Sasha and Mariel spent the rest of the afternoon checking out all the cabins. A fair number of rabbits, squirrels, and other four-legged squatters had moved in while the camp lay vacant, and needed encouragement to move back out. After their first encounter with a porcupine, and the tell-tale stench of an irritated skunk, they took the precaution of stomping around in the pine needles and fallen branches before entering a new cabin, waiting a few minutes to see if the noise warned the squatters to vacate the premises. Even so, they cupped their hands to the window of each cabin to scan the interior before entering. Neither was certain which would be worse: having to de-stink themselves, or explain to Tess why a cabin was uninhabitable.
Tess tracked their progress by the good-natured bickering and laughter, allowing them to make a game of acclimating to their new home. Near dusk, they found a cabin they could agree upon which coincidentally was close to the mess hall. They returned to retrieve their duffels, jackets and blankets, hoping to drag everything down the dusty path so they could move it all in one trip. They dragged a fair amount of leaves and dirt into the cabin in the process. At that point, the cleanest part of the cabin was the path their duffels had cleared. Still, they had to make one more trip for the last of the blankets.
“Sure didn’t seem like we’d brought that much stuff.” Mariel grumbled.
“I bet Tess added a few more things to the pile she thought we’d need.” Or to make sure the house was empty. Sasha shivered as she thought about what the townspeople might do to the house once they realized she was gone. Would they care? Or would they think they’d finally chased her off, and go back to their boring lives until someone else came along for them to abuse? A picture of the house, windows broken, furniture smashed and ripped apart flashed in her brain. Tears welled in her eyes and her stomach roiled.
She picked up a duffel bag. and flung it more violently than necessary onto one of the bunks. Mariel knew her too well to comment, sensing, if not understanding her pain. They worked quietly for a few minutes, stacking everything near the two bunks they’d chosen for their own before heading back to the mess hall to collect the last of their things.
The clearing where they’d landed when they first arrived had begun to fill with people while they cleared cabins. Some looked to be about their own age or younger, while others were clearly adults.
“I sure hope they’re teachers and cooks and stuff and not wardens.” Mariel whispered behind her hand.
“You do realize if they can talk inside our heads, they can hear your whispers too.” Sasha cautioned.
“Well, I hope they at least have the decency to respect a person’s privacy!” Mariel retorted. “This training Tess mentioned had better include how to keep unwanted visitors out of our heads.”
“Speaking of Tess, I haven’t seen or heard from her since she left us hours ago. She didn’t seem too happy about playing errand boy. I wonder if she’s leaving the ‘babysitting’ to someone else so she can use her superior mind for more important things?” Sasha scanned the open area for a grey feline but saw only humans.
Inside the mess hall, some of the adults had moved ice chests and bins full of food into the kitchen area where they prepared a meal from the random assortment of ingredients everyone had grabbed before moving from their homes to the compound. Watching the preparations, Sasha’s mouth dropped open. Her gaze locked on what should have been a chaotic mess of people crashing into each other in their rush to get the meal on. Instead, they resembled a carefully choreographed ballet.
“How do they do that?” Not really expecting an answer, Sasha nearly bumped heads with Mariel as she whirled around to pull her gaze away from the confusing spectacle.
“Do wha…” Mariel followed Sasha’s gaze. “Oh. Telepathy I guess.”
“Nice to see it can actually be used for something besides spying or scaring the crap out of innocent teenagers.” Mariel rolled her eyes and ducked Sasha’s swat while picking up her share of the blankets and heading for the door.
Creating their own space in a cabin meant for ten kept them busy for the next couple of hours. Their earlier wanderings around the compound had yielded a number of storerooms filled with interesting bits of furniture and other items. They used some of the extra blankets to create a haven of privacy, knowing from the constant flow of new arrivals they wouldn’t have the luxury of an entire cabin to themselves. As their space took shape, they made additional forays to the storerooms to retrieve things they had to have once they saw how everything fit together. They used two five-foot tall, woven wood dressers to anchor colorful flags, creating a curtained entrance for their more grown-up version of the chair and blanket tents they'd created as children. They hung more flags from the walls and across the ceiling creating a softness in what they told themselves was just a temporary home. As the only personal item they’d brought with them was the framed picture from Sasha’s room, the illusion was easy to maintain.
