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Viren knew that he may most likely be walking to his death right now. He was already a wanted man in Katolis with the princes alive. He was playing with fire coming to Neolandia after not only attempting to kill their previous king and leading the prince on a wild goose chase ,but also turning the current king into a monster and almost getting him killed. On second thought, maybe the phrase playing with fire is too light of a way to describe how deep of a grave he was digging himself.
‘I’ve come too far to turn back now. I need to see him. I need….to apologize.’ He silently pondered, another wave of grief and self pity washing over him for the 10th time that day as he was led to the throne room by the guards. He’s been sinking into those bouts more and more often as days pass. Ever since…..Ever since he lost Claudia. The last child he had left with him after he had pushed the first one away. And now look where all his scheming and desperation got him. Running back to where he last heard his son was. It had been a harsh slap in the face when he heard the news of Soren stepping down as a Crownguard. His son giving up the very station he had dreamed of for years, the thing he spent countless days and nights training and fighting for, it didn’t seem right. It made no sense! His confusion had only grown when he heard news of Soren leaving Katolis and moving to Neolandia to live in the court of King Kasef.
He decided to come himself to see if he could find him. Even if it costs him his life.
“Your Majesty, a visitor has come to speak with you. He says he is from Katolis.” The guard announced as he was led into the throne room, Viren stopping a few feet away from the throne.
It truly was a magnificent thing to behold, just like the palace. The seat was formed in the shape of an elephant’s head with its golden trunk lifted proudly in the air over the monarch's head. The massive golden tusks acted as the legs of the throne, stretching outwards. And sitting on top of the throne in the center, was King Kasef, formally Prince. The past 5 years have done nothing to soften him from what Viren could see. His hair had grown longer, held back in a ponytail and topped by the crown. Viren tried not to wince at the sight of the faint lighting-like scars that sprawled over the right side of his body, crawling up onto his face underneath where a black eyepatch rested. More scars left from his mistakes.
“You do not look like a messenger from Katolis. State your name.” Kasef ordered, sharp gaze focused on Viren, who has still still not raised his head, lest he be discovered too soon.
“Yes, Your Majesty. You are correct, I am no messenger. I am a seeker, looking for someone.”
“State your identity. Do not make me repeat myself.”
Viren took a breath, steeling himself and pulled down the hood of his cloak, raising his head to finally look Kasef in the eye.
“I am Lord Viren. Once a High Mage of Katolis.” He watched with nervous trepidation as recognition slowly dawned in his eye before being quickly eclipsed by burning fury, the scars beginning to glow orange.
“ You!”
By the time the roar of rage hit his ears, he was hanging by his neck from Kasef’s hand, hands trying to pry it off of him.
“ How DARE you come here and show your face?! Your arrogance truly knows no limits and now will drag you to your death again!”
Viren could barely hear the king’s growling words over the thunder of his heart beating in his ears.
“ Give me ONE reason why I shouldn’t tear your head off right now.”
He scratched desperately at the hand around his neck, trying to speak with the remaining air left in his throat.
“I...I n-need to s….see S-Soren.”
Kasef’s now glowing orange eye widened before narrowing into venomous slits again, his grip tightening around Viren’s throat.
“You dare come into MY kingdom and have the audacity to demand to see MY-”
“Your Majesty!”
A shout interrupted the enraged king’s rant, drawing his attention to instead glare at a shaking soldier.
“What? Speak quickly.”
“Y-Yes, Your Majesty. His Royal Highness wishes to see you in the Eastern Gardens.”
The soldier then paused, nervously casting a look at Viren hanging from Kasef’s grip before adding in.
“H-However, perhaps I-I can inform His Highness that Your Majesty is busy-”
“No need. It’s perfect. Tell him I’m on my way.” Kasef ordered, sending off the guard back to where he came from. Viren tensed as the king’s gaze fell on him again but with a glimmer of malice in his eye that made Viren’s blood run cold.
“What perfect timing. Since you came to see him, it is only fair that he decides what to do with you, Mage.”
The way Kasef spat out the word “Mage” made it sound more like a curse than anything else. Before Viren could respond, the grip on his neck loosened and he was thrown into the waiting arms of four guards.
“Put the shackles on him. I don’t want him causing more trouble with his magic than he already has.”
