They headed to the field in relative silence, until they could see the glow from the fire just in the distance. As they neared, they could hear them laughing loudly at whatever story Anacostia was sharing.
"Finally!" Tally called happily as they arrived. She hopped up and beelined for Sarah. She took the bottles from her and leaned in to kiss her sweetly.
"Hello, darling," Sarah murmured against her lips. She pulled her in with one hand and kissed her properly.
Tally hummed against her. It had only been a little while, but each time Sarah returned to her it felt like the first time all over again.
"I missed you," Tally said softly.
"And I you," Sarah replied, kissing Tally once more.
"Come and drink," Anacostia called over to them as Petra took her seat next to Abigail. "You can make out later."
The pair rolled their eyes before claiming their spots.
There were four large tree trunks on their sides, creating seats around the fire.
Anacostia was seated with Raelle, Abigail, and Petra on the one to their left, four of the biddies on the log next to them, the other three on the next, and Sarah and Tally on the log to Anacostia's right.
"I brought some of my own whiskey," Sarah told them as she grabbed a cup for her and Petra. She looked at Tally. "Care to try something that doesn't taste like gasoline?"
Tally rolled her eyes but held out her cup.
Alder filled everyone's cup with her whiskey, earning approving nods from Anacostia and Abigail. Tally wasn't a huge fan of whiskey, but Sarah had carefully selected bottles that she felt Tally would be more inclined to enjoy. She was proven correct as Tally sent her approval through the bond. She filled cups for the biddies as well, blocking out much of their conversation in her head so she could focus.
Erin was disappointed Sarah hadn't fried Petra, Tessa was mad because she was out $20 for betting that they would have words, Corinne was teasing Margaret about their last round of chess, Analese and Aria were arguing over some TV show that Sarah didn't understand, and Liza was trying to cheer both Erin and Tessa up by thinking about adorable puppies and kittens.
I'm starting to think I need to send you all to a gamblers anonymous meeting, Sarah thought to them. She smiled as their amusement echoed through the link. But, Margaret, you owe me $20 for my correct estimation that the Imperatrix would manage to piss Tally off enough to call her out.
Witch, Margaret thought back with a grumble.
"Okay this is really good," Tally told her as she sipped on it.
"I thought you might like this one," Sarah replied. "Would you like to know a secret?" Her blue eyes sparkled.
Tally nodded fervently as Sarah leaned in close to her ear, lightly tucking a strand of auburn hair behind her ear.
"This bottle in particular…I made it," she admitted.
Tally's eyes widened as she met Sarah's gaze. "You made this?"
Sarah nodded slowly. "A hobby I began centuries back. I've made various types and experimented over the years. The biddies have always served as taste testers for me."
"This is seriously delicious," Tally insisted. "I mean, I know you think whiskey is one of the things civilians got right. I just hadn't expected you to take up making it. Where do you do it at?"
"I have a workroom on base in one of the lower levels. I haven't had time lately to create anything new. What I currently have down in the casks have been aging for quite some time."
"I thought you bought all of your whiskey?"
"Oh I do as well. I enjoy sampling everything I can," she replied, eyes flickering down to Tally's lips.
The redhead leaned in, capturing Sarah's with her own in a chaste kiss. She stroked a finger over a sharp cheekbone, enjoying just looking into her eyes for a moment.
"How did it go?" Tally asked finally. Her curiosity had gotten the better of her.
Sarah wrapped her arm around Tally, pulling her closer to rest against her side. Tally turned her head to nuzzle into Sarah's neck, a contented sigh escaping her lips.
"It went well after you reached out. Thank you for doing that," Sarah replied, allowing Tally to explore the feelings and thoughts of what transpired.
She nodded against Sarah's neck, content that everything was okay in the end and grateful that she had been able to provide her with some comfort and shoulder the burden.
Then she caught a thought and looked over at Petra. "What's this about you getting piss drunk in a field?"
Petra spluttered as everyone's eyes shifted to her to explain. Her eyes narrowed in on Sarah, who held up her hands in mock surrender.
"I can't hide things from her," Sarah defended, a pleased grin on her face.
"Mom?" Abigail urged with a grin before she downed her whiskey.
Petra sighed. "It was my first year of War College and a few units were all drinking…right here actually," she told them. "I had way too much to drink and ended up falling asleep in the field with my unit and was woken up by my mother and a rather vicious rainstorm. We had missed the first half of our training for the day."
Abigail snorted in amusement at the mere thought. She knew her grandmother must not have been happy.
"She dragged Petra all the way back to base by her ear, sopping wet, being sure to pass me on the way," Sarah explained with a laugh. "I've never seen her look so mortified. Minerva was furious." Sarah's eyes lit up as she recalled it.
