Aric followed Julia through the corridors of the estate, his legs still weak but steady enough to carry him forward. The main hall was on the other side of the residence, and with every step, he drew closer to the people he had never met but whose memories had become part of him.
His heart began to beat faster as they approached.
Julia glanced over her shoulder.
"You are walking slower than you were a moment ago."
"I am tired."
"You are nervous."
Aric said nothing, but Julia seemed to understand that she was right.
"There is nothing to be nervous about."
"That is not what I am nervous about."
"Then what is?"
Aric struggled to find an answer. The memories he had inherited told him that his father loved him and that his brother had always looked out for him, but they also carried the resentment Aric had felt towards a family that seemed to possess everything he lacked. He had spent years watching the people around him grow stronger while his own body remained weak, allowing his frustration to turn into bitterness towards the very people who cared about him.
Anastasius understood that feeling all too well, having spent much of his life believing that his own family never truly saw him, only to discover how wrong he had been when it was already too late.
He did not want to repeat those mistakes, nor did he want to spend another lifetime pushing away people who genuinely cared about him simply because he was too afraid to let them get close.
They reached a pair of large double doors, and Julia came to a stop.
"They are inside."
Aric took a slow breath before nodding.
"Alright."
He pushed the doors open and stepped into the main hall.
The room was enormous, with a ceiling that stretched high above him and tall pillars of pale stone rising along either side. A massive chandelier hung overhead, its hundreds of tiny lights reflecting against the polished marble floor, while tall windows framed by deep blue curtains allowed the last rays of the evening sun to spill into the hall. Tapestries depicting richness and breathtaking landscapes adorned the walls, and at the far end stood a raised dais with an elaborate chair that could only belong to the Duke.
It was beautiful, almost overwhelming in its grandeur, and the kind of place that made anyone standing inside feel small.
Yet Aric barely had time to take it all in before his attention shifted to the two figures approaching him.
The first was a tall, broad shouldered man with long dark hair falling past his shoulders and a pair of crimson eyes fixed firmly on him. He carried himself with the quiet confidence of someone who had spent much of his life on the battlefield, and even from a distance, Aric could feel the weight of his presence.
Beside him was a younger man with the same dark hair and crimson eyes, though unlike the older man, he made no attempt to contain himself as he broke into a run towards Aric.
"Aric!"
Before Aric could properly react, Ivar rushed forward and wrapped both arms around him, lifting him completely off the ground in an almost suffocating embrace.
"Aric, you are finally awake!"
"Ivar, wait!"
Ivar squeezed him tighter, burying his face against his shoulder.
"I missed you so much!"
"Yes, I can tell. Now put me down!"
"Not yet."
"What do you mean, not yet?"
"I haven’t hugged you enough."
Aric stared at him in disbelief, then glanced helplessly towards the Duke, who was watching them with an unmistakable smile.
"Father, are you just going to stand there?"
The Duke chuckled.
"It is good to see your brother so happy."
"Then perhaps you could tell him to put me down!"
Ivar finally pulled back just enough to look at his face, though he made no move to release him.
"Look at you. You have gotten so thin."
"Well as you know I’ve been unconscious for three years!!!"
"And you couldn’t dream of food?."
"How exactly is that meant to work?"
Ivar paused, apparently considering the question before nodding.
"That is a fair point."
"Then put me down!"
"Alright, alright. You do not have to shout."
Ivar finally lowered him to the ground, but kept both hands on his shoulders as though he was afraid Aric might disappear if he let go.
"Then all you simply need to do is eat."
"Ivar, I haven’t been starving myself."
"It looked that way to me when you decided to not wake up anymore."
"You are Impossible."
"I’m just as lovely as ever."
Aric sighed and finally managed to push his brother’s hands away from his shoulders. He took a step back and turned towards his father, who had remained a few feet away, watching them with a gentle expression and his red eyes fixed on Aric as though he were trying to commit every detail of his appearance to memory.
At least he was finally free of his brother’s embrace.
His father stepped forward.
"Do you have any idea how much we have missed you?"
Aric opened his mouth to answer, but before he could find the right words, the Duke pulled him into a tight embrace.
"Do you know how worried we were?" His father’s voice was unsteady, and Aric could feel the slight tremor in the arms holding him.
He stood frozen for a moment, unsure of how to respond to the sudden affection, until he caught sight of his mother approaching them with tears already gathering in her green eyes.
"Darling..."
Emilia reached them and wrapped her arms around both her husband and son, pressing her face against the Duke’s shoulder.
"He is awake," she whispered, her voice breaking as she struggled to hold back her tears. "Our son is finally awake."
"Please, do not ever scare us like that again," his father murmured, and this time Aric could hear the tears in his voice.
Aric did not know what to do.
He had never been held like this, never had anyone cry over him simply because they were afraid of losing him, and the warmth of their embrace stirred something deep inside him that he could no longer keep contained.
"I’m sorry," he whispered, his voice breaking. "I am sorry I took so long."
His mother pulled away just enough to cup his face between her hands, gently brushing her thumbs against his cheeks.
"Do not apologize, sweetheart. You are here now, and that is all that matters."
Before Aric could respond, Emilia came rushing towards them and threw her arms around his waist, pressing herself against his side.
"You are not allowed to leave again," she declared, her voice muffled against his shirt.
"I will not."
"Promise?"
"I promise."
Aric finally returned their embrace, wrapping his arms around the people surrounding him as the tears he had been holding back since waking in this unfamiliar body began to fall. He had spent his first life believing that nobody truly saw him, and even after death, he had carried the loneliness of that life into a world where another boy had suffered in much the same way.
Yet here they were, holding him as though he were the most precious thing in their world, and for the first time in either of his lives, he was beginning to understand what it meant to have a family that loved him without asking for anything in return.
Julia stood to the side with the other servants, several of whom were wiping away tears as they watched the reunion. She glanced towards Ivar, who stood a short distance away with his arms crossed and a smile spreading across his face.
"Are you not going to join them, Young Lord?"
Ivar looked at the family embracing one another before turning towards her.
"I suppose I should, shouldn’t I?"
"I believe they would appreciate it."
A grin spread across his face as he approached them, and before anyone could react, he wrapped his arms around the entire group, pulling everyone into an enormous embrace.
"Now this is a proper family hug!"
"Ivar, you are crushing me!" Aric protested.
"You’ll be fine."
"I am beginning to have doubts!"
"Stop complaining. You have barely been awake for a day, and you are already arguing with your older brother."
"Mother, please tell him to let go!"
Emilia laughed as she reached up to pat Ivar’s arm.
"Be gentle with your brother."
"But I am being gentle!"
"Your definition of gentle is going to kill me," Aric muttered.
The servants could no longer contain their laughter, and even the Duke joined in, pulling his family closer as Ivar tightened his embrace one last time.
Aric found himself laughing along with them, even as he struggled to escape his brother’s ridiculous display of affection.
He did not know if this was what happiness was supposed to feel like, nor did he know if he deserved to be on the receiving end of so much love.
But he was here, they were here, and for once, he did not have to face the world alone.
He had lost one family without ever truly understanding what he meant to them. He would not make the same mistake with this one.