New chapter up. Some nice father/son moments. Enjoy.


Thankfully, a month later, Vala and I both seemed to fall into a comfortable normal.

Though still a bit gunshy, Vala was starting to come out of her shell. She'd stuck to the keep for the first two week, slowly venturing further and further away from the comfort of her chambers. Thanks to Connie, she'd found the library and the gardens, which seemed to help make her more at ease. As did Connie's presence. The two women became fast friends.

Anduin had been true to his offer and started doing weekly exercises with Vala, helping her strengthen her talent with the Light. Though he'd agreed with the priests from her past that she'd never develop it much further than it was before she was trapped in the demon dimension, she was at least getting closer to where she'd started. And the practice gave her mind something to do and helped her trust Anduin.

Vala also restarted her mage training, thanks to Kalecgos. The blue dragon had offered to train Vala in the magical arts. Since he was a master at all magic performed by mages and Vala had really no specialization in mind, the arrangement worked out well. I wasn't sure if Jaina had been behind Kalec's offer, though it wouldn't have shocked me. Needless to say, Vala had no trouble learning to trust the person who had literally carried her out of the demon dimension.

Vala was taking it all in stride, considering she'd never dreamt she'd be tutored in the Light by a king and in magic by a dragon. It was funny how things worked out.

As for me, I was enjoying getting a chance to sit back and watch my son in action. True to what I had been told by many people, he was shaping up to be a fine king. He was fair, but also firm. He didn't let anyone push him, even though occasionally people tried. I'd asked him about it once, and he told me the talking back didn't happen nearly as much as it had when he first took the crown. Apparently, he'd proven a king could be compassionate, but yet still have a backbone. He'd found a balance that made him well liked, but also well respected, without losing his temper.

He wasn't like me, but maybe that was a good thing.

I was starting to finally relax. I even started to draw again, though I was also taking up more duties for Anduin. At first, he seemed reluctant to ask for my help, as if he was afraid I'd disappear again, but as things calmed down from the events of my return, he became more and more comfortable with having me available to help him run the city. It was really a surreal experience.

Anduin and I were enjoying an evening walk through Stormwind's memorial garden, where his mother was buried. It was also where my empty grave had been, though Anduin had it removed once I'd returned home. I was thankful for that, since I had no desire to see my own grave.

Vala and Connie had gone to Dalaran with Jaina, so we'd taken the time to visit Tiffin's grave. We'd tried to visit it at least once a year together, deciding to take advantage of the empty keep to uphold the tradition. In the past, this walk was a way to bring us back together, when our personalities drove us apart.

It was getting to be the end of autumn, the warmth and sun of the summer months slipping towards the chill of winter. I was looking forward to the holidays this year. I was sure Anduin was also looking forward to celebrating, since last year he was still mourning my loss during the normally cheery season.

I was also looking forward to Anduin and Connie's wedding. My father hadn't been alive to see me married and had never met his grandson. Very few Wrynn kings lived long enough to be a part of their children's adult lives. I was still fairly young to be a grandfather, at least in my opinion, but part of me was eager to see Anduin as a father. He'd turn out to be a superior father to his children than I had been to him, I was sure. I just hoped I would do better as a grandfather.

I kinda chuckled to myself at the thought of grandchildren. Anduin glanced over at me, giving me a confused look, since my chuckle broke the comfortable silence between us.

"What?"

"Nothing. Just thinking about the future. About all the things I'm looking forward to."

"Like?" Anduin asked.

"Like your wedding. I'm happy I'm getting a second chance to be a part of your life, as you start this new adventure. You'll never know how proud I am of the man you've become. When you have children, you'll understand how I feel." I stopped walking, placing a hand on his shoulder. "And I plan to do everything in my power to be here for my grandchildren."

"I'm going to hold you to that, Father. I still feel too young to have children, so I'm going to need your help when it happens." He said with a smile. "You've changed since you've been gone."

We started to walk again, heading back to the keep.

"I guess being dead for a year and a half makes a man rethink the way he lived his life. I regret many things, so as I said, this is my second chance at everything and I'm not going to waste it. I plan to try to be the father you deserve. The family you deserve."

I had always held back how I felt around my son. I once saw it as a weakness, something I could not afford as king, but things were different now. I was going to spend the rest of my life trying to be a better person. For my family.


To Be Continued...