The Duelist 3, page 22
“Take it easy, big guy,” I chuckled. “I don’t want you having a stroke on me.”
Then the ram-lord threw his head back and laughed so loud I heard the startled flapping of birds as they fled from their roosts in the carriage house eaves.
“Alex!” he thundered as he launched up from the grain sacks and clapped me on both shoulders. “I knew you were clever, but I never thought how clever! For as long as I’ve lived, I’ve never known anyone to fool Sha-Kane. He misses nothing.”
“I noticed,” I snorted.
“Kane is one to look out for in the future,” the ram-lord said and gestured for us to walk side by side. “He is not a man to be trifled with and does not suffer those who sleight his honor.”
“I’ll keep that in mind for the future,” I said. “Gavlain, are you going to tell me more about why… all this?”
“I know you might be discouraged about me being less than forthcoming with information, but just trust me a little longer, my friend,” he said. “The timing of such things is a delicate one.”
“I trust you,” I said. “But is there anything you can tell me at least?”
“Have you glanced at that book I gave you after the Hunts?” he asked.
“Half-book, you mean?” I scoffed. “Yeah, I glanced at it, but I can’t understand a single word.”
“Neither can I,” Mec chuckled. “Neither can most people. But the point is not to read it, but to keep it safe from those who can.”
“Then where’s the second half?” I asked as we left the carriage house. From where I was standing, I could see Horus was on top of the carriage and looking in our direction.
“Take a guess,” he sighed.
“Doler’s estate,” I concluded. “You want me to find it, don’t you?”
“It must be found,” he said.
“What even is it?” I asked, but by the way Mec pursed his lips regretfully, I knew what the answer was going to be. “You can’t tell me, can you? Ugh, more secrets.”
“I understand it is frustrating, my friend, but I am only trying to protect you,” the ram-lord said, and the weary worry I glimpsed earlier shone through the crack of his facade.
I took a deep breath and nodded my head. “I understand.”
“Thank you, Alex,” he said as a little of the ease returned to his frame, and his smile was no longer strained. “You continue to help me more than you know.”
“Yeah, I know,” I snarked and shoved him in the shoulder.
“Take care of yourself.” He suddenly turned serious and placed another baseball mitt of a hand back on my shoulder. “If someone is trying to eliminate those with the knowledge of the metal, you are a target just for knowing that shard exists.”
I glanced down at the twisted metal piece Sha-Kane gave me.
“I’ll be careful,” I said and stored the five-inch piece of metal in a nifty leather pouch strapped to the inside of my armored belt.
Mec and I finally parted ways, and I decided to do the rounds and see if everyone was ready to go. After waving at Arvid and Mel kicking it in the hitched cart, I decided to poke my head into the carriage mostly to see if everyone was still intact and getting along with our two guests.
When I opened the door, however, I immediately noticed over half of the people inside were fast asleep.
Shay and Rylan were both curled up and leaning against one of Zoie’s shoulders while the cat-woman held them close. Across from them, Jenner had leaned back against the carriage wall and was snoring lightly, and Vel-Rala had rested her head on a grinning Bodin’s shoulder.
“How is everything?” I whispered to Zoie, who was keeping watch.
“All is well,” she intoned and kept up the motion of her hand through Rylan’s hair.
“Where are the sisters?” I asked as I glanced worriedly at Shay.
“I believe they have their own mode of transport they have elected to use on our way back to Ithaca,” my cat-wife said.
“Did Shay tell you what happened?” I asked.
“Yes, but I have a feeling she is leaving out some information,” Zoie sighed as her ears drooped. “I just can’t put my tail on it.”
“Remember her tragic fortune she told us about?” I cocked an eyebrow, and Zoie nodded. “Mec’s sisters were there.”
The cat-woman’s mouth fell open in a tiny “o” of realization, and she looked down at Shay as if seeing her for the first time.
“Is she alright?” Zoie mouthed at me.
