Jesse wondered how he'd gotten from hitchhiking to Haven, to being in the back of Sundark's van.
Okay, granted, he'd arrived moments before Bane and Cynthia and Deanna left to pick up Flynn and Gisela; Kevin, it seemed, was already at Coven Winter's house. Okay, granted, he'd somehow managed to time his visit for Dandelion's anniversary as a coven, and found himself invited to join them.
It was still sudden enough to make his head spin.
Flynn first, who hopped into the back and greeted Jesse with a smile; then Gisela's house. Gisela saw him, and immediately pounced for a hug that might have startled her as much as it did him, because she blushed and retreated quickly to hide in Deanna's shadow.
“Good timing,” Flynn commented. “Tonight's going to be fun.”
“Mm. I don't think I've met anybody from Winter or Dandelion for more than a couple of minutes.”
“Don't worry about it,” Cynthia assured him. “No one's expecting you to remember names of people you've only met briefly.”
Coven Winter's house was medium-sized and well-kept, the nearest neighbours some distance on either side. Bane parked the van, and everyone headed for a door at the side. Cynthia tapped briefly, opened it, and shooed everyone into a warm, bright, and reasonably large kitchen. Haven seemed to be fond of big kitchens.
Lori, Kevin's cousin, who looked so much like him, turned away from the sink, wiping her hands dry on a dish towel, and smiled warmly. “Jesse! Hi!” In the background, he could hear a lot of voices, and music—Meatloaf, he thought.
“Jess?” Kevin, doing something at the stove, glanced back. “Get in here, you. It's cold out there. If you wanted to visit, why didn't you call? Someone could've come to get you.”
Jesse shrugged. “It's not that bad. Are you sure I'm not interrupting?” There was a truly astonishing amount of food on the go in that kitchen.
“The best possible time for you to come,” Lori laughed. “We would have invited you, if we'd been able to, but you haven't called since we decided to do this. Consider yourself invited.”
“There's no room in this kitchen for extra bodies,” Kevin said. “Take your boots off and go get comfy in the living room until supper's ready.”
Jesse saluted, but obeyed, left his snowy boots with the numerous others and added his jacket to the pile on the chest freezer behind the door.
“Find a spot, if you can,” Flynn said, claiming one end of the couch, which already had two people on it: a woman with shoulder-length copper-coloured hair, a little taller than Gisela but no heavier, and Samantha from the pet store. Bane crossed the room towards the one chair; the man sprawled in it, a leg draped over the arm, resembled him quite a lot. Aha, that was Bane's older brother Bryan. Bryan started to move, but Bane shook his head and sat on the floor leaning against the chair.
Leaning against the couch, on a pillow on the floor, was a curvy dark-haired woman whose hazel eyes focused on nothing, but who cocked her head a little to listen. A grey husky hovered near her, like always. Jesse had never heard of a seeing eye dog that wore nothing save a collar, but Gwyn did help Naomi get around somehow, so he filed it as one more small mystery. Everyone else, he counted seven more including the other newcomers, found space on the floor, a few with cushions to sit on, most not.
The oval coffee table bore a heavy load of bottles of pop, pitchers of juice and one of water with ice in it, and a collection of mismatched glasses and mugs; some of those present had obviously already helped themselves.
Against one wall were two women. One had hair so pale it was practically blue-white, cut to shoulder-length, an interesting contrast to her tanned skin; she was petite, but nicely curved under the simple blue and silver short-sleeved dress she was wearing. He thought he remembered meeting her briefly at some point, and that her name was Evaline. She nudged the woman beside her with one bare foot, and both moved aside to make room between them.
“There's not much room,” the second woman said cheerfully. “But we can make some. Come have a seat, gorgeous. You have awesome timing, this is going to be a great party. But then, we always have great parties when we're all together.” The dark red silky stuff she was wearing, a cropped tank top with a ribbon tie gathering the bottom and calf-length pants so loose they resembled a skirt, showed off her athletic body nicely; Jesse thought he wouldn't want to mess with her. Thick chestnut hair had been cut to jaw-length, around a tanned face that was too strong to be called pretty. Still, they both seemed friendly, so he shrugged and accepted the offered place. Anywhere he sat, he was going to be right next to someone, so why not?
“Calm down, Caitryn,” Bane said, amused. “You can be a bit alarming when you get excited.”
“Oh, I'm not scaring Jesse. Am I?” she asked Jesse.
He shrugged. “Not particularly.”
