Author: Wildbow

Gone and Done It – 17.5 | Pale

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Avery stirred awake as her mom sat on the corner of her bed.  She blinked a few times, then saw how serious her mom looked-

“Is Grumble dead?” she asked.

“What the fuck?” Sheridan asked, from the far side of the curtain that separated their room.

“Grumble’s fine.”

“Why the fuck are you going right to that?” Sheridan asked.  “Freaking dark.”

“Language, Sheridan,” their mom said.

Snowdrop, under the covers, moved next to Avery.  That was awkward.

“Sheridan, could you go have your shower?” their mom asked.

“I’m cozy and don’t have to get up yet.”

“Oh, I can guess what this is about,” Avery said, moving her covers so they didn’t make as noticeable a bulge around Snowdrop.  “It’s okay if Sheridan stays.”

“I don’t care if it’s okay, I’m not getting out of bed before I have to.”

“Thanksgiving?” Avery asked.  “And the deadline?”

“Yeah,” their mom said.  “We were supposed to talk about that.  But you’ve been busy with new friends, and friends from out of town.”

And fighting a secret wizard war.  “Yeah.”

“You okay with Sheridan listening in?”

“I trust her,” Avery said, sitting up.  She semi-crossed her legs, caught Snowdrop in the crook of her knee, and secured her between and beneath her knees.

Her mom put both hands over her heart.  “I love that.  That’s what being a sister should be.  I want to reward that, somehow, but-”

“Raise in allowance,” Sheridan said, out of sight on the other side of the curtain.

“-I dunno.  Keep that.”

“Raise in allowance, though,” Sheridan said.

“I want to have a serious discussion with Avery, Sheridan,” Avery’s mom said.  “We’ll talk about it after.”

“Whatever.”

“Right after waking up, huh?” Avery asked, while propping up pillows behind her back.

“We’ll talk after school, if you can please make the time?”

“I wanted to hang out with Nora after, before-” Avery paused.  In the corner of her eye, she could see her dresser, with her various things piled up on top of it.  Some with wards and connection blockers.  A pigeon and a squirrel were hiding in among the pictures she had on her dresser.

“-school,” she said, taking her eyes off them.

“If you could make the time, please?  Just to talk about expectations, making peace, and finding a healthier way to engage with your dad?”

The squirrel used its entire body to ease Avery’s drawer open, before dipping inside, the pigeon sticking its head out over top to watch, cocking its head to one side briefly.

“Maybe.”

“Have you talked to him?  Your dad?”

“Time sort of got away from me a bit,” Avery replied.  “No.”

“We’ve been talking a lot.  For what it’s worth, he’s listening to me, and I’d like to think I’m on your side.”

“Sure, yeah,” Avery said.  She could see the squirrel stick a bit of cloth out of top of the drawer, behind her mom, out of sight of Sheridan.  The pigeon and squirrel worked together to get the shirt free, then dropped it to the ground.

“And he’s been talking to an old coworker, who left the company a few years ago.  She has a trans son.  I know it’s not the same, but… similar?” Avery’s mom asked.

“Sorta.  That coworker’s last name isn’t Sadler, is it?”

“No.  Are you thinking of your friend Zed?”

“Yeah.”

“Jasmine mentioned Zed.  It’s not Zed.  He’s older.”

“Okay.  Because I didn’t get the impression Zed’s parents were great.”

The squirrel and pigeon dropped a bra and sweater onto the floor.

“Well, I would love to meet Zed if he was ever around.  But I do think your dad is trying, Avery.”

“It’s not just dad, you know?  It’s Declan, and Grumble.  It’s the atmosphere in the house.”

“Your dad pushed Declan to get a hobby.  We think more exposure to the world at large would be good for him.  He’s going to a programming club after school, to make games.”

“If that’s an all guy thing-”

“There’s girls in the club.  Including one your dad thinks Declan likes, even if Declan doesn’t realize he likes her.  I won’t lie.  I want to be honest, and we’re… it’s a struggle.  Declan might be sabotaging the club thing when he wants to come home and play games instead.  Your dad took away the system and limited computer time the second time he came home early instead of sticking it out.”

Avery nodded.

The squirrel and pigeon were picking out socks.  She didn’t match her socks, so they were working through the assortment to find the ones that did match.  Here and there, the pigeon shook its head.

“Grumble’s another story.”

“Yeah,” Avery said, voice soft.

“Whatever you end up deciding, if you want to tell him, if you want to keep it secret, whatever you wish, we’ll support you.  He loves you dearly.”

“More than he loves me,” Sheridan said.

“He loves all grandchildren the same,” Avery’s mom said, before shaking her head and pointing at Avery.  “I could see his love for you winning out and forcing him to change his mind.”

“I could see it not,” Avery replied.  “Which would suck a whole lot.”

“Yeah.”

“Okay,” Avery said.  The pigeon and squirrel were sorting out the clothes on the floor, straightening them out.  She wasn’t sure if she should let her mom know, or keep the conversation going.  Fuck.  Who were these jerks?  “So… what happens?”

“Your dad wants to take you out to dinner.  You and him, talking.”

Avery cringed a little.  “Ennnh.”

“You can say no, but I think you should say yes.  We’re already two and a half months into this experiment.  Time, like you said, it gets away from us, and it’ll get away from us faster as things move along.  If you don’t talk to him now, it’ll just speed on by, it’ll get easier and easier to not talk to him…”

Avery sighed.  “He’s being okay?  About stuff?”

“I think so,” Avery’s mom said.  “It will be a good chance to get away from a very crowded house, at least.”

“How crowded?” Sheridan asked.  “Wait, who’s coming?”

“Oh boy,” their mom said.  “Your aunts and their families, at least.  Uncle Declan might come but he’d stay at the motel.”

“Oh my god, what the hell?” Sheridan asked.

“Sheridan.  You’re being included on the sidelines here because Avery trusts you.  We’re having a different conversation.”

“Everyone’s coming?”

“Maybe.  Some of your oldest cousins are going elsewhere or staying home.  I’m tentatively discussing with Rowan that he might stay behind here in Thunder Bay, look after the apartment, work, and have his Thanksgiving with Laurie.”

“Could I sleep over at Lucy’s, maybe?” Avery asked.

“I think…” her mom seemed to pause, changing her mind.  “Maybe?  I’ll talk to your dad about it.  What I really want is family to be a family.  I love that you were willing to have Sheridan here for this conversation-”

“Allowance,” Sheridan said, barely audible.

“-and if you’re willing to work with us on this, in a way that’s… gosh, how do I put it?  If you’re willing to try this, give your dad a shot, give Declan a shot to show he’s changed, deal with or work around Grumble, communicate?  I want to know that you’re not just pulling away from the family as a whole.  If I can feel like we’re moving in that direction even with the sleepover, if Jasmine and Lucy are okay with it, then yes.”

