The teens sat at the table for the next few hours, only getting up to grab some watermelon juice and pretzels to snack on. They were in much the same positions by the time Jabali arrived a bit after 5.

“Yo, kids!” he called as he walked through the doorway and spotted them. “How ya doing?”

Jabali looked worn out. His dark skin was covered in more sweat than Sarala’s had been, and the ends of his long blue locks were tangled in his backpack; he had gotten the new hairstyle before the kids had arrived, as his hair had been bushy before. He peered at them through droopy eyes, as if ready to fall asleep.

“Hi, Jabali!” Ren greeted, glancing up from the mirror.

“Have y’all been sitting there the whole day?” Jabali asked, signaling to them with his large hands.

“No,” Ren replied earnestly, picking up the mirror to make more room at the kitchen table. “Only since this afternoon.”

“Mhmm, sure,” Jabali said, setting his backpack on the table, where he then proceeded to untangle his hair from the straps. “Wanna go to town for dinner tonight? We ain’t got much to eat, huh?”

“I’d rather stay here,” Sarala grunted, keeping her eyes glued to the mirror.

Ren sighed inwardly. Sarala hadn’t gone to the city all summer. The twins had gone with Jabali to get dinner a few times, but felt uneasy leaving Sarala alone and therefore rarely went. They also felt guilty for making Jabali drive his boat again, especially in the pressing heat.

“Well, you two?” Jabali asked the twins.

Ren exchanged a glance with Zyn, knowing that they were thinking the same thing. She replied, “Maybe tomorrow, Jabali. It’s too hot to go anywhere.”

Jabali shrugged, not looking bothered. “Okay, but don’t y’all complain ’bout having nothing to eat!”

Ren turned the mirror off, and it was soon reflecting the ceiling. She then hurried to the kitchen, searching the fridge for food they could make. Zyn joined her, checking the various cabinets. Sarala grabbed clean plates and set the tiny table. Jabali, meanwhile, sunk onto one of the bamboo chairs, letting out a deep sigh of exhaustion.

After a bit of looking, the twins agreed on making a tofu scramble, using the random ingredients they came across: tofu, tomatoes, an onion, several garlic cloves, a few handfuls of spinach, a large prickle-pepper, and some spices. While Zyn sliced the tomatoes on one of the counters, Ren grabbed the onion and garlic cloves. She set them on another counter with a cutting board, then pulled out her wand.

“Make an air bubble around my head, so cutting these onions does not make me cry,” she ordered her magic.

A bubble formed over her head, and she quickly set to chopping. The air cavity saved her eyes and nose from the fumes, though she could hear Zyn give a sniffle on the other side of the room.

Ren was soon adding the chopped onion and garlic to the fire-enchanted pan, then Zyn put in the tofu and tomatoes. Sarala cut up some leftover fruit for a fruit salad, using the table as no more counter space remained.

Within minutes, the tofu scramble was done. A spicy aroma filled the air, causing Ren’s mouth to water. The fruit looked as good as the scramble too—she could see finely-sliced pieces of strawberries, watermelon, rettishes, and scorlengs. 

“Mmm, this looks tasty!” Jabali said, straightening as the food was placed on the table in front of him, his mismatched blue eyes lighting up.

Ren piled some tofu scramble on everyone’s plates, while Sarala passed out the fruit. They left the big dishes on the counter, as the table was crammed with all of their plates.

Ren ate the tofu slowly, the spicy flavor setting her mouth on fire so often that she needed to drink plenty of the watermelon juice in between. She definitely had to remember to put less spice in next time, or leave out the prickle-pepper entirely. She finally turned to the fruit, which helped her mouth cool down.

“I was thinking of making tomorrow a fun day in town,” Jabali said. “Y’all interested?”

Ren glanced at Zyn and Sarala. Sarala frowned and got to her feet, finishing her meal. She left the dish on the table and went down the hall, saying something about needing to use the bathroom. Zyn was chewing, so Ren replied.

“That sounds nice,” she said. “I don’t know if Sarala would like to go though.”

“It’ll be fun!” Jabali urged. 

“Sarala has a different definition of that word,” Ren replied, trying to keep her face straight and failing.

Jabali shrugged. “Well, if she ain’t wanna come, we won’t make her. But the rest of us can go have a good time, eh?”

Zyn nodded, swallowing. “What do you have in mind?”

“You’re gonna have t’wait and see!” Jabali said, winking.

Ren rolled her eyes and popped another tart rettish piece in her mouth. She imagined the four of them having fun in the city, getting out of the boring house. Her lips soon formed a frown though.

