Aubrey hated funerals. Not that she had been to many.  Her grandparents.  An elderly great aunt twice removed.  Though the last one she had been a part of as an ordinary human had been a little too close to home. After all, it had been her own. She had woken inside of a coffin and started a new life. A new existence. One which in reality has been beyond her wildest imaginings. Even when she had been buried nose deep in her library books and dreamed of a more exciting lift, she never would have pictured this.

Yet, with the gifts came the curses. She had magic. Heightened strength and senses. And despite that she was powerless against the passage of time. The length of her life would far exceed that of the people she had known in her human life. They would die, their bodies turned to dust, and she would still be existing.

A warm breeze brushed past her, tugging at the bottom of her coat. Her hand absently rubbed at the ache which had formed in her chest.

It had happened so slowly and yet all at once. She had walked away from her old life and, though the quiet librarian would always exist in her heart, she now had another purpose. A larger purpose that would determine the fate of so many people.

Dry leaves crunched underfoot as she moved carefully around the edge of the ceremony. She stood apart but close enough to hear all of the proceedings. Death was a part of life. Yet, witnessing the others go through loss was still painful.

A familiar figure huddled at the front by the grave site, her shoulders stooped and her face drawn in grief. Surrounded by so many people, Andrew's mother had never looked so lost and alone. Her body wanted to close the distance between them. It would be a mistake.

Pressing her lips together, Aubrey took a step back so that one of the trees offered her some coverage.

Even though she had to be here, watching the generous woman grieving felt wrong. If she had only stumbled into another town.  If only she had never walked into Andrew's life. He would be alive. His mother would be whole and untouched by the pain of outliving her son. It was a burden no parent should ever have to bear.

A large warm hand settled on her shoulder. Glancing up, Aubrey offered a grim smile to Tiberius. He was dressed to fit in. A black suit and tie somehow making him fierce in a completely different way.

"This was my doing. If I had not walked into his life, he would not be in that coffin."

The fingers flexed around her shoulders. "And if the car had not struck you, you would not be the Matriarch right now." He continued, before shrugging his shoulders. "Some things are fated or, at least, are meant to happen. You were chosen to be the Matriarch. The Divine Mother saw something in you long before your new life started. I think, no matter what decisions you made in your mundane life, this life was always waiting for you."

"Maybe so. But, without me, his passing may have been more peaceful."

"Andrew was a police officer. A warrior of this mundane world. Even if you had not interfered with his life, there is every chance his ending may have come around in a violent fashion." Tiberius replied calmly, his voice placid as he gazed over the mourners. "Though I doubt that he would have seen much conflict in this area."

Even as they lapsed into silence, Aubrey could not stop her mind from thinking of the 'what ifs'.  For every action there would be consequences. She just hoped she could bear the consequences of any decisions she made as Matriarch.

Eventually the mourners approached casket one by one, setting a pale white rose onto the closed box with tears streaking down their faces. Bright sunlight danced across the polished wood like a gleaming beacon. Wind lifted Aubrey's short hair. A shiver coursed down her spine forcing her to wrap her jacket tighter around her body despite the warm day. It was nearly time.

She had been so consumed in her thoughts, Aubrey had not noticed the mourners clearing out. And, with it, her chance at a quiet retreat. There were many things she could cope with but somehow speaking to the mother of her fallen friend was not something she felt equipped to deal with.

It was too late. With the help of a young girl, the older woman turned away from the coffin and almost unbidden, her gaze lifted to meet hers. Aubrey sucked in a sharp breath. The older woman gently patted her companion's hand, detaching her arm from the supportive hold. Then, she drew back her shoulders, lifted her chin and appeared to find some strength within her that hadn't been there before.

She strode forwards quickly, her face determined. While she knew she was quicker than the older woman, Aubrey knew there would be no running away from this. Wiping her hands on the soft fabric of her black skirt, she stepped away from Tiberius and walked to meet the older woman.

"Deirdre," she started apologetically, unable to find the words she so desperately wanted to say.

A second later, she found herself wrapped in the grey haired woman's shaky arms. Her body shook in Aubrey's hold as she cried, her tears soaking into her shoulder. Swallowing past the lump in her throat and blinking against the burning in her own eyes, Aubrey lifted her arms and slowly wrapped them around Andrew's mum. It was the least she could do.

It took a few moments before Deirdre was composed enough. Then, ever so slowly, she pulled back, her hands coming up to grasp either side of Aubrey's face.

"I'm so glad you're okay, lass." She croaked, her eyes searching Aubrey for any hint of injury. "When they found my boy, and there was no sign of you, I thought the worst. You wouldn't imagine the scenarios running through my head."

