"Is not big enough for any baby either, darlin'," Khash laughed. "I'm not sure who itissupposed to be big enough for. These architects must have all been single men with no aspirations for a family. It's a good little starter house and you'll have it as rental income once we buy or build something bigger."
"So, you would stay in Cambric Creek?" Ainsley looked between Khash and Lurielle, his eyebrows still raised. "Or will you be looking, uh, somewhere else?"
"No, I don't want to move," Lurielle answered for both of them. "I moved here for my job, and my job hasn't changed. AndI really do love it here. I love the inclusivity. I love that I can be an elf here and not be ostracized for not living in the Elvish community and being a member of the club. The community is great, the schools are excellent, there’s no shortage of entertainment. The house is big enough for the two of us.” Ris joined her in laughing at Khash’s dubious look at her words. “It is! And we have plenty of time to either find something bigger or build before we have to worry about a tiny roommate, once we take the next step."
Once we’re married. Lurielle’s unspoken words hung in the air above the table between them, nearly shimmering in their pointedness. All that was missing was a blue Elvish dress and an Orcish bridal cuff.This is it, that’s your cue.Ris cleared her throat, but sudden movement in her periphery stopped her.
Ainsley had sat back in his chair, arms crossed, considering the couple on the other side of the table appraisingly.
Ris had grown up in an Elvish community, attended an Elvish school. She'd not been in the thick of club culture, not the way Lurielle and Silva had been, the way Silva still was, but she was no stranger to the superiority complex of her kind. She saw it mirrored in orcs. She had considered, not for the first time, that it surely had something to do with the cross-species attraction between them. Orcs and elves were the exact same flavor of exclusionary, possessing the same streak of superiority. There weren’t many other species who lived in their own, separate communities, their own schools and clubs and businesses. Orcs saidclaninstead ofenclave, but the principle was the same.
That they each thought themselves above it was comical.
She was no stranger to Elvish and Orcish superiority complexes, nor was she unfamiliar with a self-satisfied attitude of comeuppance, and she didn't need to stare directly into Ainsley's eyes to know that was what he was currently exuding as his head cocked, considering.
"We're going to a museum exhibit tomorrow in Starling Heights that I'm really looking forward to,” she exclaimed with a manic note of false cheerfulness, abandoning Lurielle’s engagement conversation in an effort to cut off the comment she could practically see forming in his head, the shape of it, the smugness of it.
Across the table, her friend’s blonde eyebrows drew together, seeing the easy opening she’d given Ris, closing with the rapid subject change.
She’d never before been so upset not to possess the power of telepathy. Ainsley was still sitting back, arms folded over his chest.Don’t do it.Save it for later, I’m begging you.
"The evolution of selkie culture from the Ice Age” Ris went on, wondering if she sounded as much like a cartoon character to the others as she did in her head. “It sounds so interesting!"
"Oh, we went to the Minotaur exhibit here in town like that," Lurielle said, her smile a bit thin, oblivious to Ris’s panic. "My neighbor wassoinsistent; he finally wore us down. But I’m glad he did!”
Instantly, Khash rolled his eyes. “Oh ho, he did indeed. Comin’ round with that hangdog expression, acting like I was personally putting my hand in the Minoan Society’s pocket by not buyin’ tickets. Made that sweet little human of his go through it over and over. Finally, I said ‘Bluebell, enough’s enough. Bully boy isn’t gonna give us a moment of peace until we go to this museum.’ I’ll admit — it was very interesting.”
Lurielle was laughing before he’d finished. Ris sighed in relief at her friend’s recovery.I’m sorry. I didn’t think everyone was going to be in a bad mood tonight!
“Oh, you aresoridiculous! He only mentioned it twice! And the second time was to invite us to go with him and Violet! I swear, between the two of you, I don’t know who’s worse!” Sherolled her eyes as Khash huffed. “Anyway, it’s very cool. Have you been to that one?”
"We have," Ainsley answered, "twice, actually. The first trip through, there was a school group right on our heels and I felt like we had to rush past the statuary,andwe missed the movie. I didn't care that it was available on the website, I'm like a little kid. I want to sit on a miniature bench and then get dumped out into the gift shop."
Ris laughed gaily, hoping she sounded natural as she latched onto one of Ainsley’s hands, forcing it down into a less petulant pose and squeezing hard.That’s it, good job. Talk about museum shit. You love that and it’s not going to offend anyone.
"I wonder what it would take to get an Orcish exhibition like that,” Khash mused. “We don’t want those minotaurs gettin’ too big for their britches. There are certainly enough of us around the area to fund it."
"Can you imagine?” Lurielle gave an adorable, ladylike snort. “Rourke would never stop insisting that you copied him!"
Good, good. Museum shit. Perfect.
"I wonder what it would even be about, though," Ainsley mused. "There's no one real defining creation event in our history, right? Not like the Minoans. Evolution of the culture, maybe? The history of clan living and our gradual, collective leaning away from it, leading to the modern orc? Thatwouldbe interesting if they do it right.”
Ris held her breath.What the fuck, it's like you're not even listening to the very clear thoughts I’m telepathically sending you! Keep it light, inoffensive. Un-fucking-believable!
Across the table, Khash blinked slowly.
"Well, I don't think that's necessarily the case. I think an argument can be made that major metropolitans have led to a watering down of the culture, but the same can be said for every species.” He shrugged, a magnanimous gesture, but his wordswere too careful for her to relax. “If you live amongst humans, humans make the rules. They're the majority and the rest of us are just window dressin’. But that's true for everyone. I don't think Orcish culture has shifted away from our roots that much at all."
Ris squeezed as hard as she could, but the hand she was death gripping slipped away like a wriggling fish. Ainsley leaned forward in his chair.
"I'm not sure I understand how you can say that? I agree, assimilation leads to a breakdown of community culture if the community isn't given the opportunity for expression. But modern orcs arechoosingto move away from the concept of clan living. Are we better or worse off for it? What does the evolution of our culture look like in the next few generations with more orcs leaving that environment?"
Ris closed her eyes.You should've stayed home. You should have stayed home and gone back to his place. You should have stayed home and cleaned your closet, read a book, taken up jigsaw puzzles. Anything but this.
“Orcs who grow up in clans are able to retain their identity in the larger world, they learn the language, they learn values. You have the benefit of your elders and the community.” They were matched in stubbornness, neither willing to concede their point. “I know you didn't have that benefit, but it's not as if—"
There it is. There it fucking is.
