by Pirateaba
“Ow, ow! It hurts! Do you have anything to get the shards out with, Lyonette? I can feel one stuck in my foot!”
Erin moaned and winced as she sat in a chair, her bare feet pointed towards Lyonette. Blood dripped onto the floor, but Lyonette could still see the shards of porcelain that had buried themselves in the sole of Erin’s foot.
“I see it, Erin. It’s big. I’ll try to get it out. Hold still.”
Lyonette had a handkerchief in one hand, a healing potion in the other. She gently tried to grasp the bit of pottery, but it was slippery with blood and she didn’t want to break it and leave it in Erin’s skin. Neither did she want to use the healing potion right away; that might mean flesh growing over the shards and that would be bad. Erin whimpered as Lyonette concentrated; Mrsha sat anxiously by the table, eyes wide, watching.
It had happened this morning. Someone had broken an empty cup on the ground in front of the trap door leading to the basement and sprinkled the shards around. The porcelain was sharp and would have cut the Goblin’s feet badly if they had stepped on it. Unfortunately or perhaps, fortunately, Erin had tried to go to the basement first and gotten several shards through the light soles of her shoes.
“Stop wiggling, Erin. If I slip—”
“I’m trying, but it hurts! Ow! Okay, do it.”
Erin gritted her teeth and stopped moving. Lyonette took a deep breath, then grabbed the largest shard with her handkerchief and pulled. It came loose with a horrible, tearing sensation and she saw Erin bite into her lip, drawing blood. Lyonette pulled the shard out and immediately poured healing potion on the spot. The wound closed and she saw Mrsha’s wide eyes going to the bloody shard.
“Do you think the Goblins did this?”
“No. There’s another piece—”
“I see it.”
Neither girl looked at Mrsha as they spoke. The Goblins had been the first to hear Erin scream, and Headscratcher had carried Erin to the table. They’d let Lyonette take over, and, because Mrsha was there, they were in the basement now. Lyonette could only imagine what they thought of all this.
She glanced at Mrsha and saw the Gnoll staring with wide eyes at the blood dripping to the floor. Lyonette felt her chest twist and saw Erin looking at the Gnoll as well. Both paused for a second, and then kept talking about the Goblins because that was easier, for the moment.
“I think they’re leaving, Erin. I saw, uh…Shorthilt hiding several biscuits in his pants when he was going downstairs. And Badarrow had several sausages—he wasn’t trying to hide it. They’re going, Erin.”
“Biscuits? But those pants aren’t large enough to—where were they hiding—never mind. Look, if they go…they go. But I’m going to have them upstairs and having fun today Lyonette, if it’s the last thing I do!”
Erin gritted her teeth as Lyonette’s fingers slipped on the second shard. Lyonette stared at the [Innkeeper].
“Why are you doing this, Erin? Really? Do you want them to stay? The Halfseekers haven’t eaten dinner here the last few nights, and no one’s coming in. We can’t keep doing this.”
“I know. I’m just—ahh! Just trying to get them to talk to me, Lyonette. If I can do that, I think it’ll be okay. I just want to talk to them, to understand them before they go. But it’s not happening no matter how hard I try.”
Erin closed her eyes as the second shard came out. Lyonette stared at it, pulled sliver out of Erin’s foot, and then healed the rest. Some of the color rushed back into Erin’s face and she got up very gingerly.
“Thanks, Lyonette.”
“Don’t mention it. Okay, look, talk to the Goblins. I’ll—clean up I guess—”
“I’ll do it!”
Drassi had been hovering by the two Human girls the entire time, wringing her claws and looking horrified. She had already swept up the other fragments. Lyonette nodded gratefully.
“Okay. You do that Drassi. Erin will serve the Goblins breakfast and I’ll—go upstairs with Mrsha and have a talk.”
Erin paused as she looked down at the white Gnoll sitting by her feet. Mrsha wasn’t looking at anyone and she was trembling slightly. She looked at Lyonette and nodded.
“Okay.”
She stepped gingerly towards the trap door, keeping an eye out for fragments as Lyonette washed her hands in a bucket of water and then looked at Mrsha.
“Come with me, young lady.”
