Everything was peaceful at the Fendleton Manor. The morning light picked up the thick layers of fog clinging to the wet grass of the valley floor. The river was overflowing from snow and rain in constant torrent. Though halfway through winter, the little manor had not yet been snowed in. Despite the quietness of the surrounding woods, there was a storm brooding on the horizon. The gossipy ladies from the village were overcome with excitement and had begun preparing for weeks in advance. Despite all their complaining and whining of the wretched weather, they all secretly yearned for the snows to cover the ground. And what a gossipy lot they truly were.
It had only been a few weeks I'd been cramped up in Fendleton and I was getting cabin fever despite the size of the actual manor. Kitty had summoned me month and half prior for safe escort out to the countryside. London may have been in ruins, but it's political state remained surprisingly stable. Prominent commoners had stepped forward to begin a joint leadership and it was all working out rather tidily. For all the humans, I suppose. Sure, they had all started trust exercises with each their djinn and policy was to not use punishments of any sort, but the djinn remained bound to their tasks. But I hardly had any room to complain. Kitty and Nathaniel let me soar far and wide, though the countryside was so open it satisfied my wanderlust and cramping essence most days.
Nathanial was still recovering from a few cracked ribs and a broken leg, though his leg was almost entirely healed. Upon first seeing him and recognizing his stubborn survival, I made no hesitation in informing him that if he uttered a word of my respect for him I'd break every bone in his body twice. So, without further ado, we had launched back into our usual banter. But very little seemed to even ruffle his feathers these days; not even the cruelest of my witty jabs. The boy was in love and it was the reason I often wasn't in the house. Though there was another reason.
Kitty and Nathaniel had rescued a girl from the rubble after their brief stint helping to organize cleanup of the city. (They had proclaimed love and quickly decided to have off with all politics and moved to the country after being given a substantial amount of money for killing Nouda.) She had been an orphan, sent to live with her extremely wealthy uncle, who happened to be a magician. He had been killed by one of Noudas followers in the chaotic night the city had been overthrown. Rather than taking on a new apprentice, he simply trained the girl. Even I had to admit though, she was unnaturally intelligent and had a knack for…well…everything. But there was this horrible…cockiness. Great lords of the sky, I couldn't even describe how exactly she got under my skin, but she did. She played piano, violin and harp perfectly. She spoke as many languages as I did, cooked better than most French chefs, sewed her own dresses, drew and painted scenes worthy of the metropolitan and, of course, got along with everyone perfectly. Nathaniel and Kitty just loved her, they always harass me about not getting on with her. It was bloody degrading.
I could smell the storm that morning; the air was heavy with the scent of snow. With a sigh and a grumble I turned back towards the house. Though the storm wouldn't be here for another three days or so, I knew kitty would want to run out and fetch plenty of supplies from the town.