Chương 27: XXVII. Bound Together

The dining table was made of maple, and Melissa had woven a blue tablecloth that hung off the edges. The orange tulip sat in the vase on the centre, surrounded by marigolds, amarilflowers, and zinnias. Mirchie Jr. had already hopped on the table and chewed on an amarilflower, spilling its seeds all over the cloth.

"Let's get you out, girl," Adrian said. He picked her up and the rabbit tugged the entire stem, pulling the vase over. It teetered on the table, and then began to fall. Ashley uses [Mage Hand]! Through Force of Will The vase, and the flowers, held still mid-drop. The weight was barely noticeable as I righted it, and Adrian brought the rabbit towards me.

"Thanks, Ashy. Let's get this girl bound so she stops acting like a menace." I eased my control over the vase and faced Addy. He held Mirchie against his chest, and slowly raised her up towards me. My hands faltered in the air, before resting them an inch above Adrian's. He closed his eyes, and I followed suit. Adrian casts [Bind Familiar]! Time spent with a cat is never wasted. Heat. The ever-rising flames of Amaril peaked over the Symphony, and all notes followed suit.

Each beat was a staccato, uninterrupted in its warmth and radiance. The light enwrapped all who would approach, and in its glare there was unity. The song was hundreds of boots marching in lockstep, and Adrian wasn't a composer, but a commander in its concert. The glowing weave scoured and protected, prosecuted and examined and – – The howl of winter cycled through a storm. The legato of the snow was destinations without end, but the heat was a promised completion.

Blue-green-brown energy weaved out of my fingers and golden-white-red poured from Adrian. His brown hair fluttered and my red hair frazzled – Mirchie Jr's soul was a pelting thing. It was a beast first and foremost, and had to be made into more. My snowfall met with the rising heat until it had become one, and the gestalt soul was inserted back into the rabbit. Blue-Green-Brown light shone from her eyes, as her black-and-white fur glistened gold-white-red. And just as soon as it had begun, it was over. Mirchie Jr.

regarded us both with unblinking eyes, and loudly chewed the amarilflower between her jaws. She hopped away from Adrian, and then found a corner to nuzzle in; by the hearthflame, surrounded by parchment and quill, and near another vase she had not-so-discreetly decided was her own. Adrian squeezed my shoulder, and I leaned into him.

"I mean, Mirchie… senior, I guess? Mirchie Sr. decided to run a marathon with her bond, it was an entire three days till I saw that mare back. Sleeping in a corner is a very… you thing to do. Anyways, dinner, or do you have to leave?" Beef roast wafted from the kitchen and Missy's slippers pattered over the floor. Adrian turned his head too and released me, running towards the kitchen.

"Ya need any help, Missy?"

"Bless your heart, I have it handled, ya can just keep yer sister busy less she tries to help," Missy said. To my surprise, Adrian actually returned, holding nothing in his hands. He took a seat on one side of the table, and I figured it was more appropriate to sit on the opposite. Missy returned with heavy mitts, holding a ceramic bowl that sloshed its gravy with the chuck of beef. She placed it on the center of a wooden trencher atop the tablecloth, and then returned back to the kitchen.

The roast itself was what I would have expected of her; thyme and rosemary flaking the browned skin that had been kept together with butcher's twine. Carrots and potatoes bobbed into the jus, alongside the tiniest pearl onions. Roasted like this, the vegetables became soft – but the coloration and marbling of the carrots and the paleness of potato flesh showed there was some concern in the quality. [Uncommon] ingredients, compared to what was normal fare.

Of course the beef was of good quality too, most of Auntie Laura's cows and the other beef cow herders primary customers were nobles and adventurers… Which was Addy and Missy now. Perhaps me as well, if I continued on the path. Missy put a bowl of garden greens with sliced tomato and onions beside it, and then what I was most eagerly waiting for. A baked glass tray of crumble, with honey-soaked peaches candied into the filling.

