35: HM2V: Paper Hearts & Politesse

11:30 pm, Vera Manor, Kitchen

Harry grinned, realizing he was that much closer to keeping Macy and their twins safe, and training Maya to be an independent, gifted witch for the future. Everything was finally falling into place.

9 am, Next Day, Vera Manor Garden

Summer, this time around, meant that instead of tinkering in her she-shed or soaking in the hot tub, Macy was sitting on a lounge chair in the expansive garden patio overlooking the lush azalea, begonia, and gardenia bushes that were in full bloom. Watching Maya and that woman.

"Iced strawberry lemonade?" Harry handed Macy a small glass, and she gratefully accepted, kissing him on the cheek.

"Thanks Harry—just watching Abigael introduce herself to Maya."

"Speaking of which…" Harry drew out what appeared to be tulle netting. "I took your words to heart and designed an Invisi-shield for you, the first of its kind."

"An Invisi-what?" Macy had a befuddled look.

"An Invisi-shield," said Harry, demonstrating the fabric's use. "You wear it like so" he carefully strapped it around Macy's bare belly under her shirt, "and it protects you and the twins from magical curses of any kind, physical or otherwise."

"Wow," breathed Macy. "It seems to act like a girdle too—I don't feel nearly as much muscle strain. So, how exactly does its defense mechanism work?"

"As soon as someone tries to lay a hand on your belly without your permission, a bright light emanates and the person and/or object is sent flying, at twice the force given—about 3-5 feet back, give or take an extra inch...and a half…"

A strange look flashed across Macy's face. "And just how exactly do you have such precise measurements?"

"Jordan. He graciously agreed to go into the basement, got knocked out cold, and I fixed him a gourmet bologna sandwich for his troubles, since the last one got destroyed mid-process."

"Harry!" Macy's mouth formed a very shocked "O." "You can't just grab Jordan and test something this crazy on him—is he ok? Does Maggie know?"

"He's fine, love. Of course Maggie doesn't know, but she is aware I've been training him in the art of Whitelighting. I needed to ensure the shield worked, and that you had peace of mind when Maya was under Abigael's tutelage. I took a slightly…unconventional approach since this was such an unusual situation." He regarded Macy closely. "Are you angry?"

Macy swallowed hard. "N-no Harry—not angry—just…caught off guard. With the lengths you're willing to go for me and our babies. Nobody's ever done anything quite so strange and crazy for me before. Honestly, I'm really touched. You're going to make an amazing father to these kids, just like you already are to Maya." Harry smiled, giving Macy's hand a squeeze.

"Thanks, love, that means a lot," Harry made as though to return to the kitchen, but Macy grabbed his arm.

"Have you ever thought about patenting the Invisi-shield, Harry?"

Harry paused in his tracks and kneeled over to meet Macy's eyes. "Given it's not exactly replicable and involves secret Whitelighter magic, no, but it's something I've given some thought to."

"I see…nevertheless, from a scientific innovative standpoint, I do find it quite impressive. Mad props, Mr. Valensi. Mad props and kudos to you," she leaned over and kissed him.

9:30 am, Vera Manor Garden

"Miss Caine, you're pretty."

"Oh, why thank you, Maya," Abigael replied, while they took a break from their exercises, which mainly involved hole-punching pieces of colored construction paper using one's telekinesis skills, much like a child would learn to cut pieces of paper for dexterity. Maya had been a natural, punching holes separate and discrete, in the shape of a heart "for her mommy," she had said.

"Why don't you come to Vera Manor much?" Maya then asked, her large eyes all innocent.

"Well…" Abigael tried to frame her answer in the most politically correct, child-friendly way as possible. "The skills I'm teaching you—I use those skills every day. I work very long hours to fight corruption."

"What's corruption?" Maya then asked.

"Corruption is… It's like…" Abigael paused. "It's like, if you were at Morgana's daycare and there was a singing contest to see who sings the best, and the winner wasn't the best singer—it was someone who gave everyone all their snacks instead. And the best singer is sad because they lost, and the contest wasn't fair. Does that make sense?"

