An American Geek in a Halkeginian Court

by Inner Legions

An American commits cultural appropriation against a hapless Japanese youth. Typical, just typical. WARNING: CONTAINS RAW, GRAPHIC KIPLING. May only be suitable for mature readers.

20. Rumors of War VI

Rumors of War, Part VI

"You are certain that you don't wish her bound?" Agnes asked, as the four of them looked down on Nicole's slumbering form, now laid out on the bed in de Montferat's hidden BDSM chamber.

Jason shook his head. "Even with a blanket hung to cover the restraints on the wall, it's pretty obvious what this room is for."

"If she attacks you-"

"You already searched her for weapons. I'll take my chances."

"Very well." She gave him a curt nod and marched out into the hallway.

Several moments later, her muffled voice came from the wall with the peephole. "I'm in position to observe."

"And can you hear me?" he asked in a deliberately-conversational tone.

"Well enough."

Henrietta smiled, although her expression was a bit strained. "Then it's time to start, isn't it? May Brimir smile on this method of yours." She then leaned over and tapped Nicole's head with her wand, casting the spell that would allow the ex-faerie to awaken.

"I'm sure you'll be fine," Louise as the princess led her out the door. "But if you aren't, call out, and we'll come!"

With that the door shut, and Jason sat down in one of the two chairs that they'd brought in from another room, waiting for Nicole to wake up.

Shortly thereafter, the ex-faerie stirred, yawned, stretched, opened her eyes . . . then froze as she saw Jason sitting by the bed, watching her.

"Where-" She started, before looking around the room and tensing up even more. Then, in a deliberately bored tone: "You bring me to a room like this, and you don't even chain me up?"

He flushed. Dammit, we should have figured out some other room to interrogate her in. "I, uh, I hope you aren't too disappointed at the oversight. We needed to talk, though."

Nicole shook herself, then rolled over onto her side, facing him. "I suppose," she said in a small voice, looking up at him with wide eyes, lustrous brown curls framing an expression filled with trepidation, "that I shall have to accustom myself to obeying your every whim. Whatever you wish, my master."

Jason couldn't help but gulp. Her dress had caught as she rolled, tightening on her frame, riding up on her legs far enough to show a bit of thigh as well as pushing her bosom into sharp relief, high and firm on her chest. And unlike the incident with Kirche, he was the one who'd dragged her into a bedchamber.

"Master?" she asked when he didn't say anything. "I've been memorizing Gallian love poems. Would you like me to recite some of them?"

"I-I-" But he couldn't get anything out past the stutter.

"You won't be breaking your word, you know." Her voice turned slightly husky and breathless, as her eyes widened even more. "I'm already with child and dismissed from the Inn, so you can do as you like without ruining me further. Just, please, for the love of Brimir, don't abandon me afterward!"

Jason stood frozen, all-but-paralyzed, mind utterly blank-

[agnes says she is ready to end this farce] There was a slight pause. [you are not planning on ravishing her][,][are you][?]

[no i am not][!]tell agnes to give me a bit longer]

[then you need to stop letting her turn your head like a customer][!]

Oh. Right. She's the most skilled faerie after Jessica. And we're an idiot. [thank you little mistress].[i did not consider that]

He took a deep breath and then let it out in a great big sigh. "Nicole, if you don't stop trying to play me, I'll be pulled out of this room. And the next person you'll have to answer to won't care at all about your situation."

The ex-faerie gave him a heavy-lidded look, then sat up and turned so that she was sitting on the edge of the bed. And somehow, in that one move, her dress was back to normal.

"What do you want, then?" she asked, tossing her head.

"I want to hear what happened, how you ended up where you were."

Nicole blinked, then smirked. "That's easy. Roxane muttered something about the Laughing Princess while she was drugging de Montferat's dogs. No surprise that they're involved, what with already having to hide who they are."

"Which doesn't explain how you were there, or even why. Seriously, if you don't come clean with me, you won't like who you have to answer to."

"I wanted to know if you'd made contact with Reconquista yet, of course."

"Made-" He stopped himself. "Go on."

She rolled her eyes. "If you must know, I was going to blackmail you and 'Athena' for the rest of my dowry money. Not that it matters, now that I'm your prisoner."

"Ah." [Louise][please point out that this is exactly the kind of ruthless practicality that she favors].[so she is probably telling the truth]

[i will].[but keep her talking][!]

"And how did you find out about our interest in Reconquista, exactly?"

"How do you think?" Nicole leaned forward a bit, her smirk widening. "You told me."

"I . . . what?"

"'Ge' off me, lady, I'm taken!'" she replied in a mimicry of intoxicated speech. "As drunk as you were, I didn't expect that. But I could work with it: 'Shhh, it's Siesta, I've come to visit you.'"

Jason blinked. "That . . . how does that lead to Reconquista, exactly?"

"That didn't. I was still trying to seduce you so I could claim you as the father, when I started to show my pregnancy. But then you said: 'No, not Shieshta, gotta get to Louishe.'" Nicole frowned in an exaggerated expression of puzzlement. "'Who's Louise?' 'Oh, tha' right. Athena.' Then you winked at me.

"That's when I realized that I didn't need to seduce you after all. I just needed to lead you on until you told me who Louise's family is, and then I could demand your gold for my silence!"

Once more, he was reduced to gaping, albeit for somewhat different reasons.

[agnes wants to know why you got drunk]

[tell her what nicole gave me to drink when I thought I was still having punch]

[i am. She says it was still foolish of you]

[i cannot dispute that] Jason shook his head. "I think I can guess where this is going, but why don't you finish up?"

The brunette leaned back, looking smug. "You wouldn't give me her family name, but you started going on about finding Reconquista. Except then I heard the door behind me start to open, so I kissed you to shut you up so that Louise wouldn't know what you'd let slip."

"Uh-"

"And then when I was in bed, I put it all together. The rumors you started to get people talking in the taproom about Reconquista, and how Louise would eavesdrop on them whenever she could. She's the younger sister, and doesn't stand to inherit anything, right? You're trying to find Reconquista and join them so that she'll get something better than what her family will give her!"

"Huh. And that's what you were going to blackmail us about."

[her highness is laughing her head off][,][and agnes is muttering something about bad theatre]

[this is degenerating into a farce][,][i agree]

Nicole nodded, but then her smug expression faded and she looked down. "But your contact caught me, instead. Please, I just wanted to save myself from falling into the slums. You know how I'll end up, if I can't find a man willing to marry me, and soon."

"Yeah." Jason shook his head. "I'm going to have to go confer. In the meantime, don't go looking around the room. See if you can't nap, or something."

[okay][,][let me out].[we gotta talk about what to do about her]

"You want me to sleep in here?" she asked incredulously.

"Try?" he offered over his shoulder, as the hidden door opened to allow his exit.

---

"In deference to the expert," Jason said as soon as the door was Levitated back into place, "Agnes, was she telling the truth?"

Said expert looked like she was biting into a lemon, but nodded curtly. Then burst out: "How, in Brimir's name, did you get her to do that!? She was . . . she was like a theatre villain explaining her plan to the audience!"

He chuckled. "Because she was bragging about how clever she was? Yeah, people like to do that." The smile left his face. "I'm relieved it worked, to be honest. Most people want to be . . . in good standing with whoever they're among. So they have a desire to justify themselves, if they're accused of wrongdoing. Either explain why it was okay for them to do whatever they did, or set the record straight."

"Or set the record crooked," Agnes retorted. "Scoundrels lie, and lie again, and lie all the harder when you have proof of their infamy. I would place little trust in her words, save that she was boasting of how she cozened you."

"So we're satisfied that she was just trying to get the gold she needed to finish growing her dowry?" he asked hopefully in reply.

"By treacherous means, and twice over!" Louise put in, scowling. "If she had asked, we could have tried to figure out how to help her, but instead, this!"

"Indeed." The bodyguard turned to shoot Henrietta a look of warning. "She would not do well working in the Palace. Her intrigues would be a constant source of discord, and if a foreign agent happened to recruit her-!"

"Why not just pay her off with a bag of gold?" Jason asked. "I mean, Louise could probably put up most of what Nicole needs from the funds you released to her-"

"No I couldn't," his little mistress interrupted. "Nicole wants to buy a workshop for whoever she persuades to marry her. Six hundred gold pence is enough for a family to live on for a year, not to purchase an entire living! Even with what she's put by, she needs another year of earning the kind of tips that she makes before she has enough."

"If a workshop or other living could be had so cheaply," Agnes confirmed, nodding sharply, "there would be more masters and fewer life-long journeymen. Even among the Protestants most livings are passed on through inheritance, and prices here in Bruxelles are higher than anywhere else!"

"Oh." Jason winced. "That's going to make it even harder for the slum conscripts to make their way after being released from service, isn't it?"

"I'm sure a journeyman lives better than a slum rat," Henrietta pointed out. Then she smiled. "Agnes, it's Nicole's intelligence that makes her such a problem, isn't it?"

"She would scheme to her own benefit regardless," the bodyguard replied warily. "But her intelligence does make her scheming and grasping at apparent opportunity more dangerous to our plans. That is why we cannot simply pay her off and let her go: Sooner or later she would seek us out to try to demand more. Or worse, find another to sell our supposed secrets to! Better to simply dispose of her now, before she can attempt any more interference."

"But what if I take her into my service-"

"Your Highness!" came the protesting reply.

Only for the princess to continue: "-and assign her to you for training? If she schemes, let her schemes serve us instead of thwarting us."

Agnes froze for a moment, clearly thinking.

Then she shook her head. "No. I could train her, if she is as clever as she seems, but the blade that I would forge of her would turn and cut once you tried to wield her in your service."

"You can't know that."

Nostrils flared and teeth gritted. "Your Highness, I serve you faithfully because of what you give me in return. Miss Vallière serves you because she is raised to it. Jason serves your purpose because he is a man, and is sentimental as men are prone to be, and has devoted himself to Miss Vallière."

Jason blushed, opened his mouth to protest . . . and then shrugged. "'Tis a fair cop," he laughingly agreed.

"Nicole will not be loyal to anyone but herself and her family. Which means, for her, the child she bears and none else! I could train her in the skills I have acquired, but I cannot teach her to be loyal. She would turn and cut in your hand."

"That may be, but I cannot abide the thought of killing her simply for being in the wrong place at the wrong time," Henrietta replied, quietly, but with considerable dignity. "Perhaps she could be remanded into Vallière service-"

"What?!" Louise gasped.

Royal gravitas morphed into an impish smile. "You could see to it that she's too busy to get into mischief, and Jason would see to it that she's not badly treated."

"No." He shook his head. "Just . . . no. She'd hold Louise's undercover activities over our heads, and inevitably her parents would find out what's been going on."

"Indeed." Agnes looked once more to Henrietta. "Your Highness?"

The princess sighed. "I suppose I shall have to think on it further. For now, hurry to the Purse while we still have plenty of daylight."

"Yes, Your Highness." With that, the bodyguard turned and quickly exited the townhouse.

After she left, Jason looked from noble to princess and back again. "So . . ." he started, "did you have enough time to fill Her Highness in on my girl problems?"

Louise rolled her eyes, as Henrietta started giggling.

"Void above!" the princess replied through her laughter. "It's almost as if she rolled you in catnip for commoners before coming to Bruxelles!"

"I would never-!" his little mistress protested.

"Actually, you kinda did," Jason disagreed. "Commoner catnip is also known as 'close servant to a wealthy noble'. It's a variety of woman catnip known as 'young man with a good fortune'."

They each turned a rather disgruntled look on him, but he grinned cheekily and continued. "Doesn't affect all women, but a man reeking of wealth can always find someone to love him."

His little mistress still looked rather offended, but then Henrietta started giggling again.

"That wasn't funny!" Louise complained.

"Oh, but, you haven't had to winter at Court. Brimir willing, you won't have to until you're married. And they'd draw wands if you said it out loud, but Jason just described half the unmarried ladies who come each year!"

"Many students leave the Academy after a year of Second Form instruction, without even trying to advance to Third Form. I could winter at Court next year, if you want my company," she offered.

Henrietta shook her head. "No, you know you could benefit from two or even three years as a Second Form, and that's if you aren't ready for Third Form next year! Besides, with my upcoming marriage I don't know how I'll spend this winter, let alone the next. I know you want to be strong, like your mother. Don't pass up this chance to learn all you can!"

Louise sighed and nodded.

"Now, you've found what I sent you to look for. So, what can I do for you in return? You have earned quite the boon, for your service."

"I-" Louise suddenly looked lost. "I don't know. Like you said, I'm studying what I need to learn at the Academy. And it'd have to be something that wouldn't draw comment."

The princess nodded. "That's true. But think on it! I'm sure the time will come when you need a favor. As for you, Jason?"

"Wait, do I get a boon?" he asked. "I'm Louise's familiar, so doesn't it all go to her?"

"A singularly intelligent familiar, who has his own will." Henrietta smiled sadly. "I would see you honored as a Chevalier if this were to become public, but it cannot. But is there anything I can have done for you?"

"Well, I do have a bit of advice, if you'd care to hear yet more from me."

"Go on."

"First? That money we just found? That probably comes from people de Montferat robbed over several years, right?"

"Almost certainly."

"Then the ones who are still in business? Give it back to them. It should have been their money to begin with."

The princess blinked, then took a slow, deep breath. "That would be a blessing for them, yes. Although I'm sure I will hear arguments about how the Purse can use it for the public good." Then her face turned determined. "But I shall point out that Reconquista is trying to paint the Crown as thieving and grasping, and that I will not give truth to their lies."

Jason smiled, and out of the corner of his eye he saw his little mistress blinking rapidly. "Beyond that? Louise hasn't finished her prototype wand for Arise, and our time here has pretty much run out. If you could have the formulation refined, and give one of the perfected versions to the Charming Faerie Inn? And maybe see to it that the hedge-mage faeries are able to continue their training?"

