Nod was sulking in his nest with his favorite blanket pulled over his head when Ronin got home.
"Nod said to tell you he's not coming out ever again," Orla informed Ronin sympathetically, "also that he would like honey brittle for dinner."
It would have been funny if the boy hadn't been so upset.
"Any new plans?" Ronin asked as he put his weapons away and started taking off his armor.
"Today, the plan is to hide out in the rookery for a few months because he can eat the seed they feed the birds, and it will be warm and dry," Orla's lips quirked up just a little, "also so he can throw seed shells at his uncle until he goes away and never comes back."
"That's not the worse plan he's come up with," Ronin nodded, locking the weapons cabinet, "I'm taking tomorrow off, but I need to go in the day after. Will that work for you?"
"That should be fine," Orla nodded.
"I'm sorry the schedule has been so chaotic the last few weeks," Ronin apologized.
"Don't worry about it General," Orla shook her head, "it's good for you to be home with him when you can."
"Thank you for your help," Ronin smiled sincerely.
"It's my pleasure General," Orla returned the smile.
After calling goodbye to Nod, who answered very grumpily from his nest, Orla left for the evening. Ronin pulled off his boots, then went to lean over the back of the couch, looking down at the wiggling blanket.
"I got you something."
Nod peered out from the blanket, giving Ronin a suspicious look.
"You want to see?" Ronin asked.
"What is it?" Nod narrowed his eyes.
"Come sit on the couch with me, and I'll show you," Ronin turned to sit facing the right way.
Nod considered for a moment, then clamored over the back of the couch, dropping down beside Ronin and looking at him expectantly.
"Here," Ronin pulled a small pouch out of his pocket, handing it to the boy.
Nod undid the draw string and shook the contents out into his hand. His face brightened immediately at the sight of the necklace.
"This is for me?" he asked, running his fingers over the pendant on it.
The pendant was a small polished gold disk with a lotus flower etched into it. It was strung on a sturdy woven leather cord.
"It's called a lotus lock," Ronin explained.
"It's shiny," Nod grinned, "and it feels nice."
"I have one too," Ronin pulled his own lotus lock out of his shirt to show him, "my father gave it to me when I enlisted."
"What's 'enlisted' mean?" Nod gave him a curious look.
"It means joining the Leafmen," Ronin explained, reaching back to undo the hook on his own lotus lock.
He handed it to the boy, who turned it over carefully in his hands, comparing the two. Ronin's lotus lock was more ornate, shaped like a lotus flower with a small green stone at the center. He had thought Nod would like something simpler though and more sturdy, as the boy was constantly climbing up things and crawling under them. Ronin hadn't wanted to risk the charm having edges that could catch on things or be easily broken.
"Lotus locks are for protection," Ronin explained, "there's a charm on them that can help keep you safe."
"Like magic?" Nod handed Ronin's lotus lock back to him.
"That's right," Ronin nodded, refastening it around his neck again, "it can't protect you from everything, but it helps."
The magic was why the lotus lock was gold. Gold wasn't a material jinn had much use for. It was hard to get and too soft to be practical. It mostly got used in jewelry. The one thing it was good for though was magic. Gold held and amplified magic better than most materials, and when Ronin had asked for the strongest lotus lock the charm maker could managed, he had known he would end up with a gold one.
"Will it keep bad things away?" Nod fumbled with the clasp, trying to figure out how to put the necklace on by himself.
"Some bad things," Ronin nodded.
Ronin didn't know much about how protection charms worked or much about the mechanics of magic in general. He just didn't have any aptitude for it, but he had had enough close calls and near misses to think the charms really did do something.
"Want some help with that buddy?" Ronin asked.
"Yes," Nod held it out to him, "can I wear it forever?"
"Of course," Ronin looped the necklace around the boy's neck and did the clasp.
"Even in the mud and in the snow and in the bath?" Nod wrapped his hand around the charm once Ronin let go of it.
"Yep," Ronin nodded, "it can get as dirty as you can, and it won't hurt it."
"I'm going to wear it forever then!" Nod lunged forward, wrapping his arms around Ronin's neck.
"I'm glad you like it," Ronin hugged him close.
"Maybe it will keep Uncle Barnet away," Nod settled in Ronin's lap and pulled the charm away from his chest so he could admire it.
Ronin winced, "I don't think that's how they work kiddo."
"But he's a bad thing," Nod angled the charm so it would catch the light.
"What if he's not bad?" Ronin prompted gently.
Nod tipped his face back to give him a sour look, "he's bad. Otherwise he would let me stay."
Ronin was hoping that by that same logic he didn't get put into the 'bad' category as well for making Nod go. He didn't want Nod to stop trusting him.
