It was an hour later when Damien drifted off, his crying earlier and now the reading lulling him to sleep. Just before I could lay him down on the couch, Maximus swept through the door.

A smile curled his lips as he took in the scene, the tender gleam to his eyes filling me with hope and a squirmy kind of happiness I still wasn't used to. His smile dropped when he met my eyes, apparently sensing that something wasn't right.

Gesturing for him to wait a minute, I laid Damien down before turning to face him. Whispering as to not wake the napping boy behind me, I tugged on his hand toward the hall. "He probably won't wake up thanks to his exhaustion from crying but lets not risk it."

Alarm flared in his eyes at the mention of crying, but he didn't fight. Once we were outside, with the door shut behind us, he asked. "Crying?"

His concern was touching, further bolstering my hope that he'd agree to take Damien in. "Oh, Maximus. His mother was a horrid woman! She made him believe that if he was even slightly inconveniencing someone then they wouldn't want him."

Maximus's eyes darkened, his mouth curling in distaste as he stroked my hand. "I've never heard of a mother training their child to be adopted, but this is even worse than I'd thought."

He fell into consideration, giving me a chance to choose my words. "Maximus, Damien asked if I'd- we'd adopt him."

The sudden jolt he gave, staring down at me in surprise, announced his shock more than his words. "He did?" Briefly he glanced back toward the room, uncertainty creeping across his face before looking back to me.

I didn't want to put him on the spot, this wasn't a decision to make lightly after all, so I squeezed his hand. "I know we haven't discussed kids yet and I'm not going to push for an answer right now. I just wanted to see what your general thoughts were before I even contemplated it as a possibility."

I watched as he swallowed, the previous uncertainty growing until it seemed to be all that was in his eyes. "Zelda, I'm-. Not sure about this. My history with children isn't good." His voice dropped to a pained whisper, something in it snapping my attention to him.

This sounded bad… Gesturing to his door, I reached to hold his hand. "Do you want to talk about it?"

His grimace was an answer in itself, but he nodded. "If we're even starting to consider adopting a child, Damien or otherwise, then you need to know something about my past."

That definitely sounded bad, but I forced my nerves down until we were both settled into his room. His nerves confused me as he paced back and forth. Did he think I was going to tell him I'd leave if he didn't agree? I'd never do such a thing to him…

"You don't need to be so nervous, even if you don't want kids I'm not leaving you." Better to get that out there now.

He paused, none of the nerves leaving his eyes but warmth nudging in alongside it. Heaving a sigh, he sat down on the bed next to my chair and clasped my hands. "I know you wouldn't, but that's not why I'm nervous. Zelda, I didn't tell you this part of my service in the Crusades because...well I don't want you to see me any different. The thought of you looking at me with disgust, it destroys me."

Every radar I had was going off with every word he spoke, what could he possibly have done to make him think I'd see him as anything but the man I loved? I didn't have to wait long to find out. His hand clutched mine as if terrified I'd disappear the second he let go as he slowly began to explain.

"I was ordered, alongside the other soldiers, to kill every civilian in the Holy City when we took it back during the Crusades. Women, children, it didn't matter. People who had done nothing wrong other than not being on our side of the war. The memories still haunt me to this day, the terrified faces of my victims and the children…"

His voice grew ragged, his eyes shutting as his head hung. He looked as if he were bracing for a blow and with tears threatening to overflow I realized that he was. He thought I was going to hurt him, whether emotionally or physically I wasn't sure but either option was equally as abhorrent.

"God, Zelda, the children… I should have defied my orders, I couldn't have been the only one to want to refuse. Maybe, if I had stood against my commanding officer, others would have too-."

Tears gathered in his eyes, the pink liquid ripping my heart to shreds as he clutched so hard at his knees I briefly worried about him breaking them. Wheeling forward, I couldn't stop myself from wrapping my arms around him to drag him into an embrace.

While the thought of what he was describing made my stomach sour, it didn't change my view of him in the slightest and I made sure to tell him such. "Maximus, what happened was horrible, I won't lie, but you've carried this guilt for centuries. It isn't as if you went back and did it again, you saw that it was wrong and while you may not have tried to stop it, you left. Right? That's why you left from the Templar order?"

He nodded, not lifting his head from my shoulder as he clutched to my back. Having my usually strong lover crumpled so thoroughly into my arms made tears burn in my eyes. He shouldn't be like this, crying and hurting from following an order from nearly a millennium ago. I wished I could go back, if nothing else then to be there for him when he'd first gone through this. If he was still hurting like this after this long then what had it been like when he'd first done it?

Shaking the thought to the side, I continued. "I don't see you any differently, although the thought of what you've had to go through alone for so long is enough to make me want to wrap myself around you and barricade both of us in my room."

Pulling back, I cupped his face and gently turned it to meet my eyes. "I love you Maximus, nothing's changing that."

All of his previous fear dissolved into relief, his arms rising to pluck me from my chair and deposit me on his lap. I understood his need for contact, I'd felt it many times over the years myself during my darker periods. Wrapping myself around him, I tightened my grip as much as possible until we were both clutching desperately to one another.

Silence rang as we soaked in the other's presence, before Maximus broke it. His voice was like gravel from the emotions still threatening to drown him, the sound making my heart ache in my chest. "Praise the Lord, I thought-."

