Epilogue

                                    

                                          
Tear-stains covered the photo in my lap. Little discolorations sprinkled across the surface. It wasn't the best photo of us, the two of us laughing and unaware of my mom taking the picture, but it was the last. The last one the two of us would ever be in together. Every other shot with the two of us, those laid spread across the bed. But this one, this one I kept clutched close, quietly crying even though my tears had long since dried. I refused to lift my gaze. I didn't dare to do it. The decorations that crowded the room were gone. It wasn't his room anymore.
A gentle hand took my wrist. I didn't fight as Orin pulled my hand away from the photo, or as he drew symbols on the inside of my wrist. I could feel the buzz of magic and of the link binding the two of us together. Temporary, he had said, just until he could find someone else. 
That was a month ago. 
"I'm going to go," said Orin. He brushed his hand over my hair and kissed my forehead. I wanted to lean towards him and hug him, but I didn't. I couldn't. He has to go help people. Has to go be a king. I could handle sitting alone in here, surrounded by boxes and photos. I could. No matter how much I wanted to leave the room, I would sit here and keep looking at these photos until Orin came back to move all the boxes into storage. 
The door latched behind Orin, and I was left in silence. Dark, heavy silence that seeped deep into my bones, weighing them down like anchors tied to my limbs. Part of me wanted to go to the living room, and find something to watch to get rid of the silence. Amazingly, I didn't listen to it. I leaned over and grabbed the corner of the photo album. Photos slid towards my knees, rasping against each other. I sighed and moved them away. I didn't want to bend them. Different piles rose up around me, and then those pictures found themselves in completely different piles. That happened again and again. Maybe by year? Or maybe by event? No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't decide how I wanted to organize them.
"Percy."
My heart stopped. I shook my head. No. It's not real. It wasn't the first time I'd heard him. I'd hear him talking in the hallway or calling from outside. I'd hear his feet on the floor and the creak of his bed and that old lullaby he used to sing. Each time I looked, he wasn't there. He was gone, and whenever I looked up and saw that all over again, it stabbed me in the gut and twisted the knife. 
The same thing had happened with Beckendorf, and I had hoped and hoped he had somehow survived. Each day, hearing his voice wore on me. Then I was kidnapped and I hadn't heard his voice since, and I couldn't remember what he sounded like. I...I didn't want that to happen with Kaldur. I don't want to lose that. Not the little bit of Kaldur I have left. 
As much as I knew it would hurt, I looked up. And I froze. "Kal-Kaldur?"
Standing in front of me, wearing his jacket— the same jacket I was currently wearing—  Kaldur looked like I hadn't watched him die. He smiled. "Hello, your Highness."
Photos scattered everywhere as I scrambled off the bed. Kaldur didn't move, his expression didn't falter. He didn't disappear into thin air. He was here. My arms passed through him, and I bit back a sob, aware of the tears dripping renewed down my face. I dropped my arms back to my sides. His smile wavered. 
"I am sorry. But I- This was one of the conditions," he said. He lifted a hand, only to remember what he just said and let it fall away. He sighed."My soul is bound to you, yet we may never fully interact." He spread his hands in front of him. "In all honesty, it took a while to get your uncle to agree to even this. And the deciding factor was likely that I am quite adept at acting like you." Kaldur looked away and walked to his dresser. A frown stared back at me from the mirror above it as he pulled his fingers across the surface. Against the dark wood, I could see the soft glow surrounding him. "I am surprised he did not clean this room out sooner."
"Neither of us wanted to." I gathered the pictures and sat them on the nightstand. "It's your room." And now it was empty of everything that made it his. I itched at the symbols. 
"He- he has not found someone else?" Kaldur asked, hand hovering under my arm. His eyes scanned over the protection spell. 
"He said he's been looking."
"I take it he has not been looking very hard."
"...It's your position. No one else should have it."
"Regardless of my failings, you still-"
"You died!" I said, jabbing my finger at his chest. "You died, and I can't even touch you anymore. You're my brother and you did not fail at anything except staying alive."
Kaldur stared at me with wide eyes. Then he laughed. Rubbing at his eyes with his sleeve, he waved his hand towards me. Instinctively, I moved back to avoid being hit. The edge of the mattress hit my butt and the next swipe of his arm had me falling back. Kaldur climbed onto the bed, holding himself over me. 
"You are alive," he whispered. "I told you, I never regretted my oath and I still do not. You are alive and that is all that matters to me." He closed his eyes and moved. 
Swallowing, I rolled onto my side and curled in on myself. I could feel the mattress shift as he sat down. Why? Why could I feel that but not him? I sniffed and wiped my eyes. "Kaldur?"
"Yes?"
"I missed you."
Well, I'm gonna go
Hope you enjoyed
See yah