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As it turned out, saving the world from a giant aer-eating monster four years ago was cool and all, but none of them expected to end up so goddamned bored.
That wasn’t a bad thing, per se. After all the blastia had been converted to spirits and the balance of aer stabilized, monsters largely stopped acting up, some even becoming downright docile. The barriers, as it turned out, were no longer needed, and even though people were still reconstructing, still trying to figure out just what life was going to look like in this scary new world they were all suddenly inhabiting, things seemed to be on the right track.
Case in point: the fact that a platoon of Imperial Knights was currently parked just outside Dahngrest, working on constructing a small outpost only steps away from Crimson Stars, and no fights or murders had broken out. Yet.
Don’t get her wrong: Judith was glad the guilds and the Empire seemed to be getting along now. Just last summer the Union had moved some of its members to a series of administrative buildings in the Public Quarter in Zaphias; the Empire was just mirroring this extension of an olive branch. Under the leadership of Emperor Ioder and President Kaufman, the Empire and the guilds were finally seeing eye to eye, establishing a solid if still slightly awkward peace that no one would’ve thought possible a few years ago.
So yes, all of that was just great. She just wished it left her with something more to do.
After traveling all over the world four years ago, first with just Ba’ul as she went about the lonely mission she’d set for herself, and then later with Yuri and Karol and the rest of their little strange group of humans that had, as the months progressed, eventually solidified themselves into her friends, Judith found herself feeling more and more restless these days. She’d considered returning to Myorzo, but even though the prospect of getting to be around her people again was tempting she wasn’t sure she was ready to field all their questions and vaguely judgmental looks, to be the outcast once again. She liked it here in Dahngrest, as part of Brave Vesperia, teasing Karol and sparring with Yuri between jobs. It was...nice. Peaceful. She just wished, you know, that it came every once in a while with the opportunity to stab her spear into somebody’s eye.
At least she had a bit of entertainment in the fact that, through a series of nice coincidences, their whole little party was all back together again for the first time in over a year. Rita and Estelle were visiting from Halure, the former Zaphian princess finally managing to drag her partner away from her research long enough for some socializing. Raven had a few days off from running errands for Kaufman (read: he was hiding, and hoping she wouldn’t notice), and even Flynn had managed to make his way over here, somehow having been landed with the unenviable task of overseeing the whole construction project.
So things were nice, almost alarmingly so. But Judith was still so very bored, which was probably the only reason why she found herself watching two particular people in their group with much more interest than usual.
After finally burying whatever hatchet they’d had between them with that duel in Aurnion, Yuri and Flynn seemed to have only grown closer over the past four years. That wasn’t surprising, per se, given how long they’d been friends, but really, Judith couldn’t be the only one who looked at them and had to refrain from rolling her eyes. They were...what had Karol said...so into each other it was almost painful to watch, how Flynn’s eyes followed Yuri everywhere he went, how Yuri couldn’t seem to stop touching Flynn: a pat on the back here, a hand on his shoulder there. They were being so goddamned obvious about it that they had be the only two people left on the whole of Terca Lumireis who hadn’t caught on by now.
And boy, was that frustrating. Judith couldn’t understand it. Krityans were direct and blunt with their feelings—sometimes overly so, as she’d been told numerous times. Humans were just so weird sometimes, with their need to overcomplicate things, to hide feelings inside of other feelings instead of just talking about them and finding a way forward. If Judith had been having this problem with another Krityan, she’d long have confessed how she felt, they’d have fucked it out of their systems, and would be either going their separate ways or settling down to have children by now. The fact that, four years on, Yuri and Flynn were still dancing around each other like two ships scared of entering the same port...it was mind-boggling, to say the least.
“Hey, darlin’. You daydreamin’ about me?”
She looked up and smiled as Raven lowered himself into the chair across from her. In the corner, Estelle, Rita, and Karol played some sort of card game by the fireplace, and Yuri and Flynn were in the kitchen preparing dinner.
Judith hummed and, as usual, got straight to the point. “No. I was thinking about why Flynn and Yuri aren’t dating.”
Raven opened his mouth, but Estelle beat him to it. “Oh yes, I’ve been wondering the same thing,” the pink-haired healer said. “It’s so...obvious, isn’t it?”
“I mean kinda, yeah.” Karol was concentrating on his cards as if trying to imprint their contents onto his brain. “Flynn’s always over here, right, trying to spend time with Yuri whenever he can? And ever since we opened those offices in Zaphias, Yuri’s been heading over there a couple times a month. And we all know it’s got nothing to do with Union stuff.”
