Gabe was surprisingly awake and alert for someone who might've gotten about 4 hours of sleep. He sat up to the hustle and bustle of the dryad morning rituals happening all around him. Women getting ready for work, girls getting ready for school, y'know, the usual. Before he could realize that Willow wasn't nearby, he watched her approach with a brown paper bag in her hand.
"Mornin' Bambi, sleep well?" She greeted, quick to kneel beside him in the grass.
"Yeah, had a weird dream though." He was surprised it wasn't a nightmare. "Dreamed one of the other nymphs stood over me while I slept, touching and smelling my hair. Couldn't really make out her face, but she kinda looked like the girl we met yesterday..." As he dwelled on the recollection, he realized that he never really saw Mala again after the whole incursion at the playground. He couldn't help but wonder what happened to her.
"Huh. That is weird." Willow reinforced as produced a hot sandwich from the bag. "Got a bacon egg and cheese from the nearby bodega." She tossed the foil wrapped food into Gabe's lap.
"Eat up kiddo, we got people to see and places to go!" Gabe didn't hesitate to attack the sandwich as he succumbed to the temptation of his appetite.
"Feels like I haven't eaten in ages..." You could barely hear him say as he scarfed down the breakfast.
"I'm sure it has been a couple of days..." Willow quickly and quietly replied, guiltily diverting her gaze.
"A couple of days?" The claim was overheard by Red Ash, who was quickly approaching the two. "Gabe you've been doing all this running around on an empty stomach? Are you trying to starve yourself to death? Why didn't you tell me?" Red Ash drilled. Willow almost did a double take at the level of concern the tall nymph was dishing out.
"I didn't want to worry anyone, I thought I had it." Gabe quickly and quietly replied, guiltily diverting his gaze.
"Next time you feel like you need to eat, let me know. You can't build muscle without the proper fats. And no carbohydrates mean no usable energy." Red Ash's personal trainer habits were shining through.
"Okay." The Harvestchild polished off what remained of his food and rose to his feet. Red Ash looked the two over, noticed the old ratty jeans and clothing bin/thrift store hand-me-downs they wore.
"That's what you're going in? You don't have any shorts or anything?" She asked them both. Gabe didn't immediately think he was going to Adrian's house just to work out, yet at the same time, he couldn't recall if he had ever seen Red Ash in anything besides leggings, cross-trainers, and hoodies.
"I don't have anything else with me," Gabe shrugged.
"And I wasn't trying to involve myself in whatever they were planning on doing. I'm just there to watch." Willow quickly followed up. Red rolled her eyes.
"We gotta get you some more clothes. I'm going to get tired of you wearing the same dirty stuff over and over." The big nymph replied.
"I have more stuff. We'd just have to go back to my grandma's house to get 'em." A mission Gabe wasn't too sure he wanted to embark on. For the time being, he was fine dealing with what he had.
***
One Train Ride to Brooklyn Later...
It didn't much for Gabe to retrace his steps back to the Bedford-Stuyvesant residence. Instead of taking the stairs, Gabe opted to ring the ground floor bell, located underneath said concrete stairs. A series of doors and a heavy iron gate reinforced that entrance, and the three could soon hear the sounds of locks clicking and doorknobs turning.
Eventually they were greeted by the fire demigod, still separated by the black gate. "Hey hey!" Adrian hailed in earnest, a genuine grin stretched across his gob. "Really glad you guys made it back. And you brought Big Red with you!" He gestured towards Red Ash, who raised an eyebrow in return.
"What'd he just call me...?" The big nymph muttered in bewilderment, ignoring Willow's snickering as they followed the demigod inside. A couple of steps into the cramped hallway, the party bumped into Freya, who opted to glare instead of greet as she quickly proceeded upstairs, most likely to the sparring studio. Gabe's expression flattened as he looked on.
"Oh. She's still here." He mumbled in his usual monotone way. "Oh, yeah, Freya was sent here on behalf of the European Valkyrian Forces to monitor us." Adrian explained, leading the three up. "Karti volunteered my spot as a bit of a lodging for her, so she's gonna be around. As long as we're here, she's here." He elaborated, motioning between himself and the Harvestchild. As they ascended, Red Ash bent to Gabe's ear.
"Was she the one that snatched you up the night before?" She asked.
