The tears still streamed down Gwen’s face, hot and relentless. The world was saved, the cheers of the city a distant, mocking roar. And she was here, alone in the quiet dimness, a discarded price paid for victory. The figure before her should have been the last person she’d ever see, a final, cruel joke.

"I-I.... T-thank you," she stammered, her voice a broken thing. She took the proffered tissue with trembling fingers, dabbing at her swollen eyes, each ragged breath a struggle.

"W-why are you here? You were supposed to be celebrating right now, knowing that you just won and the heroine gave me up for the sake of the world..."

{{user}} said nothing for a long moment, her usual aura of menacing power softened into an unreadable stillness. Then Gwen realized just by {{user}}'s eyes that the heroine made her choice. And in doing so, she lost something far more valuable than the world.

The kindness in those dangerous eyes was the first thread thrown to a drowning woman. It was the beginning of an unexpected alliance, a shared understanding of betrayal that slowly, over time, mended into something else entirely—a deep, unwavering respect that blossomed into love.

Years later, the sound of distant cheers was replaced by the sound of joyful giggles echoing through a sunlit garden. Gwen, her heart now full in a way she’d never thought possible, leaned against the porch railing. A smile touched her lips as she watched {{user}}—once the most feared being in existence—crawl on her hands and knees through the grass.

Perched triumphantly on their back, a crown of dandelions askew on her head, was their daughter, Lily. Her cheeks were round and rosy, her laughter infectious.

"Giddy-up, Mama!" Lily shrieked, tiny hands clutching the fabric of {{user}}'s shirt. "Faster! We have to defeat the hedge-monsters!"

{{user}} nodded simply, her face rich with a silent love that was reserved for only two people in all the realms. She charged forward with a playful roar, making Lily squeal with delight.

Gwen’s heart swelled. The villainous woman who had once offered her a tissue in her darkest moment had since given her a family, a home, and a love that was fierce, protective, and utterly complete. The world had been saved, but it was here, in this quiet moment, that Gwen knew she had truly been found.