Nory.

I tried to not think about the wonderful thing Vim had brought up as I walked into Brandy's office. She gestured for me to shut the door behind me, and as I did I pretended I also shut out the thoughts of my daughter, her possible name, and Vim's lovely method at trying to be a better man all outside, with the rest of the world.

I needed to focus. Or at least, attempt to.

"How've you been Renn?" Brandy asked as I stepped deeper into her office, over to her desk where she sat.

"Fine?" I answered, unsure why she'd even ask.

"Really…?" Brandy gave me an odd look as she nodded, and I realized why she was likely asking.

I cried a few hours ago. Although only Merit had actually seen me do so, other than Vim, I undoubtedly had a face of proof when others had shown up. Red eyes and whatnot. They had noticed, and thus there were now rumors going around that I had likely wept. I wonder who had spread such rumors already…? Merit wouldn't have, especially since I had explained to her why I had been crying in the first place.

I'd of course not had cried from grief or pain, but rather just… happiness. Or maybe even shock, possibly. It was one thing for Vim to talk about our daughter, our prophesized one, it was another thing completely for him to do so in such a… lovely way. Vim had lately been mentioning that he had, and would, try to be more open with me… to be better when it came to putting aside his own hate and such, but this was the first time it was so obvious and well intentioned! He had indeed been getting better, but that had likely been the greatest step, and proof, of his commitment to me I'd received. Even if just a simple thing, it meant a lot to me.

It was the same as him confirming he'd not only do nothing to stop or impede such a prophecy from coming true, he was actually expectant and happy for it. For him to actually consider what we'd name her… Even I hadn't even thought of such a thing. Though I admit that I'd been trying not to think too deeply about my soon-to-be daughter, since I hadn't wanted to risk it. I didn't just want to not risk Vim's ire, I also didn't want to risk the girl herself. I knew, rather well, that a saint's prophecy could be wrong... or could go wrong. So in fear of ruining the one about my daughter, I'd been trying to not draw too much attention to it. As if to protect and shield it... not just from Vim, but everything and everyone.

Then Vim goes and does such a thing...! He's lucky, or unlucky, he'd revealed his thoughts to me in such a way and at such a place... otherwise who knows what I would have done...

"You sure you're fine…?" Brandy then asked, and I didn't need to wonder this time at why she was asking such a thing. I had a huge smile on my face, and I knew it likely looked a little silly. Especially here and now in this moment.

"I'm fine. Just happy," I said as I glanced at the nearby chair in front of her desk. Judging by the angle of it, someone had been sitting in it before I arrived. Whenever Brandy got up and left her office she always re-arranged the chairs to their proper spots, and it was slightly angled away from her desk right now. Who would sit in it in such a way to make it angle, though, I wonder?

"That's good…" Brandy said, and I noted the tone of her voice. She wasn't sure what to think of me at the moment. But what was I going to say? Although happy about Vim's growth, I also wasn't much in the mood to share it with anyone. It was… private, I think. Though maybe not, since I had happily told Merit all about it. And I'll likely tell Lilly too, once I see her.

"So, how can I help?" I asked, getting to the point. Sofia had asked me to come see her, since Brandy had something she wanted to ask me.

Brandy nodded. "Vim's recent request. I was wondering if you'd like to be the one to handle it?" she asked.

Request…? "About the rumors…?" I asked. How was I supposed to handle that? Possibly just… going around town and talking to people, maybe? I'd probably be okay with that, I suppose. Though it'd be sad to waste time on such a thing instead of spending my last handful of hours here with my friends.

She frowned at me as she leaned back a little in her chair. "Rumors? No. The more important one," she said.

Important one…? "Sorry, I don't know what you mean," I said. As far as I was aware the only request Vim had given to anyone lately was concerning the rumors for monarchs and gods. So he could address them, or track them down. Supposedly he had used such a process before to great success, way back in the day.

