Edward arrived back a day before Willow would have demanded a guard to go after him herself. In that time her anger had only grown towards the man, although she understood that Agnes' letter may not have indicated just how precarious the situation, they were in was. Agnes knew full well she had handled the situation poorly. She had always given Willow the benefit of the doubt until that point and could not explain to Willow what she had done to lose that trust.

Jonathon knew things were strained but studiously ignored their existence whenever the two women were in the same room. Willow would have found his wilful ignorance hilarious if the situation wasn't so awkward. Things settled over the next few days, especially as Willow watched Agnes with Felix and the genuine affection the two shared.

Willow was getting antsy by the sixth day after the incident, and when she heard the announcement go out that Edward and his entourage had returned, she was one of the first people to march out to meet them. As she watched the men approach, she was glad that Felix had been napping when the cries had started up. This was not a conversation she wanted Felix to overhear.

"I heard there was trouble?" Edward called to her as she approached him. He was freshly dismounted and looking dirty and scruffy from days on the road, but that did little to quell Willow's temper.

"You could say that," Willow stated shortly, eyeing those nearby. "I have news that may be best told by me before you overhear the exaggerated rumours," Willow continued, eyeing the tight knot of older, married women best known for this behaviour. Willow noted that they looked perturbed at her words and glance, disappointed that they would not be given the chance to tell 'their version' of the tale.

"What do you mean?" Edward asked, noticing now the tense nature of the onlookers, and wondering just what had happened. "I received Agnes' note. It stated you had instructed her to send it via any means. It did not seem terribly urgent..."

"Agnes grossly under-represented the situation here," Willow cut off strongly, still furious about this and not wishing to lose her temper in this moment. "Please, Edward," Willow lowered her voice pleadingly. "It is important information only I can give, and I would rather you hear the truth before the rumours. We've been keeping everything we can on the down low until you returned and could decide on what is to be done, but that hasn't stopped rumour and speculation. We've done our best."

Edward nodded and turned to dismiss his entourage, giving brief instructions before indicating he was willing to follow wherever she led. Willow felt her muscles relax at the statement, worried he would have continued to argue. The longer they took to get Edward inside the rooms and explained, the better chance he would overhear a rumour and fly off the handle. As it was, Willow wasn't sure the news wouldn't ignite his temper. He was notoriously protective of Felix, and the kid had nearly died while he was away. Like his wife. That would be traumatising enough as it was.

Shrugging such thoughts away, Willow led Edward towards her rooms, the poor man terribly confused and growing increasingly worried by the second. Willow had arranged for there to be tea and alcohol and some simple food to help replenish Edward after his long journey. Willow had pushed herself to add a little sprinkle of magic, barely noticeable, that should help rejuvenate him a little. She hoped.

Edward sat on the edge of his offered seat, twisting his dusty cloak between two hands as Willow settled herself down, although he shot Willow an incredulous look when she carefully dropped a heavy dollop of alcohol into his cup before handing it to him, repeating the process for herself. Willow wasn't actually against alcohol, especially for conversations like this one, but she guessed people presumed she was strongly against it by her demeanour. In all reality, she had just learnt the lesson all young people learn when they first start drinking: over-imbibing is perhaps not the best course of action. She had not so fond memories of the times she had overindulged and had no desire now to repeat such actions, but that didn't mean she hated the stuff!

Willow waved away his confusion, "I do not understand where this idea came from that I hate alcohol. I am not a hermit or a recluse. I enjoy a couple drinks with friends or at a celebration the same as anyone," Willow sighed as she met Edward’s gaze, "Besides, it acts as a good way to get a difficult conversation over with."

Willow settled herself down for the long haul.

"What exactly happened while I was away!?" Edward demanded.

"A lot, to be honest. There was an... incident... Involving Felix," Willow hurriedly raised both hands, stopping the anger Edward displayed from springing forth "He's fine! Felix is alive and well! Nothing bad happened to him in the long run! Please calm down!"

Edward went to take his seat, but Willow took his hand gently and pulled him into her room, where Felix was still napping. “Try not to wake him," Willow whispered, "He's been through a lot and sleep will help him feel better quicker. But you can see, he is fine. Please let me fully explain.”