Raven looked thoughtful. “Well, yeah, it’s true they’d be spendin’ so much time together, considerin’—”
“That they’re such good friends, yes,” Judith said, “but I think we can all agree that that’s not what’s going on here.”
“It’s gross, is what it is,” Rita grumbled, glaring down at her cards. “Having to watch them make those goddamned eyes at each other day in and day out. You’d think they would’ve figured their shit out by now.”
Which was when Judith got the idea.
“Well, why don’t we?” she said, and Karol blinked, looking up at her.
“Why don’t we what?”
“Figure their shit out.”
The others fell into silence, thinking it over. From behind the kitchen door, Flynn’s voice drifted to them, muffled. “But what if I just tried—”
“No, dipshit,” was Yuri’s answer, but there was no heat in it whatsoever, a clear smile in his voice, and Judith sighed. If they kept this up much longer...well, let’s just say Myorzo was looking more and more like an option.
Rita seemed to agree; the young mage cast down her cards and crossed her arms. “Fine,” she said. “Anyway, if I have to listen to any more of this I’m going to solve manatech and figure out how to cast Thunder Blade again just to put us all out of our misery.”
“You’ll do it anyway, dear, I know you will,” Estelle said, patting her hand. “It seems like a great idea. They’re both such wonderful people, and they’d be perfect for each other. So why not try? I think they deserve it.”
“But what do we do?” Karol asked. “If it was that simple—hey, where’re you going, Raven?”
“Sorry, kids, but I ain’t helpin’ out with this,” the older guildsman said, waving a nonchalant hand as he headed for the door. “Got other stuff needs doin’, and besides, I don’t much fancy havin’ Yuri stab me through the heart a second time. See ya!”
As the door closed behind him, Judith shrugged and turned back to the rest of the group. “So it’s decided then. Anyone have any ideas?”
Estelle and Karol looked thoughtful, but it was Rita who finally huffed and got to her feet. “Well, the logical approach always works, right? So let’s try something.”
#
Flynn frowned. “What do you mean you’re under renovation?”
He had every right to ask, seeing as the the inn around them was clearly constructed just fine, no missing parts or holes in the wall or anything. Still, the innkeeper flashed a bright smile. “Our sincerest apologies, Commandant! I’m afraid you’ll have to find other accommodations for tonight.”
She waggled her eyebrows, which personally Judith thought was laying it on a little thick. But what could they expect? They’d paid her a thousand gald for the ruse.
Flynn’s shoulders slumped. “All right. Can I fetch my things, at least?”
A few minutes later, they were walking together back to Brave Vesperia’s headquarters, Flynn’s travel bag hoisted over his shoulder. A few feet away from the door, he slowed his steps. “Okay, well, you all have a good night. I’ll go pitch a tent with my men—”
“Oh, no, that just won’t do,” Judith said, as sweetly as she could.
“Yeah!” Karol nodded. “ Dahngrest is known for its hospitality, you know! You should stay with us!”
“Except Estelle and I are sharing the guest room,” Rita said, “and Karol’s room is, uh, too full of hammers, and Judith, um...”
“I’m planning to have a nice little night to myself,” Judith said, smiling at Flynn. “So I suppose that means you’ll have to share with Yuri.”
Yuri, who only had one bed. A tiny bed, with no room on the floor or anywhere else to sleep.
Rita, she had to admit, was brilliant.
“Oh.” Flynn looked at Yuri, and Judith waited for it: the blush, the stuttering. But instead he just said, casual as you please, “Well, wouldn’t be the first time, right?”
Yuri, too, just rolled his eyes. “Won’t be the last either, if the inn’s gonna take a while,” he said, turning to open the door. “Come on then. It’ll be just like when we were kids, right? ‘Cept you snore so much louder now.”
“I do not! You just wake up easily!”
“And whose fault is that, Mr. Blanket Hog?”
“You don’t want me freezing my ass off at night? Then close the damned window!”
As their arguing voices drifted upstairs, everyone turned to look at Rita, who promptly turned red. “How was I supposed to know they share beds all the time? Close physical proximity is supposed to breed intimacy!”
“Well, it does do that, doesn’t it?” Estelle said, with just enough of a teasing lilt in her voice to make her partner flush even more. “Okay, so Rita’s plan didn’t work. Does anyone have any other ideas?”
Karol hummed. “Actually...”
#
Estelle rounded the corner, looking breathless. Judith cocked an eyebrow. “Well?”
She nodded. “It’s done. The last thing I saw was Flynn walking up the hill.”
