*sweat drop* Sorry for the delay. Was being baka and forgot...
T and I really should have gone through more hypotheticals when we made our plan to leave last night. We hadn't expected them to be waiting for us. the only ones missing when we first got there were Lie, Eni, and Marshall.
"Where did you two disappear to?" Duke had his hands on his hips. "You were gone a long time."
Recah sighed and refused to meet my gaze. I was sure she had some idea of where we went.
"We went to scout out Taradita. We didn't need to all go."
Duke rolled his eyes. "Are you sure about that?"
This was Marshall came through the door. He was dripping in sweat. Seeing as his natural tan couldn't hide his blush and I felt his heart skip a beat, it clearly didn't take him long to realize something was up.
Marshall immediately sat beside his sister. "Did something happen?"
"These two snuck off on their own!" Duke shouted.
"Name one good reason we should've all gone." I shoved my hands in my pockets and met the fifteen-year-old's gaze. "I can think of three that justify what we did: large groups draw attention to themselves, Tiana and I didn't do much, and a Lock could've been waiting to ambush us."
Marshall raised an eyebrow. "Why'd you bring your sister then?"
"You and Duke don't have powers." I glanced at Kaze. She could hardly keep her eyes open now. "Natalie and Phoenix could use more training." Then I smiled. "Besides, T and I sleep together. I couldn't have snuck past her, anyway."
Recah shook her head. She didn't seem convinced by my words. "I wouldn't have wanted to go, anyway. I've been a part of every important thing since we confronted the Council."
Marshall gritted his teeth at hearing "the Council".
"You don't believe that." Duke rolled his eyes. "You and your sister oversee his training. I've overheard you both say he's pretty much on par with you."
T nudged Duke away from me. "He still has things to learn. He's powerful, but strength isn't everything."
"You don't believe that, Princess, Key Keeper."
"What do you mean by that?" she shouted.
"Never mind." Duke turned his head. "It's not important right now."
I face palmed. "You really had to go there?"
The boy smirked. "I did."
"Enough!" Kaze rose. "We did what we had to do. We're playing by ear. We haven't planned that far ahead."
Marshall rolled his eyes. "Why would you admit that?"
"We'll discuss it next time." I put my hands in my pockets. "I saw no point in it then. I wanted to get the ball rolling."
"I still can't understand you!" Duke ran into the hallway.
Marshall took off after him. "Duke!"
I turned to Recah. "How did you guys realize that we snuck off?"
"You weren't anywhere around the house. I think your mom was the first to realize it, but she didn't say anything. It hit us after a few hours." Recah got up. "Anyway, I should see if my brother needs a hand. That kid can be pretty hard to reason with sometimes."
"Good luck."
Recah left the room.
I stroked T's hair. She'd laid down on a now empty couch. "You can go lie down if you want. I know I got you up at o'dark-thirty. That couldn't have been easy."
"I'm fine..." my big sister mumbled.
This was when Mama came into the room. A look of relief washed over her face. "Welcome back, you two."
I averted my gaze. "You're mad at us, aren't you?"
"I'm not mad." Mama sung into my ear. "A thousand miles seems pretty far, but they've got planes and trains and cars. I'd walk to you if I had no other way."
My flames pooled into my cheeks. I knew she loved that song and all, but why did she pick that song? Why that song of the hundreds, maybe thousands, she knew?
"You both went to scout out the place. I can't help worrying, but that's just what a mom does. You just wanted to help Vanna's and that girl's parents."
T had tears in her eyes. She was probably thinking about her own mama, Cece. It couldn't be easy knowing it'd nearly been fifteen years since Kaze had seen her. I couldn't imagine what it was like knowing Mama could never come back into my life.
Mama squeezed T's hand. "I'm sure your mom is watching over you and that she's proud of all you've accomplished. A true mom is proud of her kids regardless of what they decide to do."
I wanted her to myself, but that was something I couldn't have. T deserved a mother figure too. Until we came home, that was something Leon and I had no way of giving her. After all, we weren't women. Her caretaker and Eni's did what they could, but T's probably felt more like a grandma, and Eni's definitely came off more like an aunt or a Chastity.
"I know you kids can handle yourselves. I wouldn't be able to tell you so, if you couldn't."
I was tempted to cry myself. Mama and Kaze wouldn't care. Still, I felt the urge to hold them back. Someone had to be strong.
"Come here, you two," Mama said.
We hesitated but did as she asked.
She wrapped an arm around each of us and we hugged her back. "You're both so strong. Phoenix is lucky to have you as his elder siblings. Whenever you're unsure, cry if you have to then watch his smile. Watching someone you adore smile can be quite the forced to be reckoned with."
T and I looked at each other. "As long as the North Star guides us, we'll never be lost."
"That's right." Mama took a moment to look each of us in the eye. "It's true. Even in the darkest night."
The North Star was the brightest star. That was probably why people used it to navigate the seas at night.
"Let's go eat." Mama smiled. "One of the workers brought some food by while you were gone. She insisted I had to try it. There's no way I could eat it all myself."
"Who was it?" I asked.
Mama opened the door for us. "Rosemary."
My mouth watered when I heard that. Mama and I didn't like depending on the kitchen staff, but there were times we didn't really have a choice. Rosemary had always been our favorite. It was always clear that she put her love in her cooking.
Rosemary had made a casserole. It looked like it had just come out of an oven.
Eni was inspecting it. "Hey, Ain? What's this?"
"It's called a casserole, sweetie." Mama smiled. "Someone brought it over, so we could all have some."
"Have you eaten?" T asked.
Our little brother shook his head.
"You should try this with us then." Mama got out silverware and plates. "The lady that made this is a really good cook."
Eni looked at me and tilted his head.
"Mama's right. She is."
Mama gave T the first plate then passed two to my brother and I. As usual, she gave herself the last one. She and I had a habit of doing that whenever we were serving people. As long as it meant everyone else ate, we were fine with it.
Eni's eyes lit up. "And I thought the people in our house were good at cooking!"
T and I were laughing on the inside. That was on odd way to phrase it, but it was still a compliment. He was certainly right. People usually refused to believe that Rosemary never went to cooking school.
We got up when we were done.
Eni wrapped his arms around us and pulled us close. "No reason," he whispered.
We relaxed into his hold. He didn't need to have a reason. We were family. That was reason enough. We loved each other. That was all.
***
Thoughts on Ain and T this episode? Mama Sarah? Theories? Predictions?
~Shino out!