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TENET: 74
Get to know your charges. Each one has something to teach you, and something unique they need from you.
- Dr. H. VynFleet, 132 Tenets of Childcare & Maintenance
APRIL
An hour later, April was legitimately exhausted.
She had put Bo to bed with a story about airships that Minerva had helped her read aloud.
Now she was heading back out to the living room. To her delight, Minerva was following her instead of closing herself up in her room.
“I was going to make some hot chocolate,” April said as casually as she could. “Want some?”
“Yeah,” Minerva said, sitting on one of the stools to watch.
“That was fun tonight,” April said. “You’re really good at cheering up your sister.”
Minerva’s face deepened to a richer green with pleasure.
“I had fun too,” she confessed.
“Me too,” April said. “Obviously. It’s nice to let your hair down, right?”
Minerva laughed.
“So, what else makes you feel like that?” April asked her, starting the heat going under the milk.
“I like reading,” Minerva said.
“Yeah,” April agreed. “That’s more of a peaceful feeling though, right? Is there anything else that makes your heart pound? Like a sport or a musical instrument?”
“There’s one thing,” Minerva said. “I think.”
“What is it?” April asked.
Minerva looked torn for a second.
April turned and grabbed mugs from the shelf, giving the girl space to decide if she felt at home enough to share.
Minerva slipped off her stool and disappeared down the hall.
April finished making the hot chocolates, reminding herself that Minerva might have changed her mind and that was okay. They were just getting to know each other, and she had already let April in a lot tonight.
But as soon as she set the steaming cups of chocolate on the island, Minerva padded back, with something in her hands.
“I, um, I think this might be my thing,” Minerva said shyly, placing a set of slightly crumpled brochures on the island.
April bent to look at them and barely held in a gasp. This wasn’t a sport or a hobby, or even a wish list item like a hoverboard or a motocraft.
These were brochures for the cadet program in the Ulfgard Air Brigade.
April forced herself to remain calm and not make a big deal out of this in a way that might send the teen back into her shell. Minerva had trusted her, not just with a wish but with a dream. And the way the paper was worn at the creases told April that it wasn’t a new dream.
“Wow,” she said carefully. “This is amazing, Minerva.”
She could feel the girl studying her face, looking for a reaction. She probably hadn’t told many people yet. Maybe she hadn’t told anyone else.