Before Viren’s vision could stop spinning, the cold grip metal clasped around his wrists along with a loud click informed him that Kasef’s order had been carried out. Before he could examine the feeling of ice crawling through his veins, Viren was roughly dragged between the guards, following behind Kasef as he led the way out of the throne room.
‘Well….that didn’t turn out as bad as I expected. I’m still in one piece. For now.’ Viren mused silently as he was led. But one thing did confuse him, though. Kasef said that it is only fair that this mysterious person decides his fate, which implies he has caused this specific person harm in the past. But Viren couldn’t recall especially harming a specific Neolandian besides the past King Ahling and Kasef. Perhaps one of his siblings? It is known he has quite a bit of them.
‘Well, no matter. I’ll soon find out which person wants my head more. The King or a Prince.’ He thought dismally as they finally arrived in a beautiful courtyard area surrounded with hundreds of well maintained bushes and bright flowers. In the center laid a long rectangular pool spanning the length of the courtyard, filled with floating white and purple water lilies. A tranquil place, or would’ve been if Viren wasn’t being dragged to his most likely death sentence. A shame he won’t get to enjoy it, at least, not in this life.
At the other end of the courtyard, on a wide space of grass were a group of people. Five of them standing to the side, three soldiers and two servants, and one person dressed in the Neolandian royal colors sat on a golden chair facing away from him. They seem to be watching a young child running and rolling around in the grass, the sound of their laughter rising above the natural noises of the garden.
What confused Viren was the fact that the person sitting in the chair had long blonde hair, a rare hair color in Neolandia. Definitely not a relative of Kasef.
Before he had any time to try to guess at their identity, the back of his knee was kicked from under him, forcing him to kneel on the ground with a grunt of muffled pain. Kasef ignored him to kneel next to the blonde, leaning in to whisper something into their ear, causing them to turn their head towards him. From his position, Viren could only see a tip of a pale nose, the long blonde hair obscuring everything else. The two whispered to each other for a few minutes before Kasef rose up and made his way back to where Viren knelt, a dangerous smirk on his face with eyes filled with malicious promises of pain and retribution that sent a shudder down his back.
‘I can’t say I’m surprised.’ Viren gulped, his throat drying up in the face of such anger. He had faced the anger of Harrow’s sons, the raging fire of Callum and the silent storm of Ezran, but they were nothing compared to Kasef’s volcanic rage and bitterness towards him.
Before anything else can happen, the blonde being stood up from their chair and spun around to face Viren, finally allowing Viren to see their face. His face. An all too familiar face that stuttered everything in Viren to a stop, a shock so deep that for a split second, Viren couldn’t feel anything in his body.
The first thing that registered in Viren’s stunned frozen mind were the eyes. A familiar grayish shade of blue. Eyes underneath dark brows, the left one of which had a scar that cut through the dark hairs. Slowly, all the pieces of the puzzle slid into place, assembling a complete picture of the man in front of him.
“S...Soren?” He questioned in disbelief, his eyes wildly looking over the man standing before him, trying to find something, anything, that will prove him wrong. But everything in front of him was exactly like his son, but yet different. Grown up. His once short, half shaved hair had grown long, almost down to his waist and currently tied in a braid, now bleached by the harsh Neolandian sun to a lighter shade. His skin darkened with a sunkissed tan that only made his eyes stand out more. But even with all the changes, Viren could recognize his son anywhere.
“...Dad?” Soren asked, so quietly that Viren would’ve missed it if he hadn’t been close. The sound of his son’s voice after so long brought back all the guilt, self hatred, turmoil, and longing to make up for his countless mistakes in a flood of emotions that threatened to overwhelm him.
“Dad? Is...is that really you?” Soren asked again, slowly moving closer to stand in front of him, kneeling down to better see his face. Viren knows he has changed since the last time Soren saw him and his resurrection three years ago. His hair and beard had returned back to its original deep brown that he hasn’t seen since his 20s and his skin has lost its deathlike paleness gained from years of staying in the dark and dark magic. Though, the most startling discovery had been the change of color in his eyes from steely gray to an unsettling bright purple and the appearance of the purple star marks under his eyes and on his cheeks.
He can see the moment that Soren noticed them, his eyes darting down, filled with confusion before darkening into a mix of fear and confusion and caution, taking a large step back from Viren.
