Tobirama had let me be when I walked away.

I was desperate for him to follow me, and upset that he didn't understand that. But I tried to be fair, reminding myself that he didn't know me all that well, and acted in the way he believed was correct. I had walked away, and he believed I needed to be alone for a while, and so had let me be.

I let everything I'd learned spiral round and round in my head. One of us has to die... I would give up my sword for him in a heartbeat. But I knew he wouldn't accept it. He had all the power here, and that filled me with so much frustration, I sat down and wept.

After a while, I felt a presence behind me. I turned round, and recognised the motherly crystal because it had a hint of blue in its core.

"Hi", I snivelled in their language.

"Hi", it said. "I am so sorry. We see you love each other very much."

I was taken aback. Love... Did we?

"Thank you.", I said. "It's just..." I burst out crying. "It's not fair!"

It moved closer until it touched me. To my great surprise, its surface was exactly the temperature of my own skin, making the sensation very pleasant. I would learn that the crystals changed their temperature to match the person they were touching if they wanted to comfort them, or burn or freeze them if they didn't like them.

"Where's Tobirama?" I asked.

"The king is wandering, pondering. He asked us to join the war on the side of the elves. We declined."

"Why?" I asked, curious. I'd heard the crystals were great warriors.

"We go to war to fight for justice. We believe the elves are at wrong just as much as the humans are."

I remembered what Gedallion had said about the sword choosing a person that could create peace with it in hand, but I still snapped a little at this. "As much as the humans? Whatever have the humans done other than being oppressed? Of course they'll rebel!"

"We agree. But the elves have never started a war against humans. We understand the humans, but we believe there are more diplomatic choices."

"Oppression does things to men. People have watched their loved ones die. They've tried conversing. They can't take it anymore."

The crystal was quiet for a while before it spoke. "I see your point. And I agree with you. Are you arguing for us to join the war on the side of the humans?"

"No", I said, and I realised my mouth had spoken quicker than my mind had decided what it would say. I took it as my soul knowing what it wanted without me having to think about it.

"You seem sure", the motherly crystal said.

"The elves are outnumbered. I really..." I swallowed, thinking about Nicholas and Erika, who had both been so kind to me. "I really like them. I don't want them to die."

The crystal was quiet again. Then, it spoke one final time before turning to leave:

"The amethyst is angry", it said.

I did not understand.

We sat together. We weren't touching, just sat separately on the ice, looking out over the ocean at sunset. The air was so crisp, it created cloud formations I'd never before seen in Anderion, and it was all lightened up in a beautiful, tropical colour that warmed the soul when the temperature didn't. It was stunningly beautiful. 

I stole a glance at the king. The peachy light reflected beautifully on his face, his skin so white it was a blank canvas for the skies to paint on. To my great horror, I saw he was quietly crying.

"Sire..."

He jerked, not having noticed my gaze, and dried his tears.

"So sorry. It's just..." He couldn't finish, but hid his face in his hands and wept. I moved closer until our shoulders were touching, just as when we had supervised his soldiers in training what felt like ages ago.

"I know", I whispered, putting a hand on his arm, coated in the thick fabric of his winter coat. "I know."

"It's not just that! It's not about me dying! Please, Izuna, believe me!" He looked at me, desperate to make me believe he was good. It broke my heart, because it showed me that deep down, he thought he was a bad person. "It's how quickly you just gave your sword away to me, even if you knew that would kill you. You didn't even stop to think! How little you value your own life..."

I looked down a little, thinking. "Sire, I... I lost my big brother. He was my best friend. I don't have any other close friends in my village, except a little girl who idolises me. My parents died. I live in great poverty. I didn't value my life. That is..." I looked up at him. "Until you came along. I care about you! I'm not letting you die by my hand! I just can't believe that will happen, and I'm going to figure out a way to make it not. It's not that I don't value my life. It's just that I value yours more."

He looked at me then, and for the first time, I could see his entire face relaxed as he gaped at me. I realised he'd always had some tension in his face, his brows always slightly furrowed, his lips always a little set. But now, all of his defences were torn down. And he looked beautiful.

He took me into his arms then, hugged me close, hid his face in my hair. He pressed me so close, I felt like I was drowning in my feelings for him.

"I love you so much", he whispered.

He captured my lips, kiss me forcefully on the lips over and over, crushed them to wine, just giving me the slightest time to resurface and breathe in between before he dove right back in.

And took me with him.