Andraya was furious; there was simply no other way to describe how she was feeling. Her son was a stubborn idiot who wouldn’t listen to her, and no matter what she tried, he simply wouldn’t see sense.

“Why can’t you see that I’m right?” she asked in exasperation, and Rian glared at her.

“Because you’re not,” he said. “This is an entirely different situation-”

“That still comes down to the same fact: you’re stealing her away from a normal life,” Andraya interrupted, and Rian sighed, rubbing at his temples to dispel the headache that he could feel growing.

“I understand why you feel so strongly about this, but Ellie’s situation is completely different to the one that Kyle was in,” he said, and Andraya’s glare hardened at the mention of her mortal ex-lover.

“I’ve seen what it does to a mortal who knows about our world, but is forever kept outside of it. It destroys their lives; just ask your father. He had to watch his grandfather Ross turn into a bitter old man, resentful of the fact that those that he cared about not only didn’t age whilst he did, but were a part of a world that he had been teased by for his entire adult life, but never allowed to enter.”

“I know that, but-”

“I made the decision to leave Kyle because he deserved more from me, and I couldn’t give it to him. I had a choice, Rian: let him know the truth about me, and destroy everything he’d ever known about the world, or let him go and live a normal, mortal life. I stand by the decision that I made, because it was the best thing to do for Kyle.”

“But not for Ellie,” Rian said once his mother had finished. “Why can’t you see that? Kyle didn’t know about immortals, but Ellie does. She’s been here in our world, and she’s fine with it. She wants to come here, and I’m not going to deny her that.”

“You’re making a mistake,” Andraya said, just as stubbornly as her son. “If you do this, she’s going to wake up one morning and hate you. It might be decades from now, but one day she will realise what she’s lost. She will watch her parents grow old and die, and then her friends will follow. She will never get to share her life with them ever again, and she’ll lose everything,” she finished bitterly, and Rian scoffed.

“You just described out family history in a nutshell,” he pointed out, but Andraya wouldn’t be dissuaded.

“Harmony, Luke and Adrian didn’t have a choice in leaving, and Jaid took advantage of a situation that was given to her,” she pointed out, and Rian raised an eyebrow.

“And Alisha?” he prompted, and Andraya snorted.

“Alisha was rewarded for saving the world, Rian. And in case you’ve forgotten, both her and Jaid continued living their mortal lives, albeit in disguise. It’s an entirely different situation.”

“So is this,” Rian insisted. “I know you hate the idea of me getting involved with mortals, but has it even crossed your mind that perhaps this is what was meant to happen?” he asked, and Andraya frowned, folding her arms and silently asking him to explain. “I don’t believe in coincidences, so Li-Nezah interfering with Meng-Po’s wheel whilst Ellie was on it must have been the work of Fate.”

“Fate? Are you kidding me? Lady Fate doesn’t get involved with immortal affairs, Rian you know that,” Andraya interrupted, and although he nodded in agreement, the young man wasn’t quite finished yet.

“I do know that, but there’s more. The accident in Feng-Du flung her spirit into some random immortal world – the very same immortal world that I happened to be spying on at that particular point in time. I highly doubt that I would have so easily found her if she hadn’t have crossed my path at that moment.”

“Okay, so maybe Fate helped you get her back to Meng-Po,” Andraya admitted, but Rian shook his head.

“Imogen and I found her after she was reborn, in a Queensland hospital, in the same country that she had lived her previous life in. Not only that, but the name that I gave her became the shortened version of her new name. Someone wanted to make it very easy for me to find her again, and I can only think that it must be Lady Fate,” Rian concluded, and Andraya was forced to agree that the facts made for a strong case.

“But still; taking her away from a mortal life,” she said, shaking her head. “I just don’t think that I can ever see that as a good thing.”

Rian sighed. “I’ve given her a chance to make up her mind for certain, and she’s made her choice,” he said, and indeed the young man had given Elouise Cooper several months to carefully consider the situation. He had wanted her to realise what she would be missing out on, and to really stop and think. To become immortal, she would have to die as far as the mortals who knew her were concerned. She would never again be able to converse with them, and even though she would be able to watch over them from afar, they would forever think that she was dead and gone.

“You’re being selfish,” Andraya said. “You’ve always had the power to get what you want, but this is not one of those times,” she insisted, and Rian gave her a tired smile.

“You’ve got it all wrong,” he said. “I’ve never once told her that I want her to come with me. All I’ve ever done was give her the facts, and actually, she was the one to ask me if it were possible for her to become immortal. This is entirely her choice; I left my selfish desires out of it,” he informed her, and Andraya was actually surprised to hear it.

