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Chapter XLVIII- The Funeral Days Part V (Aftermath)

Ian could only sigh as he sat in the crowded hospital room. It had been nearly three days since Lucas was brought here after being shot during the chaos that was the Hunter attack on his mother Marie's funeral. All the medical tests on Lucas showed he was perfectly healthy, and Allison had done a great job healing him, but nobody knew why he didn't wake up. He sighed again and looked around. It was a shared room, and he could see Jai sitting in the bed on the other side of it, his eyes still bandaged. Though he did his best not to snoop, he had heard the worried whispers that he might never regain his sight, which pained the wolf since he found that the cheetah was a nice dude. He seemed to be sleeping at that moment though with his parents on either side of him, his siblings having been told to stay home so not to overcrowd the place.

He then looked across to see Mr. Mason, who looked like he had aged ten years in the past few days. He had been so distracted with what was going on he hadn't thought about what the man must have been feeling. He looked terrible, his eyes were bloodshot from the lack of sleep and constant crying. Ian wanted to comfort him, but he really didn't want to risk earning his ire, given the elder fox was hardly in the best place right now and it probably wouldn't take much to set him off at the current moment. Ian's own parents were there as well, not wanting to leave him by himself, and of course Greg was at his side. Erin was sitting next to her father and Xander, Jonah and his brother were all at home with the Agents, while Monet had gone home with her family as they didn't want to make the room even more crowded.

Ian closed his eyes and gave yet another sigh. He hadn't slept since they got the hospital and he was exhausted. His dad had offered to keep watch on Lucas while he took a nap, but Ian declined over and over again because he didn't want to risk missing Lucas wake up if he was asleep. He just really hoped Lucas woke up soon because he really missed him.

He was broken from his thoughts when he heard Evan get up. "I'm going out for some air. Keep an eye on him for me, will you kid?" He said, giving Ian a pat on the shoulder before he left the room. He had done this a few times, and Ian figured he went to drown his sorrows as he came back drunk the times he got back. He couldn't really blame the man, after all he was in immense stress.

His own dad got up and also patted him on the head. "I'll keep watch on him. Stay here okay son." He said, before leaving the room after Mr. Mason.

Ian got up and walked closer to Lucas, who was laying on the hospital bed face-up. He had a feeding-tube connected so he could get nourishment, but thankfully that was the only tube connected to him this time as he seemed to be breathing fine and if it wasn't for the tube he would have thought the fox was just sleeping.

"Any changes?" he asked Erin as he took a seat next to her and started holding Lucas's paw.

Erin could only shake her head. "None that I've noticed. He should have woken up ages ago. I'm getting worried...What if he never wakes up?" she asked with her eyes tearing up.

Ian shook his head at that. He refused to believe that as a possibility, he had to wake up, he couldn't stay in a coma. "He'll wake up Erin, don't worry okay?" He reassured her, with a strained smile. He was going to say something else before he heard some commotion outside the room and a loud slam and shouting which caught Ian's attention. He swiftly got up and rushed to the door, and when he opened it, he saw Mr. Mason had a skinny mink held against the opposite wall with a shattered camera next to him. The elder fox was shaking with rage and he was snarling in the man's face, and the mink looked terrified at being caught. He saw his dad was standing close to the other man, watching on with a deep scowl on his face, obviously upset with the mink as well.

"What do you think you are doing here?!" He heard Mr. Mason shout in pure fury. "Were you trying to sneak into my son's hospital room!? This is a private ward and there is another child in there as well along with his family! Not only are you invading my family's privacy, but theirs too! Who do you work for so I can inform them that they will be facing a lawsuit for this." The mink just wheezed as he tried to grab at his throat as the enraged father's grip got tighter and tighter.

"What is going on here? Who is that man Evan?" Yet another male voice said from behind Ian, which made the wolf turn around and see Dr. Mishra, Jai's dad standing at the front of the door looking asvery stern.

Mr. Mason briefly took his focus off of the mink and addressed the cheetah with a softer look. "Just some Paparazzo Aditya, I'm handling it so go back with your son. I'm sorry your privacy is being disturbed, but I will make sure that this won't happen again," he said firmly, before turning right back to the mink he was holding. "Well? Are you going to answer my question or not? I can force it out of you, but I am sure you might prefer it this way because my other idea will be much more painful for you." Mr. Mason snarled into the mink's face. "What's your name? And don't even think about about giving me a fake name, I'll know if you lying."

