Claude lined the crocheted bears up on the couch and stepped back to assess his work for the millionth time. Something always looked off, even though he counted his stitches perfectly. Gwenore would say that offness was what made them special. He'd spent a month putting these together, and just as long hiding them from the twins. One yellow bear, one orange bear, their favourite colours. He'd accented them with a beautiful cream colour, but now he was wondering if something a little darker would've worked better...

"Big brother!" Amani called from the study, jarring him out of his ruminating. "We've been waiting forever." He'd gotten better at telling them apart now, and even knew their voices. Amani spoke with higher-pitched inflections, perfect for whining.

"Just give me one second," he called back, and rushed over to the couch to adjust the polka-dot bows around the bears' necks.

"One!" Inati shouted, without missing a beat. "Can we see the surprise now?"

Claude breathed a sigh, and contemplated just giving the bears to the Paterra instead. "Fine, you can come out, but don't look yet. I mean it. No peeking."

They came out of the study, guided by Ashon, hands covering their eyes. Ashon gave him a sympathetic look but by the twitch of his lips, Claude could tell he was holding back laughter. He'd seen the bears already. As much as he marched through Claude's room to go to the garden, he was bound to sooner or later.

"Be nicer to your brother," His mother called from the kitchen. "He spent a long time working on this surprise for you."

"Sorry," the twins chimed in unison.

Claude couldn't help his smile. No matter what they did, he couldn't stay mad at them. "Alright, you can look."

They dropped their hands, and for a few heartbeats, there was silence. Then they squealed so loud, Claude almost jumped out of his own skin. They rushed the couch and grabbed their bears before bouncing around the living room with them.

"Ah, it's so cute. I love it. I love it. I love it," Amani said.

Inati held hers at arm's length. "I'm going to name him Hoho. Hoho the Bear."

Ashon cleared his throat loudly. "What do we say?"

The twins set down their bears and enveloped him with hugs. "Thank you, big brother."

"You're very welcome," Claude said with a smile. He was overjoyed that they liked their gifts, but now he'd have to find something else to occupy his time. He'd been looking around for job opportunities in the market, but hadn't found anything concrete yet. His mother had told him they were always looking for ferrymen, but he felt as though he didn't know the city well enough to take up that role.

"Girls, why don't you put your bears away and go help your mom," Ashon said.

"Okay, papa." Inati hoisted up her bear and rushed towards their room with Amani in tow.

"I'd say you successfully won them over. You could level this city and still be in their good graces." Ashon started towards the kitchen. "Which reminds me. You've been looking for work, haven't you?"

Claude followed him. "I have. Why?"

"There's a group of former priests here that help the search and rescue teams with information on the Divine City and the Priesthood at large." He slipped past Esther to stir a pot on the stove. "I've asked about you joining their ranks. Not only will it set you up with a job, it'll be a way for you to get in the Baraza's good graces. Intelligence on the Divine City is in high demand right now, given the chaos in the north."

"Alright." Claude picked up a stack of plates and helped his mother set the table. "What do I need to do?"

"For now, you just wait," his mother said. "You may require some more training, which Ashon and I can definitely help you with. I run drills with the Intel teams all the time."

"Sounds good." Claude looked thoughtfully down at the table. "I can't thank you both enough, for everything. I...uh..." He gave himself an internal kick. Now was not the time to get emotional. "It's nice to know I'm not alone in this." Or anything anymore, he added in his head.

"Nonsense," Ashon said. "You're family. We'll always look out for you."

The twins chose then to burst into the kitchen. "We're here to help," Amani announced. They bustled around, grabbing utensils and bowls. In short order, the table was set, and they were seated, passing around the food. The twins bombarded him with questions as usual, and his mother and Ashon stepped in to distract them so he could actually eat.

But he didn't mind them talking his ear off. He soaked up all these warm moments with his family, added them to the pile already filling his heart. Ten years of searching was more than worth it to sit around this table with them. To see his mother's smile, and the twin's giggles and listen to Ashon's wisdom. Even standing on his shaky two-year deal with the Baraza, he felt... happy.

For the first time in a long time, he was finally happy. He was finally home.