To a garden

"Okay? What are we doing here?" Leon asked as they were now at this large, impressive botanical garden.

"This place was....... special," Wanda said seemingly trying to hold back tears as she walked through it.

Leon wasn't sure where she was going with this but he decided to stay silent as he took her hand and walked through it with her. She trusted her and wanted her to know he was there for her just as much as she wanted to be there for him.

"This reminds me of a garden I used to have," Aezeth said in Wanda's mind without Leon being able to hear. "This place is special. Thank you for coming here."

"This was where Charles proposed to me," Wanda said as they stopped at a fountain.

"Wait, he proposed?" Leon asked, but never actually knew that.

"It was the day before he died. We had planned to tell you together but....." she said before she looked down at her reflection in the water.

"Oh my God, I didn't know..... I knew he had planned to but......" he paused as Wanda turned towards him. "I never said anything because I didn't want to break your heart any more than it already was."

Wanda gave him a half smile, before turning back towards the fountain. "I miss him, and I feel guilty. I feel like I'm taking advantage of his son."

"No more guilty than I feel, taking advantage of my dad's...... fiance," he said, being the first time either one of them had ever acknowledged it.

"Perhaps you are both looking at it the wrong way," Aezeth said, her reflection appearing in the water in front of them instead of speaking through Wanda.

"Aezeth, is that......" Leon began to see as he stared at the woman with green skin and tendrils for hair, wiggling on their own.

"This is my true form, after the gods cursed me."

"I saw you in that memory, with your daughter, and you looked, well, like Wanda. I've never seen this version of you before."

"I know, it's atrocious, that's one of the reasons we need to bond," Aezeth said before lowering her head.

"Can I........ see it, I mean, can you....." Leon asked, not sure if it was appropriate.

"Wanda?" Aezeth asked as Wanda shook her head.

Wanda suddenly transformed into Aezeth's form. The same form she was in when she took Ted, and possessed Wanda's body. Her face was the same shape but the rest of her looked different.

Leon examined the scales on her arms and the tendrils of hair. Aezeth didn't even look at him as she just stood there staring at the ground as Leon examined her.

"Wow," he said in a whisper as he looked her over.

"I know, it's......"

"Beautiful," Leon said interrupting her as she suddenly looked up at him.

"What?" Aezeth asked, confused.

"You look incredible. Like a Goddess of nature. If I ran into you in the woods, I feel I would be in the presence of my Earth mother."

"You, you really mean that?" Aezeth asked with tears in her eyes as Leon placed his hand on her cheek, one of her tendrils gently caressing his hand.

"I truly do, you look beautiful. Any of those men who are now statues, I bet they all have smiles on their faces."

Aezeth smiled, letting out a little laugh in the process. "Wanda is lucky to have you, Leon. We both are," she said before she realized that he was still holding her hand.

Aezeth turned towards Leon, a nervous look on her face. Despite the similarities to Wanda, Leon could also see the subtle differences. Despite the obvious green skin and tendrils, Aezeth's cheeks were a little more defined than Wanda's, and just subtle things like the shape of her nose.

"Once the bonding is complete, Wanda, Dawn, and I want to have a ceremony with you. We will be your wives."

"All three of you?" Leon asked, a little confused.

"Well, Wanda and I will be one, but...... I know this is probably very odd for you, but Dawn is already in agreement. And Wanda and I both want this too. Whatever happens during the merger, our loyalty is to you."

"That sounds......." he said, not sure exactly what to say.

He loved Dawn, and always had, but he also had realized he was in love with Wanda. Aezeth and Wanda were in a way the same person, so deep down he felt he loved her as well, despite how confusing this all was.

"I thought you didn't believe in love anymore," he said, breaking eye contact with her.

"I don't," she said as Leon quickly looked back up at her. "But Wanda and Dawn do, you do, and I know that you can make me believe in it again," she said before she leaned in and kissed him, unsure of how he would react, but then felt his hands wrap around her, embracing her and the kiss.

"I look forward to showing you," he said as their lips finally separated.