Tim woke the following day with no magical solution to anything that had happened. He hadn’t expected to somehow work it all out in his dreams, but it would have been nice.

He was off the rota this morning, which would do him no favours later when Tom found out, let alone the other guards.

It didn’t help matters that everyone knew that Sylvie was all for them being together, and she made no secret of that. Tim was the uncertain one, but how could he not be?

His father abandoned them after Tom was born, leaving them to manage on their own, which only got harder after his mother died. Tim had always sworn to himself that he wouldn’t be the same. He would do right by whoever he committed himself to and be a better man than the scum that fathered him.

He’d had a few short relationships here and there, but nothing serious, and that was precisely what Sylvie wanted.

Shaking his head, Tim dressed and headed downstairs to see if Henry was still making breakfast.

“Morning, Brother,” Tom said loudly as Tim came into the canteen. Declan and Pawel were sat with Tim’s brother, and the two echoed Tom’s sentiment a moment later as all three turned to look Tim over with sly grins.

“Don’t even start,” Tim said before any of them could comment, sinking into the seat next to his brother and stealing half of Tom’s sandwich, ignoring his little brother’s protests.

“Don’t want to talk about it then?” Pawel asked with an overly innocent expression.

“We had a nice time, anything more than that isn’t your business,” Tim said firmly, taking a large bite out of the sandwich he’d stolen.

The petty banter continued for a while, eventually coming to an end as Declan and Pawel left to go walk a patrol, leaving Tim with just his brother.

“I get it, you know,” Tom said softly, looking at the table with hooded eyes. “Why you’re hesitating.”

“Yeah, I know you do,” Tim said equally softly, reaching over to squeeze Tom’s shoulder.

The two of them sat in companionable silence for a while, sipping on some coffee Henry had brought them. Tim had the morning off, and Tom wasn’t included in their usual rota because he was a Sorcerer now, so they had the time to spare.

“Mum would have liked her, you know,” Tom said, breaking the silence as he leaned back in his chair with a sad smile.

“Yeah, I know,” Tim said, looking around the room carefully before continuing quietly. “I like her as well. It’s just scary, you know. If I commit, then I commit. I’m not going to be like him.”

“You’re nothing like him, Brother, never have been,” Tom said, patting Tim on the back as he got to his feet. “I’m gonna take a walk. Fancy stretching your legs?”

“Why not,” Tim said with a shrug, getting to his feet and drinking the last of his coffee before following Tom outside.

Unfortunately, their planned walk didn’t make it past leaving the workshop, as there was a standoff occurring in the middle of the estate.

On the one side was Sylvie, who was standing tall with a defiant expression, and on the other was Blane with four other people that Tim didn’t recognise.

Strangely, the group of four was in two sections. Three of the four stood behind Blane in support, while the fourth stood slightly off to one side, watching carefully.

Tim and Tom shared an uneasy look as one of the newcomers, a woman with dark hair, stepped forward and asked something.

“It’s none of your business,” Sylvie snapped in response, her voice carrying clearly to them. “I decide my fate, not you, and I have placed it here. Why even come if you do not wish to stay?”

“We came to ensure that you don’t die, so you have a chance to come to your senses and stop being a naita. The idea of you with a strab is ridiculous!” The woman beside Blane retorted angrily. “Now I’m here, though, I may just drag you home and accept your thanks once you come to your senses.”

“Stop trying to force her to do something she doesn’t want to,” Tim called out as he started over to them, something angry stirring in his chest at the sight of them ganging up on Sylvie.

“You sure about his, Brother?” Tom muttered as he tagged along with him.

“You have no say here,” Blane said with a look of frustration that the newcomer picked up on.

“Is this the strab she’s chosen as her drassul?” The woman demanded, eyeing Tim with a curled lip as Blane gave a terse nod.

“Who I am doesn’t matter; what does is that you’re not taking Sylvie anywhere she doesn’t want to go,” Tim declared, meeting her derisive look defiantly.

