Chapter Twenty – OathsMidj wasn’t happy. “Mother’s oven, Tomi. Did you even taste the gravy?”

  “When you’re dealing with dinner at First Field’s canteen, it’s best not to do too much thinking. I’m just gd it’s a half an hour ter, and I’m not puking. Can’t always say that.”

  “Gravy is the rain,” Ames said.

  Gray listened to the banter with a smile on his face. He wasn’t sure why. He’d been trying to get Tomi to tell them why they had to eat dinner at the canteen in the first pce, but she wouldn’t say a thing. She just told them to be patient.

  And now, they were in library in the Pink Pace, and Rynn was back to reading another edition of The Trinity of Avatars. This one had any number of colorful drawings on thick paper, and the words themselves were works of art. How long it would take someone to write and decorate such a book was beyond Gray’s comprehension. Every letter of every word seemed sculpted.

  Quinly came out of her office with the tray of tea and cookies. Her cookies were as dry as the deserts around Belly where there was no rain. The only reason why they got so much moisture was because of the strange effect the Weeping Well had on the climate.

  Quinly Quillswrath had become more and more comfortable with them the more often they showed up. She was very happy to have the company, and more, she loved her small collection of precious books, and she wanted others to enjoy them as well.

  Rynn did wonder aloud why she would have them eat or drink anything around the books. Something was bound to spill.

  Gray knew the answer. In the end, Quinly liked the company more than the books. The old fairy was lonely, and that wasn’t too surprising, since Gray had never seen anyone but Squad 23 sitting at those tables or even knocking on the door.

  The ancient fairy set the tray down. “Here you go. Have to keep your strength up, don’t you, Gray? Because of your bonded. How many times do you do the dirty deed in a day?”

  Rynn turned pink.

  Tomi’s smirk was the stuff of legends.

  Midj’s mouth dropped open.

  Ames’s gazed at Gray, her interest very apparent on her face.

  Gray shrugged. “Ten times at least, Miss Quinly. It’s mostly Rynn. Sometimes I feel like I’m being used.”

  Rynn squeezed her eyes shut.

  Quinly’s eyes twinkled. An orange-colored mana swirled in her core. It wasn’t surprising that she had a lust resonance. Most Fae did.

  Tomi started ughing, smacking the table. “Rynnanatha Sereph. You little devil. But then, I’m not surprised. It’s always the quiet ones.”

  “You might need a cream, dear,” Quinly said. “For chafing.”

  Ames looked like she’d just eaten the best frycake ever. Her smile was so cute, and yet, she didn’t say a word.

  Midj pinched the bridge of her nose. “Well, now, there’s an image. Rynn’s chafed—”

  The elf girl cut her off. “Let’s not talk about my chafing. Mrs. Quillswrath, Gray and I have a normal amount of retions.”

  “So that’s what the kids are calling it these days.” The old fairy chuckled. “Normal amount? So, ten times is about right. It was back when I was far juicier than I am now.”

  Tomi’s big smile turned into even bigger ughter. “This is the best night ever. First, Rynn’s chafing and now we get to talk about Mrs. Quillswrath’s juicy—”

  “Tomika Ka!” Midj said loudly. “You will not finish that sentence.”

  Rynn’s face might never be the same color again. “Mrs. Quillswrath, in a heroic effort to change the subject, would you happen to have a copy of A Song of Scale of Ash.”

  Quinly’s face fell. “Well, now, that is a book, isn’t it?”

  “It sure sounds like a book,” Tomi said. “It’s kind of convenient that we’re in a library. What are the odds? Now, Mrs. Quillswrath, about your juicy—”

  “Tomi!” Midj shoved her friend.

  The cat girl took it in stride.

  “It’s a rare book, girl,” the old fairy said. “The Fall of Astria is shrouded in myth and legend. Destroyed a whole continent it did. Even now, no one knows what happened to Princess Cassandra. Most agree Malchutt killed her.”

  Rynn went back to looking shocked.

  “Yes, I say his name,” Quinly sniffed. “He’s either going to come back or he’s not. It’s been a thousand years. I’d say he’s as dead, and I know about the dead. Lost my husband and all of our wives. But while we were alive, ten times was a slow day for us.” She gave Rynn a wink.

  “Multiple bonds?” Gray asked.

  Quinly nodded. “No one likes to talk about that, but yes, it can happen. But with my Nedword, it was his core oath. A lot of the fae don’t like to talk about core oaths, but it’s like resonances, we all have them. Why not talk about them?”

  “Yes, Midj,” Tomi said. “Why shouldn’t we talk about our juicy—”

  The goblin girl lifted a hand. “Stop. Just stop with the juicy.”

