“Kelly, grab your stuff. You’re going home.” An older voice instructed from behind their desk, breaking the silence of the classroom.

Most of the kids in the classroom leered at packets of paper, circling in answers from time to time, but there were some just sitting on their phones and waiting for the period to end. Kelly was the latter. Finishing her math final in about half an hour, she spent the rest of her time on her phone, specifically texting her older brother that she was done and ready to go home. She was also messaging her friends and boyfriend that she was about to leave.

Hearing Mrs. Greenbell’s instructions, she flew her already packed bag over her shoulder before waving goodbye to a few students and walking out. She speed walked through the hallways, but her anticipation made the halls appear endless. All she wanted was to go see her brother again, but no. She had a stupid math final on the final day before winter break. She wished that her brother came just a day early, but just brushed it off as she left through the front doors.

Marching through the parking lot, she scanned around for one of the cars her family owned. After a few seconds, she was able to find Dylan’s lexus, with two figures standing in front of it. The first was Dylan, standing there with a big grin plastered on his face. It was obvious to Kelly why, as she turned over to see a person she hasn’t in so long. Her other brother: Caden. He didn’t look a day older than he had when he vanished all those years ago.

Tears forcing their way through, she bolted towards her brothers with her arms spread out. Extending his own forwards, Caden smiled and received her hug joyfully, with tears welling in his own eyes.

“It's been a while, Kell-Kell.” The words choked out as he held his sister tightly.

“Right back at you, Den-Den.” She responded with a chuckle.

Leoric gave out a warm smile. It had been so long since Kelly called him that. When she was little, she couldn’t pronounce his full name, so she would just call him that. And for some reason, it stuck. It even stayed after three hundred years.

Dylan joined in on the hug, before they heard and felt the rumbling stomach of his younger brother. Leoric paused at the reminder of his lack of food for the day, before him and his siblings began laughing together over the low rumbling. Dylan walked over to the driver’s seat, while spinning the electronic key around his finger.

“Come on, let’s go home. Mom and dad should almost be done cooking by now.” Dylan informed, unlocking the car.

The other two smiled, before heading towards the doors and sliding in. Kelly took shotgun, while Leoric sat in the back. As he sat down, he began to crack his back and neck, before warning his sister that he was about to look different.

Kelly raised an eyebrow, but soon figured out what he meant as Leoric stopped the Transmutation magic. One minute, he looked how he did when he left three years ago, and the next he reverted to his usual Ice Elf appearance. She remembered being told that he’d look different, but it was still strange to see. Dylan looked a bit used to it, but now fully.

“So, how did your test go?” Dylan asked, causing his sister to rear her head back to hit the top of the seat.

“It went alright, but do we really have to talk about this?” She turned to face the back seat with a joyful smile. “I wanna hear what you’ve been up to, Caden.”

Leoric gave a gentle smile, “Maybe we should wait for when we get home, I’m sure mom and dad would like to hear them as well.”

Kelly was taken aback a moment at her brother’s calm and polite speech. Last time she saw him, he was very informal and cursed quite a bit. A quick look towards her older brother showed he was caught off guard too, but seemed to have started to get used to it.

“Oh come on,” Kelly pestered, “Just one story. I’m sure they won’t mind if it's just one. Plus, you can retell it.”

“Very well.” Leoric pondered for a minute, placing his hand on his chin. “How about the time a friend and I destroyed the remnants of the Bandit Queen’s army?”

Leoric began to remark the story of one of his first major combats: one of a queen dead before his arrival to Durria, but her influence still prevalent. Leading what remained of her roaming empire of thugs, her son attempted to return them to their former glory. Unfortunately for them, Leoric and his friend were tasked with their destruction. It involved quite a bit of creativity and guerilla warfare on their end, but they were eventually able to defeat every last member.

While Leoric was telling his siblings about the Bandit Queen, his parents were preparing a feast for lunch. Gabby was working on the sides, being corn and hashbrowns, while her husband was grilling the steaks in the backyard. She’d wanted him to just leave the steaks alone while they cook, so they can talk about everything a bit more, but he was always meticulous about his cooking.

“Is there anything I can help with?” Aera asked, walking into the kitchen with Gabby.

