“Most laws are,” I said, earning a sharp look from Paesha. “What? They are. Especially the ones written by mortals trying to control things they don’t understand.”
“Like gods?” Thea asked innocently.
I had to smile. “Exactly like gods.”
“Speaking of control,” Elowen interrupted smoothly, “Quill, honey. The next time you feel really upset, let’s avoid the garden. Everything out here is starting to die.”
“Sorry,” she mumbled.
“Hey,” I said softly, surprising myself as much as everyone else. “Come here a moment.”
She hesitated, looking to Paesha first, then Archer. When they both nodded, she slid off her chair and came to stand before me.
I knelt to her level. “Your power feels big, doesn’t it? Like it’s too much to hold sometimes?”
She nodded.
“That’s because it is. Maybe you weren’t meant to contain it all by yourself.” I held out my hand, palm up, letting a small globe of golden light form there, hoping like hell it didn’t flicker out and ruin the point. “Watch.”
The light split into tiny streams, weaving between my fingers like liquid sunshine. Quill gasped, reaching out to touch one.
“Big power isn’t meant to be caged,” I continued, letting the light dance around her fingers. “It’s meant to flow. Like a river. You don’t stop a river, you learn to direct it.”
“How?”
“First, you have to accept that it’s part of you. Not something separate to fight against.” I glanced at Paesha, seeing understanding dawn in her eyes. “Then you find anchors. People who help you remember who you are when the power tries to make you forget.”
“Like Paesha and Archer?”
“Exactly like them.”
She studied the light thoughtfully. “Is that why you stay close to Paesha? Because she’s your anchor?”
“Yes,” I admitted quietly. “She is.”
“Then you should eat more bread,” Quill decided, very seriously. “Because anchors need you to be strong too.”
I was sure there was logic in that to her. Somehow. “You know what? You’re absolutely right.”
“I usually am. But that doesn’t solve how we’re going to get Archie a wife.”
Archer stood, tucking a stack of papers under his arm as he mussed the child’s hair. “Wearen’t going to get Archie a wife. That’s not how it works, Pencil.”
“But you’re sitting around staring at boring papers all the time now. That’s not how it works either.”
He smiled, something genuine this time. “Fair enough. How about this, I’ll make you a deal. I’ll find myself a date, and you and Paesha can decide if she’s the right one to marry. Since you guys are always going to be an important part of my life, and I’m always going to want to protect you before anyone else, you should get a say.”
“And she’ll have to accept our bond too,” Quill said. “Or I’ll have to kill her.”
Archer jerked back. “We talked about you throwing creepy threats out like that, didn’t we?”
Quill rolled her eyes. “Fine. But I’ll make her really sad and watch her cry for fun.”
“Time for your bath,” Thea said, jumping to her feet. “Bath before death threats has always been the rule.”
To his credit, he waited until the back door slammed shut before he rounded on Paesha. “I told you your kid is creepy.”
“I mean, I’m not one to judge, but from the sound of that conversation, she’s your kid too. Also, we probably let her spend too much time with Death’s Maiden a year ago.”
