by A E M
“Must we really speak of such heinous things?” Phoebe snarled.
“You’ll have to wear a dress.” Charlotte teased her.
Phoebe paled. “Please tell me that’s some kind of sick joke.”
Chime tapped her foot in the dirt. “You might as well get used to the idea. You have certain responsibilities, Phoebe. You can’t run from them forever without risking your species’ survival.”
“What are you talking about?” Charlotte turned to Chime.
“Phoebe is the eldest faun now.” Chime explained.
“I am not!”
“Philip can hardly be counted on!” Chime argued. “And from what Charlotte has said, he’s had multiple surgeries. It’s up to you now.”
Phoebe glared. “I wish I had been born later.”
“It’s not so great on the bottom, either.” Chime rolled her eyes, and then turned to Charlotte. “She must find a mate and they will be the next Faunus and Fauna.”
“Now you’re joking.” Charlotte laughed. She looked over at Phoebe, who was scowling at the sky.
“Phoebe?” Charlotte asked. “Is it true?”
Phoebe grimaced and kicked the dirt. She grunted and looked up, but then ran off into the woods.
“Chime.” Charlotte said. “I’ve never seen her act like that before. I think you went too far that time.”
Chime shrugged. “She has a responsibility, Charlotte. Somebody had to say it.”
“She’ll respect your honesty.” Charlotte said. “But I think she needs a friend to hear her out, too.”
Chime raised her eyebrows. “Are you asking or commanding?”
“Chime!” Charlotte snatched the tray out of her hands. “You know me better than that!”
“Fine.” Chime marched after Phoebe.
“Alright, good luck.” Charlotte headed towards the castle. She didn’t envy Phoebe. The survival of an entire species was a lot of weight to have on your shoulders, especially when you didn’t agree with how it worked.
She dropped off the tray in the kitchen, found an empty room near the portal, and quickly showered and changed into one of the three special outfits the fairies had left for her to help control the heat she emitted uncontrollably. Beau also had an outfit, but somehow he was the only one able to touch her skin to skin, so he didn’t wear it. She still wondered what exactly had happened that evening. The scars on Beau’s arms from her violent transformation still haunted her dreams. So did the ones she left on Evangeline during that long ride. She had controlled herself then, but it wasn’t enough. Even the clothes had not been enough that time.
Alcott and Barnabas were still busy in the hallway closet when she arrived to wait for her cousin. Charlotte leaned against the wall and thought of the day before. Josef had followed her around the castle all morning, eyes darting and hands fidgeting, until at last she had demanded that he tell her what was going on.
“Your father had a younger sister.”
She shuffled her papers. “Susan. She died a long time ago, right?”
“Right. You have a cousin who will be visiting tomorrow.” His voice trailed off.
“I don’t remember a cousin.”
“You were very young the last time you saw him.”
“Oh.” She flipped the next page over and signed the back. “What does he want?”
“He heard about what happened with your parents and he wants to introduce himself. Offer support. Be family.”
She dropped the pen. “How did he hear?”
Josef’s face had gone white. “Your father left me instructions to contact your cousin in case anything ever happened to him and your mother.”
“Of course. He needs to know.” Charlotte had clenched her fists and shook her head. “I can’t shake his hand, Josef. I’m a mess inside. What kind of family will I be to him?”
“I think he means to be there for you.”
Charlotte blinked and wiped away a tear. She focused back on the present and the two dwarves arguing over the portal in the closet. The closet was the size of a small room with a large rectangular platform in the center rear of the room. Alcott had a panel open on one side, and Barnabas was in the front working in another panel. There were four panels on the front, and three on the sides. Each panel had a different flower etched into it.
“It’s beautiful.” Charlotte leaned against the doorframe.
Barnabas and Alcott stood, and then bowed low.
“It’s good to see you, Charlotte.” Barnabas smiled. Charlotte loved how his face was covered with creases and his greying head of hair and beard were braided and tied off with thin strips of leather. He wore his Maguard suit of dark blue with gold buttons shaped like mountains. “The portal was for your father, whether he liked it or not. The flowers were for your mother.”
Charlotte stepped back out to the hall. “How is it going? Chime says it is giving you troubles.”
“We are still having problems with it. Some one has been tinkering with it.” Barnabas admitted. “But we will figure it out. Dwarves made the portals, you know.” He smiled and knelt to rub his hand over the top of the portal. “I enjoyed every moment I worked on this for your father. He would never admit it, but he did find it handy now and then.”
“I had no idea that he even used it.” Charlotte admitted.
Barnabas smiled fondly. “No, your father wouldn’t have told you much about it, let alone show you how to use it. He didn’t want you stumbling upon it when you were small, and then even when you were older he probably didn’t even think about it much.”
A voice laughed from the hallway. “No, I doubt it.”
They all turned to see two men standing behind them. Charlotte’s heart leapt straight to her throat and tears threatened her eyes. The speaker, who she guessed to be her cousin, could have been her father’s twin. He had short, wavy black hair and the same sea eyes her father had. He was dressed in a black suit with a striped black shirt and nice dress shoes. Across the bottom of his face was a week old five o’ clock shadow. His jacket was folded across his arm and an easy smile was flung across his mouth. Charlotte reminded herself to keep breathing. And standing. She wanted so badly for this ghost of her father to actually be him.
