Reunion

by Mystic Star

It was a perfect day for sailing. The sky was clear, the sea calm, and the wind filled the sails of The Nomad. Her captain stood at the tiller, talking to the lovely sorceress and his big brother. The scientist was working on some new invention by the bow and the moor was helping him.

“Doubar, I don’t remember the last time we had such a peaceful day at sea,” commented Sinbad. “Nor such a long span of time with no monsters attacking us.”

“True Little Brother, not to say that I mind in the least,” said the gentle giant. “We could all use a rest from the constant battle of good and evil.”

“How right you are, Doubar. A little break before going back to our normal hectic life sounds very good to me,” stated a smiling Bryn.

Just then a crash was heard from the bow. The three looked over, to see Firouz with a blackened face and a smoking creation. A look of puzzlement was on his face as he tried to figure out what had happened. Bryn and Doubar walked over to help clean up the mess, leaving Sinbad smiling at the tiller as he thought of his friends and their adventures.

A far away look was on his face as he thought of previous adventures. Ones with a beautiful Celtic sorceress that was very dear to him. But he brushed the thought aside. The only way he got through every day was the belief that they would one day be reunited with Maeve.

It had been two years since the fateful storm that took Maeve away from him, and brought Bryn to the crew. He had mourned for her, died inside, for a year. He had withdrawn from his family, closing himself off from the ones he cared about. His attitude became more ruthless, his appearance more rough, all so he could become tough and protect himself. He had been afraid of the pain it caused to lose someone else he cared about, so he tried to not care about anyone. He had forgotten his heart to avoid being hurt again, and had changed for the worse because of it.

Then Mala, the mysterious women that helped him defeat Scratch and save his crew, opened his eyes. He would have to live until his Maeve returned. He had to care again, be less ruthless in his fighting. He would still await the return of the sorceress that had won a special place in his heart that could never be taken by anyone else. Mala helped him realize he had to live until this reunion happened though.

Now things were back to normal, as they were before Maeve disappeared, before Bryn joined the crew. He wore his sailor’s outfit with blue pants, white shirt, and blue vest. Even his red headband had returned, along with a shave and haircut. The crew all knew that their captain had returned to his cheerful self.

So he was on his beloved ship, surrounded by his faithful crew he considered family and was happy. He missed Maeve, but he was going to live a life she would be proud of him for until she returned to him. Now thinking of the fiery spirited women warmed his heart, and no longer brought grief. They would be together again, of this he was sure. So after only a moment of thinking of his Celtic angel, he handed the tiller to a passing sailor to join his friends, laughing at Firouz’s latest explosion.

As he arrived the cleanup was almost finished by his efficient crew. They smiled at their friend as he approached.

“So Firouz, was that supposed to happen?” Questioned Sinbad.

“Point of fact, no-but I think I know what was wrong with the experiment. You see the balance of the blasting powder was off which led to a spontaneous combustion of the chemicals- what?” He trailed off at the looks given to him by the others.

“Firouz, we have no idea what you’re talking about! Eh Sinbad? Sinbad?” Concern for his brother crept into Doubar’s voice for a moment.

Rongar gestured that Bryn was also looking dazed. The reason why was discovered when the two raised their left arms with the rainbow bracelets on them, clasping hands. The bracelets were glowing extraordinarily bright with their rainbow colors. They were in a trance and everything seemed to happen in slow motion.

What brought the two out of their trance like state was an even brighter white light in the middle of the ship, which also shattered the time freeze and everything happened at once. Standing where the blinding light was a moment before was a beautiful red-haired woman who had everyone’s attention.

“Maeve?” Sinbad asked with disbelief in his voice. Was she really back?

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Once the time freeze was shattered, everything happened at once. Right after Maeve appeared in the white light, only a second past before Sinbad had spoken her name. Then she had fallen to the deck unconscious, in a graceful faint.

Dermott was the first to react, flying over seemingly to check if his long lost mistress was all right. Shortly after, when Sinbad snapped out of it, he took charge of the situation, shouting orders at everyone.

