Aggie grumbled as she towel dried her hair while wearing a plain linen chemise, and a silk shrug over her shoulders.

Head Maid Trudy had swiped her clothes before she realized what was happening, and had whisked them away from her grasp.

The clever woman had removed all of Aggie’s male clothes in order to force her into a gown for the feast- on the Minkies Queen’s orders.

She had left her room in a fowl mood as Trudy, Bonnie, and the Queen debated amongst themselves which color and cut would best suit her. Despite the Minkies Queen living a savage lifestyle for years, she seemed to keep tabs on the trends for style thanks to the trips to market places over the years. Though Aggie briefly wondered why the woman lived like a barbarian when she seemed perfectly comfortable in the role of respected kinswoman.

As she huffed down the hallway, Aggie found herself entering the library she hadn’t revisited since her first day waking up.

It was quieter than the rest of the house, and the plants atop the bookcases added a cheery atmosphere to the musty tomes.

Distracted from her previous ire, Aggie began strolling down shelves, running her fingers along the spines of some beloved works she remembered reading at home.

She stopped when she saw a particularly interesting book, and pulled it off the shelf for further inspection.

Mindlessly, she wandered around the shelves until she was before 2 plush armchairs situated under a window with a table in between them. A hidden reading cove, that sported a particular Minkies man in its midst.

Aggie jumped when she caught sight of Keynan’s boot, and took several steps back clasping the book to her chest.

Keynan cocked an eyebrow, as he stared back at her, his feet stretched out in front of him, and a book with a green cover in his hands.

“It would seem you have found my hiding place.” Keynan said slowly closing the book and resting it on his chest. He seemed to recognize the shifty response from his guest, and he made no move to adjust his lounging position, and thus appeared all the more harmless.

Being alone with a man that wasn’t Arlen still wasn’t a comfortable moment for the Lady since her trip on the ship.

“You read?” Aggie blurted out awkwardly, the book still pressed to her chest.

“Yes. Whenever I can. It is one of my absolute favorite pass times. Unfortunately, I only get to partake when we come here…” Keynan gently clasped his hands in his lap as he stared around the room.

“Why do you live with the tribe in the mountains instead of staying here then?”

If Keynan found her bluntness rude, he made no mention of it.

“There are some things that are more important.” He smiled a little before returning his gaze to Aggie.

While at the Keep, the Minkies man had begun to grow out his facial hair, and Aggie could see while his hair was a pale brown with blonde, his beard carried similar tones of red as his children’s own hair.

“Why do the Minkies own a place like this?”

“For times like these Lady Beatha. At times, when we interfere in matters to adjust the balance of the world, we need to hide in plain sight.”

“I am not a Lady.” Aggie’s mood turned black, but unlike the maids and Arlen who would be sent scampering at her obvious shift of attitude at being called by a title, Keynan smiled again.

“I’m afraid it isn’t that simple to denounce.”

Aggie let out a small growl, but decided she had more questions, and Keynan had always been the Minkies whom was the most forthcoming.

“Why is it there is a Minkies Queen but no King?”

“There usually is, however I was not born in the tribe, therefore I can never be King.”

Aggie blinked in surprise.

“What do you mean?”

“I was born here. I was the young Master of this Keep before I met the Minkies and joined them. I donated the home to them for whatever uses they deemed fit assuming they took care of the families on the land.”

Aggie was completely flabbergasted by the information, and took another minute to digest it.

“If it’s yours, why does the Queen run it?”

“Because she is my Queen. She is a Queen before she is a mother, a wife, or even a woman. That is her duty.”

Aggie once again fell silent.

“Why would you leave all of this…? This is a wonderful home, what-”

“That is a long story Lady Beatha. I am sorry to say, that I do not like sharing my story with many.” Keynan bowed his head in apology.

Aggie tried to process the information in her mind, and tried to think of another question before he dismissed her entirely.

“Lady Beatha, I have a question of my own for you.”

“Shit. I should have asked faster…”Aggie lamented silently.

“Why did you turn your back on a life of peace and prosperity in exchange for revenge and war?”

For some reason the question angered Aggie, though she wasn’t entirely sure why.

