Viola and Eulen walked home quietly. It was peaceful and relaxing. Mudd's suggestion had helped but she knew it wasn't only him. It was hearing others struggling with similar problems. That gave her hope there would be someone else after Ravin.
She smiled to herself.
“You are in better spirits.”
“Thank you.”
Eulen stopped in front of Viola's apartment. She held out her hands. When Viola rested her palms in them, the older woman gave a quiet squeeze. “Ask for help when you need it. You have good friends who won't judge you, we are all different in our own ways.”
“Y-Yeah,” Viola said with a smile of her own.
“Any time. Just yell, or project, you know it works. Either my sister or I are always on duty. One of us will hear it.”
“I just have to work at it?”
Eulen shrugged. “If that is what you want, you need to make it a conscious choice, like casting a spell. Man, woman, animated statue, everything requires effort. If that makes you happy, then make that effort. If you want to give up on romance, then just make that a choice also.”
She gave Viola a kiss on the cheek before slipping away.
Viola watched her go down the street.
Eulen stopped half a block away and turned around. “And if he won't honor those damn books, dump him!”
Viola laughed. “I will!”
Make romance part of her life instead of stumbling through it? Viola could do that. She wasn't willing to turn her back on love quite yet but now she had new ways of approaching romance.