Lesson 79- If someone knocks on the door, don’t open it by yourself, always get a grown-up first.

Jackson eventually finishes replacing the doors and then he approaches Torin and I. Torin stands up effortlessly without even putting me down. Seriously, I keep forgetting how ridiculously strong the guy is.
“Tori, I’m awake, you can put me down.” I comment mildly. He glances down at me, seeming surprised. Not that I’m awake. I’m fairly sure he had already noticed that. He just seems surprised to find that he’s still holding me.
“Right… Sorry.” He responds awkwardly, lowering me to my feet. I smile at him cheerfully, I feel a lot better after getting some sleep.
“All good, thanks for letting me get some sleep.” I thank him and he gives me a tight smile. He still looks strained and anxious. Jackson clears his throat. He’s watching us both and his expression is strange, like he doesn’t quite know what to make of us. I meet his eyes and shrug, not quite sure what else to say about it.
“Right, well I have an invoice here, I just need someone to sign it and I’ll get going.” Jackson says, he seems a little uncomfortable as he holds the sheet of paper on a clipboard out to me. Why is he handing it to me anyway? I take it and offer it to Torin but he just shakes his head.
“You sign. Don’t worry, I’m still paying for it.” He says vaguely. I frown, if he’s paying then why am I the one signing? I want to ask, but now probably isn’t a good time. Jackson is still hovering awkwardly and he’s probably got other things he needs to do.
“Okay, sure. Why not.” I respond. Jackson hands me a pen and I scribble my name on the invoice. I’ll ask Torin about this later when he’s less stressed out.

Torin gives Laura a call to tell her that she can come and start figuring out the new wards. While the phone is ringing, I step in closer so that I can hear the call too.
“Hello?” I can just hear her from where I’m standing.
“Laura, the doors are fixed. You may begin setting the wards when you’re ready.” Torin tells her. His words and tone both sound carefully controlled, I can tell he’s being careful not to be rude again and I’m proud of his efforts. I tap him on the arm and give him a thumbs up. Laura agrees and says she will be here in about twenty minutes. I decide that it’s time to go and actually get dressed. I should also probably check in on Jane. I don’t want her to think I’m upset with her, even if I am kind of traumatised right now. Torin hovers around by my bedroom door while I get dressed. When I emerge I tell him my plans.
“I want to go check in with Jane. She saved me and then I passed out. I want her to know I’m okay, and I want to make sure that SHE is okay too.” I explain. Torin seems a little wary but he doesn’t argue, just nods and gestures for me to go ahead then follows me into the bar. I knock on Jane’s door.
“Jane?” I call out softly. The door opens a crack and I can hear her purring sound.
“Hey Janey, I just wanted to thank you for looking after me, and to make sure you’re okay.” I say gently. She makes her unhappy clicking noise which alarms me.
“Is something wrong? Are you not okay? Did they hurt you?” I ask in a hurry. She continues clicking and I know I need to slow down.
“Are you hurt?” I ask. She clicks indicating no.
“But something is wrong?” I follow up and this time she purrs. I’m stumped, not quite sure what else to ask. Torin seems to have an idea though.
“Are you feeling unwell Jane?” He asks politely. She purrs.
“Are you sick?” I add. She clicks and then suddenly I figure it out.
“Jane… Are you feeling unwell because you ate too much?” I question. She immediately begins purring louder than ever.
“Oh.. Right… Well, if I could help I would, but I doubt a cup of tea would be all that helpful to you…” I trail off. Jane purrs again.
“You… Want a cup of tea?” I conclude and the purring continues.
“I mean… Alright. But don’t eat the cup. I don’t want Kyle to be mad at me for feeding you teacups.” I add. I turn to Torin and he just shrugs.
“Let’s go make tea I guess.”

Ten minutes later we return with three cups of tea. I awkwardly place one cup on the floor by the trapdoor and watch as Jane slowly reaches out and takes it, vanishing down into the basement again.
“Make sure to give the cup back.” I warn her again and she purrs happily. Torin and I sip at our tea quietly. At least I had a nap today, he must be exhausted. Maybe I can convince him to rest for a bit while Laura works on the wards. I know he feels the need to watch strangers, but he knows her, and he would still be nearby. I’m about to suggest it when a knock at the front door startles me.
“It’s me!” Laura calls through the door. Torin goes to let her in and she looks much better after some sleep. She’s also just clearly had a shower, her red hair hanging damp down her back.
“So, I thought I would start with the back door. The new ward is going to be way stronger. Not only will uninvited guests not be able to get through, but only the approved people will be able to touch the door at all. I’m also blending in an illusion spell so unless someone knows exactly where the door is, they shouldn’t even be able to find it. The front door will be similar but without the illusion spell and when the door is unlocked then anyone will be able to touch it. I thought maybe I might also add a ward to the door between the bar and the back of the building, one that blocks people who don’t work here so only we can touch it. Does that sound okay? It’s the best I can think of. I was researching half the morning.” She looks to Torin nervously who nods silently. I roll my eyes.
“That sounds great Laura.”
“Okay, perfect. I stopped by to see Catch and Kyle on my way over and got a sample of their blood to add to the spell for the inside door. Torin, who do you want to have access to the front and back door? The illusion spell won’t work on any of us since we already know it’s there. And the wards themselves won’t work on Kyle because he’s a dwarf. But the illusion spell should stop people from seeing him go in and out so they can’t do the same thing they did when he got hurt.”
“And it wouldn’t work on you either I assume.” Torin adds. To my surprise, Laura shakes her head.
“I thought that I could add a duress charm. It basically means my own spell can work against me IF it detects I am under some kind of duress. No one would be able to force me to open the door.” She explains. Torin nods.
“Good. Then set the front and back door to be opened by myself… and Rina. Just in case I’m running late.” He decides. I’m shocked that he includes me but when I look at him he just shrugs.
“You’re always here, it makes the most sense.” He explains. I just smile. He says that’s the reason, but he doesn’t even particularly want Laura to have access. I think he is definitely trusting me more and more. One day he’s going to realise he doesn’t need to keep me trapped here.
“And all of us will need to be able to open the door behind the bar of course. But no one else.” He turns to me with a serious expression.
“If you take any guests back there again, you will need to make sure to open the door yourself, don’t let them touch it.” He warns and I smile and nod. It’s nice that he isn’t ruling out the possibility of me having guests at least. Although I still can’t help but hope that soon he will be willing to set me free.