The sun had fallen and they’d been working by the dim light of the four bare bulbs suspended from open beams in the ceiling for over an hour, dragging furniture, flags and ladders they’d liberated from the storerooms. They paused, partially from exhaustion, but more to admire the results of their efforts. They stood in the curtain-and-dresser doorway with their arms draped around each other’s shoulders wearing matching smudges on their cheeks. Their efforts had created at least the appearance of privacy though they knew even without telepathy, their future roommates would be able to hear everything but the softest whisper. They did a happy little dance, threw their arms around each other and collapsed onto one of the cots, lying there for several minutes, enjoying their handiwork and admiring the soft, blue glow the flag they’d draped across the ceiling gave to the single light bulb above their heads. The magical feel it gave the room helped improve their mood. For now, it felt a little more like one of their family adventures and less like running for their lives from something they didn’t understand.
"Ya know what, Mariel?" Sasha said, breaking their comfortable silence.
"No, what?" Mariel replied, following a pattern they'd established when they were much younger, and still very literal.
Smiling at the familiarity of Mariel's response, Sasha continued. "No matter what happens, I know as long as you're here with me, everything is going to be OK."
"Yeah. I know what you mean," Mariel nodded. "There's never anything we can't get through together." Pausing for a moment with a faraway look in her eyes, she added "And I just know our parents are OK, and will be here soon! I think we'd both know if something was seriously wrong."
Sasha’s smile broadened as she hugged Mariel even more tightly. She realized for the moment, this knowing coupled with the company of her best friend were all she really needed. It didn't matter how or why she knew or what they’d have to do to ensure Mariel's prophecy. For now, she felt happier than she had in months and wasn’t about to question it.
The two friends had no way of knowing part of this feeling of rightness was a direct result of the efforts of Tess and the unseen Guardians who had been working diligently to seal the energetic field around the compound. They’d ensured what was sealed inside was infused with feelings of calmness and loving warmth. For now, it was best they attributed the feelings to things they knew, rather than to Tess and the world she represented. Taking smaller bites of the strange, new world into which they’d been flung would make it easier to digest.
The girls leapt apart as a loud rumbling sound filled the room. They giggled when they realized the hollow sound came from their bellies, encouraging them to return to the mess hall. The busyness of the day combined with the sheer joy of being together again had temporarily driven thoughts of food from their minds, but their bodies needed fuel and could no longer be ignored. Breakfast was a distant memory and they’d had such a good time exploring they’d forgotten to eat lunch.
Excessive physical labor and the excitement of the day caught up with them, leaving them ravenous. Platters of food had been placed on some of the picnic tables. The enticing smells they emitted were all the invitation two hungry girls needed after a day of shocks, surprises and hard work. They joined a table already occupied by several other young people and wasted no time serving themselves meatloaf, buttery mashed potatoes and fresh green beans from the platters, eating their fill of the hot, delicious food.
Focusing on satisfying their seemingly endless hunger, Mariel and Sasha silently agreed they’d have plenty of time to compare notes with their fellow campers later. Looking around the room, they noticed with surprise, and quite a bit of relief, many of the new arrivals were actually old friends. Recent events and their own gut feelings told them this was going to be an extended camping trip with ample time to learn even more than they might want to about their fellow campers. For now, exhaustion dictated they concentrate on the food and a few unsuccessful attempts to communicate telepathically with each other.
Soon, their stomachs refused another bite. Their eyes drifted shut, and they slumped against each other for support. Forcing their eyes open, they succumbed to years of habit by clearing their dishes and placing them in the bins someone had provided before dragging themselves back to the cabin. Falling into bed fully clothed, they were both asleep before their heads hit the pillows. Singularly focused on sleep, they were oblivious to evidence that others had begun moving into the cabin as well. A backpack on one cot and a pair of slippers tucked under another proved Tess and her team were filling the compound quickly as they hurried to safeguard the Star Guides’ future. Protecting and training their children was no longer optional, and the luxury of a leisurely training process was something they could no longer afford. Recent events meant they didn’t have the luxury of allowing everyone to acclimate themselves. The sooner they were settled, the sooner training could begin in earnest.
Looking in on the girls sleeping peacefully in their tent room, Tess allowed herself a quiet sigh. Their childhood was coming to an abrupt and potentially dangerous end. She wondered briefly if being untrained at this moment might not actually be a blessing in disguise. Only time and the ability and tenacity of both the trainers and trainees would answer that question, and at least a million more. The young people would get their last peaceful night’s sleep for a long time. They were blank slates about to be filled with both the amazing and terrifying which would test the strength of these late-blooming Star Guides.