Edited on July 4, 2015. I'm currently working through this story and making slight adjustments to the story in order to fix certain inaccuracies that started popping up later in the story.

I own nothing of the Black Jewels Trilogy or any following novels. All rights go to Anne Bishop. Thanks for reading!

BJT:ANW

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"Well, it's about time that you got here," the strange woman said chidingly. "I've been waiting for centuries, my dear."

Arina's jaw dropped in outright shock.

"What?"

BJT:ANW

Chapter 10

"I…what?" Arina repeated, her voice faint. "I don't understand."

"I know you don't, child," the grandmother—Arina realized that this must be "The Mistress" that the housekeeper had mentioned—replied lightly, stepping inside the room and moving across to sit on a delicate chair opposite the young girl. "That's quite alright. We have some time before Mrs. Iden will return with refreshments, so I will explain."

Arina nodded reluctantly. She leaned back in the sofa and slipped her heels off before she pulled her legs up to her side and curling up rather like a cat on the couch, turning her attention back to the lady. "I'm listening," she said quietly.

The older women smiled sweetly. "My name is Sandra Starwood. My family has owned this manor for over 75000 years. I never thought that it would leave my family; it has been with us for so long. After all, we had never forgotten our roots." She paused at Arina's look of curiosity. "Our ancestors were simple people who hunted in the jungle all those years ago. They came across a cliff with stone that glowed in the sun. After digging it out, they found that the stone absorbed light of all kinds, and when they took it home with then, they found that it reflected that light and glowed in the starlight. They learned and adjusted quickly, began making the stones into jewelry, and soon grew wealthy. After some time, one of the sons of the family married into the aristocracy and had the manor built, but even then, he didn't forget his roots." Lady Starwood smiled sadly. "But my children didn't want the manor. They all moved to the big cites, and their children don't want the manor either. When I realized that my children would sell the manor if it was given to them, I wove a tangled web to see if my grandchildren would want it. But I didn't see any of my grandchildren. Instead, I saw you, and I knew that you would be the one to take the manor from me. I knew you would love it as I did."

"But that was a long, long time ago, child, even by my standards. I am old. I had almost given up hope that you were coming, my dear." Arina blinked at her in surprise.

"You don't seem that old," the young girl murmured in surprise, half closing her eyes as she absorbed what she had been told. The information about the family was interesting, and she understood the message behind it—don't forget the people who were here first. She also empathized with the importance of the jungle; she had only been here less than an hour, but she already felt a strong pull toward it. It was reassuring to know that Lady Starwood was happy that she was taking the house. It might have been very uncomfortable.

"You are a sweet child," Lady Starwood said. "I am over 4,500 years old. While not as old as Lord SaDiablo is, it is still very old. Now that you are here, I can finally rest."

Arina made a strangled, gasping sound. Mrs. Iden walked in with a tray of tea and sandwiches while she stared at Lady Starwood in horror.

"Oh, don't look that way, dear," Lady Starwood said calmly. "I'm quite pleased about it. I am ready to pass, child. I've spent my time. Now, if you want a drink before we go to tour the house, then take a cup." The lady leaned forward and poured herself a cup of tea, and Arina hesitantly followed her example.

Once both females had a cup of tea in their hands, Lady Starwood stood up with her cup in her hands. After enchanting the tray to follow behind the pair, she led Arina out of the drawing room and back into the entrance hall. The silver eyed girl blinked once at the brightness, but her eyes adjusted quickly and she once again saw the brilliantly lit room clearly.

"The study is on the end there," the Lady said, nodding to the end of the hall and a door made of a cloudy crystal. It was behind the stairs, not hidden, but not obvious either. A public space, not the real study, Arina assumed. "Also on the first floor are two other receiving rooms and a formal dining room. Upstairs are several guest bedrooms, an entrance to the library, the ballroom…"

Arina's head spun as the tour went on. In addition to the ballroom, guest rooms and libraries, there was a solar—in a nook with a glass ceiling overlooking the cliff—a music room also facing the cliff, a few office type rooms with large desks and bookshelves, three empty rooms and what looked like two practice rooms: one with padded walls, and the other with mirrors. It looked like they were set up for weapons practice, and the padded room would work perfectly for her martial arts.

