#rivervale_lodge

"You ran into trouble on a trod?"

"Kind of" Vague as he works

"Well, you're in good company, if so. I think everybody who's done trod travelling has a scary half-memory that haunts them about a mistake or a wrong turn."

"It's not just trods. Sometimes you arrive, think you're safe, and then... you drop your guard. And someone pays for it"

"Mm." A nod. "I imagine that's so. We live dangerous lives, we fae, even when we think we're in safe spaces."

"Yes. So I want to be ready. I need to be ready"

"Well...ready, yes. Of course, one mustn't be over ready. That leads to jumpiness, which can cause its own problems."

A frown at that, an she can tell she's not the first to warn against that "I suppose"

She dries for a few moments in silence, giving him space to talk if he's moved to do so.

then he says "It's just... isn't it better to be too prepared than not prepared enough??"

"Well...that depends on what you mean by 'prepared' doesn't it? For example, if I tried to over-prepare for the kitchen, I might not have the flexibility to adapt to price changes at the market, or an unexpected contribution from the Farm, or the sudden arrival of half-a-dozen hungry Rovers." She gives him a grin and a wink at the last. "I think it's important to be ready to respond, but that's not the same thing as being on high alert at all times."

He looks troubled

"One can't always be prepared for the unexpected, but one can be ready to say, okay, that's new, let's figure out how to handle it."

"I really want to be a good rover" He says "A knight of the way. I want it so bad things don't happen to others like it happened to... someone"

She pauses in the drying. "Can you tell me what happened?"

"I got to the end of the trod, got saved. From there , we were supposed to be safe. Hastien held the silver, but my... this girl with me, she and I stepped off, came into the autumn world. And... I didn't see the gun" Grim

She frowns. "They were waiting for you? For her?"

"No, in some ways that makes it worse. Bad luck? Random chance? I don't know, we came on the wrong scene and... the gun came out. ' A frown "I hurt the gunman after, but then, it was too late"

"If I'd been ready, if I'd been prepared.. if I hadn't dropped my guard..."

He stifens then takes a breath to calm himself

"It's impossible to be prepared for everything. I would say that if she were being hunted, and you knew it, then maybe I could see that you'd have reason for feeling that way. But this a random thing, like you said. You can't hold yourself accountable for random."

"Yes. Yes I can. And I do" Stubborn troll chin

A sad look. "How's that working for you?"

That seems to catch him off guard

then he says "It's driving me forward"

"Is it?"

Less sure for a moment "I'm trying."

"But it's difficult," she offers.

"Yes" He says with a frown "Is.. there anything else you need cleaned , Hearth?" Perhaps seeking an escape

She acts as if she didn't hear him. "See, what I don't quite understand is, why turn to the Rovers as a way to respond to something that happened off the trods. I suppose I see that if Hastien, a Rover, saved you, you want to be able to save others the same way...but there are many ways to protect others, to serve others."

"Rovers also protect regular roads, heck, they often guarded bridges, until a story with goats villified it"

A grin. "Fair." She considers him. "How long since your chrysalis, Hesso?"

"three years" He nods

"Have you been maintaining a mortal job during that time?"

"I tried, got fired" He blushes purple

"It's hard to balance the obligations, isn't it?" she says understandingly. "What was it?"

"Fast food... actually a bit banal. Then COVID hit and some jackass throws a fit because one of the counter guys wears a mask. Scrawny guy, but good at his work. This 300 pound 40 year old manchild starts to bellow and insult him. I.. went to his defense. Manager fired me for risking myself"

A blink. "Fired you for risking yourself? That's what the manager said?"

"Apparently yanking a jerk away from a coworker he's grabbing is best left to police?"