The Gnoll flinched and followed Lyonette upstairs to their room. Once there, Lyonette sat, heart pounding, as Mrsha sat near her bed and pretended to be very interested in the covers.
How was she supposed to do this? She didn’t remember her mother ever sitting her down like this. Her father—his disapproval had been frightening, but he’d never really talked to her one-on-one before. And yet, Lyonette had never done something like this. She’d caused trouble, but it had been her [Tutors] and other guardians who had taken her to task for it. But this?
She did what she could. Lyonette spoke, voice trembling but trying to sound stern rather than heartbroken.
“That was a very bad thing that happened to Erin, don’t you think, Mrsha? She looked like she was really hurt.”
The Gnoll glanced up at Lyonette, and then away, swiftly. Lyonette paused.
“It looked like it hurt. It was very bad. Wasn’t it?”
The Gnoll nodded slowly. She still wouldn’t meet Lyonette’s gaze. That was what broke the girl’s heart. Oh, if only she could blame it on the Goblins or anyone else. But Mrsha was a poor liar. She folded her arms and tried not to let the stinging in her eyes become tears. It wasn’t right what she’d done. It wasn’t right, but Lyonette understood it.
“Do you know anything about this?”
The Gnoll shook her head half-heartedly. Lyonette paused, gulped, and raised her voice.
“Mrsha, look at me.”
Reluctantly, she did. Lyonette met her gaze, her fingernails digging into her arm.
“Do you know anything about this?”
The Gnoll looked away. That was an answer. Lyonette paused.
“Erin was in a lot of pain because of that, Mrsha. She could have been hurt worse. What if she’d stepped on the shards and one broke off in her foot? She’d need a [Healer] to cut it out of her, then.”
Mrsha began to tremble in place. Lyonette felt her heart breaking and stopped because she couldn’t go on.
“Maybe it wasn’t meant for her. Maybe that—trap—was meant for someone else. Like the Goblins. Well, if it was, it still wouldn’t be nice, understand?”
Something changed. Mrsha’s head slowly rose. She stared at Lyonette, and the guilt and sadness in her eyes dried up. Lyonette realized she might have chosen the wrong words.
“Mrsha. Hurting the Goblins isn’t right. Understand? You can’t—”
Mrsha’s hair was rising. She sat up straighter, and glared at Lyonette. The Human girl hesitated.
“I know how you must be feeling—”
Wrong words. Mrsha looked away from Lyonette and the young woman snapped.
“Mrsha! You can’t harm the Goblins! These are Erin’s guests and they’re all Hobs, understand? If you cause trouble, I will punish you. In fact, I’m already punishing you—no lunch!”
The Gnoll looked back towards Lyonette and now her eyes were glaring. Lyonette glared back.
“No lunch, and it’ll be water and bread for dinner unless you go to Erin and apologize, understand? And if I ever catch you doing that again—are you listening?”
Mrsha reluctantly turned back towards Lyonette. Her ears were flat, her eyes alight with anger. The Goblins. Lyonette wavered between compassion and anger, and lost.
“Look, Mrsha. You don’t have to go near them. You can go to the city if—no? You don’t want to stay with Aunt Selys? Okay. But Erin’s very hurt, even if she didn’t say it. You know it hurt? Don’t cry. Don’t—come here.”
She reached out and gathered up the Gnoll into her arms. Mrsha wept silently, big tears rolling down her furred face. Lyo
nette hugged her, as her mother never had, and tried to say the right things. Only, she’d never heard them herself.
“It’s okay. I know you’re sorry. You can apologize—we’ll do it together. Its okay, Mrsha. You’re not a bad girl. It’s just—”
She didn’t have the words to express it. Lyonette held Mrsha for a long time, until the tears had stopped. Then they went downstairs.
Erin was cleaning up the tables, and the Goblins were finishing their breakfast. Lyonette froze and Mrsha’s claws dug into her clothing, but she made herself go downstairs. Erin met them by the stairs, smiling, and Lyonette had Mrsha apologize there, while both girls shielded the Goblins from view. Mrsha still smelled them, though. Her nose kept twitching even as she licked Erin’s face and hugged her and was hugged in return.
