Dylan just walked past the guest room Nolan's been using since my cabin was built. I can feel him carrying his sleepy son in his arms, and I know Nolan's got a hopeful/desiring emotion mix going on, but that doesn't tell me anything else. This is the first time Dylan's skipped past the bedroom when putting his son to bed.

  A few moments later, they reach the door to my study and Dylan knocks on it.

  "Enter," I stop writing in my journal and lay my pen down beside it.

  Dylan opens up the door and Nolan's gaze fixes on me. The nature spirits which always accompany them are manifested, something that's becoming more normal lately. I think the same will be true for Cedric in no time.

  The kid's first lesson with an ocarina was yesterday and while he needs plenty of practice, the spirits seemed to like it. His own companion spirit even remained manifested for longer than the others which showed up for his playing.

  Some of the cloth his mother spun for me was already used to make clothes as well. It was dropped off yesterday, nearly two weeks after I asked her to make it. The length of time it took didn't surprise me considering the sheer volume of it and how much work their family already has on their own.

  When trying to figure out how to spend my Friday, I decided to make stuff out of the wool today. Yesterday ended up not having that happen as we focused on the farms for the afternoon after Cedric's ocarina lesson.

  Dylan and Nolan are both wearing their new day pants right now. They're grey, made from the wool of a cloud sheep. Samantha wove a couple of different patterns, including making it so that the natural variation of grey showed for some and blended them together so that the other was a more uniform color.

  I made their pants from the latter type as that's better for just normal pants. Dylan told me earlier that he feels weird wearing them because he knows they're expensive. Wool from magic sheep that are difficult to find and require orichalcum tools to cut is never cheap. There's little chance he would ever be able to pay for even his son's pair, and I made each of them four pairs of pants. Two for days and two for nights.

  Why I chose to use the more expensive wool instead of something he can actually afford… I'm not sure. It's just what I decided to do this morning when I was trying to figure out what to do with my Friday.

  Not that I regret doing that even if it's odd for me. He might never be able to pay me back, but he looks good in pants made from cloud sheep wool pants. Especially with the muscle definition he's developed. Nolan looks pretty healthy now as well, his body lean but not skinny, his hair a little fuller, and his eyes a little brighter.

  Even if sleepy. The kid's so tired he might fall asleep during his evening bath, if his father gives him one tonight. He probably won't, since there was a light rain all day and Nolan played in it and the rain for most of it. A bath was mandatory once he came inside, even with the mud being washed off with some water magic before then.

  "Yes?" I ask after a few moments.

  "I'm not entirely sure," Dylan says. "But I think Nolan wanted to say goodnight to you? He was staring at the door to here pretty hard when we entered the hall."

  Nolan looks at me, then snuggles his head against his father's chest.

  "Come here," I say, and Dylan walks over. "Around the desk."

  Once Dylan's beside me, I reach up and ruffle the kid's hair. Before I can wish him happy dreams, he turns a little and reaches towards me, arms spread out. Dylan inhales sharply in surprise before realizing what his son is doing. He leans in so that Nolan can give me a hug, and I pat the kid on the back before ruffling his hair.

  "Dream well tonight, Nolan," I say, and he gives me a little bump with his head before snuggling back against his father's chest.

  The bump was definitely deliberate, so I think it might have been his attempt at saying something.

  Dylan leaves with Nolan and based on where he goes, he just puts his on in the kid's bed. It's new as well, another thing I made today. All three of us now have beds with their mattresses made from some of my new materials.

  Earth sheep wool can be stiff enough to form the rectangular shell for a mattress so I stitched some up with that. Cloudgoose down stuffing ensured they'll remain fluffy and comfortable for years, never compressing no matter how much weight is put on them. Up to a degree. To finish it off, sheets made of cloud sheep wool were prepared and used to cover the mattresses, for a softer and more comfortable sleeping surface. The blankets and pillows were made from cloud sheep wool and stuffed with cloudgoose down.

  This will be Nolan's first time sleeping with that as I made them after his nap and I'm sure he'll sleep well.

  I finish writing in my journal by the time Dylan finishes up putting his son to bed, then he returns to my office.

  Which is unusual. The reason for it is guessable, though.

  He normally goes to the living room to wait until I'm done regardless of how horny he is. More than that, those feelings are actually not as strong at the moment as they normally are. His mind is more dominated with anxiety, hesitation, and attraction. That last one has been a little bit stronger today, especially when he looks at me. There's also indecision mixed in with that and has been all day.

  So the reason he came to me now rather than waiting for me to finish is because he wants to talk about something a little serious. Dylan sits on one of the chairs on the other side of my desk; there are two wooden ones I made and placed there in case I have a meeting with someone for some reason.

  Now that I have the wool woven into bolts of cloth, I'll make new chairs with cushions at some point. That will give a more comfortable time when sitting, especially for longer periods of time.

  "Alright," I set my pen down and close my book when I finish today's entry. "I'm assuming you wanted to talk about something?"

