Page 50 of Pisces Rising

Aries simply grinned and tenderly traced the contours of her face.

The tender moment was interrupted by the others appearing in the room and an obnoxious clearing of a throat. "Oh, my gods, get a room, you two!" Gemini groaned dramatically. Now that her dark side was under control, her usual sarcastic self was firmly back in place. She punctuated the comment with an exaggerated wink at Leo's hulking form, who responded with a flirtatious shrug. Pisces hid a knowing smile, picking up on the spark between them.

There was something utterly perfect about this moment. Aries was returned to her, and this was the first time in centuries that all the Zodiacs had been together. Her eyes welled with tears, overcome with gratitude, and the eternal power flowing within her.

Nothing could have made the moment better until Gemini said, “Looks like everything is back to normal, Pisces is crying again.” She flashed Pisces a gleaming grin and winked.

Despite Gemini’s aversion to it, more tears fell, and Pisces smiled, happy to have her friend back.

Chapter

Forty-One

Pisces found Gemini alone, sitting under the stars. She sat beside her, letting her legs dangle over the edge of the courtyard that looked down on the endless blanket of stars.

"Hey," Pisces said, nudging Gemini with her shoulder. She could sense the melancholy radiating from her.

"Hey," Gemini said, uncharacteristically short on words.

Pisces studied her friend. There was something different about Gemini now, but it wasn't like when Dark Gemini had taken over. This felt like a wholeness that hadn't existed in Gemini before. Pisces knew it because she'd gone through the transformation in the black hole too. Instead of tearing them apart, the void somehow put them back together, fusing the missing pieces of their energies into one whole being.

"Are you okay?" Pisces finally asked.

"Yeah," Gemini said, keeping her eyes on the stars. "I'm just learning to handle the weight of carrying my dark side."

Pisces nodded in understanding. She'd been carrying that weight herself for a long time. "It will take time to get used to it," she said with a small smile.

Gemini shrugged and looked at Pisces, her bright green eyes reflecting the stars. "I guess this is why you're crying all the time, huh?" Her lip curled in a wry smile.

"Something like that," Pisces said with a laugh. "Don't worry, Gem, we'll work on it together."

Gemini nodded as she sucked in a sharp breath, her mood lifting slightly.

"Can I ask you something?" Pisces wanted to touch Gemini's hand, but she knew Gemini would hate that.

"Shoot, little fish."

Pisces took a breath, worried the question might upset her. "Was it ever you in there?"

Canting her head, Gemini looked at Pisces sidelong. "Of course, I was in there. Until she took me to the mirror realm, anyway. Then she stuck me in the black hole time-out corner so I wouldn't interfere." She sighed and clasped her hands in her lap, her gaze drifting back to the stars. "I was in charge until we visited Aquarius, I think. That's when my...other half started making her presence known. I thought I was stronger than her, but I greatly overestimated how despair can warp a soul."

This is what Pisces suspected, recalling the shift in Gemini's appearance under the flash of lights, like someone was turning a light switch on and off. "But you're whole now?" Pisces didn't need to ask; she already knew, but she felt like Gemini needed to speak it in order to accept it.

"Yep. Whole and in control." Gemini rolled her eyes toward Pisces. "Do you think I should tell the others?"

Pisces looked at her gently and nodded. "I think so. They fought hard for us in that realm, and they deserve to know the truth about what happened to you. It might help them understand and connect with you more."

Gemini pondered this for a moment before throwing her head back in mild frustration. "Ugh! It sucks that I was the one trying to tear apart the universe. You know?"

Pisces threw caution to the stars and reached for Gemini's hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze. "It wasn't your fault, Gem. We're not meant to be perfect. We're meant to grow and evolve, just like them." She looked at the blue planet in the distance, a symbol of constant change and possibility.

With a grunt, Gemini got to her feet. "All right, let's go do this." She reached a hand to help Pisces up, and when she stood, Gemini unexpectedly pulled her into a firm hug. "And...I'm sorry." Her words were clipped but genuine, heavy with the weight of her regret.

Pisces embraced her friend tightly, feeling the tension melt from Gemini's frame. "You don't have to apologize to me," she said, her voice cracking with emotion. "I'm just glad to have you back."

They held the embrace for a long moment before Gemini finally pulled back, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. "Okay, you're ruining it with the waterworks, and now you’re making me cry," she teased, but the smile on her face outshone her words. She took a deep breath, squaring her shoulders. "Let's go face the music."

Together, they made their way back into Star Castle, ready to lay out the truth to their celestial family.