#leonor

Leonor was back in her own bed by the time Salvador woke up, and came down to the kitchen when she got back out of it. She didn’t look any more or less disgruntled than any other morning. He had no idea what time it had been when he woke up or how long she had been up with him. 

Clarissa seemed a bit tense, which was fair. It was just the evening before that the two of them had been in a room together and Leonor had thrown spaghetti at him. Her concern gave way to confusion as the two young ones now seemed perfectly content to be near each other. 

Leonor let out a small, tragic gasp, and then lay her forehead and her mug back on the counter with a thunk.

“You good?” Salvador asked.

She looked back at him with a dramatic pout on her face. Salvador laughed and got up from where he was polishing silverware. “I’ve got it. I was going to brew more anyway.”

She lifted her hands in a silent cheer before stepping aside so he could start making fresh coffee. She took her mug and sat near where Salvador was working, resting both her elbows on the table. 

“If you were going to hang up a punching bag, where would you put it?” He asked.

“Hmm.” She tapped her fingertips on the table while he got the old coffee grounds out of the pot and into the compost. “It’s for you?”

“And you, if you want.” 

“To teach me how to punch?”

“That’s what your dad wants, yeah. I’m not sure how far we’ll get, no offense. You probably can’t even do a push up so I don’t think you’ll be able to actually hit someone hard enough to do anything. We can do self-defense, I guess.” 

“How would I learn?”

“To do a push-up? I don’t know, planks I guess? Like this.” He gave a brief demonstration, bracing on his elbows. 

“I can do that.” 

“Oh yeah? Show me.” 

He expected her to refuse but she got on the floor and did it. Her form was terrible and she stopped after about three seconds, sitting up and looking at him like see? I did it. 

“You did it badly and for like two seconds. You’re supposed to hold it for like… a while.” 

She did it again and he crouched next to her, telling her to move her hands and straighten her back. She started shaking just as soon as he expected but seemed determined to keep on. 

“Try straightening your arms, it’ll use different muscles… Yeah, like that.”

She stayed up a bit longer before falling back to the floor, defeated. 

“That was good.” He encouraged her. 

“It was not.” 

He laughed. “It wasn’t great, but you get the idea.”

She got back into her seat and he explained the general idea of doing sets of an exercise. Clarissa decided it was safe to leave them for a moment. 

“Can you teach me to climb?”

“Yeah, if you get stronger. You need to be able to move your own bodyweight around.” 

“And get down?”

“Yeah, and get down… That we can actually do whenever. Falling is not a strength based skill… I think teaching you how to not die when falling off the roof would actually be a really good idea, we’ll consider that a priority.” 

“How long can you do it?”

“Plank? I don’t know. Long enough I get bored before I get tired.” 

She nodded, taking that down as a personal goal. She got bored pretty easily so she liked her odds.

She never answered his question about where to put the bag, he’d have to poke around a bit to find a spot. That would be a good excuse for looking for any sign of the mysterious sister, although the idea was starting to sound a bit ridiculous as the house became more familiar. 

They sat in comfortable silence while the coffee finished brewing. Salvador could see she was thinking about something and had the misplaced idea that she would tell him what it was. He made her cup of coffee the same way he had before, one sugar and enough milk to make it lighter than his arm but not as light as hers. 

“There you go. One coffee for the coffee orphan.”

“Am I adoptable yet?”

“Hmm, maybe. I think we should do something about your bangs, that would help.”

She made a face at him and left with her coffee, leaving him to drink his coffee orphan coffee alone. 

Salvador had expected them to get her a new coat by now. It had only been a couple of days, but how long could it take to buy a coat? Being coatless didn’t stop her from going out to do whatever it was she did, but the one time Salvador saw her coming back in she was shivering head to toe. 

“Woah, are you okay?”

“Y-yeah, I’m f-fine.”

“You don’t look fine.” 

“That’s j-just how I l-look.” 

“I know you always look half dead but the shaking seems a bit much.” 

She was struggling with her boot laces because her fingers were clumsy from the cold. 

“Do you need help with that?”

“No.” 

She wore a thick sweater along with a hat and mittens, but none of that was enough against the bite of the wind. That and she was so thin, she probably made about as much body heat as a squirrel. 

Maybe Rabbit Crick didn’t have a coat shop, it was pretty small. He wanted to go to Brachtree anyway, they probably had coats. He left Leonor to her laces and went to find her mother. 

“Excuse me, lady Cresthall?”

“Yes, dear?” She looked up from her book. She was in a window seat in the library. 

“I’m going to Brachtree tomorrow, I was wondering if you wanted to give me some money to get a new coat for Leonor?”

“Hmm? A coat?”

“Right, a winter coat… for, like, warmth.”

“No, that’s alright.”

