“Terrible?” Nina asked with a frown. How bad could it really be? It was Svanda’s own family if what Trim had said was correct, so why would she of all people come out worse for wear?

“They looked… gaunt,” Aline replied with a shrug. “Don’t ask me why, they never tell us anything besides the fact that we were lucky not to go. We asked the first time, and we asked the next time too. Not that they visit every time we’re here, far from it, but after a while we just stopped asking. No point when you already know what the response will be.”

“Deflection,” Nina guessed.

“Yup,” Jade nodded. “It’s not impossible to find out anything about the clan, but details about what goes on outside of the public sphere are scant at best. There are always people who are willing to talk about the Daerx Clan over ale in the tavern, but they’re never people of any significance. It’s always a miner, a tailor, or perhaps even a trader who once set up shop over there, but that’s it. Even if you scrape together a few tidbits on how they’re tough negotiators or how they’re unfriendly towards outsiders, what goes on behind closed doors is still largely a mystery.”

“I’d be willing to bet that Reina and Svanda will be stepping behind more than just one door too,” Aline added.

“Guaranteed,” Jade replied with a sigh as she leaned back into the seat, crossing one leg over the other before folding her arms. “We don’t even know how Svanda is tied to the clan either, besides that she is truly from the Daerx Clan and not just one of the branch families. It’s significant weight to throw around if she wanted to, but she doesn’t even tell anyone. She obviously hasn’t been disowned considering that she can still go back there, but my guess is that they don’t receive her very well either. Whatever the problem is, we don’t know. One thing’s for sure though, Svanda doesn’t like going to see them and neither does Reina.”

“Or Trim,” Aline added.

“At least she doesn’t go with them anymore,” Jade replied before turning to Nina. “She stopped going a while ago, and she also seems intent on keeping it that way. Reina was pushy about it at first, but it’s just normal now. I’m sure she’d take Trim if she wanted to go, but I don’t see it happening.”

“You could ask her about it if you want,” Aline said before glancing out the window to see that the car was pulling up beside the house. “At your own risk though. You certainly didn’t hear anything from us, alright?”

Nina nodded before Aline opened the door, stepping out before holding it open for them. The weather hadn’t changed much since yesterday, although Nina did note the humidity in the breeze that drifted down the street. It wasn’t raining at least, although the ever-present mass of clouds above them constantly threatened to do so like a temperamental deity. No tantrum for now though, thankfully, and the three of them made it inside before the storm could change its mind. Ignoring the ground floor which Nina had guessed was largely a storage area, the three moved up to the living area before throwing their shoes in a heap by the couch and settling down around the room.

“How was it?” Trim asked, her back still turned to them as she sat at the dining table with a laptop open. Her hair wasn’t tied up, which was surprising, although she did wear one of her usual tracksuits. Nina noted both her bare feet and the couple of empty soda cans beside her with a raised eyebrow, but decided not to comment on the uncharacteristic decisions. Jade would do it if it was appropriate, so if she didn’t then Nina should almost certainly take a leaf from the same book.

“It was alright,” Jade mused as she flopped down on the couch. “Got what she needed at least. Thought we’d wait for opinions about dinner before we committed to anything though. Don’t know if Reina will be back yet either.”

Trim murmured some kind of reply, but Nina didn’t catch it. Instead she strolled over to the kitchen before pouring herself a glass of water, thankful that Terminus had decent plumbing. Areinis hadn’t been terrible, but Moonglass Isle was a significant downgrade from the Fire Fountain. Zaffre’s wasn’t that much better when it came to water quality either, while both were better than the Badlands. How something as basic as clean and cold water on tap impressed her these days was somewhat amusing, and she was comforted by the fact that the worst of it was over. Caecus had more than adequate infrastructure, while they wouldn’t be spending any more time than necessary at the Skywall. After that, her first tour would be complete and she would be safe to hole up in The Cloud Orchestra offices for as long as she needed. Reina wouldn’t be dragging her away from her bed anytime soon once she got there, that was for sure.

Maybe not Euris levels of hiding away, but not far from it either.

“Where’s Saela?” Aline asked as she took a seat beside Jade, placing her feet up before resting back against her shoulder. “In bed?”

“No idea,” Trim replied with a shrug. “Haven’t seen her this morning, you could always go and check if you want to.”

“Nah,” Aline said with a shake of her head. “I’ll leave her until Reina gets back.”

Nina watched as Trim went back to her work before glancing over at Jade and Aline, the two resting against each other on the sofa. No space for her here, it seemed, but she was happy for the opportunity to slip away for a bath. A problem that she had quickly learned with The Cloud Orchestra was that there wasn’t exactly a lot of time to spend in the bathrooms while they were away from the office. While on tour they had to share one or two showers unlike their own rooms in Luem, and even if there was a bath there was never time to use it. Mornings and evenings were practically peak hour traffic when there were so many people flying about. A quiet afternoon was just about the only time she would ever get, and she certainly wasn’t about to pass it up.

Maybe being the boss wasn’t so bad after all. At least Reina usually got her own ensuite.

Entering the bathroom that she shared with Jade and Aline, Nina opened the taps to the small ceramic tub before stepping back out into the hall. The mention of a ‘spare bedroom’ upon their arrival had been music to her ears, and for what felt like the millionth time she silently thanked Jade and Aline for their habit of sharing a room. Noticing that Saela’s door was open, she shrugged to herself before poking her head inside. An empty bed and some scattered clothing sat in the corner of the room in an answer to Aline’s earlier question, but Nina was unconcerned as she instead continued down the hall before ducking into her own room. It wasn’t much of a sight with only a single bed and practically nothing else, but it was soon joined by Nina’s latest shopping purchases before she returned to the bath.

It wasn’t the largest bath that sat in the small white room, but at least it filled quickly. Checking the water temperature and finding it satisfactory, her attention turned to her own reflection in the mirror as she waited for it to fill. She’d seen better days, that was for sure. Her thin black hair which she had constantly kept hovering above her collar on Caecus looked worn, its usual shine nowhere to be seen while it also now brushed against her shoulders. A few days outside on Areinis had done little to fix her pale complexion, but she didn’t mind. It suited her attempt to look somewhat icy, she thought, but the darkness around her eyes was beginning to suggest that she was a tad more irritable than she would have liked. Not a great look when they were supposed to be meeting people, but there was only so much she could do.

Pushing her lacklustre appearance to the side, Nina stripped off without ceremony before slipping into the bath. The warmth of the water quickly enveloped her, and a contented sigh escaped her lips as she eased backwards. She’d needed this, probably more for her mentality than anything else, and so she soon set about emptying her mind in favour of the pleasant sensation. Here, there was nothing to worry about. No Ormain, no Rucille, no Reina to put her to work, and no Saela to deal with either. Right now her life was about being inside a box of plain white tiles, a locked door and a wall of water separating her from the outside world. After stretching her toes and then rolling her shoulders, Nina allowed herself to sink downwards, waiting for her chin to touch the water’s surface before tilting her head back so that her ears dipped below the surface.

Closing her eyes as the world turned silent, a small smile crept onto Nina’s lips.