Matizu Writes
patreon
StLQ Chapter 24 - New Home
🕑 Added 2025-08-25 01:00:07 +0000 UTCHoly fucking shit, I thought, surprised I was still alive. Somehow, no stray magic had hit me.
The explosions and chaos around me finally calmed down. My ears still rung from spells colliding against each other, crashing against walls. Magic was deadly as all hell in the wrong hands. Even being hidden away in a locker during a fight like that could have ended up in me dying in crossfire.
Luckily, Almir Hedwin, the sixteenth crown of the mages’ association, was quite literally amongst the top five most powerful mages currently alive. He could defeat Donovan while still defending the innocents around him.
I pushed the locker door open and entered the destroyed World Tree. A sweet scent of burning lollipops filled the air. I grinned, bathing in victory, until I spotted Luna.
She stood near the cauldron with a stunned expression, eyes confused. An official of the association tended to her, asking questions. She didn’t seem to be responding.
Concerned, I walked over. “Luna?” I asked.
She blinked, and her eyes regained light. She turned to me, raised her eyebrows, and stared at me. She continued to stare. I struggled to read what was moving in her head.
“Um, Luna?” I asked. “That was amazing. You did well. Everything is good now. You, um…”
Arms wrapped around me, and I was tackled. I lost my footing and fell against the ground.
Luna buried her face against my chest. The dark cloak of her disguise blanketed us both. I felt her warmth as she hugged me tight.
Her body felt surprisingly calm. She wasn’t trembling, and her breathing felt normal. Slow, even. Hopefully that wasn’t a trauma response.
I met eyes with the association’s official. He eyed Luna, probably wondering the same thing as I—was everything alright in Luna’s head? He seemed to decide that the situation wasn’t catastrophic, as he smiled at me and stepped back.
“It’s okay now,” I said. “It’s over. We did it.”
Luna took her time responding. “I… disobeyed her. I fought back.”
“You did,” I said. “And you were amazing.”
“I defeated her,” Luna said. Her voice was a mix of amazement and disbelief. Mostly the latter.
“How do you feel?”
“I… don’t know.”
I chuckled. “Sorry, Luna. I really could have made this a lot less dramatic.”
The arms around me hugged tighter. Not quite tight enough to hurt, but I would have had trouble escaping. I couldn’t think of anything to say. Now probably wasn’t the time for stupid jokes. We lay there, on the ground, for minutes straight.
A simmer came from the cauldron beside us. Luna flinched. “Ah, the cauldron!” she suddenly remembered. She let go of the hug and sprung to her feet. “Kai, the smoke!”
“It’s fine.” I stood and faced the cauldron. I took a deep breath, inhaling the sweetness. “These aren’t lichstone shards.”
Luna blinked. “What? Really?”
“They are the same mana container shards liches use, sure,” I said. “But there’s no lifeblood inside. It’s all candy.”
“Candy?” Luna asked.
“You remember when I asked for your house keys?” I asked. “I had someone visit the house to replace the shards with something a bit… tastier.”
Luna’s mouth hung open in astonishment. “You knew my mother was planning this?”
I nodded, grinning wide, as if I was some genius for figuring this out. I was about to boast further with my utterly idiotic wit, but someone spoke behind us.
“Are you two alright?” It was Johannes. The lumps underneath his eyes were deeper than yesterday, but relief radiated from his eyes.
“I’m fine,” Luna said. She lowered her head. “Your advice… it worked. Thank you.”
Johannes smiled. An exhausted but warm smile. Faced with the expression, I couldn’t believe this man had been imprisoned as the culprit behind all this in my original life.
“The association really could have made this easier for you,” Johannes said. “But it’s over now. You two did well. Thank you, Kai, Luna.”
Luna struggled to look him in the eye, clearly still shaken. Everything around her must have felt overwhelming. When I woke up from the coma for the first time, I felt the same. Time was always needed to adjust to a new life.
Clean-up and arrangements lasted for an hour after that. Classes were understandably canceled, and students were sent home. Almir had mostly protected the wardrobes and important belongings, minimizing damages with his defensive spells, though repairing the World Tree would still cost a fortune. One which would be taken straight from Donovan’s account.