"My name is Jo McGinnis... I work for Affairs Weekly... I wanted to get photos for a story I'm working on... Your wife's funeral was big news, you know, and the attack is big news too! I wanted to get pictures of your son, there has been a high demand for pictures of him and your daughter, but you haven't allowed anyone close to them so I thought I would be able to sneak and get a few..." the mink said, shaking. "Please don't hurt me... I didn't mean any harm."

Dr. Mishra was the one who spoke up next, his accent even more noticeable when he was upset. "Even if you didn't intend any harm, you were attempting to invade the privacy of a child who was shot at their mother's funeral. The boy has been through so much in the past few weeks and you dare try and spy on him in a private hospital? Not only that, my own son is sharing the room with young Lucas so you'd be invading his privacy as well... I might join Evan with this lawsuit threat, you will be hearing from my lawyer soon enough," he said coldly, and Ian couldn't help but shiver from the ice in the man's voice.

However, the commotion caught the attention of a nurse, a pretty coyote lady who reluctantly went up to the angry fox and gave him a light tap on the shoulder. "Um, Mr. Mason you are causing a scene here, can you let the man go? I will escort the intruder out so please go back to your son's room."

Mr. Mason gave her a nod and dropped the mink on his ass. "Sorry for causing such a scene Johanna, but please see the parasite out," he said, before looking at the mink in disgust. "You will be hearing from my lawyer as well. You'd better hope your rag has enough funds to help defend you boy, now get out!" The mink got the message and ran out of the hospital as fast as possible as Mr. Mason returned his focus back to the nurse. "I hope I didn't cause too much of a disturbance, but I couldn't allow him to get into the room."

"It's no worries Mr. Mason, I can get you and Dr. Mishra a more private suite so you won't be disturbed if you wish?"

Mr. Mason just gave a shrug and a smile. "That won't be necessary Mary, both me and Aditya should be fine here. What do you think Aditya? Would you be willing to have them moved to a more private area?"

Dr. Mishra also shrugged. "No, I don't want to have Jaidev moved right now, plus he's resting. He hasn't been able to that since he got here and I don't want to risk waking him up."

Evan nodded and let out a sigh before clenching his forehead like he had a headache. "Very well then, we won't be needing a new room, but if it's possible can we get a few guards stationed in front of room? Just so we can be sure nobody sneaks in? I'm willing to pay any nuisance fee to make it happen, but I just want my family to be safe. They've been through enough as is with their mother dying and the attack at the funeral. Can you make it happen?"

Johanna just nodded with a smile and patting the older man on the back.

"Of course we can Mr. Mason, we should have done that at the start of this. I apologize for this inconvenience sir, I'll get right to it!" She said, before beginning to walking away while talking into a walkie-talkie.

Evan nodded and began to walk away towards the exit of the ward. "I need a drink, you want to join me Jordan? I know you don't drink Aditya, but you can join me as well, I'm sure they can make you something non-alcoholic if you want it?"

Dr. Mishra could only give a dry laugh at that. "I normally don't, but given the current situation, I'm sure my God can forgive me for indulging in alcohol. I could use a drink myself," he said, before joining Mr. Mason and whispered in his ear so that nobody else can hear him, except Ian himself and his dad he figured. "Plus I have a lot of questions regarding the Hidden World. I think I deserve an explanation for all this."

Mr. Mason wrapped an arm around the tired-looking cheetah. "Jordan and I will explain everything to you while we drink, we owe you that at least. I'm sorry about Jaidev though. What's the prognosis regarding his eyes?" Mr. Mason asked.

Dr. Mishra frowned and looked like he was about to cry, which broke Ian's heart. He could tell that the other man had been doing his best to keep in control, obviously not wanting to distress his injured child, but Ian could tell the reality weighed heavily on him, and while Ian had figured the answer, he could only imagine how such things weighed on the father of the boy and how helpless he must have felt.

"My poor B???*. He's blind Evan, he won't be able to see again. He's going to have such a hard time and he wanted to be a journalist! How can he do that without sight?" Ian's dad also went up to the distressed-looking man.

