© 2025 Joelle R.
the late day sun made the sandstone walls of the ala mhigan quarter look like they were awash in flames, but aemilia hardly noticed. the viera woman had finished polishing her greatsword, which now lay next to her on her rooftop seat, and had moved on to her knives. she methodically worked in the oil with a rag, rubbing with purpose. she noticed the light footsteps on the wooden beams from the adjacent roof, but did not bother to look up.
"thought i'd find you here." m'naago said softly. "i think you've polished that one enough." the viera lightly chuckled, but didn't look up. "aemilia, how did meeting your parents go? arenvald said it seemed to go well enough."
"it did," aemilia said without looking up. the normally husky voice of the viera woman was even huskier than usual. "nobody expects to be immediately functioning as a family after being separated for 30 years, but it went as well as expected."
"so....do you want to talk about why you're trying to shine your knives to use as a mirror?" naago teased lightly. she knew exactly why, but knew that the viera would push down her emotions with a smile into the next era if she could.
aemilia put down the now-gleaming knife but still didn't look up. her face betrayed no more emotion than before, but her voice was shaking. "...thirty gods damned years apart, naago. thirty! and they were being shuffled from work camp to work camp that entire time. they could barely see me! they saw through me, a thousand malms away. i'm a stranger to them. i can't even begin to think about how much they've lost. how much we've lost."
"oh, aemilia..." naago took a seat next to her on the edge of the roof. the viera finally looked at her and realized this was the first time she had seen naago out of her usual resistance uniform. she was wearing a long tunic of vibrant blue with coral accents and a matching kerchief. aemilia did not realize her mouth had gone slightly agape.
"i...what?" naago flushed noticably. "did you think i wear the uniform on leave too?" she teased again. truth be told, naago really did own very little clothing other than that. lyse had not only made sure naago's work was covered for the next several suns so that she could spend time with aemilia upon her homecoming; she had also forcefully pressed a coinpurse into naago's hands for a new outfit on her way out of the palace.
"no, i. um...gods. pretty," aemilia managed to sputter.
"rhalgr's beard, aemilia grenat. are you really that weak to seeing a woman out of uniform? how ever did you survive out in bozja?"
"the publications i may or may not have read to sustain myself are between me and the twelve."
naago rolled her eyes and smiled, taking aemilia's hand in hers. she began again, "i'm so proud of you for meeting with them today. i know they appreciated it and that they're happy that you're safe after all these years. as for the time lost...no time better than the present to start making up for it." naago offered a rueful smile.
"time..." a familiar anxiety rose up in aemilia's chest. for a moment, thoughts of long outliving her friends and loved ones rose unbidden to the back of her mind. she shoved them back down once again and breathed deep. "aye. no time like the present." now she was truly looking at naago. the light caught her face, making her glow even brighter than the surrounding buildings. she looked even more fierce and beautiful than ever. "thank you, naago." she put her arms around the smaller woman and brought her in close. naago leaned in, getting lost in her love's broad arms.
"of course, my stars."
they watched in long, comfortable silence as the light subsided and the shadows grew longer. night fell over the ala mhigan quarter.