Chapter Three - Ducks

Opening the door, she smiled at the royal trio and Jessica, who was waiting next to them with a cart of food. Stepping aside and pushing it fully open, she greeted them. “Good morning everyone, come on in.”

Will stumbled past her first, greeting her sleepily as he rubbed his eyes. “Morning Jade!” He still looked half-asleep, and his collar was askew as if he hadn’t bothered to look in a mirror when he got dressed, but he was up and moving, albeit slowly.

Camille and Victor looked far more awake and put-together as they filed in, Victor nodding congenially and Cami studied her closely, looking for who knew what. Jessica gave her a short bob and friendly grin as she pushed the laden cart in. Her meal with the royal parents had only been an hour ago, but she wasn’t going to say no to more, especially given that the others needed to eat too.

Still, she glanced down the hallway as there was a small thump behind her, puzzled for a moment. Camille caught the look and laughed as she explained, “We’re used to getting up early for school. Tisha and the twins like to sleep in.”

Shaking her head, she made way as Jessica pushed the cart back out, saying softly as she reached out to pat her with her good hand, “Thanks Jessica. You doing okay?” She just wanted to quickly check on the girl, who smiled as she paused her hurried gait.

“Thanks for checking, but I’m good. Just busy.” She cast a glance at the nearby guard, and Jade sighed softly.

“Sorry for making you bring everything up here.” She made a note to at least give the girls a small spatial ring so they could move things conveniently. They would undoubtedly protest that it was too much, but she didn’t care. Her found family deserved the best, and she wanted to make their lives easier much like they did for her. Mentally she added that to her to-do list for today. They didn’t have signet rings, so something simple and inconspicuous would work well for them. Not that she didn’t still fully intend to make them pretty for her friends.

Letting out a small huff, Jessica responded with teasing sarcasm, “Yes, it’s so difficult to do the job I’ve been doing for the last four years. Now go eat before you waste away.” She stuck her tongue out, mimicking Jade’s silly habit as she gave her a small push to go inside. Grinning, she acquiesced as Jessica closed the door behind her and Jade turned to the elder royals, joining them at her…breakfast table? She paused, blinking.

Where she’d had an empty corner by the window before, a cozy round table with four chairs hosted the royals, complete with tablecloth and a small vase of flowers. One of the boys must’ve had it in his ring. She was a little annoyed at the thought that they’d considered bringing a table and chairs in, but didn’t help Jessica with her cart of food. Whatever. At least they hadn’t bothered her with moving furniture.

She took a deep breath to center herself, realizing she was irritable and not wanting to take it out on them. Staring at the mirror had left her more off-balance than she wanted to admit, and her shoulder was still throbbing from their attempts earlier. There was no painkiller or magic to spare her the ache of her spirit.

“Jade, are you okay?” Worry strained the princess’ face as she kept glancing down at Jade’s shoulder.

Managing a small smile, Jade started to shrug, then winced and took a few seconds to blink before drooping. Finally, she answered honestly, “No, not really. But it’s all right. I will be. I’m still just coming to terms with everything.” She tried to reassure them, knowing that she would, in fact, get over this. Probably. Cami looked like she wanted to push, then thought better of it and instead started serving her food.

She smiled gratefully as the princess continued, “Well then. You should eat something. Food always seems to help.” There were soft chuckles, and Will seemed only moderately more awake now that he was shoveling pancakes into his mouth. Something about his manner was still bothering her, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it.

Loudly swallowing, he grumbled, “The kids don’t know how good they have it. I don’t remember the last time I got to sleep in.” Even tired, he was trying to make her feel more comfortable by changing the subject.

Taking the offered rope, she agreed. “The last time I slept in was three weeks ago, in another world. Here, I don’t think I’ve slept through more than a couple hours at a time. Passed out, sure. Slept in? I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to again.” She was far more willing to focus on her inability to snooze than her true disability. With a small smile, she dug into the food Camille was still stacking onto her plate regularly.

“The guards mentioned you startled them when you came out so early.” Victor paused, then asked a little carefully, “Do you have all the clothing you need? Do we need to arrange another visit to the seamstress?”

She paused, her brain catching up as Camille huffed. “She has pajamas. She just doesn’t like to wear them, apparently.” OH. This was about her not wearing enough to sleep again.

Rolling her eyes, she muttered defensively, “I’ll work on it. I don’t like being constrained when I’m asleep.” It reminded her too much of not being able to move because of needles and the machines hooked up to her. But that was no longer a problem, so she needed to get over it. A lifetime of habits just wasn’t that easy to kick.

Feeling the need for another conversation starter that was less about her, she asked, “So what are you guys doing today?” The royal parents had offered their children as chaperones, but never mentioned which ones.

Victor and Camille exchanged glances before he spoke, “Will and I are headed to the gates after breakfast to help out and get people settled.” Will just nodded, content to nom his breakfast. She didn’t remember him being so quiet in the mornings, and frowned slightly, studying him as Camille spoke beside her.