"So they can continue to have ice?" Henrietta smiled. "I think I can justify working on such a wand as part of my studies, and Agnes can deliver texts for them to study." Once more, her smile turn impish. "So, you've grown fond of the Charming Faerie Inn? Or perhaps it's the exotic-eyed faerie that Louise is so wary of, that nearly won your devotion through a family heirloom?"

By sudden shift of expression on his little mistress's face, Jason somehow got the idea that he needed to answer very carefully.

Luckily, there was an answer he could give that avoided the prospect of drama. "I've put enough effort into helping the Inn thrive that I'd rather not see it fail. It'd mean my ideas were bad ones, see?"

"Oh." The princess's expression shifted, and perhaps looked a bit crestfallen.

"Wait," he said warily. "You weren't hoping one of the girls here in Bruxelles had seized my fancy, were you?"

"Oh, certainly not!" she hastened to reassure both him and his little mistress. "But it would make for a more dramatic story."

"Ugh," Jason sighed. "Highness, I am called to be here for Louise. I am seeking what she needs to see her magic grow whole and hale, rather than awry. I have as little attention to spare for other pursuits as any familiar might have, when sent to find what his master needs."

"You're hardly that single-minded about it," Louise pointed out. But there was a bit of smile at her lips.

He shrugged. "I'm still learning about Halkagenia. But everything I learn is another chance to have an idea that we can try out to help you become a better mage."

"Well spoken," Henrietta said, a smile playing on her lips as well. "I stand rebuked. But is there truly nothing I can do for you?"

"Well . . . it'd give me some peace of mind if we could find a solution for Nicole that doesn't see her dead, imprisoned, or exiled to some horribly remote nunnery or military outpost."

Henrietta's expression turned bemused. "Once again, you ask for help for another. You truly forgive her for seeking to ensnare you, and then seeking to take advantage of you?"

Jason shrugged again. "I don't want her life ruined over it. I especially don't want to spend my life feeling guilty over what I've helped condemn her to."

"Very well," Her Highness replied doubtfully. "As I told Agnes, let me think on it while we wait for her to return."

---

It was not much later when the bodyguard returned, leading a pair of men inside to the room where de Montferat and the Reconquista agent lay. The first man was tall, only an inch or two shorter than Jason, with brown hair, waxed sideburns, and a thin waxed mustache. His dark blue shirt was heavily ruffled, and the decorations made it impossible for Jason to tell whether he was barrel-chested or merely stout. The other man was much shorter, more than a little plump and more plainly dressed, and only notable things about his chubby face were piggy eyes, a quickly-receding hairline, and an almost complete lack of chin.

The taller man bowed low upon seeing Henrietta. "Your Highness!" he exclaimed. "Your woman bid me follow her to you, but this is not nearly the setting I had expected!"

He looked around. "Is that Turenne de Montferat? And who is this other fellow on the floor?"

Henrietta Levitated the agent's letter over to the tall nobleman, who took it and read quickly, his eyes widening as he did so.

"Reconquista, here in Bruxelles!" he breathed. "I'd heard the Regency Council was concerned about the possibility of Albion falling, but this . . . where is your Captain of the Guard? I should confer with him at once regarding these prisoners!"

"I have hopes that after today he truly will be my captain," Henrietta replied, "but for now he works for the Council, and has been under orders to prevent my 'maidenly foolishness' from putting me in danger. And so I must rely on those I can trust to obey me, rather than my mother's fears."

The tall nobleman looked a little surprised. But then he cast his regard towards Louise and Jason, and he smiled knowingly at Louise once he noted the wand in her hand.

"Miss, skill with a wand will carry you far in her Highness's service. No matter how low your family is, a few more errands like this and I'm sure she'll find reason to enfeoff you to the peerage. And," his head jerked towards Jason, "you've even made an early start on your shield-wall, for orc clearing. Brimir, I wouldn't have minded having a few more his size this spring!"

"Thank you, Count Motte," Louise replied calmly, her face carefully neutral.

Jason blinked. [is that really him][?]

[yes]

The Count had turned back to give him another appraising look. "In fact," Motte went on, "there's still some clearance left to do. If you want him to get some early experience, I wouldn't mind borrowing him for the rest of spring. Maybe even summer, as well."

There was a moment's pause. Then:

"Thank you for the offer," Louise said, her face still a pleasantly neutral mask, "but I value his good counsel too much to send him away."

Count Motte burst out laughing in reply. "Figured it out already? Good for you! Knowing that'll give you an edge our more established peers tend to overlook."

"I'm sorry?" she asked. "I fear I do not take your meaning."

"Why, we have three examples right here! Take her Highness's guardswoman-"

Agnes's face was suddenly also carefully blank.

"Who in their right mind would expect a commoner woman to be concerned about anything more than husbands and babies? By Brimir, the kindest thing you can do for 'em is catch 'em while they're young and pretty, give 'em a half-noble to raise, and find 'em a husband who doesn't mind adding some magic to the family tree. Void Above, do them both a favor and give them two or three half-bloods, if she doesn't spread too much from the first!"

Count Motte laughed again before continuing. "But this one, she doesn't care about all that. Strike me down if she doesn't have a brace of rogues' pistols hidden about her, and a nasty surprise for anyone who sees her pretty face and thinks the obvious."

"Thank you for that assessment, my lord," the tall blonde responded in a quiet, emotionless voice.

"Now, take Andrus here," Motte slapped his shorter companion on the back, making the man stagger. "Andrus doesn't look like much, but he's got the keenest mind for numbers I've ever seen, even though he's just a commoner. Couldn't have sorted things out so neatly last year without him. Need to find a likely lass for him to settle down with, see if he can't pass that along to the rest of her children. Probably make him steward of my purse, once the estate is running."

Andrus smiled obsequiously and nodded.

"And then we have your ogre of a commoner. He may look like some Germanian farm-bred dullwit, but that's commoners for you, can't always tell by looking at 'em. If he's hiding a keen mind under that slack-jawed face, don't let it get out! He'll hear more if everyone thinks he's too stupid to understand 'em."

The Count winked. "That's why Brimir made so many commoners, you know. So we could make use of the good ones, and let the rest tend to fields and mines."

"That was quite illuminating, Count Motte," Henrietta broke in. "You say Andrus is skilled with figures?" She gestured, pointing with her wand. "In that room and through the broken wall there are a large volume of papers to go through. We think they may be the records of the people that de Montferat has cheated over the years."

"Right!" Count Motte boomed, slapping Andrus on the back again and giving the poor man a push before he could catch his balance. "Off you go!"

The fat little man managed a staggering recovery, almost but not quite tripping over the body of the Reconquista agent, and vanished in the direction of the once-secret study.

"Now, Your Highness, shall I have the guards come in and remove these two traitors?" Motte asked jovially.

"Yes." Henrietta nodded, then quickly glanced at Jason. "And be sure to have them kept separate, so they have no chance to collaborate on any falsehoods to tell us."

"An excellent idea! I'll see to it at once!" With that, Count Motte strode outside and began barking orders.

Jason stared after him. "Okay," he whispered, "I know I'm an overly-casual barbarian, but that man's an asshole."

None of the women responded out loud for a moment, until Princess Henrietta tittered. "Yes," she agreed in an equally low voice, "but take care to whom you say that."

"Right, but . . . is he on the Regency Council? Is that why he doesn't seem to respect you? It sounded like he wasn't, but-"

"No!" Louise interrupted, also whispering. "Count Motte can afford to be difficult, because he's a parvenu. None of us are."

Jason blinked. "Okay, I know he just got his estate, but that term . . . is he enough of a social outcast that it doesn't matter who he offends?"

"Your auxilum's obviously not translating again!" his little mistress told him. "Don't you remember? He was awarded an estate swarming with orcs, and he's been clearing it ever since the first thaw. Not many nobles can say they've cleared their own estates! Anyone will think carefully before challenging him, now, and he'll lend impressive sway to those he allies with."

Oh, he's a proven hero, when most landed nobles just inherit. "Okay, I think I get it. Thanks."

"Speaking of allies," Henrietta murmured, casting an appraising look in the direction that Andrus had gone, "I haven't come up with any good solutions, yet, but perhaps this is an opportunity to see to the boon you've asked on behalf of Nicole. Do you think she would be willing to attach herself to the Count's man? If he's truly seeking a wife, she's even carrying a half-noble, which Count Motte clearly approves of."

"Pair her off with-" Jason broke off, and pinched the bridge his nose. "Better him than me, certainly. But lemme go sound him out, first."

"Of course," she murmured again, nodding. "One man to another."

"Yeah. Something like that."

He made his way over to the once-hidden study, as behind him there were the sounds of guards entering the townhouse. Andrus was already scanning through pages, taking notes on bark paper as he went along.

Jason cleared his throat, and the little man jumped and whirled around.

"Oh, it's you," he said in a relieved tenor that had more than an edge of a nasally whine to it. "I don't need any help moving things, just yet."

"That's fine," Jason replied. "I'm here to talk to you about women, actually."

Andrus looked at him incredulously for a moment, before bursting into a bit of laughter that trailed off into pig-snorting.

"Go on!" he said bitterly. "I'm the last one of the Count's men you want to be talking to about women. The rest are all strutting around with their loot, showing off and getting the girls, and no one even looks twice at little steward Andy."

"Oh? They're having more success than they did at the Academy?"

The piggy little man stared up at Jason for another moment, before bursting into more laughter. "Now that was a laugh. Everyone was bragging about the slits they were gonna to bring back, but then de Smedt was fool enough to go and attack a Vallière, and they were all sent away empty-handed. He'll be on shit detail for months! But how did you hear about that?"

"I know someone who has a cousin there. But back on the subject, do you want a woman of your own?"

"Who doesn't?" Then he snorted. "Not like I'll have the chance, unless the Count needs to settle one of his sluts."

"Well, that's the thing. I know a woman who was taken in by a young noble, all smiles for her pretty face and no honor when she found out she'd gotten in the family way. It's cost her her job, and it'll be a hard life for her unless she has a husband. And she knows it, so she's wanting a husband badly."

Andrus gave him a very narrow look, and then his face closed down. "The baby isn't yours?"

"I'm not a noble, and anyway she got with child the week before I met her."

"And she's pretty?"

"Pretty enough to go work at the Academy, from what I hear. Good with money, too, so she won't overspend what you bring in."

Andrus gave him another long look. "Got her with you? I'll talk to her, at least."

Jason grinned, and left.

To discover that Louise, Henrietta, and Agnes were all standing rather close by. He raised one eyebrow.

"Count Motte left with the guards to see to the prisoners," the princess said brightly. "So we decided to make sure everything was going well here!"

"And it's not like we can tell her Highness no, once she gets an idea," Agnes remarked dryly.

"Guess you can't, at that," Jason agreed. "He's willing to meet Nicole, at least, so I'll go upstairs and fetch her now, unless you order otherwise."

"This strikes me as an entirely too softhearted solution," the bodyguard declared sourly. "But I suppose a newlywed bride will have enough to do to keep out of trouble."

Louise grimaced. "The faster she's not our problem, the better. Go, bring her down here."

---

Nicole was lying on the bed when Jason reentered the room, but by the tenseness in her posture she was clearly awake and waiting to learn her fate. However, she relaxed slightly when the door failed to close behind him.

"Am I free to leave?" she asked, sitting up on the side of the bed again.

"Not precisely," he admitted, taking one of the chairs. "I mean, if we can reach an agreement you'll be getting out of this room, but I wouldn't try to run. Of your captors, I'm probably the least dangerous if you try to become more of a problem for us."

The ex-faerie gave him an unreadable look, then got off the bed and dropped into the other chair. "What do I have to do to get out of this room? The colors remind me of blood, and it's become unnerving."

"Like I said, we gotta come to an agreement. You need support for you and your child, and your dowry isn't quite enough to get a journeyman his own shop or what-have-you. Which is why you were hoping to blackmail Athena."

Nicole nodded. "I've been thinking about that. You have me here because you need me to keep quiet, don't you?"

"That is a pressing issue, yes. You're in too deep for us to just let you go on your way."

"What if I turn my dowry over to you, and you use it to purchase the living for my husband, once I've convinced a journeyman to marry me? You'd hold the title to the workshop, so we wouldn't dare cause trouble for you." She looked around. "This is de Montferat's home, isn't it?"

Jason blinked at the apparent digression. "Yes. Yes it is."

"If you've done something to deal with him, then, even if his extra taxes aren't stored here surely there are furnishings that could be sold off? You mightn't have to pay out of your own pockets, if there's enough that can be carried off before anyone notices."

Huh. That's not something we'd considered as a possibility. Agnes would argue against it, though, on the grounds that it'd give Nicole too much room to scheme some more.

He shook his head. "I'm sorry, but you're in too deep to let you go like that. So, I know you want the security of your husband owing his living to your efforts, but . . . strictly speaking, you don't need that for yourself and your child. You just need someone to support you."

Nicole digested his statement for a moment, and then her face closed down. "There's a noble in your conspiracy who saw me, I take it. Is he at least wealthy enough to support a mistress, like Frederick couldn't?"

"Er, Frederick? Is that the noble who seduced you?"

"Don't be absurd," she retorted, smiling bitterly. "Frederick de Fontlebaum would have me pilloried if I were to spread such slander. He told me so himself."

He face-palmed. "Right." [Louise][the guy who seduced nicole and stuck her in this mess is one frederick de fontlebaum].[if her highness can get the undine order going i think he would make an excellent member]

"Jason?" Nicole asked after a moment. "I'd rather not meet my patron-to-be in this room, especially if he wishes to spend time with me immediately. This room truly makes me uneasy."

[henrietta thinks that removing a cause of headaches is a marvelous idea]

"Okay, here's the thing. He's not a noble, although he serves one. He's actually pretty well situated, with a secure living, it's just that he's . . . inept at courting."

"Inept at courting," she repeated flatly.

