She slipped her hand into his. "That's very philosophical."
"Occupational hazard. Spend enough time studying dead civilizations, and you start thinking about what makes them fade into nothing but pages in history books."
She cast him a sidelong glance. "And your conclusion is?"
He shrugged. "There is no one answer. Natural disasters, famines, plagues, wars. Weak leadership or power-hungry leadership—both can be disastrous."
She chuckled. "It's like that song about a hundred ways to die. Have you heard it?"
"Can't say that I have."
For the next several minutes, she sang to him the verses she remembered, making him laugh, and then they walked in silence, comforted by the warmth of their conjoined hands.
It felt nice.
Instead of being two, they were now one—an island of strength and unity in a chaotic world.
As they approached the house that had been designated for the temporary store, Din could hear voices and the distinctive sound of heavy equipment being moved. Inside, two Guardians were maneuvering a commercial refrigerator cart while Ell-rom guided them through the narrow doorway.
"Careful with the door frame," Soraya said, her hands fluttering nervously. "We just had it painted."
"We've got it," one of the Guardians assured her.
Din quickened his pace. "Need another pair of hands?"
Ell-rom's face lit up with relief. "Perfect timing, Din. This is the third one, and there are two more plus all the shelving units."
"Where do you want me?" Din started rolling up his sleeves.
Soraya looked like she might cry with gratitude. "You are angels, both of you. The refrigerators need to go along the back wall, and the shelving..." She gestured vaguely at the empty space. "Everywhere else, I suppose. We have a plan. Somewhere." She looked around frantically. "Rana! Where's the floor plan?"
"I have it!" Rana emerged from another room, waving a piece of paper. "But I think we need to make adjustments to it. The refrigerators are bigger than what we planned for."
Din joined the Guardians and Ell-rom, taking a corner of the massive unit. It was awkward to maneuver, even with immortal strength.
"On three," one of the Guardians said. "One, two..."
They lifted in unison.
After days of grading papers and sitting at his laptop, using his muscles felt good, necessary even.
"Through the door," Ell-rom directed. "Watch the?—"
A scraping sound made Soraya gasp.
"It's fine," the Guardian quickly assured her. "It just brushed the frame. No damage."
They got the refrigerator inside and positioned it against the back wall, then returned for the next one.
Fenella joined her cousins in unpacking the shelving units and organizing the parts by function.
"I can't believe this is happening," Parisa said. "Our own store."
The morning fell into a rhythm of lifting, carrying, and arranging. Din enjoyed the physical exertion and the camaraderie of shared labor.
The Guardians were surprisingly good-natured about the constant adjustments Soraya demanded; "—move this refrigerator two inches left, no wait, maybe three inches right—no, to the left. Sorry. My mistake."
After the last unit was in place, the Guardians apologized for having to leave.
