Petunia

There was a small lounge – small by the standards of the Palace, at least – on the way into the wing where team personnel were accommodated. Curving handrails atop ornate balustrades cut the room into bays of half a dozen narrow, throne-like armchairs each. The carpet was plush and red, the walls covered in portraits in between complex plaster mouldings.

The whole room was so visually noisy that when Petunia walked in, eyes half-focussed after poring over Stefan's paperwork for a couple of hours, she almost missed Adelie sitting quietly in a corner on her own. Rubbing her cheeks, glad she hadn't gone for a full face of makeup today, Petunia walked over. The vet had her phone in her lap, its screen dark.

She looked up at Petunia’s approach. "Phoebe’s schemes, huh?"

"Yeah." Petunia hesitated, then picked the seat to Adelie’s left, which was further away from her than the one on her right but angled more towards her. The chairs were too narrow, their sides too hard, for her to really sink deep into, especially with shoes on so she couldn't pull her feet up and hug her knees. Probably that was better for her posture or something. She looked over at Adelie. "It's been a crazy year, hasn't it?"

Adelie snorted gently. "I can't believe I'm a guest at the Winter Palace. I'm just a vet!"

"To the best dragon in the world." Petunia was surprised at the force in her voice. "We were really lucky, yeah. With Soot, I mean."

"Were we lucky or just stupid?" The vet looked around the room. "We could still get killed over this, remember."

"Do you regret it?"

"No." Adelie picked up her phone, then put it down again. "Maybe I will if I have to go get another job somewhere else after… after whatever, but no, I don't regret it. I'd never have- I'd never have met Marisa."

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Petunia stared at her for a second. "You talked to her?"

Colour rose on Adelie’s cheeks, and she glanced sideways at Petunia. "Yeah. Remember when we went back to Rindburg before Uriankhai?"

"I thought you went to see your family!"

"I did, but I went to the farm too."

"Is she still there?" Petunia frowned. "After what happened…"

"Yeah, I wasn't sure, but she… showed herself? I don't know the right words." Adelie shrugged. "We talked and stuff."

"That's really cute, I'm so glad. She really wanted to talk to you, she just wasn't sure how to make you… not afraid."

There was a quiet, melancholy chuckle from the vet. "I had to work that part out for myself. I don't think I could have done it without being in the team, you know? Having to be in charge of people and stuff."

"You do seem more confident, yeah." Thinking back, it was hard to even remember how shy and quiet Adelie had once been.

"What about you?" Adelie’s tone sharpened slightly, and Petunia felt her friend's eyes on her. "Do you regret it?"

"We'll know tomorrow, I guess." Petunia shrugged, not quite meeting Adelie’s gaze. "If Brynna doesn't succeed at whatever she's trying to do, I don't know. I'm proud of everything we've built, though, with the team, the sponsors, the people we've brought in, you know? We really deserve to be here, I didn't believe that when we started but… I guess I don't regret it, actually. Even if I end up in jail or something, yeah."

"We'll just have to trust Brynna, right?" Adelie was smiling, slightly lopsidedly.

Petunia matched her expression. "I think she can do it. She seems really… powerful."

"Yeah."

For a little while, they sat in silence together. Petunia tipped her head back and stared at the ceiling, letting her eyes blur at the sparkles from the scattering of gold leaf up there. A few other personnel, in other uniforms, came and went, but something about the shape of the room sucked away the noise of their conversations, so there was no disturbance.

Eventually, Adelie said, "If we win tomorrow… uh, if we win the championship or whatever, is it OK if I skip the parties?"

"What do you mean?" Petunia looked over to see Adelie looking at her phone again.

"I wanna go and celebrate with Marisa. Stefan and Tamra can handle looking after Soot without me, and Marisa’s all alone. We shouldn't forget about her."

Petunia nodded. "Yeah. I'll see what I can get you for a flight."

"Thanks." Adelie paused. "For everything, not just the flight, I mean."