Chloe hummed softly, watching TV.
Sadia and Ender appeared. "Yes, Chloe-?"
They exchanged a confused look.
Chloe smiled and laughed slightly, pausing her show with a shaky hand. "I called you both here."
Sadia smiled and sat beside her. "Okay... What's up, kiddo?"
Ender sat down in a nearby chair, listening quietly.
Chloe smiled. "How is everyone?"
Sadia was surprised for a moment then remembered how lonely she got in unreality. Chloe was older, and her husband had died... Sometimes, her daughter, Lucy, visited with Chloe's granddaughter, Lea, but Sadia still imagined she still got lonely sometimes.
"Everyone's doing well," Sadia smiled. "How are you doing?"
Chloe shrugged. "I'm old, but it's what I expected to happen, so I can't complain."
Ender looked over at her. "Chloe, it's not too late to-"
Chloe waved her hand at him dismissively. "Now, now, none of that, Ender... Anyways, I called you here to ask for a favor."
"Of course! What do you need? Do you need me to get some grocceries, or-?" Sadia began.
"No, no, none of that, Sadia..." Chloe sighed quietly and frowned. "It's...about Arcadia..."
Ender frowned. "What about her? Do you want me to get her? Do you want to talk to her, or...?"
Chloe laughed slightly. "Not right now, no. I wanted to talk to you two about...well...my death."
"Are you not feeling well?" Sadia asked, panicking. "I'll go get help-"
Chloe sighed. "Will you two calm down for five minutes and listen?"
Sadia and Ender smiled sheepishly. "Sorry..."
Chloe laughed and shook her head. "Don't worry about it. Now... When I die, I... I'm not worried about me. I made this choice. But I am worried about Arcadia... I don't want to leave her. And I'm afraid... I don't want her to... I don't want to lose her. I won't be here to make her smile and try to help her anymore. I'll have to pass that responsibility back fully to all of you... And I know you helped her before I met her, Sadia... I'm not trying to discount that. And besides, I'm not much help in terms of the guardian responsibilities anymore. But... Please keep her from being too sad. Help her... I don't want to hurt her. I feel guilty... And sad that I chose this path..." She teared up. "I just can't imagine outliving another family member after Ed... I can't imagine outliving Lucy, or Lea... Or any of the descendants to follow. I just...can't do that again..."
Ender frowned. "Chloe..."
Sadia put a hand on her shoulder. "It...it isn't easy... I've watched my sister's family grow over thousands of years, and it was worth it to lead to having you, Chloe... If you can't go on, it's your choice. We will miss you...so much... You brought so much happiness to Arc. If Julia hadn't found you and taken you in... I feel like Arcadia would've adopted you instead. You always brought so much light to our family... Chloe, thank you. You did what I couldn't... You made Arcadia happier than she had ever been. And I will watch over her and take some of her responsibilities away as she grieves. Don't worry. We'll do what we can."
Ender nodded. "I'll do what I can to comfort her and be there for her as she grieves too... I won't let you lose her."
Chloe smiled. "Good... Now!" She got up slowly and used a walker to get to the kitchen. "Who wants cookies?"
Ender followed quickly. "Me! Me!!"
Sadia laughed and also followed. "I'd love that."
Ender and Sadia ended up helping Chloe make the cookies...
Ender and Sadia were sitting back on the couch with Chloe, eating cookies.
The doorbell rang.
Ender teleported over. "I'll get it!" He opened the door. "Hello-"
Lea waved then ran past him. "Grandma!"
She sat beside her and hugged her tightly.
Chloe smiled and hugged back. "Hello, Lea... It's so good to see you. We made cookies!"
Lea pulled away and grabbed one. "Thanks, grandma... Eli and Easton came over too."
Easton walked in, carrying a tiny Eli.
"There's those handsome Prince boys! Come in, come in!" Chloe clapped happily. "Get some cookies."
Easton carefully set tiny Eli down, who ran over and grabbed a cookie.
"Yummy! Thank you, auntie!" Eli giggled, running over and trying to get on the couch beside her.
Sadia smiled and scooted over, picking him up and setting him beside Chloe.
Easton took one and nodded in acknowledgement. "Thank you."
He sat beside Lea.
Ender shrugged and shut the door, walking back over and sitting down.
Chloe smiled. "Of course, of course... You three do know who these two friends of mine are, don't you?"
Eli looked up at Sadia and tilted his head. "Pirates?"
Sadia laughed and ruffled his hair. "Not quite..."
Chloe laughed. "No, not pirates... Sadia is a guardian and Ender here is an alien. They work together with the planet guardians to protect the planet."
"Like Arcadia?" Lea asked.
Chloe nodded. "Exactly. Did I ever tell you this story about Arcadia? One time..."
Chloe went on to tell stories about the planet guardians to Lea, Easton, and Eli. Sadia and Ender stuck around, listening to the past adventures with a smile. Lea and Eli were heavily influenced by the stories while Easton wasn't as much. At that point, even with Chloe and Adelyn, Easton had become broken.
