A Birth day

"Let's just take them?" Anise suggested. "I think we should keep the solar light to put on her grave. She'll need the light with her."

"But the other things should go in the tea garden," Ginger said.

Evan found himself standing in front of a rather ordinary looking row house. This was the big secret? So someone had a house in Paris. Big deal. Angus and Marcus took very casual looks to see if anyone was around. Then Angus motioned to him and they went up and inside.

Inside, Evan was overwhelmed with children of all ages running everywhere. Lots of them. And there were staff members there. Some seemed to be teachers, or nurses, or cooks. Some looked, to Evan, to be fighters.

"What is this place?" Evan asked Angus quietly.

"This is what it's all about. It's about them. We rescue them from people who would try to hurt them. We take them from dark arts practitioners and, when the family is appropriate, we return them home. If not, then we find them safe places to be."

"Who is after them?"

"One of the most wanted men, not just in England, but in all of the wizarding world."

"This isn't just yours is it?"

"It isn't mine at all. I just work here. Robert and Kate and Michael, they're the last of the seven founding members who are left. We work for them."

"Show me. I want to see all of it," Evan said. There wasn't anything Angus could have ever showed him that would have drawn him in more than a house full of children.

Ruby nodded to Anise " I was thinking the same thing, it would mean we had them when we got home" she said and looekd to Ginger as she spoke of the light for the grave " of course" she said softly to her. Now gathering the things she walked behind a wall and aperated back to the duplex right to the flower garden with the trolly " I'll return the trolly once were done" she said then looked to the garen " okay chose your spot" she said motioning to the garden " The tools are in the shed over there, while you get them I'll unload the flowers and statue." she smiled as she picked up the first tray of flowers and set them down ready to be planted.

Ruby saw Simone and the babies out in the garen and smiled as he walke dover to them " how have they been?" she asked knowing that for the moment the twin boys were their responcibility just as much as Caprice was.

The girls took a careful look around the garden, and it was Ginger who suggested they plant the snapdragons on the east side so that the would face the morning sun because the morning sun had been Phoebe's favorite time of day. Anise got the tools while Ginger started taking the snapdragons out of the flat and spacing them along the bed. Anise followed behind Ginger and used the trowel to dig out enough space to put the plants in. The two worked together without speaking, just dedicated to getting the plants put in for their mother.

"They've been just fine," Edward said. "Slept mostly. It's been quiet, so there wasn't much for them but to sleep. Looks like your trip was successful."

Angus and Marcus showed Evan the entire operation, and Evan was deeply affected.

"I want in," Evan said. "Somehow. If Robert won't take me as a fighter, I'll cook, I'll clean, I'll change diapers or sweep floors. I want in."

"I'll talk to him--if you're..." Angus began, wanting to discuss it, but then he caught sight of something. Something in the next block. He saw two people crossing the street a block up. It was unquestionably Tom Gelding and a woman. "Wait here. Marcus, stay with him for half a tick." Angus crept up the alley careful to not be seen, and when he got there, he looked, and he saw them go into a shop. And what he saw before they went in surprised him. He didn't have one shred of doubt. Suzanne Gelding was surely pregnant. Angus sighed heavily. He slipped back into the alley so that Gelding wouldn't catch him, and he slid down the wall to sit on the pavement. Damn. Things just always seemed to go from bad to worse.

Ruby watched the girls as they worked to plant the snapdragons in the perfect spot they had found she could not help admire how they worked well together. Hearing Edward she looked in at the babies and smiled " thats so true, but as they grow they will not be so quiet she said as Caprice gave a soft cry in her sleep. " yes I let them get what they needed , Anise found a solar light she wants to put on the grave becuse she said pheobe was scared of the dark, I'll talk to Angus when he returns about doing just that for them." she said then motioned to the statue " I think they chose well in the statue, its a beautiful peice." she said brushing some dust off its head. " and if it gives them a place they can come and feel close to her , Im okay with it." she said smiling.


