Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It was the early hours of the morning and the town of Sandrock was fast asleep when the explosion rang out, shaking the foundation of the temple. Smoke rolled past and stone rained down on the two figures that were huddled behind a boulder.

Logan nodded at Haru as the two got up and ran towards the new hole in the side of the church. They had placed the charges on the outer wall where they thought Howlett, Logan’s Pa, was being kept. Their plan was for Logan to run into the building, assess, and if they were right, he would call in Haru and together they could free Howlett.  

They didn’t much plan for if they got it wrong. Wing it was the best plan they had, really.

The men slipped through the smoke and dust and to the building. Logan ducked into the small hole they had made in the brick and was about to turn to Haru as his pa was lying in a small cot on the other side of the room when a buzzing sound distracted him. He heard it only for a fraction of a second before the crashing of stone and brick took over his senses.

“PA!” Logan shouted as he dodged falling stone, running to the man he was there to save.

“Logan!” Howlett croaked out, waking up to the face of his son. He reached up and put a hand to his boy’s face as Logan tried to shield him from the debris falling around them. “Protect Sandrock, son. Duvos…” was all he was able to get out before the wall crumbled around them, crushing Howlett as he lay there. Logan fell back as a stone landed right on the top of his foot, his father’s hand sliding from his cheek.

“PA!” Logan tried to craw closer to his pa, touched the hand and arm that was still outstretched, poking out of the pile of rubble, “NO! PA!”

“Logan!” came the voice of Haru as he slipped into the room and grabbed his brother’s shoulders, “We have to go Logan, we don’t have much time.”

Logan let out a sob, breath hitching, they hadn’t considered leaving without Howlett. All their plans and none of them included leaving without his Pa. He tried to breathe in but there was a weight on his chest, he couldn’t get a full breath. He couldn’t leave without his pa!

Haru tugged and pulled on Logan until they fell out of the church’s back room into the smoke-filled courtyard. “Come on Logan, we have to go, it won’t take but minutes for Pen to be here.”

Logan tried to take a step forward but fell as pain shot up his leg from his foot. He held onto Haru as they hobbled across the courtyard towards the old trolly walk where their goats were waiting, packed and ready to run. The air was thick with dust though the stones had fallen already. He turned to look back at the church, a shadow through the smoke.

He tried again to breathe, this breath was coming a little easier, though he fought the sobs that tried to break through.

“Lo!” Haru shook him, “We. Need. To. Go.”

Logan shook his head. He couldn’t run, couldn’t hide. His Pa was dead and it was all his fault. “Run home Haru, quick. When they ask, I told you it was for a hunt, to clear that rockslide in the badlands. You didn’t know, understand?” Logan could hear voices coming from the dormitories. They were out of time. “Do you understand?”

“Logan, no, I’m not letting you…”

“Haru! Please, I need you to listen to me. Please.” He begged. He couldn’t let this come down on his brother, couldn’t continue to drag him into situations that caused people to get hurt. They had both been hurt countless times on hunts due to Logan’s recklessness and Haru had plans. He would protect Sandrock and the people in it, even if it meant he had to take the fall. “Please Haru, run and come back yelling. Please…”

Haru searched his brother’s eyes. “Ok. But I won’t lie. I’ll keep quiet but I won’t lie to Justice if he asks directly.”

Logan nodded and let his brother go, falling to the ground, unable to stand without help. Haru slipped down to the side path that would take him behind the museum and towards their house. He figured Rocky would be running up so he waited just around the corner until it could be convincing that he had just made it out of his house a little faster than the miner.

Logan let out a quiet sob as he sat at the edge of the debris. He gave a quiet but carrying whistle to the goats, who would return home at the signal. If anyone questioned his need for both goats, he would say one was for his Pa.

His pa who was dead.  

Pulling his knees up to his chest he hugged his legs, tears flowing from his eyes as he pictured his Pa’s last moments. The dust in the air, the falling stone. The soft callused hand on his cheek falling away as he was crushed.

His last words.

Logan couldn’t think of that right now. The voices got closer, he could hear Pen and Miguel arguing. Burguss he could hear groaning from where they had stashed the minister who had stumbled on them as they were preparing the charges. He had given him a quick knock on the head and moved him away from the church to keep the boy safe.

“Whats going on?” Rocky shouted from behind him.

“What happened, is everyone ok?” Matildia said from the direction of her home.

“I’ll tell you what happened, those bandits Logan and Haru attacked the church!” Miguel spat.

