Kouichi had observed that Takuya had been growing more nervous all morning as they passed through the village as hooded travellers, but now as they left the village behind them his whole body language was tense, and his mind was practically screaming as they turned off the road and started up the dirt track.

"Are you okay Takuya?"

Takuya forced a high-pitched laugh. "Sure! I'm about to see my family again after three months. Why wouldn't I be okay? I'm happy!"

Kouji snorted. "Scared more like." He tugged on the reins, bringing Starfire to a halt, and then dismounted. "You should go on ahead by yourself. Your family will be happy to see you, I hope, but bringing us with you might cause them fear."

Kouichi nodded and did the same as his brother. "The king's proclamation about elves might not have reached this far away yet. And I don't know if you could keep them calm enough to explain about both you and us."

Takuya nodded slowly. "I just… What if they won't take me back? What if they still think I'm a demon?"

Kouichi sighed and pushed the hood of his cloak back. "How will you know unless you see them? If they are still afraid of you, then you'll have to show them that there's no reason to be. We'll follow on slowly behind, so you can see them without us."

Takuya nodded. "Okay. I can face this." He smiled a little. "Wish me luck?"

Kouichi nodded. "Good luck, Takuya. May Lady Elsa bind your family back together."

****************************

Yuriko sighed as she pulled the bread from the oven. She'd been sighing a lot, ever since construction of the new barn had started. Clearing the burnt-out ruins of the old one had been hard enough, every moment of the work had caused her to wonder what had really happened there. Now with the new one nearing completion, and Shinya talking about being able to play in the hay loft again, Yuriko's heart ached for her missing son. She set the bread on the table to cool, and pulled the dough from the proving oven, to place in into the main oven to cook. No matter how I go over those happy days, I can't see when my dear Takuya could have been replaced by some creature's child. She sighed again, remembering how happy she and Hiroaki had been at Takuya's birth, and how neither had ever wanted him to be let out of their sight at first. She also remembered how he'd been fascinated by the hearth fire as a toddler, and some of the many times she had swooped down to scoop him away. He is, but he isn't… I know he's my son, my precious little boy, but then, am I calling Shinya a liar? Or ignoring parts of Takuya's childhood? She shook her head. What's done is done, Yuriko, she told herself. I should just let go. Takuya is gone from us forever. I just can't seem to. She looked up as Shinya ran in.

"Mama! Mama! There's a stranger come through the gate!" Shinya laughed in excitement, and Yuriko smiled. He had been so scared during the aftermath of the fire, and scared for a while that he was a demon child like he thought his brother was. Now he never spoke of Takuya by name.

She moved away from the oven, taking off the padded gloves that protected her from the heat. Visitors to the village other than merchants were rare. To have one at the farm was almost unheard of. She smoothed out her skirts, then followed Shinya outside to where a hooded figure was dismounting a pony slowly.

Yuriko frowned. The figure was much too short for either a grown man, or a woman, and as its cloak fell open she could see a sword sheathed at its waist. She knelt to address Shinya. "Shinya, go find Papa and tell him that there's someone here to see him. Tell him that they've got a sword, but we don't know who they are."

Shinya nodded, suddenly serious at his mother's request. "Okay, Mama." He kissed her cheek, then ran off.

Yuriko moved towards the figure, which seemed to be watching the men work on the barn. "Excuse me? Can I help at all? I'm the farmer's wife, Yuriko Kanbara."

The figure turned to face her suddenly, like it hadn't even noticed her before now. "Ma… Mama?" it asked in a voice Yuriko found heart-achingly familiar. The figure pushed down its hood, revealing itself to be none other than her lost son, Takuya, who was trembling. "Mama?"

Neither of them could later say which moved first, or which started the flood of tears that followed. All either of them knew was that moments later they were in each others arms, crying, and holding on as if the other was the only thing stopping them from drowning.

"Oh Takuya, Takuya-sweet, don't cry. You're home now." Yuriko smoothed the hair at the back of Takuya's head gently, trying to soothe the tears.

Takuya shivered, and moved away from her slightly, revealing the face that was so like her own. "Mama, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to set fire to the barn, it just… it just happened…" He started to sob again, and Yuriko held him close again.

"Shh, shh… It's alright, Takuya. I know it wasn't your fault." Takuya moved to look at her again as she continued to speak. "I'm sorry we believed Shinya without asking you what happened. You were so lucky to escape the fire without getting hurt, and we…" She stopped as Takuya shook his head.

"Please, Mama… I… I have to tell you something that you won't like, but please, listen?"

Yuriko saw fear and desperation in his eyes and nodded slowly. "Okay, Takuya. I'll listen. I'm just so glad to have you home, and safe. Something bad must have happened to you while you were gone."

Takuya nodded, then took a deep breath. "I love you, Mama, and I'm not a demon or a changeling or anything like that." He stopped and took another deep breath. "But I did start the fire. It was an accident and I never meant to, never expected to, but I did."

Yuriko hugged him. "It's okay. We've all knocked over lamps in our lifetimes, someone must've left a lit one in there all night for you to find that afternoon."

Takuya pulled back from her again, shaking his head. "No, mother. I was asleep in the loft in the sunshine, and… and…" Takuya took another deep breath. "The sunlight was so warm I think it woke something in me… My fire magic."

Yuriko moved away shaking her head. "Takuya, that's not funny. Humans don't have magic, only demons do."

