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“Shadia!”
Shadia glanced away from Uli, who’d been entertaining her with stories of the old days of the dithyramb, back when it had been a shrine to a fallen god, to see Elodie and Hero coming down into the amphitheater, both looking as if they’d just come from some sort of gala in fancy clothing.
Well, to be fair, Elodie was always fashionable, and that just transferred over to Hero. There were times when Shadia was a little jealous of Elodie’s wardrobe, but it would have hardly been practical with her acrobatic lifestyle…although she did love a pretty dress when the occasion called for something fancier than trousers or tights.
Smiling, she excused herself and headed toward the pair. It had been about a week since she’d seen Hero, and a little longer, Elodie, and she was surprised and happy at them stopping by.
“Hello!” she greeted, returning Elodie’s hug, then moving to hug her little sister. “It’s good to see you both.” She kept her arm around Hero’s shoulders.
Elodie was smiling. She was a beautiful woman, and Shadia could never blame her Dad for falling for her while Mom was gone. Elodie was just a generally nice person and Shadia was totally unable to be upset about gaining a sister out of their relationship. “We wanted to come and see what progress there’s been lately.”
“As you can see,” Shadia gestured with her free hand, “it’s going great.”
And it was. Most of the seats going down from the upper balconies have had the wood replaced and were varnished to a dark shine. The stone steps leading to the base of the stage had been polished, gleaming in the sun that poked through the clouds. There was still the painting to be finished, and the stage still needed work, but Shadia was proud at how well things were proceeding.
Elodie looked around approvingly. “You and Hal should be very proud at the work that’s been done.”
She was very proud, but she had to add to that, to give credit where credit was due. “We’ve had so much help, from the troupe and from others who support us. And Uncle Bolaire…he’s been amazing, helping Dad with paperwork and suggesting contractors who’ve been fantastic.”
“I cannot believe how much has been accomplished.” She was very impressed. “I cannot wait to see what your father has in store for productions here.”
“Neither can I,” Hero added.
Hero was eight years Shadia’s junior, but was whip-smart and extremely talented. She was very pretty as well, with the best features of both Dad and her mother. “You know he’s going to ask you to play here, right?”
Hero grinned. “I’m looking forward to it!”
Elodie laughed. “You’re just like him. And I couldn’t be prouder.” She looked up at Shadia. “Speaking of Hal, is he here?”
“He’s backstage with Uncle Bolaire and Olgud, working on some business stuff.” Another reason she was glad her male parental figures had made up…there wasn’t much of a chance now for Dad to mess up the accounts. Oh, it wasn’t because he was slow when it came to higher maths; he simply had other things to think about, and that meant that sort of thing just wasn’t important to him to know.
Uncle Bolaire was the one who was more organized, with his experience in the museum. Olgud was pretty decent as well, but his knowledge was more along the lines of advertising the troupe and arranging shows. Together, the three of them were a force to be reckoned with when it came to running a theater.
The problem, of course, was that Uncle Bolaire was currently in a fight for his museum. The Lloy Wing had been under Shadia’s mother’s directorship, although she really left all that to Bolaire, trusting him to stay on top of things. Now, however, House Cormoray were sniffing around, and it had been only some smart thinking on her uncle’s part that had managed to get them to back off.
For now.
It meant that he wasn’t spending as much time at the Round as he’d had previously, too busy trying to outflank Lady Amariya Cormoray in her attempts to take control.
This was a good day, and Shadia had been able to tell immediately how relaxed he’d become the moment he’d stepped foot into the Round. She’d had to hug him for that.
“You may want to rescue Dad,” she went on, “because he told Uncle Bolaire what other food item we’re going to be offering at the concession stand.”
Elodie laughed. “Oh dear. And just what is that?”
“Enormous turkey legs. Uncle Bolaire is complaining about how messy that sort of thing will be, and how the guests wouldn’t want to get juices all over their clothes when trying to enjoy a show.”
“He may have a point.”
“Honestly,” Shadia confided, “Dad’s just messing with him, after the fruit leather debacle.”