  “How does that work?” Gray asked.

  Quinly pulled up a seat. “Beastkin get to shift their skin, and dragons get fire, and humans get a little bit of everything. Every one of the blood races got something, but what did us fae get?”

  Tomi answered. “Wings, an active social life, winning personalities. Oh, and you’ve had a queen for forever.”

  “Yes.” Quinly looked like she’d eaten a frog, one covered in the canteen’s gravy. “There’s a reason for that. But that, I won’t talk about. As the fae, we created something called a core oath. I have a book on it if you’re interested. But you can’t tell anyone. Anyway, a core oath is one that a fae makes when they come of age, in a ritual, and it’s a promise one makes to themselves. It binds them. And to break your core oath is to shatter your core completely. Sad to say, there’s quite a few fae working the pleasure markets who shattered their core that way. Long story short, Neddy’s core oath was about love, and loving as many women as he could. Now Neddy had an active social life, let me tell you. I was his first, but I wasn’t his st. I miss ‘em. I miss them all. It’s a sad thing to outlive everyone you’ve ever known. Gets lonely.”

  They all sat in silence.

  No wonder Quinly tried to make them as comfortable as possible. Gray was struck again at the magical world where he found himself. And he couldn’t help but think what kind of core oath had Pinch made with herself?

  In a sense, he could appreciate the idea as another form of self-mastery. To make yourself a promise, so strong, that to break it meant the death of your soul. It was a striking idea.

  He addressed his friends. “Did you know about this?”

  “Multiple bonds?” Tomi snorted. “Yeah, everyone knows that Akazel the Bound had an active social life. It’s rare.”

  “Maybe not as rare as you think.” Quinly waggled her rather substantial gray eyebrows. “But like a lot of things, no one talks about it. What do I know is that times have changed, and I’ve seen ‘em come, and I’ve seen ‘em go.” She then stood. “It’s Thursday night, and I have a meeting. Would you mind locking up, Rynnanatha?”

  “No,” the elf girl said quietly. She had something on her mind, and Gray could guess what it was. She shook herself out of her reverie. “Enjoy your meeting.”

  Quinly left them.

  That was when Tomi leaned over the table. “Okay, she’s gone. Since Gray has been talking Crewel’s office, I’ve been looking to see if I might be able to leap up there. I think I can do it, but I need someone to keep watch.”

  Gray caught the cat girl’s eye. “And it’s perfect timing. Crewel should be at this meeting, so he won’t be in his office. You have to be careful, though. We can’t get caught.”

  Tomi rolled her eyes. “Like I don’t know that. Now, who is going to keep watch.”

  Rynn spoke up first. “Gray should. He can see mana. He can tell if anyone is coming.”

  Midj rolled her eyes. “Sure, Rynn. Like that’s a thing.”

  The elf girl just shrugged.

  Gray got up. “I’ll do it. I’ve had some experience sneaking around. Let’s go, Tomi. You three stay here.”

  Midj grabbed a handful of cookies. “Oh, we will. Don’t you worry about it.”

  Gray and Tomi left the library. A fine mist fell from the sky, slickening the rock.

  “Is the rain going to be a problem?” Gray asked.

  Tomi grinned. “You call this rain?” She shifted, her uniform magically expanding to cover her, until she was a hulking cat woman. “No, it’s not a problem. Now that I have these.” She flexed her cws, and her fingernails glowed with a dim purplish light. “Traction.”

  “Are you enjoying being an acolyte?” Gray asked.

  Tomi titled her head. “More than you could ever know.”

  They made their way to the side, creeping through bushes, on the north-facing side of the building.

  Gray was confused. “Crewel’s office faces east.”

  “But the easiest way up is over here. I’ll climb up on the north side and then make my way around to the front. Go to the path, stand there, and if you see anything, just cough, really loudly.”

  “I can cough,” Gray said.

  “But can you cough really loudly?”

  “I’ll do my best.”

  Gray left her and walked to the path.

  He watched as she sprang off the ground, rising higher and higher in the air, before nding on a little ledge on the second story. He could barely see her—her dark uniform was dark with rain, and while the stone was pink, the shadows were thick.

  Gray walked to the path, pausing there, gncing up, every now and again. The hood of his cloak was pulled over his head. He paced back and forth because he couldn’t just stand there. Tomi crept along the edge, leapt again, and then scurried around another ledge on the third story. Then she slid around the corner to the east facing part of the building. Just another story, and she’d reach the window.

  Gray meandered to the front of the building and caught a shock. Crewel was walking toward him.

  If the Magistrate looked up, he would see Tomi there.

  And all their pns would be ruined.