“Doubar, carry her below, Trias, take charge of the deck, and Firouz, hurry up.”

The whole crew sprung to action at once at their captain’s orders. Doubar carefully picked up the red head and carried her below deck. Firouz rushed after them, knowing his medical expertise would be needed. Rongar went too, out of concern for his returned friend. Bryn tagged along out of curiosity about the only other woman to ever sail on the Nomad, and who she sometimes felt she had replaced. Sinbad led them all to Maeve’s old cabin, which was still intact because even though he was moving on, he didn’t have the heart to disassemble her cabin.

Firouz examined Maeve and determined she was fine, she just-something about exhausting herself. He then told everyone to leave, she needed to rest, but Sinbad refused to leave her. The others understood and left him alone. Dermott was the only other person in the room with the couple. The hawk had made it quite clear he was not leaving, in a fit of wings and cackles that could not be argued.

In the galley the crew talked about the shock of seeing Maeve again, reminiscing of past adventures with her. They also answered some questions Bryn had about the mysterious sorceress she had never known, but was unbelievably curious about. They were all waiting for Maeve to wake up and properly welcome her home.

Meanwhile, in Maeve’s room, Sinbad was in a state of shock, still not being able to believe it. One minute he’s laughing about some crazy creation from Firouz, and the next a strange feeling as his bracelet began to glow. The flash of white and he looked up and there she was. In one second he had whispered her name and she had fainted without even looking at him with those gorgeous brown eyes of hers.

He sat beside her bed, holding her hand, comforted by the knowledge that she was back and safe, soothed by listening to her gentle breathing. His heart was complete once more by being reunited by his other half. He lovingly stroked her ethereal face with his free hand.

“Oh Maeve, I can’t believe it’s really you, that you’re really back.” He whispered softly to not wake up his angel. “I’ve missed you so much, my l…”

He sucked in his breath and stopped talking when she started to move. Ever so slowly, her eyes fluttered open as she woke up.

“Sinbad?” Maeve questioned, still a little out of it.

“Aye, Maeve, it’s me.” Sinbad gave her his famous dimpled grin.

“I can’t believe it! My spell really worked?!!” Her smile outshone the sun.

Sinbad couldn’t help but smile as her eyes lit up and she threw her arms around his neck. He hugged her back tightly, relishing the fact that she was once again in his arms. They pulled back and gazed into each other’s eyes. Slowly leaning toward each other again, they kissed lightly, barely brushing lips then again more intensely, but still gentle, sweet, and romantic. Breathless, they parted and locked eyes again.

“Welcome back.” Sinbad said in a soft and caring voice as he delicately pushed a stray lock of hair off her face. Clearing his throat to lighten the fast becoming awkward mood he continued in a more normal tone, “Everyone is waiting to see you.”

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Maeve suddenly noticed how close they still were to each other and backed up on the bed, in doing so she dropped his hand that she had still been holding. Her movement caused Sinbad to realize their close position and he too backed away, slightly. She too cleared her throat to lighten the mood, and focused on the new subject in an attempt to forget the potentially embarrassing events that had just taken place.

“Let’s go see the others before they start wondering where we are.” Sinbad and Maeve both blushed as they realized what her words had implied.

“Uh, yeah, let’s go. All the crew is worried about you.”

Sinbad took her hand again and led her to the door that led to the galley. His thoughts were elsewhere however. *How does she feel about me? We never told each other how we felt. I now know that I can’t live without her, the past two years proved that. I need her, no I love her. But how does she feel about me? Have her feelings changed, did she ever feel the way about me the way I feel about her? How….?*

Even though Sinbad didn’t know it, Maeve was thinking the same thing. *How does he feel about me? Does he love me, did he ever? All those women in every port. What do I mean to him? It’s been two years. What did those kisses mean? Oh, what am I going to do? Do I love him? What am I saying, of course I do, but I can’t tell him can I? How….?*

Both their thoughts were interrupted because they had reached the door.

“Are you ready?” Sinbad looked at her questioningly.

