"Can you...please sit down so that I feel better about telling you something shocking?" Cass asked carefully, aware that Sir Sanders was watching him like he was a threat. Ser Hune’s expression softened significantly as she scanned Cass’ face before she reached up, touching his cheek.
"You’ve been crying." She said softly, and Cass watched as her expression hardened slightly as she looked at the trio of men behind him. "Was it any of them who made you cry?" She asked boldly. Cass felt his mouth fall open slightly, but it was Edgar who scrambled to defend their honour.
"No, Ser Hune. We haven’t been making him cry. At least, certainly not intentionally. I’ve actually been working rather hard to stop him when he starts crying." Edgar defended, placing a hand on his chest, his blue eyes wide and pleading. Lord Ridgewood, like his name could imply, was rigid in his seat.
"I have not attempted to make Cass cry." He said firmly and Lucian? He just shook his head and shrugged.
"I have no defense. I tend to make him cry in several ways." He wasn’t even intending to be cocky, he was just talking. Cass felt himself frown deeply at the casual way that Lucian said that. Edgar reached out and smacked Lucian’s shoulder, but the other man looked unapologetic. "What? Am I supposed to lie? You were there to witness it, Eddie." Lucian said and Cass watched as Edgar blushed. He looked embarrassed that it was being brought up in front of others.
"Lucy! That’s not the point! You are not supposed to embarrass Cass like that in front of others! They do not need to know that, and they are asking about the current moment!" Edgar hissed. Ser Hune tossed her head back and laughed.
"Mm, normally I would be Lord Vespertine, but Lucian and I have a slightly abnormal relationship. He saved my life in the forest outside of the dungeon that you went into, and he has a unique relationship with Byron." Ser Hune said, revealing to the others that she herself had a unique relationship with Byron. Edgar and Lord Ridgewood, who hadn’t known, looked a little surprised as Ser Hune reached out and motioned for Byron to come closer.
Byron did so without much hesitation, maybe a little embarrassment as Ser Hune reached out and pulled him close. Since Sir Sanders didn’t react poorly, that made Edgar and Lord Ridgewood pay even more attention.
"Byron and I are from the same area in the fairy’s homeland. Byron, however, is the son of someone important to Lucian. I think of this little fledgling as a younger brother, even if he’s a few years older than me. He’s not more mature than me." Ser Hune said with a grin, squeezing the embarrassed Byron’s shoulders.
Edgar glanced between Cass, Lucian, and then the other couple. He and Lord Ridgewood connected the dots rather quickly.
"Byron is also a dragon?" Edgar asked, sounding quite surprised. Cass nodded.
"Yeah. Sent by the fairies to spy on me." Cass told them and Edgar winced hearing those words.
"Why would the fairies want to spy on you?" Lord Ridgewood asked the question before Edgar could. Cass turned to look at him, giving him a pained smile.
"Why wouldn’t they? My Mother left the fairies and married a human. In their culture, that’s like sleeping with the enemy." Cass told him and Ser Hune huffed. She was shaking her head as Cass turned back to look at her.
She released Byron, gently pushing him away as she took her husband’s hand and moved towards the couches. She sat down, pulling Sir Sanders down with her as she sat across from Lord Ridgewood, forcing Edgar to sit down beside him again while Cass, Byron and Lucian remained standing.
"Cass, I didn’t tell you more about our past so you could hurt others. Granted, I am not all that fond of anyone who works for this temple, I didn’t tell you that to disparage your Mother’s name." Ser Hune said. Cass winced and Lord Ridgewood stiffened. Lucian let out a loud huff, not hiding his distaste in the slightest.
Ser Hune was not an idiot. She could feel the tension in the room and her gaze sharpened, any hint of a smile leaving her face.
"What is that reaction for? What happened while I’ve been ill?" She asked and Cass looked uncomfortable. "Have I been neglecting my duties too much? Are you alright, Cass?" She asked, worry lacing her town and even Sir Sanders straightened up slightly. They were busy trying to for a family, but they were knights first.
Cass made his way over to the solo seat, leaving the two dragons standing while he shakily sat down. He glanced at Edgar and Lord Ridgewood, both men staring at him intently, before Cass turned his gaze towards Ser Hune.
This felt like it was going to tear her in two.
Cass felt emotional. His eyes watered and he ducked his head, trying to fight the urge. A hand from his right landed on his knee and he knew it was Edgar from the grip alone.
"Do you want me to say it?" He asked softly and Cass shook his head. He let out a shaky breath.
"No, but thank you for offering." Cass told him. Edgar squeezed his knee and didn’t move his hand. His offer of support, silent and otherwise, helped.
