Shadow & Mist Pt. 04 - Aftermath

June 27, 1991 -- Feel Something Else

As the morning light beamed through the eastern windows lighting up the floor next to the pile of furs, Annette was peacefully drooling on Alex's shoulder. Her fingers were tangled in Vicki's curls. Vicki was coiled up like a cat, using his broad chest as a pillow. Brittany and Tabby were spooned together between his legs. Tabby was instinctively grazing the pink birthmark in her sleep.

Footsteps could be heard walking through the screen room before a light knock on the door. No one moved or reacted.

The knock came again, gentle but louder. Still, no one stirred.

A brash but tremulous voice making no effort to be quiet spoke out, "By The Elements, Katy, they've been asleep for nearly eleven hours. Just go in."

With that, the door swung open, and Nana's cane, still hovering over the floor more than tapping on it, led the way in followed closely by Katy, Isabelle and Tina.

The group took in the scene. Tina seemed to linger on the furs with a crooked smile and a sigh. Nana's eyes focused on the kids themselves. Isabelle kept drifting off, looking out the window with thin, whitened lips and glassy eyes.

Katy, on the other hand, looked like she was cataloguing the entire room. Her gaze would linger for a second or more on each dresser, flower petal or discarded piece of clothing. Her nostrils even flared when she inhaled.

Nana spoke first.

"Alright, young buck, unless I'm in line for round two, or whatever round is next, it's time for you and your harem to get up."

Alex's eyes crept open. When he saw full daylight, he bolted up with a start.

"Oh, no... the barn!"

Vicki went rolling into the furs with a "whoa-eeeee!"

His flaccid penis dragged across the faces of Brittany and Tabby. Brittany just barely stirred awake.

Tabby propped herself up.

"Also better than an alarm clock. Damnit, the lights are still on."

Annette stood up wiping the back of her hand across her mouth. Suddenly, she scrambled for her work skirt. Her panic matched Alex's.

Alex wondered why his shoulder was wet.

Annette looked away from him staring at his shoulder.

Katy interrupted the chaos.

"Don't worry about your work today. Your cabinmates, with a little help from some others, have volunteered to take care of your duties."

Annette stopped and crossed her arms.

"Please tell me that you did NOT let Will do the greenhouse. He waters everything like it's cucumbers."

"No, Emma did the greenhouse. Will did the barn with Nana's help."

"At least it was a water witch."

"You should know that three of the goats are probably going to be giving birth before the new moon," Nana noted.

"Four. I examined them all thoroughly yesterday," replied Alex with a smile.

She was testing him. Alex knew it was a test and knew he had passed. His grandfather used to do that.

Katy resumed, "Tabby, Hank and Shannon took care of the lights and will do it this evening, too. The five of you need your rest."

Tina spoke up next.

"I don't know if you realize it or not, but you all saved the entire valley last night."

The new circle looked at each other in confusion.

"We did what, Miss Tina?"

"If the five of you didn't feel it, you're the only ones who didn't. The eclipse in this moon cycle caused a bleeding of certain magics. We, as The Elder Council, mistakenly hid the threat from the rest of the coven," Tina responded.

Nana stepped in.

"They decided that trying to contain the magics was the correct course of action. They failed. The co-mingling of your Elements somehow created a shield that plugged the hole in the moon."

Isabelle was choking back tears.

"Thanks to our misguided belief that other voices would distract us from what needed to be done, our miscalculations didn't just fail. Two witches were seriously injured."

Tabby did a head count.

"Mom? Where's Dad and Uncle Pat?"

"Tabby, follow me outside. I need to talk to you privately."

"Mom! Anything you have to tell me, you can tell me here. This is my family, and now they're your family, too. Didn't you just learn what you've taught me my entire life? We don't hide!"

Isabelle nodded in agreement without hesitation.

"Patrick was drained, but he's awake and recovering. Your father, once free to do so, protected him. He lost more magic than Patrick, and he has been in a coma since. I don't think he's getting any worse, but he doesn't seem to be improving either."

She turned to Alex.

"We don't have a doctor right now. Would you mind going to see him? See if you can do anything or tell anything?"

"Yes, Miss Isabelle. I'd be happy to do anything I can."

The other three girls held Tabby, and Alex held them all. Tabby was purposely not looking at her mother.

Tina approached and touched Tabby on her shoulder. "If it wasn't for you guys, neither one of them would be here. Until they recover, Nana has been gracious enough to fill in for Tom. Tabby, you should know that Izzy was the only one who argued in favor of telling everyone, and she specifically mentioned telling you."

Tabby swirled around with flaring anger.

"Does this mean that if Dad doesn't make it, I get to blame you, Katy and Uncle Pat for not knowing how love works!?"

While this was going on, Katy's eyes were still darting around the room.

The chalice. The smell of burning beeswax. The faint vibration of orgasmic magic still shaking the air.

Recognition flashed across her face.

"It wasn't just the love."

"What was that, Katy?" Nana asked.