“Hey, Haru’s right here with me!” Rocky boomed out.

“I just got here and what do you mean, callin’ Logan and I bandits!” Haru argued.

“I.. well, what else should I call you when you’re bombing churches!” Miguel argued back.

“I’ve done no such thing, like Rocky said, I just got here with him!”

Logan could see their outlines through the dissipating dust and smoke. Haru and Miguel chest to chest, Rocky with a hand on Haru’s shoulder, Matilda and Pen just standing back, watching.

“Whats all this now?” came the quiet voice of Justice to his right. Looking up at the man Logan didn’t hide his tears. He had known Justice all his life, trusted the man with his life on many occasions, but he couldn’t bring himself to say out loud that his pa was dead.

Justice though, was good at his job as well as being a good friend and didn’t need Logan to say a word to him.

“Oh, no, Logan…” He dropped down, ignoring the shouting Haru and Miguel for the moment. Others were making their way up to the church at the top of the mountain and could handle those two. Justice put a hand on Logan’s shoulder, giving it a squeeze before pulling him into a hug. Logan finally stopped fighting and released the sobs he had been holding in and clutched at Justice’s jacket.

Logan lost track of what was going on around him. He heard Justice quietly but harshly tell someone to back off, he was in charge and they would wait. He became aware of a large solid hand rubbing his back, Owen, and a smaller hand on his knee, Haru. Slowly relaxing into the presence of his friends, his family he allowed himself to cry for his pa. That his pa trusted him at his last moments even though he was the reason for his death.

It was a little while before he got himself back together. The stress of the past few weeks of his pa being sick and held in quarantine by the church and from everyone but the church made his breakdown that much stronger. He was also probably in a little bit of shock, not just from grief but from his, most likely broken, foot.

Realizing his guard had changed to Heidi and Haru, he wiped his face and smiled sadly at the two. Both could empathize having both lost parents in the past. Heidi quietly took his hand and placed inside of it a small, smooth, polished stone. It was a rose quartz he had given her when her mom died. He had polished it up for her to wear as a necklace to remind her of the love that her mom had for her. It was still on the bit of leather he had fashioned for it.

No words were exchanged as he put it on with another strangled sob and clutched at the gem. He was truly blessed by Peach to be surrounded by such good friends.

“THAT IS ENOUGH.” came the angry voice of Justice, breaking him from his spiraling thoughts. They all looked over to see Justice pointing to the dorms and all but shoving Miguel towards it. They couldn’t hear what was being said at that point but Justice was clearly not happy.

Logan sighed and went to stand. It was time to face the consequences of his actions. With a cry, he crumpled to the ground, again, he had forgotten his broken foot.

“Lo!”

“Logan!”

“I’m fine,” he said a bit breathlessly and not at all convincing Heidi or Haru.

“What happened, are you hurt?” Heidi asked, standing and giving him a onceover.

“I’m here. How… are you hurt?” came the quiet but uncompromising voice of Doctor Fang.

Logan looked at Fang who just stared back, unblinking. He sighed, “My foot. Feels broken.”

Fang nodded and looked at Logan’s foot, still tucked in the leather boot that was dirty but otherwise unblemished. He poked at it and Logan winced in pain.

“Keep the boot on. Come… to the clinic for… treatment. Now.”

“I’ll help him there, Doc. We’ll meet you.” Heidi said as she helped Logan stand and watched as Fang walked away towards his clinic. “Come on then, lets get you checked out. JUSTICE!”

Logan flinched at her volume and looked at Haru who was wiping his own tears as he nodded and stepped back. “I’ll stay and help Justice before coming to check in on you. Do try not to give Fang to much trouble, will you?” he said as he stepped back again before turning and walking over to Owen, who was stacking the bricks and cleaning up the rubble.

Staring at the side of the church, the hole they blew in the wall clearly visible, Logan closed his eyes and whispered, “I’m sorry Pa. I was tryin’ ta help. Ta take ya ta help. I’m sorry.”

If Justice or Heidi heard him they didn’t say anything. Instead, Justice told him to stay at Fangs until he or Haru came for him and he’d need to know his side of things soon but for now, he was to get seen to and they’d figure the rest out later.

Logan sighed and accepted the help from the small but strong Heidi as they slowly made their way to Fang’s clinic wondering if he should have listened to Haru, if they should have run after all.

