NEW GODS: The Awakening

Warmth And Cold

Leon rubbed his eyes. The blinding lights all around him made him see odd shapes at the corners of his sight. He tried to concetrate but his mind was churning from the onslaught of sensations.

Lanky arms were thrown around him and he stumbled back. Finally returning to reality, he realized it was his father hugging him and he went totally still.

Goro pulled back, his eyes reddened from crying, gigantic dark bags underneath them. His bottom lip was still trembling as he pulled Leon back in, this time craddling his head.

"Thank the Gods, you are well. Thank the Gods," he mumbled as he placed a kiss on the crown of Leon's head.

"Leon, how are you?" Cassandra prodded softly.

She was seated right in front of him, eyes wide and fearful. He tried to respond to her but only a cough left his mouth and he settled on nodding to her question. She clutched her hands together and dragged her chair closer.

The moment she did that, Goro grasped her hand and pulled her into the embrace as well. She gasped but steadily settled into the touch. Her chest was moving like she was fighting down sobs.

This was too much for Leon. The overwhelming closeness and warmth, the ever looming presence above his head. The cold... Gods, the searing cold. Even with a blanket on his lap, his entire body was quivering. He needed something warm.

He tapped his mother's shoulder to motion for her to put some more distance between them. She gulped hesitantly but when she drew back, she dragged Goro back as well.

"What happened?" Goro's voice was quivering as he licked his dry lips.

"He needs to rest," she whispered hoarsely at his father who hummed in response.

"Dragonborn..." Leon protested with the little force he mustered up "What happened with Dragonborn...?"

"We believe he has escaped. But we have placed patrols all around. The guards should be able to find him," she shook her head in disbelief "What were you thinking, Leon? If you had even the slightest suspicion of his presence, we should have been informed right then and there."

"I wanted to, but..."

Trust me, Damian had pleaded, eyes wide and brimming with tears. And of course, being himself, Leon relented to his every demand the moment Damian looked at him like that.

"...that does not matter," Leon cleared his throat "Is Damian well?"

"As well as one can be while in the-," Cassandra slammed a hand over Goro's mouth.

"You need to rest," she insisted and approached him again, leaning over to peck him on the forehead.

A needle prickling his skin and a sudden burst of anger at the realization that he was being drugged were the last things he felt.

Cassandra did not fail to notice how Goro was avoiding looking at her while they headed back to her office.

"I am saving him the pain," she answered the question he refused to voice.

"It will hurt anyway. The only difference now is that he will be mad at you specifically when the truth is revealed," Goro retorted.

"Let him fully recover before we tell him his best friend has betrayed him," she rolled her eyes.

"Cassie, do you think maybe we are rushing into conclusions? I mean, you know Damian and his family. Do they really strike you as the treacherous type?" he frowned.

"You have been away for too long, Goro. A lot has changed in your absence. Most of all, Damian has made it quite clear that he does not like the monastery for quite a while,"