Tanner was fidgeting in the city hall in the capital of Vermont. It was November 7th, and it was time.

Lennard and Gryphon were right there, beside him, keeping him calm. Or, at least, trying to. Lennard was the calmest out of all of them, but that was to be expected from the boy. He was currently drinking out of a champagne flute, despite his age, laughing with an elderly couple. Completely at ease.

Tanner, to the outsider, looked perfectly fine. He looked confident and cunning, ready to win the election. But to Gryphon, who had been watching him closely all night, knew better. He could see the unease in his expression. He could see Tanner fidgeting.

He placed his hand on Tanner's arm, soothing him. "I just heard from Minny that Polly is safe. Her aunt and uncle won custody."

Tanner looked down at Gryphon, and the smile that erupted over his face was of complete happiness. For a moment, Gryphon imagined that Tanner was happy that Polly was safe because of his feelings for her, but then the young man crushed Gryphon to his chest. "I'm so relieved. So relieved. She's safe again."

Gryphon returned the embrace, wishing it didn't cause his heart to beat like it did. The two of them had yet to have the talk about what happened after that speech, when Tanner told Gryphon how he actually felt.

And Gryphon was beginning to wonder if they'd ever talk about it.

Tanner released Gryphon, his eyes shining a little more bright. "Today is going to be a good day, Gryphon. I can feel it."

Lennard came to join them then, his smile easy and carefree. "Tanner, you ready for the big speech?" He was talking about the speech Tanner would deliver if he won the election.

Tanner smiled back, relaxed because of the news about Polly. "Did you hear about Polly?"

Lennard smiled, slapping his brother on the back. "She's safe, for now. Yes. Things are coming together perfectly."

"I'm surprised she's not here tonight, actually."

Lennard turned to look at the new comer, shocked to find Alex standing there, a champagne flute in his own hand. He looked older than his age, but then again, so did Lennard. The twin addressed him silently for a moment, and then he smiled. "Well, I imagine she's rejoicing with her family." Then, Lennard faltered for a moment. "I wasn't aware you knew Polly."

Alex stuffed one hand in his pocket, sipping from the champagne flute. He eyed Tanner, and then Gryphon, though he didn't know him. "Tanner, nice to see you again."

Tanner nodded his head, though he said nothing. Then, Alex focused back on Tanner, and slipped a grin towards him. "I'll have you know, Polly was to be my wife."

Lennard's grip on his own champagne flute went weak. "Your wife? You do know she's... gay, right?"

Alex tipped his head back and let out a loud laugh. "Good god, Lennard. I'm not daft, or course I know she's gay. Her mother wanted me to marry her in exchange for her publication. It was a very sweet deal indeed, only Polly went back to live with her aunt and uncle. A shame, really."

Tanner's eyes narrowed, and his mouth twisted into something cruel. "Polly moving back in with the people who care for her wellbeing isn't a shame, Alex. Watch your mouth."

Alex let out another laugh at Tanner. "I was joking, Tanner. Relax. I never knew you as someone who riled easily."

Gryphon put his hand on Tanner's arm again, easing him. Lennard spoke next instead, taking Alex's interest away from Tanner and Gryphon. "Her publication? What for?"

Alex glanced around for a moment, and then leaned in. "I have an interest in writing about corruption in politics. And a well known, popular publication would have been the perfect place for that. I also wanted Polly to do an art piece for it, but she left too soon. And, it doesn't matter, because I won't get her mother's publication anyway."

Lennard was taken aback that Alex even knew Polly. It was strange how small their world actually was, and how Polly seemed to be at the middle of it all. She had connected them all together, and it was strange that one girl could do that. How she could bring together a makeshift family of teenagers.

Lennard smiled at the thought. A family, a real family.

"Well, I can assure you, when Tanner wins, she'll probably marry her girlfriend Kenzie."

Alex tipped his head towards Lennard in respect. "I wasn't aware she had a girlfriend, but I hope the best for her. Again, I'm surprised she isn't here." He looked around the room again, and then his expression soured.