Everyone laughed at that.
"She gave her quite the talking to." Sarah raised her cup in salute.
"I made sure to never get so drunk I would pass out in a field again," Petra supplied seriously, her eyes on Sarah. She noticed the coy look in her eyes and suddenly things clicked. "You."
Sarah merely chuckled, throatily and melodically into her cup. "I have no idea what you mean."
"You summoned the rainstorm!" Petra accused.
"I knew you'd passed out in the field, I was trying to warn you and get you out of there before Minerva got to you. It's not my fault you didn't wake up in time," Sarah retorted cheekily.
They all shared a laugh, especially Abigail at her mother's plight.
Abigail's eyes fell on Sarah then. "I'm sure you have plenty of drunk stories."
Sarah laughed, eyes twinkling with amusement in the light of the fire. "I once arm wrestled George Washington…and won."
"No shit!" Raelle exclaimed, filled with disbelief and excitement.
"How'd that go?" Abigail asked.
"He bought the next round," Alder answered with a smug grin. "Anacostia has quite a few as well."
"We heard about her puking on your shoes," Raelle supplied with a snicker, earning a shoulder bump from the Captain.
Sarah scoffed. "I see she chose to not tell you about her first drunk heartbreak."
"Sarah," Anacostia groaned. Her cheeks flushed with embarrassment as she recalled the incident.
"Oh you have to tell us now," Abigail urged.
Sarah's eyes glinted with mischievousness. "She got her heartbroken by a boy that was quite undeserving of her, and proceeded to drown her sorrows in one of my very expensive bottles of whiskey."
Tally's mouth dropped and a large grin split across her face as she looked at Anacostia. "You went for her whiskey?" she asked, totally scandalized.
"The balls on you," Raelle teased.
"What happened?" Petra urged, now thoroughly curious.
Sarah chuckled. "She was laying on my office floor, empty bottle next to her, and drunkenly whining about the wretch." Sarah rolled her eyes. "I helped her up, begging the Goddess to keep her from puking everywhere before I got her to the bathroom. The Goddess clearly thought I deserved Ana vomiting all over my rug. I didn't even know that much could come from a person."
Anacostia hid her face in her hands. "It was mortifying when I woke up in Sarah's bed. She had left water and ibuprofen on the nightstand and had been up the rest of the night having the rug removed, the floor cleaned, and a new rug brought in."
"I miss that rug," Sarah sighed heavily. "It was an antique."
"I said I was sorry!" Anacostia defended with a laugh.
The group joined in, laughing boisterously at Anacostia's situation.
"It was a gift from Alfred von Waldersee, the German Field Marshal during the Boxer Rebellion—a thank you for being an ally…irreplaceable." Sarah couldn't help but laugh harder at the mortified look on Anacostia's face.
"Every time you bring it up, it somehow gets worse," Anacostia groaned before downing her whiskey.
"And I will continue to do so, my little fosterling," Sarah retorted. "Allow it to serve as a reminder to never go for my whiskey."
"I remember seeing Anacostia at her first Beltane," Petra supplied, offering a sly smile.
Sarah let loose a loud laugh. "That poor boy."
"What did you do?" Abigail asked, scandalized and proud.
Anacostia shook her head, unable to stop her own grin. "I ripped that boy's pants clean off."
"From the back," Sarah added.
"WHAT?" came the resounding cry from the three cadets.
"Damn, woman," Abigail praised. "That's impressive. And I thought I was demanding."
"How did you get them off like that?" Raelle asked.
"Windshear," Sarah answered for her. "I saw her from my dais. He never stood a chance. He went home the next morning with his suit jacket tied around his lower half. "
"Oh my god," Tally gasped out before she laughed loudly. "Anacostia! And you called Sarah and I hornballs."
"You did?" Abigail and Raelle asked together.
"They fucked in the warding circle after they found out about the connection," Anacostia defended pointedly, trying to get the attention off of herself.
"Hey!" Tally squealed, a pretty blush on her cheeks from the alcohol and her usual flush.
"Oh we know," Raelle and Abigail said in tandem, giving Tally proud smiles.
Sarah chuckled throatily as she wrapped her arm around Tally's waist and pulled her closer. She placed a kiss to her temple.
"Tally is the one that asked," Sarah supplied.
"Tal!" Abigail and Raelle whooped in delight.
Tally downed her whiskey and gestured at Sarah. "Can you blame me? We just found out about the bond. We were happy."
"And horny apparently," Anacostia muttered behind her cup. "Isn't that right, Sarie?"
"Sarie?!" All but Anacostia and Tally echoed.
"I allow the fosterlings to call me Sarie so they feel more comfortable," she replied with a smirk. "But nice try, Ana. As for Tally and I, we were both things."