  "Yeah," Dylan shifts. "Sorry for doing it now, but-"

  "It's fine," I tell him. "If you waited until after, I'd just be wanting to fall asleep and you'd be wanting to head back to your room."

  "I mean this late."

  "Ah."

  Dylan rubs the back of his head with a hand for a moment, then drops his hand back to his lap and sighs.

  "When we first started having sex," he tells me. "You were pretty clear that you ain't attracted to me. And I can tell you're a bit attracted to Thomas. Thing is, my feelings for you ain't gone. And lately… they've just been gettin' stronger, Rowan. 'Specially with the way you act."

  "The way I act?" I frown a little. "What do you mean?"

  "Well," he says. "You're a bit stiff and come off as not having emotions quite often-"

  "Thank my life until I came out here," I tell him. "I have… a lot of trauma. And over the seven years I was traveling, well, I just became a lot calmer of a person. And less expressive."

  It's something Jasper mentioned a few times, that it could sometimes be difficult to get a read on me due to my lack of expressions. I do try to work on that a little but it feels strange to force it rather than let them come when they come.

  "I ain't saying it's bad," he says. "But it's hard to get a read on you sometimes. But then you do things like play with Nolan, or make toys for him-"

  This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

  "Those are educational tools that anyone can use," I tell him. "And I like watching him goof around. Still haven't figured out what's up with the rolling, but it's kind of fun to watch him do that."

  It's a little bit goofy.

  "Uh-huh," he snorts. "They're just educational tools. And… yeah, I ain't sure what's up with the rolling. Nolan's a lot different than he was a few months ago, before he started gaining strength."

  Dylan shakes his head.

  "Ain't gettin' off-topic," he says. "It's little things like that. And how you don't mind cooking for us. And you make sure Nolan is entertained before I wake up, make sure he's fed, makes sure there's food for me if you eat before I wake.

  "And that's why I brought up that it's hard to read you," he says. "I realized it this morning, after seein' you had breakfast ready for me and Nolan was already fed and entertained. The way you treat me's definitely beyond just as a friend or one with extra benefits. You act a lot more caring. I honestly keep forgettin' that we ain't together. And it's making some things difficult for me. 'Specially with Nolan, since he likes you a ton. And as I said, my feelings've only grown stronger. If we keep staying here, it'll only make things more confusing for us."

  As he says that, I come to a realization about myself. What was it Willow had said? As smart as I am, I can be dumb in some areas?

  Dylan's right. We've been living as if we're in a domestic relationship for some time now. I'm not entirely sure how long that's been going on for, either. This is definitely one of those things I'm dumb about.

  I've based my determination for whether or not I'm attracted to someone for more than sex on my first and only relationship and how that went. That relationship was one both of us knew wouldn't be sustainable in the long-term.

  With Dylan and Nolan… I know I'll miss them if they leave even with them planning on moving to the other side of the stream. The only reason they haven't moved yet is because I haven't built my golems to take care of the crops yet.

  But there's also been no real reason for me to not build the golems. I keep putting it off and never thought about why. Dylan bringing up how our relationship currently is makes it clear to me, though.

  The thought of him leaving actually bothers me. I want him to stay with me.

  His claims about us essentially living a domestic relationship isn't wrong, either. I do try to take care of them, and he tries to take care of me. The question I need to ask myself now is whether or not I want to be in a relationship with him.

  Yes. The answer is a definite yes. He's fairly attractive, he's nice, hard-working, is a loving and caring father, and an all-around good person. The sex is fantastic and he doesn't have an issue with my high stamina and drive. But more than that, I find myself wanting him around, to live with him and just be with him. I want something long-term with him. For him to keep living with me, to share my bed, and to raise a family with.

  On my first day here, I had a vision which involved two boys running out of a cabin and into the stream. They were a few years apart in age. While I don't know who one of those two boys in the vision was, one of them must have been Nolan. It was a vision of him and a friend of his playing.

  It's even something I'd already suspected. With how much I interact with Nolan and how much he loves playing with me, it makes sense he'd be over when he's older. I was thinking of it like an uncle relationship, not with me being a second father to him.

  But in the four months since the vision, I've essentially entered into a relationship with his father without realizing it. A relationship I want to keep and further. It's also possible that we give it a try, don't work out, and I just stay as an uncle-like figure to Nolan and end up with someone else. Nolan would likely still remain family anyway.

  To see if Dylan and I will work out in an actual relationship, there's a question which Dylan needs to answer. A question he can only answer if I give him some of the information I've been keeping secret from the villagers.

  "Do you remember my lesson on the difference between mages and Archmages?" I ask. "It was last week."

  "Yeah," Dylan answers. "A mage is anyone who can properly cast spells and uses them regularly. Their irises have turned fully green due to the influence of their mana and magic. An Archmage is an extremely powerful, extremely versatile mage. They're able to use more advanced magics, the ones in the nature, holy, or mind schools. Well, holy when it's not gifted to them by the gods."

  "Right," I say. "There's also no military obligation to them, just as with magi. Unlike magi, however, they might be asked for assistance in military affairs. Many of them make a living as an adventurer until they retire.

