31 Think you can handle it?

"How do you do this, Val?" - Philimon proclaimed with a grin, looking at her friend, who watched the backs of her two companions with thoughtful eyes through the window. Niels strode confidently ahead, heading across the courtyard to the rundown building, and behind him, Mark stumped heavily, slightly hunching over.

"What are you talking about?" - Valeria finally replied with a playful surprise, turning to her friend and making innocent eyes. Philimon could not resist and chuckled, slapping her friend on the shoulder.

"Whenever I begin to think that there could be nothing to surprise me anymore, you just casually stumble in here dragging along ... What would be next? A Unicorn playing on the flute? What is wrong with you?"

"I just try to share with you all the most pleasant surprises that life brings to me." - Valeria answered with a cheeky smile and again fixed her gaze out the window.

This strange pair now stopped at the back door inspecting everything from the outside. From far away, it was difficult to discern the expressions on their faces, but for some reason, Valeria was ready to bet that the boy is now crookedly grinning and tossing sarcastic comments. And orc's face as always detached and slightly thoughtful.

Watching them, Valeria could not help sighing. A smile slowly slipped from her face, and a strange shadow appeared in her eyes.

"What?" - Philimon immediately asked, noting such a sharp change in her friend. Valeria shook her head in response, and after a moment of silence, finally replied.

"In fact, I brought these two here for a reason. You are not only my best friend but also one of the few who really can sense other people. I know that these two need help, but I ... just don't know how." - On the last phrase, the duchess's voice faltered, and her eyes treacherously shone. The mistress of the orphanage immediately got up and gently took her friend by the shoulders, pushing her back to a small shabby sofa.

"Tell me everything." - She spoke firmly, seating Valeria and positioning herself opposite. Valeria picked up a cup of tea that had already cooled down and twisted it in her hands, before taking another breath and beginning to lay it all out to her friend. Everything that had happened in recent days.

"Phil, you know, when I decided to bring them here, I still thought that Mark will be the easiest to deal with. I thought that it will be enough just to offer him a little friendly support and a bit of warmth. No more complicated than with your children. And now ... "- Valeria sighed again, and finally putting the cup on the saucer hesitantly raised her eyes to her friend. But instead of disapproving look, the duchess, to her surprise, found only affection and sparks of mockery in Pilimon's eyes.

"Do you seriously think that everything is so simple with my children?" - The mistress of the shelter chuckled, shaking her head. - "Support and warmth are certainly good things, but even a puppy will shun people if they have already thrown him out or offended once. What can we say about people then?"

Valeria pursed her lips and nodded sadly. Philimon, seeing the frustration of her friend, took the woman by the shoulders and shook her slightly.

"Do not go limp on me. Yes, everything is not so easy. But you made the right choice. There are many people here who may be able to at least understand your new friends. This is sometimes quite enough to take the first confident steps into a new life. "

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Hearing the words of a friend, Valery immediately cheered up a little and even smiled slightly.

"Maybe we should follow them? You know, just to observe! What do you think?" - She perked up and offered in a conspiratorial whisper, leaning closer to Philemon. The mischievous glitters again started to jump in her eyes. The owner of the orphanage grinned back and nodded toward the window.

"I think there are already too many curious mice watching them. And besides, we are too old to hide in bushes and spy on the young men." - She replied with a wink. Valeria chuckled and wiggled her eyebrow with a hint.

Philimon only shook her head with a smirk and nodded to the window, as if inviting the duchess to take a look.

Indeed, there was a scene worth seeing. Two figures of Valeria's companions just disappeared in the doorway. In the next second, a whole bunch of small shadowes emerged from the bushes. The other batch of little mice stumbled from around the corner of the building. And they all froze, looking at each other as if waiting on who will make the next move. A couple of the bravest even cautiously began to sneak up to the door. The rest fearfully followed, jumping at each rustle.

The first at the door was a young guy of about twelve with dark hair sticking out in all directions. Behind him was a tall girl whom the duchess and her companions had met earlier, upon their arrival. Now and then, she grabbed the boy by the sleeve, tried hard to stop him, and kept whispering something in his ear. The latter only frowned and dismissed, continuing to move forward.

Valeria barely held back a laugh seeing these restless kids.

