For a moment, Gwendolyn hung in a void. There was no ground beneath her, no sky, no walls or ceiling. Such an intense sort of nothingness that she wasn’t even falling. No air rushing past her face.

But it was only a moment, and then she was standing outside the gates of a city far bigger than her home village of Greenville.

He’d done it, he’d sent her away. Just like she’d asked. He was no Damien, who pretended to acquiesce only to buy time to change her mind.

She crumpled to the ground. What had she done? The final look he’d given her was of such abject heartbreak that she knew he was innocent of the crimes she had imagined for him. From the moment they met, she’d compared him to Damien. It was only a matter of time, really, before he did something similar enough for her to latch onto and lash out.

Why had she done that? Why had she held Tristan accountable for another man’s crimes?

It wasn’t Tristan she was mad at, not really. He had only ever cared for her without asking anything in return, and the one time he wronged her, he apologized sincerely.

She thought of the hours they’d spent at the dinner table on her second night, just talking about the possibility of parallel worlds, and the potential for variance between them. He opened her mind to entirely new things, and she found she enjoyed the mental exercise. Who else would ever see her with such lack of prejudice, to bring her into conversations like that?

Just as she was beginning to well and truly despair, she heard a slight pop and the other wizard, Xavier, appeared beside her.

“Well, look at you sad sack,” he said. “I thought you got everything you wanted?”

Gwendolyn turned her tear-stained face up to him. “Oh, I’ve been a fool, Xavier. I should never have yelled at him, I— I—” she hiccuped. “I love him.”

The wizard crouched beside her. “Do you?” His voice cracked like a whip. “I’ve known Tristan a very long time, you know, and he’s not so good with people. He’s naive, even now, because his own goodness blinds him to the faults of others.”

“I know,” she cried. “I was just so afraid he would turn out to be like my husband, and I, I was so afraid that I only saw what my fear showed me.”

“He doesn’t open himself up easily,” the wizard mused. “Yet somehow, with you, it only took a few days for him to fall flat on his face.”

Through the tears, Gwendolyn smiled. “We talked of the most wonderful things, you know. He asked me just the other day how I would feel if I was cloned, and we spent two hours discussing the ramifications of it.”

Xavier let out a low whistle. “I’m beginning to see what he likes about you. Not many could hold their own with Tristan on a topic like that.”

Gwendolyn’s smile turned once more into a sob. “That’s one of the things I’ll miss most about him.”

Xavier sighed. “You’re both fools. Just go tell him you’re sorry. That idiot will take you back in a heartbeat.”

“You think so?” She looked up at him with such hope that Xavier felt his own heart start to break.

He rolled his eyes. “Obviously.”

“But…” Gwendolyn rose to her feet and dusted off her clothes. She was still wearing the shrunken robes that Tristan had made for her on the first day. They were more comfortable than anything she had ever worn before, and she knew she could never find anything else as fine.

“How will I get back? I don’t even know where he’s sent me.”

Xavier passed a hand over his face. “For such an intelligent woman, you sure do miss the obvious. Oh!” He smacked his forehead. “I’ve just realized why you and Tristan are so perfect for each other.”

Gwendolyn’s eyes narrowed. “What have I missed?”

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“Well, I’m here, aren’t I?” Xavier gestured at himself. “Do you think I asked Tristan to send me somewhere far away and unknown, or do you think I sent myself here to clean up your mess?”

Gwendolyn gasped. “You can take me back to his tower!”

“We-ell, yes and no. Tristan has wards in his tower, so I can only pop inside if I ring the doorbell first, and he’s not answering at the moment. But I could drop you off outside easy enough.”

Gwendolyn paled. “Outside the tower.”

“Yep, that’s right. Outside the tower.”

“Where the mob is.”

“Oh, riiight, the mob. Gosh, if only you could do something about that.” Steel returned to his gaze as he gave her a hard look.

She blinked. “Me? What can I do?”

“Have they not gathered on your behalf? Are they not chanting your name as they batter the walls of my best friend’s home?”

Gwendolyn reeled. The wizard was right. It was her fault the villagers were pounding on his door. If she’d had the backbone to tell Damien off properly before, Tristan might not even be suffering this indignity. It was worse now, and that made it all the more her responsibility to fix it.

