A Necessary Conversation

They seem to warm to us more and more, and I find that I was wrong in my initial assessment of them. They truly did come into this with an open mind, ready to accept that we exist and are a part of Skylar’s life. They might not have planned on this happening, but they seem pretty okay with it.

Once we reassured them that Skylar isn’t in any danger, and that she’s actually safer living with us than she is with them, they seemed pretty content with her living in my kingdom. They don’t have to know the part about how Skylar has joined our guild, or how we all nearly got captured at the Opera House, or that we’re aiming to take over Sydney.

Avoiding those topics does wonders for the conversations and for how they warm up to us. Skylar seems pretty happy with it being this way, and I find it difficult to fault her for it. This might be dishonest, but I know she wants to keep a good relationship with her parents, and she wants us to have a good relationship with her parents.

“So you three are in a guild right?” Mr Whitley asks, looking between Mia, Ivy and I. I nod after a moment’s hesitation. “We are indeed.” I confirm. “Why?” He asks me, and I’m floored by the question. “What do you mean why?” I reply. “Why are you three in a guild together? What was the purpose of that?” He presses.

My charisma finally lets me think of an answer. “We wanted to present a united front. In case we ever find ourselves stuck in a situation, we want to appear united to those who might try to hurt us.” I say. “But Skylar hasn’t joined your guild?” He questions further. I shake my head. “She was very explicit that she wanted to stay out of that area of things.” I answer smoothly.

“So Skylar, why did you get into a relationship with these three? I mean no disrespect, you seem lovely people. But why put yourself out there like that?” Mr Whitley asks. He seems genuinely curious about this, but also still concerned for her safety. “Because I wanted to. I was tired of living in isolation, they came along and we clicked really well.” She says.

“I fell for them all. We all have the same goals and values in life, and this works really well for me.” Skylar says defensively. Mr Whitley smiles at her disarmingly. “It’s okay, I can understand that.” He says. He hums thoughtfully as he chews, speaking a few seconds later. “Goals huh? What are you all aiming for?” He asks.

“What do you mean?” Mia asks. He shrugs in response. “I mean, you already said that safety and happiness is a big thing for all of you. It seems like you already have that, at least for the moment. If your home is as safe as you say, then safety isn’t really an issue anymore. And you all seem really happy with each other and the life you have.”

“That being the case, are you aiming for anything else? What other goals do you have?” Skylar’s father asks. I look around at my girlfriends to answer the question. I can’t really think of anything, and from the way the three of them are looking around at the rest, they can’t either.

We do have ambitions and goals, but we can’t tell Mr Whitley about them. What other goals do we have besides wrestling control of Sydney from Mathias and making it a safe place to live? The first thing I can think of is getting closer to Elsa, Paige and Olivia, but somehow I feel like that’s a little inappropriate to talk about.

After a few seconds of awkward silence, Skylar speaks up to answer the question. “Well we um…we’re training to get stronger so we can protect each other and our home better. We want to….we’re teaching ourselves things to….enrich our lives.” The maiden of shadow answers hesitantly. Mr Whitley raises an eyebrow.

“You seem pretty unsure about that stuff. Sorry to pry, but are you sure you’re all on the same page?” He asks. “We are! It’s just that…well we…” Skylar says, unsure where to go from here. Mr Whitley leans forward. “What’s up? Is everything okay?” He asks, genuinely concerned for her. “Yes, everything is okay!” She answers a little too quickly.

Mia, Ivy and I stay silent, not wanting to mess anything up and accidentally give anything away ourselves. “Well what were you going to say?” Her father asks. Skylar visibly gets annoyed. “Dad, stop prying.” She says. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to.” He apologises, putting his hands up defensively. “Well you are.” Skylar replies, her face reddening slightly.

“I’m sorry, it just seems like you-” “What dad? What are you accusing me of?” Skylar says. “I’m not accusing you of anything, I just want to make sure you-” He replies, but Skylar cuts him off again. “It’s not your job to make sure I’m okay, I can take care of myself now!” Skylar says, getting more and more worked up from the stress.

I want to say something and intervene, but I’m frozen, stunned at the exchange and can’t think of how to de-escalate the situation. Mr Whitley recoils at that. “Skylar I am your father, of course it’s my job to make sure you’re okay.” He says, hurt evident in his voice. “I know, I’m sorry, I just-” Skylar starts.