“You don’t really think I wouldn’t be, do you?” Maeve challenged him with a toss of her fiery mane and that saucy grin he loved so much. He should have known his Celtic Angel wouldn’t stay down for long, and that she would always be ready for anything, as long as it didn’t involve expressing her feelings.

“Well then, let’s go.” With that he opened the door to the galley.

Meanwhile, the crew was still talking about Maeve, well Maeve AND Sinbad. They had reached the Vorgon topic and were having a good laugh about it. All conversation immediately stopped when they heard the door to Maeve’s cabin open. They turned expectantly towards the noise and they all seemed to catch their breath as the opening widened.

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The crew got worried when Sinbad stepped through the door first. What was wrong? He would never leave Maeve’s side, unless…. Then Maeve came out behind him. She smiled at them and was immediately surrounded by Doubar’s strong arms. For a moment he was too overcome with emotion to talk.

“Little Lassie, I’ve missed you so much. I’m so glad your back home, where you belong.” He whispered softly as he pulled back to stare at her face with brotherly love.

“Aye Doubar, home, where I belong, and I’m not going anywhere.” She hugged him again but not before stealing a glance at Sinbad when she said ‘home.’

Next came Firouz. His expressive face was flooded with delight and excitement.

“Maeve, I am so happy you’re back! I have so many inventions to show you and oh!! All the adventures we’ve had!!”

“I can’t wait to see all your creations and hear about all the adventures, Firouz.” She said interrupting him. Simultaneously and suddenly they hugged each other.

“It’s so good to have you back, Maeve.”

“It’s good to be back, Firouz.”

Rongar went to Maeve next and though no words were spoken, their eyes met and they understood each other. They leaned in and hugged.

*I missed you, Maeve.* Rongar thought, hoping his eyes delivered the message.

*And I you my faithful friend* Maeve thought back.

Rongar pulled away with a surprised look on his face. Maeve just smiled. The rest of the crew had no idea what had happened. Rongar’s eyes seemed to ask ‘How?’ Maeve’s smile broadened as she pointed to her head.

“Dim-Dim helped me hone my telepathy powers. I can hear your thoughts now, Rongar, but only when you wish me to.”

This earned a startled gasp from everyone around them, followed closely by a happy feeling. Of course, they shouldn’t have been surprised because she can communicate with animals and her powers are much improved now.

Bryn stepped forward and offered her hand to the other woman.

“Hi, I’m Bryn.”

Maeve met the brunette’s gaze and smiled with her eyes and mouth.

“I’m Maeve. It will be nice to finally have someone to talk to about men.”

The two sorceresses shook hands and giggled, while the men groaned. Two women on board, were they ready for that?

Sinbad had stayed back while Maeve was being bombarded with hugs and greetings. He was rather amused about how his crew’s reactions, especially their faces. When he had come out of the room first, they looked so worried and disappointed, and then devastated when they thought Maeve wasn’t well yet. The way the excitement, joy, and relief washed over their faces when she stepped out from behind him was comical. He wore a soft smile of joy mixed with love on his face, and didn’t want to think about if his crew had noticed but for the teasing.

His musings were interrupted when the welcomes came to a finish. All the crew turned toward him to include him in their circle of friendship, which he readily entered.

Doubar didn’t miss the look on his brother’s face though and couldn’t help but rib him for it. His eyes glittered with amusement as he said, “Little Brother, maybe you’ll start acting normal again, eh?”

Laughter followed the remark and even more so when Sinbad blushed furiously and stared at the wooden floor. Even Bryn joined in. She could sense the denied love between her captain and new friend. Not able to resist himself Doubar added, “So, Sinbad, Lassie, what took you two so long to get out of that room?”

Maeve blushed at his last words and joined Sinbad in staring at the floor. For his part, Sinbad blushed an even deeper shade of red if that was possible and continued to examine the planking. This of course caused the rest of them to laugh even harder. Having way too much fun with this, Doubar continued his teasing with, “A fine pair we have here, a couple of love struck stubborn fools!”

Sinbad had had enough. A mischievous look twinkled in his sea blue eyes.