The ballroom was floored with the glowing white stone prevalent everywhere in the manor—she discovered that it was named starstone, aptly enough—and lined with mirrors. It reminded her quite a bit of pictures of the Versailles palace in France, with some differences, naturally. Despite the obvious elegance of the room, it wasn't obnoxiously so, and as the girl looked up at the crystal and gold chandeliers she could see herself having celebrations in the room. She made a mental note to find some black marble tables for the room to contrast with the brilliance. Arina smiled at the thought of the room being in direct contrast to the Blood's reverence for the Darkness—she could certainly appreciate it, at least.

Most of the rooms either had no furniture at all, or only generic pieces with no soul. The only exceptions were the offices, which held desks and bookshelves made of a very nice, heavy, mahogany type wood. So as Lady Starwood showed Arina around the second floor, the girl called in a notebook and a camera and took pictures of every room and jotted down her thoughts for the type of furniture—light, heavy, dark, old, modern—and noted wither or not she wanted a rug in the room. Some of the rooms could use a lamp or two, and some needed curtains, so Arina also noted the type of fabric she wanted for the rooms.

The suites on the second floor were generic, decorated in white and creams, and Arina took pictures for the shape of the room, and simply noted that she wanted a total makeover, including paint for them all.

The third floor turned out to be where the family would gather, with all the family bedrooms, and several large gathering spaces all over the floor with different views from each. Arina decided that she wanted the gathering spaces to have a darker tone than the bright ones already in place, taking pictures and making notes. Most of the library was on the third floor as well, needing nothing more than wall hangings and carpets to complete the decorations. There was a Healers room on the third floor, as well as a Black Widow's workroom.

Lady Silverwood smiled as she watched the young girl scribble down ideas on a note pad, taking pictures of the rooms as well. She was sure that the manor would flourish under this girl, even more than it had under her family. The true mistress of the house had arrived.

"Come," the woman said at last, once she had lead Arina through the entire house. "For the finishing details." She took Arina back down to the drawing room they had started from, leading her into the room to join another woman. There was paperwork spread out in neat piles over a table, already signed in places.

The woman—a real estate agent—and Lady Silverwood walked Arina through the papers to officially sell the house, and Arina signed in a daze, hardly daring to believe that it was really happening. They had almost finished before Arina came back to herself.

"Wait," she said abruptly. "How much are you selling for?" She pulled the papers closer and scanned them, trying to locate the price.

"100 gold marks," Lady Silverwood said calmly. Arina dropped the papers in shock, sputtering.

"Don't be ridiculous," the girl finally managed. "The manor is worth at least ten times that!"

"Perhaps, yes," the older woman allowed, sitting back and looking at Arina steadily. "But that does not mean that I need the money, or that it should cost much to give the manor to its true mistress. My dear, I have no need for money. My family is wealthy, and I will be well supported by them. I do not need to empty your pockets for the manor. Besides, this house is meant for you. I would be a fool to make it difficult for you. And on top of that," she shrugged quietly. "I said so, that's why. So just smile, and accept it."

Arina didn't want charity, and at the same time she couldn't afford the house if it was too much more money, but she still wanted to argue the point further. She felt bad about it, but the real estate agent just shook her head at the younger girl. "Lady Silverwood is famous for always coming off better in her bargains, child," she advised. "Don't worry about cheating her or anything. I don't think that it's even possible. Now, I need you to sign your full name here, please."

"All right, all right," Arina surrendered, pulling the last page forward to sign her name. Arina Julianne Valini. From there, it only took another ten minutes at the most for details to be finalized, and soon Arina was being handed a sleek deed of ownership to the house. A thrill went down her back as she looked at it.

"Congratulations, my dear," Lady Silverwood said gently.

"Thank you," Arina said breathlessly. "Thank you so much."

"Think nothing of it, child. Now, did you not mention earlier that you had a timeline?"

