22

Bright sunlight was pouring through the curtains as my eyes slowly opened. The night before felt like some kind of beautiful dream. I laid still, trying to process it all in my mind. Had everything been some vivid dream?

The slight shift of a small body against mine brought me to reality. I blinked, focusing on the blonde haired little boy sleeping beside me in the full bed. Chris laid on the other side of him, still sleeping too.

Oh yeah, I thought, now I remember.

It had been nearly two in the morning when the Mass had ended and we were able to return to Fallsburg. While the clan Nephilim with us had returned to their homes with their Seraphs, Saffron and Jade decided to allow us along with Will and Elena to stay at the house there. It wasn't like Chris and I had a house to go back to at that moment anyway. The one we'd been staying in with Elijah until now had been destroyed by Legion.

As for Zane, he'd decided to return with Kira to the home they shared to get some rest, though he'd promised us that they'd return within the next few days. I can't say that we had much of a problem with that. We all probably needed time to recuperate and pull ourselves together emotionally.

While having the redemption completed was incredible for us, the ending of the hunts was a lot for us to process, especially Chris and Will. I was hoping that Will had been able to get some rest too. He'd been exhausted when we'd said goodnight to him, and like Elijah, Elena had already fallen asleep.

Chris shifted a little in the bed, stretching as his eyes slowly opened.

"Are you awake now?" I whispered, trying not to wake Elijah.

"Depends. It's damn bright even with those curtains. What time is it?" Chris responded.

I glanced at the nearby wall clock, "I think it's almost one in the afternoon."

"Guess we were overtired." Chris sighed. He shifted to his side, quietly brushing Elijah's hair back to look at him, "I hope he sleeps tonight with all of this."

"I hope so too, but I think that's the least of our worries now." I admitted.

Chris easily caught onto what I was talking about, "You mean about where we'll live. You shouldn't worry too much about that. We can figure it out in the next few days, and it's not like this place isn't a safe haven for us too. Jade did tell me before that he'd give me this house if I wanted it."

"I wouldn't mind. I do like this place. But seriously, we don't have anything either. It all got destroyed in the other house. Elijah has no toys and barely any clothes. We can't put off getting that stuff too." I continued.

"Don't worry so much about all of that. We can figure it out in the next few days." Chris assured me. He glanced at the closed door, "I think I'm more concerned about what Will's gonna do once he gets up. It's not like his kid has anything either right now, and he's been drifting for the past twenty years. I wonder if he's thought about all of that before now."

He was right now that I thought about it. Poor little Elena didn't have anything but the clothes she was wearing right now.

"Hey Chris, do you think Will's going to be okay with all of this?" I had to know.

"What do you mean?" he responded.

"He's been searching for Elena for years, and Judiel killed her mother. Elena didn't even know him before last night. Do you really think he'll be able to handle her by himself with all of that?"

Chris still wasn't worried, "I know he can. Besides, that kid already adores him, and she did tell Elijah before that she wanted to stay with him. She's also what Will always dreamed of having, so he'll definitely end up being a good dad, even if he's probably going to be overprotective sometimes." he assured me.

I recalled them saying something about that before.

"Hey, you and Zane mentioned that Will wanted a family with Chloe before, and that it had always been his goal, but other than what's happened now, aren't all Shadow Wings sterile? Were they planning to eventually adopt a child or something, maybe a newborn Shadow Wing?" I inquired.

"No, that's not what he was trying for." Chris responded. He glanced at Elijah to make sure he was still sleeping before he continued, "Zane told me before that Will talked to you about his studying medicine and all, right?"

I nodded, "Yeah, he talked a little bit about it back when Judiel tried to use him and almost killed us."

"Well, there was a hidden thing behind him wanting to learn medicine and whatever he could about Shadow Wing biology. Will wasn't the same after the first time we went to St. Peter's and they nearly killed us. Zane and I didn't see him again for about thirty years, and when we did, it was the time we told you about when we got to meet Chloe. She was what brought Will back to life in a sense, and being with her drove him to keep pushing against our fate. But eventually, he also got this idea in his head somewhere along the lines. He decided that he wanted his own family." Chris explained.

