In case we never meet again (Bailey)

[Blake Oleander]

Blake knocked on the door of their chambers, Dante hovering over his shoulder with arms crossed and scythe on his back.  Blake would enter a moment later.

"How are you feeling?" 

[Bailey Oleander]

Bailey looked up at the knock at the door, shifting to face it as the door opened. She smiled at the sight of her husband and pushed herself up to stand as Jack went from invasive fussing to more observant with someone else in the room.

"I'm alright. Impatient." She chuckled a little, hating how it felt when gravity seemed to shift or she had to go quickly at all. But beyond the fact she felt like she had to pee every five minutes, she noticed who stood at Black's shoulder. Normally, it was Virgil or Beatrice. A cold knot of foreboding settled in her stomach.

"What's on your mind?"

[Blake Oleander]

"It's almost time for me to leave across the ocean."

He bridged the distance between him and his wife, placing a hand on her stomach.

"How is everything with you and the kids?"

[Bailey Oleander]

Her heart sank a little at the announcement. She knew it would happen - it had to, and Blake wasn't the type to sit back and watch something happen. Doubly so if it threatened his home or his people. A sad smile tugged at her lips as she lay her hands over his, wincing a little as one of the twins kicked beneath their touch.

"We have everything we need. I think they're as impatient as I am." She tightened her grip over his hands as she looked up at him.

"Promise me you'll make it back." It was silly, but she needed it. For all that Blake was able to weather any storm that had come his way so far, she couldn't help but worry. It would be him alone on the other side of the world. No word, no way of knowing what was happening unless they saw a castle fall from the sky...or worse.

[Blake Oleander]

"Not even the combined might of the Dragons will keep me from returning home."

He said as he squeezed her hands back.

[Bailey Oleander]

"Good. We'll be here to welcome you home from victory."" Her smile warmed a bit as her fingers laced between his. She could think of a dozen protests or worries, but it wouldn't change the path before him or his choice. Her eyes watered with unshed tears.

"Who'll be with you?" It wasn't going to be a jaunt into the forest. It could mean his death, and she could think of others willing to join him. She just wasn't sure which ones would.

[Blake Oleander]

"Virgil will be with me as will Dante. And I will be unleashing my Monster so that we may fight side by side."

[Bailey Oleander]

"What?" She blinked, grip loosening with her surprise without letting go as she searched his face for some sign that this was a kind of humor. But there was only the serious, stoic expression she knew well. Not to mention who all was listed as his allies.

"Both of them? And the Monster?" He'd kept it in check all this time and now it was just going to be freed?

[Blake Oleander]

He nodded.

"Without it then it is a one-way trip. This way there is a chance it won't be."

Virgil was part of him, he knew that it wasn't his normal knowledge that had him say they could do it with just the three of them. Perhaps there was no chance at all. But if there was a small chance Blake was going to grab hold of it, and if there was none to be had then he would make one. Because he would not abandon his home, his people, or the family that he had worked so hard to build.

He refused to die before seeing the faces of his children at least once.

[Bailey Oleander]

"I see." Her voice was faint, the response delayed. The color drained from her face at the explanation, both at the true severity of the situation as well as the odds.

Their children could grow up without ever having met their father. Living in a world he had worked so hard to create, with only a small fraction of the people knowing him before Aurora had been born. Stories. Other people's memories. Her grip on his hands tightened at the thought.

This was the only way there was even a chance of him coming back. At least there was a chance. If there was, she had confidence in Blake making it back home. He woudln't settle for less, and neither would she.

"And if the beast decides it won't be caged again?"

[Blake Oleander]

"Then I am content to be simply human."

[Bailey Oleander]

As he had thought he'd been for most of his life. Bailey nodded, still fussing internally but setting the worries aside for now. She'd plague him with a million questions if she didn't. If he had mastered the beast within, then she had to have faith he'd find a way to either part cleanly or otherwise control it from without.

"Then we will look forward to having you home again, either way." She paused, letting go for a moment to a box where she kept some of the flowers she had saved from the tournament they'd fought in months ago, producing two orange flowers and gently placing them in one of Blake's hands.

"These saved my life on the battlefield when I should have died. Just in case." There was no way of knowing what would happen if the Monster was freed. If Blake lost access to his abilities, she could at least ensure he could care for his own wounds.

________________

Giving Blake "Cast the Dawn" Leaves (x2): When fed to a dying individual, these leaves can bring them back from the brink of death, healing their most damaging wounds. It has limited scope, however, and does not affect minor injuries nor decrease the level of exhaustion someone feels.

[Blake Oleander]

Blake's hand closed around the leaves gently as he leaned in to kiss her, less gently.

[Bailey Oleander]

Bailey's arms wrapped around Blake's neck, returning the kiss with a fierceness that surprised even her.

"I love you."

[Blake Oleander]

He wrapped his other arm around her, holding her snugly.

"I love you too."