Chapter 34: A New Family Member

Neo woke up the next morning as the warm sunlight filtering through his curtains, the faint chill of winter still clinging to the air despite the warm blankets wrapped around him. He blinked slowly, stretching his arms above his head with a small yawn before rolling over and glancing toward the wrapped bundle resting beside his cushion.

’Still no movement. Guess you’re taking your sweet time in there, huh.’

He sat up, gave the egg a gentle pat through the cloth out of habit, then climbed out of bed and got ready for the day.

By the time he made his way downstairs, he found Nora already seated in the small breakfast nook near the garden window, sipping quietly from a cup of warm milk while Elara chatted animatedly beside her. The moment Nora spotted him, she set her cup down and simply patted the empty seat beside her without a word.

Neo took the hint and sat.

"Good morning," he said, grabbing a piece of toast from the tray in front of him.

Nora glanced at him.

"You slept for a long time. I woke up before the sun."

Neo raised an eyebrow, chewing his toast. then reached for the small notepad, scribbling something quickly before sliding it toward her.

[That’s because you’re weird and get up too early. Normal people sleep until the sun actually rises.]

Nora read his words, then simply shrugged, unbothered, before going back to her milk.

The two of them spent most of the morning together, wandering through the halls, feeding the fish in the frozen half of the pond that hadn’t iced over completely, and eventually ending up back in the garden, sitting on their usual bench despite the lingering cold. Nora didn’t seem to mind the chill much, though Neo made sure to remind her at least three times to keep her coat zipped properly.

By the time evening rolled around, the two families gathered for dinner in the main dining hall, the long table filled with warm food and even warmer conversation. Cassian and Liam swapped old stories from their younger days, much to Sylvia and Elara’s amusement, while Neo and Nora sat quietly beside each other, exchanging notes under the table whenever they got bored of the adult conversation.

It was near the end of the meal, just as dessert was being served, that Sylvia cleared her throat softly and glanced toward Cassian.

"Neo, after dinner, your father and I would like to speak with you for a moment. Just the three of us." she said, her tone gentle but oddly careful.

Neo paused mid-bite, glancing between his parents’ faces, trying to read whatever expression they were hiding.

’Just the three of us? That’s never good. Did I do something wrong? Did they find out about the egg?’

His mind raced through every possible mistake he might have made recently, but nothing seemed to fit the strangely soft, almost nervous look his mother was giving him.

"Um... sure, Is something wrong?" he said slowly, setting his spoon down.

"Nothing’s wrong, Just something we want to share with you." Cassian said quickly, though the corner of his mouth twitched slightly, betraying whatever he was trying to hold back.

Neo nodded, though the knot in his stomach didn’t loosen at all.

After dinner wrapped up, Liam and Elara excused themselves to take Nora off to visit the garden, completely unaware of whatever conversation was about to happen. Nora, however, lingered for a moment longer than usual, glancing at Neo with a small, questioning tilt of her head before finally being led away by her mother.

Neo made his way to the private study, his footsteps a little slower than usual, his mind still spinning with possibilities. When he pushed the door open, he found his parents already seated together on the small couch near the fireplace, waiting for him.

He walked over and sat down across from them, folding his hands in his lap, trying his best to look calm despite the growing tension in his chest.

"Okay, what’s going on?" he said, glancing between the two of them.

Sylvia and Cassian exchanged a quick look, the same nervous, excited energy passing silently between them.

"Well, you know how busy your father and I have been lately." Sylvia began, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear,

Neo nodded slowly.

"Yeah. With the festival and the dukedom stuff."

"Right," Cassian said, rubbing the back of his neck. "But there’s actually something else that’s been keeping us a little... preoccupied, lately."

Neo’s brows furrowed slightly. "Preoccupied how?"

Sylvia let out a small, nervous laugh, glancing down at her own hands for a moment before looking back up at him, her eyes suddenly a little glossy.

"Neo, sweetheart, how would you feel about having a little brother or sister?"

The room went completely silent.

Neo blinked once. Then twice.

’Wait. What?’

"You’re... you’re going to have a baby?" he asked, his voice coming out smaller than he intended.

Sylvia nodded, a bright, watery smile spreading across her face.

"Yes. I’m already a few months along. We wanted to tell you before anyone else. Even before Elara and Liam."

Cassian reached over and gently squeezed Sylvia’s hand, his usual playful grin softened into something far more sincere.

"You’re going to be a big brother, Neo."

For a long moment, Neo simply sat there, completely frozen, his mind struggling to catch up with what he’d just heard.

’A sibling. An actual sibling.’

In the anime, this had happened.

Sylvia had been pregnant, yes, but the child she gave birth to was killed during the war, lost along with everything else when the Draven family fell.

And that happened several years later—not now.

This wasn’t supposed to exist. It wasn’t part of the story he remembered at all.

’This is happening way too fast... How could the baby happen so soon? Did my presence already start changing things? Does that mean the original story has already changed this much without me even realizing it?’

Something warm and overwhelming rose up in his chest, so sudden and strong that he barely had time to process it before he was already moving, crossing the small space between them and throwing his arms tightly around his mother’s stomach.

"Neo?" Sylvia asked, startled, though she immediately wrapped her arms around him in return, pressing a soft kiss to the top of his head.

He didn’t say anything right away, his throat too tight to manage any real words. He simply held on, his small fists gripping the fabric of her dress, his mind spinning with a strange mixture of joy and fierce, sudden protectiveness he hadn’t expected to feel so quickly.

"I’ll protect them, I promise. No matter what happens, I’ll protect them." he finally choked out, his voice muffled against her.

Sylvia’s arms tightened around him instantly, her own eyes filling with tears at his words. Cassian reached over, resting a large, warm hand on top of Neo’s head, ruffling his hair gently.

"We know you will, You’re already a good big brother, and the baby isn’t even here yet." Cassian said, his voice thick with quiet pride.

Neo pulled back slightly, wiping at his eyes with the back of his sleeve, though a small, embarrassed laugh escaped him despite himself.

"Sorry, i don’t know why I got so emotional all of a sudden."

Sylvia cupped his face gently between her hands, smiling down at him with the same warmth she always carried whenever she looked at him.

"There’s nothing to apologize for, sweetheart. This is exciting news. It’s okay to feel a little overwhelmed."

Cassian leaned back against the couch, letting out a satisfied sigh, his earlier nervousness melting completely into quiet happiness.

"We were a little worried you might feel jealous, some kids don’t take too well to the idea of sharing their parents’ attention."

Neo shook his head firmly.

"No way. I’m happy. Really happy. I just want them to be safe. That’s all I care about."

Sylvia smiled softly, pulling him into one more tight hug.

"They will be, with a brother like you looking out for them, I have no doubt about that at all."

The three of them stayed like that for a while longer, wrapped up together on the small couch by the fireplace, the quiet warmth of the room settling comfortably around them, while outside, the snow continued to fall gently over the estate, blissfully unaware of the small, precious new addition already on its way into the world.