#earthrunes

Minerva's room is not hard to find

"Coradel...."

"Yes?" she responds, not pausing in her pace. Minerva's door is just down this hall.

"Minerva was mislead. The whisper said so. She may have Chloe's things but ...."

"You did not care about them till now."

"Unless you were also effected?"

She stops to look at him. "Also effected? August, if this had stopped at Shalimar retrieving information for the Baron, that would be one thing. I wouldn't have minded that at all. I can trust Shalimar! But this girl...I have trusted her, and she has violated that trust. And yes, it does bother me now more than it did in the past because now I know what Chloe did! Imagine if my professors learned, August!" she finishes in a hissed whisper.

"Coradel." Serious "You did not care about Chloe's ... her things. Why not? "

She stares at him. "Because...they were hers. A life I didn't know or want, mostly. Why should I want them? I don't want them now except for damage control."

"Yes." He nods.

The talking must draw attention because the door opens

He stops, moves in front of Coradel, and looks at the open door.

"Then I don't understand why you're asking...." Coradel's voice is rising, but then he moves and she turns, and glares at the door.

Minerva peeks out then meets the glare , and she respodns by looking confused "is...everything all right your lordships?"

"Lady, please come and join us."

August steps forward to welcome Minerva.

"No, it is not all right." Coradel's demeanor is quite different from August's.

"We have some questions." he agrees.

"I'm sure Minerva won't mind if we have this conversation in her room," Coradel says as she steps past August and towards the door.

"Of ...course" She says and invites tthem in "I've just been following the Baroness' instructions"

August doesn't stop Coradel, but follows her.

That brings Coradel up short. "What instructions?"

"Lady, I'm not sure you have been, and I'm not sure it's your fault......"

"When did I give you instructions?"

Stopping just inside the room.

August settles.

The room is spacious, and there on the desk is the journal of Chloe

Her eyes settle on it, and she crosses directly to it, picking it up.

"Well, you told me to do research, that there were secrets. That any Eiluned should not blow these chances before her saining, if Eiluned I am, to find them remember? " The girl looks excited "I began o realize, your predessor was an Eilunned. Surely he left clues and secrets galore"

"Lady.... Coradel came to you and told you these things?"

Coradel turns and stares at Minerva, mouth open.

"I was hoping to be sained early. I told her..."

"Some secrets are only revealed by naming"
"And she replied, wisely..."
"Of course. Are those the only secrets there are, though?"

Then she groans slightly and puts her free hand over her eyes. "Yes...yes, I did..." An admission.

August is nonplussed.

Looking up again, she says, "Minerva, I didn't mean for you to spy into my secrets." A tone of 'well of course she did' in her voice.

She looks to August. "I was giving her motivation," she explains.

"Well, I wasn't targeting your secrets in particular, baroness. Just any, do you know how hard it is to find a secret neither the librarian nor Miss Zara know already? To learn them on my own? And yes, I was motivated."

Coradel shakes her head and flips through the pages of Chloe's journal.

"I really have to admit, your mortal host was a beast, I've rarely read such self centered and grammatically sloppy clap trap in my life. I understand some sidhe feel guilty about the bodies they take. YOU? You were doing the world a service. Forgive me Baron, I know you'e a Liam but I stand by what I just said. She was a danger to OTHER Humans"

"Well, at least we're agreed...." Coradel mutters.

Then she gives Minerva a direct look. "What do you intend to do with this information?"

"Well my plan was to gather this and the other things i'd managed to learn and impress you"

"Considering you yourself got your saining in half the usual time I thought if I could impress you, you'd consider a time cut for me"

"Other things...?"

"But first I had to take up that challenge" She paces "Had to prove it... this is my Fior Righ after all isn' it? A test of my abilities..."

She blinks. "I...hadn't intended it to be that, MInerva."

"Another force at work?"

"oh damn it." A sigh "Oh well, it was still satisfying I suppose. And yes, other things. I mean finding a mortal brat's journal is hardly enough"

She shakes her head to August's question. "I can completely understand how she misinterpreted this as a fior righ."