Thoreau - Chapter 18: Chapter 18

After Gelo left, I picked up my new animal book and read it to Baby Tanner for about half an hour. Finally, I felt brave enough to go looking for Leo and Poppy, but they found me first.
Well, Leo did.
I had my hand on the door knob to go out of my bedroom when I heard a soft knock and smelled Leo. Grinning, I twisted the knob as silently as I could, then yanked the door open super fast!
"Oh!" Leo jerked back a step.
"Hahaha!" I laughed and pointed at his surprised face. "I got you, Leo!"
"Yeah, you did." He smiled, his eyes wrinkling at the corners. "Wayne and Arch would be proud of you."
"Really?" My eyebrows flew up as I stepped back so he could come in.
"You're their prankster in training, right?" He held up the white noise machine from his bedroom. "I brought you something. Thought it would help you sleep tonight."
"Thanks, Leo, but won't you need it?" I took the machine from him and carried it over to my dresser.
"Um, no. Not now that I have... Um."
"It's okay, Leo the lion. You can say her name." I set the machine down next to my star lamp and turned around to look at him. "I am sorry I yelled and was disrespectful. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. I was just scared you'd forget about me because you'd be too busy with your new mate."
"How could I forget about you? You're my buddy." Leo held out his arms.
Grinning, I ran to him and wrapped him up in a big hug.
"I'm sorry you were upset, Reau," he whispered, resting his chin on the top of my head. "I should have explained it in a different way."
"It's okay. I should have listened in a different way." I laid my head on his chest and listened to his strong, steady heartbeat. "Did I scare Poppy? I don't want anyone to be scared because of me."
"No, buddy, you didn't scare her. She was sad that you were upset, though."
"I will find her and apologize and tell her not to be sad." I squeezed him, then asked something I'd been wanting to ask him for a while now. "Leo, will you be my zio? And will Poppy be my zia?"
"If you'd like to call us that, you can," he said slowly, "but you don't need to grant us that title. We can just be Leo and Poppy."
"I would like to call you zio and zia," I said with a firm nod, "but that means you can't leave me. If you are my zio and zia, you have to always be my zio and zia."
"Of course, buddy. I'm honored to be your zio."
He hugged me harder and I felt him kiss the top of my head. Happiness made my chest feel warm, and I wondered if that was because it was more happiness than my heart could hold, just like Binda said.
I think it is, Tanner! Won't Binda be proud of us for finding it? I grinned into Leo's shirt, then remembered and felt a pang of sorrow. Oh.
"I hope I'll be able to provide Poppy with a place of our own soon," Leo was saying, "but even after we move out, we'll always be there for you, and you can come stay with us anytime you want. In fact, we talked about it and, if you want to have a sleepover tonight, we're both okay with that. And whenever you get scared of the ghost, you can come to our room."
"Nah. Gelo said the ghost is a friendly one. He told the ghost he had to be quieter, but moaning is just what ghosts do." I shrugged. "And Gelo told me to go to his and Bubba's room if I get scared so you and Poppy can have private couple time tonight."
"Oh. Yeah. That."
Lifting my head, I looked up and saw his ears were red again. But he'd found his mate now. Why was he still embarrassed?
"Why do your ears always turn red when we talk about mates and mating?" I stopped hugging him and took a step back.
"Well, ah. Hmm." He cleared his throat and his cheeks were pink now, too. "I don't know. They just do."
That's when I finally understood what was going on.
"You're shy!" Peals of giggles burst out of me. "Zio Leo the lion is shy about mating!"
"Don't rub it in!" He scratched the back of his neck. "I've never mated anyone before, and I'm nervous and worried I'll disappoint her!"
"You should talk to Zio Zayne and Zio Zayden. They mate Zia Bea all the time." I patted his shoulder. "Since Zia Bea hasn't lit them on fire yet, I guess they know what they're doing. Well, at least enough to give you some tips."
"How do you know they mate her all the time?" He scowled at me.
"I hear them talking. They tease each other about how many times they make her come when they mate." I tilted my head. "Why does she need to come to them to mate? I thought they lived together?"
