A twig snapped as Gigi pushed it aside, moving through the tangle of trees. The dirt was soft and cool beneath her feet. Around her, a breeze whistled seeming to sing along to the melody that rose from the camp. She descended a small embankment onto a pebbly strip of sand. On either side of her the narrow beach stretched out, running along the water.

The sun was lowering behind her, evening rising from the edge of the sea before her. Gigi breathed in the scent of the ocean, the salty smell so familiar to her that her heart ached. With the world still and peaceful around her, she stood there, savoring it all. She dug her toes into the damp ground, storing up the feel of it wedged between them.

Water skidded up and wrapped around her ankles before returning to travel to some other part of the world. The feel of it was silky, like the finest clothes she had worn. But standing there, in a threadbare skirt and homespun shirt she never wanted to leave.

But it was what she had to do.

Raif had left the morning after their arrival. Everyone had been sad to see him leave, his teasing manner and reckless ways making it feel as if he were one of them. When he had said goodbye to Gigi, he had told her that no matter where she went, if she ever needed him he would come.

A part of her had wanted to blurt out her problem to him, knowing he could solve it. Wanting him to so she wouldn't have to face her grandparents.

But she didn't. She knew it was her place to protect her family, not his. Besides, he had a wandering soul like her and she knew she could never do anything to trap it. The only consolation she had was knowing she would see him again. Knowing that when she did he would know the truth and she would have a true friend.

With a smile that hid so much of her grief, she waved goodbye, wishing him clear skies. The same smile had carried her through the remaining days with her family. At times she saw her mother watching her as if trying to see what thoughts filled her head. If she wondered about the past months she never spoke of it, giving Gigi space to speak if she needed to.

The days passed as if nothing had ever changed. No one talked about her leaving. Instead of patching the crack in her heart it hurt more knowing that they wouldn't understand why she would leave again.

She had to leave though. There was no way around it. Living with her grandparents had taught her that they had power and money, enough to get their way in any matter. As she went through each day she struggled with telling her parents or not. Wondering if it would make them proud or force them to do something rash like making her stay, telling her they would find a way out of it. But she wasn't a fool, spending time in the palace had changed that. It was her life or the livelihoods of all the people she loved.

There was no choice. She would never do that to them.

A seagull swooped overhead, calling out to Gigi. She looked up, watching as it glided on the wind, free from even the laws that held her down. The waves built, rolled and crashed in front of her, the sound echoing the churning of her own thoughts.

She knew to leave without any reason would be devastating to her parents and so she would leave a note explaining it all. They would find it by the time it was too late to change anything. In some ways, she hoped when they read it they would be proud of her, but she knew that more than that they would be heartbroken.

Gigi gripped her skirt, hating how much it would affect them. Already knowing the words she would write. Words that would be read over and over again. She had to leave. Even though that act felt as easy as tearing out her own heart. Part of her knew it would feel that way.

A branch groaned under someone's hand and Gigi released her skirt, smoothing out her expression. Huck jumped onto the beach and took up a spot beside her. His hands were stuffed into his pockets and some part of Gigi wanted to cry, the act was so much a part of who he was and it was something she wouldn't see again.

She didn't know how he would handle her leaving. In her mind, she could see him chasing after her and calling her foolish for not telling them, for accepting her fate without a second thought. Another side of her could see him silently taking the news and hating her in his heart, pushing away the memories of growing up together so it couldn't hurt him.

"You're different," Huck said, banishing the quiet.

Gigi glanced at him but he was staring off into the sea as if he didn't want her to see how much he felt this change.

"I know," she said.

They were silent, letting the sounds of the world fill the void. Like her mother, Huck had been watching her, seeing what mannerisms she used and whether she would put on airs. Gigi never had, she knew to her core who the true noble men and women of the world were and it wasn't the ones that were dressed up in jewels and finery.

"Was it worth it?" Huck asked.

The question caught Gigi off guard. They hadn't talked about her time away before and she didn't know if she could answer the question. The clothes and the balls weren't worth it. But the people...

