The hours after his parents left were some of the longest Cer'iq had ever experienced. Seated in front of the window in the living room of his aunt and uncle's house, his eyes trained on the village square, waiting for the first glimpse of his mother's wild red hair and his father's shining armor.
"Watching for them isn't going to make them return any sooner," Gyendal pointed out, coming up behind him with a mug of tea in hand.
Cer'iq nodded his head but said nothing.
Gyendal sighed and sat down next to him. "So, are you going to tell me why you are angry at your father? What did the fool do this time?"
Cer'iq hesitated. He was tempted to tell his uncle about it, but a part of him was reluctant to do so. Uncle Gyendal had never really gotten along with his father that great. He wasn't sure why, but there had always been this mutual hostility between them. As far as he could figure, it had something to do with how Uncle Gyendal tried to take over the world.
Yet, as reluctant as he was, he was still tempted. There were a few unanswered questions in his head that needed answering. Maybe his wise uncle would know the answers.
Prying his eyes away from the window, he sat down on the couch next to his uncle.
"He and mother were arguing… about you… Mother said something about how she probably would have turned you even if you hadn't asked and then Father called her something… Demon Spawn…"
His uncle didn't seem surprised or repulsed by what he had just said in the slightest, or if he did, he certainly didn't show it.
"So, he's back to calling her that again."
Cer'iq looked up at him in confusion. He was back to calling her that again? What did he mean by that?
"I suppose your parents never told you this, but they didn't always get along," the older vampire began to explain. "In fact, your father downright hated your mother when they were first married."
"Was it because she bit him on their wedding day?"
At that, Gyendal couldn't help but let out a slight chuckle. "That and because she stole his soul, using it as bait to trick him into marrying her."
The young half-vampire's eyes widened. This was news to him. His parents had never told him any of this.
As he thought about it, he recalled a conversation they had years earlier, right before Uncle Gyendal and Aunt Mel's wedding. Something about a shop where his mother had purchased a pendant that could steal souls. His father hadn't seemed too happy at the mention, but forgave his mother quickly enough. At the time, he hadn't been paying much attention to them, as he was focused on finding his friends.
"Your father was ungrateful and despised the gift of vampirism that had been given to him. He longed to be human, and tried many times to end his own cursed life. Of course, it never worked," Gyendal continued. "My sister is nothing if not persistent. She waited three-hundred years for the fool to love her back, and in the end he finally did, only after a near death encounter."
To say that Cer'iq was shocked was an understatement. He didn't know what to say to that. He knew about the near death encounter and everything that came after that, but he never knew about the three-hundred years that came before. Though, he understood why his parents hadn't told him. They probably thought he wouldn't understand, or just didn't know how to tell him. It certainly seemed like a difficult story to tell.
"But isn't it still mean to call mother a demon spawn?"
"Not really. She has a tendency of treating his insults as if he was flirting with her. I wouldn't take it too seriously if I were you."
Cer'iq laughed. That definitely sounded like something his mother would do. "We Ravenfoots have our own way of doing things," he quoted his mother.
"Indeed we do."
They sat and talked for a while longer about various things, though the primary topic was obviously magic; the very thing that bonded the uncle and nephew together. Cer'iq hung on his uncle's every word, fascinated by the depth of his knowledge. In fact, they were both so focused on their conversation that they didn't even notice Mel coming up the path to the house.
The sound of the front door opening finally alerted them of her return. Getting up off the couch, they hurried to go meet her. Uma and Nox must have heard her too as they came running down the stairs.
"Welcome back, Aunt Mel," Cer'iq greeted her with a smile. "Where are my parents? Did they go back to our house?"
Mel didn't smile back, nor did she reply to his questions. She just stood there staring off into the distance with a haunted look in her eyes.
Gyendal wrapped an arm around her, pulling her close to him. "What is it, Lamb?"
It took her awhile before she finally opened her mouth to speak.
She explained everything that had happened while they were in Thais. How Lydia and a powerful dark mage by the name of Caius had been behind the attack and how the group had been ambushed. Somehow this mage had stolen their memories, an ability that was extremely rare in this time and age, before promptly vanishing into thin air with the two vampires.
"I returned to Aveyond, but even she doesn't know where they are! She tried to look into their futures, but she couldn't see anything. She said it was nothing but a blur."
His aunt and uncle continued to talk, but by then he had stopped listening.
