Basil watched his mother and sister stare at each other. While his mother looked relatively calm, Birdie looked as though she was ready to flip their kitchen table, spilling food and dirty dishes indiscriminately. He reached across the table to take hold of her hand and watched as she visibly relaxed when he did. His mom nodded her head in thanks.

He could understand why his sister was so angry, but also knew that her anger was supplemented by fear. Birdie hated to be out of the loop on anything. He knew her tolerance for betrayal was low and she was slow to forgive. However, knowing that it was his mother who had kept secrets from them, he hoped that Birdie’s love for their mother superseded her disappointment in this moment. He also hoped that Birdie wouldn’t let her fear get the better of her. Basil squeezed his sister’s hand tighter, tugging it lightly to gain her attention. He hoped that his face didn’t portray the confusion that he felt in his own heart.

“Birdie,” he started, using her special name sign, the word “bird” followed by a two finger tap to the heart.“I know you’re mad, but you know that Mom never does something without a reason. I trust her, even if she didn’t tell us about her brother…brothers. Right now, we must listen to her, then we must help her if we can. Okay?”

Basil used his eyes to plead with his sister, begging her to listen to their mom. He watched anger and acceptance war within Birdie, but eventually acceptance won. She nodded her head and took a deep, calming breath.

“Okay,” she confirmed.

He and his sister turned to their mother still hand in hand, but Basil had to sit on an angle to see both his sister and mom’s hands clearly. He took a deep breath to compose himself and raised his hand to speak first. “Two questions, why do you need to protect us from your brothers? Also, what happened today?”

Mapiya let out a breath. She raised her hand to reply. “My brothers are not fond of humans, especially those who can use magic. They might have been okay with you because you are my children, but I taught you both my magic.”

“Why would teaching us your magic be a problem?” asked Birdie. “Also, why are you saying “humans” like you are not one?”

Basil noted that she still signed much slower than their mom, but she pronounced words so carefully that her lips were easy to read. It also helped that he could almost always anticipate what she was going to say. Her second question caused him to scratch his head.

“My magic, and that of my brothers, is… s-a-c-r-e-d. My brothers, especially the oldest, W-a-k-i-n-y-a-n, would be disgusted,” their mom answered. “The four of us were the only people to have this type of weather magic. That is, until I taught you.”

“I’m sorry mom,” Basil said with a frown, “I still don’t see the problem.”

“The magic I taught you is for Thunderbirds, not humans. I am not human,” she responded.

Basil took a moment to understand one of her signs, the word “thunder” followed directly by the word “bird”.

“Thunderbird?” he asked, mimicking the same signs that she had used. “You mean like the myth?”

“Yes, like the myths,” Mapiya confirmed. “I know you have been raised as Navajo, but Sioux Thunderbird stories are something you both should know.”

Basil sat back in his chair stunned. Thunderbirds. To him they were just stories, part of a history that was slowly being forgotten over time. Now his mom was saying that she was some creature of myth? Not just a human woman with a particularly strong affinity for magic? It was true that compared to the few other gifted people he knew, his mom, sister, and himself had much more power. But still, a Thunderbird?

While Basil stayed lost in his thoughts, Birdie took their mother’s words in stride.

“You’re not human?” She asked.

“Correct.”

“You’re a Thunderbird?”

“Yes.”

“A giant, body-less bird that summons storms and represents change?” Birdie asked incredulously. Her eyes were wide and glassy.

“Yes.”

Birdie paled. She looked like she was going to pass out. Like her brother, she sat back in her chair. Their mom stood up and went into the kitchen leaving them at the table. Basil watched her leave but said nothing, he was still in shock. A few minutes later she came back to the table with two cups of tea in hand. She sat and pushed the cups to towards both of her children.

“Drink,” she commanded.

Basil sipped his tea first and his sister followed his lead. It was his favorite, a homemade blend of mint and herbs straight from Mapiya’s garden. Sadly, the tea did nothing to soothe him. He did notice that it helped his sister though. He looked at his mom over the rim of his mug before setting it down.

“Are we…” he started, but didn’t know how to continue.

“You’re both human. Your father was human,” his mom told him.

“Okay,” he responded, nodding his head. He was slowly coming to terms with what he had been told. Birdie’s eyes were downcast. She was staring into her tea as though it held the answers she needed.

“Listen you two, I am still the mom that you know and love. I would never hurt you. Everything that I do is to keep you safe, okay?”

The twins nodded in tandem. Birdie stood up and hugged their mother before sitting back down.

“The storm today was the result of my oldest brother, Wakinyan, sending me a message,” Their mother said. This time, instead of signing the individual letters of his name, she signed the words “big”, “thunder”, and “bird” together. “I’m going to need you help to send a message back.”

“How?” Birdie wondered aloud, lifting her gaze from the cup.

“Tonight, I will summon lighting. I need you two to keep watch over me. During the summoning I will be helpless. You two will protect me using what I have taught you.”

“Protect you from what?” Basil asked.

“The storm today probably drew everything magical within a hundred miles. The wards on this house are strong, but anything with a good nose could hunt me down during the summoning,” Mapiya responded, picking up the two cups of unfinished tea and walking them to the sink. "Truly magical beings like myself are highly prized."

“What wards?” Birdie scrunched up her nose.

“The flowers all over the yard dear,” Mapiya moved around the kitchen picking up dirty pots and pans to clean. Seeing that their mom was about to do the dishes, the twins picked up the dishes off the table and brought them into the kitchen. Birdie took a seat on one of the stools in front of the kitchen island. Basil joined his mom at the sink so that he could dry dishes. Mapiya started scrubbing away. “The flowers hide my scent, as well as yours, from any unwanted visitors.”

“Oh,” was all Birdie could say. Basil registered that his mom and sister weren’t talking as he looked up from the bowl he was drying. He noticed that there was a napkin on the island that Birdie absentmindedly played with. He watched her focus on the napkin. She called on a small gust of wind which lifted the napkin and gently floated it over to the trashcan. He shook his head. Birdie had always had a finer control of the wind then he did. He wished he could exert such precise control.

When the dishes were done and dried, Basil and Mapiya moved to the island on the opposite side of Birdie. He leaned against it.

“I need you both to clean up and take showers, then dress in loose clothing. While you do that I’ll set up the bond fire. Then I’ll get clean, okay?”

The twins nodded in confirmation.

“Go quick, the sun will set soon. I don’t want to be out too long after night fall.”