"Yeah. Wants a wife, doesn't know how to get one on his own. I'm pretty sure you can wrap him around your finger in no time at all, if you choose to."

"And when he notices how quickly my pregnancy starts to show?"

Jason shrugged. "He already knows."

He raised a hand as if to ward off the sudden glare directed at him. "Come on, you know it's better for you both if that's not a dark secret waiting for the right time to jump out of the shadows and bite. And I told him that you were pretty enough to work at the Academy, which should make him even more willing to let the past stay in the past."

"I should slap you for telling my indiscretions to a stranger," Nicole replied, although largely without heat. She sighed. "You think he'll truly be so easy to charm?"

He nodded. "I know it's not the kind of security that you were planning on, but as long as he's besotted with you that'll be its own kind of security, right?"

She stood up. "This is not what I'd hoped for, but . . . it's not what I've feared, waiting up here. I'll meet with him now, if he's available."

Jason stood up as well and smiled. "I'll take you to him."

000000000000000000000000000000000000

Andrus was waiting alone downstairs, and when he saw Nicole, his eyes widened as he openly stared.

Finally, he blurted out: "You are pretty!"

"So I hear," she replied with aplomb, with a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. "I'm Nicole. May I have the pleasure of your name?"

He nodded. "I-I-I'm And-d-d-drus."

"Andrus? That's a strong name. It suits you." She then turned to Jason. "Is there a room where we might have a little privacy?"

He raised an arm to point. "Down there, the last door. Looked like a small dining room. You should be undisturbed in there."

Nicole nodded graciously, then turned back to Andrus. "Shall we?" she asked, offering her hand.

He stared at her dumbly for another long moment, before gulping, taking her hand, and leading her through the indicated door.

As soon as the door closed, Henrietta emerged from one of the other rooms, followed by Louise and Agnes.

"What will they say to each other?" the princess breathed in a tone of fascination.

"It should go well enough, as long as Nicole decides he's worth her time," Jason quietly responded, then shrugged. "Which, given the circumstances . . . and she's had over a year to practice leading men to wherever she wants them to end up. Doesn't matter how clumsy or tongue-tied he is, if he follows her lead even a little bit, they'll end up wherever she decides."

"That sounds like something I absolutely must hear," Her Highness declared, softly but fervently, and started towards the door to the dining room.

Only to stop as Jason stepped in her way and folded his arms.

Agnes gave him a very level and appraising look.

[what are you doing][?][!] Louise demanded. [she is the princess][!]

"Highness," Jason rumbled, looking down at Henrietta, "the whole point of them being in that room is so they might have some privacy. Your curiosity is not sufficient reason to deny them that."

"But what if they discuss something related to Reconquista?" the princess promptly asked, smiling a bit smugly. "It would be irresponsible to ignore the possibility!"

"We've already established that Nicole has nothing to do with Reconquista," he replied. "And Andrus has been studying de Montferat's accounts, not his treason. So please don't try to confuse the issue."

Henrietta stared up at him for a moment, then laughed. "Is he always this stubborn?"

Louise sighed. "When he thinks he's right. Jason-"

"Is there a problem?" Nicole asked from behind Jason.

He turned to see her hand-in-hand with Andrus, who was smiling a wide and silly smile. And then he had to suppress a snicker, since side-by-side it was clear that she was slightly taller than the rotund accountant.

Henrietta gave a disappointed sigh. "You settled things so quickly?"

"The count always says to seize the moment or the woman, when you find the right one." Andrus gave Nicole a soppy look and squeezed her hand. "Brimir willing, we'll do wonderfully together."

"Andrus has even been kind enough to grant me a better place to stay than my current residence." Nicole gave him another smile that didn't quite meet her eyes.

The accountant's returning smile was entirely unfeigned. "You're practically living in a slum. Of course I'm not going to leave you there. I'll be there with a couple of the count's men tomorrow."

"And you've such important business to attend to, so it wouldn't behoove me to linger." This time, the joyless smile was directed towards Jason. "If all the difficulties have been resolved, could I prevail upon you to escort me to my flat?"

"Uh, I'll see what I can arrange."

Nicole gave Andrus a quick kiss – he leaned into it, but she pulled away quickly – and stepped over to Jason's side. To where he was no longer blocking the view of the would-have-been eavesdroppers.

"My ladies," she said, giving Louise, Henrietta, and Agnes a brief curtsy-

Then she stopped and paled. "Your Highness? I-!"

Henrietta smiled gently. "May Brimir look upon your upcoming union with favor, Nicole."

"I . . . 'Athena' had a friend she called 'Ann'-"

"I had word that things were not quite right, but not who was to blame. Athena and Jason have been most helpful in winnowing out the guilty."

It's probably wrong of us to enjoy the look on Nicole's face. Probably. Can't really think of why, at the moment.

"They-" The ex-faerie's mouth worked for a moment. "I thought . . . were they looking for de Montferat all along?"

Henrietta inclined her head. "We did not know it was de Montferat we needed to search for, but they have done an admirable job. But it would be best to keep quiet what you have learned, and discuss it only with Andrus, since he will be deciphering de Montferat's thievery for the next several days."

"It'll keep me busy," Andrus agreed. "Some of these records go back to the very beginning of de Montferat's position as tax collector." He smiled goofily at Nicole again. "If I wasn't going to stay up late tonight to start to try to make sense of it all, I'd have your things moved now, but-"

"I shall be fine for a night," the tall brunette agreed, faintly. "By your leave, Your Highness?"

"Go with Brimir, Nicole."

"Let them have a moment for a proper farewell," Agnes suggested, jerking her head towards the vestibule. Henrietta's eyebrows rose, but she followed her bodyguard, and Jason and Louise perforce followed after.

"If she's been playing us this whole time," the tall blonde said, once they were out of earshot of the, er, happy couple, "now's the time she'll attempt something. And she was quick to arrange to leave."

"Can't exactly blame her," Jason said quietly. "De Montferat's red room put her on edge."

Agnes bared her teeth in a parody of a smile. "True as that may be, I do not care to deal in uncertainties." She reached into her clothing and pulled out a small sheet of silk paper. "Her Highness helped me devise this."

"A seal of alarm," Henrietta nodded. "Place it against a threshold, such as a closed door and its frame, and if the threshold is broken . . . that one is attuned to a messenger bird, if I recall aright."

"That's pretty clever," Jason said, admiringly.

"They're usually not worth the trouble. Once applied, the seal fades within a few days, and can only be used once in any case." Then the bodyguard's bared teeth widened. "But if you need to catch someone in the act, without alerting them-"

Her 'smile' faded. "Tell Nicole to stay indoors until Andrus sends for her. As long as she complies, the seal will not be triggered. But if she seeks to rendezvous with anyone . . . then, she will have to answer to me."

He nodded soberly. "Understood."

---

Nicole led he to a rundown set of flats at the very edge of one of Bruxelles's slum districts.

"Do you mind stepping in?" she asked, once they outside the door of what was apparently her flat. "I doubt anyone has broken in while we were away, but-"

"No problem," Jason replied. "I don't mind checking. Better safe than sorry."

He entered to discover a tiny set of rooms, with what seemed like barely enough room to stretch out. Although someone smaller – i.e., just about everyone else – might not find it quite as cramped. Nicole certainly had no trouble maneuvering as she followed behind him while he checked her rooms and closets. Fortunately there was nothing to find.

Soon he was back at the entrance, looking around the flat one last time as she changed out of her day-clothes in the bedroom. She's not going to have that much stuff to pack tomorrow. I guess that's a silver lining, of sorts.

It didn't take the ex-faerie more than a few minutes to reemerge, now dressed in a long chemise that reached down to her ankles.

And that ought to work out fine, given that she needs to stay inside tonight. "Alright. Are you going to be okay, staying here by yourself for the night?" he asked.

Nicole nodded. "I stayed somewhere worse for a little while, after I left my brother's home. One night here is nothing." Then, she hesitated. "You . . . you weren't ever trying to join Reconquista? You were hunting them for the Crown from the beginning?"

"Trying to see if they were around to be hunted, yeah. But that's not something you can go around talking about, understand? It'll be fine to talk with Andrus about the details he's handling, in fact he'll probably appreciate any help you can give him, matching the details of how much de Montferat stole from the different residents in the bourg. Other than that, if someone wants to talk about it and they aren't from her Highness, better to assume they're unfriendly and trying to get you in trouble."

Her eyes widened slightly as he finished up the warning. "I . . . think I understand."

"Alright then. Stay here for the night – don't leave unless it's truly an emergency – and like he said, there'll be people by in the morning to help move your things to nicer lodgings."

Jason then gave Nicole a pained smile. "Look, I know that Andrus wasn't really what you were looking for, but being with him does keep you out of the slums. I hope everything works out for you."

She grimaced, but nodded slowly, and he turned to go.

But then, when his hand was reaching out to the door-

"Wait!" she exclaimed.

He stopped and turned back around. "Yes?"

Nicole's usual cool expression was looking . . . almost cracked as she approached him. "I don't like to apologize – it accomplishes nothing – so I prefer to live with nothing to apologize for. But you've been trying to help me, even though I-"

She broke off, then took a deep breath. "Even though it doesn't do anything, I just want to say, I am sorry. I was desperate, but I shouldn't have tried to trap you."

Jason raised one eyebrow, then took a deep breath of his own. "Alright. Apology accepted. Next time you need help, try asking. I'm sure Andrus will give you the sun and the moon if you let him. So again, hope things go well."

An expression that he couldn't quite interpret flickered over Nicole's face. Then she closed her eyes for a moment, before opened them back up and meeting his gaze determinedly. "Thank you, but it doesn't feel like it's enough."

"That . . . well, that happens. Learn from it. But if you want to do something, though-" He paused, then shrugged. "I'm sure you were planning to be a good wife, once you'd picked out a husband. Do that. Leave all this behind when you leave here tomorrow."

"But how would you know if I did that?"

"I wouldn't, necessarily. You would, and that's what matters."

"Yes, but-" Her voice suddenly sped up. "Andrus is scarcely a man. Void Above, he's shorter than I am!"

"Ah-" Yeah, can't really blame her for picking up on his omega tendencies. "Looks aren't everything."

"I know. A gentle, thoughtful heart is easily worth a homely appearance." Nicole then gave him a frustrated look. "But you've seen Andrus, you must know he only understands his numbers!"

Jason sighed. "He did come across as awkwardly as any teenager."

She bit her lip, and her eyes turned pleading. "Frederick was young, and thoughtless, and I regretting giving into his blandishments even before I knew I was with child. Andrus . . . I hold no hope that he will be any less inept."

"Uh-"

Then she reached out and laid a hand on his shoulder. "If I cannot have aught else, I would at least have the memory of one who would take care to please his lover."

Jason froze as she leaned towards him slightly. Her chemise was cut much as Louise's, and was far more modest than the Terran garments that went by the name, but Nicole was sufficiently developed that her bosom, high and firm, pressed against the neckline of her chemise and offered an enticing line of cleavage. Which he now had an excellent view of, along with the parted lips that offered themselves to him, moist and-

Her lips are moist because she licked them while she was biting them in 'uncertainty'. She changed into bedclothes almost as soon as we arrived, and contrived an excuse to keep me around. This is not spontaneous.

"Nicole, it's best to start as you mean to go on. If Andrus makes for a poor lover, then you'll just have to teach him."

"I don't have to go back to him," Nicole countered in a husky voice that sent shivers of lightning up and down his nerves. Her other hand reached up to cup his cheek. "You're an agent of the Crown. I know Louise won't let you marry me, but even as a commoner, you surely have enough of a living to support a mistress."

"But . . . you agreed-"

"No one would be surprised that I chose the better man," she pointed out in that same husky tone.

"I . . . understand. Someone like Andrus would be a lot work to turn into a decent husband."

Nicole smiled enticingly, and her hand went to the back of his neck, applying gentle pressure as she stood up on tiptoes, her eyes closing-

Only to stumble and nearly fall as he backed up, breaking away from her. "Nonetheless, I have to decline. I think the best thing for everyone is if you commit to putting in the work needed to salvage him."

The tall brunette stared at Jason as she reclaimed her footing, a flash of something more furious than mere disappointment fickering across her face before she locked it down into a cool mask. "Afraid of somehow upsetting your sister again? If you're lacking the nerve, I suppose you should go back to her now, before she decides to come looking for you." She tossed her hair, then turned away, heading towards the back room. "I'm sure you can see yourself out."

"Yeah, I think I'll go do that," he agreed, deliberately ignoring her jibe, once again turning to go. Hell, ain't even a patch on getting called a ball-less cocksucker because we wouldn't take the skank's fake ID. Graveyard shift: Gotta love it, cause you ain't gonna last long if you don't. "Again, good luck."

As he opened the door, he found Louise quickly stepping back, left hand oh-so-casually behind her back.

Jason smiled. "That what I think it is?" he asked, applying the security seal before nodding to the hidden hand and it's presumed contents.

She flushed and nodded, bringing her hand out to reveal the ear trumpet Henrietta had lent them last week.

"Listening in?" He shook his head in mock dismay. "Ann's been teaching you some bad habits."

"You were taking too long to get your things, and I got worried. Here!" she thrust the cone into his hand. "Let's go back to the townhouse."

We barely spent any time at all . . . so Louise means she was feeling paranoid about what we might get up to with Nicole. But we won't call her on the prevarication.

His little mistress didn't say anything else either until they were a couple of blocks away. "You didn't take her up on it. You didn't even hesitate."

"Well, no. Did you expect me to?"

"You've been taking her side all along, even when you knew-" Louise broke off. Then: "Do you care for her, or not?"

"Do I care? I care about her. I pitied her, certainly. But I don't care for her as a lover ought to care for his beloved, and I wasn't seeking to."