“Really?” she asked, and Rian gave her an incredulous look.

“Of course I did. What do you take me for? The kind of guy who would drag her away, kicking and screaming? Come on, you know me better than that,” he said, and Andraya gave a slow nod.

“I guess so,” she admitted, before giving a frustrated sigh. “So when is the new addition moving in?” she asked, and Rian brightened as he realised that he’d somehow managed to win the argument.

“Tonight. Since I’ve finished getting her room all ready, I’m going to see her tonight,” he said, and Andraya nodded.

“Fair enough. But if in a few decade’s time she wakes up and hates you for ruining her life, I have every right to say I told you so,” she said, and Rian grinned at her as she left his room. Moment’s later, he could hear his parents no doubt discussing the situation in their lounge room, before Imogen and Bryant snuck in through his open door.

“Man, I though we were gonna have to call the cavalry in on you two,” Bryant said as he plonked himself down into Rian’s beanbag.

“Who did you have in mind?” Rian asked with a laugh, and Imogen shrugged.

“It was a toss up between your dad or Adrian,” she informed him, and Rian’s laughter only increased.

“My dad would have not only felt obliged to, but would have been guilted into siding with my mum, and Adrian probably would have made things worse, or blown something up,” he said once his laughter had subsided.

“Yeah, they probably weren’t the best of choices,” Bryant admitted.

“Next time, I say we get Harmony. She always knows how to defuse an argument,” Imogen said, and both boys nodded in agreement.

“Hopefully there won’t be a next time,” Rian said, and Bryant snorted.

“Oh, there’s always a next time,” he said, and Imogen mirrored his grin.

“Parents are there to be argued with, after all,” she said, finishing her brother’s point, and Rian had to smile at their twin antics.

“I guess you’re right,” he agreed. “Besides, Andy was never going to win that argument anyway,” he pointed out, and the twins laughed.

“Well duh,” Bryant said. “Everyone knew that. She was the only one who wasn’t willing to back down,” he pointed out.

“At least we now know where you get your stubborn nature from,” Imogen added, and Rian scoffed at her.

“I’m only stubborn when I’m right.”

“Which is all of the time,” the twins said in sarcastic unison, and Rian threw a pillow at them both.

“Whatever,” he said in annoyance, and yet he was grinning at his cousins. More than anything, he was looking forward to finally having Ellie back in his life again, and this time it would be forever.

***

Elouise had a bulging backpack sitting on the bench next to her, filled with precious possessions that she simply couldn’t bare to leave behind. She had spent the last few days loading every piece of music that she owned onto her iPod, and when she had run out of room, she had started burning the leftover MP3’s onto half a dozen or so CDs. She had never really been a big book reader, yet Elouise had also packed the few books that she did own, being unable to leave them behind. Her biggest problem had been her prised PlayStation 4 console, and her mountain of games. Although Rian had assured her that she would be able to use the console in the Trinity world, she had still been reluctant to part with it, and had subsequently packed her all-time favourite games into her bag. However, she would have to start all over again, as the hard drive on her PS4 had all of her saved data on it, but the way she figured it, she’d have all of eternity to play them now.

Clothes, shoes and other miscellaneous possessions had been jammed into what room was left in the bag, with most of the shoes ending up in a calico bag that sat at her feet. Her favourite Blu-ray movies had also been crammed into the calico bag, and the whole lot had been tied shut with a ribbon, preventing anything from falling out.

On her lap sat her computer bag, with her laptop, external burner and hard drive, digital camera, and miscellaneous cables. After her PS4, her laptop was her next most valued possession, as the data that was stored on it comprised of documents, videos and images that made up her life thus far. There was simply no way that she could leave it behind.

When Rian arrived in the park, Elouise’s green eyes lit up at the sight of him. Over the past few months since her memories had returned, the young immortal had been coming to see her on a regular basis – unbeknownst to anyone else – and Elouise had grown incredibly fond of him. She had been able to tell right from the start that Rian cared deeply about her, and after getting to know him, she was delighted to know that she now felt the same way. It was more than just the lure of immortality; Rian was special to her. She could see herself with him for the rest of her life, and every time that his eyes met hers, she could see a man who would do anything for her, and who cherished her above all others.

“Looks like you’re all ready to go,” the young immortal said with a smile, catching sight of the three bulging bags that were on and around the young woman. Elouise smiled back as she stood up.

“Of course,” she replied, before a sudden jolt of nerves washed over her. “So, um, how do we do this?” she asked, and Rian smiled as he stepped in closer, reaching out and gently touching her face with the backs of his fingers.

