Kai's first proposal attempt failed because of Leo.
Technically.
Emotionally.
Spiritually.
Nancy would never let him forget it.
It started peacefully enough.
Too peacefully, honestly.
Kai invited Nancy on a walk near the river at sunset, which immediately made her suspicious.
"You're acting weird," she informed him.
"I always act weird."
"True. But this feels organized."
Kai looked personally attacked.
The river shimmered gold beneath the evening light while the forest glowed softly around them.
Very romantic.
Too romantic.
Nancy narrowed her eyes immediately.
"What are you planning?"
"Nothing."
"That sounded criminal."
Kai sighed dramatically.
"The bond has ruined my ability to lie."
"Good."
They reached a quiet clearing beside the water where lanterns hung carefully from tree branches.
Nancy stopped walking.
Slowly.
"…Kai."
He suddenly looked nervous.
Which terrified her far more than any cosmic entity ever had.
Kai rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.
"So, hypothetically—"
"Oh no."
"—if someone wanted to ask a very important question—"
A loud crash exploded somewhere behind the trees.
Both of them jumped violently.
Then came Leo's voice:
"THIS WAS NOT MY FAULT."
Silence.
Nancy stared at Kai.
Kai closed his eyes briefly like a man abandoned by destiny.
From behind the bushes emerged Leo tangled in approximately six lantern ropes.
"I can explain."
"No," Kai said immediately.
"You actually can't."
Nancy burst into helpless laughter.
Apparently Leo had attempted to "secretly supervise" the proposal setup to ensure nothing went wrong.
Instead he stepped into the decorative lighting and collapsed directly into the riverbank.
"Why were you supervising?" Nancy wheezed.
"Because he was pacing for two hours beforehand like a haunted Victorian man."
Kai looked betrayed.
"You said you wouldn't tell her that."
"I lied."
The proposal failed.
Spectacularly.
The second attempt failed because children followed them.
Nancy noticed the tiny footsteps almost immediately.
"Kai."
"…Yeah?"
"We're being hunted."
Three wolf pups froze behind a tree.
One waved.
"We support romance!" he announced proudly.
Kai looked toward the sky like he was asking the universe for strength.
The third attempt almost worked.
Almost.
Kai finally managed to get Nancy alone during a late evening on the cabin porch while snow drifted softly through the air.
No interruptions.
No disasters.
No spying children.
Perfect.
Nancy sat wrapped in blankets beside the fire while Kai looked increasingly nervous again.
"You're doing the weird face," she informed him.
"What weird face?"
"The emotionally constipated one."
"That's Leo's insult."
"And yet accurate."
Kai laughed softly.
Then fell quiet again.
Nancy's teasing slowly faded as she noticed the seriousness in his expression.
The bond pulsed nervously between them.
Which honestly was alarming.
"Kai?"
He reached into his coat slowly.
Nancy's breath caught immediately.
Oh.
Oh.
Kai looked at her carefully, all humor softening into something unbearably sincere.
"You know," he said quietly,
"when I met you, I thought the bond was the most terrifying thing that could happen to me."
Nancy smiled faintly.
"Reasonable reaction."
"But then you changed everything."
The fire crackled softly beside them while snow drifted beyond the porch light.
Kai's voice steadied.
"You taught me connection wasn't weakness."
A pause.
"You taught all of us that."
Nancy felt emotion rising dangerously fast already.
Which was unfair because he wasn't even fully proposing yet.
Kai finally pulled out a simple silver ring threaded with tiny gold markings resembling intertwined bond-lines.
Nothing flashy.
Just warm.
Steady.
Beautiful.
Like them.
"Nancy," he said softly,
"every version of my future that matters has you in it."
Nancy officially started crying.
"Your timing is terrible," she informed him emotionally.
"I practiced this speech."
"That somehow makes it worse."
Kai laughed quietly.
Then his expression gentled completely.
"Will you marry me?"
The bond glowed warm and bright between them instantly, like the answer already existed there.
Nancy looked at him through tears and snowlight and years of survival and healing and impossible love.
Then smiled.
"Obviously."