Emery

By the time Emery and Avuri left their room, the Basin was already busy with preparations. While their plans for Ieji's farewell party weren't too extensive, that didn't mean that the prep work for it wouldn't take plenty of time. No matter what they did, cooking for thirty people was always work - and that was without it being a special day.

They had a good spread planned for the day. Multiple chicken, pork, and beef dishes as well as the standards like rice veggies. Of course, most of the work would be going into the various baozi they were planning to make. Folding enough to feed everyone by hand was not just hard work, it was time consuming.

Emery and Avuri shared a quick kiss in their house before they separated and got to work with the family. Avuri went off to check in on all of the non-food related chores to just make sure everything was in order. There really wasn't any reason it wouldn't be, given the kids had been keeping up on their chores the last few weeks. But she was also planning to check to make sure everything was secure so they didn't need to worry about it while the whole family was eating.

Emery went to join the culinary team in the kitchen, who had already been joined by the entire group of floaters. It was all hands on deck to get the baozi filled, folded, and into their massive streamer. Even with their extra large kitchen, Cyrus, Enrik, and Wrynn were sitting outside at a folding wooden table to work on some of the baozi while the rest bustled about the kitchen.

"Hey, Mom." Elise greeted Emery brightly when she walked in. "Coming to help or just check in?"

"Help, probably." Emery said, taking stock of everyone. "The food is the big star today, anyway."

"Ieji was talking about holding a special final class with everyone before lunch. Is it okay if we go?" Lia asked.

"That should be fine." Emery said, grabbing her apron from the hook it was on. She got a few weird looks from the kids as she picked it up with her hands rather than Qi, but no one actually said anything. She still wasn't sure about using her Qi yet, after the last Cultivation session with Avuri. Something about their Qi had changed significantly, and neither of them were keen to share it with any of the other adults just yet. So, they had prepared to do their work today almost entirely by hand.

It was convenient, Emery figured, that there wasn't a lot of knife work to be done today, so at least the lack of floating knives wouldn't be too conspicuous.

Emery sat at the table with Lia and joined her in stuffing more baozi. "We should see how many of these we can get folded before you all need to run, then."

"We've gotten a lot done, already." Lia grinned, pointing to a platter with a tall pyramid of assembled bao, ready to be cooked. "We figured we'd get them into the steamers much closer to dinner time, though."

"Well, yeah," Elise said, "you want them fresh. Especially the tangbao."

"Did you get any of those started yet?" Emery asked, leaning back in the seat to look at her other daughter.

Elise shook her head. "Nope. We were waiting on those too." She stared at Emery like her mother had grown three heads. "What's up with you today, Mom? You're acting like we have no idea how to cook."

Emery smiled a little sheepishly. "Sorry. Long night. I'm still a little frazzled."

That drew eyes from basically everyone in the kitchen. A frazzled Emery wasn't common. Even when Flowing Dragon City was under threat, she wouldn't have considered herself frazzled. But her entire Cultivation base altering overnight and not getting the chance to really examine it? That definitely set her on edge. As did generally keeping her Qi on lockdown. It all added to her feeling off.

But still, Ieji was leaving and Emery wasn't about to let them go without a good send off. She wanted to make sure they had a good time before they set off again to who knows where. Ieji had an innate talent for finding trouble while also being exactly where they were needed. When they weren't actively doing their contracted work, anyway. And it didn't sound like Ieji had anything in particular lined up, so it was likely they were just going to wander again.

Emery honestly thought that being the 'Wandering Cultivator' type suited Ieji very well. It just felt right for them.

Generally speaking, the rest of the day's prep went well. Most of the family had eaten breakfast before Emery and Avuri had gotten up, so the plan was to wait for the early dinner and skip lunch, which meant the entire morning could be spent on dinner prep, and they didn't need to stop to make lunch.

