Chapter Text
Keyleth had never claimed to be a good liar. In fact, on several occasions, she’d openly admitted to being terrible at it, along with most forms of deception. Oh, she
can
lie, when needed...it’s just very obvious to those who know her well what she’s doing. Probably to those who don’t know her well, either, to be honest.
The fact that she was able to keep this as quiet and hidden as long as she did would be, in other circumstances, a minor miracle. She knew it wouldn’t last (she didn’t want it to last), but the right opportunity to talk to the others just...never came up.
It comes out at the wedding. Because of
course
it would come out then, after a long stressful day trying to make sure everything was perfect for her closest friends, of attempting to come up with a speech on the fly, of worrying and wondering, should she tell them now? Would it be better or worse to wait until after the wedding? Could she get away with keeping this from them all for a little longer? How mad would they all be? Was it worth it, to keep going with the lie?
Derrig had stepped in, calmed her down and broke her out of the anxiety spiral she had rapidly descended into the minute they got to Dalen’s Closet. She had been so...angry wasn’t quite the right word for it, but it was stronger than irritation...either way, she’d been
extremely
displeased with the council, at first, for insisting that she bring him, for thinking that she wasn’t capable of looking after herself, when he would have done so much more good staying home, looking after--looking after those who couldn’t defend themselves. But...it had been good, having him there. Having somebody who understood, who
knew
. He’d stepped in, helped her with her speech, helped her come up with a plan to talk to Vex before she and Percy left on their honeymoon. If nothing else, he’d said, she deserved to know, and the rest could come later. It had been a good plan, and she’d finally felt ready to talk.
And then Sylas
fucking
Briarwood had decided to show up and ruin everything. Because of
course
he did.
The entire night had dissolved into chaos, a complete disaster that thankfully ended in what everyone hoped would be the final death of Sylas, an impromptu ceremony...and then Scanlan had used Wish, and Vax…
He had been different. Of course he’d be different, he’d been gone for over a year, but actually
seeing
the changes that he’d undergone residing in the Astral Plane...His movements had been stilted and his words slow and deliberate in a way he’d never been in life.
But he’d held her in his arms, called her his home...and Keyleth knew it was still him. He was still their Vax. Gods, she had so much she wanted to tell him, so much she needed to say to him before
She
stole him from them all again. But her plans were shot and she was free-falling, and all she could say to him was: “How am I supposed to get over you if you keep sending ravens to me?”
Stupid. Foolish, stupid Keyleth, desperate to try and hear his laugh one last time.
“I am...imperfect. As are the gods.”
If she listened closely, she thought she could hear a tinge of humor in his voice. Or maybe she was just hearing what she wanted to hear. Maybe they all were. Still, it brought a weak smile to her face. “That was my poor attempt at humor. I’ll never get over you.”
“Nor I...but you will
live
. And your life...will touch thousands.” He had pulled away from their embrace, just enough so their eyes could meet. They were still the same shade of grey, still as bright as she remembered them being. And then…
“Your children…”
The entire cliffside was silent. Somewhere off to the side, she heard a soft swear from Derrig. Though she couldn’t see him, she knew that somewhere in the crowd that had gathered, Shaun Gilmore had froze, going rigid. Vex, who’s eyes had never left her brother, was suddenly staring right at her. Questioning. Accusing.
He knew.
Of course he knew.
Keyleth recovered quickly, saying something about watching over his sister and her family, her descendants, for as long as she lived, and he had pulled her close for just a moment. There would be time to explain things to everyone tomorrow, because regardless of how she’d covered it up, the cat was out of the bag. There would be no more running, no more hiding this...no more lying to her family. But Vax would be gone before tomorrow...and regardless of whether or not that large raven with the intelligent bright eyes of the man she loved came to visit again, she would not see him off without telling him. He would not go back to
Her
without her knowing for sure that he knew of his children.
Keyleth took a deep breath before whispering in his ear, just before he pulled back to face the rest of Vox Machina. Their family.
“Their names are Simon and Shaun.”
His nod was almost imperceptible, as was the way he blinked once, twice, rapidly and out of synch with the rest of his movements, as if he was alive once more. He looked at them all, his family, his friends, speaking in that strange, slow manner that was so unlike him...telling them all to live. And then...he was gone.
Again.
She thought her heart couldn’t break anymore than it already had.
But Pike called them all together to celebrate the wedding, pronouncing Percy and Vex husband and wife. Even though her chest hurt, even though she knew there was no more hiding, she still smiled, druidcrafting a thousand fireflies that exploded outward and encircled the couple. For a moment, in spite of the sadness she still felt, everything was perfect.
And then Vex put a hand on her shoulder.
“You and I,” Vex--no, Lady de Rolo said, “need to have a talk, don’t we.”
Well…shit.