“Great!” Karol grinned. “This is gonna work, guys, you just watch. There’s no more romantic place in Dahngrest than Ellowei Hill. The sunset, the view of the ocean, the giant oak tree where so many people propose to their partners...” His eyes went a little dreamy. “It’s perfect.”
Rita crossed her arms. “And you’re sure Yuri’s there?”
Karol nodded. “Yeah. I told him Flynn needed to meet him urgently there, and he set off right away.”
“I told Flynn the same thing,” Estelle said, giving a dreamy sigh. “This is so romantic! Remember, Rita, when we met up under the Great Tree in Halure, that one night when we finally—”
“Yes, okay! That was...” Rita cleared her throat, face bright red. “Uhh, w-we should go on a walk, Estelle! Right now! And then go check up on Flynn and Yuri later!”
She seized her partner’s hand and practically hauled her down the street. Judith couldn’t help but laugh.
About half an hour later, after Rita and Estelle rejoined them (the former looking much less flustered), they made their way up toward Ellowei Hill. The sun was setting, turning the sky a brilliant conflagration of reds and pinks and purples, the wind blowing in from the ocean bringing them the scent of saltwater and freedom. It was really a beautiful place, and as they got closer, they slowly became aware of sounds of exertion: gasps, grunting, the solid smack! of skin on skin.
A-ha. Judith grinned. There we go.
“Oh.” This time it was Estelle’s turn to blush. “M-Maybe we should just...leave them to it...?”
“I think that’s a great idea,” Karol said, with a face Judith was pretty sure she’d last seen when he’d thought Duke was about to murder them all.
She was about to agree, except that was when the other sounds drifted down to them. The whistle of blades flying through the air. The solid shring! of two swords meeting, and definitely not in the fun way.
They looked at each other in horror. Oh, no.
It was Rita who turned and burst up the hill, and whatever she saw had her planting her feet, hands on her hips. “Are you kidding me?”
Quickly Judith followed the others to join her, and...yep. Yuri turned to them, hair damp with sweat, still very much wearing all of his clothes as he lifted the hand not currently holding his sword to give them all a wave. “Hey! Come to watch me kick this guy’s ass?”
“We’re at a draw, Yuri,” Flynn answered, also frustratingly clothed and looking equally energized.
Karol, though, looked like he was having an aneurysm. “But you—but I don’t—”
“S’okay, Captain Karol,” Yuri said, turning back to Flynn and twirling his sword once. “I get it, everyone makes mistakes. Turns out Flynn here didn’t actually need me for anything, but we figured, with such a wide open space...”
“You decided to spar.” Rita looked like she was trying to figure out how to cast Meteor Storm with the power of her glare alone. “You met up at Ellowei Hill, the most romantic spot on the Tolbyccian continent, at sunset, and decided to spar.”
“Well, the light’s still good,” Flynn offered, and Rita made a noise that Judith had previously only ever heard from a dying Drillbeak.
Yuri frowned. “I think your girlfriend’s broken. Estelle, is your girlfriend broken?”
Estelle just sighed, walking up to take Rita’s hand. “I think we’re just all very tired,” she said, as she gently tugged her partner back down the hill.
Okay, Judith thought, as she herded a dazed-looking Karol after them. So this was going to be harder than they thought.
#
Estelle came up with the next plan. Judith had to admit there was something...poetic about it, given how much trouble Yuri and Flynn had put them through.
“Well, it works in stories, right?” the princess said, which was how, the following afternoon, they found themselves gathered just outside Brave Vesperia’s small storage closet, listening to the argument happening behind the locked door.
“Ow! Get your damned elbow outta my face!”
“I’m sorry! I can’t see anything in here!”
“Maybe now you’ll finally figure some things out,” Judith called, which only seemed to piss Yuri off more.
“What do you mean, ‘figure things out’? We didn’t do anything—why’d you lock us in here?”
“Correction: I didn’t do anything. I’m sure Yuri has a list of offenses longer than—ow! Yuri!”
“Shut up, Flynn. Karol! Let us out right now!”
“Please, Lady Estellise. I don’t know what Yuri did to anger you so much, but I have to meet with my captains in half an hour...”
“Well, I’m sure they won’t mind a little delay,” Estelle said, and wow, turns out smug was a good look on her.
Rita nodded. “So why don’t the two of you just stay in there and have a nice long think about what it is you want.”
“Miss Mordio, what I want is to be let out of this tiny place where I don’t have a mop trying to stab me in the eye. Honestly, I know Yuri can be a major pain in the ass but—oh no, I caught that one, don’t you try to kick me again—augh!”
