"Come here, AJ." he said gently, using his pet nickname for his son, Avery's middle name being John. Only his father ever got away with calling him that, either, so he figured he wasn't in too much trouble.
John put an arm around the ten-year-old. "You've been uncharacteristically quiet." he observed. "Is something the matter?"
"Aren't you and Mummy mad?" He blurted out.
"No. No, we were worried when we could not find you, but, no, not mad. Merely glad you all are safe."
"I was s'posed to be in charge." Avery fidgeted. "I'm two months older than Tommy."
"Ah. Well... Tommy and Abby have been here all of their lives, save vacations, and you never have. It's a dangerous place if you don't know where you are going." he soothed, rubbing his back gently.
"It's not that... it's that I'm supposed to be in charge of Morgan and Emmeline-Cate when you aren't with us. I'm supposed to keep them in line."
Roxton's mouth twitched, but he didn't let his son see it. "Well, now, that's a big responsibility for ten years old, isn't it? They can be a handful..."
Avery nodded solemnly. "Yes, but... I'm the oldest. So... if we're in trouble... blame me."
Roxton drew him close. "Noble of you, but no one is in trouble..." he assured. "Growing into quite a man, aren't you, AJ?"
Avery nodded, giving a bit of a smile. "Am I, Daddy?"
"Yes, and I'm very proud of that..." he said, giving him a light squeeze. "But, you must promise me not to do that again, all right? If Mummy and I don't know where you are, we cannot keep you safe. All right?"
"Yes, sir..." he said, looking at his shoes again.
"Now, why don't you tell me what you learned while you were there?"
Meanwhile, inside, the ladies had gathered with the little girls to do some sewing.
"Ow!" Emmeline-Cate wailed, sticking her finger into her mouth.
"Oh, let me see that, darling..." Marguerite sighed, looking at the tiny hand. "It's nothing; just a small prick." she said, giving the finger a gentle kiss.
"Why are we sewing instead of the men, Mummy?" Emmeline-Cate asked, looking around, and Finn laughed.
"She's smart." Finn laughed. "Sweetie, back in California, I don't do much of my own sewing- and I have a male tailor!"
"I don't like the idea of other people having their hands in my clothes before I put them on, or their hands on me, measuring me." Veronica admitted. "Ned has taken me to those fancy dress shoppes, and even the women tailors make me uncomfy. I like to do it for myself."
"That's because you're good at it- and actually look good in your clothes." Abby blurted.
Veronica tilted her head at her daughter. "What are you talking about, Abby?"
"Everyone always talks about how beautiful you are... Everyone... cause you are." the nine-year-old said quietly. "But, not me... they look at me like, 'how did she come from her?'."
Veronica put down the shirt she was mending and sat down next to her daughter, gathering her into her arms. "Abby... you're beautiful!" she said, holding her tightly. "The moment I laid eyes on you, I thought you were the prettiest little thing ever!"
"I'm not; I'm all bony and skinny... and I'm too tall! I'm taller than Tommy, and he's older, and a boy!" she pouted.
"Sweetie... you just hit your growth spurt first, that's all... and he might end up being kind of short; your Dad's handsome, but not exactly a giant..."
"I know how you feel." Marguerite said, sitting down in front of the mother and daughter.
"How could you, Auntie Marguerite?" Abby sniffled. "You're beautiful, too!"
"Not always, I will have you know." Marguerite confided. "When I was a child I was too thin, too tall, too awkward... too boisterous, too... everything." she laughed. "But, then, I bloomed earlier than other girls around me. I started getting breasts at 12. And, that was actually awkward, too, because little boys can be stupid about those things. Big boys can be even morestupid."
Abby nodded.
"Don't be in too big a hurry to grow up, Ab." Finn said, sitting next to Veronica and her daughter. "It'll happen soon enough, and you'll miss being a little girl, able just to crawl into Mom's lap and let her make the world go away."
Abby nodded, snuggling closer to her mother, and Veronica smiled, kissing the top of her head.
"You know... maybe it's time we started letting you wear skirts and dresses all the time..." Veronica whispered, and Abby's eyes lit up...