"Alright then, we are next," Carien stated as he moved toward the attendants operating the teleportation array with Sriel on one arm while dragging along his suit case with his other arm.

They would only be attending for the night gathering and leaving once morning came, so it was all he needed clothing wise.

His suit.

Petrina and Oryen had just disappeared a brief moment ago in a burst of light. Most likely they'd accept another guest from Hathen or the Capital, then allow another from Hylyu.

"Please step inside and do not move around too much," the attendant said to them both, pointing to the inner circle of Hylyu's teleportation mechanism while removing a rope that had been blocking their path.

Looking around, Carien could see the edge of their continent just one hundred feet to his front. The circle was placed on a far edge so as to give it the least likely chance someone would interfere with it on accident. All Celestials taking flight or landing were not allowed to do so on this western corner, either.

The blue sky was as beautiful as it always was, even more so today since he was underneath it for pleasure, not work. He had time to enjoy the sensation of the soft, cool breeze on his skin, the sun, the chirping of birds... Sriel. He had time to enjoy it all.

'If only this would last,' Carien mused.

He led Sriel into the circle with a smile and stayed put as they closed it off again. A heavy gust of wind slammed into the side of their island, causing the barrier of mana around it to fluctuate inward slightly while becoming visible, lighting up in a very dim and seethrough green striped pattern across the sky. That indicated a very very minor threat, usually reserved for weak spells, strong gusts of wind, or other acts of nature.

Another smile adorned Carien's face as the gentle breeze from the prior gust swished through his hair and around the feathers of his wings. Looking right, Sriel held the same content expression as her hair danced in the sunlight, giving off different reflections of red and orange.

He was glad she'd chosen to grow it out.

"Activating the array," a second attendant said, placing his hand on top of what looked like a pedestal made out of solid Moonstone.

Being the most flexible metal while accepting mana the easiest, any serious array or creation of Alteration would be done on it. Naturally, such a stone had a high cost. It was as difficult to get ahold of as it was to go to the moon and back, thus its name.

The ground lit up white in a strange series of lines, similar to a maze. Carien tore his eyes away from his companion to examine it as it finally stopped getting brighter.

"Permission received; sending package," the second attendant stated, dropping his second hand towards the top of the pedestal.

Carien's stomach sank a bit and his knees went weak, eyes losing orientation. It lasted no longer than a fraction of a second, but he always hated that fraction. He felt vulnerable in a way he usually never felt. It was irksome.

"Em what the hell?" someone called out the moment Carien's vision cleared up and his body began to regulate to the new location.

"Petrina and Oryen. Isn't that...?" Sriel mumbled from his right.

"Yes, yes it is. I believe we should leave speaking with him for another time, though. It does not seem they are in a very calm state," Carien said with a laugh.

"Dad!" a cheerful voice called out, causing him to turn and see a very beautiful and smiling young woman waving at him.

"Plus, today is not a day for work," he whispered, smiling and waving back as he moved toward his daughter.

'If only.'

"You should have told me you told him," Damien whispered, pulling Alexa aside as the rest of their two families exited the coach.

The N'morans had been rather peaceful and quiet during the twenty-minute ride over, Oryen casually chatting with Damien about his life, his son, and Damien's parents, while Petrina largely ignored everyone.

Damien's parents themselves had been excitedly conversing with Kastra and Vanessa. Vanessa even displayed a level of emotion Damien hadn't heard once since meeting her. She had elected to disappear once they'd gotten to their home, informing no one of where to. She asserted that she'd be back later, so no one asked much more than that, but Damien was curious.

It was understandable when you took into account how fancy everything was, his parents being excitable. The cushions felt like heaven and the coach didn't let a sound in or out of it. Indeed, showing up to their small mansion only served to further agitate his family while Alexa's ignored the novelty of the entire trip. Damien was slightly embarrassed for them for a brief moment, he was, after all, trying to impress or at least show worth in the eyes of her mother, but quickly pushed those feelings down.

If his family was happy and excited, he should be as well. Petrina could get the stick out of her ass or-

"I forgot," Alexa whispered back.

"What?"

"About you staying with me. I'm sorry."

