The father remains skeptical, but Brother Lawyer seems interested despite himself.

The father can be as sceptical as he likes, Sadde's already rich and not even off the globally changing tech.

It does seem to bother Terel a bit, though.

Samara serves coffee to everyone, with a plate of creamer and stuff on the counter. "Now Sadde, don't take this as a personal attack... But I am a little concerned about - you're a Fair Folk?" Left unsaid: What even are you?

Well she does have wings. "Mmm not exactly. My world doesn't have Fair Folk the same way here does, everyone is or used to be human. Nothing just randomly appears. No idea how the first vankire or wolf or child of the moon appeared, though."

"...She's worried you'll mistreat me or startle me with foreign social norms or magical properties of vankires. Don't worry, Mom, I'm fully informed on Sadde's species and I am okay with it."

"There aren't any magical wiles vankires in general can use on other people."

They only have their word for that, but it's comforting to hear.

"But... They do have a lot of advantages. And some disadvantages. And one thing they can do is turn humans into vankires."

His whole family stares in some disbelief at this.

"So... You're going to do that?"

"Yes."

His dad makes an exaggerated 'hmm' sound, while his mom glances nervously between Sadde and Terel.

"The main advantages being immortality and nigh-indestructibility," she points out helpfully. "But lots of others."

"Son," his father says, "You are an adult and you can do what you want. I've tried to raise you well and, while I question this decision quite a lot, it is certainly your decision to make. We'll pay for another year of college if you want us to, as we agreed, and I hope you come visit once in a while, but I'm glad you're finding your own way."

His brother agrees. "Yes, indeed. Your choice to make, even if it is a big change... You'll have to talk to the crown office, I think, to register a change of species. I've never even heard of such a thing. It certainly counts as a special case..."

"Just remember. You're always welcome back home if you need it, Terel."

He almost beams. His family relationships are rocky sometimes, but they came through for him right now. "Thanks, dad. I'll make sure to do that, Brell. And thanks, mom, but I probably won't need it. I'll be sure to visit sometimes. And maybe in a few years we can talk about some of you becoming vankires if I don't find it utterly disastrous."

She does beam. Then gets a bit more serious. "One of the disadvantages, though, is that for... about the first year after he turns, he probably should not be around humans. He can still take crystal calls and most other species aren't as much of a problem but, yeah."

"Don't ask why, please. I have it covered. Maybe I'll say... Later." He glances at Sadde. "And a year is the high end but better safe than sorry, correct? We'll get started on computers then, there's a lot to figure out."

"Yeah, you'll probably be less, and you can keep in contact anyway."

"Yeah, I'm going to go get three new pairs of linked crystals for us all, we might not have Charlescomm's service where we go."

Terel's mom asks, "You'll stay for dinner, right?"

"Sure!"

Samara tells childhood stories over dinner, which Sadde probably doesn't actually enjoy except as a social function. Like the time he lost a toy golem by setting it up to do some kind of maneuver that ended up higher than it started, and putting that in an infinite loop. It's probably still in the sky somewhere.

Sadde actually does enjoy them! Sadde is incredibly socially curious and moreover anything about Terel is absolutely fascinating. Not to mention that Terel losing a toy while breaking the Second Law of Thermodynamics is ridiculously adorable oh my god.

He's a little mortified by the childhood stories, which Samara has a lot of now that she sees Sadde likes them, but it's the low-key semi-good kind of embarrassed. His dad and brother join the fun - like the time the Jenses had him over and he ended up poking through their utility closet, fixing their thermostat because 'you fix things that are broken!' and outright refused to acknowledge the idea that he might have broken it worse.

Smol Terel is so ridiculously adorable and she'd kiss him if she didn't predict this might embarrass him but dear gods he's too cute for words.

Samara is greatly reassured by how much Sadde smiles at Terel, and how genuine it looks. The dinner isn't all cute childhood stories though, they get to know Sadde some. And eventually it is over.

"So that went well."

"Yeah." And when they're outside parental visual range she spins him around and kisses him, as she likes to do. "And you are wonderful and I love you."

He grins. "Aww thanks! I guess you liked the kiddie stories huh..."

"Yes, a lot, you must've been such a cute child, and in hindsight they're so very obviously things you'd have done."

"I guess they are. Childhood stories are always leaned that way though... Now that I'm not going to disappear on them without an explanation, anything else we still need to do? I don't think so."

"Yeah, I don't think so either. We just go to the shadow people and... yeah."

"Yeah... Let's go, then."