Guardian

Chapter 10

Thomas methodically pulled breakfast ingredients out of the fridge. The light from the large picture window reminded him of one of the traditional melodies his band played. It could have something to do with the old-fashioned appliances that were not meant for this modern time. It seemed the kitchen was misplaced. They'd transported it brand spanking new directly from a different era.

As soon as he'd entered, he'd had to start the fire in the wood stove so it would be hot enough to cook eggs and white pudding. Luckily, it also cast a merry glow and warmth that hadn't been there when he entered. It was the one place in this house that didn't feel so cold.

He pulled out mushrooms and tomatoes to make a fry.

Since when did I agree to cook breakfast for the man I'm trying to banish from my life? Oh yeah.

He couldn't help it. After seeing how raw Aidan was when he woke up, then witnessing how he still told his best friend he would cook breakfast, Thomas realized he needed to step up. The man with his messy hair, loose T-shirt, and pajama bottoms was a far cry from the made-up man he was used to seeing in interviews. He was more shy, less flamboyant, and more real. At that moment, he couldn't help himself. He was making breakfast for his idol, not for the man he was supposed to guard.

And there he was. Aidan stood bleary-eyed and looked around the kitchen like he'd never entered one in his life. For all Thomas knew, maybe he hadn't.

"Hi, ye finally made it down. Ye can trust me with the making of breakfast, but not with coffee." Thomas shrugged his head toward the coffee pot and the bag of whole beans. Hopefully, Aidan was at least able to brew coffee.

Thomas continued his mission by putting the pan on the stovetop and adding butter. He glanced in Aidan's direction. The look on his face was one of pure joy. His eyes sparkled. "If I'd known coffee could put that kind of grin on yer face, I'd have brought it upstairs to yer room to help wake ye this morning."

"Oh, hush then," Aidan said as he dashed back the direction he came.

"Suit yerself then." Thomas shrugged.

The face of the ghost and the face of the girl in Aidan's dream flashed in Thomas's mind. Yes, Aidan had started dreamin'. It was official.

Still, what was that anyway? He knew from the tales of his cousins that he could enter the dreams of the person he was supposed to guard. What he didna realize was that it wasn't necessarily voluntary. He had no urge to know what was going on in Aidan's dream, yet he couldn't seem to help but appear in them.

"Irritating man. Irritating family. I just want to play my music, and yet here I am doing things involuntarily." He wasna even a human in the dream. Rather, he was the cat version of himself. How did he know this? Well, it sort of became clear when a man, clearly Scots, and a girl who wasn't entirely a girl appeared like giants before him in his mind's eye. It was a little dizzying to go from normal-sized to so small even if it was a dream.

He could sense Aidan's energy underneath the girl's energy as he dreamt. It wasn't strong, but it was still there. She was Eleanor, the ghost roaming the house. According to his family's lore, Aidan would dream more and more about the ghost he was supposed to help. In order to help them pass on to the other world, he had to know why they were stuck there in the first place.

Thomas couldna linger much longer in this man's tale. He was already being pulled in, not just by the ghost's sad story, but also by Aidan, who just walked back into the kitchen prepared to brew his coffee. "I see ye have all the fancy equipment."

"If you're going to do it, do it right."

Aidan had a point. Thomas felt the same way. Thus the reason he was making a fancy breakfast, even though he had no urge to be anywhere near any of this.