"Oh. Well now he thinks I lied to him," Damien responded, thankful she'd grown used to his mid-conversation tangents. "You didn't tell them we sleep together as well di- Oof"

Suddenly, Alexa had him wrapped in a hug with a hand on his mouth, eyes looking a little wild. She had tackled him a little aggressively and he'd lost his breath, so he tried to pry her away from him as quickly as possible to inquire just why that was necessary.

"I can't believe you just said that," she hissed. "He," she continued, pointing off to the side where Damien looked, seeing Oryen smiling and waving at them while Petrina glared, "is always listening. To everything. Even this, by the way, which is extremely rude."

Oryen shrugged and Damien went white.

"Well why didn't you tell me THAT sooner," Damien hissed back to Alexa after he'd grabbed her hand off his mouth.

"What are they talking about and why are they so close," Petrina asked, trying to kill the boy no doubt with just a glare.

"I forgot! I haven't seen him in years if you don't recall. I've been with you!" Alexa replied, whisper yelling.

"He joked about kissing in front of us," Oryen replied, glancing down to his wife nonchalantly.

What she didn't know wouldn't hurt her.

"Crass," she spat out, turning away and looking back at the house.

"Fine. Fine. From now on, English whenever he is around. What about that?" Damien finished as Alexa unwrapped herself from him.

"It isn't so bad darling, we have joked about worse," Oryen defended with a pat to her butt. "I didn't know he knew a second language, Alexa never mentioned that."

"That's a good idea," Alexa replied, turning to look at Oryen and grinning. "It's a good thing you taught us. Didn't think it would come useful in this manner."

"A second language?" Petrina asked.

"[Translate]" he said with a grin back, activating a premade matrix he'd picked up hundreds of years ago.

"Magic all you want. It is different sound," Alexa said, causing him to scrunch his eyebrows slightly.

'There seems to be structure to her words but... if it's a language, why can't I...'

"It is a different language," Damien responded to her, using a few similar sounds and different ones. "Also, not magic but... we'll work on it." he finished with a shrug.

"[Translation: Full]" Oryen stated, activating a secondary matrix he'd created a hundred years back alongside the spell [Compound].

It was different than the generic [Translate] in that it had languages from across the islands all over the globe, as well as the demonic language from the far west. No other spell had that language in it, and he'd only been able to include it because his retinue had managed to capture one of their kind. In exchange for its freedom, he demanded it translate a few lines of their language for him. Within a day, he'd had more than enough information to recreate the language from his storage of the sounds their kind made.

Within a few days and nights of staying up constantly, his [Compound] had sifted through the tones, body language, and words used to create a usable translation of their language. It had been considerably simpler than previous instances requiring him to stay up for anywhere from two weeks to a month, and with each conversation he'd had after that with the thing, it improved itself tenfold.

Recovering from his magically awakened state had only taken a week of rest. The translation that had taken twenty-five days and nights... his body was ruined for almost half a year after coming out of it.

Learning the Demon's language had taken place over fifty years ago and he hadn't encountered another foreign language since then. If this truly was a new one... Damien may just have his approval right off the get-go.

His daughter opened her mouth and Oryen waited with baited breath.

"Ok. It is a different language?" she said back, raising her tone as if asking a question.

Oryen smiled widely and tilted his head back to the sky, chuckling slightly.

"What?" Petrina asked.

"It is a new language," he said with mirth. "The boy actually taught our daughter a new language. Our daughter."

"It is a different language," Damien responded in the common tongue as Oryen tilted his head down and nodded in confirmation back, though the boy wasn't looking at him. "Yo-"

"No!" Alexa yelled in the other language, once again shoving her hand over Damien's mouth. "Do not translate sentences in English. He's made a spell that can deconstruct languages," she finished, causing Damien to go silent.

"Oh come on Alexa don't be selfish," Oryen grumbled out.

"What do you mean by... as in, one you don't know?" Petrina asked with a shocked expression.

He turned to look down into her eyes as she stared up at him. "Yes, one I don't know. I wonder if he has taught the slave girl over there..." he asked absently.

"But how-"

"I have no idea," he replied, snapping back into focus. "But I can't wait to get him alone to find out."

"Think of the uses," Petrina said, nodding. "At least he wasn't a total waste of time with our daughter. Get him alone."