"Yes, your father is here," Lennard ventured, "and I'm glad to see you still don't support him."
Alex turned back towards Lennard, his disgust clear on his face. "Alright, enough polite, political talk. God, I forgot why I hated these functions so much. My father is an asshole, but he's going to become worse when he loses tonight. And he will lose - I've seen the ratings. I'd stay far from him, if I were you."
"Your father doesn't scare us, Alex."

"Not yet," Alex grumbled, tightening his hold on the champagne flute. He turned to Tanner then, warning in his eyes. "When you win tonight, it won't be over. Trust that my father will come for you, continuously and relentlessly. Your father... may not. You're still his golden child, even if you went against him. My father however doesn't care for you too much. And will make you life in office a living hell."

Tanner opened his mouth to make a remark, but there was no time. Alex was slipping through the crowd, and then someone was at the podium in the front of the room, speaking. Tanner was hearing the words, but not listening. His heart was pounding, and he was suddenly nervous.

He felt Gryphon reach for his hand, and he took it without looking at the boy beside him. He squeezed Gryphon's hand, thankful for his presence, and tried to focus.

"Almost all the ballots have been counted, and we are minutes away from announcing our next governor!" A cheer rose up in the room, boisterous and loud. From across the room, Tanner made eye contact with his father. Dillard raised his own champagne flute and smiled. Congratulatory. Tanner knew that move from his childhood, but it was wrong. Something was wrong.

He elbowed Lennard. "Father just congratulated me. Why on earth would he do that already?"

Lennard caught the anxious tone of voice from Tanner and looked until he too found his father. The man wasn't looking their way, but already he could see the look on his face. The strain. The weight of losing, already etched into his features.

"He can't already know, unless he botched it on purpose. Unless..." Lennard suddenly stormed forward, towards their father, his suspicions high. Why would he lose on purpose? Why would he give them the win?

Before he could reach half way across the room, the man was at the podium again, and a countdown had begun. It made Lennard pause, enough so that he stopped walking entirely and looked at Tanner. This was it. This was it.

The man at the podium had an envelope in his hand, and he was waving it around. The room was excited, but grew quiet. Lennard shifted his gaze back to Tanner, his breath caught in his throat. Both brothers looked at each other, and they knew this was it: all their hard work was about to be over.

"This has been a long campaign," the man at the podium said, "but it with is with great honor that I announce our next Governor. Drum roll, please."

Lennard wasn't sure just how many elections had drum rolls, but it didn't matter. He crossed the room towards Tanner, trying to reach him before the man opened the envelope, but it was too late. Too many people in between.

"And, our next Governor is... Mr. Tanner Higgins!"

The room erupted, and then Lennard was running to hug Tanner, crushing his brother in a tight grip, tears ready to run down his face. "I can't believe we did it... I can't believe we did it!" But, there wasn't a lot of time to hug, and both knew this. When they drew apart, Tanner grinned back at his brother.

"You did this for me, Lennard. You truly believed in me."

There was a moment before Lennard felt his heart break for his older brother, the boy who had seemingly had it all. The perfect older brother, with the perfect looks, and all the love he didn't deserve.

Lennard watched as his brother walked up towards the podium, ready to make that speech, and he couldn't help but remember the time they first met. How angry Lennard had been that their father seemed to love Tanner more. That the household attention had shifted. That Minny didn't seem to care as much that their father was never around.

Childhood be damned, this made it all worth it.

An arm slung itself across his shoulders, and a voice extremely similar to his own yelled, "We won!"

Lennard embraced his twin tightly, trying to hold back his own tears. "You made it!"

Minny grinned at Lennard, releasing his brother. "Of course we did! It was hard to find you in the crowd, honestly." Minny shifted, so that Lennard could see that all of them were there: Kenzie, Minny, Tom, and Polly.

Lennard drew Polly into a hug. "I'm so glad to see you here unharmed."

Polly returned the hug, although it almost felt weird she was even hugging Lennard. He'd never been a touchy person, especially not towards her, but she knew it was just who he was. Professional. Closed off.

"I'm glad that we won," she said in response, pulling away.

The happiness in the room was so strong that Polly couldn't stop herself from grinning as she embraced Gryphon as well. "We made it!" She said into his ear, then squeezed him tight. What she wanted to say was that they would be safe now. No camps that could threaten them, not anymore. What she wanted to say was that they could both be happy, and both be themselves. No more hiding.

