Leo spent the next few days popping in and out of the medical ward as he completed paperwork and tied up the loose ends of the case. Any day now, a public announcement would be made that it was closed and the residents of Castle Krakenburg were safe.

He was still struggling to come to terms with the fact that it had all been about him, but with some help from me, he was getting by. He was also helping me to deal with my new reoccurring nightmares about Emiko.

The murders had left their burdens, but together, we would bear them.

On the morning of my third conscious day in the medical ward, Elise skipped over to me and announced that I had a visitor. I was expecting Leo again, and so I was surprised when King Xander came to my bedside.

"Good morning, Grace," he said. "My apologies for not being able to visit you until now. After what happened in Windmire, I've had quite a job reassuring the public that Emiko is no longer a threat, and that we are not going to hang you."

"I can imagine," I said stiffly.

He smiled tightly: an acknowledgement of the difficult feelings between us. "I came to speak to you about that, actually. But first, I need to deliver a letter." He drew an envelope from beneath his cloak and handed it to me. "It arrived for you this morning."

I took it from him and studied the neat writing printed across the front. Castle Krakenburg. Grace.

I would know that handwriting anywhere. I tore the envelope open and pulled out a thick sheet of parchment.

Grace,

Thank you for your letter. I am so relieved that you're safe. Dealing with delinquents in Windmire sounds like it's just what you need now that Janus is gone. It seems that tracking criminals was always your talent. Though I miss you dearly, don't rush to come home when the case is over. Follow your heart. I can send you money to travel around Nohr...or perhaps you can find more crimes to solve.

Love,

Rory

I put the letter down on my bedside table. What would I do now?

Well, one thing at a time. I looked up at King Xander. "You wanted to speak to me about the day of my execution?"

He sighed. "Yes. I just wanted you to know how sorry I am. After you were arrested, Leo begged me to release you. I realised that in not trusting you, I was also not trusting my brother. If he would tell you things he would not even tell me...perhaps I had been wrong to arrest you. But by the time I came to that decision, it was too late. I had been pressured to arrange your execution. I could not release you without repercussions...at least, not willingly. And so I came up with a new plan that not even Leo was aware of."

My ears pricked up. I sat forward.

"Whether you can find it in your heart to believe me and to forgive me is up to you," King Xander continued. "But I gave Commander Jago the order that you were not to be executed. The moment when Emiko attacked the crowd was the moment when he was supposed to cut you free. A controlled distraction would have been made, allowing you to escape. You would have been a wanted woman, and so you would have had to leave Leo and Windmire. But at least you would still have been alive."

It took a moment for his words to sink in. So that was why King Xander had been so quick to order my release after Emiko had attacked. In his own way, he had plotted to protect me just as Leo had done. Some of my trust in him returned.

"Thank you, Your Majesty," I said. "Now that I know of your plan, I forgive you."

King Xander smiled. "Thank you. I was hoping you would, as we have a surprise for you. It was Leo's idea."

My stomach flipped. A surprise? Good gods, I didn't know if I should be excited or scared.

"Elise?" King Xander called.

The bubbly princess appeared at my bedside. "Is it time? Yay! Come on, Grace!"

Before I even had the chance to ask what was going on, she had pulled the blankets off me. I was still wearing my leggings and blood-soaked leather coat from my tangle with Emiko.

"Oh!" she said. "I almost forgot about the dress! Stay there while I get it from Leo!" She skipped off.

I looked at King Xander, but he shook his head before I could open my mouth. "Don't ask me what's going on. I am under strict instruction from Leo not to tell you anything."

We waited until both Leo and Elise returned. Elise had changed into a floor-length black gown, and she was holding another dress in her arms. Leo was dressed smartly without his armour.

I decided to try him. "Leo, what's --"

He lifted a finger to his lips and stood next to King Xander, smiling.

Elise helped me to stand up and hobble into the storeroom to change.

"Leo, Kass, and I went to Windmire late last night," she said once we were shut inside. "Leo picked this, with our approval. It will be the first dress that has ever been bought from Windmire just for you!"

