Girl Meets the Long Game

Summary: And suddenly, it was crystal clear to her whom she was playing the long game with... and she didn't mind one bit.

A/N: So Texas left things… unresolved. And every time I see that moment at the end of part two, I keep hoping to see a different outcome… so, so close…

But I understand why things went the way they did and though it hurts to have it close (for now) in such an uncertain place, I do think that, ultimately, this will have been for the best. They say that time heals all wounds… well, I think that everyone needs some time to heal from this before they can go forward. After all, things are never quite that simple in matters of the heart.

If (or, rather, when) things, one day, get resolved to the point where something like the following could happen, I will be happy. Until then… there's fan-fiction.

I had specific characters in mind for these scenes but, because of all the unresolved everything after Texas, I decided to make it as ambiguous as possible. But I ship the ending, I really do, and I hope that, taking the time difference (it's set sometime in their future when they're older and wiser) into consideration, the characters aren't too OOC. Enjoy!

It wasn't uncommon for characters in a movie to have some sort of life-altering revelation. But things like that just didn't happen in real life.

Until… they did.

It didn't have an orchestral backing or a dramatic climax, but the implications of the revelation were just as important all the same.

Because this thing, this revelation, was no longer just an obvious fact that had been overlooked, like "gravity keeps us from flying away" or "Superman's weakness is kryptonite".

It was glass… it was a diamond. Sharp and focused and magnified to crystal clarity so that each and every facet could been seen by the naked eye.

How had it been hidden all this time?

She looked up at the one she thought she had fallen in love with. Her first true love, an epic love to endure for all time…

And she felt… closure.

"I'm sorry… the long game with you ends here."

He was sleeping. No. He had been sleeping, now he was drifting in and out of consciousness, something potentially important pulling him into awakening.

It might have something to do with the burglar breaking into his room. Though, perhaps breaking and entering was a bit of a stretch, considering that his window was perpetually unlocked and he could sense the familiarity of said burglar.

The familiar not-quite-a-burglar easily lifted his window and slipped inside his room. He turned onto his back and squinted at the golden-crowned shadow that had appeared. The shadow crossed his room to the far side of his bed, removing uncomfortable articles of clothing in the process, until it was close enough to pull up a corner of his covers.

"Scooch over."

He sighed and did as they commanded. The shadow was always bossy.

The shadow didn't speak while it curled up under his covers, pulling one of his arms around it to use as a pillow as it laid on its back, sighing in contentment.

He turned on his side to face them but in the meager lighting that came through the window, he couldn't see the brilliant blue of their eyes. Nonetheless, he could still sense the moment of unease that passed through them. Fighting the darkness that threatened to pull him back to sleep he used some of the last remnants of his conscious state to ask,

"What happened with—"

The warm shadow turned on its side to face him, one hand with its fingers entangled with his from the arm that provided her pillow for the night, the other tracing gently down his chest to feel the steady rhythm of his heart.

"Shh…" it soothed him. "Go to sleep, Huckleberry…"

The shadow seemed to be content and sleep sounded like an excellent idea. His mind started drifting of its own accord, losing more and more ground to the realm of unconsciousness. The shadow turned onto its back once more and relaxed with him, serenely following him into the abyss of oblivion.

And in the aether between dreams and consciousness he heard,

"… looks like you're stuck with me for the long game."

With the last tendrils of wakefulness he possessed he curled himself into his shadow and smiled.