"Also, I want honey brittle for dinner. I told Miss Orla, and she said you were making dinner, and I want honey brittle," Nod informed him grumpily.
"What if we have grilled mushrooms with flat bread instead?" Ronin suggested, "then we have honey brittle."
"That's not as good," Nod huffed, "it should be the other way. The good stuff should come first."
"I thought you liked grilled mushrooms," Ronin tweaked his nose.
"Not as much as honey brittle," Nod stretched, pushing back against Ronin's chest.
"We have plenty of honey brittle," Ronin gave him a squeeze, "you can have some after dinner."
"Okay," Nod sighed dramatically, then paused and looked up at Ronin uncertainly, "does Uncle Barnet like honey brittle?"
"I don't know," Ronin kissed his head and set him on his feet so he could get up, "you'll have to ask him when he gets here."
For a moment Nod seemed to think this was reasonable, then he scowled, "no, I'm not talking to him ever because I don't want to meet him, and I'm not going with him."
The boy scrambled back over the couch and tumbled down into his nest. Ronin leaned over to see him, giving him an unimpressed look.
Nod stuck his tongue out at him and pulled his blanket back over his head, but he popped out from under it again in less than a minute, rolling onto his back and holding his lotus lock up to the light to admire its shine.
"I'm going to go make dinner," Ronin told him, reaching down to rumple his hair.
"With honey brittle!" Nod called after him as he headed towards the kitchen.
Ronin shook his head. Barnet better like honey brittle, or he was going to be in trouble.
Packing for Nod proved to be difficult for a number of reasons, most of them not related to the shear amount of things Nod had accumulated since he came to live with Ronin. Every time Nod saw him packing up his things, he got upset and tried to unpack them again. It had turned out to be a slow, painful process for both of them.
Ronin saved Nod's nest behind the couch for the night before Barnet was scheduled to arrive. The child advocates had tried to coax Barnet into staying in Moonhaven for a while to allow Nod to get used to him gradually, but he had refused to stay more than the two days he needed to turn his trade caravan around. He had claimed it would be detrimental to his business to linger too long.
Needless to say, Ronin's misgivings about the man had only grown. Their inquires with Bufo's people hadn't turned anything up. Barnet was a bit cut throat as a businessman, but all of his dealings were legitimate. As uncomfortable as Ronin felt about giving Nod to him, they hadn't found anything that indicated he would be an unfit guardian.
Ronin planned to introduce Nod to him in the afternoon and have the boy stay with him that night. Hopefully being with Barnet in the semi-familiar setting of Moonhaven would help Nod with the transition. Ronin would come by to say his final goodbyes before they left the next day.
"No!" Nod pulled hard on the blanket Ronin was trying to pack, "it's mine! You can't have it!"
"I know it's yours buddy," Ronin held onto the blanket, but didn't pull, "that's why I'm packing it. So you can take it with you."
"No," Nod drew the protest out into a long whine, "it's my nest. It belongs here."
"But this way you can take it with you and rebuild it in your new home with your uncle," Ronin tried to reason.
"No!" Nod sobbed, dropping to the floor, "it goes here!"
Nothing Ronin had said or done seemed to help Nod warm up to the idea of living with his uncle. The boy was doing everything in his power to stop it from happening, but the reality of the situation was that he had to go. Even Ronin's promises to visit as soon as he could get away from the demands of the spring harvest hadn't helped.
"Chickadee," Ronin sat on the floor and pulled the crying boy into his lap, "it's going to be alright. You'll have a new home soon, and you can build your nest there good as new."
Nod buried his face against Ronin's chest and continued to sob. With a soft sigh, Ronin picked him up and sat in the rocking chair, rocking him until he wore himself out and fell asleep. Unfortunately, this had been how most of the last week had gone. Nod wore himself out crying, and Ronin packed while the boy slept.
Once Nod was sleeping, Ronin tucked him into bed and finished packing up his nest, then checked the bag he had packed for him for the trip back to Willowbrook. He had tucked bags of honey brittle into it and made sure that Nod had extra socks and his slippers with the bells.
He had sent Barnet extensive notes and directions, everything he could think of about caring for Nod and helping him when he was upset, all his idiosyncrasies, and a list of the things he and Orla had been working on helping Nod learn. Hopefully, it would be enough for Barnet to pick up where they were leaving off with helping Nod to adjust and continue to improve.
Ronin was just packing the last toy when he heard Nod start to cry in the bedroom. He pushed himself up and went to get him, telling himself that everything was going to get better for the boy soon. He just had to get over this next hurdle of meeting his uncle and making the move.