Gryphon touched her face like he wasn't sure she was really there. "I heard the good news you'd been released from your evil parents, but seeing you here makes it so real."

She beamed up at him, happy too that she was finally saved.

Kenzie came up from behind her and squeezed her tight. "You know you have to go talk to him."

Him meaning Tanner, and Polly knew that. She was working up the courage to say what she needed to say to him, because there was a lot that needed to be said. So much. Yet, she couldn't quite figure out how to formulate the words into sentences.

Instead, she saw Alex first, and decided to deal with that bridge.

When he saw her, he bowed. Completely unnecessary, but it made her laugh, and that had been the goal all along. "My dear Polly, we meet again. Are you here to tell me the good news that you've fallen in love with my boyish charm?"

She knew he was joking. "I'm sorry about my mother's publication." But, she really wasn't so she tried again. "Well, okay. I'm not actually sorry, because I didn't want to marry you. But I'm sorry things ended so abruptly. I really hadn't wanted them to, which is surprising, because I really didn't like you at first. But, you were a friend to me in a time of need."

Alex grinned, stuffing both hands in his pockets. "Polly, I never meant for you to become a pawn. Your mother's offer was a good one, and I was greedy and selfish. I knew from that first meeting that you'd never agree to marry me, yet I was selfish enough to keep requesting your company. You may not have remembered me from school, but I did remember you. I remember you'd been a friend to me in a time of need, and that had meant a lot to me. So much that I won't hold anything over you anymore. Consider yourself free."

Alex looked like he was going to leave, but she caught his arm. "What did I do? What do you mean I was a friend in a time of need?" She honestly couldn't remember him, or remember what she'd done. Clearly, it hadn't been important to her.

"Maybe I'll tell you someday. Good luck Polly in everything that you do, and perhaps we'll see each other again soon." And then he melted into the crowd, leading her there speechless. She hadn't expected that exchange to go that way, not after their last encounter.

Kenzie was by her side again, urging her towards the podium. "He's coming this way! Now's your chance."

She felt like it was all moving too fast, and like there was too many people in the room, but it was happening. Suddenly, she was in front of Tanner, and suddenly she couldn't remember what she had wanted to say.

He wrapped her in a hug. "I'm so glad you're here, and I'm so glad you're safe. You have no idea how worried I was."

His words were genuine, even though the hug was beginning to make her uncomfortable. When she pulled away from him, there was happiness in his eyes. A touch of relief as well. And, of course, there was Tanner stripped bare. When she first met him, he was someone else. A shell of a boy pretending to fill his father's big, unrealistic shoes. But now, Tanner was just Tanner. His own person.

"I want to congratulate you," she started, and then she looked down at her hands. There was no easy way for her to say this, but she needed to do it. "And I want to tell you that I forgive you. I know that what you did to me will continue to haunt me, always. I'll never move past it. But, I don't want to hold you back anymore. You've clearly shown that you want to grow as a person. You want to become better. And I don't want to stop you from doing that, and I know how much my forgiveness means to you."
There was something in Tanner's expression that cracked Polly's heart. It was such relief behind those eyes that told her just how much it did mean to her, even if it was hard for her to forgive him. And it was. Probably the hardest thing she'd ever had to do, but she knew it was right. Knew it had to be done.

He was hugging her again. "Polly... thank you." He wanted to say more, but he couldn't find the words to do so, and so he didn't. He just pulled away, wiping the tears in his eyes. "I did this all for you, and I'm glad you're safe. So glad."

She knew he was, and she how genuine those words were. And, it felt like a weight had been lifted off of her shoulders because she had forgiven him. Harboring all that hatred, all that pain, had been pushing her down. But she'd released it, she'd forgiven him, and it felt good. Felt right.

He wanted the same Dr. Higgins that had destroyed her. Now, he was different now.

She watched him step around her and walk towards Gryphon, and she knew that things for him were changing as well, in a different way that he probably had imagined.

It was Minny who found her this time. He didn't push her to talk, but he didn't have to. She turned to him and hugged him tightly. "I forgave him for what he did to me."
And that was all she had to say. It was all she had to do, because it was all over. Tanner had won the election, Polly was free, and she had forgiven the man who had ruined her life. But, Tanner deserved it. After all he'd done, he deserved her forgiveness.

