#rivervale_lodge

A slight jump until she realizes it's Goth Girl. "Oh! Oh....hey, Gerd."

"Hey Gerd!" Stormwake trots over to the fence to see if Gerd has apples.

There are not a lot of groceries, but to look at Gerd you'd think she was carrying the rock of sisyphus

"He can? You mean, without enchantment? Geeze...that's gotta be confusing."

"You need help?" she asks Gerd.

"Yuh-huh. So the Oath was to protect him and us, but one of the rules is he can't talk to unknown fae without Chief's permission... and since he hasn't met you yet? I wouldn't risk it."

"Hi," Gerd growls, then sees the horse, and her mood lightens JUST a bit, "hi stormwake" Then to Sylvi, "I need help? your mom is the one who has gone weird. She drafted me."

Stormwake snuffles at Gerd's shirt, leaving drool on it.

"Drafted you?"

She frowns at the criticism of her mother, but not too much.

"Wait." To Dagmar. "So....how does he get permission to talk to me if I don't get to meet him and he doesn't know I exist?"

"Okay, I don't know what happened, but we were talking about that new boy whats his name? the oathed guy? And there was talk of Kinain i nthe area period... and there some right but mostly linked to changeling families, of course... and I was like 'well, just have Sally Mae do it, it's easy enough a hearth in training could do it' and the next thing I know she's got ME ... working under the hearth and now I have to make this meal for 10 people, but the reciepes I got are for FOUR so I can't just double it.... and I tried to ask Sally Mae for help and your mom wouldn't let her help me"

Sylvi blinks...then tries to control a smile. "Whatcha gonna make us?"

She considers. "Maybe Chief could make a list of fae he CAN talk to, sign it, and I give it to him..."

"Maybe we should make up a list of fae we think he should be able to talk to, and give it to her to approve?"

"Well, if you triple it you'd have leftovers..."

"Leftovers are good."

"It's not for us" She says, then stops, and listens "No Dagmar, she doesn't want waste. She said so."

"What's this about the new kid?"

She nods at Sylvi. "All the wilders at school, for sure - OH, and Vali! What if he takes French?"

"Definitely Vali."

A frown at Gerd. "Who's it for, then?"

"Oh, well, then there's math..." Nose-wrinkle. "Good luck."

"Multiply by two-and-a-half," Sylvi offers helpfully.

"Yeah, but what if there's half an egg?"

"How do you make half an egg? I don't have half a chicken!" alarmed

"Well, half a chicken is easy. Get the big cleaver and WHACK!" She mimes it.

"Better ask Mom or Sally Mae. They know the tricks to make it work."

Dag nods. "Bet there ain't nothing they don't know about cooking."

"...Or Tove? I mean, if Hearth said not to ask Sally Mae, Tove'd know it, too.

"Tove! Yes!" She looks to Dagmar "Dagmar you're the best" And she streaks off to the Ironhawk house, two miles is nothing if she can get some 'legal' aid

she calls back "And it's for the McPattersons"

"Well... hunh."

The McPattersons had a house fire the last few days. With ten of them...well... and no house of their own? They could use a bit of a kindness in the food department.

Sylvi stares after Gerd. "I wonder if we just got her in more trouble."

"Still, if it's for the McPattersons...well...helping is the goal, I guess. Mom won't mind that much."

"Kerri just said Sally Mae..."

"And I mean, I'd think twelve servings still wouldn't have much waste. But what do I know? Maybe it's a test."

"Totally sounds like it. I mean, you heard her...she got this assignment after she dissed Sally Mae and the Hearth position."

Sylvi fishes out her phone and opens the notes. "Let's make that list of fae, and I'll write it down for the Chieftain later. So...he should be able to talk to me, and Vali, and...um...who else hasn't he met yet?"

"Symon, Lucia, Eden, Jimmy..."

Sylvi types away smoothly.

"Think that's it?"

"He's met Dirk? And Nadeen?"

"Oh, what about Tove and her dad?"

"OH, yes!"

"And Kerri, and Frank..."

Not so far away, Sylvi sees her father, dripping water.

"Wow, yeah, it would be pretty bad if he couldn't talk to either of them."

He's shaking droplets off his axe