Jon and the boys went after Charlotte back into the living room. Jon watched Charlotte turn into the kitchen while the other two men each took a couch to their liking. Hector sat upright on a long couch; Mallory sat on a large single couch, propping his legs up.

He patted the arm of the chair next to him. “Choose your pick, Jon!”

Jon thought that there were too many choices. It was beginning to remind him of the small ring of chairs in Graves’ house, and he was trying to decide if that was a good thing or not.

While he was waiting, he got a whiff of the raw meat from the area next to him. He unconsciously walked over to the table while Charlotte was moving things over.

“Oh, you wanna help out darling?” She asked.

Jon nodded.

“Alright. Can you prepare meat for me?" She asked. "I wanna tenderize it.”

“I can do it!” Hector sat up quickly.

“Sit down, before you fall apart faster than a stack of untethered luggage!” Charlotte demanded. “Relax!”

Hector turned glum and sat down.

“I’m gonna get this oven hot,” Charlotte said. She turned around and started rummaging through the drawers.

Jon expected her to point to the oven and light it. Instead, she pulled out a small pair of matches.

“Let him tenderize the meat!” Mallory called. “He’s pouting over here.”

“I’m not pouting,” Hector muttered. Jon couldn’t see past the back of Hector’s head, but he imagined that Hector might have felt some way.

“What do you think, Jon?”

Even if she said his name, Jon took a moment to realize that Charlotte was talking to him.

He turned.

“Uhh…” Jon knew that Hector was exhausted and probably still hurting from the past few days, and Hector wasn’t one to complain vocally whether it mattered or not. Still, Jon also knew that Hector probably wanted to feel the furthest away from useless, as well as to keep as much agency for himself as possible.

“Hector can-”

“On my way!” Hector stood up and rushed to the counter.

He slowed down as he came around the counter in front of the meat.

“‘Scuse me, Jon.”

Jon shuffled over while Hector took his place.

Hector pointed both of his hands down over the slab of meat, one hand higher than the other.

He then began punching at the meat steadily, flattening it down to the table.

“Hector!”

Hector stopped and turned to his sister, who was holding up a mallet.

“What?” Hector asked.

“Your technique’s off.” She told him. “Use this.”

Hector made a skeptical look at the hammer.

Jon wouldn’t have been able to tell if the hammer technique was off or not. He had never seen his mother tenderize meat.

“I’m…”

“Hector, you’re off,” she repeated. “Make sure you-”

There was a sudden ringing throughout the house. It took Jon and the others by surprise, though Charlotte seemed less so.

“Oh!” Charlotte’s eyebrows furrowed. “I think that’s me. I have to go.”

“But-” Hector nearly raised his hand out toward her.

“I’ll be back to finish dinner!” She handed Jon the hammer before she briskly walked away, much like how Mallory did when he was in a rush. She continued into the hallway where Jon presumed she disappeared into her room. There was a shut of the door, and the ringing suddenly became muffled.

“Huh…” Hector took a look at Jon, who was still holding up the hammer.

“She said my technique is off,” Hector repeated.

Jon didn’t know how to reply.

Hector rubbed his shoulder. “Maybe I should take a rest. You got this Jon?”

Jon didn’t know, but he nodded.

“You got this,” Hector said firmly. “I’m gonna rest.”

He walked back to the couch he was in and sat down firmly.

Jon waited an extra moment to decide if he should risk tenderizing the meat. He decided to go for it.

He raised the hammer and slammed it on the table.

“There you go, Jon!” Hector called out enthusiastically. “You got it!”

“You got it, Jon!” Mallory echoed.

Jon kept smashing the meat one swing at a time. Once he thought he was finished, he waited.

He had no idea how long he waited. He had an idea of how much time passed when Mallory had fallen asleep sitting up in his couch.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Hector wasn’t making much noise from his. Jon assumed he was asleep as well.

“She’s not coming back,” Hector finally said.

Jon frowned. He wanted to ask how Hector knew this to be the case, especially since Hector was still facing away from him. However, from the tone, he knew Hector believed it to be the case.

“You should… just finish up,” Hector continued.

“Are you sure?” Jon asked.

“Sure. We can’t let that meat go to waste.”

Jon hated that he was taking over Charlotte's place, but honestly, he had been thinking about doing it anyway. The meat couldn’t be out for too long without preservation, or it would go bad. Jon thought that it was already going on a bit long anyways, and he doubt Charlotte wouldn’t have wanted to meat to go bad when she wasn’t there, assuming it wasn’t on purpose.

He turned to the left and saw the containers of seasoning that were next to him.

Charlotte had pulled out a couple of them before leaving. Jon figured that was what she had wanted on the meat.

He stepped over to the seasoning and picked each of them up one by one. He didn't recognize some of them.

He didn't want to blindly season the meat, so he looked around for a board. When he found it, he pulled it out, then sprinkled some of the seasonings on it.

He wiped up a bit with his finger and tasted it.

His tongue burned from the spice.

Spicy.

After a few more smacks, Jon figured it was safe for the meat. He also assumed that since the entire family liked to use fire magic, they would appreciate spicier meals.

