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Arborus was sitting in the potting shed attached to his small cabin sharpening his lopping shears. It was called “the shed” by everyone at the Manor, but it wasn’t a derogatory term. It was a sturdily built structure made of stone, heavy timbers for rafters and had a tinned roof. His attached house was often referred to as “the cabin” as well, but it also was built of stone and heavy timbers. It was only one room and probably smaller than most robot room suites at the Manor, but Arborus liked it just fine.
Cob, his dark bay Morgan horse, was nearby, calmly munching on some hay. The kitties were nowhere in sight, probably still off hunting in the garden. He drew the whetstone a few more times down the blade then tested the loppers on a small branch he had brought in for the purpose. Perfect. He gave them a spray of WD-40 and a quick wipe with a rag, then set them aside to pick up his pocket shears from their cleaning soak in a can of kerosene.
He looked up at the sky. Those were definitely storm clouds rolling in. He had followed Cob in from the garden a little earlier, trusting the horse’s weather sense more than his own. He was not yet used to the weather here in San Diego. At home in Maine he could tell when a storm was coming just from the wet “feel” of the air. Here it was different, always drier than it should be. But he could almost feel this storm as it approached. He’d been told there weren’t often thunderstorms here, but the air was almost electric as this weather front rolled in and the old barometer on the back wall of the shed was dropping fast. It was good to be under cover, just in case. If Cob sought shelter, so would he. He picked up a smaller whetstone from the cloth-roll kit on the bench and began work on sharpening the pocket shears.
Voices were approaching from the far side of the glass house yard. Arborus looked up, his eyes widening in surprise. He could see the tall silver bot, The Spine, walking slowly down the path on the opposite side of the hedge. He was talking to someone whom Arborus could not see.
The Spine still sort of scared him. Arborus wasn’t sure why. The Spine had been nothing but nice to him since his arrival and had even gone with him when he had to have his surgical upgrade done. But he always seemed so serious. And he was so…intimidating. Besides that, he was a heavily armed warbot and had seen so much in his long life, so much more than Arborus could even guess. And then, finally, there was that fact that his own momma had been a part of that not so happy past. Arborus quite often lost his words for several moments whenever The Spine spoke to him, not always, just often enough that he was sure by now that it was noticeable.
There was no mistake, The Spine was coming down the path that would eventually cross in front of his cabin. Not wanting to go inside, as that would appear rude, Arborus put all of his concentration into slowly whetting the blade on the shears he held. Maybe The Spine would just keep walking on by. Maybe? Cob nickered and tossed his head.
A deep voice said, “Hello Arborus.”
Arborus looked up into the glowing green eyes of the silver bot - and immediately became mute. He dropped his eyes, his mouth open but no words coming. Arborus thought to himself, he must think I’m a total idiot by now.
“Hello, Arborus,” chimed a second, much lighter voice.
He looked up again to see Sparky rounding the hedge at the tall bot’s side. She was carrying something under her arm. Of course. He should have guessed that Sparky would be with him. She was smiling down at him. The tightness in his chest loosened a bit. His words were slow, “Hello…Sparky…Hello…The Spine…” Remembering his manners, he stood, so as not to be seated with a lady present.
Sparky smiled at him. He was always so polite. She said, “We decided to go for a walk and came out this way to see you.” She shyly held out what she had been carrying under her arm. “Look what I found in the library this morning. Two more plant books! They’re old, but I don’t think the plants have changed.”
Hesitantly he took them, glancing up at The Spine as he did so, finding him smiling down. His gaze turned back to Sparky. “Thank…you.” A small smile twitched at the corners of his mouth as he flipped through the top one. “Pictures! Nice! I will…look…at these…tonight.”
There was a long quiet pause. The Spine put an arm across Sparky’s back in a light hug. “Go ahead and ask him,” he said. Sparky became all shy and looked just a little bit frightened. The Spine offered, “Do you want me to ask?”
Arborus smiled his sweetest smile as he looked down at Sparky, “You can ask me anything Sparky, what is it?”
“Well, I….I was wondering if I could meet Cob. He’s such a beautiful horse.”