"Of course he did," Damien said with an exasperated sigh. "Well, even if he knew what I was translating, I think it would take a lot more of hearing us speak it and translate it before his spell would work. Or maybe not, maybe he can just bippity boppity poof and know it. Dammit," he finished, frustrated.

That language was his. It was a memory of home, his first home. He didn't realize it until teaching Kastra and Alexa, but it was something tangible he had held onto after leaving his old land behind. Teaching them had been fine, but the thought of someone stealing it from him irked him to no end.

"He can't do that," Alexa said back in a calm manner. "It takes a long time and lots of translations, just like you said. He's told me before. If he tries to start translating it without enough known, it could take months and possibly end with him killing himself. Just don't translate anything in front of him," Alexa finished, hugging Damien in a manner that didn't hurt or start with her hand over his mouth.

He sighed back and rested his head on her shoulder, a little relieved. Still worried, but not as much as before.

"Can we go inside and change yet?" his mother yelled from across the front yard. "Its going to get dark if we just wait for you two to stop hugging!"

Damien nodded.

"Adrenna, please take my parents to a room on the second floor. You have my permission to go up there until the task is complete. Return as soon as they are shown their quarters," he finished as thoroughly as possible.

"Yes, Master," Adrenna responded sarcastically, becoming visible while bowing from where she'd been standing by the front door and scaring his dad as his mom and Kastra giggled.

Damien nodded with an awkward smile and sighed again. He felt bad whenever he gave her orders like that. The fact that she wasn't allowed up there yet was an unspoken awkwardness in their relationship, but what needed to be done... needed to be done. He didn't trust her fully and was unsure if he ever could trust her fully. She lived with them, inside of Kastra's barriers and warnings... what would he do if she decided to act on that while he slept?

He wished she could move out, or that he could just transfer her to someone trustworthy that was willing to take on the risk. The risk of a slave with nothing to lose and an aggressive personality.

"So where are you staying then?" Oryen asked, walking over to Damien as Petrina floated both her's and her husband's luggage into the house after Adrenna and his parents. "You can't sleep with my daughter, so how about we share a room and they share one? It would give them a chance to catch up after all, wouldn't you want that?"

"I'm not staying with mom. Kastra sleeps with us too. I'll be with her. Damien can take Emra and Piper tonight; you stay with mom," Alexa finished, answering for Damien as he mentally thanked her for saving him from the loaded question.

"I think Damien would-"

"You aren't guilting him into agreeing with you, dad. I don't want to stay with mom alone either. If you want to learn the language from Damien so bad, why not try to actually befriend him rather than blackmailing him with support?" she continued as Damien puckered up. "If mom truly can't see eye to eye with me about him, that isn't a problem to me. The only reason Damien is trying and going to be trying so hard while you are here is that he wants me to be able to have my family still. If she and you won't accept him, then at least I'll have Vanessa, Jemmy, and our family," she finished, waving her arm towards Damien, who had chosen to turn away from their conversation moments into her monologue.

He was thankful for her aggressive defense but really, really could have done without being present for that outburst. The last thing he needed was her dad working against him or blaming him for losing his daughter.

It stayed silent for about ten seconds, and Damien began to get a cold sweat down his back.

"I did not know you felt so strongly about this," Oryen finally said.

"They have been my family for longer than she and you both have been at this point in my life," Alexa stated plainly.

Damien almost crouched down and put his hands over his head and ears. If he wanted to make a true friend out of her dad, this was not helping. Not at all. He wanted to be anywhere but here at the moment, until he felt her emotions take a hard dip.

"If she can't accept that, then I won't accept her."

It stayed quiet for another ten seconds before Alexa's voice was heard again shakily.

"But I r-really don't want it to come to that," she finished.

Damien turned back around to give her a hug and console her but found her dad had his arms around her already. He made eye contact with Damien and smiled in a pained manner. It took the man more than a few tries to piece his words together.

"I won't attempt to decipher your language, Damien, and I'll do my best to not make it come to that Alexenna. You will always have me, even if your mother cannot accept your wishes. I'm not losing my daughter because of a stubborn wife. She will come around in time, anyway. I'll..."

Damien nodded and slowly backed away from the father-daughter moment, making his way inside to change for the event as Oryen continued to console Alexa.

