Meryn stuck the card in her pocket. "I guess it's time for presents. Nigel and Neil, if you would please?"
The twins raced off to one side and came back, dragging Warrick and a carrying wrapped box. They pushed the enormous warrior over to stand next to his new mate.
Nigel handed the box to Avery then stepped back with Neil and Pip to stand beside Meryn.
Avery stared down at the box.
"Well, don't just look at it, open it!" Meryn prompted.
Avery looked up at Warrick then tore into the box. When the lid opened and he moved aside the tissue paper his breath caught. Tears began to stream down his cheeks. Oron thought Avery was being emotional until he saw that Warrick wore a matching expression, his tears running unabashedly down his face. With trembling hands, Avery lifted a statue that seemed to glow from within.
"Oh my," Beth gasped.
Oron leaned in and was shocked at the detail captured in the delicate figurine. It looked like it was about to come to life at any moment.
"It was kinda my idea. I found that footage from when Warrick's douche cousin tried to attack you," Meryn explained.
"I found the stone; I knew it would be perfect for what we wanted to do. It is from Level Five too, so it seems fitting," Pip said, pointing to the brilliant colors of the opal-like stone.
"Nigel and I shaped it using our earth magic. If either you or Warrick touches the inscription it moves," Neil said, pointing to the small lettering at the base.
"And Felix helped us polish it, being so small, he was able to get into the delicate bits," Nigel added.
Avery gently touched the base, and the sculpture began to move. The figurine of Warrick dropped to his knees and took the likeness of Avery's hands in his own before kissing them. In response, Avery's figure brought their joined hands up before rubbing his cheek along Warrick's knuckles. After that, the figurine resumed its original position.
Warrick turned his head to one side and rested his cheek on top of Avery's blond curls, the giant unit warrior was absolutely undone. Around them, many of the men also looked moved to tears as the women wept openly.
Avery turned in Warrick's embrace. He very carefully passed the priceless sculpture to his mate before he turned and simply launched himself at his friends. He was sobbing and trying to thank them but was barely making any sense.
Meryn kept awkwardly patting him on the head while Nigel and Neil rubbed his back. Pip just wrapped his arms around all four of them and squeezed tight.
Oron stared, he had never seen such close bonds amongst different paranormals before, outside of his unit brothers.
"Do you doubt my earlier praise now?" Prince Magnus asked softly.
He shook his head. "I will never doubt Meryn again," he vowed quietly. Because as Warrick shared the marvel that was their gift with his fellow unit warriors, a human, a shifter, a sprite, two witches and a vampire gripped each other tightly as family.
CHAPTER TWO
Oron's heart broke as he took in the scene before him. After last night's display he knew exactly how hard this would be on both the menace and the adorable vampire.
He and those leaving for Éire Danu had made it as far as the Ledge before the small vampire began to have an epic meltdown. They quickly returned to the Grand Hall.
"I want to go!" Pip wailed, clinging to Meryn desperately.
Meryn kept swallowing hard as she tried to blink back tears. "Maybe we can open a portal right to the city?" She looked over to his brother hopefully.
Darian shook his head. "I could absolutely take Pip directly from the antechamber to Éire Danu, the only reason we were going via the Ledge was to show him the desert but..." he trailed off before turning to him.
Oron walked over and ruffled Pip's hair. "The fae city is all open-air kiddo."
Pip looked up at him with tear-streaked cheeks. "Why is it so open? What keeps the sky from falling down?" he asked pitifully, hiccuping between words.
Oron smiled down at him. "I'm afraid those questions are above my pay grade, but I can assure you, that in my thousands of years of living, I have never had the sky fall on me, not once."
Meryn nodded. "Me either, Pip."
Pip looked up at Meryn. "I cannot go, can I?"