It had only been a few minutes since Edric had woken up. His first thoughts were confusion and panic. After being on the run for months, he'd gotten used to sleeping bags and tents. Waking up in an actual bed was rare, let alone one as luxurious as this. Honestly it was a little uncomfortable. His old mattress was a lot softer than he remembered. It felt much larger too, but Edric quickly recognized the reason for that when he noticed how small his hands were. Edric really wished he had been the kind of kid who kept a calendar in his room, or that his mother had allowed him to have a personal scroll before he was eleven. Unfortunately the closest thing he had was a simple clock that told him it was 6:48 in the morning. He had no way to know the date beyond the fact that it probably wasn't a school day if he had been allowed to sleep this long.

He did have a mirror though. He didn't even have to get out of bed to see his reflection in it. Edric had always been terrible at guessing ages but he didn't think the boy in the mirror could be any more than eight or nine years old. He definitely wasn't a teenager anymore. That was a startling revelation to say the least.

'It could be worse...' he thought to himself. 'At least I'm not a baby.' That notion that that was a possibility was terrifying for a number of reasons. Not the least of which was the question of what would have happened to Amity if he'd gone back to before she was born. The thought of his younger sister's name caused something to click in Edric's brain and he suddenly jolted upright.

'Amity's alive! Emira too! My family isn't dead!' Once thoughts like these started flooding his mind it was impossible for him to go back to distracting himself by focusing on trivial concerns like his bedding and age.

This was unreal. Everything about this situation felt like an impossible dream. It had all happened so fast and it was only now that Edric finally had a chance to process it. Edric knew he should be happy. Heck, he should be overjoyed and grateful. And a part of him was. He had been given a second chance to save the world. To save his family. The optimistic part of him was over the moon. But living through the apocalypse has a way of slowly killing that part of you, and the rest of him was terrified, anxious, guilty and all sorts of other emotions that were too overwhelming and numerous for him to deal with.

'Time travel isn't supposed to work this way. What if all of this is some sort of trick? Maybe Belos captured me and trapped me in some kind of weird super illusion. Everything feels real but who knows what that monster is capable of. It certainly wouldn't be out of character for him to trap me in a wonderful false reality only to reveal it was all fake!'

Logically Edric knew that it was impossible for illusion magic to do all this. Creating a false world was one thing but making someone believe they'd deaged was beyond the scope of what illusion magic could do. Before Edric could continue down that rabbit hole, an even more horrifying thought struck him.

'What if all of this really is real and I mess it up? If Lilith or Darius were sent back they'd be able to fix everything. They're both powerful witches and brilliant strategists. I'm just a screw up. I'm not qualified to save the world. If anything I'll just make things worse. And then I'll have to watch everyone die again...'

Edric was no stranger to emotional stress. The last year had been rough, and even before that growing up in the Blight household wasn't always a pleasant experience. That said he couldn't recall the last time he felt like this. He'd gotten used to coping with intense emotions but right now it felt like those skills were failing him. As if his tolerance for emotional pain had been decreased somehow. He wondered if that was due to the intensity and absurdity of his current situation or if his physical age was affecting more than his size. That naturally led him to question whether he actually was a teenager in the body of his younger self, or if he was a child with memories of the future. Ironically it was this strange existential train of thought that distracted Edric enough for him to regain his composure and calm down again.

But Edric knew that composure was fleeting. He could already feel the dread and anguish building back up in the pit of his stomach. He tried breathing techniques and focusing on his surroundings but none of his usual coping strategies seemed to be working. Reluctantly he prepared to try his most extreme one. The one he kept promising he'd stop using. He raised a finger and began creating the circle only to stop himself partway through as a realization hit him. His family was alive. Emira's bedroom was right across from his. Why should he talk with an illusion of her when the real thing was so close?

Actually there were plenty of reasons why talking to his real family members right now was a terrible idea. For one thing, he wasn't sure he'd be able to keep his composure in front of any of his revived loved ones. Actually he was almost completely certain that he wouldn't be able to. He didn't know what would happen if he suddenly broke down or started rambling like a crazy person in front of them, but it probably wouldn't be good. The fate of the literal world was resting on his unqualified shoulders. He didn't want to screw things up right out of the gate.

The logical thing to do would be to somehow get his emotional child brain under control and plan out what he was going to say to them before he left his room. But Edric wasn't the most logic driven person at the best of times and the sudden awareness that Emira was likely sleeping mere feet away from him wasn't helping. He resisted for a little while but eventually gave in. Before he could think about anything else he had to know for sure that they were really back. He would make it quick. He'd just talk to her for like a minute or two before retreating back to his room to plan.

Edric finally got out of bed and walked over to the mirror. An anxious little boy in forest green pajamas stared back at him. Now that he could see his complete reflection he realized he looked even younger than he'd guessed. It was still weird to think of that as him but that was something he'd think about later. For now, he tried to school his worried expression into something more neutral before taking a breath and stepping out of his room.

