#anywhere

"Dreams of rulership, and oddly obligation... noblisse oblige I think they call it? They are...everything folks want to be... beautiful, powerful, respected by just existing. ANd yet... in some ways they're even more frustrated than NOckers. Nockers try to craft perfection and always fall short. SIdhe almost ARE perfection... but they're merely so close they can taste it. And people need them to be perfect.... themselves most of all. Theirs is a magic of majesty, glory, and tragedy." A sigh "Gorgeous though. I'd probably be one's king ring if he asked me"

"King ring?"

"pardon, Key ring... I think I started to drool as I envisioned High King David. Slurred my words. He can 'Righ' me 'Ard' anytime"

"The King of..... fruit. Apples?"

"Oh he's High King of ALL Concordia..which is pretty much North America. BUT... you are in the Kingdom of Apples"

"Concordia is divided into Kingdoms... this one is Apples. You're in the Duchy of Gardens if you care to know. "

"And the Chief is a Baroness. So, a Barony."

"Yes, part of the Duchy is the County of Bergan... and then here you are., Barony of Rivervale"

"SOmetimes there are smaller parcels called fiefs.. but meh"

He nods. "And mortals.... I mean, even kin like me, only can be knights."

"Few are even that... but don't let those kithain blow hards get too fussy. WIthout mortal dreamers? they'd choke"

"Tell me about that, about Dreamers. How does that work?"

"Oh wow.. that's the bread and butter of things really... how to explain..."

"By encouraging the passions and dreams, by musing them, changelings not only fuel their own souls, they feed the dreaming itself... or..expand it." A sigh "Not fast enough though"

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"The final winter, the big end.. the winter not of glamour, but of discontent, disbelief, and dis aint 'fun" Nabuni says

"Like... End times?"

"You won't even feel it... in fact it's possible no one will ever feel anything ever again" There's just no sexy way for the chimera to say that

"That's not ok." Seriously.

"So, wait, more Glamour stops The End?"

"Many hope.. mind you, some believe we have all theglamour we need, we just need to be more ruthless in getting it... but you wouldn't like that. Some Fae might see you as a cow to be milked, but that's a lto better than being the bull to be slaughtered"

"I'm not cattle." Firmly, defiantly. "So, wait.... I have stuff I like doing, and stuff I want to do. Does that count?"

"It might. For and against... I'm afraid we've gotten way beyond what one well read... "Sexy librarian look "Chimera can be SURE of."

He blinks. "Woah."

"So.... uh, you live here? I mean, lived here before me?"

"I did" she says

"You going to stay?"

"Why not, if that obnoxious doll can, I sure can"

"Wait, there's another?"

"Well, she's a bit different, but yes"

"Just one? Where?"

"Your sister's Doll? She's more than she seems"

Jaw drop. "There's Chimera in Lilly's room?!?!?!";

He shifts to swing his feet onto the floor, wobbling the chimera.

"Well, not quite a CHIMERA but yes..."

"Hey.." she grips his hair and hangs on his shoulder "She's not going to hurt your sister"

"Yeahbut... ouch. Yeah, but... how do you know?"

"Because she threatens me if I go near your sister trying to protect her and told the sluagh for me to stop making the slurping sound"

"The sluagh??"

She covers her little mouth

then looks up, and points "That sluagh"

and on the window is ....

He snaps his head up to look.

(Seems like a good place to cut to the RV room action) 🙂