Arborus’s smile grew wider as he looked to his horse. He made a low chuck-chuck noise under his breath. Cob tossed his head and began to amble over from the other side of the shed. Sparky’s eyes grew wide and her smile froze at the approach of the large animal. She took a step back, colliding with The Spine, who steadied her and kept her from falling. Seeing this, Arborus slurred a barely audible “whoa.” The horse stopped in his tracks. Arborus went to Cob and put his free hand under the bay’s chin. “Why don’t you come on over and meet him, Sparky. He’s very gentle.” The horse offered another friendly nicker.
Sparky looked back over her shoulder, up into The Spine’s reassuring eyes. He nodded to her, smiling. “Go on, darlin’, I’m right here with you. He’s not anywhere near as big as Marshmallow.” The Spine laughed lightly, giving her an encouraging pat on the back. Sparky slowly approached the horse. Cob nickered again and tossed his head then settled his chin back onto Arborus’s hand.
“You can pet him if you like,” Arborus said. “Just give him a gentle rub there on the shoulder. He likes his neck scratched there too.” Sparky reached out a tremulous hand and placed it on the horse’s shoulder. Her smile grew wider and her eyes shone brightly as she gently patted the horse. Curling her fingers she gave him a scritch where his neck met his shoulders. Cob leaned a little bit into the scratching fingers, enjoying the attention. Sparky laughed and went back to patting him.
“His coat is so soft!” she exclaimed. “He’s such a sweet horse.” She leaned forward to rest her head against his neck, still patting his shoulder. “You’re such a good horse, Cob.” After a few minutes she stepped back reluctantly.
“You can come visit any time you like, Sparky. Welll…sometimes we do have work to do. We have a few more stumps to pull so…”
“Oh? Don’t we have a backhoe for that down in the garage?” asked The Spine.
“I’m…I’m…trying to keep….” Come on words, Arborus was saying to himself. “I’m trying…to keep…the heavy equipment off the old garden beds. And besides…Cob enjoys the work. He’s Morgan all through.” Arborus suddenly looked up at the sky. He could hear it coming. The rain. Two cats came tearing around the corner of the shed, one large and gray, one much smaller and pitch black. They pulled up short when they saw the two visitors then together executed a leap up onto the top of Cob’s hay bales, then up into the rafters. Cob had taken a step back too. Arborus moved back under the roof edge, saying to his visitors, “You should come in under the roof. Now.” At that moment The Spine heard the rain hitting the back side of the tin roof. One giant step put him under cover, a long arm bringing Sparky with him just in time. The downpour started and within seconds rainwater was pouring from the eaves. A flash of lightning was followed a moment later by a rumble of distant thunder.
“Oh no!” wailed Sparky as she threw her arms around The Spine’s waist. He put his arms around her shoulders, holding her tight.
Seeing Sparky’s fear of the storm Arborus went to the cabin door and opened it. “Come inside. This rain might last a little while. You’ll get drenched if you try to go back to the Manor now.” The Spine looked thankful as he led Sparky inside.
Sparky hadn’t been inside the cabin before. Her curiosity set aside her fear for the moment, even though more thunder growled in the distance. The inside was spartan and impeccably clean. The space was small, only about 12’ x 25’ of floor space. Two sturdy, black metal chairs with padded seats flanked a small wooden table near the door. A covered ceramic pitcher and two heavy plastic glasses sat on a tray on the table. Parked under a large old roll-top desk in the far corner there was a third chair, a wooden one fitted with heavy duty casters. The desk tambour was closed.
A low bookcase stood on one side of the desk with some neatly stacked old books lying on the shelves. A large potted fern sat on top. A filing cabinet sat next to the desk on the other side, another potted fern sitting there as well. A box-based twin bed with two drawers underneath stood against the side wall under the front windows. It was neatly made and covered with a dark green woolen blanket. The floor was smooth flagstone set in concrete. The stone walls were unpainted and unadorned. Some clean clothing hung from hooks on the wall behind the door. There was only one ceiling light. The only thing that seemed out of place were the brightly-colored, shirred curtains covering the two front windows facing the yard. Sparky smiled when she saw them. She had seen Butterfly making those and had wondered where they had gone.
“Please…” Arborus swept his arm at the room in general. “Have a seat, anywhere. I…I can offer you some water…?” He gestured at the pitcher on the table. He kept it there, filled daily, as a friendly gesture for the random visits by other bots. He didn’t need it himself, not being steam powered, and he wasn't sure Sparky did either, but he offered. He went over to put the books down in the bookcase.