"That's . . . that still doesn't explain why you didn't . . . she's as pretty as any maid at the Academy, and prettier than some of the nobles. And everything was set up so that you couldn't get in trouble, as far as you knew." She was quiet for a moment before continuing. "Why didn't you?"

"Well, I wasn't kidding when I told her that she should start as she means to go on. Sleeping around on your husband may be more exciting, if he's a husband you didn't want in the first place, but people get caught. And she's marrying someone who specializes in figuring out when other people's tallies aren't adding up. Being unfaithful to someone like that strikes me as particularly unwise."

"Oh."

"Besides, after everything that's happened I trust her even less than I do Elena. I can understand that she felt desperate, but she still decided that the best way to fix her problems was to get me drunk so that I'd sleep with her. And this just now was merely her taking a final chance to get in good with someone who serves the princess's friend. Which she found out after it was too late to try to convince me she was sorry and that she'd make me a good wife." Jason shook his head as de Montferat's townhouse came into view. "I'm grateful as hell that you interrupted us that night, by the way. Even if we didn't realize what she'd learned."

Louise smiled. "Because you didn't care for her."

"That, and because all this scheming she does? If I fell for one of them, she'd be worried that someday I might see through her. Whereas to me, it would feel like I could never make her happy, no matter how good a husband I tried to be. It'd be a pretty miserable life."

"Well, she'll be with Andrus, now. And he won't need to feel guilty about anything."

"No, he won't. Hopefully, that'll be enough."

There still weren't any guards at the townhouse, so they went inside, to find Henrietta and Agnes waiting for them.

"Where's Andrus?" Jason asked. "And Count Motte? And the guards, I suppose."

"Everything's been taken back to the palace," Henrietta replied. "They came back shortly after Louise left to follow you." She pouted. "Agnes wouldn't let me go along with her."

"You needed to stay here," Jason pointed out. "Custody of evidence, after all."

"I know." The princess smiled at Louise. "So did she try anything?"

"She offered herself to him," his little mistress grumbled, then smirked. "But he turned her down. And he didn't even know I was listening!"

"Of course I turned her down. She tried to trap me, then tried to blackmail us. I can't trust someone like that."

"But it's fine for Andrus to trust her?" Agnes put in dryly.

"He knows she's carrying a mage's child, and was happy with her anyway." Jason shrugged. "And yeah, I'm sure she did her absolute best to charm him, given her circumstances. And . . . okay, I wouldn't be too surprised to find out that the rest of her children are all Count Motte's, at least while she stays pretty enough for his tastes. But they're both willing enough, and that future is their business, not mine." Then he smirked. "Besides, if Count Motte is serious about giving a half-noble baby or two to every pretty commoner under his authority, then in about 15 to 20 years, and going on for another 30 or so depending on his virility, his estate is going to be overrun with petty nobles. It'll be interesting times, especially if you, Highness, decide that he owes them all training and support."

Henrietta blinked. Then burst into giggles. "I confess," she got out eventually, "that I felt uneasy at the Count's words on the subject, for all that they had the force of logic behind them. Thank you for clarifying why his programme of . . . noble largesse to pretty commoners is not quite the wise plan that he so clearly believes."

"If half of them are women, and brought up in commoner circumstances," Agnes mused in a thoughtful voice, "wouldn't that mean dowries for a dozen daughters?"

"Perhaps more than a dozen," the princess agreed, a wide grin on her face to match Jason's earlier smirk. "Perhaps far more than a dozen. And as he will not have estates to hand out, I believe Count Motte will owe them dowries no matter how they're raised. I shall have to revisit this notion, once the first of his bastards begin to come of age."

"Does he already have a reputation for tumbling commoner girls?" Louise asked. "I hadn't heard that he'd become betrothed this last winter, and if there are so many unmarried ladies who winter at Court, why couldn't he find one he got along with?"

"He was quite busy with his duties involving the Purse, and then preparing for the spring campaign on his estate," Henrietta pointed out. "But if his habits become known, then he might have to settle for one of the more desperate noblewomen, when he seeks a wife. Why, she might not be more than a Dot!"

Her Highness smirked a final time, then clapped her hands. "In the meantime, one sum Andrus was able to quickly uncover was the recent amount 'taxed' from the Charming Faerie Inn. And I think I should like to meet this Scarron and his daughter Jessica. So, as soon as we may, let us pay them a visit!"

---

Agnes and Henrietta were once again in their hooded robes, as they entered the Inn.

Margaux saw the four of them enter, and at Jason's request called Jessica over. "But are you sure you want Scarron?" she asked, doubtfully.

"I'm sure," he nodded, and so the zaftig verdetress went in search of the owner while Jessica waited.

"You're Agnes, I'm certain," Jessica finally said, nodding to the taller of the hooded figures. She turned to the shorter figure, looking curious. "Are you Ann? Athena's friend?"

Henrietta hesitated, then nodded.

"The ice-cream is just about frozen, if you'd like to try some? I put strawberry preserves in one bowl, and the first of the blueberries in the other, and I wouldn't mind a noble's opinion on how good they are."

Her Highness nodded again, and Jessica bustled into the kitchen, looking a bit relieved.

"Why don't we set a couple of tables together, so there'll be enough room for six people to sit?" Jason suggested.

Another nod later, and he and Agnes started rearranging the furniture, while Louise helped with Levitate.

[why are you smiling all of a sudden][?] she asked, as he put the last of the chairs into place.

[oh][,][it is a bit silly] he replied, trying to smother a smile that wouldn't go away. [strawberry and cream and blueberry][,][red and white and blue].[the colors of my national flag].It was nothing more than a coincidence, but the reminder – and it probably wasn't that far from the 4th, for all that he hadn't been keeping strict track of the days, let alone compensating for the difference in the length of the day – sent a thrill of nationalistic pride and sudden longing through him.

Scarron came out shortly thereafter, with Jessica behind him bringing a tray with many small bowls . . . but Jessica went largely unnoticed, as the two hooded figured were clearly focused on the owner of the Inn.

"Oh, my," Henrietta breathed quietly, and for all that he felt like rolling his eyes, Jason couldn't fault her. It wasn't that Scarron was in one of his skimpy debauched leather outfits that he wore during business hours. But his shirt, split down the middle, still showed off the kind of physique that Jason knew he wouldn't ever manage unless he spent a lot more time exercising than he currently did.

Louise nodded. "You see what I mean about him?" she whispered back, very quietly.

"'Beefcake', as you said Jason says. Indeed."

Henrietta and Agnes removed their cloaks and sat, as Scarron froze. Jessica finished setting out the bowls and looked up . . . and then she froze, and as funny as the tableau was, Jason quickly looked away lest it appear he was overly interested in the current view down her blouse.

"Please, relax," the princess said, with a soft smile. "You have been a good host to a dear friend of mine these past weeks, and we are nothing but grateful."

"Your Highness!" Scarron said in reply, coming to military attention. Beside him, Jessica quickly straightened up and imitated her father. "We are your humble servants!" he continued, bowing low while his daughter curtsied.

"Then sit, and share some ice cream with me!"

Eyes wide, they sat.

Henrietta pulled out her wand and Levitated a bit of the strawberry ice-cream to her mouth. Then her eyes widened. "This is . . . this is quite good!" she exclaimed. "I think the palace chefs might be interesting in swapping recipes. Who had the idea of mixing fruit in with the ice-cream before freezing it?"

Jessica's eyes had grown even wider at the mention of trading recipes with the palace staff. Then her eyes narrowed and her gaze whipped over to Jason once the princess finished speaking.

"You didn't learn how to make ice-cream from the nobles at all!" she accused. "You brought the knowledge from wherever you were summoned from!"

Henrietta eyebrows rose slightly, before she her head to address Louise. "You told them that Jason's a familiar?" she asked. "I thought he was supposed to be pretending to be your brother?"

"He was," his little mistress sighed. "Jessica figured it out eventually, just like she knew I wasn't a commoner after the first night."

"Ah." The princess nodded, then smiled at Scarron. "You have clearly raised a canny and clever daughter."

"Thank you, Your Highness!" he choked out. Much as when he toasted the Queen's health each weekend, there was no trace of the affected voice he normally used, let alone the falsetto he favored while acting as a bouncer.

"Your Highness, if I may ask?" Jessica began, hesitantly.

"Of course you may ask!" Henrietta assured her. "Even if I decline to answer, I will not take your question amiss."

"Then . . . why did you send Jason and Athena here to the Charming Faerie Inn? Your friends didn't know of the trouble with Turenne de Montferat until he arrived at the end of their second week here. What were you hoping to learn?"

The princess smiled gently. "In truth, I did not send them to you, specifically. I merely asked them to find some place where they might encounter the unfettered opinions of the people of Bruxelles. If I understood Athena's first report to me, she and Jason found this place on their own, with help from a friend at the Academy."

"Oh." Jessica breathed in. "Now I don't know whether to scold my cousin for setting them on us, or thank her for . . . but we do not even know of de Montferat's fate, yet."

"He is in Crown custody, awaiting the question," Henrietta replied softly. "I'm glad, for your sake, that his corruption was uncovered, but the true task I set was to listen for whispers of the activities of Reconquista. The Regency Council would not discuss the possibility with me, citing my few years and lack of experience, so I felt I had to seek for myself."

Scarron blanched. "We have always been loyal subjects, your Highness!" he protested anxiously. "Talk of treason would never be permitted at the Charming Faerie Inn!"

She gave a light laugh. "Indeed! And no word of import was heard, regarding them. But then Turenne de Montferat came, demanding taxes that the Regency Council has not required. Jason offered the theory that if Reconquista was present, but not openly active, they would recruit in the shadows, and seek out the corrupt, threatening to reveal their crimes if they did not act as Reconquista required. And so it proved. By Brimir's favor, Athena and Jason have given me a loose thread, by which I mean to unravel Reconquista's entire design."

"These are . . . weighty affairs," Jessica said, sounding a bit daunted. "Why come to us and explain?"

"Because her Highness wishes to keep contact with the Charming Faerie Inn," Agnes put in. "You have customers from all over Bruxelles, and sometimes the palace doesn't afford the best view of a situation. I shall leave you an address, where you can send a bird to contact me, and through me her Highness, if a matter arises that merits her attention."

"And I may wish to visit, now and then," Henrietta added. Then, smiling impishly: "Although I do not think Agnes will permit me to try life as a faerie, even for an afternoon, so that is one experience Athena has had that I will be denied."

Scarron blanched again, and Jessica went white, while Agnes rolled her eyes. "Making you a disguise that will hold up in the streets for a little while is not the same as crafting one that will keep you incognito for an entire night!"

"I know," the princess sighed mournfully. "Such a pity!"

"If Your Highness truly wishes it," Scarron began, carefully, "we will of course accommodate you. But it might prove to be more notoriety than my Inn can survive."

"Perhaps another time, then, when Agnes is more confident in her skills." This time Henrietta's smile was warm, rather than impish. "But I am serious about wanting another view of Bruxelles than that to be had from the palace. And if there are problems that are better handled by royal attention, please, don't hesitate to send a message. Hosting Athena and Jason while they acted as my agents has earned you my gratitude."

Jessica nodded faintly. "Ah, regarding problems that we cannot handle well? There was this girl that we had to dismiss, after she'd gotten herself with child. It happens from time to time, and if they have no one to turn to . . ."

She trailed off, but still looked anxious.

"Nicole, you mean?" Henrietta smiled again. "Jason introduced her to a man who wished a wife, and he was thoroughly charmed by her. Brimir willing, they shall get along well enough."

Huh. That's a rather gracious recounting of what took place.

"If she thought he was worth charming," Jessica nodded, "she's willing to make a go of it. But, if I may beg your indulgence?"

"Certainly!"

"If there were some place that they could turn to that would keep them out of the slums . . . I know the Church is supposed to take orphans in, but the fees they require for the maintenance of the children are so high-"

Jessica broke off again, flinching, as the princess frowned.

"That . . . could take some thought," Henrietta said slowly. "The Church preaches against leaving babes to die, uncared for, but I had not considered the difficulty that the poor and desperate would face, trying to pay for the upkeep of their children . . ."

She shook her head. "I shall have to think on it. In the meantime, if any of the faeries find themselves in such straits, pass the word through Agnes and we shall see what may be done." A new, determined smile appeared on her face. "But is there anything that can be done for the Charming Faerie Inn straightway?"

The head faerie hesitated. Then: "Jason suggested several new dishes. He claimed they were Romalian, although it's clear now that they came from his homeland, instead. They're selling very well, but de Montferat's 'taxes' have left us in a grave situation, and in a few more weeks we shall be ruined, when payments are called due. If not for that, we would be thriving." Her voice became hesitant, to match her expression. "Perhaps this, also, is better addressed by Royal hands?"

The smile left Henrietta's face, and she nodded gravely. "Indeed. Reconquista pressured him to step up his thefts, to drain all within his bourg of gold and silver, and destroy the flow of commerce. It is already clear, even before the prisoners have been questioned, that Reconquista is putting this plan into effect all over Bruxelles, that they might drain the city of wealth and simultaneously rouse the ire of the people towards the crown." Henrietta paused. "We may therefore predict that they plan to attack Tristain either this year or the next, depending on how matters turn out in Albion.

"But the threat of invasion is for the Regency Council to consider. Here and now, I instead focus on the damage they sought to do to my subjects."

At this, Agnes produced a rather substantial pouch, and placed it on the table, while Henrietta continued. "I would see the opposite happen. That the people of Bruxelles, and of all Tristain, stand strong and united. Therefore these 'taxes', unlawfully taken, are being returned to their rightful owners. And once de Montferat's thievery across the years is unraveled, what he has stolen in the past shall also be returned, insofar as they can be recovered."

Scarron reached out and spread open the mouth of the pouch, revealing a multitude of silver and gold coins. His eyes widened once again. "Your Highness," he began, sounding moved almost to tears. "This is . . . your generosity leaves us overcome with gratitude!"

