A/N: If you are confused by family trees or ages, I added some information in the author's note in the first chapter.
Alex: Yes, Reese and Hazen don't get along. You'll have to wait to see why :p Good luck on ACT!
HammyMC: Haha...yeah I'm back.
Aubrey: Glad you're excited :) Yeah...why did the extra day have to land on a Monday? That just made everything worse :/
TheRanger'sDaughter: It's going to focus mostly on Reese, Robin, and Elizabet.
RedRebel: Oh Reese and Hazen...those two are a mess.
Disclaimer: I'm not John Flanagan.
Robin slung her bag over her shoulder as she walked towards her parents' home. At eighteen, she currently served as an apprentice under her aunt, Lucy. Lucy commanded a fleet of merchant ships while simultaneously managing distribution warehouses. Lucy had been too focused on her career to ever really settle down. After taking over the family business, she refocused their efforts from merchant-for-hire to a niche medical market. She enlisted Gabby, who in turn enlisted Caitlyn, for products to sell. Her two partners worked together, Gabby from her base as a private physician in Araluen and Caitlyn from her post as a poisons researcher at the Academy of Roscrea, to create ingenious product. Gabby identified problems, Caitlyn solved them, Gabby tested them, and then Lucy figured out the logistics of manufacturing and distributing. Gabby and Caitlyn were both invaluable parts of a greater puzzle, but it was Lucy who had to do the heavy lifting most times.
Not that Lucy minded. She also took a larger chunk of the profits. She took over the bills of her parents' home and expanded their central offices. She sat in meetings with royalty when discussing Araluen trade agreements, often as the only woman in attendance, and amassed such a fortune she was able to rent rooms at inns rather than camp when she traveled. The company had become so grand they needed to bring in more people to manage it all. Lucy loved to travel, but she needed an equal to help her. She needed someone to work with the way Gabby and Caitlyn worked together, and she was willing to give up part of her share in profits to get such a person. When no one in her circle seemed to fit, Robin came of age and offered herself as an apprentice to her aunt. She'd grown up around the company and knew it well. Now, Lucy was training her to take over management of the fleet. Robin looked forward to the day she took control over such an important part of the company, though she knew it'd be years before she could do so. She'd have the title 'apprentice' far longer than those in service to the crown.
Robin arrived at the door and let herself in. Her parents had moved here just a couple of years before she became Lucy's apprentice. The apartment had more bedrooms than they really needed, but Gabby's wealth allowed them such a luxury and this way they could host all their children plus grandchildren when the time came. At the rate Robin and her brothers were going, that would be a while.
"Morning Robin," her father greeted her from the breakfast table. Robin grinned and nodded to him before setting her bag down in a chair. She went to the table and immediately hugged her mother from behind.
"Good morning, Mum," she told her. Gabby's fingers traced her arm up to her cheek.
"Robin? What are you doing here?" Gabby asked with surprise. Robin never knew when she'd get to visit her family, so she'd taken to dropping in whenever the opportunity came.
"You almost missed us," her father added. "We're traveling to Hibernia for the wedding next week with the royal family."
"I know," Robin answered. She went to the kitchen and retrieved a plate and cup so she could join them. "I'm scheduled to go on the same ship. I saw your names on the manifest and Aunt Lucy decided to send me ahead so we could board together. I have some things to take care of here before we go, but I thought it'd be nice to visit too."
Robin sat next to Anne, the sister her parents adopted. They adopted Russ, her oldest brother, but he was still family. They took him on long before she and Holt were born and thanks to common ancestry his blonde hair and blue eyes fit in so well he always felt like a brother rather than an uncle. Anne, however, came after she and her brothers left home. Kane and Gabby didn't do well with an empty nest. Robin had always wanted a little sister and doted on Anne. She went out of her way to bring special presents back from trips abroad and often sought her out before other family members when she returned to Castle Araluen. When her parents gave Anne her old bedroom Robin gladly surrendered the space. It made the most sense for her blind sister to have the simplest room to memorize, and when Robin moved all of her things to what had been a guest room before she purposely left behind some items she thought Anne could enjoy.
