Dear Diary,

"Lust is a fire on the hearth,

Bloodlust, a raging wildfire.

Which would you warm yourself at?"

Doctrine of Tabitha, Book of Bloodlust

Yeah, I've really debated putting questions into the Doctrine. Like, on the one hand I want my people to think. I want them to consider their actions, to try and choose the ones that will benefit everybody as much as possible as often as possible. The ones that, as far as I can tell, will lead to a better world for my kids to live in.

But I'm a Goddess of Passion, Ecstasy, Bloodlust, Vengeance, and Justified fuckin' Homicide. Somehow I do not think 'careful, calm, considered actions' are gonna come very naturally to my future worshippers. Then again, maybe that's the Good I can do in The World; to lay down a Divine Mandate for the 'doers not thinkers' of the world to stop, take a breath, and think about what they're doing when it comes to big, serious shit.

Fuck, I think if when whatever God's in charge at the End of Days does the final ultimate accounting, I managed to get one person to make one other person's life a little less shitty by wrapping his willy before spelunking, I'll consider it a win.

Daughter?

What's up, Dad?

Among your titles as Mimic?

Why do I not like where this is going?

You are the Walking Ragnarok.

Yeah... oh, fuck. Really?

Yes, Daughter, there is some strong evidence that you will be the Goddess in charge of that final ultimate accounting.

Fuck.

I am sorry, Daughter.

Nah, not your fault. Fuck, you might be wrong. Maybe between now and then we'll get a God of Accountants, and I'll just have to keep him around to cook the books.

There she is. Pride filled Dad's mental voice. That's my Daughter.

Thanks, Dad. You're the best.

I know.

So yesterday after sequestering herself in Adrienne Crow's rooms, Karen changed back into her uniform, then bowed her head and closed her eyes. Goddess?

I'm listening.

It would be rude of me not to sleep here. Can you watch over me while I rest?

You got it, Karen. Saffron squeezed my hand, and I thought, give me a few minutes. I turned to Saffron. "What's up?"

"If you enter the Overlord's Keep without specific invitation, that would be offensive as well."

I might have bristled a little bit. "Okay, one, why would me visiting my Highest Priestess be offensive, and two, why the fuck do I care?"

Saffron sighed and rubbed the back of my hand. Karen? Must you sleep immediately?

Well, no, but the cracker is beginning to have an effect.

They fucking poisoned my Priestess?

I started to move, but Saffron grabbed me, held me still with a single barked word. "HEEL!" I froze. "Good Girl." Marie? Attend Karen please.

Coming.

Thank you. Saffron reached up and caressed my cheek. "Now, love, I'm sorry I've spent so little time with you with this, but... are you in the mood for a lesson right now?"

"Not fuckin' really, no."

"Do you trust me?"

"Did I heel?" I growled back.

A few minutes later, as Saffron straddled my lap where I sat on the end of the Bed, Marie showed up next to Karen, her cart in tow, steam rising from within, her old metal tub atop it. You gonna be okay, Karen?

If Marie cannot protect me and navigate the Courts of the Fae, I am lost in any case. Should that happen?

Rich Man's Port's gonna be getting a new Overlord.

Thank you, Goddess.

Lost most of the night to watching over Karen through Marie's vigilant gaze, while Saffron did her damndest to keep me from just flattening the whole fuckin' Keep. Not long after Saffron fell asleep, when the rays of the morning sun filtered through Karen's windows, she woke, stretched, and bowed her head. Thank you, Goddess.

No worries. You good for the day?

She nodded. I think it best if I remain here until summoned by the Overlord.

You need one of us to fill in for you at the Temple?

She smirked, and I got a secondary view from inside what looked the kind of restaurant that really swanky hotels had. I never said I had to only be in Adrienne's rooms.

Cool. Marie, can you back her up until Saffron and I wake up?

Yes. The Marie in the room with Karen settled to her knees, arranging the hem of her skirt in a neat circle around her.

Thanks, Mittens. Love you.

Welcome, Vlickies.

Saffron woke me for bath time. "Good evening, Goof. Feel better?"

I pouted. "Still not happy with the fuckin' Fae."

She sighed. "Neither am I, love. But... are you ready to hear me out?"

I shrugged. "Sure. Anything the women and kids shouldn't hear?"

As she stepped us to the bathroom, where the kids had already lined up to use the toilet, with Siobhan managing the cup for them, she spoke at a volume the room could hear. "No. In fact, I suspect we ought all know at least the basics, just in case we wind up with Fae living near or even on our Homestead." She didn't point Maze out, but the pony girl's ears perked up. Like, literal pony ears, barely covered by her hair, that disappeared a moment after she realized they'd done so.

"Okay then. Class is in session, ladies, Archmage Aetos-Diaz lecturing."

She smiled at me, nodded, then poured the first few kettles of water into the tub. Once she had, she cleared her throat as Menace climbed into the tub. "The first thing to understand about the Fae is that they are, one and all, native to Underhill, to M-Space. They are thus typically more inherently Mana enabled than their analogs in the Mortal Realm."