Some scuffling and low, angry voices. Something smacked against the closet door. Then, finally, Yuri’s voice came to them, slow, even.
“Karol,” he said. “Let us out of this closet right now, or I’m telling everyone about the sock puppets.”
Silence. As one, they all turned to stare at the teenager in question, who promptly turned the color of beets. Over his head, Estelle looked at Judith and mouthed, Sock puppets...?
Then, with shoulders hunched like a man on the way to the gallows, Karol walked up to the closet. “Karol?” Rita said, but the teenager just shook his head, taking his lockpicking tools out of his pocket.
“Some things just cannot make it into the light,” he said, solemn, before getting to work on the door.
#
Yuri and Flynn were, understandably, pretty annoyed with them for the rest of the day. Flynn stomped off immediately to go oversee his knights, and after the third time Yuri mysteriously “failed” at cooking them a decent curry, Judith pasted a smile on her face and suggested they all head over to the Sagittarius for dinner.
At least the lively atmosphere there seemed to loosen things up. Yuri finally relaxed, smiling and flirting with the staff, and only seemed to unwind more when, about an hour later, Flynn found his way in and promptly ordered him some strawberry pudding for dessert. Watching the commandant hand Yuri a spoon and then proceed to sit there and watch him eat with a dopey smile on his face, Judith felt the first real hints of irritation rise up inside her. Really, they were just trying to help. Why couldn’t the two of them just pull their heads out of their asses and admit how much they were in love with each other?
This was getting ridiculous. At this rate, it’d take some sort of divine intervention from the universe to get Yuri and Flynn on the same page.
Which was, of course, when the universe promptly delivered.
The Sagittarius had hired a new waitress just last week, it turned out, a pretty if shy young woman who, it soon became apparent, took an immediate shine to Flynn. Her nametag read MARYA, and she gravitated to him immediately, taking his orders first and smiling and blushing whenever he looked at her. Flynn, too, treated her with the same polite kindness as he did everyone else, and slowly an idea coalesced in Judith’s mind.
Because she noticed the way Yuri watched Flynn and Marya. He pretended not to care, but his fingers tightened on his spoon and there was a clear set to his jaw as he watched his best friend stutter and turn a little pink when Marya said he looked so much more handsome in person. Yuri was jealous, and oh, this was too good to pass up.
The others agreed, when they gathered outside the tavern a few minutes later to huddle. Maybe they’d been going about it all wrong: maybe Yuri and Flynn were so comfortable with each other that trying to push them together just wouldn’t work. But maybe that just called for a different tactic: drawing one away, which would then force the other to close in.
So they formulated their plan, and Judith dutifully parked herself outside the Sagittarius at closing time, waiting until the lights went off and a slim figure exited the back door to step out of the shadows. “Evening.”
Marya gasped and stumbled back, but Judith just raised her palms. “It’s okay. It’s just me.”
“Oh.” The young waitress nodded, glancing around for a moment as if making sure they were alone. “Yes, you were at one of the tables tonight. Um...Jenna, was it?”
“Judith.” She cocked a hip and couldn’t help but grin when she noticed Marya was trying her very best to keep her gaze on her face. As she’d concluded: humans were weird. “I couldn’t help but notice how...attentive you were to the commandant this evening.”
“Oh!” Marya blushed. “D-Do you think he noticed? I was trying so hard to keep it a secret!”
No, you weren’t, Judith thought, but, magnanimous, decided not to say. “Well, I just wanted to let you know that Flynn finds you quite attractive as well. He’s too shy to say it out loud, I’m afraid, but you definitely caught his eye today.”
“Really?” Marya’s eyes glinted with excitement, before she quickly blushed and looked down at the ground. “I...I’m so glad. Do you think maybe he wants to talk to me?”
“He very much does.” Judith smiled. “In fact, he’s waiting for you near the outskirts of town, next to where the old barrier blastia used to be. Do you know the place?”
“Of course!” Seeming to realize how quickly she’d spoken, Marya swallowed. “I-I mean...yes. I know where that is. So Commandant Scifo is there right now? Alone?”
“Yes.” Because Estelle would’ve sent him there by now, saying Marya needed to give him some urgent intel she’d overheard at the tavern. “So you should probably go over there. Although remember, he’s shy. He won’t necessarily want to talk about it immediately, so take your time.”
“Yes, of course!” Marya dashed forward to clasp her hands. “Oh, thank you, Miss Judith! You don’t know how happy this makes me!”