"Back home in the UK we have a man named Gary O'Donoghue who works for The BBC, he is blind and he is a great reporter. If Jaidev is willing to work hard, he can fight for his dream, I know people who can teach him briale if he needs it. Both Evan and I are both willing to do anything to aid your family. Let's get that drink though, I could use a nice glass of scotch myself," he said, before looking towards Ian. "Keep an eye out on things while we are gone okay son? We will be fine, but I think Aditya needs a break for a bit and we have a lot to explain so keep an eye on everyone okay?" Ian just nodded and gave a salute to his dad, which made the elder wolf laugh. "Good boy!" He said, before he and Evan gently led the still shaking cheetah away from the ward.

Ian turned and went back to into the room, his mother seemed to be comforting Erin, who seemed to be crying again, and when she saw Ian enter by himself, she gave him a strained smile.

"Where did your father go dear? Did he and Evan take Aditya with them?" Ian just gave a nod and went back to his seat next to Greg and put his head in his paws. He heard his mother get up, and when he lifted his head, he saw her going up to sit next to Mrs. Mishra. She was a Doctor herself from what Ian had heard, but it would have gotten confusing to call them both Dr. Mishra. She hadn't taken her eyes off her son since he fell asleep. His mother knelt gently down next to her and placed a gentle paw on her shoulder.

"How are you holding up Sumati?" The pretty cheetah woman just let out a sigh as she reluctantly took her eyes off her son.

"I'm tired Rebecca... really tired... and I'm scared. My baby is blind and there is nothing to do about it. Not only that, but that poor boy Lucas got attacked and shot at his own mother's funeral," she said as she wiped away tears. "I hope Evan knows that none of us blame him or his family for what happened. It wasn't their fault, they weren't the ones who gassed the church, but it's going to be hard for Jai when he goes back to school. We are talking with the school to see if we can get some disability aids for him given he won't be able to see. I'm going to see if I can find a braille tutor as well. Oh there is so much to do... plus we still have two other children, but Jai is going to take up most of our focus for now," she said with a shake of her head.

"Don't worry Sumati, we will do our best to help in anyway we can, so don't worry and I'm sure Ian will help Jai around school as will Lucas when he wakes up, right Ian?" his mother said, while giving him a look.

"Of course!" Ian said with a smile. "Jai is a buddy, so of course me and Lucas will help him out in school!"

Jai's mother gave a shaky smile and thanked him tearfully, before her stomach rumbled which made Ian's mother frown. "Oh dear me, have you eaten at all since you got here Sumati? When's the last time you ate?" She asked the other woman, concerned.

Mrs. Mishra rubbed her stomach with a frown. "I haven't eaten since Jai was checked into the hospital... I don't want to leave him alone even for a second, he must be so scared," she said, reaching towards her son as if she wanted to touch him, but refrained from doing so in fear of waking him up. "I just don't know what to do Rebecca. I never thought I'd have a blind child. How is school going to work? Does Greenhart have blind students? What if we have to transfer him to a different school? How will this affect his future?"

Ian's mother just let out another sigh and gently got the worrying woman out of her chair. "Okay honey, I think you might need a break yourself. Let's get you some air and probably some food, you still need to eat." Seeing the look on the woman's face, the female wolf let out a gentle smile. "Ian and Greg will still be here and they are both more than capable of defending themselves as well as Jaidev and Lucas."

Mrs. Mishra looked like she was going to refuse the offer, before her stomach growled again which made her sigh in defeat. "Okay, I'll go with you, I think I could use some air. Thank you Rebecca," she said, which made the other woman smile.

"It's no problem dear, you need this," she said, before turning to Erin. "Erin honey, how about you come with us as well, Lucas will be fine and you probably haven't eaten much either."

Erin gave a tired nod and got up after kissing Lucas on the forehead, before walking up to the older woman. She then turned towards Ian and let out a smile. "Watch after them okay honey? We won't be gone long and I promise I'll bring something back for you boys," she said, before exiting the room with Erin and Mrs. Mishra in toe, leaving the boys alone. Ian was all set to just sit down and stare at Lucas, willing him to wake up, but he was caught off-guard when he heard a soft voice ring out.

"Are they gone?" He heard Jai ask, which made him turn his focus on the cheetah who was now sitting up in his bed, looking around with a frown. He reached up towards the bandages covering his eyes and Ian was quick to rush towards him to stop him from removing them. The cheetah had to have some minor reconstructive surgery to fix the damage done by the teargas canister exploding in his face, and the bandages were there to cover the injuries until they healed.

"Don't!" Ian stated as he pressed the other boys paws away from the bandages. "Did we wake you up?" Ian asked gently, he really wasn't sure what to really do in all honesty, how did he comfort someone who was blinded in a freak accident involving anti-magic terrorists?

