a one-way ticket (emma, jag, sunny, coby, curnen)

[st_ackeddeck]

Her first reading with the deck Jag had given her had pointed Emma in the right direction for crafting her counteroffer. She'd gone, on her own, back to the Goblin Market and found the fairy who'd told Jag they could send him home.

It turned out True Sight was even more valuable to an ambitious fairy looking for an advantage than Emma had expected, and an hour after their negotiations were finalized, she walked out of Faerie, her eyes haunted and red rimmed from tears, carefully guarding a sprig of pale purple sweetpea flowers she carried. When chaos of the fairy realm was replaced with the cacophonous greens of the Irish Hills room, exhaled in relief, and then hurried back to her rooms.

"Jag?" she called out as the door to their suite shut behind her. They only had until moonrise, and she had no idea when that would be.

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[st_ackeddeck]

Emma didn't want him to rile or rage or make anyone pay. She wanted him to take the flower, go home, and get to be happy. For a moment it looked like he might not take it, and she was already trying to think of what she could do or say to convince him.

"It's okay," she told him again, cupping the side of his face, thumb brushing over his cheek. "I saw you with Ollie. It will get us back where we're supposed to be."

Home. Where they were supposed to be. But what did that mean when home was people from different realities? It meant saying goodbye, and she'd known that too, but it was a price worth paying. This place was killing them; they couldn't stay here. Emma pulled him into a tight hug, careful not to crush the sweetpea. "It's okay. We're going home, Jag," whispered around the lump growing in her throat.

[st_artandstoke]

Jag hugged her hard, eyes shut tight against the tears that threatened. This was goodbye. "I love you," he told her, before he could think it through, before he could stop himself. If he didn't say it now, he never would. He whispered the words now, but there was no hesitation to them. "It's not fair to you, and it's probably not fair to her, but I love you." The lump in his throat sharpened, but he forced out more words. "I hope he brings you all the happiness you deserve."

She'd be returning to him, at least. Pyro. He wasn't quite a person to Jag. He was a name, a past, regrets, something to measure up to, at times. But he was real to her, and she deserved to find happiness with him.

[st_ackeddeck]

It was no or never, and Emma had to say it just the once before she lost the chance, "I love you too." But. "You belong with her, where you can be happy." Her arms tightened around him one more time before she made herself draw back, blinking away the sting of unshed tears.

She pinched the flower stem so it broke about midway down, and handed one piece to Jag. They had other friends who should have a chance to go home. And maybe it would make this goodbye easier if it didn't linger too long. "For Coby, and..." she shook her head, "whoever else you want to share with. I'm going to try to find Sunny?" Maybe Lillith too, if there was time.

[st_artandstoke]

Jag hesitated. His heart felt heavy and light all at once. He didn't think she meant the words as he had, but they were bittersweet every way he spun them, anyway. And here she was, giving him more flowers. She was a giver, every time they met, and here he was, taking again.

"Are you sure?" he asked, raising his free hand to curve his fingers around hers, gently, loosely, as if about to slide up and take the flowers from her, but not quite there yet.

[st_ackeddeck]

"You love him." It didn't take an empath to see how Jag and Coby were.

"I couldn't send you home and not give him a chance to go too. I wouldn't do that." She might have been able to send herself home and Jag to his with just one reading, maybe, but she couldn't have done that to their friends, if she was able to get more of them home too. And Coby was one of the people she'd been thinking of when she made the deal.

[st_artandstoke]

It was a fairy deal, and there was no telling where Coby would end up. Same place, hopefully - probably - but maybe not the same time. Would they even remember everything that had happened here? Would they all go back where they'd been taken from?

Did it matter? Jag did love Coby, and he wanted to offer him a way out of here. Him, and Curnen. Emma would handle Sunny.

Slowly, he took the cut off stem with the two flowers, then transferred it to his other hand, with his own flower. "Thank you," he said quietly. They were still standing so close, and her eyes... He lost himself in them so easily, even now. Heart hammering, he cupped her cheek, slowly, and leaned in, giving her ample time to move away. "Thank you," he repeated, the words so full of love he might as well have said I love you again, before kissing her.

[st_ackeddeck]

Emma kissed back, even before her brain got around to pointing out he wasn't drunk this time, and there weren't feelings being empathically reflected back on each other, around and around. This was I love you and goodbye, and maybe more bittersweet than anything before.

"I don't want to say goodbye," she admitted when the kiss ended and she didn't want to pull away. "But I don't know how long we have," she made herself say out loud, so the reminder would be all the stronger. They had friends who deserved a chance to go home too.

[st_artandstoke]

Jag wasn't sure why she was kissing him back. Did she truly want to, or was she being kind? But he didn't want to think about that; he wanted to be selfish, for this one moment. He focused on the kiss, every shift of her lips against his, the slide of her tongue, the way she felt in his arms. So familiar, and yet this wasn't Em, but the Emma he'd met here, so close to the one he'd met years ago. This moment was precious, and he savored it while it lasted.

She spoke when it ended, and his heart clenched again, with love, and hope of love returned. "I know," he acknowledged, reluctant to move away. Perhaps he shouldn't have kissed her. Suddenly, walking away felt near insurmountable. So he thought of Coby, and Curnen, and his love for them. He could not leave them to rot here. Coby ought to get back to his angel, and Curnen to her people. Both of them, to freedom. And Sunny, too, if Emma could find her.

Jag brushed his lips against Emma's again, briefly this time, the actual goodbye. "We ought to go. Find them." He forced himself to step back, all of his feelings shining in his eyes, free hand lingering on her arm, finding her own hand to squeeze it. "Thank you."

[st_ackeddeck]

It wasn't long enough. Would any amount of time been enough for goodbyes? She wanted to tell him to come find her if they still had time after the rest of the flowers were given away. But then they'd have to do this all over again, and Emma wasn't sure she was strong enough for that.

"Thank you." She squeezed his hand back. "I wouldn't have survived this place if it hadn't been for you."

Then she took a breath, straightened her spine, and forced herself to take a step away. And another. Time to go find Sunny.