“She’s the one who invited them over, so I really don’t know,” I murmured and reached over to run my fingers through the feathers at Shay’s temple. She looked like she was resting peacefully, but the faint pinch between her eyebrows told me a different story. “I have more to tell you, but we should get everyone back.”
“Husband,” Zoie said and caught my hand before I could leave. “You’ve done well by all of us, and yet I can still see there is a burden on you. Don’t forget you have us to help you carry it.”
“Thanks, kitten.” I smiled, and a knot of tension I didn’t know I was carrying unlocked as if Zoie’s words were the magic key.
The short ride from the Battle Hall back to Ithaca was a good one even though Horus decided to be cagey as fuck and “patrol the caravan.” Which really just meant he wanted to avoid any more loaded conversations.
It was fine because I used the time as well to clear and settle my own mind.
A lot had happened the past day and a half, and the longer I mused over the details, the more my brain kept trying to tear everything apart in order to assemble it again. But, frustratingly enough, it didn’t matter which combination I ordered the details, I was still missing pieces of the bigger picture.
Why was the Council interested in Doler’s library? Was it really the one book Mec had given me? And where would I even begin to look?
And if I did find the book’s other half, then what?
And why was Sha-Kane so interested in the book?
And what exactly was it that could make the fearsome Asher Lord nervous enough to obfuscate the existence of the book? If Mec could be believed, trying to pull one over on the all-seeing osprey-man was quite risky and could spell his doom.
And finally, what did this have to do with my need to participate in the Tithing Ceremony, Gella Vane, and that one guy who tried to snake me at the auction?
Too many questions, and not enough information.
“Husband.” Zoie’s voice suddenly broke me out of the brooding I’d been doing for the past… quite a while if my surroundings were anything to go by.
“What?” I blinked at my damp face staring back at me in the foggy bathroom mirror. Apparently, I had switched to autopilot and skipped the whole disembarking process.
“You’ve been scowling at your reflection since we unloaded from the carriage,” she replied and hooked her chin over my shoulder. “Remember what we talked about? You do not need to weigh yourself down so much.”
“I know, I know,” I said and brought one of her hands around so I could kiss her knuckles. “There’s just a lot I don’t understand yet, and I guess I need some processing time. I hope I wasn’t rude… what is it we’re doing again?”
Zoie laughed her full chiming laughter that was always such a refreshing contrast to her naturally deeper speaking voice.
“Good Goddess, you did get trapped in your head, didn’t you?” she purred and then turned me around to face her so she could groom and fix my hair. “Shay has requested us in the dining hall after we’ve all had time to refresh ourselves from the journey. Arvid is preparing an early evening meal along with Vel-Rala, Mel is off doing a favor for Shay, and Bodin is supposedly ‘helping’ in the kitchen, but I think he’s only there because Vel-Rala is.”
“You think she likes him back?” I grinned.
“I did spend a good time observing them in the carriage,” she said and smoothed a wrinkle out of my tunic. “Vel-Rala acts like she is either annoyed or confused in the face of Bodin’s attentions. But he is charming, and I’m sure it’ll only be a matter of time before she gives in.”
“And how is our son?” I asked.
“He’s back to being himself, but I told him he needs to be in bed for the rest of the evening,” she said and then smirked. “He was definitely a little annoyed at the fact, but I held firm.”
“You’re really good at this, by the way,” I said and nuzzled my nose against hers for a moment.
“Good at what?” she asked as she nuzzled back.
“Taking care of everyone,” I said. “Being kind of like a mother to Rylan.”
“I never thought I could grow to care for a kit who was not my blood,” Zoie admitted and tucked her head snugly under my chin. “It is not the Varthan way. But Rylan is different, and for some reason, I care more for him each day.”
“I understand the feeling,” I said and kissed the top of her head right between those soft ears I loved so much. “But you’re really good with him, and it’s really sexy.”
“Alex!” she giggled as I dipped my head down to nibble at her pulse point. “We must be joining our guests soon.”
