Night had fallen on Freedom Town when Eric arrived. Another consequence of the merge was that a drive that had originally taken him only 20 minutes now took him nearly an hour. He parked the truck outside town and sat behind the wheel. Tears streaked down his face, and he wiped them away. Overlapping memories flashed in his mind as he approached the door.

Eric paused in the middle of the road.

The house was empty as he walked into the front door. The roses he held in his hand dropped to the floor, and he dropped to the floor. The couches were gone. He tried to stand, but couldn't. The weight of Iraq lingered over him as he felt like a demon was whispering into his ear. "She's gone, fool." Eric slammed his fist against the ground. "No!" He stood up, then noticed the smell. The house still smelled of her perfume. Unlike the roses that other women loved, Victoria loved violets. Tears began to fall freely as he walked further into the house. The floors were recently mopped. She always did like the lemon scent.

A car passing by brought him back to his senses.

He heard Liara laughing as he approached the door. Jessica was calling for Mia, but the singsong voice of his wife, whom he loved more than life itself, called back. "It's your turn, Jess. I did everything for two weeks. You and your oaf of a father will be taking that mantle now." Liara started wailing, and her words brought a smile to his face. "No wanna! No wanna!"

Tears ran freely down Eric's face now, and his chest tightened as he fought a sob.

Before he turned the front door knob, the picture of his old house flashed in front of him again.

He ran through the house, calling for her. "Victoria!" Maybe they had been robbed? Maybe she had gotten a new apartment? Maybe... Maybe... Maybe..." His thoughts raced as he walked into the office. A letter was on his desk. His desk and laptop had remained; they were the last things that he had bought as a single man. "No..." He muttered, clutching the letter as he collapsed against the desk. He hit his head, but the pain barely registered. Blood trickled down the back of his head, but he ignored it. He didn't want to open the letter. He couldn't.

Someone cleared their throat, bringing Eric back to the present again. He looked to his right.

Kamer was watching Eric from his front porch. For once, the older cat man observed Eric quietly. The two nodded to each other, and Eric sighed. "That isn't my life anymore." He mumbled as he walked through the front door and into the living room. Everyone in the house froze. Liara stopped struggling with Jessica, and Mia looked up from her book. His wife smiled at him and walked over. She threw her arms around him and hugged him as tightly as she could. "You're finally home." She whispered.

Eric hugged her back, kissing her head and then her neck. "Yes."

He couldn't say more. His words failed him as he wrapped his arms around Mia. The two seemed to shut the world out for a moment as they embraced, breathing in each other's scent. He smelled her perfume and closed his eyes. That rosy scent was the best smell in the world at that moment. "Yes. This is where I belong." He said as he kissed her head. Mia looked up, her tail flickering.

"What do you mean?"

Eric sighed. "I have been a soldier for so long, fighting someone somewhere, that it felt normal for me. When a conflict happened, I was sent there. But standing here in this house, hearing our daughter fight her sister and fight sleep reminds me that I am a husband before I am a warrior, and a father before I am a soldier."

Mia's eyes softened, and she reached up to cup his face. The two looked into each other's eyes before kissing again.

"Have you eaten yet?" Mia said after they exchanged a long kiss. She looked up at him, the soft light of warmth and her burning love so evident on her face that Eric had to refrain from wrapping his arms around her again. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

"No. I was waiting to come home so I could taste the best food in the world."

Mia rolled her eyes, but smiled all the same. She walked into the kitchen. "Go take a shower. You smell like you rolled around in the dirt for ten days."

Eric gasped. "How rude. I did in fact roll in the dirt for ten days."

"Jessica didn't smell nearly as bad."

Eric shut his mouth, and Jessica howled with laughter. "Oh, she really got you with that one, old man!"

Eric grumbled and began to take off his top, but Mia turned around as if she had eyes in the back of her head. "You better fucking not!" She growled. She had a spatula in her hand and waved it towards him. "Jessica and I just spent the last hour cleaning the floors. You better not dirty them."

Eric laughed and walked towards their bathroom. Along the way, he saw Lee standing on his hind legs. It was looking at Eric as if judging him, and Eric felt the urge to pet the cat. "You and I are still not on good terms, Lee," Eric grumbled.

The cat smirked.

"What the fuck! Mia! I swear, this cat is not normal!"

His wife ignored him, not even sparing him a glance back over her shoulder.

He undressed and threw the dirty uniform into the hamper. He stepped into the bathroom and took a look at himself in the mirror. Haggard eyes, a disheveled haircut, and a nasty scar on the top of his head stared back. He ran his hands along his chin, feeling the stubble. "Guess I need a haircut and I gotta shave before Monday." He muttered as he turned the water on.

"It's good to be back."