The Sparrow Academy was now been filled with nothing but cheers, laughter, and the popping of Champagne bottles. Astrid had never been so happy in her entire life as she and her family lived to see another day, and this could finally mark the end of their adventures time traveling and stopping apocalypses, doomsdays, and now kugelblitzes. She sipped on her flute, dancing along with Sloane as the remaining Sparrows started blasting old hits.
She could see the spark of hope in her girlfriend's eyes, something that caught her attention from the beginning. And now, they could start that future both of them envisioned. Astrid pulled Sloane close, slowly rocking back and forth together as she inhaled the sweet candy scent of Sloane's hair. "I love you so much," Astrid whispered. "I love you too, Triddy," Sloane replied, interlocking her fingers with Astrid's. They never separated during the whole party, their love was so strong that they couldn't bear to be apart from one another.
But eventually, Astrid found herself pulling away to go to the bathroom. And as she finished washing her hands in the sink, a familiar gleam around her neck caught her eye. It was the chain of her necklace. Reaching inside her shirt to pull them out, she glanced down at the two rings, remembering the days when she wondered what to do with them. And as the times with Sloane replayed in her mind faster than the speed of light, Astrid finally figured out what to do with them.
And the thought of asking that fateful question made her both nervous and happy.
"Oh, I'm sorry! Are you using it?" Luther gasped as he covered his eyes, hoping not to see Astrid indecent. "Actually, I just finished," Astrid clarified, her gaze still locked on the rings. Luther slowly uncovered his eyes to see his sister was telling the truth. "Okay, good. But if I may ask, if you're done, what are you doing?" He asked. Astrid finally looked up at him, unable to properly form her thoughts into words. "Uh... just thinking," She answered. "Is it something you want to talk about?" Luther inquired. It wasn't until he followed Astrid's gaze back to her necklace, trying to recall if he saw it before.
"Call me out if I'm wrong, but haven't you worn that since we were kids?" Astrid nodded in confirmation and unclasped it from her neck, taking off the rings. "I've been waiting to figure out what I should do with them. Now, I've realized the answer has been in front of me for the past few days," Astrid smiled. " I think it's time me and Sloane started our lives together,"
Luther's jaw dropped in surprise, but through his shock, he was happy for his sister. Finally, she was getting the happy ending he had hoped for her. "You deserve to be happy, Trid. I can see Sloane brings out the best in you," Luther nodded. With the biggest grin, Astrid hugged him as tightly as she could, thanking him for his endless support. "Of course, I made that promise to you, and I'll never break it," Luther assured. As they pulled apart and Astrid stepped out of the bathroom, she walked down the hall to Sloane's room, knowing the perfect way to pop the question. She picked up the travel guide from the desk, grabbed a few highlighted sticky notes, and got straight to work.
~~~~~~~~~~
Pouring herself a third glass of Champagne, Sloane rested against one of the pillars, awaiting the return of her girlfriend. But as the minutes ticked by and Sloane continued to slowly sip her drink, Astrid was still a no-show. What's taking so long? Is she okay? She set her glass down and walked to the staircase, nearly colliding with Luther as she reached the top step. "Hey, Luther. Is Astrid doing okay? She's been gone for a while," Sloane asked.
"Oh yeah, she's fine," Luther answered. "Well, have you seen her by any chance?" Sloane inquired. Luther looked around to make sure no one was listening before whispering the answer in her ear. "She's on the rooftop," he answered. Sloane thanked him before rushing down the hallway and up the stairs. Astrid's figure cast a dark shadow on the path leading to the edge of the academy, where Astrid sat on the stone edge, seemingly looking out into the orange and smog-filled sky.
"Are you avoiding me?" Sloane questioned with a smile. Astrid looked over her shoulder, a smile of her own spreading. "Never, how could I? You're the best thing that's ever happened to me," Sloane flushed pink with flattery. They quickly embraced when Sloane felt something heavy brush against the small of her back. "I have something for you," Astrid handed her the travel guide, and Sloane was both confused and surprised. "I made you a new list. You said you wanted to wait for the right moment to travel the world. Now that we've saved it, you have that opportunity," Astrid explained.
