Porto Montenegro, Tivat, Montenegro
Two Weeks Later After Return,
2100 Hours
Eloise DuChamp
"Clear. All you, Archer. Show me how a professional does it."
Eloise was, once more, clad in her stealth suit and all its accoutrements. She had been relieved there were spares; they made her job much easier. But even if there hadn't been, she wouldn't have let it stop her from carrying out this op. It was one of the few things she'd wanted, especially since returning from the climactic events in orbit.
She'd healed mostly from the wounds she'd suffered, but under the one-way, blank mask of her headgear, her face was still puffy and bruised, and when not wearing it she'd been ordered to wear sunglasses to let her her damaged eyes heal, and there was a strong indication she'd be wearing glasses for the rest of her life.
None of that was of any consequence right now, however, as she lifted herself almost silently out of the water and onto the swim deck at the rear of the opulent yacht. The merc that had been standing guard there was already wasted; Tahlia's shot had taken care of him, and any of the other obvious ones on the outside. The rest were hers to deal with.
She moved through the interior of the ship like the spectre she was, camo blending in with her surroundings. She eliminated the guards - one way or another - with silent efficiency. The vessel was big enough to have an 'operations room' of sorts, as well as its' bridge. There, she slotted one of Sam's clever devices into the yacht's computers, and it went to work.
Then it was time for the main reason she was there.
In the yacht's absurdly luxurious main lounge, Spectre relaxed in one of a pair of high-backed, scarlet upholstered chairs. Opposite them sat the man he'd come to meet. He was aged, but in a fine way. Noble brows, a refined point of a nose, and similarly pointed chin under fine cheekbones. His silver-grey hair was meticulously combed back without a single hair out of place, and a short ponytail hung above the collar of his saville row suit. Despite his age, his steely grey eyes glimmered with the light of intelligence and an active mind, and his voice was firm and strong. Despite the strings he had to pull and the resources at his disposal, few people knew his real name and instead he mostly went by his nickname or 'trade name'; Zero.
The two men had been discussing business; with Artemis rapidly becoming property no-one wanted to touch, and so many of its former investors and employers distancing themselves, Spectre's empire was rapidly falling apart. It helped to have contacts, and Zero had been one of them - and vice versa, the older man always knowing when to pull on a string.
"Look more cheerful, Mister Hansen," he said, swirling an expensive brandy around in a cut crystal glass. "At least this way, you haven't lost everything. And we both stand to profit, and get bigger and better from this. It's a chance to reinvent. With all the information at my disposal, you have the perfect chance to forge new opportunities. The fallout of this situation will die down, and there'll be new people with new needs for your particular resources to fill. Trust me-"
The lights flickered and shut off as soon as those words left his mouth, and the dim, stark shadows of emergency lights snapped on a moment later. The formerly silent sentinels in the corners of the room, clad in business suits warily put hands to their earpieces and started to look about, and Zero's head of security made his way toward the pair of men.
"What's going on," Spectre asked, rising out of his seat. "Is this some kind of setup, are you-"
"Nonsense," Zero said sternly, remaining in his chair with a firm expression on his face. "I'm sure it's a momentary issue"
"Sir," the bodyguard said quietly. "I think you should come with us, we've lost all contact with the rest of the security staff-"
Muffled thumps and shouts cut short sounded from around the room. A single gunshot made them all stare in alarm in the direction, the muzzle flash barely hinting at a black shape on the move that was lost in the darkness. The remaining man drew a machine-pistol from inside his jacket, looking frantically back and forth, and even Spectre drew his own sidearm.
SilenceIt dragged on, until Spectre broke it, glaring at Zero, the emergency lights throwing haunting shadows onto all three mens' faces. There weren't even any windows to the outside: the lounge was supposed to be the most secure room in the boat, after all.
"Do something! This is your boat, these are your men. You're supposed to have control here!"