“Mmmkay,” I murmured and then worried that same tag of delicate skin between my teeth before laving over the spot with my tongue. “Just need a snack first.”
“If only there were time,” she breathed and then caught my chin in her hand so she could place a scorching kiss on my mouth. She broke away after nipping my lower lip just enough to sting. “Ready?”
“Oh, fineee,” I groaned and tore myself away. With one hand, I brushed some of Zoie’s hair away from her neck so I could admire the rosy bloom I sucked into her pale flesh like the bruise of a peach. “We’ll continue this later. Shall we see what our wife has planned?”
We kissed one more time, threaded our fingers together, and then left the third floor in search of the dining hall.
And stopped dead at the sight.
The last time I passed through this room, it was a dingy circular space with moldy drapes, dull brown paint, and no table or chairs in sight.
Now, the drapes got upgraded to a shimmery satin blue and were opened to reveal the half-dozen floor to ceiling stained-glass windows bathed in the late afternoon glow. In the center of the room was a circular table almost as impressive as King Arthur’s, and it was surrounded by several comfortable-looking cushions and poufs. The whole ensemble was of course sunken into the stone floor in the way that was traditionally popular for Aventoll interior design, and my dumbfounded gaze tracked upward and marveled at the large crystalline chandelier that was dusted and polished to a high shine. When the sunlight sparkled through the dangling crystals, the light fractured just like it did in the greenhouse, and I wondered if the chandelier was made out of the same kind of glass.
“I didn’t even know this room looked like this!” I said as I looked around the opulent, yet tasteful, space.
“Me, either,” Zoie said as she walked up to the round table with a series of stemless champagne-type glasses that all had varying amounts of pale-yellow liquid inside and were arranged in some pattern as a decorative centerpiece. Some only had a little of the substance, and others were filled nearly to the brim, and when I got closer, I could smell a sweet aroma wafting from them.
“Careful, those are not for drinking,” Shay’s musical voice trilled as the resplendent phoenix-woman floated into the room in a pale-green dress with a tasseled rope-belt that showed off her hourglass waist. “Well, at least not yet.”
“Hey,” I said and went over so I could give her a hug. “This place looks amazing. How did you have time to do this?”
“I have my ways,” she said and threaded her fingers through the hair at the back of my head.
“How are you, really?” I asked her as I tried to see behind the mask of normality she was trying hard to maintain.
“Fine,” she said and pulled out of my embrace.
Which meant the total opposite, if I was learning how to speak “woman” correctly. Before I could question her further, however, the entrance of Arvid wheeling a large cart with multiple silver covered domes interrupted the moment.
Behind him was Vel-Rala holding two pitchers of water and wine respectively, and Bodin trailed after her with a tray of glasses and a small bowl of tithe stones.
Finally, the last to arrive were Horus and the two Mec sisters as he escorted them in on each arm.
Now that they’d shed their non-descript brown cloaks, the sisters were clad in matching white cotton dresses that were long-sleeved but left the tops of their shoulders bare. Other than a set of matching gold pendants that looked like a sun balanced on the peak of a mountain, they were unadorned of anything else.
“Welcome to Ithaca,” Shay said and folded her hands in front of herself like the perfect hostess. “I hope you enjoy the fare Arvid has prepared. It is one of Nata’s delicacies: a five-course meal of ashroot soups three ways, roasted valley squab, and cloud cake for dessert. Please sit wherever you are comfortable.”
At first, I worried things would be awkward, and I could tell Horus was likewise concerned by the way he kept glancing between the quiet Mec sisters and Shay as if she was a ticking time-bomb.
But my phoenix-wife was as gracious as ever, and she kept the conversation easy but low pressure.
“Do you think she’s mad?” Zoie whispered to me when we finished the three courses of soup. She leaned into me and reached for something to nibble on from my plate for some reason. “She doesn’t look mad.”
“Who, Shay?” I asked and then chased her questing fingers playfully with my fork.