Jai just shook his head and sighed. "I've been up, I only pretended to be asleep so my parents would stop fussing," he said in a frustrated tone. "They have no idea what to do with me? I doubt either of them ever planned on having a disabled child," he said, his voice getting increasingly bitter. "It's not fair..." he said as he put his knees up to his chest, head downcast. "Those bastards... Not only did this happen to me, but Lucas got hurt again, as if attending his mother's funeral and dealing with that awful bitch wasn't enough." His voice turned sad right then and frustrated also, as if the sheer amount of injustice enraged him. "Has he woken up yet?"

Ian just shook his head, before he remembered that not only was the cheetah blind, but his eyes were completely covered up with bandages, so obviously non-verbal gestures were useless. "No, still out cold, but other than that he was fine. Monet did a great job healing him. Really, he should be up, but nobody knows why he is still asleep," Ian said in a tired tone, "But you need to rest mate, you been through a lot."

This however caused Jai to hiss. "DON'T TELL ME WHAT TO DO IAN!!" He shouted out, angrily enough to make the taller wolf back away a bit in surprise. Ian had never heard the cheetah raise his voice at all, let alone scream. Ian heard Greg growl from where he sat, but Ian gave him a wave of his paw to tell him to stand down as he knew Jai didn't mean anything by the shouting. Jai seemed to sense the reaction and let out a tired sigh. "I'm sorry, I'm just really tired right now... and I hate hospitals. Spirits are everywhere here and I can't keep them out of my head. Everytime I try to fall asleep I hear the cries of all the people who died here and it makes my skin crawl. I haven't been sleeping well in months honestly and I'm scared..."

"It's understandable that you are scared Jaidev, but you shouldn't take it out on Ian," Greg said, speaking up for the first time in awhile. "But what are you scared about exactly? It usually helps to let the fear out so it won't fester and we won't judge you for anything."

Ian agreed and smiled at the tiger for being more social without Ian having to tell him to do so. Maybe that little speech Monet gave got it through his thick head that he needed to be his own person? Ian was still pretty proud about how Greg managed to use ferrokenesis on his first try.

Jai simply sighed, burying his head even further into his knees. "What if I do have to move schools? I don't want to leave Greenhart, I have friends there; you, Lucas and others and I don't want to lose that. Plus where would I go? Would we have to move? What about my dreams? How will I be a journalist with me being blind? And I love reading, I can't do that anymore."

Ian winced at hearing the cheetah's words, but he braced himself, he had to be the leader here. Jai was his charge, his parents and Ian's own entrusted him to watch over the cheetah and he couldn't fail on this, if he couldn't succeed in leading one person, how in the name of Zeus would he be able to lead an entire country of magically-empowered people?

"You won't leave Greenhart," he said in a gentle tone while he grasped the cheetah's shoulders. "Lucas, Greg and I will do our damnedest to help you in school, even if we have to read everything out for you. Plus we can try and make some braille. I'm sure the school can afford to invest in some screen reader tech to assist you and any future blind students to the school. As for your dream of being a journalist, there are blind journalists, so it's doable. And as for reading, there are always audiobooks right?" Ian stated as helpful as possible. "You'll do great Jai! Heck, maybe Monet can teach you some awesome blind stuff like Daredevil! But seriously, you got us and we'll have your back okay buddy?"

Jai just nodded and latched onto Ian with a hug, which caught Ian off-guard, but the moment was ruined when he heard someone clapping and with a growl he turned around to see a dark-furred fox standing at the door.

"Who the fuck are you?" Ian snarled as he got up. However, the fox just ignored him and went straight for Lucas and just as he was about to touch him, Ian grabbed his arm and snarled right in his face. "Don't you dare touch him!"

The fox just gave him a smirk, and with his free paw, he blasted Ian with a spell that knocked Ian back a few meters, but he managed to catch himself and send a spell of his own at the fox, only to watch it fizzle out before it could hit him. "Wha? What did you do?" he snarled out in surprise. Greg let out a cry before attempting to attack the fox, before he was frozen in place, as if he was encased in a large block of ice.

"I'm not here to fight," the fox said, before Ian went after him with a strong light burst which actually caught the fox by surprise and knocked him back, which allowed Greg to be able to move again.

Ian then walked up towards the fox and lifted him up, before getting into his face. "Who the fuck are you, and what are you trying to do with Lucas?" Ian snarled.