Arina checked her watch and made a strangled gasping noise. "Oh, shit!" she leaped to her feet, almost sending the papers flying. The real estate agent scrambled to vanish the papers as Arina rushed through a goodbye and several more "thank yous"s and a few "sorry"s as she bolted out the door. Both older women looked at each other, and then laughed. Youths these days, they both thought.

BJT:ANW

Arina pushed as hard as she could on the winds, and just barely arrived back in Glacia by two. Dropping off the winds, she breathed a sigh of relief as she checked her watch while walking in the door. Two o'clock on the dot. "Honey, I'm home," she sing-songed, reaching out with a psychic thread to find everyone else. Locating them on the second floor, she bounded up the stairs and into the gathering room. "I have a house!" she exclaimed from the doorway.

The girls, Jaenelle and Karla all looked up in surprise. "Already, really? That was fast," Jaenelle observed, even as the girls made noises of surprise.

"I know," Arina responded, collapsing into a chair and stretching absently. "I couldn't believe it either. But it really happened. I even have the deed," she added, calling it in and showing it to Jaenelle in excitement.

"Arina Julianne Valini. That's a beautiful name, my dear. Wait, Starfire Manor?" Jaenelle asked incredulously. "I've heard of that place. Isn't it in the middle of the jungle, and as old as the Hall? Owned by a prominent Hayllian family?"

"Yeah, I think so. At least, it's definitely in the middle of the jungle, and it's actually 75000 years old, so older than the Hall, I think. But I didn't meet the current family; they didn't want to live in the middle of the jungle, so they've been trying to get the Matriarch to sell it for years. But the Matriarch was a Black Widow, and apparently she was waiting for me. At least, she wouldn't sell to anyone else, and made very sure of that. The ad that I found in the newspaper, it had a strange enchantment on it so that no one but me could read it. I still don't know how she managed to key it to me, seeing as she had never met me, but there you go. It worked, anyway, and I got my own house as well!"

"Why do you need your own house?" Rose demanded, indignant. "What's wrong with the Hall?"

"I'm sure that nothing is wrong with the Hall. But that's your family's home, not mine. I need to make my own place, away from all of your families and influences. My home, my life, you know? But it has to be in one of the long lived territories, so that narrows it down to three places. Rose, your family rules Dhemlan, so that's out. Rillian, Lillian, your family pretty much rules Askavi, so that's out as well. That only leaves Hayll, right? It's a distance from both other long lived territories, and no one from Jaenelle's court hails from there. It's a clean space for me." Arina smiled hesitantly at the other girls, who looked disgruntled and not very convinced. "Besides, Hayll called to me. When I went there, the jungle sang to me."

Augustine smiled reluctantly at the other girl. "You have to get space from the Circle so that you can make your own court and your own path without anyone trying to tell you how to do it. And you can't live in any of the territories we live in, or you would be accused of favoritism."

"Exactly," Arina said dryly. "Not that it's fair or anything. It's just easier that way.

"Ok, fine, alright," Rose said in exasperation when Arina looked back at the girls pleadingly. "Whatever you say. I get it."

"But you do know that you will have to get houses or something in our territories eventually, right?" Titan said wickedly. "Hell's fire, the boyos have probably already found places for you to get." The other girls made various noises of agreement.

"I will pick my own houses, thanks," Arina muttered darkly.

"Try telling that to the boyos," Astira said lightly.

"Oh, no worries, I no longer seem to have many problems telling people no." Arina called in her camera and her laptop, ignoring for the moment the curious stares that she was getting. She got up and crossed over to the center table and set up the laptop on it, turning it on absently.

"What's that?" Emerald asked curiously, leaning forward to look more closely at the computer.