“Mmhm,” she said as she successfully stole some meat from me, grinned, and then stuffed it in her mouth. “I’ve been watching.”
“You have, have you?” I asked as I eyed her up and down and took note of her rosy cheeks and low-lidded gaze. “What else have you been up to? Drinking a little wine?”
“No, nono wine,” she said and shook her head. “I don’t want to get drunk.”
Then my tipsy cat-wife lifted one of the stemless champagne glasses up to her lips and took a drink of that weird liquid Shay specifically told us not to drink.
“Okay, how about some water,” I said as I intercepted the glass and replaced it with mine. I took a sniff, but when all I could smell was a faint floral scent, I almost tried some just to see what the fuss was about.
“Shay’s been watching, too,” Zoie said before I could take my chances with the mysterious drink, and the way she listed to the side made me think twice once and for all.
“Here, Zoie, maybe have some bread,” I chuckled and ripped off a hunk of the crust loaf for her to nibble on. “Now, what about Shay?”
“Hm?” Zoie slowly blinked and swallowed her mouthful of bread. “Oh. I said Shay has been watching, too. Specifically the way her brother looks at the woman with the long hair. Who is she again?”
“Her name is Anwaar, and her sister’s name is Amaya,” I said.
“Amaya,” Zoie sighed as she put her head on my shoulder and idly swirled an odd pattern into the leftover juices on her plate. “That’s a lovely name.”
“Don’t forget to drink your water, kitten,” I said and tried my hardest not to laugh at her dopey state.
“Mkay,” she said and sat up straight so she could dutifully drink some water.
Just then, the doors to the dining hall opened, and in strode Ithaca’s missing resident, Mel, carrying in one of the hand-woven hives for the bumblebirds.
“It took a little coaxing, but I finally convinced Lula to put on a show for us like you requested, milady,” the raccoon-man said as he settled the hive on the far end of the table no one was sitting on.
“Mel, just in time!” Shay cheered. “We have your meal waiting for you under the warming lids.”
“Shaylee, what have you prepared for us?” Horus asked and then leaned in between the Mec sisters. “My sis, always such a good hostess, her galas are legendary, you should have seen the one she threw for me when I got into the Academy--”
“Oh, Rus-Rus?” Shay interrupted. “If you don’t be quiet, I will instead tell them about the gala mother threw for your twelfth season.”
“I would like to hear that story,” I piped up.
“No!” he shouted and then cleared his throat. “Ahem, nobody wants to hear that boring tale. We’re all much more interested in that thing there whatever it is you have planned.”
Shay gave her brother a deadpan look but then she smiled her usual sunny smile as she glanced at the rest of us.
“I’ve only ever read about this, and I hope I got my measurements correct,” she said with a nervous blush. “But I do hope you will enjoy it.”
Then the phoenix-woman whistled a tune, and the one-winged bumblebird queen peeped out of the top of the hive and then hopped on a twig.
The pretty creature cocked her small arrow-shaped head and then looked at the assembly of filled glasses. Then she twittered, and all of the bumblebirds swarmed in a large chiming mass, until the chaotic din began to smooth out almost like an orchestra tuning itself.
When the swarm was all congregating in the same counterclockwise fashion, Lula chimed, and like a mini-maestro, she began to conduct.
As if following some invisible sheet music, the bumblebirds would one by one drop down until their hovering bubble-like force fields were just on the inside of the glass. Because of the rapid vibration of their dragonfly wings, the glasses resonated similar to someone running their finger around the rim of true crystal, and I understood the reason for the different amounts of liquid poured into each glass. When all of the bumblebirds played their crystal glasses in concert, the whole effect was like watching a symphony combined with something out of Willy Wonka.
All of us were captivated as the hivemind of queen Lula took us on a musical adventure with all the highs and lows of an epic tale, and the music was so vivid I wondered if everyone else was experiencing the same ride.
Finally, the symphony rose up into a frenzied crescendo that lent itself to a victorious battle of some kind, and the music swelled to completion with a triumphant…
Tuba noise.