Damien sat in a guest room by himself on the second story, unsure of what to do. He had no need for clothing due to Kastra's influence nor the need for luggage of any kind since the guest bathrooms and bedrooms all came with the same assortment of items. His hair was short and easy to take care of with mana, his body and odor easy to clean with water manipulation in just seconds... He had two hours to kill before they'd all be expected to head to the main building and currently he was burning that time by staring blankly into a wall and deciding just what to do.

"Practice more I guess," he mumbled. "Or work on growing wings so her mom doesn't hate me."

He paced around the room a bit before returning to his staring contest with a wall. He didn't understand just what the woman's problem was, but it was his problem now.

"So, Gold as a first-year? I'm disappointed you didn't go Platinum or Diamond," Vanessa said from the hallway, breaking him from his staring contest.

He tore his eyes away from the wall and turned around, smiling at her. She hadn't changed one bit, ever the Ice Queen, albeit grinning a bit wider than usual.

"I didn't want to break their little system," he responded with a shrug. "'Human male tests out of school on first year in attendance.' I see that going over well. Hey Emperor, remember how I hid from you for eleven years? Here I am."

"You'd get the Academies protection," she replied with a chuckle.

For a few moments they stood apart, smiling very slightly at one another. Eventually, Damien broke eye contact and sat on the bed, offering her a seat next to him.

She gasped.

"What would Alexa say?"

"Can it," he replied, chuckling as she took a seat next to him.

Looking at her, he took in how petite she appeared now that he'd grown. No longer able t-

"I can still kick your ass," she asserted out of the blue, turning to her left to look at him with a neutral expression.

"And read my mind apparently," he replied with a sigh.

"I can do that too. Currently, it's, 'how can I get a former Guardian and parental figure to ravag-"

"My mother is a bad influence on you," Damien interrupted with a laugh. "Your sister is right. We Humans are a bad influence."

"She certainly is," Vanessa replied. "Sometimes what we need is a bad influence to get the stick out of our asses, though. 'What can I do to make Petrina like me? Is it going to be alright if she doesn't? Am I worth Alexa not seeing her mother again?'"

Damien stayed silent.

"Well? Am I right?"

Damien sighed and nodded, turning back forward to look at the ground.

"Doesn't matter how I put it, I can't see that stuck up woman liking anyone. I'm surprised she's married. Colossal bitch."

Vanessa chuckled.

"Well, that'll happen when you and your younger sister see your parents killed before you by a different race than your own. You'll resent them even more than you already did, and she had always been a bit on the anti-Human side already. She grew resentful and angry, I rebelled," she finished.

Damien opened his mouth to respond when Vanessa held her hand up and motioned for him to stop.

"It's not something you can apologize for, nor something that you should. Just keep in mind that just by being here, in this home with you and your family, she is trying in her own way."

Damien nodded and Vanessa smiled again.

"That isn't to say she is a saint. The woman is a bit of a bitch who would rather marry her daughter off than let her choose her own partner. I had to escape custody before she tried to do the same to me a long time ago."

"Nice," Damien said with a laugh. "Well, I'll take quiet indifference to mean that I'm doing alright then."

"Good call, Oryen isn't too bad either. If it weren't for him, I don't know that I would have escaped my sister so easily. A bit single-tracked minded when it comes to certain things, sure, and definitely loves to stir it up, but he can be an ally to you if you play your cards right," Vanessa continued, shoving her left wing into Damien to knock him over while she got up from the bed. "Good luck, and try not to beat yourself up too much."

He smiled and watched her leave as Emra came bounding in around the corner with Piper on her back, maneuvering around the Celestial and leaping into Damien's chest where he lay knocked over on the bed.

"Oh god, you two smell," Damien coughed out, trying to prevent himself from gagging.

"Gods," Vanessa corrected as she smiled and shut the door.

"Gods then," Damien mumbled as he decided to spend the remainder of time he had washing his companions.

"So, Gold. That is impressive considering your race and age, how did you accomplish that?" Oryen pried as he, Damien, and Petrina sat in yet another coach, headed into the school grounds from their home.

He'd been prying ever since they'd all got inside the coach, seemingly unrestrained now that Alexa wasn't around. His wife didn't mind or give any input to the conversation either, making his only excuse to stop replying, her hating the sound of his voice, not a viable one.

