Welcome to Gaia! ::

"This way," Adonijah nodded towards the two-storey house in the distance. "Uncle Adonai and Aunt Shael will be happy to see you."

And Rhea, of course.

"Have you had lunch?" he asked, remembering suddenly what time of day it was.

Adonijah nodded without saying anything, and it was in silence that he led Cindy the rest of the way to Adonai and Shael's house. Once they arrived, he knocked on the door solidly three times, then opened it and stepped inside.

"Hello?" he called out, shaking the snow off his clothes. He motioned for Cindy to follow him inside.

There was the pitter-patter of excited footsteps, and suddenly Rhea appeared in the room, her eyes bright with excitement. "You're here you're here!" she squealed, tackling Cindy around the waist and hugging her tightly, for all intents and purposes ignoring her timid cousin. "And it didn't even take you long to come!"

Rhea was amazed. "It must be a very big bag!" she exclaimed, looking around. "But you only have one bag! Did you have to leave it somewhere?"

That was a good question, Adonijah mused silently to himself, edging towards the door and trying to remain undetected She had only had one bag with her when she had come through, that he had seen ...

"Cindy?" Adonai's voice came from down the hall. "Is that you?"

Suddenly he appeared, wearing the same black that he usually did, his expression warm and happy. "Welcome back," he said softly. "We've missed you here."

Adonai smiled at Cindy and put one hand on Rhea's head. "And you haven't changed a bit," he murmured softly. "It's been ... twenty years, and you haven't changed even a bit ..."

He grinned down at Rhea and winked. "Did you remember to introduce yourself?"

Rhea giggled, covering her mouth with both hands.

"Oops," she grinned back. "I forgot." She turned back to Cindy. "Can I see your bag?" she asked eagerly, completely forgetting once more about introducing herself. "I never saw a magic bag before! Do you think I might be able to do that someday?"

"I would like that!" Rhea beamed brightly. "I liked watching Kara do magic, she taught me lots of things! Like this!"

She held out her hand, and magic began to glow blue and pool in her palm. A short moment later, the pool of glowing magic began to take shape, finally becoming the winged horse that Rhea was so fond of. It took flight and began to dance through the air, going around Cindy, and around Rhea, and then around the entire room.

Rhea giggled and nodded. "Yup, we did lots and lots together," she affirmed as the horse landed back in her hands. "But that's my favourite part, the flying horse! It's so much fun! Can you do that, too? Make something out of your own magic?"

She looked up at Cindy eyes wide, but Adonai stepped in to stop them before they got too carried away.

"You can do that later," he chided Rhea gently. "Go back to the table."

He turned to Cindy. "I do apologize," he smiled softly. "We were in the middle of our lunch ... would you care to join us? There is plenty to eat."

Adonai chuckled and motioned towards the hallway. "Then after lunch, perhaps it would be best if we showed you to your room and let you get settled in, and then sleep," he suggested. "We don't want to make this a longer day for you than it needs to be, and Rhea still has her lessons this afternoon, so she won't be any trouble."

"I'm never trouble," Rhea pouted, sticking her tongue out at her father. Then she skipped ahead towards the dining room, singing, "Mama! Cindy's here!"

Adonai smiled and nodded at Cindy. "As you like," he murmured. "I'm sure you would also like to see the house, get to know your way around ..."

Just then they entered the dining room. Rhea was sitting at the table once more, munching away at her lunch, and Shael was just coming back from the kitchen with an extra place setting, which she had gotten for Cindy. She was using her crutch, and had the dishes balanced in her other hand.

"Welcome, Cindy," she said warmly, her hazel eyes shining brightly. "We've been looking forward to having you stay with us. Why don't you take your cloak off and set your bag aside for now, just relax for a while. You must be cold after that walk through all that snow ..."