Chapter 250: She speaks for the trees
Fiona started laughing after the pause, holding onto her stomach as she did so.
"You think? I feel like you’re speaking from experience." Fiona teased and Cass felt his face warm slightly. He cleared his throat again.
"Well, why wouldn’t I offer up this kind of a suggestion? You have experienced how the nobles work. You understand they all have their own interests at heart. You have to herd them sometimes. It’s not like this isn’t something others aren’t doing. I’d say my grandfather is exceptional at this tactic." Cass said, adjusting the sleeves of his shirt nervously. Fiona was still laughing, her eyes sparkling as she looked at Cass.
"Hmm. So you did learn at least one good tactic by being with him." She said and Cass wouldn’t go that far. Ser Hune’s soft snort behind them had everyone turning slightly to look at her, and she looked a little embarrassed by that. She bowed her head.
"Forgive me, I didn’t mean to draw your attention." She said, meaning it and Cass felt his lips turn up slightly.
"It’s alright. What part of that were you snorting at?" Cass asked and Ser Hune shifted nervously. She glanced around the table, ending with her eyes on Cass who was openly curious. She made a face.
"Well, I just think that it shouldn’t matter what you learned from him. He’s a piece of shit and that will make anything you learned from him tainted forever. I’ve heard what he was like, what he’s still like for Forsythe and I just-" She cut off, shaking her head. "No child should go through that. Especially a fairy child. It’s a miracle you’re alive." Cass blinked, surprised by the passion in her voice.
Cass knew he was young compared to her. He had to be, given how Ser Hune didn’t quite feel like just a friend, or even a knight that he had hired. She kind of felt like...an older relative? Like what he’d read about in stories before? He’d never had those, so he wasn’t exactly sure what kind, or what that really meant, but he could tell that she cared about him.
If he had just been a noble, just been someone who had been born with a golden spoon in his mouth, he probably would have taken offense to what she had said. Thankfully, he hadn’t, he wasn’t, and even Lord Blackburn wasn’t upset at her.
Inside was a complex mixture of emotions, both from him and from Lord Blackburn. Lord Blackburn’s emotions had been swelling inside of him again, and it was at this moment that Cass realised he’d practically been cut off from the other man while he’d been inside of the dungeon. He hadn’t fully noticed it until now.
Ser Hune looked more and more ill as the time ticked on and Cass hadn’t said anything. It was clear that she cared more about what he thought than the others, which was fair, but Cass was grappling with a lot of big feelings inside right now.
Lord Blackburn was overwhelming him, and eventually, Cass had to drop his head to take a few deep breaths without feeling everyone’s eyes so intently on him.
"M-My Lord? I’m sorry, I overstepped. I didn’t mean to upset you." Ser Hune sounded panicked, horrified and Cass just shook his head.
"I’m...not that kind of upset." Cass said quietly and Lucian cleared his throat.
"He’s just processing what you said." Lucian told her, and Cass wanted to glare at him for speaking for him, but he also knew he was just trying to give Cass more time. Ser Hune let out a deep sigh of relief.
"Oh thank goodness. I was worried he hated what I said. I sometimes can’t stop myself when I get upset. Should I step away for a moment?" She asked and Cass shook his head. He was almost able to speak.
He raised his head slowly, meeting Ser Hune’s eyes, aware that everyone was watching him quietly, waiting to see what he was going to say. Cass swallowed thickly, trying to hold the powerful emotions beneath his skin.
"Did Sir Forsythe tell you a lot about how I grew up?" He was asking for several reasons. One, to see if he had broached privacy laws and the like, and two, to see how much he cared. Ser Hune gave Cass a soft look.
"No. He tried not to, but there are just some things you pick up on." Ser Hune said, before she looked a little nervous. "Dustin and I also snuck out to view the estate today, and I’m glad that I gave you the charm that I did." Ser Hune said, and it took Cass a second to remember who Dustin was. That was Sir Sanders’ first name.
