It was sundown at Lyngarth. All of the stores were closing now since the clients were most likely returning home. This also applied for a certain terrasphere store that had been open for decades.
"Another good day," the storekeeper said to himself as he checked the sunset. It was time for him to close up shop. He was a man with muddy green hair in a ponytail and matching beard. His most notable feature was his relaxed expression of half-lidded green eyes that displayed how at ease he felt at the store.
Since the storekeeper worked at the terrasphere store since he was young, he was already familiar with the process of closing down the store. He began locking up the displays while thinking about the evening's activities.
'I can't believe how many people were looking for terraspheres,' the storekeeper thought with a wistful smile. 'I guess it makes sense since the school semester is about to begin.'
DING! DING!
"Sorry," the storekeeper turned around. "The store is closed..." He didn't get to finish that thought as a freckled elf boy with a bow in his hand burst in
and ran all around the shop in excitement. A dark-skinned elf woman with dark red hair poked her head in the door.
"Hi, Thyme," the shopkeeper smiled sheepishly as the elf woman entered into his store. "Your kid's acting up," she said in a deadpan tone.
"Really? And here I thought he was our kid," the shopkeeper chuckled in a deadpan tone that was cheerier than hers.
"That's what I heard," a large blonde dwarf woman added as she came out of an
adjacent hallway with a redheaded dwarf boy riding on her shoulder. "Okay, Archer, what's got you so excited?"
"Mama Parsley! I hit a bullseye!" the elf boy happily announced as he ran to the dwarf woman. Though the two of them were not related by blood, he considered Parsley like another mother because of her connection with his father.
"No way! Really?" Parsley said in amazement as she lifted him into the air. She loved lifting little ones in the air. She did it with her little brothers. Then she did it with her baby. And now she was doing it with Archer.
In the background, Thyme was smiling. Though she loved her son, she wasn't the openly affectionate type. As such, she was happy that Parsley could provide the type of affection that she was too shy to give. "Yeah!" Archer laughed.
"Oh, wow!" Thyme made an amazed face to encourage Archer. "Soon you'll be even better than your mommy!"
Thyme didn't mind the comparison as Parsley put down Archer to the ground. The little elf kid ran back towards Thyme to hug her. "Thanks for teaching me how to shoot, mom," Archer told Thyme.
Thyme's expression softened because of maternal love and her son being so cute. "Any time, my son," Thyme got on her knees and kissed him on the forehead.
After getting a kiss from his mom, Archer ran to his father to hug him. The shopkeeper patted the elf on the shoulder. He remembered when Archer was small enough to fit on the palm of his hands. And now his son was big enough that he needed to grab him by the waist to be able to lift him.
"Guess he really is your kid, huh, Thyme?" the shopkeeper asked playfully at Thyme. "I can see that he inherited your marksmanship."
"Yeah," Thyme said, giving a rare smile. "It must've been what my dad felt when I hit my first bullseye..."
The elf woman had a close relationship with her father. He was the one who taught her everything that she knew about archery. And now she was passing that knowledge to her son in their archery lessons. He was still not yet at her level, but Thyme was ready to nurture that talent as much as she could.
"You told him?" the shopkeeper asked Thyme.
"Of course," Thyme huffed. "I'm not that cold."
"He's got to know from your mouth," the shopkeeper clarified. "And now you have something to tell your folks when your mom asks why you haven't been writing."
"Thanks for reminding me, Tarragon," Thyme crossed her arms as she finally addressed her husband by name. It wasn't that she hated her parents, but Thyme did have to deal with them separating when the Fairy Woods were being corrupted by the Rot. As glad as she was that they reunited after the Fairy Woods were saved, Thyme had grown distant due to being forced to grow up fast while finding a cure. She still loved her parents. The problem is that it was a bit harder to show up after she sacrificed her childhood.
"Hold me, daddy!" the dwarf boy who was riding Parsley's shoulder was waving his arms at him.
He chuckled and took the dwarf boy off Parsley's shoulder. Though he loved his elf brother, it was clear that Forge had a bit of a jealous side, demanding equal attention every time that he saw his father treating any of his siblings with apparent favoritism.
