Hello! How are you doing? May I ask a reader who is Lilia's wife (and consequently the boys' mother), she has been missing for years, but here suddenly they see her alive and well. Lots of tears of joy, figuring out what happened and at the end she says something like, "well, let me make your favorite food for dinner, shall we?" Boys: *rejoicing that their stomachs will be okay from now on* Lilia: happy, trying to hold back tears. I also want to say that you write so "deliciously" about Diasomnia! Especially about Sebek, I saw that another anon asked something about him and I'm sure it will be interesting and fun to read too!
DIASOMNIA AND READER
Where you are Lilia's wife, missing for years, and you return home.
It began on an otherwise ordinary afternoon in Briar Valley.
Silver had just returned from a training session, his hair still damp from the light rain outside.
Sebek followed at his heel like always, lecturing him about staying alert despite the weather.
Malleus stood near the great hearth of the main hall, idly watching the flames dance.
And Lilia?
Lilia was cooking.
Unfortunately.
The boys had long resigned themselves to his “creations,” though they shared one common silent prayer whenever he stepped into the kitchen: please, Great Seven, don’t let this one kill us.
“I believe I nearly unlocked the secret to curry-flavored cheesecake this time!” Lilia announced emerging from the kitchen with a bioluminescent dish.
Silver’s soul left his body for a moment. “F-father, maybe we could try—”
He was interrupted by a knock at the gate.
Not the main entrance. No, this was the old garden gate—rusted from disuse, half swallowed by ivy.
The room grew still.
“…That gate hasn’t opened in years,” Malleus murmured.
“I didn’t sense anyone approach,” Lilia said, suddenly more serious.
He handed the cheesecake off to Sebek (who immediately looked like he was holding a bomb) and moved toward the hallway.
The knock came again.
Once.
Twice.
Slow. Almost hesitant.
Lilia opened the gate.
And time stopped.
There, standing in the haze of the twilight garden, was someone who had been gone from their lives so long that seeing her again didn’t seem possible.
“Lilia?” your voice was softer now, worn by time. A little hoarse. A little tired. But undeniably you.
His eyes widened.
“…Dear?”
You looked up at him. A little older. But still smiling.
The smile he used to dream about and wake up heartbroken to realize was gone.
“I’m home,” you whispered. “I’m sorry I—”
You didn’t get to finish.
Lilia pulled you into his arms so tightly you could feel the shudder in his shoulders. The way his fingers clutched the back of your coat.
You felt his breath hitch against your neck.
“You idiot,” he breathed. “You’re alive. You’re alive.”
The next moment, heavy footsteps echoed down the hall.
“MASTER LILIA, WHO WAS AT THE—” Sebek’s voice rang out before he skidded to a stop, Silver nearly bumping into him from behind.
And then, silence.
Silver dropped his sword.
Sebek’s mouth opened and closed several times, but no sound came out.
You looked at them with a trembling smile.
“My boys… You’ve grown so much.”
Silver’s eyes filled with tears . “M-mother…?”
The moment he said it, the dam broke.
He ran to you like a child again, throwing his arms around you and clinging tightly, nearly knocking you off balance.
You laughed, hugging him back, kissing the top of his head like you used to when he had nightmares.
Sebek, meanwhile, dropped to his knees.
“You… You were presumed… H-how can…?”
You knelt down to him and brushed his hair back, just like you had all those years ago when he scraped his knee climbing a tree. “I’m here now. I promise.”
He lunged forward and hugged you, sobbing uncontrollably.
And then Malleus.
Quiet Malleus.
“I had long accepted your loss. But even now… my heart dares not believe this miracle is real.”
You reached for his hand and placed it over your heart.
“It’s me, Malleus. It's me.”
A small laugh broke from him.
He drew you into a gentle embrace, forehead resting against the top of your head.
“Welcome home.”
For several minutes, you stayed like that. Surrounded by them.
The explanations came later, once everyone had calmed enough to speak without sobbing.
A magical accident—your disappearance had been the result of a sealed portal misfiring during a research expedition.
You were stranded in a temporal bubble, barely able to age, watching the years pass. It wasn’t until the rift finally weakened that you’d escaped, fighting your way home.
“I could hear your voices sometimes,” you admitted, sitting on the hearth now, a blanket wrapped around your shoulders. “In my dreams. I held onto them to stay sane.”
“And I stopped singing at night,” Lilia murmured, his voice breaking. “Because it hurt too much.”
You touched his cheek .
“Sing again. I’m home now.”
You stood up and stretched.
“Well…” you smiled at the boys, wiping your eyes with your sleeve, “how about I make your favorite dinner tonight?”
Sebek actually yelped in joy.
“Master Lilia's wife cooking has returned. Salvation is upon us.”
Silver burst out laughing. “Father, please let her into the kitchen before you finish your cheesecake.”
“I will gladly yield the ladle- My culinary reign ends tonight.”
Malleus chuckled, a rare sound of true joy. “Then I shall summon the stars themselves to light your table.”
You cooked.
Lilia watched you with a soft smile, brushing away a tear every now and then when he thought you weren’t looking.
The boys sat at the table, basking in the comfort of a meal that tasted of home.