"Look, Nana! They bound themselves! It wasn't just The Elements and the love! That's why it became a blood moon! Us following Tom's sugge--"

Tabby exploded at her, "Don't you fucking dare try to get out of --"

Alex stopped her by putting his hand firmly on her shoulder. "Give Miss Katy her time to explain what she means before we go accusing her of somethin'."

Now that it had been pointed out, that same look came across Nana's face.

"Tabby, I promise you that when we make a mistake, we carry it forever whether we're really to blame or not. If something worse happens, Katy will carry that weight forever. Isn't that right, Alex?"

"Yes, Miss Nana."

"What Katy was trying to say is that it wasn't JUST their miscalculation, though that definitely played a role. Truth is, they didn't have the tools they needed to fix it anyway. The spell had to come from the blood of The Five Elements, not just the magic and the love."

Annette's face contorted.

"What does that even mean?"

Nana answered, "Annette Beaton... Vicki Erdmann... Tabitha Levant... Brittany Bjergbaek..."

Vicki jumped up excited.

"I get it! Alex Hoguera-Hedrick! When we bonded last night, it was part of the whole ritual! We bonded all five of the original bloodlines! That's why our magic worked when their ritual failed! I wonder how many times that's happened, all five in one circle?"

"Never. This is the first time in 350 years," Nana answered.

Katy interjected, "That brings us to a new point of business. We need to make this new circle official. The sooner the better."

"Are we getting Hand-Bound now?" Brittany excitedly asked.

"We can't yet. Alex isn't available for Hand-Binding. He must be an adult in the eyes of the coven."

"He was an adult when he got here. How does that work?"

"Well, Brittany, he's going to need a rite of passage."

"Miss Katy, are you tellin' me that, after building something real with these women, I'm gonna have to go sit naked in the woods for three months?"

"You've already proven to my satisfaction that your grasp of magic and nature would be more than enough for that task, and you've done over twenty years in the outside world. I think a Vision Quest and your declaration would be enough for us to acknowledge you as an adult of the coven. Any objections?"

"Nay," Tina, Isabelle and Nana all said in unison.

"Alex, you'll have to do your Vision Quest for your circle to be recognized as a Soul-Circle and then Hand-Bound. Do you agree to this test?"

"I damn sure do... so when do I do this?"

"Would tomorrow at dawn be too soon?"

"I don't reckon it would, Miss Katy. Tomorrow will be just fine."

Brittany got dressed before the entire group went to the infirmary together. Alex threw on his outside armor more as a sign of solidarity with Britt than for his usual modesty but neglected the boots.

On the way over, Isabelle, Tabby and Alex led the parade. Brittany, Vicki, Katy and Tina made a second wave. Annette stayed back with Nana, and Nana let her feel like she was helping.

Inside the Lodge's infirmary, Patrick was sitting in a wheelchair next to Tom's bed. He was holding his hand so tight that Tom wouldn't be able to slip away.

Tabby, always the fastest, was the first to make it to Tom's side, but Alex and Izzy weren't far behind.

"Daddy! Daddy? Uncle Pat, how is he?"

"I... I don't know, Sunbeam. I've only just managed to make it over here. He's not moving, and this isn't my kind of magic. I hear that he'd be a hell of a lot worse if it wasn't for you."

Tabby reached to pat him on the hand as a peace offering to herself.

"Mountain Boy?" She was pleading.

Alex started examining Tom as best he could.

"Mr. Patrick, are YOU okay?"

"I can't walk really well yet, but that's just weakness. I'll be fine. All I need is for you to help Tom."

Alex checked him over as quickly as he could, but it felt like the blood pressure cuff was inflating slowly, like the tube on the stethoscope was stiff, like his movements were a fraction off. Every check took forever.

To Tabby, it must have felt even longer.

Everyone else had made it to the Lodge by the time he finished.

"His heartbeat's strong, breathin's good, eyes are clear, blood pressure's normal... I can't find anything wrong with him physically."

"It's magical," Patrick said. "I can feel it. I was drained. That's why I'm weak. I can feel my magic coming back, but it's slow like a trickle."

"Can you feel his life magic?" Isabelle asked.

"I can try, but I've never done that before. Miss Nana, how should I try?"

"How people connect with their magic is different for everyone. You have a natural gift, but you have to figure out how to do it consciously. This is something that I can't do for you."

Alex got close to Tom again.

He was on his own this time. No stethoscope. No blood pressure cuff. No herbal poultice.

He remembered that thing Akiko had done with him on the picnic table. He put his hand on Tom's forehead, held Tom's hand to his own heart and closed his eyes. He tried to focus on Tom like he would focus on Flint when he was brushing him... like when he was examining the oxen, feeling their entire bodies.

He felt... something. It was small, but he felt it.

He thought about when he met Tom and how he entertained himself by good-naturedly making him uncomfortable. Tabby got that from him.

It became clearer. He moved his hand slightly from the head to the throat. There was a thread, a lightly glowing thread that went from Tom's brain to... somewhere lower. He followed it... past the heart... past the sternum... past the stomach.