"Hey, Forge, buddy!" Tarragon lifted Forge in the air and spun him in a circle to make him laugh. "How was your day?"
"Spin me faster, daddy!" Forge yelled happily. "Spin me faster!" "Were you a big help to your mom today?" he asked affectionately.
Forge was the latest descendant of a family of blacksmiths. His grandfather was a blacksmith. His mother was a blacksmith. His uncles became blacksmiths. He was in the process of becoming a blacksmith. And then his little cousins were also going to be a bunch of blacksmiths.
That was the good thing of being born in a family business. Everybody knew what they were going to do for the rest of their lives. And Forge was more than happy to be in the family business of being a blacksmith and a guardian.
"Yeah!" he replied eagerly. "Mom taught me how to use a hammer. And I made a knife at the end of the day. I personally sold it to a customer. Mom told me that she'll teach me how to make a sword after I forged a hundred knives."
"Sounds like a good challenge," Tarragon put Forge on the ground and ruffled his hair, a trait that he got from Parsley always doing that to congratulate their son when he behaved like a good boy.
"It is!" Forge grinned. "But I love doing blacksmith work! I love watching my mom work with fire and steel. And I want to do that too."
His response got Parsley to lift him in the air, feeling touched by his devotion to her. She held him in one arm so that she could nuzzle his face with her cheek.
"Aw, I'd never get anything done without my number one helper," Parsley said, ruffling his hair with one hand while holding Archer with the other.
Tarragon and Thyme watched the scene with approving smiles on their faces. Such signs of familial love were what made the visits to the terrasphere shop worth going.
"I'm hungry, dad!" Archer spoke, putting a hand on his stomach. "My stomach is rumbling."
As if to prove Archer right, Forge's stomach started to growl, making everyone stare at the dwarf boy.
"I'll get started on dinner," Tarragon said. "Are Lavender and Anise still studying?"
Though Tarragon's eldest children lived at the top of his store, he didn't get to spend much time with them unless it was dinner time. That being said, a part of him expected them to get out of the store to spend time with their brothers.
"I'll get them," Thyme said. The elf woman was used to going after Lavender and Anise when the dinner was being prepared. She already knew where their room was, so it only took a couple of minutes to go get them.
"How about I help you make dinner, Tarragon?" Parsley proposed.
"More hands in the kitchen mean better food," Tarragon joked. "But I feel like you'd make a fine meal even without my hands."
"You flatterer!" Parsley blushed. "I just learned how to cook from my mom so that I could take care of my little brothers. It's nothing that impressive."
"I think that you are the best cook of this family," Tarragon smiled as he entered the kitchen and gestured to her to follow him.
"I'm gonna make dinner for the both of you," Parsley told Archer and Forge. "I want you inside the store at all times until I call you when dinner is ready."
"Yes, mom!" Forge nodded his head.
"I understand, Mama Parsley!" Archer grabbed Forge by the hand.
"Where are we going?" Forge asked as Archer dragged him along.
"I'm gonna show you the new terraspheres that dad got this month," Archer spoke, being the child most interested in running the terrasphere shop after he retired as a guardian.
"That's my boy," Tarragon muttered as he began cooking.
'I never thought that I'd be the concerned mother reaching out for the kids,' Thyme thought as she climbed up the stairs.
Ever since Rosemary and Sage left on a mission, it was up to Thyme and Parsley to take up their roles as mothers until the pair returned. While Parsley had no difficulty opening up to Anise and Lavender, Thyme did have trouble acting motherly to girls who weren't hers.
She was barely able to show that side to Forge, but that was mainly because Parsley and her family were close to her. In the case of Anise and Lavender, Thyme was just learning to open up. She couldn't rely on just casual greetings while her son took care of interacting with them. All of the mothers in this relationship treated Archer like they were her own.
It was only fair that Thyme extended the same kindness to their children. She went up the stairs until she reached the second floor. There were at least a couple of rooms on the second floor. One was their room, the other one was the guest room and the rest were the children's.
