Jason responded only with a saturnine smile.
“Alright,” Hiro said. “Something I’ve been thinking about, then. You know I’ve been talking about a legitimate development project once the EOA handover is completed.”
“Sure,” Jason said.
“What if it was a residential community? Like the gated communities in America, except built to keep out dangerous magic rather than ethnic minorities. Is there some way we could bake in magical protection, right from the planning stage? Secretly build a place where our friends and family can be safe if things do go bad?”
“That’s an interesting idea,” Jason said, thoughtfully rubbing his chin. “A very interesting idea. I’d need to advance my understanding of array and formation magic, but I just so happen to have an excellent library of appropriate theoretical texts. I’ll have to do some reading before I can tell you how viable that is.”
“It’s not like I need an answer today,” Hiro said. “I need to finalise things in Sydney before I even look at what comes next. I’d like to head into Sydney later in the week, if that works for you. I know enough now that I don’t want to meet them without you watching my back.”
“Of course,” Jason said. “Set something up and let me know a time. Anything Wednesday or later works for me.”
Casselton Beach always had pleasant winters, but the morning after Jason’s big talk with his family was shaping up to be an especially fine day. The sky was crystal clear and the weather was projecting a high of 26 degrees. When Shade took his car form, it was open-top. Jason patted the door appreciatively.
“Have I ever told you how awesome you are, Shade? Because you’re awesome.”
Jason took the wheel himself as he threw on some music. He intended to enjoy the drive out of town as he headed for his father’s new place. It was just a few minutes out of Casselton Beach, but that was still far enough to leave the small town behind and hit pleasantly pastoral countryside.
Ken had picked out a good-sized patch of land that occupied an entire hilltop. It had panoramic views on all sides, with a vast open sky overhead, although parking was not ideal. There was a short gravel drive off the access road on the far side of the property from the cottage where Ken was living. Jason parked next to his father’s flat tray Land Cruiser.
Jason picked his way through an expansive landscaping project that was currently little more than a hilltop covered in dirt, large holes, and a scattering of native trees. Jason walked around dug-out dirt beds as he navigated towards the little wooden cottage where his father was living. Even the grass was largely torn out, with only some of the native trees left intact. The holes and projects dotted the property, all the works careful to avoid their root systems.
Jason knew enough to realise how ambitious the project was. His father was literally reshaping the hilltop in preparation of establishing the foundational infrastructure. It would take years to reach fruition.
The old wooden cottage was the exact opposite of Jason’s lavish magical home. He could just imagine the interior, all worn down wood and faded furniture. The only new things would be the big TV and the extra shelves for all the DVDs. Give his father a bunch of solar panels and the complete series set of Magnum P.I. and Ken Asano would happily wait out the zombie apocalypse.
Jason found his father in a folding camp chair outside the cottage, overlooking the property with a pensive expression. He had an old car stereo sitting on a brick and set to a golden oldies station. It was wired to a loose car battery. Ken had watched Jason pick his way across the property, then rose to hug his son as he arrived.
“You know, Dad, both of those things are meant to be in an actual car.”
“If I wanted a car up here,” Ken said, “there’d be a car up here.”
Jason chuckled as he moved to stand side by side with his father and look out over the property.
“This is ambitious,” Jason said.
“After what happened with you and then your mother,” Ken said, “I didn’t know how to go forward. I wasn’t feeling that excitement for any of the projects I was being offered. I needed something different, something I could lose myself in. I didn’t have any passion left. I’ve been lucky enough that money wasn’t a problem, so I packed in the business and went looking for that something. This is what I found.”
“You’re still getting ready to put the bones into place.”
“Yep,” Ken said. “I’m not sure I know how to do this after what happened yesterday, though. The things you showed us. The world just changed around me, Jason, and once again, I have no idea how to go forward from here. How do you go back to living a normal life after learning those things?”
“You don’t,” Jason said. “You can trust me on that one. Life is different now and there’s no going back. Change doesn’t have to be bad, though. I’m back, and I come bearing gifts.”
He took out an essence and placed it in his father’s hands.
“You have no concept of what it’s like to wield magic,” Jason said. “It isn’t that much of a sensation, at first. You can feel it inside you, but it’s just a seed. As you grow stronger, you can feel the power. You make it your own and then, when you use it…”
Jason shook his head, a smile on his face.
“It’s like feeling the universe wash through you. I don’t know if there’s a drug that feels that good, which is probably for the best.”
“Jason, I’m fifty-six years old. I don’t know that I’m up for whatever it is you have planned.”
“That’s the best part,” Jason said. “You’ll be healthy. Strong. Strong enough to maybe help me put aside old grudges. It’ll be awkward and uncomfortable. You’ll fight with Mum, I’ll fight with Kaito. And Mum, probably. But we’ll be there for one another. There are strange days ahead, and there will be things that I need to do.”
His voice dropped to a whisper.
“There are things I’ve already done. I’m not sure who I am anymore, Dad.”
Ken placed an arm around Jason’s shoulders as his son’s quiet voice broke.
“Don’t worry, son. You can tell the others as much or as little as you’d like. But whatever you tell me, I’ll listen, and you will never have to be ashamed.”
After unburdening his sins to his father, Jason was fearful of how Ken would look at him. For a long time, Ken watched his son in silence, Jason’s nerves fraying like old wires.
“I’m not going to tell you that the things you’ve done were right or wrong,” Ken said finally. “You can’t change the past, only the future.”
“I’m going to have these choices all over again in the future,” Jason said. “I’m not na?ve enough anymore to think I can avoid that.”