Anya’s final moments unfold beneath the dim glow of fading daylight as Bear holds her trembling body against his chest, his arms wrapped around her with a tenderness that shakes him to his core while she struggles for breath, knowing the life slipping from her is measured now in heartbeats rather than minutes, and the weight of unspoken truths presses against her ribs like one final plea demanding release, pushing her to summon every last ounce of strength she has left before the world goes silent around her, because there is one thing she cannot leave undone, one responsibility she refuses to let fall into the wrong hands, and as her voice cracks through the thick ache in her throat, she whispers the name of the daughter she never had the chance to raise, the girl who lives somewhere out in the Dales, unaware that her mother is fading from the world, unaware that her future is about to change in ways she could never imagine, and Bear feels the words like a blow to the chest as Anya clutches his shirt with a fragile desperation, begging him to protect the girl the way she wishes she could have, to seek her out, to shield her from the shadows Anya knows will come searching once she’s gone, shadows tied to her past mistakes, regrets, and the dangerous forces that have always lingered too close to her life. Bear’s heart fractures as he promises—first with a shaky nod, then with a voice thickened by grief—that he won’t let the girl face the world alone, that he will take her into his care, that he will honor Anya’s final request even if it leads him into a storm he’s not prepared for, but Anya shakes her head slightly, her eyes wide with urgency, making sure he understands that this is not a simple favor but a mother’s final wish carved into the fragments of her failing breath, and she presses her hand to his cheek with a tenderness that breaks him completely as she whispers details only he must know: the girl’s name, the place she stays, the secrets that must be protected until the time is right. Bear listens, memorizing every syllable, every warning, every plea, and as Anya’s energy wanes, her words slow into a trembling cadence, drifting between apologies for the years she spent hiding her daughter’s existence and confessions of fear for what might happen once she is gone, but Bear refuses to let her slip away without comfort, holding her tight and reassuring her that she is not leaving the world alone, that her daughter will never feel abandoned the way Anya once did, that he will fight tooth and nail to keep her safe no matter what ghosts rise from Anya’s past. Tears spill down her cheeks as she tries to smile, the effort small and painful but filled with an immense love she rarely had the chance to express, and she whispers that she wishes she could have met her daughter properly, could have watched her grow, could have given her the stability she herself never had, but fate denied her that chance, and now she must trust Bear to become the guardian she never had the chance to be. Bear feels her grip loosen slightly, her breaths slowing, becoming shallow and uneven, and panic ripples through him, urging him to cling tighter as if he can keep her anchored to the world through sheer force of will, but Anya’s gaze softens with acceptance rather than fear, her eyes drifting toward the sky as if seeing something only she can perceive, and she exhales a faint final request for Bear to tell her daughter the truth someday—that she loved her, that she never abandoned her, that she fought for her in every way she could even when the world tried to break her apart—and Bear nods again, unable to speak as his throat closes around the grief swelling inside him. In the quiet that follows, Anya’s breath catches one final time, and with a faint, trembling sigh, her body relaxes completely in his arms, leaving Bear alone with the weight of a life ended too soon and a promise that now feels like both a burden and a blessing, a thread tying him to a girl he’s never met but is now sworn to protect, a girl whose life is about to be upended by the arrival of a man carrying her mother’s final plea. The silence around him feels immense, pressing down like a physical force as he whispers a soft goodbye into Anya’s hair, grief cascading through him in waves, but beneath the sorrow lies a spark of determination that begins to burn steadily, relentlessly, fueled by the love Anya poured into her dying words. As Bear gathers himself enough to stand, cradling the weight of responsibility heavier than anything he’s ever carried, he looks toward the distant lights of the Dales and realizes that his life—and the life of the daughter Anya has left behind—will never be the same again, because a dying mother’s final wish is not something he will ever take lightly, and he will honor it with every step he takes from this moment forward.