However, the girls were a bit reclusive compared to how they used to be before their mothers left, holed up with their studies. As such, it was up to Thyme and Parsley to fill in for Rosemary and Sage until they returned from their adventures. However, since Parsley had her hands full with being a mother to Forge, Archer, nephews, and nieces, Thyme took it upon herself to be the one in charge of Anise and Lavender.
The elf came to the guest room reserved for the children, knocking on it. She got no response as usual.
'I have to talk to those girls about opening the door when someone knocks,' Thyme thought as she grabbed the doorknob and turned it.
Inside the room were two girls reading their textbooks for their first school year. The first girl had pink hair, glasses, several scars and a noticeable suntan. She was Lavender, Rosemary's daughter whom she named after her mother.
Though she was also a warrior, it was clear that Lavender had a passion for knowledge that was different from her progenitor. It was a desire to study and learn that she obtained from her half-sister and best friend Anise. The other girl had hair dyed vibrant neon colors. She was Sage's daughter, named after Sage's older cousin. And like her namesake, Anise was a bit of a rebel even though she shared her mother's talent for studying.
"Dinner's on the table, you two," Thyme told the young women. "Come on down immediately. I don't want you to keep the family waiting because you're too busy studying again."
"Yes, Mama Thyme," they answered in unison.
Thyme turned around, her ears twitching when she heard the girls stepping out of their beds to follow her. She smiled in satisfaction, happy that she had full authority over the girls if they complied with her demands. It meant that she was doing a good job as a surrogate mother to them. She led the girls to the kitchen, where Tarragon and Parsley were already serving dinner.
One of the advantages of Parsley being a blacksmith was that she had a way with fire, allowing her to cook faster without burning the meal, the kitchen, or and Forge waved to their sisters, who smiled and waved back. With the dinner served, everyone sat down and ate their meals.
"So, how are the studies going, girls?" Parsley asked.
Coming from a large family, Parsley was used to everyone talking when eating at the dinner table. It was a common occurrence in her household. And she felt odd if people ate in silence. Dinner conversations were the best way to forge and strengthen a connection among friends and family in her opinion. As such, she loved to keep the tradition going by starting a conversation.
"Fine, Mama Parsley," Anise sighed. "Mom has more than enough books about every conceivable subject. I've learned more about old magic than I've ever wanted to."
"That's Sage!" Parsley laughed. "She was trained in the ways of old magic when she first came here. But she came a long way too. Now she's an expert in new magic as well."
"At least she has books," Lavender grumbled. "Mom barely has anything that can be considered literature. And what she does have is about swords."
Parsley chuckled. Though she resembled Rosemary, it was clear that Lavender had more in common with Sage and Thyme. The young woman had been taught the importance of learning from Thyme, and she'd been taught the importance of discipline by Thyme as well.
"Yeah, those are your moms, all right," Tarragon chuckled. "So, anything good in the mail?"
The question wasn't just addressed to his daughters. Tarragon stared at his sons and wives in curiosity, wanting to see if he could do something to help them open up.
"Well, I got another letter from my mom, talking about how dad should retire and my brothers should take over," Parsley sighed as she thought of her father's condition. "My father's reaching that age when you can see that he's old and not as strong as he used to be."
"Is grandpa sick, mommy?" Forge asked, feeling nervous over something happening to his beloved grandfather.
"He's just tired, sweety," Parsley smiled at him, trying to distract his thoughts from the concept of mortality.
"Isn't that like, the third one this week?" Thyme asked, showing concern for her friend. The elf woman was familiar with the thought of a father's mortality in her mind. She had to deal with that every day regarding her father living in the decaying Fairy Woods.
"Yep," Thyme replied with a tired nod. "And I'm like, telling her that I've got a family of my own and my own stuff to deal with. You can figure these things out! I don't know…"
Parsley sounded frustrated with her folks. But she also felt guilty for not knowing how to help them. It was clear that their safety and happiness was her main concern, but she didn't want to feel herself tied up to the forgery now that she was a guardian. It was unfair.
"Anything from Rose and Sage?" Tarragon asked Parsley, mercifully changing the subject. It was a gamble, but it was better than letting Parsley feel guilty about her family.
"Yeah," Parsley answered with a relieved smile. "They finished their mission and should be home in time for the visit to Lyngarth."