Now I was putting things together, "And that's why he started studying medicine. He was hoping for a way to reverse things so that he and Chloe could have a baby." I surmised.

"Exactly, but he never figured it out. I personally don't think that it was able to be done except for these circumstances. But like I said, I know he'll take good care of her now. He's waited this long for her."

I smiled, looking at Elijah. That could've been said for us too. Even if we'd never expected him, he was our blessing in so many more ways than just helping to free us. I couldn't resist leaning over and kissing his temple.

Elijah stirred as I did, his blue eyes slowly opening, "Mommy?" he whispered.

"Good morning. Well, I guess afternoon." I greeted him with a smile.

"It is?" Elijah rubbed his eyes as he turned onto his back.

"We all needed the rest, but why don't we get up now? You won't be able to sleep tonight if we keep laying here like this." Chris told him.

Yes, it was hard for us to get up with how comfortable we'd been, but he was right. We needed to get up and see what was going on. I was curious about whether Will and Elena were up too.

We could hear voices as we opened the bedroom door. Coming down the hallway, I saw Will sitting on the couch in the den room with Elena sitting in front of him. He was almost finished braiding her hair for her. I also noticed that her clothes had been changed. Instead of the dress she'd come home in, she now wore a blue shirt and jeans with butterflies on them.

"There. All done." Will told her as he finished.

Elena smiled, moving her head a little, "I like it. It feels light." she responded.

"How long have you two been up?" I had to ask as I stepped out there.

"Only about an hour. I don't sleep that long most of the time, and apparently neither does she." Will answered.

Elijah had come out by then with Chris, and was immediately over with Elena.

"You're hair's pretty like that." he told her.

"Thanks." Elena beamed.

"Where'd she get the outfit?" Chris asked Will as he stood up with us.

"Saffron left a bag with some clothes for her this morning, but I haven't seen him or Jade since. Guess they decided that they didn't like her not having anything. There's another bag over there for Elijah too. It's not a lot, but it should tide them over until we can get out to buy them more." Will explained.

"Sounds like something they'd do." Chris commented.

I was watching the two children as they spoke. It was incredible to see how easily Elijah and Elena got along. It almost felt like they'd known each other their entire lives. Maybe they did when I thought about it. They had been meeting in dreams before.

After fixing some lunch, the three of us sat at the table together to talk while Elijah and Elena played in the den nearby. Not only had Jade and Saffron left some clothing, they'd also dropped off some toys for them to keep them occupied.

"So, what are your thoughts going forward now? You're really gonna stick around to let Elena keep seeing Elijah?" Chris was asking Will.

"That's my plan. I've been thinking about it, and I don't think it would be fair to her to take her so far away from him right now. Besides, he's the only one really like her. He might understand her growing up better than anyone else could and vice versa." Will reasoned.

"I agree with that, and I'd like it if we could get to know her too. She's such a sweet little girl." I commented as I glanced at her.

"She really is." Will agreed. He let out a long breath, "I'm just glad that she was able to know Chloe too before all of this. It sucks that she'll have to grow up without her now."

I read between the lines on that one. It wasn't just that he was sad about losing Chloe. He also had other worries in mind.

"Are you worried about her not having a mom because she's a girl?" I had to ask.

"Kind of." Will admitted, "Girls do need a mom figure in their lives too. It's not that I can't take care of her. I just don't know if I'll be able to handle everything she might need as a girl."

"I get that, but I think you're worrying too much too. There are a lot of girls who are raised just by their dads, and they've done just fine." I reminded him.

"It's not like you have to do this alone either. Yeah, you're her father, but there are plenty of us around if you ever needed help. Hell, me and Ariana have had that too at times with Elijah. We all know that being parents isn't easy, and it never hurts to have others willing to step in and help." Chris added.

Will smiled and conceded, "Yeah, you all have a point, and I'm sure I'll be fine soon enough. It's just been a long four years."

"No kidding." I sighed.

"Yes, it has been quite a road to all of this, hasn't it?" Jade commented as he appeared near us.

