A/n: abra ka ruffra!

Howling Thunder Ch28: Getting to know them

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Father seems a bit surprised but then narrows his eyes for a moment, “Ivan, Miklos, have the watch search the nearby alleys and rooftops. The assassin may not have made it far if she was injured. Otso… you can go back to bed old bear, everyone’s fine.”

The gruff old man chuckles, “That's fine Skoll boy, I’ll just rest here for a bit. I’d like to sit in on Walther’s lesson. Since we decided to send the boy to the warfront I want to make sure he has the best training. Any random advise this old man can give could raise his chances of ending this stupid conflict earlier. That’s also less time these two buffoons lose control of the city.”

Their faces turn sour but the two other Generals say nothing.

Osto heads to the door, he smiles at Walt, bows towards mother, then simply nods at me with a sigh on his way out.

Miklos gives a proper bow, back straight as an arrow, then marches promptly out.

Ivan gives pays respects and only stops at my side near the door, “My wife told me everything. You think you can cut her off from her family, give her everything she wants like a flower headed princess and she’ll be your happy little pet? I didn’t raise someone so useless.”

Rubbing my eyes and yawning, “Not everyone has a scheme General Ivan, I don’t at least.”

He smirks, “You haven’t lived here long enough. Good day Young Lord.”

Ulfa shuts the door behind him and closes her eyes, after a moment, “They’ve left Lord Fenrir.”

Father stands from his desk and goes to the couch to sit back, “You know Ivan was such a fine commander before he got promoted… So, what really happened boy?”

He didn’t believe me at all, well he is a ruler. I start poking my nose into the cabinets of his office, I know he has some whisky stashed somewhere.

“I started a scheme… Ulfa tell them.”

She smiles and walks in front of the desk, “The would be assassin was actually a rather young girl. She was immediately captured, her shouts included…”

Ulfa puts on a terrified face, “What have you done with Lupy?!”

Not a bad impression, Ah, I found a bottle in the last book shelf by the desk!

Pouring a glass, “I can’t go about killing or torturing my new wife’s friends. She’s under a curse from Miss Ulfa, I’ll get the information we need out of her another way and let you know.”

Grandmother frowns at my wakeup method, “Just like your father, what other way?”

My throat burns, this stuff is far stronger than what they had in the den!

“Ah! Well, I’ll just scare her a bit more, have Lupa and Patra put on a little act. Apparently the bird girl’s father is involved somehow, Lupa should already know who that is.”

Mother nods, “That should be fine for now, I’ll still have Ulfy haunt the girl once your done. I won’t have someone attack my pup and go unpunished. Now put that down and go eat.”

I empty the glass and wave on my way out.

Speaking to Ulfa as I lead the way, “Have the Anubi prepare a large enough crate, tell them it's for materials I purchased for Patra. We’ll head to the craft district with the little birdy once the sun is up...I’m going back to bed.”

Looking out an archway I can see Turul castle guards soaring among rooftops. I’ve no way to know if they’re really giving their best effort or if they're also just putting on a show. I doubt all of them have it out for the wolves.

“Ulfa, what do you know about General Miklos?”

“He’s the cousin of Queen Emese, born into a military family. His sky guard has an outstanding record of public service. While some have suspected his involvement in the mischief of these young Turul, his track record makes most laugh at the idea. This is especially so if one believes the old rumors that the young captain was set on marrying Emese before their tribe offered her to the Fenrir.”

I glance back, “There’s a motive right there however.You don’t think he might want her back?”

She shakes her head, “The queen has never shown him any interest and is absolutely devoted to your father, so it was simply a young man’s dreaming. Furthermore, his family has always held the utmost pride in defending the skies of Yoden. The General is no different, I imagine Otso’s words earlier enraged Miklos far more than Ivan.”

Well, I don’t see him putting his foot down on the situation either.