Tally choked on her drink, earning soothing pats to her back from Sarah.
The biddies all chuckled in tandem with Sarah.
"Good for you," Petra said seriously. "Goddess knows she's needed to get laid outside Beltane."
Sarah arched an eyebrow, but the smirk gracing her lips conveyed her amusement.
"Beltane is once a year and I am expected to remain celibate the remainder," Sarah noted. "As the Imperatrix continuously reminds me, I know my duty." She hummed then. "Well this Beltane will be different, of course."
Tally looked at her, clearly surprised. "You are?"
Sarah nodded, still smiling with amusement.
"Darling, I told you that I didn't take this lightly. You know I hadn't taken a partner outside of the festival in hundreds of years," Sarah told her through the bond.
"I know. I didn't know you were expected to remain celibate though," Tally responded.
She basked in the affection Sarah was sending through the bond—as well as just how serious it was for her to pursue a romantic relationship with Tally. She felt incredibly lucky that even though they hadn't known the magnitude of their connection, Sarah had still thrown caution to the wind and asked to court her.
She leaned over, kissing Sarah softly and pouring as much gratitude through to her as she could.
When they broke for air, Tally whispered, "I love you."
"And I you," Sarah murmured in reply before she stole another kiss.
"You two are so adorable it's disgusting," Abigail told them with a grin.
"I concur," Petra agreed as she raised her freshly filled glass. "I believe a toast is in order."
Sarah passed the bottle so everyone could refill their drinks.
"First, to Sarah and Tally for being songmates—an exceedingly rare blessing for two rare witches. Congratulations," Petra said seriously before they all took a swig.
"And the other celebratory reason," Sarah began as she stood from the log, eyes falling on Anacostia. "To Captain Quartermaine for her years of exemplary service. Your work has not gone unnoticed, nor has your dedication to your sisters. As your General, I am proud of your loyalty, tenacity, and commitment to this nation. As your foster mother, I am proud of you, my daughter. You've exceeded every expectation I ever had," she concluded, eyes watering.
Anacostia was in a similar state as Alder and everyone toasted. When they finished, the Captain stood and crossed the distance, pulling Sarah into a tight hug.
"You've made me so proud, Ana, and I know your parents would be proud of you as well," Sarah told her softly.
Anacostia pulled back, tears falling silently down her face. She laughed and wiped them away. Nodding at Sarah to acknowledge what she said without words—she knew that the General understood immediately.
"Now, less weeping and more partying," Raelle jeered. "Also, ah, we invited Gregorio, M, and Adil so they should be showing up too."
"You know, technically you aren't supposed to be this far from base at this hour," Alder commented.
Raelle grinned. "But we're with General Alder."
Sarah chuckled as Tally leaned forward and peered down the path.
"They're on their way," she told the group.
"Come drink!" Abigail called out to them.
They appeared from the darkness a few moments later. Adil was looking amusedly at Abigail, and then nervously at Petra.
"General Bellweather," Adil greeted cordially.
"None of that, Adil. You're seeing my daughter, you can call me Petra," she said sincerely, filling a cup of whiskey and handing it to him.
"I heard about the songmate bond," Gregorio announced as he took a seat between Raelle and Tally, but on the ground. "Congratulations."
"I figured something must have been up," M supplied, sliding down onto the ground near Sarah. "You two stared at each other with too much familiarity."
Alder chuckled and nodded her agreement. "We weren't the most subtle."
"I can't think of a witch in history who deserves it more than you, General," M said seriously. "Three hundred some years of dedication…" they whistled.
"Can't agree more," Tally agreed, a smile on her face as she turned to look at Sarah.
"Well, since I have you all here, I have news for the two of you." Alder gestured to M and Gregorio. "I will be overseeing the combat training for Sekhmet, effective immediately. I also want the two of you to join me as part of my private unit, along with the Bellweather unit, should you accept."
M blanched, mouth falling open as they looked at Gregorio—who was looking right back with an equally stunned expression.
"G-general that's…"
"Wow," Gregorio filled in.
M nodded. "Yeah, wow. That's—what an honor."
"So you accept?" Alder questioned, voice filled with amusement.
"Absolutely!" They both exclaimed together.
"Excellent," Alder quipped as she tapped her cup against theirs.
The night divulged into more stories, as well as war stories from both Petra and Alder. Adil and Alder discussed his stay at Fort Salem, and his help with the seed to reveal their connection. Tally had stood and joined the biddies, asking them question after question about various things. Gregorio had been asking Sarah questions about life three hundred years ago—which she discussed animatedly the more she drank. M and Raelle were trying to arm wrestle to see who was strongest; Adil and Abigail were whispering to each other; Petra and Anacostia were swapping stories of their own.