"It seems Eric has grown even more since the last time I saw him." - Valeria said, not even turning to her friend, because she was very afraid to lose at least a second from this funny performance.

Philimon only sighed in response. The duchess even turned around, not expecting such a reaction from her friend. And when her gaze came upon Philemon's serious face, Valeria frowned even more.

"You see, even among my children, there are challenging cases when you just don't know what to do to at least not hurt." - finally said Philemon, not giving Valeria a chance to ask. - "Eric, as you know, has always been a boy with a strong personality. But now it has become so complicated with him. As if every wrong step can make him ignite like a fire. Since I brought him to the shelter, Eric has always shown the qualities of a leader. He took care of the younger ones, helped his peers, even the older ones treated him with respect, and Julia always followed his as a tail, but now it is like he became someone unknown."

"That's can not be so bad!" - Valeria said with genuine surprise, turning entirely to her friend. - "But what happened, why did he suddenly change so?"

"Maybe it's just age." - shrugged Philemon. - "I tried to talk with him, even asked Julia to find out somehow. But it didn't end with anything. He only drifted further from us and now completely avoids my company."

Valeria took her friend's hand to somehow support, and turned back to the window, carefully observing what was happening outside, but her face was already much more severe. Wrinkles of uneasiness lay between her eyebrows.

It seems that Philimon also needed her help, and not only with the collapsed house. No wonder many members of the Valeria family were members of the Green Castle, Valeria could never calmly pass by something broken. Just the opposite, now her hurt started to drum with excitement.

Even if the human soul can be much more complicated than any mechanism that Lester could invent. Valeria never gave in even to the most difficult challenges.

***

Agatha's morning, as always, began when outside was still dark. Tiring open her eyes, she gathered all of her willpower just to push herself out from under the warm blanket, moving as carefully as her sleepy clumsy body allowed her. Baby Joseph, who was sleeping next to her, only frowned slightly and, turning over on his other side, continued to puff peacefully.

Agatha stood in silence for another couple of seconds, listening to the measured breathing of her children, then smiled slightly and headed for the kitchen. Ahead of her was another stressful day, full of work and worries.

While preparing breakfast, Agatha did not even notice how the first rays of the sun looked into the window, and the city on the other side began to wake up slowly.

The woman whirled around smoothly in spite of her impressive figure. Nature went a little overboard, gifting her with all those curves and a strong body. When she was still a baby, many warmly called her a sweet bun, and with pleasure pinched girl's chubby cheeks. But the older she got, the more often she caught sight of gazes full of pity and disgust. There were standards everywhere, and a big woman, who is a head taller than any normal man, is always frowned upon.

The father, in whose eyes she remained a sweet little bun, often consoled her, saying that she was the spitting image of her mother. A proud, stout woman with a white-toothed smile and a shook of dark brown hair that looked more like a mane. This fine woman always looked warmly at her daughter from a small portrait that stood in the most honorable place in their small living room.

Father himself was not a small guy. A brawny blacksmith with broad shoulders, dark skin soaked in soot, and a loose black beard.

Agatha sighed heavily and turned to the portraits of her parents, wiping her hands on a shabby towel on her belts. They were now placed side by side, wormly smiling at her daughter. It has been ten years since her father died, transferring his forge and all his affairs to her ex-husband Patrick. He was so happy that he managed to entrust his daughter into the hands of a reliable man, who, moreover, was his apprentice.

"How I hope you are now so happy to reunite with mother, that you don't have any time to look down at us." - Agatha muttered, looking sadly at the painted faces of his parents.

"Mom!" - A quiet, uncertain voice came from the door. Agatha jumped in surprise and spun around, almost hitting the pan with porridge on the table.

"Baby, why did you get up so early?" - Agatha threw up her hands and went to the girl, who was modestly stomping in the aisle, fiddling with her worn-down nightie. Catherine has already turned seven this year. She was tall and adorable, with a shock of dark-brown curls framing a childishly stern face. But what worried Agatha the most, Catherine was too quiet and very timid, like a small frightened animal. She always kept her face down and hunched over, as if trying to seem smaller and less noticeable.

"I want to help." - The girl spoke and clenching her fists, taking a step forward. Agatha immediately noticed the fire in her daughter's eyes and tight shoulders, that was trembling a little. Apparently, the baby was gathering strength for a long time, even with Agatha, she kept silent more and always tried to stay in the shadow. But today was somehow different. Did her sweet girl grew up so quickly?!

