Epilogue
SUN brEAKS THROUGH the taverna entryway as the linen curtains are pulled open.
Small flecks of dust catch in the light, dancing to an unknown tune.
I recognize the hand guiding aside the cloth, well-tanned with tiny scars crossing over each other.
I recognize the smile, small and mischievous.
A secret smile; quiet as a morning to everyone else, louder than a roaring river for us.
My eyes wander above her, dull metal glinting in the reflected light.
Dust gathers along the length of a legendary blade and the broken head of a spear.
Relics, now of a time past when the gods learned to die.
I look back down to Archon Helia Athos, to that symphony behind the forest pines of her eyes, the slight curl of her mouth.
Not quite where we thought we’d be those years ago, nor a fate that others intended. But here is where we’re supposed to be.
Here, is home.