Twenty-Five

Archer

Over the next three days, we discovered that taking care of two babies was wildly different from taking care of one baby.

For one, both babies had a different internal schedule, which meant that when one was hungry, the other had just fallen asleep, and we had to juggle them to make sure they didn't wake the other.

Baby Fae—we'd taken to calling the fae baby that, since neither of us felt comfortable naming him until we knew for sure we'd be keeping him—wasn't very fussy, which was a blessing, though Gunner seemed determined to make up for it. I thought he felt jealous of the newcomer, and didn't feel like sharing our attention.

I'd had to go back to work since I couldn't exactly tell my friends we had a second baby at home, but I'd checked in with Lux every chance I could, and rushed home the moment the clock hit five.

The worst part of the whole thing was waiting to hear from Artemus and the king. Not knowing whether the baby would stay with us was awful, and despite my best attempts not to, I was starting to get attached to him, and so was Lux. He tried to act like he wasn't, but I'd seen him with the baby, and I could tell he truly adored the child.

When I returned home that evening, I found both babies sitting on the playmat, with Gunner handing Baby Fae some of his toys one by one while Baby Fae took them, eyed them curiously, and then placed them on the mat. The sight made me smile, and I shared a glance with Lux, who sat on the armchair, watching them play.

I could hear utensils puttering around in the kitchen, and for a moment I worried we had visitors, but then I realized Lux was using his magic to cook us some dinner. I'd learned that he preferred to do the actual cooking instead of magicking up the food, but clearly he'd made a compromise so he could spend time with the kids. It was a very Lux thing to do, and I walked across the room to settle on the arm of the armchair, turning so I was facing him.

"Hey," I murmured, reaching down to cup his jaw. He smiled up at me, his blue eyes sparkly as ever, and I leaned down to press a kiss to his lips. I'd missed him today.

Since the arrival of Baby Fae, we'd barely had any time for each other. After confessing my feelings to him, I'd hoped to spend some time making him feel loved, but I'd had to hit pause on that. I didn't think we'd be able to do much of anything until we got out of this limbo, until we knew for sure if Baby Fae would be staying or leaving.

"We missed you," Lux murmured against my lips, and I smiled as I leaned back, gazing into his eyes.

"I missed you guys too," I said, then glanced down at the babies. "How have they been?"

"Good! Gunner gets fussy if he doesn't get to play with his new friend."

"It looks like they're getting along."

"Yeah. I just hope Gunner doesn't get too attached. At least, not until we know what's going to happen to Baby Fae," Lux said, and I hummed in agreement. It would be awful if any of us got attached to Baby Fae, then had to say goodbye to him, but a part of me also hoped that he had parents somewhere out there who were worried about him and wanted him back.

I leaned into Lux as I watched the babies, and we stayed like that for a while before Lux declared dinner was ready. I excused myself to freshen up, and tried to keep my mind off Lux and all the things I wanted to do to him as I showered. I knew we weren't going to get a chance to be together until we figured out a system for the babies, and I knew neither of us were willing to do that until we knew Baby Fae's fate. I hated dangling in the middle like this, and I hoped the Otherworlders would find an answer for us soon.

After the shower, Lux and I ate on the couch as the babies played on the mat, and Lux told me about their day, making me wish I'd been there with them. It'd been a while since I started going back to work, and yet I wished every day that I could stay home and spend more time with my family. I wondered if all new working parents felt that way, and if so, how did they deal with it?

At least I was lucky enough to have a partner who could teleport into my office with our baby whenever I missed them too much, but there were only so many times I could ask him to do that without raising suspicion.

It was Saturday the next day, which meant we could sleep in, and Lux was adamant that I take the opportunity, and that he'd make sure the babies didn't disturb me. While I wanted to argue, I had been getting less-than-adequate sleep this last week, what with the intruder and then the second baby. I knew I'd be useless to all three of them without proper rest, so I relented to Lux's orders.

Of course, I slept like the dead, and I was sure I could've slept a few more hours when Lux shook me awake.

The sleep clinging to me vanished instantly when I looked up into Lux's worried face, taking in the creases on his forehead and the downward tilt of his lips.

"What's wrong?" I asked, sitting upright at once, my eyes scanning the room as if I'd be able to spot the threat.

"Nothing's wrong," Lux hurried to assure me, his hand coming up to rest on the nape of my neck. "Artemus and King Damien are here."

Oh.

I'd been hoping for their arrival for the last few days, but now that they were here, I was afraid to hear what they had to say. Judging by Lux's expression, so was he.

Lux

We walked back into the living room with our hands tightly clasped together, and Artemus and King Damien glanced up at us from their spot on the couch as we came in.