"Okay, but cars…had to blow your mind," Gregorio said as if it was obvious.
"I was petrified to drive one," Alder shared. Her eyes were bright and dancing in the firelight as she spoke. "I only, begrudgingly, agreed to traveling in one when it became necessary."
"So what did you do, just keep riding horses?" Gregorio pressed, fully invested.
"I think Gregorio may want to start an Alder fan club," Corinne told Tally from where she sat next to them.
Tally chuckled as she watched the display.
Alder nodded in response to Gregorio's question. "Of course. Horses I trust."
Gregorio snorted with laughter. He tapped his glass against Alder's. "Indoor plumbing though…how about that."
"I would have traded anything to have never lived without that," Alder retorted seriously. "There is nothing worse than having to shit outside in the freezing cold."
Gregorio snorted so hard he choked on his drink, earning some back slaps from the General.
"Fair, fair," he replied as he regained his composure. "Okay, what was it like sailing across the Atlantic?"
Sarah grimaced. "Cold." She shook her head. "Even in the barracks, it was freezing and damp. Everything was covered in a sheen of saltwater, everything smelled like fish…not to mention the level of unsanitary conditions. My immune system was clearly superior to many others for surviving months in such conditions."
Gregorio's brow furrowed. "That sounds awful."
"It was," Sarah replied seriously. "Scurvy, plague, consumption…all normal for the time and especially on ships. It was brutal. My sister contracted the plague near the end of the trip. My mother, thankfully, was a good fixer and managed to take care of her. Had she not, she never would have made the journey."
"Shit," Gregorio murmured. "I'm sorry, General."
"None of that," Alder urged. "It's Sarah. This is completely informal and there is no need for such formality. Tonight I am simply Sarah, songmate to Tally Craven." She smiled softly.
Gregorio beamed. "I really am happy for you two."
"As am I," Sarah replied, eyes twinkling.
"I have one, General," M broached with a grin.
Alder arched an eyebrow. "M, what did I say about formalities?"
M blushed and shook their head. "Sarah," they corrected, "I know you don't have a lot of free time, but do you and the biddies do anything besides work?"
Alder glanced over to her biddies, who had ceased their conversation to look over at the small group. She waited for one of them to answer.
Erin smiled. "Board games."
"No shit," Gregorio gasped. "What ones?"
Tessa's eyes twinkled as she fixed Sarah with a stare. "She's horrible to play Monopoly with."
Tally's mouth dropped, eyes landing on her songmate. "That good? Or that bad?"
Alder scoffed affectionately. "Darling, do you honestly think I would be bad?"
"She bankrupts us every time," Corinne groused. "You'd think she'd go easy on us. I mean, we only carry her years and wounds but whatever."
Anacostia interjected. "Please, that woman is fucking brutal in any board game. She seeks to make enemies."
"You're only sore because you always come in last," Alder retorted.
"She never lets you retake a turn if she's teaching you a game," Anacostia continued on, undeterred. "Once she kicked my ass in chess in three moves. Wouldn't let me redo a move at all."
"How else would you learn to guard your King?" Alder arched an eyebrow.
"I was eight," Anacostia defended.
"Old enough to know the importance of being careful."
"You name a game, she'll kick your ass. She takes no prisoners," Anacostia pressed. "Trivial Pursuit is another one."
"She has an unfair advantage," Liza added with a grumble. "You shouldn't be allowed to play if you're older than the invention of the game and lived through the majority of events in the questions."
The entire group laughed loudly at that, and Sarah shook her head—an amused smile on her lips.
"Just be glad I take it easy on you all by not suggesting Twister," she quipped.
Tally cackled and snorted—laughing hard at the image. "That would just be cruel."
"See, Ana, I can be nice," Alder teased.
Anacostia merely rolled her eyes at her foster mother.
"Okay last question and I promise that it's a light one," Gregorio began. "Because I'm dying to know…"
Sarah nodded for him to proceed.
"Syphilis. As big of a deal as it seemed?"
Sarah's laugh was loud enough to echo in the small space around the fire. Her shoulders shook with it, and she looked at Gregorio with wet eyes. "It really was. I cannot tell you how many fixers had to tend to it on a regular basis. It was exhausting work. When penicillin was found to be effective, I remember one of my Generals, a scientist and fixer, threw a party to celebrate because—and I quote, 'I'm exhausted of looking at syphilitic dicks.'"
Gregorio laughed so hard that he sent himself into a coughing fit. He finally called and glanced over at Tally with the biddies.
"Tally," Gregorio called across the small space. "Your girlfriend is so cool."
Tally couldn't help the boisterous laugh that bubbled up at seeing Sarah's blush.
"Still your CO, Shellbark," Alder remarked seriously, but the amusement in her eyes was unmistakable.
