A/N:
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Final chapter! Happy reading!!

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After floating aimlessly in a dreamless sleep, Ravenna snaps her eyes open to find the familiar moon-pale skin of Morpheus sprawled across her. He has his head on her chest and his arms secured around her as if he is afraid she will vanish from his hold at any moment.

She smiles and sinks her fingers into his thick, disheveled hair, running them through it, resulting in him sighing in contentment in his sleep.

She places a kiss on his head, then brings her other arm and presses her fingers gently to the back of his neck, tracing lightly over the bumps of his spine, making him shiver.

Their fate is finally sealed, not by a curse this time, but by marriage. And she has this urge to rub it in Desire's face.

She carefully lays his head on the bed and replaces herself with a pillow in his arms, slowly untangling their legs, not wanting to wake him from his peaceful sleep.

After taking a shower and dressing in fresh clothes, Ravenna finds her way to the gallery and to the heart of cut glass. She holds it in her hands and summons them. "Desire. I stand in my gallery, and I hold your sigil. Talk to me."

Desire's thickly made-up face reflects in the sigil. "Why, sweet Ravenna. This is a surprise. Almost an event, I might say."

"Good. I'm coming through," she announces with a blank expression.

"You are?" Surprise dominates their face before the familiar smirk blooms. "But of course. You know you're always welcome in my realm."

Once Ravenna enters Desire's threshold, she notices how different it is from the Dreaming or any other Endless realm she has visited or heard of. Everywhere she looks screams bold red, the color of desire. Every corner is spotless and glowing as she can literally see her reflection on the walls and floor.

Sprawled across a bold red, expensive chair placed in the middle of the gallery, lies Desire with a smug grin. "Lovely to see you, my dearie. Can I get you anything you desire?"

"Lose the grin, Desire," Ravenna glares at them.

"Changed your mind, sister-in-law? Is my brother boring you to sleep?"

"If only boring and restless bring you the same meaning, we are on the same page. He kept me awake all night. Not that I'm complaining."

Desire scrunches their nose with disgust. "You do reek of him, and it is disturbing."

"Good," Ravenna admits, finding their misery a great satisfaction. "So my question is... Are you quite enjoying wrecking others' marriages, or is it just mine?"

"I am Desire, my dearie. Spicing things up is my job." Desire's tawny, sharp-as-yellow-wine eyes fill with humor, not finding anything serious in her stance. "Let me rephrase. Can I get you anything you desire?"

"I already have everything I want. What else would I need to be happier than I am now?"

"I should warn you, getting what you want and being happy are quite two different things."

"Allow me to make certain things clear. If I find you meddling with my married life again, you will have to find a way to function without your pretty head."

"Is that a threat?"

"Does this feel like a threat to you?" Ravenna asks, holding her right hand up and calling upon her powers, concentrating on sand squeezing around Desire's neck, suffocating them, which leads them to choke for air. There is no sight of the mischief remaining on their face, just a panicked expression. "Figured being Morpheus's wife came with perks. I'm no longer the Lady of Tragedy, but the Queen of the Dreaming. Isn't it lovely? What do you say, my sibling?"

"Perhaps you do contain the qualities to be an Endless," Desire chokes out, and Ravenna lets go of the sand with a snicker at their vulnerability. They cough violently, attempting to recover from the uneasiness in their throat and filling their lungs with needed air.

"Did that hurt that bad?" Ravenna shakes her head with fake sympathy, muttering, "Poor thing," letting them taste their own medicine, only to gain a dead glare from Desire.

"I shall leave now, as my work is done here." Ravenna wickedly smirks at them before walking away when she hears their voice.

"What if I tell you your lovely husband is keeping a secret from you again? The secret is buried with the dead. You shall figure it out yourself."

Ravenna freezes in her spot for a moment at their confession as it already begins to bother her. She can feel their sickly smirk without even turning to face them. But she will not take the bait without real proof. She is no fool to play a pawn in their wicked games.

"We'll see about that. Farewell," Ravenna mutters before sand surrounds her, ready to teleport her back to the Dreaming when Desire's smug voice echoes back into her skull, hauntingly.

"Fare you well, my dearie."

The graveyard of the Dreaming looks grim and deadly as it is supposed to be. But it lures her in for some reason, and she walks further.

Suddenly, the familiar baby gargoyle flies around her playfully, attempting to gain her attention, which works.

"Good girl, Goldie. Good gargoyle." Ravenna pets the creature with a smile as it purrs. "Goldie, I need your help. Take me to it. Whatever is hidden beneath here as a secret."

The baby gargoyle grunts with hesitation, and Ravenna raises an eyebrow in utter confusion.

"Is something wrong? What is it?" she softly inquires of the creature, petting it with care when it grunts once again in response. "I won't let any harm come to you. You have my word."

With a nod of its head at her words, Goldie leads the Queen of Dreaming through the graveyard.

And there it is. Among the old and dirty graves, stands a shiny, eye-catching one. A wrinkled bouquet of white lilies lies at the foot of the grave, representing that someone visited it recently.

Her legs move before her mind, curiosity getting the best of her. But when her eyes read the words carved on the grave, she is left flabbergasted.

Hyacinth Edwards

A Loving Daughter

Everything falls into place: the emptiness she felt after waking as an immortal for the first time, all the symptoms Cedric noticed, and finally, Desire's bluntness. They are all nothing but missing pieces of the same game. The same secret.

