Chapter Text
Dave is the first to wake up. When you open your eyes, you find him making a fire nearby. He has left his cloak draped over you. You keep it wrapped around your shoulders as you get on your feet. The cloak is a lot lighter than you expected, but it is way too long for you, dragging behind you on the ground.
“Mornin',” Dave says, smiling undoubtedly at your shortness. You grunt sleepily and move closer to the fire. You had almost forgotten what real heat felt like.
“Why did you build a fire?” you ask. You squint up toward the sky, where the sun is already pretty high. How long did he let you sleep? “We should get moving.”
“Relax. You need to eat.”
You're too tired and hungry to argue with him, so you plop down and pull some food out of your bag. Dave is sitting nearby, poking at the fire absentmindedly with a stick. Out of your peripheral, you watch the reflection of the flames dance on his glasses. You can't really see his eyes, but you can tell he's deep in thought as he prods aimlessly at the embers. After you finish your snack, you offer his cloak back to him. He tosses the stick in the fire and gingerly accepts, draping it loosely over is shoulders.
“We could get you there faster if you let me give you a lift.” You can tell he's choosing his words carefully, making an effort not to upset you like he had the night before. “We could even take our time before we have to go.”
You scrutinize his face, searching for some ulterior motive or sign of irony. From what you can tell, he's being genuine. You have to be realistic though, since he won't be. As much as you'd love to spend more time with him, he's already in a shitload of trouble. Prolonging the inevitable will only make his problems worse. “You want to stay here?” you ask. Dave doesn't respond right away. You hoist your bag back over your shoulder. “That sounds like a huge waste of time.”
“Karkat--”
“We don't have time for your bullshit, Strider. You'll be lucky if the humans don't fillet you when you get back for all the trouble we've caused. I don't know why you came after me or why you're trying to hard to protect me, but you need to get whatever ideas you're having about me out of your head. You know you could have sent anyone to escort me, right? Why are you here?”
Dave says quietly, “I wanted to say goodbye.” Part of you wants to feel bad for him, to lay off, but you know that you need to be harsh right now. It'll make it easier for him to leave, and easier for you to see him go.
“Well, you sure fucking dragged it out, didn't you? Why don't you just go home, Dave? And...” Your hands go up to your ears. “And what the fuck is that awful noise?” An unnatural whirring noise had started sounding during your rant, and you're pretty sure Dave is the source.
He digs through his cloak and retrieves a hand mirror. The whirring grows louder and you swear you're going to smash that thing to bits if he doesn't make it stop. It doesn't seem to be bothering him, but he also doesn't have sensitive troll hearing.
“It's Rose.”
You're still reeling too much from the noise to decide if you had just heard him correctly. “What?”
Dave touches some runes on the handle in a precise sequence and the whirring noise fades. The glass begins to shimmer. “Hey, Rose, what's u--”
A face takes shape in the ripples of the glass, but the face does not belong to Dave's sister. “Hello, Dave.” His entire body grows tense, and you can feel your own stomach churning as you watch on in horror.
“Kanaya,” he breathes. “Uhh... you excited for the big day?” You mentally facepalm. Idiot.
Kanaya's voice is calm and crisp. “Please cut the bullshit, Strider. Rose told me everything.”
“Shit. I always knew she'd betray me.” His tone is a joking one, but you can tell he actually does feel a bit betrayed.
Kanaya continues as if she hadn't heard that. “We've met with your family and have agreed on your punishment.” He tries to keeps his expression flat, but his face is noticeably paler. “You have forfeited your claim on the throne and my hand. The next heir will be taking your place.” She's... smiling?
“The... next heir?”
“Rose and I will be married in three days. This gives her enough time to locate her missing brother. As for Karkat--” and she seems to be looking in your direction, even though you're pretty sure she can't actually see you. “He is now your responsibility. We are going to forget about his past crimes, as you and I are no longer betrothed.”
Dave lights up, and you're in complete shock. “How the hell did you do all this?”
Her expression is warm and endearing now. “Rose rediscovered your birth records. Did you know that she is, in fact, the older sibling? By seven minutes, to be precise. So, technically, the throne should belong to her anyway.” Kanaya pauses to let you both absorb her words. “We would like it if you were both at the wedding, so come home, please.” And with a final smile, her image fades from the mirror. You're left in a long silence.
After a few moments, Dave places the mirror back inside his cloak and faces you, beaming. You're having trouble wrapping your head around what had just happened. You get to go home. And Dave doesn't have to get married. And that means...
You throw your arms around him, pulling him into a kiss. He leans down so that you don't have to stand on your toes to reach him.
It was going to be okay.