Chapter 10 #2
Sydney didn't answer from across the kitchen.
Instead, she set her mug down on the counter and walked over to his side of the table.
Every movement was deliberate, smooth, and entirely unhurried.
She stepped into his immediate space, ignoring the way his large frame subtly tensed with protective instinct, and reached down.
She took both of his large, calloused, bandage-wrapped hands into her own.
Her touch was warm, solid, and entirely real. She squeezed his fingers, forcing him to release his white-knuckle grip on the wood, and anchored him to her. Then, she leaned down slightly, tilting her head until her striking blue eyes looked directly, unflinchingly into his clouded lavender ones.
"Well, we never really met… except mentally. The memories we have are from our brief telepathic interludes after you had escaped the first time.”
“Then I was captured again, right?”
“No one knows for sure.” She shrugged. “You were in a magical coma, then got up and walked out of the Clinic.”
“I don’t remember any of that.”
“And you don’t have to. You don’t have to remember anything from the past, ‘cause we’re gonna make new memories." Her voice didn't shake. It didn't carry a single trace of doubt or hesitation. It was a flat, beautiful decree of unconditional certainty that echoed through the quiet room like a vow.
Garrett blinked, his chest hitching as the sheer simplicity of her words cut through his spiraling panic.
"You think I went down into the throat of the Abyss because I wanted a history lesson, Dragon Man?
" Sydney asked, a soft, fiercely protective smile breaking through the gravity of her expression.
She squeezed his hands tighter, her thumbs gently tracing the healing skin over his wrists.
"I didn't fall in love with a collection of old stories or a resume of your past battles.
The Garrett I rescued– the stubborn, fiercely protective man who couldn't even remember his own face but still tried to shout at me to run to save my life– that is the man I fell in love with. "
She stepped closer, letting the edge of her sweatshirt brush against his shoulder, closing the last of the distance between them.
"If the old pieces come back, great," she whispered, her blue eyes gleaming with unshed tears that she refused to let fall. "We’ll celebrate them. But if they don’t? If they're gone forever? It doesn't change a single damn thing. We start right here…”
“Today…”
“Together.”
Sydney lifts her mug and smiles. “Coffee helps.”
Garrett stared up at her, the suffocating weight in his chest completely evaporating, replaced by a profound, staggering warmth that vibrated all the way down into the depths of his soul and to Aodhan.
He let out a long, ragged breath he felt like he’d been holding since the day he was captured, his fingers wrapping back around hers, accepting the future she was offering him.
As their fingers remained tightly interwoven across the smooth oak table, the quiet atmosphere in the kitchen suddenly shifted. The air grew warm, vibrating with a subtle, deep resonance as the Dragon King and Dragon Queen's bond finally settled into a calm, steady rhythm.
Deep within, the two Ancient Beings finally spoke. There were no booming decrees, no grand lectures on cosmic destiny, and no deep histories of ‘In the beginning….’
It was just one quiet, profoundly simple exchange between two souls who had outlived Time itself.
“You did exceptionally well, my special girl,” Kara’s majestic voice echoed softly inside Sydney’s mind, her magnificent presence swelling with a rare, pure pride that brought a sudden warmth to Sydney’s chest.
An instant later, a deep, rumbling vibration rolled through the shared link from the other side, filling Garrett’s consciousness with the familiar scent of gray fire and ozone.
“Our boy finally listened,” Aodhan murmured, his tone laced with a quiet, satisfied approval that Garrett had never heard from the Dragon King before.
Garrett’s lavender eyes widened slightly. He froze, his mug hovering an inch above the wood as he processed the sudden mental input. He looked up at Sydney, his brow furrowing in utter disbelief.
“Did he just call me ‘our boy’?” Garrett asked aloud, his gravelly voice filled with complete shock.
Sydney blinked, hearing the echo through the quickening circuit of the Mating Bond, and immediately threw her head back. A bright, genuine laugh rang out through the kitchen, shattering the last remnants of the heavy morning tension.
Deep in Garrett’s chest, the silver and white Dragonfire flared with a brief, sharp flash of defensive heat.
“Do not become accustomed to it,” Aodhan grunted sharply, his commanding presence instantly retreating into his disciplined, dignified shell.
The peaceful quiet of the kitchen didn’t last long. The heavy oak door swung open, and the household began to get crowded, transforming the quiet morning sanctuary into a lively, chaotic breakfast table.
There was no giant, overwhelming party, and nobody treated Garrett like a fragile glass doll. Instead, his brethren handled his return the only way they knew how– with plates of steaming food, heavy teasing, and absolute normalcy.
Colton dropped into the chair right next to Garrett, immediately reaching across his plate to snatch a slice of bacon from the center platter. He leveled a deadpan stare at the recovering Guardsman. "You still owe me twenty bucks."
Garrett blinked, his coffee mug hovering halfway to his mouth. "Colton, I have been imprisoned in The Abyss by a Demon Lord for years altogether."
"I know," Colton replied smoothly, taking a massive bite of the bacon without a single blink. "You still owe me twenty bucks. Interest doesn't stop just because you're playing anchor in a primordial Void, man."
A low chorus of chuckles echoed around the room. From the other side of the breakfast bar, Ruairí slid a massive tower of fluffy, golden pancakes directly in front of Garrett, while Ginnie bypassed the crowd to hand Sydney a fresh, piping-hot refill of dark roast with a quiet, supportive wink.
Through the lighthearted noise of clinking silverware and shared teasing, Garrett felt the true weight of the room. This was his home.
He looked toward the edge of the kitchen, near the sunlit veranda door.
Carrick was standing completely to the side, his massive arms crossed over his chest, his large frame leaning casually against the doorframe.
The legendary Dragon Elder hadn't touched the food, and he hadn't joined in on the banter.
He just stood there, his bloodshot eyes softer than they had been in weeks, watching his family interact with a quiet, fierce contentment.
Sensing his gaze, Carrick looked directly at Garrett. He didn't make a grand speech. He gave a solitary, firm nod of his head.
"Welcome home," Carrick said quietly, his deep voice carrying over the chatter of the table.
That was all. Carrick wasn't a speech guy, and he didn't need to be. The words were enough to anchor Garrett to the earth for good.
After the noise of breakfast died down, they slipped out the front door through the veranda and into Ginnie’s garden.