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The Gift

Edward's Storyline, Chapter 8.3

copyright comidacomida 2019

The Bear let out a sigh and took a seat on the sofa beside Tre. "You obviously care for Edward, and you are willing to help be his Guardian. You will work closely with me to see to his safety?"

The Wolf nodded without the slightest hesitation. "Nothing'll happen to Eddie with me around... I won't let it."

The Ancient One, who had once again taken on the form of a green scaled Western Dragon pounded one clenched talon into the palm of his other. "I look forward to hunting anything that wishes to harm my Seeker."

It was a fine sentiment from my three Spirits, but I really just wanted to be done with all of the negativity and use my day off of work to its best effect. "Okay... so, if that's settled can we all just cool off and take it easy? I'm giving up another one of my days off so I can spend today taking it easy."

Tre nodded, kicking back and patting me on my knee. "Sure, Eddie... no reason you can't relax a little."

Medved grunted. "A little, da... but we must still be aware that she is looking for him and we do not know why."

The Ancient One, still covered in green scales, punched one talon into the palm of another. "She would be stupid to try anything with us around."

The Bear didn't agree. "She is strong, you know... if we can avoid putting Edward in danger it would be wise to seek a way other than conflict."

Rolling his eyes, The Ancient One rose into the air as the body was given over to Red, and he levitated, furry body wriggling like he was suspended in water. "No... Green is correct. She will not try anything unless she can act against him directly. She gets no Spirit Energy off of a conflict with us while you and Treboada--"

The Wolf interrupted "Tre!"

Red continued as if Tre hadn't said anything. "Would gain Spirit Energy for defending your Ward. It would be a disadvantageous position for her."

Sighing, I realized that they weren't going to quit talking about the War Spirit. "So much for cooling off, huh?"

Medved apologized-- at least, that's what it sounded like even though I didn't understand it in Russian. Fortunately he followed up with English. "Izvineniya, Edward... There is nothing wrong with that, but we must also keep you safe."

He had a good point, and I really didn't want to be an ass about it. "Sure... yeah... I get it. Okay-- so how about you guys finish with that while I figure out something to eat, then, once you figure out how we're gonna handle that chick you can give me an overview and I can get on with living my life rather than acting like some princess locked away in a tower for her own safety?"

The Bear frowned; it seemed much less judgmental than Tom's scowl but it was still not something I wanted to see. "Edward... you may not be in danger now, but we should have a plan in case you are endangered in the future."

I ultimately had to admit defeat. "I know... I get it... I get it. I'm used to handling my own problems, and not dealing with them until they come up."

Red nodded his head, the rest of his body unaffected by the motion. "This is true... but that would be unwise considering the strength of--"

Cutting him off, I acknowledged that I was done arguing. "Right. I get it. Back to my point: you guys know Spirits better than I do, and I know 'getting on with my day'... so I'll do that while you guys figure out how to handle Queen Bitch if she shows up again."

The three Spirits glanced to one another; it was ultimately Tre who spoke up. "Eddie... better you don't give her a nick name."

Red elaborated. "Spirits grow in strength when named by Humans... even casually."

I somehow managed to avoid sighing; he was right-- they all were. "Right. Gonna have to get the crash course on Everything-Spirit one of these days so I don't keep fucking up."

Not even pausing, the furry Dragon corrected me. "It will take far more than a single day... even if we were attempting an overview it could easily--"

Fortunately red fur gave way to rainbow feathers as Ch'upikaq interjected, taking control of The Ancient One's form. "What we mean to say, Edward, is that life itself is a learning experience, and there is far more to Spirits than we could ever hope to teach you in a day."

I stood up and moved into the kitchen; Tre slid back against the armrest and kicked his legs up onto the abandoned cushion. "Good thing we're not goin' anywhere... Eddie'll have a chance to learn as much as he wants to about us."

Medved nodded confidently. "We will keep him safe and be sure he has the time he needs to learn it."

The three (or five, I guess you could say) finally took my direction and started discussing things in a more positive light as I prepared some food. It was a lot later than I usually got up so I had to figure out what I wanted to eat; breakfast sounded right since it was my first meal but it was closer to lunch time. In the end I split the difference and fried an egg, putting it on toast with a slice of cheese. I announced my victory in the fight over what to eat. "Bam! Egg sandwich!"

Tre laughed. "Best combo of breakfast and lunch out there."

I motioned at his legs and he moved them aside, sitting back up so I could take a seat. Sure, it's silly I guess if you consider that I coulda plopped right down without a problem but I'd taken to the thought of Tre being more solid than spirit-- he'd certainly felt that way when we'd been together the night before. Maybe that's why I offered him my plate. "Care for a bite?"

His ears raised as he looked at the sandwich. "Isn't that for you, Eddie?"

It took me a second to realize what I was doing and I felt foolish. "Food... right. Sorry... never mind."

Tre quickly sat up straighter and inched closer. "Nah... nah... that's fine! I'd love to share it."

Trying to figure out what would happen exactly, I offered up the plate to the Wolf, who slowly and purposefully reached down and scooped the sandwich up in his paws. I guess I was a little surprised when I saw it respond to his touch, but I was just as focused as how intent his eyes were on what he was doing, and how deliberate he was with moving it to his muzzle. He bit it twice before the sandwich responded and, when it did, he pulled it away from his teeth, setting it back onto the plate with a Wolf-muzzle-sized piece missing.

I watched as he chewed, a wide smile spreading across his thin black lips. Although he'd all but lost his accent, the comment he shot out sounded pure Scottish. "Well tidy scran."

Taking a bite out of my sandwich as well I chewed and swallowed. "That's a good thing, I assume?"

He nodded, but before the conversation went any further, Green interrupted, plopping his ample bulk onto the floor in a way that should have created a loud thump but, considering he was a Spirit it was silent. "Seeker... you should eat, and then I can spend the day with you and teach you how to relax while remaining aware."

Although The Ancient One remained big, scaly, and Green, Ch'upikaq's voice came out of Green's maw. "Edward wishes to spend the day in quiet contemplation, not concerning himself with her... there will be time for that later."

Medved looked up and at The Ancient One. "That is the hope, yes... but there are no guarantees that it will be the case."

It had been going so well it was probably too much to ask for the Spirits to give me a break. Taking another bite of my sandwich I--