“Yes, it is. It's you who carried on after I was taken, taking care of mother. You were brave, hunting for food when you needed to. You even got a job as a tanner.”
“An apprentice,” I corrected.
“See, stubborn,” Willam said, rolling his eyes. “My point is, when the situation demanded something of you, you rose to the occasion.”
“I couldn’t save father,” I whispered, my heart breaking on the admission.
“That is not your burden to bear,” Anam declared from his throne. “Do not mourn the death of a soul that was not yours to save. You have no say in when the threads are cut.”
Anam was right, even though it was hard to acknowledge. The years I’d spent mourning—my life, and the ones I’d lost—had taken enough from me. I had been holding on to far too much, for far too long. Nothing could erase my grief, but maybe it didn’t need to disappear entirely.
Maybe it was enough that I made peace with what I couldn’t change.
“Why did you ask to protect me?” I asked Willam.
“Because you’re my sister,” he said, as if it were that simple, “and because I foresaw your future.”
“You… you were a seer?”
He grinned.
“I saw the future—one where you shone like a star. And I saw what I needed to do to get you there.”
“Wait,” I paused, “were you the one sending me visions?”
Willam nodded. “By being tethered to you, I could share my gift. I apologize only for all the close encounters with death that I couldn’t prevent.”
“Oh, Willam, I could never be mad at you.” I reached out, desperate to embrace him, but stopped just inches away. “Can I…”
He stepped forward and wrapped his arms around me. Warmth flooded my spirit, familiar and comforting. I sobbed into his shoulder, holding onto him as though he might vanish again.
“You’ve been so strong, Mavis,” Willam said, stroking my hair reassuringly. “I’m so proud of you. But now, it’s time for me to move on.”
“No—please stay,” I begged weakly, gripping tighter.
“I can’t,” he murmured, leaning back just enough to meet my eyes. “I’ve done what I was meant to do. You’ve grown into someone incredible. Someone important.”
“What happens now?” My voice trembled.
“I finally get to rest. And you,” he smiled, “have an even greater destiny waiting.”
“No,” I whimpered, covering my hands over my mouth to keep myself from sobbing.
It was Anam who spoke next.
“It is time. His body has been long buried, and so he should never have stayed in the realm of the living. That was a decision my sister did not have the right to make. His name belongs to me, and his soul mine to judge.” Anam’s commanding voice left no room for argument.
Willam stepped back, his form growing translucent. “We never really say goodbye. We just find each other again in different ways.”
A silent sob escaped as he faded peacefully into the surrounding darkness, his presence lingering warmly before finally disappearing completely.
I stood there, feeling both hollow and filled with profound peace.
Anam’s voice broke the silence. “He has crossed over into the Realm of Remembrance. But your journey, Mavis Ashbone, is just beginning.”
I wiped my tears and shifted my gaze back to Anam. He still sat on his throne, observing.
“What do I do now?”