Sorta.
Then the ram-lord threw his head back and laughed so loud I heard the startled flapping of birds as they fled from their roosts in the carriage house eaves.
“Alex!” he thundered as he launched up from the grain sacks and clapped me on both shoulders. “I knew you were clever, but I never thought how clever! For as long as I’ve lived, I’ve never known anyone to fool Sha-Kane. He misses nothing.”
“I noticed,” I snorted.
“Kane is one to look out for in the future,” the ram-lord said and gestured for us to walk side by side. “He is not a man to be trifled with and does not suffer those who sleight his honor.”
“I’ll keep that in mind for the future,” I said. “Gavlain, are you going to tell me more about why… all this?”
“I know you might be discouraged about me being less than forthcoming with information, but just trust me a little longer, my friend,” he said. “The timing of such things is a delicate one.”
“I trust you,” I said. “But is there anything you can tell me at least?”
“Have you glanced at that book I gave you after the Hunts?” he asked.
“Half-book, you mean?” I scoffed. “Yeah, I glanced at it, but I can’t understand a single word.”
“Neither can I,” Mec chuckled. “Neither can most people. But the point is not to read it, but to keep it safe from those who can.”
“Then where’s the second half?” I asked as we left the carriage house. From where I was standing, I could see Horus was on top of the carriage and looking in our direction.
“Take a guess,” he sighed.
“Doler’s estate,” I concluded. “You want me to find it, don’t you?”
“It must be found,” he said.
“What even is it?” I asked, but by the way Mec pursed his lips regretfully, I knew what the answer was going to be. “You can’t tell me, can you? Ugh, more secrets.”
“I understand it is frustrating, my friend, but I am only trying to protect you,” the ram-lord said, and the weary worry I glimpsed earlier shone through the crack of his facade.
I took a deep breath and nodded my head. “I understand.”
“Thank you, Alex,” he said as a little of the ease returned to his frame, and his smile was no longer strained. “You continue to help me more than you know.”
“Yeah, I know,” I snarked and shoved him in the shoulder.
“Take care of yourself.” He suddenly turned serious and placed another baseball mitt of a hand back on my shoulder. “If someone is trying to eliminate those with the knowledge of the metal, you are a target just for knowing that shard exists.”
I glanced down at the twisted metal piece Sha-Kane gave me.
“I’ll be careful,” I said and stored the five-inch piece of metal in a nifty leather pouch strapped to the inside of my armored belt.
Mec and I finally parted ways, and I decided to do the rounds and see if everyone was ready to go. After waving at Arvid and Mel kicking it in the hitched cart, I decided to poke my head into the carriage mostly to see if everyone was still intact and getting along with our two guests.
When I opened the door, however, I immediately noticed over half of the people inside were fast asleep.
Shay and Rylan were both curled up and leaning against one of Zoie’s shoulders while the cat-woman held them close. Across from them, Jenner had leaned back against the carriage wall and was snoring lightly, and Vel-Rala had rested her head on a grinning Bodin’s shoulder.
“How is everything?” I whispered to Zoie, who was keeping watch.
“All is well,” she intoned and kept up the motion of her hand through Rylan’s hair.
“Where are the sisters?” I asked as I glanced worriedly at Shay.
“I believe they have their own mode of transport they have elected to use on our way back to Ithaca,” my cat-wife said.
“Did Shay tell you what happened?” I asked.
“Yes, but I have a feeling she is leaving out some information,” Zoie sighed as her ears drooped. “I just can’t put my tail on it.”
“Remember her tragic fortune she told us about?” I cocked an eyebrow, and Zoie nodded. “Mec’s sisters were there.”
The cat-woman’s mouth fell open in a tiny “o” of realization, and she looked down at Shay as if seeing her for the first time.
“Is she alright?” Zoie mouthed at me.