"Not anymore," responded a quiet voice from the darkness. It had a slight muffled, electronic flangeing to it, but was unmistakably female. Zero's eyes widened in disbelief as he heard it. The bodyguard fired his Beretta M93 into the darkness, the sound a roaring burst; but it was cut short as with a whickering swish of air, a sleek arrow embedded itself in his eye socket, and he collapsed.
Spectre had started to put things together, and by now had a good idea what he was up against and he grimaced, scanning the room looking for an exit, a way out, or anything. He started to move, but a pair of throwing knives whipped out of the darkness, one in his thigh and the other in his hand, forcing him to drop the gun. He collapsed and cried out, spitting curses, before a third struck him in the abdomen, and he fell quiet; though the rise and fall of his chest showed he was still alive.
"Well," Zero said, in a tone that carried a bitterness. "You may as well come out"
The darkness shimmered, and the cloaked, masked form of Eloise appeared, detaching from the darkness like a phantom. Despite himself, Zero shuddered at the sight; it was as though the masked, shrouded operator was made of it, rather than hidden in it. Despite her diminutive size, she radiated threat and danger. Weapons and equipment adorned her slight frame, hidden as it was under layers of tactical gear and armour, and a cloak that made her look like some kind of vengeful spirit. But it was the bow she carried that was the most distinctive thing, and told him that she was there for him.
"You know who I am," she said matter of factly, and he nodded.
"Eloise. I didn't think I'd see you again"
"You only did because I wanted you to," she answered , matter-of-factly. "I could have killed you with ease. I considered it. But no, that would have been too easy".
"You should have," he said with a shake of his head. "You know how deep I go, how many connections I-"
"No," she said, cutting him off, as she reached up and slid her hood down, and unfastened her mask, retracting and sliding aside to reveal her haunting eyes and elfin face. "Not this time. And not ever again".
She tapped the mini-tablet strapped to the back of her forearm, and showed it to him. Data scrolled and moved faster than was easy to track across its screen.
"All of your assets. All of your investments, your crooked deals, your companies, within companies, within companies. All the accounts and all that money, all those names. All of it is being taken, right now. You won't have
anything left"
She looked him in the eye, as the energy drained out of him, as the realisation set in; held that impassive look, as he slowly sank to his knees, and the lights snapped back on. Running booted feet could be heard approaching from nearby.
"I just wanted to tell you that. Wanted to see you realise it, and see that feeling set in - just how you left me, with nothing. Hung out to dry, and abandoned, with nothing to hope for. But I'm better now. Better than
you, because I have all the people that made this possible"
She tapped a hidden button, and her mask slid back into place, and she pulled her hood up, the active camo starting to shimmer again and her outline softening as the sound of running feet grew closer, and orders shouted in uncompromising, hard voices came from close by.
"I don’t need you any more. Goodbye"
The door burst inward just as she disappeared, and the Police Tactical officers closed in.
***
A couple of short days later, things had died down. The excitement that had followed the police actions in the harbour had become a headline, and then something discussed by excited voices while tourism and life continued.
Submerged in the pleasant hubbub, among the sun-soaked courtyards and cobbled passages and narrow streets of Kotor, Eloise sat in the late afternoon sunshine with Purna. The little street cafe/bar was a slice of regular life, and the cold, amber pint of beer in a tall glass that dripped with condensation was a welcome slice of it, as she sat across the table from her fellow operator.
A city that felt ancient, it still felt off the beaten track but enough to hide in its sinewing, dense old city centre. Drinking down a cold lemonade, Purna in a polo shirt, Aviator sunglasses and cargo shorts seemed like a different kind of character to what he’d been barely a few weeks before. The Adriatic town was beautiful, a tourist hive, but it hadn’t lost its charm with Orthodox and Catholic chapels alike. He’d had his life saved by the operator he was facing, and well, maybe returned the favour too. That was a new one to him. It was a pleasure to help her in getting rid of Spectre- Tahlia having to make a move quickly after it was all said and done, and reminding him of the good old days when working for Oracle meant being deniable, and flexible in approach, without a boss. That, and a bit more leeway in afterwards. A sip of the straw, and he put the glass back down, shades off, the Nepali glad to be at rest.
