After a careful scouting of the outside of the house, we realised that there wasn't going to be an easy path to the back garden. Within seconds, Juno had summoned a rune, and a cold but not unpleasant gust blew towards us from behind, catching us under our feet and lifting us up a few metres into the air. As much as I would love to say we glided elegantly over the back fence, the wind expelled us almost instantly over the top in a rough arc, both clattering to the ground with an unceremonious "thud". "Come on," Juno called, grabbing my hand as they pulled me up from the bracken, the mostly moist mud leaving spots of residue along my back and legs. We headed over to the back of the house, a window through to an empty kitchen at eye level, a view of Aubrey and Mike's bedroom above, both framed by vines that crawled up the trellis. Outlining a familiar circle around the palm of my hand, I traced the rune I had learnt earlier in the day, watching the purple hues dance along my hand and along the vines as they grew upwards, forming a makeshift and uneven ladder against the wall. Juno and I looked at each other. "So uh..." I started, "Oldest first?"
Juno's eyes wandered to the unstable mass of green in front of us. "Aren't you supposed to be the reckless one?"
The two of us stood side by side, staring at the giant structure in front of us. Perhaps the great idea wasn't so feasible after all. "Maybe we can-"
"Hey! Up here!"
Leaning out of the window was a tall boy with dark skin and tight black curls that framed his visage, a smile plastered across the lengths of his face.
"Mike? Why are you- where's Bee?"
He frowned. "I think I saw her go to the bathroom. Why are you round the back of our house? We have a front door, you know."
Juno stepped forward. "Aubrey seemed upset today, so we came by to check up on her, but your mother answered."
His smile quickly fell, replaced by a grim expression. "Oh." He looked over to me, and a slight flush passed over my cheeks. "Whatever she said to you Tobi, I... just don't take it to heart, okay?" I tried to ignore the burning in my face. "I'm all good, don't worry," I replied, smiling and pulling my hands out of my pocket to produce a hopefully comforting thumbs up.
"So you came around the back to... politely ask to come back in?"
"We- uh..."
Juno sighed. "Listen Mike, we're here to break Aubrey out. Are you in or out?"
I waited for a response, an anxiety tugging at my stomach, convincing me he would bait us out to his mother. Just as the tension was getting slightly too unbearable, a laugh resounded from the window above us. "Of course I'll help you - as long as you let me come too. It's so boring in here, I would much rather hang out with you guys. I'll go get her for you."
Phew. A large exhale escaped my lips, turning misty as it reached the cold autumn air, and it was only at that moment that I noticed how much the temperature had dropped over the past week. It seemed as though winter had finally gotten a hold of the September climate, weaving a chill into the fabric of each day.
"Tobi!" A familiar voice echoed, waving frantically out of the window, her brother standing next to her with his arms folded. There were obvious tear stains along her face, as well as apparent red swelling around each of her eyes, but aside from that she seemed genuinely happy. "Aubrey! Are you okay?"
She smiled, wiping away the last drop of water that fell from her eyes. "I am now. I'm so sorry for everything my mother said to you - I had no idea you were coming round, I would've warned you."
"We wanted to surprise you. You seemed so upset during the day, we wanted to try to help."
Aubrey sniffled. "You guys..."
