P. Power - Knight of the Realm

That being the case, feeling so relaxed, Tor half expected to fly back to find a fight had broken out, or someone dead. All they found though was a party and people cleaning up for dinner. They landed close to one another on the front stoop of the house, white stone, marble he thought, just as the sun was dying. There was no one there, even though he normally would have preferred to land in a more open area.

Trice saw them and walked over looking smug and belligerent.

“So, where did you two get off to for three hours? Out counting the sand dunes?” Her voice wasn't slurring from drink, but it didn't sound happy. In fact it sounded a bit like she wanted to pick a fight. Her face looked like that too.

Oh goody.

Tor couldn't tell who with yet. He tilted his head, waiting to see what she'd say next, but Petra couldn't contain herself and burst out happily about their day and his gift.

“It's huge! Some of the rooms are nicer than the King’s palace in the Capital, or at least copies of it, and it goes so fast, for a ship I mean. Would you like to see it? We could go tomorrow. We could stay out for a night even, the bed is huge, I mean we have to share, but it's twenty feet wide and ten feet long. It looks ridiculous, but it's so soft and it forms to you perfectly. Ooh, and the bed? You hit a single sigil and it cleans and remakes itself, so no sleeping in the wet spot.” She grinned and tried to nudge Trice a little on the shoulder. But she dodged it easily and glared at Tor.

“So, trying out this new magic bed with your girlfriend? Was she good? Did she let you be on top so she didn't crush you or what? I see how things are. I lose my arm and suddenly I'm not good enough for you? Or you just never liked me at all, is that it? Not noble enough for you?” Her voice was getting higher pitched and fierce at the same time.

“Scored a Princess, so figured that nothing less than a Counserina will do? Is that it? Found out you were a Countier and now I'm not good enough for you?” She looked ready to cry.

Tor sighed, because he knew this probably didn't have anything to do with him at all, just anger at all she'd lost. Her arm, her comfort zone at school, her reputation and, just possibly, him. If she'd ever really cared about that. She'd said she loved him and meant it though, crazily enough. This didn't seem like it to him. Then Trice never did do anything the normal way. Too easy and predictable probably.

Tor opened his mouth to speak but Petra beat him to it again, and of course, said things that Tor never would have.

“Patricia… I didn't have sex with Tor, not today, because he has a meeting with Collette this evening and doesn't want to dishonor her by coming fresh from another woman’s bed, which is a bit old fashioned, but sweet, don't you think? And she's a Baronetta so you know he isn't getting silly about rank.” The large girl put her arm around Tor protectively, or tried too, her hand hovering over him like normal.

“Besides, we talked about you and you're definitely on his short list. He just doesn't know if you want to or not, so he's been hesitant to ask. Still, Collette has actual work stuff to do with him tonight and I do to, as soon as that's done. Then, if you're really interested, I suggest you get in line fast, because in case you haven't noticed, women aren't exactly in short supply around here, but people giving away free magical devices are. Plus, Tor is very good looking, pale and exotic. If he just yelled out that he was looking to meet ladies, they'd come just for that, don't you think?” Her voice never went mean but Trice glared at her, stamped her right foot hard on the stone once and stormed off.

Not knowing what to do he started to follow her but Petra moved in front of him and tilted her head a little to the right, shaking it.

“No Tor, don’t. She was trying to be bitchy because she's feeling down on herself. If you let that work for her now she'll just keep doing it. If you want to keep her as a friend, you have to stand up for yourself. She isn't allowed to push you around and you don't deserve that kind of thing. If she'd done it in private, maybe you could have comforted her about things, but going after you at a party? Classic manipulative bitch move. Now you're supposed to run to her and make her feel better, but if you do, that proves you're weak, and while she'd like it today, in a month or two you'll have no value to her at all. Women don't really like emotionally soft men. They think they do, but in the end they really want a protector, not a slave.”

That made Tor blink. He'd… never considered anything like that at all.

So, taking her advice, even though he was still worried about his other friend, he went and got something to eat. Mainly fish tonight, but cooked, thank goodness, with a strange starchy vegetable that was covered with sugar burnt to a kind of caramel. Everyone else acted like it was fantastic, but Tor didn't get it at all. Still, people seemed happy and danced a lot. Instead of dancing, Tor decided to just go back to his little house and wait for Collette, who was still busy with some pretty good looking guys.

Well, if she forgot, Tor could just work on the controls for various kinds of clothing, right? In the end, after about an hour of waiting and working out how to do it, it hit home that even a house could use feedback like that. It could be used to add rooms, doors, hallways to join various areas as well as add multiple levels. It couldn't dig in, so no basement or cellar, but still… He could even let people pick the outer and inner colors. Or add and subtract furniture… It was massively more complex than what he had already, but if he did the work carefully and in a deep enough state, could he have it all in a day? It would take that risky work state again, but mastery didn't come with a promise of safety, did it?

Thinking back to school he couldn't remember anyone ever telling him that.

Hard work, sacrifice, sobriety, and dedication. That had all been mentioned in class, but no talk of safety in particular. Not for the builder. Tor rubbed his head, the long black hair getting in the way. Nope, risk was a part of life. He'd try it. Tor would be careful and plan first, but if he didn't try then he wouldn't know if it was possible.

When Collette did show, about two hours later, she came walking in with Martya, who carried a plain tan wooden box, the flimsy looking kind people sold fruit in. Smiling the dark skinned woman, shorter by a good four inches than the Baronetta moved to the table and took a seat easily, his blond friend did the same with a grin. Well, this was unexpected, wasn't it?

“Time to divvy up sir! Shall I count or…” The look she had was one that spoke of people not trusting her as a rule in business, probably because she was a whore. Well, Tor wasn't like that, he smiled and gestured to her to go ahead.

Tor wondered about that, feeling naughty for a bit. If you couldn't trust someone with gold, why the hell would you put your manhood that close to their teeth? The piles of coins, mainly silver and gold, with a few coppers thrown in, were sorted first by kind. There were twenty gold coins, but turned out to be nearly fifty gold worth of silver and two silver in coppers. Seventy gold wasn't bad for a day’s work.

Then, not making eye contact she started to divide the coins, taking fifteen percent of them for herself, leaving him the rest. Her head hung slightly and she winced when he spoke, even though his voice was gentle and calm.

“That's not the split I had in mind, Martya. Here, let me show you, it's easier than explaining. It's different…” He split the pile three ways, but the first pile held half the coins, the next two were evenly divided. The woman smiled and licked her lips.

“I get twenty five percent? But… Who gets the other bit?” She pointed at the other pile of twenty five percent and glanced at Collette. It seemed meaningful to him.