“She’s the one who invited them over, so I really don’t know,” I murmured and reached over to run my fingers through the feathers at Shay’s temple. She looked like she was resting peacefully, but the faint pinch between her eyebrows told me a different story. “I have more to tell you, but we should get everyone back.”
“Husband,” Zoie said and caught my hand before I could leave. “You’ve done well by all of us, and yet I can still see there is a burden on you. Don’t forget you have us to help you carry it.”
“Thanks, kitten.” I smiled, and a knot of tension I didn’t know I was carrying unlocked as if Zoie’s words were the magic key.
The short ride from the Battle Hall back to Ithaca was a good one even though Horus decided to be cagey as fuck and “patrol the caravan.” Which really just meant he wanted to avoid any more loaded conversations.
It was fine because I used the time as well to clear and settle my own mind.
A lot had happened the past day and a half, and the longer I mused over the details, the more my brain kept trying to tear everything apart in order to assemble it again. But, frustratingly enough, it didn’t matter which combination I ordered the details, I was still missing pieces of the bigger picture.
Why was the Council interested in Doler’s library? Was it really the one book Mec had given me? And where would I even begin to look?
And if I did find the book’s other half, then what?
And why was Sha-Kane so interested in the book?
And what exactly was it that could make the fearsome Asher Lord nervous enough to obfuscate the existence of the book? If Mec could be believed, trying to pull one over on the all-seeing osprey-man was quite risky and could spell his doom.
And finally, what did this have to do with my need to participate in the Tithing Ceremony, Gella Vane, and that one guy who tried to snake me at the auction?
Too many questions, and not enough information.
“Husband.” Zoie’s voice suddenly broke me out of the brooding I’d been doing for the past… quite a while if my surroundings were anything to go by.
“What?” I blinked at my damp face staring back at me in the foggy bathroom mirror. Apparently, I had switched to autopilot and skipped the whole disembarking process.
“You’ve been scowling at your reflection since we unloaded from the carriage,” she replied and hooked her chin over my shoulder. “Remember what we talked about? You do not need to weigh yourself down so much.”
“I know, I know,” I said and brought one of her hands around so I could kiss her knuckles. “There’s just a lot I don’t understand yet, and I guess I need some processing time. I hope I wasn’t rude… what is it we’re doing again?”
Zoie laughed her full chiming laughter that was always such a refreshing contrast to her naturally deeper speaking voice.
“Good Goddess, you did get trapped in your head, didn’t you?” she purred and then turned me around to face her so she could groom and fix my hair. “Shay has requested us in the dining hall after we’ve all had time to refresh ourselves from the journey. Arvid is preparing an early evening meal along with Vel-Rala, Mel is off doing a favor for Shay, and Bodin is supposedly ‘helping’ in the kitchen, but I think he’s only there because Vel-Rala is.”
“You think she likes him back?” I grinned.
“I did spend a good time observing them in the carriage,” she said and smoothed a wrinkle out of my tunic. “Vel-Rala acts like she is either annoyed or confused in the face of Bodin’s attentions. But he is charming, and I’m sure it’ll only be a matter of time before she gives in.”
“And how is our son?” I asked.
“He’s back to being himself, but I told him he needs to be in bed for the rest of the evening,” she said and then smirked. “He was definitely a little annoyed at the fact, but I held firm.”
“You’re really good at this, by the way,” I said and nuzzled my nose against hers for a moment.
“Good at what?” she asked as she nuzzled back.
“Taking care of everyone,” I said. “Being kind of like a mother to Rylan.”
“I never thought I could grow to care for a kit who was not my blood,” Zoie admitted and tucked her head snugly under my chin. “It is not the Varthan way. But Rylan is different, and for some reason, I care more for him each day.”
“I understand the feeling,” I said and kissed the top of her head right between those soft ears I loved so much. “But you’re really good with him, and it’s really sexy.”
“Alex!” she giggled as I dipped my head down to nibble at her pulse point. “We must be joining our guests soon.”
“Mmmkay,” I murmured and then worried that same tag of delicate skin between my teeth before laving over the spot with my tongue. “Just need a snack first.”