"Yup." The boy and Willow answered. This intrigued the commanding dryad.
"Huh. Sounds like she's pretty strong." She pondered.
"She's stronger than me at least." Adrian replied. "She benched all my plates with minimal effort. And even then she's still young, so who knows where her potential lies."
Once they reached the second floor, Adrian guided the three into the sparring studio. It was already a familiar sight for Gabe and Willow, but Red Ash laid fresh eyes on the scene, and honestly she was kinda surprised.
"You got all the bells and whistles here, Adrian." As she complemented the setup, the young Valkyrie quietly entered the room, looking over the towering nymph from behind.
"It's pretty vital to be in tip-top shape when you're a demigod. At least, that's what Karti says." With the lazy reply, Adrian carelessly rolled onto the sparring mat.
"That, and I don't get to go out too often, so it was within reason to bring the gym to me." Gabe placed his belongings to the side and he and Willow joined Adrian on the mat, while Red Ash took to a nearby bench.
"So, what do y'all wanna know?" He queried, quickly springing into a Indian stance. "Gabe, I can't say much about your mom, other than the basic facts that I'm sure you already know. I can, however, tell you a bit about yourself. Your demigod bits, I mean."
"Pause." Gabe retorted.
"Not like that, you know what I mean." Adrian quickly shot back. Freya looked briefly confused by the exchange.
"Put it like this: Being a demigod means your body was bred to be the best humanity has to offer. Our physical averages are a step or two above normal mortal physiologies. We run faster, jump higher, hit harder, and last longer than most." Gabe's eyes widened a bit as he talked.
"You might've noticed that with some of the fights you've gotten into during the past couple of days. Yeah, you're still getting scratched and bruised and bloodied, but between yesterday's sparring, and that encounter we had in the park, you've definitely taken hits that would've gravely injured-if not outright killed-a normal person." He explained. The harvestchild's thoughts immediately rushed back to the ambush at his school.
"Sure. When I was at school, a girl kicked me in the face so hard it threw me across the ground. She got a running start." Gabe replied, unprompted. "I guess I should be glad she only gave a black eye, instead of breaking my neck." He added. Freya scoffed at the grim wit.
"We can trade fight stories later." Adrian interjected. "Trust me, I got some good ones and I'm sure you'll have a whole library's worth of tales before the year's out." He added.
"I got some good ones too." Red Ash blurted out, in an enthusiastic tone that caught Gabe by surprise. With that, Adrian transitioned to the pair of windows shining natural light into the reformed apartment.
"Check this out, Gabe." He gestured for the boy to follow. As the young harvestchild met him at the window and looked out, he expected some new, complex step to his demigod training, like some sort of specialized obstacle course.
Instead, he found himself looking at a standard Brooklyn backyard, a small government-sanctioned square bordered by large old trees, and tall fences. The grass in Adrian's yard was actually an outdoor carpet that simply looked like a cut lawn.
"Yup, that's a backyard." Gabe replied after a pause.
"Sure, but how do you feel?" Adrian asked. "If you're like me, then you definitely feel like, a resonance when you're in the presence of your element. Personally, I gotta stay strongly aware and focused within the presence of open flame, else I can get lost in a...destructive trance. What about you?" He asked, making light of a potentially dangerous habit.
"I get a buzzing feeling in my head." Gabe answered flatly. "It's annoying, and I've only just gotten to the point that I could push it to the back of my head. It came back when you brought it up, so thanks for that." Adrian chuckled a bit at the boy's monotone sass.
"Yeah, my bad. Does that buzzing do anything other than be annoying? What if it's just the first stage of something else?" Adrian raised an eyebrow, capturing the curiosities of everyone listening in. (Except for Freya, she was playing on her phone.)
"What're you implying, fireblood?" Red Ash asked. Adrian stepped into an inquisitive pace.
"I'm thinking that weird little side effect might be the key to fully understanding Gabe's abilities." Growing excited, he turned to the boy. "When was the last time you stepped outside with your shoes off?" Adrian asked.
"What...?" Gabe was a little weirded out by the question.
"Immersion within your acquired element always helps with a higher understanding. Consistent physical contact will definitely speed along the process."
"Okay...?" Gabe wasn't too sure he understood the reasoning.
