Page 43 of Dance in the Stones

After ending the connection, Damon found Redford leaning against the kitchen doorway, dish towel in hand.

“They’re coming?”

“Both of them – well, Kolton and Simon with Warner in a day or two and JC as soon as I’ve got the rooms ready.”

“You look happy.”

“I am happy.” Damon crossed to his mate, taking the towel and tossing it aside. “You’re about to meet the pack. Well, some of them.”

“Should I be nervous?”

“I don’t think there’s much that scares you.” Damon kissed him. “They’re going to love you, which means they’ll have opinions about everything.”

“Are you sure that’s a good thing?”

“It really is.” Damon meant it. “You wait. You’ll see for yourself.”

/~/~/~/~/

The next morning, Damon stood outside the cottage with Redford, studying the stone walls and existing layout.

“How does this work, exactly?” Redford asked.

“I basically convince reality that the space was always here.” Damon circled the cottage, visualizing the additions. “Two guest rooms with a shared bathroom, accessible through a new hallway off the kitchen.”

“That’s not how architecture works. I thought you would’ve learned that while we were working on the castle.”

“It’s a good thing I’m not an architect, then. I see things differently.” Damon closed his eyes, reaching for his magic.

He pictured the rooms forming - solid stone walls matching the cottage’s exterior, wooden beams supporting new ceilings, along with comfortable beds and furniture that looked like it’d always belonged. The bathroom with a large tub and separate shower, and then a hallway connecting it all seamlessly.

Magic surged through him, reality rippling as space folded and expanded. From the outside, nothing had changed. The cottage looked exactly as it always had, squat and solid against the hillside.

But inside…

“Are you done already?”

“Yep.” Damon opened his eyes, took Redford’s hand, and led him through the front door.

The kitchen was the same, but now a new hallway branched off to the left where only a wall had existed before. Damon guided them down it, past the first guest room with its large bed and tartan blankets, past the second room with similar furnishings, to the bathroom at the end.

“This is impossible,” Redford said, touching the stone wall. “The cottage isn’t big enough for this.”

“It’s not inside the cottage, not really.” Damon leaned against the doorframe. “Think of it as occupying space that exists adjacent to normal reality. Humans looking at the cottage see what they expect - the original building. But these rooms are solid and permanent.”

“It’s a shame we couldn’t do that with the castle, but then the point of those renovations is so that everyone can see it in its refurbished state, so I guess we have to do it the old-fashioned way. But your magic is something else.”

“You’ve got to admit it’s useful.” Damon was pleased. He was usually the one who went visiting his packmates, especially when he was racing cars, so having a few of them come to him was a real treat.

“Very useful.” Redford turned, pulling Damon close. “Now you have room for your pack.”

“I really didn’t want us to be sharing our room with other people,” Damon chuckled. “Especially if one of them is a baby. And it’s our pack, remember. You’re one of us now. Now, how do you feel about going shopping, because we’re going to need food.”

“Or you could zap that too, and we could take a nap?” Redford was really getting into taking time off, and Damon loved it.

/~/~/~/~/

The phone call came that evening while Damon and Redford were reviewing Malcolm’s latest progress reports on the main castle restoration.