Footsteps echo through the slightly muddy ground, and Dream appears with a mournful-looking expression on his face and a fresh bouquet of lilies in his hands. It doesn't take him more than seconds to notice her, which sends his whole body stiff and uncomfortable.

Confusion flushes his face at how she managed to find the truth before his nostrils flare with fury and his darkened eyes glower at the baby gargoyle, who cowers behind Ravenna, whimpering.

"Leave the creature alone, Morpheus!"

"Ravenna-"

"How dare you?!" she spits at him, disgust dripping from every word while poking him hard in the center of his chest. She feels her throat getting itchy from raising her voice, and her emotions are filled to the brim, ready to spill over. Her hand flattens, almost unconsciously, letting the warmth of him seep up through her palm. She hasn't realized how cold she has become, standing in the wind.

He buries his face in her neck. Dampness touches her skin, and she realizes she isn't the only one crying.

"I'm sorry," he says hoarsely.

"You're sorry for lying or sorry that I found out?" she asks, fighting back against his logic of apologizing after repeating the same mistake-hiding his sins behind his charms, not giving a damn about the consequences.

"I didn't mean to. I didn't mean to." He keeps repeating, over and over again like a broken record, desperately trying to justify his actions. "I caused it all. I led you right into pain. It was my fault that we lost our little girl."

"It was a girl?" She looks at him, hurt written all over her face. "Why? Why hide it from me?"

"I was terrified to lose you again." His voice fills with strains of sorrow.

"Perhaps Desire is right. You and I... We're a terrible mistake. We're never meant for each other."

"That is not true."

"I need to rest."

He grabs hold of her wrist, and she is shocked by the sensation of his skin, warm against hers. "Then what about this? How will you compensate for this?"

"I need to rest," Ravenna repeats blankly and quickly detaches herself from his grasp to make the tingles stop. She teleports herself to their sleeping chambers and quickly walks over to the large bed. She crawls to the middle, peeling the covers back, getting under them, and burying her head in the pillow. Crying is not a solution anymore, but crying makes her heart light.

Once her sobbing comes to an end and peaceful silence takes over the chambers, she hears a knock on the door.

"Can we speak, my wife?" His soft voice flows into the room, and Dream slowly moves into the chamber.

Ravenna gives him what he deserves: the silent treatment, as she lets the large covers drown her completely, hiding her from his view.

"Answer me. Can we speak?" He tugs the sheet playfully, but soon irritation dawns through his nerves. At her, her dismissive behavior, the entire situation. "Stop being so adamant, Ravenna!"

"Did you just raise your voice at me?!" she tosses her sheets away and yells back, her eyes narrowing into a glare. She can see surprise mirrored in his wide eyes as if he's a deer caught in the headlights.

Morpheus shifts uncomfortably from his right foot to his left. "No. My voice must sound louder in this chamber. I shall leave you to get some rest if you're tired. Get some rest."

Before Ravenna speaks another word, he shuffles out of the room in a quick pace, not wanting to anger her any further.

"That's what I thought," Ravenna huffs before laying down again and snuggling up to the fluffy pillow, getting cozy in the covers once more. "Imbecile."

It doesn't go more than two hours until the bed dips down on the other side, and Ravenna feels a warm arm wrapping around her, pulling her into his muscular body.

She tries to pry his arm off her and slide out, but his strength makes it nearly impossible. Dream just chuckles and pulls her closer, his warm breath fanning across her neck and making goosebumps prickle along her skin.

"I see. Still angry," he mumbles tiredly into her hair.

"I'm not angry. Just upset. You hid the entire existence of our dead child," Ravenna admits with a loud sigh.

"I was afraid. I was afraid to lose you. It is you I cannot sacrifice."

"That doesn't make up for the child, Morpheus. You cannot keep hiding things from me. I am your wife, for God's sake."

He rubs circles on her arm in an attempt to soothe her pain and drain it all out. "I will keep trying. I will do everything I can to overcome what happened and cope with it. So please stop pushing me away. Let me stay by your side. Please?"

She turns her body to face him. "Morpheus. Look at me."

"I am looking," he replies, his eyes falling on her form.

"I am your wife, not a fragile, mortal glass doll you need to keep safe from breaking. And you do not need to be afraid, as I will not leave you- not today or any day in the future of our forever. So promise me one thing." She cups his cheek in her hand, which he immediately leans into. "No more secrets?"

"No more," Morpheus replies, taking her hand into his and placing a gentle kiss on it, earning a smile from Ravenna.

One year later, they welcome a healthy baby boy into their embrace. A bundle of joy for the whole realm. The baby is later named 'Alpheus' as per Dream's request, which Ravenna simply scoffs at his rhyming obsession over naming their children.

The rivalry between Dream and Desire continues, with both jumping at each other's throats when it pleases them most. However, Desire finds a soft spot in their Endless heart for little Alpheus, who inherits the best qualities of both his mother and father.

As Alpheus grows older and becomes experienced enough to take over the Dreaming, Morpheus steps down from his throne to find peace with his wife, settling down on the other side of the Dreaming and thriving in their happily ever after.

And with that, the quill rests upon the page, the ink dry and the tale told. In the land of dreams and nightmares where every end births a new start, this chapter closes, leaving whispers of its legacy in the night. The End.