The rest of the afternoon passed uneventfully. We ate a light lunch, made general conversation, and relaxed until bedtime. It was a nice night for relaxing, and I sat in my chair facing the mouth of the cave once more.

Drake padded quietly up to me and sat beside me, the tip of his tail resting on my arm. “Hey Drake,” I said softly.

“Hello Bubba.”

“Have you enjoyed your time with us?”

“I have, yes. Am grateful for meeting you.”

“You are? Why is that, Drake?”

“I can see this world now. I can taste the life that exists here. I am not starving anymore. I have found…what is the word? Ah, yes. Family. You are family. Katira is family. I don’t want to return to my other life anymore. I doubt any other would even dare to help me after I had devoured so many of their predecessors. I am content now.”

I watched the little dragonet as he “spoke” to me. His eyes were sincere and his posture relaxed. There was no doubt in my mind that he believed and meant the things he said. I hoped he could be a stellar ambassador for his kind, and that the Guild would agree to allow them to make Connections with Necromancers.

From what I had gathered, a Connection was similar to a Bond, only much weaker. Idly, I wondered what needed to be done to create a Connection.

“Well, I, for one, am glad that you are content. I like having you around, and I am learning from you just as you are learning from all of us. I still need to craft a shoulder pad of some sort for you. If you’re going to perch on my shoulders, I’d like to not get holes in my shirts. I think I’ll get some good, sturdy leather when we get back home. What do you say? Wanna help me build a pad for you to rest on?” I asked the little dragon.

“Of course! I will help however I can. I do not like it when I poke holes in you, Bubba.”

“Excellent. Have you been eating enough? Does eating while in a physical form sate your hunger?” I asked, intensely curious.

“Yes, actually. I have had several of the small, furry things you are trying to reanimate. My hunger is the same as it would be if I were still in my normal form. It is sated all the same,” he replied.

“I notice your speech is getting better and better. I’m glad for that. It makes translations take longer, but your meaning is much easier to understand now. Pretty soon, I’m going to have to build a speech box of some sort for you,” I said and scratched his scaly head.

He closed his eyes and leaned into my hand, and together, we watched the sun fall below the trees. After a while, Katira walked up behind us, silently observing the two of us.

“Hello, Katira. Is everything alright back there?” I asked, focusing on the pink and purple clouds strewn across the sunset sky.

“No, Master. Everything is fine. I came to check on you, actually. You two have been sitting here silently for about an hour now,” she said softly.

“Have we? Huh. Sunset must’ve been more captivating than I thought. Although, it is rather pretty,” I said quietly.

“Indeed. Sunsets usually are. However, you must remember that we have only a few more days here, and none of you are any closer to reanimating your squirrel. Tomorrow, we will begin searching for the proper reagents to raise them. You’ve all had a taste of what an experiment entails, and now, you will put that experience to even greater use. I can only tell you what the reagents do, as there are several that can be and have been used. Reanimation tends to be a rather personal process. I am curious to see what you will do tomorrow, Master,” she said, resting her hand on my shoulder.

I reached up, absent-mindedly caressing her warm hand. The sunset was just better with good people around me.

Eventually, the sun fully set, leaving the blossoming night sky a tapestry of dark blues and grays. Katira and Drake wandered back into the cave, conversing with the others. I stayed where I was, content with the activity of friends behind me, and the coming night before me.

As the curtain of night began to be pierced by the light of thousands of stars, I started feeling the effects of hunger. I got up, folded up my chair, and walked unsteadily to the back of the cave. I set my chair next to Katira in her niche, then went and got something simple to eat.

As I stood there, eating the cold burger, a thought occurred to me. I was finally in a group of people I didn’t feel separate from.

For years, I’d felt separate from everyone I knew. Everyone. My family, my friends, my partners; all of them. I’d always felt ‘different’ and far too weird to really “fit in”. Now? Now I had three other humans that I knew I’d always belong with. Three people with whom I’d always have the same weird bond with. Three people that I knew I’d always fit in with. And not just them. There was a whole community of Necromancers out there. Whatever our differences, whatever our quirks, I knew that this would bind us more tightly than anything I’d ever seen. This was probably the biggest thing about us that would keep us from being able to ever truly integrate in modern society.