Or me, Judith thought, watching as the young woman turned and hurried down the street. Okay, time for Step Two.
She made it to Brave Vesperia’s headquarters a few minutes later, opened the door, and announced, “Guess what I just saw?”
Seated at the table with Rita and Estelle, Karol cocked his head. “What did you see, Judith?” he said, and okay, so the kid could really use some brushing up on his acting skills. At least Yuri, seated in the corner sharpening his sword, didn’t seem to notice, just blinked up at her, curious, so Judith got right down to business.
“That cute little waitress from the tavern...Marya, was that her name? I spotted her and Flynn talking next to the old barrier blastia.” She smiled, and looked Yuri straight in the eye. “They looked...close.”
”...Really.” If a gathering thunderstorm could be encompassed in a facial expression, it would be the one Yuri was sporting now as he set down his whetstone and got to his feet. “How close?”
Judith delivered the killing blow: “I’d say...kissing close.”
Brief silence. Chairs creaked as Rita, Karol, and Estelle all turned to look at Yuri, who just picked up his sword and marched for the door, face like stone. “I’m going out.”
“What?” Judith sent him a sweet look. “Whatever for?”
“For a walk.” And with that, he disappeared out the door.
Left in the silence of the lobby, Karol blew out a whooshing breath. “Holy shit, I thought the whole place was about to catch fire, he’s so angry.”
“Maybe we shouldn’t have pushed it this far,” Estelle said, but Rita shook her head.
“After the hell those two idiots have been putting us through? They deserve a little heartache, if you ask me.”
Judith tended to agree, taking a moment to inspect her nails—maybe she should do a new topcoat tomorrow—before sending them all a grin. “So then. Shall we?”
The journey over to the old barrier blastia was quick; despite appearances Dahngrest actually wasn’t all that big of a city, most of its inhabitants used to a simple life without the need for space or random luxury. The night air was cool, the stars twinkling bright overhead and, thinking of Yuri and Flynn finally coming to terms with their feelings, Judith couldn’t help but think things were turning out quite nicely indeed.
Which was when they heard the yell.
It pierced the night cleaner than any of Judith’s spears, and her blood ran cold. That was the sound of someone hurt, of someone dying, and they took just long enough to glance at each other before breaking into a run.
The scene, when they finally came upon it, was awful.
There was a body on the ground, and Yuri stood over it with his sword drawn, looking grim. For half a second Judith’s heart leaped into her throat because had Yuri gone and murdered Marya, she didn’t think he’d take things that far—except then she realized the person lying on the ground had short blond hair. Oh, fuck. That was Flynn.
Her suspicions were only confirmed when Yuri lifted his sword to point its tip at Marya, who was standing a few feet away and holding a—holy shit, that was a dagger, six inches long and covered in blood. Flynn’s blood. What the hell was even happening?
“Flynn!” Estelle rushed forward but Yuri’s sharp voice stopped her in her tracks.
“Don’t,” he said, glaring at Marya. “Not until I kill her.”
Marya sneered, and it twisted up her whole face. “Too late, Lowell,” she hissed. “Knew you’d catch on eventually, the two of you being so joined at the hip, so I moved fast. I do my job well.”
“Not well enough,” Yuri growled, and Marya lifted her dagger, eyes bright with fury—and hatred.
“Death to the Commandant!” she shouted, leaping forward. “Death to the Empire—”
Judith punched her.
She wasn’t even quite sure how she did it; it was like she blinked and all of a sudden she’d closed the distance between them, her fist sinking into the other woman’s face hard enough she felt her knuckles split against Marya’s teeth. The assassin spun with the impact, smacked into the wall, fell to the ground, and stayed there.
The silence that followed was heavy and oppressive. In the distance, a night bird screeched.
Then Yuri’s sword dropped to the ground with a clatter, and Judith could only stare as her friend bent down to gather Flynn in his arms, turning to Estelle, eyes wide with panic. “Help him. Estelle, help him.”
She rushed forward, the air around her already glowing with gathering particles of aer. Karol went to Marya, already pulling some rope out of his bag, and Judith just stared down at Flynn, lifeless and still in Yuri’s arms, dark red blood oozing out of the deep stab wound in his chest even as Estelle struggled to stitch it together with her magic.
How had this happened? How could they have not seen?
Next to her, Rita took a shuddering breath. “We really fucked this up, didn’t we,” she said.
Judith didn’t bother with a reply. She didn’t need to; looking down at Flynn, bleeding out and dying as Yuri begged Estelle to please, you have to save him, please...it was more than answer enough.
