Tripler leans forward in his seat, grinning at my interest.
Or, perhaps he’s grinning at my rebuff of the Prince, I can’t tell.
“You’ve certainly ridden past them in your travels, yes?”
“Yes,” I nod earnestly, grabbing the ale in front of me, “though it was a pass from afar. I’m afraid I’m completely ignorant to how a quarry actually works.”
“As were we,” Sutton laughs, grabbing her toddy, “but one day we felt the rock beneath us when we rode through the Valley. It was unlike anything I had ever experienced. Tripler as well. We had to confirm with eachother that we weren’t crazy.”
“I certainly knew we weren’t crazy,” her brother rolls his eyes with a chuckle, “but the method had never been tried before. We felt the granite under us and knew that it sat beneath the earth. So we had to learn how to pull it from the ground. Our summoning, mixed with a few others, as well as a lot of hard, manual labor, saw the quarries finally created.”
“Hence the gaping holes there,” Sutton laughs again, looking at the Prince behind my shoulder with an apology.
“You have provided and produced hundreds of livelihoods for the people of my Court,” he leans in with a nod, “continue to cut into the ground as much as you’d like.”
The brother and sister both grin at the Prince, lifting their drinks in salute.
“But what of the greenstone, Lady Alexis,” Sutton looks at me curiously, “the mountain rests behind the capitol of Bardot, yes? Is your home built into the mountain or do the people there mine it?”
I feel Keane shift in his seat as I reply, “a little of both, actually. The castle itself is built of greenstone but it sits separate from the mountain at the bottom. We do have a few rooms within the castle that rest inside the mountain, but mainly the stone is mined for the construction of new buildings in the Palisades up top.”
“We’ve heard of the Palisades,” Tripler smiles, “the way it’s described, unlike anything in Disce.”
“It is,” I nod vigorously, “one of my favorite cities to visit.”
“We must make the travel, Tripler,” Sutton turns to her brother as Keane leans back in his chair, his fingers inching towards my back again.
“The city is built on top of the mountain or within the top?” her brother asks, gaze holding mine.
“A little of both again. There are multi-leveled homes built into the mountain with only their verandas that jut out. But the top of the mountain is where the city really lives. The shops and homes are built using the greenstone and rise high to the sky above. The view at night is unlike any other.”
“We will visit,” Tripler nods to his sister without any hesitation.
“Call on me when you do,” I smile at the two of them, “I’ll show you around.”
Tripler’s grin is wide as he tips his drink in my direction. I grin and do the same, glancing down to check on Stormfall as he remains staring out to the court in front of him. I reach out a hand and stroke the back of his head, smiling when his body leans into the touch.
“How did you come by the hawk?” Sutton asks.
Storm looks back at me at the question, his yellow eyes flashing another strong gold that makes me freeze in my seat. Hirovale holds my gaze for a small moment before the yellow returns, the Bird of Ash turning away from my caress as he starts walking towards the Prince.
What in the Ancients?
“Stormfall found Lady Alexis,” Keane replies, hand reaching out to Storm as he looks at the Bird of Ash with affection. I scowl, not sure I’m liking this new duo,trio, and find myself wishing for the sleepy moments in the private room of Pyre when Storm nipped at the Prince from under my hair.
“In Pyre?” Sutton looks over at him with brows raised, “we heard your travels took you beyond our forests.”
“In Pyre,” Keane nods in confirmation as I take a hefty drink.
What are Hirovale and Storm playing at?
“He’s beautiful,” Sutton says in awe.
The Bird of Ash turns his head and gives her a small caw.
“Wait,” the Discerni woman stutters, “can he… can he understand me?”
“At times,” I drop my drink on the table and look back at Stormfall with narrowed eyes, “but then there are other times when you have to remind him that he knows absolutely nothing at all.”
