No More Walls
Episode 68
From Here to There
Episode 22
Thetrainrollsdownthe tracks, and Rominy watches until it’s impossible to see any longer. Even when it’s out of sight, he gazes off into the distance after it. Elowyn doesn’t seem in any more hurry than he is to go back to the castle.
He’s going to miss Arisanna. Now that she’s gone, the platform already feels empty.
With a sigh, he looks back at Mother where she wipes away tears as Father rubs her shoulders.
“We should go,” Father says, and he gently guides Mother toward the castle.
Rominy turns to follow when Elowyn’s hand slides into his own. He grips it tightly, though whether it’s for her sake or his is impossible to say. Sadness clouds her gray eyes, but no tears fall. The surprising urge to wrap his arm around her shoulders catches him off guard, but he doesn’t act on it.
Back inside the castle, they form a quiet party as Elowyn clings to his hand, and reality settles in more strongly than ever. Arisanna is gone. And Elowyn is here.
And she’s his wife. For the rest of his life, she’ll be here beside him. This stranger he married, with her curious ways and pointed ears. Her ready smile and ever-present compassion.
What now, though?
“How do you spend your days?” Elowyn asks as if her thoughts have followed the same course as his.
“With my father, usually.” Rominy glances at his parents again. Father has wrapped his arms around Mother now as she quietly weeps against his chest.
“You should take the day to yourselves,” Father says over Mother’s head as he rubs her back. “In fact, why don’t you take a month? Go somewhere together. I can manage alone for a few weeks.”
Rominy gapes at his father.
Travel? With Elowyn?
Alone?
“Oh, yes.” Mother perks up a little. “I’ll arrange everything. You can leave tomorrow. What do you think? The mountain chalet? Or the house on the sea? Either would be perfect for a honeymoon.”
A honeymoon?
Warmth creeps up Rominy’s neck as he glances at Elowyn, only to find a look of pure excitement on her face.
He clears his throat. “Do you have a preference?”
“They both sound delightful for this...honeymoon, as you call it. I’m not familiar with that word. I assume it has to do with traveling?”
Rominy catches the mirth in his father’s eyes before responding. “It’s a wedding trip newlyweds take.”
“So just you and me? Alone together?” Her smile grows as she looks up at him, and a thousand thoughts scream through his head at once.
Words, though. They escape him.
“Yes, dear. That’s the idea,” Father says when Rominy doesn’t respond. “It will be good for you both.”
“Where would you like to go?” Mother asks Elowyn.
Good. Let her decide. Rominy’s brain has suddenly turned to mush.
“Well, I’ve always wanted to see the ocean, but”—she glances up at Rominy—“I think I’m satisfied on that front at the moment.”