There it was.

It was a tiny dim sphere that was sitting in that spot between your stomach and your groin where you feel it when you just know something, where the butterflies flutter when you meet someone that makes you feel special... that spot that trembles when you shouldn't go into an alleyway.

It felt like it should be stronger, but it wasn't. The good news--it wasn't getting any weaker. It wasn't getting any stronger either.

"He's stable. It's like those hand pumps in the shower. The magic is there. We just gotta figure out how to prime the pump so that the water flows."

"How do we do that?" Isabelle asked.

"That I don't rightly know. Miss Nana?"

"I can search The Book, but I don't remember seeing anything like this."

"So what are we supposed to do? Sit here and do nothing until Dad springs a leak and dies!?"

Alex put his arm around her.

"Right now he's not getting worse. Maybe that'll give us time to figure something out."

Tabby slapped his arm away.

"Then I'd suggest you take your clinical ass and do that."

She stormed away and out of The Lodge, slamming the door on the way out.

Alex moved to go after her, but Brittany grabbed his arm. "Don't. She's angry, but not at you. I'll go keep an eye on her. Go do what you need to do."

Alex nodded and gave her a kiss. He looked at the rest of the group.

"I need to clear my head so I can work this out. I don't know how, though."

Katy grabbed him by the shoulders like she did when she first brought him to the cabin.

"The other day, you told me that the barn was your church. I don't know if it'll help, but it can't hurt."

"You're right. I've got a promise to keep up there anyways."

In the open field where the animals spent their day, Alex was greeted by joyous bleats, exuberant whinnies, jubilant clucking and even a couple of not-uninterested bellows at his presence after not being there this morning.

As he looked around for Jano, Shadow walked up slowly. She didn't seem as excited as the rest.

"What is it, Miss Shadow? What's wrong? Are you feelin' alright?"

"*Whheeen-pfffrrrt*," she said softly before brushing the side of his face with hers and resting it there.

He patted her neck reassuringly.

"Thank you, girl. I've got a lot on my mind today, but being here with y'all helps. I'll be fine. I'll take you and the boys out for a run sometime soon. Sound good?"

"*Wheeeyrrrrnn!*" she exclaimed as she trotted off to graze with Smoke and Flint.

Alex smiled as she went. He was already feeling a little lighter when he heard hooves rapidly approaching. He turned just in time to see a little black-and-white goat leaping into the air at him with complete trust and abandon.

Alex caught him and fell to his butt, hugging the excited young goat tight. He tried to talk between the licks to his face that he was being bombarded with.

"Hahaha*pthuh* There you are, Mr. Jano! *mmrrrckt* Yes, I came to play."

The two of them spent almost a half-hour playing catch-the-kid and dodge-the-headbutt. There were even a few times when a couple of the older billies joined the fun and actively blocked Alex from catching Jano.

The young one finally slowed down and stopped to eat grass.

"Thank you, little one. I really needed that."

When he went out the gate, he looked over to The Whisper and the glowing-rune trees that lived in the back of it, wondering if the key to saving Tom was in the life-magic-infused mud.

Before he could fully process the thought, the air heated up as a sharp slap on his shoulder broke his attention. He turned to see a fiery-eyed Tabby.

"What was that for?"

"I'm angry!"

"Miss Tabby, they did what they thought was right."

"I'm angry at you!"

"What did I do?"

"What did I tell you? Everything's good if you're not hiding it!"

"I didn't hide anything from you."

"I know that, hay-brain. The rule doesn't only go for love. Your touch is so damned gentle and firm and authoritative that it's hard to argue against anything you're saying. Don't you ever do that to me so that I have to hide my anger again!"

"You mean at the infirmary?"

"YES, at the infirmary! AND at the cabin!"

"I was just trying to keep you and Miss Katy from --"

"Think about it! Katy watched me grow up in that cabin and was the person I went to whenever something was bothering me. Do you think she's never seen me angry? Do you think I've never yelled at her before!?"

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have --"

"Why did he do it?" Tabby pleadingly interrupted.

Hot tears started gushing from her eyes.

"Your dad?"

"Yeah."

"He was trying to protect Mr. Patrick."

"WHY DID HE LIE!? Why didn't he tell everyone what was happening? He and Mom raised me that open honesty was the only way to treat people right, then he decides not to tell the coven, to tell us... to tell me. I'm so angry at him, and I can't yell at him. I can't tell him that he fucked up."

She slapped Alex's shoulder again. He let her and nodded almost imperceptibly. Tears welled in his own eyes.

She did it again, and he reached out to embrace her.

As his arms closed around her, she hit his chest over and over and over until, finally, she collapsed against his chest quietly crying, and he just held her.

"I'm tired of being angry."

"I know." He caressed her untamable hair.

"After last night, I should be in heaven right now. All I can feel right now is anger. I'm exploding at Tina and Katy and Brittany and you. I can't explode at the one person who deserves it. I want to feel something else... anything else."

