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Vax had never gotten used to starting over. This was somewhat surprising, he felt, given that he'd had plenty of practice at it. Being taken from their mother, leaving the elven city, finding their childhood home destroyed… even finding Trinket had marked a new chapter in the twins’ lives. Their return to Emon was only the most recent fresh start.
It was amazing that they'd all managed to return at all. None of them had made it out of the battle unscathed, but they'd all made it out. They were all struggling to regain a sense of normalcy, and Vax found it strangely comforting to escape from the new duties they'd taken on and help Gilmore get his own work back on track.
The two of them were supposed to be helping him out that afternoon. The construction on the new shop was close to complete, and he'd asked for their assistance with cataloging the modest inventory of magical goods he'd managed to salvage or procure in the intervening months. Keyleth was seated in a quiet corner, surrounded by stone walls and freshly painted shelves, organizing a pile of spellbooks with avid interest. Vax, meanwhile, was perched on the counter, watching Gilmore as he directed the chaos.
“It's really amazing what you've done with this place,” he remarked. The new building naturally didn't have the same warm lived-in feeling the old one had, but it was growing on him rather quickly. He knew Gilmore's shop was a place of business and not a refuge, but he'd still come to think of it as a safe space over the years. Finding it reduced to a pile of rubble had been almost as painful as finding the man himself barely holding on.
“Yes, well… it's surprising how far a little hard work, generosity and luck can take you.” Gilmore leaned against the counter, arms braced on either side of Vax's legs as he looked up at him. It was an unusual perspective for them both.
Shyly, Vax leaned down to rest their foreheads together, taking one of Gilmore's hands between both his own. It felt like an oddly intimate thing to be doing so publicly, even though they were among friends. “Have I told you I'm glad you're here?”
Gilmore chuckled. “I believe you have.”
“It's been good having you with us.” He'd been staying at the keep with them temporarily, along with some of the other survivors who didn't have anywhere else to go. Vax had grown so used to the arrangement that the thought of not seeing him every day was wearing on him more than he felt it should. “...You could stay, you know.”
“I know, darling. But I'm needed here.” He wrapped his arms around Vax's waist and pulled him close, seeing to the heart of the matter. “I won't be far.”
Vax nodded, sighing deeply as he leaned into the hug. “You're still welcome any time.”
“Day or night?” There was a hint of a grin on Gilmore's face.
Vax let out a huff of laughter at the memory the words brought back. “Obviously.”
“Ahem.” Vax reluctantly pulled away from Gilmore's embrace to see Sherri glaring at him. She swatted his knee with the cloth she'd been using to clean. “Down. Some of us are trying to work.”
“Right.” He gave her a sheepish look as he complied. “Sorry.”
She acknowledged his apology with a curt nod of her head, turning to her boss with a glint of humor in her eyes. “Honestly, Shaun. I'm glad you're happy with these two, but do try to keep them off the furniture.”
Gilmore wasn't even trying to hide his amusement and Keyleth's giggles were audible from across the room. “Seriously, Vax,” she teased from behind the book she was supposed to be shelving. “We can't take you anywhere.”
“Apparently not.” He rolled his eyes, catching sight of a familiar figure in the doorway.
“There you are.” Vex’ahlia paid no heed to the work going around them as she moved toward her brother. “Out. I need to talk to Gilmore privately.”
What is it with people ordering me around today? “Why?” If she wanted to talk business, she wouldn't care about him being there - she usually liked having an audience for her haggling. He had a feeling this was about much more uncomfortably personal matters.
“Nothing you need to worry about. Just go.” This was hardly reassuring.
Keyleth had set aside her task to join them. “Come on.” She took Vax's hand. “Let's go for a walk.” He acquiesced with a small grumble, still eyeing his sister suspiciously as they left.
Gilmore watched the scene unfold with an unreadable expression on his normally friendly face. “What can I do for you, dear?”
She crossed her arms. “You can tell me - and please take this in the spirit it's intended because you are a very dear friend - what the hell you're doing.”