  "That's not all," I say. "They aren't just skilled enough with magic to use the advanced schools. Plenty of experienced regular mages can tap into them to some degree. What sets an Archmage apart is that they're capable of casting more complex spells within the schools they know. For example, the only mages who can cast [Meteor] are Archmages.

  "It doesn't just require an absurd amount of mana," I tell him. "And there are regular mages who have enough. [Meteor] is a complex spell requiring the ability to fuse two elements together in the correct way while manifesting them, creating a giant object, keeping it stable, doing it from a high distance, and more. It's considered an ultimate finishing spell, and I can count on the fingers of one hand the number of Archmages I know of who can cast it. And that's even with me traveling all across the continent. Thousands of miles of travel and meeting many different mages and Archmages."

  Dylan is quiet for a few moments as he thinks over that.

  "How much does it cost?"

  "A single [Meteor] costs 2,500 MP," I inform him. "So there are actually quite a few mages who have enough – but it would drain them of at least half or more of their mana. That leaves them vulnerable if something survives. And of course, it's not actually within their casting abilities. It would take them a long time to cast even if it were, which would also leave them exposed. An Archmage can cast it in just a few seconds while still casting other spells to defend against attacks."

  "Damn."

  "Yeah," I say.

  "But that doesn't do a whole lot of damage, does it?" He asks. "I've seen meteor impacts. It's a… what would you call it? A tactical strike?"

  The ones he's seen were probably smaller meteors. A few feet to a few yards in size at the most. The impacts for those would be destructive, but not useful as a finishing move against a large group of enemies. A small group, maybe, but not a large one.

  "Not with the [Meteor] spell," I smile. "It's a lot larger than what you're thinking of. The stronger the mage, the larger and more devastating they can make it."

  Dylan doesn't seem to know how to respond to that.

  "When I was fifteen years old, I took on a job to clear out some goblins. I was doing it by myself as that was the norm for me for a lot of things. It turned out that they had a whole village. Clearing one of those takes a lot of [Fireball]s, maybe some [Vortex]es."

  "And an Archmage showed up and took care of it before you?" He asks.

  "No," I answer. "I decided it'd be easier and simpler to just drop a [Meteor] on it so I did. Casualty rate: the entire goblin village, plus an extra two hundred feet of forest in all directions. I was a magus long before then, so stuff like that happened from time to time if I couldn't be bothered to do it properly."

  Dylan stares at me, eyes wide with the shock filling his mind.

  "I'm one of the kingdom's Archmages," I inform him. "Have been for quite awhile. Thomas probably figured it out after that lesson. I can cast things in the 'elite' schools of magic, which is even more complex than the advanced ones."

  "And I know you cast nature magics," he says. "I've seen you do it. You ain't exactly subtle with it when it's just us."

  Realization hits his mind just then and he feels a little nervous.

  "Can you also use mind or holy magic?" He asks. "Or just nature?"

  "I can use all schools of magic," I admit. "One of the few who can. It's even rarer for someone younger than a century… but I'm a bit of an exception to that, not the norm."

  His nervousness grows a little, and I'm sure I can guess at the origin. Most people start to wonder about it when they learn I'm a mind mage. Fear of the power we hold over the minds of others is common.

  And also the reason why I was hiding it from the villagers.

  "You know I've been hiding a lot about me and my past," I say. "And even that I may have lied about some stuff. One of those things is that I'm a natural empath. There's mind magics in my bloodline, and enough that I was born with the ability to feel the minds of others.

  "It's not something I can turn off," I continue explaining. "I'm always sensing the emotions of those around me. The distance is based on my Mind stat and [Mind Magic] Skill, so those increasing boosts its range. Even if I never cast a single mind spell, [Empathy] generates Skill Experience passively. It's how I can always tell when someone is approaching me – because I can feel their mind."

  "That's how you can tell when Nolan's awake or not, ain't it?"

  "Yeah," I admit. "It's not Aluci telling me, I can tell on my own. But people get the wrong idea when they hear 'mind magic'. They immediately assume the worst, that I use it to read people's minds, control them, influence them, whatever. Every action you've had is your own, I promise you this.

  "The only deliberate mind magic I've used on anyone in the area is the ability to read minds," I tell him. "I've never used any other mind magic on someone, other than the [Empathy] which I cannot control. The only person here I've ever used mind-reading on is Nolan. It's easier to understand a non-communicating toddler if you just check their mind. That's why I'm never right when he's trying to pick between a few options and I 'go with' one. It's because I peek into his mind to see what he actually wants, then pick the one he's most against. That prompts him to grab the card for the one he wants."

  Dylan is contemplative for a minute, his anxiety and nervousness fading somewhat. I think he's realizing that I'm not that type of person. There's still some anxiety and doubt, however. That's natural. He's wondering if his own feelings for me are from my influence and that's why he doesn't think I'm the type of person to use my magic that way. If I'm actually just able to make someone not think bad of me.

  "The question I have for you now," I say. "Is if you still want to further our relationship, even knowing that I'm a mind mage. If not, then we'll start building your house tomorrow."