He paused again at Emira's door and tried to psych himself up for what was about to happen. 'Just act natural Ed.' He told himself. 'Be brief, be calm, and whatever you do, Do. Not. Cry...'

Emira had never been a morning person. So when her twin brother barged into her room at 7 in the morning on a Saturday she wasn't exactly pleased. The fact that he was bawling his eyes out was probably the only thing saving him from getting a pillow (or something heavier) thrown at his face. It was actually concerning how hard he was crying. Edric had never been quite as tough as she was but he certainly wasn't a crybaby. He couldn't afford to be. All of the Blight children had been taught from a very young age that tears weren't something tolerated in their family.

Not that Emira was going to tattle of course. Even if she WAS a bit irritated at being woken up so early. They were twins after all. They always had each other's backs. And if that meant she had to put up with calming her brother down after the occasional nightmare then so be it. But she really did need him to quiet down. With how loud he was being, he was lucky most of the manor's staff were simple abominations that didn't have the capacity to report him to their mother. Most didn't mean all though, and it was pretty obvious that the last thing Edric needed right now was one of their mother's rants.

"Ed," Emira started as she sat up in bed and rubbed her eyes. At the sound of her voice, Ed suddenly stopped sobbing. Tears were still falling slowly down his face but there was no sound. He stared silently at her with eyes full of shock and awe. Honestly after a few moments it was beginning to freak her out. "What's wrong? Did you have a nightmare?"

"You died," Edric replied in an unsettling tone. Granted, a statement like that could make any tone at least somewhat unsettling. While the certainty in his voice was disturbing, a part of Emira was actually relieved that he'd confirmed her suspicion that he'd just had a nightmare. And if his dream was about something that morbid then she couldn't really blame him for waking her up.

"It was just a dream Ed. I'm fine." she reassured him.

"It wasn't..." Edric started before stopping himself. Instead of finishing his thought he started walking forward, only stopping when he was right next to her. Emira wasn't sure what to expect at this point. For a few moments Edric just stood there staring at her again. The crying had completely stopped at this point and his expression seemed to be a complicated mix of hopeful and anxious.

Then he poked her in the face.

It wasn't painful or anything, but it was sudden enough that Emira was too startled to properly respond to it. She stared at her brother in surprise, waiting for him to explain his actions. Instead he poked her again. And again. By the fourth poke Emira's patience was starting to wane and her anger was beginning to build back up. Just as she was about to yell at him, Edric surprised her yet again by pulling her into a strong embrace.

"You're real. You're actually real!" His voice still seemed a bit manic but now it was full of relief and happiness. Emira's anger faded away into confusion again and she awkwardly patted her brother on the back.

"Yeah, I'm real Ed. That must've been a pretty vivid dream if it has you this freaked out. Do you wanna talk about it?" She asked cautiously.

"No!" He replied. His volume was far too loud considering he was right next to her ear. He seemed to notice her pain as he immediately let go of her and moved backwards towards the door with a guilty look.

"Sorry about that," he apologized in a much quieter voice. "And sorry for waking you. I don't want to talk about it. I just needed to see that you were ok. I'll leave you alone now."

"Are you sure Ed?" Emira asked. She did want to go back to sleep but Edric still didn't seem all there. "I can get up now if you need me to. It's not that big a deal..."

"No it's ok." Edric replied. "I'm fine now. It was just a dream. You can go back to sleep."

"Ok. If you're sure. Hey when I get up do you wanna go mess with Mittens? That always cheers you up."

Instead of looking excited Edric seemed to wince at the question. "No I... I don't think we should mess with Amity anymore."

"What, why?" Emira asked.

"I just feel like we should be nicer to her." He replied. "She's our sister after all. Mom and Dad are... not the most reliable parents. The two of us have always had each other at least, but sometimes I wonder if Amity has anyone to rely on."

Emira couldn't help but wonder where all this was coming from. Edric had always loved teasing their little sister. Suddenly a thought struck her.

"Was Amity in your dream too?"

Edric went stiff. "I don't want to talk about it... That's not the point anyway. I just want to be a better older brother from now on. Is that so weird?" It was pretty much all the confirmation his sister needed.

"Ok Ed. We'll cut her some slack for a while. She hasn't been much fun since the party anyway."

"Party? What party?"

"Her birthday party... It was less than a week ago Ed. Seriously, are you feeling ok?"

"I'm fine!" He said defensively. "So uh, how old did she turn again?" The look on his face made it obvious that he regretted the question the moment it left his mouth.

"It was her sixth birthday." Emira smirked wryly. "If you can't even remember that then maybe you really do suck at being an older brother..."

"I was just joking..." Edric tried to deflect. "I mean obviously I know she just turned six because she's a year younger than us and we're seven."

"And a half..." Emira corrected almost reflexively. She didn't appreciate the unimpressed look he gave her in response.

"What? The half is important. You know that!"

"Sure..." he agreed halfheartedly. "I'm gonna let you get back to sleep now. Sorry again for waking you up in the first place."

"It's fine Ed," Emira replied. "Just don't make a habit of it! Maybe you should try to get some more rest too. You still seem pretty out of it..."

