"Please be real," he cried as he reached out to touch her and suddenly found himself in her embrace.
   "I'm here," she whispered, "I'm here."  She held him as he wept, her strength and love erasing the years of pain that had so mercilessly scarred him.  In its place, Quentin felt the stillness of peace and for a long moment, no words passed between them.  When he finally had control of himself, Quentin raised his head from her shoulder and looked into her eyes; when he did, he saw nothing of the past.  Before her death, Beth had been frightened because of the mind-switch that Petofi had used against him.  In spite of his attempts to make Beth realize he was himself again, she'd died thinking he was a monster, and he'd never forgotten the look of terror on her face when he reached out for her that last time.  Now there was nothing but joy and love in her eyes, and Quentin knew for the first time what it meant to truly love someone.  His life had been incomplete without her, and now that Beth was back, he felt alive again.
  "I've missed you, Beth."
  "I've missed you too, Quentin.  I've never been completely alone--Sarah has been here, as well as her family and mine, but being without you has been terribly painful for me.  I wanted to come for you sooner, but I couldn't.  I apologize for that, my love.  I never wanted to hurt you by staying away so long, but I had to be certain that the time was right before I came back."
  "Why are you here now?  What makes this day any different than the rest?"  His birthday had only served to remind him of his loneliness and of how he had done nothing to deserve redemption. What had possibly made this day so special?
  "I heard your wish, my love.  Tonight you told me that you love me, and that you're sorry you didn't realize that before I died.  You've changed, Quentin...you're not at all the same man I fell in love with when I first came here.  You would have never been so open and honest with your feelings before. You have a caring and compassionate soul...when I heard your wish tonight, I realized that it was my time to be with you again.  Are you ready to come with me, Quentin?"
  "Ready?  Oh Beth, the only thing that ever kept me from burning my portrait and joining you was meeting Chris..."
  "Chris? He's related to you?"
  "Yes," Quentin sadly admitted, " he's my great-grandson.  He's a wonderful kid, but he's suffered so because of me.  Before I came here, he was engaged, but his fiancée saw his transformation and had a breakdown.  I've visited her at Windcliff a couple of times and she's barely alive now.  She's trapped inside herself, and I don't think she'll ever completely recover.  Chris still blames himself and I couldn't leave him without trying to help him find a cure for the curse.  That's why I couldn't come to you, Beth.  I had to stay here until I could help my family.  They shouldn't have to suffer for my sins."
  "I understand, darling," she whispered, caressing his cheek.  "The cure was never about finding the right potion or incantation.  Magda cursed you because you killed Jenny without remorse.  Ending your punishment meant looking into your heart and seeking forgiveness.  Now that you've done that, it's over."
  "It is?" he asked, his voice breaking as he thought of what Beth's admission meant to him.  Now that she was here, Chris could find the love he deserved and Amy would be able to be a mother without having to worry about passing the curse on to her oldest son; did he dare believe that the answer he'd been looking for was that simple?  Could it be that his time as an immortal had finally come to an end?
  "Yes, Quentin.  It's over. Come and look in the mirror if you don't believe me."  She rose from the bed and held her hand out to him, smiling when he took it and followed her into the suite that adjoined his room.  When he looked at his reflection, he merely stood before the mirror in shocked surprise, unable to say anything.  The Quentin Collins who looked back at him was older, having visibly changed in a matter of moments.  His hair was silvery gray and time had whispered across his features, leaving the slightest traces of its presence around his eyes and the corners of his mouth.  It was almost as if the portrait had never existed, and he brushed his hand reverently over the glass to assure himself that he wasn't dreaming.
  "I did this?" he whispered in awe when he felt the smoothness of the glass beneath his palm.
  "Yes, Quentin.  I always knew you were a good man.... you just had to believe that you deserved forgiveness.  Are you ready to go now?"
  He was more than ready to join Beth, for he had grown weary of the price of immortality.  It had been so painful to watch his family evolve generation after generation, knowing that eventually he'd lose everyone he'd grown to care for.  Even the happiness he'd found with Carolyn's family had been tainted by the specters of the past, for he would have to distance himself from them when his eternal youth began to raise questions he couldn't answer.  He welcomed death's embrace, and knew that he would only be separated  from those he was about to leave behind for a little while.  "There's someone I need to tell goodbye first, Beth, but then I'll be ready to go."

To be continued...

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