Chapter Text
The arid wind of the dunes blew past as Martlet, with Clover in hand, approached the gates to the Ketsukane Estate. Even so late into the day, with the swelterstone already dimming, the heat was more than enough to make her sweat.
"Really sorry about this again, buddy. Doggo just assembled the Guard, and it was really short notice, and- " She rambled, looking down to her son. In the months that had passed since the outlook... she didn't like to dwell on it much, but Clover didn't like staying around in the estate, Let alone with Ceroba. But at the least-
"S'alright, Mama!" Clover said, beaming upwards. "S' meanin to tell Kanako bout' the sled!"
"Oh! Right! Mark uh..." She chuckled, rubbing her free wing to the back of her head as she smiled back. "...Which mark were we on again?" He'd made fast friends with Kanako.
"Seven!" He said, after a moment of thought. "Last one me n' Slurpy crashed inta' the tree, n' then the one 'fore that we lost in the snow somewhere, n' 'fore that-"
He was interrupted as his foot impacted the wood of the stairs, and she quickly reached a wing out to prevent him from falling. "Well, I'm sure she'll have some great ideas for eight!" She said, as they both stood before the door. She felt him freeze as she stepped forwards and knocked, saw as he looked down and away when the door opened, felt his grip on her wing tighten as her white boots came into view.
"...Hello, you two." Ceroba said, looking at her through tired eyes.
"Hey Ceroba!" She said nervously.
"Hello Ma'am." She heard Clover say, flat and cordial.
"Again I'm super, super sorry for the short notice!" She continued apologetically. "I know you said you were in the middle of a nap and that the two of them are-"
"Mom?" She heard another voice call out from within. "Who's at the-"
Clover perked up at the sound of her voice, letting go of her wing and running in past Ceroba's legs. "Hi Kanako!"
Martlet sighed, staring over as he ran to meet her. She was more than glad that they got along well, honest! It was great! But the two of them together were always... "-...A handful." She finished.
"You're fine, they're nothing I'm not used to." Ceroba said, watching as they started to talk. "Besides, it's important to let kids play now and then. Let them get themselves in a bit of trouble. It builds character." Ceroba smirked, shaking her head and closing her eyes. "...I remember me and Starlo getting into trouble all the time."
"Starlo? Really?" Martlet said, staring at her for a moment. "I'm...not really surprised, now that I think about it. "
"Well, it's more that I would drag him intro trouble." Ceroba said, chuckling. "I see the same thing in them, sometimes."
"...Although, I don't quite remember being offered Gunpowder."
"Wh-" Martlet began, before Ceroba pointed forwards towards the two. Following her finger, Martlet saw that in their conversation, Clover had pulled a small bag out from his satchel, holding it open and offering its contents to Kanako. Black dust was smudged along his face, the same dust covering covering Kanako's paw.
"Clover J. Cardinal!" She shouted, turning their attention to her. "What are- You spit that- What did we say about the gunpowder?!"
"To uh...not spill it nowhere?" Clover answered, looking back questioningly.
"What else did we say about the gunpowder?" She continued, exasperated.
"To not...bring it inta'-" He began, before he finally connected the dots, quickly tightening the string on the bag.
"RUN!" Kanako shouted, grabbing his hand and pulling him away, the two laughing as they ran to her room.
"I'm so sorry!" Martlet said, beginning to move as if to chase them down. "I'll-"
"I'll handle them." Ceroba said, holding an arm out and blocking her from going any further. "Besides, you said it was an important matter, yes? Something about-"
"-Another potential human sighting." Martlet said, annoyed as she turned back to face her. "And like always, it's just going to be another rumor! And we're going to spend the night sweeping the forest and coming up with nothing!" She neglected to tell Ceroba that she didn't tell Clover. The first time it came up, he didn't take it well at all.
"...Well, then you'd best be going. You said you needed to be there by six over the phone, right?" Ceroba said, looking over to Kanako's room as the laughing began to subside.
"Well, yeah! But we left at four, so-"
"It's 5:40."
Martlet immediately dropped any resistance, her face dropping as she panicked, checking the time herself. "I- Uh- I'll have to take you up on that!" She continued, backpedaling before running back out into the open air.
"So sorry again!" She said, taking off into the air. "ThankyouI'llbebacklatertonight!"
Ceroba watched from the porch as her suilloete became smaller and smaller, flying into the distance.
She sighed a moment later, walking back in and closing the front doors of the estate behind her.
She shook her head, hearing something crash from the floor above.
...Kids.
Kanako grumbled, looking over from her half finished drawing as mom walked back down the stairs from her room, the half full bag of gunpowder in her hand. She waited until she couldn't hear her footsteps anymore, before turning back to Clover.
"She used her mom magic on you, you know! She's not actually gonna put it in the soup!"
