He's right about that; the walk back through the crypt is unevevntful, and weirdly silent. The whole place feels alien without the pumping music and the lit-up floor, and it's made even stranger by what's left of former enemies lying around everywhere. I try not to look at it.

We're at about the third level before Dad talks, breaking the creepy silence.

"So...What did you think I was after?"

"I, uh..." I didn't want to admit it, but he had me cornered. "...I thought you were leaving us for gold and loot. Money."

He stops walking and turns to stare at me, shaking his head. "Cadence, I would never. I would never split up this family for the sake of money. I know I have a bit of a history, and if you've been living with Eli, well...he likes to say I might be a little greedy. But - I'm not! And I wouldn't have left if it wasn't important."

I believe him. I always felt kind of bad for doubting him...

"Okay, fine."

We continue walking, going a few steps before he speaks up again, looking at me curiously.

"Speaking of Eli, he kept an eye on you while I was gone, right? Did he take good care of you?"

"Well...he tried." I wave a hand in the air, "He's not exactly the best at it."

He laughs, but he looks sad. "He never was a homebody, that one. He's probably furious at me..."

"Yeah. Ever since the first month or so, he's been grumbling to himself about how you abandoned us."

"I didn't mean to, I swear it."

"...What happened? How did you wind up..." I gesture vaguely at his head, "...like that?"

He winces, glancing away from me. "...I know I made it down here, and I fought that...'man' - the 'Necrodancer' - "

I can't help but snort, "Oh my god. Is that actually what he's called."

He nods at me, very seriously, "Your...I was told about him a long time ago. That's what they called him. I fought him, but I couldn't get my hands on the lute before I got overwhelmed. I don't remember what happened after that."

"Do you remember anything?"

"Not really. Just...ringing..."

He looks upset, and I can't blame him. It sounds like he really got put through the wringer down here, so to speak.

Heh. Ringer.

"...Sorry about that. The fight, I mean."

Dad raises an eyebrow, "You didn't know. And I should be the one apologizing. I just left you...I swear, I swear if this does what it's supposed to, it's all going to be worth it..." He sounds desperate.

"Okay, we'll call it even. But you still haven't told me what you're going to do with that thing."

He hesitates for a moment.

"...I died in that fight. And you - he had your heart too, something must've happened and you..." He swallows hard, shaking his head, "...But we're alive now. The lute brought us back."

He gets this determined look on his face, the one he got every time he'd stand in the doorway telling us he was one step closer to what he was looking for - that he'd find it soon and everything would be all right. I'd started to believe it less and less over the years, but this time...I want to, even if I don't understand.

I don't fully realize why he'd wanted the lute so badly until we get to the surface and stand before a familiar grave. My mouth drops open for a second as it all clicks.

"All this time...?"

He nods, once, with certainty.

"I couldn't get it to her in time to save her...I hope she didn't mind being kept waiting for a little while. Help me dig her up."

I don't move, just staring at the headstone, my stomach doing flips in my chest. I don't know how to feel...

"You didn't have to."

He purses his lips, eyes focused on the grave, but also somewhere past it - as if he could already see her again.

"...I needed to."

It works.

The few minutes after we dig up the casket and Dad sits beside it to play are a blur of reunions and catching up and emotions and nerves as we realize what we have to do to keep Mom from leaving again. I don't know why me and Dad get to live without strings attached but she does and it isn't fair, but we all agree to deal with it later, and give the lute to Mom, putting her life in her own hands.

It actually sounds like a lute when she's playing it, the soft sounds carrying over the empty graveyard and making it a little less creepy. We fall into silence, Dad watching her play with the expression of a kid whose birthday, Christmas, and the end of the school year had all fallen on the same day - and that's an understatement.

But I'm still not sure what to think. It's great to have her back, and I almost can't believe she's really here in front of me again. I'd had nothing to lose when I'd left however long ago, and now my family's back together...I'm afraid I'm not feeling enough. But I'm just so tired...

Mom seems to notice it first - she's been staring at me for a while now, incredulous. I guess I've changed a bit in twelve years. She tilts her head.

"Cadence, sweetie...Just how long have you been going for?"

I look up at the sky. It's dark and I can't see the moon. "Well, it was night when I left so...prooobably long enough for it to be night again?"

She winces, "We need to go home. I think it's been a long day for you both..."

Mom starts to get up, and Dad reaches out to support her as she steps out of her own coffin. "Not as long as all these years."