Avery nodded.

“We can talk more after school.  Collect your thoughts.  I don’t want to bombard you with everything right after you woke up, but I do want to get you thinking about what we need to talk about.”

“Bombarded with… how many people in the house?” Sheridan asked.  “The usual eight, then Uncle Sean and Aunt Tracy, their kids, Aunt Clara, her boyfriend, and her five kids?”

“We’ll see,” their mom said.  “One of you should get in the shower.  Up for school.”

Avery glanced at the pigeon, eyes widening slightly.

Squirrel and pigeon vanished into the gap between the dresser and the chair with the wastebin between its four legs, just in time for Avery’s mom to turn around.

“Sher, can I take the first shower?” Avery asked.  “You can go downstairs if you need to, right?”

Sheridan hurried to get up out of bed, and before their mom was even out of the upper floor, Sheridan was closing the door behind herself.

So predictable.

Avery pushed the covers away, freeing Snowdrop.  Snowdrop became human and stalked forward as Avery did.

“You,” Avery said.  She moved the chair and wastebin with one foot, revealing the pigeon.

The squirrel was on top of the dresser.  Both pigeon and squirrel straightened up and saluted.

“Sootsleeves’ group?” Avery asked.

Both nodded.

“Did she put you up to this?”

The squirrel nodded and the pigeon shook its head.  They exchanged glances, then both shook their heads.

“What’s this about, then?” Avery asked.

The squirrel snatched up a tissue from the box of tissues, jumped onto the chair, then down to the pigeon.  It mimed draping the pigeon with the tissue, while the pigeon preened.

“Like a squire or something?” Avery asked.

The pigeon nodded while the squirrel shook its head, gesturing wildly.  They exchanged looks, and then the squirrel put up its hand, fingers splayed, gripping its wrist.

“Hand… servants?” Avery asked.

Both nodded.

“Don’t think I need that, don’t want it.  And don’t just intrude on my space, okay?  That was awkward, at an awkward time.  Can you leave the same way you got in?”

They nodded, then headed off toward the stairwell.

The squirrel came back, carrying a boot.

“That’s my mom’s,” Avery said.  “I don’t think she wears them.”

The squirrel put the boots by the clothes, paused, holding up a finger.

“No.  Seriously, I’m not waiting for you to get the other one.  Go.”

The squirrel looked dejected, then ran off.

“And come again,” Snowdrop said.  “I’ll happily include you.  You’d be helpful, covering gaps I can’t.  We need more animal rep.”

Avery shook her head.  She let Snowdrop out onto the porch outside, then returned to her bedside to get her phone and checked her messages.

Fernanda:  (4 days ago)
i was told i have to stop talking to you.
we’re on opposite sites
will talk again when things are done ok?

Avery: (4 days ago)
for sure.  ❤

Zed: (7 hours ago)
Alls good. Brie is still ok. But she made a hollow and we have to put something in it.

Raquel:  (6 hours ago)
I’ve been listening to this song from Claudias on repeat and I can’t stop.
Help.
Help.

Jude: (6 hours ago)
(10 prior messages)
my entire literal family thinks you are literally insane.  people don’t do these things on purpose!

“Who were you talking to?” Sheridan asked, as she poked her head out of the bathroom.

Avery held up her phone.

“Huh.  You know, if we made a concerted sisterly effort I think we could get mom to give in on the allowance thing.”

I have a crazy amount of money, Avery thought.  But you’ll be annoying if I don’t, so…  “Sure.”

“You don’t need to talk to me about anything, do you?”

“Nah.”

“Okay.  Really fucking dark that you thought Grumble was dead.”

“She looked all serious.  Are you done?  Can I pee?”

“No and no.  Go out onto the porch where you’re hanging out all the time anyway, use a shrub.”  Sheridan closed and locked the door.

“I could get arrested!” Avery called out past the door.

“Good!  Then I’d get my whole room back!”

Avery went downstairs, ate, dropped off some fruit for Snowdrop, then went up to shower.  She emerged, wrapped in her towel, and looked down at the outfit the pigeon and squirrel had laid out for her.  A dark green turtleneck she’d been meaning to wear, jeans, and the old boot with enough scuff marks they looked like part of the boot.  A pair of small hoop earrings were set out on the collar of the turtleneck, and they didn’t look like Sheridan’s, and Avery barely owned anything like that.

It probably looked super nice and she wasn’t about to validate them by wearing it.  She put the sweater back, put the boot aside, tossed the rest of the clothes they’d picked out into the used laundry hamper, and got her favorite hooded sweatshirt, before getting dressed.

“Need a ride?” her mom asked.

“I think I’ve got it handled!” Avery called out, grabbing the last of her stuff and pulling a jacket on.  “Bye!”

“Talk to you later!  Please!”

Avery jogged partway down the street before slowing.  “Sootsleeves, Sootsleeves, Sootsleeves.”

She walked another block before Sootsleeves peeled up.  Avery leaned over the door of the convertible.

“I think two of your servants stopped in.  We might need to talk about boundaries.”

“What did they do?” Sootsleeves asked.

“Picked out my clothes for the day.  Invasive and weird.”

Sootsleeves smiled.  “They’re bored.  I told them to find ways to make themselves useful.  You’re an ally of my kingdom.”

“They know a lot about how I dress, and what boots my mom wears, and how to get in.”

“It’s their thing.”

“Spying!?”

“Knowing details.  I haven’t been spying on you, don’t worry.”

“Okay…” Avery said, trailing off while she tried to think of what to say.  “Not inside my house, okay?”

“Alright.  I’ll put the word out.”

“Did you make a decision?  About the founding?”

Sootsleeves nodded.  “We’ll contribute.  No guarantee we’ll stay, but we’ll do our part.”

Avery nodded.  She reached into her pocket and pulled out the rings that had been left with her clothing.  “Here.  The pair left these with my clothes.”

“Lost have a hard time holding onto things.  Doubly so when we’re poor.  Hold onto that.”

Avery closed her hand around the jewelry.  “Okay.”

“Want a ride?” Sootsleeves asked.  She moved some fast food wrappers off the passenger seat.

Avery, hand on the top of the door, dropped her bag onto the back seat, hopped over the side, landed in the passenger seat, and buckled in.

It was a nice little distraction from thinking about future conversations she didn’t want to dwell too much on.

Florin Pesch was standing on the sidewalk outside of Avery’s school when she emerged, Nora and a group of her friends around her.  He was dressed in his usual style, with a white sweater with a navy blue band just past the v-shaped collar, blond hair with a very wavy swoop at the brow, very straight, narrow slacks, and shoes that were- were they wingtips?  She didn’t know about shoes that weren’t for sports.

Avery stopped in her tracks as she saw him.

