The Oracle and her summoned Healer Hero’s conversation continued…

  Lady Mezalune smiles at me, her jagged teeth gleaming like polished pearls. It’s only been five or so seconds – probably less – yet the silence between us feels thunderous. Heavy.

  Good grief. Is she trying to build suspense? I’m not sure why she would… but she does have a flair for the dramatic, especially in moments like this. Then again, maybe she’s just taking her time to word her question the right way.

  Honestly, I dunno. With Lady Mezalune, it’s never easy to tell.

  “Okay, alright! Are you ready, Little Miss!?” Lady Mezalune finally chirps, her voice light and airy, yet measured. “My question for you is…”

  She pauses for a beat… a deliberate beat of silence.

  “Well… it’s less of a question and more of something for you to chew on. It’s ‘food for thought’, as some scholarly mortals might say!”

  “Uh… okay?” I answer, offering her a polite smile while trying not to look too awkward. “Sure. Hit me with it, my Lady.”

  “Could you let go of Little Miss Anna, to fulfil your Prophecy? If it had to be done?”

  “What do you mean… ‘let go’?” I ask, my stomach already twisting. “Do you mean…?”

  Lady Mezalune nods, her expression unreadable, a perfect poker face carved from centuries of secrets and sorrow. “Yes. If it ever came to that. Little Miss Iris… she told me what happened between you and Little Miss Anna, one timeline ago.”

  “I see. I…”

  Lady Mezalune tilts her head slightly, watching me with those odd, glimmering eyes of hers as my breath catches. It feels like someone’s just punched me square in the gut, from mere words alone… and I’ve lost all the air in me.

  But I gotta say something. I gotta say what I feel… deep in my heart of hearts.

  “I just know… I don’t wanna feel what I felt back in Arcadia ever again – holding her like that in my arms,” I murmur, the words bursting out raw before I can temper them. “Never again, my Lady. Never.”

  “Because you care about her, Little Miss?”

  “I do,” I reply softly. “Like you said before – I care.”

  “That much is certain,” Lady Mezalune remarks, her voice gentle yet sharp like a well-honed dagger. “But what if protecting her meant sacrificing everything else? Letting everything and everyone else go. Would you do that for her?”

  “I…”

  I look away, unable to meet her gaze. My answer sticks to the roof of my mouth, the words refusing to be said. Because the truth is… she’s not wrong.

  As a Hero, I’m not just fighting for Anna. Countless fates are tied to mine… like threads woven into the seams of a too-fragile tapestry. And sometimes, it feels like the entire world of Nisha is watching, waiting for me to decide its fate.

  Because I have the power to do so. Because I’m a Hero.

  Lady Mezalune’s smile softens. She leans forward slightly, her hands coming to rest lightly on my shoulders. Her touch is cold – a reminder of the heavy price she paid to protect Eris in her time of need. And like Eris, like Anna… she’s still recuperating from it.

  “My Lady…” I rasp. “I…”

  “I can’t claim to know what it feels like to lose someone dear to you,” Lady Mezalune murmurs, lowering her head. “In all my centuries of existence, I’ve never allowed myself to grow close to anyone. Not the way you or Little Miss Iris have.”

  If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  She folds her hands neatly in her lap, her gaze distant and wistful. “Immortality… it is not without its costs. Especially in a world of mortals.”

  “It sucks,” I mutter, scowling as I look away. “You’re lucky you don’t have to deal with it.”

  “Hmph! And you’re lucky that you do!” Lady Mezalune replies firmly, her tone bright… yet somehow solemn. “Oh! To love, be loved, and to have loved…”

  “It has its perks,” I remark with a wry smile. “But even though Anna’s with me in this new timeline, safe and sound… sometimes I feel like there’s a hole in my heart.”

  “And you don’t know why, Little Miss?”

  “Yeah.”

  I can’t explain it. Not properly in words, at least. If I had to, I’d say it’s like there’s some kinda inner compass within my soul… etched into me since the very beginning of this timeline… always pulling me forward. Always pushing me towards Anna.

  But still… some nights, when everything is quiet and I’m left alone with my thoughts – lying there in the dark – I feel it – a sense of emptiness, like something is missing. That something’s… gone. And that I gotta do something to fill it and make it whole again.