The princess bowed her head. "I do no more than right a wrong that hid undiscovered for far too long, and therefore nothing more than the duty of the Crown, and years too late. But Brimir has granted us this chance to see justice finally done, and so we shall."

She then glanced over to Louise and Jason. "I had hoped to spend more time with my friends this spring, but their role in uncovering de Montferat's treachery was more prominent than I intended. So I shall be very busy in days to come, and sadly, I do not think that Athena's parents would be pleased if her part in this were to come to light. As it inevitably will, if they remain in Bruxelles."

"Since you didn't ask them first, no," Louise agreed fervently.

"You mean it's time for Athena and Jason to leave?" Jessica asked, disappointment clear in both her expression and her voice. "So soon? He's been most helpful in the taproom, playing the Black Brute, and Athena has proven the most helpful noble who ever worked here incognito."

Henrietta nodded. "I fear they must. If Athena's available, there are many people who will wish to question then both, extensively. That would be inconvenient for us all."

"If my parents were to learn what I've been doing, Mother would . . . I don't think the Inn would be left standing," Louise said in a small voice. "But," she continued, "they'll be looking for a verdetress, if Her Highness or Count Motte describe us, and that's not my true hair color."

"It's good to hear that we'll be safe, but it's still unfortunate," Jessica said. "Not only have we grown fond of you both, the girls need more instruction in magic, and we still need ice."

"I'll make as much as you need today before we leave," his little mistress promised.

"Yes, but then tomorrow we'll need more." The head faerie sighed. "I found a hedge-mage who's willing to make ice for us, when you were laid up with your monthly, but his fee was higher than we could afford after being taxed by de Montferat." She smiled, but her eyes were still disappointed. "That, at least, is a problem solved. I'll go visit him again before sunset today and hire him on."

Louise nodded. "Right now Roxane and the others mostly need to practice. But I'll make sure to send some books that help with learning cantrips, so they can keep studying."

"I'll check the palace library as well, and copy anything that looks like it might be helpful," Henrietta promised. "And I'll see to it that Athena's project to a wand formulated for Arise is completed."

"Another wand design," Agnes broke in to note, "formulated for Mix, would also be helpful. There'll be no small demand for potions from these fairies, once they begin brewing them for commoners."

The princess smiled and nodded. "I'll see to that as well."

"Then we are as prepared to deal with Athena's departure as we can be," Jessica said, still looking a bit sad.

"In that case, we need to pack up as quickly as possible, if there's to be any hope of catching a coach this afternoon," Jason pointed out. "Just to make sure we're not available for that awkward questioning Her Highness mentioned."

"There's not hope of that," Louise said, shaking her head. "The coach won't leave for the Academy until the weekend. We'll have to hide until then."

"No, no!" Henrietta shook her head as well. "I've gave this some thought, while you were escorting Nicole, and I had time to reflect on how quickly the situation was escalating."

Agnes gave her a dry look. "You're still going to try that?"

"It will get me into a bit of trouble, yes." Her Highness smiled impishly. "Like old times! Anyway, I came up with a plan to get you back to the Academy a little sooner than that. We'll be back shortly, so pack your things and say your farewells while you can!"

She and Agnes then pulled their hoods up and slipped out of the Inn.

Scarron and Jessica just stared for several moments, before the proprietor shook himself.

"So," he said, his accent suddenly snapping back to pseudo-French. "That was it all along, oui? Seeking Reconquista for the princess?"

"Sort of," Jason shrugged as he stood up. "She wasn't certain if Reconquista had infiltrated Bruxelles or not. We were just trying to keep our ears open for any hints that they might be active. A popular tavern wasn't the worst place in the city for that."

"Non, I suppose not, for all that it was my Inn you picked."

"Oh, blame Siesta for that. That part was all her suggestion. Finding out about de Montferat was good fortune, although if they were going to do this all across the city, I supposed we'd have stumbled over it sooner or later no matter which tax collector came for the Inn."

Jessica smirked. "I'll make sure to bring it up with her, in our next letter. So, you both are about to go back to the Academy, right?"

Louise nodded. "We really must avoid my parents' attention, now that this is coming out into the open."

"Well then." The head faerie got up, marched over to Jason, and stared up at him. "Siesta admitted to me last week that you haven't so much as kissed her."

He smiled sheepishly and shrugged. "We needed a reason for her to ask you to help, and we didn't realize how obviously Athena is a noble, so mentioning the thing with the noble who was after her didn't seem like an option."

"Oh, I don't mind. But if she ever lets you kiss her-"

Jessica's arms shot out and her hands pulled his head down faster than he could blink. And suddenly her lips were devouring his, and when he tried to open his mouth in some panicked notion of protesting, she gave him a most thorough proof that the French kiss had already been invented in Halkagenia.

Then finally she let him go, and smirked up at him as he sputtered in shock. "If she ever lets you kiss her, you can decide which one of us is better at it."

There was a growling off to the side, and Jason cringed as he turned to face his enraged mistress.

"YOU!" she pointed her wand at him, then to the kitchen. "Upstairs! NOW!"

"Don't make too much noise," Jessica laughingly called after them as he fled. "Elena won't want to stop at a mere goodbye kiss, if she learns you're leaving!"

---

His little mistress was still fuming, and refusing to talk to Jason except to bark orders, when Agnes reentered the Inn.

"Are those all you brought?" she asked, pointing to their rather small pile of luggage.

Louise nodded curtly.

"Excellent. Let us be going."

Agnes led them outside, to where there was an empty street. "Now follow me," she said. "Focus on me, don't get distracted, just step where I step."

Jason blinked in confusion, but Louise nodded and followed, and neither woman left him time to ask what was going on.

Then there was a peculiar wet sensation as he did as she'd said, and suddenly Henrietta was there, sitting in the back of a small open carriage, to which a pair of winged horses were harnessed, one in front of the other. The bodyguard took her place in front, at the reins.

Louise stopped for a moment, but then scowled and climbed into the carriage next to the princess. "Get in," she snapped.

So Jason hastened to board, and as soon as he sat down Agnes shook the reins. The winged horses started at a trot, then a gallop . . . but then their wings unfolded and with several powerful beats they were soon airborne, the cool afternoon air rushing against the carriage and its passengers as they picked up speed.

He glanced over at the two girls. Louise still had a stony expression, but Henrietta had her wand out and was quietly chanting something over and over again. Then they were over the wall of Bruxelles, and soon after, where there was no one in sight below, she stopped chanting.

"There!" she said brightly. "Nobody will notice us now! I'll cast again when we land on your tower at the Academy, but we're clear of being seen and pursued."

Louise nodded curtly, then handed over a sheaf of papers.

The princess gave her a concerned look. "What's-?"

Then she stopped, her attention captured by one of the notations on the top page. "Did you come up with this on your own?" Henrietta asked in an intrigued tone. "This isn't the traditional approach to designing wands formulated for Water elementari."

"I'm studying Fire," Louise pointed out, albeit in a distinctly grumpy voice. "I wouldn't have needed to do half those tests if I'd been studying Water."

"Yes, but-" Henrietta broke off, then began looking through the pages with intent eyes.

"Yes!" she finally exclaimed, pointing to something that Jason couldn't quite read from his angle. "I knew I remembered what these interactions would be."

Louise, on the other hand, had no trouble leaning over and seeing what had the princess so excited. Which, however, made her scowl. "And you can see that when I tried to combine them all, it didn't work! Just another failure," she concluded bitterly.

"Only because with five reagents, there were too many opposing reactions," Her Highness countered. "But I can work out how to prepare them in my laboratory so that they won't cancel each other out."

His little mistress blinked, and some of her scowl faded. "You think so?"

"Of course! It'll be fun, and I'll be doing something original, rather than merely repeating something that my ancestors already developed and refined into utterly tedious practice."

"Oh," Louise replied. "I'm glad for you." Nonetheless her expression and tone remained grumpy.

Henrietta gave her a sidelong look. "Tell you what, while I'm finishing this, why don't you do some experimenting on a wand formulated for Mix, as Agnes suggested? This," she shook the sheaf, "is a remarkably creative approach, and I'd like to see what else you could do."

But his little mistress hunched down. "You could just use one of the formulas that potioneers favor," she muttered.

"True, but we want a design that hedge-mages can get full use out of." Henrietta gave her another sidelong look. "Louise, what's wrong? I'm asking you to do something that will help people, and you'll be using magic! Besides, this is the grandest prank we've pulled in years, and for once you won't even get into trouble for it!"

But Louise stayed hunched down, and glared forward, refusing to reply.

The princess then craned her head up to look past her to Jason. "Do you know why she's out of sorts again?"

He sighed. "Jessica surprised me with a rather thorough kiss as her farewell. With everything that preceded it . . . hell, I'm not going to blame her if she wants to be angry about it."

"You could apologize," Louise muttered.

"For being kissed?" the princess asked, her lips quirking in amusement. "Did he ask for a farewell kiss? It doesn't sound like it."

"No, but-!" His little mistress huffed. "He could have pushed her away, at least."

"Not without hurting her, as tightly as she hung onto me," Jason pointed out. "I left bruises on de Montferat, because I didn't care if I hurt him or not. I'd rather not hurt any of the faeries, not unless they came looking for a fight, and I'm not trained to grapple someone without hurting them."

Louise snorted in disgust. "You shouldn't fight like a boy. Fight like a girl, instead."

"Against the faeries? Just because half of them were clustering around the only eligible man working at the Inn who wasn't old enough to be their father?" He shrugged. "I'm a man, Louise. Call me sentimental if you like, but I'm generally fond of women. Doesn't mean I have to try to seduce them. Still gonna try to be nice."

"Half of them? Louise only mentioned three that you had trouble with. Just how many of them were you stringing along?" Henrietta asked, eyes wide with delight.

Jason groaned. "Highness, don't put it like that. Please. But to answer your question, Jessica, Elena, and Nicole all made serious efforts to catch me. One of the others, named Therese – she's Gallian – I think she might have had some interest. And I heard that there were maybe a couple of others waiting to see if Elena would succeed or fail before they tried anything."

"Six, altogether?" The princess smiled. "Impressive."

Louise growled. "Yes, he had a good half of them seduced, and he wasn't even trying!"

"And like I told Jessica, early on, I'd follow you when you left." He looked down at her, trying to gauge her mood, and put a tentative arm around her shoulder.

She shrugged it off angrily, and he quickly withdrew his hand, not wanting to offend further. But the rejection did sting.

Henrietta was giving them her own evaluating look. "Well, since you're upset with him for being so manly," she said brightly-

Highness, are you trying to start shit?

"Why don't you and I trade places, so I can see how suitable he is for snuggling against?"

"W-what-" Louise started to sputter, but she couldn't seem to get any further than that.

"They say a drive in the cool spring air is ideal for cuddling with a man, after all. So if you aren't using your familiar . . ."

His little mistress grabbed Jason's arm and wrapped it around her, then sat there fuming.

Henrietta laughed gaily, and after a few moments Louise's lips twitched, and she started giggling ruefully.

"I thought so!" Her Highness smirked. "Jason, the next time she's upset, write to me and I'll set her straight for you."

"Don't tease like that!" Louise complained. But then a particularly crisp gust hit them, and she snuggled in tight against him. To which he had absolutely no objections, and it felt entirely natural to lean down and softly kiss the top of her head.

"Hey, if we're airing complaints," he then said, straightening up, "Louise, why didn't you tell me that mixing fruit in the ice cream before freezing it was a new thing?"

"I didn't know!" she admitted with a shrug. "Mother and Father let us make sherbet during summer, but they don't actually approve of ice cream. It takes too much ice to make without the rock salt trick, and they say that only courtiers have ice cream every day."

"Ah." He chuckled. "Well, unless you order me not to, I'm going to see if I can't help Mr. Colbert devise a machine to make ice cream a little easier than stirring it by hand, so maybe you'll get to enjoy it a bit more this summer."

"Are you planning on staying at the Academy for the summer, then?" Henrietta asked.

Jason blinked. Oh, shit. We haven't even thought about summer vacation issues. First and foremost, of course, being 'meet parents and possibly die a horrible death'.

[Louise][is now a good time to introduce me to your family][?]

His little mistress closed her eyes for a moment, then opened them, looking pensive. "I miss Cattleya, but once Mother and Father found out I was finally managing cantrips, they told me that as long as I was diligent in upholding the honor of Vallière, it wouldn't be a problem for me to remain at the Academy, to make up for lost time." She bit her lip. "And I would like for Jason to discover at least one auxilum that he can show off, when I present him to them."

Whew!

Henrietta laughed. "I can understand that!"

Then Louise sighed, relaxing again against Jason, and leaning her head against his chest. "I didn't think we'd be going back so soon, though. We only just started finding things out, and now suddenly we're going back to the Academy!"

"It's a good thing you are done!" Agnes called back. "You could have stayed at the Inn if all you were doing was collecting rumors, but instead you investigated de Montferat, and on your own! If your part in that hadn't resolved quickly, it would be because something had gone horribly wrong. It's like poaching in a noble's forest: If the game gets away after you take your shot, you're in a world of trouble faster than you could believe!"

A slow grin made its way across Henrietta's face "That is a fascinating comparison to make!" she observed. "You have kept interesting company, haven't you?"

"You already knew that, your Highness!" the bodyguard rejoined.

"Even so," Louise grumbled, "I spent more time flirting with men and begging for money – and Jason spent more time washing dishes and pretending to be a pirate – than we spent doing anything about Reconquista."

The princess smiled. "That part doesn't matter, as long as your parents don't find out! By Brimir's grace, you were there when you needed to be, and we had the good fortune to seize a swift victory. Brimir willing, it will prove a decisive blow to Reconquista's plans!"

Louise frowned, clearly thinking it over, but finally she nodded, and offered a grateful smile.

Then she asked, in a curious voice, "And how did you arrange to use this carriage? Her Majesty would never approve of you taking it."