“You’re stuck with me today, so you tell me. Where are we going?” Her voice was teasing, but Jade was still staring at her little brother. “Jade?” She queried softly, following her line of sight to see what was taking her attention.

“Probably the library for a while…” Jade responded absently before ordering, “Will, give me your hand.” She held hers out, and confused, he let go of his fork to touch her, letting her healing magic flood into his body as she closed her eyes.

Mapping everything out, she cleared out the viral strain slowly permeating his body, clearing out the congestion, addressing his fever and the buildup in his throat. Destroying the contagion, she pulled all the gunk to his nose. In the grand scheme of things, the actual matter was tiny. But she pulled her hand away as he hastily grabbed a handkerchief from his pocket, blowing out chunky mucus.

Half a minute later, his sinuses were finally cleared, his eyes watering as he shook his head, looking much more conscious. “Well, that was disgusting, but I feel much better.” Camille was eyeing the food still on the table queasily. Oops. Maybe she should have waited until they were done eating, but she didn’t really want to put off healing him. Will was digging into the food as if it didn’t phase him, his body pushing him to replenish energy.

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Victor ate sedately, though he gave his brother an exasperated side eye before turning to her. “Thank you. I should have realized something was wrong with him sooner.”

Shrugging, she began to chow down again, unbothered by the whole thing now that it was over. She’d heard and seen far worse at mealtimes and was rather desensitized to the whole thing. Only Cami’s reaction had reminded her that not everyone was used to eating no matter what else was going on. “It’s all good. You’re not omnipotent, and it’s been a crazy few days. Should probably check everyone he’s been in close contact with the last day or two. The flu spreads pretty easily, and he was in the early stages.”

She should probably sanitize things too, and that led her to… “By the way, do you guys have vodka?” She’d drank wine, but hadn’t seen anything resembling vodka. They were giving her blank stares, so she tried again. “It’s like…a pure alcohol distillation.”

That at least got their attention. Victor pondered as he asked Camille, “Do you think she’s talking about deoclin?” Well, that word didn’t translate, so whatever it was didn’t have an equivalent. She was pretty sure if she ever said the word, she’d fail to accent it properly.

Shrugging, Camille responded, “I can’t think of what else it would be.” Turning back to Jade, she questioned, “Why are you asking?”

Tapping her plate with her fork absently, she answered, “While people drank it on Earth, it was also useful as a cleaning supply. I realized my leather armor was a little…ripe this morning. But spraying a little bit of it and letting it evaporate is a good way of cleaning things up without ruining them.”

“Deoclin.” Victor nodded assertively. “It’s regularly used to clean armor.” He seemed absolutely sure of himself now that he knew what she wanted. Maybe she should have led with her purpose instead of trying to pick out a specific item. She needed to remember that this was their world, and if leather armor was something they used, then sweaty leather armor would have a solution. Especially given that she didn’t remember the smell ever being an issue. He continued, “Although if you just leave your armor in the room, the girls will take care of that for you.”

She paused. She felt like it was her armor, and thus her responsibility, but… that was the girls’ job. Literally. “Right. Okay. I’ll leave it here before we leave, then.” She didn’t really want to pull it out sooner, because the smell and the blood was…something. She could at least get rid of some of that, she supposed. To be fair, she probably needed it patched too. She hadn’t thought of that.

Camille didn’t hesitate to point out, “You’ve got more coming, anyway. Sharon should be done with the rest of your things in the next few days.” The poor girl was trying to focus on anything else, still just playing with her food in the aftermath of Will’s healing.

“Oh yeah, I’d forgotten about that.” A bunch of stuff needed alterations when she tried it on, so she hadn’t taken it with her. It was more clothing than she’d need in a year, but hey. Options were never a bad thing! “All right. So leave the stuff here, and the girls will clean it with duckling.”

“Deoclin.” Camille gently corrected her.

Sticking her tongue out, she confirmed, “Yeah, duckling. That’s what I said.” Whether on Earth or Andara, she was forever going to associate fantasy vodka with birds. Ducks, geese, they were both avian predators one wrong look away from being chased to the ends of existence. Cami let out a small huff, but she was smiling and started to actually eat again.

Absently taking a bite, Jade relished the sweet pancakes. She would never get tired of being able to eat whatever she wanted, whenever she wanted. But that reminded her… Pulling out a bit of silver and leaving it in her bad hand so she could work and eat, she magically fiddled with it, easily forming two thin rings with Celtic knotwork. It was pretty, but not overly fancy as she made them into spatial rings, expanding them until they were six feet cubes. That was enough space for them to handle daily problems, including moving the common room tables if needed.

“Making rings again?” Victor asked curiously. They’d become rather accustomed to her doing random crafting while she ate, and the sight of rings was familiar. “Are you planning to sell these ones?” It was a normal misconception, given that she’d only ever done signet rings for other people.

