They were bathed and sitting in the front room when a knock came on the door. Elsa had been standing by, so she answered the door within seconds. “Hello, sir. They are waiting for you.”
Yukiko was the first one out of the room. “Lin, it’s good to see you. We’ll be having Elsa come with us.”
Lin glanced at Elsa for a moment and nodded. “Very well, Yu. If you’re ready, the carriage is waiting.”
“We are, indeed,” Yukiko smiled. “How are Mother and Father?” she asked as Lin led them out of the home.
“Good. Missus Bean is with them.”
“She is?” Jenn asked, surprised.
“She is,” Lin replied. “She’s with them at Stabled Hunger.”
“I didn’t expect her to be here, but I’m glad she is,” Jenn said.
Lin was surprised that Elsa had a bag with her, but he took it from her and had one of the footmen lash it to the roof. He gave Yukiko a glance and got a head shake from her, so he kept his questions to himself. Lin closed the door behind the four who got in and went to sit with the driver.
Gregory and Yukiko sat across from Jenn and Elsa. Elsa wasn’t meeting their eyes, looking straight ahead.
“Elsa,” Yukiko said softly. “When we arrive, stay in the main room until I call for you.”
“Yes, mistress,” Elsa said.
“I expect my mother to agree, but there’s a chance she will not. If not, you’ll be returned to Gin’s.”
“I understand, mistress.”
“Very well.”
“We need to speak with Ramon and possibly Gufta today,” Gregory said.
“We can talk to Ramon after brunch. Gufta might not show up until it’s almost time to leave,” Yukiko replied. “We can leave a message for him, if nothing else.”
“I wonder what our elder has up his sleeve for tonight?” Jenn asked.
“Good question, but only he knows,” Gregory chuckled. “We’ll find out when we return to the clan hall.”
~*~*~
Arriving at Stabled Hunger, they followed Lin inside. The taproom was half-full, with the Warlin guards being the only patrons in the place. When they entered, Ramon looked over at them with a hopeful expression.
“Ramon, after brunch, can I talk with you for a few minutes?” Gregory asked as they crossed the room.
“Yes, of course,” was his quick reply.
Gregory gave him a nod as he trailed the others into the hall. Elsa watched them go and moved to the side, taking a seat. She cast furtive glances at the armored men, who kept glancing at her, trying to puzzle out why a maid had come with the others. Taking slow, deep breaths, Elsa tried to center herself— she would have faith in Yukiko.
Lin knocked on the door and opened it a moment later. “Sir, your daughter, son-in-law, and Jenn Bean.”
“Jenn Pettit,” Jenn corrected him as she entered the room, giving her mother a worried smile.
“Oh, you married?” Umbrose asked, rising to her feet. “I’m so happy for you!” She came around the table and hugged her daughter.
“Well, it seems our family has grown again,” Yoo-jin smiled. “Everything has been good with you?” she asked Yukiko.
“We’ve been wonderful together,” Yukiko replied.
“You’ll take good care of my daughter, right?” Umbrose asked Gregory.
“Yes, ma’am,” Gregory replied. “I was hesitant at first, but everything has been wonderful since I accepted their proposition. Jenn is the second most important person in my life.”
Umbrose let go of Jenn, went around the table, and pulled Gregory into a hug. “She spoke so highly of you, Gregory. If you’re even half the man she said you are, then I know she’ll be happy for her entire life.”
Gregory blinked and lightly hugged his mother-in-law back. “I’ll try to be more than she said.”
“You’d have to be a god to come close to that,” Umbrose laughed.
Gregory’s expression went blank for a second before he laughed, too. “I’ll just have to try harder, then.”
Umbrose let him go and hugged Yukiko. “Please take care of her. I know you’re the primary wife in this relationship, but please, treat her well.”
“I will love her only slightly less than our husband, and I do mean slightly, Mother,” Yukiko said softly.
Hao rubbed at his chin. “This is highly unusual, but my Yu is happy, so I can say nothing against it.”
“Thank you, Father,” Yukiko said.
Umbrose let her go and they took their seats.
