#goldfinchfreehold

It turns out Sylvi is rather busier than she expected. Childlings and kinain childling are dropped off until she feels like she's baby sitting in bulk. Younger wilders too.

Some she isn't sure she knows!

Well, those young wilders (the ones she knows) are getting deputized to help with the childlings, and the unfamiliar ones are getting a run-down of the place.

Eden is closer to her age, but the garden snake pooka is happy to help with the kids, taking two socks and doing a make shift puppet show "I am godzilla, I have an important environmental message if you know here to look for it. Also I think Tokyo is delicious." The other hand wiggles "I am King Kong, I have an important message about exploitation and man being the real monster and maybe true love, and New York is SO much tastier than Tokyo" "Nuh uh!" "Uh huh!" "oh yeahh?" "YEAH" "monSTER FIGHT!"

Even Sylvi has to laugh at that one as she goes past. She does her best to make sure that whatever snacks they have are doled out as fairly as possible, especially to the younger kids.

And god bless Lucia, who brings in another stack of pasta and pizzzas for the kids "Any allergies you know of?"

"Oh, wow! No, not that I know of. You shouldn't have come...it's dangerous...but I'm awfully glad you did."

"Hey!" she calls out. "Anybody here allergic to anything I should know about?"

"Whoever is doing this is going after kids..." She whispers "Not near adults. It's sick, but that's the way it is"

"I hate spinach" One kid yells in answer

"Yeah, big time creepy," she whispers back, then calls out, "Not an allergy, but noted, and you probably just haven't had it cooked right. Okay, so...anybody who wants pizza, line up at the bathrooms and wash your hands."

There is a stampede to the bathrooms

"You're really got them organized here," Lucia says "As orgonized as that age group gets. You ever think of becoming a teacher?"

"Me? A teacher? Oh, come on...." She laughs.

"I don't see why not. YOu have orgnization skills, you've got enough authority in your voice to demand attention, and you hate ignorance"

The front door slams shut, Piper is almost out of breath, so for a Satyr she must have been bookin?

"Okay, okay, okay, let's see... anyone seen my guitar?"

"Your guitar?" The winged boggan blinks "You're worried about your guitar at a time like this?"

"Well, yeah? How else am I gonna play for these kids? I guess we can just do a singalong... but an instrument gets - AHA! Hey! Scat!"

Is that an orange cat sleeping on TOP of her acoustic?

Well, in his defense, it's out of reach up there

Out of reach of sticky curious hands...

"Oh, geez, Piper, sorry...Mic! Come on, you're not supposed to be up here." Sylvi retrieves the cat.

"Ooo kitty" Some kids call out

She laughs, though. "If I had a dozen kids pawing at me, I'd hide too." She manages to snag the strap and swing down the guitar, and gives it a loud strum. "Hey kids! Who here likes music?"

"Me!" several say

"Uh" One boy ssays "can we have music AND Pizza?"

"Awesome! " Well, you can't PLAY music and eat pizza, but you can listen, and when you're done, I have recorders, a keyboard, AND some drums for anyone who can show me clean hands..."

She mentally apologizes to Linwood in advance.

"Oh, that's excellent! Okay, pizza!" Sylvi and Lucia work together to dole out the pizza and pasta and sends the kids into the big studio room to listen to Piper perform.

That is, after she deposits Mic back down in the basement.

She glances around, to see if there is anyone who looks like they are hanging back, scared, or not partaking in the treats...

Some kids go back to get their hands washed for real

One little boy seems to hang back, moving for neither pizza or music

She pauses in tugging the keyboard over onto a platform, and heads over, dropping into a squat next to him. "Hey there. I'm Piper."

"Dennis" the boy says quietly

"Dennis, that's a nice name. Say, Dennis, I need a little help up front, and you look like just the person I need. Could you help me, just for a little bit?"

"I... guess? " A pause "Will I get shot? " Fear grips him

She can't help it, she wraps her arms around him and gives him a quick, tight hug. "I promise you, as long as you are here, as long as I'm around, nothing is going to hurt you."

PIzzza flows as Sylvi and Lucia do their work

"Not a gun, not a man, not a monster, not even hot pizza burning your mouth or a paper cut."

Dennis warms up and smiles "You're nice. " Then "Oh and you need help?"

"Oh, yes. Come, here... just, lemme give you a hand. I'm short too, I understand." Helping him up the step onto the platform, and then boosting him to the bench for the keyboard. The bench might be happy, it seldom gets used with Linwood playing...

Luca says says "Seriously, Sylvi, you are drawn to leadership roles"

Sylvi passes a slice of pepperoni on a paper plate to one little girl, "Both hands until you sit down, okay?" Then she looks to Lucia again. "I mean, somebody's gotta, right?"

"See this key, this one right here?" She sets his hand on the particular key on the keyboard. "See, I'm kinda short, and my fingers aren't long and flowy like some piano players, but if you can just hit this key?" (it goes DINK!)

Dennis does as directed and touches the keyboard "This one?" He hits it

DINK!

He grins

She claps her hands together in approval. "Now, just hit it a bunch of times, in this rhythm... dink dink dink dink..." She sets the time with her hoof - er, her jelly shoes.

"Exactly, Sylvi . But we've both seen bad ones in leadership or teaching positions. Remember Mrs Gillete?"