The sound of a hammer echoed through the hardwood of the window frame. Its glass now shining with a solid pane from the shattered fragments of earlier.
“That should do it. I can’t believe that storm last night.” Ron said, turning to Linda. “I’ll get to the branch later.”
Linda stared out the window. The large branch from the maple tree had broken off during the storm, its limb crashing into the housebreaking the window. Thankfully the only damage was to the window itself. However, the heavy branch would have done injury or worse to anyone or anything beneath it. She continued to stare out the glass portal making Ron take notice.
“She’ll be back. I don’t think a storm like that would have bothered her.” Ron said. His words were referencing the time their friend, a fairy named Roween, had left.
Linda nodded, her eyes still focusing on the trees and the deep forest behind them. Then, finally, Linda turned, “yeah, she can be a trouble maker.”
Ron chuckled, “Which one?”
Linda thought for a moment, realizing what her husband was saying, “which one indeed.”
She wasn’t sure. She knew that Ron would sometimes talk in riddles. So she had to clarify, “Amanda or Roween?”
Ron nodded, “both.”
Linda liked the way Ron played with words. His sense of irony and humor was like hers. She smiled at him. Roween was the fairy that brought them together, and that magical troublemaker had been away for some months. Amanda was the girl Ron had saved when Roween had asked for his help when she was injured. Amanda was Linda’s friend as well. But, like Linda, Amanda was also friends with the same fairy. It’s not often you find others with magic friends willing to hang around.
Linda nodded as she leaned against Ron, “both indeed.” Since their ordeal with the sorcerer Doctor Raymond Terrell, she missed Amanda. Ron had moved in with Linda and was renovating his cabin since doing so. She liked to chide him on the other inhabitants when he returned home from working on his old place.
“You never did tell me how Errant and Jocelyne were handling the renovation,” Linda said.
Ron nodded, “about as expected. Errant hasn’t broken anything yet. And, as long as Jocelyne keeps him out of trouble, I should be finished soon. Then we can rent the place out after that.”
“Did they agree to that?” Lind asked as Ron wiped the new glass clean.
“Yeah, they agreed as long as it’s not some party rental. They asked that I restrict anyone who might be a problem.” Ron told her.
Linda picked up the small book Ron and kept notes on the adventures of the last few months; he had planned to turn it into a story. She remembered how Errant dismantled the truck the Doctor’s henchmen used before muttering, “did you ever think you’d have to negotiate with magic brownies?”
Ron shook his head, “nope, but since I’ve been here, I’ve met a slew of things I never thought existed. Ron referred to Roween and the Sylphs, not to mention the brownies that were the spirits of his house. Ron looked around, “you know I’ve never seen the ones who live here.”
Linda looked around, “oh, they’re around. Not all brownies are like yours. This house is much older. They like to keep things quiet around here” She turned to look at him. “that’s why I bought this house.”
Linda looked at the clock on the wall. It read seven forty-five. She suddenly felt the responsibilities she always did. Her shop was now busy since they had gained some folk hero status saving Amanda and the other magical creatures. But, of course, the paper never really knew how many other beings were saved. And that was fine with them, including Amanda. As Linda felt the weight on her, she placed the worn book down. “I have to head to the shop. It’s been busy since our….” Linda paused. “Incident.”
Ron nodded, “I’ll drop by later. I wanted to get the new wiring put in for the kitchen. It should only take me a few hours.”
Linda moved closer, giving him a gentle kiss, “I’ll see you then, lover.”
Ron had a smile on his face as she walked away. That, however, became muted as her thoughts to Amanda and Roween. Neither Roween nor Amanda had been a part of their lives since the weeks after Dr. Terrell’s arrest for trying to kidnap Amanda. Finally, she headed upstairs to finish getting ready for work.
Ron thought it ironic that the man who desired magic chose to try and take something from the girl he had saved. Ron remembered the vials and magic items strewn around the room. Still, the magic the Doctor had stolen, and how that the man was willing to try and take everything, even from an innocent child, especially someone who didn’t have magic like the creatures he captured.
That thought was in Ron’s mind as he headed out to the cabin.
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