"She wouldn't approve of me learning Raindrop Veil, either," Henrietta replied. "I learned the seals to unlock everything on the sly."

"And once this is discovered, her Majesty will surely have those seals changed!" Agnes called back again to the three of them. "Count yourself lucky if I'm not dismissed, too!"

"They wouldn't dismiss you!" Henrietta protested. "It's not your job to keep me out of mischief."

"Childish pranks and adolescent whims are one thing, but this is stealing her Majesty's flying carriage! I should have stopped you! You know that!"

"If you start stopping me, I'll just have to learn how to sneak around without you, too!" Henrietta called back, laughing.

Agnes's shoulders hunched, but she didn't reply.

"So what is her job?" Jason asked curiously. "If she's not supposed to keep you out of mischief?"

"Her job is to protect me if I'm in danger," Henrietta smiled. "Which she can't do if I don't let her follow me around. So she doesn't stop me from doing what I want to do, and Mother has the comfort of knowing I have someone nearby who can protect me if danger threatens."

Jason shook his head, then pinched the bridge of his nose with his free hand. "I guess that makes sense," if you look at it sideways, "but doesn't that mean you have a responsibility to not do anything so extreme that she'd be punished by it?"

"Yes, of course, but I had to borrow the carriage. This way, you and Louise will be back at the Academy, and I'm going to ask the Headmaster to amend the record to show that you actually returned yesterday. That way you two can't possibly have been in Bruxelles today assaulting a tax collector. Besides!" The princess rolled her eyes. "She won't get in trouble, I will. And I'll just be lectured, and I've been lectured before."

"Yes you have," Louise muttered. "And usually with me right beside you!"

He fought the urge to massage his temple. "Alright, if you say so. Anyway, this carriage . . . does every landed noble have nobilia like this, or-"

"Jason, she isn't your master," his little mistress interrupted. "Stop asking her so many questions! It's not respectful!"

"I don't mind," Henrietta immediately contradicted. "It's nice to be around someone who thinks me being a princess is a bit silly, but still likes me as a friend. Mother would never let me meet someone like that, ordinarily."

He flushed, as Louise stiffened. "Jason," she growled, "I've told you to be more respectful-"

"I've been trying!" he yelped. Then, sheepishly: "Sometimes."

"But you still said, out loud, that nobles aren't gifted with moral virtue by being born with magic," the princess noted, smiling impishly. "And I've been thinking about that. If you don't believe that mages are of higher moral character, you must not think we have a Brimir-given right to rule. And therefore all the customs of nobility and even royalty must seem pointless to you, and absurd."

Louise stared at Henrietta. "Not even a Protestant would go so far as to say that! Even if they hate the rest of us nobles, the Blessed Realms are . . . Brimir's blessing is evident in the relics, the royal magic-"

"My people do have different customs," Jason broke in. "So, no, I wasn't raised to submit to noble authority. But we still have kings, we just elect them to serve for a limited number of years." He paused. "I'll admit, the only relic we have is the original document that our national Constitution was written on, and of course we don't have magic, royal or otherwise."

"You elect your kings, as the Germanians used to?" Henrietta smiled again. "Interesting. But as to your question, a pegasus couldn't fly like a bird if it didn't have its native auxilia. I hear that nothing large enough to be ridden can. But since pegasi are kin to horses, and thus meant to pull loads, it's possible to ennoble a carriage to share the power of flight while pegasi are harnessed to it. Headmaster Osmond ennobled this himself as a wedding present for Mother and Father." It was her turn to pause. "But the process was so difficult that none have duplicated it, so this is the only flying carriage in all of Halkagenia. This will be the biggest lecture in years."

"So, in summary, we're borrowing – without permission! – an irreplaceable wedding gift," Jason replied, trying not to feel faint. "And you think Agnes won't be punished for failing to prevent what's going to look like extraordinary youthful folly? Since you can't explain that you were sneaking us back to the Academy?"

The princess pouted. She actually pouted. "I had to. I'd have been caught for certain if I'd tried to sneak four pegasi out of the stables. This was much easier, since I already knew the seals to get to the carriage."

"Even still, we should have worked out another solution," Louise muttered with a wince, shrinking down a bit. Which was very much like snuggling even tighter against him.

No, we're not going to lift her into our lap and wrap both arms around her. No, not even if that would make it possible to tilt her head up and kiss her. That would be a bad idea.

Instead he reached over with his free hand and stroked his little mistress's hair. Which made her twitch, but then she sighed and relaxed, before closing her eyes. "I'm sorry you're having to get into so much trouble on our behalf," she managed in a mumble that wasn't quite a slur.

"You've given me Reconquista," Henrietta said, reassuringly. "I can endure a lecture for that." Then she eyed Louise, whose eyes were still closed as he continued to lightly stroke her hair. "But if you're feeling guilty, you could move over to your familiar's other side. Snuggling against him looks very . . . calming."

Jason's hand froze as his little mistress stiffened, and her eyes shot open. "You – I-" she got out, but nothing coherent followed.

"Don't change your seating," Agnes called back to them, turning her head to shoot a quelling glare at the princess. And then at Jason, as well, before she turned back to the reins. "We're not too far from the Academy, and it's not safe to try to change positions while we're flying at this pace!"

"I was just teasing!" Henrietta declared. "But," she continued in a wistful voice, "sometimes I wish it wasn't tradition in the Blessed Realms for royalty to forgo summoning their own familiars."

Huh. We were maybe more correct than we knew, when we told Louise that the princess wanted hugging. He gave Her Highness a considering look, then offered, in a deliberately diffident tone: "If you scoot over a bit towards us, I'm willing to share cuddling privileges. If, you know, Louise doesn't mind maybe getting squeezed a bit between us."

His little mistress twitched again. "I . . . I don't mind," she murmured.

Henrietta blinked. Then she smiled, scooted over until she was pressing against Louise's other side, wrapped an arm around the smaller girl underneath Jason's own, and laid her head down on Louise's head (which was still leaning against Jason's chest). "Is this fine? I'm not squeezing too hard, am I?"

"'S warm," his little mistress mumbled. "Like Cattleya-"

Then she trailed off, and her breathing became slowly regular.

"I think she's fallen asleep!" Her Highness whispered in amusement, after a few moments.

"Yeah," Jason agreed quietly. "Working at the Inn's been a trial for her. Guess she's relaxing, now that it's over."

"I suppose we should stay quiet until we reach the Academy, then."

He nodded, and for the remainder of their trip the only sounds were the beating of the wings and the passage of the wind.

---

"Don't want to get up!" his little mistress protested sleepily. "Stay with me, Cattleya!"

Jason snorted, then did his best to keep his laughter silent.

Henrietta, however, had no such qualms. "Wake up, sleepy girl, before your mother brings in a bucket of ice water!" she said, once she'd finished laughing.

Louise's eyes shot open as she tried to sit up straight. "I'm awake!" she yelped, then, realizing: "Oh."

Then she looked around at the top of the tower where they'd landed. "Mother's not truly here, is she?"

The princess laughed again. "No, not this time. Does she still do that?"

"I don't give her the chance, any more. And at least it's not like the recruit barracks, where they kick you out of bed if you sleep through reveille." His little mistress wiggled. "I can't move!"

"Yeah, you kinda wove your arms through ours while you were asleep," Jason noted. Not that he was complaining. She was light enough that his own arm hadn't even fallen asleep despite being wrapped around her. "Here, lean forward as much as you can and I think I can get untangled."

Shortly after, once they had retrieved their limbs and were out of the carriage, Henrietta seized Louise in a tight embrace. "I know you had a difficult time at the Inn, and I know it seems unfair that you can't stay now that things are happening," the princess told her, "but I wouldn't have the opportunity to thwart Reconquista without your help. You truly have served us well, and I'll not forget it!"

His little mistress hugged back, just as tightly. "Whenever you need me!" she promised fervently.

And then Agnes's face took on a dangerous countenance, as Henrietta turned to Jason and gave him an equally tight hug.

"Uh, Highness-"

"Thank you for supporting Louise," she interrupted. "Thank you for thinking about things." She pulled back, looking him in the eyes with a serious expression. "Thank you for caring."

Ah. She goes to such efforts to hide it when she's around friends, it's easy to forget that shedoes know how to do royal dignity. "It's been my pleasure, Your Highness."

She smiled, released him, and turned to go back to the carriage.

But then, before she stepped on, Henrietta turned back. "I was thinking, while we flew here, on Jessica's request for a place for commoner women who find themselves in dire circumstances. The obvious solution is to establish more nunneries, but if the Church is already concerned more with being paid than-" She broke off, wincing.

"Than visiting the fatherless and widows in their affliction?" Jason finished for her.

She sighed. "Indeed. And if Brimir's most devoted servants have failed in this . . . I don't know how to devise a remedy."

"You need a recovery programme for commoner women, and military service isn't feasible for most of them." He scratched the back of his head. "Can I have some time to think about it? Because commoner women on their own and with children to care for are really vulnerable to predators. Gonna have to work out how to help them get back on their feet and discourage abuse."

"Thank you again." Henrietta turned to his little mistress. "I know you'd rather be in Bruxelles, helping root out Reconquista, but I will send you letters on how it goes. And keep up your aiming practice: I may find a way to send for you yet!"

Louise's mouth firmed as she nodded. "I will!" she promised, just as fervently as before.

"Highness, with the arrangements I've made," Agnes broke in, "we need to leave soon if we're to strike against Reconquista tonight."

"Indeed." Henrietta nodded, looking regretful as she stepped into the carriage and sat down. "Farewell, Louise, Jason. Until next time!"

With that, she cast Raindrop Veil once more, and the carriage shimmered out of sight.

Then came a sudden gusting of the wind. "Must be them taking off," he mused. "Guess the spell wasn't designed with a flying carriage in mind."

"Of course it wasn't." Louise rolled her eyes. "Come on, let's get out of the wind. It's starting to get colder."

Once inside the tower, she took his hand and Levitated them down the central well until they reached the landing just above their floor.

"So, has she she always been like that?" Jason asked as they walked down the stairs to their hallway. "I thought rooting out Reconquista was an adventure for her, that's why she seemed a little-"

"Flighty?"

"Headstrong, maybe."

Louise sighed. "Everyone wants her to be the well-behaved princess. I think that's why when she's dragging me into one of her pranks, she's just the opposite."

"Ah. She's always looking for a chance to have some adventure." Jason nodded as they arrived at their door. "Guess I can't blame her."

His little mistress nodded as she opened the door and they walked in-

Only to discover Siesta, lying on her side and napping on the bed, a book in front of her . . . oh, and dressed in Jason's swimming trunks and one of his t-shirts.

"What. Is. Going. On!" Louise hissed through clenched teeth as he did his best not to stare.

That is a downright picturesque hip bump, isn't it? The echo of the Bustier's pull certainly agreed. Apparently Siesta looked enough like Jessica that it didn't care which one of them it urged him towards.

"At a guess, Jessica didn't have time to send her a letter telling her we were on our way back," he replied carefully. Then he snorted. "Gotta wonder how long she's been getting out of other work by 'cleaning' your bedroom?"

"It's not funny! She's here in my room, wearing your clothing-"

"And did anything happen the last time she did that?"

Louise glared up at him. "You read her one of her books!"

Jason smirked. "Yeah, but you told me to."

While she sputtered over that, he went to the bed. "'The Foxwife's Tail'? Huh. Wonder what it's about."

"You know what her books are about!"

"Not all of them. Pierre's books, for example. Anyway, shouldn't you be using Awaken?"

Louise didn't deign to reply, but did mutter the short casting phrase for the cantrip, and in moments Siesta was blinking slowly.

"Jason?" she asked sleepily, looking up at him as she stretched. "Are you going to read to me? Shhh, don't tell Miss Vallière."

"See!" Louise said triumphantly. "I told you it was one of those books!"

Siesta jumped – more of a bounce, and he would not have been disappointed to see her do it again – in sudden surprise and stared at Louise. "Miss Vallière? Jason? You two are back? How did you get here so suddenly?"

"I believe that the record will show that we've been back since yesterday," he replied. "I guess Jessica hasn't had time to write you another letter, since we left."

The maid giggled, a bit nervously. "Um, she sent me a letter earlier, with all these things that didn't quite add up, so I had to admit that you weren't really my sweetheart. But I didn't tell her anything important!"

Louise glared. "That was important!"

Jason sighed. "We could have avoided some trouble if they hadn't found out that you and I aren't stepping out. But it all turned out well enough in the end."

Siesta's eyes grew wide. "Did she really use the Charming Faerie Bustier to catch your eye? I thought she was joking!"

"Unfortunately not." He shook his head. "And that wasn't half of it, really. But it still ended well enough."

"The Bustier didn't work?"

"Oh, it worked!" Louise growled. "If I hadn't been careful-"

"It ended well enough," Jason said for the third time, growling a bit. "Can we stop talking about it, please?"

"Fine," Seista pouted. "As long as the Bustier works, when Jessica lets me borrow it like she promised."

After a moment to process that, there arose a strong, sudden urge to go over to one of the walls and bang his head against it. Nonetheless he manfully resisted. "Yes, it works. Seriously, enough about that. What are you doing up here, anyway? Not enough to keep you busy?"

"With most of the students leaving for the summer break, there's less work for us to do. And since I've been working with you so much, I was told to make sure Miss Valliere's room was kept ready for whenever you returned."

"Oh," Louise said. "That was . . . well done," she admitted.

"Yeah. Well, since we're back, could I get you to go down and rustle up some supper for us?"

"A substantial one," his little mistress put in.

"Of course!" Siesta jumped out of bed and went over to a pile of clothing that, on further inspection, was her uniform. She took hold of the shirt she was wearing, and started to lift-

Then, blushing: "Jason, would you mind turning around while I change?"

A matching blush spread over his face as he hastened to comply.

A few moments later: "I'll be back soon!" she promised, now dressed in her proper clothing, and then she was out the door.