"If there's anything that I can do, tell me what it is, and I'll do it."

"Damn you for being so good."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be and don't change. This barn has a loft, right?"

"Of course, Miss Tabby, why?"

"I want you to take me up there and fuck me."

"Now? Shouldn't we focus on --?"

"I'm not asking you to make love to me. I'm not asking you to be... you."

"I don't understand."

"I want you to fuck me... hard. Don't worry about hurting me. Don't worry about going slow. Pull my hair. Spank me. Choke me. I want this to not only be the wildest sex you've ever had. I want it to be the wildest sex I've ever had."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure."

"How will I know if I'm really hurtin' you?"

"Okay... I HATE lima beans. If I say 'lima beans', stop."

"Fair 'nuff."

"Do you think you can do that for me?"

Alex didn't say anything more. She said this was what she wanted, and he had to trust her. He hoisted her under one arm, causing her to yelp, and carried her to the ladder.

She found herself giggling at how easily he manhandled her. When he set her down at the base of the ladder, it was a little harder than she expected. She started to lose her balance. He effortlessly steadied her with one hand on her waist.

He pointed up the ladder saying, "Now you go get on up in there."

"My pleasure... and hopefully yours, too."

She climbed. He gave her ass a firm smack, which made her shake it at him teasingly.

When she got to the top, she looked down.

He wasn't there.

"Mountain Boy, where did you go?"

There was no reply. She leaned over the loft to see if he was underneath her or somewhere else in the barn, but there was no sight of him.

"Farm-Bear?"

She had a bad feeling about this. This wasn't like him. Why would he just disappear now? She started to panic.

"Alex!?"

Suddenly, she noticed the chains of the block and tackle at the loft door were rattling.

She turned in time to see one of Alex's oak-limb arms reach up. He gathered all four chains in his grip, and his muscles flexed and bulged. He pulled his entire weight up with one arm to grab the four chains with the other hand a little higher. He turned his head to look at her. One of the straps on his overalls was already undone.

"What in tarnation are you doing in there?"

"What?"

He used his weight to make the chains swing forward and back. The tiniest of his muscles rippled around the larger ones as he controlled the swing until he let go. He landed almost silently on the broad boards like a mountain lion.

She couldn't help but notice how agile he was when he wasn't bumbling all over himself.

"Tabby! How many times have I warned you about comin' up and playin' around in here, huh?"

"What?"

"What did I tell you I was going to do the next time I found you up here?"

Tabby was starting to understand what was happening.

"Answer me."

She lowered her head. "You said you were going to punish me."

Alex moved quickly and grabbed her by the arm firmly and pulled her roughly. He had enough control to not hurt her... if she went wherever he moved her. He sat on one of the hay bales.

"Lay over my legs."

"Yes, sir."

She did as she was told.

Alex held her still while he spanked her one hard time. She automatically let out a sharp shriek, but he held his calloused hand there pulling the soothing heat up from her body.

"Are you gonna do it again?"

"I just wanted to -- "

He did it again. This time, as he lingered with his palm on her ass cheek, his fingers found her lips and rubbed slowly... purposefully.

"I wanted to see you."

Again, his hand landed with a slap.

Tabby could feel her juices starting to flow and him stiffening.

"I don't think you've learned your lesson yet," he said as he grabbed a handful of her wild locks and rose with her.

He fluidly moved his hand to her throat and held her against a nearby post. His other hand gripped her thigh. He dragged his nails to her wetness. If he had any nails to speak of, they would have ripped into her skin. Now, the fibers of her muscles just parted to let his fingers through. His index and middle finger slid in easily and hooked against the inner wall as his thumb circled around her clit.

Just as she was starting to really get into it, he pulled out and held them between them. He licked one side, and she the other. Tongues briefly grazed each other and shared her taste between them.

Pulling his hand away, he stared intently into her eyes.

"You wanted to see me, eh? Here I am. What did you want?"

"To be close to you."

"This close?" He asked as he leaned in more.

"Closer."

This time, he moved in so that she could feel his breath on her lips. She tried to move in for a kiss, but his grip on her neck just made the choking feel tighter.

He pulled away and threw her onto the same pile of hay bales that he had been sitting on before. He stepped back and unhooked the other side of his overalls.

Now he was standing there naked, and it looked like his body was still rippling from the chain climb. It was like she could see even the smallest of his muscles.

This was the first time she had seen him naked in the daylight. It was no wonder that Brittany fell for him when he was covered in mud.

"Tabby, if you're gonna keep fuckin' around in my barn, I guess I'm just gonna have to make you my filly, ain't I?"

For some reason, this made her nervous for the first time. She averted her eyes. She wondered if this was how he had been feeling the whole time he'd been here.

He picked up his bibs and threw them on a loose pile of hay.

"Kneel on them...... NOW!"

She leapt down and kneeled, facing him.

"Now ain't no stallion ever fucked his filly like that. You're always walkin' around here shakin' that ass at everybody. Turn around and shake it for me."

