A Wolf's Howl, A Fairy's Wing

"Do you need anything else, Sir?" Emma asked after having just served Erik and his uncle some instant coffee.

They were currently in the house's living room, where Erik and Viljar sat on sofas across from each other. Emily had already retreated to the bedroom, where Emma would soon join her to continue exploring their glyphs and advancing in power.

After all, Erik was about to talk about things that not even Emma and Emily knew about yet.

Perhaps he was a little hasty in wanting to tell his uncle everything, but he simply couldn't pass up the chance to talk to someone from his past about everything that happened to him in the last seven years.

Especially when that someone was somewhat of a parental figure and trusted pillar from his youth.

Erik smiled at Emma. "No, thank you. Go train with your sister. Oh, and check up on Astrid occasionally."

Smiling sweetly, Emma nodded and was about to turn around and leave when Erik grabbed her hand and pulled her on his lap.

Emma yelped but gave no resistance when Erik took her chin in hand and grinned evilly at her, "Where are you planning to leave without a kiss?" he asked playfully.

Viljar nearly spat out his coffee when he heard that.

Emma flushed red, and her eyes darted towards Viljar before gulping and slowly shaking her head. Erik grinned and kissed her deeply, causing Emma to tremble.

A few moments later, a flushed and slightly panting Emma quickly darted out of the room in embarrassment.

Meanwhile, Viljar looked at him with wide eyes. "You… what about that woman from earlier?"

Naturally, Elora took that moment to appear because, as they say, speak of the devil, and she shall appear.

A cloud of light specks separated from Erik's body and formed into the life-sized version of Elora, who took her place on his lap. She grinned playfully at Viljar. "What about me?"

Viljar nearly spat out of coffee again. "Gah! Dammit! Where do you even come from!"

Erik chuckled at his uncle's surprise and wrapped his arms around the fairy. "She lives inside me. But that aside, I believe I mentioned her name, but I haven't properly introduced her yet. Uncle, this is Elora. She is my wife, empress, partner in everything I do, and the reason I am alive today."

He didn't say anything else nor introduce Viljar to Elora. There was no need. Elora knew everything he did, and she didn't particularly care anyway.

Viljar looked at her with caution, a little suspicion, and some awe. He couldn't help but recall how her smaller form had intimidated him before. Her beauty, too, was unexpectedly disarming, even for someone as seasoned and traditional as himself.

After taking a moment to collect himself, Viljar coughed and greeted Elora, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Elora."

Elora giggled before responding with a confident grin. "I'm sure it is." She nestled back into Erik's comfortable chest, who patted her head while grinning at Viljar's expression. He looked forward to seeing his uncle's reaction to the specifics of his relationship with Elora.

"Anyway," Elora continued, "What about me?"

Viljar looked uncertain and glanced at Erik. He had just seen Erik kiss another woman, and although he disapproved of such playboyish behavior, he also didn't want to cause any problems for the nephew he had just reunited with.

Seeing his difficult expression caused Elora to giggle. "It's cute to see you worry about my relationship with Master, but did you really think I was unaware of what just happened? Master just told you I lived inside of him."

"Wait!" Viljar exclaimed. "Now you're calling him Master?! What happened to the wife and empress part?!" He was starting to get a headache as he began losing sight of the situation.

Elora and Erik both couldn't help but laugh at Viljar's confusion, causing Viljar to huff in annoyance, thinking these youngsters were making fun of him. "Let me explain," Erik said after he was done laughing.

The relationship between Erik and Elora was complicated, especially by modern Earth standards, so it was not a short explanation. Naturally, he included the part about them making occasional bets to explain her calling him Master.

By the end, Viljar was grabbing his forehead as he groaned. "I can't believe sweet little innocent Erik is creating a harem of all things." He turned towards Elora, exclaiming. "And you're encouraging it!"

Elora giggled playfully while a lustful glint shone in her eyes. "And why wouldn't I? You think Master is the only one to enjoy himself with this arrangement?"

Viljar's conservative mind once again groaned at Elora's casual mentioning of such things until he finally sighed. "I'm too old for this shit. I get tired even thinking about the complications that come with your relationship."

Erik smiled softly and with warmth. "It's not that hard, Uncle. All you need is complete honesty, a lot of love, and a lack of interest in what anyone thinks of you. Plus, the fact that our connection passively shares our emotions with each other doesn't hurt."

Erik and Elora firmly believed that uncertainty was the main obstacle to most harems. After all, no one could be one hundred percent certain of their partner's love for them, and if a third person entered the relationship, doubt would inevitably creep in.

But Elora didn't have that problem. Not only did she know they would be connected forever through their bond, but she could constantly feel his immense love for her, just like he could feel hers for him.

Naturally, this didn't currently count for Emma and Emily, but there were solutions to that.

If they passed Elora's test, that is.

Viljar shook his head in exasperation. "Well, whatever. I don't exactly approve, but I won't interfere. Not that I have any right to, anyway. Besides, I have no interest in marring our reunion with a lecture. If you're happy, Erik, then so am I."

Erik could only smile warmly at his uncle's acceptance. He wasn't exactly worried, nor did he even want or care for anyone's approval. But it still felt good when it came from someone as important to him as this man. "Thanks, Uncle."

Viljar sagged back in his couch a little, apparently relieved they could finally move on from this topic.

"Anyway," Viljar continued, his voice now carrying a somber weight. "tell me everything that happened to you in the last seven years. Your mother and I only knew you were with Edda outside the village when the hunters attacked."

His eyes dimmed as he reflected on the gravity of that day, the shadows of the past momentarily clouding his expression. Especially when he mentioned Edda did a combination of extreme depression and fury pass over his face.

The betrayal of the young girl he raised from birth had hit him hard. Even now, seven years later, it still weighed heavily on him.

With a solemn voice, he continued, "We heard your howl, but after that, nothing. We searched for you the next day, but the trail went cold. All we found were scorched earth and ashes, which we assumed were from hunters caught in the awakening."

Seeing the expression on Viljar's face, Erik wasted no time, hoping to take his Uncle's mind off those events. "Alright, Uncle. Let me tell you my story. I suggest you get comfortable because it's going to take a while." He said before beginning to spin the tale of his last seven years while hugging Elora.

Erik began to talk about everything that happened from the moment he woke up on that cliff overlooking the town. From the chase through the woods to the confrontation near the light to waking up on another planet, he left nothing out.

It was a unique and fantastical tale, and telling it all felt good. The only reason he hadn't told Emily and Emma any of this yet was because their relationship was technically still temporary.

They might still decide to part ways with him after ten years.

But with his uncle, it was different. They would always be family, after all.

He did skip over many of the parts of his life on Söl, as they were largely irrelevant right now. Eventually, he spoke of his return to Earth and how he met the Ashcroft sisters.

Throughout his tale, Viljar had mostly remained quiet, only occasionally asking a question to get clarification. For the most part, only his expression changed from shock to wonder to various other emotions.

Yet, his next question surprised Erik and Elora.

Viljar frowned and asked, "That council you mentioned, can you tell me some more?"

Erik, and especially Elora, were very curious about Viljar's interest in the council but decided to let it rest for now. Erik simply nodded and told his uncle everything he knew of the council, causing Viljar to frown.

While there was clearly something going on there, Erik decided to simply continue his tale with the boat ride, the arrival in Kirkenes, his encounter with Astrid, and, finally, his return to Frostvik, leading to his encounter with Viljar.