“That would not surprise me one bit.” Elodie shook her head. “I’ll just head back there now and prevent any bloodshed.” She was very amused by the notion.
“I’m sure Olgud would appreciate the save,” Shadia agreed, laughing. She wasn’t at all worried about any sort of disagreement that would get out of control, not after the last one that had had Dad and Uncle Bolaire estranged for weeks.
Shadia still didn’t know what that had been about. She didn’t really want to know, to be perfectly honest. She was just glad that it had all been worked out.
Elodie swept toward the backstage area, leaving Hero with Shadia. She was giggling at her mother, and Shadia tugged her closer in a one-armed hug. “I take it, things are going pretty well with Dad and Uncle?”
“Not too bad,” Shadia answered. “I’m doing my best.”
Of course, she’d talked to Hero about what she was doing, concerning Dad and Uncle Bolaire. Her sister was all for it, and was willing to help, but she wasn’t around as much as Shadia was. She’d promised Hero that she’d let her know as soon as she had a new plan, and Shadia could see that her younger sister was itching to get involved.
It was so nice to have back-up in her plotting.
“I’m glad to see you,” Shadia said, “because I think I have something you can help with.”
Hero perked up. “Do tell!”
Shadia tugged her toward the stage, where they hopped up and sat on the edge, legs dangling. “They’re back to their coffee and wine get-togethers, but those don’t count as dates.”
Hero nodded. “They totally should, though.”
“I agree, but that would mean they’ve been dating for years and nothing’s happened. No admission of feelings, no kissing, no heartfelt confessions…because I’m pretty sure we’d know about any of those.” Shadia really wanted the kissing. They would be so sweet about it.
“But Uncle admitted his feelings to you.” Her little sister frowned.
“He did, but I doubt he’ll act on them without a push of some sort.” Even with things back to normal, Shadia doubted he’d ever speak up, convinced Dad didn’t really feel the same way when it was fairly obvious he did. “I think he’s afraid it will change things in a way he couldn’t handle.”
Hero sighed. “I suppose he does have a point…but can’t he see that Dad loves him too?”
Shadia wrapped her arm around her sister. “Adults are stupid.”
Conveniently forgetting that she was an adult, too.
“So, you think we should set them up on a real date?”
Shadia knew Hero would get what she was suggesting. “Yes, I think it’s time we do exactly that.” If they won’t do it for themselves, then their daughters would have to step in.
“Do you have some sort of plan?”
“A part of one. I’m hoping you can add to it.” Then she cursed. “They’re in my notebook, and I left that in the backstage area…”
“With the adults?” Hero’s voice was teasing. Shadia knew exactly what she was inferring with that tone, and she supposed she’d let her get away with it…this time.
Nah.
She playfully smacked the back of her younger sister’s head. “Stop it, you.”
Hero was pushed forward, but not hurt. She giggled. “Let’s go.” She jumped off the edge of the stage.
Shadia followed, her fondness for her sister warming her chest.
Dad had left his worktable in the same place Shadia had cornered him weeks ago, only he’d it moved away from the corner so he couldn’t be blocked in…Dad wasn’t an idiot in that respect. However, when Shadia and Hero entered the area, he was blocked in yet again…this time by Bolaire and Olgud, who were flanking him as he sat in this chair, shaking his head fondly. Elodie was standing on the opposite side of the table, arms crossed, looking vastly amused at the “discussion” going on between Uncle Bolaire and Olgud.
Bolaire poked a gloved finger down onto a piece of paper that was in front of Dad. “See? Not only are you going to have to outsource all of that turkey from suppliers who may not be able to keep up with demand, you’ll also have to build a dedicated area to cook anything onsite! The funds simply haven’t been budgeted for that!”
Olgud puffed out his chest a little. “We can also outsource the cooking and have the turkey legs delivered on the day –”
“And run the risk of them being served cold?” Bolaire scoffed. “I’m quite certain our patrons will want cold and sticky turkey legs just as much as they’d want the mess of eating them in any capacity! And don’t forget the extra permits! Getting those would take longer, push any sort of opening shows back farther, and don’t forget the payout we’d need to make to the correct authorities!” He shook his head. “There is just no logical way to put this plan into action.”
