KOTLC Sokeefe One-Shots, Alternate Endings, etc

The Fight (Keefe POV)

Keefe was sprawled out under Calla's Panakes watching Foster make starkflower stew, trying not to fall asleep.

"You look tired today," she noted.

"Yeah, well, today I had Empathy training and training for this stupid commanding ability that I refuse to name," Keefe replied. "It's really draining. And here I always thought it was so cool that you had multiple abilities."

"It comes in handy, but I wouldn't wish it on anyone," Sophie said sympathetically. He could feel her concern for him and would've gotten up to kiss away that worry crease between her eyebrows if he could've mustered the energy. So instead, he changed the subject.

"Just the smell of that stew still takes me back to those days living in Alluveterre," he said with a sigh. "I have pretty mixed emotions about that time."

"I'd think they'd mostly be unpleasant. Considering...everything."

"Yeah, but...it's also the first time my home life was pleasant. Living with friends in a giant tree house was a major improvement compared to Candleshade. But mostly, it's because you and I grew a lot closer then," he told her. "Even when I was angry at everyone, at the whole world, you wouldn't let me spiral. You were there. Those window slumber parties meant more to me than you knew." The way she'd so tenderly taken care of him, sought him out even when he was isolating himself, forced him to rest, insisted on helping him...he'd known, then, what an incredible girlfriend she would be.

Foster smiled, and he knew she was thinking about that period of time too.

"What was harder?" she asked him, surprising him with the question. "Being in the Neverseen with half our group convinced you were a traitor, or being alone in the Forbidden Cities?"

"Both sucked," Keefe said immediately. "But the Forbidden Cities were worse. At least when I was with the Neverseen, I got to talk to you most days. And I hadn't manifested these abilities, and I fully intended to come home. Being in the Forbidden Cities helped me in some ways, to get over what happened in Loamnore, but...it was also horribly lonely. Like the only way I could protect everyone was to sacrifice my own happiness and live an eternity in hiding. I was so tempted to hail Grady with the Imparter he gave me and just ask how things were going, ask him about you."

He realized a second too late that he shouldn't have said that last sentence.

At first, she mostly just felt shocked as she stopped adding ingredients to the stew and stared at him, saying "wait, what?"

Oops. That was not how he'd intended to tell her. And he detected hurt and anger coming from her now.

Not now, he thought. I'm so tired. Let's not do this now.

"Um..." Keefe bit his lip. "I guess I never told you that. When he caught me in your room, leaving that note, I kind of thought he was going to kill me, but...he told me about how you'd burned down the storehouse and asked me not to leave. I told him I had to and he gave me the Imparter and made me promise I'd answer if he hailed me."

"Why wouldn't he tell me?"

She was shaking.

"I asked him not to," Keefe said.

"Still." She frowned. "He asked you to stay, for my sake, and you still left?"

Keefe looked down at his hands and mumbled "don't word it like that." Didn't she know how much harder that made it to leave? But he had done it to protect her. To protect everyone. From him.

"I tried transmitting to you. I just wanted to know you were okay. And he didn't tell me he could reach out just to check on you. That would have helped a lot."