Chapter Text
Keefe had been pleasantly surprised that the Black Swan had agreed to his and Foster's terms for a meeting. However, he had not been atallsurprised to hear that Grady had a hard time being convinced to let her go.
The Black Swan didn't have a great track record of delivering on nice, safe, non-life-changing meetings for Foster.
But when Keefe showed up at Havenfield and saw Grady and Edaline's solution...
Sandor.
In a lacy shawl, hunched over a cane like an old lady.
A really bulky, truly hideous and terrifying old lady.
Keefe couldn't stop laughing at the sight of him. "Grandma Gigantor," he wheezed between laughs, his eyes watering with mirth even as Sandor looked at him like he was going to kill him.
When he finally managed to settle himself down, he took in Foster's appearance.
She looked like the Forbidden Cities' prettiest human in jeans and a yellow shirt.
And he could feel her strange sense of déjà vu as she looked at him--wearing clothes he'd borrowed from Fitz before leaping to Havenfield--and told him that they were both wearing the outfits she and Fitz had worn on her last day in the Forbidden Cities.
"Want me to talk like this?" Keefe asked, mimicking Fitz's accent. "Take my hand, Sophie. Let me show you where you truly belong."
"That'snotwhat he said," she told him. "And just so you know, the mimicking is totally creepy."
"I know, right? My mom does it all the time. You should see the way she mimics my dad. It's almost terrifying."
But, he had to hand it to his mom. She had at least taken the time to show him how it was done. It didn't come intuitively to him the way it did to her as a polyglot, but it had definitely come in handy more than once at Foxfire.
"That would be," Foster agreed. Then she looked away and started pacing her room. They still had a few minutes before it was time to leave, and Keefe could feel the anxiety and nervous energy coming off her while they waited.
"Remember, Foster, we're calling the shots this time," he told her. "No crazy leaps, or midnight flights over the ocean, or drugged cookies. Just us, asking questions and not letting anyone leave until we get some answers."
She nodded, but sank to the floor, already looking strangely defeated.
It was time to see if she'd open up to him a little bit more.
"So what is it?" he asked, sitting down beside her. "I totally get the nerves and stuff. But . . ."—he brushed a finger across her palm, the brief contact confirming what he'd been picking up even from several feet away—"what's with all the dread?"
Before she answered, she pulled out the compact mirror that had once belonged to Jolie. She'd told him that one side contained a human mirror.
"The Black Swan knows who I am, Keefe," she admitted quietly, not taking her eyes off her own reflection. "Not who I was—or who I think I am. Who I reallyam."
Wellthatwasn't true.
All the Black Swan knew was her genetic information. They didn't know whoshereally was. Nor could they take credit for this incredible person she'd turned out to be. He scooted closer to her, leaning in so they could see each others' reflections in the small mirrors. "Well, we both know I'm not good at the serious, supportive thing, so I may be a jerk for saying this, but...when are you going to realize that they can't tell you who you are? Maybe they can tell you a bunch of weird junk about your past and your family—and I get that some of that might be freaky. But if they tell you that your mom is the most open, go-with-the-flow person they've ever known, is that suddenly going to make you stop being so stubborn or keeping so many secrets?"
"I doubt it," she admitted.
"And what if they told you your dad was an even bigger rule breaker than me—not that that's possible. Are you suddenly going to start ditching class and pranking Dame Alina—or, Magnate Leto, or whoever our principal is?"
"No."
"Right. Because our family doesn't decide who we are.Wedecide who we are. Believe me, it drives my parents crazy. And sometimes that's the only thought that gets me through the day," he added with half a smile.
She closed the compact and stuffed it into her pocket before turning her face to look at him. "Things have been better with your parents though, haven't they?"
Only if I keep my mouth shut and don't fight back.
And even that isn't BETTER. It's just...quieter.
But he wasn't going to admit that. "Yeah. I guess. I don't know." He stood up and went to Iggy's cage, rumpling Iggy's orange dreads. "Sometimes it feels like they're starting to accept me for me—not turning me into a mini-them. But other times it's like . . ."
"Like?" She prompted when he didn't finish.
He wanted to tell her. All the things he usually hid from everyone--mostly even from Fitz--he felt this strange pull to share with her. He had a feeling that his secrets would be safe with her. That she would understand, and hate it for him without feeling too much pity. But...she had alotgoing on. He didn't need to add to her worries. All he really wanted to do was help her through her own.
"Like...I've distracted you long enough," he told her. "The time has come!" He sang the words, fist-pumping the air before taking her by the arm and leading her--and Gigantor--downstairs and out the front door.
As they made their way through the pastures and toward the cliffs, Keefe was contemplating the conversation they'd just had. Foster was definitely still anxious, but...he'd helped her. He could feel it. Her feeling of dread had eased up significantly after he got serious and talked her down.
Keefe wasn't great at the serious stuff. He was much better at cracking jokes, evading any personal talk, making people laugh so they'd forget that they didn'treallyknow him.
But even so...not for the first time, he'd chosen to be serious with her, and once again, it had paid off. He'd made her feel just a little bit better.
Making her feel better? That was something he hoped he'd get very good at as time went by. He seemed to be off to a good start.
And making her smile made everything in him feel all warm and tingly in a way that he'd never really experienced before.
But he'd have to think about that more later. They'd reached the cliffs and it was time to go.
"Game faces on, everyone!" He said cheerfully before looking at Sandor. "That goes for you too, grandma. Channel your inner grumpy old lady."
Foster fought back a laugh, but Gigantor looked like he might actually club Keefe with his cane.
"Perfect!" Keefe told him, pulling them closer to the edge. "And hey, I just realized—this is your first time teleporting, isn't it, Gigantor?"
Sandor nodded, staring at the crashing waves below. "I have a feeling I'm not going to enjoy it."
Keefe laughed. "Don't worry—Foster's got this." He had all the faith in the world that this adorable creature next to him could handle not only the teleporting, but whatever waited for them at the other end.
"The jump is the hardest part," he added before tightening his grip on Foster's hand and pulling them both off the cliff.