She felt happy. She felt elated. And most of all, she felt free. Free to be herself, to love who she wanted, and to live with people who loved her more than anyone else possibly could. And on top of everything else, she had a great group of friends who loved her, too.

It was all over, and for once, Polly knew that her past was behind her. And it wouldn't come after her ever again. 

* * *

I think this is it, my skeleton children. I think it's all over.

Of course, I'll probably end up writing an epilogue. But for now, it's done.

This has been a crazy writing journey for me. This story itself was a crazy thing to write, as well as the characters.

While not as well loved as The Skeleton Boy, I feel that these characters have a deeper place in my heart. This powerful friend group is honestly the kind of friend group I want to have in my life. The characters themselves, their growth in the story, and every little detail that makes them who they are, were so much more thought-out than my other characters in my other books. And I think that puts this story above The Skeleton Boy.

I love you all for following me on this crazy journey. It's been long, but it's been worth it. I hope you fell in love with the characters as much as I did. In fact, I want to find my own group of Minny's and Tom's and Kenzie's and Polly's and Lennard's and Gryphon's and yes, even Tanner's. 

I love you all. I love all of my supporters. I love each and every one of you that reads what I write, and waits for my updates, and messages me kind messages of support. I love the comments, even if I don't get around to answering them.

I could not have asked for a better fanbase on this website. I rarely find hate on my page and on my stories, and when I do, you are ALL always there, ready to defend me. And I thank you for that. You're ALL always there to defend me, to wait for me, and to join in on these hard conversations of everyday horrors.

Again, with the end of yet another book in this series, I am FLOORED by this fanbase. By all the love, and all the hope I see from all of you. You are all beautiful human beings. And you all are the reason I continue to write on here. 

To all my readers who think that they are not good enough to write: You ARE. Please keep writing, please keep practicing, and please don't be afraid to talk to me. I want to support each and every one of you. I want to help you in any way I can, since you're the reason my stories on here continue to grow popular.

To all of my Skeleton Children who have been here since the beginning. You know who you are, and you hold such a special place in my heart. Without you, my skeleton children, I don't think these stories would exist. Your support on The Skeleton Boy has pushed me to places I didn't think I'd go. Your support in my endeavors is the reason that these books exist in the first place. You are all patient. You are all kind. You all put up with my plot twists and yes, even my plot holes. You aren't afraid to correct me, and challenge me. And you are the reason that i am so very thankful today. 

To all of my LGBTQ+ readers, I wrote this for you. I wrote this because I want a different future for all of you, and because I hate to see one my best friends suffer every day because of how our society views him. If any of you ever want to talk, I am always here. Please drop me a message - I always answer those (and I usually do quicker because of the notification). I hope that you have not dealt with the severity of hate that pops up in the story, but if you have, I hope you are fighting and you continue to stay strong and I hope you know that you are loved. Especially by me.

To all my new readers who joined the journey starting with this book. Thank you for joining in on a crazy ride that somethings didn't make sense, and most of the time confused you. Thank you for being patient with my wonky updating schedule (old readers def already knew about it and were anticipating it). Thank you for following me, for showing me love, and for supporting me. I hope you enjoyed this story, and will check out my others.

And lastly, I want to tell you all that this series ends here, but it will never be over. I wrote these three books not for myself, but for people who suffer this pain every day. For those who suffered abuse and still live to tell the tale about how it effects them still. For those who suffer from the hatred surrounding the LGBTQ+ community. I continue to see stories on here that brush over abuse and use it as a character builder, and it isn't. Abuse isn't a trait to give your character so that they're no longer a mary sue. Abuse isn't a reason why your female character shouldn't trust men. And abuse isn't something that is fleeting. It affects people years afterwards, and it is something real and hurtful and destroys people. And I read far too many stories on here about abuse victims that were "healed" by love, or were "saved". That isn't how it works. So, I wrote these stories for those who needed a story they could relate to. I wrote these stories for those who needed them most, and I hope they helped.

I love you all, and I will always love you. Even when I don't update in months. I hope to see you in my other endeavors on this website.

Forever and Always, your Skeleton Queen. XOXO