As the years passed and Ember grew up, Maze taught her how to control her temper. She still had the occasional outburst that she was unable to control and both Maze and James weren’t looking forward to her teen years at all, but James was very thankful they had only the one child and didn’t end up with multiples like the rest of his family.


On Ember’s first day of school, James spent the entire day on edge. They had tried their best to prepare her for being around other humans and even though James knew she tended more towards Maze’s attitude of not caring if people stared or what anyone thought of her; he still worried. They were waiting for her outside when the school bus dropped her off that afternoon and as she threw her arms wide and ran at them, shouting about how much she loved school and how many friends she’d made, and James realised he had worried for nothing.


There were times when James found himself staring at Maze and Ember and wondering what he had done in the past to deserve such an amazing family and thinking back on all of the events that had led up to that point in his life. Being locked in that cell, not knowing if he was going to live or die, it had been worth it to meet Maze and he couldn’t for the life of him remember why he had ever been so hesitant about allowing himself to fall in love with the alien.


If James could it all over again, he wouldn’t change a thing.