For some reason, Zio Leo covered his face with his hands and his shoulders shook, and I frowned. Maybe he was too shy to talk to the Z twins?
But they're his best friends! Shouldn't you be able to ask your besties anything? And it's not like he's close to anyone else in the pack.
"Sorry if you're too shy to ask them, but it's not even worth asking Gelo or Bubba for advice," I warned him. "They put their dickies in each other's mouths and tushy holes. They wouldn't have a clue what to do with a vagina."
Now he let out a little gasp and bent double, and I felt really bad for him. He was so, so nervous!
"Don't cry! I know you can do it, Zio Leo! Just find her vagina and put your dicky in it. If that doesn't work, let her play with your dicky while you play with her breasts. How could that disappoint her? Plus, it feels so good when the white stuff—" I stopped and reminded myself that Gelo said it was called semen. "When the semen comes out."
"Oh. My. God. Dess," he whimpered.
His ears and what I could see of his face were really red now, and he whirled around and sprinted out of my bedroom.
Guess he wants to cry in private, I thought with a shrug and went to find Poppy.
After I told her I was sorry, she gave me a big hug, and I reminded myself not to rub my face in her breasts. Even though it was tempting because they were big and soft and right there, I knew they belonged to Zio Leo, so I stood on my tiptoes and laid my head on her shoulder as she smooshed all the air out of my lungs.
"We're going to be best friends, Reau!" She stopped hugging me and grabbed my hands in hers. "You, me, and Leo!"
"I already have two best friends," I said slowly, worried I might hurt her feelings again. "Wayne and Arch are my besties."
"Sweetie, you can have as many friends as you want. There's no limit on how many people your heart can love." When I frowned, she tilted her head and stared at me for a second. "Hmm. Maybe it's the terminology... I know! How about this? Leo and I will be your best buddies. How would that be?"
"I don't know what terma-lolly is, but Leo already calls me his buddy!" I grinned and swung our hands excitedly. "Okay! Wayne and Arch are my besties, and you and Zio Leo are my buddies!"
"Thank you, sweetie!" She leaned in and kissed my cheek. "The others are busy making plans for tomorrow, so would you like to hang out with me?"
"Sure! But what can we do?" I tilted my head as I tried to think of something fun. "I have Candy Land we could play or lots of books we could read."
"Or we could go exploring outside," she suggested. "Beta Emerson said there's a secret we could try to find in the backyard."
"A secret? Oh, boy!" I hopped up and down. "Leo and I found a secret in the study! I'll show you that later, but yes, yes, yes! Let's go 'sploring outside! I love to be outside!"
"Okay, okay," she laughed as I let go of one of her hands and tugged her toward the door. "Beta said we can find the secret along the edge of the woods."
"That meanie Bubba!" I growled with a little pout. "He never told me about any secret in the backyard!"
"I think he was saving it for a special day."
I stopped and looked at her.
"Is today a special day?" I asked.
"Sure it is! Leo and I found each other, and I joined your family. That's something special, right?" She gave me a big grin, showing white teeth that glowed against her brown skin.
I grinned back and decided it was an okay time to ask her about being my zia since she was the one who brought up family.
"Poppy, can I tell you something?" I squeezed her hand as we walked through the backyard.
"Anything, buddy."
"Zio Leo said you can be Zia Poppy, but you have to understand what that means. If I let you be my zia, you have to be my zia forever."
Wanting her to know how serious this was, I looked into her shiny black eyes, but I wasn't 'specting to see tears in them.
"Oh, my dear, sweet boy. I would be honored to be your zia and part of your family and your life forever."
"Don't cry." I dropped her hand and used my fingers to brush the tears off her cheeks. "You have a home now. And a mate. And a family. And me! See? No reason to cry. You won't be alone ever again." Uh-oh. That was the wrong thing to say! Her tears fell faster and a little sob came out of her mouth. "I'm sorry, zia. Please don't cry. It makes my chest hurt to see you cry. And Zio Leo will be mad at me for upsetting you."
"These are happy, grateful tears, Reau. I promise I'm not upset, baby. "
"I'm not a baby! I'm a big boy! Why does everyone call me a baby?" I made an angry face.