"Ah, I thought you were just Sarah, songmate to Tally Craven, tonight?" he retorted smugly.
Alder rolled her eyes at her own words being thrown back at her.
"General," Abigail broached then, looking a bit uncertain.
Alder's eyes turned on her. "Yes?"
"Those Weather Work lessons…when can we start?"
A grin split Alder's face as she stood. She was definitely a bit tipsy—as was their whole group, so it wasn't terribly noticeable.
"Now?" Sarah suggested as she began walking a few more paces to the field.
The whole group walked too, with the exception of the biddies staying behind near the fire where they could rest.
"Don't you need the biddies?" Abigail questioned as she stopped a few feet from the General.
Alder smirked. "I have enough power of my own."
Her eyes turned up to the sky before she closed them and took a deep breath. Her hands opened at her sides as did her mouth, vocalizing a powerful seed that made the sky rumble with thunder.
She motioned her hands, circling them around each other to create a cyclone.
Tally thought it looked so effortless. Alder swiftly brought down the tip of the twister—the ground kicking up dust and grass as Sarah began to move it—then a second twister descended, moving in tandem with the first. Tally could feel the power through the connection, as well as the energy of the magic around them. It nearly knocked the wind from her with the amount of power Alder truly wielded.
Then, as quickly as it began, she slowly released them—dissipating back up into the clouds.
She turned to Abigail. "Begin."
Abigail wet her lips and took a deep breath. She began the seed, slowly rotating her hands like Alder had done. The sky filled with clouds as the tip of the tornado slowly descended to the ground.
"Good," Sarah said. "Hold it there in one spot."
Abigail did as instructed.
"Now bring down the second."
A second twister touched down next to the first.
"Breathe. Feel the Work…allow it to fill you as you tune in to the power of it. Draw them close to each other."
Abigail did as she was told, faltering slightly as holding two so near in proximity to each other in place became more strenuous.
"Breathe, Abigail. You control it, do not allow it to control you. Respect it, but do not bow to it."
Abigail had beads of sweat clinging to her forehead. She slowed her breathing, relaxing into it as she held the twisters in place.
"Good," Sarah praised, "Now, move them further away from you."
Abigail began. With each yard that passed…it was more difficult.
"Stay there. Feel how it grows distant, as if you're about to lose it at any moment. You will, if you let yourself. Push your power into the song, as if it must cross this distance to be reached."
Abigail's song grew louder, and Tally couldn't help but look excitedly at Raelle. Raelle nodded to her, letting Tally know that she could feel the power too.
"The better you become at controlling it so far away, the easier it will be to drop them on the enemy from a safer distance, and with a companion for added devastation," Sarah told her. "Release it."
Abigail tried to allow it to slowly leave—but it was exhausting, and the two were wretched back into the sky as Abigail fell on her knees.
Alder was kneeling next to her, rubbing her back soothingly. "If you must throw up, I recommend you do it."
That was all the permission Abigail needed to let go.
Alder couldn't help but chuckle as Abigail wiped her mouth and grimaced at her amusement.
"Relax, you aren't the first Bellweather to vomit in front of me."
"Abs, that was awesome!" Tally called as she joined them.
"I just barfed," Abigail pointed out as Alder helped her to her feet. Her mother slung an arm over her shoulder a moment later, pressing a kiss to her temple.
"Doing tough Weather Work while inebriated is quite nauseating. You did exceptionally," Alder told her seriously. "You're powerful, Abigail."
"She's right," Petra agreed, "About seeing Bellweathers puke, and your power."
Abigail snickered as she reached for her cup to rinse her mouth.
"Uh uh," Alder chided disapprovingly. They all headed back to the logs, where Alder picked up the cheaper bottle of whiskey that Anacostia brought. "You can rinse with this. I'll not have my expensive taste be spit out on the ground."
Tally chuckled as they all sat down—her taking up residence in Alder's lap on the ground.
"So you've seen my mother puke?" Abigail asked as she snuggled up with Adil.
Sarah's eyes twinkled with amusement. "Your mother, your grandmother…Jem, even."
"Really?" Abigail and Petra asked together.
"Tell me about my mother first," Petra requested with a chuckle. This was clearly her first time hearing about any of this.
Sarah took a swig of her whiskey. "It was during Yule. Festivities were in full swing across the base. She was in her final year of War College, and was drinking with other cadets as per usual for the festivity. Unfortunately, she had accepted a drinking challenge from Arlene Swythe."
Abigail and Petra howled, as did the rest of the group—all intimately familiar with the Swythe-Bellweather rivalry.
"First one to pass out lost. They passed out at the same time, but your mother managed to win on a technicality—because she woke up shortly after to stumble back to her room. She was puking into a potted plant when I rounded the corner. I escorted her back to her room. She was mortified that I saw her in such a state."
