"Are you sure?" Ellone asked, concerned. "You're more than welcome to stay, you know."

"Yes, we know," Chwaer nodded. "And we're grateful for the offer, really. But we never meant to impose so long on your generosity."

Cariad looked to the edge of the village with a dreamy expression. "There are things we want to do, Ellone, that we can't do if we live with you. We need...space." Her eyes focused upon Ellone again with a smile. "But you're more than welcome to call on us if you need a sitter for Ahnah."

Ellone looked openly relieved. "Are you sure?" she asked again. "I know she's a handful, but it's such a relief to know you two are around and can deal with her. I had no idea this would happen."

'This' was Ahnah's unusual gift - although she apparently couldn't speak with her lips and tongue yet, if one was close enough the baby would very clearly express needs and wants in images that went right into nearby minds. It had managed to unnerve any and every babysitter Ellone had tried to find for the girl, but the twins were entirely unruffled by it. Chris refused to discuss it at all - with Ellone or anyone else - and it had proven hard on Ellone's self-assurance.

"The mind is still a mostly uncharted territory," Chwaer noted with a shrug. "You have an unusual gift - it's not too great a leap to see where Ahnah got hers from. She doesn't seem to invade thoughts, only project her own." She smiled. "At least we know why she cries!"

Cariad laughed. "Ellone, we won't be disappearing entirely - it will take us months to get the house built and the ranch ready for spring."

Ellone nodded, somewhat sadly. "But even as strong as you two are, building it will still take most of your time." She paused, thinking. "Would you like me to help? I won't call myself a professional contractor, but I did refurbish the inn and my house more or less on my own." She smiled. "Sort of a rite of passage, I think. At least, it seemed to prove to the locals that I was serious about settling down here."

Chwaer bowed. "We would deeply appreciate all the help you can offer, as long as it doesn't take you from your work at the Silver Lining or your family."

Ellone smiled. "As if you two haven't made yourselves family by now," she chided, and both girls blushed.

* * * * * *

A new routine then began in Ellone's house - during the days, caring for Ahnah alternated with working on the design for the girls' new home, and advice on what woods to use and how to use them. Cariad turned out to be a very capable lumberjack and woodsmith, once she knew what kinds of woods were needed and in what quantity. The oldest trees she refused to touch unless by removing them she aided the growth of at least a dozen younger trees, but old trees or young she never cut more than was actually required. Chwaer helped her haul the felled trees to the site they'd chosen - technically not part of the village of Winhill at all, ancient law would make it theirs if they developed it and proved they could defend it against monster attack, and they would have the option of making it part of the village proper after successfully living there a full year.

Both girls had specific ideas concerning what they wanted, for the house as well as the property they were claiming around it. Cariad wanted room to build greenhouses and plant flowers and food crops, while Chwaer wanted to build chocobo stables and fence in a running range for the birds. The two plans together required a lot of land, and would require a lot of work as well, quite aside from the house.

The house! The twins were by now very popular in the village, and both were willing to entertain guests at any and every opportunity. They were the sweethearts of every one of the few boys their age in Winhill as well, and had expressed a desire for many children - which would require a large house, even though they had evidently not found the charms of any of the boys sufficient to their preferences. The floor plan they agreed on required an extensive root cellar, a furnished basement, and an upper floor that consisted almost entirely of bedrooms. Spare bedrooms - neither of the twins were at all fond of heights, and the master bedroom was in fact located in the basement, tucked away in a corner.

One of the first things to be built - aside from the basement - was in fact the mailbox; a rather large one, of stone masonry carefully laid so that the result was both beautiful and incredibly sturdy. Despite the distance from the center of Winhill, the two girls still received letters and invitations enough to entertain them through their rest breaks on a daily basis, and at night they went back to their rooms above the Silver Lining and watched over Ahnah. They worked alone, for the most part, though even when the village at large knew the two girls were much stronger than they looked they never lacked for volunteers offering to help. The younger boys of the village, mostly, who thought the two girls were beautiful and to be protected from hard work.

Chwaer found their offers annoying; Cariad was more amused than insulted. Of course, Cariad received the most offers of 'help' - though the only physical difference between herself and her twin was the length of her hair, Cariad was more soft-spoken and gentle, and thus more attractive. At least, she seemed so until the boys saw her cheerfully pick up a log two and a half times her size and casually carry it over her shoulder to be cut into planks. The two girls would have taken more pains to hide their differences from the village, except that Ellone assured them this would be the worst possible course to pursue. Chwaer and Cariad had lived in Winhill several months now, getting to know and becoming known by the residents, and while the people of Winhill would defend them from outside prying eyes it was understood that the condition was knowing what they were defending. Ellone had never hidden her ability to see the past, and Ahnah's projection power wasn't concealable even if Ellone had wanted to try - and while the Winhilli were still somewhat unnerved at demonstrations of those powers, they were unified in their desire to protect Ellone and her daughter from any outside force. That same consideration was now being extended to the twins; as long as the two girls were open about their differences and sincere in their desire to be part of Winhill, the town would shelter them.

Still, the twins enjoyed talking with Ellone about the various offers they received while they played with Ahnah in the evenings.

