Kat did not collect the bounty on Soros.

The crew of the Dauntless was very upset about that, but after they met him, they agreed in unison that yeah, mhmh, that was probably better for everyone.

No bounty.

Not too surprisingly, Zoey Swann forgave her too.

They were very anxious to leave the Corgan realm far behind, but Kat convinced them to stay and watch the last act of the unification play out. It went so much better than she'd expected that after several months, she still pinched her arm first thing after waking up just to make sure it was still true.

Alright, second thing. The first was and always would be smiling, seeing Soros already awake and looking at her. The newest clan lord was finding his life to be very much agreeable, although Kat knew he missed Dolon Hall every once in a while.

And ‘agreeable‘ wasn't perhaps the right word either. After that dreadful day at Dolon Hall, Soros had taken Kat away from it as soon as he could. He left the cleanup to his students and his new clan, saying it was their new task. Neither objected, accepting the job of putting together what had been destroyed, something that was sacred to all Corgans regardless of which side they fought on earlier.

Kat thought it was a nice symbol for everything that had been going on. As Soros had promised, they spent the first week in a bed, but not in the Hall. They went back to the little town near the ice ocean.

It was funny to Kat how sentimental a person could get over a place when it was no longer threatening their life. Trips to the ice ocean were highlights of her days, though a distant second to being in bed with Soros.

She liked watching the daylight play on the surface of the ice, reflecting its depths.

Bliss would not last too long, however, as soon enough they had to visit the planet Soros now found himself residing over. Ruiam, the homeworld of Soros’ new clan, came with its own unique challenges, but after dealing with Turian, Kat felt like she and Soros could take on anything the universe had to throw at them.

It was safe to say she missed Hetton too, but luckily for her, they didn't have to stay away from it forever. The chieftain dismissively said that a clan lord could have two jobs, no problem. They were the most powerful and most capable people in the Corgan worlds after all. With that, dividing their time between Soros’ new home and Dolon Hall wouldn't be a problem.

And it wasn't, either, to Kat's absolute delight. Soros had taken control of his clan easily enough. She wondered if it had again been his name, always walking in front of him, that made it almost effortless.

Soros agreed with her assessment, to a point, but said that Corgans were done fighting each other. They wanted stronger leadership and were ready to look to the future.

It seemed the chieftain had won.

He appeared to think so too as Soros' first task had been to go and report to him and only then could he go to his new home world. Kat had been searching for a way to ask if it was to become her home too, but for a Corgan, that apparently went without saying.

"You are mine," Soros said when she’d finally brought the topic up. "Now and forever. We will be together and where one of us goes, the other follows. Whether you like it or not, now you must truly become a Corgan, my little one."

When she told Zoey Swann that, the ambassador laughed.

"He means it literally," the other woman warned her. "Corgans are very literal about stuff like that. He isn't going to let you out of his sight, but I suppose that just like me, you'll love it."

After all the suffering, the pain and the cold and the danger, it was so nice to finally relax in Soros' arms and think of days to come. They had fought for each other and deserved to be happy now.

Her only fear had been the chieftain and what he would do with his newest clan lord. Their roles seemed reversed for once, as it was Soros arguing for reason and trust.

"Relax," he had said, running his fingers gently through her hair. "This is over. Nadar will not do anything to damage his precious peace."

After the Corgans she'd seen, Kat wasn't convinced, but the meeting went better than expected. The chieftain's Terran bride Mara had been there as well, a small girl holding her hand. Seeing them together like that made Kat think of whether that was the future that was waiting for her as well.

Peace.

She saw Soros looking at her, smiling and realized they both wanted it. After that moment, even Nadar Brenger didn't seem so scary.

The chieftain was the one who offered Kat the bounty for Soros.

"I wouldn't say she caught me, exactly," Soros objected, amused.

"Her task was to find you," the chieftain said. "And deliver you to me, if possible. She has apparently done that."

"I think we're fine," Kat cut in, smiling to Soros. "We have everything we need."

There was a knowing look in the chieftain's eyes as he nodded, a small smirk on his lips.

"Very well. So, tell me, Soros. Should I fear that you will one day start craving my position?"

Kat's heart dropped, but Mara shook her head, giving her a reassuring smile.

"No," Soros replied, standing by her side. "I didn't even want to be a clan lord. Becoming the chieftain would be unthinkable. I have no interest in ruling."

"Excellent," Nadar Brenger said, the mischievous smirk lighting up his face. "That makes you a perfect clan lord, then. Those who do not seek power are the only ones fit to wield it, after all. Is there anything I can do for you to repay the service you've done to our realm?"

Now Soros looked at her, making Kat feel like she was all he could see.

"As she said," Soros replied, not taking his eyes off her. "We have everything we need."

* * *

Things had only gotten better from thereon. With nothing else to threaten them, Kat and her crew changed professions. Bounty hunting wasn't a big business in the Corgan realm where the clans handled most of their problems on their own. But scouting missions into neighboring regions were very prized. The chieftain offered her the job at once, and Kat accepted with glee.

She was very amused at seeing Zoey Swann's warning manifest so utterly when Soros tried to convince her to take an escort of Corgan ships on her every trip.

"I can't do that," she said patiently, loving how much he needed her to be safe. "It's a scouting mission. One ship of dubious origin, that's nothing. A Corgan armada following that little ship is something else."

Soros wrapped his hands around her, a grin telling Kat that he hadn't really expected her to agree.

"I suppose I can't just lock you away," he said.

Kat laughed.

"No," she agreed. "I would just find a way to escape. And besides, it's what you love about me."

"It is," Soros said, pulling her in for a strong, sweet, loving kiss that left her just as breathless as every last one of them had since the very first one. "I love everything about you."

"I love you too," Kat whispered, allowing him to press kisses on her lips, smiling. "Almost everything about you."

Soros pulled back, giving her a glare that wasn't in the least bit serious.

"You think I need improvement?" he asked playfully.

"Not exactly," Kat teased him. "I was just thinking that I would like to see Hetton again, soon. Maybe even stay for a while. Your clan can handle itself without you, but Dolon Hall needs their commander."

"I'm no longer their commander," Soros pointed out.

"Nonsense," Kat argued. "You are. Always. Now, the man I met and fell in love with would tell the chieftain to deal with his own problems for a while and take me to Hetton. I want to see the ice ocean again, and maybe visit our cave. And you can take some of your warriors to Dolon Hall."

The fire in Soros' eyes told her exactly how much he loved that idea. It was how Soros ended up doing it all with Kat by his side whenever she wasn't out on her own missions – splitting their time and their energy as wisely as they could.

They didn't get into too much trouble. The chieftain seemed more amused than mad, but they wouldn't have cared either way. Ruling a clan was something Soros had to do to keep peace and order in the realm.

But his heart – and Kat's too – belonged on Hetton, with Dolon Hall, which they had fought for, and the ice ocean, that had fought them. And the cave that had brought them together.

In there, with only the two of them, wrapped in warm blankets, the world was theirs. Outside, a storm beat against the Grouvelle range, but inside, Kat was thinking that she wouldn't change it for anything. Soros was all she needed. Together, their happiness was complete.