When dinner was nearly ready Redwall had returned, with a guest.

One who wanted to have a conversation with Harlan before they ate.

So he was led to the tearoom and found Blackstone waiting for him.

Everyone else had been asked, or rather, politely ordered, to leave.

"Harlan, have you been avoiding me?"

"It has been hard to visit, after the court case I ended up making a pact with the god of dark mana and then I've been spending a lot of time assisting another group of students with missions sent to the academy. Now, if you really wanted to speak, you have my contact."

"Oh no, I don't think this conversation can happen anything but face to face. Did you kill my mayor?"

"It was suicide, and was ruled as such."

"You may not have known him, but I did, my father put him in place. That man feared death and loved gold. He was good at making one and avoiding the other, the news that he had been part of some crimes was not shocking. I want to know, did you mention revolutionaries because it was convenient for you at the time, or because you held any real suspicions?"

"Guns are making their rounds in the frontiers, for him to have one so far south was odd, but it was just something I mentioned offhandedly. I hope it hasn't caused you any distress."

"Oh it has, because the crown hates the idea of a count being disloyal. The Seekers are trying to prove guilt, not innocence."

Harlan did feel a little bad for her, he just assumed that she was a big fish, but when a shark starts prowling the waters…

"Just as a hypothetical, what would the charges be if I did admit I killed him."

"Nothing, claim self defense and give a good reason for why you didn't say it until now and the case can be dropped by me since you killed a man under me would've gotten a death sentence anyway and you did so while under my authority. Which does being me to another question, why hide it? You don't shy away from violence."

Harlan leaned back and sipped his tea.

"What are the chances she is telling the truth?"

"She is in deep waters and you can pull her out, even in the worst case all you can lose is gold. A noble covering up a just killing wouldn't be new."

"Should I pull her up?"

"It isn't my choice, but, if I had to choose, then yes. Once wronged, once forgiven. She rushed that case for you and I believe she feels some regret over what she did on your first meeting."

He set his cup down on the table.

"I assume you heard what I did the day prior to your mayor's death?"

"You killed bandits, what of it?"

"I tried to kill a disarmed man, Ava wasn't happy with me. I didn't want her to hear that I killed more people who I could've captured."

Blackstone sighed and pulled a flask from her handbag.

She took a swig and asked Harlan to do the same, though he refused and she drank his share.

"What did he say then, to make you decide he couldn’t live any longer?"

"He said If I arrested him he would be out before the moon was up and that he would send people after Ava. I couldn't take that chance, he was clearly a man of wealth and influence."

"That he was. I understand your reasoning at least. You were acting under my authority, you killed a man under my authority. I'll try to keep what happened quiet, but your secrets seem to get out."

"I'm sorry for the trouble I've caused you. Had I known what would happen I wouldn't have said anything about his gun.”

“Now then, we have that settled. But, there is still something else. How much would it cost to make a set of that armor, the one you and your family have and nobody else. I had contacted the crown to see if I could avoid taking up more of your time, but after a long delay I was told that it was part of a contract between you and the king himself, nobody was supposed to know how it was made other than you.”

“For you, as part of my apology, I would make one for cost plus 10%. The armor itself would need to be forged by a blacksmith, either your own personal one or a man named Brig in Luth would be good. Then I would just need 2 mana gems at least 3 inches in diameter. I spent 1000 on this one, 1200 on another set, and considering the rush to make another for my sister before we return to the academy, I might end up spending 1500 or more on her set.”

“What do you think it would cost if you were to sell one without a discount?”

“I’d never sell for less than 2500 gold coins, that would cover labor, materials, and then the premium that I would charge just for the fact that I can.”

“Onyx’s birthday is near, just a few days before the party I throw before the students leave for the academy. I would like 3 of them, one for myself, one for him, and one for Sable. How does this sound, 5000 gold, I will provide the materials for my sets, and the gems for yours at the price I paid for them originally?”

“What do you think? Good idea?”

“I kinda like her, so why not? It is going to take you, what, 3 or 4 hours per armor?”

“Depends on what she wants them to do, I also need to update my book of spells so she can look at what I can actually do. I don’t want people looking too closely at the gem.”

“That is fine. But, you would be limited to only what I can do. I have a book of spells at my home that you can look over, but I do not want others to try and soulsmith the gems after I am finished. These are my works, and I do not want others to find out ways to find out how they might harm my family by understanding them.”

“Very well. Shall we head there after dinner? Or perhaps you would rather schedule another day?”

“After dinner would be fine.”

They walked the halls to the dining room, making small talk along the way.

Harlan didn’t want any details of their conversation continuing past what had already been said.

