A half-eaten plate of food sat on the low table near Brenon's bed. I'd left only to use the bathroom in the last two days. Time seemed to move more slowly than usual as I paced the small room, stopping every so often to check for any signs of movement from Brenon.

Settling into my spot on the floor next to his bed, I leaned back and let myself close my eyes. I'd only slept in small spurts despite Joe and everyone else's reprimanding. There was no way I wasn't going to be here when he woke up.

With each passing day, Miles grew more concerned, though he tried to hide it from me. He wouldn't tell me exactly how long he'd wait until he'd given up on Brenon waking, but I knew it couldn't be much longer.

I opened my eyes and turned around, so I was facing Brenon. I ran my fingers through his hair, then grabbed hold of his hand. "Please wake up."

A gentle knock sounded on the door behind me before it opened. I turned to see Goldie and Joe walking in. Goldie had taken Joe under her wing, finding things for him to help with while I sat vigil over Brenon.

"Any change?" She sat down next to me.

I shook my head. "How about on your end? Any word from the others?"

Goldie had sent out a message to the supernatural community two days ago, but last I'd heard, there wasn't an overwhelming rush of responses. I wasn't even sure how they communicated, but yesterday she'd seemed disappointed.

She shook her head. "I thought we'd have more responses by now. A few have let us know they'll come. Some have sent excuses as to why they won't. Mostly, they're afraid. Word got out about Terra."

"And there's the rumor she's spreading," Joe added.

"What rumor?" I asked.

Joe and Goldie exchanged a worried look.

"Just tell me," I said.

"Word is that Terra will be opening the gate in two days. The rumor is that Gia knows how to do it."

"That's impossible," I said. "Unless..."

I'd been thinking a lot about the curse and the threat that Terra was to us. Since there was nobody else like me, that we knew of, I had wondered if there was another way to open the gate. Sometime in the middle of the night, I'd had a terrible thought.

"Unless?" Goldie raised her eyebrows.

"Well, there isn't a set spell for opening the gates, and I know it says it has to be a child of both worlds, but I've been wondering if it's possible for Terra to take the magic of both sides and do it herself. If she had the magic of both Sayge and Fae, would it give her the same benefits?"

"If that was the case, why didn't she do it years ago?" Goldie asked.

"I wonder if it's about the power," I said. "She took Gia for a reason. She wanted Brenon's power. But he's not the only Fae with enough strength to give her what she wants."

"Tristan," Goldie said.

I nodded. "What if she takes his power? What if that gives her what she needs?"

Goldie stood. "I'm going to find Evangeline. We need to get eyes on Tristan. Find out where he is."

"Guess I'll wait here," Joe said as Goldie closed the door behind her. He turned to me. "You think Terra can open the gate with Gia and Tristan?"

"I don't know, but I'm guessing she's trying to find a way to do it without my help or Brenon's." I knelt back down next to Brenon's bed.

"Ara, have you even left this room in the last two days?" Joe asked.

I shook my head. "I want to be here when he wakes up."

Joe knelt down next to me. "What if he doesn't wake up?"

I glared at Joe. "He's going to."

"Then what?" Joe asked.

It was the question I'd been avoiding asking myself. Then what. I knew the answer, but I didn't want to think about it. There were only two ways this could end: either we all died fighting against Terra, or we defeated her and Brenon returned to Faerie. In either outcome, I was going to lose him. I knew that already, which was why I insisted on spending time with him here. Even if he didn't know I was by his side. I wasn't ready to say goodbye in either situation, but at least I was going to have the chance to say goodbye. It wasn't something I'd been granted when my parents passed. They were here one day, gone the next.

"Maybe it would be easier to say goodbye now and go help, Goldie. Do something productive. Take your mind off of things you can't control," Joe said.

"Giving up on me so soon?" Brenon's voice was scratchy and quiet, barely a whisper.

My heart leaped at the sound. Turning my attention from Joe, I practically threw myself at Brenon. His eyes were open, squinting against the light. In a rush of relief mixed with joy, I laughed as I planted a kiss on Brenon's cheek. "You're awake."

He sat up slowly, pausing as if gaining his balance. "How long was I out?"

"Almost three days," I said.

"Three?" He tried to stand, then fell back onto the bed. "Terra took Gia, then they attacked. I don't know what happened after that. Where's Gia?"

"Shh." I stroked Brenon's shoulder. "Sit, don't rush, we're working on it."

Brenon covered his face with his hands, then dropped them and looked around the room. "Where is everybody?"

I glanced behind me and realized that Joe had left the room sometime after Brenon woke. "They're working on getting help. I'm sure they'll be here to check in soon."

Just then, the door opened, and Evangeline and Miles raced in. Joe followed them through the door.

Evangeline rushed past me and launched herself on Brenon, pulling him into a hug. He wrapped his arms around her and patted her on the back. "I'm fine, Eva. Just groggy."

She let go and stepped back. "This one's been at your bedside since we returned, just so you know."

Brenon smiled at me, and I felt a rush of heat go to my face.

Miles handed Brenon a cup of the orange liquid I'd come to appreciate for its healing qualities. Without pause, Brenon threw back the drink, then gave the cup to Miles. "Thank you."

"Evangeline, Miles, come quick." Goldie raced into the room, stopping in her tracks when she saw Brenon awake. A huge smile spread across her face. "Welcome back, boss."

"What is it, Goldie?" Evangeline was back to business as usual, the brief show of emotion gone.

"You have to see this," Goldie said. "Hundreds, all here to help."

"What?" Miles set the cup down and walked over to the window.

"The Fae, all the supernaturals we called. They didn't respond, they just came. They all want to help us take down Terra. They're ready to toss the blue pills and go after her."

I helped Brenon to stand, and without words, all of us made our way over to the window. Goldie was right, outside the car were more people than I'd seen at any of the Rose Circus parties. Brenon kissed the top of my head, then moved away from me. He was walking regularly now, not showing any signs of having been incapacitated for the last three days. "Looks like we have some work to do."

I followed the group out of the train to the abandoned train yard we'd parked at for the last few days. Huddled around the Circus train, surrounded by graffitied, rusting train cars, the people who'd come to help us waited.

A cheer rose from the crowd when they caught a glimpse of the Ringmaster. And as if he'd never left the stage, Brenon seemed to light up, his stage persona taking over. He smiled and waved to the group, posture straightening as he addressed the crowd. "Thank you all for coming. This ends now. This time, we fight back. No more hiding. No more fear. It's time to go home."

The crowd parted, and murmurs rose as a figure made its way to the front. It took a moment for me to process what I saw as the leather jacket and long blonde hair came into view. Tristan was here.