"Dorian..." She squints at him, "I'm going to need to have a talk with you about all of this, mister."

Dad smiles nervously, "But it's...good to have you back?"

She lets out a long, tired sigh.

"Yes...It's good to be back."

Maybe that's all that needs to be said right now. Maybe the more complicated stuff will come later. I can live with that.

The lute's haunting notes follow us all the way back to the house, under the sound of Dad trying to catch Mom up on the last twelve years. I'm hanging off of Dad's arm more than I'd care to admit, like a little kid, but I can't help it. I'm only now realizing just how exhausted I am. It feels like the ground's about to rush up and punch me in the face.

The familiar little house comes into view. It's probably about five in the morning by now, so none of us are sure whether Uncle Eli is going to be awake, let alone how he's going to react to this, but Dad puts on a brave face and knocks on the front door anyway.

I count five seconds before it opens to reveal my uncle taking up almost the entire doorway, squinting down at us blearily and scratching his beard with his good hand. A candle dimly lights the room behind him, and I can see Dad's old chest of notes against the far wall, and papers everywhere. Eli looks like he hasn't slept since I left, and I feel kind of bad about it - I didn't think he cared that much.

He and Dad just stare at each other for what feels like a full minute, and I can't make anything of either of their expressions. Dad's the one who forfeits the staring contest, glancing away and clearing his throat, rubbing the back of his neck.

Uncle Eli grunts and nods as if expecting this.

"...You're an idiot, Dori. You know that?"

Dad coughs into his arm, "You've told me."

"You shouldn't have gone."

"Probably not."

"What do you have to say for yourself?"

Dad hesitates for a moment, before a little smirk crosses his face.

"I'd do it again in a heartbeat."

Uncle Eli gives a long-suffering sigh and steps forward, pulling Dad into a hug and smacking him on the back a couple times with his good hand like guys always do when they hug.

Dad returns the gesture, and comes out smiling. "Missed you, Eli."

"Eh." I assume that translates to 'I missed you too, but that's too mushy for me to say in front of the women'. He takes notice of me and raises a bushy eyebrow. "And you, Cadence?...Good to see you're still in one piece."

I suddenly feel very awkward, and clasp my hands in front of me, shifting around under his gaze.

"Mhm, I'm fine. ...Look, I'm sorry about what I said..."

"You're just like him. You're just like your father. Can't believe I have to deal with another of him."

It's chastising, but the way he says it, there's a little smile in it, and he shakes his head, chuckling quietly. Then he looks to Mom, pushing Dad aside a bit to get a better look at her.

"...By God. He did it. He actually pulled it off." He awkwardly bows a bit, "Welcome home, Melody."

"I'd shake your hand, but I'm a bit preoccupied," Mom replies with a small smile, playing a chord on the lute to emphasize it.

He settles for patting her on the shoulder, and I realize something, glancing between Eli and Dad.

"Wait, Uncle Eli...you were in on this?"

He sighs, "Knew he was planning it from the day she got sick."

"Then why didn't you tell me that was what he was after? I asked if you knew a million times!"

He gives me a pointed look. "Because you're just like your father. Now come on in, all of you. I've got eggs...somewhere."

Eli turns and goes back inside, and the rest of us glance at each other again for a moment. It still feels absolutely unreal that we're all here right now. Honestly, when I left, I wasn't a hundred percent sure I'd be making it back to this house, as much as I don't want to admit it. Let alone making it back with my parents...

Dad's still in Dead Ringer's plate armor and cape, but the splotches on his skin are clearing up. Mom has a worried look in her eyes as she plays the lute, but she's getting less pale by the second, more and more alive.

And me? I'm exhausted and sweaty, but the head injury doesn't hurt as much anymore. I've got a pouch full of gold and a few neat little charms around my neck. I've got a family again, and a beating heart in my chest.

There's a lot of things we've still got to figure out. I know almost nothing about the instrument that's keeping Mom alive, or the grandmother who apparently told stories about it. I don't know if Mom's just going to need to keep playing forever, or if there's some way to keep her here for good. I don't know how the others are going to react to Dad's story, or if he has any loose ends in the crypt. I don't know anything about the Necrodancer who made our lives a not-living hell, not even if he's really gone for good.

We all still have a lot of questions - about the lute and its player, about the crypt, about where we go from here.

But if I know anything about my family, I know that we're gonna find the answers if it kills us all over again.

...Since when did we ever do what was good for us, anyway?