Chapter 1902 Three is a Crowd (Part 4)
"Why?" Solus asked in confusion. "Can't I cuddle you like Mom?"
"For the gods' sake, no! I mean, you'll understand when you grow up." Threin had to drop the argument since Menadion's glare was about to drill a hole in his head. "Fine, you can stay.
"But tomorrow you must be a good girl and stay in your room until sunrise. Promise?"
"Promise, daddy." Elphyn moved toward him but the now dressed Ripha dragged the child to her bosom, giving her husband the opportunity to wear something as well.
That night, Solus' memory of when she embraced her mother and Threin embraced them both, took place in a different time, place, and with different people. Just like in the past, she felt loved, protected, and safe.
And she wasn't the only one.
Kamila woke up often due to the unusual circumstances, noticing that Solus didn't struggle in her sleep and Lith didn't shapeshift. She understood how much they both had lost during their childhood and figured out another important missing piece in Lith's life.
***
"You know that I'm a married woman, don't you?" Kamila asked as Solus buried her face deep in the softness of Kamila's bosom to shield her eyes from sunlight.
The morning had come and Lith had opened the windows and pulled the curtains to get his wife back.
"Kami?" Only then did Solus realize that she wasn't pressing her face into a pillow and that her hands were actually grabbing a pair of buttocks.
She instantly woke up, looking around and discovering she had spent the night in a different room from the one she had fallen asleep into.
"Quick, hide in the bathroom! What would Lith say if he found us like this?" Kamila pointed at the door, her tone and expression matching the gravity of the situation.
Solus nodded and rushed into the other room, trying to understand what could have possibly happened while she was unconscious.
'By my Mom, what have I done? I've ruined Lith's honeymoon and maybe his marriage. How can I explain to him that I-' She was biting her nails in frustration when she heard a burst of laughter from the other room.
Two people were having the fun of their lives and didn't even bother to keep their voices down.
"Wait a minute! I don't know how I ended up here, but you were here all along." She pointed her finger at Lith who was laughing his ass off.
Tears streaked from his eyes as he clenched his belly, gasping for air.
"This is my bedroom and she is my wife." Lith replied amid laughs. "Where else would I be?"
Solus opened her mouth to reply but then she started worrying about what she might have done and looked down. She was still wearing her pajamas and so were Lith and Kamila.
"Now that you had a good laugh at my expense, do you mind telling me how I got here?" Solus sighed in relief.
"There's not much to tell." Kamila shrugged. "Last night, while Lith and I were having a moment, you sleepwalked in our room and then you forced your way between us. Luckily, our armor can get on and off with but a thought."
She lied through her teeth to make sure that Solus wouldn't be so willing to spend the night at the cottage again. Kamila's acting scared Lith and would have made Jirni proud. If he didn't know better, he would have believed her.
"I'm so sorry." Solus said, turning to a bright shade of purple. "I promise you that it won't happen again."
"It's fine, don't worry." Kamila said with a warm smile of satisfaction for the mission accomplished.
"By the way, you ignored me and went straight to Kami." Lith said. "Is it because you prefer a woman's chest or did you need the mommy treatment?"
"First, I don't think of Kami that way!" Solus replied in outrage.
'Maybe.' She actually thought, the softness of the buttocks still lingering on her hands.
"Second, I'm not a baby-" Her voice died as the word triggered the memory of her dream.
Solus could remember it down to the smallest detail, even things that as a child she had missed. She could now easily decipher the grown-ups' secret code and smiled sadly at her own naivety as a baby. Threin's words now made sense.
Her mind could see the times she had barged into her parents' room, finding them without clothes in spite of the coldest winter. Her childish questions always received the most implausible excuses, but she never actually listened as long as she got her spot in the bed.
"I'm a big baby." Solus sighed and sat on the bed.
Then, she told them about the dream and how safe it had made her feel.
"I thought that recovering my memories would have made me feel better, but learning of my father's death left a hole in my heart." Solus dangled her short legs in the air.
"Then, after Bytra told me what she had done to Mom, another hole opened. Since we almost lost Raaz, I'm always scared of losing my family again. Of remaining alone. I bet that I came here for Lith, but then I must have mistaken Kami for my mother.
"Gods, I'm such a useless adult. At my age, I still need to sleep with my parents."
"Stop beating yourself up, Solus." Kamila said, glad to have understood the root of her problem. "You went through a lot recently and you have lost a lot. There's nothing shameful in a moment of weakness."
"Did you at least sleep well?" Lith asked.
"Yes, very." Solus felt her body brimming with energy and her mind lighter than it had been in months. "Did I hurt you or throw a fit in my sleep?"
"No." Kamila replied. "You and Lith both slept like logs. He didn't shapeshift once nor did he kick the bed."
Salaark's cottage was made to withstand the passion of Guardians. A few hits from a Tiamat were nothing to its sturdy enchantments.
"Really?" They asked in unison.
"Really." Kamila nodded. "You missed your parents while Lith never knew that kind of affection. In the end, no harm no foul and you both had a serene night's rest."
Solus pondered her words, realizing how much Lith had lost as a child on Earth and Mogar as well. Then, an idea dawned in her mind.
"You know, I feel that between the months since my last breakthrough and the improved nourishment from Lith's violet core, the tower is close to finishing repairing another set of floors." Solus kept her tone as casual as possible.
"If I reach the blue core before we hunt down Meln, our chances of killing him will greatly increase."
"Sure." Lith shrugged. "If your mana core and the tower's power core recover, there's no telling how much our combined prowess will improve."
Kamila glared at him, having already understood where Solus' reasoning was going.
"We already passed the awkward moment. What if I also remain for the night when I come to visit? I mean, there's no harm in a sleepover, and Lith and I got great benefit from it." Solus asked.
"Over my dead body!" Kamila blurted out, quickly adjusting her tone after noticing Lith's and Solus' hurt expressions. "I mean, we'll talk about this another time. I'm starving and I need breakfast."