In my excitement at the admission that we would be staying came the fear of obligations to a family. I was used to him being a loner; Verando went wherever I did whenever it was necessary, and he did his own thing for the majority of our time together. 

With this promise came the warning that I had been concerned about since I first brought it up to him. Children didn't fit into our lives; we were dangerous and unpredictable people who had to go wherever necessary. 

How would that work if we had just promised to remain in this state for the sake of Helen? 

For the sake of two other granddaughters who might also face this challenge?  

Much as he didn't want to, Verando left to confirm that Senator Campbell was missing, and I remained behind to practice with Tyler while Helen rested. Her frail body needed as much sleep as she could manage, and with Tyler's heavy circles, I knew that he wasn't feeling much better. 

However, we had to build his stamina so that he could be of help to us. With the rain coming in, going down to the ocean wasn't much of an option, so we settled for cloud control and freezing on the fly. 

Tyler was brilliant and dedicated, but we were once again frustrated with his ability to wield the elements only circumstantially.  My fear was starting to become confirmed. I was unique in that I had mastered two versions of my trade. 

Tyler seemed to be a single specialty; manipulating the element to make it useful in combat might be impossible for him. 

"Ugh! I hate this!" Tyler snaps as he once again drops the barrier, drenched by the rain.  

I guide him under the porch as he shivers, the chill of snow threatening on the breeze as heavy clouds move in from the west. "It was frustrating for me at first, too. You don't have a school that puts you in life-threatening situations. It's just going to take more time, but you're going to get it.." 

"We don't have time. The world needs us now. So you said 'Red' is back? She's a Solomonari, right? Can't she give us a hand?"

I'm uncertain if I want to involve Tyler in this amount of drama. While Verando might choose to tell it like it is, I seem to opt for sheltering when it comes to uncomfortable topics like sex and the dominatrix who beat my lover for days on end.  

"We aren't exactly friends."

"But you said she liked Verando?" He presses, attempting to pull the water from his clothes. 

"She wants to sleep with him; that is the only reason she's willing to help us." I tell him bluntly, sighing at how 'dramatic' that sounds. "She's just not my favorite person." 

Tyler thinks this over, deciding to let it go, which I'm grateful for since I don't know how much more of his prying I can take. 

Is this what it was like to be questioned constantly?

Perhaps I was truly the source of many of our arguments; having to explain myself wasn't the best feeling in the world. Verando might be more justified in his avoidance of discomfort than I give him credit for. 

"How would you feel about going to another region once you have a better handle on your skills? Helen needs the exposure, and you need more experience; it might be smart for you to leave the nest once you have a handle on things. Would that be something you'd be interested in? It might be safer not to have everyone in only one place, just in case something were to happen."

"Wouldn't we be stronger stickin' together? You really think there's bad folks out there huntin' us down? I know we've had our troubles with them... mutants—if that's what ya wanna call 'em. But shoot, that all seemed pretty random, considerin' we ain't seen hide nor hair of 'em in a while. If they're fixin' to come after us, we sure as heck shouldn't be split up."

I used to think that way, too, but in light of recent events, it felt like less is more; defending massive amounts of people was impossible. Small groups were doable, but in the end, it seemed we were safest when we could take care of ourselves. 

"In a sense, unless a part of that group is a magnet for trouble. Verando and I tend to cause a lot of interest; I would hate for you to get captured or for Helen to fall into the hands of the government again-"

"Then our safest place is together." He declares firmly. "If you think we need to defend ourselves, I'm afraid to say it, but Helen and I would be plum out of luck without the two of you." After a long moment of silence, searching my face, Tyler finally lets his shoulders sag, shaking his head in disbelief at the way I thought. 

"Helen needs him, Nic." He confirms. "You had years of schoolin' to figure all this out. I didn't. I'm gonna need you, at least 'til I can learn as much about it as you have. I wanna be able to help you. I don't ever wanna see you sacrificin' yourself to save me again. If Verando hadn't shown up that day, you'da drowned... and all this woulda been for nothin'.

I wanna be able to help you, protect you, and save you just like you did for us. I know we don't look like much right now, but give us a chance to get our feet under us. We ain't just a bunch of kids. We can do this."

Maybe we are related?

 I pat his back, nodding to assure him I understand what he's saying. 