She had met Davin, Raif...Thayer.

Just thinking of his warm brown eyes made Gigi's heart heavy. At times she would think she saw him in the face of one of the men in the camp but she would blink and the image would vanish. As each day had passed she had hoped the pain would lessen but it never had.

It hurt more than before. She knew it was because she would be forced to see him, but not touch him. Not able to share with him the pieces of herself that no one else knew. Would not be able to see that smile that reminded her of freedom.

"I regret leaving you," she said because it was the truth and the best answer she could give.

"Why did you stay?"

"I thought I was happy."

Huck turned on her, his calm expression gone.

"If you weren't, you could have come home sooner." Gigi opened her mouth but he went on. "You didn't see what having you gone did to your parents, I did. I saw how it grieved them. I saw how they looked to the roads as if expecting to see you return any day."

Gigi's throat tightened at the image, seeing so clearly how her mother would go through her days distracted, eyes always turning away from her tasks at the barest hint of hooves or footsteps. She could see her father's face lined with thoughts that he would never unburden on someone else, knowing they didn't need to know his troubles.

"You left Gigi without thinking about how it affected us. We missed you. It hurt us. One day you're riding with your mother to pay respects to her brother, promising you'll return. But you didn't! You left us. You left me!"

Tears were running freely down Gigi's cheeks. Her chest was tight with guilt and the thoughts of the future were like a brick in her stomach.

"Huck." His name escaped her throat in a broken choke.

At her obvious grief, Huck's rigid posture and storming face softened.

"I'm sorry," she said, speaking through her tears. "I wish I had never been selfish. I wish I never left. I wish I had never hurt you. But I did and I am so sorry. Forgive me, Huck. I can't bear to have you hate me."

"I don't hate you," he said, his voice gentle. "I am at a lost for why it was worth it."

Gripping his arm, Gigi hung her head.

"It wasn't..." she breathed out, "it wasn't worth anything. I am worse off than before. I wish I had never gone."

Huck squeezed her shoulder, forcing her to look up at him.

"What happened?" he asked.

Wiping her eyes, she took in a breath. For a second her confession sat on her lips but she bottled it up. Instead, she said four small words. Words that made tears so easy to reach. Words that were comfort and pain.

"I fell in love."

It was the truth she knew she could share and one that held equal weight. Huck seemed to recoil at the thought of Gigi falling for a nobleman but she held onto his arm.

"Don't worry," she said, "he was someone worth loving. He wasn't like the rest. He isn't like the rest."

At her reassurance, Huck relaxed.

"Who is he?" he asked.

Gigi shook her head. "Someone that can never be mine. He is promised to another. I made the mistake of forgetting that. My heart is as foolish as I am."

She gave him a weak, watery smile. Huck frowned as if feeling her heartache.

"Gigi-"

She squeezed his wrist.

"Please don't say anything, Huck. I was wrong in so many ways, this just happened to be one of them."

Huck nodded though she could see words building in his throat. He swallowed them down.

"I'm happy you're home," he said.

"As am I." The words seem to cost Gigi everything, tears climbing up again.

"I am sorry you hurt and wish I could chase your sorrow away," he said in Eldin. The phrase spoken as gentle as a kiss.

"I thank you, friend," Gigi responded in kind.

Huck took a step back towards the camp but stopped when she made no sign of following.

"Are you coming back?" he asked.

It was a question that was simple but to Gigi, it hurt because there were two answers.

"Yes, I simply need a moment."

Worried, Huck didn't move.

"I am fine, Huck. I don't want to concern my mother with tears, that is all."

He looked as if he wanted to argue with her, but Gigi gave him a smile and turned away. For a stretch, there was no sound then Huck walked away his feet hitting the sand and kicking pebbles. Alone, Gigi didn't know if she could return. The truth of what she had to do was overwhelming and she feared just seeing her mother's smile or her father's caring blue eyes would cause it to come crashing out.

