Episode One Hundred and Ninety-Nine: Outside?

Worry weighed down on me through the chit chat while Onyx grilled the meat and served us all around the island.

It felt like I was torn in two different directions, between the conversations happening in front of me and wondering what I’d missed back home. Wondering what else had changed while I lived and worked in the shop.

Indigo leaped onto the counter just as we finished eating. I still had some steak and veggies on my plate, which I quickly lifted into the air as she skidded across the counter.

“Ah, want some food?” asked my dad, who quickly tossed her a piece of steak.

Her eyes grew wide as she chomped down on it.

I shook my head and set my plate on the counter behind me. It vanished. 

Indigo’s head snapped up, and she jumped off the counter and around the corner.

“Maybe it was too spicy,” said Onyx at the sudden action. “Well, I can get the fire started and we can relax outside.”

He headed out with my Dad on his tail, and I went upstairs to my room. It was exactly the same as my room at the shop. I snagged a hoodie from my closet. The first time I’d needed to wear something for warmth. There was still no sign of the Cat.

Indigo ate from my plate, which now rested on my floor. She glanced up. “So good! Steak good!”

“It is.” I mentally added some steaks to the shopping list. Maybe I could figure out how to do one in the oven or something. A grill wasn’t really something I wanted to learn how to use.

“We’re going to head out on the patio if you want to join us.”

“Outside?” she asked, before quickly gulping down the rest of the food.

“Yep, it’s like the rooftop deck.” If I said it enough, maybe I’d believe it.

After I quickly laced up my boots, and yanked my hoodie over my head, I exited my room. I closed the door behind Indigo as she followed me out. I did not need anyone to see how put together my room was.

A fire roared in the stone firepit as I slid open the slider, and I carefully stepped outside. It didn’t feel like the rooftop deck, yet as I placed my foot down warmth blazed from the flagstone.

Betty.

She was still here, right beneath my feet.

I confidently continued out and closed the door behind me. Indigo zoomed to the stone surround and leaped up, getting way too close to the flames.

“That might be warm,” said my Dad, but he didn’t grab her.

Indigo ignored him and curled up, staring at the flames with wide eyes.

Someone had grabbed cushions for the wooden chairs around the fire. Warmth rushed over my face as I approached.

“You really built a fire,” I said with a grin.

Onyx motioned to a stack of firewood near the grill. “There’s plenty of wood, and it feels good.”

“I love a good fire.” My Dad leaned back in his chair, his eyes still on Indigo.

“You always volunteered to tend the solstice fire.” I moved closer, each step warmer than the last. I sat near Dad as Onyx stayed standing.

“Onyx did it this year,” he added with a proud smile. 

“Oh, that had to be fun. I loved sitting with it till dawn with Dad.” 

Onyx gave me a tight smile and wouldn’t meet my eyes. “Maybe if you can get the holiday off, we can do it together.”

How he said it made me feel like he knew I wouldn’t be around for it.

Dad didn’t notice as he sipped on his tea.

Wood smoke lingered in the air, and I reached for my power. I let it wash out from inside me, drifting over to Onyx.

Yet, I didn’t have time to look at him, as my father lit up like a holiday tree. Golden light surrounded him, branching off in several directions. One of the lines lead directly to me, while another went to Onyx.

What the heck?

No one I had ever looked at had looked like this.

I blinked a few times as the glow faded. 

“Sable, you okay?” asked Onyx. He stared at me across the firepit.

I nodded. “Just a little distracted is all.”

Again, I reached for my power and directed it to my father. He blazed with golden light again, but this time I focused on the lines tracing outward. Especially the ones heading to me and my brother. 

These were golden ropes connecting us. They reached out from him and connected right to the center of our chests. I poked at it a little with my magic, but it just passed right through. Then they faded again as I let my magic sight go.

What did it mean?

“This is exactly what I needed,” said my dad. A giant smile covered his face as he glanced between the two of us. His mug of tea was still cupped in his hands. “My two favorite children.”

“You say that to all of us when we’re alone…” I added with a smirk. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Yet he chuckled a little. “Still, getting out of town for a while has been good, plus catching up with you. At least I can track you down, unlike your brother.”

“Aren’t you the one who encouraged him to chase his dreams, even if it meant climbing all the mountains in the world?” I glared at dad.

“Of course. I encourage all of my kids. They need to do what’s right for them. That doesn’t stop me from worrying about them.”

I melted a little.

“At least three out of five stick near home, for the most part…” 

“You could always have more kids,” added Onyx.

My dad spit out his tea and just missed Indigo. “Don’t send that out into the universe. We are done having kids.”

Indigo leaped away from the fire with a yowl, before padding to my Dad.

“Come on Onyx, the next kids will be Umbers’ and Jackie’s…”

Onyx looked thoughtful.

“Now, be careful saying stuff like that. They aren’t ready yet. Plus, Jackie is going to need to hit him with a shovel before he even realizes she likes him,” my father said, pointing at me and shaking his finger as he set his empty mug on the ground.

Indigo leaped onto his lap. She glanced at me with a head tilt.

“Sable’s just latching onto the idea that one of us will have a relationship like you and mom.” Onyx’s voice came out deeper than normal, and he stared into the flames. “Her path is all twisted and uncertain, so the idea that one of us will continue the trend of true love brings her peace.”

I jerked back at his voice, and swallowed hard. 

Jackie and Umber would make a fantastic couple, but I didn’t think it was true love like a fairy tale. Love was something you needed to work at each day, each of you putting in the effort to walk beside one another and be a team.

Did I want that someday?