“Well, I did say we would always catch up when it was all said and done, get to know each other more.” Purna coyly mentioned, leaning back in the chair, the infiltrator’s eye always looking around, but the other at least able to focus on small talk. “I am surprised you held back. What he did to you was….well, he’ll suffer, if his crimes are what they said they were in the paper. And the rest..” He added, shaking his head, sighing.
“There’s always another bad guy. Always someone else. We don’t get much closure in this game, I suppose. But, maybe this is a start. I guess I learned that too all this time. A bit of time to stop and be mindful.” Purna added, letting the reply drift back to Eloise.
Eloise looked on as Purna sipped through his straw. The sight was somehow slightly amusing to her; so dainty and elegant compared to the rest of his actions, and how she’d seen him carry himself. But still; the contrast was nice, and seeing him relaxed and in his civvies for once was a change. It suited him. She shifted in her seat, the thought reminding her that she was also equally in civvies and ‘under dressed’ compared to our normal outfits, instead wearing a simple - if somewhat gothic, and paired with boots - summer dress.
As he spoke up, she nodded in understanding, that haunting look and her resting bitch face softening for once.
“It’s been overdue,” she said back with a nod of agreement as she took a sip of her beer, relishing in its cool, refreshing temperature and taste. As he mentioned her show of restraint, she considered her thoughts before replying.
“It… would have been too easy. I know, that’s kind of a simple or naive outlook. But really; all that power and information he had. I wasn’t the only one he must have hurt in all that time. There’s plenty of others out there who need their share of justice, and him getting dragged into the light of day to be on the spot like a bug with a pin through and squirming… I think that’s going to be more suffering for him than me putting a bullet or a blade through him”.
She tilted her head in acknowledgement as he mentioned that their work was, essentially, never-ending, but gave a small smile.
“Maybe there is always another bastard out there, yes. I don’t think, really, that however advanced we get as a species, it’ll ever really go away. It’s just the nature of people, I suppose. But look,” she said, gesturing around at the scene they were in the middle of. Couples talked and shared laughter. Music drifted on the afternoon breeze, and families walked together, children playing. It was a bucolic, pleasant scene.
“There’s also always going to be days like this, moments in time where people are just… people. Enjoying life, living in their moment. No-one will ever really take this away. I think I let myself get a bit too… distant from it for a long time. Life, I mean”.
Purna dwelled on that thought a lot himself lately. Life was a concept he’d only started to come back to, from that poverty in Nepal, to working in the SFSG to then working freelance as an elite troubleshooter and assassin. Eloise’s casual-ness, in amongst all of it, seemed to offer a different sort of mirror to his own face in that, the stone-cold from his own dropping as much as it was from Eloise’s. Even if the boots were still tactical, Eloise had what Purna had. That ability to blend, dissolve into it all. Something Freya or Athena never understood, the ability to go invisible didn’t mean just optical cloaking, it meant being able to hide in normality.
“It’s easily done in our line of work. Every bullet, knife, trap, it has a name on it and a price to pay. Restraint is easier said than done,” Purna added, sipping more lemonade, the sound of kids running past as a family went through the alley, before he continued, “But it’s easy to forget that living is on the other side of it. You’re right.” The ex-Gurkha noted, glass back down, looking across to her, thinking on that thought.
“I guess nobody’s going to tell you to come back when you’re told to do all of these things. For me, I suppose it was helping family at home. Quietly. That kept me going. Still does. But it’s hard, you know…if only they knew the extent of it. They just think I’m some Gurkha, in Britain. Not…..this. And the quiet inbetweens. Never keeping track of people. Until now.“ Purna smirked, shaking his head, looking around the alleyway, sitting up a little more, before glancing back.
