Darr made a motion of shooting an arrow from a bow.
“Yes, Mekos is good with that weapon. I heard he used it against Olina’s money-stealing officers. But Mekos is under the rule of his father, his grandfather, and especially Haver, his great-grandfather. It’s a wonder the boy can breathe.”
Darr pointed toward Tam and Bree.
“That girl has no confidence. She’s intimidated by everyone, but Cappie told me of her abilities. She knows so much and that strength of hers would be useful.” Bree was laughing and Tam was acting hurt that she’d yet again defeated him in lifting.
“Tam. Zeon’s son has a wife and child. But he’s falling in love with Bree.” Qip gave a sigh so strong that it swayed the tree leaves. “Vian wanted Aradella and Mekos to marry then be enthroned on Pithan. But are those two ready to take overruling an island? There’s so much anger in that girl that if she were queen and had power, what would she do with it? I could believe that her anger would make her become like Olina.”
He took a breath. “And Bree needs a backbone. She certainly needs to stop being afraid of Aradella!” He waved his hand, unable to voice all that he was feeling. “Why were these four put together? It doesn’t take magical foresight to see that as they are now, they can accomplish absolutely nothing. Aradella will give Bree some hate-filled look and she’ll run away. Yet this ‘team’ is supposed to help destroy Empyrea.” He gave a snort of laughter. “They don’t even know what the place is like. They seem to believe it’s full of warriors. If they only knew the truth!”
He looked to Darr to answer. Wisdom was something he hadn’t specifically added when he’d created him, so when it appeared it had been a wondrous surprise. Cappie, annoyed at how long it took to get an answer from Darr, had asked, “Don’t you regret not giving him a mouth?” Qip had replied honestly, “Never. Not even for one second.”
Darr reached up and broke a leaf off an overhanging branch, then held it to the place where his nose should have been. This was odd since Qip had put the olfactory nerves in his ears. Obviously, Darr was mimicking human senses.
“They smell the flowers? Probably.”
The light in Darr’s eyes got brighter. He repeated his action of smelling the leaf, then he clasped his hands together, fingers entwined tightly. Qip knew he was trying to send a message, but he didn’t know what it was. Darr pointed to the sides of the garden, to the far-apart couples, then he again clasped his hands.
“To get them together? Great idea. How do I do that? Act as their mother and tell them they should get along with each other? Be nice? Play pretty?” He grit his teeth. “Right now I’m afraid Aradella will snap at Bree for the thousandth time, then Bree will pick up a horse and throw it at her. Or maybe she’ll just break the girl in half.”
Darr’s eyelights began blinking. This meant “listen and think.” Again, he broke a branch and sniffed it.
It took all Qip’s concentration before he finally understood. “The Rose of Vaheal,” he said softly. “Oh! but I’ve wanted that for a long time! I know where it is but the bastards won’t give it to me.”
Darr raised his shoulders.
“Of course I’ve asked them, but they laugh at me. If these four got it, they’d have to... I don’t know what they’d have to do, but—” When Darr put his hands back together, Qip smiled. “Yes. Together. Whatever they do, they’d have to do ittogether.”
Darr put his hand on his chest as though clutching something.
This time, Qip understood. “The medallion? Are you crazy? They could be killed! Sheean would—”
Darr pointed to the flower bed.
Qip’s eyesight wasn’t good enough to see the tiny Never, but he understood what was meant. “Like your new friend. Not what he seems. Yes, that’s what Sheean is like. Something other than what he seems.”
Darr nodded in agreement, his eyelights showing he was pleased that Qip understood.
But Qip shook his head no. “That’s too much. They’re too young for something like that. And how am I to know it’ll work?” Qip closed his eyes for a moment. “Why did Vian dump this onme? Of course she injected me into Zeon’s mind, then he obediently sent them here. Formeto solve it all. What did I do to become thought of as a wise old man?”
When Darr shrugged his shoulders to show he didn’t understand either, Qip laughed.
“Let me think about all this. Let’s go back down. I’ll talk to some people and you need to cook dinner. I forgot how much young people eat.”
The light in Darr’s eyes changed to a soft blue. It meant he was pleased.
“Thank you,” Qip said, then he went down the stairs.
It was nearly sundown when the two couples gathered at the dining table. They hadn’t been together since they were in Qip’s library, and they’d managed to explore the garden without bypassing each other. They were like explorers among wild beasts, talking loud enough that they wouldn’t surprise one another.
The big table was covered with many dishes of food, some of it that they’d never seen before. There were two place settings on each side, and one at the end.
What drew their attention was the other end. A miniature dining area had been set up. It looked like items had been taken from the many artifacts in the house and put together. There was an elegant inlaid table with platters of fruit that had been cut into tiny portions. Pretty porcelain bowls were filled with food from the big table, all of it cut very small. A brown ceramic jug held beer and there was a pewter mug next to an exquisite porcelain service. A carved chair held a tapestry-covered pillow.
“It’s beautiful,” Bree said.
They looked at Qip. “I have a friend who brings me items from Earth. These are called dollhouse miniatures.” He looked embarrassed. “I am a bit of a collector.”
