Grian's POV

Ezra's incredibly tense beside me as I lead him to the End Portal, and I'm guessing he's just a little nervous. I was nervous to see my mom for the first time after I was taken, so I understand.

"You know, I was worried when I saw my mom again too." I tell him comfortingly "She didn't forget me though, and now she insists I call her at least 3 times a week and makes me visit her at least once a month."

"It's been longer since I saw them though." Ezra points out "What if Xisuma told them about... about what I did?"

"I'm not gonna lie, he probably did tell them, but it wasn't you who did those things. A mother's love is unconditional, and they'll still love you, I'm sure of it."

I can tell he's still worried, so I suggest something.

"Here's an idea. How about we refer to you and Evil X as different people. He's not you, you're not him. Would that help?"

Ezra nods, smiling gratefully as we come up to the End Portal. He pales slightly, not looking too happy.

"How are we gonna find them?" He asks me

"I don't know. We'll figure that out later, let's just go through for now."

We enter the End, looking around. The place has been set up for an easy fight against the Dragon, and an enderman farm isn't too far away in the distance. I haven't actually been to the End all season, having no use for elytra and being able to buy shulker boxes from Scar.

There's two figures pacing back and forward about 20 feet away, seeming very concerned. Squinting slightly, I see it's a woman with white hair like Ezra's, and dragon wings and a tail like Xisuma's. The other is a woman with brown hair, holding her hand.

My boyfriend's gone very quiet beside me, and I turn to him. He's standing perfectly still, not even blinking, watching his mothers with tears threatening to spill down his cheeks.

They notice us, pausing only momentarily to look at each other, then back at us, before disappearing in a puff of purple particles. And all of a sudden they're right here, the two of them holding on tightly to Ezra in a bone crushing hug.

"You're ok? We thought we lost you!" The one with the brown hair gasps. She sounds quite similar to the twins, and I notice her big, red eyes, identical to Ezra's.

"Is that really you?" The other asks, brushing some of the hair out of her son's eyes. "You're so different!"

"Yeah... it's me." He confirms, smiling as he dries his tears.

The three just hold onto one another, and I smile, happy that Ezra can be happy. That's when one of his moms sees me.

"Who's that?" She asks cautiously

"This is my... my boyfriend, Grian." Ezra tells her, cheeks a little bit red.

"Boyfriend?" The two repeat in unison

"Yes... I was also taken the same day as Ezra and Xisuma... so I've known him for nearly 14 years now." I explain, smiling awkwardly and feeling like I've interrupted something.

"Well it's lovely to meet you, Grian." The one with brown hair tells me warmly. "I'm Edith, and this is Aeryn."

Aeyrn isn't saying anything, simply staring at me with her head tilted to the side a little. After a moment, she looks around then says something.

"Where's Xisuma?"

"Oh... he couldn't make it, he's busy dealing with something importa-." Ezra explains, before being cut off.

"Is he ok?"

"Yes, don't worry, we just can't find someone and he's out looking for her."

"Ok, that's fine as long as he's safe." Edith tells him. "Now I want to know, are you ok? Xisuma... explained some of what happened, and I want to make sure everything's alright."

This makes Ezra go very quiet, tears in the corners of his eyes.

"I... I'm really not ok." He admits, the burden of his trauma making him break once again as he starts to cry.

I'm not sure whether to leave the family alone, or to offer my support. I decide to just stick to the side for the time being, watching as his parents comfort and soothe him.

"I've missed you so much." Ezra cries, face buried in Edith's hoodie. "And I'm really sorry because I got tears on your hoodie and I hurt Xisuma and I'm a terrible person and-"

"Hey, hey hey! Don't worry sweetheart, it's ok!" Aeryn tells him "We still love you, no matter what, and that's never gonna change."

"You're not a terrible person." I tell him "You didn't do anything wrong, Evil X did. And you aren't Evil X, remember?"

Ezra nods, but seems slightly uncertain. He looks up to his mothers.

"Could... could I go over to Grian for a moment?"

They let him over to me, and I offer a hug he immediately accepts. It's kind of weird to try and comfort him, seeing as he's much taller than me, but it works out.

"Remember the time I had to fight you?" I ask him "When we were 14?"

"...Yeah? That was the first time you kissed me."

"Do you remember the next day? Do you remember what I told you?"

"That... that you'd always stick up for me and help me?"

"Yeah. I made you a promise, and I'm still gonna keep it. I'm always here for you, ok?"

Ezra nods, letting me hold him in my arms for a while, until he calms down. His moms, who've let us have some peace, slowly come over.

"Thank you." Aeryn whispers

I'm about to ask why she whispered, when I realise Ezra's fallen asleep. Edith helps me up, while Aeryn easily lifts my boyfriend up into her arms.

"He was a lot smaller the last time I did this." She admits quietly, a warm smile on her face, before she motions for me to follow her and heads off in the opposite direction of the portal.

"I'm glad Ezra was able to find someone who loves him as much as we do." Edith tells me as I walk beside her. "Love like that is a rare thing."

"I... I don't know if I could compare it to you. You're his parents, I don't think I-"

"No, I can see how much you care for him. And he's so close to you... he really trusts you, and that's a rare thing for him."

I must look confused, because she laughs a little.

"Yeah. When he was small, Xisuma, Aeryn and I were the only people he'd ever talk to. You wouldn't think it when he's with you, but he's actually really shy."

We walk for what seems like hours, but at the same time it only feels like a few minutes. I know time passes differently in the End, but this feels even weirder than usual. When we come up to a small house I've never seen before, I figure we must've gone a long way.

Ezra wakes up as we go inside, looking very confused for a moment before he realises where we are.

"How long was I asleep?"

"About 2 Overworld hours." Aeryn tells him, setting him down on a couch.

He looks around until he sees me, and smiles.

"Hi." I say, sitting down beside him.

"Hi."

"Are you doing better?"

"Yeah." He responds, cuddling up beside me.

"What's that on your back Ezra?" Edith suddenly asks, motioning to the wings folded against his back. When he has them like that, they almost look like some kind of backpack, which probably confuses her.

"Oh... I didn't get to tell you yet."

Ezra stands up, and unfolds his wings, spreading them out a little. Both his mums look equally surprised, but he just beams proudly.

"Those are new." Aeryn says bluntly

"Well... not really. I've had them since I was 14... so almost 12 years."

"12 years?" Edith repeats "But that makes you..."

"Twenty five. Almost twenty six."

That makes the two of them go awfully quiet.

"I'm gonna kill those Watchers." Aeryn growls. "Nobody takes my baby from me and gets away with it."

"It's ok Mama, they're already being dealt with."

"Wait, what do you mean?"

I look at Ezra.

Ezra looks at me.

"It's a long story."