“And if it escalates,” he went on, voice low, “they’ll be pushed again. But east toward Shadowick.”
The word settled heavily between us.
“Who will welcome them,” I said softly, “with open arms and bad intentions.”
Keegan nodded. “Exactly.”
I studied his face, the concern there unguarded and sincere.
“But what’s the alternative?” I asked. “We wait? We let them keep moving, keep being displaced, until they’re desperate enough to take whatever deal they’re offered? I know this is full of risk, but I want to welcome them to Stonewick before Shadowick ever gets their teeth into them, and if the shifters are looking for the same…”
He didn’t answer right away and paced in front of me.
“You’re asking to step into the middle of something volatile.”
“I already am,” I said. “Whether I want to be or not. We all are, and now that my daughter’s magic has started to awaken, I can’t afford to let a darkness invade Stonewick or any other place it chooses because she’ll be the one left to clean it up, long after I’m gone.”
“You know, most people would hear orcs marching toward an ancient threshold and think time to hide.”
“I’m not most people, and when I did try hiding, it didn’t work,” I said dryly.
That earned me one of Keegan’s precious smiles that was small but real.
“So,” he said slowly, “you want to welcome them to Stonewick first.”
I laughed, the tension in my shoulders loosening just a bit. “Maybe not invite them to dinner right away.”
“Smart,” he agreed.
“But yes,” I said. “Something like that, or at least let them know Stonewick sees them. We hear their worries, and we share them. They need to know that we understand they’re not marching because they want to.”
Keegan studied me for a long moment, his expression thoughtful now rather than purely protective. “You realize what that makes you.”
I shrugged. “Optimistic?”
“Political,” he said. “Whether you like it or not.”
I grimaced. “I was hoping to avoid that.”
“Too late,” he said gently. “You’re already a point of contact between factions and worlds.”
The maple leaves rustled overhead, a soft whisper that sounded suspiciously like agreement.
I crossed my arms, grounding myself in the feel of my sleeves beneath my fingers.
“If the Priestess is pushing them out of their homelands,” I said, “then she’s counting on them not being heard anywhere else.”
“And you want to ruin that plan,” Keegan said.
“Yes.”
“I know you’re choosing the right path,” he said quietly. “I just don’t like the idea of you being in the middle of it.”
“You’re always in the middle of it too.”
He smiled wryly. “Occupational hazard of falling for Stonewick’s Academy.”
“I won’t go without preparation, or without listening to every warning you want to give me.”