  “I’ll tell you why, Little Miss!” Lady Mezalune declares, her voice ringing with conviction as she straightens, puffing out her chest proudly like she just solved a riddle. “It’s because you’ve made Anna your everything.”

  “Huh?” I ask, blinking in startled confusion, my brows furrowing. “What do you mean?”

  Lady Mezalune nods with vigorous enthusiasm, her eyes gleaming with certainty. “I’m glad you asked, Little Miss! The way I see it… every thought, every choice you’ve made in this timeline has been to serve a self-imposed penance for your guilt. For what you see as your failure, one timeline ago!”

  “Shit. You think so?”

  “I do! You believe she died for your sake, and so you’ve been trying to make it right. Over and over! Trying to pay off that debt with your own happiness!”

  Her words hit me hard. I look down, biting the inside of my cheek. I swore to myself – and to Lady Iris – that I’d do better this time. That I’d be better. Stronger. A worthy Healer Hero, strong enough to save everyone.

  And above all… protect Anna from the fate awaiting her in Arcadia.

  She’s my Paladin. My anchor. My bleeding heart. But how far will I go to keep her safe? How far should I go? The world has indeed been pushing back, fate and destiny alike twisting around me because I’m trying to change things that perhaps, weren’t meant to change.

  Good grief. I…

  “I just don’t wanna fuck things up again, changes or not,” I mutter, finally meeting Lady Mezalune’s gaze. “I want to do right by everyone. Anna. Lady Iris. Eris. You. Everyone whose hopes and dreams rest on my shoulders, just like back in St Elicia’s. I wasn’t strong enough in the previous timeline… but I am now, knowing I’m not alone. Anna… she reminded me of that.”

  I lift my chin, the uncertainty in my chest giving way to a steadier flame. “With her, with everyone’s support… I’ll be the Hero everyone needs. I gotta be.”

  “Good! Good!” Lady Mezalune says brightly, nodding with approval. “Let that resolve carry you through your Prophecy – for the world as we know it is changing before our very eyes! I’m sure you’ve felt it.”

  She turns slowly, her gaze drifting to a tall, arched window across the room where light spills through stained glass, scattering fractured colours across the marble floor. “Perhaps that’s why winter has come early this year. Fate is ever fluid, after all! You and I and everyone else shall have our parts to play as the world we know comes to an end.”

  I shake my head. “It won’t end. I’ll make sure of it.”

  “For that reason alone…” Lady Mezalune adds with a serene smile, resting a hand lightly over her heart, her posture steady and unwavering like a solemn vow. “I put my faith in you, doom-driven Hero. I’m on your side.”

  “Thank you for the vote of confidence, my Lady,” I answer with a warm smile, the weight in my chest easing just a little. “Anna and I… we’ll do ya proud.”

  Lady Mezalune nods once, beaming from ear to ear with delight. “I know you will! But before you go, there’s one more thing I’d like you to consider.”

  Her tone softens, her good cheer fading into something more reflective.

  “Letting go doesn’t necessarily mean letting her die.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Would you surrender your chance to love Little Miss Anna, if it meant saving her life?” Lady Mezalune asks softly, tilting her head as her piercing gaze holds mine, searching past the silence for truth. “As she once did for you, in another timeline… with Divine Intervention. If fate demanded the same of you – would you answer?”

  “I would,” I answer, the words steadily leaving my lips with certainty, only for that certainty to waver as the full weight of the question begins to settle over me like a fog. “Wait. But that would also mean…”

  The words catch in my throat. Because… if I gave up my life for hers… that’s it. No more future. No happy ending… after everything.

  Isn’t that just trading one grief for another? She’d be in pain, as I was. As I am.

  And I…

  “You don’t have to answer me right now!” Lady Mezalune exclaims suddenly, a playful glint returning to her eyes. “Just think on it, my sweet Little Miss! Let today – and all we’ve discussed – guide your heart. Let it strengthen your resolve to become the Hero you want to be, forevermore!”

  I nod slowly. She’s right. I need time to think. While Anna and Eris are out, I’ll find a quiet spot – somewhere I can just be for a bit. Somewhere, I can untangle this knot in my chest… and fill this hole in my heart.

  To be the Hero I wanna be.

  “Take your time,” Lady Mezalune adds warmly, offering me one last gleaming, toothy smile. “Whatever you decide to do… I know, in my heart of hearts, you’ll choose what’s right. Because that’s what a Hero does!”