Page 15 of Ira

“Is Meera here?” Ophelia asked, hugging them each in turn.

“I’m here,” I said quietly from the sitting room doorway. I’d been taking notes on the uncomfortable couch, and I discreetly checked the front pocket of my hoodie to make sure my notebook was hidden away.

“There you are! Shall we all sit in there?” Ophelia asked, already heading my way with a wine bottle in one hand and a picnic basket in the other.

“I’ll get glasses,” Tallulah offered, her fluffy slippers slapping the stone floor with each step.

Verity flopped down on the hard couch, eyeing it with irritation as she wriggled to get comfortable. “What’s the occasion, Ophelia?”

“Nothing in particular, I just thought it would be nice for us to spend some time together. It’s been a few weeks now, I want to know how you’re settling in. You’re all so popular at court—I barely get a chance to speak to you in the palace!”

“It’s a tough job but someone has to do it,” Verity replied solemnly as Tallulah returned with heavy goblets and busied herself with opening the wine.

Astrid slunk into the room while Tallulah was distributing goblets, accepting one with a nod of thanks and perching on the arm of the couch like she was ready to bolt at a moment’s notice.

I understood that impulse. Maybe I’d thrown myself a little too far in the deep end with this whole making friends thing. Verner and I had lunch together every day and we had done so for weeks now—that had always felt completely comfortable. Maybe it was the group setting that was making me nervous.

“Cheers, ladies,” Ophelia said, holding up her goblet. I wriggled to the edge of the seat so I could reach, clinking the heavy silver cup against the others before taking a sip.

It looked like dirty dishwater, but it tasted like red wine at least.

“What’s been going on? What’s the gossip? Did you guys enjoy the ball? I want to hear everything.” Ophelia beamed while almost every muscle in my body clenched up in terror. I didn’t know how to do this. I’d never had girlfriends to gossip with, even before my life had imploded. I’d had a sister five years younger than me, who felt more like a child than a sibling most of the time.

What was I meant to say? What if I said too much and made it weird? Probably best not to say anything.

“I’ll go first,” Verity volunteered without hesitation. “The ball was great—ten out of ten, would write a favorable review. Also, I’ve decided to save my first knot for marriage.”

Tallulah choked on her wine, and Verity tilted her head to the side, waiting with a serene smile on her face for Tallulah to finish coughing.

“That’s romantic,” Ophelia hedged. I was glad that for all of her social skills, even she didn’t know how to perfectly respond to that. “Not to be crass and you totally don’t have to answer, but have you, uh, been busy? The rate the stores are depleting by has slowed a little lately.”

Verity frowned. “I mean, I’ve been enjoying myself for sure, but I doubt it’s enough to make a noticeable difference in the stores. One dude said that without knotting, I wasn’t generating nearly as much power as I could be. I feel kinda bad about that—”

“Please don’t,” Ophelia interjected. “Only do what you’re comfortable with. Who said that? I’m going to have words with him.”

I didn’t hear Verity’s answer, because the pink tint in Astrid’s cheeks that no one else seemed to have noticed had captured my attention. WasAstridthe one generating power for the stores?With who? I looked over to Tallulah to see if she’d spotted it, and maybe I was imagining things, butshelooked a little flushed too.

Shoot, I was really letting the team down. What was the point of me even being here if I wasn’t contributing?

“What about you, Meera?” Verity asked suddenly. There was a knowing look in her eyes that made me nervous. Had she seen Verner outside? The more I cleared the garden, the less hidden our little spot was.

“What about me?”

Verity grinned. “Okay, okay. Keep your secrets. You’ll tell us when you’re ready.”

She totally knew.

“I’ve been busy gardening. Or just hacking away at the overgrowth, I guess,” I said hastily, not wanting to lie but also wanting to provide a plausible reason for why I was spending so much time outside.

Why was I being so weird about Verner anyway? I could have friends. There was nothing wrong with that. I just… didn’t want to share that particular friend. Not yet.

Ophelia smiled, but it was definitely a less enthusiastic smile than I would have gotten if I’d been juicing up the stores. “The garden beds are definitely looking much less chaotic outside Elverston House. Is gardening something you enjoy?”

A lightbulb went off in my brain at her question. I wasn’t contributing power, but maybe Icouldcontribute this way. I could help look after the others, so that they could… do their thing here. And then I’d feel less like a freeloader, and maybe the royal couple would see that I was adding value to the realm and wouldn’t kick me out when they got sick of me.

“Sure. Maybe I could try growing some human realm vegetables?” I suggested tentatively. “Since the garden beds aren’t being used for anything anyway. And then Astrid wouldn’t have to bring back quite so much on her supply runs.”

Ophelia blinked at me. “That’s a fantastic idea. I mean, we need to find ways to be more self-sufficient anyway—Astrid going back and forth can’t be a long-term solution. It’s not safe.”

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