"Delsin didn't take it very well," Chwaer noted dryly as she paraded a small stuffed chocobo in front of a squealing Ahnah. "The poor thing seemed so...deflated. Is it a problem, Ellone?"

"Delsin..." mused Ellone. "Ayiana's boy? That Delsin?" At Chwaer's nod, Ellone shrugged. "I think you two are very good for the boys around here," she noted. "Winhill's always been about tradition, about 'proper roles', things like that. You two fit every expectation anyone in this town would ever have of perfect daughters - you're quiet, don't argue, don't cause trouble, don't run riot...have you ever noticed the way to be a perfect daughter is to not do so many things? - anyway, you're such perfectly well behaved young women, they can't accuse you of trying to be men when you start hauling lumber and chopping trees." She smiled down at her daughter. "Ahnah will have an easier time because you two are here - you're paving the way, in a sense. Making it all right for her to be herself."

Cariad and Chwaer shared a smiling look; it was nice to think they were doing more good than just building their own home. "Still, Delsin seemed a little put out that he couldn't lift the log by himself," Cariad noted. "Ellone, should we send him something? I have any number of cookies left over from our baking spree last weekend."

"I know, I know," Ellone smiled. "And I'd say yes, give him all he can eat - that way I won't have to! - but you see, then you'd be apologizing. What did you do that you need to apologize for?" She pulled her bangs behind her ear, out of the way. "No, Cari, if you want to invite him over for lunch you can, but I wouldn't apologize when you've done nothing wrong. You'll have that house up by the end of summer easily, at this rate."

"Ayiana..." mused Chwaer. "She does marvelous things with crystal, Cari. Maybe Delsin does, too. We could commission them for lamps, perhaps, and that would make Delsin feel better?"

Cariad blinked. "Can we afford them?" she asked, worried. "Their work is very...expensive..."

"Oh, that's easily gotten around," Ellone assured them. "Delsin is nowhere near a master crafter yet. If you ask him, that's apprentice-grade work. It will let Ayiana get rid of less-than-perfect inventory, and help improve Delsin's craft, save you some money and make him feel he's contributed - if you don't mind a few flawed lamps about the place!"

The twins laughed, and Chwaer nodded. "We'll do that, then," she said. "Imperfections make work unique, anyway - and if we need to we can always fix such things ourselves."

"Can you now?" Ellone asked, surprised. "Is there anything you two can't do?"

"Fly," said Cariad firmly. "No flying. Or ladders." She shuddered slightly. "I have no idea how we're going to get the second floor built - or the roof put on!"

Chwaer nodded. "I agree, that's going to be a problem. Maybe we should ...barter? Do we have anything to barter?"

"You've been studying with the midwife," Ellone remarked, lifting Ahnah up to her lap. "You'll be healers someday, and that's always useful. And you were talking about breeding chocobos...?"

Cariad blinked. "But we haven't any of those things right now...shouldn't we pay in advance?"

Ellone laughed. "Cari, the village boys are tripping over themselves to help you for free. You're offering to pay them, and that will keep their parents happy with you - you're not taking advantage of their lovestruck children, after all - but since they are offering all their sweat and labor for free, I think that would indicate you don't need to pay them in advance. When you can is fine. For now - just tell them to come back when it's time to do the second floor and roof, or commission them as you will Delsin for their apprentice work, and everyone will be happy to help."

The months passed, through spring and into summer, the girls either doing the work themselves or carefully overseeing it - doing more supervision than work as the house took shape, and more importantly height. True to Ellone's prediction, the village boys were more than happy to help them get the second floor and roof put together and put in place - in fact, the main problem was in keeping the number of volunteers down and willing to work with each other. Quietly the two girls spoke with the parents of those boys whose help they received, and arranged compensation for the help they took - be it a chocobo chick when they got the ranch going, or help with a harvest, or a promise of aid when they received certification as healers, or even something as simple as promising to feed their volunteers properly. And at midsummer they celebrated the completion of their ranch, which in Winhill style they called 'Tsielo' - or 'love of earth' - with a huge barbeque. Of course, now that they had a home they had to build the outlying buildings - chocobo stables, fences, greenhouses, and so on - but just having the house itself finished was exceedingly gratifying.

Now the girls were apart for large portions of the day, each working on their own projects - Chwaer on the chocobo stables and fences, and Cariad on preparing the fields for the following year when she would plant crops and on the greenhouses she would use to keep plants alive year-round. The two of them never lacked for company, as several boys still wanted to help both of them get Tsielo on its feet and self-sufficient, but they both agreed that at the end of the day it was much more fun to share a bath with each other.

By September the two girls had their buildings finished and were working on getting seeds, seedlings, and chocobos for the following year. Both of them owed a great deal to the people of Winhill by this time, for the work that had gone into the ranch - and yet the twins weren't very worried. They knew that by this time the following year, they would be free of obligations - and they weren't bound to do anything they hadn't been willing to do before anyway. Some of their debts would be repaid during the winter, as they used gifts of wool and cloth to knit or sew clothes for several of the villagers.