Chapter Text

Lucy fingered the corner of her acceptance telegram:

Miss Lucy, MB

Highwind, Cliffside Market

Position approved;

Lucy, Master Builder contract 1 year for Sandrock Commerce Guild Eufaula Chapter;

Start Spring 1 9am;

President Yan

Sighing she put the telegram down and looked out the window. She was still in a bit of a shock over the last week’s events. She graduated as a Master Builder from University, she was approached by the President of the Commerce Guild about a position as Sandrock’s Builder, and finally she applied for and was accepted as, said builder.

Apparently, the town had been having some trouble keeping any kind of builder, new or experienced, longer than three months. They had cycled through five in just the last two years and all of them gave the exact same reason for quitting; “Desert living is not for me.”

The guild was questioning things before this last builder quit but when they said the same thing and yet had been born and grew up in a small village in the North Eufaula, they knew something else was going on.

When Lucy had told her advisor that she wanted to find something that would help the every person and not just be a corporate cog, she was approached by the Guild to take a position in Sandrock and report back to them why none of the other builders would stay. They agreed to cancel her loans from school if she was able to help. Well, she didn’t have to think hard to say yes. 4 years of loans gone? Yes, please!

She did have to wonder what she was getting into, free master program for just a little information? That seemed like she made out way better than they did. Ian, her only family left, had been worried for her too. He questioned why the guild couldn’t just go investigate themselves. They had but gotten nowhere. The townsfolk claimed to not understand either. In the end she agreed to write to him weekly so he wouldn’t worry, the mother hen. But she loved him, so she didn’t mind.  

The train began to slow as they approached the station at Sandrock.

The hot dry air hit Lucy like a hammer as the doors to the train slid open and she stepped outside. It had been a long boring trip and taking a deep breath, she could feel her entire body dry out. Apparently, she was a little more used to humidity than she had assumed.

It was a bright day already and well on its way to scorching at 9am. The train had been a few minutes late so she asked if the conductor could keep her bags at the station while she ran to her meeting with Yan. Jensen had not only agreed to watch her few bags but pointed out the guild hall for her. Across the clearing to the main street and first building on the left, backed up against the oasis. She smiled, waved, and took off at a sprint.

Lucy had barely made it into the building when a high pitched nasally voice called out to her.

“About time Newbie. We don’t like late around here.”

The man who spoke wore tight dark purple pants with maroon shoes, a blue vest, red tie, black jacket and a dark grey bowler hat. Lucy had to blink at the colors that were clearly trying to be matched but were off just enough to look horrible together.

“Well? What do you have to say for yourself?”

She took in a breath to apologize but was cut off.

“Never mind, I don’t care. We do things differently here in Sandrock. I know you’ve had your school but here we use a pick-hammer. It’s, well, it’s a pick with a hammer. Here’s the plans for one. You can find scrap around your workshop that’s over on the other side of the train tracks. Come back when you’re done.” With that Yan turned and walked up the few stairs to another level of the room.

“Oh and before I forget, don’t cut down the trees. We’re in a desert and need all the cover we can get. Scrap only or those scraggly little bushes.” He gave a curt nod and disappeared into the back of the room.

“Dick,” Lucy muttered as she turned to walk out the door she hadn’t even had a chance to close yet. Assuming that was in fact Yan, and who else would it be, she had a good idea of why builders didn’t stick around. She took a deep breath and looked around a little trying to get her bearings.

Directly across the road was the Blue Moon. From outward appearances it looked like a saloon. Further to her left up a hill was housing and a few stores. To her right was a clearing that had the edge of the oasis and a board walk, the train station, an outdoor stage, and what looked like a farm or ranch at the other end. There was a metal lined tunnel going through one of the large rocks leading up to a second story of the town. She’d have to ask Jensen where everything was. He at least seemed friendly.

“Miss Lucy, here for your things?” His greeting made her smile; he reminded her of an old teacher from when she was a child.

“Please, just Lucy and yes. I was also hoping you might be able to tell me a bit about the town? Where the main stores are? Yan was… less than helpful.”

He huffed at her mention of Yan. “Yes, Yan can be a bit… well, never mind that. Of course I can help you out Miss Lucy. Over there, across the tracks would be your workshop, assuming you’re takin the same one the others did. You can go down the tracks to the other side of town or through main street or the boardwalk...”

He continued to explain the towns layout, where people lived and what they did. The Church of the Light was of course at the top of the mountain the town was built into. She tried to retain it all but figured it would take a bit to truly sink in.

