Magica heard them before she saw them.
"Those directions that guy gave us were all wrong."
"What was his name?"
"Neo."
"Was it just me or did he seem a little neurotic?"
"With that many kids running around, I bet you would be too."
As she rounded the corner of the house with DL right next to her, they came into view. A group of people stood in the sun-dappled shade by a dusty orange VW bus on the corner, where the dirt road met the tar pavement. She studied them as she approached. Several people were looking at the engine as one person appeared to be tinkering with it. She thought she could see a couple people on the other side of the hood as well.
There was at least one couple amongst them but they were clearly so friendly with one another that it was hard to tell who might be together. As she approached the group, a broad-shouldered man with dark brown hair going white at the temples popped out from under the hood of the van. He put on his aviator style glasses and looked up the sloping yard as Magica approached.
"Good Evening," he called. With that, everyone in the group turned to look at Magica.
"Good Evening," she replied graciously. "Having a bit of trouble?"
"We appear to be dead in the water," the man replied.
"Well, I don't think my truck is up to towing that and you wouldn't get anybody around here to look at it this late on a Saturday night anyway. If you'd like, I can probably put you up for the night, if a couple people don't mind sleeping in the bunk room out in the barn?"
A thin brown-haired woman squealed and clutched the muscular arm of a man with a goatee. "Oooo, let's sleep out there Des."
A tall woman wearing a gothic dress that appeared a little too warm for the 90-degree humid weather they were having pointed at DL and asked, "Is that a real Lynx?"
"Yes, his name is Deathlynx, DL for short. He's very friendly," Magica replied as DL took it upon himself to wind between the legs of all the women in the group, collecting a group of admirers and being patted as he went.
Introductions were made as the group collected their bags from the van. The man who had been looking at the engine was Remec. The woman who had squealed over the bunkroom was Kiten and her male friend was Des. The tall slender woman who had asked about DL was Ungie.
Odd names,
Magica thought.
But then again, what right do I have to criticize?
A girl of medium build with curly hair was introduced as Rosie, a muscular guy with short black hair as Slyc Willie, and an Asian looking girl with thick framed black glasses was Fat Dino.
Hmph,
Magica thought as she shook Fat Dino's hand,
anybody called me fat and I'd make sure they regretted it.
A voluptuous woman with curly red hair was Crimson Maiden, while a short woman with a very fair complexion and short curly red hair was simply called Red. She seemed very friendly though.
Then Rob Graham and Elizabeth West were introduced.
Finally, some real names,
Magica thought. The remaining three were McKenna, who looked fit to be in an Irish Spring Soap advertisement, Dampy and Trom. Magica's hand lingered in his as she looked into Trom's eyes and shivered.
I always did have a thing for dark brown eyes,
she thought. She shook hands with the lovely Asian girl, Dampy.
I hope they're not together.
Magica led them up to a big white farmhouse with dark green trim. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief as they stepped into the cool backroom.
"Thank God you have air conditioning," Rob commented. "We don't often get weather like this up in Canada."
"Oh, it's not air conditioned," Magica said as she ushered everyone into the big ivy decorated farm kitchen. "The attic fan just helps it stay reasonably cool during the day as it pulls air up through the house."
"Well, it's certainly a welcome difference," Ungie replied.
Magica gave everyone a short tour as she showed them the available rooms "There are four bedrooms that can sleep seven people with the roll away bed," she said. "Then someone can take the couch in the living room and two people can have the air mattress in the parlor. I'll let you decide who's sleeping where while I show Des and Kiten out to the bunk room."
Magica took them out the back door and across to the barn, past a wooden door set into a tall stone wall that appeared to wrap around in a huge circle.
"What's in there?" Kiten asked.
Magica stopped and opened the door to let Kiten look in. "I call it my secret garden."
Kiten oohed and ah'd as she looked in at the pathways running between huge rose and lilac bushes, lilies, poppies, iris, and night blooming tobacco. A pool of water stood off to one side, halfway between a pond and a swimming pool. Just large enough to relax in but not muddy brown like your usual pond. It wasn't your typical pool either.
"You're welcome to spend time in the garden while you're here," Magica said as she shut the door then led them on to the stable.
Horses whinnied as Magica rolled back a sliding door and led them in. A woman of medium height and slim as a whisper stepped out from behind a buckskin mare.
"Does it look like she's going to be alright Falling?" Magica asked.
