Diane settled herself on the branch of the large tree, resting against its thick trunk for a moment to catch her breath.
"Did you make it up there okay?'Meliodas's voice called from somewhere below her.
"Yeah, it's okay." She yelled back.
"Are you sure you don't want someone up there with you, that branch doesn't look-" As the captain spoke, he could already hear it beginning to snap as Diane inched her way closer to the light pink flowers.
"I'm fine. I just need to get a little-" the giantess shrieked suddenly. A blue and black butterfly fluttered in front of her, knocking her off balance and sent her tumbling downward.
"What the hell's going on out-" Ban began, his question was cut short as Diane landed on him, forcing him onto the ground.
"Ban!" Elaine cries out, hurrying toward them. She knelt at his side.
"Sorry." Diane muttered, pushing herself off of his back. "But thanks for breaking the fall."
"Yeah, no problem." Ban groaned in pain.
"Are you alright?"the blond fairy asked.
"I'll live." Ban replied pushing himself back onto his feet. "Probably be feeling that for a while."
"Are you okay, Diane, did you find what you were looking for?" Elaine inquired. The giantess beamed, opening her hand to reveal several small flowers.
"Yeah. I would've gotten a couple more but-" Diane bowed her head.
"What happened up there?" Meliodas asked, looking up into the tree.
"There was a bug and-"
"A bug?" Elaine tilted her head.
"Y-yeah. They freak me out pretty bad. But I got them anyway, for King." Elaine offered an encouraging smile.
"Harlequin would be so proud of you. Facing your fears is never an easy task."
"After everything he gave up for me, I couldn't let anything else get between us. With these, I'm another step closer to having him here. I should be able to get the Lilandryan within the next few days. I can make his medicine then and start giving it to him." Diane frowned suddenly.
"What's wrong, Diane?"Meliodas asked.
"Sometimes when I think about it, I wonder if he'd want this. King was really sick and I can remember watching him lying there shaking.I know he didn't let me see everything he was going through, that's just how he is. I wonder if maybe Harlequin wouldn't be better off if I wasn't so selfish. Am I doing the right thing, asking him to come back to me?"
"That's kind of a tough question to answer,something we've talked about before. King would want you to do what makes you happy."The captain said. "To him that would be right. His idea of what's right could be completely different than yours. I think he'll be fine with whatever you decide."
"He's right."Elaine added. "My brother will love you no matter what,but you've come so far already." Diane sighed, looking down at the flowers in her hand.
"I's better take these inside, I guess I'll see you guys later." She made her way through the forest, the sunlight coming down in rays through the trees, seemingly lighting the path.
Why does this have to be so hard? She thought to herself,pushing open the tavern door.
"How did it go?" Elizabeth asked softly, pushing in her chair and lifting her plate and glass from the table.
"I got 'em." Diane replied, heading toward the stairs.
"But you don't seem like you're happy about that, did something happen?"
"Not really. sorry, Elizabeth, I have to go put these upstairs. The jar Merlin gave me will keep them from wilting . The princess knew something was bothering Diane, but didn't push for more information. Instead, she watched the giantess rush up the stairs. She decided to check in with her later that evening.
***
Diane closed the door behind her, leaning on it with a heavy sigh. From the bed, Oslo raised his head sleepily, giving a short bark.
"Hey Oslo." Diane greeted, approaching the bed. She gently scratched the hound's head before turning her attention to the jar on the bedside table. Once she had placed the flowers safely inside, the giantess knelt at King's side.
"Hey Harlequin, I'm back. Sorry it took me so long, there was a thing with a bug and-well, I got them. That's one step closer to you. It won't be much longer, I really wish you were here. I've been feeling so conflicted about all of this and you seemed to know what to do." She rested her head on the bed with a yawn. "And I feel like I should've gotten more done than I actually did. Elaine seems to be doing okay, I thought you'd like to know. I don't know if you're aware of what's happening over on this side of the gate. I miss you so much. It feels like a huge part of my heart is missing, it has been since you left. I want you home, but thinking back on everything...is it wrong, I wish you could tell me what you want, but I guess if you could, we wouldn't really need to have that conversation, would we?"