“Hey, at least I can get Drassi to buy some more cups. We need more—specially designed ones, I think. The Soldiers can’t hold the regular ones, and I’d like them to have better bowls, too.”
The tone Erin used was light and playful as she spoke to Mrsha, but from the disappointment in her eyes, Lyonette knew she hadn’t gotten through to the Goblins today either. She’d seen Erin sitting at the table, trying to get them to talk to her, telling bad jokes, showing them how to play chess—there was no real connection there, and no one else was trying. Lately, Erin had gotten desperate and inventive.
“I’ve got a guitar that no one needs, now. I saw it in the market and I thought it would be so cool to play, but—I don’t know how.”
Erin showed Lyonette and Mrsha a strange instrument that reminded Lyonette of a warped lute. Mrsha plucked at a string and her ears perked up at the sound. Lyonette stared at Erin. The [Innkeeper] tried to play something, and the guitar made a strangled noise.
“That’s a what, Erin? A gui…”
“Guitar. It’s an instrument. Don’t they have them where you come from? The Gnoll said it’s not very popular, so he sold it to me cheap!”
“I can see why.”
Lyonette looked at the guitar, at Erin, and then back at the guitar.
“Why did you buy this?”
“Oh, you know.”
Erin made a face and nodded covertly towards the Goblins. Lyonette saw and felt Mrsha tensing up. She shifted with the Gnoll cub in her arms.
“Erin…”
“I know. Look, if I could play it—turns out they don’t know how. I think they thought it was a weapon. I guess music isn’t…never mind.”
Erin turned towards the Goblins, smiling, and they all looked away from her. They had been looking, Lyonette thought, but she was distracted by Mrsha’s claws digging into her arm.
“Ow! Mrsha, honey. You’re hurting me.”
The Gnoll withdrew her claws, but she remained taut in Lyonette’s arms. She was shaking, and Lyonette thought it was time to go back upstairs. The Goblins were glancing their way. She saw one of them, Headscratcher, looking furtively at her. Lyonette looked away and realized he’d done the same. And like that, in a flash, she realized the Goblins knew she was afraid of them. It was obvious with Drassi—but they could probably tell that Lyonette was too.
“Erin, I’m taking Mrsha upstairs. Sorry, but I won’t be down for a bit.”
“That’s okay. Drassi’s here and it’s not like we have much business, right?”
Erin gave her a strained smile. Lyonette thought about returning it, and didn’t. She turned towards the stairs as Erin went back towards the Goblins. The girl sat close to them, but not close enough to touch. The Goblins stared back, and there was that invisible wall between them that Erin couldn’t breach.
“Hey…so, sorry about that. I uh, have I showed you this guitar? Yes? Okay. Um—”
It wasn’t working. Lyonette didn’t know if it was something Erin lacked, or something she wasn’t doing, but as it was, she thought she’d wake up tomorrow or the day after and they would be gone. And would that be such a bad thing?
Part of Lyonette wished they would leave. Maybe it was for the best. Mrsha stared at the Goblins as Lyonette carried her upstairs. Her eyes narrowed and she growled. She still hated them. Erin getting hurt had done nothing to change that, and so Lyonette resolved to watch the little Gnoll until they were gone.
It was all going wrong. And that was before the Antinium came again. Then it went wrong and got worse.
—-
Yellow Splatters decided that Purple Smile was unfit to be a [Sergeant]. He might be unfit to be a Painted Soldier. Could he stay somewhere else? He was so…so different! He didn’t spar when all the other Soldiers were copying Yellow Splatters’ example, he liked going aboveground, and he didn’t fight like a proper Soldier.
He didn’t belong in Yellow Splatters’ unit. And that thought was incredible and troubling. So Yellow Splatters didn’t think about it. He stared at Purple Smile as the other Soldier wandered around the barracks, following…what? He’d rolled up a ball out of dirt and wet it with some water. Now he was rolling it around, following after it, picking it up and tossing it, and following it again.
He was too strange. Yellow Splatters didn’t know how to address it, but he was working up to some good ideas when Pawn walked into the barracks with eight Workers and spoke.
“Purple Smile? Your patrol for this morning awaits. Please take these Workers above as well with the regular group of Soldiers.”