“There is too much wrong in the world… too much injustice. I have to make those responsible pay for their crimes.” She answered uncomfortably.

“I see…Well, if you will pardon me, as I’ve said, I do not get much time to read quietly, and would like to resume the act. If you’d like to read beside me that is quite alright.”

Aggie slowly stepped forward, and seated herself beside Keynan, then opened up the bright red cover of the book she had selected slowly.

After a few minutes ticked by, the young woman slowly began to relax into the soft armchair, and find comfort in the silence save for the turning pages.

“By the way my Lady, if my mate comes in here looking for you, I will throw you to the wolves in order to preserve my own peace.”

“Likewise.” Aggie mumbled.

“Last I checked however, the Queen wasn’t trying to pick out a nice dress for me.”

As if on cue, the library door opened, and Aggie stared pleadingly at Keynan.

“She’s here reading love!” Keynan called out without raising his gaze from his book.

Aggie’s look of incredulity went unnoticed as the Queen appeared from between the shelves.

“Ah Aggie, if you could come with me, we have narrowed down your choices.”

The Queen stood and waited as Aggie slowly rose, and trudged to her side heavily.

When the Minkies ruler wasn’t looking, Aggie shot Keynan a glare that would’ve frozen a boiling pot of water.

Keynan responded by smiling and waving farewell, before turning once again to his book.

*

The dining room was laid with gleaming silverware, platters of roasts, vegetables, and bottles of wine. It was a feast worthy of a King, which would be eaten by peasants and criminals, side by side.

The large rectangular room bore red tapestries depicting unicorns and Fey lounging in the mystical world of Tara, and Beast Fey mingling with humans and Fey alike. A fire blazed in a large stone fireplace, and candles were lit in fixtures above their heads, heating the room considerably. Two of the local farmers brought their lute and fiddle, and the Head Maid Trudy pulled out a small harp. The 3 of them sang softly together in the background, aiding to the magical sense of the evening. Trudy’s voice was remarkably clear and pure despite her age and appearance, and its refined tones somehow worked with the slight rasp of her accompaniments.

Everyone but the guest of honor stood near the base of the grand staircase that no one seemed to use save for that particular evening.

The Minkies Queen wore a deep blue velvet dress with gold cording, her hair swept back with a string of pearls, allowing the rest of her locks to cascade down her back. Bonnie wore a pale green silk gown with a scooped neck, and sleeves that came to points above her hands, her shoulder length hair brushed soft, was also left to hang loosely around her face, with a gold circlet placed atop her head.

The men wore fine white silk tunics, and dashing coats of black, blue, and in Arlen’s case, burgundy. Tork was the only one allowed to wear his daily attire- due to his height and width surpassing most men and Beast Awares.

Aggie had been coaxed and threatened into a velvet red gown that dipped low near her breasts, and its heavy skirts hung at her hips. She had been able to be persuaded more easily to sport a golden comb encrusted with rubies and pearls drawing back the left side of her lengthening hair, and a gold ring on her middle finger was the last she was willing to allow before she had shooed everyone out from her chamber with some choice cuss words.

When Aggie looked at herself in the mirror, she had blinked in surprise. It was the first time she could truly see how she had changed since she had last looked at herself in her dress in Sean O’Farrell’s Keep.

Her face had become more angular and less childish, her body overall looked more toned, her hair appeared as rebellious as she felt, but what was strange to her was that she somehow seemed much older. She felt as though she had truly grown into… well, a woman.

When Aggie descended the proper main staircase down to the banquet room, everyone cheered at the bottom. Even the maids with their husbands had been invited in between serving, and whistled in excitement.

For the first time in a long time, Aggie felt a little bit like nobility, and she found the experience somehow now felt foreign.

The Queen said if it weren’t for trying to maintain her being alive a secret, she would have invited every tenant under her protection, but Aggie was plenty overwhelmed with the 20 some odd people present.

She found it odd that anyone would consider her special at all…

When Aggie’s foot touched the floor, Arlen stepped forward from the crowd, and bowed while offering his hand.

A scowl began to rise on her face, but one glimpse of one of the young maids staring at her in awe made her stop, and instead take his hand with a far more passive expression that the one she had almost shown.