Clover looked up at her from his own with a shrug, before returning to the drawing. The poor fool, she sighed. He'd never see that bag again.
"Whatcha drawing?" She asked, scooting over and peering down at his paper.
"Somethin' cool." He answered, scooting his drawing a bit farther away.
It was telling, since all Clover thought was cool was Cowboys and guns. She sighed. He was probably just drawing another cowboy with a gun.
"Well unless that's what your costume is, you should start thinking about other cool things!" She said, holding her own drawing up for inspection as Clover looked on with a confused expression.
"Your Hallow's Eve costume! I'm drawing mine cause Mom said I need a creative vision!" She said, taking the page and returning to work, grabbing her blue pencil. "What are you gonna be?"
"I ain't gonna." She heard him say as his pencil stopped scratching. "I ain't...never..."
"Haven't what?" She asked, lifting her head up and staring in confusion. "I think it's just cooler to make your own costume! You don't need to! You could probably find someone to help!"
"...I ain't ever done it at all." He clarified, looking away.
"What?!" She said in shock. "How do you not like Hallow's Eve? It's cool and you get free candy and-"
"It ain't that I dont like it!" Clover quickly shouted back. "S' just that...I ain't ever got the chance to. Not back up top." He looked away quietly,
"Sis' was always busy round' the time, n' my old folks weren't..." He trailed off, hiding his face in his arms.
She knew the look on his face, even without seeing it. Sad. Shameful, almost. She hated it, she hated seeing him like that.
"Well..." She paused, the gears turning in her head until an idea popped in. "Well, then that settles it!" She said, scooting close and pulling his head out from his arms.
"Settles what?" He asked, dropping his pencil to the ground as he sat back up.
"What we're doing for Hallow's Eve!" She smiled, staring back at him. "We're gonna go on the best, greatest, most awesome Hallow's Eve night ever!"
"You...ain't gotta do nothin." He said, looking away. "...I'd just hold ya' back. But-"
"Hey!" She said, grabbing his head and turning back to face her again. "No buts! No coconuts either! Awesomest ever, so you better have a cool costume idea!"
She relented, dropping her paws and letting him have his head back. She saw the ghost of a smile appear on his face.
"...Alright." He said, looking at his drawing and picking his pencil back up. "...I'll ask mama bout' when she comes back."
An awkward silence hung in the air shortly after, Clover unwilling to continue the line of thought, and her unsure of how to continue.
Kanako panicked, looking around her room. "Do you uh..." She said, before her gaze settled upon the TV. "Do you wanna play Super Smashing Mons-"
"Alright you two, wrap it up! Dinner will be ready soon!" She heard from below, interrupted as hear ears perked up."Oh!" She said, hastily picking herself up off the floor and dragging Clover with her. "Mom said she's making grilled cheese and soup! Cmon!"
The next few hours passed by in a blur. Mom gave Clover a stern look as he found his Gunpowder bag, catching him when he tried to put some into his soup. A passing conversation about the newest cool sled he and Miss Martlet had made, after they broke another one. Again.
She didn't have much to say in turn, just that Mom and her had started working on the Garden again. How boring school was, and how lucky he was that he didn't have to go. They finished dinner, they drew, she kicked his butt in Super Smashing Monsters, it was always fun when he was around! Time, as always, caught up with them though. The night came to an end as the swelterstone dimmed into nothing. She heard a knock on the door as she was helping Clover get his bag of gunpowder back, stacking up on a chair and reaching for it on top of the fridge. Quickly, sneakily as they could, they put it back into his satchel. she ran over with him, seeing Miss Martlet at the door. She sighed.
"I'm so, so sorry!" She heard Miss Martlet quickly say as she came into view. "I know I keep saying it and-"
"Relax, Martlet. They kept each other busy." Mom said in turn, waving her off with a paw as she looked back to them. "I hardly even noticed them. I think they were busy scheming for Hallow's Eve."
"Oh!" Clover said beside her, pulling his drawing out from his pocket. "That's right, mama! Kanako's got big plans! N' I need ta' get a costume!"
He walked over, handing Miss Martlet the paper. "Oooof Course.-" She said, sighing. "I mean- Of Course! We couldn't forget about your first Hallow's Eve, could we? You can tell me more about it on the way back!"
"Alright!" Clover said as he grabbed her outstretched wing, and they began to walk away.
She huffed. She always hated the part when he left, but she understood. He didn't exactly live in the Du-
"Oh, wait! One second mama!" She heard him say, interrupted as he doubled back, wrapping her in a hug. She quickly returned the gesture before he pulled himself away.
...She didn't ever hate that part, though.
"Bye Miss Ketsukane! Bye Kanako!" He yelled as he ran back, catching up with Miss Martlet.
"Don't forget your costume! The Awesomest!" She yelled, waving back and watching as they shrunk past the hill.