“Problem?” Putnam asked.  Avery’s teammate.  Putnam spotted Florin.  “You know him?”

“Yeah.  Hm…”

“Who is he?” Nora asked.

“An- he mentored me a bit, when I first came to Thunder Bay.  Give me a minute?”

“Sure,” Nora said.

“We’ll pester your friend with questions,” Mayaa said.

“Oh no,” Nora said, eyebrows drawing together.  “Don’t take long.”

“If you bother Nora, I can quit the team and tell Artrip it’s your fault,” Avery told them.

“He would tie me spread eagled to the lacrosse goal without gear on and make the team use me as target practice,” Mayaa said.

“The way you all talk about him is spooky,” Nora said.

“Using us as target practice, alternating between screaming and wailing,” Putnam added.  “Our anxiety ratcheting up and up as he goes longer and longer without breathing.”

“Crying blood,” Harper added.

“He wouldn’t do any of that, I’ve seen the crying blood thing and I don’t think he qualifies to do that, but hey, good mindset,” Avery said.  “Keep thinking along those lines.”

“He’d have to cry blood and become a vessel for some alien thing to show how furious he is,” Putnam said.

“How displeased,” Harper said.  “That sounds cooler.”

“How in the fuck does displeased sound cooler?” Putnam asked.

“Because you have to have the difference, right?  The wider the difference is?” Harper asked.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“If you’re like, I’m going to skin your face to show how ticked off I am then that’s way cooler than skinning faces because of your unholy fury.  Disproportionate!”

“That’s so dumb.  Mayaa, tell her it’s dumb.  Or Nora, help.”

“I’m not getting between you two,” Mayaa said.  “Don’t get between them, Nora.”

“Take a side, Nora!  Don’t be a chicken.”

“I agree with Harper.  Contrast.”

“Contrast!  That’s the word I was going for!”

“Look, all of you, I don’t care,” Avery said.  “Be nice to my- Nora.”

My Nora.  She’d been caught between friend and girlfriend and then had gone another route to be safe without realizing what she’d already said.  Dumb dumb dumb.

“We’ll be nice to your Nora!  Don’t quit the team!” Harper jumped in.  “Want five dollars, Nora?  Backrub?”

“Footrub?” Putnam offered.

Nora’s eyes went wide as Harper started rubbing at her shoulders through her coat.  Or because of the ‘my Nora’ thing.

Avery mentally kicked herself for the verbal misstep.

“That counts as harassment!” Avery said, pointing and walking backwards.  “Cut it to about ten percent of what you’re doing.”

“Half a percent,” Mayaa said.

Avery headed toward Florin.  Then she realized he’d seen her with friends.  Fuck fuck fuck.

“Apologies.  I know this is awkward,” he said.

“They set you free?”

“I swore the oaths they wanted me to swear.  I’ll be leaving, I won’t seek retribution, I won’t deliberately act against Thunder Bay or her supporters, and I won’t knowingly lend succor to her enemies.  I also owe three favors at a later date.  In exchange for that, they’re letting me leave with my possessions and a few minor concessions.”

Avery nodded.  “You’re leaving, then?”

“I will be in the region, just not in Thunder Bay itself.  I asked and obtained permission to say necessary goodbyes and make sure that some important contacts remain intact, they asked me to follow some rules around that.  I thought I’d include you in those necessary goodbyes.”

“Okay,” Avery said.  She put her hands in the pockets of her sweatshirt.

“I’ll be looking for my next big venture.  In the interest of not burning bridges…” he trailed off.  He reached into a pocket, and pulled out a business card.  “Here.”

She took the card.  When Florin drew a circle in the air with a finger, she turned it around.  ‘1 favor‘ was written in cursive.  Below it, in the same cursive but a small, just as tight script, was: within reasonable bounds and procedures.

“Not included in the three favors I promised the council.  You could have been crueler about things.  Thank you for not leaving me where you put me.”

“Sure.  I’m not that kind of person.”

“Most aren’t, and then they find themselves trending in that direction when it’s convenient and the stakes are high.  It would have been easy to do and the stakes have been high for weeks now.  Consider that favor a thank you for not getting there yet.”

“Okay,” Avery said.  She went to put it away, then paused.  She held up the card.  “Ulterior motives?”

“Always.  If you aren’t utilizing the ulterior, you aren’t trying hard enough.”

“Why?  Do I need to worry?”

“The favor you ask for often gives me a lot of information about what is going on.  And I believe in connections.  That’s mainly it.”

“Okay.”

“The council has halved in size.  They’ll bring in others, I believe.  Ann, Deb, Odis and Thea aren’t the types to pat you on the back or let you know you’ve impressed them, but from the way they talk about you, you put on a good showing.  I know the politics don’t interest you, but maintain your footing.”

“My footing?”

“On the council.  Within the structures they have in place.  Vote, participate, pay attention.”

“I’ll keep that in mind, I guess.”

“I know you’re leaving for a holiday.  A major ritual?  I wondered if you’d tell me after that last bit of advice.  Good for you, that you didn’t.”

“Who let it slip?”

“The council.  You checked with them?”

Avery shrugged.

“Perhaps one day, when I’m closer to Odis’ age and you’re closer to Ann’s age, you’ll want to come to me for advice on seizing a lordship for yourself.  We could have tea as friends.  Be sure to use that favor well before then, though.”

Avery put it in her pocket.  “Maybe.  I guess I’m on the lookout for allies.”

“Aren’t we all?  Take care of yourself, deer.  King concedes,” Florin said.

“That’s super dorky.”

“You’re one to talk,” he said.  He turned to leave, hand raised in a little wave, walking back to his car.

Avery turned back toward her friends, and saw Putnam and Harper jump over and hug Nora from either side, while Nora looked bewildered.  Putnam motioned, and Mayaa joined in on the group hug.

“You’re such goobers,” Avery told them.

“We’re being nice to Nora.  Don’t quit the team!”

Avery reached over, took Nora’s hands, and pulled her away from the group.  “You’re safe.”

“You’re mysterious.  Meeting weird people,” Nora said.  “Running off on errands.”

“Isn’t she!?” Mayaa asked.  “You’ve noticed that too?”

“Bye!” Avery told her other friends.  She pushed lightly on Nora’s shoulder to get her walking away from the main group.  “See you Monday or Tuesday!”

“Irish mafia?” Harper asked.

“Aliens!” Putnam piped up.

“Bye!”

They walked far enough away that they were free of the group.

Avery could see Hui and Jeanine leaving school over her shoulder, avoiding the group of other girls.  She gave Jeanine a wave.  Jeanine didn’t wave back.

“Feels like it’s been a while,” Nora said.

“Sorry,” Avery replied.  “Let’s hang out after we’re back.”

Nora nodded, and turned her head, glancing back over her shoulder.  Her dad was out of sight, in the kitchen.  Nora sat on a cushion on the floor, while Avery sat on the couch.  Their homework was in front of them, but they were barely doing it.

