#rivervale_lodge

"I don't think piskies can help it? Like pooka lying."

"Um. I told Chief we went to Goblin Town."

She sighs. "Yeah...Dad got the whole story out of me. I wanted to give you the heads up. But...really, you were the brains there. I was an idiot. I nearly...." She shakes her head. "You were smart about it."

"That guy... he.. he didn't lie, per se, but he was too careful, and he.. he knew too much, and was too... eager."

"I don't trust eager, especially not adults asking kids to do stuff."

"I guess that's part of it...I didn't feel like a kid. I felt like...like I was ready to go, you know? Go travel somewhere and make my way."

"I didn't... I mean, part of me wants to... but.. but it still felt... it felt bad."

A pause. "We should go on an adventure. I'm sained now, we could go places..."

"We could." She nods. "We should. You really need to find out what it's like to do a quest. A Dreaming quest. It's...I mean, you won't really remember it, but it's...amazing."

A sigh. "But it's also dangerous. It's going to take some convincing to get your folks to say yes."

"I want to! I have all this armor, and Flyswatter, and I'm a knight now... like... I don't just wanna do kid stuff."

Sylvi thinks about this. "You know...you could ask the Chieftain for a quest. She would probably clear it with your folks, first, but if she said you should be allowed to go, that'll help them agree, I bet."

"Ohhhh, you think she would?"

"I am a Gwydion knight. So, like, to prove myself, maybe?"

"And then I'd need companions."

"If there's something that needs doing, and if a knight is petitioning her to go? Hell, yeah, she would. She kind of has to, I think."

"Yeah?" Excited.

"Maybe...maybe my Dad would know of something, a problem that needs fixing, and he could suggest it?"

"Maybe! But... after grounding?"

A blush. "Well...you shouldn't have to wait for me. That's not fair to you, after you pulled my butt out of that mess."

"But I'd want to go with you. You're part of the Squad."

A weak smile. "You still trust me? After I almost got us committed to...something I don't want to think about too much?"

She shrugs. "Well, piskie. And part of me wanted to know what it was, too!"

She raises a hand. "I solemnly swear I will not piskey-out while we're on a Dreaming quest together."

"Sounds good to me. And.. well, being a satyr was fun, but I'd feel better with Flyswatter at hand."

A knock at the door

"I wanted to ask you..." But then they're interrupted by the knock.

"Yeah? Ask what?" She goes to check.

She doesn't answer, waits to see who's there.

It's Siv

"Hey Siv! Feeling better?"

Sylvi cringes inwardly, still sitting at the kitchen table.

"Well..that depends... I understand Sylvi is here? "

A sigh. "I'm here...." she calls, and gets up and exits the kitchen. "Hey, Siv."

"Oh..."

"Hey.." Siv says and comes in "If iti sn't the girl who stole me car..."

Dag frowns, fading back a bit.

Sylvi raises her chin defiantly. "I was a piskey at the time. And I did it for your own good. And I brought it back, undamaged."

She approaches Sylvi, " intruded in MY personal business..." She adds "By your own admission"

"Siv..."

Hesitation, distress, looking between the two - uncertain if she should step in?

"Yeah, I did." Sylvi stands her ground. "You were giving up on Bancroft too quickly, and you were miserable. Turns out he was, too, and if I hadn't gone when I did, he would be half-way to Hibernia by now, forever."

"Well then" Siv rolls up her sleeves, and goes nose to nose with Sylvi, "Seems there's only one thing to do." And she kisses her cousin on the nose. Then grins "Had you going there for a sec didn't I?"

"YES!" Huffy.

A tensing...then a startled blink. "Uh...yeah....?" Not sure if a sucker-punch is about to follow. "You're being for real?"

"Yup. Mind you, do it again, and I might pop you in the nose rather than smooch it. I know you mean well, but my misery aside, I can't have you and everyone patching things for me behind my back.. and the car thing?Oh Sylvi, if you'd been anything but a piskey.." A sigh "But then I took mom and dad's ship once for what I thought was a good cause, and so maybe I've no right to get too riled."

A look at Dagmar, "Sorry, Dagmar. Didn't mean to worry you so much."

"So... so you're not fighting now?"

"Heyyyy...yeah! You did swipe the Kestrel once! Okay, so I don't feel too bad now." She smiles. "So, okay, Siv, you gotta tell us...are you and Bancroft okay?" Urgent concern.

"FightingWIth Sylvi? No, I'm not." She tells Dagmar, "But .." A glance to both "Let's just say it's not all patcheed between me and Bancroft. He.. he came in, tried to set things right. He's.. he's a GOOD man, you know? Mother says she and father had some doozies in their early days. But I still feel hurt. And he's still..well, he's being honest that me being a troll does appeal. And... I don't know where to go from here. I'm thinking of breaking up with him to figure myself out for a time, but I'm not sure if.. if that's me being cowardly or smart. "