Sequel: Royal Rebels ›
Rebel Children
Nine
Rose really didn’t mind helping Eli tidy up; even if he did keep apologizing for the state of the house.
“Eli,” she said, laughing lightly. “First of all, the house barely needs any real tidying. And I’ll remind you that I’ve spent most nights the past few years sleeping outside on the ground. It’ll be nice to sleep indoors. And you didn’t have to let us stay in the first place, so it’s really the least I can do to be helpful and productive.”
It also gave her something to do, so she didn’t start dwelling on things and work herself into a knot of nerves.
“I didn’t expect you to help me clean the place in exchange for staying here,” Eli said.
“No, you didn’t. But I’m going to help out anyway. Besides, maybe I just like your company.”
She suppressed a smile as she saw his ears go bright red. There was a curtain that had worn a hole, so she was deftly patching it up with her little sewing kit.
“Well, uh.” He cleared his throat. “Well. I’ll just get my room ready for you.”
“You really don’t need to do that,” Rose frowned. “It’s already incredibly kind of you to let us intrude on you like this. There’s room down here for the four of us, you should stay in your own room.”
“No, it wouldn’t be right,” he said quickly.
“Of course it would,” she insisted. “It’s your house and your room.”
“It’ll be too cramped down here for all four of you.”
“Eli, I don’t expect you to give up your room to some stranger who just took over your house.”
“No, you don’t. But I’m going to anyway,” he said, mimicking what she’d just told him about cleaning the house. She laughed.
“Touche,” she said. “But it’s entirely unnecessary and I’m going to keep trying to talk you out of it.”
“You may as well save your energy,” he said, heading up the stairs. Rose smiled and shook her head, finishing up with the curtain. She was sticking her sewing kit into her pack when Eli returned and she continued her cheerful chatter, hoping to make him feel a little more at ease with weird strangers temporarily commandeering his home. She felt bad about it, and she felt bad that Tobias acted so distrustful. She knew it mostly stemmed from his concern for her safety; he wasn’t generally very trusting of anyone aside from his wife and Rose herself. But Eli was helping them when he had no obligation to and she didn’t want him to think they didn’t appreciate it. And she did find his shyness very endearing.
She actually managed to make him laugh with a story about the time Philip disturbed a bee hive and had to go tearing into the lake screaming like a little girl when the swarm attacked him.
“None of us could even help him because we were laughing so hard,” she said, the memory still making her snicker. “Philip wasn’t quite so amused though.”
“No, I don’t imagine he was,” Eli chuckled. Philip himself came through the door then, Tobias and Maria with him. Rose promptly burst out laughing and they looked at her in bewilderment. Then Philip scowled.
“You told him the bee story didn’t you?” he grumbled, which made Rose laugh harder. Even Tobias cracked a smile.
“I hate all of you,” Philip huffed, marching over to his pack. Tobias signaled Rose to come with him and she stepped out onto the porch, smothering her giggles.
“Soon we’ll go to meet these rebels, and try to find you a mage,” Tobias said in a low voice. Then he gave her a stern look. “And listen, young lady, you be careful around this boy.”
Rose rolled her eyes. “Don’t be so hard on him. He’s not a threat to me.”
“Realistically we don’t have any clue who could be a threat to you.”
“Tobias, I love you and you are a wonderful protector. But you need to trust me a little.”
“I do trust you,” Tobias frowned. “But that doesn’t mean I trust some stranger-“
“Well, I trust him.”
Tobias heaved a long-suffering sigh. “Fine. All I ask is that you be careful.”
“Yes I know, I’m always careful.” Rose rolled her eyes again.
“Rose-“
“Good night, Tobias,” Rose interrupted, bouncing up to kiss his cheek before going back inside. Charlie came home not long after that, and Eli muttered something else about his friends being goblins. Rose tried and failed to hide a smile.
“You’re quite certain that I can’t convince you to just let me sleep on the floor downstairs?” she asked Eli as he showed her into his room.
“I am absolutely certain,” he replied and she sighed.
“Fine,” she relented. “But I’m going to help out while I’m here.”
“You don’t need to-“
“I am absolutely certain you can’t convince me otherwise,” she said teasingly.
Once she was alone, she sat and unbraided her hair, thinking about what Tobias had said about meeting the rebels soon. She was nervous about it, but she’d need to pretend she wasn’t when they actually met with them. She didn’t want to bring extra attention to herself by making some paranoid rebel leader think she was a spy. The situation struck her as kind of ironic. Eli had said the rebellion was pretty much underground, but Rose still wanted to see it for herself and get a better idea of what was going on. She hoped it really was small and stayed that way, because Lorena wouldn’t hesitate to savagely crush any sign of uprising.