I stayed at school, not because I could offer any help, but because Luna was still there. Child protectors visited quickly, interrogating her right away. They looked at her family records, and the usual process of finding a new home for a child who couldn’t live on their own yet started. As the minutes passed, the child protectors looked increasingly troubled.
I walked up to one of them. “What will happen to Luna now?”
The burly man with a shaven beard and a clean haircut turned to me. “Ah you must be Kai Willswort, correct? Luna’s friend?”
I nodded. “Does Luna have anywhere to go?”
“She has a grandfather,” the man said, though frowned as the words came out. “In Miljes. Hundreds of miles from here. She would need to abandon her studies at Lokora’s academy. And her grandfather, it seems, has had his own children taken away decades ago. It is a difficult situation. Most likely, she will be sent to an orphanage.”
I considered my words. An orphanage would be a thousand times more pleasant than her previous home. Lokora, however, didn’t have an orphanage. And the thought of sending Luna away to some foreign city didn’t sit right.
“If Luna doesn’t have anywhere to go…” I said, “she could probably live at our place. We’re Luna’s neighbors.”
“Interesting,” the man said. “Adoption is a possibility. This will have to be discussed with your mother and Luna.”
With those words in mind, I bowed and headed outside and toward home to fetch mom right away, though I didn’t get far when I spotted her already talking with an official of the mages’ association outside the World Tree’s doors. Their discussion looked heated, and my mother had a stern look on her face, clearly arguing. The official wasn’t budging.
Then mom spotted me and ran over, placing her hands on my shoulders. “Kai! You’re okay?”
“Of course.” I smiled. “Don’t you have work today?”
“There was a fight,” mom said. “With magic. You weren’t hurt?”
“Nobody got hurt, mom,” I said.
She observed my body for bruises, as if she didn’t believe me. “Where’s Luna? Is she okay?”
“Mom, nobody got hurt!” I said with a laugh. “Luna is inside. Her mother was finally caught. Luna is getting away from her now.”
Mom kept her hands on my shoulders. She nodded. “Good. Luna will live a happy life now.”
“And, mom…?” I asked, eyes moving in and out of eye contact nervously. “Now that her mother is gone, she doesn’t have a home anymore, so, I was wondering…”
Mom's eyes suddenly paused firmly on my face. She knew what I was talking about right away. “Kai. I can’t afford her. We barely have money for your tuition.”
“Luna has scholarships,” I said. “And her mother is still alive. I’m fairly certain the law will make her pay support to Luna.”
Mom bit her lip, a troubled look on her face.
“Nelly likes Luna,” I said. “And you’re an amazing mother. Luna would live a good life with us.”
Mom took a deep breath. She gave me a look, unimpressed by the compliment. But I knew she was considering it. The idea didn’t totally throw her off.
“The child protectors are inside with Luna right now,” I said. “She’s probably going to be sent to an orphanage.”
“An orphanage?” mom asked. “Can she even complete school, then?”
“No,” I said. “And she’d lose her scholarships to Lokora.”
Mom’s eyes were closed in thought. “As if you weren’t already in enough trouble,” she muttered. She stood, tapped her foot, then said, “I’ll talk to them.”
Lengthy discussions and arrangements with the child protectors followed. The type of adult problems that fourteen-year-old me was pushed out of. My mom handled the rest from there, talking for almost an hour. I couldn’t hear what they were talking about, but I could see the determined look in my mom’s eyes and her formal demeanor.
Luna was also surrounded by people constantly. The child protectors, Almir, members of the association, everyone seemed to have something to ask, whether it be related to the crime investigation or her future. The adults wanted to deal with everything quickly, which I understood, but Luna was clearly overwhelmed by it all.
Over an hour later, she was finally alone for a moment. I took the opportunity and sat down next to her.
“I think today warrants a lot of pancakes,” I said. “And a warm bath.”
Luna lifted her head at me. Her glance quickly grew to a stare, as if she’d forgotten how to speak.
“What is it?” I asked.
“Can I really still eat pancakes?”
