At the end where Destiny awaits: Book 6 of the Kinstone series

I lean over and take another sip of my tea, trying to let the hot liquid soothe my tired throat. I love telling stories, but not heartbreaking ones. I hold the cup in my hands, letting the heat once more seep into my palms. It doesn’t bother me as much as it did before. It could even in fact be helping me.

I glance to my wolves, watching them lie on the floor. Athena has her head down with Fenris’ draped over her neck. I smile softly to them.

Marron continues to stroke my hair. “Hey sweetie, there’s something shining in your bag.”

I look over and see something holding the flap up. I tilt my head, not sure when it popped out. I lean over and reach for it. It’s a small, black canister, no bigger than a water bottle. It’s small but emblazoned with the crest of Shyair. Next to it I find several more. I tilt my head as it’s addressed to Marron. Another is addressed to my knights. I pull the first one to me and look it over.

“That,” speaks up Kateryna, “is something meant to hold letters. They can only be opened by those whose names are written on them.”

I smile, nodding to her. I roll the canister over, finding it addressed to me from Serasfall. I give it a short twist, hearing it pop open with a small chime. Inside I do indeed find a rolled-up letter. I pull it out and start reading it.

“To my dearest Aria,

If you are reading this, it means you have been returned to your era. I know you have questions about how it was accomplished.

Firstly, when you and your sister fought Critias in the market, a door was opened in the bottom of the winding stairs, a door that not even I knew of its existence. Inside I found the portal you described to me. I also found material from your great-great grandfather, stating he placed it here when a child of our line was to come and perform a task, saving us from destruction.

I know you do not think yourself a savior, however you are one.

Secondly, when you and your sister returned, I wanted to explain this to you, and properly send you home. However…if something were to happen to me, I told your sister to keep this a secret until you returned and force you through the portal and to your home. If the latter is to happen, I truly hope you can accept my deepest apology, my precious girl.

In the few months you were here, I came to love you as my own daughter. A fact I know you are very well aware of. As the months dragged on, and my inability to send you home, I began to think of adopting you as my own. Your sister and uncle on the other hand…voiced strong opposition to my idea.

Even though both of them love you deeply, they voiced that this was not your era, adding you have a family waiting for you. How even though you are blood to us, it was not my right to claim you as my daughter and I your mother. Despite it all, I would have gone forward with it, granted asking you of course.

You are my child, Aria. During your time with us, you gained a mother’s love. You are of this family, even though not born to it. Although I wished you were at times. Every day you never once ceased to surprise me, or make me even more proud of you.

I often dreamt of raising you into maturity alongside your sister, watching you grow into true woman of Shyair. The spark is there, my precious daughter. And as I said before, you are my daughter and I am your mother.

Yet now I must send you home, returning you to those waiting for you. I wish you all the love and prayers I can offer to you. I wish for you a long and happy life, filled with joy and laughter.

Now, with my piece spoken, I do have something else for you. Inside your bag you will find a letter addressed to your mother. If by some miracle you are reunited with her, you are to give it to her.

I have also placed your Xur’canah into your bag along with all of your belongings and few other items that belong to you. With it are all the secrets I taught you plus a few more relating to it. I know you will use it wisely, my dear.

I love you my dearest one, my little kitsune, my daughter. You are my greatest hope for the future. I am so, so proud of you, my child, and I am forever honored to have played a small part in your upbringing.

With all my love and more,

Serasfall.”

Tears drip onto the letter as finish reading it, threatening to stain ink. “Oh Serasfall,” I chokingly let out. I grip the pages tightly, rereading them.

The more I do, I can almost feel her arms wrapped around me, holding me to her chest as a child. In such a short time, she really became a mother to me. There were times when I nearly forgot myself and called her “mother”, yet fought it back, burying it down in my heart.

I place hers down and find the other addressed to me from Celes, opening it.

“My Nei’shy,

Mother asked me to write a letter to you before we set out on our mission. Whether you read hers or mine first doesn’t matter. What does is what I have to say.

When I first found you, I quickly knew something was special about you. A kinship, a heart that beats like my own. I wanted you close to me, hoping you would come out of the little shell you walled up those first couple days. Turns out it took our mother to do so.

I’m chuckling as I write this because despite my misgivings of her adopting you, I know in fact that she is our mother. She may not have adopted you but she is your mother as much as mine.

These last few months seem almost too cruel in how short they now seem to have been. In time I would have acquiesced to Mother in her desire to claim you as her daughter. Father was set to come home soon and he immediately would have seen you as his child.

I truly wish you could have met him. I know the two of you would spend hours on end with each other. I also know that Cronos and Fenris would see each other as equals and a worthy mate to Athena. Not to mention the fact that Cronos would love you deeply as Rhea does.

With that said, I have a confession my beloved sister. When I claimed you as my sister, it was in part because I wanted a younger sibling to hold and love. When we lost Tobin, and then my elder brothers, I thought I was lost in the world. Mother at times was inconsolable, and honestly…so was I.

Then you came into my life, and I could not have been happier. I might have been selfish in my desires at first, but that quickly went away the more you and I were together. I truly came to love you as my younger sister. To worry over you, to be near you when needed, or to stay away when needed. Yet always within reach.

When Mother enrolled you into school, I felt as if you were truly going to be here for the rest of your life. So as your sister, I started planning your future with us. I know you and Veylana equally were becoming as sisters while at school, her brothers often spoke of their time with you as well. They love you so, so much.

As I know Mother has said this, I wish that our time together was much, much longer than it was in reality. There were places I wanted to take you, places beyond the walls of the city. I wanted to show you my world through my eyes.

Each day you became more and more Dewlouran, more and more Shyair. In time the sacred crystal would call to your heart, as I know you were starting to feel it, yet may not have been aware. Regardless, the city became your home, and we your family. I will never regret making you my sister.

As for Athena, she is yours. Mother and I spoke of your question to her about the Bond and I know that Athena has bonded with you. She loves you as Mother does. She will stand by your side as a mother should with her little one. Just be sure not to forget you are not a wolf pup.

In the end dearest sister, you are forever in my heart. We share a bond deeper than mere blood. I love you, my Nei’shy.

Your sister in life, and in love,

Celes.”

I wipe more tears from my face as I finish reading her letter. I wish to God I could have had a just a little more time with her, but…I know the truth is, she isn’t really gone.

I take a long, deep breath to clear my mind. I reread each of them again before sealing up both letters and set them inside my bag. As I fumble around, I smile and pull out my Xur’canah. I smirk, not only is it in its disc form, but Serasfall even labeled it as mine. I place it back inside and do indeed find the fifth canister meant for Mom. I really wish I could give it to her, but…she’s gone.

I pull out the canister marked for Orga and Kateryna and hand it to them. They look at me confused as they take it. I smile softly, and then hand Marron hers from Celes. My knights then crack it up and start reading, instantly breaking into tears the deeper they delve into it.

I rise from my seat as Marron opens her. “I need some air,” I say and head for the terrace with both wolves rising from the floor and following after me.