Mia slams her hands on the table to get their attention. “Skylar, enough.” The aeromancer looks at our girlfriend’s confused parents. “Skylar did join our guild. We’re not just training to protect each other more. We’re training because we want to rid Sydney of the gangs and make it a safe place for people to live.” She lays it all out succinctly.

Mr Whitley leans back in his chair, somehow seeming both shocked and not at all surprised. Mrs Whitley covers her mouth with her hands, her eyes widening, as she looks to Skylar for confirmation. All the energy has drained out of our girlfriend’s form, and she looks simply resigned. Hesitantly, she nods at her mother.

Mrs Whitley closes her eyes, processing what was just said. Mia gives me and Ivy a strained smile, before looking down at her food again. Silence fills the room. Skylar slumps her shoulders forward in shame while her parents try to figure out how to deal with this situation. I hold Ivy’s hand under the table and keep quiet. This isn’t my discussion to get involved in.

After what feels like an agonisingly long time, but is probably only a minute or so, Mr Whitley speaks. “Why…why would you…after everything we’ve been through toge-” His voice catches as tears well up in his eyes, and he cuts himself off, biting his lip and looking down. “I’m sorry dad, I…” Skylar says softly, lost for words.

“Your brother. Your brother fought and died for this idea. You cannot win this, you must know that! We already lost one member of this family, don’t let yourself be next!” Mrs Whitley cries, the gut wrenching wails of a mother who has lost her son pierce my heart. I’m very close to shedding a tear myself at the scene, from the sheer grief expressed by the two of them, especially since I know just how close we were to confirming their worst fears.

Skylar sniffs and draws in a breath, gathering her resolve. “I know he did. I know how hard it’s been, and I don’t want to put you both through losing me too. But mum, dad, it’s horrible out there. I’ve seen it for myself enough. Other people out there aren’t as lucky as we are. And we might have the power to change that.” She says, her voice shaking as she speaks.

Her father inhales to respond, but she holds up her hand. “Gemma has a power beyond what you know. I don’t know if we will pull this off, but I have faith that we have a chance to finally make this place safe, for everybody. I need to take that chance. I can’t sit by and let other people suffer when I believe that I might be able to help change it.”

Skylar pauses and shakes her head. “Besides: we’ve been lucky so far, but how long will that last? We’ve all taken steps to stay off the grid, to stay hidden. How long before somebody figures out where we are and raids us just because they can?” She asks her parents. Neither of them have an answer for her.

After a few seconds of silence, Skylar continues. “Lia-” She chokes on her words, tears welling up stronger than before, but she steadies herself and forces herself to continue speaking. “Liam knew the risks and he chose to fight for the safety and freedom of others anyway. He died fighting for what he believed in.”

Skylar sniffs, breathing deeply, in and out, before she continues. “He died a hero. He believed in what he was doing, even to his last breath. I won’t let his **** be in vain. He deserves better than that. And the people around here deserve better than what they’re going through.” Ivy squeezes my hand gently, and I look at her, smiling sadly as I begin to tear up.

Skylar wipes a tear from her eye, with a resolute expression on her face. “I know how hard losing him was for you both. It was just as hard for me. I promise that I will fight with everything I have to avoid the same fate he suffered. But I’m also going to fight in his memory, for the things he stood for. Because I stand for them too.” She declares firmly.

Silence fills the room once more. Mr Whitley eyes her sadly, processing this turn of events. “Are you sure?” He asks simply. Skylar answers without hesitation. “Absolutely. This is worth fighting for.” She replies. He nods regretfully. He turns to Mia, Ivy and I. “Can you do your best to protect her?” He pleads with us.

Mia nods confidently. “We will. As long as there is blood left in my body and life left in my soul, we will protect and care for her with everything we have.” She promises. “Thank you.” Mr Whitley says in a small voice. He stands up and walks over to Skylar’s chair. She stands up to meet him and they embrace tightly.

“I love you sweetheart.” He tells her. “I love you too dad.” She whispers. Skylar’s mum stands up and joins the group hug. I smile tearfully at the scene, and Ivy holds me close. They separate after a few minutes, having calmed down a little. “I think it’s time for you all to leave. We need some time to process this.” Mr Whitley says.

“I’m sorry.” Skylar apologises. He shakes his head. “It’s okay. We’re okay.” He reassures her. “I love you honey.” Mrs Whitley says. “I love you too mum.” Skylar replies. We all file out of their home in silence. “Be safe okay?” Skylar’s mother calls out. Skylar smiles weakly. “I’ll do my best.” We get into the car and the maiden of shadow pulls out of her parents driveway.