The group had divulged into a fit of laughter at the image.
"Now, Jem," Sarah began, shaking her head and laughing fondly. "Jem challenged me to a drinking competition. Because, as with all you Bellweathers, everything is a competition."
"Naturally," Petra concurred.
"I'm unsure how much of Jem's history you Bellweathers know as fact…but for the non-Bellweathers here…I first met Jem in 1878 in South Carolina. Of course slavery had been abolished by this point, but the southern states and their white supremacy beliefs were still very much engrained. I'd heard whispers of some slaves who were still kept by a plantation owner not much further from where we were camped. This operation…was not sanctioned by the President. In fact, the Compromise of 1877 essentially abandoned southern former slaves. All federal troops were pulled. Though I agreed to the President's face…I launched my own mission."
Petra's eyebrows went to her hairline. "Treason?"
Sarah smiled and nodded. "It was the right thing to do. I was vehemently against the decision. For years, I had been advocating the end to slavery for all slaves, not just witches. Black witches though…it was a delicate matter. Many hid their gifts out of fear, many had been found out and killed on the spot…so I acted in secret with a small unit, following intelligence of where reported witches resided. The plantation Jem was born and raised on…there were five reported witches there. We went in under the cover of night. It was a summer night, the air was thick with the summer humidity—nearly stifling."
Everyone around the fire was entranced with Sarah's story as she painted the vivid picture for them all. Tally was particularly engrossed as she watched flashes of the memory in the connection as Sarah recounted it.
"The goal was extraction. No sign that we came and went, only the notice of missing slaves. We managed to rouse the slaves kept on the plantation, pointing the way to the underground railroad for them as we took the witches with us." Sarah smiled as she remembered Jem, and she laughed. "She was grateful, and ambitious from the start. She had powerful Work in her," Sarah said passionately.
Petra and Abigail were wearing soft smiles as Sarah spoke about their ancestor.
"She had a fury in her that matched my own. We were similar in many ways, and we shared the goal of locating as many witches in the southern states as possible. Freeing the enslaved so they may escape, and gathering the witches for our own forces. Jem joined my private unit after I saw her powerful Weather Work. We successfully managed to gather nearly two hundred witches in the following years. All done in secret."
Sarah looked at the group and offered a light laugh. "I have said many times that I have made countless decisions, each of them for the benefit of our kind. Even though it was treason…it was the right thing to do."
Tally turned her head to place a kiss to Sarah's neck, offering her support.
"It was on one of these missions that Jem decided to challenge me. We were camped just outside of Massachusetts—arriving back in Salem the next day. We had located as many witches as our intelligence had informed us of, and were coming home. We were celebrating our success. By this time, Jem was adamant she could take me on in a drinking competition. We were matching each other shot for shot of rum," Sarah said with a loud laugh. The memory danced in her mind as she recalled it. "Jem had raided one of the plantations of nearly ten bottles."
The group all snickered then at Sarah's description of the bottles poking out of the saddlebags on the horses.
"We had drank through the night, neither of us willing to back down from the challenge. That woman could hold her alcohol," Sarah praised. "It was nearly dawn when we finally conceded there was no winner. We needed to be on the road within the hour. So, Jem and I decided that we would cease our drinking but the first to lose their stomach would be the one that lost." She grinned softly. "We both ended up running for the tree line at the same time, losing our stomachs in tandem and sharing a pitifully, sick look—before we laughed at our stupidity and continued to relieve ourselves."
Petra had laughed so loudly that it made Abigail snort with laughter. Anacostia nearly had tears in her eyes at the mental image, as did the others. Gregorio was holding his stomach, and M was shaking their head at the ridiculousness of it all. Tally was laughing so hard she had to hide her face in Sarah's neck—the visual in their connection was too much.
"How sick were you the whole day?" Tally asked her through her gasps of breath.
Sarah grimaced. "Very. The rest of the day. Horseback riding while sick with alcohol poisoning was not ideal by any means. The fixers offered to help us, but Jem and I agreed that we should grin and bear it. In hindsight, we really should have allowed the fixers to tend to us…but Jem was as stubborn as I, and it wasn't an option," she concluded before downing the rest of her cup of whiskey.
"I never knew any of that," Abigail commented fondly. She looked to her mother, who nodded her agreement—she had no idea either.
"Jem was quite the woman," Sarah told them sincerely. Her expression grew dark a moment. "She was a hell of a soldier. I was devastated at her death." Her eyes focused on the fire in front of her. "It was a comfort though, to see her line flourish the way it did." Her eyes flickered to Abigail and Petra. "And even though you Bellweathers can be huge pains in the ass…my fondness for Jem has allowed many of you to get away with things other soldiers could never."
