The walk home from Obsidian's Haven felt longer and more awkward than Beauty had ever experienced before. Everything she thought she knew was suddenly in question. Even her father, whom she had grown up with was more like a total stranger. He had known about a magical world and had been part of it this whole time, yet hadn't told her. To be fair, she wasn't sure she would have believed him at first if she hadn't met Obsidian, though it would have been nice to have the option to try to.

They arrived at their house and Maurice made them some more tea. She sat at the table, watching him and wondering for the first time in her life if she should show him anything regarding Seiko Wendell. If sharing magical information through media was forbidden, then maybe it was better not to expose the author's real identity if they were part of that community.

"I know that look."

She huffed. "Because I get it from you."

He chuckled, pouring them both cups. "Fair enough. Where should I start?"

"How about the parts of the past I don't know about?"

"Deal." Maurice took a sip of his tea. "You never met my parents, as they passed away before I even met your mother, but they were first-rate magicians. My father was a personal friend to Arch Wizard Arucan, who apparently met your friend and made his dwelling a Haven about seven hundred years ago according to your grandfather. Wizards can live for centuries, however Arucan set the record at a thousand when he passed away shortly after I finally got a chance to meet him myself forty years ago.

"You see, my parents moved us here to America when I was one and I went to the magical school up north in Canada where my mother taught potions while my father ran the Council for the continent. He spoke of Arucan often, as they had grown up together attending the most prestigious of the universities in Norway and even over there, stories of your friend and his three thousand years of beastly wrath echoed from the few hunters who encountered him before Arucan as the newly appointed Arch Wizard decided to take the risk during a time of silence.

"He talked with the one he called Beast, and his choice to grant a Haven status was controversial at first, then lauded by the time I was born five hundred years later as the greatest act of clairvoyance in history. Yes, approximately your old man is around two hundred years on this world, as they say." His lips curled upwards a bit. "And I should have stayed in my own circle for a romantic relationship, however Arucan's prophetic words to me shook me to my core. He said:

'A time soon will come where you will not know who you can trust in our world, son of Wolfric. Hunters will run uncontrolled, the Hounds of Hel will rebel against them, and even safe places shall not be anymore. Every Council shall blame the other, and the next generation will not know what to believe being told so many falsehoods by their own kin who teach them. Break the expectations and go find a human to create a family with, however, you must be aware because not all of them can handle the idea of our world and their mind could be irreparably shattered'."

"That's what happened to Mom?"

He nodded slowly, looking down sadly. "You were very small, I doubt you remember the incident. I had been out of town for only a day and came back to find you and your mother in the clutches of Hunters with Luna's red-eyed children at their sides. I had no choice but to reveal my true nature to save you both and it broke her mind. It was my fault for letting my guard down and not protecting our home, a mistake I never made again. The price for my transgression, however, was that to save the woman I loved, I was forced to erase all memories of us from her mind and we left her at a facility where she could be monitored and kept safe from further attempts.

"In truth, we didn't come to my parents' cottage because it was the only thing I had left, but because after years of living on the move, I decided to settle back at my roots where the enchantments are so strong nothing could harm you. As you may have guessed, my trips to sell furniture have merely been a cover for reestablishing myself in my world. The Council will no doubt be eager to meet and arrange for you to attend the nearest magical institution up in Canada, however, I warn you you must not tell them about meeting Obsidian, nor the gorgon that were exterminated. We do not know if we can trust them much beyond getting a Hunter under control so close to civilization and a Haven."

"I understand. What about Seiko Wendell?"

"I assume you wish to see who she is as much as I, so for now we will keep that to ourselves."

"Deal. And Mom?"

He rubbed his face with his hands. "Honestly, I haven't found the courage to go back to that place in Colorado and face my greatest failure and pain. Perhaps a road trip is in order to finally do so."

She nodded. "I agree. I wish you had told me all of this from the beginning."

"I am so sorry, Beauty. I think I couldn't bring myself to out of fear you might be like your mother. Sometimes when a wizard marries a normal person, the child doesn't have the same gifts. Now I see you may even be a greater magician than I am. Perhaps even destined to rattle the world the same way Arucan did."

"I forgive you." She got up and hugged him. To her surprise, he started crying and she held him tighter, unable to hold back her own tears.

It was a long while before either of them were able to stop and they didn't speak as they heated up dinner, eating together in ponderous silence.