The fox just sighed and waved his paw, which made a strange symbol appear on Ian's forehead and his body immediately went stiff and he fell over completely unable to move.

"I told you, I'm not here to fight. If you would just let me talk I would be happy to explain everything, but if you won't sit still I'll make you," he said and then snapped his fingers, which made Greg give out a cry as he fell behind the fox who caught him before could attack from behind. "And tell your lackey to stand down, it's rude to attack people from behind you know."

Ian just growled and struggled to break free from whatever was holding him, to no avail. "Stop struggling, I put a binding rune on you. If you continue to struggle you'll only hurt yourself," he said, but before he could say anything else Jai spoke up.

"I know that voice... is that you Beau?"

This made the fox turn around and frown. "Oh it's you, the Medium. What happened to you kitten? Why are your eyes bandaged, you alright?"

Ian gave Jai a confused look at his seeming familiarity with this damn fox, and did he mention rune magic? "You know this person Jai?" Ian asked, his voice confused. "How did you meet this guy?"

"He was the one who saved me and Lucas from that fake abomination who was posing as his mother. Lucas must have forgotten to say anything to you about that, but he's cool," he said, before addressing the fox. "I'm blind now, I was hit in the face by an exploding teargas container at Mrs. Mason's funeral... It's a long story but the Hunters attacked the funeral and thankfully nobody besides me got seriously hurt. What are you doing here though if I may ask? Not that it isn't good to 'see' you again, it's still surprising to see you just pop out of nowhere again."

Beau let out a frustrated sigh at that. "I've been TRYING to tell you idiots why I'm here, but none of you will shut up long enough to let me talk!" He said in a frustrated tone. "But if you will let me talk I can tell you!"

When nobody spoke up in response, he let out a sigh.

"Thank you! I'm here to wake Lucas us, without me he'll stay asleep and I know for a fact you don't want that at all, do you wolfie?" Ian could only blush as it was true, the absolute last thing he would want is Lucas never waking up.

"How are you going to wake him up then?" Jai asked. "I'm guessing it's magic related?"

"More or less. It's a long story so if you got the plan, I got the cash to indulge them, but I am the only person to wake him up. My God has an interest at him, and frankly so do I, so him staying asleep won't be helping anyone."

"Your God? You serve a God? Which one? Zeus? Apollo, Athena?" Ian asked as he continued to try and get up from the bindings, but to no avail, whatever spell was binding him it was a extremely powerful one. The fox... Beau if Jai was correct about his name, just let out a loud snort and laugh.

"I don't serve the Gods of you pale-faces. My God is one you never heard of. He was the God of my tribe back before you people showed up and screwed them over."

This comment perked Ian's ears up. "Oh, you are a native? Listen, I'm sorry for what happened to your people, that was awful, but why would a tribal God be interested in Lucas? What could my fox offer him?"

