Kara did her best to explain all that had happened since her absence. She left some things out, such as Foster's involvement, and other things that her father wouldn't like, such as some of the dangers she had faced. She mentioned Shade-she felt she had to, since he was the one that had gotten her interested in a world that she hadn't known had ever even existed. Caleb listened as she mentioned the fairies she'd met and the beasts that had always been after her. He looked tense, not as worried for her as she thought he'd be. She stopped to take a breath and looked at him hesitantly. He hadn't said much since she started speaking.
"Okay, well, that's where I've been and what I've been doing, more or less. It all started from creating a Gateway in the attic, though, with this special book." She coughed, suddenly wary beneath her father's watching gaze. "I'm sorry. I really am, I..I must sound crazy to you."
"No." Caleb's voice was almost a whisper. "No, you don't sound crazy. I've been to this place that you're talking about, and it's real, as real as anything else in this world." He shook his head, looking annoyed. "You should've known better than to go to Lymeria, Kara. It's dangerous, more dangerous than you know. Your mother made sure to teach me that."
Kara's eyes were wide. This had caught her interest. "My mother? You mean Emily, right?"
Caleb nodded slowly, looking as if he were deep in thought. "Yes."
"But..my mom never went to Lymeria. She couldn't have. She was killed..killed in a car crash when I was little." She searched her dad's face for reassurance of this, or maybe just acceptance. She didn't get anything of that sort.
"That's not true, is it?"
"No. I'm sorry, but it isn't."
There was a crash from outside, one that set off a car alarm. Another loud noise followed, one that shook the ground and the house they were in. Caleb rushed to the window, his expression a frightened one. When he got there and peered outside, he looked grim. "Oh no.."
Kara followed him and saw what the problem was. A beast, one that was at least twenty feet tall, was coming towards their house. Every step the monster took sent a shockwave through the earth. Caleb pulled back and took out a bag from behind a nearby sofa. He straightened it out and began to pack things away in it. "I knew they'd follow us here. I should've known better. Those beasts'll find us anywhere! We have to go."
"Wait!" Kara was still looking out at the window. "Wait Dad, no, we don't! We've got some help."
Caleb was bewildered now. "What?"
There was another loud bang, but this time it was softer than the footsteps. Before her father could say anything else to her, Kara went outside, opening the door as fast as she could. She found Shade crumpled in a heap at the side of the house, one of his wings bent awkwardly.
"Kara," he gasped. The demise beast drew ever closer. "He..threw me. Get..my sword!"
His sword. Right, his war sword! Kara ran back up the steps of her porch and back into her house. She hurtled past her dad and bolted up the steps that led to her room. Kara opened the drawer she had kept it in and pulled it out quickly, touching its hilt. It was just as she remembered it-blue and gold markings with a sharp, lethal tip. Memories from when she'd first met Shade came to her, but she forced them away. With speed she didn't know she had, Kara went back downstairs and hurried outside to where her Guardian was. He was up and on his feet again, but still unsteady. When he saw her, though, he straightened up and smiled. "Thank you." He gently took the sword in his hands, and faced the monster before them. "Hey, beast!" he yelled. "I'm over here!"
The demise beast turned his head. Once he caught sight of the boy, he growled. Kara looked away from him for a moment to see Foster there beside her house's porch steps, looking shakily up at the beast. When he caught Kara's eye, he gave her a sulking look back. "What?" he snapped. "What now?"
"Nothing. I..I think you should go home."
"Why? Because I can't help anyone here?"
Kara sighed. "Don't fight with me, Foster. Just go home. You'll be safer there anyway, and your parents need to see you."
Her former boyfriend looked at her in an unforgiving way. He opened his mouth as if he meant to say something, then closed it again. All of the fight left from him, and he sighed, looking away from her and down at his worn out shoes. "Okay," he said, and that was all. He said that one word and then left, making his way slowly but surely down the length of the street. Kara watched him go, but this time she felt no remorse at the sight of it. She just watched him leave, and once he reached his house on the other side of the road, she turned her back to him and all that they had been before. Shade came into her line of sight. He was smiling a little, holding his sword at his side. He seemed to be finished with the fight now. That was clear to see, since the tip of his sword was coated with black tinted blood.
"That's right," he said aloud to something behind him. "Stay down."
He rejoined her dad beside the front of the house, and leaned over, gasping for breath. This was the first time she had ever seen him show any evidence of being tired or worn out. Kara came to stand beside him and snuck behind him, taking the sword from his grasp. Shade grabbed for it, but she held it behind her, smirking. "Wait, Kara! Give it back!"
"No! I can't do that, not until you're feeling better."
