“It will snow,” Mallory said, a lot like her son. “So prepare for that whether you are staying in or traveling—I’ll tell Lucas to have the place ready. Are you still in the living room?” She was tactful and light for that question but then immediately blustery and forceful again. “The snow won’t last, but it will still be cold. It’s just too wet this year, too warm, believe it or not. We all have to pay for what others are doing. The people in the rest of the world, like many in the coven, don’t realize yet that we affect one another. And, I think, even with us working as hard as we can to help, it’s going to be a struggle.” For a second, she seemed as tired as Robin felt.
Then the front door closed behind Persephone and Mallory wiped the exhausted worry from her face. “Just think about it, no pressure on your decision, and tell Lucas so he can help.”
“He likes helping people,” Robin offered quietly.
Mallory gave him a smile her daughter couldn’t see. “Yes, he does. And now he’s here, with you.”
Lucas wasn’t exactlywithRobin, but Robin didn’t say so, and wasn’t sure Mallory would have been convinced anyway. “What am I supposed to do?”
He had so much to do already.
Mallory briefly had a funny look on her face, as though confused by Robin having to ask. Since Robin had Sight like few others, maybe she was. “What you were always supposed to do, little Blessing; provide direction."
A tall order for someone who fell asleep while attempting to do several weeks’ worth of laundry. Robin felt the idea pressing on him as the afternoon went on and became evening.
The contingent of Greysmiths lingered in the kitchen. Mallory must have felt that either Robin or Lucas, or both of them together, needed affection demonstrated with sugar, because she’d brought flavored and sweetened decaffeinated instant coffee mixes, more marshmallows, a ton of butter and honey from one of the local farms, and popcorn kernels and sugar to make caramel popcorn.
Robin gave Persephone the shawl she’d asked for and took note of which details she and Mallory praised the most, thinking of what he might make for each of them. Then, when Rixon returned and his mother and sister had both started teasing him over his latest girlfriend, Robin had excused himself to rest.
He’d meant to go to the living room, but with the hand not holding his cup of sweetened coffee, he had picked up a blanketfrom the couch and wrapped it around his shoulders before heading out the front door. They’dfind himin the living room. They were being wonderful, but now that Robin was just well enough to really notice how he was feeling, it was a lot to have people in the house again, making noise, asking him questions, fussing over him.
It was just a lot.
He wasn’t the only one to think so, apparently.
Lucas was at one end of the bench on the porch, a cup of something on the arm beside him, probably tea. Flint was on the railing opposite him, making noises until Robin opened the door and she stopped mid-croak.
Robin stopped as well, glancing guiltily to Lucas. “Sorry.”
“Blessing,” Flint whispered, in what might have been her own voice, before repeating it, louder, in Mallory’s. “Oh, Blessing.”
The sadness and pity were a lot coming from a bird, even one touched by magic.
“Flint,” Lucas said, gently chiding, and Flint turned her head and walked to the next post in the railing, fluttered around it to the next bit of railing, and went to the corner post, where her mate swooped out of nowhere to join her.
“Sorry,” Robin said again, sure hehadinterrupted a conference of some sort. “It’s just that...”
Lucas understood. “She means well. But sometimes caring equals pushing with us.”
“Have you been trying not to push?” Robin wondered, enchanted with the idea. He came all the way out of the doorway and shut the door behind him so he wouldn’t hear what sounded like Rixon charming the ghosts to get away from the teasing.“That boy is heading toward so much trouble,” Robin remarked, shaking his head like the old man he was at heart.
He sat on the other side of the bench, although it wasn’t a large bench, just solid, plain wood and thick nails. He put his coffee on the arm, then pulled his legs up so he could keep as much of him under the blanket as possible.
“A blanket but no coat or shoes or even slippers.” Lucas sighed.
“Is that you trying not to push again?” Robin asked loftily. For bulky crochet work, the blanket still managed to keep out most of the chill. It was probably charmed. He couldn’t tell, of course. It was ridiculous that he had one gift as strong as he did and then almost nothing else. “I look a mess,” Robin said after a while of watching the two birds have a croaked back-and-forth. “I didn’t even really think about it until today.”
“I’m not really one to judge that sort of thing.” Lucas’ humor was so quiet and sly.
Robin nudged him with his elbow, amused and frowning anyway, then finally sighed.
“You can stay as long as you like, you know. But working here… I don’t have the energy to look at the budget right now, so pay and other such things… I have no idea. And don’t say it isn’t about that. You like to take care of things and people, and you like this house, and you’d find it rewarding to see it fixed up as it deserves to be, okay. I believe you. But, cost of materials aside, that is housekeeping, and yard work, and maintenance, and repair, and deliveries…. Those are all jobs that you should get paid for doing.”
“For now, I can just stay and do what I can,” Lucas offered. “Don’t worry about the rest today. Or tomorrow.”
“It does need the work.” Robin waved with the blanket at the porch itself, the wood in need of cleaning and new paint or sealant, with cracks or rot or something lurking where he couldn’t see. Whatever magic had gone into crafting it had probably long since faded. “I’d like to see it repainted, if nothing else. Bright, like you said. From a business point of view, it would look nice on the website. But also, it would just look nice. They would like it, I think. They’d hate the state of it now. But… I don’t think they’d blame me for it. They’d understand. They’d…. I miss them.”
“That’s natural.”
