#brightwindsbarony

Hamlin, the Troubadour rat pooka walks through "Ugh, snails.. she's got my delivering snails" He has a mail cache and is wandering through the hold

He finds Nessa outside, not unusual, reclining in a courtyard as she admires some stones that Grete is showing off. "I can't say for certain if those stones really do have healing powers, but enough Mortals believe they do, so they might?"

Grete shrugs, "Even if they don't, they're still nice."

"Who wants a magazine about Rock, but without roll? Must be a mistake" Hamlin waves the latest geology magazine around "I'll donate it to waiting room"

Grete promptly abandons Nessa. "That's for me!"

Not offended, the centauress laughs softly. "You'd better get to reading then."

Hamlin hands it over "Well if you promise to give it a good home" a smile and it's now in Grete's hands

"yes! It's Amethyst August... I was worried if I didn't get to it before Irene I'd never get to read it." She darts off with her prize.

Hamlin chuckles "She's not wrong. The kid borrowed some lyrics from me once. Haven't been able to get them back sense" he turns to Nessa, his rat tail flicking "Oh, and what's this?" He pulls out TWO letters

"Love letters no doubt, for the prettiest mare this side of the Miss and Ippi" he hands them to Nessa

"Love letters?!" She laughs, even as her cheeks pink. "Oh, you." As she accepts the letters, curiously.

Looking at the return addresses...

One is from Marfa! That troll girl she suspects!

the other bears a name she knows from Middle School, one of her best friends who moved out!

Who WRITES anymore?

BLINK. THAT one is a surprise. She tucks the Marfa letter under her arm, and - remembers to smile to Hamlin. "Thank you for bringing these to me!" She tucks a small flower behind one of his ears.

"Ah shucks" he says "Clio threatened to rip my arm off if I dropped one. Savage woman" A wink "Excuse me, I must be off to tell Billy Bobby that Bobby Bill said Howdy"

"Oh, well, don't let me keep you." A little puzzled, but still amused. She opens the letter from dear old... what was their name again?

Tabitha Greely!

She reads, curious on how dear Tabitha is doing.

Was she the one with the braces, or the girl who insisted on (and got, sadly) the unfortunate perm, or the one with the freckles?

Ah, poor Tabitha, that Perm was the cause of many hats for a long time

Reading on!

Hey Girl! You have like zero social media out there and I couldn't find your number! I wanted to tell you that my fam and I are moving back to Ft Davis! Is that wild or what? I'm gonna miss the big city (Well, big by Ft. Davis standards) but with Remote working being a thing for some companies dad says we can sell our place here and live large for a bit back where we started. Also his job needs him to be in that part of Texas in case of 'regional failure'. I've missed you a lot, and I hope this letter gets to you. We hope to be there around the middle of August, or sooner My new email is... and then Your Friend from way back when, Tabatha Greely

Nessa looks taken aback, and a little embarrassed. How long has it been since I've been in touch with any of my friends from school? Granted, I thought I'd be in Nursing school by now... maybe even a residency...

Did Tabitha include her number? Or does Nessa, as a member of Gen Z, have her number.. or SnapChat, or Facebook message... or whatever those younguns use?

She left her email! But.. no number. Argh

Fiiiiine... Nessa types up an email, picking out the letters on her little phone keyboard. She has a laptop, but it's ancient, and when's the last time she actually tried to boot that thing up? Does the Hold even HAVE Wifi?

"Hey Tabs! Long time no see - great to hear from you. I thought we might not connect again after you moved off to the big city lights. 🙂 Let's definitely meet up when you get back, it would be wonderful to reconnect. You can email me back, or text at xxxx. "

That taken care of, she opens the second letter!

Oh! Phone! That's good. Less chance of possibly being intercepted or read by unexpected eyes than a letter.

She starts to type a text, then changes her mind, and calls Alani. As it rings, she tries to remember the younger lady. Did they meet during the flurry of the assistance mission?

Yes, she was next to Eir Frey. A troll wilder

"Hello?"

"Hello, this is Ne- Vanessa Philips, from Br.." do'oh.. "...Calling from Fort Davis. I received your letter?" Carefully judging if it's safe to speak freely.

"Oh oh, one moment please. I'm in a crowd"

"Of course." She waits patiently.

A moment later background noise dies down "Sorry about that. Is everything okay?"

"Oh, yes. That is, everything is fine here. I wanted to see how everything was going over on your end, at the County Seat." She hesitates, toeing the line between possibly risking offense. "With Granddame Eir Frey on a.. leave of absence... please excuse my bluntness, but were you not already low on healers? Or at least, on those willing to care for the common folk?"

"Well, now that the incident is over we're able to handle it, but I admit if another crush comes like that it will be hard to handle it"

Relieved. "I don't mean to sound like a buttinsky. Really! I just worry, you know? ...Please, if there is any need, let me know. I am often at loose ends here - not to say I'm not happy at Bright Winds, far from it, but... often there is a surplus of healers, and I can certainly make my way to you if I can help out in any time of need."

"That is so kind" Alani says "Are you sure? I don't want you in trouble with our Count. He's covered with a lie so I don't think you're in danger if you visit again but you never know"

She sighs. "Somethings are more important that personal comfort, you know? I'd not sleep at night if I knew I was bunked down safe and cozy while other fae were suffering. " A hesitation, and she asks, "...is it only in healing that the Count withholds assistance from some of his people? Or does it extend further? From the outside, it seems like woeful neglect... but does it go deeper? Are there any in danger, or suffering - as the people of Dry Tears once suffered?"

"Oh no, it's no where near as bad as Dry Tears. That place used to make US grateful in fact. No dross tolls that heavy, no childling neglect on that level. It's true, his excellency is more focused on parties than us"

"But as for other things we're short on? Not so much denied, just.. his court gets priority. "

"That's not ideal, but at least it sounds like things are... well, if not perfect, not suffering. But still... if you need a healer in a pinch, please let me know."

"I will, thank you. Around here the surplus is Chicanery and Legderdemain. Let us know if you need help in either"

A smile that carries through to her tone. "Definitely will do. Thanks for keeping me updated, Alani. I really do appreciate it."

"You're welcome. And , well, don't worry about us. Sometimes the mandatory parties are even fun" She hangs up

She gazes at her phone for a bit, brow furrowed just a bit. Then, goes looking for Hope.

She finds Hope heading towards her car