When they reached the dining room Redwall was not sitting in his chair at the head of the table, but rather to the right of it.

A bottle of whiskey was in a bucket of ice in the hands of a servant on standby. He would’ve been the most nervous person in the room had it not been for Redwall being right next to them.

Blackstone sat at the head of the table as if it was her own home, leaving Harlan confused by the situation, she was the guest, and not the head of the house.

“Harlan, why not take the seat to my left.”

It was not a question, despite her asking.

“Of course.”

“Redwall, how kind of you to give me your seat, and a bottle of drink already in ice, well done.”

“Of course, I always try to keep one for you at the ready.”

Everyone felt a little awkward with her there, mostly because Redwall’s mood was infectious.

Harlan was the only one who did not get intimidated.

But what he did find worrying, was even mixing it half with water, she drank nearly half of the bottle of whiskey.

Even still, she barely slurred her words and kept drinking throughout the meal.

“Redwall, I’m done. Harlan… he’s making something for me. Let’s… go…”

She got up and Harlan tried to be a shoulder to lean on, yet his sixth sense told him not to do that.

“Tread very carefully, a little grief and alcohol makes people do… less than ideal things. Ask if you can lower her buzz. But be polite.”

”Countess Blackstone, would you like me to clear some of the alcohol from your system?”

She just glared at him.

Luckily Sepul had returned the carriage, and not a single box or bag was out of place.

Blackstone stepped inside the carriage without tripping and leaned up against the wall.

“Next to me, sit.”

Harlan sat next to her and she found him more comfortable than the wall.

What made it worse was that Adina was sitting across from them.

“Do you have drink in here?”

“No.”

She yelled to stop, which Harlan did. Then she opened the door to find a servant had the bottle in hand along with a bucket.

“Get it.”

Harlan telekinetically grabbed the bottle and thanked the man who fearfully, but respectfully, jogged away from them.

It would take 3 hours for them to reach Harlan’s home, and then another 6 to reach Blackstone’s home.

Harlan hoped that she wasn’t planning on staying the night, but the more she drank the more clear it was that she was in no state to return on her own, maybe she just assumed he understood that from the start?

After an hour and a half of asking all manner of questions about Harlan she started staring holes through Adina.

“Hey, Reinoan…”

“Yes, Countess Blackstone?”

“Harlan… What is she?”

“I don’t understand.”

“Mistress? Lover? Something more?”

“We’re just friends, but, we are going to be moving forward when we feel it is right.”

“What a fu- what a waste. Girl… he’s good, right?”

“Harlan is a good person.”

“Keep him close. Good men always die too young, Harlan is an idiot, stupid stupid stupid. Hey, stupid boy, marry Sable instead… She needs a good man, she is a brat, but she’ll get good, don’t worry. Make my little girl happy.”

“I am not looking for marriage right now.”

“Idiot, don’t wait, babies are easier to take care of in your prime.”

She began to cry.

“When you die young, make sure they’re old enough to be good for your wife. Don’t be a bad dead man.

I miss him, stupid idiot, always saving fucking morons, stupid.”

She chugged the last of the bottle and passed out, her arm over Harlan’s shoulder and her head on his.

Once Harlan was absolutely sure that she wasn’t going to suddenly spring awake he called Onyx.

5 minutes passed before he answered.

“Harlan?”

“Yes, I’m with your mother.”

“Ah, did she forget her amulet?”

“I don’t know, she is sleeping right now.”

Horror came over his face, though Harlan had no way to know that.

“I’ll see if I can get a gate, where are you right now?”

“I’m on the way to my home, probably an hour out, a little over perhaps.”

“Has she been… becoming of a noble?”

“She has done nothing that offended me.”

The wording worried Onyx.

“Let me contact the local gate mage, I just hope he isn’t away doing something else.”

He hung up the call and did not return for 40 minutes.

“I can’t get a gate, but I’ll be there as quickly as I can.”

“Is there a problem with me just putting her in a guest room and letting her sleep it off?”

“How much did she drink?”

“A bottle that Redwall gave her.”

“How much of the bottle?”

“The whole thing?”

There was a pause.

“Can you meet me half way back here?”

“She came here to have a meeting with me about something, but yes, I could bring her back as long as she doesn’t wake up.”

Another pause, Onyx was not confident that this wasn’t one of his mother’s plans.

“She would be upset if she had to travel back. Do you keep anything drinks in your home?”

“Just wine, I’ve always heard whiskey is more of a drinking man's liquor and less of a courtesy drink.”

“Mix it half with water, place the bottle near her bed, she will find it when she wakes up. I will be there in the morning. I am sorry to make you do this, she didn’t tell me she was leaving for the night. And please, don’t hold anything she says against her.”