The water rose and fell like a living, breathing thing. Watching the way the waves moved brought Thayer to mind. She remembered the day she had saved him. The way he had been so lost as to where he was. His fear at seeing her and the tent. The way he acted towards them.

All of it seemed amusing to her now as she thought of the man that she loved. The man that had rebuked the mocking noble men and women when she couldn't. Along with the warmth of her memories was the same pain of reality.

The sounds from the camp grew, the tones surprised and lively. It was too much to bear along with her thoughts, so Gigi walked further down the beach. The sand sank beneath her feet, footprints trailing behind her. The distance was growing from the camp when she heard someone approaching her. Though she was grateful for Huck's concern, she couldn't stand to face him again or anyone else, hiding all that she had to.

Without looking around, she spoke, her tone weary. "Please, let me be."

"If you wish it, My Lady."

Gigi's heart leapt to her throat as she spun around. Standing there on the beach, with his hands clasped behind him and his feet bare was Thayer.

The tears that were always close spilled over, as she let out a happy choked sound, her hands flying to her mouth. Thayer closed the distance between them, a gentle finger brushing away the unruly tears.

"Do you wish for me to leave?" he asked.

Gigi's eyes glistened as she shook her head, speechless. The very sight of him stole her very breath away. Wanting to make sure he was real, she placed a hand on his chest, feeling his quickening heartbeat. He was warm and that warmth seemed to spread throughout her, jolting her heart.

All she could do was stare as if she had never seen him before. His skin was tan, his jaw rough with a day worth of growth, his hair unkempt and his shirt unbuttoned at the top. Somehow she felt herself falling for him all over again, in love with this disheveled person. She curled her fingers around his shirt as if she could keep him there forever.

"Never leave," she whispered.

Thayer smiled, that smile that brought her own out. That smile that said so much without saying anything at all.

"If you wish it, I will do it, Gigi," he said.

He took her hand and kissed the palm, his lips sending her body humming. Her fingers brushed his jaw, the stubble tickling her skin. Thayer never took his eyes off her, as lost in her as she was in him.

"You're not wearing any shoes," she said.

"That is because I encountered a vagabond who climbed into a fountain barefoot and I have never been the same since."

Laughing, Gigi wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him, pressing her body into his. His strong arms encased her, the feeling of him filling every inch of her. He smelled of dirt and sun and tasted like salt. Everything about him consumed her.

Breathless, they broke apart, faces inches away, exchanging breaths.

"Gigi," Thayer said, his arms holding onto her tightly as if afraid she would vanish. "I have something I must ask you. It is a question I have no right to ask of you. It is one I fear the answer but can not bear not knowing." He brought his gaze to meet hers. "Will you marry me?"

The world exploded in Gigi's mind. The question he asked was one she never imagined she would hear and knew she could never hear from him. Not someone who was already promised to another. That very thought jolted her.

"You're engaged to Everly," she said.

She put her hands on his chest as if to break away from him, knowing he wasn't really hers. Thayer didn't let her go, though his expression was puzzled.

"I never announced it," he said.

Another shock hit Gigi.

"But the final ball..."

"My father wished that I make the announcement but I never did. I thought you knew."

She shook her head. "I couldn't bear to hear you say it so I left." A frown crossed Gigi's face. "That night at the fountain, you said your parents wished you to marry her."

"That is what they wished but I thought you knew I had never laid truth to the rumors." He cupped her cheek. "That night I wanted to know if you would truly leave the Court, if you did then I would go through with it. Until I knew where you stood I could not make an announcement I could not break."

Gigi stepped back and Thayer let her go. Her mind was spinning and she didn't know where to land. Seeing her surprise, Thayer waited, his eyes patient though there was a tension in his body he couldn't let go of, not until he knew where her heart was.

"But I left, surely that meant you would make the announcement."

Thayer gave a small chuckle. "Yes, that would have been the only choice left for me. But when I went to visit my future bride the following morning I was confronted with a lady whose heart was no longer mine. It appears Lord Davin lay bare his feelings for her and asked that she give her hand to him instead of me."