“It’s quite easy, really,” he answered, before he tilted her chin back and kissed her. It was something that he’d wanted to do for a long time now, and Rian felt a rush of happiness when Elouise kissed him back. As he held her close, Rian called upon the essence of Light that was inside of him and, still kissing her, allowed that raw power to pass through his lips and into the mortal woman.

Elouise broke away from him with a gasp, her vibrant green eyes wide as she stared up at him in sudden surprise. And then her eyes seemed to dim as she slumped against him; a dead weight in his arms. Holding her up with one arm, Rian placed two fingers against her neck and, after feeling the lack of a pulse, focuses his sense upon her until he felt that tiny stirring of new power. Satisfied, he lifted her up into his arms, before turning his attention onto Elouise’s bags.

“Imogen, if you’re gonna spy, at least come and make yourself useful,” he suddenly said, and a moment later the Celtic goddess stepped out from within her shadow-clad hiding place.

“Should have known that I couldn’t fool you,” she said, before looking at the three bags and sighing. “Do I have to carry all of them by myself?” she asked, yet when she turned back around, Rian and Elouise were gone. “I’ll take that as a yes,” she answered her own question, before slinging the backpack into her back, balancing the laptop bag on one shoulder, and then carefully bending over to pick up the calico bag. Once loaded up, she too vanished.

***

Elouise’s room was located next to Rian’s in the relatively new wing of the Trinity house, and as the young woman slept, the lounge room in that part of the house became the centre of activity.

“You know, that console was supposed to be a gift for Ellie,” Rian said as Luke and Bryant battled each other on the new console.

“Yeah, like we could leave this baby alone,” Bryant scoffed. “It’s about time one of you invested in a PS4,” he added, and Rian rolled his eyes. It was true that the newer gaming console had been a long time coming, but when dealing with immortals – even relatively young immortals like the Trinity – changes in technology were often hard to keep up with. All of their PlayStation games were for the previous two consoles, so the need to upgrade had never been a high priority. But with the arrival of Elouise, a leap in technology had finally been made.

“Besides, it’s just rude to make her set it up herself,” Luke offered, before he frowned. “By the way, was that a wireless modem that I spotted on the kitchen bench earlier?” he asked, and Rian nodded.

“Yes, it was,” he admitted with a smile.

“I didn’t think we could get the Internet here,” Harmony asked as all of the older immortals turned towards the blonde young man.

“Yeah, you know, lack of phone lines and all that. What gives?” Alisha asked, and Rian chuckled.

“I’m not too big on computers, but Andy modified that modem and connected it to a satellite that’s now on the roof, which in turn connects out to the satellite Internet network,” he said with a shrug as his mother took over.

“I thought that it was about time that we did something about the lack of Internet around here, and it really wasn’t that hard. All I had to do was hack into the modem and redirect it to-”

“Okay, we don’t need an explanation, as long as it works,” Adrian interrupted his daughter, who smirked at him. She always loved it when she managed to bamboozle people with techno babble. Three years of mortal university well spent.

“Hey Rian, she’s awake!” Imogen suddenly called out, standing in the doorway to Elouise’s new room. The young immortal was up in a flash, with most of his family close behind him. Only Luke and Bryant remained, finishing their battle, with Jaid acting as a sort of umpire, and Andraya and Tyler staying to see who would win.

“Wow, everyone’s here,” the new immortal said in surprise, and Rian smiled as he sat down next to her on the bed.

“Of course,” he said as Alisha also sat herself down on the end of the bed.

“You’re sort of big news around here,” she informed the young woman. “Which just goes to show how dull things can get,” she added with a laugh.

“Dull? You should try my job for a while,” Adrian grumbled, yet no one paid him any attention.

“So how do you feel?” Rian asked with only the smallest hint of the concern that he felt. He’d never made anyone immortal before, and he was worried that he may have done something wrong.

The girl shrugged. “I feel fine. Better than fine, actually. I feel like I’ve been in a deep sleep for a week!” she said, and Imogen – who was sitting on a chair on the other side of the bed – shared a quick glance with Rian. “What?” Elouise asked, catching the look.

“Well, you haven’t been asleep for a week. More like three days,” she explained, and Elouise blinked for a moment as she took this in.

“Huh,” she eventually said, accepting the facts. “No wonder I feel well rested,” she added with a grin, before her vibrant green eyes took in the rest of the room around her. She was sitting up in a double bed that was in the centre of a rather large room. A bay window afforded views of grassed fields leading to thick trees at the base of a mountain range, and Elouise recognised the view, placing herself in the Trinity’s house in immortal Australia.

