Epilogue:
After their family had returned home to their condo, Elisa told Golaith everything that had happened. Everything that she could remember clearly, anyway. She admittedly glossed over a few things. The original reports of her injuries, for one thing. No one could look at her now, and think that she'd gotten so much as a splinter in her finger the night before. Even the circles under her eyes were gone.
She didn't go into details on her dream, either. She told him, but in very little detail with no mention of the "gifts" that were supposedly given to her. After all, if it had been nothing but a hallucination, she did not want him to have to deal with that kind of disappointment… Or maybe it was her disappointment if it wasn't true that she couldn't deal with.
It was something she was going to have to examine for herself later, she decided.
Afterwards, they both spent time with Liam. Elisa could see the regret in Goliath's eyes that Liam had been scared all day because of his actions, and Goliath made a point of spending some "boy time" together with his son.
While the two of them retreated outside, Elisa had decided to make them all some honest-to-goodness hot chocolate. One that involved actual cocoa powder and hot milk, instead of the stuff that came in a pre-mixed packet. While the milk heated, Elisa hurried to change into something more… her.
Once the chocolate had been made, she carried a pair of mugs to the sliding doors that overlooked the courtyard and paused.
Elisa could only shake her head at the sight of her boys, heads bent in conversation, as they sat together in the open courtyard of their penthouse condo. Goliath was an amazing father, especially for someone who had been raised without the traditional parental roles himself. He had claimed to not know how to be a parent, but he was truly magical with Liam sometimes.
"Hot Chocolate's done," Elsia called, grinning as Liam's head whipped around and he flashed her a big grin.
"Careful," Elisa reminded him quietly as he took one of the mugs in his hands. He blew on it, causing the white cloud of steam to lighten briefly before building up again in the chilled air.
Liam walked slowly, cautiously, as he made his way to the kitchen table with his mug.
"How did it go?" Elisa asked quietly, joining her husband where he remained sitting on the stone bench.
"I think it went well," Goliath said, still looking uneasy. "I am still more sorry that you will know that I reacted that way in front of our son."
"Hey," Elisa said, giving him a hip bump. "You know what I was just thinking?"
"What?" He asked, turning to look at her quizzically.
"I was thinking about just how amazing you are at the whole 'being a father' thing," Elisa admitted.
He groaned, then looked down at his hands. "I do not feel as if I am doing well at all."
"Trust me," Elisa said, giving him an encouraging smile. "You're doing fine."
They sat in a comfortable silence for a few moments, both taking a moment to collect their thoughts.
"Have you heard anything about the man responsible for the damage at the pier?" Goliath asked quietly, almost reluctant to break to silence.
"No," Elisa said with a sigh. "I have two more days before I'm even allowed back in the precinct, and until then, I guess Maria's put everyone under a gag order to enforce my getting rest." Elisa paused as a thought occurred to her , then she laughed. "And so, in an effort to, quote "take it easy", I took my son to a fun little fundraising fair, and this happened." Elisa turned her laughing face to Goliath, "Do you think she'll ever encourage me to take time off ever again after this?"
Goliath's shoulders began to shake with laughter. "No. I do not believe that she will ever again ask you to take time off to relax."
The couple laughed together again.
"What's so funny?" Liam asked, joining them outside once more.
"Nothing," Elisa said, swiping at her son's chocolate mustache that lingered on his lip from his drink.
"Hey, dad," Liam said, hopping up on his father's knee. "What's that one?" Liam asked, pointing to a line of stars in the sky.
And that's how they ended their day, spending their time outside as Goliath entertained them by identifying star patterns and constellations in the sky, and telling them the stories of their origins.