June massaged his throbbing jaw. Damn, Nyxis could throw a punch. That thin scarecrow could actually get angry and hit people. He made a mental note to never piss Nyxis off since he had confirmed that with or without magic, the human was a deadly force to reckon with. June winced as he tapped the sore circle at the side of his face. The pain shot up to his temples, making his head throb as well. Oh, gods. This was going to bruise.

His feet had taken him to a courtyard of some sort. He hadn't come here to look for Airene. Ravalee had told him through his head that it was just to get him out of that corridor. Thanks be to the gods Ravalee could do that. June didn't want to deal with that all over again. It's best to avoid Nyxis altogether. The guy was an angry mess.

He stepped inside the open courtyard and craned his neck up at the ceiling. Everything was sculpted from ice. Arches with elaborate engravings of leaves and flowers formed a pattern around the courtyard, each shadowed by the same type of magic used to conceal rooms and spaces that the ice sprites employ.

June sighed as he trudged to a frozen fountain situated at the center of the room. Thanks to the beige robes lent to him by a nice ice sprite, his butt didn't freeze over when he sat on the bottom tier. He leaned back and instead of clear water settling in the reservoir, it's some kind of silver liquid. The two other tiers' elegant carvings matched the pattern evident in the arches. There's no liquid spewing out from the tip that would make this fountain functional. It's just the pool of silver liquid...and him.

He sighed as he tucked his hands inside the sleeves of his robe as he'd seen several ice sprites do. The ceiling of bare ice didn't provide much company and the lights that shone from somewhere behind the ice were the only reminder that he was still here.

June didn't know much about technology or innovation but to him, the lights were the most ingenious things he had encountered. He thought that after seeing flowing water technology in Lanteglos he would be fine with other inventions but this...this was beyond what he could understand.

He winced when his jaw throbbed again. Why did he even have this? Of course, Nyxis had some valid points. June really didn't deserve what he had been given but he's not going to throw it away either. He's going to make the most of it and...gods be damned, he's going to live the best life he could.

Getting pummeled by an angry human didn't seem like the best life though.

When Ravalee blurted that she could bring Xanthy back, June's heart tightened. Of course, he wanted Xanthy back. Everyone did. But if that meant Ravalee won't have a future, didn't that count as unfair? He didn't need to add another thing that he'd feel guilty of into his ever-growing list.

His finger tapped his jaw again despite his mind forbidding it. It's like having a wound that one would peel over and over because the pain was a reminder. It's a reminder that June had indeed separated Xanthy's form from her soul and that he had already doomed a life by doing so.

He clenched his jaw which resulted in another bout of pain flashing along his temples. He shook his head. Truly, he deserved this pain for the things he did. Maybe he deserved more but hasn't the world taken everything from his life already?

What more could it possibly take save for his life?

It really sounded like he was paying for his sins by continuing to live and bringing disaster upon disaster. With the War Council tomorrow, he would be required to explain how in Umazure did Cardovia and Synketros come to know the location of the Ice Capital and why these organizations would want to put up a siege against it.

It's really simple. It's because of him.

April wanted his head. Kymalin and Marin wanted the Virtakios. He promised to protect Xanthy. Therefore, he couldn't die just yet. Then again, he already found people who were willing to take the burden of protecting the Virtakios. Perhaps, he could finally...

A fairy couple skidded into view from one of the arches. June's eyes locked eyes with the male fairy and they froze. June ducked his head and stood up. His ears rang as his jaw made a scene again. He winced but shook his head and greeted the couple. "Are you going to use this space? I'm good to go," he moved to the other open arch that he entered from.

"Wait," the female fairy said. June paused to look at them. The fairy's beige robes swished as she approached him. They're not ice sprites. June dropped his gaze to the trail dimension and confirmed his assessment. Aha, a brownie and a...nature fairy?

"A bit odd, isn't it?" the brownie smirked.

A fairy who could answer his internal thoughts. She must be a thyminka. June shook his head. "No, not at all," he jerked his chin towards the arch. "I should go."

"No, no," the brownie reached out and caught June by the sleeve. "Eldan and I wanted to thank you."

June's breath hitched. Eldan—

The brownie cocked her head to the fountain June had just left. "Perhaps we can sit down?" she said. "We could get more acquainted that way."

June rolled his shoulders. Wouldn't hurt, right? The brownie led him back to the fountain and sat him at the bottom tier again. The couple remained standing. Was this some sort of interrogation?

"No, it's not," the brownie said with a playful smile. Ugh, she read his thoughts again. "I'm Airese, Xanthy and Ravalee's mother."

June was very careful to not widen his eyes too much. This was a surprise. Did Xanthy know her parents were alive?

"She does," Airese nodded. "I'm thankful that I was able to meet her before she..."

June knew what came after that. He nodded, the pain of his jaw now spreading to his neck. Oh, gods. What did Nyxis hit him with? "Well, what did you want to talk to me about?" He crossed his legs at the ankles to prevent them from shaking. "You don't even know me."