“Before we get too involved, I had a request, Mother,” Yukiko said. Seeing Yoo-jin focus on her, she went on, “I was hoping you’d do me a favor and take on a maid-in-training while you’re here.”
Yoo-jin’s lips pursed. “Tell me the story, please?”
Yukiko exhaled slowly. “Very well. This might take a while. Lin, can you tell Vana to hold off for a bit, please?”
“Of course,” Lin said, stepping out of the room.
“The one I hope you will train is Elsa…”
~*~*~
It took her some time to tell the story, including her reasoning. Yoo-jin looked thoughtful after Yukiko finished. “Hmm… it has been a long time since I’ve had to train a maid. You are sure she will take this seriously?”
“She will,” Gregory said. “Elsa is determined, almost as determined as I was about becoming a magi when I was her age. She knows that if she doesn’t give everything she has, it stops instantly.”
“I will try, then,” Yoo-jin said. “Do you want me to be as strict as possible?”
“She wants to learn what it means to be a lady’s maid, but only has minor training as a housemaid. She’ll make mistakes, but she will learn and not repeat them. You don’t have to be overly strict, just be firm with her. Please, Mother?”
“Very well,” Yoo-jin said. “Dear one, is this acceptable to you?”
Hao had listened the entire time, clearly thinking. “Hmm… at the end of the year, you all leave to train with your men. After that, you’ll be given your adept posting, and then your magus posting. There will be seven years where you won’t be here to check on her or the others.”
“That’s right,” Gregory said, wondering where Hao was going.
“I was thinking ahead. Pardon me,” Hao said. “I am fine with this trial.”
“Thank you,” Yukiko said, looking back at Lin. “Lin, please tell Elsa to attend us and let Vana know we’re ready.”
“Of course.”
There was a knock on the door a minute later. After a few seconds, it opened and revealed Elsa, with Lin behind her. Elsa entered the room and came over to stand beside the table, looking at Yoo-jin. “Mistress, I’m Elsa Bommet. Thank you for this opportunity.” She dipped a curtsy.
“Elsa, my daughter asked me to give you this chance. I will explain things to you one time only, and I expect you to accomplish the tasks. If there is any confusion, you may ask for clarification, but my daughter has said you are intelligent, so I’m sure those questions will be few. If you repeat a mistake, I will be displeased. From this moment until the time we leave the city, you will be my personal maid. Normally, that would mean you would take care of my rooms and any other need I may have. Since we are here and not at home, you will attend me when I am here, and care for the room we use. Do you understand?”
“Yes, mistress.”
“Very well. Take your station.”
Elsa went to stand behind Yoo-jin, putting her back to the wall and crossing her hands over her navel as she waited.
There was another knock on the door— Lin opened the door to reveal Vana with a cart. “It’s good to see our favorite guests have come back,” Vana smiled. “I have the brunch you requested.”
“We’ve been looking forward to it,” Hao smiled. “No other place we’ve stayed at since leaving home has had the same quality as you do here.”
Vana’s smile widened and she bowed her head. “Thank you, sir. I do hope that we can keep the standard up during your stay.”
“We have no doubts,” Yoo-jin said. “Please, serve us, and tell us about the meal.”
~*~*~
With their brunch over, Gregory stood up. “I promised Nessa that I’d speak with her father about him attending the tournament. If you’ll excuse me?”
“Hmm, I’ll come with you,” Hao said, standing as well. “If he or Vana do attend, we can always give them a ride up.”
“Since the men are leaving, I’d like to hear more about how the wedding came about,” Yoo-jin said.
“Oh, yes, please,” Umbrose smiled.
“Well,” Jenn said slowly, “it started before we left for our training outside the city—”
Gregory and Hao left the room. Hao stopped them walking halfway down the hallway. “Gregory, a question— are you sure you will still love Yu as much as you always have, even with Jenn being a part of your relationship?”
“Honestly, I worried about it a great deal, Father,” Gregory said. “It’s odd, though… I don’t think my love for Yuki has dimmed at all. If anything, it’s grown, if that’s even possible. It could be that love is like aether— there isn’t a finite amount, and it’s something that can expand if you feed it.”
