They sat there for a few more seconds before they heard somebody shrieking Carter's name and he was being tackled by a small child.
"Sarah!" Carter held her tight, his body curled around hers like he was trying to protect her from the world. "Oh gods, you're okay."
"You did it!" His baby sister looked at him, grinning. She had a bruise on her cheek, but other than that she looked unharmed. "You stopped him."
"I did," Carter smiled at her. "And you're okay now. We all are." He looked around at his lingering siblings. His gaze fell on an approaching Akiridion, who was supporting the weight of a teenage girl, her arm hanging limply. They were being followed closely by a young black woman who was holding a baseball bat and apologizing profusely. "Marcy?"
Marcy looked up at him and smiled. She looked tired, but she was alive. "Carter!"
They stopped in front of him, and Douxie helped him stand. Sarah clung to his arm.
"What happened to your arm?" Carter asked, concern washing over his face.
"Darci is very good with a baseball bat," Krel informed them, gesturing to the black girl.
"I'm sorry," Darci said again.
"Don't be," Marcy said, shifting her weight. "I was trying to kill you."
Krel seemed amused and turned to Douxie and Carter. He eyed Carter's bleeding shoulder. "Are you okay?"
"I'll walk it off."
"No, you won't." Jim cut in. He was walking towards them, being followed closely by his mother and a troll Carter hadn't met yet. "You're going to get your shoulder looked at." He stopped in front of the half-blood, expression all commanding and kingly. He wasn't leaving it up for debate. "And I'd like my sword back."
"Oh, yeah." Carter handed him Excalibur hilt first. "It's terribly well-balanced, by the way."
Jim cracked a smile. "Yeah, well if there's too much weight you lose power on the swing."
Carter snorted a laugh. Krel rolled his eyes, and Douxie groaned.
"Oh, great now you two are going to be talking about swords all the time." Douxie complained.
"You like my sword," Carter shot back in a low voice.
Douxie's face went red. "Carter!"
"What does that mean?" Sarah asked innocently.
"Nothing!" The adults shouted in unison.
Barbara shook her head, trying hard to hide a smile. "Walt," she said, turning to the troll. "Let's help Blinky get all the injured people in one space. The paramedics are on their way." She looked at Carter, frowning at his shoulder. "You too, Carter."
Carter had the sense not to argue with her. He gave a polite smile. "Yes, ma'am."
Barbara nodded. "Good."
She walked away with the troll, Walt. Weird name for a troll. Carter's gaze scanned the crowd again, spotting Aja and Joel not too far away, helping a fellow half-blood. Then he caught a blur of red and black on the top of the hill. He held her gaze for a long moment before she turned and sprinted away.
Jim followed where he was looking, eyes narrowing. "Do you want us to follow her?"
Carter shook his head. "No. Daisy needs to figure things out for herself. She was just as misguided as everyone else."
Jim nodded. He let out a breath and turned to survey his people. "Well," he looked at Douxie. "Looks like we've got some work to do."
"A trollhunters work is never done."
"Afraid not," Jim sheathed Excalibur on his back. "But hey, we've got one more on our team." He looked at Carter, grinning.
Carter met his eyes with a smile. "Yeah, you do."
Douxie looked... surprised. "You're not leaving after this?"
Carter looked at him, holding his gaze. He smiled softly. "No, I'm not."
"What happened to finding and rescuing half-bloods?"
Carter gestured around them. "I've got my work cut out for me here. Besides," he poked Douxie's chest. "There's no way I'm leaving your side after this. And," he tilted his head towards Jim. "The king has spoken."
"You're not leaving." Douxie breathed.
"No. I'm staying right here." Carter promised
Several weeks later
Relocating all of the half-bloods was harder than they realized it would be. There were hundreds of them. Some couldn't even remember where they came from, or if they ever had a real home to begin with. But over the course of the next five weeks, they'd managed to track down most of their families. They only had a handful left. The ones who couldn't remember their homes, and the ones who couldn't go home.
Joel had left two weeks ago to go home. They'd found his wife and daughter through a missing person's report they'd filed for him nearly four years ago. Carter had regretted not having a heart-to-heart with his brother before he left, but Joel had promised to stay in touch. Something in his tone made Carter think he was really saying, "I'm not abandoning you again."
Laura, Jamie, and Aanya had all returned home with the promise to visit soon. Carter found himself almost missing them after they left. It was a weird feeling. It was even weirder for him to have some sort of... friendship with Aanya. But hey, better friends than enemies.
And for Carter... things were looking up. They'd finally managed to remove the horribly painful prosthetics with the help of Krel and Hex Tech's combined technological efforts. Zoe had given him a piece of her mind when she'd gotten a chance to visit him in the hospital for the little removal project. But he knew she'd meant everything in concern for his well-being. Jim had given him the stink-eye during that interaction and muttered something about, "No friends my ass."