“Thanks for lettin’ me talk at ya Miss Lucy. I know I lost ya a bit ago. Not many folks round here for me to yap at. And I do so love this town and talkin’ about it. Only things better are my trains! You go do what you need to for Yan and just you let me know if you need anything.”

She couldn’t help but give him a big smile. He really was sweet, she’d have to remember to do something nice for him when she got settled. A short goodbye though and she was off across the tracks to her new home and workshop.

Looking around it was a bit barren. She had an assembly table and work bench, an old broken furnace and a rusty looking tank that must have held the water for the machines. Popping inside quickly to drop off her stuff, the house was small but serviceable and clean.

Going back outside she went exploring around the general area, gathering scrap as she went until she had enough to build the pick-hammer that Yan wanted. Why he made such a big deal out of it, she didn’t know. Were they common? No, but they went over all the different tools in school, including the random ones that were only used in specific regions, like a pick-hammer and a recycler.

It didn’t take long for her to get her hammer made and not knowing if Yan would demand to see it or not she took it with her to the back to the guild. As she got close she saw a young woman standing on the porch of the Blue Moon. Short blond hair, a short skirt and apron and red jacket, Lucy figured she was probably an employee of the saloon. Lucy waved as the young woman waved back, giving her a look up and down.

“New builder, right? Well, hopefully you stick around! I’m Grace, stop by anytime for a meal. I’ll try to make you something… edible.” She said with a wave of her hand.

“Lucy, nice to meet you. I’ll probably be stopping by later for a spot of lunch!”

“Looking forward to it!”

Lucy turned and made her way into the commerce guild. Walking in she found Yan, feet up on his desk, head back, snoring slightly. Without thinking she swung her new pick-hammer and landed the pick two inches deep into the wooden desktop right next to Yan’s feet. Yan woke with a start, arms and legs flailing as he just managed to keep his seat.

“All done!” Lucy said with a giant, fake smile.

Yan cleared his throat, “Yes, yes newbie, I see. Um… right. Well, now that you have that it’ll be your extension. I doubt it will leave your side. Next let me tell you about the recycler. Here’s the plans, it’s synonymous with ‘make do’ and a key part of being a builder here. Come back when you finish.”

Lucy continued to smile as she held eye contact a little longer than socially appropriate before nodding and leaving the guild. She did not like Yan but she berated herself as she walked back to her workshop. Like him or not he was still her boss and she should probably not antagonize him to much. Yes, she had a guess that he was part of the reason for all the builders leaving but a bad boss wouldn’t cause them all to say the exact same thing or even not rat him out.

Reading the plans for the recycler quick she looked at what she had. She’d need some more stone but had just enough wood. Thankfully there was plenty of little boulders around for her to smack with her hammer.  

An hour later she was sliding her new shiny recycler into place beside her workbench. It was going on lunch so she thought she’d take Grace up on her offer and grab some lunch before dealing with Yan again. Dusting off she made her way across to the Blue Moon.

As she crossed the tracks she saw a man standing at the end of the boardwalk behind the guild hall. He was wearing a civil corps uniform so Lucy figured she should probably introduce herself. She was going to be people’d out by the time she was done for the day, she could see it now.

“Hi there! I’m Lucy, the new builder.”

“Hey, I’m Unsuur, member of the Civil Corps. You’re new so be careful of the dangerous things that are out there. Like the wind. It throws sand at you when it gets mad.”

“Uh, thanks Unsuur. You, um, have a good day?”

“Thank you, Lucy.”

They blinked at each other for a moment before Unsuur turned to walk towards the oasis and Lucy turned to walk towards the Blue Moon, not quite sure what conversation she had just had.

Walking into the Blue Moon was like walking into a warm hug. It was dim but not dark and the warm wood that the building was made out of smooth and worn in all the right places. The decorations made it obvious that it had been around for a while with old and new photos hanging around the scattered artwork and general knickknacks. There was some stairs up to the upper floors where she assumed rooms to rent were. Directly across from the door was a bar and a few comfy chairs and to the left was a step up to tables, booths, and a small stage.

But by far the thing that caught her eye was the large shouldered gentleman behind the bar washing a glass. Looking up as she walked inside, he gave her a huge smile.

“Welcome into the Moon! Take a seat or just saddle on up to the bar here. Specials are on the board, and I’ll get you a menu.” His deep voice carried and even though it had an obvious customer service tone to it, still felt inviting and friendly.

