"Tryndamere. This alliance..... Do you think this is a fool's errand? But Sejuani..... she is sure of this... They will do this with or without us...."~ Ashe, The Frost Archer
This is a longer chapter drawing multiple parallels to the first chapter of the story. The next is also a little similar. So read the first couple lines in the chapter to enjoy this a little more.
And the time skip has come to pass. Watch the changes in characters and people they grow to become before the journey restarts.
Anyway, drop a couple comments or stones. Leave a review or rating. Anything if you have the time.
Enjoy!
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Surrounded by mountainous lands and thick vegetation,
A man is seen walking up a path. A path that led to his quaint little home. Over his shoulders, he carried a large sack with supplies that would easily last a week. An axe hung by the left side of his hip.
For chopping wood or for protection? That couldn't really be answered. The ends of Targon were dangerous, sometimes.
Being sandwiched between Targon and Shurima was pretty ideal. His family loved this place and by extension.... so did he.
The trees gave way to a creek that ran from the desert to the sea. It was a recent addition. One that did not exist till his awakening. The desert itself had changed. But he still did not want to take his children there. Even with all the changes, the desert was still that.... a desert. And deserts, normal or frozen, were were difficult to maneuver through. The journey through Freljord was something the children brought up often in an effort to convince him to take them on a journey.
The surprise he had felt when he had found out that Briar and Sydell had somehow managed to convince Daisy to go with them on a journey through Shurima a couple years ago was immense.
It had taken him a day of tracking with Oompa at his side to find the group.
And they were brought back home. And punished.
With all the chores.
For the next month.
Willa wanted them bent over and spanked but Gregori did not find that appropriate. Spanking was short term pain. Inefficient. Month long chores would force them to rethink their actions. Stop them from attempting something like this again.
He had nothing against a solid beating but why hit when you could make them suffer instead.
As he arrived at the creak, he looked at the small bridge that was supposed to take him over but he snorted, and continued walking. His magic slowly flowed out of him, pulling him over the surface of the water.
He eyed the stones he had placed in the creek as he walked. The arrangement the exact same as his previous home.
Gregori had changed. His reflection in the water was a clear indicator. His body was muscular now, more than ever before. He had grown in size as well. It wasn't like that of an assassin nor the middle ground he had found as his days as one but more of a heavy soldier whose goal was to rip through the frontlines and come out dripping with the blood of his enemies.
He rubbed a hand through his beard, it was completely gray now. His hair and gone gray too. All the magic in the world and his age was still showing.
He sighed at that thought.
A minute later, he was on the other end.
Approaching closer to his home, he reveled in its beauty. Its outward appearance the exact same as his first home but bigger. There were a couple more attachments, an outside shed, a wood storage cabin, a garden in the back and a large stable for the two beasts.
GROWLL
Gregori spotted the two beasts lounging in front of the porch. And they spotted him too as he walked closer. He raised his hand and roughly scratched the fur on the two beasts. They let out contented purrs.
"Dinner will be soon." He informed them as he walked past.
The beasts grunted in acceptance.
"You are back early." Willa commented from her seat at the porch. She had grown even older. Travel was not the easiest on her now. The woman was now truly old. And she had begun to complain about her bones. Seventies were not the most enjoyable for dear old Willa. But she was spending it with family.
Gregori nodded, "Heard you were making pie."
"Made." She corrected as she took a sip of the warm drink in her hand. "Don't think there is any left for you though."
"You wound me Willa." Gregori said as he walked to the window and carefully looked through. "As long as the children enjoyed it." From his view he could spot Annie and Daisy curled up in the big chair near the fire and the rest of the children seated in various cushions that lay about the place, Rell and Faye seemed to be discussing something as Faye scribbled frantically into a book. Daani was asleep hugging his tail and Sydell was reading a book. Briar sat still, just looking at the way the flames danced in the fireplace but a second later she turned to him and smiled.
It was no surprise.
Her hearing should have picked up on his arrival before anyone else.
He walked toward the door. Not needing to will forth energy to put on an excited front. Raising children had changed him. He didn't need to do anything of that sort simply because he found himself becoming excited as he inched closer to the door. They were grown now. Not all the way but they were getting there.
Rell and Briar had been adults for over a year now.
Coming close to nineteen years of age. Though Briar was closer to sixteen with how her mental age had been catching up. She had decided to grow out her hair a little and her face was now fully like that of anyone else's. Only her ears showed a difference with how it sharpened at the tips but other that that she was normal. She wore a white gown with a brown belt that held the cloth from fluttering in case she had to run.
Rell on the other hand had become more emotional though she did sometimes have moment where she just stared out with a frown on her face. But she was healing better than he could have imagined. And she had begun to fully consider him as her father. Nowadays she wore standard shirt and pants with her bushy hair tied behind her. The biggest change however, was the lack of metal surrounding her. The runes that had been carved into her stood out in full display as she sat in her clothes. Gregori guessed that the environment and the people made her feel safe enough to let go of all inhibitions and just be herself.
The rest were now spread between thirteen and fourteen. All experiencing massive growth spurts.
Among the girls, Daisy was the tallest and also the most physically developed. Her warrior physique had developed even further with her constant training. And the biggest change was with her weapon, It grew longer to suit her as she grew. She preferred coarse shirts and pants since they were good for training. Gregori often thought and told her that Leanna would be proud of her and how she had grown.
Faye had grown the least among the group, becoming the shortest. But she had the longest hair, flowing all the way to her knees. She had found a massive interest in studying and research as Gregori taught them and was taking the route of an intellectual.
Annie had grown but yet remained the same. Her features hadn't really changed into that resembling an adult but it was getting there. Gregori could see outlines of Amoline form in her everyday. Her magic had grown tremendously. Hand movements and the like had become a thing of the past as she willed and controlled fire with just a thought. Tibbers had also gotten a couple upgrades as Willa taught Annie how to sew. Now he sported a nice frilly skirt to his person and a stitch with his name running down his back.
Not Tybaluk but Tibbers.
He had actually spoke out against this. Not just to Annie but to everyone. Startled the group a little bit. But then went back to silence when no one spoke in his favor. Though everyone did start to feel less guilt for their actions in the following days. Which quite worked against him as he managed to make them feel less guilt for not speaking up for him. But he was a little sated at least. That was a positive.
Daani had grown into a tall and sturdy boy. He was enroute to becoming the tallest among the children. And among the children, he had the greatest growth in magic. His skill and power pushed him to the front as the training and knowledge imparted to him by the Ottrani and made him develop at a pace that far outstripped his siblings. Transformation came to him as easy as breathing now but the biggest change was the ability to create clones. If he willed it, Daani could create a clone of himself that could do anything he wanted it to. It was taxing on him but he could laze about and that was all he cared about. But he had grown out of his shell and was quite a confident young man.
Sydell was the one with the most mental change. After the passing of the little spider that followed him around for most of his life, he had grown recluse. Closed off. And Gregori and the group and tried their best to help him. But he refused it and instead did the only thing he could..... push himself further and further in training. In terms of pure physicality, he could match Daisy but still paled in comparison to Briar. His control over his webs had changed from that day. Now he could release webs from his finger tips and often used them in various creative ways. As a fighter, he was beyond competent but he was still inclined to become an assassin. Especially when he had heard of traces of his ancestor and her spider like abilities from Soraka in one of their many trips to the Astral Grove. Another more important part was that his hair had begun to regrow. It was still a small bit but there was something there and he often ran his hand through it.
Everyone noticed it but did never said anything about it. Even Briar. That was a testament to her development.
Holding the handle to the door, a smile sprouted on his face.
"I'M HOME!"