Chapter 86: Farewells

Author's note: A quick retcon - the daughter of stationer is now called Leena. We previously called her Astrix but that didn't feel right.

--

A half hour with Minos covered a lot of ground. The explorer had a way of keeping conversations on a tight trajectory. By the time Arthur had pumped him full of food-tea, Minos was fully up-to-date on the sending out of the informational pamphlets and several other aspects of everyone’s lives. He slipped in a dozen subtle questions about Ella into the conversation and now knew how she was holding up in granular detail.

Arthur was part of the conversation, but just a minor part. The same was true of Spiky. Minos would ask them questions here and there, but the bulk of the actual talking was taking place between Milo and his dad, where it belonged.

“So, when are you heading back?” Minos asked.

“I haven’t really talked about it with the others, but I figured today or tomorrow. Whenever Talca gets back.”

“Talca? Your transporter? I’ve never used him, but I heard he’s good.” Minos drummed his fingers on his side table, then tossed Milo a letter. “Take that to your mother when you go. And thanks for listening to me about not staying too long. So long as Arthur and Spiky are okay with the schedule, I mean.”

“I am.” Spiky spoke up first, which surprised Arthur. He figured he’d be more reluctant to leave Leena, his new cow-demon girlfriend. “I’ve done everything I can here. And I think I’ll be visiting from time to time. I don’t want to use up all my small-town tolerance at once.”

“What about Leena?” Arthur asked. “No offense, but leaving so quick has to sting.”

Spiky shrugged. “We can write letters. And I’ll come out when I can. I like her a lot, and I think she does too, so… if it can work, it will work. Otherwise, there’s nothing I can do.”

“Awful mature of you,” Milo said. “And I mean that. It’s awful. You should be more upset about this.”

Spiky frowned a bit before correcting his face back to a neutral expression. “I’m not saying I’m not. It just was always going to be like this. There’s not a lot I can do.”

“Could you stay out here?” Arthur put his hand under his chin, leaning the weight of his head on his arm. “I’m not saying you should. I’m just spitballing.”

“He can’t. At least not right now,” Minos stated. “As soon as those letters get where they need to be, he’ll have to be in constant communication with various groups. He needs to be somewhere more central for that.”

“It is what it is,” Spiky said. “And I’ll be fine.”

—

After bidding goodbye to Minos, Arthur spent the next hour or so working out how to keep him in nourishing tea for a while. He found that the secret this time weren’t the boba pearls for once. Instead, he discovered success in pouring majicka into a sweetened mixture of the most nourishing ingredients.

Caramel Grains of Feeding (Tea Additive)

Created as a function of your Teashop Brewmaster, Medicinal Brewer, and Mass Prep skills, these little balls of caramel and grains are infused with the essence of your Nourishment Tea. Any person can use them to create a drink that carries the effects of nourishment tea at an inferior to lesser level. Higher levels of effect are much more likely if prepared by a cook or brewer who is skilled in the preparation of tea.

Arthur tracked down his cat cook friend and let him in on that piece of information, as well as running him though the correct brewing technique for the tea he thought went best with the caramel grains.

“And here’s a bunch of boba and tea leaves to get you through. That supply should last for at least a week, which is all he should need if everything goes well,” Arthur said.

“Great. And I’m glad to help here, Arthur. I’ve met Minos and he’s a good guy. Plus, I’m probably going to get quite a bit of class experience for this.”

“I hope so. And thanks again for getting me behind a counter, Potil. It’s much appreciated.”

Just like Milo had predicted, Talca got back that day. While there was plenty of daylight, he didn’t push them to leave right away. Littal needed to be fed and rested, whether Littal thought so or not, and Talca was eager to get his wagon retrofitted with the newest shocks. Arthur and Spiky began packing while Milo did that, and by the time the wagon was ready, they were able to throw all their things into it for the next morning, counting on the cold weather to keep all the semi-perishables unpunished.

“I don’t have much packing to do, so this should be done soon. Then I’ll update dad, and we can burn some time before we go to sleep,” Milo said. “Talca says to make it an early night. With the new shocks, he’s going to try for a very long run tomorrow.”

A voice sounded unexpectedly from the doorway.

“Well, I’m glad I came, then,” Janam said. “I had a feeling I needed to. I would have missed you otherwise.”

“Janam. What’s up?” Spiky asked. “I was going to drop by later to say goodbye.”

“That’s fine, and thanks. I just had a favor to ask of Arthur, before he left.”

Arthur couldn’t imagine what he had that Janam would need, but she had been nothing but friendly and kind the entire time. He was glad to help.

“Sure, Janam. What can I do for you?”

Janam stopped for a moment, considering her next words carefully before just spitting them out.

“Can you take my daughter with you? To live in the city?”

To a man, all three of the friends were absolutely speechless. Later, Arthur wasn’t sure whether they stayed frozen for a second or an hour. It could have honestly been either. Finally, he managed to get enough of his wits back to sputter out a single word.

“Why?” Arthur asked.

“Because she can’t be who she needs to be here. You’ve seen her. The town is choking her potential. She needs to be somewhere with libraries. We don’t have much family, so I can’t send her to live with someone else, and she’s almost too old for that. That leaves sending her out on her own, preferably with someone I know and trust at least a little.”