"Because you're sweet and precious like a baby."
That was true. I was sweet and precious.
Maybe that's why Bubba and my other zias call me baby sometimes. And WayWay and ChiChi said they call me their baby because they want to spoil me and take care of me. Hmm. Well, I guess people calling me a baby isn't the same as them thinking I'm a baby.
"Okay, Zia Poppy. Do you still want to 'splore with me?"
"Of course!" She smiled and used the neck of her t-shirt to wipe the rest of her tears away. "Let's do it!"
"Yeah! Let's do it!
We did it!
We found the secret in the backyard!
We were walking along the treeline when my little eye spied what I thought was a bank of vines and stuff, but Poppy waved her hand and the vines moved aside to reveal a gray stone wall. We walked alongside it for about two hundred feet and came to a funny-looking door.
It was set in a stone archway with some flowers and vines covering the top half of it. Someone had painted it green a long time ago, but the paint was peeling off, showing gray wood underneath. Big pieces of black iron were nailed to one side of it, and Poppy said they were hinges.
"Oh, boy! Oh, boy!" I squealed as I jumped up and down.
"What do you think is inside?" Poppy asked as she examined the door.
"I don't know! Let's find out!"
The latch was made of the same black iron as the hinges. Dancing with anticipation, I brushed the vines aside, stepped in the archway, and grabbed the latch, but it had rusted fast and I couldn't get it to open.
Poppy waved her hand again, and the bolt slid back.
"There, buddy. Try to open it now."
Pushing gently at first, I quickly realized there was dirt or something built up on the other side of the door, or else the hinges were rusted fast like the latch.
Putting my shoulder against the door, I pushed as hard as I could, and the door creaked a bit before it went pop! and swung inward so fast, I almost fell! With wide eyes, I glanced over my shoulder at Poppy and saw her standing right behind me, her eyes bright with curiosity as she tried to look over my head.
Grabbing her hand again, I drew her next to me.
"Let's go in together," I said with a smile.
"See? This is what I mean by you being sweet." She smiled back.
"Oh. Well, no, I'm not being sweet right now," I admitted with wide, serious eyes. "I want you to come along because, if there's a monster inside, it can eat you while I run away."
For some reason, she laughed. She laughed so hard, she had to hold her belly.
"You're so funny, Reau!" she gasped after nearly one full minute of laughing.
My eyebrows drew together. I wasn't being funny. I was as weak as a human without Tanner, but she was strong enough to bury a monster under a tidal wave of dirt or strangle it with all these green vines. Plus, I was just a kid, and she was an adult!
Then again, Zio Leo would probably be very angry with me if I let a monster eat his just-found mate. And I'd be sad to lose my newest zia. Oh, and I'd never get to pet her fox again!
That last thought convinced me and, with a sigh, I decided I would be brave and protect her. Putting her behind me, I held her hand tightly and went through the doorway first.
Thank the Goddess, I didn't see a single monster, just green plants and flowers held in by the four stone walls. Well, mostly held in. A lot of the vines were growing over the tops of the walls.
"It's a garden!" I chirped and pulled Poppy inside with me. "It's messy and weedy, but it's a garden!"
"Wow! This is so cool!" She looked around with wide eyes. "But you're right about it being messy. It's freaking Jurassic Park in here."
Looking through the hanging vines and overgrown bushes, I saw the very center of the garden had a big concrete rectangle laying on the ground. Wondering what it was for, I tugged Zia Poppy over to it.
"What do you think this is?"
"It's the foundation for something. A gazebo or pergola, maybe. Could have been a really big potting or storage shed, I suppose."
"What's a 'zebo and that per word?"
She slowed down the pronunciation so I could hear the two words better, then 'splained what they were. Once I understood, a brilliant idea came to me.
"Zia Poppy!" My hand dropped hers so my fingers could flap against my palms. "My besties and I could build a secret fort here!"
"I think that's a great idea! You'll have to talk with your brother, but I can't see him saying no to you. Would you like me to clean up the garden for you so you can just focus on the fort?"
"No. I want to do it myself or with my besties." I rethought that when I looked at the overgrown mess around us. "Um, if it gets too much, though, will you and Zio Leo help?"
