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     1.4 +This story is based on the wonderful game by Squaresoft known as Dewprism, 
     1.5 +or as it was renamed here, Threads of Fate. This takes place right at the ending. 
     1.6 +
     1.7 +Relic of My Heart 
     1.8 +by Amazoness Duo
     1.9 +amazonessduo@hotmail.com
    1.10 +
    1.11 +
    1.12 +	Rolling over in bed, I try to keep myself from sinking back into the 
    1.13 +depression I’ve been trying to fight my way out of for the past few days. It’s 
    1.14 +gone. The Dewprism is gone. And with it, all that I had strove for was now 
    1.15 +nothing but shattered dreams. My dream was still there of course, but I had 
    1.16 +wasted all of this time trying to get Valen's Relic for nothing. 
    1.17 +	But what about her...?
    1.18 +	Okay, maybe it wasn’t all completely and utterly wasted. Maybe some 
    1.19 +of my time was remotely worthwhile in coming to Corona. In searching for 
    1.20 +something that was now out of my hands forever. So world domination is out of 
    1.21 +the question. For the time being. But still...
    1.22 +	OwwwooowowowoooowwwwOOOOOOWWW... Rolling over was a 
    1.23 +bad idea. My ribs still burn from where Valen had hit me days earlier. My body 
    1.24 +still aches even after all of the rest I’ve had. But not as much as my heart does. 
    1.25 +World domination was sooooooooo close. It was at my fingertips. It’s not fair. 
    1.26 +And of course Maya has to rub it in every time my dear little sister comes in to 
    1.27 +watch me that it’s a good thing I didn’t get my hands on it. I guess it’s good that 
    1.28 +she’s wasting her time taking care of me, but does she have to bring that up? 
    1.29 +	And then there’s her. I guess she’s really one of the only good things to 
    1.30 +come from this. Well, it looks like I’m not banished from home anymore so I 
    1.31 +can return to East Heaven Kingdom, so maybe that’s a good thing, too. And I 
    1.32 +don’t have Belle and Duke on my back anymore. But she’s definitely the best 
    1.33 +part of all this. It was nice to have met her. Too bad I’ll have to leave soon 
    1.34 +enough and I’ll probably never see her again. Oh well. 
    1.35 +	Staring up at the roof of the inn, I still can’t get her out of my head. The 
    1.36 +thought of never seeing her again is even more unbearable than the thought that 
    1.37 +I was so close to the Dewprism and now it’s gone. I can’t stand the thought of 
    1.38 +leaving her behind after all this. I always looked forward to seeing her and even 
    1.39 +to fighting with Rue over her. I’m glad he wasn’t interested in her after all. Even 
    1.40 +though I know I could have won, it’s much nicer to have things laid out for you 
    1.41 +on a silver platter. It means no wasted effort looking for a damned thing that 
    1.42 +disappears the moment you get too close. Ahem... 
    1.43 +	Where was I? Oh yeah, Elena.  Everything about her is so sickeningly 
    1.44 +sweet. From the first moment I saw her, I knew that she was way too innocent 
    1.45 +for her own good. But how could I know that after saving her, she’d grow on me 
    1.46 +the way she did? I’m starting to love everything about her. Even her goofy way 
    1.47 +of looking at things and her naïve view of the world. The way she’s out of it all 
    1.48 +the time, like she lives in some other place than the rest of us. Like she’s never 
    1.49 +fully there. The way her cute pink hair frames a beautiful face that’s almost 
    1.50 +always smiling. 
    1.51 +	I sigh and try to roll over again but give up. It’s not worth the pain. In 
    1.52 +either case. I should just pack up and head back to East Heaven Kingdom with 
    1.53 +Maya. I can always try to find a new relic after I relax for a while. That would 
    1.54 +work nicely. Give me a chance to check on things back home before conquering 
    1.55 +the rest of the planet. Two years on the road has really been too long. I’d love to 
    1.56 +slump down in my bed in the royal chambers and sleep for days. With her right 
    1.57 +next to me...
    1.58 +	Agghhhh!!! I fling a pillow at the wall in my frustration. Why the hell 
    1.59 +can’t I get her out of my head?! It’s worse than the Dewprism. I’ve been 
    1.60 +thinking about her nearly nonstop from the moment I woke up after the fight 
    1.61 +with Valen. No, since before I left to his fortress in the first place. When I left 
    1.62 +for that last confrontation, I kept wondering if I’d see her again. And what 
    1.63 +would become of her once I got the Dewprism. Lots of pleasant ideas came to 
    1.64 +mind at that. It would be my world after I conquered it, so it would be easy 
    1.65 +enough to bring her to my palace in a nice lacy little thing and just spend my 
    1.66 +days relaxing with her. But now I’m being dragged back home by my little sister 
    1.67 +and the world dominating’s gonna have to wait. So where does that leave Elena? 
