Chapter 4

When I get inside,Fox hands me a small box, and I open it, pulling out a miniature table and a matching chair. I smile at my man, grabbing my tool box from the linen closet as I skip to the table that exists in Bellamy's bathroom that these minis are modeled on. Fox follows me and watches as I place the mini-table on top of the big table. He loves these miniatures as much as he loves the full size tables he collects.

I pull out a small hammer and tiny nails, and I find a wall stud before hammering two nails into the wall, using a level to make sure they're even. Then I hang the chair on the wall above the table and pull out three more chairs from the cabinet below the sink. I've been collecting small chairs for a few weeks now just so I can surprise him with this. I take my time to mount them on the wall in an appealing pattern, and when I'm done, I turn to Fox, who looks like I've given him the most amazing gift anyone's ever thought of.

I knew he'd love the wall mounted chairs. It was the logical next step.

He reaches for me, pulls me into his body, and ravages my mouth, pouring all his gratitude and love for me into that kiss. I wholly approve of this positive reinforcement. I definitely deserve kisses.

"Why are you kissing in my bathroom?" Bellamy deadpans, interrupting what could easily become a reward quickie.

Fox squeezes my ass and ends the kiss, pulling away so I can shoot Bellamy a disgruntled glare.

Bellamy's eyebrows shoot up when his eye catches on the mini chairs hanging on the wall directly over the table in front of the commode. "Just what in the ever loving fuck is that?" he demands, pulling Fox out of the way so he can push in between us. "You are not decorating my bathroom with wall chairs!"

Oh. Oh no. Bellamy's yelling. I've finally found the limit of his politeness.

I take out my phone and immediately hit the record button.

"You already have way too fucking many tables all over the house; you are not starting up with chairs. There will be no room to walk! Papa, this is not happening, you are not—"

Fox grabs Bellamy's hand to stop him from ripping the chairs off the wall, spinning his Acolyte to face him. "No."

Fox's one word order sends a shiver of distilled desire through me, a potent, heady sensation that makes my already raring cock pulse with need.

Bellamy's face pales and then he flushes bright red, and then he tips his head back and knocks it on the wall. "Why are you so obsessed with furniture, and why did you decide to feed it with minis?" he demands of me.

I smile brightly and hug Fox from behind, pushing my hard on into his ass so he knows what he does to me.

Fox releases Bellamy and with a small smile replies, "Because he loves me."

That's exactly right.

Bellamy huffs with indignation, shakes his head, and takes a deep breath. "You have a guest, and it's rude to make out in the bathroom while they're snooping around our house," he points out, reminding me that we do actually have a guest, and maybe Fox and I got a little distracted with the fires of our eternal passion.

Fox snorts a laugh, turning to kiss my temple. "I'm going to shower; you go figure out what Akile wants."

We washed up in the Captain's bathroom to get the blood and grime off, but Fox could definitely use a shower. Bellamy too. I point to the shower behind my son and give him a meaningful once over.

Bellamy rolls his eyes. "Of course I'm going to bathe. I don't actually like being covered in the blood of my enemies."

I give him a wink to make sure he knows he looks good covered in the blood of his enemies, because there's nothing sexier than competence (I'm an expert on this kink), and then I follow Fox out of the bathroom and go in search of my new bestie.

I find Akile in the living room sitting on my couch and reading my latest romance book. I've been on a ‘cest/pseudo-cest kick lately and have fallen down the fantasy/paranormal rabbit hole. Don't side-eye me; taboo is exciting, and this one is about a young alpha who puts a mating bite on his omega brother to save the brother from a miserable life with a cruel alpha. It's fun, I swear. You should read it if you're into that kind of thing.

Anyway.

"Who'd have thought I'd be into brother-cest," Akile comments, setting the book down.

He can't have gotten that far into the book. I swear it's only been fifteen minutes since we got here, if that long.

It's a good book and a fun taboo.

I send that after sitting down on the couch with him. There's room enough for Fox between us, but we're close enough that we don't look like strangers either. I like that. It feels right for us. Besides, we're not total strangers; we've been messaging back and forth, and that's given us a firm foundation for this blossoming of bosom buddies.

