"Which is why I'm here in the middle of nowhere trying not to be recognized," Raven said, her voice sharp. "I'm helping with the fundraiser. I'm not turning it into a bloody meet-and-greet."
Daisy looked crestfallen.
"What Raven means," Annabelle said quickly, ever the peacemaker, "is that we want to keep the focus on the children and the library. Which is absolutely right. This isn't about celebrity, it's about community."
Raven glanced at her, surprised. Annabelle met her gaze with a small, understanding smile that made Raven’s chest feel funny.
Christ. The woman really was far too nice. How could anyone be that nice?
"Moving on," Annabelle said, consulting her notes again. "The first bake sale is scheduled for this Saturday. I've already started baking, and several parents have volunteered to contribute as well. Now, Gloria, you mentioned you had some ideas for the talent show?"
Gloria launched into an elaborate vision involving period costumes, choreographed dance numbers, and at least three scene changes. Raven tuned her out after the first thirty seconds and watched Annabelle instead.
The teacher was frantically scribbling notes, nodding along to Gloria's increasingly unhinged suggestions, her face bright with concentration. Every so often she'd interject with something practical like, "Do we have the budget for that?" or, "The hall might not have enough space," but she never shot Gloria down completely. Just gently redirected, like she was handling an overexcited toddler.
Which, Raven supposed, she essentially was.
"What do you think, Raven?" Annabelle asked suddenly.
Raven blinked. "About what?"
"About the talent show. Should we do one large performance or several smaller showcases?"
"I think you're all going to exhaust yourselves trying to do too much," Raven said bluntly. "Pick three things. Do them well. Stop trying to save the world in a weekend."
There was a pause.
"That's actually quite sensible," Arty said, looking impressed.
"I have my moments." Raven drained her coffee. "Are we done?"
"Almost," Annabelle said. "I just wanted to check, and this is completely optional, absolutely no pressure, but would you be willing to help with the talent show? Not directing," she added quickly, seeing Raven's expression. "Just… maybe teaching a song to the children? Something simple they could perform?"
Raven opened her mouth to refuse.
Then she made the mistake of actually looking at Annabelle.
Those ridiculous blue eyes were so full of hope and optimism it was almost offensive. Like she genuinely believed Raven was going to say yes. Like she had complete faith that underneath the grumpy exterior, Raven was secretly a good person who wanted to help children.
Which was absurd.
And yet.
"Fine," Raven heard herself say. "One song. Simple. Nothing fancy."
Annabelle's entire face lit up. "Oh, that's wonderful. Thank you so much. The children are going to be absolutely thrilled."
"Don't make a big deal about it," Raven muttered.
"I wouldn't dream of it."
The meeting finally wrapped up twenty minutes later, after Gloria had been talked down from staging a full production ofLes Mis and Daisy had been gently discouraged from hand-delivering flyers to every house in a ten-mile radius.
As everyone started gathering their things, Raven found herself lingering near the table, watching Annabelle stack her notes into neat piles.
"Can I ask you something?" Raven said, keeping her voice low enough that the others wouldn't hear.
Annabelle looked up, surprised. "Of course."