As Verando pulls in and jogs to get under the overhead, I can tell by the look on his face that he had no luck with the Senator. 

"We are up to twenty missing people, all gone without a trace. I'm going to need to do some searching and see if I can pick up a scent once this rain dies down. I wish I had gone before, I was so focused on this ridiculous benefit that I didn't even think about our surroundings... "

"You couldn't have known this would happen," I tell him firmly. 

Tyler frowns. "Why is it our problem? Only the Senator went wolf, right? Maybe he's killing them? Gary used to tell us that Lycans eat humans, it only makes sense."

 Verando emits a low rumble from his throat, and I quickly put my hand on the man's chest, only to have him speak anyway. "That's just propaganda. Werewolves ate humans, but it was taboo for them, much as it's nearly poison for Lycans. So no, I doubt that the Senator is eating people. Read fewer horror stories, perhaps." 

I give Tyler an apologetic glance and sigh at my moody warlord. 

While I have him here and he's being so agreeable, I figure I might as well add fuel to the fire. "Tyler and Tyler need to practice, and I'd like to give them some real-life danger to trigger some better quality magic. What do you say we go down to the beach and get some exercise? Let him bond with Malka?"

Tyler gapes at me, taking a step back as if I hold a knife to his throat. "Ride Malka?"

"Yes."

"No." Verando snaps, catching me by surprise.. "She's not ready."

"How ready does she need to be? If she becomes too strong, how will we be able to get her back if she runs away? It went well enough when I sat on her, and I thought the goal was to keep her tired." 

Since when does he turn down running around and discipline wrapped into one activity? 

"Did something happen?"

 Deflecting the topic, he walks into the house, and I motion to Tyler before I follow after him. 

"If you're going to be an ass, at least look at me when you do it. Why not?" 

"It's not safe," Verando mutters, grabbing himself the bottle of whiskey from the cabinet and pouring himself a drink. 

"It's never going to be safe!" I retort quickly.

"What's not safe?" Marisol yawns, stretching from her position on the couch.

"Why're you still here?" The gray-haired man demands, ending the theory that he could be happy in a full house. While I know Legardo had gotten under his skin, I was fully aware of how much he valued his privacy, and we were at a loss for places he could decompress. 

Marisol sits up with a look of offense, and I silently plead with her not to engage in his poor behavior as he takes a drink from his glass. It takes everything in me not to indulge in the drink, but I needed to get a handle on my vices, and  I opted to leave him. 

Dragging Tyler over to the coffee table to sit across from Marisol, we talk strategy, while Verando seethes over whatever failure he has claimed as his own. 

Laying out the tablet on the table, Marisol presses a button, and it projects a holographic image into the air. "This is where the hurricane landed, and while there was some flooding, there seems to be a small increase in humidity here-" 

She gestures with her finger, tracing over the dunes of what was now a slow-growing dead zone. 

"This is the first time in thirty years that this region has had any moisture. Perhaps if we can divert some of this water, we can initiate a new river and bring water to that region. People would move back there, irrigate the land, plant crops... we could reconnect the cities, and people could have their homes back." 

Her dreamy eyes give me hope.

 Marisol was the protector of the innocent and the voice for the people. While we plotted, she fed the people and ensured they had fresh water to drink. 

"You care about these people," I conclude gently. 

"Someone has to." She sighs. "If we don't do it, who will? That's why I don't think this is a war.. this is just helping people, and the ones fighting back... surely they're just terrified that we're going to make it worse."

I could have used her back in our time. 

Why did she have to love the man that I loved? 

Yet, I don't think I could fault either of them. As far as relationships go, he could have picked a worse woman, and obviously, I have an attachment to her man of choice. 

 "My wife would have liked you." I allow, observing the projection. 

She raises a brow, amused. "That's a brave statement." 

I shrugged, amused myself. "We do what we must when it's for our people. They wanted me to get married to a woman so I did, she was a wonderful person, and I did love her in a sense. Just not in the romantic aspect, but she was a very good friend of mine, and there wasn't another woman that I would have married."

"Are you talking about Fillipa?" Helen asks as she steps around the ticking time bomb that is my warlord and her Alpha to come and sit with us. "I miss her a lot, I think about her all the time. She was an amazing mistress to me; she took such good care of me."

"She did. She was very kind-hearted, and she would have made an incredible queen." 

