"I understand," I said when she didn't continue. "You've sacrificed and suffered. You deserve these moments with your daughter, and I don't intend to stand in your way. I'm hoping we learn to work together. For Justice."
Deloria nodded, and what did you know, we might have just had a moment.
"I'll be back soon, Mom," Justice said, hugging her one last time before moving to hug her father. Jepati held her for a long time, squeezing her tightly. "I love you, child," he murmured. "Communicate through the gems. You've felt their connection across the ley lines. You can use them to find us."
Justice's smile was brilliant when she stepped away. "I will always find you."
That was the right thing to say to them. They looked relieved and at peace. Justice and I waved goodbye, before turning to make our way back to the center of the lands.
"What's our plan?" she asked as we walked through the town. She looked around like she was seeing the ruby city for the first time, and as fey appeared in the windows and doorways she waved at them. Most cheered when they saw their princess.
"Hopefully Tyson or Louis have made some grounds on that spell to slow the time difference,” I said. “If we can close the gap at all, then moving between them will be much easier."
She stopped waving, turning all of her attention on me. "Do you think something like that might really be a possibility? Ty has been working on it for a while.”
“I don’t know. But if anyone can figure it out, it’s him.”
Her face was thoughtful. “Either way, as long as I can communicate with my parents easily, we’ll make the rest work. My home, at the moment, is in Stratford, so that’s where we’ll be based."
Pulling her to a stop, I shook my head. "You don't have to give up this world for Stratford. We'll find a balance."
She smiled. "I just think that for now while you're still the ruler of Stratford, it makes the most sense to be there. My parents will not be abdicating their throne any time soon. We can just vacation in Faerie."
Not wanting to argue, I just kissed her gently, setting us off again along the path. There was plenty of time to decide; we'd eventually figure it out. Having almost lost her, these minor life decisions seemed almost inconsequential. As long as we were together, nothing else mattered.
When we reached the center point, a few fey were lingering there, chatting to those from the other jeweled courts. "We're having a dance soon," one of them said, noticing us. "All four jeweled lands are invited. We haven't had a night like that in so long."
Their excitement was contagious. "We'll be there," I said, determined that would happen. Justice had already missed out on far too many of the jeweled land customs. "I imagine it's quite the spectacle to see all the gems together."
More bursts of excited chatter and I smiled down at my mate. "I suggest you fill your dance card with me now, because I'm not letting you out of my arms."
She smacked me on the shoulder. "You saw me at the last dance, Jake. The best I have is some jumping around and waving my hands. All co-ordination flees with a fast beat."
"What about line-dancing? I imagine with all the country in your soul, you've found yourself one-two stepping before."
Her lips twitched. "Okay, you've got me there. Line-dancing is my limit, and I will do that even with my crappy dance skills. Everything else though … nope."
I had to kiss her. It was a fucking desperate driving need in my soul, especially when she was as adorable as she was right now.
"I'm not adorable," she said, snarling at me in fake annoyance.
"I can see into your emotions," I reminded her. "You love when I call you adorable."
Her eyes narrowed to join her scowl.
Laughter spilled from me and since I never thought I’d laugh again, I relished in the happiness. "Come on, Ruby. Let's go home."
She shook her head, lifting her hands to call a pathway home. It shimmered to life and we stepped forward, traveling together. Stratford shimmered in the early morning light, frost already burnt away, as the sun burst to life across our land.
“Can we quickly check on the rubies?” Justice asked, her eyes darting in the direction of the shield.
“Absolutely,” I told her. I was curious myself as to what had been done with that gem graveyard.
"I'm not sure my intention was to kill them," Justice confessed as we walked. "I just wanted to stop them. Once the gems escaped my full control though, it was too late to draw them back."
"You didn't do anything wrong," I assured her. "You saved us all, and hopefully the secret of supernaturals has remained intact. We'll find out soon enough."
The repercussions of whatever happened here were not Justice's to bear. She’d saved the fucking worlds and almost paid the ultimate sacrifice. She should be honored.