Hmm. That brings up the image of sharing a pair of boobs like pillows. It's a little weird; I think I'll try a different way to describe our friendship.

So what exactly is it that you want us to do? And did you ask the depot to give us vacation?

I'm using the group text thread so that my men know what I'm up to while they're showering.

"Do you want me to answer aloud, or should I type it out into the group text?" he asks curiously without a hint of teasing. He's at least serious about communication, and I like that about him.

Me: Text it, that way Fox and Bellamy aren't excluded.

Bestie: Sure thing. Give me a minute to type things out. And no, I didn't ask for vacation for you; but my friend did, and then my other friend approved it.

I'm sure he will explain who his friends are and why they need us to go on vacation.

I wait, watching him type out a long message. It takes him at least five minutes to get his first message typed out the way he wants it before he sends.

Bestie: Have you noticed how much the world is changing right before our eyes. We've gone from a struggle to rebalance good and evil to a complete balance in a matter of days, but before that, something started happening when the first Acolyte to appear in so long we forgot that Harbingers can claim Acolytes popped into existence. Before that, a Reaper who's worked without a Harbinger for a decade (and struggled to keep one for hundreds of years before that) finally found one that wants to stick around. The world is changing quickly, and it has the attention of the cherubs.

Bestie: The older generation of cherubs, the ones who put in place the power structure that we currently have, are so entrenched in the power structure that they're fighting the change, but the young cherubs, the ones like me, know that what's happening is good and have started working for it behind our parents' backs. We've been actively seeking the right Harbinger. I was recruited into the organization I work for specifically to find and make contact with The Harbinger, but like I told you before, I'm not one of the decision makers. I'm one of the cherubs that have been looking for the right Harbinger. And I found him. Well, you. I found you. You're The Harbinger.

Bestie: Huh. I don't have to say "with caps" because it's written out and seeable. That's fun.

Me: The written word does have some benefits.

It's true.

Me: What is the organization you're talking about?

Future Husband Even If I Have To Buy The Ring Myself: What are the requirements for Romily to be the right Harbinger?

Our First Child: What is Romily the right Harbinger for?

I guess my men are done with their showers, or possibly they're texting from the shower; both of their phones are water resistant, and we installed phone holders in all the bathrooms because Gregory "gets bored when he's washing his ass."

Bestie: Good and Evil are thought of as two sides of the scale. We want everything to be in balance, right? But there's been research done by some cherub scholars that suggests that there's a problem with that metaphor.

Akile sends that and looks at me as he thinks.

Our First Child: What's the problem?

Akile huffs and types again, shaking his head.

Bestie: The problem is that people don't take into account the scale that good and evil are balancing on. Sometimes we call it justice and it's represented by a blind person, but that's not right. The scale is neutrality, and we've completely ignored that universal force. We understand and work for the force of good, and we understand and fight against the force of evil, but we ignore the force of neutrality, and ok, yes, this has worked for three thousand years, ever since the cherubs instituted the system of governance that we currently have, but it's the hard way of working for balance.

The scale. That's interesting. I've never considered that the universe might have a neutral force like good and evil, but that makes sense. There are plenty of things that don't have a moral value. My socks are completely neutral and wearing socks isn't a matter of good or evil unless you're wearing them with sandals. There are a lot of things like that that aren't governed by good or evil, and so it makes sense that there would be a universal force that rules over them.

Oh wait.

Me: Does that mean that there's a neutral Avatar like Annette and Santanos?

Bestie: It means that there should be, and there isn't.

Me: Well shit.

Future Husband Even If I Have To Buy The Ring Myself: Well shit.

Our First Child: Well shit.

I laugh at the texts that appear almost simultaneously.

Me: I AM NOT THE RIGHT PERSON FOR THE JOB.

I put that out into the universe because there is no way I want to be an Avatar, thank you very much. I've already got my hands full with a single Reaper, an Acolyte, and an Auger. Sure, I'm waiting to find my Arbiter too.