She got on all fours and wiggled. She considered looking at him over her shoulder while she did it, but she couldn't bring herself to. There was something about not being in control that made her hesitant... almost shy.

She felt him move into position on either side of her.

"Now, that's what I'm talking about," he teased.

His hand pressed into her lower back, and she felt him lubricating the tip of his penis by sliding it along her dripping slit from clit to twernt. It would slide along the lips, dip slightly into her and pop out from the edge on the other side only to do it again the other way.

She tried bucking to make him enter her, but he had no problem stopping her tiny frame from moving back onto it.

He stretched his thumb down, rubbing her perineum to collect her dew and massage it around her pucker. She became genuinely concerned that he was going to try to enter her there. With his girth, she didn't think her body could take that. Instead, he just firmly massaged the tender outer skin. She found it oddly comforting and even turned her head to look at him.

"Eyes forward!" he commanded before she could see him.

She needed him.

She was so wet. Her juices were running down her thighs.

She had been so angry, but now she was just...

... empty.

He filled her.

He slid into her desperate emptiness, his thumb still circling around her ring.

First, it was just the head, and she clenched around it hoping to pull him further in, but he was able to pull it back out. The pressure of his ridge escaping her hole sent shivers through her body. Between that and the soothing movement of his thumb, her whole body released again.

This gave him a chance to go further. It was harder and faster this time. It felt like he went halfway in. When he pulled back, he didn't pull out this time.

Again, a little harder and faster, he went until he touched the back wall.

He started a rhythm at that same speed. Two or three easy, steady strokes in as far as he could go. Back out until the head almost fell out but not quite. One fast thrust followed that gave a hard 'love tap' at the end that would make her let out an airy grunt.

After almost a dozen rounds of that, Alex started pistoning these deeper thrusts. He slid his thumb into her back door to the first knuckle and held it there.

That triggered her first orgasm.

She lost control of her body and started convulsing and holding him inside in pulses. Her eyes, when they opened, made the shadows in this nook a little brighter. Her arms became useless, and her face fell into the denim beneath her. It smelled like his sweat with the slightest tone of tobacco. She didn't have long to enjoy the scent.

Alex held her entire limp, shuddering weight by her hips as he stood up.

When her orgasm subsided, he wrapped an arm around her waist and lifted her up and supported her almost to his chest.

She relaxed her body. She was sore, but that was worth it.

Her eyes widened as Alex grabbed a fistful of her hair and started pumping again. She could feel him pressing on her lower belly while his cock was running the length of the wall behind it. The convulsions quickly came back in another wave.

This was how things continued. Tabby would shake and shiver. Alex would move her into another position without pulling out. He'd start thrusting, and the climax would surge again.

She lost count after the fifth wave. At this point, she was just a limp mass of molten flesh that he could wrap around his cock any way he wanted.

Tabby was unsure how long it had been when he finally pulled out. She could see the sun was lower in the sky, and she was torn between sighing with relief and begging for more.

When she decided to look up into his eyes, they were stern. He was slowly stroking his shiny, slippery cock.

"Now, Tabby, I'd suggest you get up here. It's my turn now. It's goin' somewhere, and it'll make less of a mess for you if you come up here and take it like a proper lady."

He moved close enough that she could climb up his leg and hold his member herself. She took the head into her mouth and suckled while stroking him.

He decided to just let go and release, holding the back of her head tight and going as far in as she could take it.

She tried to relax like Vicki had and just let it flow in, but she hadn't had the practice.

She took a lot of it but started coughing and gagging. His seed ended up as much on her face and his groin as it did in her throat.

When he was done, he pulled her off and dropped her into a loose pile of hay.

"Clean yourself up, you're a mess."

She was using her finger to slide his cum from her face to her mouth when he snatched his overalls off the floor and sauntered over to the entrance of the hayloft. He wrapped his hand around the chains once more before looking back at her.

"Do you know what you're gonna get if I find you up here again?"

"More?"

"Damn right, more," he said with a smirk and a wink.

With that, he lowered himself to the ground, and she was, again, alone in the loft.

As Alex finished getting the animals into their stalls and coops, he saw Tabby easing her way down the ladder.

"I was wonderin' if you were ever gonna get down here. I thought I was gonna have to come on up there and carry you back to the infirmary myself."

"I'm gonna be sore for a little while, but I don't think I'll need the infirmary."

"Not for you." Alex held up a bucket. "I've got an idea."

"What's that?"

"Mud from the fen. I've got an idea for your dad, Miss Tabby. You wanna come with me?"

She was still holding herself up with the ladder.

"I'm not sure if I can."

"If you want to hold the mud, I can carry you."

"That sounds nice, you know, except for the mud."

Alex handed her the bucket and scooped her up.

As they walked away, she asked, "Do you know what my favorite part about that whole thing was, Mountain Boy?"

"What's that, Miss Tabby?"

"You think that being a 'bad boy' means you don't call me 'Miss'."

"Cute."