Shade's sea-green eyes narrowed. "Feeling better? I'm fine."
"No, you're not. You're exhausted. Sit down for a while." Her Guardian eyed her doggedly, trying to grab for the sword still. "Kara, no, come on-"
"Do it, or you won't get your sword back."
Shade shook his head at her. "You know I could just use magic to get it, right?"
"Just sit down, sleepyhead."
Shade obeyed at last, dropping down onto the concrete with his legs crossed over each other.
He released sharp breaths, and took in quicker ones, running his hands through his dark hair that was clinging to his forehead from sweat.
"I must be out of practice," he mumbled. "Any other beast hunt would've been easier. I mean, there wasn't a host this time, just a shifting bug, but it shouldn't be like this."
"You do that a lot?"
That was from Caleb. Kara was startled to hear this come from him. Having him be mixed up in an insane world such as Lymeria still baffled her. Shade focused on him, still slightly shaky.
"Yeah..I guess so. Who are you, exactly?"
Kara didn't know how to react. She hadn't been expecting Shade to meet her dad. They weren't dating, or even all that close, but here he was, meeting him and looking at her as though he expected her to explain this new development to him. At a loss for words, Kara made herself say something. "Yeah..uh, um..well, you see, that's-"
Her dad offered his hand to him. "Caleb. Caleb Tilling. I'm Kara's father."
Shade looked up at him with something new on his face now. Fear? Admiration? Respect?
Whatever it was, it seemed to give him a new amount of strength. He rose to his feet, with all the sleekness of a cat, and took his hand. He shook it firmly, with a broad smile there upon his face. There was no fear now, though there had been traces of it moments before. "I see. I'm Shade Fern. It's a pleasure to meet you, sir."
Caleb smiled back, seemingly pleased with this brief interaction. The handshake ceased to be, and he gave him a nod. "I knew your mother once, while I was in Lymeria. For the time that I knew her, she was a good person. I hope that in that sense, you will be the same."
Kara was taken aback by this. Her father couldn't really have known Mrs. Fern, could he? She searched his face, searched for a sign that he was lying. There was no sign of that, however. Shade's confident look dulled a little at the mention of his mom. He cleared his throat, and soon regained that sense of bravado.
"Okay, Mr. Tilling. I'll do my best to live up to that."
"Good." Caleb smiled in the next moment. "You don't need to be so formal, Shade. Call me Caleb, by my first name. I'll sound too much like my father otherwise." He laughed, and Shade did too, in a way that wasn't forced.
Kara found herself being amused by this as well. Shade had done the unthinkable. She would have to talk to him about it later.
Her father looked over at Kara, still looking happy. He turned back towards the house, talking as he went. "I've got some things to do inside. For now, I'll leave you to it."
Kara knew what those words implied. Blushing, she tried to call him back. "Dad, no, it's not like that! Wait-"
It was too late. He had already left, heading back into the house and closing the door shut behind him. Shade laughed at this. "Wow. I'm surprised he wanted to leave us out here together. Don't most dads have this weird urge to strangle any boy they don't know that comes near their daughter?"
Kara snickered at that. "Yeah, usually. That's what surprised me. You got him to like you. My dad never likes any boys I know, unless he has time to get to know them. He met you only a few minutes ago, and already he's leaving you alone with me." She cast a nervous glance at Shade then. "Wait...you didn't use any magic on him, did you? That's unfair."
Shade shook his head. "No, I didn't. You're right, that would be unfair. I considered it, I'll say that much, but I didn't do it. I guess he just thinks I'll be a lot like my mother."
"Will you?"
Shade smirked at her, leaning in close.
"I guess you'll just have to wait and see, Kara."
Kara blushed at those words, her face burning. She trusted him, but she wasn't sure how much. Most fairies in the stories she'd been told were very manipulative. Would he be the same as them? Only time would tell.
Shade's gaze was suddenly drawn to something behind him, and he looked back apologetically at her, his face still weary. "I'm sorry, but I think it's about time for me to leave."
Kara was dismayed instantly. "Wait, really? What for?"
"What do you think?" Shade took back his sword and stood up, stretching out his arms and legs as he did so. "Just like you and your crazy nerd did, I have a family to get back to. " He paused, then went on. "Reena was actually the one that wanted me to go with you. She said a whole bunch of inspirational stuff and then sent me on my way. She made me promise to come back, though. Usually, I can't make promises- can't keep them, either, but for her..for her, I can do it. I can try."
Kara smiled slightly. "See, that's one of the things I like about you. You're so devoted to your family. Most people could care less about their parents, or their siblings."