"Will you stay with us in our cabin on the ship?" Anne asked. Robin stroked her little sister's chestnut hair, the most glaring evidence of her adoption into a family of blondes.
"I've got my own cabin, but I was thinking you could stay with me a couple of nights during the voyage. We can stuff ourselves with sweets while Mum and Dad sleep."
Anne giggled. Kane mouthed a thank you to her, hidden from Gabby and Anne. Robin nodded acknowledgement and helped herself to the platter of food in the middle of the table.
"Is Lucy with you?" Gabby asked.
"No," Robin answered. "She'll join later. She has to finish up an account here and then she'll join me in Hibernia. Are Russ and Holt coming for the weddings?"
"No," Kane answered between bites of fried potatoes. "They can't get away from their work."
Robin nodded. She elbowed Anne gently. "Sounds like it's going to be just us."
Anne giggled. All three of Kane and Gabby's older children loved their newest sister, and all three had a hand in spoiling her. Russ, now twenty-six, grew up to become a Ranger after completing his roundabout apprenticeship in three years. He watched over Norgate fief while being groomed for Special Operations. Holt opted for battleschool, and in another year he'd join the Royal Cavalry. He first aimed for knighthood, but decided he could never deal with the arrogance of those he'd have to spend his career working alongside. His horsemanship paired with his swordsmanship and archery skills would boost him into the ranks of leadership in no time without tying him to a title.
Robin enjoyed the breakfast with her family. Anne's tutor came to collect her while Robin helped a maid clear the table. Her father gave her a hug and left to meet with the king. Kane had given up the Royal Scouts shortly after getting hurt, sealing early retirement as a Captain. Now he spent his days acting as an advisor to King William and helping Gabby with her part of the company. He kept her records and accompanied her when she needed to travel. Robin admired her parents. She aspired to have a relationship like theirs one day, where she could become the breadwinner even if it wasn't necessary and her husband remain supportive. She'd seen enough to know men like her father were rare in that sense.
"Do you have patients today?" Robin asked as she followed her mother to the sitting area of their main room.
"A couple, but I don't check on them until after lunch," Gabby replied. They sat together on a couch. Robin rested close to her mother, letting her rest her hand on her arm so she'd know exactly where she was. "How is your apprenticeship going with Lucy?"
Robin beamed. "I love it, Mum. Aunt Lucy's letting me do more on my own now. I've got three accounts I watch over and she's going to let me help negotiate the terms for a new one in Toscana when we go there next year."
Gabby laughed. "I'm so glad you're enjoying yourself."
"How's Dad doing?" Robin asked seriously. "And Anne?"
Gabby found the ends of Robin's hair and combed them with her fingers. Robin wondered if she'd get a lecture about the length. On a recent trip Robin boldly hacked off several inches trying to mimic a style she'd seen a farmer's daughter wearing. The farmer's daughter may not have meant it to be so appealing, but the uneven layers gave her face a shape Robin envied. Robin was fairly decent at cutting her own hair and liked the results, but it got her more than one stare when she returned to castles where women kept their hair long enough to weave and coil into complex shapes.
"Dad's good," Gabby finally said without mentioning the hair. "His back isn't getting better but we've found a good method for controlling his pain. He's not getting worse. Anne's finally finding her confidence. She's getting better at preventing headaches."
Robin nodded. "I brought a gift for her."
Gabby laughed. "You are always good to her."
"It's great having her in the family," Robin grinned. Having a little sister was the greatest thing that had happened to her.
Spending the morning with her mother was exactly what Robin needed after over four months of nonstop, high-energy work with Aunt Lucy. Robin loved her apprenticeship, but Aunt Lucy didn't go easy on her just because she was her niece. If anything she worked Robin harder, setting her expectations so high Robin sometimes doubted if she could meet them. It felt nice to relax for once.