“If only there were time,” she breathed and then caught my chin in her hand so she could place a scorching kiss on my mouth. She broke away after nipping my lower lip just enough to sting. “Ready?”
“Oh, fineee,” I groaned and tore myself away. With one hand, I brushed some of Zoie’s hair away from her neck so I could admire the rosy bloom I sucked into her pale flesh like the bruise of a peach. “We’ll continue this later. Shall we see what our wife has planned?”
We kissed one more time, threaded our fingers together, and then left the third floor in search of the dining hall.
And stopped dead at the sight.
The last time I passed through this room, it was a dingy circular space with moldy drapes, dull brown paint, and no table or chairs in sight.
Now, the drapes got upgraded to a shimmery satin blue and were opened to reveal the half-dozen floor to ceiling stained-glass windows bathed in the late afternoon glow. In the center of the room was a circular table almost as impressive as King Arthur’s, and it was surrounded by several comfortable-looking cushions and poufs. The whole ensemble was of course sunken into the stone floor in the way that was traditionally popular for Aventoll interior design, and my dumbfounded gaze tracked upward and marveled at the large crystalline chandelier that was dusted and polished to a high shine. When the sunlight sparkled through the dangling crystals, the light fractured just like it did in the greenhouse, and I wondered if the chandelier was made out of the same kind of glass.
“I didn’t even know this room looked like this!” I said as I looked around the opulent, yet tasteful, space.
“Me, either,” Zoie said as she walked up to the round table with a series of stemless champagne-type glasses that all had varying amounts of pale-yellow liquid inside and were arranged in some pattern as a decorative centerpiece. Some only had a little of the substance, and others were filled nearly to the brim, and when I got closer, I could smell a sweet aroma wafting from them.
“Careful, those are not for drinking,” Shay’s musical voice trilled as the resplendent phoenix-woman floated into the room in a pale-green dress with a tasseled rope-belt that showed off her hourglass waist. “Well, at least not yet.”
“Hey,” I said and went over so I could give her a hug. “This place looks amazing. How did you have time to do this?”
“I have my ways,” she said and threaded her fingers through the hair at the back of my head.
“How are you, really?” I asked her as I tried to see behind the mask of normality she was trying hard to maintain.
“Fine,” she said and pulled out of my embrace.
Which meant the total opposite, if I was learning how to speak “woman” correctly. Before I could question her further, however, the entrance of Arvid wheeling a large cart with multiple silver covered domes interrupted the moment.
Behind him was Vel-Rala holding two pitchers of water and wine respectively, and Bodin trailed after her with a tray of glasses and a small bowl of tithe stones.
Finally, the last to arrive were Horus and the two Mec sisters as he escorted them in on each arm.
Now that they’d shed their non-descript brown cloaks, the sisters were clad in matching white cotton dresses that were long-sleeved but left the tops of their shoulders bare. Other than a set of matching gold pendants that looked like a sun balanced on the peak of a mountain, they were unadorned of anything else.
“Welcome to Ithaca,” Shay said and folded her hands in front of herself like the perfect hostess. “I hope you enjoy the fare Arvid has prepared. It is one of Nata’s delicacies: a five-course meal of ashroot soups three ways, roasted valley squab, and cloud cake for dessert. Please sit wherever you are comfortable.”
At first, I worried things would be awkward, and I could tell Horus was likewise concerned by the way he kept glancing between the quiet Mec sisters and Shay as if she was a ticking time-bomb.
But my phoenix-wife was as gracious as ever, and she kept the conversation easy but low pressure.
“Do you think she’s mad?” Zoie whispered to me when we finished the three courses of soup. She leaned into me and reached for something to nibble on from my plate for some reason. “She doesn’t look mad.”
“Who, Shay?” I asked and then chased her questing fingers playfully with my fork.
“Mmhm,” she said as she successfully stole some meat from me, grinned, and then stuffed it in her mouth. “I’ve been watching.”
