“… AUNTIE’S HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOME~!”

Draenen didn’t have enough time to think before something with curly black hair practically flew out the door and tackled her. Out of instinct, she tried to brace herself but her injured leg crumpled beneath her. Thankfully her backpack kept her from cracking her head against the cobblestones, and with a pained chuckle she ruffled the black hair. “… Missed you too, Blackbird.”

Aderyn was wiggling like an excited puppy as he threw his arms around Draenen’s neck and kissed her cheek. “You brought me good things, riiiiiiiiight? Like toys and treats and a mommy?!”

“… Well… I got you two out of three. But I think the cake is crushed now.” She looked past the boy to Mirror who was standing in the doorway, a cautious look on his face. She smiled at her brother. “Kirious sent a message: ‘I told you so’. I’m also supposed to spit in your face, but I’ll skip that.”

Mirror drew a sharp breath. “You mean…”

Draenen grinned and gave him a thumbs-up. “Mission accomplished.”

–––––––––––––––-

“While I’m disappointed, I can’t fault his reasoning for bringing her to Windurst.” Peb placed a sandwich on the coffee table in front of Draenen. For the past two hours, she had been regaling them with stories from her trip. “She’s going to need peace and quiet for a bit. Let her get comfortable.”

“Can’t believe you’re suddenly on his side…” Mirror grumbled as he nursed a black eye with one hand, and reluctantly drank from a flask with his other.

Peb shrugged. “Envy kept his word, and Malay seems to already have latched onto him even though her memory is full of worms. If she trusts him, then let’s not disrupt her.”

“… It was WEIRD, though.” Draenen shuddered slightly as she took a bite out of her sandwich. “I don’t think he left her side for more than a minute. And he was a little… cuddly… with her.”

“Malay always enjoyed simple physical contact. If Envy remembered, then it’s good for the both of them, and I’m not going to fight her decisions anymore. It’s always backfired on me.” Peb sat down in his chair.

Mirror leaned back on the couch and ran his fingers through Aderyn’s hair as the boy slept next to him. “I still think he should’ve brought her here first.”

Draenen rolled her eyes. “Yeah… and you would’ve jumped her and freaked her out. Or gotten all weepy and weird. Either way, this really is for the best. Once she’s comfortable and… capable of multi-syllable phrases, Kirious’ll bring her around.” She paused, making sure Aderyn was asleep before continuing. “… I downplayed it earlier because I didn’t want him to hear. It’s more than just her memories; she’s an Immortal now. She’s like Kirious… but unstable. There’s more than just worms in her brain.”

There was a long pause as Mirror and Peb took that in.

“You know…” Mirror looked at the flask in his hand. “… I could just—“

“You’re not messing with her memories.” Draenen and Peb spoke at the same time, and the older man raised a hand to silence her before continuing. “You’ve caused enough havoc recently, and this is a very delicate time.”

“Fine, fine.” Mirror huffed, and then slowly turned to give Draenen a sly look as she lifted her glass. “So… baby sister… what’s with the hickey? Will you be giving me nieces and nephews soon?”

Aderyn rubbed his eyes as he sat up, and gave Mirror a confused look as he sniffed the air near his uncle. "…. Uncle? Why are you sweating apple juice?"

Mirror remained silent as he glared at Draenen while she sputtered and wiped her mouth.