He stopped walking, and they exchanged a long, bright, silver gaze before he kissed her and continued to the infirmary.

So that's what I taste like, he thought.

Tabby's legs had come back t her about halfway back to the infirmary, which Alex realized when she started playfully kicking him and leaning up to kiss his face. By the time they got there, she was walking on her own, and he was carrying the mud.

Isabelle came running up and wrapped her arms around Tabby.

"Tabby, I'm so sorry. I should have made them tell everyone. I should have told everyone myself."

"Mom, what's done is done. I'm not angry anymore. I've had time to... think... things over. We can talk about this later. Right now, we've got to try to get Dad better, and Alex has an idea."

While they were talking, Alex moved to Tom and pulled his blanket off. He and Tabby locked eyes when she said think. Hers still had a sheen of silver in them.

Alex's face warmed up again, but it wasn't a blush this time. He just thought she was pretty.

"Where's Uncle Pat?"

"He was able to walk, so Katy and Tina took him out to get some sun."

While the two women watched, Alex smeared the mud across Tom's forehead from temple to temple and then between his bellybutton and his pubic mound from hip to hip. Then he drew a mud line from one patch to the other.

Next, he stripped down, mud-painted a solid circle on his chest with lines connecting them to his now mud-covered palms.

"Alright, now y'all do the same. I think you've gotta be part of it."

"What are we doing?" asked Izzy as she took off her scrubs.

"Well, you know how I said about primin' the pump, right?"

"Yeah," Tabby replied as she started spreading the mud on herself.

"The mud can charge any of us, but particularly me 'n' Mr. Tom since we're Life Witches... and y'all's love for Dr. Tom and my love for Tabby'll charge us up even more if we really focus on 'em."

"And then what, Mountain Boy?... I love you, too."

"I'll put a hand on Dr. Tom's head where I can keep an eye on what's goin' on inside, and we'll all hold hands, and Miss Isabelle will put her hand where his magic ball is --"

"Magic ball?" Izzy asked.

"Well, it's not like the one that tells you what you should do... I could sure use one of them about now... but that's what I'm callin' the magic area in his lower belly.

"Then, we're gonna lay hands on him like I did Mr. Jano, and I'm hopin' that the extra magic that we move into him will prime the pump. Make sense?"

Isabelle looked at mud-covered Alex, then shifted her gaze to Tom's unmoving body. She lightly nodded her head like she had just agreed with someone about something she didn't know about.

"No one else has worked anything out, so I'm willing to give it a shot if it might save Tommy."

The three of them finished prepping and got into position.

The infirmary got completely quiet.

Tabby remembered when she was still a youngling and she tried to climb The Sage Willow. Mom, Aunt Katy and Aunt Tina were all telling her to get down. It was a sacred tree and not meant to be climbed. Dad and Uncle Pat were behind them laughing and waving at her.

"You can do it, Sunbeam!" Uncle Pat encouraged.

Aunt Tina turned and smacked him, which made him laugh harder.

Tabby got to the tippy-top and waved back at them. That's when her foot slipped.

She fell. On the bright side, hitting the branches on the way down slowed her descent. Unfortunately, she was bruised, scratched up, and part of her broken forearm was sticking out through her skin.

This was a Dad Emergency. He had his doctor's bag like he always did. He spoke to her in a calming voice, telling her that he was going to make it all better. He had her bite on a willow branch that fell with her while he reset the bone. He stopped the bleeding, wrapped the branch's bark around it and used the wood as a temporary splint.

When she was safe and he was drying her eyes, Mom started telling her how she needed to listen, but Dad held up his hand.

"She's going to be fine, Izzy. This didn't even use one of her lives."

"Is it gonna get better, Daddy?"

"Good as new in no time, Tabby-Cat. Daddy makes people better, and Daddy loves you. When you love somebody, you make them better."

Tabby's eyes blazed silver.

Isabelle thought about one night after coming back from the Harvest Festival that Camp Coventry held in Oakhaven every Autumn Equinox.

She had been chosen as the fifth member of the ceremonial seed exchange. The Oakhaven farmers presented the camp with seeds and roots from their best-performing crops from that year so that they could be mixed, preserved and charmed with the camp's own best. On May Day, they would take half of them back to Oakhaven for planting.

For the ceremony, Isabelle had been chosen to represent the Africans, Tom the Celts, Pat the Indigenous, Katy the Nords, and Tina the Romani.

Tina, Katy and Pat were already an item in The Loft House at the time. Tom was Pat's best friend, but he usually spent his time alone studying. Isabelle was more than a little heavy and shy, but she was enamored with the tall, lanky hunk of man with the wild red hair.

She sat on that dock wishing that she had asked him to kiss her. She must have said it out loud because she heard his voice behind her.

"I wish you had, too, Bella."

He sat down beside her and stuck his feet in the water.

"The night's not over yet, you know."

She stammered, trying to get the words out, but all that came out was a jumble of noises that sounded similar to "wackamater".

Tom leaned into her, put his hand on her cheek and kissed her for a long time. She thought the sun might be up before he pulled away.

