-Sophie took a deep breath as she walked onto Everglen's leapmaster, wearing a simple green dress, holding onto her boyfriend's arm, who was also wearing green. They all were. Hers was more of a jade, Fitz's was a brighter, more vibrant green. Biana wore a few different shades while Dex stuck to more of an army. Della wore bright green, Alden wore forrest. Grady wore olive, Edaline wore grass. Green upon green upon green. It made Sophie green; sick to her stomach. She hated seeing the color now; it meant life, but in the Lost Cities it was only used when there was a lack of it.

"Everyone ready?" Alden asked solemnly, and everyone quietly agreed. Then they were off.

Arriving at the Wanderling Woods made Sophie want to light leap, or jump off the nearest cliff and teleport to anywhere else in the world. Everyone's eyes were on them as they walked up to the front where Lord Cassius was standing, his hand clutching tightly around something; something Sophie knew she didn't want to see unleashed upon the world. Biana let go of Dex's hand, which she had been holding with white knuckles, and hugged the withering man in front of them. Elves didn't usually age, but Lord Cassius's hair seemed to be thinning with grey, and hard lines were almost pressed into his skin. His skin was sallow and dark circles rivaled the dark soil a few gnomes were unearthing behind him. It was like his life was being sucked out of him... Grief. In the elvin world, it was like an almost unbeatable disease. It wafted off of him like an unbeatable stench and he sort of stayed where he stood.

Lord Cassius smiled tiredly as the teal eyed girl hugged him, and as they pulled apart he took her hand, "Thank you for coming, my dear." My dear. That's something a father would say, or a grandfather, but in this case it was almost like he was her father-in-law. Weirdly, her potentially almost father in law... Or at least, that must be how Lord Cassius saw her: the only thing he had left of his son... the only thing he had left of his family. Sophie knew that Biana felt that she needed to be there for him.

When Biana stepped back, Dex stepped forwards, and Lord Cassius clapped him on the back weakly. Dex held out a flower for him, but when Lord Cassius grabbed it, it turned to rubber and sprung up like a spring. Cassius's eyes started to shine, and he smiled widely. Onlookers knew that was something Keefe would've done... "Thank you, son." A reminder of the one he lost in the best light.

The rest of the party only shook his hand before they all - except for Biana and Dex, who stood with Lord Cassius - sat down in the front row seats that had been reserved for them. Sophie sat with her cognate, and took his hand, their cognate rings snapped together in the process. She squeezed his hand tightly to fight that ugly weight in her stomach as she watched the three greet guests. She almost wanted to be up there, greeting guests with them, but at the same time, she didn't. She was conflicted, and confused as to how she felt about Keefe. She felt terribly that she hadn't been the first to read his letter to her; that she hadn't believed that there could have ever been any good left in him. That said, she was also upset that he hadn't come to them and the Black Swan before choosing to help the enemy. It was almost a senseless self sacrifice.

She could feel Fitz's eyes on her as she was lost in her own head, but what snapped her back to reality was when she felt a gentle kiss pressed to her cheek. Blinking, she turned her head to see her boyfriend smiling at her softly, "You okay? You seem a little... distant. Not 'angsty teen' distant, but more 'Oh no something's wrong'."

She snorted a little at her cognate's goofy analogy, "Yeah, I'm okay, just thinking."

Knowing her too well, Fitz transmitted, "Thinking about what?"

"Keefe... I don't know what to think about him."

"I had trouble at first with that too," he admitted, taking her other hand, their rings snapping together, causing some people to look over at them, but Sophie didn't care, "but I've been looking at this as a planting for the memory Keefe we knew before all of this was even remotely close to happening."

She pondered for a moment before clarifying, "From the beginning?"

Nodding, he replied, "Yes."

The only response she gave was giving her hand a squeeze, and she looked away, though she saw a small smile on Fitz's face. She leaned against him slightly and he unlaced their fingers so he could put his arm around her shoulders, kissing her hair softly, making her smile too. Together, they watched as Lord Cassius gave a speech that Sophie ended up tuning out. She was too busy remembering what Keefe had been like when she first met him in order to bring herself to the proper mindset for this planting.

The only time she really paid attention was when they all watched as Cassius shakily knelt down onto the ground, and started to dig a small hole with his hand. He carefully deposited the seed into the hole, and covered it up tenderly, a few tears falling down to the soil. When he stepped back, and life sprung up from the seed he just buried Sophie tried to tear her eyes away from the tree ten yards away.

The trunk of the tree was a pale blonde-brown, and the leaves a golden yellow with brown flecked spots and icy blue veins. There were four leaves to a twig, and at each joint where the leaves of a twig all met were crowns of black berries. Thin, tiny jade colored vines crawled up the tree, coming up to the berries and almost suffocating them. The bark of the tree was very smooth, and there were very few pointed edges on the wood, contrasting against the sharp points of the heart shaped leaves. It was very pretty, but the longer she observed it, the more she was confused as to why there was such a dark yellow in Keefe's wanderling tree, and started to question the brown flecks when she quietly gasped.

"What is it?" Fitz transmitted as Lord Cassius began to read the letter that Keefe had written to Sophie, though he replaced her name with Biana's to appeal to the public front.

"The gold... the brown... the heart shaped leaves..." her knuckles were white now as she dug her fingernails into her palm; the color draining from her face, "That's... that's me. That's because he loved me."

Her boyfriend was quiet, and she was afraid that she said something she shouldn't have until he gingerly took her hands, and pried her fingers nails from her flesh, holding her hands tightly instead, averting his eyes from the angry red marks. "I'm sorry," was all he said for a few seconds, "you made your choice, yes, but he made his. He didn't have to make it, it's not your fault that this happened, so don't you dare think that it is."

Sophie's eyes rose to meet his, and when they did, she looked into them deeply before saying telepathically, "I love you so much." He understood her. What she needed, what she wanted, what she was feeling, and the best part was that she understood all of those things about him in return.

Her cognate seemed a little baffled by this, but nonetheless replied, "I love you too, so much."

They then turned their attention back to the ceremony. People were standing up now, and starting to congregate around the tiny sapling. Fitz stood up, and gave his hand to Sophie before they joined the rest of the attendees. When they were close enough in range, Sophie wrinkled her nose, because the plant smelled Keefe's awful cologne. She looked up to see her boyfriend nearly gag, muttering, "Justringo..." like it was a type of disease, which made her smile a bit. Even though Keefe was to forever be a mindless zombie at the Neverseen's beck and call, his wanderling still managed to make a joke out of itself. What a Keefe thing to do...

Sophie and Fitz pushed their way to the front next to Dex and Biana, who were both crying. Until the cool tear hit her lip, Sophie hadn't realized she was crying. When she looked over at Fitz, she saw that he was too. They all were. Their friend had sacrificed himself with the intentions of saving them. He had given up his life, his happiness, and every aspect that made him human just because he thought he could spare them from being casualties in this growing war. It was a lot to take in.

Slowly, Sophie put her arms around Fitz and Biana, who were on either side of her. Her friends put their arms out and around one another so the four of them formed a chain that meant more than what meets the eye. It wasn't just four friends comforting one another. It was four friends linking themselves together in one unified, silent pact to do whatever they could to stop the Neverseen to avenge their friend, who they would never know again, because after everything, it was the least they could do... But that wasn't it. It was also a pact to stay together, and not stray from the group as Keefe had, so they'd never have to go through this again. So no one would ever have to sacrifice and suffer as Keefe had. It was a pact that promised, for once and for all to every member of that chain of four, "If You Fall, I Fall."