A few miles Outside Alfheim, Tuesday

[anarchist_queen]

"I got him, Mom, Dad." Leda said softly. "It's over."

She stood before the monument to monarchs past. It was a simple obelisk, but those who touched it would be able to see the faces of those commemorated here. Leda had stopped here to let her parents know that the man who had ordered their deaths was gone.

She stood there for a moment, just refreshing her memory of their faces, then went to join the others.

Word had come late last night that the Dragons had driven back the Giants with minimal loss of life. But for the Matriarch and her daughter, it was a Pyrrhic victory at best. Ember and Smoke were children really, in the way Dragons measured age.

Dragon mourning practices were very private and not for the eyes of other races. But because of his friendship with Leda and the others, they were having a memorial for Smoke here as well.

Polaris clutched Leda's hand as she approached the crowd.

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[heromaniac]

In deference to both Smoke and the fact that this was a time of mourning and not battle, Momoko had transformed back into, well, Momoko. She'd also spent some time with a few Elven tailors and seamstresses to create a kimono with an appropriate design, a calm pattern, incorporating both Leda's family crest and the beautiful sky and landscape of the Dragon kingdom, to wear to a funeral of State.

She took a moment to look up slowly to the sky, then made her way to pay her condolences with the others.

[anarchist-queen.livejournal.com]

Ember stood next to her mother, who, despite her grief, was managing to put up a brave front. Ember's eyes were red, and wet with tears, a human affectation her mother hadn't quite got the hang of.

Sila and Ron hurried over to Momoko, each reaching out to take one of her hands.

(Special Guest Star: Katherine Hepburn as the Dragon Matriarch)

[heromaniac]

"Hello, you two," Momoko gave the children a welcoming smile and she clutched their little hands tightly as they led her. She was so glad to see they were still safe; she hadn't dared ask about them until it was all over.

[anarchist-queen.livejournal.com]

"We're glad you're okay Aunt Momko." Sila said. "We were worried."

"I knew you'd be okay." Ron said. "You're the good guys." And the good guys always win. It says so in all the stories.

[heromaniac]

"Thank you for worrying! And for believing in us. Both of you." Momoko took a moment to sweep them into a huge hug before continuing. "We didn't win because we're the good guys, though. That's the problem with a war - everyone thinks they're the good guys. We knew we were fighting to come home, so we worked extra hard to win."

[b-town-girls.livejournal.com]

Ron pondered this. It had never occurred to him that other people thought they were the good guys.

When they reached the crowd, he took hold of his father's cane to let him know he was there. Leander used a minor levitating spell to help him pick the boy up. His leg wasn't too fond of him doing it physically.

It was tradition to, among other things, tell a brief story about or some remembrance about the deceased at an Elven funeral. It was said that you could truly tell the worth of someone by how long their funeral took. They didn't end until everyone had had their say.

Leda was asked to go first.

"I...I didn't know Smoke, as well as I thought I did." she said. "I mean, from the moment I met him and Ember...I thought he was just you know, going along with his sister's adventures among us bipeds. He always seemed so mystified by everything we did. Especially when," she laughed, "When I took pictures of everyone...okay that was a new one to most people in Faery, but the look on his face was priceless."

She had to take a breath to regain herself. You could tell how close to breaking she was by the more deadpan she got. "I was, only just getting to really know him. I'll always remember how beautiful he was. And how proud he was of his wings-" She gave a short laugh, or possibly a sob, and stopped.

[heromaniac]

Momoko waited a moment, not sure of protocol when the Queen was your best friend and she was crying, but finally gave in and started to move close to Leda, to offer her support.

[anarchist-queen.livejournal.com]

Oh it was totally fine. Everyone here knew their Queen didn't stand much for ceremony when it came to her friends.

Leda was still trying to keep her Elven Deadpan in place, even as she reached for Momoko for a hug. Elves could be a bit silly about who got to see them get emotional. If it was just her and Momo, she'd probably be a big ball of tears right now.

[heromaniac]

It would totally be the two of them later, Momoko decided as she wrapped her arms around her friend. And they would go over photos and stories and do lots and lots of crying.

"He's not gone away," she whispered to Leda. "He's just changed shape again. You just have to remember, okay?"

[anarchist-queen.livejournal.com]

Leda pulled herself together, and gave Momo a squeeze. "Thank you." she said. "Would you like to say anything?"

[heromaniac]

"Would... Would it be okay?" Momoko wasn't sure if there was still a glamour on her, and wasn't sure if the Dragons would be insulted by what a mortal would say, if not.

[anarchist-queen.livejournal.com]

"Of course it would!" Leda insisted. "You were his friend too." Dragons might be a little standoffish to many races, but that was partly due to most other races being terrified of them. Leda's friendship with Ember and Smoke was doing a lot for relations between them though.

[heromaniac]

Momoko nodded and gave Leda a small squeeze of her own, and then stepped forward. Drawing a breath, she smiled first at Smoke's family, and then at the rest of the gathered crowd.

"My name is Momoko Akatsutsumi. Thank you for coming and for allowing me to be here and to speak."

"Where I am from, dragons are wise and ancient beings of great power, beings to be honoured and respected. Where I am from, my emperor is believed to be of dragon descent, my country bounded by the dragon-god who creates the rains and rules the oceans."

"But where I am from, dragons are no longer plentiful. Where I am from, meeting a dragon is rare and considered a very high honour and a life changing experience."

She took a breath again. "I wasn't sure what to expect when I arrived and met Mr Smoke and Ms Ember, but I totally wasn't expecting him to tease me, make me sweat and worry about breaking a protocol or being rude, and then break into laughter at my reactions to what he'd say, like a friendly kind older uncle. For the rest of my time with him, he was extremely personable and kind, never mean. And the way he cared for others became more and more visible, the longer I knew him."

She was totally not going to cry! Instead she looked up into the sky as if to look for him. As if he'd perhaps been joking and just off napping and was now circling above and chuckling at everyone.

"I didn't know him very long or very well, but he was a wonderful being. I don't know if I was his friend, but he was mine and I am very honoured to have met him. His family..." She turned to Smoke's mother and bowed deep. "Your son honoured you, your family, and your race. I simply don't know what to say; it must be terribly painful for you. I'll pray for his happiness in the next life."

[anarchist-queen.livejournal.com]

The Dragon Matriarch smiled at Momoko, and bowed in return.

Ember came forward to embrace her. "You were his friend." she told him. She added quietly; "I think he actually liked you a bit better than Leda. He never let her in on the joke."

[heromaniac]

Momoko hugged Ember back almost as hard as she'd hugged Leda a few minutes earlier. She was still trying not to cry but had nothing left to say.

[anarchist-queen.livejournal.com]

One or two more people told a favorite memory of Smoke, and then, softly, Sila began to sing. She had had no formal training in bardic magic, but she may have had a natural talent for it. For as she sang, those around her felt comforted, even in their grief.

"Lay down, your sweet and weary head. Night has fallen, we've come to journey's end. Sleep now, and dream, of the ones who came before...