She shook the dress out so that I could see it properly. It was a knee-length black gown with long, flared sleeves, just like the dress Leo had seen me wearing on the poker night. But this one wasn't lacy. It was plain, aside from a row of silver gemstones shaped like stars around the abdomen.

Stars in a night sky.

I smiled. It would have been a beautiful gesture from anyone. But from Leo, it was especially beautiful because he knew what it would mean to me.

"It's pretty, right?" Elise said. "I thought you might have wanted a colourful version, but Kass agreed with Leo on the black. He said it was your colour."

My smile grew as I put the dress on. Of course Leo had chosen black. I had been wearing black when I'd arrived here, and I had chosen to wear black when I'd wanted to look nice for the poker night. Black was my colour. And Leo liked me in it.

There was nothing but medical supplies in the storeroom, so I had no idea how I looked once the dress was on. But Elise smiled and clapped her hands. "You look so pretty! I wasn't too sure what to do with your hair, but now I see that it just needs brushing and then it will be perfect the way it is!"

I tugged a dark lock self-consciously. "Elise, why am I dressing up?"

She took a tiny hairbrush out of her bag and approached me. "I told Leo to buy you new shoes, but he was adamant that you would want to wear your boots."

"That's right. But, Elise --"

"Are you sure? I can run and get some of my shoes if you like."

I sighed and gave up on questioning her.

Once my hair was brushed, Elise helped me to fasten on a thick cloak, as it would be freezing outside. Then I put my boots on and followed her out of the storeroom. Leo and King Xander were still waiting for us.

"Come on, let's go!" Elise exclaimed.

She and King Xander led the way out of the medical ward, leaving Leo and I to walk alone together.

"You look beautiful," he said quietly.

I linked my arm through his, deciding it would be a harmless enough gesture under the many eyes of Castle Krakenburg. "Thank you. Elise told me that you picked out the dress. I love it. It reminds me of Sasha."

He met my gaze, his eyes soft. "I thought it would."

Outside the castle, a small group of the Royal Guard and a collection of wyverns were waiting. Queen Kassandra and Princess Camilla were with them, both also wearing gowns.

The Queen smiled at me. "Good morning, Grace. Xander, I asked if we could share a wyvern today. We haven't done it for a while."

He pulled her against him in a brief but affectionate hug. "Indeed. It's been too long."

While King Xander and Queen Kassandra mounted their wyvern together, Leo led me to another one. "As you can't fly by yourself yet, you'll have to come with me."

My heart flipped. Yet?

I let him lift me onto the back of his wyvern. He mounted, and I wrapped my arms around his waist and buried my face in his shoulder. "I love you."

When he replied, I could hear the smile in his voice. "I know."

Then we soared into the sky the way my heart was flying: up, up, up.

***

When we landed, I was surprised to find that Leo and I had been allocated a carriage all of our own. We sat together in privacy as we rolled into Windmire.

The carriages took us to a different city square. It was surrounded on three sides by the walls of the largest temple I had ever seen. Unlike the others in the city, it was not tall and spindly, but considerably shorter, with flat roofs and black pillars, conspicuously open to the elements on the two long sides. A balcony was positioned in the centre, and an even larger crowd than the one at my hanging was gathered beneath it.

Our carriages slowly rolled around the edges of the crowd until we reached the inner left-hand corner of the temple. Then they stopped, and all the doors were opened.

Leo got out of our carriage first and offered me his hand as I descended. I was grateful. This was the first time I'd been up and about since my poisoning, and my legs were weak and shaky. The road to recovery after my brush with death was going to be a long one.

He kept hold of me as we passed through the gaps in the pillars and entered the chilly hallway of the temple. Bumping his shoulder against mine, he looked up. I followed his gaze and gasped.

The ceiling had been painted so that it looked like a night sky filled with stars.

"Believe it or not," Leo murmured, "I didn't choose this venue. It's just luck that Xander always makes public announcements here."

Lady Luck is on my side.

We turned a corner so that we were in the main body of the temple and approached a grand staircase. The King and Queen of Nohr led the way up it with their retainers -- including a recovering Silas -- and the Royal Guard. Elise skipped after them with Princess Camilla. Odin and Niles followed.

I eyed the steps uncertainly.

"Is this going to be too much?" Leo asked.

