Blue Blood

Picking Up The Pieces

By the time I wake up, all the rain from last night has already dried up, the sun warming the damp ground with her fiery kiss. Looks like it's going to be another really hot day.

I sit up and stretch my back. A few rays of sun sneak past the curtain and brighten the room. The soft sound of clattering dish wear whisks up the stairs, followed close by the scent of a hardy breakfast.

I spare a glance at Roman next to me. His mouth is partly open, drool dripping from it. His hair is all over the place, reaching far and long in all different directions. I gently move his arm from my lap and get dressed.

The stairs creak slightly as I walk down them. I guess I'm a bit heavier than the average person. The people around town gave me a nickname, Mountain, because of it and me being so tall. A lot of the eligible women in town make jokes about climbing me. I'm not sure what it means, but I don't think I want to know.

I have to catch myself from falling down the stairs as Lea comes barreling down behind me.

"Lea! I swear, you're gonna end up hurting someone one of these days." Kate scolds.

"Oh, come on, look at her. She would never!" Damien coos, squishing the dogs face lovingly.

I whistle to her and she trots over, tongue hanging loose. I scratch behind her ear and rub her sides. She pants and sneezes repeatedly, her way of showing gratitude.

"Good morning, sunshine. How did you sleep?" Kate asks from the stove.

"No complaints. I went the whole night without a nightmare, if you can believe it." I state, taking a seat at the table.

"Well that's great to hear. Say, after breakfast, Kate and I are gonna run into town for some supplies. Are you okay to hold down the fort until we get back?"

"Of course. Why wouldn't I?"

He smiles, "Just thought it would be polite to ask."

I shoot him a smile and we continue to talk about everything and nothing. What the weather looks like for the day, how soon the mare is coming, favorite types of stew, and so on and so forth. I like it when Kate joins in because she's always so clever and quick on the draw. She tends to keep to herself though and I don't push her. She's kind of scary when she wants to be.

"So . . . Magnus. Where did that name come from? If you don't mind me asking." Kate asks, sipping her tea. There's a mischief and intensity behind her eyes I can't quite shake. Damien noticeably tenses up as well as he fills his mouth.

"Um, well, it's the only name I've ever known. I can only assume that it's the name my . . . *ahem* parents gave me."

She hums to herself, hand at her chin. Damien avoids eye contact with me. What are they up to?

"Hah, did you know that Magnus means big? Ha! Ya learn something new everyday!" Damien blurts.

Okay, something is definitely wrong. He only spits random facts when he feels guilty or he's hiding something.

"Iiiiiiiis there something you're not telling me?" I ask slowly.

They freeze for a moment. Damiens eyes are wide and he quickly shovels food into his mouth. Kate sits, thought showing in the creases of her brow.

She takes a deep breath, "There's a thought in the air, yes, but we don't want to bring it up if it is just a miss understanding."

"Well, if you told me what it is, maybe I could clear it up."

Her eyes sadden ever so slightly, "it's not that simple, darling. If it was a danger to anyone here, we would let you know."

She stands, puts her dishes in the sink, and grabs her purse and shall. Damien quickly piles the last bit of breakfast into his mouth and grabs his hat. He waves goodbye and a muffled departure as he exits the door. Kate gets to the door and stops.

"How old did you say you were again?"

Confusion runs across my face for a moment, "18."

"Hm." She gives the answer a quick thought and exits the house, entwining her hand in her husbands.

What the hell is going on? What's with the weird questions all of a sudden? Maybe I just haven't known them long enough and this is a normal sort of thing. Who am I to know what normal is? My life is ANYTHING but normal.

"M-Mags?"

I nearly jump out of my skin at the new voice behind me. I quickly stand and turn around. I stand dumbfounded for a moment, unsure what to do.

"You . . . You're awake!" I beam.

I go to hug him, but stop myself short. He looks at me a bit confused.

"I . . . Sorry, I just . . . I don't . . . I don't want to hurt you again."

His features soften and he initiates the hug. I very carefully wrap my arms around him and give a small squeeze even though I want to squish the life out of him. Not literally of course.

"I missed you." He hums dreamily into my chest.

He quickly darts back, "where are we? H-how long have I been out? WHAT YEAR IS IT!?"

I steady my hands on his shoulders, not being able to hold back a smile, "woah, woah, woah, hang on, it's alright. We are with some very nice people who have been taking care of us. You've been . . . Out for six months and I think that also answers the last question. Anything else?"

He processes it for a second, looking around the house. He looks down at himself, seeing the bandages and different clothes.

"Who dressed me?"

"Uh that would be Kate."

"Kate? Ew, who's that?"

"Uh, yeah. She's really nice. Married to Damien."

"Damien?"

"Look, they'll be back in a little while and they can explain who they are, okay?"

"Okay, who's that?" He asks pointing to the dog.

"That's Lea."

"Like the princess?"

"Sure, why not?"

He glances around the room again, nodding his head. He looks at me and smiles. What's he up to? I flinch as he rubs the side of my jaw.

"Fuzzy, like the fuzzy. Very manly, very cool-I'm hungry. So . . . Yeah. Is there real food in here or am I gonna have to eat the princess dog?"

Lea runs up the stairs.

"Don't eat Lea, she's precious!"

"Ah! Sorry it was a joke, now FEED ME!"

We both laugh for a spell, the first good laugh we've had in a long time. I head outside to grab a few eggs and make him some omelettes. He sits at the table, looking around the house and out the window.

This is so weird and awkward. The last time he saw me, I was trying to kill him. I roll my shoulders uncomfortably at the thought.

"Hey, you okay? You did the shoulder rolly thingy." He pipes up from the table.

I take the eggs off and set them in front of him, taking a seat, "Uh, yeah I guess. I'm just, ya know . . . Thinking."

I fidget around trying not to make eye contact. I thought I could get past this but I guess I'm still the same scared little kid I was back then. Edgy and sad and confused. I jump as his hand rests on mine.

"Hey," I look up, "I forgive you . . . I forgive you, okay?"

I slump a bit in my seat, "you shouldn't."