It felt odd standing on the paved road in front of my house. It didn't seem real. The hot sun beat down on my head and the breeze was full of sweet woodsy aromas. The street was so peaceful. All the houses, even the vacant ones, were in one piece and there wasn't a wild monster in sight.

For the first, I fully understood why people craved the security of the walled cities. Sure, I hid in Eden for eight years, but this was the first time I fully appreciated the effort people went through to create a safe place for my family to live in. If every city was like Laramie, with monsters hiding in every nook and cranny, and vulnerable to attacking overpowered monsters, my little family would be dead already, despite Uncle Maveric's best efforts.

It almost felt surreal standing here. Like it was all a play created to appease the people inside the house. No, not like. This really was a blissful dream painstakingly crafted by Dad and Uncle for my family. For Micah and I to feel safe.

Now that I tasted that nightmare outside of the dream, I wanted — needed — to protect this dream. Keep it safe, so that when my family felt overwhelmed, they could retreat into it, and pretend the scary outside world didn't exist. If only for a minute. Protect this place, so that Micah can grow up strong and positive. Not like me, with too many bleeding scars to patch up.

"Are you sure this is where you want to be dropped off?" Terre asked from atop Ghost behind me. Karmin was long gone, running off to do something before we even got to Mist Haven. Terre looked up and down the street in confusion. After all, he knew where Uncle lived. He obviously knew who the buildings on that short street belonged to.

I smiled at him over my shoulder. "Yes. This is my house now." Well, it was the house where my family lived. I wouldn't know if I had the right to live in this house until I got the level fifty and found out if I killed my mother or not. Until then, and even after, I'd protect this house until my dying breath.

He looked at the renovated split-level house with a complicated expression. "It's a lot smaller than I expected."

Yeah, I bet he lived in a mansion. Then again... "If you're comparing it to Uncle's house, yes, it is," I admitted. It's even smaller than our farmhouse on Uncle's street. "But it's perfect for us."

He nodded, his gaze trailing on barrier spikes positioned around the boundary. "And well protected, huh."

I nodded and motioned to the front door. "Uncle's inside. Did you want to talk to him?"

Terre shook his head. "I'll contact him tomorrow. I have other business I need to attend to.” He paused and then opened his Guide screen. "Add me as a friend. Just in case, you know."

I already added Karmin as a friend before she left, so I guess it wasn't a big deal to add him too. But it was funny. Considering I was a puny Hunter right now, the only three contacts I had were for the number one armorer in the country, a billionaire, and his best friend — who was obviously loaded, too. All three of them were very powerful. I definitely had connections, huh?

We exchanged numbers and Terre took off.

Stomach twisting and turning, I half ran, half walked up the walkway, a weird canter that had my feet tripping over themselves. Part of me was dying to rush through the door and tackle my family. Another part dragged my toes, dreading the confrontation I knew was coming. A shiver went down my spine as I passed through the boundary barrier.

Levi flinched, flicking his tongue in agitation, but the magic didn't ignite and even let him through. Was it because we were connected? So the barrier registered him as a part of me?

The door swung open so fast, the hinges groaned. Dad appeared in the doorway. Dark bags hung under his wide, bloodshot eyes. He was clean and shaved, but several knicks dotted his chin, something he never did. It's only been five days, but he'd lost weight, his cheekbones becoming more prominent.

As soon as I saw him, all the emotions I'd bottled up erupted. And all the matter was he was here. Tears burned in my eyes and my nose burned. "Dad!" I gasped and threw myself at him.

Levi stealthily dropped from my shoulder, unwilling to touch him. He ducked into the grass at the bottom of the stairs and watched.

I hardly paid him any attention. My arms wrapped around Dad and hugged him tight, while being conscious not to hurt him. I buried my nose in his chest and breathed in his familiar scent, and unloaded a torrent of tears on his shirt. "I missed you!"

Dad hugged me just as tight, gasping with his own sobs. "Ria, my baby. Are you okay? Are you hurt? Where are you hurt?" His large hand soothed my hair. He pushed me back to hold my shoulders to examine me. His wet eyes took in every nick and burned on my armor. He lingered on each one, brows tight like his heart broke again and again from seeing the injuries I took while I was away. Maybe I should have changed before I got here like I normally did.

Compared to everything I went through, especially yesterday, these little burns were nothing. And Regen works great while sitting on a flying tiger. I grinned through my tears and tried to force them under control. "I'm okay. Really, I am." I hugged him, trying to control my emotions, smiling and crying at the same time.

Suddenly Micah appeared from inside the house. "You stupid head!" he yelled, his voice cracking with emotion. He tackled me in a flying hug, but didn't have enough weight on his skinny bones to throw me off more than a couple steps. He squished my head in a hug, his arms directly over my ears. "Where did you go?" he demanded, then sniffed hard, trying to disguise a sob.

I gave him a quick hug then tapped his arms. "This is really uncomfortable, let go."

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

"Not until you tell me where you went!" he demanded.

"Um, a lot of places, actually," I said. Since he wouldn't let go, I reached up and pried his arms open. No matter how he tried to resist, I was a lot stronger.

"That's not good enough!" Micah yelled.

"Micah, give her some room," Dad grabbed him and pulled him to the side of the crowded door step.

With Micah out of the way, Uncle stepped up and infolded me in a hug. "Welcome home."

I gripped his shirt behind his back and hugged tight. Unlike Dad, I didn't have to hold back. By now my emotions were more under control, and I felt comfort in the smell of hot metal that lingers on him. "Thanks," I whispered, my voice choking a little. "Thank you for not giving up on me. For sending Terre to find me."