The realization that his parents were missing was swift and brutal, and felt like a dagger to the chest. His face paled dramatically and his body began to tremble uncontrollably. For he knew what it meant if the Oracle couldn't see their futures… It meant that they didn't have a future… They were gone… He would never see them again…
"We should leave this place. It's not safe here, especially not for me," Mel stated. "Lydia is sure to come after me as well and I don't think we can create a barrier powerful enough to keep her out."
"Do you honestly expect me to just hide myself away, in Aveyond of all places? Need I remind you that my disguise as Lars no longer works."
"Maybe it's time that we stop hiding and tell the truth. After all, it's just Stella. She might not like you, but she is definitely more understanding and forgiving than Edward."
Gyendal let out a sigh but gave in. "Fine, I'll go, but only for the sake of keeping you and the children safe."
Satisfied by this, she took hold of her daughters hands and led them back up the stairs to start packing, leaving Gyendal with his grieving nephew.
Cer'iq was trying his hardest not to cry in front of his uncle and mentor, but a few stray tears managed to break through. He wasn't sure what hurt him more; the fact that he might never see his parents again, or the fact that he had refused to hug his father before he left.
Reaching out, Gyendal placed a hand on the boy's shoulder. "Look, everything is going to be alright. If your parents are still out there, I will find them. In the meantime, we need to leave this place. They would want you to be safe."
Cer'iq nodded his head but said nothing.
He let his uncle lead him out of the house and down the path to his own house. Stepping into the house he had lived for many years with his parents, he couldn't help but feel like he was all alone in the world. In a way, he was. After all, he was the only half vampire in existence and the two people who understood him better than any and loved him unconditionally were gone.
"Go and pack whatever you want to bring with you to Aveyond. We may be there for a while."
Leaving his uncle's side, he headed up the stairs to his bedroom, gathering some of his favorite toys and books, along with a few sets of clothes.
He took a moment to say goodbye to the house as he left his room, trying to memorize every cobwebbed corner of the place. As he did so, he couldn't help but be drawn to the bedroom belonging to his parents. Reluctantly, he pulled open the door and stepped inside, taking in the familiar scents of his mother and father that still lingered in the air.
"Please come back to me…" he whimpered.
Searching through the room, he decided to take a token to remember them by. That way, he would still have a piece of them with him. However, choosing such a token was not as easy as he thought. He felt a bit silly about taking something like a blanket or a pillow. While it did smell like them, he knew the smell would fade quickly.
Eventually, he settled upon two items, one to remember his mother and one to remember his father.
Lying in the bottom of the nightstand drawer, was an empty pendant. Despite never having seen it before, he recognized it right away as his mother's soul stealing pendant. As twisted as it sounded, he felt a sense of gratitude towards the pendant. Even if his mother had used it to trick his father, it still played a role in getting his parents together, which meant that it also played a role in his very existence.
And then, hidden away in the back of the closet, he found one of his father's many swords; the Osmium Sword. It wasn't as impressive as his father's favorite; the legendary Thor Sword, nor was it nearly as powerful, but it still belonged to his father.
Grabbing a belt, he managed to wrap it around him, fastening the sword, which was much too big for him, to his back. Once he was sure that it wasn't going to fall off or poke him in the leg, he slipped the pendant around his neck, tucking it underneath his tunic for safe keeping.
With a piece of both of his parents on him, he finally felt ready to leave.
Gyendal gave him an odd look as he came back down the stairs, but didn't say a word as he led him back outside.
There he found his aunt and cousins waiting, each toting a bag similar to his own.
"Is everyone ready?" Mel asked.
"As ready as I'm going to be…" Gyendal mumbled.
Cer'iq just nodded his head.
With everyone assembled and ready to go, Gyendal conjured up a portal for them. Mel went through first with Uma and Nox, and no sooner had they gone then Gyendal motioned for Cer'iq to follow after.
Taking a deep breath, Cer'iq tried to gather as much courage as he could as he took one last look at the snowy village. He had many good memories in this village, and he would miss it dearly. Yet, at the same time, it no longer felt like home anymore… not without his parents.
Closing his eyes tightly, he stepped forward into the portal, feeling the ground beneath his feet momentarily give way. Gone was the sound of wind blowing in his ears as was the snow falling on his head. In its place was the sound of birds chirping and the feeling of sunlight beaming down on him.
"Welcome to Aveyond, Young Dhampir," greeted a kind yet frail voice.