The older woman smiled, “Thank you, Aera. We got a good handle on the food, but could you set the table?”

With a quick nod, Aera walked over to the pile of plates and silverware already brought out. She could tell just by their look that this was a set of china. Intricate designs swirled from plate to plate, and silver flowers were engraved on each piece of silverware. The weight of the steak knives was good too, lifting one up and inspecting it like a lethal weapon.

“Thank you again for letting me stay here, Mrs. Mitchelle.” Aera called out, setting down each plate carefully.

“Don’t mention it, we have the extra room. And although I don’t understand why my son needs an escort, we’re happy to accomodate.” Gabby’s first thought was that this was her son’s girlfriend, but that was quickly shut down by both of them. She still thought that deep down, because it didn’t make sense why her son needed to be monitored.

“The people keeping us safe just want to make sure Leoric is protected ma’am.”

“Leoric?”

Aera paused. “Oh, my mistake. I meant Caden. Leoric was his name in the other world, or so I’ve been told. Everyone back at the base usually calls him that.”

“I… see.” Gabby went quiet, staring down at the pot of boiling corn before her. Her gaze, however, extended outwards into space.

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

Silence enveloped the kitchen, only to be broken shortly every time a plate or utensil was set, giving off a muffled thud as it impacted the placemats. Aera felt as if she said something wrong, but couldn’t quite figure out what. All she did was say Leoric’s name. They must’ve been informed of his other name days before this, but she seems to not even register it.

“So, your friend was the one who ended up taking down the Bandit Prince? Kind of anticlimactic for a story about you.” Kelly commented, opening the door to the garage.

“Yeah, she’s right on that.” Dylan chimed in.

Leoric gave a quick shrug. “It would seem so, but that’s life. Besides, I was busy at that point, doing-”

“Welcome home!” Gabby called out, running over to give her son, before pausing at his appearance. He hadn’t started his Transmutation again, not wanting to use the thinned magic, so he towered over her more than usual. She gave a bit of a look before going in for another hug.

Leoric was caught off guard for a moment, before returning his mother’s embrace. He closed his eyes for a moment, appreciating the long awaited greeting, before letting go of Gabby. He waited for the hug to stop, but his mom continued to hold on, even fastening her hold when he tried to tug away. It took a few tries before she gave into the resistance before releasing her grip.

“Give him some room to breathe, mom.” Kelly chuckled, placing her backpack down before walking into the kitchen. “Is food ready yet?”

“Just about.” Her father responded, carrying in a plate of steaks. “Coming in hot!”

Leoric watched as his siblings swarmed into the dining room, while his father placed the steaks down and mother grabbed the sides from the kitchen. Already bantering about their days, specifically Kelly’s final, he couldn’t help but relish in this moment. For hundreds of years, he had never once stopped wishing to share a meal with his family again.

“You coming!?” Dylan wondered, already placing the largest steak on his own plate.

Leoric chuckled, before walking over and taking a seat next to his brother and Aera. She seemed out of place, but loosened up a little as Will handed her one of the steaks. She thanked him before asking for the sides to be passed over to her next.

The lunch in the Mitchelle household was in full swing as it usually was. Banter and playful arguments erupted from the table. Dylan had even asked Leoric if he thought he could take on a soldier, which started the chain of being asked if he could take on even greater threats, such as a tank or nuclear missile. For each one, he smiled and said he didn’t know, since he’d never had to fight one before.

“What’s something you did have to fight then?” Dylan asked.

“Now Dylan, don’t pressure him too much. I’m sure he doesn’t want to talk about it.” Gabby stated, tapping a finger hastily on the table.

“It's alright, mom. I’m okay with telling a story.” Leoric interjected. “Let me think of a good one.”

“Well don’t feel pressured to remember one too quickly.” Gabby looked over to her daughter. “Soooo, how have things been going with you and Brennan?”

“Fiiine, mom. The same as the last time you asked.” Kelly rolled her eyes, turning her head over to see Leoric. “You think of one yet?”

“What did I just say, don’t pressure your brother.” Gabby asserted, causing her daughter to roll her eyes once more. This time, not in the same playful manner as before.