Maybe not Mallory, though…

He went through each of the seasonings, as quickly and as thoroughly as he could. Many of them he recognize from home, but even from those, he hadn't tasted them and tried them out. That made him wish that he had invested more in learning about all of the spices in his mother’s cabinet. Asking his mother too many questions had reminded Jon what a bad farmer he had been, and so he skirted away from doing so. Now, he wished that he had asked her as much information as possible. In doing so, he might have been able to share his knowledge with his friends.

Once he finished, Jon took a match and started it. He had once been nervous about starting a flame from a match. Now, he was able to strike it hard enough to get it going on the first try.

Jon noted the small flame, wondering how something so small had once scared him so much.

He then opened the bottom of the stove and lit the wood underneath.

He then finally took the spicy seasoning from earlier and brought it over to the meat. He held it hesitantly, deciding how much he was going to put on.

“I can take care of that.”

Jon turned to see that Charlotte had returned. She was standing next to him.

“You’re back,” Hector said aloud in a disapproving tone. He still hadn’t turned from his chair.

“I’m sorry,” Charlotte explained. “You know, I-”

“Mallory’s asleep,” Hector replied.

Jon watched Charlotte rub her lips together as she pondered what to say next.

“We can wake him back up,” she replied. “No need to go to sleep on an empty stomach!”

“I’m not waking him up,” Hector replied. “We have to leave tomorrow. We should get as much rest as he can.”

“You’re still awake, Charlotte said. “That means you’re still hungry. Jon?”

“Huh?”

“Want to finish helping me in the kitchen?” she asked him. “You seem to have a knack for this stuff.”

“Okay…”

She rubbed his shoulder. “I’ll show you what to put on.”

She walked Jon through all of the spices she had pulled out, as well as some of the ones she had left in the nearby cabinet. She moved swiftly, but Jon was able to keep up with whatever she brought. There weren’t as many spices as Jon had at home, but he was still impressed by the array.

She then took him to the mat and she explained each of what she put on.

“Crushed rhine powder,” Charlotte noted, shaking the brown material Jon had first tried. “It adds a bit of spice without running the entire meal.”

She leaned closer to Jon and whispered. “I started using it when Mallory came around so that he didn't feel left out.”

Jon nodded quickly, taking note.

Once the meat was finally on the pan on the stove, Charlotte sighed.

“Perfect,” she said with a good smile. “It’s been a while.”

She left the kitchen area and walked over to Hector.

“Don’t be mad,” she said.

“I’m not mad,” Hector replied simply.

She sighed and put her hand on her hip. “Then can I sit next to you?”

“No.”

She sighed again.

“Sure.” Hector had amended his answer without fanfare.

She finally took her seat.

“Jon!” she called. “You can come join us! Don’t worry about the meat!”

Jon nodded, even if she couldn’t see his face. He took one more look at the meat before coming around and sitting on the large single couch next to Mallory’s.

Mallory had started snoring, his head tilted back as he was staring up.

Across from them, Hector had leaned over so that his head was on his sister’s lap. She was slowly playing with his hair.

Jon didn’t know what to make of Hector’s passive attitude. He just decided to accept it.

“I was busy,” Charlotte said, continuing the earlier conversation

“Busy with what?” Hector asked. He was looking up at the ceiling, but his attention was clearly on her. “Same thing as always?”

“Yeah,” she said.

Hector grunted before speaking. "Why aren’t you there?”

“Because I'm here,” Charlotte replied. “That’s it.”

Hector grunted again.

“Why talk about me?” she said as she looked down at him. “What about you?”

“Everything sucks,” Hector answered simply.

“You have a new friend.” Charlotte nudged her head in Jon’s direction.”

“Friends," Hector corrected, much to Jon’s delight. “And no, it sucks, because now Jon’s involved in it too.”

Jon was yet again being talked about in front of him. There was something genuine about the conversation that didn’t bother Jon this time around.

“Did you ask him if he feels that way?” Charlotte asked.

Jon waited for Hector to ask him like usual.

“I don’t want Jon involved,” Hector eventually said. “I know that he and everyone else is okay with it, but… I wish it didn’t have to be me.”

“It’s okay,” Charlotte replied. Her finger twirl became a full caress on top of his head. “‘It’s okay. It’s hard, but it’s okay.”

“Are you sure?” Hector sounded as if he really wanted his sister;’s answer. Jon noted that Hector seemed to take his sister’s advice very seriously, and without argument. . “You still haven’t told me why you’re here.”

Charlotte twirled Hector’s hair around her finger without word for several moments.

“You should stay an extra day,” she added.

“No!” Hector nearly sat up, but Charlotte quickly pushed him back down with her free hand. That didn’t stop Hector from protesting. “Lana said-”

“She can wait a day,” Charlotte exclaimed. “Since when do you care what Lana says?”

“I always care.” Hector looked much less interested in moving now.

“Then why don’t you tell her?”

“She doesn’t need to know what I think,” Hector replied. “She doesn’t care. She’s not my sister, she’s my boss.”

“Hector-”

“I said-”

Mallory accompanied a snort with a sudden shake in his chair, drawing all attention to him. He resumed his rhythmic snoring right after.”

“Let’s not wake the sleeping giant,” Charlotte replied, keeping her voice low. “I won’t push the matter any further.”

Hector didn’t respond, but Jon took it as him agreeing with her.