Waiting For Sunrise - The Books Of Beginning AU

54. A Perilous Destiny

It was nearly six in the morning by the time the Wibberly siblings finished recounting their adventures in Cambridge Falls for Miss B, Rafe, Abigail, and Violet. They explained it all, from the time travel to the Screechers. They told their friends about the Countess and her sinister Secretary, about the wolves they fled from, the places they traveled to, the things they did to get home. They talked about Abraham and Miss Sallow and Dr. Pym, Dena and Lee and Granny Peet, about Robbie and Wallace and, unfortunately, Hamish. They spoke of Gabriel and how he had rescued them. They recounted everything about the Books of Beginning and the prophecy, the truths they had learned about their parents, the threat posed by the Dire Magnus. And, of course, they explained what they'd done to save the children and how, against all odds, they succeeded. ("We're heroes, all of us," Emma couldn't help but exclaim. "Even Michael." Her brother had proceeded to scowl at her for that jab. "Gee, thanks.")

Once their story drew to a close, they spent another half an hour fielding questions from their friends. Explaining how they had promised to write to Dr. Pym and the others, how they were still being hunted, that yes, the Atlas's power belonged to Kate. There were a few questions they couldn't answer, of course, like Abigail's inquiry about what powers were contained in the other two Books, or just who the Dire Magnus was, but they did their best to share all the information they could.

"Goddamn," Abigail was the one to break the silence, once they finally finished. "Out of all the possible explanations for you lot up an' vanishing without a trace, an ancient prophecy and time travel weren't ones I thought up."

"It ain't anything we ever expected either," Michael admitted with a heavy sigh. 

"So what do we do now?" Violet questioned. 

We. Kate felt warm hearing the girl say that word, sensing the silent agreement of Rafe and Abigail. She and her siblings would not have to face their future alone. As she had believed, the Savages were standing by them.

"Are you alright?" Rafe murmured. He leaned his head so close that he was almost resting against her shoulder. 

Kate whispered back. "I'm fine. There's a lot goin' on, but right now, I'm just glad to be back."

"The first thing that I am going to do is update Scruggs on the situation, so that he can ensure the spell keeping us hidden and safe remains impenetrable," Miss B declared. "Furthermore, I will write to your wizard friend, Pym, to exchange information. If Abigail can provide you with a lockbox - we should have something adequate squirreled away in our storage closets - can you three etch the runes as he instructed you to?"

"Of course, Miss B, we'll take care of it," Michael replied. He hesitated for a moment, then added, "thank you very much."

The witch raised an eyebrow and looked at him sharply. "Whatever for?"

"For continuing to keep us safe, even with these new dangers. We understand that there's risk, we understand that our presence could cause trouble, and if that's too much for the Savages to handle, we'd understand. But for now, thank you so much for letting us stay."

There was another long pause as Michael's words lingered, heavy, among the dust and first rays of the rising sun. They were the words of a boy used to being abandoned by everyone but his sisters, the words of a boy who had been seen as a burden by so many orphanage directors, who had just learned that his parents were imprisoned as a result of a destiny he and his siblings never asked for. They were the words of a boy who finally had a home, and who wanted more than anything to keep it.

"Of course you three are allowed to stay," Miss B finally said, steady and deliberate. "You are members of the Savages and this is your home; I may not be the softest woman in the world, but I would not rip it away from you. I'm not a monster. And while you claim your presence may now invite new dangers, I disagree. You have always carried this destiny and its risk, you were just unaware of it. There is no new threat in having you here, we are just now fully informed about the possibility for harm that has always existed. The conditions, though not ideal, are not ruinous for us. There is inherent risk for all magic users, even those just going about their lives. It is a sad fact of being who we are. You three simply have more challenges facing you than even your fellow magicians, and you should not be punished for that."