“Ah.” Of course, that made perfect sense. “I believe the proper answer to that involves stories that aren't mine to tell.”
“Don't bullshit me.” Vex was still frowning, but her attitude seemed at least somewhat less confrontational. “Everything's changed so much… and I don't think we can take anything else falling apart. I need to know you understand that.”
He nodded slowly. “I wish I could promise you that it won't, but life rarely affords us such certainties. All I can tell you truthfully is that I'm doing everything in my power to keep them from getting hurt.”
“Good.” She blinked back a few stray tears, frustrated at herself, before looking back to him. Some of her resolve was returning. “You know I don't want you to get hurt either, right?”
“Of course.”
Vax woke late the next morning, with the rare luxury of not having anywhere in particular to be. He wasn't surprised to find himself alone. Keyleth usually rose with the sun, and they didn't share a bed every night to begin with.
He'd barely made it downstairs before he felt something small clinging to his leg.
“What the f-"
He caught himself just in time as he looked down into the face of a small child, no more than five or six years old, staring up at him from under a mop of curly red hair. The child gave him a gap-toothed grin and held up a chubby finger in an exaggerated “shh" gesture.
“Okay then…” A rather frantic-looking young woman caught his attention from down the hall. He quietly waved her over once she spotted him.
“There you are, Toby. What have I told you about wandering off?” Vax stepped aside as she retrieved her son, looking very apologetic as she did so. “I'm so sorry if he's bothered you, ‘specially since you've all been so generous letting us stay here. I try to keep an eye on him, but he always wants to explore.”
“Don't worry about it, I think he just wanted to use me as cover.”
Toby looked innocently at him from his mother's arms. “‘M good at hiding.”
“Yes, I can see that. Come back in about ten years and I might teach you a few things.” He gave the boy the sternest look he could muster without actually frightening him. “In the meantime, don't scare your mum anymore.”
It was nearly midday by the time he made it outside. His usual meandering walk was interrupted by a joyous snort and the thudding of paws as Trinket bounded up to him, stopping to sniff happily at his pockets.
“What? You think I've got something for you? Oh… what's this?” He pulled out a packet of meat scraps he'd liberated from the kitchen. He was pretty sure he didn't really need to be sneaky about it, since he suspected that Laina set them aside for Trinket to begin with, but it was more fun this way. “Don't tell anyone.”
Trinket gulped down the treat in two large bites before showing his gratitude with a few slobbery licks to Vax's face.
“Ugh, your breath really is terrible.” He laughed, patting Trinket on the back as he tried to fend off the bear's affection. “Go on then.”
As he did, Vax continued on his way, listening to Scanlan singing from somewhere on the grounds (about Pike, if the entirely inappropriate lyrics were any indication.) Keyleth and Gilmore were already deep into a conversation when he found his way to the corner garden and he stopped, content to just listen to the beloved voices for a precious few moments.
“Vax.” Gilmore's greeting snapped him out of his temporary reverie. “So glad you could join us.”
He accepted the gentle teasing without comment, sitting next to Gilmore and nestling into the crook of his arm. “I didn't want to interrupt your important discussion.”
“We were talking potions.” Keyleth was seated on Gilmore's other side. As she spoke, she picked a few brightly colored flowers from the surrounding greenery and started weaving their stems together. He realized rather belatedly that Gilmore had a single red flower tucked behind his ear.
“Indeed.” Turning slightly, Gilmore tugged Vax’s hair from its loose ponytail, holding the strands between his fingers and twisting them into a braid. “There are a few specific plants that are highly sought after as ingredients. Someone with Keyleth's talents could make a decent income from them.”
“That ought to keep my sister happy, at least.” He was glad to hear it himself. As their relationship developed, Keyleth and Gilmore had discovered their mutual love of learning, bonding over old half-illegible scrolls and the shared thrill of discovering something entirely new. It was oddly heartwarming to see that knowledge put to good use, especially for something that would benefit the whole group.
Keyleth picked another flower, opting for a warm peach-colored blossom that contrasted with the blue ones she already held. “Has Vex seemed a little… odd to you lately?”