“Who are you calling a fool?” With that he strode over to Maeve and kissed her with such passion that the world spun off its axis.

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Maeve had looked up at Sinbad when he had spoken, and she somehow knew what he was going to do. The twinkle in his eyes spoke volumes, but the passion and desire there had more to say. The way his sexy voice had gotten huskier ever so slightly when he spoke. She knew when he walked over to her that he was up to something, and she had a VERY good idea as to what that something was.

None the less, when he had pulled her into his arms, she was too surprised to respond. Was this really happening? How could it be? She had only gotten back what seemed like minutes before and it was at this point? He was REALLY kissing her? She felt a flicker of indignation that he thought she could just be treated like any other of his girl toys, and she tried to hold on to it. If she let that go, what would be left? *Love* her heart whispered to her struggling mind.

Maeve stood passive for a moment, not responding or pulling back as her heart argued with her racing mind. The shock suddenly gave way with her rampant thoughts, and under the distraction that Sinbad was responsible for.

The pressure of his sweet tasting lips against hers, the support his strong arms gave her, the way she could picture his sea blue eyes sparkling, all contributed and all she knew was him. His smell clouded her mind and she was lost in the passion of the kiss, of HIM. She lost all sense of time and space, the only thing that existed to her was Sinbad, and only seconds had passed.

Sinbad had no idea what he was doing, but it felt right. He could feel how shocked she was and was surprised himself that she hadn’t burnt him to a crisp yet. All thoughts like these were pushed aside when she started to respond to the kiss to him, and he lost all sense of time and space, even the knowledge of his shocked crew.

The crew fully expected the two to break the kiss and stare at each other in shock, as they had done when the Vorgon had been defeated. But they were wrong, for not only had the two not broken apart yet, but they appeared to be losing themselves in each other, in their love for each other. Their jaws dropped even closer to the ground when Maeve, the spitfire Celt with a temper to match her wild red hair, didn’t push him away but wrapped her arms around him instead.

Maeve brought her arms up to circle his neck and drag him closer to her, if that was possible. She dug her fingers into his silky, gorgeous, thick brown hair with those fabulous golden highlights. She moaned ever so softly in her throat, so only Sinbad could hear, and she felt his lips curve into a smile against her lips. The sweet torture of his tongue as he deepened the kiss was doing something awful to her equilibrium, and she fell completely into his arms as her knees gave out, weak from he passion he was putting her through.

Sinbad’s arms were around her waist and they tensed as he accepted her full weight. He felt as she tilted her head upwards to give him better access to her mouth and he took the opportunity to deepened the kiss further. He could feel her heart beating rapidly in her chest that was pressed against his with a fury that matched his own. He had never ever in his whole entire life experienced a kiss like this before, and he had many. Not one of them had this much emotion and power though, and he couldn’t help himself as he pulled her closer still.

Mere moments had passed but to them, it could have been eternity. Both needing air they slowly released each other’s lips, breathless. But they did not let go of each others’ bodies, staying closer than arm’s length away. Just far enough apart to look into each others’ eyes, seeing the shock there, and the secrets to both their hearts.

Maeve stared at the most beautiful face in the world. She gazed deep into the depths of his bottomless sea blue eyes that were still hazy with passion, and she thought….

Sinbad gazed at his angel, her gorgeous features that he had missed so much. He stared deep into her lovely brown eyes that were still hazy with passion, and he thought….

The crew just looked at each other, then back at the couple. Dumbfounded with their mouths gaping open, and thought….

…..*Wow*

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Sinbad was the first to come out of the trance created be the soul-searing kiss. He was the first to become aware of his surroundings, and the first to recover from the shock. He was also the first to remember his closest friends had been an audience to the whole thing. He remembered how Doubar had goaded him, and how he couldn’t resist the crew’s reaction at him not being a ‘stubborn fool.’ Then he remembered how Maeve has responded, and wondered if she was about to fry him with a fireball.