Olgud narrowed his eyes at Bolaire, harrumphing in a way that conveyed he was certain Bolaire was blowing things all out of proportion.
Shadia wanted to laugh. It seemed as if Olgud had taken Dad’s suggestion of turkey legs seriously, and was arguing with Uncle Bolaire over it. Olgud was a seasoned businessman, but he also was fiercely loyal to Hal, so he’d defend the decision to the proverbial death…even if it had been something Dad had come up with to tease Uncle Bolaire about.
Uncle Bolaire had some good points, though…points that she and Dad had discussed back when the idea of hot food for their patrons had come up. Dad had been correct about having something savory to balance out the sweet of the fruit leather, yet they hadn’t really come up with anything simple and easy to eat during performances.
“You know,” Elodie spoke up, humor in her tone, “you could always serve coffee, tea, or cocoa instead of food. You’d only need heated tureens for that, and you wouldn’t need to build an entire kitchen.”
All three men looked up at her. Their expressions ranged from surprised, shocked, and amazed.
“That,” Uncle Bolaire exclaimed, “is a brilliant idea! Mistress Elodie, you are a diamond amongst the coal within this mine of male despair.”
Elodie laughed delightedly. “Why, Master Bolaire, that is quite one of the nicest things anyone as ever said to me…especially as I am in the same room as three handsome and intelligent men such as yourselves.”
Shadia giggled as her Dad blushed, Olgud puffed out his chest a little more, and Uncle Bolaire sketched a rather flamboyant bow in Elodie’s direction. Hero snickered as well, and it had all four of them glancing over toward them.
“Hello, darlings,” Bolaire greeted the two young women, “what can we do for you today?”
“I’m here for my notebook,” Shadia answered, grinning. “I accidentally left it in here…there, on the edge of the desk near Olgud’s hand.”
Olgud huffed, reaching down and picking it up. “Here you are,” he rumbled, passing it over.
Shadia accepted it, thanking him. “We’ll leave you all to your important discussions.” She couldn’t keep the chuckle from her voice and using her fingers to air quote the words.
“No making fun of the elders,” Olgud waggled a finger at them.
“No, keep on doing just that,” Bolaire countered. “It keeps us on our toes.”
Dad began to laugh helplessly. “No wonder she loves you more than me.”
Her Uncle put a hand on his chest dramatically. “Of course she does, because while you’re the father, I am the fun uncle.”
That had the entire room laughing.
Shadia felt a warmth spread through her at Bolaire’s acceptance of the term ‘uncle’. He hadn’t really done that before, at least not in the presence of others. He was finally accepting that he was a member of the family, and he made her so incredibly happy. Shadia’s work had borne fruit, and it was wonderful.
“Now that we have an alternate idea to consider,” Dad said, “we should take a look at the finances to see if that fits better.”
Olgun grumbled. “We do still need some sort of savory alternative to what we have now…”
All three started talking over each other, and that was when Shadia decided it was time to leave. Truly, it was hilarious to see them all discussing snacks so vociferously, she almost wanted to stay and watch, but she still needed to plot with Hero.
Elodie was shaking her head fondly as Shadia tugged her sister back toward the stage. “Is it like that all the time?” Hero exclaimed.
“Not really.” Shadia was grinning like a loon. “I swear, Dad came up with that turkey leg thing just to pull Uncle Bolaire’s leg, but Olgud ran with it.”
“They’re never going to get anyone done!”
“Nope, I highly doubt they will.” She loved it, the chaos. It couldn’t have worked out any better even if Dad had really tried to convince everyone that it was a really good idea.
Elodie will most likely step in at some point, once she got enough of her own amusement out of it all. She was very smart when it came to business, and Dad was prone to ask her for advice. After all, she did run her own very successful concern, and to be honest those men really needed her help in their own ways.
Elodie might not be an actual partner in the Hallowed Round, but she definitely wanted it to succeed as much as everyone else in the family.
