“You’ll see, it’s a matter of time
Can’t keep on ignoring what’s in you
Runs deeper the harder you try
Might as well just surrender, you want to.”
-Biig Piig
Corellia
Surface: Coronet City
The warning lands as intended.
There had always been a dire quality to her demeanor, one that took him some time to understand. In their time together and apart, he has grappled with what it means to be a Patten. Her revelation had not deterred his love for her or diminished the great lengths she had gone to protect him. Instead of protesting, he moves forward and embraces her. He was once a boy, someone who fits neatly into her arms, now a man whose arms encircle the whole of her.
Riley takes a step back and directs them to the chairs nearby where they sit beside each other, her hands in his.
“Aunt Mara,” he begins with a smile. “Thank you for always putting my safety first even if it seems as though I do not appreciate or deserve it. I would not be here without you. I want you to know that I do not believe this life is guaranteed or that, through these plans, I would squander it so casually. The contingency is just that – a contingency. In case of emergency. In case we fail to stop Adubell or the Voss-Ra. I know what she is, what they are, and that this has been in motion far longer than any of us.”
He looks away briefly but returns his gaze to the grave expression on her face.
“I also know that in the prophecy there are loopholes. I am one of them. The reason the cycle began again. The reason so many have died in the name of that prophecy as others have again used it to their advantage and agenda. As much as I do not want this to be the case – as much as I want us to survive – we must plan for any outcome. Even you cannot know what will happen and we cannot assume anything. In some ways, I think we are more alike than we may have realized. You wish to spare me these horrors and I want nothing more than to end it so that no one else has to suffer as we have.”
He takes a breath, widening his smile on the exhale.
“That has not come without reflection. Taking stock of what I have and want. Funny you should mention humanity and what it means to be alive. That is something I’ve been thinking about a lot lately. What it comes down to, at least for me, is honor, integrity, respect, and love.
Whatever happens in this life, I know that I do not want to experience it alone…which is why I asked Gemma to marry me and she accepted my proposal.”
He feels her hands tighten in his. Even though he has all the credits in the worlds, there is no time for such a spectacle. The grand wedding of their dreams. There may be greater dangers to face together but he and Gemma would declare their love for one another in front of those closest to them, at least the ones who could reasonably do so. He laughs, in spite of everything, because his heart is full. He has Mara, Gemma, his friends, his mentor, his duty, and, for the moment at least, his life.
There is so much to be grateful for.
“Nothing extravagant. We were thinking of something small, tasteful, in the gardens of the Patten Ranch. I would very much love for you to be a part of that, Aunt Mara. Celebrate our humanity and the love that comes with it. What do you say?”
-TBC