Takuya looked at her, desperation in his eyes. "Please, Mama. I'm human, and I do have fire magic. I know it goes against everything you've been taught at temple, but it's true."

A voice interrupted. "What's true is you're no son of mine, demon!"

Takuya looked up, only to see his father aiming an arrow at him. "Papa! Please! I'm not a demon!"

Hiroaki shook his head. "I don't know what mind games you want to play, demon, but you're not our son, you never were, you just pretended."

"Hiroaki, no!" called back Yuriko. "He's come back to us, and he's just confused. He's blaming himself and you're just making it worse."

"Back away from him, Yuriko," commanded Hiroaki, his aim not moving from Takuya's chest.

"Papa…" started Takuya.

Hiroaki interrupted him. "Don't you dare call me that."

Takuya looked angry and upset. "I'm calling you that because that's what you are." He put a hand to his chest, feeling the letter tucked between his two shirts. "I've got a letter from king Elbert himself, saying that I'm human and to be trusted just like anyone else." His voice started to rise. "If that doesn't satisfy you, the Goddess Herself came to me in a vision and told me I was human."

Hiroaki ignored the worker that were gathering to stare at the tableau, and kept his focus on Takuya. "Do you swear by the Goddess that you are telling the truth, that she came to you?"

Takuya nodded. "I do. I would not take her name in vain."

Hiroaki paused, waiting to see if divine retribution would come. When it didn't he lowered his bow slowly. "Let us see this letter."

Takuya waked forwards to Yuriko, pulling out the envelope and passing it over. "I'm still your son," he said quietly to her, before withdrawing back.

Yuriko unfastened the envelope and gasped at the king's seal, before moving to Hiroaki's side and reading the letter.

Hiroaki was the first to speak. "It says 'services to the king'… What happened?"

Takuya scuffed the ground with his foot, looking embarrassed. "There was a fire in the castle, and the crown-prince nearly died. I used my magic to save him."

"So you do have magic, like it says here?"

"Yes." Takuya looked back up again. "But I'm also human. I just wanted to see you again. You're my family and I love you."

Hiroaki nodded slowly, and let the bow drop from his hands. "I'm sorry, Takuya. I thought… I had to protect your mother and brother. I love them so much, and it hurt them so badly when… Why didn't you tell us?"

Takuya looked miserable. "You were too busy yelling at me and threatening me for me to explain. I didn't know what happened anymore than you did. I woke up and there was fire everywhere, but it wasn't hurting me."

Hiroaki cleared his throat. "Can you forgive me? I was so sure you meant harm… no, I was angry at the destruction, and then when Shinya said he'd seen the fire start with you, and then to see you just walk out of the fire dazed but unhurt… There seemed no explanation other than…"

Takuya walked forwards slowly. "It's okay… I spent two months asking myself the same thing… did I do it? Was I even human? How could I live if this power would come out and overwhelm me and I could do nothing." He stopped in front of his parents. "I at least found someone who could tell me what I was, help me with what I could do. You guys, I left without trying to explain or come back… I'm sorry, but I was so scared that all you would do was kill me on sight."

Yuriko bent down and hugged him. "It's okay, you're home now. You can just forget it all, be normal again."

Takuya sighed. "Mama… I'm not normal." He smiled. "I brought some friends with me. Is it okay for them to stay here with us?"

Hiroaki nodded. "I'm sure we can make them welcome."

Takuya looked back towards the gate, sure that Kouji and Kouichi were near, and probably watching. "Guys?" he said, trusting in their ability to hear things distant. Sure enough two shadows leading ponies came out from under the trees. Takuya looked around. "Shinya? I'd like you to meet some people?"

"Go away," replied Shinya from behind some of the workers. "You're not my brother, you didn't get hurt by the fire. I saw you make it. You closed your eyes, and the air went all funny, and the hay started to smoke."

Yuriko moved to him, and knelt. "Shinya, Takuya is just… strange. He's not going to hurt you." She took his hand. "Come and meet his friends.

Shinya did as he was told, but hid behind Yuriko's skirt, looking out at Takuya worriedly, before his eyes would flick to the hooded figures approaching, then back.

Takuya smiled. He could tell them apart from their gait, without even looking at the differing bows and ponies. "Mama, Papa, these are Kouichi and Kouji Minamoto. They're the ones that helped me with my magic, and have been my friends without question. Please don't be scared of them either."

Hiroaki looked puzzled. "Why would they know how to help with magic? Are they healers, or mages like the one that serves the king?"

Kouichi reached up and pushed back his hood. "We're what you call 'elves'. We don't mean any harm to anyone."

Yuriko gasped, and Hiroaki moved to stand between the twins and his wife. Many of the watching workers made the gods circle on their chests.

Kouji snorted. "Seems like everywhere we go we get that reaction." He tugged his own hood off and folded his arms. "We're here now, and we certainly don't mean any harm to you, unless you threaten us."

//Kouji, you shouldn't stand like that. You don't look very friendly,// sent Kouichi.

Kouji stayed glaring at the people staring. //I'll look friendly when they do,// he replied.

Takuya smiled, and tried to break the tension. "They can stay, right Papa? You did say they could."

Hiroaki let out a deep breath. "They can stay for a while. If you trust them I guess we can give them a chance."

//He doesn't trust us, Kouji.//

//Tell me something I don't know. I don't trust them.//

Takuya kept smiling. "Thank you, Papa. You won't be sorry for letting them stay, you'll see."