"It's a personal computer…I'm not sure how to explain it though. It's sort of like a portable information base, though that's not a great explanation. It does a lot of things, almost anything, really. When it connects to something called the internet, which of course here is…" Arina stopped, staring at the small symbol in the corner of the screen. "Is. Huh. That is…really weird. It shouldn't be possible, but apparently it is connected to the internet. Well, it's something for me to muse on at a later date. Anyway, it can access music, books, newspapers, magazines, movies—recorded plays, and more. Information on anything and everything, and that's really just the start. I don't know much about how it works, only how to work it. But almost everything back on Earth was done online, so pretty much everything is on it. There are games you can play, you can compile documents professionally, and….well, let's just say that you can do anything you want on a computer, pretty much. Right now, I'm uploading the pictures that I took at Starfire Manor so I can show you guys before we go shopping. They will show up on the screen in a minute."

All of the girls, even Jaenelle and Karla crowded around the screen as Arina deftly connected the camera to the laptop and opened up the file that appeared on the screen.

"Ooohhh," Alexandra gasped. The others all made similar noises of astonishment, as the first image of the front of the Manor filled the screen. Arina sighed happily at the sight, impressed despite having seen the real thing. The image captured the light that infused the building, and showed the beauty of the jungle surrounding the manor. It was easy to see why Arina loved the place so much already.

The Queen in question clicked through the pictures, showing the rooms she wanted to get furniture for immediately and ignoring the multitudes of other rooms for now. She explained what she wanted while she showed the rooms: the library, the 'family' bedrooms and gathering spaces, the dining room, the work/practice rooms. Places she needed ready for when she moved in so that she had somewhere to eat, sleep, and work. The other rooms could afford to wait awhile, also giving her time to really plan what she wanted for them in greater detail. And it would help total renovations if she didn't have to move the furniture around too much.

"So, were we planning to go to the stores in Hayll first, or to Dharo for rugs?" she asked the adults once she had cycled back to the first picture again.

"Hayll first," Karla said decisively. "We'll stay in the capital over night, finish up the last of the shoping in the morning and then head over to Dharo before lunch. We won't have as much time in Dharo as originally planned," Arina flushed slightly but didn't look away from Karla's slightly reproving stare. Karla continued. "But not only are there enough of you to make sure it works out, but now we have a better idea of what we're getting." She finished speaking and turned towards the door with an intent look on her face. "The carriage is waiting for us in the drive, if you are all packed and ready to go," she announced, getting up herself and starting for the door with Jaenelle.

Arina turned off the laptop as the girls all started talking at once. Vanishing it once the screen had gone black, she got up, listening with amusement to Titan and Alexandra, both city raised, who were already arguing over what stores they should go to first. Emerald started arguing that they couldn't make the decision yet because Hayll probably had stores that they didn't know about that might be better, so they should wait. Arina laughed.

"What did you want to get first?" Lauranna asked her. "Tables, beds, lamps…"

"Beds, probably," Arina said thoughtfully. "Once I figure out what size of bed I want, the rest of the room just comes together. After all, you have to know how much space you have before you can go and get all kinds of knickknacks that don't fit," she reasoned.

"Big beds?" Rillian said with a grin.

Arina smirked at her. "I know I kick in my sleep, so little beds just don't cut it for me. I'd fall off of it and hit the floor, and then I'll just be upset. So yeah, big beds are a must for me. You too, I imagine, with the wings."

"Of course," Rillian said with a shrug, rustling her wings slightly. "But there are other advantages," she added with a small, demure smile.

"Oh, I bet."

"Wait," Lillian said with a smile, leaning forward excitedly. "Do you mean that we get rooms at your house?"

Arina raised her eyebrows at the younger girl. "Of course. Don't you have rooms at the Hall?"

The girls all squealed in excitement; Arina gathered that they had hoped that they would get rooms, but hadn't wanted to assume. They immediately started planning the rooms, thrilled that they got to design the whole thing. Leaning back, Arina let the hum of voices carry her to sleep. She was already tired after her frantic morning, and she knew that she was going to need all of her energy to get through the afternoon. She was sure that the short nap would be enough to tide her over.

BJT:ANW

Seven hours after she woke up from her short nap, Arina finally fell onto her bed for the night in a hotel room that she was sharing. Augustine, her roommate, settled down beside her with a sympathetic smile. Arina threw her arm over her face with another groan at the look on her face.