“How are you here?” Soren demanded, his expression closed off and cold. But Soren’s eyes have always been the most expressive part of him and that remains even now. There were a whirlwind of questions in them but the most powerful one was the hardest to answer.
How are you alive?
“I...Its hard to explain.”
“Nothing new then. Lemme guess, Dark Magic?” Soren glared down at him, a tone of exasperation and annoyance in his voice as if he had been expecting that answer. And why wouldn’t he? It is expected of him to always have something involved with Dark magic. But even still, Viren didn’t have the strength to answer. Soren scoffed, rolling his eyes.
“You know, the people here have a saying. “Silence is confirmation of the fearful”. Are you scared?”
“...Yes.”
The answer slipped from his lips like a breeze, a bare whisper. But judging by the look of shock on his son’s face, he was heard. Viren understood his shock. He has never shown weakness in front of anyone, especially not his children. He was the High Mage and their father. He had to be the pillar of strength for them. And yet, like many other pillars, he weakened and crumbled into pieces.
“You should be, Mage. You dared to come into our kingdom and stand before us with all the confidence of a tiger in his den. I suppose resurrection has made you lose your senses.” Kasef interjected, stepping around Viren to stand beside Soren. It was the arm wrapping itself around Soren’s waist that caused his brain to suffer another stuttering shock. The way Soren leaned into it and acted like it was completely normal was the cherry on top of it all.
“What’s with that look for, Mage? Am I not allowed to touch my husband now because of your presence?” Kasef questioned, narrowing his eye at him, the threat of losing his temper again clear with the subtle glow of his scars.
HUSBAND?!
Soren blinked down at his gobsmacked expression before looking back at Kasef confusedly.
“Didn’t you tell him we were married?”
MARRIED?!
“I assumed he already knew. He had come here asking for you, after all.”
“Ah ah, remember what you said about assumptions? Makes an ass out of us to a T.” Soren lectured, confidently crossing his arms and giving Kasef a smug look.
“.....My Love, that’s not how the saying goes.” Kasef corrected, snickering quietly.
“What? Wasn’t that how you said it?”
“Assumptions make an ass out of you and me. That’s how it goes.”
“Is that really any different than my way, Sef?”
‘They have nicknames for each other?!’ Viren watched in a mix of horror and shock as the two bickered and teased each other like an old married couple. Which apparently they were!
“I thought we agreed to not call me Sef.”
“Did WE or did YOU? Big difference.”
“I distinctly recall you screaming yes. Or was it my name? Can’t quite recall.”
“Kasef!”
“There it is.”
“Daddy!”
A shout interrupted the conversation between the adults and a blur of brown and yellow slammed into Kasef’s leg, nearly tumbling him over. Judging by the giggling, it was the child that had been running around earlier. Much to Viren’s surprise, Kasef wasn’t the slightest bit annoyed at the interruption. In fact, he beamed down at the child and lifted them up in his arms, kissing their cheek as they cheered. Viren can now see that they were a little girl, with characteristic Neolandian dark skin and large bright eyes shining with mischief. Overall, she certainly took after Kasef in terms of looks.
“Hello, Princess.”
“Who’re you talkin to?” She asked, turning her head to stare curiously down at Viren. Now that he can see her face straight on, he can pick out a few of Soren’s characteristics. The dark eyebrows, the nose, the ears especially. She had the same look of eagerness and inquisitiveness that Soren had when he was a child. Which usually meant trouble.
“Who are you talking to.” Kasef corrected her grammar patiently.
“I’m talking to you, Daddy.”
Yup, that’s Soren’s daughter, no doubt. Of course, after his mind registered that particular thought, it then suddenly slammed into him that this was his granddaughter. His son’s daughter. His son was a father now. He was a grandfather.
The look of pure paternal adoration Soren directed at his daughter prompted memories of when he himself gave the same look to Claudia and Soren when they were children. When did he stop giving those looks? When did he stop feeling that love for his children?
“Sweetie, why don’t you go with Daddy for a little while? Poppa needs to talk to someone for a little while.”
The little girl pouted, her lips shifting into a frown, not pleased with the suggestion.
“Poppa play?”