A rumbling growl came from two of the other newcomers as Tim continued to draw near, both of whom were grey-haired men with hard, angry eyes that were fixed on Tim.

Tim met their gaze without flinching and maintained his pace, feeling the solid presence of Tom at his side and noticing that the other guards had gathered to watch what was happening.

Sylvie and the woman continued to argue as the two men moved to stand in the way of the two brothers, Blane watching with an uncomfortable expression.

“Walk away, strab,” the closer of the two men said, baring his teeth at Tim to reveal oddly elongated canines.

“Get out of my way,” Tim said, his heart pounding in his chest as he tried to stay calm. His instincts told him he should be beside Sylvie, supporting her, and they raged against anything that stood in his way.

Tim wasn’t sure who threw the first punch, but one moment he was facing down one of the grey-haired Airta, and the next, they were grappling with each other and exchanging blows.

It was an angry and forceful contest of strength more than a fight, one that Tim couldn’t win. For all that they were about the same size and weight, the Airta had a supernatural edge to his strength that allowed him to throw Tim back and get enough clearance to punch him in the face.

“Brother!” Tom’s voice was oddly muted to Tim’s ear as the Airta’s fist hit him like a hammer, throwing him backwards.

Chaos reigned.

Tim got back to his feet and came in at the Airta with a bloody grin, slipping past a wild punch to sink his fist into the other man’s gut.

Tom and the other Airta were battering each other to his left while Sylvie and the other woman continued shouting at each other with increasing intensity, and the other guards closed in.

The Airta reeled back from Tim’s strike and was about to retaliate when Blane shoved him aside with a deep growl.

“Enough of this!” Blane snapped, staring down the Airta before turning back to the woman arguing with Sylvie. “This wasn’t what we agreed. Delia.”

Sylvie looked over at Blane’s interruption and glanced past him to see the blood on Tim’s face from where he’d been punched. Going very still, Sylvie turned back to Delia with a murderous expression that promised immediate violence.

“Davin, Cristian, stand down,” Delia snapped, motioning for the two men to return to her side with a glare for the one who had hit Tim. “I apologise, Tara. I did not mean for this to turn violent.”

“My name is Sylvie, now,” Sylvie said, baring her teeth as the tension in the air started to soar once more.

“Davin stood between two drassul. How could it have gone differently?” The fourth newcomer spoke up for the first time, having not intervened when the brief fight broke out.

Tim wasn’t exactly sure what that declaration meant, but he saw how uncomfortable it made Delia and how pleased it made Sylvie.

“Thank you, Honoured Zhalia,” Sylvie said to the watcher before turning back to Dalia. “This is not some flight of fancy, Dalia. It isn’t as simple as between Airta, but we are finding our own way. Acknowledge that, or leave.”

“Perhaps I misjudged the situation,” Dalia said begrudgingly, glancing to Zhalia before looking between Tim and Sylvie with a thoughtful expression.

With the Airta no longer in his way, Tim took up a position behind Sylvie, one hand resting on her shoulder. He might not know or understand everything that was happening, but he knew he was on her side.

“Is everything okay, Tim?” Verdan’s voice reached them as the Wizard joined the odd tableau. Verdan’s eyes were flicking between the newcomers, assessing them carefully.

“Everything’s fine, Boss, the reinforcements that Blane went for are here,” Tim called back, confident that they were past the worst of the situation now. The Airta might be strong, but Verdan was on a whole different level.

Delia remained quiet for a few more moments before glancing back to Zhalia, taking a breath and nodding to Sylvie. “Very well, we’ll do this your way. What do you need from us?”

“For now, nothing, but this city will be attacked in the next few weeks, and we will be defending it,” Sylvie declared, gesturing to Verdan with one hand. “The Wizard is in charge, he is the one who healed me, and he will be the one to defend the city.”

“Defend from whom?” Delia asked, glancing between Sylvie and Verdan with some concern.

