Summer has fully arrived. The windows of your apothecary are wide open, welcoming warm breezes filled with birdsong and the smell of wildflowers. Mossden is lively and bustling. It's so different from just a few months ago, when your days were filled with curing those with the deadly red sickness. The last patient was healed many weeks ago, and the disease is thankfully gone.

Roth is a daily visitor to the apothecary, usually arriving with a bit of village gossip or a joke. Tully visits too, her limp growing less and less noticeable as the weeks pass. Halpra comes as well. She prefers to quietly assist you in sorting and preparing herbs. You understand her silence.

With Tully healed, the trails clear, and the weather fair, it's time to journey back to the village. But you will not be joining them. You have been asked to stay in Mossden as their new apothecary and are preparing to train your very first apprentice.

On the day of your friends' departure, you walk them to the edge of the woods. Seeing their familiar packs and weapons makes you think how much you have changed from the scared mouse that first started the journey. The four of you pause at the start of the trail, and Roth wraps you in a big hug, pounding your back. Tully embraces you as well, her climbing gear jangling cheerfully on her knapsack. There is a lump in your throat as you realize how much they mean to you.

Halpra is the last to stand before you. “Goodbye Halpra," you say. "And... thank you.”

“Thank you?” she says gruffly, her brows knitting together in confusion.

“For leading us over. For making us succeed.”

“Me? We all did it. We all got each other across." She reaches out and touches your arm with surprising gentleness. "But those final steps? That was you. And you never gave up. So, believe I should be thanking you.”

Suddenly, she smiles, and it's like a brilliant burst of light through the trees. “Do you know what they call you here at Mossden?” she asks.

You shake your head, tears in your eyes, unable to speak.

“Tolo the Brave. And I definitely think the name definitely suits you."

"To Tolo the Brave!" cheer Roth and Tully.

Halpra looks at you a moment more. "Send word if you ever need us."

"Just...not in winter," Roth adds, earning laughter from all of you.

Halpra turns, shouldering her pack. "Take care, my friend."

You watch them walk away. At the edge of the woods, they wave one last time, then enter the green canopy. You turn and look up into the expansive cerulean sky. Clouds race and pile in fluffy bundles. The earth carries the promise of warmth and prosperity.

“Tolo the Brave,” you say, smiling at the bright sun. “That’s me.”

The End