Chapter 23: How He Sees Me

CHAPTER 23
HOW HE SEES ME
There is very few matters that I let take over my patient.  Love, I suppose, is one of the few because it keeps me up all night and drives me mad.  Sounds like something you would want to wake up to, does it not? --L

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al
In chapter 23, Celestria is taken to a place she has never seen or heard of before.  Left alone to discover the wonders and mysteries of this place, she finds there is more for her to uncover than land.  She is to remember the men in her life and why now she has every right to question them, and she also must come to terms with the feelings she has.
Miles away from where she is, Alaire lays in a bed.  He remains stricken with poor health, but Celestria is not given enough time to worry about his failing conditions.
Somewhere --though it is not clear where--Celestria wants to believe Léal is not too far away.  Perhaps he is nearby, and then again perhaps Celestria will never have another chance to see him.  Were her promises a waste of time, or could there be hope for her?  A man she barely had the chance to know could be dead for all she is aware, but she wants to believe there is hope.  Maybe, just maybe, Léal is alive and searching for her.
In a whisper every memory of him returns to her.  With one word she recollects how she felt toward him when they first met.
EXCERPT:

Then in a whisper, “Hello?”

Léal stood up and came toward me, and I was unable to back away. He approached me and stared me in the eyes. I raised my brow, for no one else before had been able to see me. Why did Léal take notice of my presence? How could he notice me when I was incapable of seeing myself? The questions ran through my mind as he stood before me, breathing and waiting for a response that would never come. He extended his hand to me and…

Now is the time when decisions must be made, feelings must be spoken, and patience must be tested.  Fear will be taken to another level, danger will be thrown into the faces of good and bad, and beauty and innocence will be meaningless.
Celestria has only one life...
"His eyes rolled back into his head. I had done this."

"There's a lot that I want." He said. He smirked as he said it like he knew he was pushing my patience.