“Blane should have explained this,” Sylvie said, giving her brother a withering glare.

“He did, but I confess that I didn’t listen,” Delia said with a grimace. “I misunderstood the situation; I thought your claim of a bonded was just a fabrication.” Delia’s gaze rested on Tim for a moment, though he felt no anger from her now, simply curiosity and a touch of confusion.

“Very well, we are defending against the Weeping Death sect of Sorcerers, who are intent on taking over the city. This is one of the human Enclaves, so they’re using a failed assassination attempt as a justification to avoid angering the other sects.”

“Sorcerers,” Delia said, her lip curling in distaste.

“Forgive me for being blunt,” Verdan said, coming closer to the group as he spoke directly to Delia. “But from where I’m standing, you were about ready to fight us all two minutes ago. Why should we involve you in this and not expect you to betray us?”

“Because I wasn’t expecting the bond to be real,” Delia said with apparent reluctance. “As long as…Sylvie… is here and fighting by your side, so shall we be.” Delia’s reluctant use of Sylvie’s name felt like a victory to Tim, a sign that they were taking the changes seriously.

“You figured it to be real because Tim got punched?” Verdan asked, cocking one brow at the Airta, who shifted uncomfortably.

“No, it’s because I acknowledged it,” Zhalia said, stepping forward to capture Verdan’s attention. “My name is Zhalia. I am a Cleric of Dassdarth. My lord is well respected among our people, and my own knowledge of the bonded is well-known.”

“Introduce yourselves properly. I will see to my drassul,” Sylvie declared imperiously, the Airta nodding and moving over to speak with Verdan. Once she was satisfied they were doing as she asked, Sylvie turned to Tim with a concerned look.

“I’m fine,” Tim said, warding away her concern immediately. “It was just a punch.”

“True enough, I’ve hit him harder than that before,” Tom volunteered, making Tim shoot him an exasperated look. “Right, yeah, gotta go. Shout me if we start fighting again.”

“Your brother loves you,” Sylvie said softly, an amused smile on her lips.

“He does, but it doesn’t make him any less frustrating at times,” Tim said with a smile of his own.

“I’m sorry you were dragged into that,” Sylvie said, looking back to the other Airta.

“It’s okay, no lasting harm done, and at least they acknowledge that you’re free to do what you want,” Tim said, trying to look at the positives of the situation.

“Yes, but only because they now see you as my bonded. It’s one thing to stop something from happening, another altogether when it’s already happened,” Sylvie said, not meeting Tim’s gaze.

“I don’t understand,” Tim said, sensing that something was amiss.

“Did you feel the urge to protect me beyond what you would normally feel?” Sylvie asked, looking up at him questioningly, making Tim abruptly aware of how close they were standing.

“Yes, I could feel this urge telling me to go to you,” Tim said, all thoughts of lying driven away by the concern in her eyes.

“Then the bond is already growing between us, which is good, but at the same time, I know you haven’t made a decision,” Sylvie said, her voice soft enough to prevent anyone from overhearing.

“Wait, how has it grown? We haven’t….” Tim made an uncomfortable gesture, unsure how to say what he was thinking.

“Not everything is about sex,” Sylvie said, rolling her eyes at him, her concern momentarily driven away. “Feelings and desires are the foundation of the bond. We might not have committed ourselves, but we’ve grown closer.”

“What does this mean?”

“It means that you need to decide, and the quicker, the better. The soul should not be misaligned with the mind. That leads only to problems.”

“I see,” Tim said, doing his best to stay calm and try and think about things from a logical point of view.

“I can see that you’re not ready,” Sylvie said sadly, a bittersweet smile spreading across her face as she stepped away from him. “I will speak to Zhalia about our options. All I ask is that you think about what you want. Time is running out.”

Tim watched her walk away with mixed feelings; he wasn’t sure what to think about this bond being able to affect him like that.

This was only getting more complicated. She was right; he needed to make a decision. Soon.