Cass raised his eyes and met Ser Hune’s gaze. She was watching the interaction between Cass and Edgar with a rather serious gaze, before she met Cass’ head on. She was braced for whatever he was going to say, and he just hoped she didn’t react negatively.
"Don’t worry." She said softly before Cass spoke. "Our friend below is looking out for everyone involved. Me, you, and the little one growing inside of me. You won’t harm us." She told him softly. That was actually a great relief to hear. Cass nodded, taking a calming breath, before he spoke.
"I went to speak to a demon at a demon shrine. Mostly to find out more information about something...personal. I wasn’t exactly sure if I was going to speak to anyone, but it was...so much worse than I anticipated." Cass started. "I spoke to the demon king." He told her. Ser Hune didn’t seem surprised in the slightest.
"Of course you did. He would be interested in you. From a normal standpoint, having someone from the hero party coming to speak to the demons? That’s interesting all on its own." She said and Cass winced. She was right. Under normal circumstances, that would be interesting.
"Ailia," Cass began, "I have demon blood." Cass watched as her whole body stiffened at the reveal. Cass watched as the cogs turned in her mind, caught, restarted, and caught again.
"What? H-How? That’s impossible." She said. Cass felt the room tense as she denied it. She wasn’t being cruel like some of the others would have been prior to this. Cass felt a bitter smile cross his lips.
"That was part of what I wanted to know. How would it be possible? It was confirmed by Lady Ava, so it’s true." Cass told her and watched as such a depth of despair crossed her face. She didn’t hesitate. She moved, getting to her feet and turning to Cass. Cass could feel how everyone else was tensing, but he didn’t. Ser Hune came to Cass and gently wrapped her arms around him.
"Oh my dear fairy. It’s okay." She whispered, pulling him in. "That does not make you less than. Who did this to you?" The fact that she didn’t even for a second think that Cass, Cassian, he himself, would do this?
That trust broke something in him.
Cass reached out, breathing heavily as he held onto the woman holding him. She stroked his hair, humming a soft tune as Cass felt his eyes pour over and soak into her shirt. She didn’t say a damn word, just held him with strong arms, her hands rough as she comforted him.
Eventually, Cass was able to get the words out. He knew she wouldn’t react well, who the hell would?
"It was my Mother." Cass whispered. "She made a deal with the demon king. She sold my human side to him while she was pregnant with me. I have two dads." Cass told her, breathless with the weight of the words. He felt her tense, her hands pause, before she pulled him even closer against her, nearly smothering him with her chest.
"That fucking cunt." She growled. Cass was not expecting that level of anger from her, but he would admit that it was refreshing. "I can’t believe she would do that to her own child." She hissed. Cass realised that this information would probably affect her differently than the others at that moment.
She was pregnant. Recently too. Not only that, from how she had told him the news, they had wanted a child for a while but were unable to have one. To hear that another woman, another fairy had gotten pregnant and then gotten them involved with demons? That probably had a greater impact on her.
Cass shivered, holding her, giving her a squeeze. That was when Ser Hune realised he probably needed to breathe and pulled back slightly. When Cass met her gaze, her silvery eyes were overflowing with angry, upset tears.
"If she was still alive, I’d ring her neck." She promised and Cass sniffed.
"She’s a demon now. I spoke to her." Cass admitted and watched as Ser Hune’s jaw dropped, before she slammed her mouth shut with anger.
"That bitch. I’m calling the council right fucking now. Not on my fucking watch is something who sold her fucking child to gain her own wealth remaining in our fucking registers." Ser Hune growled.
Cass had no idea what that meant, but he had a feeling it was a big fucking deal.
"You don’t need to do that." Cass told her but Ser Hune would not be talked down. She turned to look at Byron.
"Do you still have the ability to contact them?" She asked and Byron shook his head.
"No. I gave that up when I truly started working for my Lord." Byron said smoothly. Cass was a little surprised to hear that. In a good way, of course. Ser Hune growled.
"I don’t want to leave your side right now. Dustin?" Ser Hune asked and her husband let out a low growl.
"I will do it, but no one better touch a hair on your head." He reminded the room. Ser Hune let out a laugh.
"If anything, sweetheart, I’ll kill them first if they hurt me or Cass." She told her husband. Cass was...Cass was glad to be included in her maternal instincts. He had...he could admit that he had appreciated how the others had cared for him prior to this, but Ser Hune got the betrayal on a different level.
She could feel the true depth of this in a way that the others couldn’t. Cass needed that support right now.
He sighed and held her tighter and Ser Hune asked no questions, just tucked him against her chest more. Like a protective older sister.