Anise gave a quiet groan at the news of her mother coming home early.
"That's great news," Tarragon spoke. "Let's finish our dinner and wait for them. They should arrive here in a couple of hours."
"And you kids better go to sleep," Thyme stood up. "Anise and Lavender need to wake up early for the tour across Lyngarth. And Archer and Forge are too young to stay up late."
"Yes, Mama Thyme," the four kids answered and went to their room. The only exception was Archer, who returned to his mother for a hug.
"Good night, mommy!" Archer hugged her tightly. "I love you."
"I know," Thyme hugged him back and then sent him to bed.
With the kids asleep, it was up to Tarragon, Parsley and Thyme to wait for the arrival of Rosemary and Sage. The trio was sitting on the couch with steaming mugs. As they sat and drank, Parsley talked to them as if she was telling them a secret plan.
"Ok, Coral and Amphitrite will be coming back from visiting her family and Snapdragon and Am are coming back with Amaryllis," Parsley said. "So we should all be together in Lyngarth."
"I just hope Snap's keeping a closer eye on them," Thyme grumbled. "You remember how Amaryllis spoiled that girl rotten last time."
"Yeah, that was… not fun," Tarragon sighed, feeling exhausted just thinking about it.
Suddenly, a door opened. Thyme raised her bow and Parsley grabbed her hammer with a speed that left Tarragon stunned.
"Hey, hey! The power couple's back!" a pink haired woman in armor announced, not feeling threatened at a bow and a hammer pointed at her.
"I told you that we should have knocked," a blue haired woman with blue robes entered as she held the shoulder of her partner. "Sorry about that. Rosemary is still prone to dramatic entrances."
"Rosemary! Sage!" Parsley happily exclaimed as she and the others rose from the couch to greet the two with hugs and kisses.
"Where are the kids?" Rosemary asked, glad that she could finally spend some time with her daughter.
"They're in bed, Rosemary," Parsley said with a kind smile.
"Aw! I wanted to surprise them!" Rosemary lamented as disappointment clearly evident in her face.
"We'll surprise them at breakfast, Rose," Sage said with a reassuring hand on her shoulder.
"It'll be nice to see the good old Academy and everyone again," Tarragon said.
"Pass," Thyme said. "I didn't want to see any of those people when I was attending. Why would I want to see them now?
"Okay," Rosemary crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow at Thyme. "How about this: we'll go and you can stay here with the kids."
Thyme stared at Rosemary's smug expression for a minute. It was clear that Rosemary was going to test Thyme's ability to be a mother of four. Though she was the dumbest of the four, Rosemary was still smart enough to know that Thyme wasn't ready for such responsibility.
"You are an evil woman, you know that?" Thyme stood with a huff.
"I know," Rosemary said with a cheeky grin.
"Hey, remember how we all first met?" Parsley said. "It was when all of us were ready to enter the Academy."
"Yeah, that was the luckiest day of my life…" Tarragon said as he began to reminisce. Slime Boy, as he had been known back then, had been walking through the marketplace for one reason or another when a tricksy ran by him with a locket in his front paws.
He'd barely had time to process the sight when a pink haired girl and a blue haired girl came barreling through close behind.
"Hey, kid! We need your help!" Rosemary said as she grabbed him by the collar and dragged him along behind.
"Oh… uh… okay," he said, his face turning red.
"Rose! You can't just…!" Sage began to protest but to no avail. Since the two of them were running after the tricksy, it was a useless endeavor. Rosemary wasn't going to be able to listen to her while they ran. Sage would run out of breath if she tried. And the young boy that she was dragging was too involved to turn back now.
Why can't she listen to me when I speak to her? Sage lamented, ignoring that frustration growing in her heart. No. She lost something important. I am not going to judge her.
They ran through alleys and up over rooftops in pursuit of the tricksy.
"So, uh, are you girls new in town?" he asked as he and Sage made their way down the roof. "I don't think that I ever saw you here."
"We're new in town," Sage explained. "We are going to the Academy."
"Me too," Tarragon replied. "I think that…we can reach…orientation if we deal with the…the tricksy."
"Then let's deal with him!" Rosemary shouted as they finally caught up with the creature.
