A/N: [July 10th 2024]

October 2nd 2023

Chapter 275
We Return Before the End

The first week back to school had flown by for all of them. The days didn't feel as though they should have piled up so quickly, and yet suddenly Lucas was at the ranch, looking around at the multitude of children who were running around, children and teens, all flying the colors that tied them to their groups. It was the first day back for the afterschool program, and it was at once as though they'd never left and as though they had been gone for eons.

It all came on the end of what had been a pretty solid start to the school year for the Friars. Aubrey had struggled just a bit on the first day, but by the end of the second she'd bounced back, as she'd done when she'd started her ballet lessons. Mackenzie was so thrilled to be in her kindergarten class, though her struggle came in not wanting her little sister to think that she didn't miss playing with her. The triplets were doing great in second grade, and while it would have been hard for any teacher to top Miss Ingrid and Uncle Zay, Marianne was getting along alright with her new teacher, Mrs. Tyler.

None of the campers were thinking about school anymore, not now that they were at the ranch. Because it was the first day, they'd started out with all the kids in one place, just a sea of bandannas in seven colors, before splitting off. Lucas continued to split his time wherever his children and grandchild could be found, and he started out with green group, where his youngest girls were reunited. They would be split again the following year, when Mackenzie would graduate up to blue, but he was certainly not thinking about it yet, and he wasn't about to put any of it into either of their heads either.

For now, all that Aubrey and Mackenzie seemed interested in was matching one another. That had started out just a few days ago, when all the girls had been taken in for their start-of-year haircuts, if they wanted it. The little sisters' hair had been growing, barely touched, for most of their lives, and now they both had new and matching cuts of a middling length, which they had now topped with their green bandannas tied over their heads and underneath their blond hair.

Moving over to blue group, he found the opposite, in that none of the triplets matched one another. Remy had not gone to the salon with her sisters, keeping her curtain of blond as it had been, just past the middle of her back, with her bandanna wrapped at her wrist. Kacey had gone and had her hair cut above the shoulders and stopping just above the blue cloth tied around her neck. Lucy, for her part, had wanted nothing more than to make the natural wave in her hair stand out better, and so it did, with the twisted bandanna looped under her hair and tied in a knot at the top of her head.

This had come about after the birthday trick and the approach of second grade, as they had decided that it was time to stop playing to the triplet thing. They had never really been made to wear the same things, only on certain occasions, but now they wanted to try going this way, and their parents were more than happy to let them lead the way.

Up in red group, Tori was so invested in the work she was doing, in the arts and crafts room, that Lucas didn't dare disrupt her by announcing his arrival. He could see that the paper she was drawing on was split into squares, each space filled in with a name in its own style, with various little drawings to match. He couldn't say whether these were names that her parents had told her about or if they were simply ones that she liked and wished to suggest, but without a doubt they were meant for her unborn sibling, be it brother or sister. When she finally saw him there, he quietly informed her of his personal favorites, and she smiled.

"Hey there," Lucas smiled when, on his way to find yellow group, he found Maya doing the same thing, with Ezra balanced in one arm. The nine-month-old wiggled about until his desire was fulfilled and he was passed into his father's arms. Lucas gave him some good cheek kisses and Ezra giggled, returning the favor as best he could before twisting around to look around as he'd been doing a moment ago.

Maya had promised to come along on the first day back at the ranch, so of course she'd come. She'd been there for a little while, stopping in with the other groups without running into her husband as he did the same, but now they were both due to check in on Marianne and Shonagh, and that was where they went. In the past, their XC campers had only participated in the program by helping with snack time for the most part. That was different now though, as much because they had expanded the age range up to eighteen for the afterschool program and because they'd taken in their youngest XC through Shonagh. All four of the XCs could be found here and there, sporting their own colors, but it was impossible for Lucas and Maya not to get caught up in how Shonagh was doing. She lived with them, she was part of their household now, as she would be all through the year and beyond, if any of them had any say in it. Even when she'd return to Ireland, she'd be as good as an honorary Friar.

It was good for Maya to look around the ranch as they went and see some of her students now in their colored bandannas. She'd put it out there, sure, when the older groups had been formed, in case anyone was interested, but she hadn't been sure whether any of them would actually go for it. But they were here now, some of them, and it made her smile.