Jack finished his patrol and walked over seeing teh girls planting and digging " wow looking good girls " he said " this will be the best spot in the garden" he said with a smile as he lifted the statue up and placed it down off the trolly for them in a place among the snap dragons that fit it perfectly, now it looked like it had always been in that spot surounded by the snap dragons. As he stepped back a blue butterfly fluttered and landed on the stone womans hand pausing to flap its wings before taking off again.

"It's a good thought, but I think I can do better. I think we can enchant the light so that it never goes out. I'll arrange for it to be put on her grave, and then Phoebe will never ever be in darkness. It's a lovely thought and a beautiful way to honor her. I'll take the light and I'll do the enchantment on it, and then arrange for it to be put on her grave so that the girls can see for themselves that she's well cared for."

It wasn't more than two minutes when Marcus and Evan caught up with him, and they saw him sitting on the ground, leaning back against a building.

"What is it?" Marcus asked. "What happened?"

"I just saw Tom and Suzanne," Angus said. "And you'll never guess what I saw. It explains why she hasn't been around. Suzanne is very, very pregnant. Ruby and Jessie and the boys are going to have another sibling, and its going to be a Gelding."

"Oh, for the love of Merlin," Marcus sighed, rolling his eyes. "And you're going to be an uncle to a Gelding."

"Leave it to you to think of something I hadn't thought of yet," Angus scowled at him.

"What's a Gelding?"

"He's the reason that house we just came from is in business. He's responsible for it," Angus said.

"Well, how is that going to work for your house and the organization?" Evan frowned.

"For Robert? Business will carry on as usual. As for my house? I don't know," Angus said. "The very last thing I want to do is bring any of them any more pain. I know their loyalty is to the Lupins and the Donohues. I know that, but this has to create for them, perhaps some sort of feeling."

"I think," Marcus said, "you'll find that they are a good deal more secure now in their relationships with you and with the others at the estate. I think you'll find that they aren't as affected as they might have been some months back. I think you should tell them so they aren't blindsided. And if the day comes where you have to rescue that child as well, then I suggest you let the organization do whatever it does with every other child that cannot be returned. You do not need to take it on just because Suzanne is the mother. Let the organization place it elsewhere."

"Maybe you're right," Angus said.

"Sounds like wise advice to me," Evan said.

"Let's go home," Marcus said, reaching down a hand to help Angus up. They ported home, seeing the boxes from Clive sitting on the porch already.

Ruby heard Robert sugestion and smiled "I think thats perfect" she said knowing the girls would love it . Retching into the trolly she lifted out the light and handed it to Robert " I'll leave it with you" she said turning to see the once barren ground filled with Snap dragons.

" okay, now we water them so they settle in." she said to the giorls as she walk over and picked up a garden hose from where it was kept, turning it on she sprinkled them with a light spray of water and smiled at how the sun glinted off the water like tiny gems on the flowers petals .

As Angus and Evan and Marcus approached the porch, some large cloth food delivery bags arrived on the porch. Evan and Marcus picked up the packages from Clive and also the food delivery bags and took them inside.

"It's here? Good," Simone said, hurrying in. "Your timing is perfect. I ordered some chinese chicken salads for lunch for everyone. There should be a take out box for every person. I counted nine people who might be here for lunch, so I ordered ten because, you know, sometimes we have another show up. Oh, and I ordered a couple dozen chinese almond cookies."

Marcus peeked in one of the boxes and saw a lovely looking chinese chicken salad in it, with a container of salad dressing. Evan found the box of almond cookies, and they set out the containers of entrée salads, some forks, and the open box of cookies. They set out some glasses and a pitcher of iced tea.

Evan went out to the deck.

"Come get some lunch, All," he called. "Simone's ordered take out for us."

"I didn't think I would be hungry," Anise said to Ginger, "but I guess I am."

"Me too. Let's go eat," Ginger said. They got up, brushed off the dirt and went inside and washed their hands. Edward put the light away temporarily and he went to join the others.

