a/n: here we are, folks. the end of the road. the final chapter. god, that sounded morbid.

this chapter was supposed to come out earlier but oh, well. here's the sTuNnInG cOnClUsIoN to KotLC: LGBTQ+ Edition!

LINH SONG

due to my lack of time and setting this is just vaguely LATER:

I fight to control my panicked gasps of air, focusing on the moisture I breathe out and feeling it dissipate. It's a weird way to calm down, but it works for me. The air of the Neverseen hideout is cold and stale, and if we didn't know better, we would probably think it has been abandoned.

Sophie flickers into view as she presumably steps away from an invisible Biana, releasing her hand. She looks regal and deadly in her black suit, fitted with her beloved pockets and a dull moonlark pin. (Mr. Tiergan had said it wouldn't help much if the moonlark pin was shiny, much to my disappointment and Biana's.)

Without Sophie's enhancing, Keefe and I both come into view as well, and Biana flickers into vision for just a moment. Luckily, Keefe and I are dressed in Neverseen cloaks, so in the unlikely event that we're caught, we have some protection of our identities.

Sophie tears off her black mask and shifts so her body is angled in the silvery moonlight that floods through the single window. The light only comes in at this exact minute every night, and otherwise, the underground place is blanketed in total darkness. Sophie's shadow casts across the pitch-black floor. I hold my breath, and a warm hand squeezes mine in comfort. Keefe. I squeeze back, knowing he's just as nervous as me.

I'm not one to doubt his powers, but there's no way he can sense Sophie's shadow up against the natural darkness of the place. It seems to seep into my skin, chilling to the bone, and I shiver.

But somehow, he does.

"Who's there." Keefe's grip becomes bone-crushing at the sound of Tam's rough voice, and I choke back a sob. He's there. He sounds terrible, but he's here.

Sophie gestures at me.

"Tam," I manage. "Tammy, we're here."

The silence stretches. My heart throbs in my ears, my head full of rushing water. Did he-

"You can't." Tam's voice breaks. "You can't be here. I'm hallucinating."

Behind us, the streak of moonlight disappears and we're plunged into complete darkness. Biana grabs my hand, and I don't need to see Sophie to know that she's holding onto Biana's other hand.

I can't even make out her silhouette.

"Bangs Boy," Keefe says, his voice shaky. "It's us."

"Is this some form of twisted torture?" Tam snarls, and my heart shatters. "Knock it off, Ruy. That's not fucking funny."

"I-it's not him, Tammy …" Tears well in my eyes as I whisper to my brother. "We're here."

How can we show him? How can we prove we're here when even the slightest bit of light, other than that brief spell of moonlight, will activate the Neverseen's trap and alert them to our presence?

"Ask me something," I beg quietly. Our voices won't trigger anything, but I can't help but wonder if the Neverseen will spring out from nowhere if I speak too loud. "Ask something only I could know."

"No. If you're in my head, you would know anything I say. Quit trying to trick me."

It takes every muscle in my body not to run out and hug him, tell him I'm here, even let Keefe kiss him until he realizes that he's not alone.

But we can't cross the shadows. Tam has a barrier of shadowflux situated around him, and only he can cross through.

Sophie had said the most important thing was to stay calm. But it's getting harder.

A tendril of water splashes the wall of shadowflux, and it shocks me, the feeling of pure darkness against the cold water.

Tam lets out a strangled cry that rips into my gut, and I can feel Keefe step forward as his grip on my hand begins to stop blood circulation.

"Linh," Tam gasps, and I realize he's not in pain, but terrified that he hurt me.

"I'm okay," I manage, and his footsteps echo on the floor as he draws closer.

"Water," he's mumbling. "I felt it, it has to be real, Linh-"

Keefe shuffles sideways, towards the sound of his voice, and the rest of us shuffle along beside him. It's awkward, walking with our hands linked, but otherwise we might lose each other in the suffocating blackness.

A prison of shadows. The ideal prison for a Shade, apparently; while it might seem like their element, it's entirely the opposite. The shadows are even more smothering and overwhelming to a Shade, just like a Hydrokinetic in the middle of Atlantis.

"There you are." Keefe's voice is quiet, almost entranced, and his foot comes to step on top of mine as he releases my hand. A soft gasp of surprise, a quiet laugh, the sound of someone being punched in the shoulder and a hiss of pain. I can only assume my brother had punched his boyfriend.