“The lies exist to keep those we love safe, but then again, we can’t lie to ourselves. Skye said that. Not to forget what we were behind it all. And I think on that sometimes. It’s a flawed world, but we get to keep on going in it, enjoying what we love. So maybe we enjoy this little escape that she bought us. That…..you did, Eloise. Pretty good going.” Purna smiled, sipping lemonade again, knowing Eloise might even blush now she heard that, given she was letting her guard down. “But don’t go having your ego grow like Athena’s now you saved everyone. You still have a lot to learn from yours truly about grappling and climbing. I mean….take it from an ex-Sherpa, you saved the world but haven’t done Annapurna yet.” Purna sarcastically smirked, knowing full well, he had fingernails under her skin, even if he was a touch envious of her adventure into space- despite how it had ended.
Eloise listened closely as Purna talked, leaning forward onto her edge of the table on her elbows, feeling like she was actually able to relax for the first time in a while. She nodded amicably as he said about no-one waiting on her to come back, but tilted her head with a slight smile creasing the corner of her lips.
“I suppose… but maybe now there is. I might not have been born to a family, but I feel a bit like I’ve found one, all the same. There are people who’d notice if I was gone, worry if I wasn’t coming back. That’s something worth it”
She listened as he continued, calling back to Skye’s words, and she felt that pang of melancholy in her chest at the loss of their mutual friend - though, that word honestly didn’t feel like it encompassed enough. As he mentioned she had a lot to learn still, the slight woman nodded somberly, the expression changing to a quiet, soft, musical laugh as he mentioned her need to learn more of climbing.
“Well, I know where I can find a good teacher when I do need it, Purna. Maybe you ought to show me how it’s done sometime. I’m almost sure that neither of us is completely done with our adventures just yet. At least, I hope not. I definitely intend to see more of you in the future, you know”.
“Though,” she said after a moment and another long drink of her beer. “Perhaps a little bit more of this and bit less getting up close-and-personal with psychopaths wearing powered armour”.
Purna shrugged, with a small smile back knowing that she certainly was beginning to melt a little bit more under all of this.
“Yeah, a bit more of this would be nice. This family’s certainly….something, and I guess it’s a place we belong. Because I’m sure we’re not done. And not done with a bit of a break before the next piece of work comes along.” The short Nepali replied, that feeling mutual between the two that they had begun to open each other up.
“I’m sure I can make room in my schedule now we’re not hunting those psychopaths.” Purna added, with it, finishing up the lemonade, the squelch of the straw indicating he was past the ice and at the bottom of the glass, before putting it back. The sound of bells could be heard, the clocktower in the square across from their little alley going off, Purna watching as the crows flew away from the rooftops in response, thinking over his next steps of his own. Being a tourist had never been his forte, but it was strange to slow down and enjoy a place, hiding in plain sight rather than pretending to be someone else, and be a ghost. Because of it all, he had the opportunity to let his….well, shaven hair down.
“That said, I have some work with Blue Sword to go to first. With Ebrima, if you can believe it. I wanted to rip out his guts before. I suppose it’s creed that would have made me. But….we’re back to training recruits, and it pays for a bit, then after, I might go grab some leave. After that, who knows. You should come visit us in Perth sometime. Bring Aloysus along too, given it’s their winter down there soon. And how about you? What’s your next plan?”
Eloise likewise drained the last of her glass, gasping a satisfied sigh as the last of the cool pint sank down her throat. She chuckled slightly as she heard the slurp from his glass, setting hers down as well. She nodded as he mentioned his next moves, and her eyes glittered mischievously and that rare, impish grin of hers floated onto her lips, decorated with her dark cosmetics.
“Ebrima… I didn’t really get to know him, but he had my back and me his when we were, you know,” she cocked one slim eyebrow and jerked her head upwards toward the sky. “I can see you two working wonderfully together though. Those poor recruits, I almost feel sorry for them”. Her grin turned more predatory and her eyes twinkled even more, despite the lingering blood spots where they were still healing. “If you really want to scare them, I’d be happy to come and do some… guest lecturing”.
She laughed softly, before he continued. At the mention of coming to visit, her smile turned to a more reserved, fond one, and she grinned as he mentioned her beloved cat, her eyes shifting to one of the many cats of Kotor. They’d been about during the meetup, but one, lounging and rolling around in a patch of sunshine looked particularly like her own feline companion, and her eyes lingered on the cat as it stopped its’ rolling to lick one paw and then clean its’ face.