A door to the side of the bar opened and Grace slid out. “Lucy! Welcome. Owen, this is our new builder, Lucy. Lucy, this is Owen, owner and operator of the Blue Moon here.”

“Oh, new builder you say? Well, welcome Lucy! Hope we can keep you here a bit longer than the last one. I don’t know why we seem to be having problems keeping one around, Mason stayed long past when he should have retired. Sorry, didn’t mean to dump that on ya. What can I get for you? I have Highwind Rice if you’d like to try it. You can let me know if I am doing something wrong. See..”

“Owen,” Grace interrupted. “Let the poor girl look at a menu first at least.”

Lucy, who was just a bit wide eyed, nodded. “I would love to try the Rice, if it’s not to much trouble to make. And a water to drink?”

Owen grabbed a clean glass and a pitcher of water, then a second glass and pitcher and poured in a transparent brown liquid. “Sand Tea. It’s actually a bit more hydrating than plain water. I expect you’re a bit dried out. Highwind was a fair bit more humid than here if I remember right.”

“You’ve been to Highwind?” Lucy asked, tasting the tea. It was light and refreshing and she could understand what Owen meant by saying it was more hydrating. It just felt better to drink than the water did.

“Sure have. Been all over the Free Cities and a little bit outside when I was a young man. I became an adult and left to travel the world. Came back when I decided I’d rather be running this place than not knowing where my next meal was coming from or where I’d lay my head for the night. Took over from my Pa here and the rest was history!”

Lucy just smiled and lowered her eyes. She wasn’t about to get into her own life path with a stranger. She had a feeling their versions of not knowing where the next meal was coming from were a bit different.

Owen made his way to the kitchen as Grace leaned on the bar top. She was the only customer.

“So, what made you take this position out in the middle of nowhere?” Grace opened, skipping the small talk.

“Just wanted to go somewhere I could help, you know? Didn’t much like the idea of a corporate job.”

“Fair. I’m out here to work while relic hunting for my archaeology degree. Figured working here would give me some flexibility. Didn’t realize how hard cooking was until I got here though.”

They chatted about school and nothing important. Lucy figured she’d have to make some friends or at least be acquaintances with people before she started digging about the previous builders, though Owen seemed a talker so she might be able to get a little out of him. She wanted to know people better though, so she would be able to tell a little easier if they were leaving parts out or not giving her the full story.

Then again, the longest someone stayed was five months, most didn’t make it past three, so whatever was driving them out she might find sooner rather than later by default.  

Owen came out with her order of rice and watched closely as she ate it. Grace smacked his arm once and whispered and he disappeared, but Lucy felt like he was watching from the crack in the kitchen door because as soon as she finished he was there asking her opinion. (A little more soy sauce, grate the potato a little finer and some thin sliced veggies, for a more authentic dish. A lot more soy and two eggs with only half a potato for her personal tastes.)

She was finally able to escape by agreeing to taste test his next attempt and just barely managed to get out of a cooking lesson on how to make it. Taking a deep breath she crossed the road to the guild hall to find Yan again. She really hoped this would be the last of her interactions with the man today but she needed to register her workshop at some point so she could officially start with commissions.

Which, you know, was the whole point of the commission guild in the first place.

“Newbie. You done with the recycler?”

She nodded and opened her mouth but he interrupted her, again.

“Good, no need to show me, you have a license, don’t you?” Lucy ground her teeth; the man was frustrating. “Now, you just need to go up to city hall and talk to the minister to register your workshop.”

“Minister?” She was unaware the church was in charge of the town, that’s not normally how it worked.

“Oh, you haven’t heard? Our mayor is out in the desert somewhere trying to plant trees or something. That’s if she’s still alive.” He laughed. “Anyway, Minister Matildia is in charge while she’s away. Now git.”

A deep breath later she turned to leave. He really sucked as a boss. Jensen had said city hall was up the hill past the Moon and guild hall so she turned left and made her way there, stopping to pet a few stray cats on the way and meeting a few other residents.

So far everyone she had met outside of Yan had been nice if cautious. She couldn’t blame them. A revolving door of builders and they didn’t want to get their hopes up she’d stay. She wanted to though; the little bit she had seen of town gave her hope that with a little bit of work they could repair and revive it to better than it was when first built.

