Atticus had just destroyed the Willguard headquarters, decimated their world, and slaughtered every living being in the domain, utterly unfazed.
Yet, as he stared at the swirling portal before him, a faint frown ford on his face. Sohow, returning ho made him feel… nervous.
"Relax… old Pounce has you covered." Whisker grinned. "I've co up with worse excuses than this."
But it wasn't that Atticus was a stranger to lying. It should be easy, after all, he hadn't told anyone where he had been heading. "…That's not it."
As he told Whisker what he was truly worried about, Whisker winced.
"I an… yeah, golden boy can be unpredictable, but he's not that bad, right?"
Both n exchanged a glance, then frowned.
"…There's only one way to find out."
He turned toward Azeron, Thora, Thomas, and Tia, who were each watching them curiously. Then he stepped forward and entered the portal.
His vision swam for a mont, then cleared.
Atticus took everything in at a glance. The familiar portal room in Eldoralth, the small crowd gathered before it… then the sight of two figures rushing straight toward him.
Before he could react, his body was pulled into an embrace that was both gentle and crushing at the sa ti.
"Atticus!"
"Son!"
He stiffened slightly, before his body gradually relaxed. He raised his arms and hugged his mother and father back.
"You're back… I'm glad you're safe." Anastasia's voice trembled as she tightened her hold. Atticus' gaze softened as he lifted a hand, gently running it over her head.
"…I'm fine."
A dry laugh sounded from his side as Whisker appeared.
"Oh, wow… I was wrong. I'm actually impressed. He really did it."
"No—mom, dad, don't do this!" Ozeroth cut in, stepping forward. "This isn't what we agreed on. He needs to be punished. We said we'd teach him a lesson."
"Hey, relax…" Whisker lifted his hands. "No need to go that far, yeah? I was with him."
Ozeroth turned toward him, his eyes slowly widening as if only just noticing his presence. "…You." Ozeroth blinked, staring. "Wait… you knew?"
Whisker gave a proud look. "Of course I knew. My star actor doesn't keep things from . We're tight like that."
Atticus shot Whisker a look that clearly said: why are you making this worse.
Whisker only shrugged in response, giving him a quick wink.
"You—! He's tight with too! It's just… I've been busy, that's why he didn't say anything—"
"Hah. That's actually kind of sad." Whisker laughed lightly. "Sorry, but whatever you think you have with him doesn't compare."
"…You—"
"That's enough."
Avalon stepped away from the hug, his gaze never leaving Atticus.
"…We need to talk."
It was then Atticus noticed the darkened look on his father's face. But it wasn't only him. Everyone gathered, from his parents to Magnus, to his cousins, even Anorah and Zoey, wore the sa expression.
Atticus felt a quiet weight settle in his chest.
"…alright."
…
Monts later, they returned to the mansion on the hill. Atticus sat on a single chair, facing what he could only describe as an army of his loved ones.
'What is this?'
This felt less like a conversation and more like the start of an interrogation. He would have understood his parents and Magnus sitting him down like this, but everyone he had deed relevant in Eldoralth was present. Oberon, Jenera, the silver siblings Zair and Lyra… his ex, especially his ex. Atticus didn't quite know what to make of it.
Even worse, the fool, Whisker, who had claid he would have his back was lounging on a chair behind them, casually tossing popcorn into his mouth. Azeron, Thora, Thomas, Tia, and even Noctis had also seated themselves off to the side, not hesitating in the slightest to remove themselves from the matter.
They observed with faint smiles, as though this were nothing more than a show.
Atticus let out a quiet breath. He should've known better than to trust Whisker of all people.
'No… this is all his fault.'
His gaze transford and locked onto Ozeroth, who t it without hesitation. If anything, the man's glare only sharpened, as though Atticus were the one in the wrong…
A long mont of silence stretched between them.
Finally, Avalon cleared his throat.
"Son… why didn't you tell us anything?"
"I didn't think it would be that dangerous. I thought it'd just be a quick in and out—"
"Don't listen to him, mom and dad. That's crap!" Ozeroth cut in sharply. "Since when is the Willguard headquarters sothing you just walk into? He knew exactly what he was doing—he just didn't tell anyone."
"…Is that true?"
"…."
"Why didn't you tell us?"
What the hell was this man doing? And why did he keep calling his parents mom and dad?
'Ozeroth… what are you doing?'
'What does it look like? I'm telling the truth.'
'I can see that. But why? You know how Anastasia would react.'
'Good. That's the point.'
'…'
Atticus let out a quiet breath inwardly.
'You can punish in so other ways. Not like this.'
'You should've thought about that before going off like that.'
"…Do you not trust us?"
Atticus was pulled out of his thoughts by Anastasia's voice, filled with concern. He shook his head almost imdiately.
"Of course I trust you."
"Then why didn't you say anything?"
"I—"
"Isn't it obvious? He didn't think we could handle it."
Atticus turned toward Aurora, who was glaring at him. For a brief mont, he considered telling them the truth.