Beau rolled his eyes at Ian's words. "I've heard those same sympathetic words before and I'm sick of it. It was centuries ago and it doesn't matter anymore, my tribe is gone now. Our mages were wiped out by Hunters, my parents included, and the rest of them just drifted to other tribes and my God almost died back then. I'm sure you know that a God's power is tied to their followers. Since I was for a time the only follower he had, my God became so weak he couldn't even maintain his personal realm, so he left that to me. But, somehow, Lucas's astral form found itself in my God's realm and is basically stuck there, unable to get back to his body. My God made it to where if I touched Lucas I would be able to return him to his body," he said before, he let out a sigh. "But I will explain exactly what is going on though, so listen up," Beau said before recounting the events that just passed.

~~~~

Lucas sat in the chair that Alignak had provided and looked at the unfathomably ancient being in front of him. The ferret eyed him with a small smile. "So um... what do you want to talk about? Why did you want me for? What could I offer a God?"

The ferret just let out a friendly chuckled. "So many things my child. Your power fascinates me greatly, you have a great power inside, you something beyond even the power of the Gods. I have a proposition for you. My champion Beau is a powerful rune mage, and I know you are capable of it as well, but he can train you in the art which could prove helpful in the future. What do you say child? Will you accept our help?"

Lucas let out a thoughtful sigh and closed his eyes as if debating things in himself. What did he have to lose really? He really could use the extra power, and Beau did save his life already, so he had some trust for the other fox. 'If only I could hear Noctis and see what he thought of everything, he's really wise and stuff so he would know what the right decision is right? But why can't I hear him? Aren't we connected?' He honestly missed the dark entity, sure he hadn't known the wolf-like being for that long, but Noctis had been part of him for all his life from what he said so he guessed it made sense he would have some affection for the stoic entity.

"You are talking about the Dark dog? You have developed a strong bond with it, most of his kind merely see mortals like yourself as mere food, but not only have you developed a bond with it, you even changed his form."

"Changed his... form? You mean Noctis didn't always look like he does?" Lucas asked confused, he didn't comment on the fact that the God literally just read his mind, but if some Mundanes could have telepathic abilities why wouldn't a literal God, even if a greatly weakened one.

The ancient ferret God gave a smile and a nod before speaking once again in his quiet, authoritative voice. "Yes, most of his kind look like large feral dogs, yet the one you know as Noctis took the form of a wolf and gained his own sense of self, rather than the collective identity of his kind, how curious."

Lucas let out a nod. He guessed the God made sense, he didn't really know much about Noctis or what he was, all he knew that he was one of many creatures of the Dark Plain. "Excuse me sir, is there a reason I can't hear him?" Lucas asked, hoping the God had it answers to his question.

"It's simple. My realm exists outside the bounds of the mortal world and the Elemental Plains. So your connection with him wouldn't be able to follow you as you are here. But another issue is that since you are in my Realm, you won't be able get back to your body on your own."

"What!?" Lucas cried out in shock and got out of his chair, tail twitching behind him. "What do you mean I can't return to my body!? Am I stuck here?"

"Don't fret child, I'll be able to return you to your body. Beau is not only the caretaker of my realm, but he serves as my proxy in the mortal realm and acts out my will there in what way he can without ruffling the feathers of my stronger contemporaries. He should be able to return you to your body if he can access it. So, do you accept my offer child? Will you accept Beau's training?"

Lucas let out a thoughtful sigh and stayed silent for a few second, before letting out a gentle shrug. He really didn't have anything to lose really did he?

"There isn't a catch is there?" Was all he asked cautiously. "Will I have to serve you if I do accept the training, or is this a no strings attached kind of deal?" The Ferret let out a loud bellowing laugh at this, which made Lucas blush furiously. 'This is so embarrassing, a literal God is laughing in my face. How do I get myself in these situations... I miss Ian.' Thinking about the wolf actually made him start to cry, which caught the God off-guard. He could only imagine how much of a wreck the wolf must be right now. Was he eating, sleeping? Just how long had he been out? What if he never got to see the wolf again? Just how long could he be separated from his body until he died? He was broken from his thoughts when he felt a giant hand rest on him and lifted him up.

"Be at ease child, you will be reunited with your love and I ask for nothing in return for your training, I just want to help. Even if you do not accept, we will still restore you to your body, but having training will make things easier for you to defend yourself. So what do you say child?"

Lucas let out a sigh and nodded, he didn't really have anything to lose, which made the God smile.

"Good, my child!" He said, before shouting out. "Beau! Come!" Almost immediately the black fox rushed in and Lucas could swear the boy reeked of sex. The fox panted as he tried to regain his breath and gave a deep and respectful bow to his master.

"What is it that you need my lord? I was about to take a shower before you called me so I apologize if my smell offends you."

Alignak just gave a hearty chuckle and smiled. "I have lived countless mortal lifetimes. If the smell of sex disgusted me so, I wouldn't have allowed you to let your pets stay here now would I? I have my own fun with them anyways so worry not Beau, your odour offends me naught. But you might have yourself a new student. Lucas here has agreed to be under your tutelage."

Beau gave a smug grin at that. "I'd told you'd he would agree old man!" The fox said with a laugh, before focusing on Lucas. "Okay kit, when you get back into your body we'll start your training... Or at least after you recover. I warn you though, I won't make it easy for you. It's going to be a rough go, but I have a feeling you will prove me right in my assessment of you. I have high hopes, and I expect them to be met."

Lucas gave a quiet nod, wondering just what he agreed to, but it didn't matter, he had more important things to worry about. "Right, so um... can I go back to my body now? I kinda miss it and I want to get back to Ian and my family, they must be worried sick."

The Ferret just nodded and patted the boy on his head. "Very well child, we'll get you back into your body."

~~~~

"So that's everything that happened. Is there anything else you want explained?" Beau asked in an annoyed tone.