A large oval mirror caught her attention next. It was a part of an old-fashioned vanity set, and lined on the tabletop were bottles of perfume and what looked like a make-up bag.

Following her gaze, Imogen smiled. “I picked out the perfume and make-up, so I hope you like it,” she said, and Elouise nodded.

“I’m sure I will,” she assured the other girl, before her eyes travelled to the other side of the room. A set of doors in the wall screamed walk-in wardrobe at her, and further down a bookcase had been set up. A smile broke out over her face when she recognised the contents of the shelves – her books, movies and music that she had brought with her. There was also a micro stereo unit, with her iPod already in place in the docking bay. But she had to frown as she realised that something was missing.

“Where are my games?” she asked, and Adrian snorted. Elouise looked up just as Harmony elbowed him in the stomach.

“It was supposed to be a surprise, but we couldn’t stop Luke and Bryant from pulling them all out,” Rian explained, and Elouise frowned as she strained her hearing. Sure enough, she could hear the sound of game play coming from just outside of her room, followed by a whoop of delight that could have only come from Bryant Douet.

“Are they playing my games?” she asked, and Rian nodded.

“I bought you a PS4 as a ‘welcome to the immortal club’ gift, and naturally, Luke and Bry had to make sure it all worked properly,” he explained, and with a squeal, Elouise flung herself at him, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck.

“Oh, thank you so much!” she gushed, and a ripple of laughter spread through the room.

“She gets a whole new room, all decked out and ready for her, not to mention her new-found immortality, and the one thing she squeals over is a gaming console,” Adrian said with a roll of his brown eyes, yet it was clear to all that he meant his words in good humour.

“Oh no, I love everything. Really I do!” Elouise assured him as she pulled away from Rian, and once more a round of laughter circulated.

“Come on, I’ll help you kick those two off of your console,” Alisha offered as she slipped off of the end of the bed. Elouise nodded as she threw her covers back and slid out onto the floor.

“I’ll help,” Imogen offered brightly, following after the two girls.

“This I’ve gotta see,” Adrian said, and soon it was just Rian and Harmony left in the new room.

“Are you okay?” his grandmother asked as she came and sat down next to Rian, who nodded.

“Yeah, I am,” he assured her, before giving a sigh. “It just seems strange. I’ve been waiting for this day for eighteen years, and now its finally here,” he explained, and Harmony nodded.

“Does it feel a bit anti-climatic?” she asked, taking a stab at what might be troubling him.

“No, nothing like that. I feel relieved,” he answered, turning to face her with a smile. “She’s everything I’ve ever wanted, and now she’s finally here with me,” he added, and yet still he made no move to leave the bed.

“You know, it’s a scary thing when we realise that we’ve found the one person that we want to spend the rest of our lives with. Believe me, I know,” Harmony said with a slight laugh. “But Fate brought you to Ellie in the first place, and then she allowed you to find her once again. Not many people ever get that lucky, Rian.”

“I know. I owe Lady Fate big time for this,” Rian replied with a grin, and Harmony laughed.

“Oh I’m sure she’ll find a way for you to pay her back, don’t you worry,” she assured her grandson, before nudging his shoulder. “Come on, let’s go and see how the intervention’s going out there,” she said, before standing up and heading towards the door. Glancing back once she’d reached the doorway, she was happy to see Rian nod and follow after her.

‘Whatever you want in return, Lady Fate, I will gladly grant it as thanks for giving me back my Ellie,’ he thought as he left the room, before being drawn into the commotion that was occurring in the lounge room. It seemed as if Alisha and Elouise had teamed up against Luke and Bryant, and Rian guessed that the winners would lay claim to the console.

“You are so going down, Bry-Bry,” Elouise taunted, digging at the Celtic boy’s ribs.

“Oh, I don’t think so, Ellie-girl,” he replied, digging back. Elouise squealed, scooting out of reach as the fighting match started. Everyone had gathered around the couch, and Rian smiled as he watched the pair duke it out on screen.

Elouise Cooper was going to fit in just fine with his quirky family, he could just tell. And now that she was immortal, Rian would never have to lose her again.

The End

Author’s Note – So there you have it, the end of another Trinity fic. I’m sorry if the ending seems a bit rushed, and I do have a lot more planned out for this, but that’s all to go with the revised version of the story, not this version. But with that said, I hope everyone enjoyed this story! Many big hugs to Anjirika, without whom most of these ideas would never get off the ground. I hope you enjoyed this!! I do have another Trinity fic planned for a bit later on down the track, so this isn’t the last you’ll be seeing of my characters. Anji, I’ve already got an Imogen and Bryant story planned out, just for you!