“We can finish playing later, Muffin. Play with Daddy for a little while. If you’re good, we’ll have some of your favorite jelly tarts for dessert.” Soren promised, giving her an exaggerated kiss on her cheek, brightening her mood. Over the top of her head, Kasef shot Soren a certain look, conveying some message with his eye. Soren met the gaze with his own, tilting his head and cocking a brow. Kasef rolled his eye, not completely satisfied but willing. Sending one last glare in Viren’s direction, he and the child left, heading back inside the palace. With them gone, the air shifted into a more somber tone, father and son now left to a more proper reunion.
“Let him up. But leave the shackles on.” Soren commanded with a sigh, returning to his chair, now facing the disposed mage.
Viren let out a heavy exhale once he was finally released, wincing as he rose from the ground, bones cracking and creaking from the being in the same position for such a long time.
“Where’s Claudia?”
And there it was. The question he feared to face. How do you tell your child that their sister has fallen further into the shadows under the whim of a powerful ancient elf? How to explain that its because of him putting his trust in an elf that brought them here?
“I...She...Soren, Claudia’s in trouble.” Viren stumbled over his sentence, trying to find the right words, quickly giving up and telling him outright.
Soren’s face contorted into a look of horror and Viren could almost physically hear his heart breaking.
“Clauds….What did you do?!” Soren roared, shooting up from his seat to glower at Viren with a rage he has never seen in his son before. His bared teeth and snarling face looked fit more for an angered Twin Tailed Inferno Tooth Tiger than a human.
“Soren-”
“ANSWER ME! WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER?!”
Now Viren felt genuinely in danger. His fingers twitched, longing to prepare a spell but the manacles were restraining his magic. Perhaps for the best. He has no doubts that using magic right now would only make things worse.
“Soren, please, calm down. I’ll explain everything but you need to calm down.”
“Oh, look at you. Commanding me to do something. As if you’re still in charge of me. As if you’re still my Dad.” Soren sneered down at him, hands curling into fists.
‘Ouch. I deserved that.’ Viren winced at Soren’s barbs, letting out a heavy exhale and letting his shoulders fall.
“I know. I don’t mean to do that. I’m sorry.” He apologized sincerely. That seemed to cool Soren’s temper and he sat back in his seat, calmer.
“Explain.” He commanded, sounding very much like a king. And ever the servant, Viren obeyed. He told Soren about the mirror, the discovery of Aaravos and listening to his advice. He talked about the Pentarchy meeting, his frustration about the refusal and Aaravos encouraging him to take more drastic measures. He hesitated when he spoke about sending the shadow Moonshadow elves to kill the other monarchs, watching his reaction closely.
He saw a flash of sharp anger appear in his eyes before he closed them, taking a deep breath before shooting another sharp glare at Viren.
“Just so you know, You owe Kasef and his sisters a heavy apology for that. You’re lucky his wounds didn’t kill Grandpa outright or else Kasef wouldn’t have let you even enter the palace, much less let you speak.”
“He almost did kill me outright. The only reason he didn’t was because he believed it best to let you give me my death sentence since I came to see you.”
“Aww, that’s so like Sef.” Soren hummed, a soft blush dusted on his cheeks. Well, its nice to know that Soren has a good marriage. Better than his.
Continuing on, he explained how Aaravos helped him during the march into Xadia and was the one who killed the Sunfire Elf Queen and corrupted the Sun Staff. Viren had just been the way to sneak inside undetected.
“So the whole time we watched you talking to yourself was you talking to this Star elf? Who was actually the bug pal the entire time?”
“....You saw that?” Viren asked in hushed mortification.
“Viren, we all did. Kasef, Clauds, and I. Had a good laugh over it. Well, Clauds and I did. Kasef was still an asshole at the time.”
His dignity would’ve been thrown out the window if it hadn’t already jump ship 5 years ago. Ignoring his snickering son, he continued to tell about how Claudia resurrected him using Dark Magic, how they spent weeks waiting for Aaravos’ arrival into the real world in a cold damp cave, surviving on the sparse berries and fish nearby. When Aaravos was finally freed, he immediately taken over as leader of the trio and started to use the humans as tools for his own ends.
“When I started rebelling against him more and more, I...I think he knew that his hold over me was fading. He started to focus entirely on Claudia. He taught her more spells, made her grow in power, sinking deeper into the depths with him pulling her down. Eventually, I couldn’t bare it anymore. I had to leave. What he plans to do, not just to Xadia but to the Pentarchy…” He trailed off, leaving the words to hang in the air, unsaid but understood.
