Unremarkable, really, in comparison to his hands. Neither tall nor short, thin nor fat. Roughly my age. Apparently in good health. Inviting mouth, wit... a welcoming smile and the white teeth of someone who eschewed coffee, tea, and tobacco. Not unattractive, but not stunning either. He smelled of a woodsy soap, rugged and pleasant. And he carried himself with a quiet confidence, a take-it-or-leave-it attitude that was more contented than arrogant. His hazel eyes held a mischievous sparkle,. Alan smiled then collapsed beside Hopix, Concentrating Hopix managed to carry him with whatlittle power she had (she still couldn’t use her full power yet). The Lobrits came out in force carrying Alan inside and to his bed. Hopix sat next to his bed feeling tired herself she knew they were almost done. She just hoped that the last secret didn’t tear them apart. Laying her head on the bed she was soon asleep herself.Merlin had seen them come in he’d been practicing he had his power right on the. Traveling across the desert was not a joyful experience! There was at least one skeleton or abandoned wagon for every mile; you could find your way across just by following these depressing markers. They couldn't help breathing in the dust containing alkali and salt particles, even though they wore cloth masks. The only thing to do was stoically bear the discomfort, but it only added another layer on top of the boredom.The children were the only ones to find some relief from the boredom of the. On Monday morning I picked Karen up and we drove to the office. Fred was already there and greeted us warmly. Karen was feeling a little bit embarrassed, but that quickly disappeared as we got into the office routine and Fred and I went out for appointments.We managed to all be together at afternoon tea time and as we sat enjoying a cup of coffee with some fresh baked cookies Fred had brought from the bakery he asked us if we wanted to have dinner at his place again on Friday.Once we had.