    1.68 +What do I do about her? I’m royalty. This isn’t fair that some country girl can 
    1.69 +get me so riled up about things. I laugh as I look out the window, catching a 
    1.70 +glimpse of her cotton candy pink hair as she leads Prima Doll through the town 
    1.71 +square. It’s not like I’m in love with the silly country girl or anything. Right? 
    1.72 +Imean... Oh, damn it.
    1.73 +	I slam my fist into the bed angrily, my frustration at this whole thing 
    1.74 +growing, but the pain shooting through my back makes me reconsider another 
    1.75 +violent outburst. What the <expletive> is going on here? No. No, I’ve gotta be 
    1.76 +wrong there’s no way that this can be right. I’ve spent two years on the road and 
    1.77 +I’ve been doing just fine on my own please and thank you. But... It was always 
    1.78 +so lonely. I’ve been through hell. And it’s been so nice ever since I’ve met her. I 
    1.79 +don’t feel so lonely and angry at the world when she’s around. A soothing wind 
    1.80 +follows her. 
    1.81 +	This isn’t fair. What was Fate planning when it made me run into that 
    1.82 +country girl? Does it matter? I glare daggers at my roof as if it had offended me 
    1.83 +by it’s mere presence. I don’t need this. Not now. Not when I’m so close to 
    1.84 +going back home. I mean, at least I’ll have a kingdom within my fingertips 
    1.85 +again. And Maya said she needed my help to run it all. But I can’t just leave her 
    1.86 +behind, can I?
    1.87 +	I sit up in bed and wince at the pain biting at me. I’ve come too far to 
    1.88 +go back empty handed. I’m gonna get what I want even if it kills me.
    1.89 +
    1.90 +	There she is. And for once, Prima Doll isn’t around. Thank God for 
    1.91 +small miracles. I know we’d probably just end up arguing and I’d forget the 
    1.92 +whole purpose for leaving my bed. The whole scene is beautiful, serene as she 
    1.93 +dips her fingers into the fountain in the center of town. I will myself to move 
    1.94 +forward, but my aching body doesn’t seem willing to comply. After a few 
    1.95 +threats to myself that I’m certain my body just laughed off, I finally manage to 
    1.96 +stumble towards her. Not at all with my usual grace and elegance that I’m sure 
    1.97 +has enraptured her by now in the same way her cute, quaint country girl qualities 
    1.98 +have somehow managed to wrap themselves tightly around my heart, but at least 
    1.99 +I get over to her.
   1.100 +	“Hey, Elena...” I manage, suppressing a wince as I lean against the 
   1.101 +fountain. She really is beautiful in a charming, small town sorta way. I sigh and 
   1.102 +shake my head. She’s gorgeous no matter where she’s from. Her gentle gaze 
   1.103 +shakes me from my thoughts, making me realize I’m staring at her. I flush 
   1.104 +slightly as I look down. This isn’t easy at all. What am I supposed to say to her? 
   1.105 +With my luck she won’t even understand what I’m trying to say. 
   1.106 +	“Hi, Mint!!” Elena says happily as sits next to me on the fountain. So 
   1.107 +happy, so content. It’s like nothing ever really worries her. I sigh. This is going 
   1.108 +to be so much more difficult than I had thought. Maybe I should just forget 
   1.109 +about it. “I’m glad to see you. I was so worried when you were sleeping for so 
   1.110 +long. I thought you were hurt too badly.”
   1.111 +	I nod slightly, feeling the pain deep in my body. “Yeah, that whole 
   1.112 +thing was just plain awful. I should have the Dewprism by now but all I have for 
   1.113 +my trouble is a bunch of sore muscles.” I frown exaggeratedly before shrugging. 
   1.114 +“Oh well. There have to be other relics out there. I’ll get one someday.” 
   1.115 +	Elena giggles musically, nodding. “Yeah, I’m sure you will, Mint. I 
   1.116 +don’t think this will stop you. I really hope you can get one soon. I think you’d 
   1.117 +make a good queen.”