“Ah, now; he’d miss me if I go missing too, of course. But yes, I’d love that. I’ve ever visited Australia before, but it’s somewhere I’d love to go. Especially to visit company, too”.
She sighed and looked a bit awkward as he mentioned what was next for her and glanced away, watching a female couple walk past, arm in arm with one another, gazing into one another’s eyes as they shared quiet conversation.
“...I’m not sure. I’ve got some more actual healing to do-” she gestured to her still-bruised and blotchy face, and the lingering damage in her eyes. “And… I’ve never really had much time to myself. I was thinking of, honestly… a break. And just figuring out what I want to do, honestly. But… whatever it is, it’ll be something… good” she said, with a soft smile.
Purna smiled, knowing Eloise seemed to be coming out of her shell, bit by bit, this whole idea working just great. And well, maybe it was something he didn’t want to admit, he needed. Going home, focussed on his work at hand, constantly with a point directed somewhere. For the first time in a while, he’d not needed it at all, not for now. Maybe as much as he said it, he needed that himself. And even with her needing a bit of recovery, a bit of time to heal, Purna had a funny feeling she’d be back at it sooner than some would think.
“You’ll always be welcome. Bit of lecturing from a different light will keep them on their toes. Whenever you’re ready….I mean, I think of all people, you might have earned a bit of a break. Bit of a saving world thing you did up there and you have some healing to go.” Purna smiled, standing up, leaving a nice tip under the receipt on the table, grinning at her additional comments.
“I’m sure you’ll find something good. But take all the time you need. With someone like you Eloise, I’m sure once you find that thing….you’ll find all it’s looking for. Shall we get going? There is plenty more city to visit.” Purna smiled, standing up, cryptic in elements. He might have known a little more than he might have let on about where Eloise’s next move might be. A cat appeared on the next table, and Purna gave the little white and ginger kitty a gentle scruff, smiling to Eloise.
“You really do have magnetism to cats, Archer…”
Eloise stood as he did, grinning back at him, as she too leaned over and gave the cat a loving fuss between the ears, and whispering soft, sweet words to it that got a purr going, and earned her a kitty head-bomp of affection against her cheek as she leaned over, something that left her grinning.
“What can I say; animals have always seemed to like me. But cats especially. I suppose it’s growing up on the streets. I was always kind to the cats I saw”.
She reached out and took his hand to give it a squeeze on impulse, and giving the normally stoic, stocky Nepali a warm hug, before she leant back and nodded, looking at his face, as if committing it firmly to memory, and the moment along with it.
“Let’s. There’s still a little time left to enjoy before we have to be anywhere, let’s make the most of it, and look forward to more”.
Somewhere on Hvar, Croatia
Two and a Half Weeks After Return, 1000 Hours
Eloise walked along the beach. This early in the morning, it was quiet. No crowds had descended, no locals even; they’d been long done with their morning fishing and chores, and were busy elsewhere.
She wasn’t sure what had drawn her to the beach this morning, but it felt like the right time. She’d breakfasted and wanted to stretch her legs; to just get outside and let the surroundings wash over her, and maybe lose herself in them, sit in the shade and listen to the soft song of the tide against the shore, the quiet murmur of everyday life, and read a book.
Maybe while drinking something ferociously alcoholic and fruity from a glass with a lot of ice in it.
Her face had all-but healed now, a month after the encounter in space, and her eyes no longer showed blood-spots where blood vessels had ruptured. The doctors had been right though; she had a lifetime of glasses ahead of her - at least, for certain activities like reading, driving, or using computers and other things. Fortunately, her sharp sight was otherwise unaffected.
She couldn’t fault Tahlia for recommending the place to her to visit. It was as picturesque as the Kiwi had described, and she had found the tranquility of the surroundings and its’ rustic charm revitalising.
