Last but not least

His mum and Jude had come first. Now it was time for Edmund to seek out Harper. He'd heard the man was home, so the young Ancient let his feet lead him on a route they had long since memorized. As he drew towards their street, he hesitated. He wasn't sure how he'd feel once he saw his own home. It'd been so long. But he couldn't put this off. Taking a deep breath, Edmund forced himself forward, a nervous tongue swiping across his fangs. Harper was easy to spot from where he was tending to plants. Clearing his throat, Edmund nervously played with the hem of his sleeve, "Hi, Harper. I've missed you." His voice cracked with emotion as he said the man's name. Harper was a lot of things to the young Ancient. Family, first and foremost. At first an uncle figure. Then his stepfather and the father of his brother. A mentor, a friend, a source of comfort. Edmund had missed him horribly. Edmund Reborn In Fire

Harper

I see what lies heavy on your heart

Spring means the garden needs to be weeded and replanted, and Harper - ever the sun lover, and incapable of ignoring any kind of task that requires physical labor - had set to working on it as soon as any risk of frost had passed. Gardening is one particular hobby he'd never anticipated enjoying when he was in his former homeland, but it has become something truly enjoyable since. It has been so many years he has been in Caido now that he can scarcely imagine any other place feeling like home. Even when theirs has been so very empty as of late - Maeve gone, Edmund missing, Jude quiet and isolated in his bedroom. Harper has been struggling to keep them all together, to make his arms long enough to hold them all, and every day he feels as if he's failing that little bit more.

He's not surprised to hear footsteps - many come to visit him when they see him outside, but he's not expecting the voice that follows the clearing of a throat. Jerking up, Harper swiftly stands and spins on his heel, taking in the new form of a face that remains stubbornly familiar. "Edmund?" he breathes. But even the shock can't delay him for long, ripping off and discarding his gloves immediately as he moves in long, earth-eating strides to the boy in front of him. Big arms coming to envelop the young Ancient and hold him tight against his chest, pressing a small kiss to the boy's temple. "Oh, Edmund. Welcome home, kiddo. I've missed you so much." Pulling back but keeping his hands on Edmund's shoulders - one gently holding the side of the boy's neck in a paternal embrace - the man smiles, full of love and understanding. "I'm so glad you're safe. How are you?" He doesn't doubt the boy had sought out his mother first, devoted as he is to her, and Harper can only imagine how hard that must have been.

and the strength you still keep inside

Edmund crumbles into Harper's hold, distantly wondering when they became the same height. The kiss to his head has him nuzzling Harper's shoulder, his voice muffled. " 'missed you to." The man pulls back and Edmund startles, reaching out to grasp the Attuned's wrist to prevent him from leaving. But as Harper simply places the hand on his cheek, the young Ancient relaxes. His hand remains on the Attuned's wrist but the other hangs limply at his side. "I'm good. I'm happy to be home." How could he possibly put all that had happened into words? There were some things that he'll never be able to share, but he owes the man something. The young Ancient rubs the back of one of his horns nervously, "How have you been?" Edmund Reborn In Fire

Harper

I see what lies heavy on your heart

He can fall apart as much as he needs, because they may be of similar height but Harper is strong enough to hold the young man's weight, be it literal or metaphorical. As he reaches for Harper, he'll find the man easy to return back to his former place, unwilling to stray. It's clear the boy - a boy no longer, not really, but always to Harper - has far more to tell than what he says, but Harper does not pry for more.

Though the only alternative is providing his own state of being, which is far from positive. The man sighs softly, clearly hesitating. Edmund is like his own son and Harper would never put the burdens of adulthood on a soul he sees as his own child, but the Ancient is old enough to know more of the man Harper is beyond parenthood and protection. "It's been difficult, since you left. Not because of you," he is careful to explain, not wanting Edmund to blame himself, "but...well. Jude has been very reserved, and your mother absent more often than not, and Jude's mother equally so. It hasn't been easy." But Harper smiles still, even if there are small notes of strain in the corners. "But Jude will be ecstatic now that you're home. Have you already seen him?"

and the strength you still keep inside

Edmund listens silently as Harper updates him. Regardless of his assurances, an apology spills from the Ancient's lips, "I'm sorry." He opens his mouth to try to explain himself but the question about Jude gives him a pause. "I have. We spoke and I brought him home with me.  I missed him." It has been so easy to slip back into the role of a loving brother. Jude easily pulls the softest parts of the Ancient to the forefront. On some level, it's reassuring to know that his transformation hadn't burned those parts away. Taking a steadying breath, Edmund tells Harper as much as he's willing. "I felt that I had to leave. Needed to. With everything that had happened, I had been so useless. Every precaution that we took as a region, as a family. It was barely enough." The Ancient's tail lashes slightly as he recalls the War, "I needed to become stronger so that I can help. I went and became an Ancient to do so." Reborn in the fire, stone, and blood of Dygra. Edmund had found the power he sought, without regret. But the blood now on his hands would be kept close to his chest. He didn't want to know how his family would react to the full truth. Would it shatter them alongside with their view of him? Shaking his head, Edmund pulls Harper in for another hug, "I'm home now. I just have to do ne last thing first." With a few more reassurances and easy questions, Edmund went to go join Jude's nap. Little did he know, this brief calm would be the last for months to come. -{FIN} Edmund Reborn In Fire