“I feel weird around your friends.  Like… it’s hard to get a word in.”

“A lot of them do this thing where they try to play off each other, sometimes it’s great, and they’re funny as heck.  And sometimes it’s all of them trying to be louder and quippier than the others and it’s like, oh my god, shut up,” Avery said.  “And it’s like, go off.  I’ll be here when you’re done.”

“It’s cool.  Except I feel like every time I interact with them, the moment I’m out of the room, they’re all ‘she’s so quiet’.  Or worse.”

“Pretty sure they’re not like that.  Just give them an audience and they’ll love you, I bet.”

“It’s weirrrrrd,” Nora said, eyes going wide.  She turned her head as her dad stepped into the doorway.  “You’ve made more friends in a month and a half than I’ve made in my life, here.”

“It’s the team.  It’s like… my friends from back home were talking about how Verona’s mom joined a church to have a community.  If you do that right, instantly you have a bunch of friends.  And sports are kind of a church too, maybe?”

Avery kept pausing, waiting for Nora’s dad to join the conversation or say something.  She looked at him at the end, letting the question hang.

“Does your friend need a ride?” he asked.  He had keys in hand.

Nora looked at Avery, who asked, “Am I being asked to leave?”

“No,” Nora’s dad said.  “I’m going out, I can drop you off.”

Avery shook her head.  “I’m good.  Thank you.”

“Okay.”

“Bye, Dad,” Nora said.

Avery turned her head and watched out the front window as he left.

“Is he okay?” Avery asked.

“Just… vibes.”

“He’s fine.  Living his life.”

“Okay,” Avery said.

She was very aware at how quiet Nora’s house was.  Nora’s family was out.

The air felt electric with that realization.  It didn’t take Nora long to seem to pick up on it.  Or maybe she’d been aware and she was reading Avery.

“Want to watch a movie?” Nora asked, picking up the remote to turn on the TV before getting an answer.

“Sure,” Avery said.  She flopped sideways, moved a cushion, and put it under her head.  She watched as Nora flipped through the available movies in the online catalogue.  Nora sat down, only belatedly realizing Avery was lying down behind her.  She shifted her seat, sitting on the very front edge of the couch cushion, instead of against Avery’s legs.

“Oh.  I remember hearing that title.  Gosh Golly Gosling, Dodgeball Darling?”

“You want to watch it?”

“I dunno… I was at a store once, and the employee said it was supposed to be playing, but what I saw was pretty violent and obscene.”

“Tags: psychological, crime, postmodern, sports.  Thirteen plus.  I could see that being violent and obscene, I guess?”

“I think those are the wrong tags.  And I’m certain what I saw wasn’t that movie.”  It was Breastbiter.

“Want to watch?”

“I think I could watch whatever, and I’d be good.  So long as we’re watching together.  Lie down?” Avery asked.  She tugged lightly on Nora’s sleeve.

“Uhh.”

“Nothing nefarious, nothing rude.  I think I want to date a lot more before getting into that.”

“Okay.  We’ve barely done any, technically.”

“Technically we’ve gone shopping, got food, had homework dates.”

“Loose definition of date,” Nora said.

“Just… cuddle?  Or is that too much?  You could lie down the other way, head on the other side of the couch.”

“It’s just awkward.  If either of my parents get back…”

Avery reached for Snowdrop, calling her over.  “I think it’s okay.”

Nora let herself tilt to the side, lying with her back to Avery’s front.

“Still can’t see your face,” Avery said.

“I’d be too chicken of lying face to face like that.”

“Or face to side-face?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay.”  Avery squirmed a touch, getting comfortable, squished between Nora and the back cushions.

Nora put the movie on.  “Can you see?”

“Sorta?”

“Tell me if you can’t.  You could get a cushion… bottom of the couch.”

Avery raised her head up, then she and Nora both used their feet to kick and maneuver the mini-cushion, with both of them trying to be the one to get it between their feet for a little bit.

Both of them jumped, dropping the cushion, as the woman on TV slapped a ruler down on the desk.  “Are you cheating, Mr. Ager?”

“Scared me,” Nora said.

Avery got the cushion between her feet, then maneuvered it to her reaching hand.  She put the cushion under her head, so she could see past Nora’s head and shoulder to the screen.  Nora’s locs framed the bottom end of things.  Avery could smell whatever Nora used to keep them looking nice.  Moisturizer or whichever.  She’d looked it up a bit after talking with Nora about the terminology of ‘dreads’ vs. ‘locs’.

She put a hand on Nora’s side.  “You good like this?”

Nora nodded.  “You?  Can you see?”

“Yeah.  I’m good, I see.”

The movie kicked off with the main character and his friends being horrible people.  Cheating, helping others cheat, helping others cheat on their relationships by providing alibis, smuggling drugs into school.

Enter the love interest, who faked a school-wide locker search and went through the school with two adults in police uniforms, cutting off locks and looting the lockers.  Love at first sight, as Roger watched the audacity from a hiding spot.

“Where’s the goose?” Avery asked.  “Gosh golly or whatever?”

“No idea.”

The main character wanted to get into a top school, his friends all had their own reason for joining a sports team.  One wanted to have something to help them dodge time in juvie, another wanted to impress their dad, the love interest wanted the prize money.  Everyone was gathered at a picnic bench in at the waterside.

“None of us are good at sports,” the dad-impresser said.

“We’re going to cheat, intimidate, and win at any cost.”

“What is this movie?” Avery asked.  “Where’s the goose?”

About thirty seconds later, a third of the way into the movie, a goose attacked a small child.  The group broke into laughter, pointing as the child screamed and fled in terror, while being pecked at and bullied by the goose.

They had their mascot.

Avery didn’t want to move.  She didn’t want to break the spell or ruin this moment.  If she moved her hand, she worried Nora would call it quits or something.  She’d meant what she said about wanting to wait, and wanting to take a more natural path of dating to other stuff, but she could see where the signals and cuddling like this would spook someone like Nora, when Nora was skittish.

She didn’t want to breathe too hard, but trying to hold back combined with everything else made her feel faintly dizzy.  Her eyes studied Nora’s ears and the piercings in the ear, the locs, and Nora’s shoulder.

Her thoughts wandered over in the direction of Nora’s parents and the situation there, and her own dad, and his reaction.  Grumble.  Even Declan, or the wider family.

Man, everyone was coming to Thanksgiving.

Lying like this, Nora right there in front of her, it felt like maybe the best space she could have to go through those thoughts and consider all the options while not feeling like she was… betraying herself?

Like thinking too hard about concessions or not telling Grumble without a constant, cozy reminder of what she wanted and who she was would lead her to the an endpoint she regretted.

