Julian did his best to suppress a yawn as he rang the doorbell. He hadn’t gotten much sleep after his conversation with Havik, and what he did get was restless and plagued with further images of Ren falling into the pit and his own inability to save him. He only wished he knew what he’d done during the blackout, before the bolder struck him down.

Hero opened the door, grinning at his grandson as he entered the large, fully renovated house on the cliffside. It had been opened up further, a new sun porch added to the side of the house closest to the treeline. A couple of the rooms downstairs had been converted into a studio for Hero to continue his music compositions and the room near the back had been turned into a library and office for all the old texts and artifacts Hawk had recently acquired.

The rooms upstairs had also been redone, Havik’s old room becoming a standard guest room, Ynda’s becoming slightly larger to accommodate her and Mei when they came over. The only room that hadn’t been touched was Toji’s. Not because they were afraid to make it something else; they simply didn’t want to lose what they had left of their oldest, including what they had brought back from Helman Hall. There was still plenty of his and Natsu’s old belongings still there, though. Hawk and Hero insisted the Kanaki’s would come back one day and they wanted both of them to feel welcomed and at home in both the Hall and the house in the Veil.

Julian, Tanya, and Tristan, along with the rest of their family, would often stay in both locations when visiting; no one touched Toji’s rooms.

“Thanks for coming on such short notice,” Hero was saying, leading Julian into the kitchen. The smell of fresh coffee assailed his nostrils, making his mouth water slightly. It had been some time since he’d had good coffee.

“Yeah, no worries,” Julian replied as Hero took the pot from the machine and poured three mugs, pulling out the creamer and sugar for the younger man to doctor as he saw fit.

“How’d the last job go? I heard you got back sooner than was anticipated.”

Julian shrugged, moving to sit at the table with his sweetened beverage, taking a sip before he landed in one of the chairs. “It was a pretty easy find, actually. Thanks to Ruby, it didn’t take us long to narrow down the location and the most likely area where the book was ultimately found. The client was happy enough and even paid more for the expeditious results.”

Hero smiled. “It’s why you’re the best. You know what needs to be done and you do it. It’s little wonder so many people seek you out.”

“I guess,” Julian said, leaning back and taking a sip of his sweetened coffee. “It isn’t just me, though. I have a good team to back me up. Sure, I’ve taken on some quick solo jobs, but most of the time it’s a group effort.”

“Glad to know you have people you can rely on.”

“No kidding,” Julian agreed with a slight grin. Hero hadn’t been oblivious to the fact Julian hadn’t had a real smile since the accident four years ago. He’d had very little to be enthusiastic about since losing his soulmate, one they knew was still only missing.

“How are Tanya and Tristan? I haven’t seen them in a while.”

“They’re fine, I guess,” Julian shrugged. “Tanya’s still dating Nikolai Verikof, still taking things slow, even though they really don’t have to.”

“You’d be surprised,” Hawk said, walking in on them and accepting the coffee Hero handed him before joining them in his own seat. “A lot of soulmate couples will take their time to get to know each other before they’re bound. Some, especially those in the positions Nico and Tanya are in, will choose to take a more traditional route for appearances sake. I think they’re taking their time because Nico is very old fashioned in some ways and wants to show your parents he can, and does, treat Tanya well.”

“You said ‘couples,’” Julian pointed out. “You mean there are soulmates out there who aren’t involved romantically?”

Both his grandfathers nodded. “More than you’d think,” Hero said. “They remain friends, or one takes the position of protector over the other. Often, they won’t marry because their bond to their soulmate is so strong, even if they’re not attracted to each other.”

“Why is that?”

Hawk shrugged. “No idea, honestly. Could be preference, could be they just don’t want to be bound to anyone.”

Julian’s eyebrow rose. “I had heard Ynda wasn’t gay but she’s bound to another woman.”

“She isn’t,” they replied. 

“She’s never been interested in anyone,” Hero said. “When she found she was bound to Mei, they were both surprised and even a little scared because of what they were at the time.”

“Assassins.”

Hawk nodded. “Eventually they fell in love and the rest is history. I think they’re entering their soul union soon.”

“This summer,” Hero said. “In Kanaki Valley, last I heard.”

“Maybe I can go and celebrate with everyone,” Julian said, though it wasn’t said with much commitment. He wasn’t big on crowds or celebrations of any kind and Hawk and Hero knew that.

“We won’t keep you out of it,” Hawk reassured. “Neither will they.”

Julian sipped his coffee. “Yeah,” he said over the rim. After another sip, he said, “Tristan is fine, too. I didn’t get a chance to see him over the last few days, though. Mom said he was on a trip with some friends or something. For a ten year old, he sure does travel a lot.”

“And your parents are fine with that?” Hero asked, furrowing his brow. He had never felt comfortable with his own kids traveling that much when they were that young. Not without them, anyway.

Julian averted his gaze. “They don’t care,” he muttered. 

Sensing the young man didn’t want to discuss anything to do with his parents, Hawk and Hero exchanged a look, inwardly agreeing now was the time to broach the subject that brought Julian there in the first place.

“So, as I’m sure you guessed, this isn’t really a social call,” Hawk said. “We want to hire you for a job.”

Julian sat up a little straighter, slowly placing his mug on the table. “What kind of job?”

“The kind you’re the absolute pro at,” Hero said. “A hunting expedition.”

-*-