The syrup glazed the interior of the glass, and the steam wafting out of it was sweet peach-scented. Mirchie Jr. was also staring, though, I suspect hers was for the bowl of lettuce and onions than the glorious peach-divinity in front of us. The chair beside me pulled back, and Melissa sat beside me. She gave me a nod and then motioned to Adrian, who sliced off the leading edge of roast and placed it down atop my plate. He then served Melissa, and scooped up a healthy side of vegetables.

Only when our plates were filled did he serve himself – before getting up again and moving towards the hearth. On the mantlepiece – beside trinkets like his commissioning badge or Melissa's school diploma – was a brass phoenix, her wings open in Empyrean Resolution. He tilted it backwards, and cool mist wafted out. He pulled out a glass decanter that had sloshed amber liquid, and showed it to Missy. She raised one of the glass cups. He poured two fingers, and then leaned over to me.

I tilted the glass towards him, and he poured it against the glass. I raised only one finger against the rim, and Adrian obliged. He poured himself three fingers. Melissa took a sip, but Addy raised his glass upwards, and I followed. It wasn't a sniffer that captured the aroma, but… It still smelled too much like Ethanol. Marcellus, a friend of mine from the academy, could tell what the composition was, and this had tinges of wheat and… was whiskey made of wheat?

Regardless, I raised it to my lips and the potent taste was exactly like ethanol, with a sharp kick of cinnamon of all things behind it.

"What do you think?" Adrian said.

"Haven't had much time to practise my [Distiller] but I think it's getting good."

"It's strong," Melissa said, her throat seizing.

"Ya know other people have to drink this too, right?"

"Ya just ain' used to it, Missy! Besides, yer more of a wine girl, ain' ya? That's on–""Addy, didn't I just tell you that you have to cut the drawl off?" I said, lowering the cup down. Missy snickered and patted my shoulder. She also lowered her cup and lifted the knife in its place. Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

"Awh shucks, it ain' personal, Ashy – Missy. This is how I normally talk, an' the capital is so borin'," he said, and raised his tumbler back to his lips.

"Well, it is annoyin', Addy. Besides, when you two talk all capital like, I feel like I'm learnin. Anyhoo, Ashy! Jazzy joined your business?" The roast beef was very, very soft. The knife cut into the meat easily, and red… myoglobin spilled out. I wouldn't have known that word if it wasn't for that journal Madeleine had given me. In class, it was just sanguine humour that escaped from the muscle and it was good for you. It was understood to be good for you. Levan's Journal claimed it wasn't blood, but myoglobin.

It wasn't responsible for pushing or pulling Anima, but moving oxygen around the muscle. It poured onto the plate regardless, and even if I had a more accurate term, it looked like blood. It seeped into the roasted carrots, and into the flesh of the potatoes. The carrots soaked it up, and I brought it to my lips. It was soft and sweet, and the myoglobin gave it a rich texture. It tasted no different than blood. We all drank blood.

"Yeah, she did," I said.

"Did you know her employer is a [Vampire]? Her old one. Lord Elias Hawthorne." Melissa's knife scraped against the porcelain, and she looked across the table to Adrian. Adrian closed his eyes and downed his tumbler in one go, and poured more from his whiskey.

"Even she knows, 'Lord Skye'. Why ain' ya doin' anythin' 'bout it?"

"I can't!" Adrian said.

"It ain' a crime to be a [Vampire]. I mean, it is under Amaril, but the Phoenix Queen declared as long as he paid his taxes, he's fine. Torment, the only real criminal in this room is Ashy with her lien, if she starts defaultin'." My knife cut another slice of the beef, and more myoglobin spilled atop the plate. I impaled it on the tongs, and then scooped up some of the reddened potato flesh.

"Uh… huh. So, he's not even a criminal for killing Cynthia Larine? Jazzy said he paid the 50 gold…"" [Blood Debt]," Adrian said, and Missy dropped her utensils.

"--HE KILLED CYN?" Melissa screamed.

"AND –""Missy, Calm down!" Adrian put his cup down and pulled out his chair.

"NO!" Melissa pushed the plate forward.

"He paid a [Blood Debt]?! Was Cyn's life worth so little? What if he killed me? Would he just have to hand you 50 gold and it's fine?"

"No?" Adrian said, and I winced.

"It'd be–""Addy, don't finish that sentence," I said. They both turned their heads to look at me, and I shrunk into my chair.