Brandy sighed. "So he hasn't told you. Did he not mention at all the young girl he saved?" he asked.

Slowly shaking my head, I wondered what she could possibly be talking about.

Brandy's eyes narrowed a bit as she studied me. "On purpose, or is this just Vim's indifference…?" she mumbled.

"What are you talking about?" I asked, a little upset she didn't just come out and say it.

She gently nodded as she gestured to her desk. As usual it was slightly cluttered, but it seemed she was pointing at a small satchel and a letter she'd likely just finished. "Vim rescued a young girl while dealing with a monarch on his way back here. He asked me to send her some money, and possibly invite her to work for the guild. I was just wondering if you'd like to be the one to handle it? We're busy right now, and it's only a day away at your pace. I figured Vim could even go with you, since he's not really busy at the moment," Brandy asked.

Oh!? "He saved a young girl…?" I asked. He in fact had not mentioned this at all to me. I wonder why?

"Someone named Mistle. He took her to family, extended family, and something must have made him worry about her because… well…" Brandy shrugged lightly as she gestured again at the letter and satchel.

"Because he'd not have asked for such a thing otherwise," I said, nodding in agreement.

"Mhm… I'd deal with it myself, but I'll not be able to leave for months thanks to an upcoming council meeting with Thraxton. Not to mention Light and her schemes causing issues, to say the least, and honestly I think I might have a small issue with asking anyone else to do it. Recently Gerald brought in some kids, and now there's a small sentiment amongst everyone here that we should put a stop to allowing in humans. I can't fault them, we've tripled the human member population in less as many years, but still…" Brandy said with a sigh.

Huh…? "Wait…" I frowned as I put together what she was saying. Those here, the non-human members of the Society, were upset at the number of newly recruited human members?

"No one faults you, Renn. As I said, Gerald just brought in a bunch himself. In a way you can say it's his fault. He pushed everyone's sentiments over the ledge."

That didn't make me much feel better. "Wait so… when you say help someone, and bring them here to work… you mean actually let them join the Society? Not just… giving them a job, or whatever?" I asked for clarification.

"Of course…? If someone requests a human to be given help, it's usually because they did something to deserve it. Either by helping us, or being a friend to one of us. Why would we not make such people members?" she asked, as if it was obvious.

I hadn't realized that at all! So that was why Roslyn, Lamp and the rest are considered members… here I had thought it had been because of Vim's actions, since he had allowed Lamp to meet me without my tail and ears hidden. Because she had realized it, and it was his way of keeping her alive! But maybe he had simply hastened what was already in motion… same with that pirate he had brought back with him, that Ronalldo…

"He did say I can just send her some money, but that's usually more harm than not. He knows it, which is why he asked me to find a spot for her here. I think I'm going to put her in the bank, you know… since we're somewhat short on members there now," Brandy said lightly.

Right… because Herra was gone. She had been one of the supervisors for the bank.

"Okay… I don't mind. Even if Vim is busy, I'd be more than happy to go see her and offer her a position here," I said, deciding before anyone else could for me.

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

Brandy smirked at that. "Really? Good! Vim can give you better directions, I'm sure, but here's his original letter with all the information about her he gave me," Brandy said as she reached over to grab a letter. I took it, and was a little surprised to find Vim's handwriting. It wasn't often I got to see it.

"This is the money, which you can give her no matter her decision. But if you can, try your best to convince her to join us. More often than not any humans we give such funds to, for one reason or another, end up losing it all or dying because of their newfound wealth. Particularly the younger ones," Brandy said as she handed me the satchel of coins.

I didn't peek into the coin purse, but I did study its weight for a moment. It was a small pouch, but heavy. A little too heavy.

Were there gold coins inside…?

"I'll go find Vim, and then leave today if I can," I said. I was a little worried about leaving, since Light had seemed to think she'd return to find us here. It made me believe she had a prophecy concerning us being here for when she came back, and I didn't want to risk that if I could keep myself from doing so.