Edward stared at his son's form for a moment, the relief of being able to see that his son was fine was palpable, but Willow could make out the edges of his pain written clearly in his eyes. Felix didn't look an awful lot like Edward himself, although they shared the same face shape and a hint of something around the mouth was the same, although Willow couldn't pinpoint exactly what. The rest of Felix's features must have come from elsewhere though and Willow was willing to better her sword against the King that most of his features were his mothers. Was this why Edward struggled to spend meaningful time with his son? Because of the similarities to his lost love?

Willow retook her seat beside her tea and waited for Edward to join her. He did shortly after.

"Tell me everything," he demanded, and Willow was happy to oblige.

She recounted her day all the way through to Willow, carrying Felix back to her rooms and housing him with her. She also filled in Edward on some things Felix did not know, such as the energy Willow had shared with him for the first twenty-four hours.

"It terrified me that we would lose him," Willow explained fervently, "I don't use my magic in any great way, but he didn't deserve to die for being sad."

Edward had listened quietly as Willow detailed everything, from Felix's birthday to his emotional outburst; he seemed in shock, but Willow was sure he was listening intently, trying to put all the dots together.

"My son can use magic?" Edward confirmed after a moment of silence.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

“Unequivocally,” Willow confirmed. “That outburst was massive. Everyone here felt it. For a non-magic user to be able to sense that... Well, let's just say it was immense.” Willow took a deep breath. “I consulted with the book about it. It said it was incredibly rare for a regular human to hold that kind of magic. He will need some form of training once he is well. From my short experience, it'll be closer to the surface now, easier for him to have a storm." Willow fidgeted.

"Can you do anything?" He asked faintly.

Willow shrugged. "I don't know a great deal. A hob taught me to hide my magic when I was around nine. Nianti taught me a more refined version. I can try to teach him those techniques. I've been using my own techniques to keep him hidden for now and will continue to do so for now."

Edward slowly nodded, processing.

Willow realised he hadn't made the connection. “You realise what this means, don’t you?” She prodded faintly. She’d still not found a diplomatic way to explain to the man that his son wasn’t just any old magic user, but The Bearer he’d been pushing her so hard to find. “I need you to understand the danger Felix is in right now. The King could be on his way right now,” Willow broke it to him. Edward jumped, staring at her in horror, trying to find the connection.

"The King can track magic..." Edward murmured after a moment. Willow nodded solemnly,

"I hid it quickly, but the essence would have been traceable. It should take some time for him to track it back here. You should start planning for a full-scale evacuation, however. Probably make plans for an emergency evacuation, too. I've been trying to keep an eye out for magic nearby, but the King is a lot stronger than me. He could hide magic from me easily, and I can't push for magic much bigger. It could kill me for one. My magic isn't that strong. But I can't risk the King finding more reasons to come here. If he found out there was another magic user? We'd be over in a matter of days."

Edward nodded slowly, already planning contingency plans, but Willow had one more point to make.

"Edward?" She asked gently. He snapped his attention back.

Willow took a steadying breath. “You understand what this means, right? The whole compound has guessed what this means, despite Agnes and Jonathon’s best efforts.”

He stared at her blankly for a moment before he paled, eyes widening, and he collapsed backwards in his chair.

“Agnes!” Willow called, hurrying to her feet, reaching for the bottle of alcohol. “Edward!” She called, gently tapping against his cheek.

“Goodness!” Agnes exclaimed, tripping over herself in her hurry to be of use.

Edward blinked rapidly as Willow forced a small nip of alcohol into his hands, insistently pushing him to drink it as he slowly seemed to come back from wherever his brain had taken him. Agnes held his shoulders upright as Willow coaxed the liquid down his throat and quickly refilled.

“Oh, sweet Alva,” He murmured softly as he studied the drink in his hands before moving suddenly to drain the glass and demand a third. Agnes was quick to comply as Willow returned to her seat.

He seemed stable enough as he forced himself to straighten. He demanded an explanation and Willow was quick to obey, explaining how she knew and everything she could about the situation Felix now found himself in. Through the entire process he remained deadly silent, merely taking in the information with a stony look on his face.

When Willow finished, she waited, concerned for his reaction.

“I could have you thrown in prison for this,” He thundered, suddenly leaping to his feet, and moving to stare out the window. He continued to rage, pacing backwards and forwards.