“Okay,” Shadia sat back down on the stage, Hero beside her. She flipped her notebook open to the page she started marking her ideas for this date in. “I was thinking, we don’t want to set them up at a café or restaurant or something public. I doubt they’d be comfortable with that.” They might go for coffee and such, but that wasn’t something quite as intimate as a date.
“That makes sense,” Hero agreed. “We want them to relax, not worry about people trying to snoop on what they’re up to. And they would, if it was any sort of upscale place where people usually took their dates and if Dad was recognized. Also, let’s face it…Uncle does draw attention to himself without even trying.”
“Exactly. So, then I thought at home; that would be private, but I’m not sure about that either.” She pulled her stylus out of the messy bun she’d stuck it in to, only that made a large section of her hair tumble down around her shoulders…which was the reason she’d used the stylus up there in the first place.
Hero frowned. “I mean, it would be comfortable for them, but a first date needs to be somewhere not…dang it, I don’t want to use the word familiar, but you know what I mean.”
“Yeah, I do.” First dates needed to be special. The two men could meet at the house at any time, but this needed to be memorable.
“What about here?” Hero suggested, her eyes lighting up.
Shadia cocked her head. “At the Round?”
“Why not? It would be private and yet familiar.” She was waving her hands about, her excitement growing. “We can set a table up here on the stage, decorate a little …”
“We could put lanterns in the tree,” Shadia’s mind was throwing ideas up at her. “Make the lighting extra romantic. A nice tablecloth, silverware…”
“Candles,” Hero enthused.
“We can cook the meal at home…” Shadia tapped her teeth with the tip of the stylus. “We’d have to find a way to get it here without it getting cold…”
“You can’t tell me we don’t have people who can help with that. Maybe some of the troupe who live closer would be willing to lend us their kitchen…”
Her sister had a point. Everyone in the troupe adored both her Dad and Uncle Bolaire, because they cared so much about the theater and were doing their best to make the Round a special place to be. They were an extension of Shadia’s own family, in a way. “Niveda might be willing, she only lives a couple of blocks away.” She scribbled down a note to remind herself to ask.
“We would just need a way to get them both here at the same time without making it sounds suspicious,” Hero pointed out.
Shadia slumped a little. That was going to be the hard part of this whole plan…coming up with a way to get Dad and Uncle Bolaire to want to come to the Round at night, because this wasn’t going to work if they somehow made them both question the reason for the visit.
They’d come up with something. She just didn’t know what.
**********
In the end, it was Olgud who helped get Dad and Uncle Bolaire to the Round, under the guise of meeting a potential investor who was only in town for a short time and wanted to get together as soon as possible.
When Shadia had approached the older Orc for any ideas, Olgud had huffed and said he’d take care of it. In fact, he confided that he’d love plotting along with her and Hero, because if there was anything Olgud was, it was a romantic at heart. As an old theater man, it had been baked into his very personality and, as much as he argued with Uncle Bolaire over the most trivial of things, he really did like Shadia’s Uncle, and also wanted to see Hal happy.
“It’s obvious they care for each other,” Olgud had claimed. “And it’s about time they do something about it.” He leaned a little closer. “Just don’t tell that arrogant ass of an uncle of yours that I had anything to do with it.”
Shadia had agreed to that; as had Hero, when she’d gone to thank the theater manager for his help.
Of course, the only thing that might have scuppered their plans was the weather; that was the danger with planning something romantic outside. However, it was a relatively clear night, for which both Shadia and Hero were grateful. The last thing they’d wanted was to be rained out after all their preparations.
Niveda had been pleased to be asked if they could use her kitchen to cook; in fact, she’d helped with it as well, and together the three of them made a meal that had Hero bouncing on her toes and Shadia hugging their friend to within an inch of her life. Niveda had laughed, and then put everything in containers for carrying to the Round.
Hero had been the one to set up the table on the stage, and it was absolutely beautiful. When Uli had discovered what they’d planned – Shadia didn’t know and Uli didn’t say how – he’d helped with the lamps, until the hoary old cedar tree was practically glowing softly with golden light. It was perfect, if Shadia did say so herself.