With a devious grin, Marisol takes her opportunity. "Don't worry, you make a wonderful modern-day queen." 

I'm afraid her terminology goes over my head, but it makes Tyler and Helen laugh, so I accept the joke at my own expense. Our laughter seems to irritate my companion, for he storms out of the room. 

Flinching at the sound of the door slamming, making the glasses on the table rattle, Marisol clears her throat and rolls her shoulders as she drags her fingers through her hair. "Well, I'm not sure what makes me say this, but I think something's bothering him."

Crossing my arms over my chest, I lean back into the couch, craning my head back as I wonder if this headache will ever subside. "Not everything circles around Verando."

Tyler gives me a look, holding back a laugh. "Since when? You two don't do anything without each other, it's admirable at times. Despite the.. You know.. violence." 

Truthfully, I imagine it's because we were talking about Fillipa, and he was never really a big fan of hers. However, it could be his disdain for our happiness when he, himself, was boiling over with some undisclosed anger. 

It would appear they weren't about to allow me any peace unless I said something to him, so like a good sacrifice, I excuse myself to seek him out. 

Grateful that the door isn't locked, I find him in the bedroom, off the balcony. Watching his form from behind, I can see the lines of tension in his back and how he stands, indicating that he was in no mood for generosity. 

"Did you have a sudden increase in testosterone...? Or should I be worried that this is your way of telling me you regret last night?" 

He doesn't turn, and I see the smoke as he exhales. 

"Really?" I demand, marching over to grab the cancer stick from his hand and crush it out with my foot. "Have you lost your mind? You know how I feel about smoking."

"You weren't supposed to come in here," Verando mutters, closing his fist as his knuckles pop in quiet restraint.

"I would have smelled it." He was intending to hide it from me? Pursing my lips, I consider him for a moment, "When did you start smoking again? I didn't think it was a 'habit', just something you did on occasion? You smell like an ashtray."

Exhaling roughly at my words, he yanks off his shirt and places it into a basket, kicking off his jeans and tossing them behind the shirt as if it were somehow offensive to him as well. "It's just... something I do now and then. I didn't think you were coming back- Better?" 

Placing my hands on the railing, I consider keeping my distance from him, the heat emanating off of him a clear warning that his control was ebbing. It was an uncomfortable place to be; the rage boiling over made me on edge as I scanned the room. "I'll bite. Is something wrong?" 

"Nope." 

Stepping into the room, I walk up behind him, slipping my arms around him, but he twists out of my grasp with a sharp inhale.

"Nic. I'm just-"

"Feeling sorry for yourself? Or angry?" I demand, frustrated that we're back to him keeping me at arm's length. "I said I wouldn't pry, but this isn't about the past. Is it Legardo? Or Tyler's comment because he didn't know, there's not a lot of literature about lycans and.. we're just going to have to start correcting it." 

I'm grasping at straws, trying to bring him back to me. In quiet pursuit, I refuse to let him gain distance as he paces, remaining behind him as I reach out to touch the shoulder muscle that used to be so damaged. 

Running my fingers over the scars, the muscle is full and firm with no hint of the defect. I leave the jagged marks to follow the fresh scar. "Is it this? Are you hurting?"

"No, Nic. I'm not hurting. It's beyond that. I feel... fine. Better than fine." 

 I trace down the line in the center of his back, finding the secondary scar of his spine where the claw marks end. 

"I feel better than I have ever felt, even before the injuries. No pain. No cracking. No discomfort. I feel strong." 

Catching the waistband of his boxer briefs under my finger, I tilt my eyes down to his right calf. There used to be a massive chunk taken out of it, but now it is completely restored. The skin was still discolored, but it was mostly decorative in appearance. 

"It's... unnerving."

"Excuse me?" I demand, that was not the word I was expecting to hear him use. "Enlighten me."

Stepping away, he runs his hand through his hair with his left hand, testing the range of motion. "My injuries kept me humble. I was so limited. A foe could easily best me, so I was forced to think ahead, pick the right choice, and develop a more versatile fighting style. Nic, before I was hurt, I was not a good person. 

What if the injuries were the only thing forcing me to be like this? What if, now that I'm healed, I can't be trusted? I could have killed Legardo today, I felt like I hardly even pushed him, and I destroyed that wall. What if that were you?"