Return of the one long gone

A reunion long awaited

Scott couldn't deny he wasn't nervous. Lizzie hadn't always liked him. In fact the first few years in his rule had been extremely turbulent with her. Trades were few and far between; she glared at him and his advisors whenever they had a country-wide meeting.

So the fact that he had appeared out of seemingly nowhere was destined to get him some form of lecture from the Ocean Queen.

- - - -

As they opened the door, Scott stopped to marvel at the size of the kitchen. It was huge. It was also spotless, the counters almost gleaming, the barrels and chests organized perfectly to fit the space. He whished he had something like that back in Rivendell.

He looked to Joel, then to Lizzie, then back to Joel. The brunette was staring hopelessly at Lizzie as he tried to find the words to say before the latter realised they were in the kitchen. It was almost painful to watch, so in a spur in the moment decision, he stepped in front of Joel with the intention of gaining Lizzie's attention.

"Morning Lizzie." Scott was sure the poor woman got whiplash with how fast she turned to face him, knife in hand as she had been partway through cutting some fresh bread. She stared at him for a moment, most likely processing that Scott was in front of her, alive and well, before walking over to him in two swift strides and hugging him. 

She was taller than him, maybe a few inches more than Jimmy was, but that wasn't an issue. He just held her as she cried into his shoulder, sobbing and shaking violently with relief. It took her a few minutes to finally calm down. When she did, she wiped her eyes and guided their guest to the table, pushing a bowl and small plate in front of Scott before getting her own; Joel's and joining them both at the table.

There was silence for a moment, before Lizzie spoke up, "Where did you go?" it was quiet, almost as if she was scared to ask, almost as if Scott wasn't meant to here it. He was, but he wasn't prepared for it. "I can't say." he wanted to tell her, tell Joel, tell the rulers of the country, but he couldn't. It was too personal, too dangerous too. He knew he wouldn't forgive himself if someone else got involved, got hurt trying to help him. "You're going to have to Scott." She wasn't so quiet that time, more stern too. It would have unnerved him moons ago, making him squirm, but not now. Not after all the worse threats he had come across. "Later then." He smiled, but his fingers were crossed behind his back.

"Does anyone else know you're here?" It was the first thing Joel had said in minutes. "No. Not much point really, I'm not staying long." Scott saw the dejected look in Joel's eyes and the muted fury in Lizzie's when he said it. He could tell one of them was going to fight that before the pinkette had even opened her mouth, "What do you mean you're not staying long? Scott, we have just got you back from wherever you were, we don't even know that, you can't just take off again!" Lizzie looked close to tears again. 

Scott politely excused himself from the table.

- - - -

It was a few hours before Lizzie found Scott in Jimmy's room, sat on his bed, deep in thought. She knocked lightly on the door, hard enough to get Scott's attention; not enough to scare him. "What are you doing in Jimmy's room?" She wasn't angry, it was just strange. She was under the impression the two still hated each other, even though they had been in an alliance 5 years, 7 now with two years wasted. Something had happened she didn't know about; it seemed Joel didn't either as they told each other everything regarding Jimmy they saw as important. "Just sitting, don't worry." He was subdued again, like he had been when talking at breakfast.

"It's later.."

Scott chuckled, "Not late enough."

"You have to tell me at some point, you promised."

"I promised nothing, and I had my fingers hypothetically crossed. My mouth is staying firmly shut." He just smirked at Lizzie as she gaped at him with fake shock. She should have known, she had known, Scott wasn't going to tell her anything.

They sat for a moment. Lizzie thinking back to when Scott first went missing, the unconsoleable mess Jimmy had been, the shortage in trades, the effect his disappearance had laid on every Kingdom. It made her upset that she couldn't get any answers. Any justification for the suffering he had indirectly caused.

Scott was thinking about the same thing, wondering if his leave had left the country in a state of disarray, if Rivendell had been well managed and protected since he had been gone or if he had left them in the hands of inexperienced advisors who couldn't agree on one thing, let alone run a whole Kingdom. The thought made him nervous. His Kingdom and people in the hands of people who would bring its downfall. It was almost enough for him to return. 

But he knew he couldn't. He knew the risks he would have to take and he knew it wasn't worth it. Going back to a Kingdom that was running bumpy but surviving wasn't worth the cost of lives. It pained him to be so far from home, from his friends within his advisory team, from the comfort of his home, from his bed. 

From Jimmy, from Katherine, from Gem. From everyone. It hurt and his head fought him on it, tried to convince him to go back and have everything he once had. Yet again, it wasn't worth risking lives he had left to protect. 

Living in the wild for 2 years was not going to be for nothing, not on his watch.

- - - -

The hunt continued. It didn't stop. Didn't take breaks. Not until it found its prey, the one thing he was desperate to find.

It would stop until it was located and exterminated. 

~ ~ ~ ~

Yall really thought you wouldn't get another cliff-hanger!