Chapter Text
"Are we there yet?" Tiadrin asked, nearly kicking her shadowpaw to jump forward.
"Almost, princess," her father Callum said from astride his moonstrider.
"This is where you grew up, right Mom?" Lian asked.
"It is," Rayla said looking at her oldest. "Your grandparents left me in Runaan and Ethari's care when they joined the Dragonguard."
The two moonstriders (Luna and Sombra) continued with the two shadowpaws (Eclipse and Cresent) at their sides. The triplets were too young for their own mounts so for the time being Dameon and Harrow rode on Sombra with their dad while Sarai was riding Luna with her mom.
"'Doraburrs," Sarai said when she saw several stuck to Luna's legs. "Stop and play."
"No, sweetie," Rayla said. "We need to get to the Silvergrove."
"There's time, Rayla," Callum said. "And we're not that far away."
But Rayla shook her head.
"You don't want to be anywhere but inside the village after dark this time of year," she said. "Trust me."
When Rayla was serious like that, Callum knew better than to argue. Besides, she grew up here and knew the area better than he did. They approached the Silvergrove and entered the village using Rayla's magic key. Moonshadow elves were everywhere getting ready for the Harvest Moon Festival. Several waved as the family made their way to the tree house.
"Grandpa Runaan! Papa Ethari!" the twins cried when they saw their mother's former guardians.
"Lian! Tia!" Ethari said as he and Runaan scooped the twins up.
"You two must have grown six inches since we last saw you," Runaan said.
"What 'bout us?" Dameon said as Rayla and Callum lifted him, Sarai, and Harrow off Luna and Sombra.
"You three have grown as well," Ethari said.
"Like 'ian and 'ia?" Harrow asked.
"Yes. Like Lian and Tia," Runaan said.
The family made their way inside; the kids talking excitedly. Hassen looked up from her place by Ethari's forge as Stella and Sneezel climbed on her.
"So, where's the rest of the family?" Runaan asked.
"Luna, Eclipse, Comet, and Twinkle decided to take the opportunity to teach Shadow, Artemis, Nova, and Starlight how to hunt and Esmeray stayed at home with Terry and Astride," Rayla said.
She looked around. It always felt strange coming home. She may have lifted the Ghosting but that didn't mean she didn't get looks from some of the other elves. There were still some that saw her as the daughter of traitors and didn't approve that she married a human or had halfling children. But she had other reasons to be on edge this time of year. Something that she kept secret from Callum and that that went back to her childhood.
“When’s the festival?” Tiadrin asked excitedly.
“Not until the moon’s full in a few days,” Ethari said.
“But that’s going to take forever,” Lian said.
The adults laughed. Everything took forever for the kids. They had no patience. Of course, Rayla had been the same. She could never sit still as a child. It wasn’t until Runaan had started her training that things had changed. An assassin needs to wait for the right time to strike and so couldn’t be hasty.
“Let’s get you settled and you can tell us about your trip,” Runaan said.
The twins began talking excitedly, the twins getting a few words in. It had been a long time since they saw their grandfathers. Though not a lot had happened but, to the kids, little things were big things, and they were excited to inform Runaan and Ethari about everything that happened.
“Still no word on King Harrow?” Runaan asked.
“Nothing yet,” Callum said. “But Ezran is still hopeful.”
After Aaravos' defeat and the sacrifice of the adult arch dragons, Callum and Ezran had learned that their father wasn't dead; or at least his spirit wasn't. Somehow, his spirit had been switched with the spirit of his pet bird Pip. Soren and Corvus were searching for Pip and Terry and Pyrrah helped when they could but Terry was busy at Evrkynd helping Rayla and Callum with the twins and triplets and Pyrrah was busy at the Storm Spire helping her mate Blaze look after a pair of sun arch dragons named Apollo and Sola as well as helping a pair of sky dragons named Thunder and Lighting look after Zym and a female storm dragon named Stormy.
🎃🎃🎃
From the shadows, a dark figure watched the family. Kim'dael remembered Rayla and her guardians. She had planned to get her revenge eight years ago when she had gotten stronger, but Rayla had been Ghosted by the Moonshadow elves and Runaan was thought to be dead. By the time she had learned that Runaan was alive and Rayla had lifted the Ghosting, things were still complicated. She couldn't enter Evrkynd or Katolis and Rayla and Callum rarely came to the Silvergrove. Now they had and they brought with them five keys for her to use against them.