Arbiters are the people who run the depot. They assign tasks to the Reapers, run the banking system, and apparently payout on assassination contracts. Most recently they've been charged with sending aid to the people affected by the balancing act of Good and Evil. Edovard went before the council to petition for an aid program, and the council agreed to make it happen. Arbiters are responsible for providing that aid.

I look over at Akile, wondering if he's the next in line to be adopted. I really am on the lookout to complete the set, and all I need is an Arbiter.

Well, I guess I also need another Avatar. I've already got Santanos as a son-in-law, and Annette is my Daddy—I wonder how the neutral Avatar is going to fit in.

Akile shakes his head at me and snorts, typing out his next text.

Bestie: Don't look at me like that. I'm not the next Avatar. We haven't even freed the magic that would unleash that back into the universe so that it can pick a new Avatar.

Wait. What? The neutral universal force is trapped?

Future Husband Even If I Have To Buy The Ring Myself: Did the cherubs trap a universal force with magic when they instituted the current system of governance?

That text chimes in as Fox walks into the living room with wet hair finger-combed backwards. He's wearing his usual black-on-black yoga pants and an A shirt even though he's technically on vacation. I don't blame him; it's looking like this is going to be a working vacation for us.

His face probably looks blank to Akile, but to me he appears grim, and through the connection we have, I get the sense that he's on the edge of furious. Fox isn't the type to allow injustice, and if someone locked up and caged a natural force of the universe, he's not going to allow that to stand.

Huh. Our telepathic connection is growing by leaps and bounds today. I just got a real sense of his inner emotions through the bond. Meditation really works! I don"t know how it did when I fell asleep, but look at us go!

Before Akile starts texting again, Bellamy follows Fox in, and Akile looks at me. "Is it ok to talk now?"

Again with the deference to my preference. Gah, no wonder we're besties.

I nod as Fox sits next to me and pulls me into his lap. Bellamy sits in an armchair, and Akile gives me and Fox a sappy look before talking. I love that he's happy for me about the love of my life.

"The short answer is yes. We're still researching what happened, but we've only been looking into this for about a year, so you'll have to excuse us. The cherubs who instituted the council and created the system that we use for keeping the balance appear to have imprisoned the force of neutrality," Akile replies with a grimace and a shake of his head. "It wasn't very forward thinking of them."

"Why would they do that?" Bellamy asks in a tone that reflects the shocked appalment in me too.

Akile crinkles his adorable nose. "Because they didn't see a need for it, and they didn't like the Avatar of Neutrality at the time. Did you know that cherubs are supposed to fall under the purview of neutrality? We're meant to be neutral."

I can"t say I"m surprised that my bestie is a cherub.

It makes sense to me; I've been completely enamored of all the cherubs I've met since I started up with Fox. It totally makes sense that I would pick one to be my best friend.

Bellamy sighs. "You"ve decided to keep him."

I smile brightly at him, wiggling on Fox's lap because I can't really contain all my joy inside myself, and sometimes wiggles need to escape.

Fox immediately relaxes under me, subtly pressing his hard dick into my ass.

"Obviously he's keeping me. I'm his bestest bestie forever. We've been through so much together. You can't just ignore the bonds that we've forged in the fires of adversity. We are connected at a soul level. Romily and I will be friends until the end of time, if not longer."

I nod in agreement with my new best friend, and Bellamy gives us both a deadpan look. "Adversity? What adversity?"

Akile's eyes go wide and he looks like that question hurts him in the depth of his heart. "How could you question the trials and tribulations that we've been through? We've been through death threats, abductions, murder, massacres, and even actual trials. Everything that we've been through together and you're questioning my loyalty?"

We texted on and off every time something important came up since he stole Dakota's phone, so I guess that counts as going through trials and tribulations together.

I point to Akile and nod, staring at Bellamy to make sure he knows I'm on the cherub's side.

Bellamy stares at me awestruck by how welcoming and wonderful I am.

(This is my story, I'm allowed to describe my family's emotions the way I see them.)

"Your willingness to overlook the red flags of cherubs is going to get us into trouble. This guy is the reason I was abducted, remember?"

He didn't abduct you. Although, you do bring up a good point. Why did your organization abduct Bellamy?