Vax glanced over to where his sister was sitting, leaning against Trinket’s side as he warmed his belly on the cobblestones. She was pretending to examine the fletching on one of her arrows, but Vax could tell where her attention was really focused. “I wouldn't worry about it. There's… a lot to get used to.”
Gilmore leaned in to press a kiss to the top of his head. “Hold still, love.”
Vax sat as quietly and patiently as he could while Gilmore continued his task. Other than his sister, no one had done his hair since he was a small child. He was still surprised at how much he associated the act with being loved and cared for. “Where did you learn how to braid?”
Gilmore's response was an amused smile and another kiss as he tied off the end of the plait with a length of purple ribbon he'd pulled from who-knows-where.
“Enigmatic bastard.” Vax grinned as he settled back against him, raising an eyebrow as Keyleth placed the completed flower circlet on his head. “Really, Kiki?”
“Oh shush, it's cute.”
“The colors suit you.” Vax felt Gilmore's quiet laugh more than he heard it, and couldn't help smiling along.
He didn't realize he'd dozed off until he woke up gasping, striking out blindly with his fist only for it to be caught by a strong and steady hand. The sensations were still vivid as he recalled being slowly crushed, gasping for breath, pain, fire and fear-
… but no. The terror was dissipating as he returned to wakefulness. The hand around his wrist pulled him into a close embrace as he welcomed the feeling of being safe in the arms of his companions.
“Shhh. It's alright, sweetheart.” Gilmore's voice was gentle and soothing, a tone usually reserved for when one or more of them was having a hard night. “Nothing can hurt you here.”
Vax forced himself to breathe deeply and slowly, letting the quiet reassurance and the pressure of being held bring him back to the moment and remind him that here, now, he was protected and loved beyond measure.
Sometimes he felt like words could never possibly encompass the entirety of the light they brought to his heart. Keyleth was sunshine, a force of life that gave new energy to all it touched and coaxed seedlings to leave the safety of the underground and reach for the sky. Gilmore was fire - not the kind he'd been dreaming of that brought only pain and destruction but the flame of a candle guiding his way, the glowing embers of a warm hearth. The one he always came home to.
“I'm so lucky to have you both.” He spoke quietly, not wanting to break the peace of the moment.
Keyleth kissed him briefly. “We should head back inside. It's nearly dinnertime.”
Dinner, as it usually was in this post-dragon recovery period, was a simple yet lively occasion. Their remaining guests wandered through a few at a time to find their meals, and no one blinked an eye when the three of them entered the room together. Gilmore's presence had become so commonplace that Laina had taken to laying out an extra place setting out of habit. The food they had available was palatable, if not exactly delicious, and Vax found himself more preoccupied with the company than the contents of his plate.
Vex seemed to have lost some of her earlier sour demeanor, giving in to the warmth and happiness of a meal shared with loved ones. At one point Gilmore's reply to one of Scanlan's jokes had made Grog spit mutton across the table, and Vax could have sworn he saw his sister giggle as Percy primly wiped half-chewed meat off his glasses. Eventually one of their remaining bottles of wine had been passed around and everyone was well on their way to being comfortably tipsy.
There was a scrape of wood on stone as Gilmore pushed his chair back. “Well… this has been a lovely evening and I thank you all again for the hospitality. I should really be getting along now.”
Vax tried very hard not to pout and failed miserably. “May I walk you home?”
“I'll come too,” Keyleth immediately volunteered.
“I would love nothing more.” They linked hands as they stood, leaving the table in the same three-person unit they had joined it as. Vax was determined to ignore the wary look that had returned to his sister’s face.
Between the slowly fading twilight and the glow of lamps in the windows of various establishments, it was easy to find a path as they walked along the promenade. Ordinarily the street would still be bustling with activity at this hour, but rebuilding was a slow process and everyone was moving at their own pace. Vax realized that the moment wasn't unlike another time he'd walked down this street.
He glanced over at Gilmore. “Do you remember our first date?”