"I'm sorry. I didn't want you to worry over me." Aubrey apologised, taking the elderly woman's hand and giving it a squeeze.

"Hush now, lass. I get to decide who I worry about." Deirdre whispered, her Scottish accent thicker in her grief. "Besides, something tells me I have you to thank for them bringing my boy home. When he left with you, I had this feeling. All these weeks I've been waiting for news. A part of me wanted to call him home. I should have listened to my innards."

Aubrey shook her head. "He was stubborn. I tried to make him come home. I knew it was too dangerous for him but he wouldn't listen. He was really brave."

"He would never have left you to fight the battles alone. He was a good boy like that." Deirdre's lips pulled up into an indulgent smile, unshed tears pooling at the corner of her eyes. "I just need to know one thing."

Aubrey's heart stuttered within her chest. "What is it?"

"Did he suffer?"

Aubrey shook her head. "It was quick. And he did it to help me and to save my friend. If it wasn't for him, we'd both be dead."

"My boy was a hero. I always knew he would be." Deirdre sniffled, a single tear leaking from her eye and trailing down her pale cheek as she turned her head back towards the casket. Her frail hands patted against Aubrey's cheeks. "I would ask you to stop in on this old woman from time to time but something tells me this will be the last time I see you."

When Aubrey made no attempt to rebut her words, the older woman nodded her head. "Take care of yourself, lass. And take care of your friend too, he looks like he needs some looking after."

"I will," Aubrey whispered, her eyes drifting to her silent sentinel for a moment before she laid her hand over the papery hand on her cheek and gave it a squeeze. "You take care of yourself too. Andrew would want that more than anything. He loved you very much."

"He was a good boy."

"He was."

With those words, it appeared whatever bravado the older woman had mustered seeped out from one breath to the next. She looked so damned tired. Her young companion, who had been hovering a few feet away and pretending not to be watching them, hurried to Deirdre's side. Wrapping one hand around the elderly woman's waist, she sent a brief curious glance in Aubrey's direction, before leading the woman away to the waiting cars.

Side by side, Aubrey and Tiberius watched them clamber into the back of the funeral cars. A procession of attendees following behind them as they headed to the wake. They made no immediate movement. Instead, Aubrey just waited for the last of them to disappear.

"How much longer?" She asked finally, her eyes looking out over the rows and rows of white stone dotting the hillside.

"Not long now," Tiberius reassured her, his eyes drifting to the coffin which had yet to be lowered into the ground.

They would come by later, as agreed.

Aubrey shook her head. It really was amazing how easily she could get someone to look the other way all for a few crumpled notes. What difference did it make to them when they filled in the hole? After all, if a grieving girlfriend wanted to mourn in peace, who were they to say no?

Closing her eyes, Aubrey drew in a deep breath before turning towards the coffin. She hoped her instincts were right. She wanted to be right so badly. That her involvement in his life had been for something.

"Come on, I think it's time." Tiberius muttered, leading her over to the coffin.

Respectfully, and ever so gently, he lifted off the flowers and set them on graveside, taking care not to step on any of them.

And then they waited. Tiberius was relaxed. Though, she noted his gaze absently roving the graveyard around them, as if expecting a nasty surprise at any moment. Though, Aubrey noted that the haunted in his expression was temporarily gone.

Her head snapped back to the coffin. A furrow formed between her brows.

At first, Aubrey wasn't sure what she had heard. A faint shuffling that could have been a creature in one of the nearby hedges. But then, came the thumps, getting louder and louder as panic set in. And then a muffled voice, unmistakeably that of her new friend, begged for help.

"Hello?! Can anyone hear me?" His muffled voice was accompanied by awkward thuds.

Tiberius was quick, his strong warrior honed arms prising open the top of the casket in moments. Almost as if he had been laid upon springs, Andrew sat bolt upright as soon as the lid popped free, chest heaving as he gasped for breath.

His eyes blinked rapidly as he sought to orientate himself in the sudden brightness, his fingers tugging at the tie which had been carefully plastered around his neck. His lips smacked. His throat worked past the dryness as his gaze fell on the pair of Atlantians dressed in black. His face, if not already covered in make-up, would have paled.

He glanced down slowly and released a yelp, scrabbling out of the coffin and tumbling on to the grass. He pushed himself up on to his knees. "What-? Why?" He questioned, his eyes staring at his casket with morbid fascination.

"What do you remember?"

Andrew frowned, a deep ridge forming between his brows. "There was a fight and then-."