“Mom. It’s fine. Really. He can think of a good one on the spot too. Like in the car, he told us about-”

“I said don’t!” Gabby declared, slamming the hand gripping her fork downwards. The thud of the fist brought silence to the table, with more authority than The Hammer ever portrayed to either Leoric or Aera.

Gabby’s twisted face of rage and sadness changed to realization of what she’d done. It caught everyone off guard, since she wasn’t known to lash out or get angry in this fashion. Her face was flooded with shame, as she looked down at the table. Her children dropped the insistence on a story and her husband reached over and rubbed her back, giving two pats when he was done. Everyone continued to eat, but at a much slower pace. And for some reason, the once brilliant taste of the food grew bland in their mouths.

The remainder of the course passed uneventfully, with Gabby being the first to excuse themselves from the table. Will followed shortly, to see his wife sitting on their bed, looking away from the door.

“Are you alright?” Will called out. “That was really something during lunch.”

Gabby looked down to her trembling hands, before looking up. Her expression shocked Will, it was af if his wife had seen a ghost.

“He was cold.” She muttered. “When I hugged him at first, he was fine. But the second time, when he looked like that, he was cold.”

“Yeah, they said on the phone that he was different. It’ll take some time, but we’ll get used to seeing-”

“It’s not just that!” Gabby shouted, “His appearance! His name! His personality! They’ve all changed.”

She looked away from her husband, once more ashamed at her burst of anger. Tears began to well in her eyes as Will approached and reached out to her. Gabby let herself be swept into a hug as she began to bawl her eyes out, akin to when her son and nephew were first reported missing.

“They said on the phone that he lived a lifetime without us.” Gabby murmured. “He became an entirely different person while I.”

She paused once more, clenching her fists till they began to change color. “He changed while I stayed the same. I kept waiting. I just want things to go back to how they were, and forget that it happened.”

The room went quiet for a moment, with Will just holding his wife while rubbing her back once more. Sniffles could be heard from the head by his chest, but they were starting to die down.

“I… I know you want things to go back, believe me I do too. Even with Josh still gone, I want to just imagine that he’s still away. Still at college. But Caden’s back. Our son is back. And he may look different. He may act differently. He may even sound different, but he is still our boy.”

“I know.” Gabby whispered, whipping away some of her tears. “It’s just hard. It’ll take me some time to get used to it.”

“I understand. And I’m sure Caden does too.” Will said, embracing his wife in the dark room.

Hours passed quickly, with Leoric unpacking and rearranging his old room, Dylan helping him, and Kelly texting her friends and boyfriend, already planning when they’ll meet up during winter break. Aera offered to help, but was denied so she returned to her room, where she began to get in some midday practice. She was also practicing with some magic, as Leoric could feel the ambient magic thin.

“Hey, who’s down to go out for dinner tonight!?” Will called out, with almost everyone immediately rushing out from their rooms. The siblings knew how rare it was, since their father usually preferred to cook at home, or just bring food from his restaurant.

Gabby stepped out of the master and headed towards the front, where everyone was busy putting their shoes on. She noticed Leoric, and how he currently had Transmutation active once more to appear like he did in the past. It was calming for her to see him this way. With the short black hair and tanned skin, much like a younger version of Dylan. It was comfortable for her to see him this way, but it didn’t feel right.

“Hey Caden.” She called out, immediately grabbing her son’s attention.

“I don’t really understand how you’re doing it, but if it's too uncomfortable to look like that, you can stop.”

“Are you sure?” He gave a curious look to his mother, before she gave a small smile and a nod.

Instantly, the ambient magic left his form, and he reverted to the pale and blue haired form he was normally. From first glance, he could tell that his mother was disturbed by it, but she still gave a smile and walked over to give him another hug.

“Is that sweater thick enough? You really are cold. I know it's winter, but still.” Gabby teased, walking over to her own set of shoes.

Leoric laughed. “Don’t worry, I’m fine. It’s natural for Ice Elves to be cold. I don’t really feel it though.”

“Really? Ice Elves sure sound weird. Could you tell us about it in the car?”

Leoric smiled down towards his mother, who was already heading towards the garage door. “I’d love to.”