“What’s wrong?” Jabali asked, catching her look.

“I wish Dad was here,” Ren muttered.

“Yeah, it’d be like the good ol’ days,” Jabali chuckled, leaning back in his chair and linking his arms behind his head.

Ren glanced at him, her heart picking up speed. Was Jabali going to reveal something about his shared past with Ak-tu? About Chaocat? She and Zyn had pestered him all summer for more information, but he often pretended not to hear them. 

“What do you mean?” she asked, trying to keep her voice innocent instead of inquisitive.

“Oh—y’know…me, him, adventuring all over the world, in boat or ship or even on a slab o’ wood,” Jabali said indifferently.

Ren leaned forward eagerly. “Was I there too?” she queried, all thoughts of innocence forgotten. “As a baby?”

Jabali frowned, his eyes getting a guarded look to them. He lowered his arms and said simply, “No, you didn’t come ’til later. We’d mostly gone separate ways at tha’ point.”

“But why?” Ren asked, fidgeting slightly in excitement.

Jabali shrugged. “We’d been growing distant for a while. Eventually, I left to start up some businesses. That’s when your dad called me up, told me ’bout needing some help off an island, and I went to rescue him. He had you in his arms, said he’d explain it all later. Barely had anything t’say.”

Ren’s shoulders slumped in disappointment. So Jabali doesn’t know anything, after all… He doesn’t know I was a gift from the spirits… He doesn’t know anything about where I truly came from…or if I am a spirit…

She had been pondering this very much since the last day of school. Ak-tu had pulled the twins aside to discuss the matter of Chaocat further with them, then told Ren about how she had mysteriously appeared after his fight with Chaocat years before. Ak-tu was convinced that Ren was a gift from the spirits, but not a spirit herself. 

Ren didn’t know if that was true or not, and found her thoughts returning to the matter again and again over the summer. After all, there wasn’t much else to do. She wished she could access the school’s Library, to research more into spirit-gifted babies! She tried to look more into it through the air-net, but there was barely any information of spirits. 

“Anyway,” Jabali continued, Ren perking up, “after I gave you two a ride back to the mainland, I stayed with your dad awhile. Tha’ creepy cat wasn’t hanging ’round, and Ak-tu said they got into a fight. We traveled a lot after, taking care of ya together. Then he went and got Zyn there, not sure why—one baby was already a handful.”

Ren snorted in amusement, trying to imagine the two men attempting to take care of a baby as they traveled across the land and through the sky. 

“Well, I’m glad Dad decided to get me,” Zyn scoffed. “Can you imagine me not being here?”

“Not at all,” Ren said honestly. “I don’t want to think of that!”

“Then, a bit later, I had enough o’ changing diapers and decided to get my life together,” Jabali chuckled. “I didn’t wanna leave your dad with nothing, though, so I gave ’im the ship and bought a house when he finally decided to settle down.”

Ren frowned. “A house? That little house?”

Jabali nodded.

“I thought that was…well, Dad’s house,” Ren mumbled.

“Well, he ain’t exactly rich,” Jabali replied bluntly. “I even funded that school of his.”

“Why?”

“He’s my best friend,” Jabali said simply. “Besides, I have too much money I don’t need.”

“You don’t seem rich,” Zyn commented bluntly, glancing around at the torches lining the wall in place of metal ceiling lights. 

“Zyn!” Ren hissed.

“What?”

But Jabali didn’t seem offended; he laughed lightly, though the smile didn’t reach his eyes. “Yeah, I ain’t one to live in a fancy mansion or buy expensive clothes. What’s the point of livin’ in some big house if you’re all alone, eh? I’d rather put my wealth to something that needs it more than I do—or someone.”

He got to his feet abruptly and exclaimed, “Well, tha’ sure was a tasty dinner, eh? Y’all mind cleaning up? I’m gonna shower and head for bed, so I’m all refreshed for tomorrow’s fun!”

Jabali quickly headed down the hall before either twin could reply. Ren and Zyn exchanged a baffled glance.

“Well, I guess he sorta told us more than before?” Zyn mumbled.

“Yeah, but—”

A loud shrieking noise sounded from the counter. Ren jumped in her seat, then realized the family mirror was receiving a call. 

“You really need to change the sound that thing makes!” Sarala hissed, entering the room again. 

“Sorry!” Ren snorted. “Zyn was the one who chose it.”

Zyn was laughing too hard to respond for several seconds, then choked out, “I was the one who made it!”

Sarala rolled her eyes in annoyance.