“See?”
Bane simply looked at her, expressionless; it took only a couple of heartbeats for Caitryn to look down and to one side, and Bane looked away. Jesse had the feeling he'd just missed something he wouldn't get an explanation for even if he asked.
“So, how's life been treating you?” Deanna asked.
“It's life,” Jesse said, with another shrug. “It's winter. Everyone in the city is broke and stressed out 'cause they spent too much over Christmas, and now they're depressed 'cause it's cold and grey and slushy with short days. Doesn't make for the greatest atmosphere.”
“Sounds it,” Samantha said. “Also sounds like a good reason to be here, not there.”
“How 'bout up here?”
“Fairly pleasant, now that we've finished exams,” Cynthia said. “It was kind of tense around here not too long ago. College exams, high school exams...”
“To say nothing of my needing to keep the library open extra hours,” Bryan said dryly. “I thought Coven Winter were going to collectively collapse from sheer nerves, all four of them trying to work and get through third and fourth year college exams.”
“We survived,” laughed the copper-haired woman Jesse thought was Sonja.
“And then there was Kevin freaking out over his first college exams,” Bryan finished.
“We just couldn't convince him that they aren't that much worse than high school ones, and that he should treat them the same way,” Bane sighed. “It was not a pretty sight. I think Lori kept half the people in this room fed for a good couple of weeks. I've never seen so much stew and curry and such, stuff she could make in big batches.”
“Thank all the gods for the Lioren family's love of cooking,” Cynthia said.
“And everyone's willingness to chip in on the groceries required,” Naomi added, her hand never still, always stroking Gwyn's fur or playing idly with his ears. Gwyn, Jesse thought, looked completely blissed out. “Not that Bryan and Lori and I wouldn't do it cheerfully under conditions like that, but the three of us just don't make enough to feed a dozen or so people.”
“It's your anniversary?” Jesse asked Bryan.
Bryan nodded. “Lori and Naomi and I have been a coven for four years today.”
“While parties are fun,” Deanna reflected, “we'd be doing nothing else if we were to celebrate holidays, and coven anniversaries, and birthdays. So we have a party for each coven's anniversary, and birthday parties for our solitaries. That would be Gisela and Cait and, when Bryan can talk her into it, Sam. Plus holidays. We don't do presents often, either, otherwise the rent would never get paid and Kev and Lori would starve to death. So we all have a feast and rent a couple of movies and just hang out for the night.”
Jesse thought of birthdays and Christmas mornings when he'd gotten all the presents his well-off adoptive parents could afford, but which he'd nonetheless spent wishing he didn't have to be there. “I like your way.”
“So do we,” Sonja laughed.
For a little while, Jesse stayed quiet, simply listening in on one or another of the ever-shifting multiple conversations in the room. It wasn't really so hard to allow himself to be drawn into a debate between Deanna and her cousin about a current movie. Liam had much the same smile Deanna did, and similar colouring, though he lacked her height and was much slenderer. Long dark brown hair was, as usual, held out of his eyes by a colourful woven headband. Caitryn got involved, too, and all four lost track of time in the animated discussion.
“Somebody want to set the dining room table?” Kevin called.
“Hear and obey, milord,” Evaline answered. Caitryn rose a heartbeat later. “We've got it,” Evaline said. “Any more than two and we'll be tripping over each other.”
“There are too many to sit at the table,” Jesse said, puzzled.
“Very true,” Samantha said. “Which would be why we're all going to get a plateful of food and come back here, once everything's on the table.”
“Ah. Got it.”
“Come and get it!” Lori called.
“And the stampede begins,” Flynn chuckled. “Don't worry 'bout hurrying, Jess. We'll all be able to stuff ourselves senseless and still have leftovers. Kev and Lori tend to get a bit over-excited in the kitchen when they're together.”
“Stay, Gwyn,” Naomi said, getting to her feet and tucking her hand around Bryan's arm. “Mm, I smell that honeyed chicken Kevin makes.”
The dining room table was heaped with more food than Jesse had ever seen in one place before. Chicken, ham, steak, rice dishes, noodle dishes, vegetable dishes, potatoes. At one end of the table was a stack of mismatched plates, and beside it, a pile each of forks and knives. Everyone simply picked one up and started choosing foods, with some degree of good-natured squabbling when someone grabbed a spoon someone else had been reaching for, or got in someone's way.