"Are we allowed…to be here?" Sage asked, noticing that the place was abandoned and filled with tricksies.
"I don't really know," Tarragon replied. "I've, uh, never been here before."
"There's more than one kind of tricksy!" Rosemary noticed that the tricksy that stole her locket gave it to another tricksy.
"There is?" Slime Boy asked. It was the first time that he'd seen tricksies in their natural habitat. It was the type of learning experience that one didn't get at school. Or it was the type of experience that one only learned at school upon reaching the last years.
Slime Boy considered himself lucky to watch the tricksies undergoing a mating ritual by exchanging a gift.
"You know, I hope I can do something like that for the girls I want to be with," Slime Boy mentioned to Sage, who ignored him to comfort Rosemary.
Though the tricksies were now mates, it came at the cost of breaking Rosemary's necklace in half.
"Hey, uh, I'm sorry…" Tarragon said.
"Don't worry about it," Rosemary sighed as she wiped a tear from her eye.
"Rose, why didn't you tell me?" Sage asked as she watched Rosemary take a picture that showed her family having dinner.
"It's just a cheap necklace," Rosemary remarked unconvincingly as she took the picture but kept both halves of the locket for herself.
Sage helped Rosemary stand up and they left the tricksy sanctuary. As they left, they noticed that Slime Boy was still with them.
"You're still here?" Rosemary asked, surprised that Tarragon stayed with them despite Rosemary dragging him into an adventure that he didn't want to take.
"Oh, do you want me to go?" Slime Boy asked, feeling like he somehow intruded.
"No, no, you don't have to…" Sage apologized on behalf of Rosemary's discourteous behavior.
"Let's forget it." Rosemary grumbled. "At least things worked out for our tricksy friend."
"Let's not give up." Sage said.
"Why not?" Rosemary replied.
"Come with me." Sage said, leading.
Soon they arrived at the forgery. The trio arrived at the forgery, where they met the local blacksmith. Slime Boy was surprised when he saw that the blacksmith was a female. She was a blonde dwarf girl. He blushed at the sight of her.
Her name was Parsley, but he couldn't get to say anything to her when her twelve younger brothers arrived.
"Wow, that's a lot of kids…" Slime Boy remarked as he noticed how big Parsley's family was.
After Parsley fixed the necklace, Slime Boy followed Rosemary and Sage out of the forgery to go to the Academy. He was surprised to find out that Parsley also intended to attend the Academy by participating in the course for warriors.
His conversation with the girls was interrupted when they met up with someone else.
It was a tall dark-skinned elf. He blushed once more. The elf girl got into an argument with Rosemary. Apparently, Rosemary nearly sliced her with her sword while she was swinging it around at the market. Even though Rosemary apologized, the elf girl had a bit of a grudge about it.
Once Thyme left, Rosemary and Sage were ready to go to the Academy. Tarragon realized that he was going late, but he didn't have the confidence to ask Rosemary and Sage to let him come along with them. And he didn't have the confidence to go after Thyme and Parsley, feeling that his presence would make things awkward between the two of them.
I have to leave them, Slime Boy lamented, having actually enjoyed the adventure with Rosemary and Sage.
"Okay, uh, bye," Slime Boy waved at the girls and then he left.
Rosemary and Sage stared at the young man who helped them even after Rosemary dragged him into the adventure. The two of them were sad to see him go, but they thought that it was for the best.
If he was going to meet them at the Academy, then there was a chance that they could start over as friends.
After having relayed their adventure to Anise and Aloe, Rosemary and Sage proceeded to turn in for their first day at the Academy.
Sage suddenly sat up, realizing an important detail that she didn't take into account until after Slime Boy left.
"That boy!" Sage put a hand on Rosemary's shoulder to shake her. "We never asked what his name was! We can't thank him if we don't know his name."
"Maybe he was our soulmate," Rosemary teased, making Sage blush at the implication.
"Knock it off, Rosemary," Sage shoved her friend, who laughed as she playfully shoved back in retaliation.
As for the boy in question, his dreams were filled by four beautiful girls. Little did he know that he'd have a second chance soon enough. And he had a great future ahead of him with those young women.