In the movie, the peeping tom of the group used his talents to track opposing players, getting their details.  It reminded Avery of surveilling the Kennet Others and pulled her out of her thoughts some, getting her more focused on the film.

Envelopes were dropped off for parents with secrets revealed, favors were called in to strand a key player on vacation, so they couldn’t get back for a game.

Avery thought of things she wanted to say to her dad.  Frustrations she wanted to express.  About Grumble.

It was heavy, sure, but nothing could feel that heavy, like this.

We’re supposed to reconnect to Kennet.  I barely have any time to do that.

I guess I have to have that dinner with my dad.

Two teams were left in the tournament.  The reveal happened in slow motion.  The other team was also using resin to make their hands sticky.

The other team was cheating too.  Flashbacks revealed how dramatic and extensive the other team’s efforts had been, the little sabotages.  Upset family members.

“There’s nobody left to root for,” Avery murmured.

“Hmm?  Yeah.”

“I like this dodgeball variant though,” Avery said.  The game had it so eliminated players went behind the enemy team and firmly caught balls released a player from the back.

With both teams cheating to catch more balls, stamina became more of an issue.  Overtired players started to get injured.

“We want to substitute a player!” the main character declared.  The music got dramatic.  The other team’s lead narrowed his eyes.

“Golly!”

“You cannot sub in a goose,” the referee said.

“The rules say we can sub in anyone on the team list for any position.  And our mascot is on the team list.”

“Front and back.  Not-“

“The rules say.”

The discussion went to the panel of refs.

“I have no idea what’s going on,” Nora said.

“I get you.”

“Did you seriously train a goose to play dodgeball?” the opposing team lead asked.

“We trained the goose, sure,” the main character said.

And he had.  The rules meant the goose could ‘catch’ the balls by maintaining wing contact.

But there were more than one ball in play.  The opposing team’s captain took aim- threw hard.

And the goose went to headbutt it.  Its neck broke in two places.

“Trained it to do that, with a lighter ball,” the main character whispered to the camera, turning his back on the scene, pretending to be horrified, while a smile crept across his face.  “And now you’re disqualified.”

The movie ended with a montage.  The cheaters got everything they wanted, mostly, and the screen moved to a tombstone with a goose on it.  ‘Cheaters prosper in this world’.

“This is a horrible movie,” Avery said.  “Reminds me of something a certain possibly sociopathic, aspiring moviemaker I know might make.”

“I was barely paying attention,” Nora said.  “But what the hell?”

“Were you dozing off?”

“No,” Nora said.  She twisted around, and turned so she was facing Avery.  Their noses would have been almost touching, but Avery’s head was raised some.  “The opposite.”

They lay like that for a bit, eyes searching each other’s faces.

“I feel like I’m going to explode, like this.  In more ways than one,” Nora whispered.

Avery nodded.  “Would it be a fiery explosion?  Or a bloody one?”

“Bloody, probably.  My heart going pop and taking the rest of me out.  Can you feel it through the rest of the couch?”

“I thought you had to be able to.”

“Nope.  I kind of want to see the bloody explosion.  You know, without you dying.  Sounds very dramatic.”

“Very,” Nora murmured.

Avery brought her head down and kissed Nora.  “Closer to explosion?”

“Pow.  I’m a goner.  Nice to know you.”

“Pow,” Avery echoed Nora.

“I’ve also had to go to the washroom since before the movie started but I didn’t want to ruin anything by getting up and leaving.”

“Oh my god, go,” Avery said.  She used her knees and hands to push Nora toward the edge of the couch.  “Go, get that done.  Come back.  I’ll be here.”

Nora resisted a bit, but then she tipped over, falling onto the floor.

“That was dangerous,” Nora said, as she lay on the carpet beneath the couch.

Nora ran upstairs.

Avery flopped over onto her back.  Body heat had raised her temperature and she felt like she’d just wrapped up gym class, just by lying there.

Very weird, being in someone’s house, when they weren’t here.  Especially when the vibe was so different from her own house.

Here, everything had its place.  Here, the Declan-age kids put their things away.

Her eyes roved over pictures and art, taking in the general feeling of Nora’s family.

What was even the vibe of home?  She thought of the apartment, the curtain divider.  She tried to think further back, and it was hard to get past the feeling of the atmosphere.

Nora came back downstairs.

“That was fast.”

“I think I might have hurt myself, hurrying.”

“Oh my god,” Avery said, laughing a bit, hand at her face.

Nora sat at the other end of the couch.  Then, like a concession, for not immediately returning to snuggling like they had been, brought her legs over.  They tangled their legs together, feet resting against one another.  Avery grabbed Nora’s big toe, then let it go.

“Were you… exploding?” Nora asked.  “You okay?”

“I’m okay,” Avery replied.  “Not exploding exactly.  I’m… okay.”

“Wow, faint-”

“No no no.”

“Faint praise?  Not praise.”

“No, really, it’s not- it’s not bad.  I- let me explain,” Avery said.

“Okay,” Nora said, settling in, arms folded.

“Just… when I think back across my entire life, the scenes that stick in my head, they’re mostly arrivals and departures.  Or me running around, you know?”

“Arrivals and departures?”

“Yeah.  Like, going to practice, running at practice, hurrying home, maneuvering around family, trying to get my share of food, trying to get to the bathroom in time, trying… all that stuff.  Busy, constant.  Homeschool events every other day, to socialize, clubs, visiting houses, traveling to my friend Olivia’s, in Tripoli, her showing.  Making my new friends, Lucy and Verona, then trying to catch up to their friendship, sorta?  Like, getting to where I fit in, gotta bustle, gotta work at it, while it’s casual for them.  They’ve been friends forever.  You get the vibe?  Coming and going.”

Nora nodded.  “Coming to Thunder Bay.  Leaving on errands.”

“Yeah,” Avery said, barely audible.  “Leaving for this weekend.  Then while I’m there, the woman who introduced me to Verona and Lucy is… you could call it a grand arrival.”

“Is she coming out?”

“Almost?  Kind of?” Avery replied.

Nora nodded.  “You’re mysterious sometimes.”

“I am.  I really want to tell you stuff.”

“Is it better if I think of this as you being some up and comer in the mafia, like Harper said, or aliens, like Sophie Putnam said?”

“Hmmm.  I’m not sure either of those are great.”

“I know it’s probably a lot more boring than that.”

“I’d tell you if I could.  I’d like to get to where I can show and tell you, later.”

“Got a few laters, huh?” Nora asked.  She moved her head, leaning it sideways against the back cushion of the couch.  With a hand, she moved some of her hair out of her face, flipping it back over her head.  “Later for rude stuff, later for some secrets.”

“Is that okay?” Avery asked.

“I’ve got my own later.  Telling my family.”

“No pressure.  Don’t feel you have to… be fair,” Avery said.

