Exton

"Beautiful..."

The word is soft, a mere breath, but it was heard. She misses Gareth's smile, staring in awe at the manicured lawns and the flowers entwining a small arbor. Torrent guides her to a padded bench then disappears, returning moments later with a cool drink.

She points out an upper balcony, telling the Brownie Lord about a party she attended her in the early 1950's. While the town itself is invisible from the home, the firework display was spectacular. Her eyes are distant, lost in the memories. Torrent smiles as she points out different parts of the property, telling scandalous stories about people long gone.

"As lovely as it was, it never looked this beautiful. They had a groundskeeper, of course. The people who owned it were monied, but he never had a touch like this. It looks like something out of a fairytale."

"Funny you should word it that way, Miss Grace." Gareth emerges from the shadows, smiling.

"You did this, Sir Gareth?"

He inclines his head. "It is amazing... absolutely amazing!"

Just then Lobo bounds past, chasing a ball. He captures it and trots back to where Stoney is helping Tomas toss it for the him. Wolf lounges nearby, keeping an eye on the children as they play. The ball rolls wildly past him and he cocks his head, watching. Lobo sits, watching Wolf. He lumbers to his feet and saunters over to the ball. Picking it up, he walks to Tomas and waits for the little boy to reach for the ball. When Tomas has it in his hand, Wolf flops down and stares at Lobo.

Grace laughs. "Now there is a show of this is how it's done, brat. "

Wolf gives her a canine grin, yawns and gets comfortable. Lobo sprawls next to him, only to bound away when Tomas rolls the ball again. Grace laughs again, hand clasping Torrent's as she watches the little ones play. The Brownie's eyes fill with tears and he blinks them away. He knew he should take her home, her energy was dropping, but he knew these times were precious.

His eyes meet Gareth's as the Sidhe Knight lays a ring of wild roses on Grace's lap. There is the knowledge of her short time in his ageless eyes. Torrent grins at the surprised expression on her aged face. The small flowers have a soft fragrance that envelopes the trio. Torrent smiles, recognizing the variety.

"Fairy roses... Set the ring in a dish of water and they will never fade."

Grace touches the petals, eyes shining. "So many miracles today. The children, being an adopted grandmother, the amazing work you all have done here, the roses..." She looks up, glancing around. "The best part is knowing that it hasn't all been my imagination. You are real, every last one of you. My husband used to smile at my fancies, but you aren't fancies..." Torrent's hand closes around hers.

She sighs. "You don't know how much my life has been enriched, just meeting my wonderful new family."