   1.118 +	“Well, yeah, thanks, Elena..” I smile a bit, looking at her eyes and the 
   1.119 +way her cotton candy hair frames that beautiful face of hers. “If I go back with 
   1.120 +Elena, I might be queen of East Heaven Kingdom in a few years, but I still can’t 
   1.121 +give up on my dream. One of these days it’ll be the whole world.” I stop before I 
   1.122 +can go further, even though I know there’s so much more I want to explain. Too 
   1.123 +bad it all has to do with her. I don’t have any experience with this sort of thing. 
   1.124 +	“I wish you didn’t have to leave, Mint. I was starting to think you’d be 
   1.125 +here forever.” Elena sighs sadly and trails her fingers through the cold water of 
   1.126 +the fountain. The water swirls behind her fingers, blurring our reflections. 
   1.127 +	“Yeah, me too. I feel like I’ve been here forever now.” My vision goes 
   1.128 +to the sky where Valen’s Palace used to be. “I don’t want to go either,” I 
   1.129 +whisper. Perking up a bit, I smile and turn to Elena. “Hey, Elena. Do you 
   1.130 +remember when I was talking about you coming to the palace with me?”
   1.131 +	Elena nods vigorously, instantly remembering when we’d been talking 
   1.132 +about that down by the lake. “Yeah, you said I could be in charge of something 
   1.133 +in your kingdom and I said I wanted to be in charge of housekeeping.”
   1.134 +	I sweatdrop at that. I’d almost forgotten that part. She really doesn’t 
   1.135 +have huge aspirations. But that’s part of her charm. She doesn’t need the world 
   1.136 +on a platter to be happy. Yet that’s what I’ve been looking for all of this time. 
   1.137 +How does she do that? It’s like she can somehow be happy wherever she is. 
   1.138 +“Yeah, that was it. But that’s not really why I wanted you to go with me.” I try 
   1.139 +to beat down the heat rising in my cheeks. She’s another girl. What will Maya 
   1.140 +and the others think? Who cares what they think? It’s not like that’s ever 
   1.141 +bothered me before. So why am I finding myself tongue tied? I sigh and try 
   1.142 +again. “Well, I still want you to come back with me Elena.”
   1.143 +	Elena frowns a little, seeming a bit unsure. “I don’t know, Mint. I’d 
   1.144 +hate to leave my parents and Prima Doll all alone. But I’d hate to leave you all 
   1.145 +alone. Especially with Rue gone.” She looks at me sympathetically. 
   1.146 +	My hair flies in all directions as I shake my head quickly. “Rue? Oh, 
   1.147 +hell no. We were rivals. Over... something. But he’s a big boy. He can take care 
   1.148 +of himself.” 
   1.149 +	That brings a sweet smile to Elena’s lips. “Yeah, you’re right, Mint. 
   1.150 +And I’m sure you’ll be able to take care of yourself, too. So I shouldn’t worry.”
   1.151 +	I bite my lip. This isn’t going as well as I’d hoped. “No, I want you to 
   1.152 +go with me because I don’t wanna be away from you. Elena, I did find 
   1.153 +something magical here. I may not have gotten a relic, but I think I found 
   1.154 +something even more important. I found you, Elena. I want you to come back 
   1.155 +with me to the palace.” I look up, mustering all of the strength it took me to face 
   1.156 +Valen and Dollmaster and all of the others. I can do this. I can make it through 
   1.157 +anything. I’ve come this far. “I love you, Elena.” My body nearly collapses, 
   1.158 +those words feeling heavier than anything else I’ve put up with up until now. 
   1.159 +	Gorgeous eyes blink uncomprehendingly at me for the longest moment. 
   1.160 +My spirits begin to drop as I resign myself to heading back to East Heaven 
   1.161 +Kingdom alone. But a soft smile begins tugging at her lips until it seems to spill 
   1.162 +over into her entire being. Shining, she grapples onto me. My weary body yelps 
   1.163 +out as I feel the sudden pressure of her body against me, but my heart sings out 
   1.164 +at the sudden contact. “I love you, too, Mint! Of course I’ll go with you. You’ve 
   1.165 +always been my hero.” 
   1.166 +	A grin starts to spread across my face as I look into her eyes inches 
   1.167 +away from mine. Maybe I underestimated her after all. Maybe rescuing her 
   1.168 +really was the best thing I’ve ever done. It looks like I’ve finally found my relic 
   1.169 +after all. Despite the aching throughout my body, I lean forward. Elena’s silky 
   1.170 +lips are all the reward I need for the past two years. She collapses against me, 
   1.171 +her weight throwing me off balance. Tumbling backwards into the cold water, 
   1.172 +her giggling fills my ears. 
   1.173 +I can’t wait to tell Maya. She’ll flip.
   1.174 +