I took in his appearance as he stood there. Although he looked much like he always had, his green eyes seemed much clearer to me now. It was a reflection of what had been done for him the night before.

"Where have you and Saffron been? I would've thought both of you would be waiting for us to get up." Chris responded.

"Just tying up any loose ends that we found, including meeting with those Seraphs to discuss things." Jade answered. He glanced over at where Elijah and Elena were. Both had stopped what they were doing, and Elijah smiled at him.

"Hi Jade." he greeted him.

No, he'd never had any fear of Jade or Saffron, although Elena didn't look so sure yet.

Jade nodded at him with a slight smile, though he'd noticed Elena looking wary, "It seems that our other little one is still feeling out being here." he noted.

"You and Saffron are going to have to give her time. Judiel did have her for those first four years, so the only thing she's known about Fallen is what she saw from him." Will reminded him.

That one pulled at my heart. I couldn't imagine what that must have been like for Elena growing up those first four years. The only good side to it was that she'd been able to be with her mother, and I had no doubt that Chloe had protected her however she could.

"Well, that is over now, and we wouldn't allow it to happen again." Saffron stated as he appeared near the children. He knelt down to Elena, flashing her a sincere smile. It was something he'd regained after his mind was cleansed, "You'll see in time that we'd never allow any harm to come to you ever again. There will be many others with us and your father to ensure that."

"It's okay Elena. Saffron and Jade are nice." Elijah reassured her.

Chris huffed, "I don't know that I'd say that much."

"Consider us nicer than what you've known now, though I'd warn you not to push your luck with me." Jade responded curtly.

"I'll push whatever needs to be pushed." Chris retorted.

I admit that all of this did feel at least somewhat normal, even if I was still processing the freedom that we now had. Even in the short five years that I'd known the truth about myself and all of this, the hunts had felt like a lifetime of fear to me. It nagged at me enough to where I had to mention it later that evening.

"Do you really think that we'll be able to get used to not looking over our shoulders all the time?" I wondered out loud.

Chris was sitting on the couch beside me, while Will and Zane sat in the chairs near us. Zane had come by the hour before with Kira to visit and check on us, and at this time, Kira had offered to watch Elijah and Elena while we took some time out to reflect on things. It had been easy for her to tell that we were still feeling a little off with all that had happened. Even though Will had be reluctant about leaving Elena, even just in there, he trusted Kira enough to relent on it.

It was pretty obvious to all of us now how much the last four years had affected Will. He'd spent that time constantly searching for Chloe and Elena, yet never able to find them. That was the real reason that he didn't return to us while I was pregnant with Elijah. Between Judiel and his father, he stood to lose everything. No one could blame him for being extremely wary now that he at least had Elena.

"It's a hard question to answer right now." Chris acknowledged. He sat back with his arms crossed, "We've been doing that our whole lives. It's not like you just give up habits like that."

Zane agreed, "No, I doubt that we will, at least not for a long time. There's also the fact that we will be called upon at times now to take care of things between the worlds too. What's been mostly on the Sumarians and the clans is now extended to us."

"It's not like we haven't been doing those kinds of things before. We always made it our business to know what creatures were around us at all times, and not just to cover our own asses. If there was a problem, then we took care of it. Even Norma was one of those cases." Will pointed out.

"Which you so lovingly handed to me." Chris remarked sarcastically.

"I said I had things to take care of too and I couldn't pull away from them. It was bad enough to deal with my father and all of his demands. Then I come back and see how you messed up enough to let Ariana end up hurt." Will argued.

"Isn't this an old argument now?" Zane interrupted, sounding as exasperated as he looked. He let out a long breath as he continued, "Either way, things have changed for the better for us, and we know that it's going to take us some time to adjust to certain aspects of it. But we've also had the advantage in the last four years of being around the clans and their Seraphs. I for one feel like I've learned a lot from that, things that I never quite understood about the worlds or myself before."

Will sat up a little straighter, "Yeah, I can't argue with that one. It feels like every perception we had about them has been shattered since the day Ariana made contact with Kinsley."

"How did you manage that one anyway? I've known other Shadow Wings with your dream abilities, but none of them ever ended up going to a place even close to angels like him. They've always been blocked out." Chris noted.