#
Several hours later found them gathered in Brave Vesperia’s lobby, waiting.
No one had slept. Judith doubted she could even if she tried, not with Flynn still unconscious in the guest room upstairs, Imperial Knight healers working to replenish all the blood he’d lost. When, you know, the sweet little waitress they’d set him up with turned out to be a deadly assassin. When they’d given someone with murder on her mind direct access to Flynn.
“Do you think they’re almost done?” She didn’t think she’d ever heard Rita sound so small. The young mage was slumped against the far wall next to Estelle, leaning on her shoulder, fingers tightly intertwined. The princess herself had decided to come down and join them after Flynn seemed to have survived the worst of it. They’d all agreed long ago that Estelle couldn’t use her healing artes too extensively, given the danger of throwing the world’s aer out of balance again.
“I’d say so,” Raven said. “Ain’t seen any of ‘em lookin’ super frantic in a bit.” The older guildsman had popped back up as soon as he’d heard the news. Judith rather wondered why he’d been so reluctant to help them with their plans before—Raven was usually quite eager about things like this—but she was too exhausted to ask.
“I hope he’s okay,” Karol said, and Estelle nodded.
“I’m sure the Knights will take care of him,” she said, getting to her feet and straightening her skirts. “In the meantime, how about I whip us up some—”
Footsteps from above, and they all turned as Yuri made his way slowly down. Judith’s heart immediately tightened in her chest. He looked like he’d aged ten years, bags under his eyes and a small wound at the corner of his lip where she knew he had a tendency to bite when he was worried. Fuck, why had they ever thought it was a good idea to try to get him and Flynn together? They were already so happy just as friends; why go and ruin such a beautiful thing?
“How is he?” Karol asked, and Yuri sighed.
“He lost a lot of blood, so it was touch and go for a while, even after Estelle mended the wound. But he’s stable now.”
“Thank goodness,” Estelle said, but Yuri just shook his head.
“I’ll feel better once he’s awake,” he said. “I just...how did that bitch get so close to him? Flynn’s never careless like this; he would never leave such an obvious opening, not unless it was set up somehow. Does Marya have other people inside the city?”
Heavy, awkward silence. Judith swallowed and looked away, as Karol, Estelle, and Rita did the same. Finally, it was Raven who spoke up. “Think there’s somethin’ the rest o’ these folks wanna tell ya, kid.”
Yuri blinked. “What do you mean?”
Estelle sighed, looking miserable. “It...what happened with Marya, it’s our fault, Yuri.”
“Huh?” Judith tried to find what comfort she could in how Yuri looked so genuinely confused, as if he could never imagine any of them being involved in this. “How so? I mean, sure, we all could’ve kept a closer eye on him, I guess—”
“No.” Judith stepped forward, and...what was that saying the humans used? In for a penny? “She means that what happened was literally our fault, as in we were the ones who set Flynn up with Marya.”
Yuri stared. Judith watched multiple expressions flit over his face: surprise, confusion, realization...and then, finally, rage. It was, she thought abstractedly, the first time she’d ever witnessed that thunderstorm inside of Yuri directed at her. Shit, why hadn’t she just gone back to Myorzo as she’d planned?
“Explain,” Yuri said then, low, his voice a dangerous hiss.
“I.” Karol looked around at all of them, but when no help was forthcoming, cast his gaze to the ground. “We were just...we thought setting Flynn up with Marya would make you jealous and you’d admit your feelings to him. We never thought...”
He swallowed, unable to finish. Rita sighed, scrubbing at her suspiciously shiny eyes. “We’ve been trying to get you and Flynn together,” she said. “What happened with Marya was just our most recent plan.”
“So then...the inn being closed.” Yuri’s voice was flat. “Ellowei Hill...and the closet.”
Judith nodded. “We’re so sorry, Yuri.”
And she meant it. They should’ve just left it alone, should’ve treated Yuri and Flynn like the adults they were and let them figure it out for themselves. Now, because of their own stupidity and brash desire for control, Flynn had almost died.
So she supposed they all deserved it when Yuri turned away, shoulders shaking. “You bastards,” he whispered, fingers twitching as if wishing for his sword. “You...fucking...bastards.”
“Now Yuri,” Raven began, stern, but Yuri spun on them, and there was real fury in his eyes, fury and frustration and a thin terror connected to the unconscious man upstairs.