Hao blinked slowly for a second, then chuckled. “Shared love grows?”
“It feels that way to me,” Gregory shrugged. “I love Yuki as much as I always have, if not more now, but I also love Jenn. Maybe not as much as Yuki, but there’s only a very small amount of difference between them now, where before, it was a noticeable gap.” Taking a deep breath, he met Hao’s eyes. “And Yuki and Jenn are the same. We all love each other a great deal. We’ve not had a single fight in the time we’ve been together. Now, that hasn’t been all that long, but even if we do argue or fight, I don’t think it will be bad.”
“Hmm… Very well. Yu is happy, I can clearly see that. I just worry that you’d minimize her in favor of Jenn.”
“Never,” Gregory said.
Hao smiled. “That’s quite clear, and it makes me glad. Now, let’s go speak with Ramon.”
The taproom had a handful of other people besides the guards. A few of them glanced at the pair as they entered the room, and two raised their glasses to them. Gregory gave them nods back, vaguely recalling them being in the tavern before.
Ramon, once he’d seen them, came to the end of the bar. “You wanted to talk?”
“Yes, but I also don’t want to stop you from making a living,” Gregory said, looking at the man who’d just gone to the other end of the bar for a refill.
“Hang on,” Ramon said, hurrying down to refill the man’s mug and quickly coming back. “Sorry. It’ll be fine, if it can be discussed here.”
“It should be. Nessa was wondering if you, Vana, or both of you would be making it to see her fight?”
Ramon deflated slightly, looking at the bar top. “I wanted to, but I don’t have anyone who can stand in for me. Vana’s sister is going to come work the kitchen for her.” He paused, looking up at Hao. “That means the food will decrease in quality slightly. She’s good, but she isn’t Vana.”
“Hmm, understandable,” Hao said. “Considering the reason, none of us will say a word.”
“Thank you,” Ramon said tightly. “I don’t have someone I trust to run the bar in my absence.”
“Well, maybe I can help?” Hao offered. “Hintle, come here, please.”
Lin’s new second-in-command got up and went over to Hao. “Yes, sir?”
“How long has it been since you left your family’s business?”
“Ten years, sir.”
“Could you do the job again?”
Hintle hesitated, looking at Ramon. “I’d want to be refreshed and to know how things were done in this establishment, sir, but yes.”
Ramon looked between Hao and Hintle. “You want him to take my place?”
“It’s just an option,” Hao said. “My men are the most trustworthy people I know. It will be up to you if you wish to take advantage of the offer but, as Hintle said, he’ll need you to show him how you want things done.”
Ramon licked his lips, clearly considering the offer. “Can I have a moment to think, please?”
“As long as you’d like. Hintle, if he accepts, this will be your task while we are in the city. I’ll make sure you are provided a bonus for going outside what your job normally entails. I’ll warn Lin about it, as well.”
Hintle exhaled slowly as he watched Ramon go into the kitchen. “I’ll do my best, sir, but may I ask why?”
“His daughter is a novice, and she will be in the tournament,” Hao said softly. “I know what it feels like to worry for your only child during that time. Their family has been good to us, and repaying kindness is something I have rarely been able to do.”
“Understood, sir. If he accepts your offer, I will do my very best.”
“It’s also likely that his daughter will be joining our clan,” Gregory said softly, “so this will help the clan and us.”
Hintle drew himself up taller. “My very best to help the little miss.”
Hao chuckled lightly. “Thank you. We are returning to the back before we head out. If he accepts, have someone arrange for a second carriage during our stay so we can ferry everyone back and forth.”
“Yes, sir.”
As Gregory and Hao walked down the hall, Gregory exhaled. “Thank you, Father.”
“Ramon and Vana have been good to us, and returning that in this way makes me feel better. I was thinking his daughter would join your clan, and that just makes it even easier to help them. Now, we have places to go and things to accomplish, but first, we must collect our wives and guests.”
“Yes, Father.”