Petra nodded her thanks, raising her glass in salute to Alder. Abigail joined in, as did the others.
"Also…Abigail has puked on me before," Alder commented offhandedly.
Abigail spit her drink out, earning a 'tsk' from Alder at the waste of her expensive whiskey. Everyone else began laughing and asking questions, clearly needing an explanation.
"She was a baby," Petra supplied with a chuckle.
"I forget you've known Abigail so long," Tally told her, nose crinkling.
Alder merely smiled and stroked a finger over Tally's nose. "She was only a year old. I was visiting Petra for military matters. Abigail had been fussing the entire time, having Petra nearly at her wits end."
Petra looked at her daughter. "As beautiful as you were, you were very fussy."
"That hasn't changed," Raelle quipped.
Abigail leaned over and punched her shoulder. "Can it, shitbird."
"So then what?" Gregorio asked, wanting to know more as he glanced over at his childhood friend.
"I took her from Petra, humming to her and bouncing her so she would calm—"
"Which she did," Petra interjected. "Praise the Goddess."
"She was asleep for the next thirty minutes, and once she woke she decided to thank me by spitting up all over my uniform."
"Show me," Tally said at once, much to Abigail's horror.
"Oh no, no no!" Abigail pleaded as Adil held her back.
Sarah merely chuckled and sent the memory through to Tally. After a moment of silence Tally burst into a fit of laughter, merely holding her hand out to Raelle so she could link and see. And so it went, each of them linking with the next as they passed the image around.
"That is embarrassing," Abigail grumbled, a small smile on her lips.
"Look on the bright side, Bells, at least you didn't shit on her," Raelle teased.
Alder let out her loudest laugh of the night then.
"Sarah," Petra warned, failing to suppress her own laughter.
"No!" Abigail screeched—eyes wide and begging Alder to tell her it wasn't true.
"You also needed a diaper change," Sarah informed her. She sent the memory through to Tally once more.
Her songmate had tears in her eyes from laughing so hard at the image of Alder holding Abigail—who was smiling as if she was fully aware of what she had done—away from her in outstretched arms, nose crinkled at the smell.
"Oh, Abs." Tally's stomach was hurting from how hard she was laughing.
"This is so fucking embarrassing," she grumbled, smiling nonetheless. "Can we please embarrass someone else?"
"I guess this is the moment we should tell Alder of one of Tally's drunken rants?" Raelle suggested as she glanced at Abigail.
"No!" Tally practically shouted. Her face was pure mortification.
Sarah's eyes sparkled as she tightened her hold on her. "Oh do tell."
"Rae," Tally practically begged before she hid behind her hands.
Raelle cleared her throat. "So this was the night we found out that we were placed in Sekhmet."
Anacostia was snickering behind her hand, eyes glancing at Sarah. "She had it so bad for you."
Tally's face was red as Sarah pressed a kiss to her cheek.
"My love," Sarah said affectionately through the bond, sending as much love and affection as she could through the link.
It eased Tally's mortification for the most part, and she nodded for them to continue.
"We were talking a little more about her time as biddy, and she could not stop talking about you," Raelle told Sarah. "Everything was, 'Alder and I' this—"
"'Alder and I' that," Abigail supplied. "We were teasing her quite a lot."
"But Tal, who by this point was fairly tipsy," Raelle explained, "Goes, 'okay I have a huge crush on her'."
Anacostia chuckled. "Which of course we gave a resounding 'duh' to."
"She would not stop going on about you. 'I swear when she pressed her forehead to mine I thought I was going to pass out'," Abigail recounted.
"Then as we got drunker," Raelle said, taking over, "she goes, 'what am I supposed to do with my feelings? I can't stop thinking about her and she came to check on me which was so sweet but I just don't understand'—"
"'And her jawline you guys, it's so hard to focus when all I want to do is mark it!'" Abigail said, impersonating Tally as best as she could.
Anacostia snickered. "'I've had a few sex dreams about her, this is going to be an issue!' 'I mean have you seen her in her uniform?'"
"We get it," Tally interrupted with a laugh. She looked at Sarah. "I was totally enamored with you."
Sarah's eyes sparkled in the light of the fire.
Should we tell her? Corinne asked through the link.
Sarah's head quickly whipped to her biddies, eyes widening.
Tally, as well as Anacostia, noticed the look.
"Oh, tell!" Anacostia shouted as she pointed at the biddies.
Sarah's gaze was warning, but Corinne didn't back down.
She cleared her throat. "The night after you were de-biddied, and Sarah came to check on you…that night we all felt your absence."
"We missed you," Analese chimed in, a soft smile on her face.
