Fledgling God: Book 4

Chapter 1, Mr. Tubbles

The first person I saw was Annabeth, and I felt something inside me relax and sing for joy. I was home!

Annabeth was my Little Miss Sunshine--the person who sat by my side most of the time while I recovered from my Waker Moment. She'd sat with me again after I was pummeled by Isobel, and we'd really become best friends when Sandy and John had played Sleeping Beauty and the Cave of Wonders. Her cheerful optimism was the foundation of our crew, and I was so glad to see her again.

I dropped my luggage and picked her up in a big hug. She laughed and gave me a classic Annabeth squeeze right back. I put her down and took a good look at her.

"Damn, gurl! You are packing some muscle," I told her playfully. And she really was, too. When I'd first seen her, she'd been a little round grandma. She was still little, but she wasn't so round anymore. All those hours of training at the beach were starting to show. Her hugs still had all their classic warmth, but now they had some real power, too.

John was next. This time, it was my turn to get swept up as he hoisted me into the air and gave me a proper mountain troll squeeze. I'm sure I looked like one of those hamsters when you hold them too hard and their eyes bug out.

"My brother from another mother!" he exclaimed, squeezing me again.

I felt my ribs creak. When he finally put me down, I was seeing stars. John was all man, and sometimes he forgot his own strength.

My magical sight had already spotted him behind John as soon as I stepped into the room, so once I got my breath back, I turned to Tyler.

My Tyler.

My boyfriend.

My heart was suddenly so full I thought it would explode.

My eyes drank in his smooth brown skin, his warm chocolate eyes, his wicked smile. It almost didn't seem real. This moment was finally here. He was real. I was real. And we were together again. It was only a week, but it felt like a lifetime since I'd last seen him.

I cried as I crossed the distance between us. I probably looked like someone in a rom-com movie, but I didn't care. I kissed him, and his lips were real. I wrapped myself around him, and his warmth was real. His muscles were somehow both hard and soft at the same time.

I tasted him. Ran my fingers through his hair. Felt his touch on my body.

Oh god! I was in heaven.

I didn't know how long it was, but I finally became aware there were other people in the room. It was long enough for Sandy to have put her luggage aside and made herself a cup of coffee.

"We'll pick this up later," Tyler whispered, and then we made some coffee for ourselves and joined the group.

For the next few hours, we just sat and told stories about the Gathering. So much had happened, and there was so much to tell. Sandy still didn't have her pantry stocked back to normal levels yet, so Annabeth made us all sandwiches. I loved mine, but it drove home the fact that we were back to normal living again. No longer would there be carts that just appeared loaded with all kinds of exotic foods.

The only thing of real excitement that had happened with the home crew was suddenly getting the Mark of the Deep Earth. That had been a shock. Other than that, life had been quiet. Nobody had attacked the House, and they hadn't found any rotten mages to take out. John was working on a new ring, and Annabeth had been training on the beach.

She was now a low student in punching, and her level was 27.8. I was completely shocked. I was level 10.3, and the last time we'd compared notes, she'd been 9.4. I hadn't tested my punching with Sparkles in a while, but still--she was doing awesome.