She spotted Freddie and Noor, and it took her back to the start of the week, the first day back at school. They had been the first of her freshmen to show up, three years ago, and now on their first day as seniors, they had been the first to show up in the art class, too. A lot had changed for the both of them in that time, and it was never so easy to see as when they came along that first day. Noor was still very much the minded and direct girl that she'd been as a freshman, but now as a senior, it felt, she had loosened up some.

For what she'd seen of her work and what she'd heard from her directly, some of that credit went to her having found her former foster brother again and having him by her side as they advanced through high school. Freddie had loosened up, too. For him, this had shown up in his coming off that much more confident in what he did. He didn't suddenly lose his speech impediment, though it had definitely become less pronounced than it had been in freshman year. In the first week back, Maya had to say, she'd been feeling as though she'd heard it more than she had in a while, and she imagined she knew why. He had to be thinking so much about what would happen after high school, about making his way on his own for the first time… He wouldn't be alone, he had to know. He had so many people around him now, ready to back him up.

The same could be said about Austin Abbott. He'd started out his high school years by being shoved into a locker and locked inside. Though his growth spurt had definitely helped, he would tell any and all that what had gotten him to grow as he'd done – personally, psychologically – was getting to be part of the cheer squad. Maya could back him up on this, one hundred percent. By now he was easily their top male cheerleader, enough that there was a lot of talk about making him captain this year. He'd already been checking in throughout the first week, wondering if dates had been set for the tryouts, getting the remaining members from last year together to practice and inviting hopefuls to sit in… This year he'd joined the station occupied by Agnes, Freddie, and Noor, the last of which had evidently become his girlfriend sometime over the summer. They made quite a team, the four of them together.

When it came to Agnes at that station, Maya was forever thankful for Lucas and how he'd managed to put the girl's mind at ease. Yes, they were now more certain than ever that she was their Ezra's mother, but she now seemed reassured, convinced even, that they were not on to her. She no longer gave off the impression of trying to avoid Maya, and she would be there, every morning in the art room along with the other members of Born Curious and the Critically Bookish as they had their regular study sessions. She had even joined Kip in checking in with her and Stella both to ask how things were going with the selection of the new freshmen members. There was nothing for them to be told as of yet, but they were taking on their roles as the captains of their respective teams, and at this point Maya would gladly take any and all queries from them if it meant that Agnes was no longer feeling as though she couldn't approach her.

She tried not to think about it all too much, especially when the seniors would be in her class, but she still couldn't help it. She would wonder about who the father had been, because how could she not want to know? Were the two of them still in touch at this point? She would wonder if Agnes had told anyone. Had she told her brother, Jonah? Had she told Freddie now that the two of them had been dating for a while? Had she confided in anyone on the quiz teams, like Max McAllister, or the now graduated Marie Nilsson? That was the hardest part of keeping her distance, wasn't it? Maya knew her secret now, and she hated to think that Agnes might not have had anyone to confide in at all.

At least they had all gotten through that first week without anything that felt like trouble brewing. They were finding their rhythm in their new grades, new groups… Maya had set about with so many projects she wanted to put together with all of her students that there was no way she would get through all of them, so she'd left it up to all of them, each group picking one. With the seniors, the vote had come down to their wanting to work with clay. It used to be part of her curriculum every year, but after Principal Davenport had come along, she hadn't managed to bring it back. In the spirit of taking back her school, her class, Maya had worked very hard to find all the necessary loopholes to make this happen for her kids, and she had actually pulled it off… so far. She fully expected some pushback from the principal, but that wouldn't stop her pushing right back. They would have their clay, and they would make wonderful things together. Wouldn't that be something when the art auction came around this year?

"Hi, Mom!"

"Hi, pumpkin!"

"Afternoon, Mrs. Friar!"

"Afternoon, Shonagh!"

"What do you know, Ezra, we're invisible," Lucas addressed their son, and Maya snorted, reaching out to brush at the boy's hair while the girls ran over. Marianne hugged her father, collected her little brother, while Shonagh waved and smiled at Lucas. She was more than welcome to hug any of them, but they'd leave it up to her to decide if she wanted to. For now, Lucas smiled and waved back.

"We're going riding soon, can he come watch?" Marianne asked her parents, turning a look to Ezra. He never stopped smiling at her, and she'd smile back at him every time.

"Are you kidding? He's been looking forward to it all day," Lucas informed her, and Maya backed this up with a nod. It was barely an exaggeration, was it? Ezra was showing more and more enjoyment whenever he got to be around the horses, and who were they not to give him what he wanted?

TO BE CONTINUED

See you tomorrow! - mooners