"I can stay with Tory and Ry?"
"We want you to," Tory nodded. "If you want to, that is."
"I want to." Toff stared at his hands for a moment. He wanted to ask why he was in the palace and why everybody was being so nice to him. He was nothing to them, yet they were treating him as if he were a member of the family. "I would like that very much, thank you," he remembered his manners, albeit a little late.
"Good. We have someone coming in who will bring some clothing for you. You can pick out what you like," the Queen went on. "Is there anything you want brought from home? Corent has already offered to send whatever you need."
Toff was embarrassed to ask for the small wooden box of bits and pieces he kept beneath his bed. "We'll just have him send everything, and you can pick and choose," the Queen told him. "Let's eat, I'm starved." Everybody started eating, then, and Ry and Tory quickly had Toff smiling as they teased one another, and then Nissa was getting onto her brothers and soon they were all laughing. For Toff, that hadn't happened in a very long time.
* * *
"Careful, she spits." Tory snickered at Ry's words after Tory sneaked Toff, Ry and Nissa into the dungeon to see the prisoners. They were coming up on Narissa's cell. She did try to spit at them, but her efforts fell short.
Narissa called them unkind names as they stared at her. "Mom says she's not right," Nissa told Toff softly as they walked away from the cell. Next on the list was Clover's cell. Toff stared at his would be murderer and shook his head. Clover looked lost and dejected.
"Gren's a pig," Toff whispered as they walked from Clover's cell to Laral's. Laral looked to be in much the same state as Clover. Gren, whose cell was next to Laral's, began shouting and forced Tory to skip them all away from the dungeons before the guards came running.
* * *
Lissa's Journal
"Roff, why don't you offer to let him help out at the winery in the afternoons? Corent said Toff has helped with that before. Mostly the crush, but he understands the basics." I took Roff's hand and pulled him down to the sofa beside me. Roff allowed his wings to loosen—his way of resting them, before he allowed the one nearest me to unfold completely and wrap around my shoulders.
"Raona," Roff breathed as he leaned down and kissed me.
* * *
Lissa's Journal
"He has not had sufficient teaching in geography or history, and nothing at all in Alliance Studies." Morwin gave his report to me later. "He is very bright and is good with basic mathematics, as far as his instruction has gone, anyway."
"Can you bring him up to the proper levels?" I looked across my desk at the best private tutor in the Alliance. I felt lucky to have Morwin—many couldn't see past his race, all of whom thought that the bushier and lengthier your eyebrows, the more knowledgeable you were. Knowledge was highly prized by the Amterean race, and information often brought more riches than gold or jewels. As curiosity went, they were nearly on a level with the Larentii. Morwin's eyebrows wiggled as he considered my question. I'd learned not to snicker when he did that.
"I think he will come along quickly, as long as he applies himself. I worry about the stress that such a move will cost him, however." Morwin was pointing out one of my own fears. Toff's background with the Green Fae was vastly different from life in the palace or any other place on Le-Ath Veronis. That would affect anyone, I think. We would all be watching Toff closely, to make sure he was adjusting to his new environment.
"I'm hoping that spending afternoons at Roff's winery will help with that," I sighed. "Please keep me informed if he needs help in adapting. I want him to be as comfortable and happy as we can make him."
* * *
"We still make the oxberry wine by hand." Roff was showing Toff through the winery. "It's the most expensive wine we sell."
Much of the winery was automated, but Toff was amazed at the number of comesuli there, all busy as ants at one task or another to get barrels and barrels of wine made. "More than likely we did the crush at the same time you were doing it at the village," Roff went on. "The fermentation is going on with this year's crop and we'll be bottling and corking some of last year's press soon." Roff led Toff past stacked wine barrels.
"This is overwhelming," Toff stared up at the tall racks that held several barrels, one on top of another.
"I don’t want you to feel that way," Roff placed a hand on Toff's shoulder. "We can start you out on the floor and allow you to work your way up if you want. And if you decide that this isn't for you, just let us know. We'll find something else. Something that you want to do."
"No, I want this," Toff breathed. "It's just so different from what I'm used to."
"I know. When I started out, we did it all by hand—my father, brother and I. My oldest child came along and helped after a while."
"Where is he now?"
"My oldest child is dead." Toff knew by the tone of Roff's voice that this was a painful subject. Toff nodded and didn't ask any more questions.
"All our power is from the sun—the collectors are on the light half of the planet," Roff showed Toff the control room where all the power lines were monitored. "The workers are paid a very good salary and receive four weeks' vacation every year. When you work, you will be paid for your work. It won't be much in the beginning, but your salary will increase as you gain experience."
"I've never had money. Someone will have to teach me about that." Toff hunched his shoulders. There was so much to learn, and the weight of it troubled him at times.
"Morwin will show you that, and you can ask anyone if you don't know about something. We realize this is a large step for you, and we want you to be comfortable." Roff patted Toff's shoulder to offer comfort and encouragement.
Toff wanted to ask Roff why he was being offered a new home, an education and work that he liked, but held back. What if the answer was something that frightened him? Redbird's words came into his mind more often than not, although he hadn't seen anything that might make him think she'd been correct on any of it. Toff resolved to wait and see. Meanwhile, he enjoyed spending time with Ry and Tory, and if Nissa were there, he liked it even better.
Chapter 8
"Toff, I have to go back to Grey House tomorrow." Nissa sounded depressed. Toff sat beside her in the arboretum. Nissa had grabbed his hand after dinner and led him up several flights of broad marble steps until they'd reached the top level of the palace. There, Toff found the most wondrous garden—it was lit with solar lamps and multitudes of plants and foliage grew inside, all of it lush and full. Small waterfalls and fountains placed here and there provided soothing sounds while visitors enjoyed the garden.