Classically tall, dark, and handsome Nick from Coven Winter slid an arm around Naomi's waist and leaned past her to scoop up a couple of still-warm rolls from the basket, then retreated to put one on each plate that Evaline held. The pair retreated, like others, to the living room. There was an awful lot of casual physical contact, with total disregard for relative sexes or covens or anything else Jesse could see. That was something he was beginning to get used to, but currently it was highlighted in neon by the number of bodies in close proximity. Somehow he couldn't quite work out, they managed to keep uninvited contact with him to a minimum without giving him the feeling that they were avoiding him.
Jesse had trouble deciding what he wanted, since everything on the table looked and smelled good. He took a little bit of each, and found his plate full before he'd gotten to everything.
“Come back for seconds,” Caitryn advised, and waited for him before going back to the living room.
That Kevin was an excellent cook, Jesse already knew. Kevin and Lori together were phenomenal.
The whole evening was a lot of fun. Jesse volunteered to help clean up; they didn't take all that long, with Bane and Bryan clearing the table and packing up leftovers, Nick washing the mountain of dishes, Jesse and Deanna drying, and Gisela putting everything away. It didn't feel like so much work, with the radio on and all the laughter and gentle teasing in the kitchen.
Only once they could all relax did Flynn turn on the TV. The first movie sent the entire room into fits of hysterical laughter; Jess couldn't remember the last time he'd laughed so hard, or with company he could simply share the moment with. The second was a well-done science-fiction action adventure. There was a third one, a truly bad '60s B-movie, but by then everyone was so worked up and tired both that it was more funny than terrible—or was it the commentary from the people around him that was funny?
“Oh, man,” Lori yawned. “I think it's about time we all headed home to bed.”
“Wish parties never had to end,” Gisela said wistfully, but she looked like she was having trouble staying awake, her head resting on Deanna's shoulder.
“They end so we can get all rested up for the next one,” Liam said. “So. How are you all getting home?”
Jesse saw a number of glances flicker in his direction, then away again; only Kevin's stayed, thoughtfully.
“Why do I get the feeling I'm stopping you from something?” Jesse asked, through a yawn.
“Just do it,” Sam said, and Flynn added, “I was going to say that.”
Gisela nodded, and yawned something that sounded like agreement.
Kevin and Lori looked at each other, and Kevin shrugged. “Oh, why not. I don't think anyone's awake enough to drive. Just don't freak when you see how, okay, Jess?”
“Okay,” Jesse agreed. “Can't be any weirder than some of what I've seen.”
“Mine's straightforward enough,” Lori said. “One gate to my focus in Sam and Bryan's living room, one to our apartment, and Cait can come with Naomi and I, she doesn't live far away. Yours could get tangled.”
“Nah,” Kevin said. “I'm still wide awake, and there's lots of moonlight. I can do three. Hmm. Would be easier to do the other two from home, though. One to our place, then one to Flynn's house and one to Gisela's house and Dia can make up her mind by then where she's sleeping.”
“Show-off,” Deanna said affectionately. “Brace yourself, Jess.”
Sleepy good-nights were said, and hugs traded—Caitryn gave Jess a bear-hug that left him slightly breathless and grateful she'd left his ribs and spine intact, but it felt good.
The silver moonlight pouring in through the windows began to visibly gather itself in front of Kevin. With both hands he gestured, outlining a rough doorway. The light strengthened, and formed into an archway covered by a filmy curtain of rainbow light; through it, he could see Sundark's familiar living room. Jesse couldn't help staring. Cynthia just laughed, took his hand, and stepped through the glowing door, drawing him after her. A couple of steps later, they were home, and the others were following. Kevin came last, and the bright doorway imploded in a shower of silvery sparkles.
“Nice trick,” Jesse said. “I'm impressed. Can you do that anywhere?”
“No,” Bane answered, while Kevin repeated the whole process twice more—once to send Flynn somewhere, once for Deanna and Gisela. “He needs a very clear link to the other end, which can be done in a few ways. There aren't many who can do it at all, but the ability tends to run in that family.”
“Right. I'm getting the feeling a lot runs in that family that I don't necessarily want to know about. I'll ask some other time. Can I go to sleep now?”
Kevin chuckled. “Go ahead. You can have my bed, I'll steal Dia's or crash with someone.”
“Sure,” Cynthia yawned. “If you're quiet.”
Sleep, Jesse thought dreamily, getting comfortable in Kevin's bed between silky sheets. What a wonderful invention sleep was...