He noticed Maeve was coming out of the trance to, and that she seemed to be completely recovered from any shock she had felt. When her cheeks flushed out of embarrassment instead of passion he knew she had realized the crew had witnessed the whole thing. Their eyes were still locked, but now their minds were clear. Sinbad hoped that his eyes relayed the message he wanted to speak, but wouldn’t dare.

Maeve saw something in Sinbad’s eyes that warmed her heart. At that moment, she felt like she could read his mind without using her powers. The emotions were plain as day on his face, and she realized that her face was probably showing the same feelings. In their eyes was a bond renewed, a bond that both had felt upon meeting each other. No matter what they would remain together in spirit, heart, mind, and body. In their eyes was a message that even in the last two years that they spent apart, they still felt the same about each other.

Sinbad and Maeve smiled at each other sweetly and took one step. They turned so they could walk along side each other. Their hands slid down the other’s arms to clasp hands, with their forearms touching. Maeve couldn’t resist resting her head on his shoulder. Without saying a word, they walked past the stunned crew and headed topside.

The crew, who had not recovered from the kiss yet, were even more shocked that the two most stubborn people they knew had just acknowledged on some level that they cared. More importantly, after the emotions faded, they didn’t take it back or deny their feelings. The four dropped jaws slowly came back up, and transformed into four goofy grins.

Doubar exclaimed for the all of them, “IT’S ABOUT TIME!!!” Laughing they all followed the duo topside.

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Maeve and Sinbad still held hands on the steps, somewhat still under the spell of the kiss. They hadn’t had time to feel embarrassed about what had happened yet, they were too caught up in the emotions of the whole thing. That magic was broken when Sinbad reached to open the door to the deck. The sun splashed upon their faces when they walked out into the day. As if suddenly realizing what had happened, they both dropped their hands to their sides. Both rationalizing their actions by telling themselves that it was one thing to show their emotions around their friends, but showing it around the rest of the crew wasn’t the best thing to do.

All the crew looked up at them when they came topside. This made them even more self-conscious about what had happened below, so they separated even further by taking a step away from each other. Their eyes were cast downward, in case any emotion could still be seen through them. A slight blush warmed Maeve’s cheeks as she recalled what had occurred below. With the emotional spell broken, nothing was left to keep the embarrassment at bay. Sinbad was blushing slightly too, but his deep tan hid it better.

“Maeve, it is so good to see you again. You look as beautiful as ever,” said Petros, a crewmember that had been on the Nomad since when Maeve was there two years ago. He had always had a crush on the pretty red head, but kept his distance. He had figured that she was with Sinbad, and thought that she was too good for him anyway.

“Thank you Petros, it’s good to see you too.” Maeve smiled at him as she and Sinbad paused by the mast.

Sinbad watched as more and more of his crew came up to meet or say hello again to his Maeve, and he grew a little bit jealous. It was her first day, first hour back, and it should have been his to share it with her.

“Hello Miss, my name is Rineon, and you must be the infamous Maeve. Pleasure to meet you,” gushed another smitten sailor.

Sinbad was starting to feel left out, but when he saw Maeve smiling the feeling vanished. If something made her happy, then he was behind her one hundred percent. Besides, he needed to think about their relationship for awhile, everything was happening so fast. His misgivings were eased when Maeve glanced up at him and flashed a bright smile. He felt that her smile was exclusively his at that moment, and he returned it with his own perfect dimpled grin. No matter what, they *would* be together.

When Doubar, Rongar, Firouz, and Bryn came updeck, they noticed Sinbad looked like he was feeling left out. They joined him in standing away from the group of people welcoming Maeve. They had recovered from seeing them kiss, mostly, but they has hoped the two love birds would still be together topside. All felt awkward, but felt they had to do something to alleviate the tension that was present.

“Maeve looks happy to be back,” commented Doubar in a conversational tone.

“Aye Doubar, that she does,” said Sinbad as he walked off to join her in handling the mob that was forming. And once again, everyone ended up with goofy grins on their faces because they were so happy for their friends.

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When Sinbad entered the circle of sailors, one of them, Krisnar, was saying, “It’s nice to meet a beautiful woman such as yourself.”