Barnabas stepped forward to hug the man. They slapped each other on the back. “It’s good to see you, David. It’s been such a long time.”
“Ah, years apart are nothing between old friends.” David laughed as they separated. He turned to Charlotte and his eyes softened a bit and a smaller smile lit up his mouth. “I should have thought to warn you, but I’m not sure words would have worked alone. You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” He tossed his jacket over his shoulder and extended a hand towards her.
She stepped back quickly and slammed into the doorframe. She felt her cheeks redden as she stepped to the side and back before addressing him. “Oh, I’m sorry. You must not know. I don’t shake hands anymore.”
He chuckled and stepped closer, bringing the smell of mint and tea with him. “It’s okay. My friend and I are wearing potholders for the occasion.”
Charlotte noticed then that they both wore gloves. She looked at him fearfully at first, then forcefully soon after. She shook her head firmly. “I’m sorry, but I don’t want to hurt you.”
He reached out and grabbed her hand. She gasped, her eyes widening in shock. He shook her hand firmly and then covered the top of her hand with his other hand. He squeezed her hand between his own, his eyes never leaving hers. “Now that’s better. I imagine you must miss this part, and what’s family for anyway?” He winked and pulled his gloves off to show her his hands. “Good to go.”
Charlotte continued her stare as the man smiled and stepped back. His friend stepped forward next and offered his hand. He wore a shoulder length head of red hair and a short beard. He was dressed in jeans, boots, a nice dress shirt and a dark pea coat. She pulled her hand into a fist at her side before releasing it. His hand stayed in the air between them, the offer of touch taunt
ing her. She lifted her hand to his, letting the tips of her fingers graze the tips of his. He slipped his hand into hers and for the slightest of seconds she felt like her fingers were remembering another handshake long ago. She pulled back from him quickly and the sensation vanished. The second man stepped behind her brother’s right shoulder.
“Daredevils are we, gentlemen?” She asked without any want of a reply. She shook her head at them before focusing back on David. “So you are one of my cousins? I’ve heard some stories of Aunt Susan, but I admit that they were a little vague. I don’t remember any mention of her having children.”
“Well, child.” David corrected. “Susan was a bit of a wanderer, and she couldn’t have done that with more than one.” He smiled warmly and looked over at his companion. “Before I jump into my story, I’d like to introduce you all to my friend, Vincent. He has a long story, but the short version is that I’ve been teaching him to use his weaver skills. He’s not much of a speaker at times.” David chuckled. “But when he does talk, you better watch out!” The men exchanged a glance before looking back at Charlotte.
“How did you get here?” Charlotte asked with a nod toward the portal.
David snapped his fingers. “Oh, I used a temporary portal that I had shipped to Alcott just in case. When I searched for portals in your area, yours was the only one I found and it was fuzzy. I don’t know about you, but I like to make sure all of me gets through safely.”
“You don’t just search for portals!” Barnabas exclaimed with a huff after glaring at his son. “It’s not like there’s a database for them!”
“Oh, there is one in the works. I’m on the board overseeing the entire project.” David said. “Barnabas, you must know how I feel about these things. What good is it to have portals if you don’t know where you can go?”
Barnabas shook his head. “I do know, but it doesn’t mean that I can agree. I know Isaac would not have.”
“David is one of the weavers who believes in meshing technology and magic. He’s quite talented, actually.” Alcott bragged. Alcott was the spitting image of his father, with the exception of having brown hair with just a twinge of grey. He wore a suit, as well, though his was blue with silver mountaintop buttons.
“Why, thank you, Alcott.” David beamed as they shook hands and hugged.
Barnabas turned to his son. “Not you, too.”
“Yes, father.” Alcott responded. “I think they are on to something.” He turned to Charlotte. “I believe David will be very helpful to have around. A lot is changing in the magical world, and we could use his help.”
Barnabas closed his eyes and stroked his long beard. He finally sighed and opened his eyes again. “You may be right, son. But for now I’d like to focus on getting this portal up. We can all discuss more of this at supper tonight.”
“I’ll show them to some rooms.” Charlotte offered, and they left the two dwarves to mumble over the portal. She walked quickly through the hall, turning her head to gauge the distance the men held behind her.
“I’d actually like to visit the library first if you don’t mind.” David mentioned the second time she looked back.
Charlotte stopped. She had planned to house them in guest suites, but it would be easier for her if they were out of the way. “Sure.” She answered with a smile. “In fact, you can stay in the adjoining family quarters.”
“Where do you sleep?” David asked, eyebrows raised and lips drawn tight.
“Wherever I find a place I like for the night.” She answered firmly before heading toward one of the two large staircases that joined the lobby to the second floor. She ran her hand over the mahogany banister as they descended, spilling her nervousness into the smooth wood.
“Charlotte?” David said behind her.
She turned to address him and noticed that she had left scorch marks where her hand had rested. She lifted her hand off the banister immediately and wrung her hands. She looked up to him. “Do you see now why you shouldn’t touch me?”