“Yeah.”

“This is okay, right?  Where we’re at?  At least for now?”

“This is…” Nora paused, searching for the words, eyes roving.  “I might be happy for the first time since I can remember and I don’t know how to handle it.”

Avery reached over and grabbed Nora’s foot, because it was the only thing really in reach.

“And you’re okay?” Nora asked, quiet.  “Just okay?”

“I’m okay and- and what I was saying before?  Always coming and going and anxious and restless and busy?  With you, I feel like I’m finally, finally not doing all that.  Like everything’s still.  I’m okay being still, and that’s…”

Avery searched for the word.  She couldn’t quite find it.

“…Big.  So big.”

“Good.”

Avery nodded.  “I could stay on this couch like this for a long, long time.”

“But you’ve got to go?  Late Thanksgiving?”

Avery nodded.  “Late first Thanksgiving.  Then we go across the border next month to my Uncle Sean’s for second, American Thanksgiving.”

“And this woman’s coming out?”

“Yeah.  Miss.”

“Miss?  That’s her name?”

Avery nodded.  “Or title.  It’s always been so important to me that I not, like… lie.  I never really hid that I’m a lesbian from my family.  But I didn’t tell them either.  And I want to keep doing that here.”

“So don’t ask?”

“Just… trust?” Avery asked.

Nora slouched a bit where she was lying down.  “I’ve got this cool, strawberry blonde, athletic, friendly, cool, beautiful girlfriend and I’m just this gloomy lump-”

“You’re not!  You’re beautiful.  You’re eco goth witch intense, in the best way, I think.  You playing the drums like you were is- it’s like it’s burned into my brain.  I feel lucky I’m with you, and I’m just this girl who runs fast.”

“-point is, I feel lucky, so I can put up with a little weirdness, so long as it’s not going to ruin things.  For now.”

Avery nodded.  She moved her leg so it pushed Nora’s leg aside, so she had a better look at Nora’s face, to look at her more seriously.  “How long is for now?”

“I dunno.  But I feel like if I come out to my family, sometime, the clock might start ticking?  Maybe?  I can see myself starting to feel anxious if I’m trusting you like that and you’re not trusting me back.”

“It’s not like that.”

“Okay,” Nora replied.  “I don’t think I’m ready to come out to my family anytime soon, anyways.  Sorry.”

“Don’t apologize!” Avery exclaimed.  She poked at the bottom of Nora’s foot, then poked again.  Nora moved her foot to dodge the jabs.

“I have this horrible feeling,” Nora said.  “Like you’re going to leave to go home and something will happen, and that’s it.  I’ll never see you again.”

Avery sat up, to better study Nora’s face.  “Lately it’s been the other way around.  People leaving my town and not going back.”

“I just worry,” Nora said.  “But I’m a worrier.”

Avery untangled her legs from Nora’s, bringing them down to the floor, then leaned over Nora, pausing for a moment, faces close, until Nora nodded slightly.  They kissed.

“I promise,” Avery whispered.  “That I’ll be back.  You’ll see me again.”

“Okay.  Good,” Nora replied.  She took hold of the collar of Avery’s shirt and pulled her down.  They kissed again, and then segued into a longer make-out session.

A few minutes in, the signal came from Snowdrop.

Avery broke contact, sitting up, then let her butt slide from the couch’s edge to the carpet below.

“What?” Nora asked.

“Someone just pulled into the driveway,” Avery said.  She moved homework to be in reach, then passed a notebook to Nora.

“You heard?” Nora asked.

Avery winked.

A minute later, the door opened, barely audible, and Nora’s little brothers came tearing through a second later.  They stopped in the doorway, looking, before hurrying off in the direction of the kitchen.

“Shoes off!  Shoes off!” Nora’s mom said, only a second behind them.  “Hello.  Oh, hi Avery.”

“Hi,” Avery replied.

“Are you staying for dinner?”

“No, I’m actually leaving with my mom to go back to my hometown for the weekend.  Late Thanksgiving.”

“Oh, that’s lovely.  Luke!  Henry!  Shoes!  Off!”

Then Nora’s mom was gone, moving on.

“I would not have heard her come in,” Nora whispered.  “How did you know?”

“Basically magic,” Avery whispered.

“Oh, so not mafia-”

“I’m not a bad guy.”

“And not aliens?”

“Don’t think they’re involved.”

“Magic.  Got it,” Nora murmured.  Her eyes studied Avery’s face carefully.  “I’ll go with that for now, I guess.”

Avery looked out over the side of the patio, as the neighborhood went about their business.  Two young boys were raking leaves, one boy holding two rakes and awkwardly trying to claw up leaves between them to dump in the paper bag.

“I’ll have that dinner with dad.  Bit of a break from what I’m guessing will be a very full house.”

“Okay,” Avery’s mom said.

“And for Grumble… I don’t think I’ll say anything, but I won’t lie either.  If someone brings it up…”

“Okay.  If anything comes up related to that, your dad and I will support you.  Whether it’s with Grumble, cousins, your aunts and uncles.”

“Dad will?” Avery asked.

“Yeah.  Of course.”

Avery nodded to herself, before sighing.

“Anything else you want to cover?  Working this out before we go home?”

“If it goes bad… I’d like to go to Lucy’s.  And maybe even skip the big dinner.”

“Okay.  I’ll call Jasmine in advance.  Make sure it’s okay.”

“She said I have an open invitation.”

“We’ll call.  To be doubly sure you have that exit if you need it.”

“Okay.  And I want to spend time with Lucy and Verona.  Even if everything’s cool.  There’s stuff we want to do.  I know that’s rude, family in town, but…”

Her mom nodded.  “Okay.”

“Thanks.  For not making this difficult.”

“I worried, dropping this on your lap first thing, that it would be a shadow over the day.”

Avery shook her head.

“But I worried more that if I didn’t bring it up and dropped it on you just before we left, it would be more panic inducing.”

“It’s okay.”  It’s my fault, for connection blocking as much as I have been, leaving to go deal with the Lordship problem.

“Hug?”

Avery hugged her mom.  “Thanks for not making this tricky.”

“It’s okay.  Are you all packed?”

“Just about,” Avery said.  She looked around.  Her bracelet wasn’t acting up.  “Can I borrow those old boots?  That are scuffed and stuff?”

“From when I worked with your dad on the landscaping?”

“Yeah.”

“Do they fit?”

“Apparently.”  And I have glamour if I need it, to resize.

“Sure.  Don’t take too long to get ready, okay?  We need to leave before too long or we’ll be driving most of the way in the dark.”

“Tell me Sheridan’s not driving.”

“She can’t on the highway.  Maybe on the side roads if we’re making good time.”

“Oh no.”

Avery’s mom stroked Avery’s hair as she got up.  “Get set, okay?”

Avery nodded.

