Ember of Hope
Chapter 24

Valiance woke up from yet another dream of his mate. It was like a daily ritual. She inhabited his every dream, possessed every thought – her memories haunted him during every waking hour. Yet tonight, it felt more real. He felt different, light. Like the weight of his loss had lifted a bit. He frowned. He couldn’t understand how was tonight’s dream any different? Falling asleep again was out of question as his nights were mostly sleepless or full of nightmares. So he did the only thing that seemed to help him every night. He stood up from his perch in the aerie and flew away in the night. High above the clouds where stars talked to him in there peaceful language.

Sound of flapping wings broke the train of his thoughts and he turned his head midflight. He wasn’t surprised to see Dimi flying towards him and catching up. They were best friends from as far as he could remember and brothers in arms. They had played together, trained together, fought together, and now – they were enduring the curse together. And in his loss – Dimi was the only and constant solace.

“You couldn’t sleep again”. It wasn’t a question.

“No” He replied anyway.

“You wanna talk about it?”

“What’s left there to talk?” his voice was emotionless.

“There’s still hope”.

“HOPE – what a treacherous little word”. He said quietly.

“Valiance I’ve said this many times before but I’ll say it again. We are in this together and that’s what counts. And like every other time we’ll come out of this as champions. Trust me brother. I can feel the change in the air. I can feel it – the end of our misery is near – very near. Just hang tight in there”.

“I feel it too. I feel like she’s near somewhere… like she’s going to come back. But I know it’s just wishful thinking. We feel what we badly want. It isn’t real. And it won’t do to dwell on hope – false hope”.

“Listen to yourself” Dimi snapped “You’ve already surrendered to despair. You’ve accepted defeat. It’s not like you Valiance. It’s not like us. We are warriors – we are warriors of Evreux – we never surrender – we never accept defeat. We just get back up every time that life pushes us down”.

Valiance just sighed. It was clear that nothing Dimi had said had made its journey through his thick skull.

“Snap out of it Valiance or so help me I’ll kick your ass to the moon”. Dimi was beyond himself. Valiance couldn’t help but laugh. Dimi bumped his head in Val’s chest like they used to do when they were kids. “Now this is what I’m talking about”. And just like that Dimi succeeded in making his mood a bit better.

– Valiance was thankful for the blessing his best friend was –

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Katie’s journal

I never thought I could be any happier than I already was after having the love of my life. But I was wrong. Today – my happiness knows no bounds. Today I found out that I am pregnant. Alex has turned into a clam – he hasn’t stopped grinning since. And it makes me happier. I am in heaven.

I had been feeling down for days. I’d missed my periods. I was sure that I was pregnant so I took the test. I couldn’t believe my eyes. Neither could Alex when I told him the news. He scooped me up in his arms, took me to our bed, and laid me down. “Don’t you dare move from here until this baby is born. Whatever you need – tell me and I’ll get it for you. You just rest”. He had said and I had laughed so hard on his silliness. “Can you also pee on my behalf husband?” I replied. “Don’t be a smartass – you know what I mean. Besides, I can take you to the bathroom. Don’t provoke me mate”.

He’s been so sweet and caring since. Although, when I state this fact he counters with “I’ve always been this way”

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“It’s a girl” the doctor had said and Alex had him in a bear hug in an instant. He even kissed the doctor’s cheek, leaving him wide eyed and flustered. As soon as he recovered he went out telling us he’ll give us some privacy to enjoy the news. Whatever that meant. I wasn’t sure what my feelings were – or rather which one was stronger… the immense joy upon having a little angel or the sheer terror regarding my coven because it was a girl. But as soon as I looked at the pure joy on Alex’s face all my worries went down the drain. He held me in an embrace so loving and delicate that I started crying. I loved this man so much. These were the moments when I selfishly didn’t repent on what I had done.

“Thank you Katie… thank you my love… you’ve made the happiest man on this planet. You’ve gifted me the most precious thing someone could gift another. I love you. I promise to cherish you and my baby girl for the rest of my life. I’ll protect the both of you with my life”. His words were so heartfelt they left me speechless so I just kept nodding like a maniac.

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