"I'm not sure." I admitted, "It felt random when it happened for me too. But you know, I also wonder if Kinsley was the one who really brought me there."

"You think so huh?" Will said.

I nodded, "It's all been odd to me about how this played out. I mean, don't you think that they all acted like they knew Judiel was a Fallen when we were at that church? Lucifer said that too, and the more I think about it, the more I feel like Saffron and Jade kept alluding to it during the last few years. Maybe it's a stretch, but it's almost like things played out in some sort of plan for all of them." I explained.

This had been my suspicion ever since we'd left that church. It all just felt too convenient. Those Fallen had been able to access the church before the gates opened, and when I thought about it, Judiel hadn't fought as hard as he had in the times we'd run into him before. Had he resigned himself to his fate once he realized Elijah was there?

Will let out a small chuckle, "I believe it. My father always told me that nothing escapes the eyes on both sides, and between us, he told me decades ago that Judiel was a Fallen and should've been under him. They were just allowing him to masquerade at that time." he admitted.

"That doesn't make any sense. Why would they allow that when they knew all of the horrible things he was doing?" I protested.

"It was testing." Zane surmised, nodding his head.

"Testing?" I repeated, not quite following.

Chris had though, "Yeah, I think I get where you two are going with this. Like we said a long time ago, we're all pawns when it comes to the war between the Heavens and Hells. Everything that's been created is. Jade mentioned a long time ago that there are purges that take place within the Heavens from time to time. There's a hell of a lot of angels there, and there's always been a cycle of those who fall and those created to replace them, and even at times the return of those who seek the cleanse themselves. The purges only happen periodically though, and Jade claimed at times that some Fallen can masquerade for centuries because of that." he explained.

"Now I get it. You think that we were pawns for Judiel to continue his hunts so that they could catch him, and the ones like him." I verified.

"It might seem like a dirty tactic, but let's face it, nothing in life is always going to be fair. Plus, there is the rule of chastising too. Let's face the facts here, especially given that three of us sitting here are the oldest left of our kind. We might've always tried to be good, but we haven't been saints by any means. While I don't believe now that they were out to kill us all, I do think that we were put through a lot of trials as part of our road to staying alive. We basically walked through Hell and survived, and our reward is what we've gotten." Will told us.

"I guess that makes sense, but it still doesn't feel that fair when you think about the ones who never really did anything and died anyway." I sighed.

"No, but it's like Will just said. Life isn't meant to be fair. We just survive and make the best of it, and be grateful for what we've gotten." Chris told me.

"Very true." Zane nodded, "But back to the subject of Kinsley. Do you believe that Ariana was called to him because he was ordered to step in?"

"I'm not completely sure that it was all orders. He probably was itching to step in for a long time along with those other two. Micah and Malakai haven't struck me as the type to idly sit by and watch others killed for no good reason either. They were probably just given the go ahead in that time, and since Kinsley's considered the leader of the three, he was the one who was given the task of starting it." Will answered.

It all did make sense now, though I was also glad that it had happened that way. I'd always be grateful that I met Kinsley Martell, not only for what he'd done for us, but also for how he'd shown me that not all angels were vengeful against us.

Chris looked amused, "I still think it's pretty interesting how a Violet Seraphim is the leader of those three when they have a Sapphire among them. I heard that Malakai even served directly under St. Michael. You'd think he'd be leading the whole thing with the clans." he commented.

"Well, it isn't that odd when you really think about it. Violets are peacemakers, and often very good at maintaining it whether it's through negotiation or fighting. Kinsley probably tends to have more insight than most, so it made him a natural choice." Zane offered.

"You think we'll be seeing more of him and the others now?" I asked them.

"I don't doubt it. I'd imagine that all of the clan Nephilim are interested in knowing the Shadow Wings more now that they have the chance." Zane answered, smiling slightly at his own words.

Will smiled too, "I can't say I mind that. I already liked getting to know the ones I've gotten to meet, and I'm looking forward to meeting more of them now. They really haven't been any different from us."

"No, and I do feel bad for misjudging them at first." I confessed.

