She was a bit late arriving and was nearly tackled by Reem, Garion looked at her flushed and shy but pleased and Zephon looked at her one trunk and frown like he’d wanted to help her.

  “It’s a trick. Dru’s rather good at them. There’s actually five trunks in this one.” She explained. The boys lifted the trunk and together stumbled it inside a guard trailing them incase they needed help. Guardian Showl walked over dressed more casually then he’d seen him before.

  “An interesting fellow Sir Divicil.” Guardian Showl chuckled. Nerezza flinched at his formal speech.

  “Gosh if he hears you his feelings are going to get hurt. He only let’s people he likes call him Dru and he’s rather insufferable when he’s pouty.” She warned shivering at the prospect. Guardian Showl blinked then shifted.

  “Dru.” He quietly corrected himself. Nerezza beamed as she was saved from having to placate the late night wine soaked bitching of a man who she trusted above anything but truly never reached the point her desired to be an adult.

  “And yes, he is very interesting. He is brilliant and his research is sound and he’s a decent teacher for a child who struggles with fear and pain related to magic. He’s right I would have tried to push through. I would have destroyed myself in order to not have anyone tell me what to do with my magic. I needed his stubbornness and patience and I think he’ll be good for Zephon. “He doesn’t like kids but he likes those he decides to.” She chuckles. “And I was the only child he liked enough to keep.” She whispered feeling the weight of the emotion curling around her.

  “It took me months of research to realize I could legally adopt Garion.” He murmured thoughtfully. Nerezza chuckled.

  “We wouldn’t have known it was possible to do it either if it wasn’t for the fact that you could.” Nerezza admitted. Guardian Showl who had been guiding her inside stopped in his track and looked at her perplexed.

  “You would have been brought into his household before I even found Garion.” He pointed out. Nerezza grinned and stepped forward hovering her mouth right before his own before turning away.

  “Yes.” She agreed mysteriously. “Another thing to do with the pesky past life that I could be telling you about.” She breathed fluttering her lashes. Guardian Showl followed her with his eyes then huffed a breath stepping forward and tilting up her chin kissing her before pulling back.

  “I am willing to listen to anything you want to tell me as long as you aren’t doing it to test whether I’ll faulter.” He insisted softly. Nerezza felt her heart trip and she looked away. She didn’t know how she could do that. She always was prepared for someone to not live up to what her heart built up. Maybe her standards were impossible but all she thought she wanted was someone who wouldn’t crumble away but also wouldn’t keep her in a prison.

  She really was willing to stay as long as she could leave and she was willing to let someone step away as long as they didn’t fully disappear.

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  “I’ll try.” She softly agreed. Then she bumped into him dropping her head against his arm before straightening. She recognized the surprise in his eyes. “I plan on trying my best here… I want things to work.” She promised him. Guardian Showl reached out and threaded his fingers with hers. She looked at the touch and smiled.

  “So what goes on, on a normal day in the house of Icortos?” She asked him. Guardian Showl grinned.

  “You don’t know?” He asked in a soft teasing tone that sent flutters through her. She smirked.

  “No. I’m afraid my information tends to be from an outside perspective.” She voiced. “The everyday is very personal, intimate.” She whispered. Showl nodded and considered.

  “I try to have breakfast with the boys every morning. Then training with the guard and a few times a week the boys. I don’t think making them train every day this young is good for them. Some sort of lessons they have every day though they have breaks in between and I tend to work through the day. Mid-day meals and tea times are usually done separately but Dinners are very rarely not eaten together. I try to do something with the boys every evening and if I go to the facilities, I don’t plan anything afterward. I try my best to spend as much time with them as possible so if I have to deal with the beasts on the borders, I know they won’t think I’m never there.” He breathed. Nerezza smiled and one of the threads of worry about lies eased away. “Do day though we have guest. I tried to delay the visit until after you were settled but he was persistent.” Guardian Showl grumbled.

  Nerezza beamed at him placing the one person who could cause that unbridled irritation in the Guardian Showl.

  “Is it Sir Wilabee Caw?” She asked him. His gaze that turned down to her own was perplexed. Then he chuckled brushing her hair behind her ear.

  “Another tidbit?” He asked her. Nerezza shrugged smirking. Sir Wilabee Caw had been a far more prominent character then Guardian Showl. He’d been a character that always ended up stumbling into the main character’s paths causing issues for them while being a baffling sort of comic relief.

  He’d removed a head of a wildebeest and left it at the door step of the second main character as a teenager simply because he stated that they didn’t need the Guardian’s to defend them from the beasts. He stole an artifact from the celestial elders and held it as ransom to try and get help for Reem. He’d cut down the man who’d owned Garion even though he was a important character to the plot and burned the histories that the man had planned on using against Garion and sent the ring to Garion with a letter that said. Caught and slaughtered a pig. How are you? And he’d acted as guide for Zephon through the magic societies.

  Sir Wilabee Caw had created ruses that she often bounced off of or solidified, verified.

  He was also the one who argued against Belladonna’s union to Guardian Showl claiming that she was dangerous. He’d been the one to blame Belladonna for the death of his chosen brother and his family. But when the daughter of Belladonna and Showl came to him for help he hadn’t hesitated. He’d introduced her to the Guardian’s and defended her to his death trying to help her maintain the magic.

  Belladonna had described him as a snake in the grass. And Nerezza couldn’t disagree with that assessment but Nerezza personally liked snakes.

  Guardian Showl bent down and caught her mouth again before they headed inside. When he pulled back he looked over her face.

  “May I come to your rooms tonight?’ He asked softly.

  She couldn’t help but compare things to the story thought she knew it was foolish. He’d never asked to come to Belladonna’s room she’d always showed up at his and he always met her every step of the way. Nerezza lifted his hand and kissed his palm.

  “Alright.” She agreed. “But first you have to show me where that is.” She teased.