'No.'
He might be emotionally stunted, but even he understood the kind of hurt that truth would bring.
He cleared his throat, then bowed
"…It wasn't that I didn't trust you. I just… didn't want you to worry. I didn't think it through… how much it would hurt you. I'm sorry."
A heavy silence settled over the room.
…
After his admission and apology, it wasn't long before the… interrogation ca to a stop.
Of them all, only Anastasia, Caldor, Ember, Oberon, Jenera, and the silver siblings remained to properly welco him back. The others either left in silence or lingered just long enough to cast him one last look before turning away.
Aurora and Ozeroth, in particular, stood tightly among the latter group, glaring at him. It wasn't until several hours later that Atticus was finally able to peel himself away from the group.
"Aurora, seriously, calm down. He almost died."
"Hmph! If he's going to start keeping secrets, then I will too."
"…What secrets do you even have?"
"I have plenty. And they wouldn't be secrets if I told you."
"…Right."
Sigh.
"Ember, please talk so sense into her."
"No."
"…You're not even going to try?"
"No."
"…Wow."
'They're all pretty mad.'
Atticus let out a quiet breath as he listened to the exchange. If he had to be honest, the last reactions he had expected were from Anastasia and Ozeroth. He hadn't really thought the entire family would be this upset over it.
'Let's deal with this first.'
Leaving the mansion, Atticus made his way toward one of the training rooms on the hill. There, Anorah sat cross-legged at the center of the room, her eyes closed..
'She's angry.'
Aside from the fact that he could sense it clearly, she had also been among the first to leave without saying a word.
"Anorah."
"…"
"Look… I know you're angry. But I ant what I said earlier. I'm sorry."
"…"
"…You're really just going to ignore ?"
Anorah's eyes flickered open, and she rose to her feet in one smooth motion. Just as he thought she was about to respond, she turned away and walked toward the terminal. With a few inputs, the surroundings changed into an endless desert.
A sword of light ford in her hand as she turned back toward him, pointing it directly at him.
"Let's spar."
"…Spar?"
"Yes."
Atticus frowned slightly. His current aura alone could crush billions instantly. To spar against her…
'I see.'
The ti he had spent with her was enough for him to understand. She preferred action over words.
She wanted to vent.
"…Alright. We—"
Anorah erased the distance in a blur, her sword already driving toward his chest.
The motion slowed in Atticus' perception, every detail unfolding with perfect clarity. Yet he made no move to dodge.
The blade struck. A violent surge of force erupted from the point of impact, tearing through the desert in a sweeping blast.
"…"
Anorah's eyes narrowed slightly. Her strike had landed cleanly, yet not only had it failed to pierce through, there wasn't even the faintest mark left on him.
Hmph.
Her will flared, as her figure blurred as she struck from multiple angles, each blow landing with explosive force.
Each impact rang out across the desert, sand scattering and the air trembling under the force of her attacks, but Atticus was unmoved, like an unbreakable wall.
Eventually, Anorah halted. She stood there, staring at him in silence.
"…I can't hurt you."
Atticus' brows twitched slightly at the faint sadness in her voice.
Was his girlfriend actually a crazy woman?
"…Anorah. Listen, I know you're angry at , but I'm sorry, okay?"
"Angry? I'm not angry at you."
"…I can feel it. You're clearly angry."
"I am."
As he t her steady, unmoving gaze, Atticus frowned.
"…Then what?"
"You went there without telling anyone because you didn't want us getting hurt, right?"
"I—"
"Don't lie. I get it. I've done the sa thing before."
She was a leader of the resistance, it made sense she had kept countless things from her people to protect them.
"…Then why are you angry?"
"Like I said… I'm not angry at you. I'm angry at myself."
Anorah's hands tightened into fists at her sides, her expression hardening. "You didn't even try to defend yourself… and I still couldn't hurt you. The gap's gotten that big, huh."
'Oh.'
Atticus finally understood what she ant. It wasn't just anger, she was frustrated that he hadn't considered her capable enough to stand with him.
For a mont, he didn't know what to say. Should he encourage her? Tell her it would be fine? What if that only made it worse…?
As his thoughts began to turn, Anorah suddenly smiled.
"…Still, it's fine. My emotions are mine to deal with… I'm just glad you're back, Atti."
She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him, holding him tightly.
Atticus' expression softened slightly as he lifted a hand, gently tapping her hair.
"… too."
Her warmth settled over him. For a mont, it felt like he could remain like this forever.
"But…"
Anorah leaned back just enough to et his gaze, her eyes locking onto his.
"…If you ever pull sothing like that again without telling —"
"…Ugh."
A low grunt slipped from Atticus as her hand suddenly found its way to his… dragon. A dangerous glint flickered in her eyes as her grip slowly tightened.
"…It won't end this easily. Clear?"
"…Crystal."
"Good."
Anorah gave an innocent smile as she released him and stepped back.
User Comments
0 comments from readers