Shade was curious now. "Oh. Are you..the one that doesn't care, or the one that does?"
Kara's brow furrowed a little as she thought about this. "Hmm..well, I care about my dad, but sometimes he gets on my nerves. I..guess I don't know."
"Well, I do." Shade looped his arm around Kara's side. "You're one of the ones that cares. In fact, if your family fell apart somehow, whether it was your fault or not, you'd probably get upset, or lose it, even."
Kara pulled away from him. "That's too dramatic. Besides, how are you so sure of that?"
"Well, that's how most people are."
Shade released her fully and brushed himself off. "It seems to be just about that time. Before I go, though, I think you should know something."
Kara turned back to look at him. "What?"
Shade seemed distraught. "Usually, Guardians are..well, they're supposed to.." He trailed off, then started back up again. "This is harder to talk about than I thought it would be. Alright, I'll just say it. Guardians are supposed to-well, after they finish their job of saving their assigned Flightless-wipe their memories clean of any fantastic or otherwise otherworldly happenings. You were supposed to forget me and everything I did for you. The only reason you didn't is because....well....I messed up."
Kara was staring at Shade now, just staring. Her breath seemed to catch in her throat as he explained this. Shade seemed angry with himself. No, not himself-something else.
"It's just..so awful, you know? I pretty much work for what's left of the Seelie Council. What they ask of me is a direct command. What I've done, or rather, what I've failed to do, is practically treason in my world." He was looking down at his hands, and they tightened into whitened, shaking fists. "I should do it now. I should be able to do it now."
Kara saw the defeated look in his eyes before he realized it himself. "But you won't."
Shade shook his head, then nodded, looking lost. "Yeah, that's right. I won't because I can't. I don't think I'd ever be able to. Not now. Not ever."
Kara's breath caught again, and she coughed.
"Why is that?"
"Because..because I-"
A shrill ringing sound came from somewhere behind them. In that instant, Shade's eyes looked very large on his face. "Kara, I'm sorry. I..I have to go. I'll see you some other time."

Before she could stop him, Shade went away. He went to the edge of her street, just as her ex had, and then watched as a wall of magic spread around him. It was see-through, and didn't cause him pain, but at the same time, it did. He was being arrested by one of the queen's accomplices. The thin, nasally voice of the fairy that meant to arrest him broke into his thoughts. "Let's see here...Shade Fern, correct?"
Shade wanted to hit him. However, that would violate codes of peace that Guardians had to follow when it came to dealing with other fairies. He took a deep breath and answered him. "Yes. That's my given name. What am I being apprehended for, sir?"
He knew what he was being apprehended for. He knew why, and it made him hate it all the more. The nasally voice returned. "You know why. I'd like to hear it from you, just to confirm this."
Oh, he was just asking to be hit now. It took all of Shade's restraint to stop himself from doing just that. Instead he replied to this statement, but in the most monotone voice he could manage. "It's the queen's law, the one she wrote herself."
"Yes, well, what is it?"
Shade's arm twitched. Instead of hitting the man arresting him, he hit his own leg and then dug in his nails to steady himself. "You know what it is."
"Yes, but I would still like to hear it from you."
Shade bit down on the inside of his mouth to keep from screaming at him. "Fine. The law is against any romanticized fraternization of any kind between Flightless and fairies of any gender or age or ethnicity."
The male servant, with his grating voice and his rat-like face, nodded to him. "That is accurate. My boy, I do feel sorrow upon saying this, but this sort of law breaking requires strict measures, since the queen herself wrote this law into existence."
"I know." Shade didn't have to be told what would happen. He knew because he'd seen it happen once. Handcuffs latched onto his wrists. Immediately his skin began to itch. Though they weren't made of iron, it was still very unpleasant. "Shade," the sniveling voice said, "I'm going to have to ask you to come with me."
Shade didn't stiffen at these words. He didn't flinch, didn't jump back, didn't even choke on furious words. Instead he just looked over at the man that stood there evaluating him for his arrest, and said one thing, "Fine."
Except it wasn't fine. It was the farthest thing from fine. He was being separated from Kara and from his family, and for what? Because he wanted her to be safe? Because he wanted nothing but good things for her? Because he wanted her to be happy? Because he l-
No. No, no, no. He wouldn't admit that to himself, not now, not with one of Queen Iona's idiotic cronies staring him down. He'd think about it later, when he was awaiting a trial that would most likely not be in his favor. He watched as the magic around him surrounded the guard that had come to take him away. He looked at Kara's outline from where he was and grabbed at the fabric of his jeans to keep from crying out. That would probably be the last time he would ever see her.