were the words; Don’t you dare!!! Max had apparently foreseen the complication even though Dana herself had not. Dana shook her head, mouth quirking when she thought about the note and sketchbook Max had left for herself this time. Her daughter was nothing if not prepared. Dana had obeyed Max’s wishes and had left her alone and afraid in a foreign world with naught but the clothes on her back. She had trusted her daughter to know what she was doing and where she was destined to end up.
Observing the joy and happiness of Max with her family now, and the revolutionary healing of the chades, Dana still couldn’t honestly say that she did the right thing or that she would do it all over again had she seen the outcome. Though she didn’t need to wonder what her stubborn daughter thought. Max had told her in no uncertain terms what her opinion was upon her return to Otherworld just weeks prior. The moment Max had crossed the veil in her pure soul form, her memories as Titania had returned and Dana had an armful of laughing, sobbing energy. Their happy reunion had lasted a blissful matter of minutes until Max had let loose a string of creative curses and demands to know what was going on. After that, Dana had been forced to endure three weeks of whining, cursing, and pouting until Max had been able to reform her physical form. Dana had been under no illusion that Max would return to Earth the moment she was physically able to, but they had both been surprised and overwhelmed to learn of the presence of the tiny being nestled contentedly in Max’s womb. Though Dana was able to essentially birth souls in the form of Custodians, she did not get to choose where those souls were housed. That was the responsibility of a different deity. Besides, Dana had refused to create any more Custodians after the last of her creations was taken against its will.
Naturally, the discovery of her own daughter made Max even more determined to return and Dana had aided her as much as she was able to. Unfortunately, all the preparation in the world still had not been enough to prevent the resulting memory loss. Human bodies simply weren’t supposed to cross the veil. Dana had watched on tenterhooks as Max found her way yet again and although she was overjoyed at the scene in front of her right now, she was even more gratified to hear Max call Mordecai dad and ask him what he thought of being a grandfather.
Dana laughed out loud as Mordecai noticeably paled. Seems that small fact had escaped him. To be fair, he responded to the good-natured ribbing from his Order and Ryker well, even smiling a time or two before finally threatening them all with bodily harm. I wish he would threaten my body again, Dana thought without meaning to. She immediately flushed, though there was no one to see her embarrassment. Mordecai had been her first – and last – lover. The title of Great Mother was more symbolic than literal. Yes, she had birthed the first souls and the first seeds of nature, but like her fellow gods and goddesses, procreation had not involved sex. Even with Mordecai being exceptionally drunk and herself aware of the purpose of the act, it had still been the most incredible night of her life. She could well understand why humans placed so much emphasis on sex. Too bad she was doomed never to experience it again.
Her sigh this time was big enough to displace the air minutely, and Max’s head popped up, eyes searching keenly. When they looked directly through where the veil was hovering in the doorway, Max gave her a small grin and a wave, even though Dana knew she couldn’t actually see the shimmering, pearlescent curtain. It was invisible and impervious to all – other than pure divinity. Still, Max was sensitive enough and astute enough to know Dana was there.
The small gesture from Max had Dana slumping in relief. When Max had said she remembered everything, Dana didn’t know if that included herself or not. Thankfully, it appeared to and she wondered when Max would see fit to tell the others about her trip to Otherworld and what she remembered of her time growing up as Titania, the beloved daughter of Mother Nature.
Max raised her eyebrows and patted her stomach one last time before turning her attention