"Thank you. If you can convince her to return, I'll put her under Sofia. So I'll let her know to expect the girl," Brandy said.

Good. Sofia was not just a calm person, and didn't hate humans, she also had been a mother herself. Many times over. She'd know how to properly handle a younger girl.

"Got it," I said as I nodded. I folded away Vim's letter and tucked it into one of my pockets, but didn't do the same for the coin purse just yet. "And that letter?" I asked to the one she'd been pointing at earlier.

"No need for it now. Was going to send it to her with our mail carriers if no one was willing to go themselves. You're going, so," Brandy said with a shrug.

Ah. Right. "What if the girl isn't able to read?" I asked. I'd been wondering that myself, back when I had spent a few days working in the mailroom I had wondered how that worked. Several people had paid for letters that I had written for them, or someone else had, since they themselves hadn't been capable of doing so.

"The mail carriers will read it to them, if they want. Most people just take it to someone they trust though, a lot of folks don't trust the carriers enough just yet. Which is funny, since they carry the letter for who knows how long… humans," Brandy said with a smile.

I see… that meant any carrier had to be capable of reading and writing. Interesting. I mean, it made sense… and the orphanages in the Society did in fact teach the children at them such things, but… hm…

"What're you thinking now?" Brandy then asked, likely noticing my thoughts.

"Was just wondering how hard it is to teach a child how to read and write is all," I said as I thought of Nory.

For a few long moments the office was quiet, so I glanced up and away from the letters on the desk to find Brandy smirking happily at me.

Oh. Woops.

"Don't tease me," I said with a groan.

"I won't. Get going, if you dally too long you won't get there before the sunrise which means you'll have to waste half a day waiting for them to wake and not scare you off when you knock on their door. The humans at those smaller port towns don't like being bothered until after sunrise," Brandy said.

"Right… Thanks for letting me know, Brandy, Vim's always so forgetful," I said as I turned to leave.

"Sometimes, yes," Brandy said.

Leaving her office, I shifted the bag of coins in my hand as I wondered why I suddenly felt… tired.

I wasn't tired. In fact I had been getting really good sleep lately, since we got back here. And before walking into Brandy's office I had felt somewhat giddy and excited, not just because she had summed me for help but because I had still been so happy over what Vim had said and done a few hours ago. Now though…? Even thinking of what Vim had done, I still suddenly felt…

Slowing to a stop, near the end of the hallway, I frowned as I realized what was bothering me.

Brandy's comments about Vim were what had made me realize it. But was I right? Or was I just misunderstanding?

Staring at the bag of coins in my hand, I felt my tail squirm beneath my pants. Brandy's office wasn't in the housing area, but instead where the humans could get to. Just like Gerald's. So I had hidden my traits, though now I wished I hadn't. My ears too wanted to flutter something fierce.

Surely this wasn't some scheme, was it…? Had she actually just pushed this onto me on purpose…?

I had a hard time believing no one would do this if asked, especially if the girl was only a day or so away from here. Plus, why couldn't one of the human members handle it too? We had several ships that sailed around the port cities all nearby; any one of them could have delivered this money or the invitation just as easily…

Maybe she thought by doing this I'd stay here longer? Or maybe she hoped I would want to then live here in Lumen, since I'd latch onto all the humans…? It seemed like such a stretch to think so, since it should just be her asking me to handle Vim's little request. Who wouldn't ask the wife to handle something the husband needed done? But something about the way she had brought it up…

Though maybe I was reading too deeply into it. Maybe Brandy just felt Vim's request was that important.

Sighing softly, I decided to not think about it. Brandy has been acting off ever since Light returned, so maybe I was just seeing something else. It genuinely felt weird to think someone would scheme in such a way… but I mean…

I bit the inside of my lip as I thought of what I had overheard Brandy and Gerald talking about, before I'd left with Light to the Bell Church. I had been trying my best to not think about it, to the point it was almost sad even for me, but… maybe I should.

