Heading back out of the sub-basement, Etani glanced once more at the strange man. Then Daemon lifted her up, growling when Versalis moved to do it himself.
Reaching for Versalis over Daemon's shoulder, he squeezed her fingers before they headed back up to the sitting room, where everyone else was waiting.
Dirdos was the first to approach Etani, his crimson eyes locked on the stairway. There was no helping Etani's smile as he approached.
"You've missed three months with me," he growled.
Etani shook her head, used Daemon's chest to allow her to write 'they don't count when you're dead', and handed it to the dragon. He looked down at them, back up to her and, then down at them again before he scowled.
"Yes, they do," he said irritably, and his eyes narrowed when she shook her head. "You owe me."
Pursuing her lips, Etani considered him and took the parchment back.
'What do you want?'
He grinned and Daemon growled, jumping to the wrong conclusion.
"I will stay here, and we can discuss it when you are able," he said.
Etani decided it was best not to argue with him. Instead, she took his hand into hers and kissed his knuckles lightly, his eyes lowering in pleasure at her touch.
Etani didn't want to be in that room with all those signs of the redhead present, so she held out her arm in the sign of 'charge!'. Daemon set off towards the stairs out of the basement, coming to a stop as Anubis stepped in front of them.
He was an enormous man, even without the six-inch jackal ears atop his head. Etani didn't know if he was like Sobek and could remove the head, as he had never shown her, but she had also never had a lot of exposure to him.
Looking up at him, his black eyes were hard on her, and she got the distinct impression that he didn't like her all that much. But then she realised that he was a God of the dead and she refused to stay dead, so perhaps that was why.
"You and I need to have a talk as soon as you are able," his voice was a low growl that was very dog-like.
Etani nodded her acceptance, her attention moving from him to Aurora. The beautiful young woman looked exhausted and worn, but there was hope in her eyes as they met Etani's.
Looking between the two, she had to wonder at the connection between them but she couldn't outright ask them and so she looked up at Daemon.
"We will seek you out as soon as speech returns to her. Until then, you're welcome to stay here in the castle," Daemon said on her behalf, though Anubis was still glaring at her. He nodded once in agreement with Daemon's offer.
A soft sound had her looking around and Letari had followed along close at Daemon's back, a pale Kai close on her heels. They were like ducklings, and she smiled at them both, their eyes greedily taking her in. When no one else seemed to have an issue with their leaving, Daemon headed up the stairs two at a time and there was a scramble in the room to follow. Deciding she wanted to be outside, Etani used her finger to trace the first three letters of the word 'garden' onto his shoulder. Daemon nodded, changing direction and heading quickly for the front doors.
The air outside was wonderfully cool, and when she motioned for him to put her down, the grass was soft under her bare feet. Still holding onto Daemon, she looked down at the grass and wiggled her toes slowly, just to enjoy the feeling. Looking up at him, she smiled at the simple joy of being able to feel things again, and his breath seemed to stop.
"Sweet mother, you are so beautiful," he breathed. There was no stopping her blush, which only seemed to affect him more.
Taking his hand in hers, she started forward slowly with her eyes focused on the process of her feet, sliding them forward slowly rather than attempting to lift them off the ground. But she knew Daemon wasn't about to let her fall.
She could feel them watching her, unwilling to take their eyes off her for more than a few minutes at a time. Loki seemed to be the only one who wasn't shocked by her appearance, and she knew she was going to have to ask him why. She could only assume that he knew she wasn't fully dead.
Turning slowly, she went still as she saw them all simply standing there, watching her with various expressions of wonder, longing, and mistrust. She didn't blame them, but it was a little creepy to have them staring at her like that.
Daemon's eyes followed hers and he laughed gently, delighting in their wonder, but it was making her feel self-conscious.
Letari bounded forward and Etani reached for her, always surprised by the small, delicate size of that body. Letari's arms were thin but strong as she swayed, clinging to Etani's middle like a child, but Etani was glad for her sister being safe. She wanted to thank the demon, but when she tried to speak, no sound was produced. Instead, she squeezed Letari, her eyes lingering on Daemon.
His smile was wide, but he tilted his head in the direction of Jaia. Etani nodded, unable to look at the vampire whose wife had followed along with him, more curious than anything else.
Daemon's brows lifted at her refusal to look at the vampire and his eyes were knowing when he looked back at her. She immediately dropped her gaze to Letari, rather than seeing his hurt that she was upset about the marriage. She had no right to be upset about it, and she didn't want to hurt Daemon at all. Instead, she squeezed Letari until she squeaked and then grinned. Then she reached for an anxious-looking Kai. He nearly knocked her over at the force of his hug, and she drew him down to kiss his cheek.
"I missed you so much," he whispered as his forehead met hers, staring down into her eyes as though he has never seen anything before in his life.
She nodded, and with one arm tight around Letari, she curled her free arm tightly around his neck and clutched him to her. She didn't care that her eyes were wet, her cheek pressed to the side of his head. His pain was destroying her, but she couldn't fix the past. She could only make sure she never left him again. She kissed him hard on the side of his head and he shuddered against her, sucking in a breath.
She hated that he was in pain, but at least he was okay and that was a small miracle. But it did raise a curious question.
Drawing back from him just enough to touch the inside of her wrist with her finger. He grinned, and he shook his head. "That broke the moment you died," he explained.
She nodded slowly. It was a good thing that he was no longer addicted to her blood, but a part of her was sad for it. It had allowed her to feel precious to them.
Pulling him hard against her, Etani looked to Daemon and smiled sadly, her arms full of her loved ones. It felt good to just hold them again, to inhale the warm, spicy scent of the vampire and the light, fresh scent of Letari. She wished she could tell them how much it meant to her.