The woman smiled broadly and patting her daughter on the head, decided nevertheless not to refuse this willful offer.

"Well, my little one. Then hurry up, change clothes, and set the table. Your help will definitely be most welcomed."

The girl's eyes immediately flashed with joy and quickly nodding Catherine, dashed off to carry out her mother's errands.

The last, as always, were the boys. Both of them stepped out from their bedroom, at the same time rubbing their eyes. The eldest son Ron came out, leading by the hand small Joseph. And they looked so alike, even though there was almost 10 years gap between them, that Agatha couldn't hold in a chuckle.

By this time, Catherine had already managed to arrange the dishes on the table. The girl stopped and shifted her uncertain gaze from her mother, who was still spinning by the wood-burning stove, to a huge pan. Agatha noticed, out of the corner of her eye, her daughter's confusion only smiled warmly and hastened to put the bench closer to the table, with inviting gesture holding out a ladle to the girl.

"Think you can handle it?" - She asked, making a worried face. The little girl's face became even more severe. Catherine nodded confidently and grabbed the ladle from her mother's hands and climbed onto the bench. Agatha only smiled wider, examining the only happiness in her life. Only such mornings made her continue to fight and meet every day with hope.

Father often said to her:

"Listen to the old man, baby, the gods gave you these broad shoulders and a strong body, not for nothing. Only women like you can fight all the hardships of fate and bear the burden that will break the spine of any puny young lady. So, straighten your back and keep looking forward with pride. "

But sometimes Agatha really wanted to be that puny young lady who would tumble down from the slightest breeze. At least for a second ...

***

When breakfast was finished, the dishes were washed, and everything was assembled, it was time to go to work. Agatha was so lucky that a few years ago, one of the old houses nearby was bought by Lady Philemon.

Then it was the most terrible year in the life of Agatha, the ex-husband secretly sold his father's forge and fled with some street woman, taking with them all their savings. And Agatha was left utterly alone with three children. Joseph was not even a year old back then. Who would want to take a woman with an infant on the work?!

In the first month, she sold everything that had at least some value, mother's jewelry, dresses, even her father's tools.

Yes, it was painful to part with these things. But when your children look at you with hungry eyes, pride and other sentiments disappear like smoke.

And when Agatha was seriously considering whether they would take her as a prostitute, or she probably would be a better fit in the circus. Lady Filimon appeared at her doorstep as a goddess. She offered a job and even looked after her children. It was impossible to dream of more.

Therefore, every day, Agatha tried her best to repay her savior, taking on even the dirtiest work.

So today, after leaving the children with the other kids from the shelter, Agatha confidently walked to the kitchen, then to the laundry room, pantry, and so on. Doing all the work with enthusiasm of a person on fire. By noon, everyday work was ready, but the energy was still not diminished. There was still an hour before the time it was necessary to serve dinner, but something inside Agatha kept vibrating.

Agatha's eyes themselves fell onto a rundown building nearby. She was so happy when the owner of the shelter bought these ruins. Agatha was never afraid of hard work, and how wonderful it will be when they can turn this abandoned house into new spacious children's rooms, a hall in which children's laughter will ring and a dining room in which even more kids can gather. Hands were itching to clear and clean everything there as soon as possible.

Looking around the kitchen and making sure that she had not forgotten anything, Agatha finally decided and with a quick step, went towards the shabby building.

A side door led her into a small kitchen. It was wider than the one in the shelter. Imagination immediately began to draw to Agate that here you can put a big table, and here is a wonderful place for a kitchen cabinet. And here ...

The woman was utterly swept over by her daydreaming and did not notice how someone's huge shadow fell on her from behind. But before she could even take a step, a terrible crack sounded all around, and the next second she was thrown up like a feather. Everything around went completely dark, and her body seemed to be squeezed by a giant clamp.

Agatha tried to scream, but only a hiss escaped from her mouth. Attempts to somehow twist out or at least understand what happened did not lead to anything. Only the giant holder seemed to tighten even more around her, and from somewhere on top came a hoarse rumbling voice.

"Quiet, little one, all is well. I got you."