I can't stop the delighted squeak that slips from my lips, and instantly I feel Tam's arms around me, and I let go of Biana's hand for a moment and sink into his embrace, burying my head in his shoulder as tears leak onto his (rather smelly) tunic. He feels different; his shoulders are broader and there's more muscle in his arms and back, but while his body seems stronger, I can feel him quiver in my arms like a teardrop about to fall from eyelashes. Tam says nothing, just holds me close and tucks his head beside mine. We freeze like that for a moment, hardly daring to believe this is real, he's here, we're both here.

"I'm so sorry, but we're still in the middle of a Neverseen hideout," Biana murmurs, her fingers brushing my back. I nod, slowly pulling away from my brother.

"Let's get out of here," I whisper to him, "so I can finally see your face again."

"And we can see just how bad of a bruise you gave me," Keefe grumbles. Despite the tears in my eyes and the way my twin is shaking and the fact that we're currently in a pitch-dark Neverseen hideout, a quiet giggle escapes my mouth.

Typical Keefe. If anyone can help Tammy out of the dark hole he's trapped in, it's Keefe Sencen.

And here comes the difficult part: finding the exit. It takes a great deal of fumbling and bumbling, but with the help of my brother (who can almost make out silhouettes), we locate the exit and clamber out of the dark prison.

Sophie, the first to emerge, releases a yelp of shock as the moonlight hits her eyes.

"Shade your eyes a bit," she advises the rest of us.

And finally, once we've all stumbled out of the hole in the ground and Keefe has closed the camouflaged trapdoor, I see my brother.

Tam's eyes are closed, since he's been down there much longer than any of us and it's hard adjusting to the moonlit night. He's so much paler than I remember, and his back and shoulders are definitely slightly more muscular, although he's still lean and not particularly tall. His trademark bangs are longer than ever, brushing the tip of his nose with silver.

Keefe is also studying Tam, but he quickly turns to face Sophie with a lopsided grin. I don't miss the furrow of worry in his brow.

"So, Miss Foster! Time to levitate?"

We hold hands once more, and as we slowly ascend into the sky, I take another look at Tam and Keefe. Keefe's icy eyes, so much like somebody else I know, glint with determination as he stares intently at the hand clasped around Tam's. And as we freefall between worlds, a smile grows on my face.

We're going to be just fine.

(sorry that was so unrealistic, but i had to save our shady boi … also damn, i did not mean to give tam such a hard time. idk how that happened, sorry tammy-)

"I'm so happy you're home," Marella breathes, and I fall into her arms, inhaling her smoky scent.

"I'm glad we all made it," I reply softly, pressing my face against her shoulder. She runs a hand through my tangled hair and nods.

"Me, too."

Tam is being treated by Elwin, but any wounds he has are reportedly superficial and his body will be fine. His mind, however, wouldn't recover so easily.

But I know he will, because Keefe is sitting in there beside him, holding his hand and occasionally pressing his lips to Tam's knuckles in silent thanks. Elwin seems amused by Keefe's behaviour, as a small smile quirks on their lips every time Keefe does something sweet for Tam. I can't help but smile, too.

"Well," Marella drawls, and a tinge of excitement swirls in my chest as I turn to face my girlfriend (my girlfriend!). "We got your bro back, now what?"

"We have to defeat the Neverseen," Sophie mumbles. Marella scrunches her nose.

"Let's take a break first," I suggest gently, before she can interject in a more hot-headed manner. "I need to catch up with my brother!"

"And I don't know about you two, but I think we need some girl time," Biana adds, winking at Sophie. The brown-eyed elf groans, but I spot her flushed face before she buries it in Biana's hair.

"You teased me about having a Mr. Snuggles, but you are Mr. Snuggles-" A deep, crisp voice grows louder as Fitz Vacker walks out of the Healing Centre. He bids a quick "see ya, Lover Boy" to Keefe before joining us.

"Hey dork!" Biana starts. "How's Tam?"

I look to the dark-haired elf as I await an answer, but Fitz just shrugs awkwardly.