I knew what he thought and it hurt to even contemplate. Dropping a kiss to his forehead, I nodded. "I know, but I'm not going anywhere. Not for this, and not if you decide you don't want to adopt anyone."

His eyes followed my every movement, a hefty sigh coming from his lungs as he leaned back on the bed, bringing me with him as he did. "I'm not sure if I'll make a good father figure. I spend most of my time working, we barely have time as it is to spend together. Not to mention my history…"

Raking my hands through his hair, I felt as he leaned in. How could I show him that his history wasn't his future? He was painfully careful with me, and I had no doubt that he'd be the same with Damien.

Maybe if I helped him understand that it was normal to be afraid you wouldn't be good enough? I certainly had that, with my inability to even stand. "It's normal to think you wouldn't be a good parent, until recently I didn't think I could do it because of my wheelchair but Damien doesn't seem to mind that. Between the two of us, if you wanted to, I think we could raise him right."

I watched as he leaned his head back, the thoughts practically visible as he thought over the options. Cracking an eye open, he met mine with a hesitant hopefulness. "Let me start by saying your chair doesn't make you any less worthy of being a mother, you're beautiful inside and out. Any child would be lucky to have you as their mother."

The compliment made me flush, but for once he didn't comment on it. "And, if you want to adopt Damien then I have a proposition. We tell Vlad about our intent to possibly adopt Damien so he won't make other arrangements for the boy. Then we just...wait. We can do all the things we would do as a family and if we all seem to adjust well, then we make it official."

It was more than I'd been hoping for after hearing about his past. Giving him a squeeze of support, I kissed him with everything I felt for him and hoped some of it made it through. I wished he could read my emotions, my words never did what I was feeling justice but if he could feel me then he'd never have to wonder just how integral he was to my life.

I'd have to settle for this though. Not that this was a bad thing and as Maximus tilted both our heads to deepen the kiss I knew he understood. We stayed plastered against one another, content to relax after the emotional upheaval of the day.

After a while, a quiet voice snapped us out of our bubble. "Hello?"

Apparently Damien had woken up and went in search for us. Raising my voice just loud enough to be heard, I called to him. "In here Damien."

The blonde head poked in not a second later, shyly glancing around only to hesitate at the door when he saw Maximus. I could practically read his nerves, considering that he knew the decision on whether or not he was going to be adopted rested with Maximus I understood why he'd be scared.

All the same, Maximus and I shared a glance that exchanged an entire conversation, before raising his hand to beckon Damien closer. Sitting up, Maximus put me back in my chair before facing the boy now toeing the ground.

Kneeling to be at his level, Maximus began. "Zelda told me that you want us to adopt you, is that true?"

Damien nodded, his little body shaking with nerves now and making me ache to wrap him into a hug. Thankfully Maximus didn't leave him in suspense for long. "We agreed that we'll do a test run, of sorts. I'll go to Vlad in a bit and tell him not to make other arrangements for you to live elsewhere. If all goes well and we all like being a family, then we'll adopt you."

Damien's head snapped up so fast I briefly worried he'd get whiplash, but that concern disappeared when he lunged up into Maximus's arm in the next second. Thank you's flew from his mouth at lightspeed as he latched onto the older male.

"I promise to be extra good and help around the house and-." Maximus pulled him into a hug, cutting him off gently, but firmly.

"That's unnecessary. If you want to help, then you can, but it is not required for you to stay. All we ask is that you be respectful, be polite and do as you're told. If there's something we're asking that you don't want to do or answer, explain why. We'll decide where to go from there, okay?"

Damien melted against his shoulder, sniffling from happy tears now as he cuddled closer. "Kay."

Rolling up beside them, I met Maximus's eyes with a knowing smile. I knew he was going to make a good father and soon he'd see it for himself. He gave me a tired smile before lifting his arm in invitation that I quickly took. As we wrapped around each other, Damien smushed happily between us, I took a moment to be grateful for the family I was building.

A year ago I'd been alone, but now I had a sister, brother figure in Vlad, a lover and now a potential son. What a difference a year made…

Glancing at the twin heads of blonde, I blinked in realization. "I never noticed before but you two look really similar."

Maximus pulled back, looking down to Damien who was now examining Maximus's golden hair with open fascination. Taking a few strands of his own, he held it by Damien's face and nodded in agreement with her.

"You're right, when you add in his eyes being like yours, he could probably pass as a biological child of ours." The statement immediately made Damien beam, his little body vibrating with happiness at the thought.

Chuckling to myself, I inched forward to brush his hair back affectionately. "I guess somethings are just meant to be?"

Maximus hummed, moving to stand and depositing Damien in my lap as he did so. "I'll go talk to Vlad. Better to get this done quickly so there won't be any roadblocks."

He leaned down to drop a kiss against my head before ruffling Damien's hair. "When I get back, if you two want, we can do something together."

Damien piped up before I could say a word, "Can we read some more? I fell asleep before but it was really fun before then!"

Sharing a glance, Maximus shrugged. "If we all feel like it then I have no problem with it." Damien began to excitedly gush about his favorite parts of the book to me as Maximus left to talk to Vlad. I hoped that everything went this smoothly through the rest of our lives…