“Of course,” he chuckled. “Though I don't believe we were calling it that at the time.”
“No, we weren't.” It was strange to think back on those first tentative steps of their dance, both of them unsure if what was between them was simply an overly friendly business relationship or the start of something much deeper. It was safe to say that that question had been well and truly answered now.
“I remember helping you get ready for it,” Keyleth interjected from his other side. There was a knowing smile on her face as she squeezed his hand.
“You all did.” That was also strange to look back on, for a lot of reasons. “Never expected we'd end up here.”
“The gods work in mysterious ways.”
Vax shook his head, tensing slightly at Gilmore’s casual reply. Somewhere there was still a goddess waiting for him… but the thought no longer held as much fear as it once did. Not when he had so many people watching his back.
Sherri was waiting for them as they reached the shop, watching them speculatively as they said their goodbyes for the night. Once Gilmore had gone inside, she spoke up. “You know, I really ought to be thanking you two.”
“What?” Keyleth sounded startled. “Why?”
“Before you came along, I could barely talk him into leaving the shop for anything that wasn't business-related. He'd get so absorbed in his work…” She trailed off, adjusting her shawl. “I can't say I fully understand what the three of you have, but I think you're good for him. That's all.”
“We're trying to be,” Vax replied quietly.
“Right, well…” She tucked her bag further under her arm. “You have a good night.”
It had grown dark by the time they returned to the warmth of their home. Vax had barely made it past the foyer before his sister grabbed him, pulling him into a quiet corner.
“We need to talk.” Her voice was stem until she saw Keyleth's confused face, when it took on a more conciliatory tone. “You can head upstairs, darling. He'll be up in a few minutes.”
Keyleth didn't reply, turning to leave after Vax’s slight nod of affirmation. She'd never understand twins.
“Can this wait? I've got-” Vax squirmed out of his sister's hold, only to find his exit blocked by a large furry obstacle. Vex smirked at him as he looked Trinket in the eyes
“I'm never bringing you snacks again.”
The bear made a mournful sound, but didn't move.
Vax crossed his arms, glaring at his sister as her smug expression faded. “I assume this has something to do with why you've been following me around all day.”
“I haven't been following you, I just happened to be where you were.” She dismissed the idea with a wave of her hand. “But I am wondering if you actually know what you're doing.”
He highly doubted that she'd just happened to find him at Gilmore's, but he wasn't about to push the issue. The question took him by surprise a bit. In all honesty, there were a number of things in his life that he didn't know how to deal with. “With…?”
“Oh…” Vex let out a frustrated growl that made Trinket tilt his head at her. “With the three of you! It was one thing when it was you and Keyleth, that was hard enough to get used to, but now there's another person in the mix… this could have huge consequences for our entire family.”
Vax just leaned back and watched her rant. “You know, after everything Gilmore's done for us, I'd hoped you might consider him family as well.”
“I never said I didn't, but that's not the point,” she snapped. Some of the fight seemed to have gone out of her then. Vax knew that her anger was often born out of deep concern, and it wasn't as though her worries were completely unjustified.
“I don't know if I can explain it in any way that'll help.” He sighed, pulling her in for a hug. “But can you at least trust that we're taking this seriously? We've waited for this too long to be careless with each other's hearts.”
“Don't make me cry, you dick.” Vax didn't know if it was possible to sniffle angrily, but he was pretty sure she'd just done so. “I just don't see how this can possibly work. It's hard enough being in a relationship with one person.”
“I don't know what to tell you. It's not like we've had many good examples when it comes to romance.” He pulled back, hoping she could see the intensity in his expression. “What I can tell you is that I'm happier now than I have been in a long time, and I think Keyleth feels the same.”
“Alright then.” She seemed to be reassured enough for the moment, but he knew she'd still be keeping an eye on them from a distance. He'd expect no less. In fact, he was grateful for it.
“And if you'd stop watching me long enough to notice Percy mooning over you, you might have a chance at some of that happiness yourself.”
The look on her face was worth the inevitable punch to the shoulder as he walked away.