I figured I'd play dumb kid who asks questions, just to keep anybody else from feeling dumb. I mean, I knew I was a dumbass, but apparently three hot babes liked me that way, so I'd become surprisingly copacetic about that. "Analogs?"

This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

She nodded. "One example would be the Sidhe, the 'noble Fae'. They are analogous to Humans. They can, and in the case of House Crow do, interbreed with Humans. Another example would be their Steeds, which are analogous to Horses, but only in general configuration, size, and function."

Menace sniffed the air for a second, then announced. "Dere Dings nad hortheth."

Saffron smiled and nodded. "No, no they are not, my girl. Sidhe Steeds are obligate carnivores, with the claws and fangs one might expect from such. But like many Fae, their appearance is deceptive; from a distance, with their mouths closed, they appear to be horses, fine strong beautiful ones."

"They thdupid, doo."

Saffron sucked her teeth a moment. "Given that horses are in fact not very bright from what I've read, I suspect their analogs may not be very smart for predators, but when the predator is the size of a horse, they don't generally need to be." Menace just chuckled and made chomping motions while Saffron scrubbed her hair.

"Okay, so they're all gonna be some degree of freaky, and some degree of magical?"

Saffron nodded to me. "An apt summation. Now, Fae who cannot speak are dangerous in the manner of any wild beast, only moreso. Fae who can speak, however..." She shuddered just a little. "Something to understand about them. They are all, even those who cannot speak, bound by rules."

"What rules?"

"That depends on the Fae," she continued. "The simple, nonverbal ones? The rules of predator and prey. The lesser verbal ones? The more powerful they are. the more rules that bind them, and the more those rules affect them."

"But they can't lie, right?" Liam piped up.

Saffron frowned, but nodded. "Any Fae who can speak cannot lie. But that in and of itself is deceptive." When he tilted his head in confusion, reminding me a lot of Lachlan for a moment, she explained, "the Fae think differently to Mortals. They cannot speak something that is untrue, but even the simplest can twist words to suit them. A classic gambit is a Fae asking for your name."

Liam nodded. "So they can use your true name to bind Mana Shapes to you!"

"No." Liam's face fell, and she added, "although that was a good guess. No, if you give a Fae your name? It is no longer yours. When you hear that name, you will no longer recognize it as your own. When someone asks you your name, you will not remember that word." Liam blanched. I'd never actually seen the little dude look scared before. "I see you are now taking the Fae with something approaching caution?"

"How... how can they do that?"

She nodded. "Because you gave them permission. If they ask for your name, and you give it to them, they can take it. Permission, Consent, Agency play huge roles in Fae Magic."

"So..." he thought, then said, "just don't give them permission to do anything?"

She rinsed Menace, then pulled Liam into the tub. "A good start, but patently insufficient. The Fae are masters of social contracts. Do you understand what those are?" He frowned, then shook his head. "Those are the agreements that we all have with those around us, most of them unspoken. To explain one all in this room understand, if the Heir of House Lancaster invites you into the House, and you are a good guest, he is obligated to house, feed, and defend you, yes?" Pretty much everybody in the room either nodded or gave Saffron a 'duh' look. "The Fae know those rules. The Sidhe, the noble Fae, know them better than anyone, and know them explicitly. You all understand that those rules are, on occasion, subject to change?" Everybody in the room frowned. "Such as, if the Heir designates a suite as the Imperator's suite, then the Imperator is expected to care for those who live in that suite?" Everybody nodded along with that, understanding.

"Wait, so why are we all eating in the dining room again?"

Saffron laughed. "Because Heir Lancaster isn't an ass, unlike his cousins."

"He has cousins?"

"He did. They raped and murdered a woman staying in the House. He executed them as soon as he found them. Then threw their remains in the tanning waste." Every woman in the room tensed up at the mention of the rape, then let out a collective breath when she dropped that bomb about Larry executing his own cousins.

Kinda wish I'd been there to see that.

You were, love. You even Healed and Revived the woman.

Really? What happened to her?

Bonnie.

Really? Shit. Wow. Uh. She seems to be okay now?

Saffron shot me a sad smile. She's different. But... she can smile. She survived. She's healing, Most importantly, she's not just surviving, she's living.

"Okay, getting us back on track, what's the dealio with the Sidhe? If they've got to follow all the rules, wouldn't that make them easier to deal with?"

Saffron sighed, her shoulders slumping a little. "Yes and no. If you can follow all the rules as well as they do, and I will note that they have an instinctive understanding of those rules, they can literally feel when they are about to break one, at least if they're paying attention? If you can follow those rules, they have no more power over you than any Mortal Mage might."

"And if you can't?"

"For every rule you break? Their power over you is amplified. Most Mortals would be in danger of being utterly overwhelmed after a single infraction." She shot me a sad smile.

You think that's what happened to me?

You are not... I love you, Goof, but you are my Goof. Rules are not something that comes naturally to you.

"So, I get how that's 'no' on 'rules making it easier to deal with them', since one of us breaking their rules make them more powerful, but how yes? Just... oh, if we follow the rules they're just instinctive Mages that live in the land of Magic and make believe?"