And right now, I would be best served by finding a way to fulfill my promise to my familiar, and being worthy of the Bond we shared. The best way for me to accomplish that would be to be a good student and helper. Katira had been there, done that, and had tragically done it over and over so many times. The absolute least I could do was to pay heed to her words.

The next right thing I could do was to swallow my anxiety and socialize with my new friends.

My mind racing with possibilities, I walked over and set up my chair between Robert and Katira as I finished the burger.

“...so then I -Hey Stu!- then I told him that I just wasn’t feeling it anymore, and that it would be best if we were to end it and stay friends,” Robert was saying.

“Best to end it? What did I miss? I’m sorry, y’all. I got caught up in the sunset. What’s up?” I asked.

“Robert-san is telling us about his last relationship. It is sad, I think,” Morita-san answered.

“Oh shit? Did she cheat on you, or something? That’s probably the saddest thing I can think of,” I said.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

“He, actually. And no, neither of us cheated on the other. We just…grew apart. Found out that there were really too many differences in us to make it work, and we decided to end it,” he said with resignation.

“Oh damn, dude. I’m sorry. That’s gotta be rough. I dunno if I could handle that, honestly. And to remain friends? That’s top-tier shit, man. Proud of you for being mature about it. Not many could,” I replied, placing a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

“Thanks for that, Stu. I appreciate it. No, it isn’t terribly easy, especially since we’re still living together, what with the housing market and all. Can’t really make ends meet, even as an engineer. How sad is that shit?” he said with snort.

“It’s more angering than sad, really. The market is pricing us all out of our homes. Joaquin lives in some of the worst of it. His home is dangerous, poor and generally uncomfortable. I can’t imagine how strong you have to be to live in that environment,” I said, giving the young man a nod.

Joaquin looked concerned after Shutan had finished the translation. “I not strong, Tio. Bannach is hard town, but not so bad. Brother lives in Rio Maria. He say is worse. No, I not strong, Tio. Always stolen from going home,” he said.

“He keeps calling you “Tio”, Stu. Are you guys related somehow?” Robert asked, his confusion evident on his face.

I held up a hand for the young man and smiled. “It’s okay, Joaquin. I’ll explain it to him, and you and Shutan can fill me in on any errors, okay?” I asked, receiving a grateful nod from Joaquin.

“In Latino culture, younger kids are always looked after by the neighborhood adults. All of them. Whether you had kids or not, you treated all the kids with respect and love. As such, adults other than your parents are collectively known as your Auntie or your Uncle. I could see his fear when he stood up to join us, and I immediately vowed to help take care of him as best as I could. He was tossed into a whole new world with no friends or family. No Aunties or Uncles. I have a daughter the same age as Morita-san, and my son is only six years younger than Joaquin. There’s no way I could leave the kid to his fate once he joined us,” I explained, getting a nod and a smile from Joaquin.

“Yeah, but how did you know what he meant? Is this another case of that clair….thingy?” Robert asked.

“I think you mean claircognizant, and no. Not at all. I used to work with an older gentleman from Mexico, and he taught me a lot about himself and his culture. It was really quite fascinating. They do things a little differently over there. The whole “It takes a village…” thing? That’s serious shit to them, and they’ll fight you over it. Community is everything to them,” I said.

Robert nodded contemplatively. “Does that make me a Tio, too?” he asked.

Joaquin smiled and said, “Not Tio. Robert is my friend.” Joaquin placed a hand to his heart. “The feel is not same. Not bad thing. Only different.”

Robert gave a frown of approval and nodded. “Not bad. I’ll take it,” he said and gave a lopsided grin.

“So what about you, Stu? Got any terrible relationship stories?” Robert asked.

I sighed and shook my head. “Plenty, actually. I’ll give you the vastly abridged version. I’ve been married three times. I have a total of three kids from two of them. I never get to see my oldest, as she’s on the other side of the country, my younger two are in the middle of the country and I see them maybe once a year, and I’ve been hurt more times than I’d care to recall,” I said somberly. Katira laid her hand on my shoulder, and I patted it affectionately.

“Shit, dude. That’s horrible,” Robert said quietly. After Shutan translated for Joaquin, his eyes got huge, and Morita-san just stared in shock.

