#rivervale_lodge

"They had better be," Kerri says, irritated, as she rights her chair.

Brekke steps forward and gives Zara a bow. "Please, Miss Zara, sit." She goes to get herself a mug of coffee.

"You're welcome" Gerd says to the chief, then she sighs and gets a wet cloth to wipe up the fake blood

Zara carefully sits, and takes a moment to smooth her skirt.

Sylvi pours the tea for Zara, then steps back to the periphery of the room.

"Thank you, Miss Sylvi." She removes her lace gloves and places them just-so on her lap before taking up the cup.

Sylvi smiles at Zara. "Sure."

Brekke moves to take a seat near Zara and sips her coffee. "It has been...some time."

Of course, wiping things slow gives her an excuse to hang around and not be banished

A dainty sip. A nod. "It is never my wish to impose myself on Rivervale, Chieftain."

"Understood." Brekke nods, sips again, looks at her. After several moments, she says, "You told the Hearth something about discretion. Do I need to send the others away?"

"I would trust your judgement, Chieftain." A pause, and she lifts her eyes from the tea to the troll. "Of course, word of your daughter's convalescence has reached the Hollow. My deepest sympathies."

An eyebrow flicker, and a tension. Brekke glances quickly at the other three, a...warning? But then she nods to Zara. "I appreciate that. We all do."

As before - "Miss Siv is my friend. I am concerned with her welfare."

A nod. "We are doing what we can to help her. The situation is...difficult."

There seems to be a quick non-verbal communication between Kerri and the girls.

"Most difficult. I would, you understand, wish only the best for her and her family."

"That is...gratifying to hear, Miss Zara." Brekke's brows furrow slightly, wondering if she's missing something, or if Zara knows more than she should.

Gerd rises

"I know something of having a loved one beyond reach or contact. It is... difficult, aye. Waiting."

"Difficult," Brekke repeats, nodding. "That it is."

"And an understatement. After all, your daughter is in a coma."

Gerd exchanges a look with Sylvi

Both brows shoot up....and then come down in a glower.

"Miss Zara, if you're offering to help avenge her, it's very nice but we have folks looking in on that already" Gerd says "And our foes are dangerous."

"I.. no. I am no fighter. I know nothing, truly, beyond what I said..."

"I...I see." Brekke's brows are still knit, and she slowly says, "There...seem to be some out there...who wish her harm, still."

"Aye. One must be mindful. It was wise, I think, to keep her from sight as she recovers."

A slow nod. "Sir Vali had...visions...that suggested this was the correct course."

"Ah! Vali." She nods.

"I respect the Beaumayn, though they have very different approaches to seeing the world."

"That's putting it mildly" Gerd says

"You know, yes, that I study at the foot of the Farm's mountain?"

"Yes, I had heard this." A pause at the non sequitur. "Your studies go well?"

"They do. I am grateful for the tutelage. I can say that such study has done much to open my eyes to the world - has allowed me to see things that once seemed impossible."

Gerd quiets at that

"I...see." Brekke takes a deep breath, and then a deep drink of her coffee. "The difficulty is, that many have become very good at seeing things...sometimes things one would rather not have seen."

She nods. "Very troubling. After all, a sluagh loves naught more than her privacy."

"And trolls are very protective of theirs too...we're a reserved people" Gerd says, not hostile, but definitely putting that out there.

Zara nods. "Aye."

A curious look. "Well...how do sluagh manage it?"

"Discretion, of course. And sometimes more.. assertive measures." Her dark eyes flick to Gerd and then back to the Chieftain. "Careful company in conversation and careful words."

"My mother was in a coma for a time. It was one of the most difficult periods in my life, to watch her and... and not know if she was going to be okay."

Gerd mmms... while not at the right vocal range, it might sound familiar to Brekke

A little frown and a hasty sip of tea. The last statement was entirely true.

A quick look at Gerd. And then a nod. "But your mother did recover. I will hold to that hope. And...to the support of friends. In time of need."

"She did, aye." Zara sucks on her lower lip, trying to find the next phrase. "Perhaps..."

"It... as a soothsayer, not a star, I cannot tell you the future."

The furrowed brow returns, Brekke trying to puzzle out the words.

Sylvi glances at Gerd.