Luz Story: 100 Baby Challenge

Lianna's Backstory: Part Twelve

Dante returned home, equal parts excited and stressed – he just wanted to find a way to stay there forever, or for them to move away together. But he knew it had to be done a certain way; he couldn’t risk the wrath of his family or the other spellcasters in their circle – the Luz’s only had one child, and he unfortunately bore the weight of their desires for their lineage.

The Luz’s were being especially nice to their son, and he really didn’t know why. Camilla was actually cheery, an emotion Dante wasn’t sure he’d ever seen her exhibit. When he showed them the new specimen he’d collected, both she and Tobias seemed overly excited.

https://i.imgur.com/LjitKYE.png

https://i.imgur.com/jxnuaTe.png

His mother was also making strange comments; after mentioning that they’ve been spending some time with the Youngbloods, she coyly stated “and I know Kyera has really missed you while you were gone, Dante.” Dante was taken aback by the comment, questioning why she would feel that way. “I barely know her, why would she miss me?” he asked with genuine confusion in his voice. His mother’s voice grew tenser, thinly veiled by her attempt to be casual and cheery, “I think she took quite a liking to you when you last met, Dante. At least, that’s what her parents have told us.” Camilla looked at Tobias, who was in the living room as well, paying hardly any attention to the conversation as he skimmed the newspaper. Camilla cleared her throat loudly, clearly signaling her husband to add to her thoughts. “What was that?” Tobias asked, admitting his lack of attention. Camilla’s pretend cheeriness now fell, and she was clearly annoyed when she snapped, “What the Youngbloods were saying about their daughter, dear. How she liked Dante a lot…” Tobias finally caught on, quickly adding, “Oh yes, they couldn’t stop talking about how highly Kyera thinks of you! Maybe the two of you should spend some time together, son.”

https://i.imgur.com/XmhxzLf.png

Camilla’s face reflected the triumph she believed she had earned, making her son more aware of the young spellcaster’s affection toward him. Dante didn’t really know how to respond…he had not thought of this girl once since they first met, and had absolutely no interest in spending a moment of his time with her. However, he did not want to rock the boat with his family, especially after learning that he was going to be a father with another woman. “Oh, yeah, she was…um…really nice, when we met. Maybe we can go out together soon,” he tried to feign interest. This seemed to satisfy his parents, as they nodded in approval and went about their business.

After the strange encounter with his family, Dante headed to Caster’s Alley in the magic realm to search the shops for a special gift for Kalani. He wanted to bring her something magical that represented this part of his life that she didn’t really know. Dante hated that she couldn’t join in on this part of his life; he just wanted to be with her every day and everywhere.

While browsing through a selection of gemstones, wands and other magical trinkets, Dante’s phone started vibrating repeatedly. He really did not have any close friends, just other spellcasters who he used to hang out and party with, and his parents did not text. Yet a handful of texts started coming through from an unknown number, reading:

Hey handsome! Are you back in town?
I’ve been missing you a lot.
Are you going to come see me soon?
Thinking someone might have texted the wrong number, he simply replied, Uh, who is this?
Oh it’s Kyera!

Dante was piecing the puzzle together now – his parents had clearly given her his number, and she apparently was pretty interested in him. Rather than being flattered, though, Dante was annoyed to receive the messages. He just wanted to focus on doing his research here until an appropriate amount of time passed that he could return to Sulani; he had no interest in making friends here, or doing anything else that might tie him to Forgotten Hollow. He thought about ignoring the texts, but realized that would likely only cause him problems. He responded:
Oh, sorry, I’m busy today.

He continued his browsing, examining each item closely to determine if it was special enough to bring back for Kalani. Lost in thought, Dante was startled by a tap on the shoulder. He turns around to find Kyera standing behind him, smiling ear to ear. “Oh…hey…”he said, clearly confused. “Hey stranger!” she responded cheerily. “It’s been awhile since we’ve seen each other!” “Yeah…”Dante replied, not sure how to feel about the fact that she found him here. Had she been looking for him after he told her he was busy, or was this just a weird coincidence? Kyera was very chatty, making small talk about every topic under the sun, laughing at every other thing Dante said. He was trying to be polite and not offend the girl, but he was also wracking his brain for any excuse to escape this awkward encounter. “Well, I better get going…have a lot of research work to do…”he clumsily excused himself.

https://i.imgur.com/4uY1XNk.png

Still trying to piece together whatever was happening with Kyera, between his parents talking about her nonstop and her texting and bumping into him, Dante headed to the Magic Headquarters to read a few tomes about exotic plants. As he entered the huge building, his magic mentor Silversweater called out to him. “Dante! I haven’t seen you in weeks. Have you been keeping up with your training?” he asked, and Dante sighed as he realized he’d gotten himself into another annoying situation that he didn’t want to deal with. “I mean, I’ve been really busy lately,” he tried to excuse his lack of spell-casting practice, but Silversweater didn’t want to hear it. He shook his head, scolding Dante, “You know how your parents feel about your magic! You need to be keeping up with your practice, Dante. You have the gift of a strong bloodline, don’t waste it by letting your abilities fade away.”

Silversweater challenged him to a duel to prove his point about Dante’s need to practice. Not one to back down from a challenge, Dante reluctantly agreed. The duel did not last long, and Dante ended up face-down on the cobblestone. Silversweater scolded him once again, and set up a training schedule that Dante would need to follow.

Rather than flying home, Dante walked the long way back to his house. He ruminated on how much he disliked this place – the focus on magic and training, on snobby societal rules, on family legacies and keeping the family image up. When he was in Sulani, with Kalani, he felt free, happy, alive…all he wanted was to fly right back, but he knew he couldn’t. Not yet.

https://i.imgur.com/fWZwPQr.png