She got up, and waited for her mom to get busy taking stuff down to the car before getting Snowdrop from the hedge.

While she was doing it, Snowdrop’s head turned, attention caught by a figure on the sidewalk.  Avery looked.

Miss.  Her back to Avery while she looked around the neighborhood.

She got connection blockers out, then placed it on the big whiteboard in the kitchen to block attention, so there wouldn’t be any questions or prying eyes.

She headed downstairs, walking outside.

“Miss?” Avery asked.

“Yes,” Miss replied.  She walked as Avery approached, standing by a tree, branch obscuring face.  “I hope this isn’t an imposition.”

“No.  The others said you were coming.  You saw the Lord?”

“The fact you helped as much as you did means your friends get a lot of leeway, I suspect.”

Avery nodded.

“It’s hard to coordinate,” Miss added.  “I can’t see you often unless we cross paths.  Alpeana can’t connect us in dreams, and it’s a distance to travel.  You seem taller and more whole.  More of a Path Runner, too.  Both of you.”

Snowdrop went over to Miss, walking over to a point where she could see Miss’s ‘face’, and hugged Miss.  Miss set a hand on Snowdrop’s head.

“Is it happening?” Avery asked.

“Soon.  It will have to happen this weekend.  While you’re there, while certain windows of opportunity are open.”

“Okay,” Avery said.  “What’s the line of thought?”

“That we’ll need to decide where I’ll be departing from, before my arrival in Kennet.”

“The Path you’re coming from.”

“Yes.”

Avery nodded.  “You okay?  You good with this?  I know you’re taking on a pattern and everything.”

“It’s a chance of getting what I dreamed of.  And a chance of losing so much of what I hold dear.”

“I get you, I think.”

“There are a few locations in consideration,” Miss said.  “You’ve been to many.  When I leave, it will be when we have sufficient distraction.  I’ll look for opportunities in the meantime.  Rook is doing the same, as are some Dogs Tags.  I’ll leave, then I’ll have to settle on one, get there without event, and then you’ll call me with the ritual to help me on my way.  It will be up to everyone else to guard Kennet.”

“What locations?” Avery asked.

“It depends.  What do we wish for Kennet to be?  What qualities can we bring from the path to impart on Kennet founded?  You’ve been to the Build Up.”

Avery nodded.  The Path that meant scaling a house that was being destroyed from the bottom as rooms were brought down from above.  “I guess that gives us a Kennet found that… builds?”

“Yes.  And does away with elements.  Just as Kennet below bleeds into Kennet above and vice versa, we would see bleed-over.  Building.  Destruction.  Activity.  A bustle.  It could be the jolt Kennet needs to thrive.”

Avery frowned.  “Or just turmoil and work without real progress.”

“I think, as in all things, that is ultimately up to the people who live there.”

“Okay,” Avery said.  “Zoomtown doesn’t feel right.”

“No.  It would be even livelier, even busier.  Better for a borough of a metropolis than a town like Kennet.  That, and I haven’t been.  I only know about it from rumor.”

Avery nodded.

She saw the cars come from the end of the street, pausing at the stop sign before turning right.  One blared music.  The other was a convertible with its top down, a hipster-ish woman behind the wheel.

“The Forest Ribbon Trail isn’t an option, and I don’t believe it suits Kennet, unless we truly wish to dwell on the dichotomy of Wolf and Carmine.”

“Yeah, for sure,” Avery replied.  If it was an option, what would happen if they did try it?  Setting Charles up to fight the Wolf for the throne?

Probably way worse stuff.

“Nor the Promenade,” Miss said.

“Yeah.  There’s uh, you can step on toes and then there’s whatever I’d be doing if I went ahead of the Garricks and pulled something like that.”

“The path would remain intact, but there would be a strong connection between places.  One that could distort their other goals.  I suspect it wouldn’t go over especially well with other Lost that regularly travel the Station Promenade,” Miss said.

“Yeah.  Just so you know, Jude was pretty anxious over this thing.  Founders territories, Kennet Found, all that.  I ran it by him some, after he promised he’d keep it secret.”

“Most see these territories as places to avoid or to deliberately unravel.  Dangerous Others can cluster there.”

Avery shook her head.  “Should we be worried?”

“I think the lordships that are being set up are far more concerning than what we’re doing.  But that’s my stance.  Lordships are traditional and what we’re doing isn’t.  For some, that makes what we’re doing far more intimidating.”

“For Jude,” Avery said.

“Yes.”

“So… back to what we were saying, Build Up is there, possible option.  Not Zoomtown, not the Forest Ribbon Trail.  Not the Promenade.  The Shining Bridge?”

The Shining Bridge had been the path she’d led Verona and Lucy on when they’d returned from dealing with Bristow’s Aware.  Clem, Daniel, and the skeptic Sharon.  An easy path.  Beams of light they could walk and jump on, like elastic tightropes.

“That is an option.  No particular forces reside there, it holds no importance to any particular groups.  Some Finders groups use it as a means of getting places, as you did.  There’s a chance that, if we created a link between it and Kennet, those who fell from the ropes would find themselves in a small Canadian ski town.”

Avery nodded.  “So… good?”

“We do have to consider meaning, and the elements we bring in.  What does this give Kennet?  What does it offer us?  If you can imagine how a Path changes depending on the observer, or how the Wolf does, but certain things remain stable?  We’d be bringing that stability and those stable elements to our version of Kennet.”

“And you, Miss,” Queen Sootsleeves said.  “You would be the lens through which it was all seen and shaped.”

“Yes,” Miss agreed.  “Queen, it’s been a time.”

“I don’t know what you’d bring to it, exactly.  With what you’re doing, I think it’s okay if you pick that yourself,” Avery said.  “But for that path, stable elements, that’d be a contrast of light and darkness, suspension, and… whimsy?  Jumping around?”

Miss turned her focus back to Avery.  Or so it seemed.  Avery was mostly going by what her familiar was sensing.  “I would venture to say there isn’t much in Kennet that fits that.  Would it find places to anchor?  Would it contribute anything?”

Avery shook her head.  “Light and darkness, maybe a bit.”

“A bit.  But no.”

“We’re running out of paths I’ve been on.  Liberty and I did Kickcan Alley after leaving the Build Up.”

“Small,” Queen Sootsleeves said.  “There’s so little to it but an easily achievable goal.”

“Bound to the Party?”  It was the path she’d left Florin on.  Animals, people in animal masks or other representatives, all carrying on very literal roles.

“A possibility.  Social, event-focused.  It could map easily to Kennet.”

“Would it map easily to you?” Avery asked.

“I don’t know.  I don’t believe so.”

“Then I dunno.”