When Diane opened her eyes again, she found herself in front of the cave, though she still felt unsure, she stepped inside to hear the familiar sound of laughter. A smile appeared on her face.
"Daddy's funny,Brother." Ava chuckled, clapping her little hands. Oberon joined in. Just in front of the children, King was making the large green bear dance.
"Do it again, Daddy." The young boy cried.
"Don't you two ever get tired of this thing?" King asked.
"No!' The reply caused the giantess to giggle. All at once, her family turned to her. The children scrambled to their feet and ran to her.
"Mommy!" the shouted excitedly, throwing their arms around her. Diane returned the embrace.
"I missed you guys so much." She said giving them an extra tight squeeze before releasing them and turning to King. The fairy greeted her with a smile.
"Welcome home, Diane." He said taking a step forward to embrace her.
"Harlequin." She said softly, feeling tears forming in her eyes. "I really need this today."
"What happened, are you okay?"He asked holding her tighter.
"I just don't know what to do." The fairy pulled away, turning to his children.
"Oberon, take Ava and go play for a little while, we'll join you soon."The boy nodded.
"Ava, come find me!" He cried, racing deeper into the cave. Ava narrowed her eyes at the boy.
"You know I have tiny feet, I am not fast like you, Brother. This is not very nice!" She yelled running after him.King shook his head in amusement.
"So,"He said as the pair sat down. "You wanna tell me what's going on?"
"I'm...conflicted about us, well not really us but-"
"You don't know what to do about me."The fairy offered.
"Right. I know what I want. The closer I get to it, the more I worry about you. I know we talked about it before, but I don't want to hurt you. I mean you've always done what you thought was best for me, and I miss you so much it hurts. But I don't know if I can ask you to go back to that if it's not something you really want."King took her hands in his own, looking into her eyes.
"I thought you might be. I understand that-"
"I-it's not because I don't love you, Harlequin, believe me I do,I just-"She sobbed.
"I know, it's because you do that you're not sure. But what I want is for you to not feel like you have to do this. Sometimes what's best isn't the easiest thing. It's not worth worrying yourself over it. The truth is, when I was with you, you loved me so completely, enough that I have peace, knowing you're safe is enough for me. I'd like to be with you again one day, we can meet here and have our family. Our own perfect world, every time you close your eyes."He reached out, wiping away the tears from her cheek. This decision is yours to make and for me, there's no wrong answer. If you call me, I'll be there."
"I want that, but you were hurting and-"
"But you're there to make it better, right?"The giantess nodded.
"But if there was a chance you might always have...something-"
"Diane, the right thing for you to do, is what's in your heart. I'd take any pain in the world for you." Diane leaned forward pressing her lips to King's.
"My heart wants us."She sniffled. "I want all of this, not just when I'm asleep. I hate that you're only a dream, Harlequin. Sometimes I hate how real it feels, it makes me miss you so much more."
"Diane. remember the doorway conversation we had?"
"What about it?"King sighed.
"I'll explain it later. It's not really important."The fairy replied dismissively.
" You wouldn't be upset if I did this?"
"No. Either way, I'm okay. I promise."Diane nodded,
"I've got a long day ahead of me tomorrow. I still feel bad about this, but I promise I'll take care of you, no matter how long it takes. One day, we'll have all of this, maybe not the cave but.."She let her voice trail off.
"Yeah."King said. "It'll be great. We'll have everything we could want."
"Mommy, Daddy, find us!" Ava called from the shadows."King stood up.
"It might be a good idea to take your mind off of it for a while. Come on, Diane, let's have a little fun." He held out his hand, Diane took it, allowing him to pull her to her feet.
"I have to warn you, they're pretty good at this."the fairy said playfully.
"Yeah?" Diane chuckled, "They might be good,but we're more experienced. They've still got a lot to learn."