Another surge of jealousy shot through Sinbad when Krisnar tried to smooth talk *his* Maeve. He possessively put his arm around her waist and tried to end the little party as fast as possible.

“I’m sure Maeve is very grateful for all of your well wishing, but she has only just gotten back from a rather long trip. Perhaps it would be best if you gave her some space and time to readjust to being aboard. Also, you all have jobs to get back to if I’m not mistaken.” Sinbad’s voice held his captain’s authority and the crew quickly said bye to Maeve and went back to work.

Maeve wasn’t happy about his actions, and her temper flared. “Excuse me, Captain, but I believe I am perfectly capable of speaking for myself.”

“I know that Maeve, but I just thought that…”

“You are such an overprotective, possessive, commanding, jealous..”

“Who said I was jealous? I’m NOT jealous!!” By now both were yelling.

“Sure you’re not, you never are!” Maeve’s eyes started to flash fire.

“Hey…” Their arguing was interrupted by laughter, loud laughter, from the whole crew. Doubar and the others were the worst, even Dermott, who had suddenly shown up again, seemed to be smiling.

“Very funny!!” Sinbad yelled clearly upset.

“Oh please!!” Maeve added, but soon they too were laughing. It felt good to be back to normal.

“Not even an hour has passed and you two are at it!!” Doubar exclaimed.

“It’s good to hear the sound of arguing again though,” Firouz put in. Once realizing how weird that sounded, everyone burst out laughing again. Still laughing, the six friends walked to the bow if the ship to continue with their reunion.

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Petros watched Maeve join the others at the bow, and a smile graced his tan face. He had a warm feeling inside because when Maeve had spoken to him, he felt like the sun was shining just for him. And Maeve’s smile reminded him of the sun. Seeing her happy made his heart beat a rhythm of joy. A laugh that he hadn’t heard in all too long sang across the ship, and he sighed happily. It was good to have her back.

Just thinking about being able to gaze at her beauty once more as she practiced her magic on deck was enough to brighten his day. He sighed again as he dreamed about watching her silently, while the wind blew her hair around her face.

*A halo of fire for an angel,* Petros thought, remembering watching her two years ago, concentrating on her conjuring. She was so beautiful then, and now she still was.

Petros looked back at the group gathered at the bow. He watched as Sinbad casually slipped his arm around Maeve’s waist. His thoughts darkened and his eyes narrowed into a glare. Angrily, he flicked his head, removing his black locks from his eyes. He glowered at the captain standing with his arm around HIS Maeve.

*How dare he think he is worthy to touch her!! She belongs with me, I want her to be with me!!* Petros’ mind screamed.

Petros respected his captain, even liked him, but jealousy clouded his mind. The thought that he couldn’t have Maeve drove him crazy. He wished that the fiery goddess would realize that HE, Petros, was the one for him.

Suddenly, his face relaxed, his eyes losing the anger and jealousy. He wasn’t good enough for the Celtic Angel. No one was even close to being good enough for her Thinking that Sinbad thought he was good enough infuriated him once again. Petros believed with all his soul that Maeve deserved to be happy, and if she was happy with Sinbad, then so be it. This thought made him once more depressed.

Petros turned from the sight of the happy group at the bow. Realizing what he had just been thinking about Sinbad made him feel guilty on top of depressed. He tried to clear his mind of the negative emotions he was feeling towards Sinbad, he knew he shouldn’t be feeling them. He didn’t know what was happening to him, why he felt all this rage. It was like something dark was joining with him, and it was beyond his control to stop it. He didn’t know why he was being so moody. All he knew was he had no right, Maeve wasn’t his, and he knew it.

He had one last thought before he went back to work. *I’m not good enough for her, but how I wish I was.*

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At the bow, Sinbad and the others were questioning Maeve about the past two years, and where Dim-Dim was.

“Is he still under the curse?” Asked Doubar.

“I’m afraid so. He couldn’t break free from its hold on him.” Answered Maeve, her voice heavy with sadness.

