"Y-you know what... I think?"

Alina lets go of Rita for the first time since they rescued Ourania. Immediately, she stumbles face first into the pile of cold stars. Her entire body is trembling, but is it with cold? Or with fear? She waves off the hands that reach out to help her, and drags herself a little bit further forward. She's so close, now. She's finally almost...

"It'd be... wrong, to focus on Castle Thessia so much... while Illumina is still hurting. So we'll, or well... I mean I'll talk to Mom and Jess about... delaying repairs. So there's more to help with the kingdom. And we'll do... the wedding in Aurora's Garden. It'll be easy to set up a big pavilion there! And, and you can see the castle, and..."

She laughs when she sees Diana glowering at her. No, that's right. She's not finally almost anything. After this comes the next thing, and after that comes something even bigger and harder than that. It's her fault. Her fault Diana suffered so much, her fault Illumina suffered so much. And Feloria and Jedad and... this would take her the rest of her life. But for an end of her adventures, this was a pretty decent first step. Alina reaches up with a trembling hand and grasps the World Seed between her fingers. 

"We'll have... m-mi-mirror cake and, nnngh! Ah, AAAH, it's s-so!"

It's the coldest thing she's ever touched. So cold it makes her fingers blister just touching it. She can feel the echoes of the ice that sat in her heart pulsing through her veins. It's like touching him. How could something so beautiful be filled with so much hate? With a final surge of strength, she plucks it free from the trunk of Argossa before her arm goes too numb to be of any use. Is she still going to be able to use this arm after all this? She reaches for her crown and sets the horrible diamond into the empty facets adorning the top. It's so large that it eats up three slots, but even so it fits remarkably well. 

"Oh! L-let's get Eupheria to plan the reception! With... with supervision, obviously. But it would be good for her to have a, a project. And maybe then she won't feel so much like she's still the wicked queen. Maybe people won't think of her that way."

All around Alina, the winds are howling. Bursts of horrible magical energy are still pouring through the cracks of the great tree. The floor is cracking and crumbling beneath everyone's feet. Strangely, the only person in the whole room that's reaching for her is Azora Howl. The look on her face is completely unreadable. Certainly it's not sympathy. Is she trying to steal the Seed and all its power? Even now? Alina shuts her eyes and winces as a lance of boiling magic almost takes her hand off. Should've known. Even after everything that happened in the Labyrinth, this is still the same person who tried to steal Rita's magic from her. Who stole Adila's skin. She's cast more corrupting spells across Hyperborea than the entire Hecatia Academy has even had to undo before. Evil is...

"Let's invite the former Riders too, right Rita? I mean, they're as much a part of this as anybody. If it wasn't for... all this, maybe I wouldn't have figured out how to tell you how I feel. And... come to think of it, this is really all Azora's fault, isn't it? Just imagine if she [i]hadn't[/i] seeded the Slaugh in Summerveil? We'd have never had our first kiss, that's for sure. Yeah, haha, you're right. There's really no other choice, is there? Hey, Azora! Would you please be my maid of honor?"

Alina giggles carelessly while the winds almost imperceptibly begin to die down around her. Does it feel warmer in here to anybody else? Sitting atop her crown, a single crack forms along the surface of the great gem.