Chương 26: Episode Two Hundred and Seventy: Time to Call

Outside the shop the scenery changed again, but to a place I was very familiar with. I checked the phone in my back pocket and found I had service.

"Back home," I muttered, as I snagged my drink.

"Time to make the call…" Warmth pulsed from the counter, making me nod. I made my way up to the living room to sit on the couch. The light within the room flowed differently today, and it took a moment for me to realize what had changed. Outside the windows, the dark evergreen forest had been replaced. A field with small seedlings sprouting up all over it reached across the distance. A roundish plastic-covered row sat on my left side.

In the far distance, smoke rose up from several chimneys"We aren't where I thought we were," I muttered to myself. Again, warmth pulsed from the floor, but it felt dimmer than usual. I headed to the couch, but sat sideways so I could keep an eye on the fields. They drew my attention, but I couldn't figure out why. I dialed Onyx's number, but it went to voicemail. Pressing my lips together, I called the house phone. This time it rang only twice before someone picked up.

"I wondered when you would call," said Onyx.

"You could have left your phone on," I muttered, with a slight giggle.

"It'd make it easier to reach you."

"My phone's off?" he said in a questioning tone, as something rustled in the background.

"I hate these things."

"It's all good. How are you doing?" I asked, before we got into the actual conversation.

"I'm fine, but where are you?" he asked, in an aggressive tone.

"Crealuen said you'd be home to talk about things sooner than later… And we need to talk about things."

"I bet he didn't say anything about how I know about magic. That cat's out of the bag." I shook my head a little. Onyx didn't say anything for a few moments. I clutched the phone a little tighter.

"Onyx… Are you still there?" No response.

"Oh, heck, please say you didn't forget me…" A sigh came from the other end.

"I already know about magic. That isn't what we needed to talk about. But I can't talk if you're not here…" I sat up straighter, phone still held tightly.

"But the magic is why you needed me home. My magic, right?" Again, no answer.

"Guess not," I muttered. Something moved at the edges of the field, but I couldn't make out what it was.

"I can't say," came across in a strangled tone.

"Is that Sable?" asked a voice on Onyx's end of the line.

"Yes, Dad. We're chatting," he said, holding the phone away from his mouth, though it didn't muffle anything. Dad's voice came through anyway, "Ask her when we can go fishing. Otherwise, I'm gonna need to take someone else…" Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Everything inside me softened. Dad wanted to go fishing. The salty air, and wind on the beach, echoed through my mind. Not to mention how happy he sounded.

"Oh, she doesn't have time for fishing," answered a softer voice. One I hadn't talked to in too long.

"Not right now, anyway…"

"Mom's here," said Onyx, and the phone was passed over.

"Hello, honey," she said quietly.

"We miss you."

"I miss everyone so much," I said, trying to think fast.

"It sounds like you won't be coming home anytime soon, though," she said, being very direct for once. Everything went quiet. On both ends of the phone. My hands went still, and all that moved was my chest as I took a shallow breath.

"Sable?" she asked, when I didn't respond.

"Yeah, mom, probably not. I need to stabilize things here first." I didn't even know if that was true. Or what it'd look like for me to take a visit. Betty and Indigo needed me more than the rest of my family did. Not to mention the Cat. While he had been freed, it wasn't like he didn't need support as he fixed his lands, and helped his people after centuries of being gone.

"We'll talk all about it when you visit. Onyx says it won't be too long."

'Mom, that's not…" muttered Onyx.

"It will all work out," she added, before I could respond.

"Yes, it will, mom. It will." Somehow, it would. Everything else had. I'd eventually figure out a way to visit them, and have this strange conversation that everyone kept dancing around. The movement at the edge of the field came from the weird plastic tunnel. Someone was moving around inside it. Then, a narrow door opened that I hadn't spotted originally. I leaned over to try and see them better. People just didn't seem to be a thing outside these windows.

Then again, they hadn't changed this drastically before, either. Whomever they were, I still couldn't make out much, though they were headed in my general direction. All I could see were tall, wide shoulders, and a big straw hat.

"Sable?" came from my phone, and I lifted it back up to my ear.

"Sorry, it's a little busy here," I said, totally distracted. Two things happened at once. The head in the field snapped up to my direction, and a voice echoed from the doorway of the living room.

"Umber? Oh smokes…" The voice was one I knew well, from her visit on her way back to our hometown, and from my whole life before that. Umber. He stared at the windows, almost like he could see me. Then the glass trembled, like the surface of water. The dark evergreen forest replaced the fields.

"That was… Umber's farm…" I hadn't seen my older brother in a long time. But his eyes. They were his eyes. Ones that would get you spilling your guts with a single look.

"Mom?" I asked into the phone, realizing I still held it. Yet, the line was dead, and I had no service.

"Betty, what was that?" I asked. A pulse barley came from the couch, and I lifted the bracelet in concern. The charm glowed, but the energy had greatly decreased. She'd used energy beyond moving the shop, but I didn't know what. I stood, unsure of what to do, and something on the floor caught my eye. Indigo rushed into the room, chirping, completely passing over the object.

"I need a scale, but the computer isn't working," she said, as she flew around before landing on the back of the couch.

"Why doesn't the computer work?" For once I ignored her, as I slowly approached the thing on the ground. Then I marveled. A sunflower, not quite open yet, lay partially across the threshold. The stem was cut off like something had sliced through it. I picked it up, and my fingers buzzed ever so slightly. Magical sunflowers. Just like the seeds I'd given him. Umber was growing them.

"Can you fix the computer?" asked Indigo, hovering in the air over my shoulder. I blinked and focused on her again, as everything she'd said caught up to me.

"What?"

"The computer. I need a food scale, but Betty doesn't have one. Can I order one on the website?" She stared at me, like I was being weird.

"I have the money."

"Food scale?" I asked, trying to switch my train of thought.

"Yeah, for baking. Weighing ingredients is better than just measuring, and I think it will be easier to handle than measuring cups." She stared at me, then tilted her head.

"Sure, that shouldn't be expensive," I finally said, still holding the flower and only slightly following what she said.

"The flower is weird," she added, sniffing at it.

"Has weird magic."

"You mentioned the laptop?" I asked, then I thought of no signal. If I didn't have cell signal, maybe the wifi wasn't working. I didn't know how it worked within the shop to begin with. Hopefully, this wasn't a bigger problem.