Butthatplan was obviously scrapped.
Giving her sisters aplease help melook, she croaked, “Um, so, yeah… I found a place I can afford on my own. It’s not far from here. I thought it’d be good to, you know, um, be more independent. Since you and Dad are always telling me that I’m too shy?”
Her sisters, for all their many annoyances, jumped to her defense as soon as her rambling petered off.
Lucy set her bin down on a table with a loudthwump.“I saw it! It’s a great studio with a balcony and everything. Mama, you’ll love it.”
Eugenia, mirroring her twin, nodded enthusiastically. “And it’s so close! Just ten minutes from here. She wouldn’t even have to fly to get to work on time.”
“But shecould,”Lucy interjected with a swift elbow to her sister’s ribs. “You know, because of thebalcony.”
There was a taut moment of silence as everyone waited for her mother’s response. Cassandra swallowed hard, not daring to look at either of her parents. Her fingers grew sweaty from their tight grip on the edges of the plastic bin, but she worried that moving even an inch to set it down would break the fragile tension in the air.
At last, when it felt like her head was going to explode from lack of oxygen, her mother clapped her hands together and cried, “Ah, my chick is growing up!”
Taking their cue from her joyful exclamation, the rest of the flock exploded into well wishes and questions. Hands rained down on her back and playfully plucked at her feathers as she was pulled into the cafe. Someone took her bin, and within moments her father had swooped down on her to press kisses to her cheeks.
“Why didn’t you say something, chickadee?” he demanded, flapping his great dark wings in proud sweeping movements.
“Um…” She ducked her head, unsure how to tell them that she had no idea if they’d approve or not.
The flock had always loved her, but they’d also looked at her like an oddball unfit for the dangers of the world. Without their aggression, she was never seen as completely grown despite the fact that she was nearing fifty years old.
“My chick gets the first latte!” her mother crowed. Swinging a clawed finger in the direction of Lucy and Eugenia, she ordered, “You two, start detangling those lights!”
Her sisters squawked with outrage before they set about their task without further argument. The cafe became a hive of warmth and activity around Cassandra as her flock filled the display cases with seasonal treats, her mother pulled perfect espresso, and her father cracked open bins full of sparkling treasures.
“Here,” her mother said, placing a warm, fragrant latte in her hand. A cinnamon heart floated on the foam. Dropping a kiss onto the crown of Cassandra’s head, she murmured, “I hope you know we’re going to be over all the time. There’s no escaping the flock, chickadee.”
Clutching the cup to her chest, Cassandra let out a relieved breath. “Promise?”
“Promise.” Her mother’s wing swept behind her back, urging Cassandra toward her father. “Now get decorating! We open in an hour!”
Solbourne Feast
DECEMBER 2043 — SAN FRANCISCO, THE ELVISH PROTECTORATE
Theodore couldn’t remembera time when Burden’s Moon wasn’t a grand affair in Solbourne Tower, and for that he would always be grateful.
His mother had apparently started the tradition of transforming the Tower for the holiday. Despite the fact that he had no memories of the woman who’d died to protect him, he felt a little closer to her when the lights and crystal moons were hung in the gleaming lobby.
Although elves primarily worshipped Glory, Burden had a special place in their hearts. The god of home, hearth, clan, and responsibility, he was the consort to their beloved goddess. The world rested on his shoulders, and if he hadn’t reached into the Earth to present his mate with a gift of jewels, elves wouldn’t exist.
And elves did nothing halfway, including celebrations.
Theodore passed beneath the massive chandelier hung above the lobby. He cast it an admiring look as he made his way to the bank of elevators that would take him home.
Made of hundreds of pine boughs, lit by artificial candles, and dripping with real crystal icicles and moons in different phases, it was a perfect centerpiece for the opulently decorated heart of the Tower.
“Andy’s outdone herself this year,” he noted, nudging Kaz.
His brother looked up with a grunt. “That’s a hazard. What if there’s an earthquake?”
“Not everything is a safety risk,” he shot back, nodding to the elves who stepped out of his way. Even at the start of the holiday, the lobby was packed with jewel-toned people, and all of them watched him with varying degrees of reverence or hostility. “Some things are just pretty, Kaz. Lighten up.”
His brother hit the up button on the elevator’s panel without looking away from the phone in his hand. “You work with my people long enough and you’ll reevaluate that stance,” he muttered.
The metal doors slid open. Theodore stepped inside with a barely audible sigh, the muscles between his shoulder blades relaxing a bit. There were many things he loved about being the first in line to take over the territory, but the constant scrutiny wasn’t one of them. Never, not once, did he get to truly breathe easy when he was out among the public.