"He seems tired, but that's to be expected," he elaborates, rubbing the back of his neck. "Keefe sure is taking extra special care of him…"

"So, where's your boyfriend?" Biana interrupts with a grin. On cue, Dex comes barrelling down the hall, tackling Fitz to the ground in a flying embrace. Fitz yelps in surprise, and the two roll on the ground like a pair of puppies before landing side by side near our feet.

"You could just say hi," Fitz grumbles, his face varying degrees of red. Dex shrugs, the corner of his mouth lifting.

"Or … I could tackle you," he responds innocently. Fitz rolls his eyes.

"And you had the audacity to call me cheesy?" Keefe suddenly exclaims. I look up at the Empath, who points indignantly at Fitz and Dex as they lie beside each other on the floor. They quickly get up.

I brush past them all to face the elf standing behind Keefe. After a shower and a fresh set of clothes, Tam seems better. Better than when we first left the prison, at least. There's dark circles under his eyes, a bruise on one cheek, and he's clearly exhausted, but he doesn't have a look of terror in his eyes anymore.

"Hey, you," I giggle, kissing his nose. Tam half-heartedly swats me away, as if reluctantly accepting the affection. I know he's overjoyed to see me, though, from the way his eyebrows quirk up.

"Looks like we're all finally accounted for," Sophie declares, and we all turn to the moonlark, who's hand-in-hand with Biana as she surveys us. When we all look to her, she flushes once more but doesn't apologize. "I'm glad we're all finally together, I mean."

"Yeah, together together," Keefe remarks with a wink. Everyone rolls their eyes, but I realize that, looking at us, none of us are single anymore.

Biana has her arm looped with Sophie's, smiling radiantly as the blonde elf stares into the distance, lost in thought. Beside me, Keefe is practically carrying the exhausted Tam, tenderly allowing my brother to lean against him and smoothing his hair down. Dex is chattering excitedly to Fitz, whose gaze is trained on him with rapt attention, one hand repeatedly brushing Dex's. And then there's me and Marella, hands entwined, Marella humming quietly.

I turn to face her and find her staring at me, and warmth boils in my cheeks. Her eyes dart away for a millisecond before meeting my gaze.

"Are you happy?"

The question startles me, but the answer comes easy.

"Yes," I reply with a smile. "No, we're not completely safe yet, and there's still the Neverseen at our door and we're still healing from the past, but … right now, we're all here and about as safe as we can be. So yeah, I'm happy. I have the strongest, smartest, prettiest girlfriend ever, my brother is home and with his crush, and I have a home for one of the first times. It's … nice." I realize I've been rambling and close my mouth, but Marella's smiling at me - no, beaming at me like I'd done something amazing.

"Then I'm happy, too," she murmurs, and I understand. If she's about to say anything else, I never find out, because Keefe decides to butt into all of our conversations as he adjusts Tam on his shoulder.

"Well folks, I think Operation Gay Revolution was a success! Full credit to our favourite moonlark and the smartest Vacker kid for initiating the revolution!"

"Hah," Sophie remarks, folding her arms. "It would've been hardly much if you hadn't built up the courage to visit Tam. And we never would have gotten him out if you hadn't brought Silveny on your trips, when she read Alvar's mind to see where Tam was relocated."

"We never woulda gotten that information if you hadn't found it in her head," Keefe argues.

"Okay," Marella interjects. "We get it. Go gay revolution or whatever."

"With that settled, I think we need to get Tam home," I tell Keefe, glancing at my half-asleep brother. He nods.

"Alright then, I'll see you later, Foster, Fitzy, Dexy, and-" He frowns. "Bian-y?"

I laugh.

"I better go home, too, Linh," Marella says quietly. I turn to her. Even though she had made it up with her mom, I can tell that it still bothers her that she isn't an Empath. I twirl the silver ends of my hair.

"Okay…" I peck her on the lips. "Safe travels, Marella."

"You too."

As Keefe and I practically carry Tam away, a smile sneaks across my face as I mull over my conversation with my girlfriend.

Maybe the future is uncertain. I don't know what's coming, and that's okay. But right now, I'm happy, and that's all that matters.

a/n: AND THEY LIVED HAPPILY EVER AFTER! THE END!

k, that ending was mediocre at best but i'm tired and this update was late anyways. i want to thank and congratulate you for reading all the way to the epic finale of this fic! i appreciate all the love and support so much. thanks for sticking with me and supporting this fic! i love you, stay safe, and happy pride!

~ JADE (: