Page 68 of The Demon's Discovery
“He also said something about me being pretty the other day, so I’m going to take that as a compliment,” Vassago smiled.
“That’snotwhat I said, and certainly not how I meant it,” Magnus grumbled, but his smile never faded.
Lovette laughed. “Come on. We can do proper introductions later,” she said the last with a loud voice as she tucked my arm into her elbow.
Several onlookers grumbled, taking that as a cue to continue along their way while Magnus and Vassago gathered our luggage and Lovette led me toward the far side of the village center.
“That’s the meetinghouse,” she said, gesturing at the largest building. “If you happen to need a quick bite between meals, there’s always something to be found there. Just be careful,” she warned, smile broadening. “That’s where the old men liketo hang around to drink ale and trade battle stories. They love new ears, too, you might get stuck for several hours while they reminisce about how wonderful they all are.” She winked at me and tossed a glance over her shoulder towards her father.
“Hey,” he grumbled, “I’m not all that bad.”
She laughed, the sound bright. “If you say so, old man.”
Magnus scoffed. “And here I thought you enjoyed being my favorite.”
Lovette laughed and patted my arm before pointing at a long, rectangular building situated behind the meetinghouse. “That’s the infirmary, where I spend most of my time.”
“Are all these houses inhabited?” Vassago asked. Nearly all the little buildings were dwellings.
“Not all, but most are used a majority of the time. They are not usually claimed like human property, though my apartment is one of the exceptions. Basically, if the bed is open, anyone is welcome.”
Vassago made a thoughtful noise. “Is there no commerce done here?”
Lovette shook her head. “No, not really. There’s a mercantile for small items, but only things that need to be acquired with urgency. We keep a robust communal food store, and ample supplies for the infirmary. Forge aside, we rely mainly on Revalia for our goods.”
I frowned. “That seems complicated.”
Lovette turned us toward a small side road that was lined with little cottages. “It’s not so bad. Nearly all of us are in and out of the city at least every few days. It’s a short flight, after all. We haven’t had to relocate in many years, but stone kin memories are long. Most of us remember having to tear down entire settlements overnight and find somewhere new to go. Keeping too many things on hand can be problematic. “
“How terrible,” I lamented. Picturing having to uproot a whole community in a single night left me dizzy.
“It hasn’t happened in a long time, and besides, we’re a hardy lot.” She opened the door on the third small cottage down the path. “This one is yours.”
“Thank you.”
There was a low fire lit in the small hearth, the entirety of the cottage comprised of a bed and a small table with a single chair.
“The toilet and shower are in the cottage one over. You should have it mostly to yourself.” Her eyebrow went up as Vassago casually set the luggage down by the table. “It’s worth warning you that there’s been rumblings of a celebration for your arrival.”
“Celebration?”
“It’s not every day that one of us who we believed to be lost reappears. Most of us love any reason to throw a party,” Magnus said, hovering outside of the doorframe. “You arriving at the conclave gives everyone a very good one.”
Lovette came close, examining my face and hair, her eyes pausing on the faint marks on my neck left behind from Vassago’s bite. She took my hands in hers again and looked at both the backs of them and my palms. She ran a thumb over the horrible ring, her smile never faltering. “An excellent reason,” she muttered. “How are you feeling? Do you need to take a rest?”
I was still well energized, so I shook my head. “I’m fine, thanks.”
“Good. Come with me, I’ll introduce you to my sister.” Vassago stepped back as she pulled me toward the door. “I’m sure you two can keep yourselves occupied for a while?”
Vassago’s mouth dropped open in amused surprise, and he looked at Magnus. “Certainly,” he replied, politeness too ingrained to disagree. “Have fun, Dragonfly. Be sure to rest when you need to.” He dipped down and kissed my temple.
“I’ll take good care of her,” Lovette promised. “We’ll see you later.” Once we were away from the little cottage, she squeezed my arm. I was no child, but the emotions surging through me made me feel like one, as did her enthusiastic words. “I’m so glad you’re here. We have much to show you.”
Our first stopwas at the far end of the encampment. The trees were closely packed together and seemed older, the shade they provided dense. A cool breeze blew through the branches, the leaves making a calming music. I smelled some kind of nearby water as well, which was likely responsible for the temperature drop.
I marveled again at the intelligence of the conclave placement and design as we approached the smithy building, complete with roaring forge fires.
“She’s a little scary at first, but don’t worry. Imogen is friendly.” Lovette giggled, and we stood just outside the broad double doors to watch for a moment before interrupting.