“Is she going to be alright? She hasn’t… expelled any of what she has already drank yet, surely her liver is not happy with her.”

“She will be fine, I’m unsure if she has spent a day without drinking in 10 years. Don’t tell her I said that. Our doctor has kept her liver just fine. Though I do find it very odd that she drank so much, she… I shouldn’t say anymore. Thank you for taking care of her, I will be there at dawn.”

”Do you think she is going to be alright by then?”

“Once she has the presence of mind to do so, she will sober up by herself. Just keep her calm until then.”

Harlan used soulspeak with Adina, he was a little worried about Dawn showing up, but she could hide her mind in some way that he didn’t understand and she didn’t want to explain.

“How are you?”

“I’ve never seen somebody drunk like this. In stories they are a bit more jovial.”

“Some people are angry drunks, some aren’t.”

“I wonder, which one you are?”

“People have inhibitions for a reason. I don’t want to, nor should I ever be drinking.”

“Alright. Did anything happen that you didn’t tell me about back in Borden?”

“We barely got the chance to talk about anything that happened there. So yes.”

She gave him the same ‘I know you know what I meant’ look that Redmond gave Amber.

“I almost died, and then I… consumed a person.”

Funny, she felt worry, not fear.

Despite how it sounded, like he had committed one of the worst taboos for a human, she was worried about him.

“Are you ok? I mean, you don’t need to tell me what happened. I’m sure you had no choice.”

“I got shot, first one took a part of my neck, I barely lived. I got shot again, most of my stomach was hanging out of my body, not sure how many organs were shutting down. So I tricked the only survivor inside of a ritual I set up already, and I turned his flesh into mine. I didn’t eat him, I did something else, absorbed him into me.”

She let out a relieved sigh.

“You should’ve been more disgusted.”

“You could do a lot of very bad things for very good reasons, and I would be ok with them. If it saved your life, I wouldn’t mind if you actually did eat him.”

“It should bother you. You are probably the closest person outside of my family to me, and I want you to want me to be better, not to accept me as I am. Look, we’ve had this conversation already, there isn’t much else that we can say on this topic.”

“I disagree, but I know you are stubborn and I’m not as convincing as Yara when arguing.”

“You shouldn’t compare yourself to her, comparison is the enemy of improvement.”

“Easy to say when you’re the better person.”

“Don’t be like that.”

“I’m just a little upset over everything still, don’t worry about it. Do you think she was right?”

“About which part?”

“Having kids in your prime, I know we’ve got 3 years, but after the academy, well…?”

“I… I think I can try, I still feel awkward about everything, but, I can’t think of a single person other than you that I would want to be together with.”

“Not even Sable? How come I’ve never heard of her until now?”

“She was my first dance partner at the gala. Blackstone wants to stick me with her because I remind her of her husband who passed away. We already talked about it, and she doesn’t even know me.

I wanted to avoid a prearranged marriage in part because of something like that happening. I do not want anyone making that choice for me.”

Harlan had to take a deep breath to calm himself.

“We’re almost back, I’ve got to figure out how to move her without waking her up. Telekinesis is probably my best bet.”

He felt an odd tickle on the back of his neck and cut off the connection.

Adina thought he had done it to avoid letting any of his darker thoughts through, which was almost right.

“She’ll be out like a candle in the rain for a while, just pick her up and put her in your bed. Trust me, Eliza did this to plenty of people.”

“My bed?”

“She took the baron’s chair, you think she is going to be ok with a guest room? You aren’t going to use it anyway.”

“I guess that does make sense.”

As soon as the carriage barely lurched forward Blackstone was awake.

“Show me my room.”

Harlan was somewhat baffled, they had hit bumps that caused far more movement, yet the second they stopped it was like she had been awake the entire time.

He led her inside and up the stairs.

Sara was in the kitchen making sure that everything in the cupboards were fresh for when Harlan came back, she didn’t expect to see him so soon.

“Is there anything you need?”

“Bring me a bottle of wine, fill it half with water.”

Blackstone stopped like a ton of bricks.

“Don’t give me any of that watered down stuff. Please.”

She clung tightly to Harlan, despite her earlier anger at even being lent a hand.

As she came down, she was entering a sad state of drunkenness.

“Just bring the bottle.”

“Crackers, or bread.”

“Crackers and bread as well. Do you want butter or jams?”

“No.”

Harlan was having a hard time opening the door to his bedroom since she kept grabbing at his hands and trying to apologize for making him do this for her, forcing him to resort to telekinesis.

Once she was inside she asked for the bathroom and then told him to please leave.

He stayed around outside the door just to make sure Sara would be alright, and then once she got her bread and wine she went to sleep.