“Yeah,” I said. “You can eat as much as you want. Afterward, you can sleep in a bed.”
“But…” Luna looked down at her hands. “I don’t have a bed. I don’t have anything. They’ll send me away from Lokora.”
Her words were melancholic, entirely different from the emotionless responses I used to get from her a week ago. Luna wasn’t shut in anymore. She wasn’t helpless. But sitting next to me, despite having just performed the most courageous act of her life, she looked anxious and frail, as if her actions had caused the world to pass by.
“Say, Luna…” I leaned back with my hands behind my head. “Would you be interested in another kidnapping? A more permanent one?”
Luna blinked, head snapping toward me.
“Kai?” a voice asked behind us. I turned my head to see mom and the burly child protector. “Who’s being kidnapped?” mom asked.
“Luna, hopefully,” I said. “We’re kidnapping Luna, right?”
Mom rolled her eyes with a funny laugh. She faced Luna, who now had her eyes wide in shock. “Our house is a bit cramped,” mom said. “But if you want to make it your home, you can move in. The decision is up to you, Luna.”
Shock froze Luna’s words. “W- What do you mean?”
“Would you like to be adopted?” mom asked.
Luna’s thoughts seemed to break entirely. “Adopted?”
“She’s asking if you want to be kidnapped,” I said. “Permanently.”
Luna sat blankly. She sat still for over five seconds. I couldn’t tell if she was thinking or just totally shocked.
She flinched, speaking in a flurry. “Yes! I would like to! If… that’s okay?”
Everyone smiled at the reaction. The child protector looked satisfied, having the situation finally resolved. Luna herself still looked shaken and confused, struggling to follow what was happening.
Mom patted Luna in the head. She offered a hand, which Luna nervously took. She stood for the first time in hours. Mom slowly held her arms around Luna, embracing her. Her chin was high enough to rest on Luna’s head.
This time, Luna didn’t panic. Her hands were hanging to her sides, disbelief remaining on her face, but she didn’t try to escape.
“We can go home right now,” mom said. She held the hug for a bit longer. “What do you say? Do you want to get adopted?”
“Mm,” Luna said. “Yes. I do.”
I couldn’t help but chuckle. You silly girl.
“A home is settled, then,” the child protector said. “You three are free to head home. You will receive a visit tomorrow for official paperwork. I am glad Luna has found somewhere to belong.”
Luna, still trapped in a hug, glanced at me. Her face went red, and she turned away.
Mom freed her from the hug. “Are you two ready to head home?”
“Only if there are pancakes,” I said. “With syrup this time.”
Mom chuffed through a smile. “Sure, there will be pancakes. But only if you watch your sister and heat up the water jugs.”
I grinned. Luna stood beside me nervously, but she seemed to be interested in the idea of pancakes.
This girl killed me once, I noted. It wasn’t a bad thought, or a concerning one. Just an odd fact that appeared in my head.
We headed for the hangers, where I slid on my jacket. I reached my hand to the spot where I usually kept my mother’s red jacket. It wasn’t there. Then I turned to my mom, and saw that very jacket and its bright colors covering its actual owner. “Ah,” I said, “uh, do we have a jacket for Luna?”
A smug grin appeared on my mom’s face. She reached into the hangers, and pulled out a fluffy piece of cloth. It was her fur cloak that she often wore over her winter jacket if the weather was particularly cold. She wrapped it around Luna and tied it shut.
With the three of us armed for winter, we stepped into the calm snowfall outside. The sun was still visible halfway behind the horizon, lighting the snowy-streets in a reflective white. I grabbed Luna’s hand, and the walk home began.
For once, neither of us shivered in the cold.
Author note:
Thanks for reading Saving The Lich Queen!
This one was the final chapter. The epilogue dropping as soon as I finish writing it. It's quite long, like a little bonus short story, and it'll be a Patreon exclusive. I'm aiming to release it by next Friday, but it might be delayed depending on how long it ends up being. Thank you!
Comments
CheeseDreamer
Delicious!! Thanks for the meal!
The Lost Pages
Thanks for the wonderful story. I love the way it played out.