The younger kids had small meals made if they asked, but in the end Emery only ended up making four small bowls of rice with some leftover stir-fried chicken from the last day or two. It left her plenty of time for the prep work, even when her team of little culinarians left her to attend Ieji's final class.

They were gone for a few hours, and returned ready to cook, immediately jumping right back to their stations to finish the prep and get the first round of baozi steaming. Emery noticed a few sniffles around the kitchen as they worked and smiled. While she wasn't necessarily happy that Ieji had to leave, she was glad that her sibling had made a strong impact on her kids. Strong enough that they were actually upset to see Ieji go.

As the early afternoon went by, the family started gathering by the large dining pavilion. Anyone who had finished their chores gravitated over to where they could smell the food cooking naturally, even before Emery had rang the bell to call everyone for dinner.

Ieji had also arrived at the pavilion before Emery called with Talya, Gray, and Mylo. The baby was riding happily in a sling around Talya's chest, peeking out to view the world with wonder. Emery had to stop by and greet her nephew as soon as she saw them approach the pavilion, leaving Elise to watch the steaming bao.

"I still can't believe you're leaving." Talya said, watching Emery wave her finger in front of Mylo's face. "It's going to be strange without you around."

Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.

"We all know I don't belong here, Talya." Ieji said, their voice the same deadpan monotone it always was. Emery and Talya knew their sibling well enough to discern the slight emotions underneath the apparent bland front.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that, Ieji." Emery said, letting Mylo tug on her finger. "A few of the kids that came back to help me cook after your last class were holding back tears and sniffling."

There was a tiny twitch in Ieji's face, but Emery could read it for what it was - they were touched. Ieji had never really found a place to belong, thanks to their strange terror aura. Even when Ieji had no Qi cycling through it, people near him were constantly unnerved and put on edge, often feeling like they were being watched or hunted. It was possible to grow used to the aura over time and become somewhat immune to the passive effects of it, but Ieji rarely stayed in one place long enough for that to happen.

It seemed like it had happened in the Basin though, as many of the kids had grown attached to Ieji over the last several months. They also found out that babies seemed unaffected as well, as Mylo had no issues with Ieji being near whatsoever.

It had led them all to an interesting discussion about fear or terror being something that people learned, and weren't born with. Which Ieji, Avuri, and Talya had all said made no sense, but Emery and Gray were still unconvinced. Mylo's lack of fear in Ieji's presence must have meant something.

"You're always welcome here, Ieji." Emery said warmly. She pulled her finger from Mylo's grasp to face her sibling more fully. "If you ever decide you want a home, this is an option. I promise."

Ieji made an effort at that to crack a smile - something they rarely ever did. "I appreciate that, Em, thank you." They paused to look out over the kids that had already gathered into seats around the pavilion, ready to eat. Many of them were stealing glances as the group of adults. "I do think I'll be back. Eventually. Maybe to stay. We'll see."

Gray laughed at that. "You're a Cultivator with a very long life already all but guaranteed. Who knows what life will bring, but if you're careful, one thing you are sure to have plenty of is time." He grinned, but looked meaningfully at Mylo. "Just be aware that while you have plenty of time, not everyone will."

Ieji's gaze met Gray's, and despite Ieji appearing to understand, Gray added plainly, "If you like these kids, Ieji, come back sooner. Don't wait ten years."

Emery looked out over her family at the same time as Ieji, thinking about it. Gray's words hit home for her, too, after spending months away for training. All she wanted was to stay settled for a while and spend time with her family.

She really hoped whatever she and Avuri had done to their Cultivation the previous night wouldn't be some ground breaking thing that Vale had to pull them away for.

Ieji's face still looked placid as they answered Gray with a small nod. "I'll keep that in mind."

"You better." Talya said. "Same goes for seeing us, alright? I'd love to have Mylo grow up while knowing his aunts and uncles. Our family has spent long enough being so scattered."

"Mom! Food's about ready!"