They were working on such clothes one rainy evening, when an excited rap was heard at their door. Cariad set down her knitting to answer it - for though they often had visitors, the weather discouraged casual drop-ins. Ellone was on the other side, with a bundled-up Ahnah, and Cariad quickly ushered the two inside as Chwaer got up from her sewing to get a pot of hot water going for tea.

"Is everything all right?" Cariad asked worriedly, handing Ellone a towel and lifting Ahnah out of her arms to get wrapped in another.

Ellone patted herself dry, but was clearly too excited to worry much about merely being wet. "Oh, it's the best news, Cari," she gushed. "It's the best news I've heard all year. Oh, thank you, Chwaer," she interrupted herself, as Chwaer handed her a cup of hot tea.

"If it's as good as that, maybe you'd better sit down before telling us," Chwaer teased with a smile. "The rain is terrible tonight."

"Is it?" Ellone blinked, then waved her hand dismissively. "It doesn't matter, it always rains in the fall." She produced a sodden envelope. "This is important. I know you don't know them, girls, but I couldn't not share this news with you. And you've always listened to their letters..."

Chwaer was blinking, trying to piece the clues together. Cariad's eyes went wide. "Is it Irvine, Ellone?" she asked. "Is it something to do with Irvine?"

"Yes!" beamed Ellone, carefully laying the wet letter out so it would dry without smudging. "And if I'd been thinking at all I'd have put the letter in plastic so you could read it now. Do you remember when he said Selphie was pregnant?" Both girls shared a glance and a grin, and nodded. "Well, this letter says the baby's been born - a very healthy baby boy, they say. Remus Tilmitt-Kinneas, born September 21...that's four days ago. Irvine wrote it while Selphie was sleeping."

Both girls engulfed Ellone in excited hugs. "Oh, that's wonderful news!" Chwaer gushed. "Is Selphie all right? Is Irvine? Are they coming to visit? Can we see them?"

Ellone laughed. "No, apparently they're taking their parental leave in Deling City, and Selphie's not up to moving for a while." Her face fell as she continued, "It was a long and difficult labor, Irvine says - he's very relieved Selphie's all right, but she won't be up to her usual self for a while. Still - they've been trying so long, and they're all okay, and they have a little boy!"

Cariad forewent words altogether and just gave Ellone a hug that her unknowing aunt cheerfully returned. "I know you don't know them," she said to Cariad's black hair more quietly, "but you two seem to care about everyone, and when I got the letter I just had to spread the news - and most of the village doesn't really care about my 'friends from out of town'. I'm so glad you two do."

"We're very glad they're happy and all right," agreed Chwaer. "Should we send them presents? Baby things? Ahnah's outgrown so much..."

Ellone laughed and pulled her hair back from her face. "Remus is a boy," she reminded Chwaer. "So I doubt Irvine would want us sending him Ahnah's baby dresses! But it's a good idea. I'll see what I have in Ahnah's older toys...my goodness she's so much bigger now than when she was born..."

"And not even a year old yet," Cariad agreed. "She'll be a tall girl when she's grown. Won't you, sweetie?" she said to the baby, gently tweaking her nose so she laughed.

"Well, I don't think anyone will object to that," said Ellone, still bubbling with excitement. "I'm just thrilled for them. And you know, Selphie has an unusual gift too - all that wild mage power. The letter doesn't say, but Remus might have it too."

The two girls shared a look. "I think if he has it, we should hope they don't find out for a while," said Chwaer. "Having a baby accidentally cast a fireball on the curtains is a lot harder to deal with than a baby who tells you she wants the pink stuffed puppy and not the green one."

"True," nodded Ellone, and sipped at her tea as Cariad pulled away and took a more dignified seat. "My goodness, you two have really made this place a home. When will you have chocobos? How did you get them?"

Chwaer beamed - the chocobos were her passion. "I promised the Chocoboy of northern Centra that I would take good care of the chocobos, and that I would share any techniques for healing them or caring for them that I came across. Really, Chocoboys don't demand a great deal."

"Aren't you going to be eating some of them, though?" asked Ellone, surprised. "I doubt Chocoboys would appreciate that much."

"I won't do that with the chocobos that I've been given," said Chwaer firmly. "The chocobos that I'm getting from Centra are on loan, not really mine. I'll use them to get a good stock going here, and then I'll send them back to the Chocoboy. That was part of the agreement, actually. I'm trying to raise domesticated chocobos, not tame wild ones."

Cariad peeked out of a window. "The rain is easing up, Ellone," she remarked. "I'm surprised you brought little Ahnah out in this, really. Is Chris all right?"

Ellone sighed, losing her smile. "No, he gave himself a cold a few days ago and mostly he's been resting. That's why Ahnah came with me."

"Why didn't you call us?" Chwaer asked, and got to her feet. "Surely we can do our needlework as well with you as here, and you can't be expected to manage the bar and your husband and little Ahnah without any help at all."

"You do have your own lives," Ellone replied, but she looked relieved. "But if you're willing to help, I'd appreciate it."

"Always, Ellone," said Cariad, getting travel cloaks for herself and her twin. "Let's get going before the rain really turns the roads to mud!"