Chương 15: Episode Two Hundred and Fifty-Nine: Family Ties

"You met my Dad, in the cabin with Onyx," I said to Indigo.

"But my mom wasn't on the trip." She cocked her head to the side, thinking hard about something. I turned to the counter and quickly threw together a sandwich for my brother, sliding it across the island. Then, I sat in front of my plate, which still had my sandwich with only a few bites missing.

"Thanks," he said, as he sat.

"But yeah, Onyx is in a funk."

"I'll figure something out," I said, wondering how best to discuss it with Betty. Randomly showing up in town wasn't something we could pull off, especially since it wasn't a big town. The downtown strip had all the shops that everyone knew. There were a few empty storefronts, but they'd been empty for ages. Showing up then vanishing wouldn't work.

"You should meet the rest of my family," said Indigo.

"Besides Grandpa, and Lady Twilight." Cerulean paused, his sandwich halfway to his mouth.

"Dragons tend to not like me," he said after a moment.

"I like you!" Indigo nudged the side of his head, leaving a greasy mark on his face. He fed her another potato chip.

"That's required, because we are related, in a round-about way," he added. She crunched down on the chip and tried to say something, but her mouth was full.

"They'd put up with you because Indigo is cute," I said, after swallowing.

"I mean, you met Lady Twilight and Lord Bennit. You didn't have a problem."

"They were more focused on you than anything else," he said, shaking his head.

"My magic makes beings with power uneasy."

"Tell me about that," I said, before taking a big bite. I tried to remember what I'd read about people like him.

"Wanderers are rare and strange," he said, putting down his sandwich next to the bag of potato chips.

"I feel the urge to travel places, and sometimes do things, but mostly just to wander. It's like an itch I have to scratch."

"So, less like a Traveler, and more like a restless person," I added.

"That's a good way to think about it. Sometimes, I need to help people get places, like folks who are migrating to new worlds. For example, if the magic changed on their current world for some reason, and they can't stay there." My mind went to the elementals, who'd had to leave.

"I don't always know why I need to go somewhere, and sometimes I just want to go somewhere." He took another bite of his sandwich. Indigo climbed down his shoulder to the island, but the potato chip bag was empty. She held it up with a pout.

"You ate way too many of those. Try some veggies," I said, pointing to Lorestone's plate. She hurried over to the grapes. This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

"Well, what about you, miss I'm in a magical shop with a familiar, and dragon?" He stared at me over his sandwich.

"I'm the Shopkeeper, and dragon-kin," I said, letting the words roll off my tongue. The power inside my chest shone brighter, just for a moment.

"We nudge things into place, help things get where they need to go, that sort of thing."

"You have way more fate magic than me," he said, after swallowing.

"This is a little strange, even for me."

"Betty does the heavy lifting." I patted the island, after finishing my sandwich. The floor warmed.

"The shop is Betty?" he asked, glancing around with a frown. Indigo nodded.

"Betty is home."

"Well, then, nice to meet you, Betty." He finished his sandwich with another bite.

"I only came by to let you know about Onyx, since you know he isn't going to call you to say anything, and I don't think everyone else understands why he is in a funk."

"What have you told everyone else about all of this?" I asked, suddenly glad I hadn't had a call with anyone.

"Nothing." His answer hung in the air.

"Wait, what?" I jerked back slightly.

"This is your business, and your magic. What you want to tell the rest of the family is up to you." He leaned closer to me, and his eyes landed on Indigo.

"Your life is pretty fantastical, but your secrets need to stay yours. The home you're building here needs to be protected."

"So you're not saying anything…" I understood him keeping things to himself, but not even mentioning he saw me was completely different.

"The family would understand." Cerulean smiled.

"Just as your secrets are your own, so are theirs." Now, this was frustrating.

"Figure out a way home, Sable. It's important."

"Can I come?" asked Indigo, quietly. He opened his mouth with a smile, then suddenly closed it with a slight flinch. I knew that pain. My eyes narrowed as I leaned closer.

"You literally can't say anything, can you?" He pressed his lips together, but didn't give me anything. Not a nod, not a flinch, nothing. I leaned back quickly.

"Fine." Indigo glanced between the two of us, before inching closer to Cerulean. She touched a claw to his hand on the counter, and magic surged between the two of them. He jerked back suddenly.

"Don't do that, it's dangerous…" Indigo wiggled her nose and fluttered her wings.

"He has strong magic on him."

"Yep, he can't say anything," I added.

"Either way, you know what you need to do," he said, before standing.

"I should get going, my time here is short, and I only found you by accident."

"So, even the great Wanderer can't find the shop?" I joked.

"Not if I don't need to." He shrugged, and his clothing shimmered. For a second, he wore the leather armor and cloak. Then it shifted back to jeans and a fitted shirt. I walked him to the front of the shop.

"By any chance, do you do deliveries?"

"Deliveries?" he asked near the door.

"Yeah. If I had something like a book club, and needed things to go to some magical folks… You could deliver them, right?" His mouth opened, but nothing came out for a second.

"Sable, you want to create a book club for magical people?"

"Hey, they all seem to love books from our world. They can't get enough of them." I shrugged, and motioned to my clipboard near the front.

"I sell stacks at a time. Less like a book club and maybe a delivery service for people who can't leave their locations, like the Sphinx, or a Dryad."

"And I thought I had the crazy life out of all the siblings." He shook his head with a smile.

"I want to hear all your stories, but not now. I got an itch, and I need to go check it out. Let me think about it. I'm not saying yes, but if you know what world they are on, maybe." I hugged him, then pulled back. Indigo flew around his head, still covered in potato chip crumbs.

"Bye, bye, Uncle!"

"I'll be back!" he said. Then, he headed out the door. It shimmered for a second, and the night sky flashed in front of him. A strong smell of leaves and crisp air flowed into the front of the shop, along with a massive amount of magic.