Ruby chuckled at the girls " its what fresh air and gardening does, makes you hungry" she said as she followed behind them inside. She washed her hands and took a box of salad and sat to eat it as did Yu who sat back close to the twins. " so how was the tour?" Ruby asked smiling as she ate. " still want to join?" she asked giving Caprice her stuffed hippogriff that had dropped from the seat she was in. " its a worthy cause, saving all those children from being sold like cattle into god knows what family." she said softly but also saw Angus was looking tired for some reason "are you all right?" she asked " you look tired, maybe you should rest" she cleaned off the recliner for him and moved the table away so he could sit if he needed to.

Jessie woke from his sleep and showered happy to get back to the boys. Now showered shaved and feeling more like himself he headed ovr to the duplex where he could see a whole new area planted with Snap dragons and he smiled . Knocking he pushed open the door " only me" he said smiling as he stepped in.

"Absolutely," Evan said. "Now more than ever. Exploiting a child? What sort of a father would I be if I didn't stand up against that? I'm absolutely in."

"I was busy this morning," Angus smiled at her as Marcus brought Angus's salad and iced tea over to him. "Thanks, Marcus," Angus said.

"Tell them the rest of it," Evan said, not bothering looking up because he was busy opening his own salad and adding dressing.

"There's more?" Edward looked at Angus.

"Well, it probably shouldn't have bothered me like it did," Angus replied. "But I caught a glimpse of Tom and Suzanne a block up the street, and my eyesight was perfectly fine. I'm 100% positive of what I saw. Suzanne is very, very pregnant."

"Oh, just what we need," Anise rolled her eyes in irritation. "That birdbrain is going to have the child of a hoodlum. That's a whole special kind of hell, isn't it?"

"Well, that's just about exactly what I thought," Angus said. Ginger said nothing, but she stabbed a piece of chicken in her salad with so much force that the tines of her fork went through the styrofoam container. Simone slipped her hand under Ginger's salad box and repaired it so that Ginger didn't get salad dressing everywhere. And Angus knew exactly what Ginger was thinking and feeling. Suzanne had been responsible for the two years Ginger had spent as a prisoner in a subterranean cell that nearly cost her her life. Suzanne had held Angus in the same prison but he had only been there for the matter of perhaps an hour or two. Ginger had lost two years of her life at Suzanne's hands.

Angus got up and went over to her and laid his hand on her shoulder.

"Alright?" he asked her. It took her a moment, but she nodded.

"She makes me so angry," Ginger said softly to him.

"Yeah. Me too," Angus said, angry far more for what Suzanne had done to Ginger than he was about how she had treated him.

"Angus, if she ever..." Ginger began but didn't finish her sentence.

"I will come," Angus said to her, kissing the top of her head. "I will always, always, come for you. I swear. You have my word." She nodded, reassured again. "And if you go after her like you're going after that chicken, Suzanne is in deep shit," he said, teasing Ginger slightly. She laughed. He went back to his place and sat back down to eat his own salad.

Ruby looked at Angus and then at Marcus as he spoke. When he said her mother was pregnant she was somewhat shocked even Jessie who had entered stood in his spot not saying a word he looked down at Ruby who looked at him too. Hearing Ginger she turned to look at her she saw Angus move to Ginger and place his hand on her shoulder, Ruby moved to sit next to Ginger and pull her to rest against her shoulder " Both of us will." she told her "No one will hurt you again." she saw how Ginger stabbed the carton and heard Angus words " agreed" she said with a smile to her " oh Robert agree to put the light on the grave and hes going to enchant it so it will never go out." she told Ginger and Anise.

Jessie walked over to Angus " your sure about her being pregnat, becuse if thats the case you know he or she will come threw our system soner or later" he said softly to Angus. "I have to say I hate the thought of another sibling going threw what we went threw." he said looking brifly at Ruby who sat with Anise and Ginger. " Rubys just starting to get over it all."