Chapter Fifty-Eight

Mutt

All that I could think about was the fact that Moon was alive. That there was a chance to save her. I really did hate leaving Clato and Manoa, but at the same time I was glad. Insanely happy about it. Because it meant that I could finally say goodbye the right way.

Because it was going to end with goodbye. It always did. I knew that it would too, and I had made peace with it. Moon wasn’t going to let it happen, I knew that. In fact, I knew that she was going to do everything in her power to make sure that it didn’t happen.

I also knew that Moon was way more powerful than she gave herself credit for. She could do so many things that she didn’t even know about. She could be a goddess, rule the world. Change everything if she wanted to. All it would do was take a little belief.

I loved her with all my heart, but that didn’t mean that I wasn’t scared to die for her. I was, but I respected her too. With everything that I was made up of. Every atom in my body.

What Manoa had said about fairy tales was stuck in my mind. This whole time I thought that I had to kill Caltaya, something I still was going to do. But doing that was going to help someone other than Moon. Doing that was going to help me. To help Moon all I needed to do was believe.

It sounded so stupid, so there was no actual way that it could fail. It was just so impossible not to be real. When Manoa teleported me, however that might’ve happened, I ended up on Looker’s Point. What I saw there terrified me.

The first thing that I noticed was my town, my home, completely destroyed. Except for a few things that looked like they had started to be rebuilt. People made their way over the rubble, climbing and scooting across broken pieces of cement.

I turn around slowly, and come face to face with a coffin made out of ice. Laying inside the coffin was Moon. Her hands folded together on top of her stomach and her hair splayed out around her head, creating a halo.

It was all very Snow White but then again, what better way to remember a fairy tale than to be in one. I kneel down in front of the ice basket, pushing the top away. It clatters to the ground and breaks into ice shards.

I lean down and press my lips against hers. The only fairy tale that made sense in this situation. I pull back, hopeful, but nothing changes. Cursing myself for being such an idiot I hang my head and chide myself.

“Mutt?” Moon’s voice whispers.

Her voice was soft and hoarse, like she hadn’t had anything to drink for days on end. But hearing her voice made my heart swell. My head snaps up.

“Moon!” I shout. Leaning down and wrapping her into a hug. She laughs lightly. “I’m so glad that you’re okay! I thought that I had lost you! I don’t know what I would’ve done if I had lost you.”

“Hey,” she whispers. “Everything’s okay. I’m not going anywhere. No time soon anyway. Not ever to be honest. You’re never going to get rid of me.”

“That I can seriously deal with,” I say, laughing softly.

“What’s happening? Why am I in ice?” Moon asks.

“That’s a very long story, and I would absolutely love to tell you,” I say. “But there’s one thing that I need you to do for me first.”

“Okay,” she says, smiling at me lightly. “What could that be?”

“Just know that you have every right to say no,” I say.

“You’re scaring me, what’s going on?” She asks.

“Really, you can actually say no, legit not joking. In fact, you’re probably going to say no. That’s fine, I mean really, it’s fine,” I rant.

“Mutt!” she says, grabbing my hand. “What is it??”

“I uh,” I stutter. “You know what, it’s stupid.” I shake my head. “Just forget it, it’s not really important.”

I bite my lip, it shouldn’t be this hard, Moon had already agreed to marry me. Except with all that had happened I wasn’t honestly sure if she still wanted to marry me. I mean, everything was changing. Especially the world was we knew it.

“Yeah,” I say. “Just forget about absolutely everything that I’ve just said, because it’s not important. At all.”

“Seriously Mutt?!” Moon exclaims. “Tell me already! Really! Just get it out already! How bad could it be? Why are you worried that I’d say no, it’s not like you’re trying to ask me to marry you!!”

In that moment my heart shatters, I had no doubt that she had put the pieces together. But it sounded to me like she was saying no. Whether or not she knew that she was didn’t matter at this moment. The rejection was clear.

I sigh loudly and bow my head. Clasping together my hands I hit myself on the forehead a few times before looking up.

“No, why would I do that at a time like this? That’s crazy,” I say forcing a smile. I stand up and turn away, looking back towards town. “We should hurry and get down there. Our friends need us now more than ever. What’s left of them anyway. Come on.”

“Mutt,” Moon says, reaching out to grab my hand.

I brush her off and twist around, so that I was facing the path that lead down the hill. I take off at a fast stride, trying to put as much distance between Moon and I as possible.

“MATTHEW ISTASHAX YOU STOP AND TURN AROUND TO LOOK AT ME RIGHT NOW!” Moon yells.

I freeze in my tracks, turning on my heel to stare at her. I cross my arms and pout. “Yeeeees? Can I help you with something my beautiful lady?”

“You can tell me what you wanted to tell me before you went crazy,” Moon says.

I frown, “I don’t think I knew you before I went crazy. Nice try though.”

“MUTT!” Moon shouts. “What is going on with you? I swear, I really did think that it was something important. But the way you were saying it made it seem like you wanted to ask me to marry you which is really insane!”

“Insane,” I say nodding. “Yeah that’s me. Just completely insane. Good ol’ insane Mutty boy.”

Moon blinks at me, “What is your problem? Seriously Mutt! Just tell me already why don’t you?”

I shake my head, “If you could excuse me, I think that I should really go down and help my friends right now. I think that they really need it and there is nowhere else that I should be except for with them.”

“WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?” Moon shouts, throwing her hands up. “SERIOUSLY? YOU WOULD THINK THAT I HAD BEEN ASLEEP FOR WEEKS WITH EVERYTHING THAT’S BEEN GOING ON!”

“Well I wouldn’t say weeks more like just one week,” I say.

“Add that to the list of things you’ll explain to me later,” she snaps. “Now tell me.”

“No reason to,” I say. “It’s an insane idea.”

“Insane-” Moon starts. Then her eyes widen. “Oh my god, Mutt. You were. You’ve been. Hold up.”

I sigh, slightly thankful that she had finally figured it out, but at the same time I was terrified that she had finally figured it out. Because now she had to answer me. Unless…

“It’s fine that you don’t want to,” I say. “Really. I knew that you were going to say no. I expected it, so I’m very okay with the fact that you said no. Well I’m not really okay with it. But that doesn’t mean that I can’t deal with it, because I can deal with it. I’m dealing with it right now. In fact, I’m dealing with it so well I think that we should break up. No more Mutt and Moon. I love you Moon, I really do. But if you don’t feel the same way then I don't want you to have to stay with me.”

“Dear gods, Mutt. Is that really what you think? I love you Mutt. Of course I would love to marry you. Anytime, anywhere. You’re my forever, nothing is going to change that,” she says.

“You meant that?” I ask.

“Of course I do Mutt. With all my heart,” she says, grabbing my hands. “You’re my forever. In fact, I think we should get married as soon as we can.”

“Let’s do it now,” I say. “Let’s go get our friends and have a wedding.”

“I would love that, more than you can ever imagine,” she says.

“I wouldn’t go that far,” I say with a smile. “I’ve dreamed about this moment for longer than you can imagine.”

She takes my hands, “Let’s go get our friends. I can’t wait to marry you.”