He squeezed me tight. "Of course. I'll never give up on you. None of us will."

I responded with a squeeze and stepped back. "Me too."

Dad passed Micah to Uncle and swung his arm around my shoulder. "Let's take this inside."

"Oh, wait." I stepped around him and jumped down the short steps. "Come on." I reached out to Levi, his thin body hidden in the grass.

He lifted up his head, blinking at the people on top of the stairs.

Micah yelped in fright, his voice cracking badly, and ducked behind Uncle. Dad jumped too, startled to find a snake just feet from him. He reached for me, trying to pull me away but couldn't reach me from the top step.

Uncle had the weakest reaction. He obviously knew Levi was there the whole time — he must have noticed him slipping off my shoulder, unlike the others — and simply stared at Levi with interest. Then again, if what Terre said earlier, he could probably tell that Levi and I were magically connected. He was just waiting to see what I'd do.

Uncle had the weakest reaction. He obviously knew Levi was there the whole time — he must have noticed him slipping off my shoulder, unlike the others — and simply stared at Levi with interest. Then again, if what Terre said earlier, he could probably tell that Levi and I were magically connected. He was just waiting to see what I'd do.

Uncle had the weakest reaction. He obviously knew Levi was there the whole time — he must have noticed him slipping off my shoulder, unlike the others — and simply stared at Levi with interest. Then again, if what Terre said earlier, he could probably tell that Levi and I were magically connected. He was just waiting to see what I'd do.

Micah peaked around Uncle. "What is that?"

"A new member of the family." Levi's cool scales slid over my skin as he settled in my palm. "This is Levi." I lifted him up so they could get a good look at him.

Levi stayed low against my skin, staring at them with guarded golden eyes. His tongue flicked out, tasting the air. He glanced at me, noticing that we all had similar smells.

"What? You're keeping a wild monster as a pet?" Micah yelped. "Are you insane? What if it tries to hurt us?"

"He's not wild." I paused. Okay, that wasn't true. The only reason he was reasonable at all was because of our bond. Without it, yeah, he was one hundred percent wild, and a bit of a brat. "Well, not a threat." Even as I said that, Karmin's warning came to mind. I got Levi's attention and introduced him to my family one by one, then explained, "They are my family." As I did, I tried to convey to him through our bond how important they were to me.

Levi looked at them, pondering my emotions. He glanced at me and showed me images of various monsters in family groups. The concept of family seemed foreign to him, but he understood my intentions based on things he'd viewed in his life.

I nodded. "Yes, we're a family. They're the most important beings to me. You have to help me protect them." Because I'd fight with my dying breath for them. In a way, protecting them was the same as protecting my life — and retrospectively, Levi's.

Levi's expression didn't change, but I felt him give me a stink eye. He tasted the air again, memorizing their scents.

"Are you talking to ... the snake?" Dad asked, staring at Levi. He was obviously still bothered, but was trying to not freak out. His fingers wiggled in the air, as if he was ready to jump in and rescue me from Levi.

I nodded, feeling a sense of de javu. "He's really smart."

"What is ... he?" Uncle asked.

Of course he'd ask that. Uncle as a walking monster encyclopedia. He had to be for his job. Without a doubt, Levi wasn't in the Monster Manual. I mean, the information on leviathans was limited, never mind a shrunken one. As usual, Uncle couldn't resist examining a new monster, but he was smart enough to read Levi's tightly coiled and nervously jerky body language.

"A snake," I insisted.

"But it is a monster, correct?" Dad asked. "It's not a native snake, is it?"

"He's a monster," I clarified. "But he's not in the Monster Manual, and I don't want him in it. He wouldn't like being studied, anyway. So as far as I'm concerned, he's just a normal snake I found in the wilds. He can use water magic, though." I paused as I looked at Levi. "But you can't use water inside the house. Or break anything." Or get big. A little snake was going to be hard enough Just imagine a six-foot snake slithering around freely in the house. Micah might have a heart attack.

Levi scowled at me, wondering if my cave was really that delicate.

"Is it really necessary for it to come inside? We don't have a cage or food for it. Couldn't you keep your ... pet outside with Shiva?" Dad asked.

The question did not surprise me. Natural pets were expensive and hard to find, since most of the ones alive now were created through cloning and were part of special breeding programs. It's not like they could let a band of cats loose in a city and call it good. Any cat that wandered into a carnivorous mount's stable would become dinner really fast — and half the mounts were meat-eaters. Between the cost of pets and our family's own issues, owning a cat or dog just wasn't possible growing up. Even now, someone else did all the hard work for Shiva's care, and I just enjoyed riding her.

I frowned and shook my head. "That's not actually possible. We, um, for reasons, needed to stay together." I paused. "He's really not dangerous to you. If it makes you uncomfortable, maybe I should move—"

Dad cut me off. "It's fine. As long as it’s — he's — not dangerous."

I nodded and went inside with everyone else.

The house was finally starting to show signs of life inside. One of Micah's shirts dangled across the couch's arm and a mess of shoes collected on the hard wood behind the door. A bag of chips sat open on the kitchen island and several cups sat around the sink. Family photos finally hung on the wall, along with a designer Italian falchion and swept hilt rapier — you know, the kind that looked cool but were actually crap.

It was starting to look like a home. Just not one that any of my personal touch in. After all, I spent the several days leading up to leaving for Laramie at Uncle's apartment.

Dad sat down on the couch and motioned to my messy armor. "Go get that stuff off. And throw them away while you're at it. You won't ever need them again."

I took a deep breath. Here it was. The fight I knew was coming.

*****