Sparky and The Spine chose to sit side-by-side on the edge of the bed. Another growl of thunder rumbled, closer now. Sparky wrapped her arms around The Spine’s waist and he kept one arm across her shoulders. Both shook their head at the offered water but thanked him anyway.
The storm’s intensity increased. The wind picked up and the rain came down harder. The roof was tiled, not tin, so it wasn’t horribly loud inside the cabin but nonetheless, the rain pounded down with a relentless fury. Just when they thought it couldn’t rain any harder, it started coming down in sheets so heavy Arborus could no longer see across the yard. There was another flash and another heavy boom of thunder right overhead, rattling the windows in their frames. Sparky buried her face in The Spine’s shoulder and started to cry. The tiny cabin was so much nearer to the elements than being in the Manor. The Spine put both arms around her as he gazed apprehensively over his shoulder out the window.
A quick series of flashes was followed immediately by a long sustained cracking of thunder. Arborus saw The Spine’s eyes wince shut and he seemed to shrink in on himself as the rolling booms traveled in succession across the stormy sky. Another group of flashes brought more heavy thunder. The ground actually shook as wave after wave of flashes and cracking thunder followed. Arborus saw the silver bot was trembling. Through her own fear, Sparky had noticed it too and in a strained, slightly distorted voice she spoke to him softly, “It’ll be ok. It’ll be over soon. Hold me tight and it’ll be over soon.” She kept on talking softly to him as the storm raged over them, occasionally wiping gray tears from her own eyes. He held her tightly, not speaking, only nodding at her voice, rocking gently.
At a loss for what to do, Arborus stood quietly near the window watching the storm, occasionally looking down at the two cowering bots next to him. The Spine was nearest to him. He tentatively reached over to put a gentle hand on the tall bot’s shoulder. He could feel the tremors, the slight flinch at each clap of thunder. A snippet of a movie he had once watched with his momma came to mind. Soldiers. In a holiday parade. That same flinch at the sound of firecrackers…and suddenly he understood. He didn’t say anything, just stood quietly until the storm began to move off. It wasn’t quite over yet when Arborus said softly that he had to go out to check on his horse. He left the two of them alone as the storm wound down and the thunder moved off. He knew that Cob would be fine, but he didn’t want The Spine to know he had seen the single oil tear that had slid from tightly closed eyes.
When Arborus came back inside, the storm had quieted and the rain was now just a steady pelting downpour. The Spine and Sparky were still sitting together but they were smiling at each other now, seeming no worse for the wear, any tears wiped away. Arborus pulled over his desk chair (it was far more comfortable than the two metal-backed table chairs.) He sat opposite them to talk about the gardens and rain and the weather in general. Arborus would ask a question then he would sit back and listen. The Spine was only too happy to talk, to get his processors out of the past and keep his thoughts in the present. Sparky seemed to understand, letting him do most of the talking. She would touch his arm gently or take his hand occasionally. They passed nearly two rainy hours just talking, Arborus carefully keeping the conversation to the present.
The rain finally slowed to an intermittent sprinkle. When Cob moved from the shed out to a green patch of grass near the main garden gate, The Spine stood and offered his elbow to Sparky. “Shall we continue our walk, darlin’?” She slipped her arm in his. The Spine turned to Arborus. “Thank you for… for letting us stay with you during the storm.” There was something else in the tall bot’s eyes. His gaze held a look of gratitude. Arborus acknowledged it with a barely perceptible nod.
“You are both welcome, any time. Thank you again for the books, Sparky! If you find more, I’ll gladly take them. You know the Manor libraries better than I.”
“Oh! If I find more I’ll bring them to you!” she replied happily. "And maybe a carrot for Cob," she added shyly.
Arborus laughed lightly. "He would love that! But just one, okay? I should have some coming on in that frame over there very soon. You can pick your own for him." He saw Sparky's eyes begin to glow at the thought as a bright smile returned to her face.
Arborus saw them out. He watched after them, a trace of concern on his face as they disappeared from sight up the path. So many bots here, so many with troubled pasts. Though his own world had been upended, he realized it was nothing compared to what some of them had been through. He touched the green stone on his choker, thinking of his momma and how much she had loved him. He shook his head, a sad smile flitting across his face. He picked up the shears and the loppers, and calling to Cob, he headed back out to work in the main garden.