“But, I’m still trying to keep a pleasant face about it all. My oldest has contacted me exactly once in the past twenty years, and I call my youngest two weekly. I’ve already alerted their mom that I won’t be able to talk to them this week. Did that before we left. I honestly don’t like recalling my marriages, as it’s a rather painful subject, as you might guess. I’m one of the weird ones, I suppose, because” -I snorted and shook my head- “I still love all three of my ex-wives. Love my kids, too. Mine isn’t a heart that lets go easily,” I said.

“Senpai…” Morita-san said quietly.

“Nah. It’s all good, Morita-san. It sucks sometimes, but it’s part of my history. I’m learning to get through it all, and hopefully, it’ll never happen again. Know that I don’t regret a moment of it. None of the pain. See?” I put on a massively fake smile, “All smiles!

“Seriously, though. Don’t hesitate to ask me anything. I have advice and I have insights. It may not be the best advice or insight, but it’s free. Well, maybe not free. You just have to be my friend. That’s the price. Take it or leave it,” I said, with a real grin this time.

Morita-san smiled and said, “Yes. I will be your friend, senpai. You have always tried to help, and I see no reason to not be your friend.”

After Shutan finished translating, Joaquin said, “And me. Am friend to Tio.”

Robert looked over at me and snorted. “In for a penny…”

I looked over at him and stared. “Did you just…?” I asked.

“Yep.”

“Goddammit, you asshole. That’s terrible. I love it. Keep that shit up,” I said with a smile as I shook my head.

Morita-san and Joaquin looked confused. Once their familiars explained it to them, they both looked at Robert with something bordering on contempt mixed with admiration.

Robert chuckled quietly, and shrugged his shoulders. “What can I say? I’m a funny guy.”

“It’s more than that, Master,” Yin said. We all turned to look at the massive, shaggy wolf. “You have had a setback, overcome it, and are now using it for, admittedly terrible, jokes. Your resilience speaks volumes for your character, and I think everyone here has seen that.”

“He’s right, dude. Just waiting to see what else you’ll do with yourself in this new world we find ourselves in,” I added.

Robert nodded, turning red. We continued to chit chat for a couple more hours, and one by one, we went to bed.

**********

I awoke with Katira behind me, her arm draped over my waist.

“Good Morning, Master. Are you ready to face today’s challenges?” she asked quietly.

I rolled over, gazing into her crystal blue eyes. “Not yet,” I said, snuggling into her, holding her tightly.

She returned the embrace, holding me closely. She sighed softly. “I think today we have to discuss Growth, as well as the reagents for reanimation. I don’t want the other three being caught unawares if it happens to them sooner rather than later. You have a week at most. Most likely, it’s going to happen in a couple of days. It lasts for anywhere between three hours to three weeks. There’s no rhyme or reason to the length that we’ve found,” she said softly, gently running her nails across my scalp.

I shivered in pleasure. Her touch was intoxicating. “Okay, then. You ready to get this show on the road, Katira?” I asked.

She nodded and disengaged from me, standing. I saw her in all her nude glory for but a moment before clothes materialized on her body. I sat up and cleared my mind before dressing and joining her and the other three.

“Okay, Initiates. Today, we will learn more about the process of reanimation, and I will go over Growth. Today will be hard for all of you, but most especially for Initiate Merideth,” Katira said, and paused, watching as every head turned to stare at me in confusion. “The reasons for this are simple. One, his essence reacts somewhat poorly with most of the reagents used in reanimation. As such, he will have a harder time finding reagents that will work. This isn’t impossible. The ones that will work do indeed exist here in this area. They are only scarce. For that reason, and that reason alone, I will be assisting him in finding the very specific reagents that will work for him. Too many will fail, and he doesn’t have enough blood in him to try over and over. Reanimation is hard for Multiplying types. Many never get to do so, and thus stay at a Journeyman level. For the rest of you, your familiars will only assist you in confirming the identity of the reagents you will choose. Nothing more.

“And number two, I will be discussing Growth today. All of you will face it at some point, but Initiate Merideth will be dealing with it in the next couple of days, most likely. Growth can be fatal. That likelihood increases with your inherent potential. With that knowledge, do you all still wish to continue?” Katira explained impassively.

We all stood there in shock.