"Oh, I know all about you, June Sylkrana," Eldan crossed his arms as a grin spread across his face. His windswept khaki hair made June's heart twinge. It reminded him of Xanthy all over again.

Well, June was used to people knowing all about him these days. "What do you think, then?" he said. "Do I deserve to die now?"

Airese shook her head as she took her place beside June by the fountain's bottom tier. "It was never a fair childhood and a fair situation. Xanthy hoped you'd be able to move past that and live for yourself," she said. "She gave you another chance, didn't she?"

June stared at his boots, grateful that the ice sprites let him keep it. It's the only reminder he had from the life he once lived, the blood splattered on its worn leather, a faithful bearer of the story of who it once belonged to. "She did," his voice flickered out. "She should've let me die."

"Xanthy made her choice," Airese said softly. "As a mother, I was against it when I caught wind of what she was planning to do. But I know why she did it."

"Which is?" June raised his eyes to meet Airese's. Somehow, he didn't want to know.

Something like anger and frustration flashed in Airese's eyes. "She felt as if the whole world was suffering because of her. She thought that without her, the island would be better. She hated herself for existing and bringing the people she loved into where they are right now. She didn't see what good she had done though."

June's stomach churned. Was that what Xanthy has been feeling all along? The burden of being the Virtakios was never an easy cup to bear and Xanthy had been carrying it alone for the longest time. She must have thought that having him would ease the burden, that it would somehow make it easier. But it seemed like he just made it harder. Another item in his list of things to be guilty for.

Airese's words echoed in his head. His head whipped towards the brownie "Wait, you said 'good'," he craned his neck up at the bright ceiling. "What's good during this time?"

He expected Airese to say that there's nothing. Instead, the brownie;s features softened. "Xanthy may not know it but she encouraged us to fight for what we believe in. In her absence, she reminded you all of what's important."

June twined his fingers together. It certainly wasn't the case with them right now. If anything, they're just wandering aimlessly and with this coming war, would he survive it while being like this?

A light chuckle tore his attention back to Airese. "You'll find out what I meant soon enough."

Right.

"Ah, I mentioned we wanted to thank you," Airese held a finger up in the air. "Thank you for staying by her side through everything."

A lump formed on June's throat. "It's not—I haven't—"

"You were able to give her friendship, even for a short while," Eldan braced his hips and shifted his weight. "It's true that what you did was unforgivable and made me want to punch you but consider my constraint my gratitude for protecting her and caring for her," the nature fairy gave June's cheek a glance. "Besides, it looks like the punching part is already taken care of."

June snorted a laugh. He bit his lip to avoid more from coming out. "I'm sorry," he said instead. "For what I did. It was...I regret it deeply."

"We all have one life left to live," Eldan's voice was the gentlest June has ever heard in his lifetime. "The best we could do is to live it to the best of our ability. Learn from the past and move forward. What we have now is the fruit of our choices. The real question is, have you learned?"

June nodded. He would like to think so. He would never betray anyone again now that he's free to do what he wanted. He wouldn't want to hurt his friends if he still had some left. A hand laid atop his, startling him to whirl to who it belonged to. Airese was smiling.

The warmth from Airese's hand somehow calmed him and her smile reminded him of something that he'd had a long time ago but was taken away from him. It was... "I'm so sorry for everything," June hung his head as tears welled up on his eyes. Why was he getting emotional over this? "Xanthy didn't deserve a friend like me."

"Shh," Airese wrapped her arms around June's head and let him lean on her shoulder. The gesture only made him cry harder. "Xanthy believed in you. I'm sure she wanted you to believe in yourself too."

Eldan crouched and laid a hand on his shoulder. "Don't let your mistake define you," he said. "If you have to spend an entire lifetime redeeming yourself, do it. But I am happy," June closed his eyes, not wanting to hear the next words that came out of Eldan's mouth. "I'm happy that Xanthy found a friend like you," the nature fairy said. "Someone that, even for a short while, showed her how to live."

June raised his head from Airese's shoulder to look at Eldan. "I did?"

Airese narrowed her eyes with a smirk. "Don't think that we don't know what you two have done."

Blood rose to June's face. Did the ice just melt around here?

"I haven't forgiven you for that, by the way," Eldan crossed his arms and gave a begrudging chuckle. "But as long as Xanthy is happy, I am."

June forced the words through his tightening chest. "No, it's...over between us."

Airese nudged him with her shoulder. "Don't be too sure about that. You'll never know."

"Um," was all June was able to say.

Eldan clapped him at the back. "I wish you luck on the War Council. Don't wet your trousers when the Grand Marshal comes. From what I gather, the Council was a force to reckon with."

June wiped at his eyes for any excess tears that managed to creep out. "I'll keep that in mind. Is that really why you were here?"

"No," Airese's wink was nothing innocent. "Now, run along. There's something we must do after months of cold."

June was more than happy to be out before he saw something not meant for his eyes.