But a moment later, Siesta popped back in. "I almost forgot!" she said, pulling out a small vial and offering it to Louise. "Here's the counter-potion for your hair and eyes."

"You've been keeping that with you?" Jason asked, surprised.

"I didn't know when you'd be back, and since it was a secret mission, Miss Valliere wouldn't want people knowing that she's been going around in green, right?"

His little mistress nodded slowly, took the vial, and downed it. The effect was swift: Her eyes were already pink again and her hair was halfway through changing back from verdetress to rosecrown before the maid was once more out the door.

"Thoughtful of her," he commented.

Louise nodded again, then scowled. "And at least she didn't try to kiss you."

"Oh, come on, you know she's not interested in me like that."

"But what if she gets ideas from Jessica?!"

That gave Jason pause. But then he shrugged. "I haven't asked your approval for Siesta, either."

His response didn't seem to mollify his little mistress, however. "And what happens when you do ask for my approval?" she demanded, not quite snarling as she glared up at him.

"Then . . . I suppose you'll have to decide if you want to grant it, or not."

"And would you truly heed me, if you loved her?"

He looked back down at Louise thoughtfully. Then: "Here, let me show you something."

"What?"

"This." So saying, he scooped her up in his arms in a bridal carry, then went to the bed and sat down, depositing his little mistress sideways in his lap and wrapping her in his arms.

"What are you doing?" she snapped. But then she scooted a little closer and laid her head against his chest.

"Once again, you're here in my arms, little mistress. No one else. I'm in no hurry to set you aside and cleave to another."

"But sooner or later you will-"

"Shhhh. Don't borrow trouble from the future. 'Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.'" Besides, when we do ask for your approval it'll probably be to get permission to court you. Not that we can say that yet, not even after those kisses last night.

"As long as you mean that." Then Louise pulled back far enough to glare at him. "I'll have at least one year as a Second Form, and at least one year after that as a Third Form. And I won't marry before I leave the Academy. So don't make plans to go sniffing around at girls any time soon!"

Another dog reference. You really were hoping to summon one, weren't you? "No plans, little mistress. Although Jessica mentioned that she might visit Siesta this summer, so we'll need to take care if that happens."

She made a disgusted noise, then pulled away entirely and stood up. "Get up. We should change out of these commoner outfits before your maid returns with supper."

That was an order Jason was more than happy to obey. If he'd gotten somewhat used to what he'd been wearing the last few weeks, they still weren't very comfortable, and being able to switch back to his own clothes was a great relief. Soon he'd changed into his nightclothes, and he was securing the ties that held his nightshirt closed when Louise handed him her chemise.

And when he turned to face her, she'd already stripped down to everything but the commoner version of hosiery she'd be wearing. Which, well, after the last couple of days it took a little more effort not to leer than he normally required.

Careful to maintain eye contact, he held the chemise with one hand and waved at his clean laundry with the other. "You sure you don't want to borrow one of mine to eat in?"

She shot him a suspicious look. "Why would I wear one of your shirts tonight?"

"Uh, 'cause Siesta's probably going to change out of her uniform and into my shirt and trunks if she eats with us."

"She-!" Louise drew in her breath sharply. "Why do you think she might wish to dine with us?"

Jason shrugged. "I'm assuming that she'll want to hear about what it was like at the Inn. We'll have to ask her not to gossip about it, but she already knew we were on a secret mission, so that's probably fine."

That got a reluctant nod. "And she already has some of it from Jessica, so she'll have questions." Then Louise pouted. "I suppose we should stay on friendly terms with her, just so she'll continue to be helpful."

"And because she's a friend," he pointed out. "Do you really want to go back to being as isolated as you were during First Form?"

A considering pause ensued.

"I suppose not." His little mistress finally sighed. "Very well. One of your shirts."

Donning the shirt took but a moment, and Siesta had not yet returned, so Jason picked Louise up and held her against him, as he had the first time she'd ever worn his clothing. "I admit," he murmured into her ear, "that it's nice to hold you like this without her interrupting."

"It is nice," she agreed, laying her head down on his shoulder with a soft sigh.

Then, after several moments of mutual contentment: "But this commoner hosiery itches, and I want out of it, now!"

Her breath tickled against his neck as she spoke, and when he set her down he resisted an urge to scratch the affected area. But hang on, we're got a good excuse for that! "Are you going to put on clean culottes, then?"

"Mm." Louise nodded after a moment, and headed towards her armoire. "What I truly need is to go bathe tonight before bed. But I'll do that after supper."

"I'll take down our laundry and bring up my buckets while you do that," Jason said, quickly rubbing his shoulder where her breath had tickled. And since she was turned away from him as she bent over her wardrobe, he shamelessly ogled the outline of her backside as she retrieved and donned her culottes.

Don't particularly care for the dog comparisons, he thought with a crooked grin as he enjoyed the view. She still wasn't anywhere near as voluptuous as Siesta or Jessica, but bending over sans-culottes for a few moments like that outlined buttocks that no few of the customers at the Inn had tried to pinch, or otherwise offer their crude admiration thereof. Still, if we could parlay that into sticking our nose somewhere intimate . . .

Only now she was done, and standing up, and he wiped the smirk off his face before his little mistress could turn around and catch him leering.

"What do you suppose is taking that maid so long?" she asked. "We haven't had anything to eat since before we left to face de Montferat, and I'm hungry."

"You did ask for something substantial. It's possible that she's trying to navigate the stairs with a heavy load."

"Mmm." A considering look came over Louise's face. "She said most of the students were gone for the summer by now, yes?"

"Uh, yeah."

"My appearance is back to normal, and I am wearing culottes if someone is watching from below, so I'm going to so see if she's in the tower yet." With that, she was out the door, striding determinedly.

[what is the plan][?] he asked.

[down to the atrium] Louise replied. [then up the stairs][,][and if she]

She broke off for a moment. [she is in the atrium][,]trying to figure out the best balance for carrying our supper up the stairs].[levitating us both up]

[a heavy load][?]

[heavy enough to give her pause]

Jason nodded, not that Louise would be able to see it, and left the bedroom to head to the landing that his little mistress favored when Levitating up the central shaft.

He got there right as the two girls landed, relieved Siesta of as much of her burden as she was willing to give up, and they all headed back to the bedroom for supper.

---

"And then, just when he made a third grab for Felicia, Scarron was there in her place!"

Siesta burst into fresh giggles at Louise's latest anecdote, and Jason shook his head.

"I wish I'd been pulling Brute duty when that happened, rather than washing dishes," he said, a chuckle on his lips as he pictured one of the patrons pulling 200-plus pounds of leather-clad beefcake onto an unsuspecting lap. "His friends won't let him forget that night any time soon."

"Oh, Uncle Scarron," the maid sighed as her giggling came to an end. "He started doing things like that after his wife died. Everyone tried to convince him to sell the Inn and come back to Tarbes, or at least send Jessica to live with us, but he always refused. I always liked it when she visited, it was like having an older sister, but I haven't been able to see her since I got my position here at the Academy."

"Speaking of the Academy," Jason replied, "Anything crazy happen here while we were gone? Thefts, duels, hijinks?"

Siesta shook her head. "The students were mostly studying for their examinations, so they've been too busy to get into trouble. Well, aside from Guiche the Bronze."

"Is he still trying to return to Montmorency's favor?" Louise asked. "You think he'd give up eventually."

"Well, now that he's gained a reputation as a rake, none of the other noblewomen want anything to do with him. I hear that even Miss Zerbst turned him down! Anyway, after he went to Menenville the weekend before last, he started reading love-poems to Miss Montmorency to try to woo her."

"How'd that turn out?" Jason asked.

"Well, I didn't get to see it, but after a couple of days she apparently conjured acid at his stack of poems. And then he tried to save them, but ended up getting acid on his hands, and they had to hurry him to the infirmary to save them. And then the two of them were hauled in front of the Headmaster, because that was too close to dueling for the teachers to ignore."

Louise rolled her eyes. "Hopefully he's learned from that. If she's using Vitrolic Rebuke, she's serious about being done with him."

"I don't think he's tried to approach her since," Seista confirmed, nodding. Then she looked at the remains of the supper laid out on the table, and then out the window, where the sun had set and twilight was slipping away. "I suppose I should take this down, now. You'll want to get to bed soon, so you can report to the Mr. Colbert tomorrow."

"We'll all go down together," Jason told her, as he stood up from his spot at the table where he'd been kneeling on the floor. "Louise needs to bathe, and I need to get my buckets. But it's been fun to catch up."

Siesta nodded. Then, a bit shyly, "I've heard that Miss Zerbst has been laughing about how Miss Vallière ran off. And she's still here at the Academy. So . . . take care."

Louise's eyes narrowed. "I will," she replied in a determined voice.

---

"This is a somewhat unusual request, your Highness," the Headmaster gravely informed Henrietta. "Altering the official records is no small thing."

"That may be, but the Crown would be very grateful if you did us this favor," she replied, smiling expectantly.

Osmond took a long pull at his pipe, before puffing out a cloud of smoke that fortunately shot over her head. "I expect I shall presently be hearing interesting news out of Bruxelles, then."

Henrietta didn't allow her smile to waver. "We hope that any such news will make for a pleasant diversion from the minutiae of running this Academy."

"Mm." The Headmaster put the pipe down, and gave her a very level look. "I will do as you ask, young princess, but I expect you to conceal whatever embarrassment took place well enough that Miss Vallière's parents do not take exception."

"As long as Louise was provably here today, then nothing happened that ought to attract their notice," she assured him.

"Very well. Now, your Highness, I must strongly recommend that you return your parents' wedding present to the palace as soon as possible, while there is yet any possibility that Her Royal Majesty hasn't noticed its absence."

Henrietta didn't flinch, but it was a near thing. Agnes had set down out of sight of the office's window, so her little adventure in borrowing one of the family treasures (which would be hers one day anyway, Hel take it!) ought to have gone unnoticed. But if Osmond was truly as doddering as he sometimes seemed in public, he wouldn't have been able to keep the Tristain Academy of Magic as his own personal fief all these years. Especially during the last several decades of national consolidation under the Blessed Realms and Germania.

"Thank you for that timely reminder," she replied, not letting a hint of her consternation show. "I take my leave of you, Headmaster Osmond."

Shortly thereafter, she and Agnes were airborne once more, her bodyguard urging the pair of pegasi to their utmost speed as they flew through the afternoon light.

"Is he going to cooperate?" her bodyguard called out. "Will Miss Vallière's involvement remain hidden?"

"The Headmaster agreed," Henrietta replied. "Louise is as safe as we can make her. So is Jason, I'm sure you'll be happy to know."

Agnes turned her head to shoot the princess a quick look. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Oh, we all saw how interested you were in him," she returned with a grin. "And how jealous you became when I embraced him while exchanging farewells-"

The princess cut off as her bodyguard's shoulders started to shake, alarmed for a moment that her teasing might have truly enraged the woman that she depended on for safety if the worst came to worst . . .

But then Agnes threw back her head and roared in laughter.

"Me, and that great big lump of a man?" she eventually said, still chuckling. "Your Highness, if I were to lose all sense and take up with a man, he'd have to be much prettier than Miss Vallière's familiar.

"No," the bodyguard continued, "my concern towards him was to ensure that he did not gain aspirations towards you."

"Towards me?" Henrietta blinked in surprise. "I admit, his forthrightness is an appealing change from the games played at Court, especially during winter, but . . . even if Louise Françoise was willing to give him up, which she is not, he'd never be able to keep it a secret. His Imperial Highness would not be pleased were I anything other than a virgin, when I welcome him to my bridal bower."

Agnes shot her another look. "See that you remember it, Your Highness."

Of course she wasn't going to forget it! Especially since Louise was too dear a friend to try to rob her of her familiar, when they were so obviously devoted to each other. Besides, as long as Jason was attached to his master, he was also Henrietta's friend by association. And he wasn't horrified when she chose to relax and ignore royal protocol when it began to chafe, so she wasn't about to do anything to cut herself off from someone that she didn't have to be so proper around. Even if it was a shock, from time to time, to converse with someone who didn't remember to defer to her all the time.

It was such a pity that Prince Atma lacked the amiable qualities that had Agnes concerned about the possibility of Henrietta taking leave of her senses. Of course she was going to do her duty and provide him with heirs, but until she had met him she'd harbored hopes that he would be someone she could come to love eventually. But his casual cruelty and his disdain for anyone of lesser station were not only personally repellant to her, they went against everything she'd ever been taught as a princess about what Brimir asked his followers to be. Especially those who Brimir chose to bear the gift of magic, as both she and His Imperial Highness had been chosen.

Henrietta grimaced. Chosen he might be, but her official betrothed hardly acknowledged the blessed origins of the more exalted side of his heritage. Fortunately, Atma Tharoor disliked children, so she'd have every opportunity to raise their offspring to revere Brimir and shun their father's heathen ways. Still, if only-

She shook her head. No use dwelling on past hopes and memories, no matter how pleasant they'd been! Now they were only a source of pain. Especially that last time, by the lake, when she'd been nearly ready to-

"Your Highness, what's wrong?" Agnes asked, breaking into her reverie.

"It's nothing," the princess quickly assured her bodyguard, schooling her face into a pleasant mask. "I was merely remembering the trouble that I used to get into with Louise, and lamenting the fact that we shall not likely have such opportunities in the future."

"Mmm. That's one reason your mother agreed to my assignment. The last time you two disappeared from a ball it was clear that you'd shirked your obligations to go swimming! What if a foreign agent had happened upon you?"

"Mother already gave me that lecture, you know." As with the Headmaster, Henrietta was able to keep herself from reacting, if only just. That last comment had to have been an unfortunate coincidence. It wasn't like Her Royal Majesty had found out everything about the lake. Saddling her with a bodyguard-cum-minder and declining to invite Louise to the Palace again would have been the least of her mother's precautions, if she'd known.