“Flynn almost died because of you,” he hissed. “Because of this—fucking game you were playing, my best friend got fucking stabbed. If Flynn doesn’t make it—”
His voice cracked, and he turned to glare at the wall, fists trembling at his side. Estelle sniffled. “I’m sorry, Yuri, we didn’t know—”
“Then you should’ve asked!” Yuri looked at all of them in turn, and the pain, the pure unadulterated hurt in his eyes was enough to make Judith want to disappear right into the ground. Or maybe that was Yuri’s next words, shaky and filled with sorrow. “Then maybe you would’ve known that you never had to get us together. Because Flynn and I are already married.”
That was enough to get Judith to snap her head up, gaping at him. Wait, what? How—what—
“I.” Rita, for once, couldn’t seem to form proper words. “You’re what?”
Yuri sighed, looking all of a sudden very tired. “We’re married,” he repeated. “We got hitched two years ago. We were going to tell all of you at the Festival of Starlight in a few weeks, but I guess you managed to shit all over those plans.”
Two years. Two years. Judith couldn’t wrap her head around it. How had they managed to keep it under wraps for so long? How had they not picked up on it earlier?
It explained everything: the long looks, the constant touches, Yuri’s frequent trips to Zaphias and Flynn’s insistence on heading to Dahngrest as often as he could. Their comfort around each other, innate and secure. How angry Yuri had been when he’d first heard about Marya, because of course he would be angry, he must’ve known Marya was planning something because Flynn would never cheat.
Yuri turned then, refusing to look at any of them as he set one foot back on the stairs. “I’m heading back up,” he said, “to make sure my husband hasn’t died while I was down here dealing with your stupidity. Don’t bother joining us. I don’t want any of you near Flynn.”
And without another word he stomped back up the stairs. In the silence that followed, Estelle let out a breath, shaky and wet. “Oh,” she whispered, covering her face with her hands. “Oh, we are terrible.”
“Can’t say I disagree,” Raven said, but the smile he sent them was soft. “Told ya, didn’t I? That I didn’t want Yuri stabbin’ me again.”
“Wait.” Rita straightened up, staring at Raven. “You knew?”
“Yeah, though I don’t blame ya if ya didn’t, they were real cagey ‘bout the whole thing,” Raven said. “I only figured somethin’ was up when I heard Flynn’d gone an’ changed his marital status an’ beneficiary info with the Knights two years ago. I pulled some strings, had a closer look, an’ then reached out to a couple friends with the Soul Smiths. They told me Yuri had commissioned ‘em to make a couple rings, an’ the rest was history.”
“Rings?” Karol frowned. “But they don’t wear any.”
Raven fixed him with a steady look. “Son, Yuri wears gloves,” he said, speaking slowly. “An’ Flynn wears gauntlets.”
They mulled that over for a while. Judith only refrained from kicking herself by thinking about how she was wearing very sharp heels. Still, it was a close thing.
At last, Raven sighed. “Course, I didn’t think things would get this bad, else I woulda put a stop to it much earlier,” he said. “So I guess I’m just as much to blame as all o’ you.”
Karol hunched his shoulders. “You think Yuri’s gonna stay mad at us forever?”
He had every right to. Still, Judith knew better than to say that. “I think he will be for a while, but you know Yuri. He’s always forgiven way too easily.”
Rita nodded, gently caressing the back of Estelle’s hand. “And Flynn?”
Judith shrugged. “I suppose we’ll see.”
And that was just what they did, sitting and waiting for another couple of hours, as the sky slowly lightened outside and Dahngrest started a new day. Despite her best efforts, Judith must’ve dozed off at some point because the next time she blinked and lifted her head, it was to the sight of Yuri descending the stairs once again.
“Oh, Yuri,” Rita said, nudging Estelle awake as Raven gave a sleeping Karol a not-so-subtle kick.
“He doin’ better, kid?” he asked, and Judith couldn’t help the rush of relief when the corner of Yuri’s lip quirked up just a bit.
“Yeah. He’ll be okay.”
Well, thank the stars for that. Judith watched as Yuri headed for the kitchen. “I’m gonna make some breakfast for when he wakes up,” he said, more to himself than anyone else, and Estelle quickly scrambled to her feet.
“I’ll help, I know Flynn likes—”
“Think you’ve done enough damage already,” Yuri growled, which brought her up short. Yikes. So they hadn’t been forgiven yet.
Raven frowned. “I get that you’re pissed, kid. I’d be too, if I were in yer position. But they just wanted the two o’ you to be happy.”
“Well, do I look happy?” Yuri spun on them, teeth bared. “Do I? Because in case you forgot, Flynn’s upstairs, still unconscious, because you let an assassin stab him in the chest!”
