Reflections; a KOTLC fanficion

Chapter 15

"Mom?" Bright lights flooded the cliff as she was pulled from the ground by someone.

The outline of her parents rushed up to her and embraced her in a hug. She had never felt more relief than she did now.

"Mom, Dad, I love you." There was nothing more meaningful she could say. She melted into their arms in the chill morning air.

"I'd thought we would never find you," her dad cried. "I'm glad we were so wrong."

This, she decided, was the best feeling in the entire world. They slowly got up and walked into the light of a leaping crystal—heading home.

The sight of her home had never filled her with more joy than it did now. Things appeared to her that she had never noticed before. The lake sparkled more, birds chirped happily, and the trees were greener than ever before. A small figure ran out of the log cabin-like house—curly red hair flying out behind her.

"Thor? Caroline? Your home!" Aden looked surprisingly happy. She embraced her siblings, making them fall back into their parents, creating a collision that landed them in the soft earth of the pine forest.

"Guys, guess what?" She asked as the group recovered from the fall.

"What?" Thor and Caroline said at once.

"I manifested as a shade!" She smiled happily. Right then, she reminded Caroline of Amelia. Then it occurred to her.

"Where is everyone else?" She asked her mom.

Mom smiled at her leading the group towards their large wooden doors. "They are all with their separate families. We thought that we all needed time to relax.

"But what about Amelia? The human girl?" Caroline asked.

"Thor made sure that she made it here safely," Mom said, gesturing to a tall girl standing in their lawn. Her short hair flew out behind her like a flag. Amelia's jaw was hanging wide open. Thor and Caroline slowly made their way over to her.

"Your house is bigger than the White House," she breathed.

Thor smiled down at her, "just wait until you taste your first slice of mallowmelt."

They pushed open the doors and ran into the kitchen where a spread of different sweets were laid out. Tani flew from somewhere on the ceiling, and Buttere bounded onto the island, ready to stuff her face with all the delicious offerings.

"We have an extra bedroom upstairs. It's not decorated or anything. We weren't expecting another girl but I hope you'll be able to feel at home until we find something more permanent," Mom told Amelia. But she was only half-listening, she was stuffing her face full of Indigoobers.

"Thank you so much!" she said between mouthfuls. Caroline couldn't blame her. She hadn't had Elvin food in so long. As tasty as milkshakes were, nothing beat a slice of mallowmelt.

In less than ten minutes, the food was completely gone, and everyone was feeling overly sleepy.

"I'm going to take a nap," Caroline managed. She slowly walked up the stairs, running her hand over the smooth wooden railings, taking in everything in the house that she didn't even know she'd missed. Her room had never been more comforting. The bed was the softest bed she'd ever felt—so much comfier than any of the human hotels. She felt herself drift into a deep sleep the moment she laid her head on the plush pillow.

Something broke. The crashing sound pulled her from her sleep. Caroline tossed off her heavy comforter and rushed downstairs to see what caused the commotion. All her friends, their parents, the council, and every other important person was standing in the room, taking part in a major shouting match.