"Oh yes, she just needs a bit of rest. I'll be over to check on her in a day or two. I've got to run. I'll catch up with you next time I'm here." Falling smiled at the small group and strode out the door at the far end.
"That's Jasmine over there, she took a little step in a woodchuck hole yesterday, and that's Niko." Magica pointed out the horses as they walked down the center of the stable to the doors at the other end. She showed Kiten and Des into a sparsely furnished room that was clearly used as an office and outfitted to look like a log cabin. It even smelled of cedar. There was a small bathroom off it with a shower stall.
"It's not big but I think you'll be comfortable. The couch pulls out into a full size bed."
"I'm sure we'll be very comfortable," Des replied as Kiten looked around.
"I'll let you get settled. Just come over to the house as soon as you're ready. I'll be getting a meal ready for everyone."
Magica walked back over to the house, trying to think of what she had on hand that would serve a crowd. She caught DL walking around on the kitchen counter. "Get down off that counter," she hissed. "Lord only knows what you're tracking up there." DL looked at her then turned and showed her his butt before jumping gracefully down. Magica rolled her eyes and turned to the fridge. "Sometimes your a very, very baaaaaad putty-tat."
She stuck her head in the fridge to see what was on hand. She'd just harvested a fair number of small zucchini and red peppers from the garden. She pulled them out along with a few cloves of garlic and some onions then opened the freezer. Yes! She'd just stocked up on whole-wheat four-cheese tortellini. Magica set to work and soon had her Kahlua Chocolate Fudge Cake in the oven, a pot of water bubbling for the tortellini and the vegetables sautéing in a pan, almost ready for the tomato sauce to be added. She pulled out a loaf of multigrain bread, sliced that and was tossing together a salad just as Rob and Elizabeth West came downstairs.
"Mmmm, it smells delicious. Is there anything we can do to help?" Elizabeth asked as she watched Magica drain the pasta.
"You could grab the salad dressings out of the fridge and the parm too. Rob, here's the silverware if you want to set it around," Magica said as she handed him a couple fistfuls of mismatched silverware.
"No problem," he replied.
People quickly joined them as the smell of food wafted upstairs. Rosie went out to tell Des and Kiten that dinner was ready but returned alone with a grin on her face.
"They'll be right over," she said, unable to contain the grin. It seemed to flow around the room and touch the lips of everyone, as if they shared a secret.
"Everybody, please, dig in," Magica said, waving her hands toward the table. People settled in and started passing dishes and chatting. Magica learned a bit more about her guests but she had the feeling they were refraining from saying some things in front of her. A few times people started to say something then looked at her and stopped.
She also caught Trom looking at her a few times but she didn't get the feeling it was because he was hiding something. She watched for something between him and one of the other females but caught nothing. It didn't look like he was with anyone else as a couple. She caught his eye and smiled. He smiled back shyly. Mmm, lovely, Magica heard the whisper of AngelicMinx in her ear. Her defective conscience was flitting around somewhere.
*****
Magica sat in the living room after everyone had gone their separate ways, some to read, some to bed and some just to chat. DL sprawled across her lap as she slowly stroked his fur.
"There's something a little unusual about this group. I get a strong sexual vibe from them. It's not unusual to get that from one or two people in a group, but this is all of them." She paused in her petting of DL and he turned and butted her hand with his head. She resumed her slow stroke down his silky back.
"Maybe it's just the hot muggy night messing with my perceptions. I think I'll go for a swim." DL jumped down and went to sit by the door, slipping through when Magica opened it.
Magica walked out across the driveway to her private garden, stripped down and eased into the pool. She relaxed with her back against the side. The muggy heat was oppressive but she could feel the change in the air, the rustle in the leaves. There was a storm blowing in. A faint rumble of thunder sounded in the far distance. She soaked it in.
Storms are wonderful things, she thought, so raw and powerful, especially up here on the hill where the thunder and lightning always seem so close.
Suddenly, she realized that she wasn't alone anymore. Someone was approaching. Magica smiled as Trom came into view. It was dark so she couldn't see him well but she recognized the silhouette and pictured his features as she'd seen him earlier. He was a cute boy with a shy and sweet nature. She thought of the looks she'd caught from him all through dinner and smiled again.
"Good evening. Restless?" she asked.
"A little bit," he replied. "It's so hot and muggy. I didn't expect that in New York."