“Okay,” he hesitated. This really wasn’t his problem. If the lady said it was fine, it was fine. Leonor’s body temperature wasn’t Salvador’s responsibility, but he was curious. “So… did you already order a new coat for her or something?”

“Mhm.”

“When will it get here? Because she’s still going outside everyday.”

“She is? That’s good, the outdoors brace the spirit.”

“For sure, but the outdoors are also kind of cold right now so I’m just wondering when her coat will be here.”

“Ms. Grady recommended I give it to her as a yuletide gift.” 

“An early gift? Yule is still a week away.” 

“She said it will help Leonor to understand.”

“Understand what? How to get hypothermia?”

“Oh, I’m sure it isn’t that cold. If she keeps going out she must be fine. Personally I strongly prefer the indoors this time of year, but to each their own.” 

“Right, yeah… So, I actually don’t have a coat either. I think Roger is paying me, could I have some of that money for a coat?”

“I don’t see why not.” 

“Okay.”

She was reading her book again.

“So… I’ll get that from you later?”

“What? Oh, yes, of course.” 

“Okay… cool.”

He had to ask about the money two more times and it ended up coming from Madame Spotten, who happened to be present the last time. Crabby was going to Brachtree and Salvador was invited to ride with him on the way there, so he didn’t have to walk. He went to the apartment first, thinking Dania might like to go shopping with him. She was eight months pregnant and it was freezing outside, so she abstained. 

“Do you know where I should go? I haven’t really bought clothes before.” A perk of being small for his age was a dependable trickle of hand-me-downs from Akim and some of the other boys.  

“How much money did they give you?”

“Um…” He pulled the money from his pocket. “A ten goulding note and some change.” 

“Ten?”

“Yep, I guess that’s about a month's wages.”

Dania looked shocked. “With room and board?”

“I told you, they’re weird and loaded.” 

“And you’re still going to leave in the Spring?”

Salvador shrugged. He hadn’t thought about it much beyond his sense of pride and independence. Dania made a good point. 

She gave him directions to a shop that sold repaired and lightly used garments, thinking he might as well get himself something sturdy if he could afford it. It was a bit of a walk, further North in the town, and he was looking forward to being warmer on the walk back. 

He ended up spending almost all of the money. There were cheaper options but he found an appropriately warm coat and a set of knitwear that matched it. They were all a dark burgundy, and he thought he looked rather dapper in his matching scarf, hat, and gloves. The level of sophistication was somewhat muted by the practical necessity of getting a coat that was large on him, but he still smiled whenever he saw his reflection. 

“Oh, shit. You’re going to get us jumped.”

“Akim! Salvador, you look very nice.”

“I didn’t say he didn’t look nice, I said he looks like he has money in his pockets.” 

“Well, they’d be disappointed. I already spent most my money on buying the pockets… What? It’s an investment.”

“All I’m saying is dinner is on you next time you come by.” Akim was just teasing, but Dania smacked his arm. 

“Leave him alone, he’s allowed to have nice things.” 

“I didn’t say he wasn’t!” 

The three of them had dinner together before the boys went out for the night. Salvador had to apologize for somewhat lackluster findings on the fourth Cresthall. He did tell them about Leonor falling off the roof. 

“And they won’t buy her a new coat?”

“That’s what I’m saying! This Grady lady is a bitch, Leonor’s going to get sick or something… What?”

Dania was smiling and trying to hide it. “Nothing, you’re absolutely right.” 

“She keeps going outside! She’s built like a pencil and has no self-preservation instincts. She’s going to get a fever and fucking die just because some lady thinks she needs to learn a lesson. Don’t wear a coat is a stupid lesson.” 

“Aw, you’re worried about your little princess.” Akim lacked Dania’s tact. 

“What? No, I’m not. It’s just weird, is all.”

“I bet. Is she cute?”

“Not really. She kind of looks like an old man, really skinny with a big nose.” 

“I think it’s sweet that you worry about her.” Dania smiled. 

Salvador rolled his eyes and ate more of his potato. 

Akim was taking Salvador to a local fighting competition. He kept saying competitive sparring but Salvador didn’t see why there would be a difference. Apparently anyone could enter, either with someone else or as someone looking for a partner. It was free, but people liked betting on the fights. 

They said goodnight to Dania and started to leave, but Akim lost his momentum when Dania kissed him. He kissed her again and she laughed at him. “You’re leaving! We have company!” She tried to escape his third kiss but he was determined.

“Mm, but you didn’t kiss me when I got home.” He mumbled into her skin with his nose pressed into her cheek.

“He was here then, too!”

Akim used both hands to capture her face and kissed her properly, with tongue and everything. She relaxed in his hands and hummed contentedly when he gave her a final peck. 

“You’re a slut and a floozy.” 

“Which you quite enjoy.” 

“Oh for heaven’s sake. Go! Shoo! Out!” She pushed him out the door, both of them laughing. 