I drew myself up straighter. "I'll manage."

"I have a better idea." He swept me off my feet and carried me up the stairs, bridal style. He continued to carry me even when we reached the closed hallway at the top, all the way down to the end where the others were waiting by a set of double doors. I could hear the faint shouts of the crowd outside.

He put me down and watched me closely. "All right?"

For once, I was the one blushing. "Yes, thank you."

"Here's the surprise." He looked at King Xander and nodded.

"We're ready," King Xander said. "Open the doors."

Two of the Royal Guard opened the doors to reveal the balcony I had seen from the carriage. King Xander and Queen Kassandra stepped out and waved. Leo and I followed.

We stood to the left of the King together. The people were cheering and roaring below us, and it felt amazing to stand so high above them and hear their exhilaration rumble the atmosphere.

Elise and Princess Camilla stood on Queen Kassandra's right, and all the retainers and the Royal Guard filed out and stood behind us. The doors slammed shut, and the crowd slowly quietened.

When they had fallen silent, King Xander let go of his wife's hand and moved to the edge of the balcony to speak. "Good morning, Windmire. I am here today to announce that the case of the murders in Castle Krakenburg is officially closed."

The crowd erupted in cheers again.

"We know now," King Xander continued, "that Captain Grace, who I charged with the murders a few days ago, was framed for the crime and is innocent. The real culprit was caught and killed. We have Captain Grace to thank for that. She risked her life and fought bravely to protect the royal family, almost resulting in her death. Thankfully, she is still here with us today...and so we would like to present her with something."

Murmurs of excitement rippled through the crowd. I looked at Leo in alarm. He smiled at me.

King Xander turned around and gestured at a member of the Royal Guard. He was handed a small medal in the shape of the Nohrian crest, and he turned and held it up so that the people could see. "Captain Grace will be awarded this medal of honour for her bravery. We would also like to make her the captain of a new platoon -- the first Nohrian platoon in history dedicated to solving crimes. Its movements will be overseen by Prince Leo, and as such, I am passing the duty to award Captain Grace with her medal and her new position onto him."

As Leo stepped forward to take the medal from his brother, my heart began to thunder in my chest. But when he turned towards me and our eyes met, my apprehension melted.

"Don't tell me I'm having this," I said. "Ask me. After all, you said I was free to go once the case was closed."

Panic crossed his face. He cleared his throat and said loudly, "Captain Grace, will you accept this badge of honour and your position as leader of Castle Krakenburg's new criminal investigation platoon?"

I grinned. "Yes."

The crowd cheered again, and Leo pinned the medal onto my cloak. Then he took my hand in his and squeezed, his eyes filled with relief. I tried not to laugh.

It seemed I was destined to wind him up for eternity...

King Xander said a few more words to the crowd, but it all passed by in a blur. I blinked, and we were going back inside.

"Now you'll be partners in -- well, partners in solving crime!" Elise said as the doors were shut behind us. "And you'll get to live with us forever and ever! I can take you shopping all the time!"

She skipped back down the stairs with the others, and Leo swept me into his arms again. When we reached the bottom step, he stopped, letting the distance between us and everyone else grow.

I tilted my head back and looked at the stars on the ceiling. I supposed, if I was going to continue living in Castle Krakenburg, Leo and I could fly up to the surface one night and watch the real stars together.

"Grace," he whispered.

I looked back at him, and I saw in the darkness of his eyes what he was waiting for.

He lowered his head and kissed me. He smelled like the old books in his study, and he tasted like the cold air of dusk.

He was like all the stars.

We melted together under the painted sky, creating a promise that could never be put into words. All I knew was that it was the promise of something bright.

It was the promise of something that would be forever.

THE END

____

Thank you so much for reading! This journey with you has been a pleasure.

I hope you've enjoyed Leo and Grace's tale as much as I enjoyed writing it. It's one of my favourite projects, and although every story I post on Wattpad is special, this was doubly so.

Although this is my final fanfiction, if you're new to my work, you can find loads more stories on my profile, including a novelisation of Fire Emblem Fates, a novelisation of Fire Emblem Awakening, and loads of Awakening short stories.

Love,

Morgan xxx