The only times you’ve really rested is when you were recovering from ghastly injuries and only because you couldn’t move.’ Solus pouted.
She didn’t like being considered among the things on the to-do list.
‘Then this is no vacation either. I’m going to have to explain magic and responsibilities to a couple of kids. Where’s the fun in that?’
‘You’re going to spend a few days in the company of your little ones in a beautiful location, relaxing in contact with nature with nothing to worry about but the lack of a real bathroom. It sounds fun to me.’ Solus could hear him inwardly whine before she could even finish the thought.
‘I could argue with many things you’ve just said, starting from the lack of a bathroom, but I’ll just point out that you probably jinxed it.’ Lith replied.
They quarreled all the way back home from the tower where they had prepared the latest batch of merchandise. Solus’s alchemical lab was the perfect place to mass produce items while also imbuing them with minor spells that would prevent counterfeiting.
Chess was easily replicable and required cheap materials so Lith simply added a multi-colored magical brand shaped like his family crest on every chessboard that marked it as an original piece.
The most expensive pieces, those made of high-quality wood and marble figurines, he would simply autograph them. Any noble or magician found playing with a knock-off would become the laughing stock of the chess community so aside from those who couldn’t afford to get one, counterfeits had no real market.
As for the strollers, Lith sold and prepared two kinds of them. One with wheels for the low-middle class and one with a floating spell for the middle-high class. They both bore a small enchantment that would make them crumble the moment they were disassembled, making them impossible to study.
Their design was complicated on purpose, with several movable parts that seemed to be important but were actually just for show.
“Are you sure you don’t want to come?” On his way, Lith had stopped by Selia’s house to invite Protector and his kids to the adventure.
“Thanks, but no.” The Skoll was in his human form, 2.1 meters (7′) tall, wearing a deep green hunter suit over brown leather boots with a soft outer sole.
Ryman’s face was still rough and savage, with a square jaw and a cleft chin. Despite his huge size and bulging muscles, Ryman’s emerald eyes were calm and his smile warm.
He kept his long flaming red hair in a tress and there were wood chips in his well-trimmed beard from the constant repairing the holes in the house that his kids opened with their claws.
“It’s the first time I have hybrid children and before they make their choice, I need to show them the best from both worlds. Which means teaching them how to hunt, showing them the limits of their strength, and showing them life in the wilds.
“They will have to shapeshift often and hunt their food. I don’t know if their Skoll nature will help them with the killing or if they’ll be shocked by their first blood. Either way, I can’t have your kids looking at them as if they are monsters.
“Before being accepted by others, they need to accept themselves, just like you did. On top of that, I doubt that Leria and Aran would manage to keep our secret since you haven’t entrusted to them even your own.” Protector said.
All of his family but the kids knew about Lith being a hybrid.
“That said, Selia sends you her thanks.” Ryman sighed while handing Lith a basket filled with some of the best cuts of meat the Trawn woods had to offer. “She can’t wait to send me away with the kids and have some quality time for herself.”
“Are you saying that…”
“Yes, I’ll be having the same experience as you but in a different location. Selia loves the idea of teaching magic and discipline to the kids so that they might help her instead of working her to the bone.” Protector said.
“I’ll see you on my return, then. Will you take part in the Blackest Day?” Lith referred to Mogar’s Fall Equinox.
It was similar to Earth’s Halloween but its meaning was different. The Blackest Day was considered both the last day of summer and the first of fall. It marked the arrival of the cold season and daylight would last as long as the night.
It was the last day before light bowed to darkness and according to lore, it was also the moment when all the barriers between the world of the living and the dead would disappear.
For the adults, it was the reminder to put their business in order before winter and snowstorms forced them to.
For the kids, instead, it was the occasion to beg their parents to let them eat all the things that they wouldn’t get anymore once the cold season started and to buy them toys that would keep them entertained while holed up home.
It was the first time Lith took part in it. Back when he was a kid, there wasn’t money to spend in sweets or toys. All they had were the figurines Raaz carved for them and the food Elina cooked.
Until that moment, Lith had been the youngest of the family and most of the money they had came from him. Back when he still worked for Nana, his parents didn’t feel like spending his hard-earned money on things he clearly didn’t care about.
By the time they had fixed their house and expanded their fields, all of their kids were too old for the Blackest Night. As for Aran and Leria, they were training hard to stay up after dinner instead of falling asleep until the next day like it had always happened until that moment.
“If I don’t, even if my children don’t kill me, Selia certainly would. Pregnancy gave her a sweet tooth and the prolonged isolation until we moved to Lutia only made her cravings worse.” Protector managed to whimper despite his human form.
“At least we don’t have to worry about stupid costumes here.” Lith said. “If everyone here dressed up like on Earth, I would be forced to stay on guard against agents of the Undead Courts the whole time.”
“You and everyone else. It would be a massacre and trigger mass hysteria. Any dumb joke would easily lead to murder.” Ryman shivered at the thought of his children butchering someone in assumed self-defense.
After Night’s attack, they had a beef against the undead and would attack anyone who just looked like a potential threat. It was one of the reasons why he needed to make that trip and teach them how to use their senses to differentiate between an enemy and a rude jerk.
Lith returned home, happy to notice how his parents were in a great mood for the first time since the day they had learned about Trion’s death. Once they got over their initial fears, the DoLorean had become their new best friend.
It allowed them to take joy rides when they were stressed, to revisit the places of their youth, and to go visit Jirni without the need to bother their children. Lith had even installed a tracking device in the car that allowed the Queen’s Corps to always know their position and to follow them from a distance.