Maybe I should bring it up to Vim. I hadn't yet, for multiple reasons. The main one was… it hurt to acknowledge that people were treating me differently, if not outright doing things entirely, thanks to prophecies about me. Then of course, since it was related to a prophecy… I didn't want to bring it up to Vim since he'd grow upset over it. And likely not in a good way.

Honestly I hadn't experienced yet what Vim was like when it came to prophecies, at least in the way most others would know. Many people have told me, and claimed, that Vim got very… odd, if not irate, when told about prophecies without warning or permission. And he was known to outright defy them, going so far as to break them intentionally if he could.

If I told him that Brandy and the rest had likely voted to banish me, if only in part, because of a prophecy… I had no idea what he'd actually do about it.

Yet at the same time…

"Rennalee!"

I looked up, but hadn't needed to look up too high. Merit hurried over, smiling up at me as she did.

"Hey Merit," I greeted my friend, and was glad to see she didn't have that weird smirk on her face anymore. She had teased me a bit about crying over Vim's suggestion of naming my daughter Nory, after my dear friend. She had done so nicely, but I was glad she didn't seem intent on doing it anymore. I wasn't in the mood to grin and wiggle and laugh, I was slightly upset.

"What's wrong?" Merit asked as she glanced past me, as if to find the source of my discomfort.

"I've been given a task. From Brandy," I said.

My little friend's little eyes narrowed on my hand, which held the bag of coins. "Task…?"

"She asked me to go see and meet the girl he saved. Mistle. To invite her into the company, and Society," I said.

Her eyes narrowed a bit. "The human girl. Whose family had been eaten by the monarch," she said, understanding.

I nodded.

"Didn't he take her to other family members…?" she asked.

"He had. But he had asked Brandy to get her a position here. You know how Vim is," I said.

"No, Renn. I do know. He'd not have asked that normally. You're infecting him with your kindness," Merit said with a sigh.

Although I knew she had been genuine with her sigh, as if exasperated over the idea of Vim being so kind to a random stranger, I couldn't help but smirk in pride and joy. "I hope so," I said. Honestly I felt Vim has, and had, always been kind, I just don't think most of our members ever realized it for one reason or another. Or maybe they simply didn't wish to.

"Hm…" Merit frowned though as she tilted her head and pondered for a moment. Then she grimaced and made a "Tsk," sound.

"Merit?

"She's trying to manipulate you, Renn," Merit said.

Ah. Gosh… for her to have realized it so quickly…

"Is. Is that really what she's doing…?" I asked, worried again.

"You don't see it?" Merit asked.

"I do! That's the problem! I was hoping it wasn't what I thought it was," I said.

Merit nodded. "Right… you're too good of a person, Renn, really. Yes. She knows full well of your affection for humans. Particularly the ones you or Vim end up tending to. She's a schemer, Renn, just like Light and the rest. One of the worst, in fact."

Great. "Are you saying I shouldn't do this…? But Vim really did want to help the girl," I said.

Merit gave me another frown. "I'm not saying that… I'm just saying it's obvious what Brandy's hoping for. She's hoping you'll latch onto the girl and bring her back, and thus keep you here because of it. I bet she'll continue to try again and again too, once it doesn't work," Merit said.

I sighed at the situation, and wondered if I should just… ignore it all. Maybe I should just focus on what I want, and what makes me happy.

"Have you seen Vim? I'd like to talk to him about it," I asked.

"He was with Lawrence a little bit ago. In his office."

I nodded and went to head that way. It was near the main entrance, not far from where Reatti usually was. "What were you doing?" I asked as she went to walking alongside me.

"Heard Brandy had called for you. Wanted to make sure you weren't getting wrapped up in something stupid," Merit said.

"Too late," I said with a smirk.

Merit nodded and sighed at me. "Always am…"

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