Ian just shook his head, that was a lot to take in. So Lucas was stuck in a Native God's realm? How in the seven hells did he even get there and why? None of it made any sense, but that always seemed to be the case with his beloved, nothing ever did seem to make sense regarding him and that was something Ian loved about the fox.

"So you're gonna train him on how to use rune magic? How did you get your mitts on a Codex? Just how many survived the purge?" Ian asked, he had thought that they all had been destroyed in the purge, but if at least two survived, how many more did? Just how many people had access to dangerous rune magic? That thought made Ian a bit uncomfortable, but he decided to shove that aside for now.

"My Dad got the Codex before the purge and I guess they didn't think a random Ahtan from a tiny Native American tribe in the middle of nowhere would ever be able to get access to something as rare and viable as a codex, so ours was ignored. As for how many still exist, I have no clue," he said before sighing. "Can we get to waking up the kit already? I want to get back to my God's realm, I've got stuff to do."

Ian just gave a polite nod and Beau walked up to the fox and placed a paw on his forehead. Instantly his paw started to glow and, right after, Lucas sprang up from the bed and breathed hard, looking around wildly confused. Before he had any time to gather his bearings, Ian was on him in an instant, holding him tightly enough to cut off his breathing for several minutes.

"You're awake!!!" Ian cried out in sheer joy and relief. "I was so worried about you!" He said, before he started covering Lucas's face with kisses, causing the fox to blush bright red and try to get away, embarrassed by the excessive affection Ian was giving him.

"Ian! Stop! People are watching us!" he cried out while Ian started nuzzling him. Ian personally didn't care what anyone thought, he was just happy to be holding his boyfriend again. After a few minutes, Ian did decide to let go and give Lucas another kiss before backing away. "How long was I out?" The fox then asked.

"You've been out for three days love... We've all been worried sick, but I'm so glad you are okay."

Lucas looked around the room and frowned. "Where's Erin? And my Dad?"

"Your dad and mine took Dr. Mishra out for a drink... and my mom took Erin and Mrs. Mishra to get some lunch. They left a few minutes ago actually before this guy showed up," Ian stated as he pointed towards Beau, before realizing the black-furred fox was gone. ''Bloody hell, he wasn't kidding was he?' Ian thought in surprise, before shaking his head.

"Why were Jai's parents he-" Lucas asked, before noticing the cheetah who was sitting in his bed, eyes bandaged. "Jai!" Lucas cried out and made an attempt to rush out of bed, before Ian stopped him.

"Don't you got a feeding tube in your belly!?" Ian said frantically. "I'll get a doctor and see if they can get it removed, but for the love of Apollo stay still."

Lucas just let out a sigh and looked towards Jai. "What's wrong with Jai? He's hurt..." Ian gave a pained look, this was the one thing Ian was dreading, he didn't know how Lucas would react to the news of Jai being blind, he would probably blame himself. Jai, however, spoke up before anyone could say anything.

"Hey Ian, can you or Greg help me get over to Lucas's bed? So we can talk easier?" Ian glanced over to him and nodded, before giving a nod towards Greg, who quickly walked over to the cheetah and gently lifted him up and placed him in the bed right next to the Lucas, who could only look at Jai in shock. Jai gave a timid smile and felt for Lucas's face and brought him for a hug. "We have a lot to talk about, but I'm happy you are awake."

Ian decided to leave the two for now, he had calls to make.

~~~~

"So, Mason is back up? I'm glad to hear that Mansfield," Allison said in the phone. She could hear Ian gave a happy laugh and she couldn't help but find the wolf almost adorable in his enthusiasm

"Yeah! He should be allowed to leave tomorrow. You should come over, I'm sure Lucas wants to thank you for saving his life and so do I honestly. But really Monet, thanks for everything you saved Lucas's life again and I owe you for that. But I got to go, my dad and Mr. Mason should be arriving shortly, but see you later!" Mansfield said before hanging up, leaving Allison holding a dead phone.

Sighing, she put her cellphone back in her pocket and let out a sigh of relief, she had been a bit worried about the fox, so it was good to know Mason was alright. She was about to go back to training when she heard her father call from upstairs.

"Allie! Someone is here to see you. Can you come up?" Curious, Allison did as her dad asked. When she entered, she saw her dad standing in front of a slim, young male fox with bright silver fur, the boy looked to be Japanese and when she got a good look at him, she let out a gasp in shock... 'It can't be... he's been dead for nearly six-hundred years... '

"Hiroshi!?" she bellowed out at seeing the blast from the past.