“You have, have you?” I asked as I eyed her up and down and took note of her rosy cheeks and low-lidded gaze. “What else have you been up to? Drinking a little wine?”
“No, nono wine,” she said and shook her head. “I don’t want to get drunk.”
Then my tipsy cat-wife lifted one of the stemless champagne glasses up to her lips and took a drink of that weird liquid Shay specifically told us not to drink.
“Okay, how about some water,” I said as I intercepted the glass and replaced it with mine. I took a sniff, but when all I could smell was a faint floral scent, I almost tried some just to see what the fuss was about.
“Shay’s been watching, too,” Zoie said before I could take my chances with the mysterious drink, and the way she listed to the side made me think twice once and for all.
“Here, Zoie, maybe have some bread,” I chuckled and ripped off a hunk of the crust loaf for her to nibble on. “Now, what about Shay?”
“Hm?” Zoie slowly blinked and swallowed her mouthful of bread. “Oh. I said Shay has been watching, too. Specifically the way her brother looks at the woman with the long hair. Who is she again?”
“Her name is Anwaar, and her sister’s name is Amaya,” I said.
“Amaya,” Zoie sighed as she put her head on my shoulder and idly swirled an odd pattern into the leftover juices on her plate. “That’s a lovely name.”
“Don’t forget to drink your water, kitten,” I said and tried my hardest not to laugh at her dopey state.
“Mkay,” she said and sat up straight so she could dutifully drink some water.
Just then, the doors to the dining hall opened, and in strode Ithaca’s missing resident, Mel, carrying in one of the hand-woven hives for the bumblebirds.
“It took a little coaxing, but I finally convinced Lula to put on a show for us like you requested, milady,” the raccoon-man said as he settled the hive on the far end of the table no one was sitting on.
“Mel, just in time!” Shay cheered. “We have your meal waiting for you under the warming lids.”
“Shaylee, what have you prepared for us?” Horus asked and then leaned in between the Mec sisters. “My sis, always such a good hostess, her galas are legendary, you should have seen the one she threw for me when I got into the Academy--”
“Oh, Rus-Rus?” Shay interrupted. “If you don’t be quiet, I will instead tell them about the gala mother threw for your twelfth season.”
“I would like to hear that story,” I piped up.
“No!” he shouted and then cleared his throat. “Ahem, nobody wants to hear that boring tale. We’re all much more interested in that thing there whatever it is you have planned.”
Shay gave her brother a deadpan look but then she smiled her usual sunny smile as she glanced at the rest of us.
“I’ve only ever read about this, and I hope I got my measurements correct,” she said with a nervous blush. “But I do hope you will enjoy it.”
Then the phoenix-woman whistled a tune, and the one-winged bumblebird queen peeped out of the top of the hive and then hopped on a twig.
The pretty creature cocked her small arrow-shaped head and then looked at the assembly of filled glasses. Then she twittered, and all of the bumblebirds swarmed in a large chiming mass, until the chaotic din began to smooth out almost like an orchestra tuning itself.
When the swarm was all congregating in the same counterclockwise fashion, Lula chimed, and like a mini-maestro, she began to conduct.
As if following some invisible sheet music, the bumblebirds would one by one drop down until their hovering bubble-like force fields were just on the inside of the glass. Because of the rapid vibration of their dragonfly wings, the glasses resonated similar to someone running their finger around the rim of true crystal, and I understood the reason for the different amounts of liquid poured into each glass. When all of the bumblebirds played their crystal glasses in concert, the whole effect was like watching a symphony combined with something out of Willy Wonka.
All of us were captivated as the hivemind of queen Lula took us on a musical adventure with all the highs and lows of an epic tale, and the music was so vivid I wondered if everyone else was experiencing the same ride.
Finally, the symphony rose up into a frenzied crescendo that lent itself to a victorious battle of some kind, and the music swelled to completion with a triumphant…
Tuba noise.
Sorta.