“So Claudia has gotten worse. And you just abandoned her. You didn’t ask her to come with you or even give her a choice.” Soren accused angrily, tears glistening in his eyes.
“She made her choice by listening to Aaravos!”
“You are her father! She is your daughter! How dare you not give her a chance! You of all people! After everything she sacrificed and did for you!” Soren shouted at him, stunning Viren with the extent of his rage. It seems time did nothing to disintegrate the love Soren had for his little sister.
“Soren.”
But he didn’t listen. He began to pace back and forth, his braid waving back and forth like a cat’s tail, a sour look on his face.
“I could never imagine doing such a thing to Azar. She’s my pride and joy, my heart and life. The mere thought of leaving her behind in the hands of such evil….I would rather be dead!”
Soren turned on him, eyes staring daggers at Viren.
‘Azar. Flame.’ Viren turned over his granddaughter’s name in his mind. It was a beautiful name. A powerful name. It showed just how much Soren and Kasef loved her.
“I know. I...I regret leaving her with that elf. Every day. The entire time I traveled here, my mind replayed all my mistakes. I failed my kingdom. I failed humanity and doomed it further. I failed Harrow and Sarai. I-I failed you and have caused you to suffer on your own. I failed Claudia and have left her to suffer on her own.” He finally admitted, spilling out the spiralling thoughts that have been his companions for the past few years.
For a few minutes, nothing but silence and the chirp of birds reigned. Viren can see in Soren’s eyes that he was conflicted between satisfaction, pity and anger.
“Did you know, that on the night you turned Kasef into...into that thing, I ran away. Claudia found me sneaking to my horse. She begged me to stay, defending you and your actions. I begged her to come with me. Told her that you were changing. That she was being changed by you. I begged her to leave. Left the choice up to her, because I already made my own. She was so scared and so hurt. She asked me to not make her choose. Not again. Not between family again.”
Soren exhaled heavily, slouching back into his seat. He looked as if he bore the weight of the world on his head, exhausted in a way Viren understood all too well.
“By saying that, I knew she made her choice. She wanted to maintain the illusion of a happy family. But that illusion vanished from me years before that day. When you told me that my life didn’t matter, to my face, that was a slap. When you told me that I should be more like Kasef and learn how to follow, that was another slap. But it was-it was when you asked, no, demanded for me to allow myself to be turned into a monster. For me to be twisted and lose my mind. All for your lust for power. To use me as a pawn again! That! That was what finally broke me. That was what finally made me see that you didn’t consider me to be your son anymore. You would’ve happily turned me into a monster and thrown me on the battlefield without a moment of hesitation. Probably even happily, to be honest.”
“No, Soren, it wasn’t like that-”
“You don’t need to lie anymore. I’ve come to terms with it all.” Soren cut him off blandly, face blank.
“Soren! I know I created a chasm between us and mistreated you and may not have shown you the love I feel for you as much as I should have, but never, ever , think that I would’ve purposely killed you! Much less rejoice in it!” Viren snapped, hurt that his own son would think so lowly of him as to be pleased with his death. He could handle that type of thought from anyone else, has handle that type of judgement from others before, numerous times. But not from his children. He couldn’t bear it.
More silence. Soren stared at him for a long while before looking down at his hands in his lap, letting a sound that tore through Viren’s heart. A sob. Every inch of him wished to go to his son and hold him like he did as a child but he knew his touch would be unwelcome. So he stood by and watched as his eldest child cried.
“Why did you come here? You didn’t know I got married or that I had a child. How did you know to come here?” Soren finally asked, sniffling and wiping away his tears.
“I went to Katolis and spoke with King Ezran. When I asked to see you, he informed me that you had resigned from the Crownguard and left for Neolandia with Kasef. I...I wanted to apologize to you.” Viren answered honestly. He saw a spark of light appear in Soren’s eyes that had gone out midway through their conversation.
“Thanks, Viren.”
It was still so odd to hear his name come out from his son’s mouth. Though, he understood why. Better and easier to emotionally distance himself from Viren.
“Your welcome, son.” He gave Soren a relaxed smile, his heart lighter than it has been in so long. The two sat in silence once more though this one was more content, each side’s grievances laid out and dealt with. Mostly.