Rose sighed and curled her knees up to her chest. She supposed she’d know soon enough.
“Eli,” she said, laughing lightly. “First of all, the house barely needs any real tidying. And I’ll remind you that I’ve spent most nights the past few years sleeping outside on the ground. It’ll be nice to sleep indoors. And you didn’t have to let us stay in the first place, so it’s really the least I can do to be helpful and productive.”
It also gave her something to do, so she didn’t start dwelling on things and work herself into a knot of nerves.
“I didn’t expect you to help me clean the place in exchange for staying here,” Eli said.
“No, you didn’t. But I’m going to help out anyway. Besides, maybe I just like your company.”
She suppressed a smile as she saw his ears go bright red. There was a curtain that had worn a hole, so she was deftly patching it up with her little sewing kit.
“Well, uh.” He cleared his throat. “Well. I’ll just get my room ready for you.”
“You really don’t need to do that,” Rose frowned. “It’s already incredibly kind of you to let us intrude on you like this. There’s room down here for the four of us, you should stay in your own room.”
“No, it wouldn’t be right,” he said quickly.
“Of course it would,” she insisted. “It’s your house and your room.”
“It’ll be too cramped down here for all four of you.”
“Eli, I don’t expect you to give up your room to some stranger who just took over your house.”
“No, you don’t. But I’m going to anyway,” he said, mimicking what she’d just told him about cleaning the house. She laughed.
“Touche,” she said. “But it’s entirely unnecessary and I’m going to keep trying to talk you out of it.”
“You may as well save your energy,” he said, heading up the stairs. Rose smiled and shook her head, finishing up with the curtain. She was sticking her sewing kit into her pack when Eli returned and she continued her cheerful chatter, hoping to make him feel a little more at ease with weird strangers temporarily commandeering his home. She felt bad about it, and she felt bad that Tobias acted so distrustful. She knew it mostly stemmed from his concern for her safety; he wasn’t generally very trusting of anyone aside from his wife and Rose herself. But Eli was helping them when he had no obligation to and she didn’t want him to think they didn’t appreciate it. And she did find his shyness very endearing.
She actually managed to make him laugh with a story about the time Philip disturbed a bee hive and had to go tearing into the lake screaming like a little girl when the swarm attacked him.
“None of us could even help him because we were laughing so hard,” she said, the memory still making her snicker. “Philip wasn’t quite so amused though.”
“No, I don’t imagine he was,” Eli chuckled. Philip himself came through the door then, Tobias and Maria with him. Rose promptly burst out laughing and they looked at her in bewilderment. Then Philip scowled.
“You told him the bee story didn’t you?” he grumbled, which made Rose laugh harder. Even Tobias cracked a smile.
“I hate all of you,” Philip huffed, marching over to his pack. Tobias signaled Rose to come with him and she stepped out onto the porch, smothering her giggles.
“Soon we’ll go to meet these rebels, and try to find you a mage,” Tobias said in a low voice. Then he gave her a stern look. “And listen, young lady, you be careful around this boy.”
Rose rolled her eyes. “Don’t be so hard on him. He’s not a threat to me.”
“Realistically we don’t have any clue who could be a threat to you.”
“Tobias, I love you and you are a wonderful protector. But you need to trust me a little.”
“I do trust you,” Tobias frowned. “But that doesn’t mean I trust some stranger-“
“Well, I trust him.”
Tobias heaved a long-suffering sigh. “Fine. All I ask is that you be careful.”
“Yes I know, I’m always careful.” Rose rolled her eyes again.
“Rose-“
“Good night, Tobias,” Rose interrupted, bouncing up to kiss his cheek before going back inside. Charlie came home not long after that, and Eli muttered something else about his friends being goblins. Rose tried and failed to hide a smile.
“You’re quite certain that I can’t convince you to just let me sleep on the floor downstairs?” she asked Eli as he showed her into his room.
“I am absolutely certain,” he replied and she sighed.
“Fine,” she relented. “But I’m going to help out while I’m here.”
“You don’t need to-“
“I am absolutely certain you can’t convince me otherwise,” she said teasingly.
Once she was alone, she sat and unbraided her hair, thinking about what Tobias had said about meeting the rebels soon. She was nervous about it, but she’d need to pretend she wasn’t when they actually met with them. She didn’t want to bring extra attention to herself by making some paranoid rebel leader think she was a spy. The situation struck her as kind of ironic. Eli had said the rebellion was pretty much underground, but Rose still wanted to see it for herself and get a better idea of what was going on. She hoped it really was small and stayed that way, because Lorena wouldn’t hesitate to savagely crush any sign of uprising.
Rose sighed and curled her knees up to her chest. She supposed she’d know soon enough.