Naerith joined them but didn’t throw himself at Clayton. His expression was a mixture of rage and helplessness, and he didn’tseem to know what to do with himself. His hands hovered over his wife’s shaking form, and he couldn’t meet Clayton’s eyes.
Clayton patted Elena awkwardly and realized she’d had to bend over a considerable amount to cry into his neck. He hadn’t noticed until now just how much taller Naerith and Elena were than he was.
“I’m not short,” Clayton announced to the pair.
Elena gave a startled hiccough and pulled away enough to gaze at him in bewilderment.
Clayton cleared his throat and continued. “For a human, I mean. I’m slightly above average, but you’re both far taller than I am.”
“That’s true,” Naerith agreed slowly, and Clayton was certain the man was considering whether or not Clayton’s weird life had caused him to grow up stupid.
Elena, however, brushed tears away and gave a watery laugh. “Fae are generally taller than humans, but my grandfather is short, so you probably take after him. Human traits pop up in our family tree from time to time.” Her expression wobbled a bit, and for a terrifying moment, Clayton was afraid she was going to start crying again, but she held firm and gave him a weak smile.
“My human ancestry is further back than Elena’s,” Naerith said, voice rough from repressed emotion. His uncomfortable expression told Clayton he had no idea what any of them were supposed to do, but that if they were all trying, then he would too. “So we don’t have many human traits on my side.”
“You both likely had recessive genes with human traits that combined into me.” Clayton was about to go off on a massive tangent about genetics—something he only knew about because he was a magicless freak in the Other, and studying science was his attempt to find some magic of his own.
He stopped himself before he could get lost, because it wasn’t the time or the place. Not only did they have a misty stranger floating next to them, hanging on their every word, but they were on a mission. “Listen, I’m going to save us all some time here. I know I must be a huge disappointment to you two. You were looking for your baby, but instead you got me, and it’s obvious that I’m no prize.”
Both Naerith and Elena looked stricken, but Clayton plowed on, not allowing them to interrupt. “I don’t expect anything from either of you. I never have.”
It was a tiny lie. When he was small, Clayton constantly fantasized about what his real parents were like and what his life would be like when they finally returned for him. As he got older, those fantasies faded, and Clayton realized they were nothing but silly stories he’d crafted to help cope with his emotions.
If he wanted more from Elena and Naerith, then it was only normal. He would get over it.
“I won’t hold it against you if you want to forget all about this and have another kid. All I ask is that you help me get my family back, and then we can go our separate ways. After that, I promise to never bother you again.”
“What the...?” Naerith was livid, and Elena was pale and shaking. “We’re the ones who fucked up and lost you, and you think we’ll just forget you and move on?”
“I don’t want another child, Carwyn.” Elena’s tears had dried, and her expression was fierce like a woman about to go into battle. “You’remy child. I’ve missed out on every possible thing a mother could miss. Even if you ordered me to leave you alone, I wouldn’t. I can’t. Please don’t ask this of me.”
“You’re stuck with us, son,” Naerith said gruffly. “We lost you. That’s on us, and we can’t change that, but we’re here now. Please don’t push us away.”
“You actually want to stay? With me?” Clayton’s vision went blurry, and he touched a wet cheek. “But I’m not a cute little magic fae baby. I’m seriously fucked up. Like, no joke. It’s literally dangerous to be around me.”
Elea reached out hesitantly to touch his wet cheek and wiped his tears away. “That’s because you were a fae child forced to grow up in the Real. Similar to how Marshall couldn’t use his power here, our magic in the Real is broken and unpredictable. Vis’s and Astraea’s little spat doesn’t help matters either. Have you had any bad luck since you left the Real and returned home?”
Clayton shivered at the phrasereturned home. He wasn’t ready to open that box yet, so he focused on answering Elena. “Actually, no. I don’t think I have.” He’d even managed to use some sort of magic to throw Marshall across a field, now that he thought of it.
Naerith tapped his chin thoughtfully. “What I saw of your life was blurry because it went by so quickly, but I did see the fight between you and the men who tried to take Tomanthus and Merribelle. Your uncle has the same talent. We call it probability magic. It’s the ability to sway things in your favor when you need it. Your uncle has never been able to do what you did, though. It’s usually a subtle magic, but the way you used it in combat was impressive.”
Naerith thought Clayton was impressive? The idea of anyone thinking him to be impressive was a stretch, but his super cool dad? Clayton’s brain released a lifetime’s worth of happy chemicals at the very idea.
Clayton rubbed the back of his neck furiously and stammered, “Y-yeah, that was pretty cool, I guess.”
“Cool? My brother is going to lose his mind when I introduce you to him. I can’t wait for the two of you to meet.” Naerith’s eyes gleamed with pride and excitement as he continued. “He’llbe able to teach you how to control it, and then you’ll be a force to be reckoned with.” Naerith slapped Clayton’s back, and since his father was considerably larger than him, Clayton nearly fell to his knees.
He was busy marveling over the fact that he managed to recover instead of hitting the ground and eating magic void mist, so he almost missed the part where he now had an uncle as well as parents.
“I have more family?”
Elena threw her arms around Clayton’s neck again. “You have so much family, my love. There are so many people who are worried sick about you and love you to pieces. The queen, your aunt, has spared no expense sending out people to find you.” Elena’s body tensed up and quivered slightly. “I’ll have to tell my sister to call off the search when we get home. She’ll be so happy to know you’re safe.” Her voice wobbled, and Clayton knew she’d just lied.
“She won’t be, though, will she?” Clayton asked softly. “They’re all going to be horrified by what happened.” Just like Elena and Naerith obviously were, though they were trying their best to disguise it.
Elena didn’t respond other than to hold Clayton tight enough for his ribs to ache.
Naerith’s face fell, and he said, “Son…” And then he trailed off.