Purple Smile turned and nodded. Yellow Splatters looked at Pawn in astonishment. Hadn’t he made it clear what a waste that patrol was? But then—Workers. They were…acceptable? Yellow Splatters was undecided. But he froze when he saw the two Soldiers standing behind the Workers and saw eight more of the Painted Soldiers, his Soldiers coming forwards.
They stopped when he looked at them. Yellow Splatters struggled internally. He’d made it clear—but if they wanted to eat—but he had shown them—maybe it was only for security? Pawn stared between Purple Smile and Yellow Splatters, and then nodded to Purple Smile.
“I have no objections to you taking Painted Soldiers. Go. And remember what I told you.”
Purple Smile nodded to Pawn, and pointed. The regular Workers and Soldiers lined up meekly, and the eight Painted Soldiers fell into line behind them after a moment’s pause. None of them looked at Yellow Splatters. He stared at them and felt an emotion rising in his being. He had to struggle to find the word to express it.
Disobedience. Betrayal. He raised his head and stared at the Soldiers, and then at Purple Smile. This was his fault. But what could he do? The other Antinium was already leading them out of the Hive—
The convoy of Antinium jerked as Yellow Splatters strode towards them. But he fell meekly into place behind the last Soldier. Purple Smile stared at him for eight seconds, and then slowly moved the procession forwards again. Yellow Splatters raised his mandibles. He was just coming along, that was all. Just to remind the other Soldiers, remind Purple Smile who was in charge.
They made it to the inn just past lunchtime. The Goblins were eating, and the Horns of Hammerad had found their way into the inn as well. The Halfseekers were silently talking in one corner of the room and eying the Goblins. A Gnoll had come from the city for the first time in over a week, and Mrsha had crept downstairs with a wand in her paw without anyone noticing.
—-
Apista was napping by the faerie flowers blooming on the windowsill. The Horns of Hammerad were arguing, covered in mud after hunting a pack of regular, hungry wolves. Erin was hugging Ishkr. Lyonette smiled as she wiped a table and listened to them talk.
“I’m so glad you’re back! Are you okay? If you need more time off, I understand. I just…”
The Gnoll looked embarrassed as he stood in the inn, his red-brown fur engulfing Erin as she hugged him. He growled apologetically.
“I am fine, Miss Erin. I apologize for my absence. It was inexcusable. If you wish to dock my pay—”
“Don’t be stupid! How could I not get it? I know—I can’t believe Brunkr—”
Erin wiped her stinging e
yes on Ishkr’s fur. The Goblins stared furtively at the Gnoll and he looked at them.
“I see we have new guests. I did not believe it when I heard the rumors, yes? Miss Erin would you like me to serve them? Miss Erin? Would you let go of me?”
“Oops. Sorry.”
Erin let go of Ishkr and smiled with genuine pleasure for the first time in days.
“We’re getting lunch out. If you don’t mind serving that’d be great. And we could use some more water, although it’s wet.”
“I can get it! Nothing like wet Gnolls to stink up a place. Hi Ishkr!”
Drassi smiled and waved at the Gnoll. He smiled back, not seemingly bothered about the wet Gnolls comment and began serving the Goblins with only a moment of hesitation. Ishkr was quiet, but he seemed resolved to do his job today.
That was all Erin and Lyonette wanted right now. The Antinium had come back as usual, only, Lyonette was sure it wasn’t like usual this time.
“Erin, that Soldier with the yellow paint is back. And I think he and Purple Smile are not getting along.”
Lyonette hissed at Erin as the Antinium took a table close to the doors. It was a mark of how the relationships in the inn were different that when they sat, it was next to the Horns of Hammerad while the Goblins sat on the other side of the room. Add in the Halfseekers, and there were three zones of tension and a very narrow pathway down the center of the inn that was in theory, neutral ground.
Erin and Lyonette stood there, talking, while Drassi came in with more water, complaining about melting snow and Ishkr brought out plates. The Halfseekers and Goblins were staring at each other silently, but Lyonette could only devote half an eye to them—she was more worried about the Antinium. As far as she was concerned, the way the Antinium with yellow splatters was acting required an eye and a half. At least.