Salvador pushed his friend’s shoulder teasingly as they made their way to the stairs. “You’re all in love and shit.”

“Yeah, and you were watching, you little pervert.” 

“Just make sure you get a bigger apartment before you get her pregnant again.” 

Akim gave him a shove by the top of his head, an advantage of his height. “I will, don’t worry… She’s kind of hot pregnant, right”

“Oh my fucking stars. Shut up, you absolute freak… So are you going to marry her or what?”

“Of course I’m going to fucking marry her, idiot.” 

Dania was pregnant. Salvador didn’t know for sure, but he knew something had changed between her and Akim. Her stomach had been upset almost every day for a month and she was moodier than usual. The summer heat wasn’t making things any easier for her, even as far North as they were. He felt on edge in the Northern duchies, he didn’t like being near where he was born. The landscape shifted around him as he walked along a river, a river he had walked by as a young child mixed with all the other rivers he had seen since. The water was low, making the riverbank easy to walk along. He was following two pairs of footprints in the mud. The large pair was fresher than the smaller. 

He was trapped in his body, which broke into a run. He couldn’t hear anything but he remembered the sound. He knew what was happening. He knew Benny. His throat ached from his own shout but he couldn’t make a sound. Everything was quiet except for the memories of sound. 

Benny let go of Dania and faced Salvador, smiling and raising his hands in mock surrender. He laughed at Salvador’s misplaced, foolish anger. 

You’re growing up, Salvador, it’s okay. Just relax, it’s okay. We’re friends, aren’t we? Sometimes friends have to keep secrets. 

Benny was so sure he was Salvador’s friend. He had made sure he was safe and warm every winter since Karloff left. He had pierced Salvador’s ears and taught him how to gut and cook a fish. Benny was the only reason Salvador knew the alphabet, Benny was the only reason Salvador was able to spar with the others, Benny was the only one who wanted Salvador. Other people liked Salvador or tolerated Salvador, but that wasn’t desire. It wasn’t love. 

Benny was so sure that Salvador would never truly turn on him, that Salvador would come crawling back to him as soon as the cold and hunger returned. Benny had another thing coming. 

Salvador tackled Benny to the ground. Benny would have had him on his back in an instant if he thought Salvador actually had the stomach to hit him properly. He spent two seconds thinking Salvador was just throwing a tantrum, a child driven about by his emotions. That was two seconds too long for Benny. Salvador was born with his hands fisted and he knew exactly what he was doing with them. 

Benny shouted, tried to get Salvador off of him, but he had taught him too well. Salvador was too fast and too angry for Benny to recover from the first hit. He couldn’t get up because Salvador’s fists didn’t leave room for anything but going down. The hits were rhythmic and Salvador was sobbing. Benny stopped moving, but Salvador couldn’t. He could feel his hands taking damage but it didn’t hurt yet. From inside his body, Salvador remembered that his hands wouldn’t start hurting until hours later. 

Dania tried to pull him off but he was still trapped in the loop. It was like trying to come to a dead stop on a swing without being able to reach the ground. The anger and agony that drove him couldn’t be stilled that quickly. 

Then it was suddenly Leonor underneath his fists. She was already hurt, lying on the frozen ground where she had landed when he let her fall from the roof. He didn’t want to hurt Leonor but still he couldn’t stop. He could feel his arms but not stop them. All he could do was watch what he was doing to her. She was crying and he cried with her until he finally crumbled to the ground and lay next to her, finally back in charge of his own body. He gasped and choked on his own breath. 

“Deep breaths, you’re okay. You’re okay, I promise. Everything is okay.”

He steadied his breathing and looked up at her. She was sitting up, unharmed except for a nosebleed that she wiped on the sleeve of her coat. She looked unimpressed. 

“Breathe, idiot.” 

He frowned. He was breathing and she knew it.

He could hear the river flowing. Dania’s hand was on his shoulder.

It’s time to leave.

He took her hand and she held onto it, leading him away from the river. 

He woke up gently, in a bed he knew and breathing normally. He knew it was a dream, he knew he was awake, but Dania’s hand was still in his. He flexed his fingers, confused. A small thumb was stroking the back of his hand in short, soft strokes, the way you might pet a nervous kitten.

 His eyes finally opened and there was Leonor, sitting with her knees drawn to her chest. Her face was  mostly hidden in the crook of her arm but in the low light he could see her eyes were open, looking out into the room. 

“Um…” his throat felt raw. 

She looked down at him. ”Are you awake?”

“Yeah.”

“Are you sure?”

“Uh, yeah, I think so.” 

“Okay.” 

“Why are you in my room?”

“You were crying.” 

“Why are you holding my hand?”

“You haven’t let go.” 

That was true. Her fingers were sort of cold, but comforting. She returned her face to her arm, going back to staring at the air in front of her. 

“Can you stay for a bit?”

“Yep.”