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When the dragons fall and the earth lies still, Kima knows this is not the end. When the burials begin and the streets of Emon are scrubbed cleaned of blood, still this is not the end. Funerals pass, families are fed and children are healed. The recovery of Tal'Dorei will be a long one, a trying one, but one that Kima has seen before. This knowledge brings both comfort and unease, a feeling that she is now all too familiar with.
Nothing is clear-cut these days.
It was Gilmore’s idea to arrange the ball. Extravagance is par for the course with the sorcerer, yet it seems this gathering is less of a strictly formal affair and more of an excuse to celebrate. He says that the sadness that lingers in the bottom of a tavern mug has no invitation to this party. Maybe he believes fancy clothes and a change of scenery are enough to start the healing process.
Kima thinks there’s some merit to that.
She’s tying the laces of her boots when someone knocks on her chamber door. Allura left for the ball some time ago, disappointment behind her eyes as Kima had said she had no mind to attend such frivolousness. Lying had never been Kima’s strength, but she had been able to get Allura out the door at least. This wasn’t likely to be Allura back already.
Sure enough, when Kima opens the door she comes eye-to-belly with an opulent man garbed in expensive-looking formal attire. Gilmore gleams down at Kima, freshly polished beads swaying in his goatee as he does.
“Are you ready?” he asks, taking in her appearance. He sounds doubtful.
Kima tugs one of her sleeves down. Ball gowns were out of the question, but she knew how to dress for an occasion. In an outfit of blue and silver without even a dagger to arm herself with, she feels less like a paladin of the platinum dragon and more like a member of court. Her hair is brushed but loose, spilling down in waves over her shoulders. A jewelled pin that Allura had once said matched her eyes is pinned to her breast.
“Let’s go.”
It doesn’t take them long to arrive at the celebration. One of the stately homes in the Cloudtop District had withstood the worst of Thordak’s rule. The upper floors have been ruined, but there is still most of a ceiling over the ballroom. Stars and candles light the dancefloor, illuminating the citizens of Emon as they forget their troubles for a night. Rich and poor alike mingle as one, the kinship of experience surpassing the years of status quo. It is a strange gathering, but then these are strange times.
Even in the crowd Allura stands out, her golden hair framing her face in a way that softens her cheekbones. It makes her look like a sculpture that someone has brought to life with the sole purpose of adding beauty to the world. A hairnet glitters with sea green jewels, giving her the impression of radiating a sparkling aura, dazzling the people she’s talking to. She’s a sight to behold.
A warm yet heavy hand drops onto Kima’s shoulder and she looks up into Gilmore’s kind face. He raises one hand slightly and she nods.
Like a dense, purple mist spiralling up around Gilmore’s fingertips, magic creeps into life and floats down to Kima. It engulfs her waist and spreads to her legs, her feet. With a motion from Gilmore, the cloud of magic draws Kima off the ground a few feet and holds her there. It’s not a difficult enchantment to control and Kima finds her feet (so to speak) within seconds. Gilmore offers a word of encouragement and then melts into the crowd, no doubt in search of his own companion for the evening.
And then it’s just Kima, nervous but resolute. She makes her way towards Allura.
Somewhere at the edge of the room is a troop of musicians, their chords magically enhanced and drifting softly over to the dancers. The singer narrates tales of first loves, of hearts beating as one, their voice barely a murmur in the hall. It’s all ambience and atmosphere, never quite enough to draw Kima’s attention away from the woman ahead of her.
Allura spots her mid-conversation. The polite public expression shifts and her face changes to the tender look she reserves only for Kima. She excuses herself and begins to walk forward, picking up her pace before their paths reunite on the dancefloor. With the aid of Gilmore’s enchantment, Kima is able to meet Allura at her eye level for the first time. It’s perfect.
Wordlessly, she reaches out and puts a hand at the small of Allura’s back, drawing her in close. The smile she receives is filled with all the warmth of a summer’s day, affection pouring out of Allura’s bright eyes and directly into the expanding muscle of Kima’s heart.
