I watched as the squirrel I was ected to climbed all over some anti-air empt half a city away. Its spastient made it difficult for me to do a thh iion, so I had ended up w a couple beavers to both my feed and Nora’s tablet to help with the structural analysis.

  Ohe beavers gave their approval, I immediately shut down the e, sat up, and sighed.

  “Are you finally going to get off that couch?” I heard Jane ask. I turned and found her sitting at the kit table, tablet in hand.

  “I thought you were doing school stuff today,” I muttered as I rubbed my head.

  “You mean that full day of talking to students, going over their education options so Sir Froggington could put together learning pns?” Jane asked. “The full day I returned from an ho only to find you in the same position I left you st night?”

  I did my best to keep from looking at that judging look as I made my way over to the fridge. “I’ve been w! I’ve been ected to my surveilwork, doing checks on a lot of the defensive empts,” I expined. “Guess I lost track of time; expins why I’m so hungry,” I mumbled as I dug through the edibles.

  “I thought you were w with Nora on that… and you told her to take the day off,” Jane said. I couldn’t see her, but I knew she’d narrowed her eyes.

  “She !” I insisted as I closed the fridge, sandwi hand.

  “And you don’t?” Jane asked.

  I paused, sandwich halfway to my mouth. “Noooooo?”

  Jane sighed and pulled out a chair so I could sit down. “That’s a lie, and you know it, you little workaholic. The bags under your eyes are even bigger than when you were putting the finishing touches on the building. Take a break.”

  I sat heavily on the chair, took a huge bite of sandwich, and sighed. “Fine.”

  “Don’t talk with your mouth full,” Jane immediately admonished me. “I’d really like to stay here, and make sure you don’t immediately slink back to your couch, but I have other things to do.” For a split sed, I thought I might be able to get away with doing just that, but then I saw Jane’s smirk. My blood ran cold. “Jennifer!” Jane yelled.

  The grease-staieen poked her head out of her room. “Evelyn is going to help everyoh their homework. Make sure she doesn’t disappear before it’s done,” Jane expined.

  “Homework?” I asked, aghast. “I am absolutely the worst person in the world to help them. You should get An to help instead.”

  “You’ll do fine,” Jane insisted as she leaned over and patted me on the head. “You just o keep them on trad ahe occasional question. You knur family stuff.”

  “I’m being punished, aren’t I?” I grumbled.

  “No, I’m f you to spend time with the family,” Jane said, switg to a quick bop. “When you get going on your projects, you fet the world around you. The kids miss you, so yoing to spend time with them. No questions!”

  I pouted for half a moment before stuffing more sandwito my mouth, while Jaood up and immediately moved towards the garage. “I’ll be at the school, discussing today’s results with Professington, you call me if you need me.”

  I waved at her back, half-heartedly, before turning back towards Jennifer, who was looking at me in disappoi. “How does it feel knowing she trusts a ten-year-old more than you?” the girl asked.

  “It’d probably hurt more if I didn’t know it was deserved,” I mumbled before stuffing the st bits of my sandwito my mouth. I slowly dragged myself to my feet and wandered over to the girl. “So what are you w on?”

  Jennifer instantly smiled and grabbed my hand. “Let me show you!” I was surprised at how easily she pulled me down the hallway. Guess that was the strength of aed child. It actually surprised me a little since I couldn’t remember the st time I saw Jehis excited.

  She shoved me into her small room and over to her desk, which was absolutely covered in meical parts. Not only that, but the top of her dresser and all the shelving I had the bears put in to provide extra ste were filled with parts too. I casually lifted a random part off the dresser, then raised a the little girl.

  “What? You shoved your bears into every possible crevi the garage. At least my parts are anized,” Jeniffer muttered as she she part from my hands aly pced it ba pce.

  “I didn’t say anything!” I insisted. “So… what exactly are you w on?”

  Jennifer pulled the rgest amalgamation of parts forward and proudly presehem to me. I didn’t have a clue what it was… it looked like half the scrap I pulled out of the scrapyard. “It’s wonderful?” I said slowly.

  Jennifer punched me in the arm. “It’s a hine for a bike,” she expined.

  I looked at the device closer. It did look like something I’d pulled out of cars before. “And it works?” I asked.

  “It hasn't been plugged into a vehicle or anything, but, yeah. One of the frog bots helped me hook it into a testing rig. It started up and passed all the tests,” Jennifer said as she ran a hand across the little device.

  “Amazing! I’m pletely useless when it es to maes. I’m so proud of you!” I announced as I grabbed the girl in a tight hug. She was surprised for a sed but returhe awkward embrace after a few seds. “Have you figured out what yoing to do with yine, now that it’s w?” I asked after we separated.

  “I was thinking that I’d try and pletely restore a bike and sell it to help the family,” she replied sheepishly.

  “hat. If you do all that work, you should keep it. It’s not like we he money,” I said. “It’s not like we he money anymore.”

  Jennifer just stared at me for a sed. “Evelyn, I’m ten.”

  “So?” I asked bnkly.

  “You’re not supposed to ride hover vehicles until you’re sixteen and you have a lise,” Jennifer expined. “Shouldn’t you know this?”

  “Look, no one in the uy will pull you over and ask for your lise,” I said. “In fact, only a handful of people HAVE w vehicles.”

  “So you just didn’t pletely fet about the w?” Jennifer asked with a smirk.

  I scratched my cheek. “I’m going to be ho,” I said slowly. “I never really learhem in the first pce. Wasly necessary survival knowledge before, and I’m apparently above the w now that I’m a samurai.”

  “You should probably make yourself familiar with at least the basics,” Jennifer replied, pushing the small engine bato her desk.

  I nodded slightly, fully intending to not do that iure. “So… Now that we’ve dohe show and tell, what homework I help with?” I asked.

  Jennifer gave me a crooked grin. “I don’t have any,” she expined. “I finish my work in css, or the instant I get home.”

  I stared at her for a moment, my brain not prehending. “So what do I help with?”

  “You don’t,” she admitted. “I’m just happy to have you e by and look at my stuff. An and Issi, though, will definitely need your help.”

  Something about the way she said that made me suspect that wasn’t quite the case, but I still po che them. “Is there anything else I help with then? Personal issues? Is anyone bullying you?” I asked awkwardly.

  Jennifer snorted. “No one would dare bully any of us. Not only are our faces retively known around here, but you send a squad of bears to follow us around when we go out. They’d have to be io try anything.”

  “Good, that was kind of the point,” I mumbled quietly.

  “Seriously, thank you for everything you do for us,” Jennifer said. “I doubt many samurai would spend their points to revitalize a slum or send kids to school like you do.”

  “I know a couple that would,” I said quietly.

  “But they’re not and you are. So thanks,” Jeniffer said, huggiightly. I squeezed her back gently.

  “No problem,” I whispered.

  After a few seds the girl pushed me away again. “Now that we’re doh MY homework, how about we go che the other two?” Jennifer suggested.

  I smiled softly. “Lead the way.”