Willow hid her fear as she responded in the affirmative. “You could. But it wouldn’t change anything.”

Edward nodded once.

“I cannot undo what I have discovered. It is all up to you now. What is it you want?” Willow rose slowly, moving to place a hesitant hand on the man’s shaking shoulders.

"More than anything, Felix needs his dad right now," she stated. Edward started, turning to look at her with watery eyes.

Willow pushed on. "I've been keeping him sleeping for the last few days. It's easier to recoup lost energy when you're not losing it. He has been lucid, and I've explained a few things to him, but I am not his parent. It is not my space to choose what he should and shouldn't know and in what detail. I didn't want to overstep my role. He knows nothing of what I have told you save for what he was present for."

Edward nodded, voice passive, "What is it you need me for? You've been a perfect teacher to him since you started. I fail to see how you might fail at this."

Willow shrugged. "I will have to explain what caused the sudden outburst. No one here has the knowledge to do that. But I found him against his mother's grave, Edward. How could I explain that to him? I admit I can fully explain death and grief to him; my own first storm was after watching my brother hanging. But that's not the point. I did not know his mother, nor do I know firsthand what her loss meant to him or to his father. How do you want me to handle that? I am not his parent, Edward, nor am I his keeper. I cannot decide what the best way to support him is."

Edward sat stunned. Never had anyone pushed him so hard to deal with the loss of his wife and to make it worse, he couldn't continue to ignore the situation. His silence had led in part to this mess and all the danger that had come with it.

Willow watched him struggle for a moment before taking pity. This was certainly not an easy topic for him to engage with and with calm gentleness, Willow handed him a fresh glass of alcohol and waited for him to toss the lot back before she began again in a far more friendly manner.

"I don't need an answer this moment, I just need you to think about it. Felix is in no way recovered enough for any formal training, and I can keep him hidden plenty fine for the time being. I don't want him moved yet, his body has been through quite the shock, and he still needs rest for a few more days. As for the other… issue. That is something you will have to decide on the council. I am ready to begin my end of that bargain as soon as he is healthy.”

Edward nodded before setting his glass down and clasping his hands. "I don't know how best to go about having... that conversation with Felix," he started haltingly. "I've never had it with him, so I don't know the best course there. He is clearly still sensitive to the fact, and that is my fault. I've struggled to speak of Alva since we lost her."

Willow gave him a sympathetic smile. "If I may offer a suggestion?" Edward nodded hesitantly. "It is painful at first but talking about your lost loved one helps over time. I'm sure Felix would appreciate learning about his mother; I imagine he knows nothing of her."

Edward nodded. "Regarding teaching Felix, I trust your judgement. He's blossomed under your tutelage."

Willow smiled. “I will keep you posted. For now, I'd like to keep him here another two days. After that he should be fine to head home for bed rest. Is this fine?”

Edward nodded again.

"Thank you Willow," he stated honestly as he sipped his tea, averting his gaze.

"Whatever for? Training him?" Willow asked curiously.

"No. For being there for him in all the ways I never was. He's needed that female figure in his life and my stern, over-protection of him has pushed everyone away. You've been good for him."

Willow waved his thanks aside awkwardly. "I did for him what I would have done for any boy in his situation in my classroom. You're not an exception, Edward, but the rule. Many parents are raising their children alone, and it leads to the same struggle in many people. I performed the same role for many children or dragged my fiancé into it when a male role model was needed." Willow laughed at herself.

“I always wanted to be a mother, even when I was a little girl. I thought I had it all set up,” Willow commented bitterly. “Yet here I am, months away from my fiancé, who likely thinks I'm dead and even further from that goal,” Willow laughed bitterly. “Felix might be as close as I get to raising a kid.”

Willow and Edward sat in the tense atmosphere for a moment awkwardly.

"There's always a chance, after all this is over. You'll find someone," Edward tried to comfort with a troubled smile.

Willow smiled, bittersweet, "If. I need to make it out of this mess first.”

Edward shrugged a little, and the visit ended there. While not awkward, it was perhaps not as positive a conclusion as it could have been.

As he departed with Jonathon, he turned back for a moment and said, “For what it's worth, Willow, I think anyone touched by your maternal care is set for life.”

Willow sighed heavily, pouring herself a drink. Tea just would not cut it.