With one fluid movement Kima is spinning Allura out into the dancefloor, their only remaining point of contact in their hands. Allura looks back at Kima slowly, her gaze moving from her outstretched hand, up Kima’s arm, along the fabric of her embroidered tunic and finally, finally, back into Kima’s eyes. Colour is rising in Allura’s cheeks, even as she twirls back into Kima’s arms, her dress moving as fluidly as liquid, spilling through the air on a collision course with Kima’s body.
They come together again and fall back into a steady rhythm, taking it in turns to lead, laughing at their own missteps and completely heedless of the other couples around them. Off in the distance, the music has changed to a new song. This time they dance to lyrics promising loyalty in return for love. A second singer joins the chorus, her voice harmonizing seamlessly.
“Kiss me,” Kima says.
Allura slips one hand into the waves of Kima’s hair, smiling as it sends a shiver down Kima’s spine. She leans forwards but doesn’t yet close the gap, eyelids heavy and the smile still present. In that moment, Kima knows what she’s asking of Allura. The company surrounding them may feel far away, but both women are aware that their past kisses have been secrets kept between two people.
“This will be the first of many.”
When she kisses Kima, it’s like the years have blurred together. Pain, heartache, distance, it all falls away. Allura is kissing her like something precious, something to be cherished. The softness of her lips is matched by the butterfly touches of her other hand coming to land on Kima’s cheek. It lasts seconds, minutes, hours. It lasts all night, lingering on Kima’s lips even as Allura pulls away.
The music swells and Kima takes a steadying breath, glad for the enchantment holding her aloft. Around them, no one pays any mind to the women mending the bond of their hearts. Allura’s head dips and she rests it on Kima’s shoulder, one hand still at the nape of Kima’s neck, stroking the soft hairs found there. Kima allows her eyes to flutter shut. They resume a gentle rotation on the dancefloor, never moving more than a few steps away from their spot.
It’s been so long since Kima has felt anything like this. This light, unadulterated joy. It fills her until it’s unbearable, until she’s holding Allura tighter for fear of letting this feeling slip away.
Perhaps Allura feels it too, as she presses herself closer to Kima and moves her arms to wrap around Kima’s broad back. It makes the dancing a little awkward, but a lump rises in Kima’s throat and she can’t say anything. She simply drops a kiss on the blonde hair under her chin and hopes it conveys everything she’s feeling, every apology she wants to give, every promise she imagines verbalising.
In this moment, by the light of a hundred candles and with all of Emon to witness, Kima silently promises to never leave Allura again. There is a force so inescapable, so strong, it is as though Bahamut himself is telling Kima to stay here. The pull she feels for this woman is rooted deep in her core. She can’t bear the thought of turning away now. Not after everything they’ve survived.
A chill breeze swoops in through a pair of open doors and Kima feels Allura shiver under her. Though her gown is stardust spun into fabric, it does nothing to stop the hairs on her arms prickling. Allura’s breath tickles Kima’s neck and the halfling can feel the stifled sigh when she moves her hands to slowly rub warmth into Allura’s exposed back. It’s as intimate as she will allow herself to be in public, but apparently it’s well received, as Allura leans up and presses a kiss to Kima’s neck. For a second neither of them breathes, unwilling to break the spell this kiss has cast upon them.
If Kima had to describe what falling in love felt like, she would think of this moment.
Far outside of their private bubble a trio of children run by, their laughter bright and unrestrained. The innocent sound – so long absent from this city – is a herald of a new beginning. Emon is being reborn all around them. Kima closes her eyes as the heavy unease that’s been on her shoulders for months starts to trickle away. The history of the land will remember this night as first of many under a new rule, a kinder rule. There will be problems to solve in the morning, but for now the moment of respite lingers and nothing seems unobtainable.
Kima’s eyes open and she looks at Allura.
It’s like looking at a sunrise.