Sally and Chexus were catching up in the garden outside the palace, especially about what had happened after she had left.
Learning that a Merit Stele had been erected in her honor was quite unexpected, but probably nobody would care much—just another statue in the square, a topic of conversation over tea and dinner.
"You said you don't remember what happened before you woke up?" Chexus asked.
Sally nodded, "Yes. My last memory was holding my son... and then I woke up here."
"Mmm." Chexus looked at her, "The man who won your heart is truly lucky."
"Bittersweet," Sally responded with a mischievous smile, "Being partnered with someone like me means being destined to spend more time apart than together."
"Being together all the time can become tiresome, too. It's good to separate occasionally, to keep things fresh." Chexus plucked a red rose, removed the fine thorns from its stem, "It's not a rose, but I'm giving it to you."