"Sarah, though," Corinne began, "was feeling the loss much worse than we were. She had quite a few glasses of whiskey and went on about what she was supposed to do about her feelings for you."
Tally's grin was pure satisfaction as she looked at Sarah, who was glaring at her biddies.
"None of that," Tally told her through the bond, drawing Sarah's gaze.
"'Why can't I get her out of my head?' 'Why is this bothering me so much?' 'This has never happened in a severing before.'" Corinne grinned as she did her best Alder impersonation, which was spot on by Tally's standards.
"She refused to accept what we were telling her," Erin said.
Tessa took over, "We told her 'you like her, so do something about it.'"
"'But rules are rules'," Margaret quoted.
"We listened to her the whole night go back and forth and back and forth. She didn't want to hear what we had to say, but she wouldn't stop," Corinne said, chuckling. "She was content to drive herself insane the rest of the evening. I thought for sure she'd wear a hole in the rug with her pacing."
"Then you started War College," Liza chimed in.
"And we were on our way without a moment's hesitation," Tessa explained, snapping her fingers.
Tally looked at Sarah. "So that was why you came and visited that first day?"
Sarah nodded and sighed. "They're correct. I had worked myself up over it and couldn't resist. I was adamant that it was just to boost morale…I don't visit covens."
"Yeah it was super weird," M chimed in their agreement. "I never heard of the General visiting any coven like that."
"And then she only spoke to you three," Gregorio added. "Which was super odd."
"Yeah, we noticed that immediately," M concurred. "And then she was looking at Tally like…well, now we know why you were looking at her like that."
Sarah groaned, and then released a laugh against Tally's hair. She breathed in her smell and sighed against her.
"You liked me," Tally teased, much to everyone's delight.
"I did," Sarah agreed with a sigh. She chuckled. "I wanted to see you, to be in close proximity again. I knew I shouldn't indulge myself like I did…but when our eyes met…" she trailed off, sending the feeling through the bond.
Tally nodded in understanding and kissed her sweetly. "Believe me, I understand."
"You two are so cute it's going to make me barf…again," Abigail said with a genuine smile.
"So what about you and Ramshorn, Collar?" Sarah changed the subject, eyes landing on Raelle.
Just as Raelle was about to answer, a voice called out from the path.
"All of you stay where you are!" the voice barked.
The group turned and looked, spotting one of the senior officers approaching—clearly on guard duty for the evening and finally spotting their gathering.
"The General will be hearing about this," she said as she stepped into the light of the fire. Her eyes landed on General Bellweather first. "Gen-General Bellweather." She snapped to attention.
"At ease," Alder said, drawing her line of sight.
"General Alder." Her eyes were comically wide, clearly realizing her mistake.
"As you can see, everyone is in good hands," Alder said.
"My apologies, ma'am." Her eyes flickered curiously to Tally, sitting in Alder's lap wrapped around her.
"What's your name?" Alder asked as she retrieved an unused cup and poured some of her whiskey in.
"Reese, ma'am," Reese said.
Alder held the cup up for her to take. "For your trouble."
"Th-thank you, ma'am," Reese said, accepting the cup before turning and heading back into the darkness.
"I think she almost fainted," Petra commented, voice filled with amusement.
Sarah chuckled her agreement.
"We should probably be heading to bed," Anacostia said before a yawn left her.
Tally hummed her agreement, tilting her head back to rest against Sarah's shoulder.
"Indeed. Tomorrow will be a busy day," Alder stated with a sigh. "I am sure the base will be abuzz with our courtship." She glanced at Petra then. "We need to begin preparations," she said directly to her..
Petra nodded as she stood, helping Abigail and Adil up from the ground.
They cleared the space, gathering the—now empty—bottles of whiskey and extinguishing the fire.
They bid their farewells, Tally giving them all a hug.
"Tally, before you go, a moment?" Petra requested.
Sarah nodded to Tally, silently telling her that she would wait at the end of the path for her.
When it was only the two of them, Petra began, "I owe you an apology. I shouldn't have sent Abigail with that bridle, and I am so sorry that my actions caused you to be the one wearing it. I wasn't thinking about the consequences, too caught up in knocking Sarah from her pedestal."
Tally offered her a soft smile. "I accept your apology. Thank you, General Bellweather."
"Petra," she corrected. "Outside of military matters, you can call me Petra."
"Thank you, Petra," Tally said with a nod.
It was only a few moments before they met up with Sarah and the biddies. Petra said her goodbyes, heading in a different direction as Sarah led them back to their room.
It was quick, and a little blurry for Tally. The alcohol was really hitting her now, and she was grateful they'd be in bed soon.
She passed out as soon as her head hit the pillow, an arm draped protectively over Sarah as she too fell into the embrace of sleep.