Stunned, Gigi covered her mouth, caught between relief and joy over Davin's declaration.

"She said yes?"

Thayer shook his head. "As it happens, she did not. She knew it was her duty to this kingdom to stay with the plan that was already set before her. She told me all this so there would be no secrets kept between us. In that same strain of truth, she told me that she felt for him as he felt for her."

The edge of Thayer's lips turned up as if the memory was playing in his mind.

"I knew then that I had found a way to be with you. Risking my parents' disappointment, I released her from whatever duty she felt she held." His gaze was steady on Gigi. "Then I set about searching for you."

A bubble of happiness filled Gigi's stomach and she took a step forward.

"How did you find me?"

"Duke Sayers."

"Raif?"

Thayer nodded. "I was at the docks in Taraben when I came across him ready to sail away. Seeing as he would have stayed at Lord Brixton's manor I inquired whether you were still there. He said no but he knew where you were." He reached out and rested his palm against her face, his thumb caressing the soft skin. "I traveled as fast as I could. I was so afraid you would be gone before I could reach you. I needed to know."

His eyes were earnest and Gigi felt herself reaching for him, wanting to hold him close.

"Gigi, I know that what I ask you is selfish. But I do not want to live a life that does not have you part of it. In every aspect of it. Leaving your family would be difficult but I would give you whatever freedom you asked of." His face took on an urgent look, his hand closing around hers still resting on his chest. "As my father's ambassador I travel frequently and you would not have to be trapped within the palace walls. You could come with me. I could see everything with you. More than that we could right the wrongs that have been dealt to your people."

Gigi started crying at the fierceness in his voice. He wiped the tears away.

"Marry me, Gigi. Let me be a part of your world. Your family."

The single word came out as a whisper. "Yes."

She could have shouted it and it would have made no difference, Thayer was kissing her, smiling, laughing, his lips finding more places than just her mouth. She had never seen him so animated and was intoxicated with it. His happiness was like a wave that was sweeping her up in it and carrying her away. For a long time, no sound passed between them as they shared their happiness.

When finally they broke apart, she spoke.  "Come with me."

Thayer gave her one last lingering kiss, his hand buried in her hair. Taking her hand, he then wrapped it around his arm. They walked back down the beach, their bodies pressed together, as if to constantly remind themselves the other was still there.

A thought of her grandparents passed through Gigi's mind. Fear shot through her as the reality she had been dreading rushed back. She paused, her mind reeling again. Seeing the change in her countenance, Thayer stopped and studied her.

"What is it?" he asked.

"My grandparents."

Thayer gave a happy laugh. "I am sure they will approve of the marriage."

Gigi shook her head, her expression still distressed, thinking of the cruelty in which they were planning to inflict upon her family.

"Gigi." Thayer's voice was gentle. It was all it took for the whole story to come out. As she talked Thayer's face changed: curious, indignant, angry, furious. When Gigi finished, Thayer's eyes were hard and his jaw was clenched.

"I would strip them of their titles if I was certain it would not cause an unwanted war. But," his eyes softened and he cupped Gigi's face, his thumbs wiping away her tears. When she had started crying she didn't know, but the relief of releasing the secret that had been weighing down her heart was too great. "Whatever harm they could try to cause I can overthrow. Your family will never have to fear. You and I will protect them."

A grateful smile spread across Gigi's face as Thayer kissed her cheeks, erasing the tears.

"They are a part of who you are and so I will fight for them as I would for you," he said.

The certainty with which he spoke calmed Gigi. Just as meeting her grandparents had changed everything, being with Thayer would change everything. With him, she could change the Kingdom's view of her people. She could help create a world where those she loved never knew disdain or hardship again. Gigi knew that though the world she so loved would no longer be fully hers, she was giving it up to be with the other half of her heart.

Thayer pushed aside branches as they made their way back to the