"I know," Augustine said dryly in response. "The SaDiablo women possess energy at a level that should be illegal. We all hate shopping with them, but at the same time, we are so used to it that we don't even register it as unusual. We didn't think to warn you. If it helps at all, though, you kept up very well."

"It doesn't help, thanks," Arina responded, her voice muffled by her arm. Shopping at all wasn't something that she was used to, unlike most teenage girls. Her only previous experience had been her spree before coming to the Realms, and that was radically different. She had been alone, not in a group of about ten, she hadn't been on a deadline like she was today, and she hadn't really been looking for anything in particular. She had just been looking to see what was there, having no expectations or needs. Looking for items that she would be using to furnish her house for a very long time at least, if not forever, was so much more demanding. It had taken her ages to find everything that she wanted, but she knew that she had to be picky. This was her first house, and she wanted everything to go perfectly. If she had any concerns about liking it or it fitting into her house, she didn't get it. But it was difficult, and very expensive. Sweet Darkness, it had cost her 350 gold marks already—over half her remaining funds!

On the bright side, though, the intensive session meant that they didn't need to finish furniture shopping in the morning. By the time that they had finished, and Arina went through her lists of things she had needed and purchases that she had made, she had crossed of everything on her lists. A very good thing, considering how expensive it had gotten. Arina had put her foot down when Jaenelle suggested continuing in the morning, insisting that she had everything she needed.

So they were heading to Dharo in the morning to get rugs. Arina had hope that it wasn't going to be as bad as today had been, but she didn't have much of it. She had a feeling that it was going to be every bit as horrible.

Arina went over the things she had gotten in her mind with a slight smile, hearing Augustine go over to her own bed for the night. The furniture that she had gotten was made of dark woods, to contrast with the light stone. The fabrics were usually darker, but sometimes she had found pieces with light fabrics that looked good. Mostly the fabrics were jewel toned, and made of leather or other sturdy materials.

She had gotten some black marble tables, and a mahogany dining room table and chair set as well. She had found three black lamps, large, and one crystal desk lamp. And of course, many large, four poster beds as well, each uniquely designed. There were dozens of other pieces that she had picked up to put around the house as well, but as long as she had tables and beds, that was enough to get her started, so the other things were just the beginning.

Arina fell asleep then, exhausted by the day, not really looking forward to tomorrow.

BJT:ANW

It was exactly as bad as she had feared. Arina cast a despairing look at the piles of rugs growing in the space that Jaenelle had reserved. The others were all roaming through the market, continually finding more rugs and other weavings to add. Arina huffed, then abandoned the pile she had been looking through for something new and moved instead toward the reserved piles. Time to weed out the stack, she thought in resignation.

Reluctantly, Arina sat down in front of the nearby pile of rugs and began sorting through them. She had set a budget of about 150 gold marks, with 200 at the absolute most. The piles had to be at least two, or even three times that amount. Picking through the first pile, Arina grimaced at a pink carpet that had she had uncovered and immediately removed. Most of the others were very nice though, but Arina had to pick out her absolute favorites, because there were four separate piles to go through.

Arina turned the four boles of "hey, that seems cool" into three piles: An "Oh, hell no, this is not ever going in my house," a "Well maybe. We'll see about prices," and finally, the "I love this. I'm keeping it." There were more than rugs in the piles as well. There were also blankets and wall hangings among the piles. Most things in the keep pile were of abstract designs or landscapes. There were all amazing, and spoke to Arina's desire to travel that she had always harbored.

There was more than what she had really needed in her house when she was finally finished sorting out the piles. There were just so many that were exquisite, and she already knew just where she would put every single one.

Nervously she checked the prices when she was finished. The total price of the pieces that she wanted to keep was just over 191 gold marks, and Arina breathed a sigh of relief. It wasn't that important that she kept them all, but she still wanted them very badly. She felt somewhat silly for being so happy that they fell in her budget—if only just—but couldn't feel sorry for it.

Arina checked her watch as she flagged down one of the workers to pay for her choices. It was already four in the afternoon, and considering that the on the Opal wind it would take over three hours to reach the Hall from here, she knew they needed to leave soon. They would be staying at the Hall until Arina was ready to move into the Manor—or more accurately, until she was allowed to move into the Manor, she corrected herself.

