tm prompt 264: Past

"The past is never dead. It's not even past."

I would never have guessed.

[locked]

...Everyone in my home at Christmas, except my daughter, has been dead at least once. My wife (fiancee?), my oldest friend, my son and his lady, definitely myself, Todd, even Logan. All of us have been, at least momentarily, consigned to that "past", "history", "dead" space in people's minds.

And yet we all live. We even have something resembling sanity, most days.

My old friend is hale and strong and has that look in his eye like he can't wait for the next job.

My wife has agreed to marry me again, to be back in my life, in my arms and -- if I set my mouth right -- maybe running at my side the way I wanted her to so badly.

My Joe. My brilliant, beloved son... everyone knows Jericho's story, and yet he is with us again. He's doing well for himself, which is all any father can ask. Don't ever act that much like me again, Joe, I can't take the fights with your mother.

His Raven -- I always expected them to be, and it's nice to be right -- has lived and died so many times that I think they chose the wrong bird for her namesake. Though I suppose given that her powers are more akin to darkness than flame, that at least is correct.

Logan – something so strange in that it was me who killed him, all those years ago. I'm regularly fairly grateful for Troy and the Amazon magics that saved him, these days. He's a good friend, better than I deserve some days. Now, if he would just do something about he and Stone...

And Todd. Most unlikely of all of my guests, I would have said, not very long ago. He's a good boy, though. Half broken by what he's suffered, and almost more by the treatment of his family... but a good young man. If they don't have the sense to see what an amazing gift it is to have him returned --then we will take care of him. Neither Addie nor I can stand to lose another boy so much like Grant. It is not going to happen.

Enough about that.