Page 91 of Mate Night Snack
"Then we'll work on anger management too," Emmett said with patience born of hard-won wisdom. "Control isn't about never feeling emotion. It's about choosing how to express it."
As the session wound down and the young shifters headed back toward town, Emmett felt the familiar satisfaction that came with useful work.Varric had approached him about joining the training program for newly manifested shifters, and it had turned out to be exactly what he'd needed without knowing it.
His past, instead of being a burden to hide, had become a tool for helping others. The mistakes he'd made, the consequences he'd faced, the long road back to redemption, all of it gave weight to his words when he counseled young shifters struggling with their dual nature.
"How'd they do today?" Varric asked, emerging from the forest path with his characteristic silent grace.
"Better. Marcus is starting to understand that his wolf isn't his enemy, and Elena made it through a full hour without a single involuntary shift." Emmett gathered the meditation cushions they'd been using. "They'll get there."
"And their instructor? How's he doing?"
Emmett paused, considering the question seriously. "Good. Really good. I never thought I'd say this, but I think I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be."
"The Council's lucky to have you back," Varric said. "Officially this time."
The words still carried weight, even months after the ceremony that had formally reinstated Emmett as a Council guard. Not just as Hollow Oak's muscle or a convenient pair of hands, but as a full member of the community's leadership, trusted with the town's most precious resource: its children.
"Speaking of being where you're supposed to be," Varric continued with the hint of a smile, "shouldn't you be getting home to your wife?"
"She's recording until five," Emmett replied, but he was already shouldering his pack. "But yeah, I should head back. We're having dinner on the porch tonight."
The walk home took him through the heart of Hollow Oak, past the Griddle & Grind where Twyla was closing up for the day, past the Silver Fang where Maeve was probably already polishing glasses for the evening crowd, past the Hearth & Hollow where Miriam would be starting dinner preparations for whoever showed up hungry at her door.
His town. His community. His family, in every way that mattered.
The cabin came into view through the trees, smoke rising from the chimney and warm light spilling from the windows. But it was the figure on the porch swing that made his heart lift with the kind of joy he'd never expected to feel on such a regular basis.
Katniss sat curled in one corner of the swing they'd built together, laptop balanced carefully on the small curve of her belly, late afternoon sunlight turning her dark curls to bronze. She was well over eight months along now, and the pregnancy suited her in ways that made him feel reverent every time he looked at her.
"How were the young wolves today?" she asked as he climbed the porch steps, not looking up from her screen but smiling in the way that meant she was genuinely interested in his answer.
"Improving. Marcus is finally starting to trust his instincts instead of fighting them, and Elena's gaining better control." He settled beside her on the swing, automatically pulling her close so she could lean against his shoulder. "How was the show?"
"Amazing. I talked to this woman in Vermont who's been helping lost hikers for twenty years using some kind of forest magic she can't quite explain. Turns out she's been unconsciously weaving protection spells into the trail markers."Katniss saved her work and closed the laptop, setting it aside so she could curl more fully against him. "I love my job."
"I love watching you do your job." He pressed a kiss to the top of her head, breathing in the scent of oranges and bergamot that had become as essential to him as air. "You're changing lives out there."
"We're changing lives. I couldn't do any of this without Hollow Oak as my foundation, without you keeping me grounded." Her hand found his, lacing their fingers together over the gentle swell where their child grew.
"I love the life we've built, the work we do, the family we're creating." She tilted her head, hazel eyes bright with contentment. "I love how far we've both come."
He could feel the truth of her words, the deep satisfaction that came from finding not just love but purpose, not just happiness but peace. And underneath it all, growing stronger every day, was the gentle presence of their child, already humming in harmony with the magic that flowed through Hollow Oak like a river of starlight.
"Can you feel her?" Katniss asked softly, following his thoughts through their connection.
"Her?"
"I don't know for sure, but... yes, I think it's a girl. And she's going to be powerful, Emmett. The Veil recognizes her already. Sometimes when I'm recording, I can feel her responding to the stories, like she's listening and learning."
He flattened his palm over her belly, marveling at the life growing beneath his touch. "She'll be perfect. Beautiful and brilliant and stubborn, just like her mother."
"And protective and honorable and gentle, just like her father."
As the sun lowered, painting the sky in shades of rose and gold, they swayed gently on the swing and watched the eveningmist begin to rise from the forest floor. The Veil shimmered at the edges of perception, approving and benevolent, wrapping their small family in its ancient blessing.
"Do you ever miss it?" Katniss asked. "Your old life, before all this?"
Emmett considered the question, thinking about the man he'd been when he first arrived in Hollow Oak. Broken, guilty, convinced he was beyond redemption. Living in the shadows of his mistakes, afraid to hope for anything better.