“Then how did you leave? You were with him right?” Bryn questioned.

“Yes, I was with him for my training, but I was not under the curse. That afflicts only he. It was difficult enough breaking free from that place un-cursed. It took almost all the energy I had, and many tries.”

“This isn’t the first time you’ve tried to come back?”

“No, I’ve tried a few other times, but I wasn’t able to complete the spell before my energy ran out before,” Maeve admitted.

“So, where is Dim-Dim?”

“The same place as always, Sinbad. He remains in a place of bees and daffodils. Unfortunately, I do not know the exact location where we could reach him. All I know is that where we will be able to reach him is a place where the barriers between here and there are weakest.”

“So we can’t find him?” Doubar asked dejectedly.

“Now, I never said that! I just said I don’t know where he is, exactly. Magic transported me both ways, so I don’t know how to get there.”

“And you don’t have enough energy to transport more than yourself to or from where he is, right?”

“Correct, Bryn.”

“Then, how do we find him? And when we do, how do we free him if you can’t?”

“To find him we only have to search the land, and sea, with our hearts. To free…”

“What?” Everyone looked confused about what Maeve had just said.

“Search the land and sea with our hearts? How do we do that?” Firouz asked.

“Well, all of us have a connection to Dim-Dim in some way. He was close to us. We follow where our hearts lead us. They are our guides to find him.”

“I’m not sure I’m all that clear,” Sinbad slowly said.

“Well, when your rainbow bracelet glows and you trust the winds of fate to guide you where you need to be, that’s like what we’ll be doing. The difference is, instead of using the bracelets, we’ll be using our hearts.”

They all seemed to understand what she meant now, at least a little, so she continued. “To free Dim-Dim, we’ll have to have magic from both sides reaching out to hold onto each other, and then we’ll pull him here, hopefully. Magic is weaker on that side of the barrier, and the curse strengthens the powers that keep him there. That is why he can’t break free on his own. It is also why I could only take myself, and why even if we combined our strength, it wasn’t enough to break both of us free.”

“But shouldn’t you’re combined strength been enough? I mean, together your power would have been greater, wouldn’t it?”

“Usually, yes. But my energy was barely enough for my escape, and Dim-Dim’s energy can’t free him because of the curse, so together, we would have still come up short. It’s more complicated than that, but it gets even more confusing the more you get into it. That’s the basic reasons though.”

Firouz quieted, signaling he understood so Maeve could continue.

“With magic coming form this side of the barrier, it should be enough to break him free. I’m stronger on this side, and have help,” she glanced at Bryn, “So I’ll have enough energy to help pull him out. Especially since I’m already out and don’t have to worry about escaping myself. Everyone understand?”

Everyone nodded and Sinabd said for the group, “Mostly. Maybe you two ladies should talk about how to do the magic part of it during the voyage.”

“Sounds good to me, it would give us a chance to get to know each other. And maybe you could teach me how to control my powers some!” Excitement crept into Bryn’s voice.

“Works for me. Besides, you have to tell me how these gentlemen have been behaving while I was away.” The two shared a conspiratorial wink and burst out laughing at the men’s nervous looks.

*I should have known not to say ladies* Thought Sinbad, as he caught onto the way Maeve had said gentlemen. Quickly trying to change the subject before the women really ganged up on him he said, “So Maeve, how did your training go? Have you learned everything?”

Maeve just laughed at his obvious attempt to change topics. “My training went fine, my powers are stronger now. I have learned many things, no longer am I an apprentice, but I could always learn more. And I still need to practice, we wouldn’t want another split mast, would we?”

“But if you have mastered your powers, shouldn’t you be done practicing?” Inquired Firouz, when it came to magic, he didn’t know much of what was happening.

“When you master swordplay do you stop practicing? No, because you have to stay in shape. The same with magic. I must continue to practice to stay in shape, magically speaking. Get it?”

Firouz nodded happily, when magic was explained through things that he understood it actually made sense, on some level.

“Enough about me,” Maeve stated. “Time for you to tell me what you have all been up to.”

The End