#anywhere

And the cat enjoys the strokes, indeed, one might think the cat were trying to lose herself in temporary sensation so she didn't think of a sweet old woman who always knew where just to scracthc under the chin. But well, can't be that. Cats, everyone knows, are too cool to care.

"I am too, Ellie. But....." Jessica pauses. "When you think about our new agreement, you see you have to have an escort with you, right? Just until your combat training is complete."

"Because I could be used as a hostage, or other things."

"Yes."

"That's why we had to leave home. It wasn't safe to stay there."

"We will make it safe for you here, but you have to help us."

"And not go out alone. Or without a grown-up."

"A Thane or Knight." she agrees.

"A thane or knight."

The cat threads between them three times more.

"Pretty Mama." Pets!

"Thank you. So this week we'll meet with the other Freeholders, and then let key personnel know, and then a general announcement and I'll have them start planning for a County tour."

"So - the Pit has an Eiluned, Baroness Mitra... who is regent for Sayda and the pretty feathered snake. Who are the others?"

Then sounds from the kittens, and the mother Cat returns to them.

Jess smiles slightly as Mama disappears back into the drawer.

"Baron (Name? ST?) of Tidemarch controls the coastline. Varich. Not a bad fellow, but he's on -his- side. At least, I have found."

"Varich are unseelie, but practical, usually."

"And Tweak is a nocker who runs Skyhook. I'd promised her a 'Fire of her own, but it turns out the next available one was the Pitt and.... it just felt wrong to hand it to her. It was complicated. When Baron Summerstrike was deposed, his Balefire was open and.... it went to Tweak."

OOC: Tidemarch is his name... Sunkissed waves is the Barony 🙂

"Was Baron Summerstrike a bad guy?"

A pause. "When I met him, he was.... unbalanced. Seriously, he was not well. He couldn't accept Unseelie as 'not-evil' even if they obey the Escheat differently than Seelie do. He became, in my view, abusive to his people and he struck out at me and mine. There was a battle. He lost."

A frown.

"You have to be lord to ALL of your people. Unseelie aren't always allied with the dark..."

Jessica nods. "Very early I offered to support and shelter the Unseelie he drove from his lands. I suppose by the end, he was seeing the increase here, and the lack of Fae there, and......"

"...unseelie scare me, sometimes. But they're still fae, and the escheat protects them."

Jessica nods. "Some who are very close to my heart are Unseelie."

"The Baroness was unseelie, half the year. The Count, always."

"His heir was an awful bully. I hated him."

"I'm sorry to hear that, Ellie. Where I was fostered.... with the exception of Samhain and kind of, on Beltaine, people pretty much stayed in one Court or the other."

"The Baroness said it was better for her magic." A shrug. "Bronn was only a baron, even though he was the heir. I think that's why my Fior caused trouble."

"I haven't had a lot of experience with Sidhe courts. Not up close. But what you say sounds likely."

"Well, not everyone like Beaumayn."

"Or Liam."

"Or Liam, no. But Liam are okay. They protect mortals, and they're friends of the house."

Jessica nods.

"Phoebe likes the nun. I've never seen a sluagh nun before."

"Neither have I. I didn't realize there were any sluagh here. I suppose things have changed......"

"I had lessons with a sluagh back home. She smells like mothballs."

"Right now, I plan for Dame Ash to take care of your lessons; either give them to you, or find someone to, depending."

She nods. "I like Dame Ash. She's very nice. She said she'd look for Sir Gerald."

Jessica nods. "We all will."

"Oh... oh, you should go. There's someone coming to see you."

The little girl tugs on Jessica's hand and then pushes her towards the hall.

"Um. Ok? You stay here with the kitties....." And Jessica steps forward to see who.... or what.... awaits her.

Kitties!

(and scene)

Salma tucks herself down by the box with a book. “You relax, Mamacita, we will watch out for you now.”
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