It took her a moment of being escorted to her seat for her to realize, that the reason her heart was pounding in her ribcage, was because it was the first time she had allowed someone to touch her since being saved.

Aggie stared at Arlen’s calloused hand gently holding her own rough one, and felt a familiar tug from an invisible thread in her that at the slightest hint of resistance, made her feel a tinge of nausea in her stomach.

With all the grace of an aristocrat, Arlen pushed Aggie’s chair in once she had been seated, and then took his place on her left side.

The food was delicious, and Aggie didn’t feel any pressure to talk, as everyone around her seemed to be conversing without any difficulty.

When the meal was finished and the maids were set back to work to bring out dessert, the Queen stood with a goblet in her hand.

“What is to come is more pain, grief, blood, and trouble. However, for tonight, we will appreciate this moment of joy and peace to be amongst true friends. People who will risk their well-beings for one another, and whom collectively will work towards making the world better for our children and grandchildren. To the safe return of Aggie Beatha, whom has brought light to us all, and I’m sure she will continue to drive this slow moving world forwards.” The Queen toasted and everyone drank deeply from their wine goblets.

Aggie didn’t place her goblet down when everyone else did, however.

She drained her cup, then refilled it promptly.

Everyone pretended not to notice, and continued on with their meals, deciding that the night didn’t need to end in a fight that may or may not become violent.

Eventually the table was cleared, and dancing was starting between some of the guests, while others stood chatting over small cups of brandy.

Aggie still wasn’t used to seeing the Minkies in such a civilized setting, and felt herself run up a tab of questions she intended to pry out of Keynan next time she cornered him in the library.

She was nursing her 5th glass of red wine, while sitting against the shadowed wall, when she felt the spinning sensation suddenly remind her of the last time she had drank.

For a few gut clenching moments she could smell the torches and perfumes from the crowd of nobilities surrounding her in the cage. Could feel her stomach fall through the floor at the sight of her mother…

As quietly as possible, Aggie exited the stifling hot room, and followed the passage down until the kitchens, where she saw another bottle of wine open on the large table in the middle of the room.

She grabbed it without hesitation, and headed out into the cool night air.

Stepping past the gardens and pens, until she was on a grassy slope under the brilliantly clear night sky, Aggie became aware that she had adapted to wearing a gown rather quickly again as she stepped in long graceful strides despite her heavy skirts.

That was where her expression of decorum then ended, as she breathed in the sharp cold air, and in a most unladylike manner, squatted down on the grass with the bottle of wine to her lips, then fell back onto the cold dewy lawn.

After a few minutes of blissful silence, Aggie heard the unmistakable heavy footfalls of Tork.

“For fucks’ sake.” She muttered with a slur before taking another deep drink from the bottle.

“I heard that, Lady.” Tork with a grunt seated himself beside Aggie, his orange yellow eyes glowing in the night.

Aggie didn’t respond, only continued staring up at the sky quietly.

“I heard you got into a bit of a fight with your Servicer there.” He said casually, turning his own face up to the heavens.

“An thas’ your problem because…?” Aggie grumbled then rolled over to her side.

“Because we’re all worried about you, Aggie.”

“Please,” She began giggling coldly. “I can’t die, what’s to worry ‘bout?”

“You got lucky once Beatha, I wouldn’t keep betting that you always will be.” Aggie closed her eyes, and hoped that he would just leave her alone.

“Beatha, did I ever tell you about how I became a Magee fighter?”

“Sure.”

“Listen you brat, I won’t repeat it ever again. I’m only telling you now because it might help, or there is a better chance you will completely forget by tomorrow morning.”

Aggie let out an annoyed sigh.

“For the first 10 years of my life, I was raised as a common pig.”

Aggie opened her eyes slowly, and then took her time sitting up.

“My father was a mean drunk farmer, and my mother well… wrong place wrong time. She was a slave for most of her life in the Southern Kingdom, treated as little more than a pig who could carry feed and lumber. She was Beast Fey, and couldn’t speak, but harmless as could be. When he realized I was born, and I was not… another pig, but from his own buggery, he slaughtered my mother, and ate her.”

Aggie’s jaw dropped and she whipped her head to stare at Tork horrified.