I waved for Archer to take a seat on the armchair, then perched on its arm, both of us facing the two royals. I wanted to demand they tell us what they'd discovered right now, but I knew better than to blurt it out. Artemus and King Damien were some of the kindest people I knew, but they were still the rulers of Otherworld, and I couldn't forget that. They had the power to make me leave the human world, make me leave Archer and Gunner—not that I thought they'd ever do that—and that wasn't something I could ignore.

"Did you find his parents?" Archer asked, breaking the awkward silence, and King Damien nodded quickly.

"We did, with Tharion's help." He glanced from Archer to me, then back again, before exhaling loudly, and somehow, I knew before he'd started speaking what his answer would be. It was obvious in the way his lips turned down a little, in the way his eyes darkened with sympathy. "They knew he'd been taken, and they were frantic in their search for him."

I should've been happy. Baby Fae had a family who loved him, who was worried about him and wanted him back. That was good, wasn't it? Yet all I felt was sadness. I was sad I wouldn't get to raise him with Archer. Despite my best efforts, I'd gotten attached.

"I'm sorry, Calux, Archer," Artemus said softly, and I shook my head.

"No, no. There's no need to be sorry. This is a good thing, right? We should be happy," I said, glancing at Archer, who gave me a smile, his own eyes brimming with sadness. He'd grown attached too, hadn't he?

"Yeah, we should be. Baby—" He cut himself off, glancing at Artemus. "What's his name?"

"His fae name is a bit...lengthy, but his common name is Sabre."

I blinked, then glanced at Archer, who was already looking at me. Another weapon name. It was like he'd meant to find us from the start, as if fate—not the one we knew, since they were responsible for fated bonds only—had led the brownie to our door.

"Sabre," Archer murmured, glancing down at the baby in question. He was busy in his own world with Gunner, both of them already best friends. I wondered if Gunner would miss Sabre when he was gone. "I'm glad Sabre has a family that cares for him. Do we know how he ended up here?"

King Damien wrinkled his nose as he said the word, as if merely speaking it made him feel dirty somehow. "Politics."

I supposed there wasn't any other explanation needed. The fae were infamous for their politics, for all the schemes and deceptions they carried out in their race for the throne.

"The perpetrators are being dealt with, so Sabre will be safe now," Artemus assured us, and I sighed, knowing there was no way we'd be keeping Sabre.

"That's good to hear," Archer murmured, and I nodded in agreement.

Artemus told us they were meeting Sabre's parents to return him in an hour, so we spent the remaining time we had lavishing Sabre with attention. I didn't know if he'd remember us once he was all grown up, or if his parents would ever tell him about us, but I hoped they would.

Just in case they didn't, though, I used a spell I hadn't used in a long, long time and murmured a few words in Sabre's ears, putting them into his subconscious for him to recall once he was older.

It was a spell demons used in the olden days to get supes to summon us. We'd find younger supes who seemed like they'd grow up powerful, and we'd whisper a suggestion in their mind with our names, leading them to grow up interested in demons. Usually, they'd find a way to summon us, and then we could make a deal that benefitted us both.

I'd used the same concept, but instead of summoning me, I'd given him the idea that he could always call on me for help if he was ever in any danger. If he used the spell I'd given him, I'd be able to enter the faerie realm without a problem, as long as it was to help him.

I didn't know if Artemus or King Damien noticed what I'd done, but they didn't mention it, and I didn't bring it up either.

Once the hour was up, Archer and I pressed kisses to Sabre's forehead before reluctantly handing him over to Artemus, who cradled him in the way of people who'd never held a baby before. I adjusted his arms so Sabre was upright and showed him the proper way to hold him, then offered to magick up a stroller, which he declined.

It was hard to watch them go, but between one blink and the next, the two Otherworlders disappeared with Sabre, leaving us behind.

Walking back to Gunner, Archer and I settled on either side of him on the playmat. Being close to him, to both of them, made me feel a little less sad about losing Sabre.

Archer placed a hand on my knee, and I placed mine on top of his, smiling when he flipped his palm up to tangle his fingers with mine. "We're going to be okay," he said with a determination that made my heart squeeze. I knew he was right, that even though it felt like Sabre had taken a piece of my heart with him, the wound he'd left behind would heal. It might take a little time, but we were going to be okay.

Nodding, I placed my other hand on Gunner's head, ruffling his wavy hair. He babbled happily, crawling over to me. Picking him up, I placed him in my lap, and Archer rested his hand on Gunner's back. With both of them so close to me, I found myself relaxing for the first time since the night Sabre first came into our lives.

Finding Sabre wasn't something I'd ever expected to happen, but then again, neither had I expected to find my fated mate in Archer.

Getting summoned to guard the human realm from the dark souls and Mammon was the best thing that'd ever happened to me, and losing Sabre didn't change that. As long as I had Gunner and Archer, I'd be okay.