She turned around at steps of City Hall and looked over the square. It felt like she was being watched. That eerie feeling at the back of her neck. She could only see Justice and Vivi though. Shaking her head she brushed off the sand that had stuck to her sweaty skin, she was starting to understand why everyone wore long pants and shirts even though it was hot as hell, and put on the silk scarf that Vivi had gifted her before opening the doors and walking into City Hall.

Standing just inside the doors, as if waiting for someone to walk through, was an older woman. The only thing Lucy comprehended about her was that she had a cane and huge ass hair. The woman cleared her throat, having said something Lucy didn’t hear due to her brain short circuiting about the hair.

“Sorry, hi! My name is Lucy, I’m the new builder. Yan sent me to speak with a Minister Matildia to register my workshop. Is that you?”

“Yes dear, you must have passed Yan’s little test then. Congratulations. So what would you like to name your workshop?” she asked as she walked over to a desk at the back of the rather large room.

“Um… name?” 'Test, really?' she thought.

“Yes dear, a name. You need to name your workshop of course.”

“Oh, um, well, lets go with The Forge then. Is that ok?” she hadn’t been prepared to need to name her workshop. Though why she hadn’t thought of it before she didn’t know. Of course she’d need a name!

“That sounds wonderful! We haven’t had one of those before. Now, sign here, initial there, and here’s your certificate! We look forward to all the telesis you can spread with your good work.”

Matilda reached out to pat Lucy on the head before turning and walking away. She had to fight not to pull away from the woman, it was such a weird move, but Lucy guessed that was a dismissal? She just stood there next to the desk blinking for a moment before also turning and slowly walking to the door.

She had made it all the way down the hill before becoming aware of her surroundings again, that feeling of being watched overriding the weird old lady interaction. Again though, she couldn’t see anyone that would cause the reaction. Tucking her certificate in her pocket, she didn’t care about displaying it, she made her way back into the commerce guild for the… fourth time that day to pick up a commission and see about some basic plans.

Opening the door she heard a raised voice.

“Why ain’t my lift request displayed on the board yet? It’s been two weeks!”

“Rocky, things like this take time…”

“I jumped your hoops, what’s the holdup now?”

“Here’s the new builder, I was just waiting for them to get settled, NEWBIE! Rocky here has a priority commission. This is a town request, so you still have to complete your daily requirements, got it? Good. Get to work!”

Lucy was again caught just blinking at someone. The man who must be Rocky was huge, wearing just jeans and a white tank, and had a hard hat on. He was the first person that didn’t have as much skin covered as possible and made her feel better for being in shorts and a tee.

“Names Rocky. Nice ta meet ya, sorry ‘bout you hearin’ me yellin’. I’m tryin’ ta get my temper in check.”

“Lucy, and no worries, I… uh…” she looked at Yan who had walked back to his desk and put his feet up, “understand.”

“Heh. Well, I run Sandrock Salvage over behind your workshop at the top of tha hill. Our lift to the ruins broke a month ago and I put in a commission for a new one when we couldn’t fix it anymore. Here, I can give ya a pass to the yard, we bring up scrap everyday, and you can take your fill. Right now we can’t get at the good stuff though, just wood, copper, and mechanical parts really. Once we get the lift there’s a mine you can dive that also has tin and we can get to the iron scrap. Here’s the plan I had Qi make up for me.”

Lucy looked over the diagram. It was well done, simple but complete and not over-engineered. She had run into that on one of her internships, the researcher there always made things more complicated than they needed to be and would get so angry when she changed it. It was good to see this researcher understood that simple was, most of the time, best.

“Sure, this looks simple enough to get together once I have the materials. Thanks for the pass, that will help get it done faster. Is within the week ok, I don’t have a furnace yet so need to get that built before building this.”

“If you can get it done in a week you’re invited to…” Rocky flailed his hand about thinking, “Pebbles wedding.” He leaned in and whispered, “he’s three. It’ll be a bit of a wait.”

Lucy smiled and outstretched a hand, “deal.”

They shook and Rocky went on his way. She moved over to the commission board under Yan’s glare and chose a simple order of thread from Vivi before turning to ask Yan about some basic machine diagrams.

Digging into a desk drawer he pulled out a handful of diagrams and tossed them at Lucy before he stood and left, claiming it was time for him to get dinner. She just shook her head and read through what he had given her. Thankfully a furnace was one of them and wasn’t to difficult. She could cannibalize the broken one in her yard for most of the parts and then she’d be able to start some bricks going before making her way to the scrap yard and picking through what they had there.

She was going to get Rockys lift done before the week was out.