The manager of the market himself came to check Arina out, and she couldn't tell if it was because of Jaenelle's influence or not. She handed over the rugs, blankets and hangings that she had chosen with specific directions that he send them straight away to Starfire Manor, just like the furniture was being sent. Once she paid, she hunted down the other girls, eventually tracked them in front of yet another wall covered with hangings.

"We're done here, children," she announced. "Already done and paid for. Let's head out, shall we?"

The girls all looked at each other in surprise. "So quickly?" Titan asked in obvious disappointment.

"It is already four," Alexandra acknowledged after a moment. "It's high time that we headed back to the Hall if we are going to be on time for dinner." Titan grumbled in resigned acceptance.

The group wound through the rows of the market, looking around with interest. Now that they weren't focused specifically on weavings, they felt free to scan the stalls for other items. Titan picked up a new messenger bag from one of the stalls, Rose found a new blue dress that she loved, and Astira got a necklace.

Arina hesitated at a stall that sold woven bracelets, an Earth tradition coming to mind. She waited for the other girls to pass by before she went up to the woman behind the stall and smiling at her. "Hello," she said, scanning the display as she spoke. Her eyes were drawn to a set of bracelets of in a corner of the table. She reached for them, fascinated. Black was the base color, and there were red symbols running around them both, with some similar and some different symbols—Arina was sure that they were some kind of runes. The red symbols were edged in gold on the masculine bracelet, and silver on the female one. It was obvious that they were made to be in a set, which was exactly what she was looking for. "What do these symbols mean?" she asked.

The woman's eyes lit up in excitement. She took the female bracelet and turned it over in her hands so that the clasp was showing, putting her finger on the first of the symbols. "This is Hope," she explained. "Love. Trust. Faith. Power. Peace. Wisdom." The woman put that bracelet down and took the masculine one from Arina. "Strength. Protector. Power. Love. Faith. Service. Trust. Hope." She set it down next to the other one, and smiled at Arina. "It was a new idea that I had, making a specific pair." Arina glanced at the woman's chest, where her Black Widow's Hourglass was visible.

"How much?" she asked.

"Three silver marks," the woman replied.

Arina called in the marks and promptly handed them over. "Could you wrap them up for me? It's a present for a…friend."

The woman gave her a sly smile as she wrapped the bracelets in gold foil paper. Arina blushed slightly and vanished the package quickly before hurrying after the girls, who were lingering curiously a few stalls down. "Don't say a word," Arina hissed at them. Rose giggled quietly, and there were several smirks, but no one said anything, to Arina's relief.

They quickly met Karla and Jaenelle at the market entrance. The older Queens were waiting inside the carriage for the girls, talking quietly. They both turned to the teens when they arrived, smiling. "Are you ready to go home, girls?" Jaenelle asked in amusement. "Everyone is waiting for us at the Hall. They miss us," she added, smirking.

"More than ready to go home," Rillian admitted, ignoring the last part of Jaenelle's statement. "I want to see my dad and my brothers. I really want to sleep in my own bed!" Lillian nodded hard in agreement. Arina remembered that their mother was a hearth witch, and wondered if that had anything to do with the girls desire to go home. Neither of the Eyrians were Queens, though she thought that Lillian might be a healer.

The others all chimed in with their agreement, longing for their families. "It's been a long three weeks," Augustine admitted.

Arina looked out the window of the carriage to distance herself from the conversation, only to remember that they had moved onto the winds, and there was nothing to see out the window. She felt uncomfortable with the conversation, considering that she had always tried to avoid her 'home' and her family. The concept of having a true home, one that she missed when she was away and looked forward to returning to seemed almost alien to her.

Remembering Starfire Manor, Arina smiled to herself. Soon she would have a home that she would love. For now, she was going to the home of her friends—another strange thing. And waiting for her were more friends, among them someone who could be much more than a friend.

She smiled more widely and turned back to her friends to join the conversation.

BJT:ANW

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