Her brother just nodded and shut the door behind him. Emira was still a little concerned about him but he seemed mostly fine now. She hoped whatever nightmare he'd had would be forgotten after a few more hours of sleep.

'That could've gone worse,' Edric thought to himself as he shut Emira's door. Sure he hadn't been able to keep his calm like he'd planned, but that actually seemed to have worked in his favor. Emira had been totally willing to write off most eccentric behavior as the result of a particularly grim and vivid nightmare. She probably wouldn't have been anywhere near as understanding if he'd strolled into her room without a care in the world.

'I almost blew it at the end though...' Edric cringed with embarrassment. There were definately better ways to learn the date than asking Emira how old their sister was a week after her birthday. Luckily Emira didn't seem to dwell too much on the question, likely attributing it to how 'out of it' he was. Or maybe she was just used to hearing Edric ask stupid questions. That was actually a distinct possibility. Edric had enough self awareness to admit that his seven year old self probably wasn't much of an intellectual. Hell even as a teenager Edric had a bit of a reputation for asking dumb questions.

He still refused to believe Hunter had never once sneezed with his mask on...

'Maybe I should focus on some less stupid questions. Like what do I do now?'

Edric had promised himself that after talking to Emira he'd return to his room to slowly think things through. It still didn't feel like a bad idea but it didn't feel quite as urgent as before. His situation was still overwhelming but he felt far more in control of himself than earlier.

At this point Edric had basically put to rest any doubts about this situation being real. It might sound sappy but he knew his twin better than anyone in the world. And whether it was in spite of, or because of that knowledge, Edric was now very aware of the fact that even his own illusions of Emira were nothing close to the real thing. Even though she was much younger than when he last saw her, the subtle nuances in her expressions and voice were something he could recognize on an almost instinctual level. But while he could recognize them he could never reproduce those subtle details in an illusion and he refused to believe anyone else could either.

So while Edric would continue to question the existence of a time bending lizard god for many years to come, he was done questioning his situation itself. He really was in the past and his family really was still alive. Confirming or disproving that had been one of his two biggest concerns after waking up here.

The other major issue was the imminent threat of Belos and the question of what a small child could possibly do to stop him. Now that Edric had the time and mental clarity to really ponder that question, the honest answer was not much. At least, not right now. Maybe if he'd been expecting to go back in time things would be different. He could've memorized a bunch of super useful intel or had Lilith and Darius make him a detailed step by step plan.

But Edric hadn't been expecting this. And while he had learnt a lot from the former coven leaders in the months after the Day of Unity, they'd mostly focused on teaching him magic and survival skills. He still had bits and pieces of scattered intel about the Draining Spell, and the Collector, and even Belos' true identity but it was all basically useless for now as he had no way to prove any of it. That was a particularly hard pill to swallow. Even if he had a way to speak to Lilith, or Darius, or Eberwolf they'd just think he was either crazy or acting out for attention. Hell even someone as wild as Eda would never believe a story like this without serious evidence. Edric tried to think of something he could use to prove his credibility but he was drawing a blank. He was very much aware of how insane his story would sound. Knowing a secret or two from their pasts wouldn't be enough to convince anyone.

Not to mention sharing that kind of information so early on would pretty much guarantee large changes to the timeline in general. All things considered it seemed like Edric would be on his own for the time being. The thought was sobering but it reminded him of something Lilith said a lot when things got hard.

'Don't focus on what you've lost and can't regain, focus on what you have and what you can do with it.'

So what did Edric have right now? The first answer to come to mind was time. There was around a decade before the Day of Unity came around again and Edric didn't remember Belos making any big moves that far back. Actually the Emperor seemed fairly passive until that last year, at least to Edric's limited knowledge. So what could Edric do with that time if gathering allies was off the table?

That was when Edric remembered another advantage he had. Personal training from some of the strongest witches in existence. Darius in particular had always lamented that Edric had such a late start to Abomination magic. He'd even said once that if Ed had started learning as a child, he might be as strong as a Coven Leader by his mid twenties.

As Edric walked back into his room and locked the door behind him, he made a promise to himself. He was going to prove Darius wrong. Not only would he reach the level of a Coven Leader well before his twenties, he was going to go even further. He was going to become a witch that could compete with the Emperor himself!

AN: And that was chapter 3. Let me know what you thought about it. I didn't want to make things too angsty but it wouldn't really make sense if Edric wasn't emotional about this situation. I hope I struck a good balance in that regard

If you're wondering whether Edric is actually going to reach the Emperor's level before the plot kicks in, the answer is probably not. Honestly even Darius' statement was actually a bit of an exaggeration. The younger Coven Leaders seem to be around Eda's age and the Emperor is centuries old with magic that isn't even available to normal witches. I want to take that seriously so without any extenuating circumstances this might be more of a shoot for the stars to reach the moon kind of situation.

Granted that doesn't mean Edric won't be really strong by the time Luz shows up. It just means I wouldn't use 9 years of offscreen training to justify making him the world's strongest witch.