“We didn’t mean to,” Karol ventured, but Yuri was having none of it.
“That doesn’t matter!” he shouted, and Judith might’ve been impressed at the new record they’d just set of How Many Times Can You Actually Get Yuri Lowell to Lose his Shit, except there was nothing to be impressed about at all. “None of that matters if he fucking dies!”
“Yuri?”
The new voice, exhausted and hoarse, had them all looking up at the stairs. Flynn was hovering halfway down, looking like death warmed over: his face was pale, blue eyes dull, the entirety of his bare torso swathed in bandages. His left hand clutched the banister for support, and Judith couldn’t help but swallow, staring at the plain gold band there. It was the color of his hair, narrow and so thin as to be almost invisible, exactly the size and shape to not interfere when he was fighting with his gauntlets on. It was, she realized, just the type of ring Yuri would buy for him.
Yuri, meanwhile, hurried up to meet him. “What’re you doing up, you’re supposed to be resting,” he said, but Flynn shook his head.
“I was, but then I heard yelling. What’s going on?”
“We’ve been trying to get you and Yuri together,” Karol blurted out. “We paid the innkeeper to close your room and we sent you both to Ellowei Hill and locked you in a closet and then set you up with Marya to make Yuri jealous except that got you stabbed and I’m so sorry about that and now Yuri’s super pissed at us and you probably are too and did I say I’m sorry?”
He paused, gasping for breath. In the silence, Flynn blinked. “Oh.” He turned to look at Yuri. “Do they know we’re married?”
“They do now.”
“Ah.” Flynn nodded, then offered them a small smile, laced with pain but genuine. “In that case, we’re sorry we didn’t tell you sooner.”
“Wait, we.” It was almost comical how Yuri went immediately from furious to discombobulated. “We are?”
“Yes, Yuri, we are.” Flynn brushed a gentle hand down his arm. “They’re our friends. They deserved to know.”
Yuri frowned. “But you got stabbed because of them.”
“No,” Flynn said. “I got stabbed because a woman with a knife did a stabby thing. It’s not their fault, Yuri. They just wanted what was best for us.”
And the smile he sent them was so sincere, so earnest and genuine and so very Flynn that Judith couldn’t help the way her heart turned over in her chest. Gods, they didn’t deserve these two. She stepped forward. “But we really are sorry, Flynn. For doing something so stupid.”
“Sure, thanks,” he answered, “but honestly Yuri does about ten even stupider things before lunch, so I’m used to it.”
“Hey!”
Estelle laughed, a little wet still, but the light was back in her eyes. “I’m glad you’re okay, Flynn. And that you and Yuri have each other.”
“Yeah, me too.” Flynn winced then, rubbing at his chest, and turned to Yuri. “Come upstairs.”
“What? But I was gonna go make you some—”
Flynn sighed and reached down to take Yuri’s hand. “Husband, I am tired,” he said, “and very dizzy. So please just come upstairs and let me nap on you for a while, before I have to go back to the Knights and make sure my captains haven’t flipped the fuck out, and then go and drown myself in paperwork because apparently when you almost get assassinated you’re required to submit forms about it in triplicate.”
That seemed to convince Yuri because he huffed a laugh and let Flynn tug him up the stairs. “You could always just change the rules, Commandant.”
“Yeah...probably should burn the archives to the ground while I’m at it...”
They disappeared up the stairs, still whispering softly to each other. Raven shook his head with a soft chuckle and started for the kitchen, Karol following. Rita sighed and leaned into Estelle, letting her partner run soothing fingers through her hair. And Judith just smiled, turning to peer out the window at the golden sunlight making its way in, the sounds of the city drifting to her, peaceful and magnificent.
Yeah, so they’d fucked up. Tried in their own bumbling way to make two people they loved infinitely happy, when it turned out they’d gone and figured that out already all by themselves. In the grand scheme of things, it wasn’t so bad: Flynn had already forgiven them, and it was only a matter of time before Yuri did too. Everything was going to be okay. At least she’d gotten some entertainment out of it.
Myorzo continued to hover at the back of her mind, but she let it float away for now. She was in no hurry; there was plenty of time yet. Right now she was needed here, by a ragtag band of humans who were secretive and awkward and really damned weird, yet also endlessly brave and kind and full of love.
The sizzling scent of something frying filled the air. Rita and Estelle whispered quietly to each other in the corner, and Judith straightened up, stretched, and headed for the kitchen.
Yeah, maybe she’d stick around a little longer. It was going to be a beautiful day.