"Well, that ties into your being the right Harbinger. We're looking for the next Avatar. We think we need them to unleash the magic, so we were testing whether Bellamy was the next Avatar of Neutrality," Akile replies, dusting his shirt as if there's something there marring his button up. He's wearing a brightly colored peacock patterned shirt with complementing blue slacks, and the clothes definitely match the personality of the wearer. I could never get away with it, but he looks fabulous.

"You think Romily is going to find the next Avatar?" Fox questions suspiciously.

"Yes," Akile replies, eyeing Fox like he's not sure if Fox is going to kill him or not. Or maybe he's measuring if Fox is the next Avatar.

Fox better not be. We are not to the point in our relationship that we would gracefully handle disruptions to our mating dances. I would figure out a way to get loud and annoying to The Universe real fast if that happened. (No yeah, Akile is right about the caps thing.) No one would rest until the responsibility of avatarness disappeared from my Fox. I'm not sharing him… except for with our family who deserve the best oppa Fox can be. Family beats Universe.

I kiss Fox so that Akile knows he's safe (hopefully he was worried about that, and it wasn't the Avatar thing), and because Fox is sexy as fuck and I really want to dick him down. Plus, I'm literally sitting on my lover; it would take Fox at least a few seconds to move me, and that might give Akile enough of a head start to get to safety before Fox caught up. I mean, Fox is definitely going to win in a one on one with Akile, but he'd never actually hurt my bestie; it would hurt me, and Fox would never do that on purpose.

Akile continues, "Romily is The Harbinger. He's the omen of change. He's gathering all the elements we need to establish the force of neutrality in our system of governance. If he hasn't already found the next Avatar, he's going to find them soon along with a new Arbiter. The depot is going to go through some major upheavals as soon as we unleash the force of neutrality, because Arbiters are meant to be cherubs and those of cherubic descent. In the past, about half of the Arbiters were cherubs and the other half were of mixed descent."

My bestie smiles at me again, but it's slightly pained. "You're of mixed descent you know. We looked into your ancestry because you can see past glamour. So far we've found a fae grandparent and a cherub ninety-seven generations back. Your cherub ancestor was one of the few who opposed the new system and met with a convenient accident days before the new system was implemented."

The cherubs killed my ancestors? That seems a bit extreme.

Akile huffs in disgust. "They needed every cherub alive in one accord in order to imprison the force of neutrality. They killed every cherub that didn't agree with them because they needed a unanimous vote. It took a thousand years before anyone started questioning the imbalance of power. Even the people most directly affected by the change didn't notice right away."

How far back is the fae grandparent?

Akile shrugs. "Just a grandparent. Your mother was half-fae. The report said you're a quarter elf of the Haegan line."

I blink at him. I'm not. I'm human. I have absolutely no magic at all except I can see through glamour.

Akile smiles adorably and reaches out to squeeze my hand. "We did notice that you were lacking some basic elven magic. We can see what's going on with that if you want."

Yes. I absolutely want.

If I'd ever had even a drop of elven power, I would have had more than I've ever had, and I would never have ended up homeless and on the street. Everything is ok now, but it wasn't four months ago, and I think I need to know if it could have been.

"We'll have someone check you out. We just have to vet someone who can do it," Akile promises

Silence bounces between us as we digest everything, then Bellamy gets us back on track, asking, "How did you find out about what your parents did?"

Akile presses his lips together in a grim line. "The cherubs didn't. The cherubs who were alive when they did this refuse to talk about it, and the people who've been trying to figure out how to fix it have only been moderately successful in discovering what happened. We still don't have any confirmation from an eye witness, but we've figured out what happened based on the information we've uncovered and the voids in it. The cherubs wiped the community's collective memory about the Avatar of Neutrality, and the blank spaces fill in a lot of the gaps for those of us who've been researching this.

"We've had to hide all of our activity from our parents, and it's gotten more difficult since Romily became a Harbinger. With things speeding up, it's more difficult to keep up with the security needs." He looks between the three of us. "So, are you in? We assume you want to restore what was stolen from the world, but I suppose I should ask if you're interested in correcting a great injustice."

"We're in," Fox confirms for all of us.

Was there ever any doubt?