She nodded resolutely. “Quite right,” she said. “Please, wizard, teleport me back to Tristan’s tower.”

Xavier smirked. With a wave of his hands, he sent her back through the void, to the space outside Tristan’s tower. He’d always felt somewhat indebted to Tristan since their time at the academy. Without the younger wizard’s tutelage, Xavier never would have graduated. Tristan always insisted that Xavier more than made up for it by being his one and only friend, but that never sat right with him.

He dusted his hands off, feeling immensely pleased with himself. This definitely evened the scales a bit, assuming the girl meant everything she said. And he’d been using a truth spell on her just to be sure. He’d go back home for now, and leave it until the Gathering to bring it back up.

Grinning widely, the wizard disappeared.

***

Gwendolyn popped into place just behind the mob. Conveniently, Xavier had thought to put her on top of a wooden pedestal so she towered over the crowd.

“Hey!” she shouted. “Knock it off!”

The villagers hesitated and turned around to face her.

“Gwendolyn! You’re free!”

Damien rushed to her feet and turned to the crowd. “We did it, men! See what we can do when we band together!”

A great cheer rose up.

Gwendolyn stomped her foot. “Shut up and listen to me!” she yelled. “I’m not going back with you. I’m not every going back with him!” She pointed at Damien.

He looked at her with familiar rage before turning a more innocent face to the crowd. “Her mind must still be addled by the wizard,” he loudly mused.

Gwendolyn’s blood boiled. “After my marriage, how many of you saw me with bruises on my cheeks or around my eyes? On my arms? How many of you did nothing?!”

The villagers shuffled their feet, many of them unable to meet her gaze.

“I finally freed myself. I stumbled through the forest for three days without enough food or water to keep me alive, and if you drag me back to live with Damien, I’ll do it again!” Her heart was racing and her breath heavy, but as she shouted at the neighbors who let her down over and over again, she felt a release of pent up emotion. “Any one of you could have taken me in when I needed it and protected me from that monster. But you didn’t. The wizard did. Begone, then, and never disturb us again.”

“Now hold on just a minute.” Damien objected.

“No, the girl’s right,” said the blacksmith. “We all should have helped her a long time ago. You never did treat her right.”

A low murmur of agreement coursed through the crowd, and Damien realized he’d lost them.

“Alright, alright,” the man said, his hands raised peaceably above his head. “We’ll leave her be. The wizard’s won this round.” He shot her a venomous look but backed away.

Not until the entire crowd dispersed did she release the breath she was holding.

She was free. Completely free. Damien wouldn’t be coming after her any more, and the villagers finally realized that she was better off without him as well. If they truly learned their lesson, they would never let him remarry, and keep their girls away from him to boot.

She stumbled to the tower and knocked on the door. “I know you can hear me in there,” she said. “And I understand perfectly if you don’t want to let me in. But I had to tell you. I love you. And I would like to stay with you, even now, with nobody coming after me.”

There was no answer. She waited as long as she could with hope in her heart. Just as she was about to turn away, the door swung open.

“I suppose you ought to come inside.”

Gwendolyn barreled forward, closing the distance between them and wrapping her arms around the wizard. He hesitated for a moment, then returned the embrace.

“You were gone… far too long,” he said.

She nodded into his shoulder. “Never send me away again,” she said.

“I never will,” he said. “Can you forgive me?”

Her arms tightened around him. “As easy as breathing.”

He leaned back, then, and with a smile he raised her chin so she was looking at him. “May I kiss you?”

“Oh, yes, please.”

He lowered his lips to hers, and she kissed him with all the passion that had built up since the moment they met.

“Come inside,” he said. “I’m thinking about lemon chicken for dinner.”

Taking his hand in hers, Gwendolyn cocked her head to the side. “I had a different idea. There are still a couple rooms upstairs you haven’t shown me yet.”

Tristan stared blankly back at her, confused. “You can explore the tower, of course.”

“No, I mean,” she laughed. “Why don’t you show me your bedroom? In particular.”

“Oh? Oh! Oh.” The wizard scratched his neck. “Yes, great idea. Right now?”

Gwendolyn bit her lip and nodded.

“Right, then.” He pulled her close and kissed her again. “Come with me.”