The Morning

The doctor stood at the door, blood staining his gloved hands.

Apastron immediately met him, his face wrought with worry.

“Is Luna okay? Where is she?” Apastron asked, trembling.

A shadow passed over the doctor's face, and Apastron knew. His knees were weak, and he nearly collapsed.

“No, she can't be…” he breathed, tears filling his eyes.

The doctor retreated once again into the bedroom, returning with a crying baby. The baby was small, too small. Apastron’s lip curled. It was a runt.

The doctor attempted to smile. “She left you a son, Master Apastron. What will his name be?”

Nothing felt real. Luna was dead, and that runt was the reason. Apastron could barely speak. “Luna wanted to name it Umbra. Just call it Umbra,” he growled, turning his back.

----

Umbra awoke in a sweat, gasping and covering his face. His heart was pounding out of his chest. His vision was blurred. Conscious of Victor's sleeping form beside him, Umbra muffled a sob.

Another nightmare. He had already woken up two times. Umbra cut his eyes to the clock on the nightstand, it was time to wake up anyway.

Umbra hauled himself out of bed, swaying on his feet. His dream refused to leave his mind. It had been about Asher. Yet another dream where Umbra had been killed.

Stumbling to the mirror, Umbra kept his eyes pointed down. He didn't want to see his reflection. Lifelessly, he put on his eyepatch.

Normally, getting dressed was the highlight of his day. But now, it made him sick. It took all his energy to even get out of bed.

He slipped on one of Matthew's old shirts--the scent was comforting to him--and a pair of shorts. He barely had the willpower to style his hair.

The past few weeks, Umbra's emotions had been chaotic. The circumstances of his injury plagued his every thought. His sleep was irregular and fitful. He felt like he couldn't relax, his body constantly on edge for an enemy that would never attack him. Physical contact felt like needles driving into his skin.

But Umbra forced himself to act normal. Esper had given him the clear on his health, and he didn't want to inconvenience his family further by moping around. He was the leader of the team, he couldn't be weak. In times of hardship, Umbra was his family’s rock. They would fall apart without him.

Trudging down stairs, Aunora immediately plowed into him, wrapping him in a hug. “Umbra! You're up!”

Ever since he had been injured, Aunora and Matthew had been treating him very cautiously, like he was a child. It drove him crazy.

Umbra felt his stomach twist. He was about to be sick. “I thought I would see what Matthew was making for breakfast,” he said cheerfully, swallowing vomit.

Pulling away from Aunora, Umbra fell into one of the barstools at the counter. Matthew was at the stove, humming and flipping pancakes.

“Good morning, Umbry!” Matthew chimed, placing a plate in front of Umbra.

He had made Umbra pancakes, with two puffs of whip cream and two slices of bacon forming a smiley face on his plate. Umbra swallowed. The last thing he wanted to do was eat.

“Thank you, Matthew,” Umbra murmured, taking a bite. He didn't want to cause Matthew any alarm. He nearly gagged, and quickly hid it by taking a swig of coffee.

Matthew paused, touching Umbra’s hand. “Umbry, are you feeling okay?”

Umbra's heart skipped a beat. Matthew could always see right through him.

“I'm fine,” Umbra assured, trying to keep the tired drone out of his voice. Matthew had more things to worry about than him.

“Just making sure,” Matthew replied, buying Umbra's lie.

Matthew sat next to Aunora, sipping on his coffee. “Guildwork’s been slow,” he said causally, trying to start conversation.

“Yeah,” Aunora agreed, propping her arm on the counter, “I'm getting kinda bored.”

Matthew threw his arms around Aunora and Umbra, smiling innocently. “Oh! How about I go down to the guild and find us a mission? Just us three, doing a real juicy mission! How's that sound?”

Umbra twitched. He quickly put down his coffee, twisting his mouth into a smile. “Sounds wonderful,” he said calmly, “Now, if you excuse me, I need to go to the restroom.”

Author's Note- ahhh, i promise this will be a happy arc!!!! while the last one started happy and ended sad, this one will be an uphill climb for umbra! there will be comedy too, later. just hang in there aha