Charlotte let her eyes fall to the once perfect wood and felt another little part of her heart shatter. She picked up her pace again. David and Vincent quietly followed her. When they turned to follow the hall to the right wing, a couple of fauns breezed by, kicking a ball between them. Josef popped up and shouted as he ran after them. “Take your games outside where they belong!” He stopped when he saw Charlotte’s group. He paled, and his eyes widened. He straightened his tie. “Ah, David. I thought you were Isaac for a moment.”
David smiled and shook Josef’s hand. “Good to see you once more, Josef. I seem to have shocked Charlotte, too.”
Josef took a raggedy breath. “If you will excuse me, I have some stray fauns to kick out on the lawns.”
“Are you okay, Josef?” Charlotte asked.
“Hindsight can be cruel. Excuse me, dear.” He bowed and disappeared.
Charlotte reminded herself to check with him again tonight as she took her guests to the library. It was still and quiet, the sunshine was one of the few visitors it had had lately. Even Charlotte had stayed away after she had packed a few of her things. Standing in the library again tickled her senses with the smell of frankincense and books and parchment and ink. The smells delighted her nose and teased her memories of many childhood hours spent reading and playing in this room. She caught herself longing to be small enough again to hide under her father’s desk while he taught his classes. She remembered the polish of his shoes and the sound of his calming voice as it danced across the room to his students. Now the room held memories of secrets and farewells. She blinked and realized that she had gone quiet. Both men patiently stood in front of her. David smiled softly.
“Pardon me.” She said. “I got caught up in memories.” She calmed her breathing and blinked the memories away before smiling again. Her mother wouldn’t have lost a beat, but she struggled with being a proper hostess. “David, you and your friend can stay as long as you like. I’m not sure what you have in mind for helping, or how long it will take, but you have an open invitation to stay here as long as you don’t cause trouble.”
David’s eyes lit up and he laughed. “Do I look like trouble?”
“Oh, I didn’t mean to imply that you are trouble.” She corrected herself, but now she wondered if he was trouble. She tapped the edge of her father’s desk with her nails. “I recently invited the fauns to stay with us, and I have found that it was a much larger decision than I had originally anticipated.”
“You have a good heart.” David said as he dug something out of a pocket and handed it to Vincent.
“Not good enough to think about what that decision might do to my hobs.” She responded.
“Hindsight is a good teacher for the future.” David said.
“You even sound like Papa.” Charlotte said softly. She breathed deeply and blinked quickly.
“This is hard on you, I’m sorry for that. I wish I had had the foresight to think about what effect I might have on you.” David said as he sat down at the desk.
“Do you know how closely you resemble him?” She asked him.
“I’ve never given it much thought.” He said as he looked over at Vincent, who was inspecting the bookshelves. “Vincent, did you ever notice?”
Vincent turned to him and a quiet look Charlotte couldn’t read passed between them. Vincent turned back to the books while David turned back to her. “Vincent seems to agree with you.”
“Does this Vincent speak for himself?” She asked as she looked over at the man’s back. She saw a small shake of his shoulders, but he continued on without a word or look at her.
“He can be slow to warm.” David said with a grin. He reached across the space between them to squeeze Charlotte’s hand. She flinched and pulled away.
“And you’re slow to learn. You’ll have to learn to keep your distance if you expect to stay here long.”
“I’m not a distance person, Charlotte.” David said as he examined his gloves. “It’s not good for yo
u, either.”
“I’m aware.” Charlotte said as she stepped away. “But I’m afraid I don’t have much of a choice in the matter.” She stroked one of the books her father had left on his desk. It was one of his teaching manuals. She hadn’t the heart to put it away, and she had let Josef know she expected it to stay on her father’s desk for now.
She looked over at David and gave him a small smile that she hoped would help ease the awkwardness. “Were you one of Papa’s students? It is hard to pinpoint your age.”
“Yes, I was one of his earliest apprentices. We had our differences, but he was a phenomenal teacher.” He sat back in the chair at the desk and folded his hands behind his head.
“He was well loved by his students.” She said, trying to keep her voice under control. She had to talk about something else other than her father. The smell of his cologne still touched the items in this room. It was the same in her family’s quarters. Her mother’s perfume could set her to tears. “What exactly are you thinking about helping us with here?”
David sat forward. “I think you need me right now.”
“We do need to advance our technology at the castle.” She admitted.
David nodded slowly and locked his gaze with hers. “Yes. There is that. I heard that you were rebuilding and that you all had to improvise some technology recently. I can help bring you all up to speed and surpass even what most weavers know about technology and magic. It’s my specialty, as you have heard.” He put his elbows on the desk and clasped his hands. “I believe you will be leaving soon for the Alliance meeting? I will also be attending, and I’d like to travel with you and get to know you.”
“We appreciate any help you can give us.” Charlotte said. “I will introduce you to Wilhelm tonight. He’s in charge of the rebuilding and can work with you.” She paused. There was no reason he couldn’t go with them. “I’d like to get to know you, too. It will put my mind at ease knowing who is working here.”
“Oh, I know Wilhelm.” David laughed. “Better than you, I believe.” His teasing eyes sparkled again.