"Of course, buddy! And I can't wait to meet your besties. I'm sure they are very nice boys."
"Wayne and Arch are awesome!" I gave her a great big grin. "They taught me how to play Minecraft and we went swimming and we played with their little brothers and they took me for dirt bike rides!"
"Sounds like fun! I bet they'll love helping you build a secret fort!"
"Is it safe for us to play here?" I didn't see any monsters, but that was one of their special skills. You never saw them until it was too late!
Zia Poppy closed her eyes and took a big breath in through her nose. The air shimmered around her, and I knew she was magicking something up.
"It's all good," she said after a minute. "You don't even have any venomous snakes to worry about, only a garter snake. He made a home under the peony bushes in the south corner, but I'd just leave him alone if I were you. He's been keeping down the slug and bug populations, which is why so few of the plants are chewed up."
"Animals? There are animals in here?!" I screeched and started hopping up and down.
"Oh, yeah! A bunch! Do you want me to tell you who's where, or do you want to discover them by yourself?"
"My besties and I will find them by ourselves," I decided. "We'll just have to be super careful while we're gardening so we don't disturb their homes."
"Such a smart boy. I can already tell you'll be a good steward of the secret garden." She patted my head, and I grinned.
I wished I could purr like Zia Maria's cat Squidge. If I could, I'd make that sound every time someone gave me a good boy head pat. Tanner used to make a rumbly kind of noise almost like a purr, but without him, the best I could do was hum.
We 'splored around the garden until the sun started to go down and Zia Poppy said it was time to go in. As we walked toward the backyard, we talked about adding stepping stones, bee and butterfly waterers, some bird baths, and a bat house. We were debating if a pond would be a good idea when Bubba linked me.
Reau? Come inside, please.
On our way now! Bubba, can Wayne and Arch come for a sleepover tonight? I have so many secrets to show them!
Not tonight, honey. A visitor is coming to meet you in the morning, and he has a special surprise just for you.
A special surprise just for me? My eyes widened. I didn't care about the visitor; I was too curious about what my surprise might be.
Just for you. I'll tell you what. Your besties can come over tomorrow evening if it's okay with Nathan and Evie. Then you can tell them about the visitor and show them the surprise he's bringing you as well as all your secrets.
Okay, Bubba! Thank you!
Are you almost here? Dinner's ready, then it's bath time.
Yep! We're walking through the backyard right now.
Good. Leo's missing his mate.
That made me giggle, and I glanced over at Poppy.
"Zia, can I ask you something? It's about mating, so you don't have to answer if you don't want to."
"Ask away, buddy. I have no shame."
"Are you nervous about mating Zio Leo tonight?"
"Nope." She even popped the p.
"Well, just to let you know, he's nervous. He's scared he'll disappoint you because he's never mated anyone before."
Since Zio Leo told me that himself, I figured he wouldn't mind me giving his mate a heads up.
"Doing anything for the first time can be scary, and Zio Leo's still sick and sad. No one will tell me what happened to him, but I know it was really bad. So will you please be extra nice to him?"
"Aww! I'm so happy to know that Leo has someone like you in his life. Someone who loves him enough to worry about him and wants to help him. But you don't need to worry anymore, sweetie." Her grin stretched so wide, it almost reached her ears. To be honest, it was a little scary, especially when her eyes started to glow with witchlight. "I am going to rock that man's world so hard tonight, we're not going to need a 'Do not disturb' sign. We're going to need an 'Everything's okay. Please don't call the cops' sign."
I had no idea what she was talking about. How could she rock the world? I knew she was an earth witch, but not even she could rock the whole world! And what about all those signs? Where was she going to hang them? And why would anyone call the human cops? Was she planning to break one of their laws? Would it be fun? I'd break a law, too, if it was fun!
But I'm scared of jail, I reminded myself. I don't want to be away from Bubba and Gelo and my zios and zias, not to mention WayWay and ChiChi!
In the end, I shook my head. It didn't matter that her words were confusing. I did what I set out to do and helped my best buddy have a better chance at success.
The rest was up to him.