"Isabelle Levant, I have waited a long time for you to say whack-a-mater to me."

Silver flooded Izzy's eyes.

For Alex, it was easy.

On the tour, when they were leaving the Smokehouse, he looked back towards the main part of the camp. He saw Tabby up on a hill near the Floor House, and she was digging near a streetlights that he assumed was a broken one.

She wasn't flirting or wiggling or winking. She was just doing her job. She wasn't even naked. She had all of her clothes on, even boots. He paused for a few seconds and watched while Vicki talked about how they have to use the vents when she wasn't there.

He noticed how beautiful she was, all sweaty and dirty, without even trying.

The silver in his eyes came to life, growing brighter.

The silence stretched.

"Bella?... Tabby Cat?"

His voice was weak, but he was awake.

"Tommy Boy, are you alright?"

"Daddy, I'm right here."

The girls raced to get close to Tom's shoulders and face while Alex stepped to the sink to clean himself off.

"I reckon y'all oughta give him a little breathin' room. He just woke up."

"It's okay, Alex. Seeing them is the best thing for me. I wasn't sure if I was going to again."

"Don't you ever do that to me again. I thought the last words I heard from you were going to be you making a stupid joke about how wrong you always are."

"I just wanted you to know that I know you're right. I just don't listen."

"Dammit, Tom. Could you be serious just once? We almost lost you."

"I know, Bella. From this point on, I'm going to tell you how much I adore you every time I see you. You should do the same."

"Tommy, you know how I feel about you."

"Just say it."

"I love you, Tommy. Every moment that I have ever had with you is precious. I promise that every remaining one will be precious, too."

"I love you, Bella. I wouldn't be able to love anyone if I hadn't met you. You're the best decision that I've made in my life. I promise to make you the primary guide in all of my future decisions."

"Tom?"

"Yes, Bella?"

"Whack-a-Mater."

They held hands and looked deep into each other's eyes... past the showy colors and into the deep darkness of the center. The life-giving mud that was still slathered on Isabelle's hand squished out from between their palms as she leaned in to give him a proper kiss.

When the kiss broke, Alex leaned in to listen to Tom's lungs.

"And by the power invested in this here stethoscope, I declare your Hand-Bond renewed. Now take a deep breath."

Tom couldn't take in a full breath, but that seemed natural to Alex, all things considered. He moved down to check Tom's magic ball and closed his eyes.

Tom turned to Tabby.

"How about you, Tabby Cat? Got anything to say to your old man after he gave you a scare?"

"You lied to me."

Her voice was calm. She wasn't yelling at him. She was just telling him.

"I know."

"Do you? You and Mom taught me that anything was alright as long as it was open, honest and consensual."

"Sweetie. We were trying to help the whole camp. We couldn't risk --"

"But you didn't, Daddy. I didn't consent to having something that threatened my magic... Alex's magic... hidden from us. Every one of us had pieces to the puzzle, but you're so tied up in your responsibilities and jokes and clichés that you forgot one of Mom's favorites."

"Which one?"

"A single straw of thatch does not roof a house. It's the same reason we all work together on leisure days."

"I'm sorry, sweet girl."

"Don't be. I'm sick of people saying they're sorry. I'm not mad at you. I was, but I'm not. People make mistakes. That's in the past. Just promise me that you'll never forget to always try to be better."

"I promise. How did you become such a smart girl?"

Tabby leaned across Tom and hugged him tight.

"I had two amazing teachers. I love you, Daddy."

"I love you, too, Tabby Cat."

Tom's voice had never gotten strong, but it trailed off at the end of Cat. Tom gave a little cough before his eyes fluttered and closed.

"Mountain Boy!?"

Alex came out of the half-trance he had put himself in trying to focus on Tom's magic ball.

"It's okay, Miss Tabby. He's just goin' back to sleep. I think he was just exhausted like Mr. Patrick was, but worse."

"Will he wake back up, Alex?"

"I think so, Miss Isabelle. His magic ball's stronger, and it's pulsin' like a heartbeat. I hope that means it's starting to pump the life magic back in."

Tabby stood up and put her arms around him.

"Thank you."

Alex just hugged her back.

"Is there anything else I can do?" Alex asked Isabelle.

"You've done a lot. I'll get with Nana and see if she knows anything more from the Book. You need to go get ready for your big day tomorrow."

Alex squeezed Tabby a little tighter. He wasn't sure how to prepare for tomorrow.

Tabby's solution for how to prepare Alex for his Vision Quest was, of course, for the entire cabin to go skinny-dipping together.

They got down to the lake right as the sun was setting and everyone else jumped in immediately and paired off. Vicki and Brittany swam off to The Mirror together. Annette and Tabby played together in the area that was just deep enough that they could swirl together, groping and laughing. Shannon and Will stayed near the dock and fought to see who could dunk the other one more. Hank and Emma just floated together alternating between nuzzling and tickling.

Two days ago, Alex would've felt alone and anxious. Now he was just content standing there watching everyone enjoy themselves.