"It's just nature, and the past is the past. We can always move forward from it." Chris reminded me.

The door opened before any more could be said, and I looked over to see Elena come in. Kira and Elijah were with her.

"Hope we're not interrupting, but they wanted to be back with you now." Kira told us.

"It's fine. We were just talking some things over." Zane assured her.

Elijah came over to me and Chris, sitting between us with his Rubix cube. It was one of his favorite toys, and he liked moving it around whenever he was bored. I noticed Elena go over and sit on Will's lap, still holding the doll that Zane and Kira had brought for her. It was a cute ragdoll with button eyes.

"You all were talking for quite a while. Are you doing alright?" Kira asked as she sat in the free chair near us.

"We're good. Just going over some stuff that was on our minds." Will assured her.

"Thanks for watching them for a bit. It's been a long two days." I added.

Kira smiled, "I don't mind at all. It kind of felt like going back to when Peyton was that little. I guess I miss it more than I realized." she admitted.

"They do grow quickly, don't they?" Zane commented.

"Too quick." Will agreed as Elena rested against him. She looked tired again. I wondered how much sleep she'd actually gotten after we'd returned.

"By the way, I heard what you all were talking about before we came in, and I do agree with you about all of that." Kira added.

"You do huh?" Chris said, sounding a little skeptical.

Kira sat back a little in her chair, "I do. It's not that I'm saying I blame Kinsley or any of them for anything either. Mark and I grew up with Kinsley always telling us that things needed to happen for a reason, and that they weren't always going to be fair. I didn't really get it when I was little, but I feel like I'm starting to as I get older now. You're probably right about the whole chastising thing too. None of us are perfect and never will be. We probably do have things happen to make up for the things we do." she continued.

Everything was fitting together in my mind as she said this and I thought about what Will was saying before.

"It's all about balance, isn't it? That's how everything works." I surmised.

"That does make a lot of sense, and I could see where the Seraphs hands were bound in many ways with that. Things needed to play themselves out however they would to ensure that balance remained. Even now, we're the balance for the families, and probably were always intended to be." Zane added.

Will shrugged, sitting back with Elena, who was now falling asleep against him, "It really doesn't matter that much anymore. The hardest part is over now and we can move on how we're meant to. Even if we don't know what the future might hold, at least we get to see it."

He was right. We did have a future ahead of us now that we could look forward to. There was no more living in fear of death just because of what we were. Maybe it wouldn't always be easy, but if we could survive all of this, then I was sure we could survive anything.

Elijah put his cube down, turning to Chris, "Daddy, is this going to be home now?" he asked him.

"I haven't made up my mind. What do you think? Do you like it here?" Chris answered.

"Yes." Elijah nodded. He shifted a bit to look out at the darkened yard, "I want to stay here. I like the yard and the trees and the water, and I like how it feels in this house. It feels like home."

The thought briefly crossed my mind that his feelings about this home could be the same sort of genetic memory that I had, but I let it go. It wasn't like I hated this house. As I said before, it carried many memories, both good and bad. I couldn't see myself letting it go even if I thought I wanted to.

"You know Chris, I'd like to stay too. Maybe this place did start out with bad intentions, but it's always drawn us back. Would it be weird to say that it's like we're meant to be here?" I spoke up.

Chris smiled, "No, I wouldn't call it weird. Besides, I like this place too. Elijah's right. It's comfortable being here, and I think it would be a good home for him to grow up in."

"It is a nice area, and I like how quiet this place is. I wouldn't mind finding a nice place to settle down with Elena around here too. It's been forever since I've been able to live like that." Will added.

"We could always come around too. I like the house that Mark has in the next town, so maybe he'll let us rent it." Kira suggested to Zane.

Zane nodded, "I'd be for that. After a lifetime of moving around, I agree with Will that it would be very pleasant to settle down, at least for a while."

Yes, in the end, I think I was starting to realize that we all find our place, even after so many hardships. Even if I didn't know what the future may hold, especially with what Elijah and Elena truly were in soul, I still looked forward to it, both with my friends and the man I loved. We belonged in this world, and we'd always make the best of our lives now.