They barely had time to set everything up before the first carriage arrived. It was Uncle Bolaire, and he looked quite startled by Shadia and Hero meeting him at the top of the enormous amphitheater. He was dressed all in black, the red of his hair bright against the silk of his coat. “Ladies,” he greeted them a little warily, “what’s going on?”
Shadia was beaming, and she knew without looking at her sister that Hero was, as well. “We have a little surprise,” she said. “Hero, will you please escort Uncle Bolaire down to the stage?”
“I’ll be happy to.” Hero stepped forward. She’d dressed nicely for the occasion, in a dress that had to have been one she’d gotten for one of her mother’s many gala appearances. It was a soft red, and fell to her ankles. “If you’d accompany me?” She held out her arm for him to take.
Uncle Bolaire glanced at Shadia, then at Hero. “Of course, my lady.” He took her arm gallantly, and allowed himself to be led down into the Round.
She wriggled a little in a happy dance as she heard his faint gasp when he got a look at what she and Hero had done. It was absolutely gratifying to know their had work was paying off, at least with one of their ‘guests’.
Dad wasn’t much farther behind. He approached on foot, looking quite dapper in his gold and black suit. She stepped toward him once he was close enough, sketching a little curtsy in his direction. Shadia was glad she’d worn gold as well, her own dress brushing the tops of her slippers.
He looked at her curiously. “Something tells me I shouldn’t have believed Olgud when he told me this mysterious benefactor wanted to meet at the Round this late.”
Shadia didn’t agree or disagree; instead, she offered her arm much like Hero had done. “Would you like me to escort you?”
“What am I going to do with you?” he sighed. “You’re such a little instigator.”
But he did take her arm.
His reaction to the sight of the stage was just as good as Uncle Bolaire’s. Dad stopped in his tracks for a moment, just staring. Uncle Bolaire was already on the stage, seated in the chair ready for him, looking up toward them intently. He was a little too far away for Shadia to judge his expression, but she hoped it was a happy one.
Hero was standing just behind him. The pair had decided to see their father figures into their seats, then leave, and that was still the plan.
Shadia tugged Dad forward, walking beside him down the steps and toward their destination. She felt so very proud of what they’d managed to accomplish; now it was up to the two most important men in her life – besides her brother, Alogar – to follow through.
“The two of you planned all this?” he murmured.
“We did. We had help in setting up, but it was Hero and I who plotted this whole thing out.”
Dad was silent the rest of the way to the stage. Shadia hoped he was pleased with everything.
If she’d miscalculated this…
Please, let her not have miscalculated this.
Bolaire stood the moment they set foot on the stage. “It seems our two young ladies have been plotting,” he said lightly, a fond expression on his face.
“Yes, it does.” He sounded equally fond, which was a good sign.
Hero met Shadia’s eyes, and her sister was just as pleased as she was that Uncle Bolaire had just claimed them for himself and for Dad. They truly were a family, and she was so happy that their Uncle finally saw it.
Shadia pulled Dad’s seat out for him. “We hope you enjoy your dinner,” she murmured.
Both men were sitting now. “I believe we will,” Dad replied.
“We’ll leave you two alone,” Hero said. “Don’t worry about cleaning up; that’s been arranged."
It had been all taken care of; Uli had said he’d bring a few of the younger members of the troupe in to handle that, sometime after midnight. That would give Uncle Bolaire and Dad plenty of time to eat and enjoy each other’s company.
“You both thought of everything,” Uncle Bolaire said.
“It seems they have.” Dad was smiling softly.
They both looked very happy. Shadia wanted to dance with joy.
Instead, she and Hero said goodnight, leaving them alone for their date. Although that didn’t stop both of them from stopping at about midway up and out of the amphitheater, and glancing back to see how it was going.
Shadia’s heart swelled as she watched Dad lean a little closer to her Uncle, Bolaire matching his posture. It was so very intimate…oh, they definitely love each other.
She wondered if they would kiss. Oh please…let them finally kiss.
Hero sighed in contentment. Shadia did the same. Then, she tugged her little sister’s hand, and together they left the two to their date.
Sometimes, people just needed to plot to get their loved ones in the right place, at the right time.
And this was both.
Fin