Right this second the team was gathered in Jim's house for a little get-together. It felt so domestic. It made Carter a little anxious. He was used to being on edge, and had been for the last five weeks, waiting for the other shoe to drop. And when nothing kept happening, it just made him more paranoid. He was trying to relax, but it was just... hard.
He drummed his fingers on the floor, getting used to the feeling of the new hand. Krel and Douxie had worked diligently on it for three weeks, not wanting him to be left without it for too long. They were still working on his leg, and he knew it would take a bit for it to be finished. So, in the meantime he was using a prosthetic leg courtesy of the hospital and Dr. Lake.
He managed a smile when Toby shouted in victory at finally having won Mario Kart against Claire. To which the shadow-mancer scoffed and hit him with a pillow.
"Hey," Douxie said softly, sitting next to him on the floor. "Are you alright?"
Carter looked at him for a while, lips pursed. "I'm... trying." He said honestly. "I think it's all catching up to me."
Douxie studied his face intently. "Blinky's offer still stands."
Carter nodded slowly. Blinky had offered trauma therapy. Apparently he was licensed, and how that happened Carter did not want to know. "I know it does. I've been thinking about it."
"I think you need it."
Carter sighed. "Yeah... probably."
"He helped me process a lot," Douxie continued, watching as Steve challenged Jim to a Mario Kart tournament. "Merlin's death. My parents abandoning me. The Arcane Order killing me." He was silent for a moment. Then, "Losing you."
Carter looked at him, eyes wide. "What...?"
Douxie let out a soft breath. "The first time. When you died during World War Two."
"Oh," Carter pursed his lips. "Yeah... I guess that's why he wasn't that surprised when he met me."
Douxie nodded. "Just... think about it, Sunshine."
Carter nodded. "I will. I promise." He leaned forward and pressed his lips to Douxie's gently. "I love you."
Douxie smiled. "I know."
There was a pause, and Douxie seemed to be thinking. Carter pressed another kiss to his lips quickly before getting to his feet.
"I'm gonna go get some air." He said, before walking out the back door.
Carter sat on the back porch, breathing slowly. He was alone for several minutes, letting himself process everything. He'd been accepted so easily into the team, the trollhunters gleefully calling him their friend and ally. He was... happy. He really was. He just didn't know why he was so anxious.
The screen door opened and shut, and Douxie sat next to him. He had something in his hand.
"Babe," Carter said lowly, keeping his eyes on the setting sun. "The therapy conversation is over for today. Check back in tomorrow."
"That's not why I'm out here," Douxie said with a smile in his voice. "I just didn't want to do this with an audience."
"Do what with an audience?" Carter asked, looking at him, brow raised.
"Well," Douxie said slowly, moving so he was in front of Carter. On... one knee. "This."
Carter's breath hitched. He stared at Douxie with wide eyes. "Douxie?"
In his hands was a small black box. He opened it, smiling at Carter lovingly. Inside the box was a small silver ring, the band etched with draconic characters that read, 'My love, my life, my breath, my heart, my Sunshine; with all that I am and all that I will ever be, I love you'.
"Carter," Douxie spoke slowly, softly. "Do you remember when you told me that when I asked you to properly marry me, you'd say yes?"
Carter continued to stare, mouth open in shock. His eyes darted from Douxie's, to the ring. "Uh- I... yeah?" He managed weakly.
"Carter Howard," Douxie's voice had a slight nervous tremble to it. "Will you marry me?"
Carter let out a shocked laugh, nearing tears. "Yes... Douxie." He smiled at him. "Of course I'll marry you."
Douxie grinned, catching Carter in a hug. He drew him in for a kiss, slipping the ring on his left hand when they parted. The ring fit snugly against his metal finger, silver standing out against the black and dark blue the hand had been painted. "I love you," he whispered, pressing their foreheads together.
Carter smiled, cupping the side of his neck as he held Douxie close. "I love you too, Douxie."
Unbeknownst to them, someone was watching from the kitchen window. The woman smiled, tugging at her husband's sleeve.
"Walt," she whispered. "Look."
The troll appeared over her shoulder, smiling softly when he saw what she meant. "I wondered how long it would be until he popped the question."
Barbara laughed softly, watching her son hug his new fiancé tightly. "You know," she looked at her husband, smiling. "When Douxie told me he was making a ring for Carter, I wondered that too."
"Yes," Strickler hugged her from behind, resting his chin on her head. "But I am happy for them."
"Me too." She watched them a moment longer. "You know what this means?"
"Hm?"
She grinned. "I get to plan a wedding that's not mine for a change."
Strickler laughed. "I'm sure they will appreciate your knowledge and experience."
On the porch, Douxie held Carter just that much tighter. He smiled against his neck, joy flooding his being. He'd put this off for way too long. Really, he should have proposed decades ago. But he was glad that he still got a chance to do this. He's getting a chance to marry the love of his life. And he wasn't going to waste a second more.
___
And here it is! The Epilogue! I hope you guys enjoyed! Be sure to look out for the short stories that are coming out soon, and the sequel book!