“No, I mean…” Arthur tried very hard to figure out the right way to say the next part. “Why ask me? Why not Spiky? Or even Milo?”

“Well, I can’t very well ask her boyfriend to be responsible for her wellbeing in a new city, Arthur. It’s too much pressure of the wrong kind. It’s not fair to either of them. And I don’t know Milo as well as I know you, and what I do know about him is that he spends an awful lot of time in a smith’s shop.” Janam stepped into the room a bit more and laid her hand on Arthur’s shoulder. “That leaves you. But relax. I’m sending her with funds to get started. Mostly, she just needs a ride.”

“Well, sure. But I do feel a little responsible in that case. I’ll get her situated, I promise. I just don’t know how,” Arthur said.

“Oh, Arthur, just give her to Onna,” Milo said, then addressed Janam’s questioning look. “A girl about our age. Nice in an aggressive, threatening way. If she likes Leena, she’ll protect her. And she likes people like Leena. It’s the easiest way to get her a guard.”

“Oh, I like that. Yes, Onna. Please do introduce them.”

“Even if that doesn’t work out, It’s a nice town. Someone will step up,” Arthur said. “At least they did for me.”

“Well then. That’s settled. And thank you, Arthur. You too, Milo. And Spiky?” Janam said. Spiky looked up. “I’m sorry, Spiky. This is an odd thing to dump on two people who have just started together. But I think you will probably get through it, anyway. I’ll make sure she has her things ready tomorrow. She doesn’t have much, really. When are you leaving?”

“Just before dawn.”

“Then I’ll see you just before dawn.”

—

Janam was as good as her word. She arrived with Leena before Arthur and friends had even made it out to the wagon. Leena looked as excited as a person could be, if a little nervous about the whole thing. As Talca readied the wagon, Janam peeled off to discuss travel plans and details with him.

“Spiky, this is great. We can see each other now,” Leena said.

“Yes.” Spiky took her hands in his. “And I’ll give you as much space as you need to have in the first few weeks. It’s going to be busier than you think it is.”

“It’s been so long since I’ve lived in a city. But at least it’s not my first time. I’m excited,” Leena said. “Where do you think I’ll stay?”

“Onna and Mizu stay in a boarding house of sorts. They might have extra rooms. If not, someone does. Milo, do you think we can get one on the first day?” Spiky asked.

“Oh, sure. Especially when we explain what’s going on. Nobody is going to make it hard once they hear the circumstances,” Milo said.

Minos walked up then, steadying himself on a cane.

“I’d say that Ella would put you up as long as you needed, but it sounds like she has a full house already. Don’t hesitate to bring her there if things go wrong, Milo. If it’s an emergency, she can just take Arthur’s room.”

“Dad, are you supposed to be walking around?”

“Doctor’s orders. Apparently, I’m ready for very light exercise. I chose to use it here. Talca, that’s a hell of a wagon. And I’ve heard good things. If you want a long haul in about a week or two, I’d love to ride back with you.”

Talca inclined his head a bit. “It would be an honor. Although I’m not sure I’ll be back on this side of the world by then.”

“Either way. Don’t put yourself out, but thank you for taking care of my son and his friends.”

The boys spent a while setting up the wagon, getting Arthur’s brewing stuff strapped down in a way that made it useable on the go. He set a pot of water boiling so they’d have tea as soon as they were on the road,

“Are you sure you are going to be okay, Mom?” Leena asked as she boarded the wagon.

“I’ll be fine. I promise. And I’ll visit. Whatever other demands Stationer might have as a class, it does allow for long vacations. I promise I’ll get down to you as often as I can.” Janam leaned forward and kissed her daughter on the head. “You are smart. You always have been. You’ll do just fine. Now, where’s that damn Cat-Demon?”

Off in the distance, a yell sounded out as Potil ran towards them, a basket looped over his arm.

“Gods, Potil, you are cutting it close. Did I give you the wrong time?” Janam said.

“Dammit, Janam, these things take time to cook. And I made it, in any case.” He handed the basket over to Arthur. “Here. Courtesy of Janam. And me, really. I put some extra things in there as thanks for making the last few days interesting. You’re all welcome back anytime you want.”

“Is that official?” Janam asked.

“Of course it is,” Potil said.

Arthur cocked his head to the side, fishing for explanations. When none came, he just asked.

“How can good wishes be official?”

“When they represent the whole city. You didn’t know?” Janam smiled. “Potil’s the mayor.”

“What?” Arthur failed to find the words to express his surprise and picked the wrong one. “Why?”

“Because I was elected.”

“And because he cheated.”

“Breakfast sandwiches are not bribes, Janam. I explained this. It was a campaign event.”

Janam kissed her daughter on the cheek as she continued arguing with Potil, and the two faded off into the background together. Minos shook Arthur’s hand, then hugged him and Milo, before moving on to Spiky and lightly hugging him as well, mostly due to the spikes.

“Ready, Talca?” Minos said.

“Whenever they are. Take care, Minos.”

“Take care. Be safe, boys. I’ll see you in a few weeks. And take care of this one.” Minos nodded at Leena. “I’m pretty sure Janam will find you if you don’t.”