Shaking her head, she responded after swallowing, “No, these are for Jessica and Kaylee. It’ll make their jobs a bit easier.”

Camille and Victor exchanged looks, before she spoke slowly, “Jade, you realize those rings are worth…”

“A lot. I know.” She interrupted, wanting to head off this conversation.

“That’s an understatement. I know you gave them to all of us, but we’re all wearing the equivalent of an estate on our fingers.” Will interjected, waving his hand.

Shrugging, she asked, “What use is an estate to me?”

Victor sighed patiently. “What we’re trying to say is that while you’ve been doing it for us, we haven’t objected because we have the power to protect them. By giving it to maids, you’re actually putting them in danger.”

Jade paused, gnawing on her fork unhappily. “But it would make their lives so much better.”

Patting her good arm, Camille replied, “Yes, it would. And we know you mean well. But if the wrong person sees them using it, it could be disastrous.” Jade opened her mouth to speak, but she cut her off. “You can’t always be there to protect them, and they simply don’t have the magic or status to hold onto them when they leave these walls. I’m sure the students mean well, but all it takes is one rumor from a disgruntled noble and, well…”

She nodded slowly. What they were saying made sense, even if she hated it. It was akin to a beggar flaunting diamonds. That comparison felt so wrong, but it was also apt. Looking down at the two rings she made, she sighed. “And there’s no way around it?”

Shaking his head, Victor confirmed, “Not without assigning them a guard. Even if you asked them to only use it when no one else is around, they would slip eventually.” She wanted to protest, but couldn’t. Habits were a scary thing.

“I still don’t like it.” She pouted softly, stabbing her pancake.

“And you don’t have to, but you should listen.” Camille said a little sadly, and she nodded glumly.

“Then what do I do with these?” She glared at the now offending rings. All she wanted to do was help her friends! Why did everything have to be so complicated? She hated social politics.

“Sell them. Wasn’t that the original plan, anyway?” Will spoke bluntly. He looked thoughtful as he said, “I would’ve suggested getting a high price out of the delegations, but I’m not sure we want to do that.”

She emphatically agreed. “Yeah, no offense to them. Jamil seems like a nice enough guy, but their entire kingdom being under contracted control isn’t something I want to empower more. Liam…well. Considering everything, that’s also a no. Aylin, I would consider, but she doesn’t need it.”

Despite the slight wince that came from her omitting all honorifics, Victor nodded along, albeit with slight confusion. “Why would you think she doesn’t need it?”

Shrugging with her good shoulder, she replied, “Well, you know she helped at the gate. Her spatial magic is some of the strongest I’ve seen, and you saw them come through originally. They were traveling light, but they’ve had everything they needed at all times. The ring would just be teaching her a new trick of not relying on bag dimensions and the inventory screen. She’s already seen us use our rings, so the screen is probably the only thing she hasn’t already figured out. So I mean, the cat is probably already out of the bag, but we don’t have to cement it in.”

Their faces were pure confusion. Victor’s brow furrowed as he tried to piece together what she meant, and she finally realized she’d been using a bunch of Earth terms and sayings like screen, cat, and cement. Waving her fork, she said, “The gist is that I don’t need to spoon-feed her my secrets.”

Nodding slowly, Camille agreed. “Whatever the terminology, you’re right. From a purely political standpoint, we’d prefer to keep it in the kingdom until we’ve got a surplus. The question then becomes who. Most of those close to you have…well, no, that’s not true.” She paused, thinking. “Everyone in the royal family has one. So that’s eight.” She was ticking them off her fingers. “Stephen and Eric… Anyone else?”

“Just Briar. And Stephen had an extra one I gave him to collect bodies.” Jade grumbled darkly, then shook her head. “Okay. So aside from having already leaked my secrets to the dragons, they’re unlikely to start trading with humans anytime soon, so no issues there. Everyone who’s ever met me pretty much knows I make them. I haven’t exactly been keeping quiet about it.”

Lifting her bad arm just enough to place the rings on the table, she finished, “So if I can’t give it to the girls, I’ll just leave them to you to sell and distribute. I did tell a bunch of people that I’d mostly be doing personalized ones out of signet rings, but whatever.” Leaving it to them was the best choice. They could distribute it to the people they trusted. Anything she could think of, they knew better in this case. While she knew it would be helpful to have it in places like Sharon’s shop, or given to Ammon and the military, or to Lupa to move beastial bodies…there were a hundred different useful places she could implement it.

She doubted any of them would get an allotment in the near future. Well. Maybe Ammon. She let out a small sigh. It felt like she would never have all her ducks in a row. She was pretty sure at least a few of them were pigeons, and not quite sure they were even in the same room. Maybe a better analogy would be that she had an entire menagerie of things to keep track of, and like a zoo, everything was both connected and utterly disparate.

While she could pass off things like selling the rings to the royals, the rest she had to deal with personally. They were her monkeys and her circus.