When we reached the brewery, I stopped for a moment, simply looking at the building in amusement. There was the grave we had dug for the people previously living here, still faintly smelling of Hecate’s magic from the benediction Silva had placed upon it, and all around the building were traces of canine activity. Only pawprints, nothing more, but when I flicked out my tongue to taste the air, I could easily detect traces of their mundane scent alongside their distinctly flavoured magic. Part of that magic was divine in origin, coming from Hecate, and part of it was elemental, or rather primal, coming from a direct connection to Nature, quite similar to that of Adra. It would be amusing if the dogs eventually managed to gain secondary animal forms, maybe even one that could talk to humans, though I had no idea how that might work. The transformation aspect would be relatively easy, humans didn’t have all that many extraordinary physical traits other than the ability to shed heat through our skin, so there was nothing difficult in that regard but learning a language, or rather, learning to speak? That sounded easily as difficult as learning to fly using wings, with numerous complex muscle interactions.

If nothing else, the dogs might be able to mimic Silva’s recently acquired bipedal form, if only because it greatly increased the power of their claws from something mostly used to hold prey down while biting to something capable of swiping at enemies and ripping them to shreds. I wanted my canine friends to be as strong as possible, given that this was an unforgiving world, one that could easily turn them from predator into prey.

“This will be our home, at least for the next few months,” I told Luna, putting a hand on her shoulder. She looked around, her eyes shining with that divine light she got when observing magic, before nodding.

“Mhm, it is welcoming,” she declared, “Lady Hecate makes sure nobody can take it from us and the dogs help.”

“Oh?” I asked, trying to read the flow of magic I had noticed, just a little jealous that Luna could ascertain this much with a single look. But maybe it was because Luna’s ability to discern magic came from Hecate Herself, so reading the Divine magic of Hecate would be trivial for her. And I had to agree, the magic around the area was quite interesting, some of it was aversion, keeping out those hostile to us, however the wards could discern that. In addition to the aversion, there were preservative and truly defensive wards on the building, keeping it intact and making sure nobody could harm those under Hecate’s aegis within the confines of the house.

“Silva, you did good work here,” Luna added, gently petting her massive head. It looked quite amusing, given that Silva’s head was at the same height as Luna’s.

“Silva did this?” I had to ask, as I hadn’t noticed the amount of magic in the air before we left. Silva let out a quiet huff, before adding a chuff and a few more noises came from the dogs all around us. Looking at Luna, I waited for her to translate, to make sure I was right in the interpretation that Silva had laid the foundations and the dogs and their constant influence had turned those foundations into the fortifications we could see now.

“Mhm, Silva alone could only get things started, the others continued her work. Isn’t it great?” Luna confirmed my words, bringing a grin to my face.

“We’ll have to find them something nice, something tasty. Maybe some sort of fowl, something they can’t easily hunt for themselves,” I suggested, getting a happy nod from Luna. There were moments in which I worried a little about the Munchkin and how easy she had taken to fighting for her life, to hunting and killing. From hiding behind me, clutching at my hand, to using her magic in combat without hesitation. The change made it necessary, but I still worried for her.

Maybe I should try having her visit the farm occasionally, simply so she could get together with children her age. Though I’d have to find out what the few children at the farm actually did with their days, I doubted that anybody had the leisure to, well, be a child at the moment. Unless the situation at the farm was a lot better than I imagined, they’d most likely be drafted to do some of the light work, helping to sustain the community as children had done for millennia before the modern era and universal schooling became prevalent in the West.

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“Now, where do you want to sleep?” I asked Luna, once we were inside our house, “Lia and I stay downstairs, in the cellar. It’s huge, the previous owners used it to make cider, and we both have our personal areas set up, far from the hateful rays of the Sun. Or do you want to stay up here, closer to the dogs? They stay outside, but I’m sure a few of them would room with you if that’s what you prefer. Just because Lia and I have to stay out of the Sun doesn’t mean you have to hide with us,” I explained, wanting to make sure Luna knew all her options.

“I’ll stay with you,” she immediately replied, a look of disbelief on her face.

“We can set up a second bed in my space but we’ll have to make sure you get enough sleep. Growing children need their sleep, both for their physical and mental well-being,” I told her, thinking of the children’s bed in one of the rooms. Though, given that the previous occupant had died in that bed, I wouldn’t want to use it, as useful as it might be.

Luna didn’t reply to my suggestion, merely reached out and grabbed my sleeve, her knuckles turning white from the strength of her grip.

“What’s wrong, little one?” I quietly asked, kneeling so I could look her in the eye.

“Can I sleep in your bed?” she asked, her voice little more than a whisper.

“If that’s what you want, yes,” I nodded after a second, “But you’ll have to take extra naps. I wasn’t joking when I said that children need their sleep, you know?”

“Okay, Mum,” she stepped a little closer to me as if seeking proximity. In return, I pulled her into a hug, hoping that I was making the right decision. Some of Lady Hecate’s lessons had been on setting boundaries and expectations for a child, but she had also talked about the necessity for physical warmth and affection. A balance, of sorts, was needed, though I had no idea how to set that balance. I could only give little Luna the affection she so obviously craved while making sure her physical needs were met. And lessons, she also needed lessons, no daughter of mine would be useless. I didn’t care what she wanted to do, but I wanted her to be able to be the best she could be at whatever it was she wanted to do. In this case, I needed to plan her magic lessons, if only because Lady Hecate had a claim on my munchkin, too.

Downstairs, I had to use quite a bit of Wind Magic to air out the space, pushing the air through the door next to the loading dock. In the meantime, Lia helped Luna to get set up in the space I had claimed. Going by the giggles I could hear, the two of them were bonding nicely, their sisterly relationship bringing a grin to my face.

“I miss you, love,” I quietly whispered, letting the wind carry my voice to my beloved Sigmir. If only she was here, part of this little family I was growing. I had no doubt she’d love my two daughters, both of them were adorable in their own right, but I wanted the two of them to not only be my daughters but be our daughters. Just as much Sigmir’s as mine, even if Luna clearly took more after me, while Lia had quite a bit of Sigmir’s physically active and combative nature. I could almost see it before my mind’s eye, Sigmir with her axe, training Lia on the correct way to fight with whatever weapon she needed, be it a cleaver, the chain-hook or anything else.

Just as I was about to close the door and check on the two, I heard a faint whisper in the wind, almost like an answer to my own.

“I’m waiting for you, love. Soon, we shall be together again.”

For a second, I was completely and utterly stunned, unable to move, speak or even think. The voice had been the one of my Sigmir, only I wasn’t sure if I had imagined it. My tongue instantly flickered out, looking for something, anything, that might tell me the reality of it. There was a faint trace, one that I hadn’t tasted for far too long, not since that fateful day in the jungle, when Sigmir had sacrificed herself. But just as I was convinced it was her magic, the scent faded, leaving me with few answers and many, many questions.