"Yeah, sorta." Maya reached for a fragment of purple construction paper and began tearing at its corners. A few minutes passed by, and she asked another question. "Miss Caine, do you hate my mommy?"

Abigael drew a sharp intake of breath. "Hate is a strong word, my sweet, and saved only for the most serious of situations. I prefer to think of her as a…compatriot. In other words, we're on the same side fighting corruption and other types of darkness, we just have different ways of doing it. Do you understand what I'm saying?"

Maya nodded, then unexpectedly smiled up at Abigael. "I hope you both win."

Abigael's expression softened. "Thanks, darling, I really hope so too."

10 am, Vera Manor Garden

The first training session was coming to a close. Maya had quickly figured out how to channel her telekinesis in age-appropriate ways, and they had discussed their toy ponies together in preparation for their next lesson. Maya showed Abigael her black pocket-sized toy pony and learned that Abigael's own tiny three-inch smoke-colored pony was named Midnight, and that her own mommy had hid Midnight in a lockbox for many years.

"Why though, Miss Caine? Why would your mommy hide your pony from you? Were you a bad girl?" Maya frowned, her brow furrowed, as she was deep in thought.

"Maya, I may have had my share of mischief, but my mum didn't hide my toy pony because Iwas bad. She took mine away because she was scared."

"Scared? Why was your mommy scared?"

Abigael sighed. There was so much to unpack here. She had never realized how direct children were, and how their questions cut through basic politesse. After a moment, she began, choosing her words as carefully as she could. "You see, Maya, my mum didn't understand what that pony could do for me. She didn't care that I was happy, turning it into a real-life pony. All she saw was the danger it could create—she wondered what other non-magical people would think. She was scared I would hurt myself and others."

"And did you?" Maya was hanging on her every word, bless her.

"Well…there was this one time when I was a small child. I uttered words to make Midnight come to life in the garden. I rode around, but suddenly, my mum appeared, screaming at me to hide from the neighbors, yet again, even though everyone would have been fast asleep. It was late evening, you see. Midnight was so startled that I was thrown off. I was fine, but for my mum, that was the end of that. She locked him up for years, and I didn't get him back until your Aunt Mel freed him. For that I'm grateful. Until then, I snuck off to a nearby farm to practice horseback riding on real, live horses whenever I could."

"Wow…" Maya was astonished at this turn of events. "But you were thrown off—wasn't that scary?"

"For a bit, yes, but I knew that I needed to conquer my fears. And when it's something you love to do, that you absolutely live for, you learn how to heal and become a stronger person. And that's why you are getting trained Maya. To become a stronger, skilled, powerful person. Are you prepared to do your best and make your family proud?"

"Yes, Miss Caine!" Maya's enthusiasm was positively infectious, and Abigael couldn't help but admire her spirit.

"That's my girl." Abigael looked up and saw Harry smiling, as he took Maya in his arms. "Thanks for agreeing to this," he spoke to Abigael. "I know it's not easy."

"I wouldn't have agreed if I didn't think I could do it. Maya is a quick study, she'll get the hang of things soon enough. Oh—and Harry—" Abigael added, "make sure she has a sturdy riding helmet for our next lesson. Enchanted ponies, big or small, can have a mind of their own sometimes."

"Will do," Harry replied. "I think I still have mine somewhere in the attic, if I'm not mistaken."

"Ok then, and cheerio," said Abigael by way of exit greeting, clearing up the tutoring items and walking back toward Mel, whose anxious face peered through the patio window. This wasn't so bad, was it? But then Abigael remembered that they were staying in Mel's old bedroom, their apartment was being hunted by Rani (and possibly Nico), and they still had yet to track down Tory. No rest for the weary. That, and the fact that dinnertime would be incredibly awkward. Mel, herself, Maya, Macy, Harry, Jordan, and Maggie. And a load of heartburn, she cynically thought to herself. Six more weeks. Just six more weeks.