She gave me an actual smile this time. "No, love. Because if they fail to follow a rule? If they fail to treat a guest who has been a good guest properly? Their power is diminished as regards to that guest. A great Fae Lord who mistreats a guest badly enough might find himself susceptible to even an untrained Human's Mana, or just their force of Personality."

"Didn't you say they have an instinct about that?"

She nodded. "Yes, they do, but while in some ways they are alien to us, in others they are very human. They can fall prey to arrogance, or distraction, or any number of things that cause them to ignore their instincts, at least long enough for a clever, determined, self-disciplined Mortal to gain the upper hand long enough to triumph." Then she looked around at the crowd, especially the kids. "Do. Not. Think. You. Are. That. Mortal." When all but Maze, Liam, and Menace looked cowed, she glared at the three of them. Well, mostly Liam and Menace, because Maze was nodding in agreement with her. "Liam, you are brave and true and barring some tragedy will someday be a Hero like your father before you, but for the moment? You are not ready for that challenge. Should a Fae try to ensnare you? You tell them that your Imperator has commanded you return to her, and get yourself back to me as quickly as possible. Understood?"

He still looked mulish, right up until Menace swallowed and said, "Liam? Do what Mom says."

Gotta hand it to my girl Isnomi, she had her posse trained well. "Yes, Isnomi."

"For the rest of you, let that command stand as well. Should a Fae try to snare you, I command you to return to me. Tell them that. You are my people, I am your Imperator, and they will understand that binding. They will not like it, but they will respect it, or...?"

"Or you'll punish them?" Guessed Liam. Saffron shook her head.

"Ow I ead dem?" Isnomi opened her mouth and gnashed holy fucking shit that was absolutely a Hell of Teeth.

"No! Do not eat the Fae." Saffron's snapped command softened into a smile. "You have no idea where they've been."

Isnomi belched, snickered, but said, "Yeth, Ma."

I raised my hand as Menace trotted off toward Marie and Liam walked over to me. "Yes, Tabitha?"

"I'm guessing if they don't follow the rules and let our folks obey you, they lose power over them?"

"Yes! That's it exactly. Follow the rules, and you are safer. Not safe, but safer.."

Devorah who'd been murmuring with Chloe, asked, "what of the rules of gifts? Like honey and bread and milk set out for them?"

Saffron nodded. "Gifts, and debts, and payback are old, old rules. Possibly even older than guest rights. The compact with lesser Fae, where homes which set out minor gifts like that are protected from mischief, is old and honored by most. But take care. Not all Fae are bound by that particular compact, and Fae take gifts and debts seriously. Never thank a Fae, nor tell them they are welcome. Thanks imply a debt. Telling a Fae they are welcome to something..." Saffron shuddered.

"How then are we to follow those basic social rules of politeness?" asked Anna.

Saffron shrugged. "Instead of thanks, offer a compliment. 'That was well done' is common. As for 'welcome'..."

"Ooh! Ooh! I know this one!" When Saffron waved a hand at me, I said, "de nada!"

Saffron smiled. "Exactly. Should a Fae thank you, simply say 'it was nothing'."

"Wouldn't it be better to have them in your debt, though?" asked Liam.

Saffron rocked her head back and forth. "For a peer? Like a Hero, or Champion, who might hold them to account if they repay that debt with poison? It might be a stratagem. But one fraught with peril. Best to forgive the debt; I cannot recall a tale where forgiveness went poorly for the Mortal."

So, that's what Karen's trying to do with all the weird socializing? Get them to put themselves in her debt? Or break a rule?

Do I ever do something for just one reason?

What else then?

Saffron smiled at me as she finished washing Daya and sent her my way. Gathering information. We still don't know who did this to you. Or why. Or even, truly, what was done.

I got cursed and glamored, is what was done.

Perhaps, but remember what I said. The Fae do not think like us. They do not think in what we would call straight lines. But... she paused, as if trying to think how to phrase something. Or, really, how to dumb it down enough for me to understand. If the Fae who cursed you thought of it as a gift, and we respond with violence, we put ourselves in their power. If they intended it as an attack, and it was unprovoked, they have put themselves in ours. But we don't know, and in this case? Details, tiny ones, matter.

Fu-hu-hu-hu-huck. This is gonna damage my calm.

Which is part of why I didn't explain it all sooner. I'm sorry, love.

For what?

She smiled at me as she scooted Alex toward me. For keeping secrets from you.

I snorted as I dried off our little tomboy. Could I... Should I have learned this shit at the Academy?

Yes, but...

Yeah, then I ought to know it, but I forgot. Which means I probably broke one of those 'basic dealing with Fae rules', at which point they whammied me, and it's my own damn fault, and you've just been letting me chill while you figured stuff out. Just promise me one thing?

Anything, love.

That when it's time to start using blunt instruments, you'll let me know?

She smiled at me. It's like you've forgotten yet again who my favorite Attack Dog is...

What else could I say but, Woof.