#rivervale_lodge

"Yes" she smiles "I am getting ahead of thing aren't I?"

"AND figure out what I want to be. Firemen don't have to go to college."

"And figure out what and who you want to be." she nods

"Yeah... I mean, I think some stuff would be harder, being a troll?"

"Being Kithain period , a changeling, can be hard in the mortal world of work at times. In that regard, as a kinian, I do have an edge" She says

"Gotcha."

"That's why the DeBukes farm? All fae?"

"It's part of the reason" She says with a nod "All Kith or Kinian"

"Yeah. It's interesting, but I don't know if I'd want to live there for always. I'd miss having school friends."

"Welcome to the downside of being a DeBuke. We don't all stay on the farm... there are some living in cities... a few in other holds, though rarely noble ones."

"Well, this is a noble hold and you're here."

"I should have said rarely sidhe noble holds. Some bad blood there for us."

"Oh."

"They wouldn't much like me being a knight, huh?"

"They wouldn't hate you for it" Sally Mae says "Sir Frank helped you a lot there ... oh they had such trouble making what to do of him and the Chief.... mostly they'd ignore your title as if it were something you should be embarrassed about so they won't mention it. It's how they cope."

"I'm not embarrassed."

"I'm not exactly proud, either. I want to do something with it, you know? Face dragons."

"Oh , you shouldn't be embarrassed," She says "As for Dragons... trust me, you don't want to face one. One DeBuke did ,and we lost her to it. POWERFUL creature."

"Oh?"

"Skallestyke, a great and angry drake.. boasts to be descended from Fafnir of legend though he's perhaps a liar. Least of his crimes, lying. SKallestryke is not some grand majestic beast with a code of honor and pride... he's a viscous scourge upon the Dreaming, or so I was told. Skallstyke has slain a hundred knights, so naturally, one of our own thought she could succeed where noble knights had failed. "

"Right..."

"And if he's a monster, he needed someone to stop him."

"Aye, she wounded him, but..." A sigh "Died. We hope she returns to us one day. We could us her like even if she was rash. YOU need to stay away from Skallestryke, I'll not have your father or mother furious with me for inspiring you to look to your death"

A frown. "Maybe the problem was trying alone?"

"I don't know, but I'm sorry I said anything because you're getting a look in your eye. Storms" Mmmph

"Um, Chief is the Storm."

"Aye, she is, and a fine one, but some troll lodges there's more than one Storm... or more accurately, there's A storm in charge of storm matters, but there are many in the storm camp. Who answer to him or her. Hearth Agnes has a lot of folks under her, for example. Technically, they could be said to be 'of the Hearth'"

"Ohhh. Okay, that makes sense. But I probably do more for Kerri than for Chief."

"Well, the patrols would count as Storm work... and so might all the practice with your weapons. Storm is often in reserve. But yes, I suppose you could make a claim to being of the Hearth Camp if you were in that kind of lodge. But here, maybe it works best that you can move from one to the other. "

She nods. "Not so much Mountain. I have some magic, but not, like, my whole thing."

"Mountain is more than magic, lore and the like heavy. " SHe says glad the subject has shifted away form SHallestyke "Shamanism and more. Me? I'm Hearth.. not THE Hearth, but if I had a camp here that would be it.. . of course, some troll lodges I wouldn't be allowed to be of a camp as I'm not a true troll"

"That's dumb. You do as much as Kerri does."

"And you make the GOOD coffee."

"Oh no, not as much as Kerri, she's got the whole mother and favorite Aunt thing and that's a WHOLLLLE Nother thing, but I get what you mean, and I appreciate the vote of confidence. " A smile "Speaking of coffee, I need to make some tea"

"Tea? Who drinks tea?"

"The visiting countess, or so I'm told."

"Oh. Her."

"That bad?" Sally Mae bites her bottom lip

"She... I... I have a bad feeling about her, I guess."

"She was okay enough the one time..."

"Well, let's hope she's got another good time in her. Me? I may lay low. "

"well, I won't draw attention to you."

"Thanks"

Indeed, Sally Mae IS visibly tense about that. To her, sidhe nobles are very very dangerous and not to be trusted.

"You deal with sidhe much? Outside of Nadeen?"

"Depends... more like every year or two some sidhe lord would find the farmhold, and try to take it in a duel or some fool thing. "

Which may remind her of a certain horse ranch hold

A grunt.

"Yeah. Jerks."

"I'm learning there are good ones. Brogan is kind of endearing. I mean, he's still proud, but he takes pride in trying to host and cook and such and ..well, can't sy I don't do the same can I?"