Valkyrie (Complete)

25: Epilogue

Two Years Later......

"Val, I'm back!" Phoenix's voice echoes through the empty home. He wanders around for a few moments, looking for his new wife. They were married just a few months ago. It was a small wedding, seeing as their people's population took a drastic hit a couple years ago during the Ankathians' invasion.

Their population was cut in half, leaving only a few hundred Eikonidians left. Of course, not everyone came to their ceremony, but everyone knew about it. It's not every day that two of the three remaining Mauliks get married!

He walks upstairs to see if Valkyrie is up there, but to his disappointment, she's still nowhere to be found. He doesn't know where she could have gone.

Dark clouds have rolled in and low rumbles of thunder reverberate across the land. He doesn't like the idea of her being out on her own, especially since she's still learning to get used to not having her powers. It's been just over two years since she lost them, but for nearly a year, she wasn't in the physical condition to train or try to work with them at all. It was hard for her. He remembers all the times that she cried, sees them so clearly in his mind that he can still feel the pain he shared with her as if it were yesterday.

He decides to check the area around their house. He knows that being outside is still one of her favorite things, despite the bittersweet memories it brings.

He spots her jacket over the back of one of their lawn chairs and he smiles as he calls out to her. "Hey Val!"

Silence answers him, and worry blossoms in his chest. When he reaches the chair, he finds it empty. Her jacket is billowing slightly in the wind, making it appear almost as if she were there, but she isn't.

Where could she have gone?

Her leg is healed but he knows it still bugs her every once in a while, especially when big storms come in. She also can't run for long distances yet, not like she used to be able to. Back after her ribs were shattered and her lung collapsed, the doctors warned them that she likely wouldn't be able to breathe as well. Considering these two things, he doesn't think that she could have gone far.

Raindrops begin splattering down. Within seconds, it pours and streams of water form where dirt is loose. It runs in rivulets and quickly covers the ground, flooding it.

He runs back into the house but his clothes are already soaked through. Water runs down his face from his hair and his worry doubles as he sees that Valkyrie still isn't in the house. He glances outside and seeing lightning like he's ever seen before. It's almost as if someone is flipping a lightswitch in the clouds, lighting everything up momentarily only to plunge it back into darkness. With a sigh, he sits down on a step and decides to wait for Valkyrie to come home. There's no way that any sane person would stay outside in a storm like this.

After a while, he gets up and walks to their room, where he changes from his wet clothes. He sees his uniform hanging there from a couple years ago. Running the durable material through his fingers, memories wash over him.

Without thinking, he grabs the uniform and changes quickly. The feeling of wearing it is nostalgic and he runs back outside, the laces of his boots barely tied.

He runs into the forest, enjoying the feeling of the cool rain on his face. The clouds are heavy enough to make it almost as dark as night and he lights a small fireball in his hand to light the way.

Suddenly, he hears a girl's voice. He skids to a stop, thinking that it sounds a lot like Valkyrie. He attempts to follow the sound, but the wind is whipping around so haphazardly that it's impossible. Lightning cracks above, illuminating everything for a split second. In that time, it's enough to see the silhouette of a girl in a nearby clearing. He heads that way, and now the girl's voice is clear.

It's Valkyrie, and she's laughing.

He yells to her but she doesn't seem to hear him. He fights the wind as he walks to her and grabs her arm.

She jumps and turns quickly, her face breaking into a smile. Her hair is half up and half down, soaking wet and partially stuck to her face and neck. Water drips from her eyelashes and smears the bold eyeliner she always wears, but she looks happy.

He glances down at her clothes, expecting her to be wearing something light and thin. The days have been so hot that it's nearly unbearable, so their wardrobes have changed in accommodation. However, he's shocked to see that she's also in her battle gear.

Hers was very nearly ruined by the end of the war, but she couldn't seem to part with it. It had become a part of her and she couldn't let it go. It held too many memories, too much of her past. She had it repaired shortly after the battle ended.

"What are you doing?" He shouts over the storm.

She opens her mouth to respond, then hesitates. Suddenly, the wind dies and the rain stops falling. Lightning still cracks but not nearly as often, and the rumbles of thunder are quieter. "Isn't it beautiful?" She asks.

"What?"

"The storm! Isn't it amazing?"

"Val, it's the biggest storm we've had in years. Come on, let's get back to the house before it gets worse."

She grins again. "It won't get any worse."

"You don't know that. There are more clouds headed this way. I don't know why it stopped now, but come on. You'll catch a cold."

She shakes her head. "No, I won't."

He's starting to get frustrated. "Yes, you will. Can we please just go home? I'm cold now." Being a fire controller, he's prone to getting colder faster. He does much better with heat than with cold.

"Oops, sorry." She forgot that he got cold easily when it rains. It makes sense; fire puts out rain, and that's his heat source. She raises her arms and the clouds disappear as quickly as they came. The sun comes back out and the temperature raises significantly. "Is that better?"

She looks over at him only to see him staring at her, his mouth hanging open in disbelief. "Did you just.... what the-" He can't seem to form a sentence.

She bounces on her feet. "Yes, I just changed the weather."

A smile spreads across his face. "Your powers are back?"

She nods enthusiastically. "All of them! They came back today!"

He squeezes her in a hug and swings her around. They're both laughing and before they know it, they're slipping on the muddy ground and lying on their backs. "I'm so happy for you, Val. I know how much this means to you."

She leans over to kiss his cheek. "Thanks, Nix. I finally feel like I know myself again."

"You've always been the same person, sweetheart. You're just as amazing without powers are you are with them. I love you."

"I love you too!"

~~~

Aaaaaannnddddddddd that's a wrap! I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I loved writing it! Please drop me some comments and let me know what you thought of the story!

XOXO -Melody