“I was only 2 at the time, but had started repeating words. He couldn’t bring himself to kill something that could speak I suppose, because instead of doing away with me, he sold me. I was treated much like my mother had been in the new place, only I could also handle more complicated farming tasks. I was sold again for a much higher price, but it was the Magee who found me. I have been with Declan and the others ever since. I eventually met my wife during the war, and as you know have created a comfortable life for myself since then.”

Aggie’s eyes were cast to the ground, her mouth clamped shut.

“Agnes Beatha, you will recover from this. If I was able to survive 10 years and do better for myself, you can as well. I know you’re angry, and hurt, and you have a right to be.” He said shortly, then added;

“Go easy on Arlen though. He did everything in his power to get you, even pulling you back from death. Before getting angry at people, maybe ask yourself if they truly deserve it.”

Aggie slowly raised her eyes with a far calmer and less hostile gaze than before.

Tork slowly stood back up, and retreated to the Keep, leaving Aggie alone with her thoughts.

It was perhaps only another 15 minutes later that the almost inaudible footfalls of Arlen reached her ears.

“I thought I’d been so stealthy leaving the banquet.”

“Inebriated people often think they are more inconspicuous than they truly are.” He replied evenly, seating himself beside her.

“You will get sick if you stay out here much longer.”

“Good. Then maybe I can sleep.” Aggie murmured feeling the heaviness of her eyes begin to take her away.

“Is it the nightmares that keep you awake?” Arlen asked his tone deceptively light.

“That… and being alone.”

Aggie felt rather than saw his head turn towards her.

“I had a friend on the boat… and she… well she is why I lasted as long as I did. If I woke up screaming she was there, and would talk to me until I could sleep again. In the quiet I can’t…”

“-Can’t stop thinking about it all?”

“Yeah.”

Aggie’s breaths began soft, and softer, until it was abundantly apparent that she was passed out on the grass, and Arlen was staring up at the unimaginable number of stars in his sight.

He turned to look at Aggie’s sleeping face with a heavy heart, and reached over to gently stroke strands of hair from her mouth.

With a sigh that left his body in a plume of vapor, Arlen picked Aggie up, and carried her back to the Keep, up the stairs, and to her chamber.

He lay her on the bed, drew the covers up to her chin, removed the comb from her hair, and turned to leave when he felt her hand grasp his.

“Please stay.” Her voice was the only sound in the quiet chilled room.

“I can sleep in the chair if you’d like.” Arlen began to try and take his hand back.

“No… beside me.”

He froze.

“Aggie I-”

“Please?”

The word was weak, yet filled with such feeling it struck him deeply.

With a slow exhale, and his heart banging against his chest, Arlen slowly took off his boots, and as carefully as possible, while still holding her hand, clamored over her sleeping form to her side.

Aggie lifted the quilt over him, and rolled to her side so that they were practically nose-to-nose.

“You’re going to scream at me in the morning aren’t you?” Arlen asked trying to calm his heart down, that was becoming quite erratic for some reason.

“Mmmmhm.”

“Should I leave now?”

“I’ll scream at you now then.” She smiled with her eyes still closed, and there was a small coiled part of Arlen that felt suddenly relieved.

She made a joke with him again.

She’d smiled.

She was drunk beyond belief, but it was something…

To him it was a sign that Aggie Beatha was still in there, and was still willing to fight to come back to the light.

Arlen felt a gnawing sense of dread in himself- despite the show of affection from his Mistress.

He worried he wouldn’t be strong enough to be there how she needed him for her journey back to herself.

That he wouldn’t be able to connect with her and stay with her through the overwhelming rough times.

He knew most Servicer’s were able to do so easily, and without a second thought.

However, he knew they did so out of a sense of duty to a job. He doubted that most Servicer’s took their task of minding their Mistress’ as emotionally tough.

He also knew, what his mother had said to him so many times before, was true.

He was not like most Servicers.

No one else needed extra help becoming flawless in their recollection of their lessons.

No one else lost control of their emotions in front of their Masters and Mistresses.

This all left him wondering; was it Agnes Beatha who inspired such change in people, or was it that he was never normal to begin with?