"C'mon in, Alex! I figure you need this more than any of us!"

Alex wasn't sure how this was going to help him prepare, but it looked like fun. He gave Hank a big smile and took his bibs off. His shoulders didn't shrink this time.

The problem with being with a small group at a quiet lake where everyone feels comfortable with each other is that no one whispers.

Before Alex could even jump in, he heard Hank talking to Emma.

"I figure you'd rather have someone like that here swimming with you."

"Don't be stupid, sweetie. He's pretty, but he's not you."

Will turned to Shannon.

"Aren't you going to tell me how much happier you are with me?"

"No, and if you'd hurry up and drown, maybe he'll come swim with me."

She dunked him again.

Vicki yelled out from the middle of the lake.

"Hey, guys, look! It's our blood moon!"

Alex and the girls all gasped. Even those who saw it last night still let out a "Wow!" or a "Look at it."

Emma wondered aloud, "How long will it stay like that, do you think?"

No one had seen Nana approach, but she tapped her cane on the dock sharply twice without stepping out on it to announce her presence.

"If my calculations are right, it'll start fading tomorrow night... maybe even later tonight. With the full moon cycle over, the Shield of the Blood won't be needed. In a couple of days, it should be back to normal."

"Miss Nana! What are you doing down here?"

"When I heard that you were coming down for a night swim, I thought this might finally be our chance, but I didn't know it would be so crowded."

"Will you at least do a young buck a favor and sit with him on the dock?"

"Oh, Alex, even if I got down there, I'd never get back up at my age."

"We'll go up to the shallow part 'n' sit there. When you're ready to get up, I'll help you down, you'll be able to walk straight out."

"What if I fall?"

This was the most frail Alex had ever heard Nana's voice.

"You're tougher than Miss Vera, and you ain't never used that cane for nothin' except knockin' on things. Besides, I'll hold you the whole way. I ain't gonna let you fall."

"Okay. We're going to go around, though, until I can just sit on the dock. Fair?"

"Fair," Alex nodded.

He held Nana's hand and waist as they went into the water. She was shaking, but he held her tight. When they got to a stopping point at the dock, she realized that she was already too deep to just sit down. She looked back to the shore nervously.

Alex picked her up by the hips and gently set her on the dock before he sat beside her.

"See, nothin' to worry about."

She still held his hand.

"You know, I haven't been in the lake since Migo passed."

"Then I reckon you need this more than I do."

They sat quietly for a minute or more watching the Blood Moon and listening to the others playing.

Nana was the first to speak.

"You know, Alex, those girls are not the only ones you've changed in your short time here."

"What do you mean, Miss Nana?"

"Do you remember how I told you that knowledge is power and power comes at a cost?"

"Yeah... you used it to check me out."

"And that was well worth it, but I've been cursed with access to more knowledge than anyone here. Do you know what the cost was?"

"What?"

"I've been surrounded by people who need me... people who worry about me. When they come to me, they ask about a problem, or they ask me how I'm handling things since losing Migo and Dottie. Even my friends still remind me of them.

"I've had a lot of people around, but I've spent the last thirteen years being lonely."

"You don't seem that lonely to me."

"That's your fault. The first thing you did when we met was talk about how mistreated the horses were, accused me of teasing you, and then teased me for being lazy."

"I didn't mean to --"

"You're the only person here who has never treated me like the widowed Matriarch that everyone has to worry about. You treated me like a real woman. I even went back to the barn this morning."

"Well, that was easy, Miss Nana. You had a bigger impact on my Granny than you ever knew. She must have loved you. She was just like you. You're the one person here that I've never been uncomfortable with."

"I feel like what I'm hearing here is that there is zero chance that you and I are ever having sex because I remind you of Tilda."

"I'm gonna tell you what Granny would say here."

"What's that, Alex?"

"No matter how slim the chance is, it ain't never zero."

Nana laughed like a young woman and leaned her head against Alex's arm. Alex gave her a wink and a smile.

"Look at you giving an old woman hope. It's probably for the best, I guess. Someone like you would probably break my hip."

Alex hopped off the dock into the water. He was only thigh deep. He held his hand out to Nana.

"Miss Nana, would you do me the pleasure of letting me take you swimming for the first time in thirteen years."

Alex had never seen Nana shed tears, but when she held her hand out to his, she did. He moved in close.

"Now, put your arms around my neck."

She did, and he held her by the waist and carried her out until he could stand flat on his feet, but she would have to float with his help.

He held her by the hands as she kicked and swam. He pulled her the same way a father pulling his little girl through a swimming pool.

Soon, Brittany and Vicki came over with silvered eyes. Brittany used her magic to make Nana feel weightless in the water. Then Tabby came over and heated the water enough to ease her joints.

Before long, everyone was swimming together around the dock. They were laughing and joking and flirting.

Nana gave Alex the exact same smile that Vicki gave him when she's about to bounce.

Alex felt like he was ready for his Vision Quest.