His hands lifted to rub at his torso, right over the spot where Merlin's treacherous blade had cleaved through his body.

"Merlin killed me. How am I here? How am I alive?"

Tiberius stepped forwards and held out his hand. Instinctively, Andrew clasped onto the other man, and allowed his strong grip to haul him up on to his feet. And when he was finally steady, Tiberius carefully rotated Andrew's hand. And there, etched into the palm of his hand, was the marking all three of them bore. The mark of the Atlantian.

"What? It's just like yours." He stuttered, fingers carefully tracing over the lines. "When did this happen? How did this happen?"

"You are Atlantian now." Tiberius muttered gruffly, releasing the other man and instead busying himself with closing the coffin and returning the flowers to their original resting place, albeit a little crumpled after being caught beneath Andrew's body. "You have been chosen and no, it isn't a mistake."

"This is all so crazy."

"Crazier than following a complete stranger across the country and helping her to save her friend?" Aubrey offered the man an understanding smile. "Merlin took your life and therefore your life here has ended. We're here to take you home - to Atlantis."

Andrew's head snapped up, his mouth opening and closing. "What about my mum? She needs me."

"To her, you are already gone. Now, others need you." Aubrey held out her hand. "Will you come with us?"

Pulling at the collar of his police uniform, Andrew glanced behind him at the coffin, the flowers now resting on top, and the then back down at his now marked hand. A frown briefly marred his brow. Eventually, he raised his head. "Do I have much of a choice?"

Aubrey smiled softly, "You always have a choice but becoming an Atlantian is a calling. Even if everyone didn't already think you were dead, if you somehow returned to your normal life, I think a part of you would wonder. And 'what ifs' are something that will never go away."

He glanced once more at the coffin before shaking his head. "This is crazy. But I'll come with you."  He took two steps before shaking his head. "What about Merlin? It's fuzzy but I know he intends to betray you."

Aubrey placed a hand on his arm and smile. "You do not need to worry. He has been dealt with."

Andrew opened his mouth, glancing between the pair before he sighed. "I'm not sure I want to know."

**

It was under the cover of darkness that their trio reached the cave.  Pushing aside the vines, Aubrey poked her head through the gap and grinned at the sight of the scaled hide. Her reception was less amicable. Jet huffed and turned, lifting a tail over her eyes so that she was hidden from Aubrey's gaze.

"Come on, Jet," she begged, stepping inside and allowing the curtain of vines to fall back into place. With night fallen outside, a normal human would not be able to see their hand in front of their face. Fortunately, her vision had improved since becoming Atlantian so that she could clearly see the dark form of her winged companion. "I'm sorry I was gone so long. I had no choice. I promise, this is the last time I will ask you to hide in the cave alone."

Jet gave an indignant snort. Her wings shuffling as she moved herself deeper into the cave. Several bits of rock broke free from the ceiling and clattered to the ground.

"I missed you, you know." Aubrey continued, taking careful steps forward so that she could rest her hand upon her scaled back. "I never meant to be gone for this long. I promise, if I had any other choice, I would have been here sooner. I knew you would be able to look after yourself, even though you shouldn't have had to. Tiberius needed my help and, this time, Andrew did too. You haven't met him yet but I know he is going to love you."

Aubrey sighed and pressed a hand onto the scaled hide closest to her. "But, as wonderful as I think you are, the mundane humans would have been terrified if they had seen you flying all over the UK. It doesn't take much to scare them really. I used to be afraid of everything."

"I heard my name," Tiberius grunted, a moment before the curtain of vines was pushed aside and he joined the pair within the gloomy space.

"Wait for me," another voice muttered, distractedly batting the vines out of the way and spluttering as one came back and slapped him in the face. A moment later, Andrew came to a stunned halt.

"Wow," he stated dumbly, his focus so completely on the large form rising and falling in time with the rhythmic breathing so that he almost strode into Tiberius's back. "I know you said dragons were real but a part of me still thought you were trying to pull one over on me. Incredible."

At the new voice, Jet removed her tail from over her snout and attempted to preen for his attention, her back swiftly hitting the ceiling. She laid back down with a huff, frustrated by the lack of space within the cave.

At her giggle, Jet sent a puff of warm air towards Aubrey.

Chuckling, she affectionately scratched at the dragon's scales. "Not much longer and we'll be home. Then you can show off as much as you want to. And I know you want to."

Jet blew another puff of warm air before raising his head and nuzzling her snout against her stomach.

"Come on then, let's go home." She murmured, glad to finally have everyone back together.