The sun warmed her honey-coloured skin, much of it exposed by the simple bikini she had donned for the beach. Nothing too ‘racy’ or ‘daring’; it was a simple but elegant two piece, strapless at the top with half white, half blue and the same with the briefs. She wasn’t daring enough for a thong in back, but it did ride scandalously low on her boyish hips. Likewise, she had little that filled out the top half, but she was pleased - enough, anyway - with how it looked, and it was comfortable. The sun likewise gleamed off of her cybernetic right arm, the prosthetic dark against her skin, but she’d long ago gotten used to its presence, and barely thought of it - even if the advanced limb gave other people a surprise and a second look.
A couple of beach chaises sat ahead, and she spied a beach bag with some belongings near one of them, similar to the one over her shoulder. The wide-brimmed sun hat she wore shielded her eyes, even with the sunglasses she had on, and it spared her bringing a hand to her brow. Out of curiosity, she looked around for the bag’s owner and cast her glance out over the beautiful aquamarine water, and the softly sighing waves.
Her gaze was sharp, and she soon picked out the shape of a person, rising from the water. A woman, she quickly realised, by the figure and the swimwear…
Her heart skipped a beat, and her eyes were suddenly glued to the sight, as the figure resolved. As far as they were out from the sand, they were already tall. Their skin was marble clear, with the hint of a healthy tan. And a gorgeous cascade of blonde hair in an unruly, untamed mane tumbled down from their head, framing their figure wonderfully - and what a striking figure it was.
So striking, in fact, that she’d seen very, very few like it ever, and even fewer in person or that were naturally that way.
The shape resolved further, grinning mouth with perfectly luscious lips, gleaming, beautiful eyes, and a shape gifted abundantly, but still in a way that was natural and fit perfectly on her towering frame.
Emotions tugged, toyed and tangled inside her; disbelief, awe, excitement, curiosity, and even the hint of anger, but it was all subsumed under a wave of joy, as she strode out of the waves, a vision like venus on her shell, but moving quicker as as she caught sight of Eloise standing there and watching.
"Well, hello you. Fancy seeing you here!" Athena giggled, holding back her own excitement, though turning into a light jog that seemed like she was clearing yards with her long legs.
"I mean, I thought I'd just take a teeny, tiny, little break from social media....I mean I can see why you thought I was dead! Did you think I was off grid forever?" Athena grinned, barely needing a stride more to bring Eloise into her arms, in an embrace, lips locked, the smaller girl squished into the endless volume of chest, both heartbeats almost wanting to bounce out of her ribs into Eloise. It felt like the smaller girl's was about to leap into Athena's.
Eloise let out a cry, words failing her, and flung herself at the giantess, wilfully smothering herself into Athena’s strong, womanly embrace. She pressed her face against her abundant chest, rubbing her cheeks against her and wiping away tears of joy. If the sight left her wordless, as her lips were found by Athena’s, that left her breathless and laughing with joyous relief.
"A little bit of space dust aren't you?" Athena softly giggled, her Mid-Atlantic voice, usually booming, loud, overwhelming, turning into a tantalising, almost crawling whisper, holding her tight still. And still talking.
"You know, nearly dying in that....thing, it kinda made me re-evaluate things. I appreciate you waiting for me. Tahlia did well getting that cryptic letter to you to come here and expect something special. I'm glad you're enjoying it." Athena grinned, putting her down at last, casting a shadow over the tiny infiltrator, walking towards the chaises that sat on the beach, Eloise at an eye level where she'd likely realise where Athena's sister had some envy. Lifting for a twin-hearted giantess, and carrying the Warhawk around meant she frankly had legs that looked like they were chiselled from a quarry in Italy, let alone flesh.
"So, we saved the world. You did. And here you are, being all quiet. How have you been? And well, what plans now?" She teased, looking down past her shoulder and her breast, bra barely able to keep up with the crackhead energy that she had, as they got to the chaises, settling down, Athena back to Eloise's level but her body sprawling out. She actually kept her trap shut, listening to Eloise, knowing the usually shy, quiet admirer had suddenly pulled her attention.
