Kaeda only glimpsed the flames for a moment before they winked out. 

     She did it! She felt giddy. Apparently she was going to have to focus better to maintain them, but - she did it! Draik was grinning at her and she was grinning right back. Progress! And she hadn’t burned anything, so that was a relief.

     “Okay, I’m gonna try again, and try to stay focused this time!” she said excitedly.

     And so she tried, so many times. Sometimes she managed to make her hands glow, sometimes she summoned the flames, sometimes nothing happened at all, but she wasn’t able to control it - no matter how hard she tried.

     She kept at it until she was exhausted, then they finally ate and laid out their bedrolls. Kaeda sat on hers, nibbling a second piece of bread with cheese on it, noticing how using magic wore her out in a different way than physical exercise. Her body felt heavy, but not sore like it would after a day spent sparring with Draik. Her head ached, and her mind felt foggy - similar to a hangover. Maybe the side effects would lessen the more she practiced. 

     “We can stay here and try some more tomorrow, or we can keep going. We’re roughly a day's ride away from Demorth. It’s up to you.” Draik said from where he laid on his own bedroll, a few feet away.

     She finished off her bread and cheese. “I’ll decide when we wake up, if I feel recovered enough to practice more.” she yawned. “Let’s get some sleep”

     Having her bedroll laid out on the creeping thyme felt so nice. It was more comfortable than her cot back in Arbold. She tried not to think about anything else, as the fresh smell of the clearing helped lull her to sleep. 

     “Kaeda, wake up. We’re here.” shouts Nicolai, and she opens her eyes to see him standing in the doorway of their room on the boat. She must have fallen asleep while telling him about leaving Arbold, and now they were here. Here, in Tavedor! Oh, my Gods. she suddenly feels so nervous - excited, but definitely nervous to walk these streets and face those memories.

     “Does your mom still live in the same house?” She asks, as she helps to gather their things.

     “No, she finally remarried, and moved into a place with her new husband. It’s really nice, over on the beach.”

     She’s so glad to hear that. Moira deserves to be in love and have a nice, comfortable life. “Wow, that’s great! Who did she marry?”

     “Male named Marley, he and Mom make soaps together and sell them in the market. He moved here after you left, but I’ve met him a couple times. He makes her happy, and that’s all that matters to me.”

     “That’s really wonderful. I’m happy for them.” she says, as they step off the plank and onto the docks of Tavedor. The docks where Nicolai used to work, and where they used to spend lazy dimmings gazing out at the horizon and dreaming up fantastic features for themselves. 

     Everything looks pretty much the same. Ships are docked, with workers moving crates on and off, some being loaded onto rolling carts and sent off to their final destinations in town. Up ahead, Kaeda can see the old tavern she’d once worked at, and she wondered if she would know anyone inside.

     “Mom will be expecting us, she’ll probably have food waiting.” he tells her, as they make their way through the crowd.

     She’s eager to see Moira, and to eat her delicious cooking. Nicolai’s mom has always been a great cook. She made Kaeda a beautiful birthday cake every year after she and Nico became friends, probably because Moira knew Kaeda didn’t have parents to do that for her and her aunt was always busy, often away on business. Moira took care of Kaeda like one of her own, and she’d always appreciate her for that.

     Nicolai waves at a dock worker as they pass by, someone who looks vaguely familiar but she’s not sure she recognizes him. The male smiles at her, so she smiles back and offers a little wave, as they keep walking.

     “Who’s that?”

     “That’s Flint. You met him a few times, when I used to work on the docks.”

     She recalls the day she went looking everywhere for Nico, and she’d questioned some of the guys from the docks. It took her a minute to age the faces in her memories, but she did remember him. His hair is cut shorter now, and his eyes look more tired, but otherwise he looks much the same. She feels a little bad that he seemed to remember her, but she hadn’t remembered him. She looks over her shoulder to see if she can glimpse him again, but he’s gone. 

     They carry on, away from the harbor, into a more quiet part of town. It’s not very far to the beach, and not many houses are in the area. They pass one very small, neglected house, and she remembers the fisherman who used to display big, exotic shells on the tiny porch.

     “Did that old man die - the one who lived there?” She asks, pointing at the ruined little place.

     “I don’t know, but it doesn’t look like anyone lives there anymore, does it?”

     She shook her head. ‘Nope. Is that your mom’s house up there?” 

     Off in the distance, there’s a beautiful coral and white beach house with a few very tall palm trees around it. She can make out a hammock hanging between two of the trees. It looks like a little slice of paradise. Quite an upgrade from his mother’s old house, which hadn’t been much better than Kaeda’s little old shack in town. This place is beautiful. 

     As they near the house, she starts to smell some really delicious things. Some kind of meat cooking, along with a warm, vanilla and cinnamon scent. Her stomach growls, and Nicolai grins, laughing at her a little. 

     “I hope she made a lot of food, or we’ll be fighting over it.” he jokes. 

      Suddenly the door flies open, and Moira rushes out, throwing her arms around Nico. “My boy!” she cries. “You’re home!” She holds his face in her hands, looking him over, then she kisses both his cheeks and turns to Kaeda. “And you brought our Kae home, finally.”

     She finds herself wrapped in Moira’s warm embrace, and she can’t help but cry. She never thought she’d see this sweet woman again, and now she’s holding her like a long lost daughter. It really does feel like a homecoming, and her wounded heart aches with joy.