"Lot's of practice. Vanessa helped me from a young age to control the elements and my mana," Damien responded. "Alexa took over training once she moved in with us, actually."

"Ah, yes, moved in with you. You see, we were under the impression... Well, I say we, but I mean my wife, was under the impression that she was living with Vanessa. We didn't know she'd been with you and your family until very recently," Oryen responded. "Well, not that it did any harm. She seems to be very happy and is obviously thriving in her environment, isn't that right dear? Ranked first at the school, first mage in years to achieve that..."

Damien listened in, a bit taken aback by how the man seemed to be reaming him only to take a serious negative and spin it off positively. He wanted to point-blank ask the man whose side he was on, but refrained as he instead waited eagerly to hear Petrina say something actually non-hateful.

He didn't hold a lot of hope in that, though.

"She is doing well," Petrina simply said, causing Damien's heart to ease slightly. "Yet she managed to keep a leech living with her."

Damien's eyes rolled around his surroundings more thoroughly than they'd ever before.

"Hardly a leech, dear. The man is talented himself, is he not? Plus, the way she tells it, she owes their family, this man here specifically, a few years in rooming fees and tutoring fees," Oryen laughed out. "So, just how did you get our daughter to Diamond? She attributes her success to you, and I'd certainly like to know how in case we decide to have any future children," he stated with a nudge to his wife. "What are your secrets? Surely 'young age' isn't the only thing that allowed you to start where most Humans barely finish," the man finished.

Damien considered his answer carefully before opening his mouth.

"Maybe someday I'll let you in on my own secrets but until then... I'm just a hard worker," he finished with a shrug.

"I like it. Maybe someday I'll get you to teach me that language as well. I may have agreed not to pry into it and figure it out on my own, but I'll be damned if I'm not going to try to get you to willingly hand it over," Oryen responded.

"That probably won't-"

"Where is Alexa?" Petrina randomly cut in while staring at her husband, stopping their conversation short.

"She is-"

"I was not asking you. Oryen?" Petrina interrupted again, causing Damien to roll his eyes with a scoff and gaze out the window, keeping the two in his peripheral vision.

Why he had to sit in here with them while his own family was busy playing dress up and getting his four favorite women ready was beyond him. He missed them all.

'Play nice they said, get them talking they said... Why don't I get to spend time with my actual family?'

"Well honey, I don't know. Maybe you should ask him?" Oryen said with a shrug.

"Bullshit you don't know," she responded with a glare, causing her husband to shrug again and her to turn and glare out the window.

Damien was liking Oryen more and more with each passing moment at least, grinning at the man's response.

"Even if she is testy, my wife loves me. I am allowed to pick on her from time to time," the man stated.

Damien looked over at him and grinned.

"I can relate. She claims to hate it, but Alexa puts up with plenty of my own antics. I like to think she enjoys most of them."

"I do as well," Oryen laughed out. "By the way, I've been meaning to ask and take this however you'd like but... your eyes are so interesting. Grey with silver and red wisps floating through them. Exactly what is that from? And the exceedingly strange... red birthmark on your neck. Very distinct features, is there a story behind them?"

"That..." Damien started, closing his mouth as he thought up an excuse.

"No lies now," Oryen quickly interjected. "You should just tell me if you can't respond. Stop covering up your tracks so much; you're just a child. Leave that for when you are my age."

"Ahh... Yeah, that is a great idea. I'll tell you what, ask your daughter. I'll let her figure out the answer to those, since we can't exactly hide it," Damien said with a shrug.

"I will then," the man said with a grin. "I look forward to her answer. That Fae has wings similar in color as well... I guess I'll bring that up too."

Damien smiled and turned back to his window to continue staring out of it, less miffed that he had to be here but still disappointed he couldn't be with his family.

He was wearing a black, red, and white suit crafted for him specifically by Kastra, made to match a set the three of them would all be wearing. Maybe Oryen would notice the pattern, maybe he wouldn't. Damien assumed he would but either way, he wanted to see how they looked with the matching dresses on.

The two N'morans in the coach with him were both dressed in gold and white with their family crests displayed near their hearts. Both looked immaculate, both were mesmerizing.

'If only they were both so amicable.'