Sloane took the book from her, flipping through a few of the pages to see the colored sticky notes on some of the edges along with highlighted locations. "It's all your favorite Italian monuments that are still left standing, color-coded by region, of course," Astrid pointed to one of them. Sloane chuckled to herself as she met Astrid's gaze. "Nerd," Astrid brushed back a piece of her girlfriend's hair, telling her she deserved to see what the rest of the world had to offer. Okay, Astrid. This is it, whatever you do... don't blow it! She inhaled a quiet breath, the words neatly lining themselves up in her head.
"And... I'd like to see it with you," she admitted. Sloane flipped to the other colored regions inside the book. Her surprise continued to peak as Astrid remembered every little place she wanted to visit. From the nearby shops and cafes to the hotels that felt like you were walking into a dream. While Sloane was distracted, Astrid sank onto one knee, carefully pulling out one of the rings. "Ast... this is so-" Before Sloane could finish her sentence, she gasped at the sight before her. Her heart started pacing as if she came back from a long run, and she could feel the tears forming in her eyes. "Triddy, wha-where did you?" She trembled.
Astrid's throat tightened with emotion as she held the ring between her fingers. "I've been carrying this ring with me for years. Even though we've known each other for a few days, I feel like I've known you all my life," She did her best to hold back the tears in her eyes, but she could feel them slip down her cheeks. "Sloane, I love you so very much, and I want the whole world to know how strong our love is," Her soft voice echoed throughout the night. "Will you marry me?"
If Sloane's tears of joy weren't enough confirmation, the endless nod of her head was. "Astrid, of course I will!" She answered. "Really?" Astrid double-checked. "God yes! Come here!" Sloane wrapped her arms tightly around Astrid, pulling them both onto the ground in a mix of laughter and happiness. Astrid slipped the ring onto Sloane's finger and pulled her in for a passionate kiss.
Luther clapped as he poked his head out from behind one of the trees. The two women looked up to see him walking towards them with his arms wide. "I'm so happy for you guys!" He grinned. "Luther! I didn't know you were watching us," Astrid chuckled. "Well, I didn't want to miss the engagement of my baby sister and my soon-to-be sister-in-law!" Luther ruffled her hair like she was a little kid. Luther tightly embraced them both as he continued his muffled murmurs of excitement.
As Sloane and her fiancée pulled away from the hug, the gravity girl caught a glimpse of the familiar emerald-green bottle in Luther's hand, the golden foil and cork untouched. "Luther, did you sneak us a bottle?" She asked. "Consider it an engagement gift," He nodded as he attempted to open the bottle. "Come on... just a little bit more!" He struggled. You would think since Luther had superstrength that opening a bottle would be easy. But other than the constant put-downs of Reginald, opening bubbly bottles was not his strongest suit.
"Here, let me get that," Sloane offered. Luther held out the bottle, and without much effort or concentration, Sloane popped the cork, making a tiny geyser of bubbles shoot out. They poured their glasses and raised them in a toast, wishing only the best for Sloane and Astrid's marriage. But as their little party was about to get started, Astrid stumbled as she felt the ground beneath her shake. "What the hell was that?" She grabbed Sloane's shoulder to keep herself balanced. But before either Sloane or Luther could respond, the Sparrow Academy shook again, but this was followed by a loud explosion that rippled throughout the rest of the city and destroyed almost every building in its wake.
"Oh my god!" Sloane gasped. "We have to go right now! Come on!" Luther gestured as they quickly ran back inside the crumbling academy. Astrid, Sloane, and Luther tightly gripped each other's hands, trying to stick together as they reached the main floor, catching up with the rest of their siblings. "Wait guys, where's Ben, Fei, and Chris?" Astrid questioned. Five looked back into the living room, and behind two of the big chairs near the fireplace, Ben lay unconscious on the ground. Although no words were spoken on what happened to Fei and Christopher, Sloane instantly knew they were gone.
Five quickly blinked into the living room and returned, carrying Ben over her shoulder. How he didn't stumble and fall over Ben's weight, Astrid would never know. "Come on! Into the cars, let's go!" Astrid instructed as she, Ben, Five, and Sloane piled into one car, while Luther, Diego, Allison, Lila, and Viktor piled into another. Hitting the gas with as much force as possible, Astrid and her siblings sped back to the Hotel Obsidian while the kugelblitz swallowed the Sparrow Academy whole.