"Missy, you're the wife of a [Hero]..."

"Wow." Melissa said. She stared down at the plate and crossed her hands on her lap.

"... Am I only worth somethin' to the Phoenix Queen cuz I'm marryin' you?"

"I mean, I'm worth negative to the Phoenix Queen since I have a debt, but Eveline said I'd have the debt forgiven if I joined the war. I don't think anyone is useful to her," I said. Melissa snorted at the comment, and gave a wry smile.

"Right, because you're also becoming a [Hero]," Melissa said.

"Outgrowin'--""It's not like that!" Adrian said.

"Besides, if he did hurt any of us, I would –""You should do it now," I said, words flowing before I could think. This conversation felt familiar to me, but why did it feel familiar? I turned, and Melissa's shoulders were tense. I reached over, and squeezed her arm. She shivered, but eased into the sensation.

"Missy, if he does anythin', I swear on Rhyvesta herself I'll cut his manhood off and – ""Ashley!" Adrian said.

"Look, a [Vampire] is one thing, but The Grand Deceiver is not someone you make oaths by. Everything she does – Necromancy, [Soul Manipulation], extra-judical killings – are all taboo's punishable by death."

"And… that matters more than your wife, because?" I said. Why did I say that? He wiped his face with his glove, before sitting down and pouring another serving of whiskey for himself. He wasn't swaying at all, and his eyes were focused.

"It doesn't. I'm focusing on the wrong thing," he said. I had to lean in to hear him.

"Do you know where the body is, Ashley? The… murder is technically legal, but if there's any signs of The Grand Deceiver or Necromancy, I am authorized to execute."

"Jazzy does," I said, and released Melissa. She glared down at her plate, but some warmth returned to her.

"Does a Blight count?"

"... A Blight?" Adrian said.

"I mean… only an Agronomist would be able to be able to tell if there was a blight around… or a [Farmer] cross-trained with [Divine]. Are you trying to say that Jazzy told you there's a blight?"

"I don't even know what a blight is."

"... A Blight is an inversion of the land. It's a parasitic call that takes life force from the surrounding areas to feed into a singular spot. The central area becomes what's known as a [Necropolis], and the area being fed off becomes a [Blight]," Adrian said, and took a deep drink.

"A [Night-Thing] can exist on both regardless of Amaril's Gaze, but they thrive on a [Necropolis]. I don't know how they specifically work, but they are hard to detect without proper training. There isn't a Blight here." A blight here, yet.

".... Well… I was just mentionin' it since Jazzy is helping me with my farming now, and we was plannin' to make a [Vintnery]. Lord Hawthorne seems like an ass. Know anythin' about Lady Hawthorne?"

"... Who?" Adrian said.

"I haven't made a point to learn about people I was meant to [Smite], Ashley. Now, A [Vintnery]...?" he said, his tone dropping. Melissa jerked up as well, also seemingly pleased.

"You'se makin' wine now, Ashy?" she said, but there was a tremble in her voice. She was forcing past it.

"Not yet, I want too. But…" I said, and again, my thoughts were mixed with… an odd familiarity.

"It's going to be secondary. Nyla did bless me, and… I think I might need to finish learning medicine. I have to learn more about Ani– Blood and life," I said. Adrian's eyebrow raised, and he chewed his lip.

"How is it that you always copy me? I learn to be a [Distiller] and now you'se becomin a [Vintner]?"

"Complete Coincidence," I said, and reached for the peach cobbler.

"Addy, you will take care of Elias, please?" Melissa said, and Adrian looked to his uniform. He chewed on his lip… which meant, as far as I knew, he was planning too - but just needed to work out how. But why did I want that? Wasn't Elias my supplier? The winter chill coated my skin. There was a reason, I just wasn't privy too.

"Oh! Ashy, did you see what Lil' Mark is doin' for Mary?" she said, and the table returned to an idle conversation. Dinner lasted a few hours, and they gave me the rest of the peach cobbler to take home. I took that, and Mirchie Jr. with me back to the farm. Rhyvesta shimmered overhead. The woodlot glistened, there was something there.