“Soooo...Your daughter.” Viren prompted, catching Soren’s attention.
“Hm?”
“Tell me about her. She seems to be a handful already.”
The grin on Soren’s face could’ve outshone the sun with how bright it was.
“She really is! Azar was born 3 years ago and hasn’t slowed down since. From the start, she knew what she wanted and knew that she would get it, one way or another. Before she learned to speak, she would tug on our clothes or our hair to get our attention and do some baby babble. If we told her no, she would pout, grumble, and huff. She still does that. Nowadays, if we tell her no, she’ll try to convince us to agree. If we still say no, she’ll pout. Not that we can refuse her for too long. Kasef especially. She’s his little princess.”
Viren watched fondly as Soren talked proudly about his daughter, his hands gesturing wildly as he spoke, eyes bright.
“She sounds like she takes after Kasef quite a bit.”
“Oh yeah, definitely. Kasef brags all the time about how she’ll be a fearsome queen when she grows up. But her love for jelly tarts definitely came from me.”
Viren had no doubt about that. The way Soren was able to bribe her with a promise of jelly tarts said it all.
“She would be so excited to meet you. She likes meeting new people, especially foreigners. Though, she’ll probably end up bossing you around and give you a run for your money. I used to think you were the bossiest person ever but then she learned how to talk and took your spot-” Soren stopped mid sentence before his expression and mood dropped.
“Soren? What’s wrong?”
“Do...Do you want to stay?” He asked, looking up at Viren with a nervous look, obviously bracing himself for refusal. Viren hesitated, looking away from Soren to look around.
He has missed so many of Soren’s important milestones in the past 5 years. His first boyfriend, to Viren’s knowledge, leaving the Crownguard, moving to a new kingdom, marriage, becoming Consort to a King, his first child, his granddaughter’s first words, steps, birthday. So many things. So much lost time that he can never get back. Now, he’s scared to leave and miss more.
“I...I would be honored to stay. To atone to Kasef and Neolandia. To meet Azar. And to spend more time with you.” He finally replied after a long moment of deliberation, watching the fear be washed from Soren’s face and replaced with joy,
“That’s great! I’ll talk with Sef about it long term. For now though, Fatima!”
Viren watched as out from the shadows, a young but tall Neolandian woman dressed in white with bright brown eyes made her way to Soren’s side, bowing.
“Your Highness?”
“Can you lead Viren to one of the guest rooms, please? In the Eastern Wing? He likes watching the sunrise.” Soren requested, looking up at the woman with pleading puppy eyes. The woman, Fatima, glanced at Viren with a calculating look of barely concealed disapproval before looking back at Soren, who was clearly pleading with her with his eyes. Eventually, the woman gave in, sighing heavily as she bowed again.
“Yes, Your Highness. His Majesty is in his study with the Princess if you wish to speak to him.”
Viren could tell from her tone that it wasn’t just a random bit of helpful information.
“Got it. Thanks, Fatima! I can always count on you!”
“Thank you for your praise, Your Highness.”
Soren gave her another smile before looking back at Viren.
“I’ll see you at dinner, Viren. Oh, and a little reminder; they shower and change their clothes for dinner here. It's seen as a huge rude thing to eat in the same clothes you wore for the day. Don’t ask me why, Sef said it has to do with hygeine. See you later!”
WIth a wave, Soren disappeared into the palace, leaving the mage with the maid. She stared at him with suspicious eyes before pivoting around.
“Come. As much as I want to stuff you in the deepest cell we have, Consort Soren is willing to forgive you your transgressions and treat you as a respected guest. Be thankful. Now come, we have 5 hours before dinner and you need to be searched, cleaned and have your magic sufficiently sealed off.”
Without another word, the maid briskly marched forward, back straight and chin raised. She vaguely reminded him of Opeli in terms of demeanor. With one last glance around the gardens, Viren quickly followed behind, faintly overwhelmed but the happiest he has been in years. That went far better than expected. He got Soren’s forgiveness. At least, partially. Now he needs to work on convincing Kasef and his siblings to allow him to keep his head on his shoulders. But with his son no longer angry with him and a chance to meet his granddaughter, the thought of death didn’t seem as tempting as before.
Hopefully this was a new chapter of his life. And hopefully, someday soon, he could have his whole family together again, with both of his children happier than before.