt better, dearest.”

A moment's comfortable silence.

“There's a stew on inside. Let's go.”

Back on the path, and up towards their little hillside cottage. “Your cooking's gotten a lot better this century, I think.”

“Well, I've had the best mentor.”

Another little kiss.

“And I've had all Kara's old notes to study, of course.”

A lot has changed. But there are some things which are immutable, and the love that was found all those years ago is foremost amongst them.