“Space dust, for a falling star,” she said back in the same sort of hushed, intimate whisper, as she finally found her voice. Her fingertips touched to Athena’s cheek as if she had to touch her to believe she was real, the smile not leaving her lips, and her eyes still wet and liquid, even as she let go to walk in step with her back toward the shade where the chaises waited for them. She gave a rueful smile as Athena confirmed Tahlia had been involved in what turned out to be a conspiracy to get her here. As Athena asked her how she’d been, she pouted and jabbed an elbow at the much (much!) taller woman, before she settled down to her own one, next to the one Athena occupied.
“How am I? What a question! I thought… well,” she humphed with deliberate exaggeration, but humour in her tone and that smile still plastered to her face. “Well, you know what I thought. Plans… well. That remains to be seen,” she said with a lightness in her voice that was tinged with a suggestive, hopeful edge to it.
She leant back, supporting herself on her arms and smiling, just basking in the moment and the relief that coursed through her, the possibilities that unfolded as this new step into the world had been presented to her, the ideas she dared to entertain and imagine, now that Athena was back in the world… and the possibilities and potential of a very different life and future was something she could entertain.
Her thoughts were brought back to the moment as her friend spoke up in that assured, confident, sexy voice, and she blinked, snapping back her attention.
"Uhhh...are you just going to sit and ogle like everyone else? Let me turn bronze like I belong on Mount Olympus? Or are you gonna put some sunblock on me? Because I think I only need one squirt and I've got you covered. Me? You're gonna need the rest of that bottle. You looked up at that blimp of mine with some envy.....how about you get to see what that blimp feels like? No small gestures anymore."
Feeling more emboldened than ever, and more on the same footing - despite their difference in height and size - she teased back and giggled softly.
“Well… I thought I might ogle for a little bit. I think I’m allowed to do that as a return for your… deceptions!” she laughed, but reached for the sunblock nonetheless.
“Although an offer like that… well,” she purred back, slipping off of her chaise and moving closer. “How could I possibly refuse. There’ll be more time for ogling. But that can come after getting my hands on. And I agree - no more small gestures; it’s all in from here. Time to live my life to the fullest… with someone who knows how, and wants me in it”.
After that, well… there wasn’t much more room for words, for a while.
Isle of Skye
Some Time Later
Eloise wore black, like the rest who had turned up. She stood, quietly, as part of the small group of mourners and rememberers. She reminded herself; it wasn’t about quantity - but quality. She’d arrived with Athena; that had raised a couple of eyebrows and garnered a few interesting conversations - she had no doubt that would be a big feature of the post-ceremony catchup. Right now, the moment was quiet. Somber. Reflective, as it should be.
Once Sam took her place, Eloise fell quiet with the others, and listened. She was surprised; her tears didn’t come, although something inside her ached deeply as she heard those words, and the memories that came with them. It was how it goes; sometimes the tears came later, in quiet and personal times. On other reflections when something jogged the mind and heart, and a presence was missed.
When the call came to share some words, she surprised herself, stepping forward and clearing her throat quietly and speaking up. Her voice was soft, but it carried well in the moment of stillness.
“I didn’t know Skye all that long. Not nearly as long as the rest of you. I didn’t share the same experiences as you all did, go through all the same things. But she made me feel like I had. Like I belonged, and was in the right place. She never looked down on me, made me feel new, or inexperienced, or doubted me. I would’ve followed her anywhere for that - and I did, of course. I wish I’d had time to get to know more about her, learn more about her life and who she was… but I’m glad that she bought all of us together, so I can learn about her from all of you, and we can remember her together, and all she did - not just for us, but for everyone else, too”.
She looked suddenly awkward as she ran out of words, and mumbled a sheepish ‘thank you’, before returning to her position among the others.
She repeated Sam’s words of parting, and then as her question came up, surprising her, she felt a hesitant thrill run through her. She exchanged glances with both Athena and Purna, whose eyes she found through the crowd before she spoke up, with a confidence in her tone for once.
“If you’ve got room for an Archer, I’d be glad to join you, Sam”.
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