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A couple hours later finds us in the carriage, once more heading to Patra’s shop. On the roof sits a long wooden crate, roughly the same size as a coffin. A few simple spears from the armory are tied to the lid to fully throw off any curious eyes. Anyone would think it just a normal delivery from some family.

Ulfa is being distracting as usual, bouncing her legs across my lap, opposite from me is Mora.

Breathing in the smell of the morning bakeries and the gentle sound of the wheels along the cobbles, I glance to Mora’s face hidden behind a book.

“What ya readin’ anyway?”

She keeps her face blocked from sight, “My Lord, it is a fairy tale.”

I poke the book cover which has a drawing of a dragon, “Just Nox… Any particular reason for this story?”

Mora doesn’t answer for a moment, then, “It’s from the north east, the evil dragon is based on my Father.”

Well, that got unpleasant fast, “Do you read a lot of such stories? I’m not sure what to think of that.”

No answer.

Ulfa sits up, “There are plenty of tales concerning her father, he was quite famous and was called many names. The stories are often exaggerated however, although not without some base of fact.”

Mora slams the book, “Mraz Zmaj! ...Papa’s name was Mraz.”

She looks at me, traces of tears in the corners of her eyes, “Lord Nox, do you want to be a hero?”

I shake my head, “No Mora, nothing good really happens to heroes in those stories anyway.”

The dragon girl nods, “They slaughter their way to fame only to be betrayed later or die of old age, fat and bald.”

“You’ve met me for only a day Mora, but do I seem like the type who wants fame, or to grow fat on a mound of gold?”

She smiles and wipes away a tear, “Papa would say a mound of gold sounds quite comfy…no, you seem more like him than a hero.”

That's not so bad to hear...I think.

Wait, “Then why do you read those stories?”

Mora opens the book back up and doesn’t answer.

Soon we arrive at Patra’s shop, Copper and the guard haul in the crate.

Just as he sets it down looks ready to complain I cut him off, “Go clean out one of your cousin’s store rooms. Nothing fancy, just push everything into the hall then place this inside and go to lunch.”

Patra asks, “Did you bring me a present? Is it to cover the fact that you were caught with another girl last night?”

She glances to Mora who goes red in the face and moves away to look at the foreign plants.

“No, we’re going to play a little trick here… where is Lupa?”

“Sleeping in.”

Her voice drips with annoyance, I ask, “That a problem?”

Patra blows a bit of hair from her face, “Not really, Copper stayed up late to finish unpacking those crates and assembling everything so I guess I just expected her to be excited to try them out this morning.”

I glance at a set of stairs near the back, “Maybe it’s fine to let it go for her first morning here. I’ll go wake her up.”

Glancing around I check if anyone is in earshot before whispering, “I’ll need some chains and a wooden cross about your height.”

She pouts, “If I’m doing the work you better let me have some fun too.”

Why not, “Fine with me, back in a moment. I’ll help you set up once Copper leaves.”

Making my way up the stairs, it only takes a moment to catch the cream girl’s scent. No decorations mark the light wooden door yet. Poking my head inside I spot a lovely figure facing away from the door under bed sheets, sunlight from the window highlights every curve. Her long blonde hair spills out from the blanket near the pillows, I can hear her soft breathing.

The room probably isn’t as big as what she had at home, but something makes me guess she’s happy with it. A large, unfinished tapestry hangs across an entire wall. A stool with thread on it marks where she left off. Turquoise blues, cool greens and sand white create what can already be recognised as a beach. An island maybe, was she working on this late last night?

A lantern sits on a white wood dresser with the candle burned quite low.

I walk back out, there’s no rush.

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A/n: See ya in the Comments! that break in the middle is a spot i'll separate chapters eventually.

got to play a character in a D&D styled one shot last night based on Trump, super hilarious. Odu Trumpunaga, he'll make japan great again. he's gonna build a wall, and CHina is gonna pay for it. yes, I was the bad guy.

We at 55k word count, my target is 90 for the first book. If i hit the end of this arc too fast i'll have to add more flavor here and there but its looking pretty good so far.