Chương 139: Chapter 138 [The Feast]

The lads were sitting in the living room, talking to Lyra while Marcus finished getting himself and Lucas ready upstairs, when the front door opened and the trio walked in. Rika came in first. The dress was a deep blue, sleeveless and backless, cut to leave room for her wings to move freely. She did a small turn without being asked, clearly pleased with herself.

"Well?"

"You look great," Parmo said. Shai came in next. Black, short-sleeved, finishing just above the knee, the kind of dress Leo had seen a hundred times back home and never once expected to see here. There was a careful opening at the back, just enough for her tail.

"Someone did good work on that," Phil said, nodding at the opening.

"Torren found someone who used to make suits," Shai said.

"He adjusted a few things for us."

"You look beautiful, Shai," Leo said. Shai glanced at him and gave him a smile that took his breath away. God, how the fuck did I get so lucky. He tried to keep a stupid grin off his face so the lads didn't have something to take the piss about. He failed. Then Torren came in, and the room went quiet for a second before the lads started looking away, hands on their mouths. His shirt was covered in flowers.

Bright ones, oranges and pinks and greens against a dark background, the kind of pattern Leo thought you'd see on people in Hawaii or round a pool. Phil was the first to lose it.

"Oh my god Torren."

"What?" Torren looked down at himself, then back up, entirely unbothered.

"Nothing, it's..." Phil was already laughing too hard to finish.

"It's a good shirt," Sam managed, also losing the battle. Torren looked between them, then at Leo, eyebrows raised.

"It's just..." Leo grinned.

"Back home that's basically a holiday shirt. Like, you'd wear that somewhere hot, on a beach, with a drink in your hand. Sometimes the swimming shorts match it too. It's not a bad shirt and it's not a bad pick for something like a feast. It's more the fact it was so unexpected." Torren considered this.

"I like it."

"No, it suits you," Luka said quickly.

"Honestly, it works on you. We're laughing because we didn't expect it, not because it looks bad."

"I'll take that as a compliment then," Torren said, entirely at ease, and the lads gave up trying to explain further. The square had been completely transformed. Long tables ran in rows from one side to the other, each easily long enough to seat fifty down either side, several of them placed side by side to cover most of the open ground. Even with that much seating there was still room to move between them, clusters of people already drifting in twos and threes despite the food not having properly started yet.

Off to one side, an area had been set up that could only be described as an outdoor pub, with rows of kegs with taps driven straight into the wood and people helping themselves to cups. A handful of the larger buildings around the square had their doors open, smoke and steam rolling out from what looked like makeshift kitchens, food being carried out in batches by people who clearly knew what they were doing. A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

The lads found a gap at one of the central tables. Diane spotted them first and waved them over, clearly having saved seats. Ronan was already there, along with Kai and the others from Monkhaven, Jeff sitting on the end of their little group alongside Carl. Leo spotted a few faces from the tournament further down, and others who'd stood out to him while he'd walked around the village earlier. Further down the same table, the elders were seated with Mike and a handful of people Leo didn't recognise.

Most people around them were dressed similarly to what Leo had seen throughout the day, just with more care put into it. Embroidery along sleeves and necklines, patterns picked out in thread that caught the light when people moved, boots polished rather than scuffed from work. The group seated with the elders looked different again. Matching sets, trousers and tops in the same colour, long-sleeved despite the warmth of the evening. It was the closest thing Leo had seen here to what he'd think of as formal wear.

Luka nodded towards Diane.

"Hey guys. Had a good day?"

"Yeah, it's been amazing. I might have found a way to help us get a load of stuff working again. I'll explain it in more detail when we get back to town." Food started to make its way down the table in waves, plates passed hand to hand, people serving themselves as things reached them. Phil eyed something orange and segmented with deep suspicion before eating it anyway.

"Good?" Luka asked.

"Surprisingly, yeah, given how it looks. I don't think we've had anything bad today. Imagine if we tried something that turned out to be their version of surstromming."

"Jesus, yeah. Let's hope that's not something people enjoy here. The Swedish can keep it to themselves," said Leo. Further down the table someone was telling a story that kept getting interrupted by people adding details, Diane laughing loud enough that a few heads turned. Leo caught pieces of it without really following, content enough just sitting with Shai's shoulder against his. Kai got up at some point to speak to one of the elders, moving down the table with Nessa.

Phil waited until he was out of earshot, then leaned in slightly.

"So. Where's everyone sleeping tonight?"

"Our homes are available," Shai said, not looking up from her plate.

"Between the five of us there's more than enough space. Rika's got room, so does Torren, and there's space at mine. I'm sure Ronan, Kai and Nessa have space as well."

"Cool," Phil said. Leo didn't think much of it. It was a practical answer to a practical question, and the conversation moved on within a few seconds, with Luka asking about something further down the table and Parmo wondering aloud whether there were magical tamers who used magic balls to catch their creatures. Phil went quiet, reaching for something else on his plate.

"You should all mingle a bit," Torren said, looking down the table.

"Tonight's the easiest night of the year to meet people. Doesn't matter if you've been here a day or your whole life."

"Is this aimed at anyone specific?" Phil asked.

"It's advice," Torren said.

"Particularly useful for those of you without a partner for tomorrow. But good advice regardless." Leo caught Shai looking at Nessa, then at Sam, then back to Nessa, grinning the whole time. He grinned too. Sam had wound Nessa up earlier and apparently it hadn't gone unnoticed. Nessa caught the look and rolled her eyes. The table dispersed. Leo watched Phil head off, wanting to see who he ended up talking to. Sam made his way over to Ivaran, the two of them already mid-conversation by the time Leo looked away.

Luka had spotted Gomir across the square and was already moving, grinning before he'd even said anything. Diane and Ronan had gone the other way, close enough together that it didn't look entirely accidental. Leo lost track of Phil in the crowd before he got anywhere useful. A woman approached, maybe late twenties, holding a drink she didn't seem that interested in. Scales ran along her forearms and up the sides of her neck, with more around her temples.

She was a lizard beast-kin; otherwise she looked entirely human.

"You're Leo, right? I watched you in the final. Congratulations on your victory."

"Thanks," Leo said.

"I was wondering if..." Shai's arm slid through Leo's, settling against his forearm. The woman stopped, looking between them.

"Oh, sorry, I didn't realise you two were together." Leo put his arm around Shai's shoulders.

"No harm done." He nodded toward the crowd where Phil had disappeared.

"If you want someone to ask, my mate Phil's free. He's a good guy." The woman followed where he was pointing, smiled, and headed off in that direction. Scaly instead of furry. I can work with that.