"Alright, try this: go in the back barefoot, and focus on the buzzing instead of pushing it away. We'll stay up here and watch." Gabe's expression scrunched in uncertainty at the demigod's eager request.
"Why the distance? Am I gonna explode or something?" The young boy quipped.
"Do you want Freya out there distracting you?" Adrian replied with a smirk. The young Valkyrie looked up as her name was mentioned, and she and the Harvestchild quickly exchanged annoyed glances at each other.
"Good point." Gabe relented and began out the room.
"You'll have to get through the kitchen to get to the backyard. It's the door on the furthest wall." The older demigod instructed. Gabe mentally recalled the detail; he noticed the door when he took a shower the last time he was here. He was sure to recall his sword before transitioning downstairs.
Upon entering the kitchen, he removed his socks and sneakers. As he reached the door, the warmth of the May morning greeting him as he proceeded out. Radiant light hit the paved stone of the area, no doubt making the manmade paths warm to the touch.
Gabe did as he was told, focusing on the buzzing sensation as he gravitated towards the nearest tree. He stepped into the narrow lane of dirt the old tree used for rooting, and the buzzing intensified immediately. The feeling pulsed and throbbed through his head, a rumbling shudder caused his stance to stagger and his vision to blur.
Upstairs, the audience of nymphs, valkyries and demigods crowded around the windows.
"Never seen him react like that before..." Red Ash observed curiously.
"Is he going to be alright?" Both she and Willow spoke, her tone of inquiry reflecting the other's voice of concern. Adrian stroked the long hairs of his unkempt goatee as he looked on.
"I think he's adjusting to the extra contact." He voiced a theory.
"What do you mean 'you think'?!" Willow was quick to go on the defensive.
"Well, I mean, I was born attuned." Adrian replied with a tinge of discomfort. "Gabe only just recently awoke to his powers, right? He's experiencing the process differently than I did." He smirked at the troubled dryad.
"Relax Willow, Gabe being in better touch with his element won't kill him." With a chuckle, he turned his attention back to the backyard.
"...I think." He quickly, quietly muttered to himself.
Outside, the barrage of disorientation continued. Gabe felt himself growing weaker as his breathing grew heavier. For support, he stumbled into the long trunk of that old tree, steadying his hands against its rough bark. In a second, his heavy panting stabilized, the invasive pulse of the buzzing steadily fading like a tv antenna zoning in on a steady channel. Forming into a feeling much more serene.
He closed his eyes, and his breathing slowed after a long, controlled exhale. He found himself overtaken by a familiar, comforting warmth. He envisioned the golden shoots of wheat he'd seen in that endless field, thought of the loving embrace he feverishly ran into, the cathartic tears that ran down his face.
He heard the call of the birds, and a cacophony of incomprehensible whispers on the wind. The fears plaguing his thoughts in that moment melted away, replaced with the internal words of peace and optimism. The bark felt inviting against his palms, the packed soil sprouted new growth under his feet and between his toes.
"Is this how she feels...?" His voice was light as his heart rate slowed and his focus increased. Outside of his command, the wooden sword in his belt slipped from its sheath and floated about his person, lingering in a lazy orbit.
From there he experienced a strange, but known resonance. He didn't need to open his eyes to locate the sword floating in space, didn't need to physically touch it to feel it. The sensation he would feel when exerting his will on the plants had grown acute, refined. Alongside the sword, he could feel the trees and shrubs and all the assorted flora occupying the immediate area. Everything felt so much more alive than it did just a few minutes prior. Everything felt within reach.
For the first time in a long time, Gabe felt safe.
Excited at the developments they could see, Adrian threw open his window.
"Did it work?!" He called from the two story window, he and the others practically hanging on the brownstone sill.
Gabe's concentration broke and his sword briefly fell through the air. Reflexively, he reached out with a hand and it recalled to his awaiting grasp. It almost felt brand new to him, like he wasn't relying solely on his physical strength to wield it. He pulled his other hand away from the tree and felt a subtle attraction to the bark, as if it didn't want him to pull away. With a raised eyebrow the boy straightened his posture to play more with his sword.
As he let it go again, and with minimal thought he could get it to float and bounce between his hands. He was almost proud of the progress made. With new eyes, he looked to his guardians. With a small nod and an even smaller grin, he answered.
"Yeah."