"Coming!" Emery said, twisting to face Elise. "You all find somewhere to sit. The baozi are coming out."

"Can't wait." Gray said. Talya looked equally excited, while Ieji nodded with a slight smile - it was about as much emotion as Ieji ever showed; baozi were their favorite.

It wasn't long before massive platters of stacked baozi were brought to the tables. The drier bao were stacked into large pyramids on a number of platters while the more wet ones like the tangbao were served in a single layer on serving trays with walls on the edges to keep in all the excess liquid.

The 'party' was barely a party at all, and the way the meal went really accentuated that for Emery. There wasn't much celebration or excitement, so much as just a larger-than-average meal made with Ieji's favorite food.

The adults, including Vale, who had turned up to say goodbye, were seated together and simply enjoyed good conversation while they ate. It was relaxing, lovely, and far more in line with what Emery believed Ieji would want for their departure party.

When the meal was finished, everyone was stuffed. The vast majority of the bao had been eaten, leaving perhaps a single platter's worth of food that could be kept for late-night snacks. Even Ieji was leaning on the table looking a little worse for wear. Emery appreciated the compliment paid to her and her little culinarians - Ieji had eaten so much that she couldn't have taken it any other way.

The conversations around them had quieted a little as everyone was groaning from over eating, and there was an hour or so of communal after-meal lethargy. Eventually, though, the time came for Ieji to stand and get moving.

It was Ritz and Shara, who had positioned themselves close to the adult table who moved first. As soon as Ieji made motion to stand, they hopped from their seats and ran to give Ieji a tight hug. Emer had been told they got close to Ieji over the months, but hadn't really seen much to support that until then. Ieji patted them on their heads, ruffling their hair a little, and that set the two of them to crying.

Everything broke down after that. The kids all came up to say their actual goodbyes despite their earlier 'last class' with Ieji, many of them at least tearful if not crying. Even the older kids looked upset that Ieji was finally leaving. By the time it came for Emery's and the other adults' turn, Emery was similarly misty eyed.

Gray, Talya, Vale, and Avuri all said their goodbyes before Emery took her turn. She was listening to each goodbye, and each and every one of them told Ieji some variant of come back soon and don't be a stranger. Emery imagined Talya felt the same way as she held back the tears that threatened, seeing Ieji regarded so warmly. So different from what was normal when they were growing up.

Irji had only ever had their family as refuge, and once everyone became adults, their family had scattered to the wind. It hadn't really occurred to Emery at the time that it might have left Ieji in particular more alone than the rest of them, who could still fit in basically anywhere.

When Emery stepped up to take her turn, she was just shy of boiling over, the thoughts and memories of the past really threatening her with blubbering. She held that back the best she could while giving Ieji a big hug.

"I think you've heard enough people telling you to come back." Emery said, trying to add in a little lightheartedness to keep the mood up - but mostly to stop herself from crying. "Instead, I'll tell you that you always have a home here, okay? Whenever you want to come back, we'll be here waiting with a good meal, a warm bed, and a family that loves you."

Despite choking up at the end, Emery decided she said her piece pretty well. And then she heard Talya a few steps behind her start crying, and couldn't help but feel like she was doomed to the same fate.

"Yeah. I'll be back, I promise." Ieji said, their voice still mostly without inflection. But they were also sporting one of the closest to genuine smiles Emery had ever seen on their face.

Ieji moved to give Emery one more squeeze and then they were gone. They had never been one to take long goodbyes, and just leaping away seemed like as good an exit as any. Emery took a long shuttering breath and finally started crying. She moved over to Talya so the sisters could cry together, and their spouses and Vale quickly closed on them in one big hug.

Avuri, her face snug against Emery's shoulder, took a moment to look over their family, at least half of which was crying or recovering from crying. A few of the kids who had managed it were in the process of cleaning up the tableware from the meal with dried tears still on their cheeks. She couldn't help but shake her head.

"What a mess."

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.