“There are other Paths I could describe to you,” Miss said.  “I was bound on the Stairwell Web for a long time.  A puzzle of stairs, that punished rushed movement and wrong turns.  It’s perhaps the Path with the greatest connection to me… but I am not Kennet and Kennet is not me.  If I was purely selfish, and if I had fonder memories of it, I would choose that, perhaps.”

“Let’s not, then.  I could see that going really wrong,” Avery said.  “If you’re tying yourself to Kennet found.”

“Falling Oak Avenue is a well known Path.”

“I read about that.”

“Easily accessed by Finders.  It acts as a second escape rope, like the rope you used to leave Paths, and to escape Theodora Knight’s realms.  If you know the right words or preparations, and if you have the time, you can enter Falling Oak Avenue and, if you can complete the necessary tasks while falling, you may be deposited back on Earth.”

Avery nodded.

“It’s easier for a Lost to navigate.  And for a finder or path runner that has more experience under their belt.  Falling Oak Avenue could fit Kennet, but the side of Kennet it captures?”

“Is a place in crisis, right?  Crumbling streets, buildings, all hurtling down.”

“It’s a strong choice, I feel,” Miss said.  “With the caveat that we’re representing a Kennet in a dire situation, and that may be forever represented, after.  Another caveat?”

“You establish a link,” Queen Sootsleeves said.  She moved her head a bit in tune with the quiet singing coming from the car that had taken the parking spot behind.  “It’s a very trafficked path, known to most Finders.  There would be something, a tell, a symbol, a puzzle that could be solved, something possibly representative of Kennet.  Finders that riddled it out or noticed it was something new and consistent could enter Falling Oak Avenue, look for that puzzle or landmark…”

“And drop into Kennet?  Literally,” Avery concluded.

“Yes,” Miss said.

“That seems like it could work against us.  If we get rival Finders helidropping our enemies into Kennet.”

“There are Paths that offer security.  The Watched Way is a path with a throng of small creatures, rats, cats, birds or something similar, all perched on nearby surfaces, watching every movement.”

“Creepy.”

“Perhaps it’s not the direction we want the eyes turned, all over the city and looking inward, when we have enemies outside the city, looking inward.  The Clock Vault Climb is time gated.  Specific intervals, schedules, careful movements, a puzzle that forgives no missteps.”

“That’s intense.”

“It could anchor in Kennet’s town center.  But little else fits, I feel.”

“I get the impression you have places you like and are leading up to.”

“I don’t dislike Falling Oak Avenue,” Miss said.  “There are measures we can take to secure it.  A guard at the landmark, if we absolutely must.  But that’s a second or third choice, with all other factors considered.”

“What’s the first?”

“I told you about it, a long while ago.  If I were the sole person choosing, I would not pick it first.  But with all other factors in mind, I do think it suits.”

“If you’re the one binding yourself to this Path and to Kennet…”

“I have invested so much into Kennet, and as long as it remains Kennet and remains standing, I’m fine with many choices.  Don’t fret too much over that.  After I rescued you from the Forest Ribbon Trail and secured my exit from the Wolf, without the detour available, I had to decipher my way free.  While I wandered, I found that there was a place that was easier to get to than it was easier to get free of.  Roads kept turning to take me back there.  It’s called the Stuck-In Place.”

“Okay.  I think you mentioned it briefly,” Avery replied.

“It’s a contrast to what Kennet is.  Kennet is hard to get to and easy to leave,” Miss said.  “Make of that what you will.”

Miss didn’t have hands, but she could hold things, and for a moment, she held Snowdrop’s shoulder, beneath the opossum’s tangled hair.  Without Snowdrop’s Lost senses, it might have been impossible to notice.

As it was, it was like a huge punctuation mark.

And this place is easy to get to and hard to leave?

“Okay,” Avery said, keeping her expression flat.

“It’s a dead end of a place.  Make of it what you will, but I would argue-”

“Kennet’s a bit of a dead end of a small town.”

“Yes.  And for what it’s worth, I do think you would appreciate that one aspect of what we’re doing that’s so much of a detriment in other locations is an advantage here.”

“What’s that?” Avery asked.

“We could get them more stuck in the Stuck-In Place,” Snowdrop said.

“Creating an exit,” Avery said.

“If the paths connected to it form a funnel with steep sides to climb, or a pitcher plant, then the creation of an escape route would mean people wouldn’t be so trapped within, once they slide down to the dead end at the lowest point.  They would be able to find a consistent landmark in the form of something Kennet recognizes, or a puzzle, and those within may find their way out…”

“And into a small Canadian ski town,” Avery concluded.

“Less easy to find than the ones in trafficked and known regions like Falling Oak Avenue or the Shining Bridge.”

“What’s the catch?” Queen Sootsleeves asked.

“There are two,” Miss replied.  “The first is that it’s the location where I killed a Garrick.”

Avery remembered now.  Miss had detailed that while they were negotiating her big contract with the Garricks.

“There is blood on my nonexistent hands, and that would be hard to completely ignore when we’d be tying ourselves to such a place.”

“Based on the discussions we’ve been having about the council and everything, that kind of ties things to Kennet too, almost.”

“Unfortunately,” Miss said.  “But I thought you should know.  There remains a risk that your allies in the Garrick family could find out.  If they did, I’d tell the whole truth.  That I had little chance.  But you know them better than I.”

“It’d be honest, but being honest doesn’t mean they wouldn’t freak out, and that could spoil everything afterward.”

“Yes,” Miss said.

“Okay,” Avery said.  “There’s another drawback?”

“Yes.  It’s a simpler one, and one that applies to other locations.  Like Falling Oak Avenue.”

Avery frowned.

“That I’ve been, and you haven’t.  In many other cases, you’ve at least seen the locations and you know what to feel.  This- I can describe the path in full, and I can name all the things that are consistent, and I can outline the variations I’ve seen.  But that’s no substitute for you having been.”

“Your family could go to Kennet without you.  Lis has agreed to not interfere.  She’s pulling back, and the Carmine throne will not be as firmly seated in Kennet in the meantime… allowing visitors and travelers to get to and from Kennet more easily, without the one day rule.”

Again, that ‘grip’ tightened on Snowdrop’s shoulder.

“How much can we control that?  Because Verona said a call would go out, like for a Lordship or Demesne claim…”

“We can control it.  If we must, we can ask Lis and Charles to lower the gates, to stall our enemies.  We may have to.  It shouldn’t materially change things.”

For the third time, Snowdrop sensed Miss’s signal.

So… we can do this and drive a wedge in.  Get our own claim over our own part of Kennet, countering what Charles is doing, some, and set up a link to a place that does the opposite of what he did to make himself hard to get to?

“If you block the connections to family, we could tour the location.  You should be experienced enough to get us out.  We’d time your arrival to reach Kennet as they do.”

Avery frowned.

“I’m going to go with my family,” Avery said.  “Our joining the practice was us making a leap of faith. I’m okay if this is the same.”

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