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The light of day touched at the corners of your eyes- you were in a bed. Not a particularly cozy one, and you felt wrung out and stiff. But alive. You opened your eyes, looked around the room. A hospital, privacy curtains all about. A military one most likely, looking around. A private ward. Probably better than would normally be afforded to you, no matter if you were an officer or cadet or whoever’s retinue.
Ah, crap. You didn’t have to go through this again, did you? You sat up and cracked your neck, your back, your shoulders, knuckles, stretched. No, you didn’t feel bedbound.
“Don’t be so hasty,” Magnus’s voice sounded to your right. He was in a chair there, a few books on the table by both your sides. “You’ve been unconscious for two days. Have some patience.”
Two whole days? Damn it. “Psh.” You leaned back again into your stack of pillows, “That’s a lotta wasted time. I feel just fine.”
“No, you don’t.”
“I’ve been way worse,” you said, “Trust me, this isn’t even close to the times I’ve been actually bedridden.”
“The doctors didn’t know what was happening with your body,” Magnus insisted, “Yuliana seemed to. She gave a blood transfusion to you, saying it was the only thing she could think of to help. I don’t know why it would have…but you’ve woken up now, so you’re better than you <span class="mu-i">were</span>, at least.”
Did that have anything to do with the vision you saw? Come to think of it, the way the hair and eye colors were changing with you and mother, those hues were just like Yuliana’s. “So where is she?” you asked, “I mean, I won, didn’t I?”
“You did.” Magnus closed his eyes, discomforted, “I sent her on her way home. She’s said that she needs to…journey. Go on a trek about the world. To become stronger.” He bit his lip and clicked his tongue. “She’s not quite given up. But she’s accepted that you won.”
A moment without words. “So uh,” you pushed, “That means…y’know.”
“Who won wouldn’t have mattered, Anya,” Magnus reached out and stroked your cheek. He was noticeably warm compared to you. “It was my choice. You restrained yourself. You didn’t hurt Yuliana too badly. I appreciate that. Even in a bitter fight like that, you could consider something besides victory. That was more important than who was standing in the end. Yuliana…was not herself. Because she thought she couldn’t be.”
Magnus seemed genuinely hurt by that, but…he’d gotten what he’d needed, hadn’t he? There wouldn’t have been any duels if he’d decided earlier. Then, maybe there would have been duels anyways. Maybe it was just like he said, where he couldn’t make the right decision without a fight. Either way, you couldn’t help but feel lighter.
“So that’s it, isn’t it?” you asked, “You’re my boyfriend. No more hesitating. It’s decided.”