"I would supply you with a stream of lectures unending, Highness, if I thought they would persuade you to a little more caution regarding your own safety."

"But you know better, so you won't!" she replied brightly.

Agnes sighed. "Unfortunately."

---

Henrietta cast Raindrop Veil once more as the walls of Bruxelles came into view. Shortly after that, they were over the Palace and landing in the stable-like aerie built especially for the royal carriage and its assigned pegasi.

"Will you be able to get away safely?" she asked Agnes. There was a slightly better chance that her bodyguard wouldn't get into as much trouble if it looked like the princess had gone off on her own, after all. And they would lose precious time, if Agnes had to endure the royal displeasure instead of hunting Reconquista.

Which was why the tall, athletic blonde was pulling out a long, thin stretch of rope. "I'll be fine," she reported after taking a peek over the edge. Then she folded the rope in half and tied a complex and peculiar knot to the edge of the aerie.

"Make sure you rub them down properly before you leave," Agnes then cautioned. "And give them a generous portion of grain once they're cooled off. It'll give me time to get away and make it look like you aren't being quite as irresponsible." With that she was heading down the rope, taking care to only put her weight on one of the dangling halves, and not the other. Shortly thereafter, she was on the ground, and a sharp tug on the other dangling half undid the knot and caused the rope to fall down, leaving no evidence behind of an escape.

"I wish she'd show me how to do those trick knots," Henrietta sighed, as she Levitated water for the pegasi to drink before Levitating a quartet of brushes and getting to work.

Fortunately, like most magical creatures, pegasi were hardier than their common counterparts, and it wasn't long before they were properly cooled off and enjoying their supper.

Of course, that meant that it was time to face Her Royal Majesty. It was tempting to Levitate down, to try to evade responsibility. But if the missing carriage had gone noticed, and the seals reset, getting caught trying to avoid punishment would only make things worse.

Thus she took the stairs down the aerie to the bottom instead, and triggered the seal on the entrance designed to keep out all but the Royal family and those servants trusted to tend to the pegasi above.

Naturally, it failed to open.

So Henrietta schooled her face for a third time into pleasant blankness, and held it like that until the doors opened and she was face to face with her mother.

One look at said face and she sighed internally. For all her bravado earlier, this was not going to be an easy lecture to endure.

---

Jason blinked as his little mistress returned to their room, freshly bathed. Once more she was in her chemise, which he hadn't even noticed her bringing with her when they set out. Guess it makes sense. Might attract comment if she gets noticed going around wearing our clothes outside the bedroom, but . . .

"Want to review your spells before we go to bed?" he asked.

"No, it's been a busy day, and I'm getting sleepy," Louise admitted. "Do you need to stay up for anything?"

"Nah. I've exercised and washed up, so we just need to brush our teeth and we're good."

She nodded, then looked down at his air mattress. "That's starting to look flat, after a month of not being used," she said. "You should make sure you inflate it tonight."

Jason opened his mouth . . . but then closed it, and nodded. "That may be a good idea," he agreed in a subdued voice.

She gazed into his eyes, expressionless, for several long moments, before nodding back, and they both got ready for bed.

---

Louise was silently tense as she and her familiar brushed their teeth, side by side. He'd been displaying more disobedience at the Inn, and she'd indulged him more than she ought to have.

It was something she hadn't realized until Jessica had grabbed him and, a-and-!

Being kissed by Jason had been nice, and so had kissing him back. Each time, her lips had been left tingling, and her heart had thrilled with the knowledge that she was the only one he would kiss willingly.

Maybe it hadn't been the overwhelming, breathless, knee-weakening sensation that Siesta's books had described, but those had clearly been exaggerating. It's not like they were concerned with accurate details, after all.

Except then Jessica had pounced with her farewell kiss, although at least he'd frozen up and hadn't kissed the head faerie back. But with the way her mouth had moved, almost as if she were chewing on his lips (but not truly biting him, because Louise knew how he reacted to getting bit), it was clearly a level of kissing that she hadn't even realized was possible. Maybe the books had described such kisses accurately.

She'd ignored it at first, because they were leaving and he wasn't looking to court Jessica no matter what the head faerie attempted and once she got him alone in her bedroom she was going to be able to try it out herself-

And that's when a wave of utter fury had washed over her, because it was a kiss for lovers that she was seeing, and Jason was her familiar, not her lover.

She was Louise Françoise Le Blanc de La Vallière, and she would never shame her family by taking a lover out of wedlock. She would wed in due time, a few years hence, and she would be a devoted wife like her mother because her husband would make her deliriously happy and even if she'd been inclined to be as foolish as Eléonore had believed she was not going to do anything as depraved as taking her familiar as a lover!

And it didn't matter how many of the books passed around by the maids featured mages seeking to give their familiars a semblance of human form (or even more disgustingly, not caring and attempting to mate with them regardless). Real mages didn't do that.

Besides, Headmaster Osmond's Mirror of Truth notwithstanding, altering the form of a creature like that was nigh-impossible, familiar or not. The only confirmed shape-shifters, aside from humans afflicted with the curse of lycanthrope, were creatures of extraordinary magic such as rhyme dragons. And the last one of those had appeared in Halkagenia over a thousand years ago.

(Which didn't necessarily rule out familiars having the power to alter their forms, but such powers were always a matter of changing their size, and not transmuting their very species.)

Of course, Jason was already quite human, so he wouldn't need a familiar power or exotic magic for that. Which made her belly feel a little funny, like her dreams the previous night only not nearly so intense, so she needed to stop thinking about the depraved stories that commoners liked to tell each other.

Or how 'disobedient' he'd been last night.

Her breath caught nonetheless, for if there was one thing Louise could count on about her familiar it was that he was always willing to disobey her!

And now they were done brushing their teeth, and she was enduring a small sip of his fire-mint mouth-rinse, because she couldn't tell him to kiss her like a lover but if he was going to be disobedient and kiss her that way it would be when their mouths were clean and she remembered that he'd recommended the mouth-rinse that first night as something to use before kissing a lover-

But he merely went to his 'air' mattress and worked the cunningly-designed bellows until it was fully inflated once more.

She scowled at his back as she got into bed, but then he finished inflating his mattress and he was bending over to tuck her in and her wand was under her pillow where she couldn't reach it if he seized her hands first and she even exhaled a little so that he'd know her mouth would taste like mint if he wanted to bend down and-

But Jason didn't do anything to disobey her and take advantage of her. He just tucked her in, and smoothed a stray lock of hair away from her cheek (even ignoring how it made her shiver!), and lay down on his mattress next to her bed before snapping the light off.

Louise fumed, lying there. Of all the times for him to suddenly become obedient! It wasn't as if he had to fear her punishment anymore. She couldn't stand to, not after that morning when she'd worn herself out, pounding on him, and all he'd done afterward was feed her, and hold her, and gently pry from her burdens that she'd never been willing to share out loud with anyone.

She gave a soft, soundless sigh. Mother and Eléonore would consider it weakness, no doubt. A few quick strokes of the lash were enough to correct most forms of commoner disobedience, and had the advantage of being over and done with while neither maiming the erring commoner, nor ruining his livelihood as fines might, nor even causing lingering pain or humiliation.

But Louise just wasn't that kind of noble. Not with her familiar. She could hardly imagine wanting to hurt him. (Unless he committed some gross betrayal, of course!) And now having lived among the commoners of Bruxelles for most of a month, she wasn't sure she could properly discipline other commoners either.

She'd become softer. More like Cattleya.

But perhaps that wasn't so bad.

It had been eye-opening, to live among commoners and pretend to be one of them. (Not that her pretense had held up to the faeries' scrutiny, but the Inn's customers had been fooled well enough.) Certainly, Louise had been considered a failure, and in the last few years she'd dreaded the inevitable day when she would finally be declared inexprimé. And some would consider that as bad as being born a commoner.

Still, if a failed mage was little more than something to be pitied, she was yet of the nobility, for her children were likely enough to have the magic that had been denied her. Every noble grew up knowing that their duties in life would be determined by their affinity, their strength, and their family traditions, in that order. They might not know what those duties would be until their affinities manifested – her mother was of Air, but her sisters were of Earth and Water, and of course she herself had been revealed to be of Fire – but it was a framework that no noble was without.

Commoners had nothing like that. Not even family talents would pass on reliably: Listening to the other faeries, she'd heard of parents giving their children up to apprenticeships, sometimes for sums that commoners could ill afford, when those children had no talent for the family business no matter how much they tried. It meant that commoners had to find their way through the world as best they could without the Brimir-given roles that lent structure to a noble's life. And for all that nobles were commanded to care for their commoners, Louise had seen that even in Bruxelles, the very seat of the Water Throne, there were all too many nobles who lacked the piety to carry out their divinely-appointed duties.

Knowing all that, how could she blame commoners for doing everything they could to wring security from their surroundings? She could even sympathize with Nicole's behavior, now that the ex-faerie was safely paired off and no longer a threat. Er, to Jason. A threat to Jason.

His breathing hadn't slowed down, so he was still awake. And if just pressing her lips against his was enough to make them tingle for him too . . .

Maybe he hadn't noticed her using the mouth-rinse?

---

Well, what's there to say? Jason thought as he lay there in the dark, feeling rather lonely. We're back at the Academy, and if we've grown rather used to sleeping with Louise next to us? Well, by her lights we're still just a commoner. Even if she wasn't happy about how the faeries were taking an interest in us, that and a few kisses don't have to mean romantic possessiveness. Plenty of cultures kiss for non-romantic reasons.

So if she stops doing girlfriend things altogether, we should assume she's come to her senses, as it were. A stab of cold dread went through his heart at the thought, but he shifted to lay on his side, his back to Louise's bed. Yeah, already knew that we're going to need time to get over her, if that's what we have to do.

Still, if that is the case, gotta wonder if Siesta's maybe a little interested? Not that we can overtly pursue her right now. But we probably have time. Besides, coming up with that cover story was kinda flirty, right? And the way she woke up, plus how she felt free to wear our clothes off duty, it's seeming more and more likely that she doesn't have a sweetheart of her own, not even one she hasn't told her family about-

[Jason] Louise sent, breaking into his train of thought.

[yes][?] he replied, his thoughts suddenly back to his little mistress with laser-like focus.

She didn't respond.

He waited a bit longer, and she still didn't respond. Is she about to ask us to join her up there? She did say she sleeps better next to someone else. And we've gotten rather used to it ourself. Besides, if we push just a little, maybe-

[Louise][is something wrong][?] He paused. Is she having a hard time sleeping? [do you want me to]

[no] she sent, interrupting him. [nothing is wrong]

There was another pause.

[sleep well][Jason]

Dammit. [you too][,][little mistress]

---

[Jason] Louise sent, hardly daring to breathe at her own presumption. His disobedience might be one thing, but if she crossed the line into outright inviting him-

[yes][?] he replied.

But what could she say? Offering to let him kiss her would shame both her and her family, even if no one ever found out. Hints were one thing, hints could be disavowed, once their meaning was deciphered . . . but he often didn't decipher her hints, not unless they were so broad that they weren't hints at all-

[Louise][is something wrong][?]

Yes! He wasn't next to her where she could lie against him, not quite like sleeping next to Cattleya but at least as nice. Once he was in her bed he would surely notice her breath, and if she playfully spurned him for not kissing her the way Jessica had kissed him he would surely prove once again where his loyalties lay, and then it wouldn't be her fault that they were kissing like lovers, and now her belly was feeling funny again-

[do you want me to]

[no] she quickly sent, scowling. [nothing is wrong]

Why did he have to ask, all of a sudden?! After all, they were both where they ought to be. Jason wasn't a dog, to curl up next to her, and she couldn't encourage disobedience.

[sleep well][Jason] And no matter how much her mouth wanted to tingle again, she meant it. She had to.

[you too][,][little mistress]

Stupid obedient familiar! She was going to miss having someone sleeping next to her again, for he was as nice to snuggle against as Cattleya. But maybe one day she'd get a chance to sleep between the two of them, like when Jason had invited her Highness to snuggle up against Louise that afternoon. That had been amazingly relaxing.

Maybe. If she didn't marry first. Brimir willing, her husband would be just as good to snuggle against, years hence.

But tonight she didn't have anyone, and she couldn't encourage Jason, not outright. For now, she'd just have to get used to sleeping alone again.

---

A/N: I believe I mentioned earlier that Motte would be more than a one-episode wonder. So here he is. Yes, he's an asshole. He's also an asset to the Crown, a personal badass, and aside from appreciating female beauty he's pretty much a total OC replacement for the anime character.

New Terms: Parvenu – translates to 'upstart'. The thing is, in fantasy role-playing games (the kind done with dice, not hand-cuffs) the adventurer who can carve out his own domain is usually a very capable warrior, a complete badass compared to nobles who inherited their titles and lands. And before gunpowder knocked heavy cavalry down from its throne as king of the battlefield, there was a lot of emphasis on personal combat prowess to be fit to be a lord. It's why women couldn't inherit in England after William conquered it, in fact: Women weren't knights, only knights were getting land grants from the king, therefore all property was owned by men.

(Note that the average man wasn't going to be a very successful knight: It was the biggest, strongest, and most talented men who thrived in that profession. Exceptional women wouldn't be facing average men in combat, they'd be facing the top ten percent of men in terms of size and strength. Think Ronda Rousey and Holly Holm up against professional linebackers in heavy armor.)

Anyway, in this fic if you prove yourself badass enough to recruit a small army and clear your Crown-granted estate of orcs and sundry monsters, you'll get all the respect that a Name Level fighter would be due in Old School D&D.

New Spells: Raindrop Veil – a Water-based invisibility spell restricted to the Throne of Water.

Vitrolic Rebuke – Line spell of Water, seems to conjure acid.

Magic Items: The carriage driven by Henrietta flies, by extending the native auxilum winged horses possess over it and its passengers, and is the only such flying vessel.