"You went to the estate when I told you two to have a fun date?" Cass asked, slightly confused and Ser Hune huffed.
"Why would you assume that wasn’t a fun date? It was terribly fun! I love sneaking into places that aren’t expecting me, and they really weren’t. Security is so lax there compared to the security you have at your bougie estate near my hometown. I couldn’t get in when I wanted to see Sir Forsythe, I had to send a little bird to go seek him out. He rarely answered." Ser Hune had no problems admitting to trying to infiltrate their home and Cass felt his lips turn up.
He did really like how honest she was.
"Alright. So far you’ve admitted to sneaking onto properties I am tied to. Should I be flattered?" Cass asked and Ser Hune’s ears twitched slightly. Cass swore they dropped a bit.
"It wasn’t-that wasn’t-I wasn’t trying to hurt you at all! I was...damn it, fine, I’ll admit it." Ser Hune muttered darkly and he could feel how the others around him were tensing, but Cass had a feeling, no, a hope that he knew where this was going given what Ser Hune had brought up to him before. "I was asked by your great grandmother to check up on you, how you grew up, and everything related to that." She admitted.
The tension left the group sitting at the table, well, mostly. Fiona was still on edge, which was interesting to Cass. But, given that they both had complicated pasts with relatives, he of all people could understand why that didn’t make her suspicions drop.
"So have you been working with her this whole time?" Cass asked and Ser Hune looked apologetic.
"Not the whole time. I was working with my village for quite a while, and then when the whole Byron thing got discovered and I let them know what happened and who had found him out, word got around and she...reached out." Ser Hune said with a sigh. She scratched behind her head, looking apologetic, but not as apologetic as he thought she should look.
"Wait, what’s this about Byron? Who’s Byron?" Edgar asked, and Lucian blinked several times as he glanced at Edgar and the rest of the crew.
"You don’t know Byron? He’s the blue haired man who follows Cass’ servant around. Cass blackmailed him." Lucian said, proudly and Cass rolled his eyes when everyone looked at him, including Ser Hune.
"I didn’t blackmail him." Cass said, protesting Lucian’s statement. Lucian huffed, rolling his eyes.
"Yes you did. I know we have cultural differences, but this is a big one on my side. If you threaten anything to do with someone’s curiousity, it’s a big deal. He grew up with fairies, he doesn’t know that." Lucian told him, and Cass felt himself grow defensive.
"I didn’t know either! I’m not an expert, and I didn’t know what he was when I first met him. I thought he was something, but I didn’t know what. How would I guess what he really was? Hmm? You’re supposed to be rare!" Cass protested and Fiona seemed to put the pieces together and she sucked in quickly.
"What? He’s a dragon?" Fiona said and Lady Ava’s eyes shot wide.
"We have a dragon around us?" Everyone looked at her with pity. There was no way she hadn’t noticed this yet. Lucian puffed up, looking happy that he had fooled at least one person.
"We have two." Cass told her and Lady Ava gasped.
"What? Two? I agree with Cass. I thought they were supposed to be rare!" Lady Ava said, instantly jumping into Cass’ camp. Cass felt that might have been a bit of pandering, but he didn’t care. He’d take it.
"Either way," Cass interrupted, "Sir Forsythe didn’t reveal anything?" Cass said, getting back to the main issue. Ser Hune nodded. "And my great grandmother? Why would she be interested in me?" Cass asked and Ser Hune stared at him before she closed her eyes and ran her hand over her face.
"Fucking humans." She muttered and it shocked Fiona, Lady Ava, and Edgar. Lucian had a little tell tale smile on his face, but said nothing while Cass blinked up at her from his seat. "They didn’t educate you at all about your Mother, did they? About who she was to our people?" Cass didn’t like the sound of that.
"Uh, no? I barely got an education, Ser Hune." Cass told her without hesitation and Ser Hune looked livid. The trees and bushes around them began to shake and tremble and it was Sir Sanders stepping forward and placing a hand on his wife’s shoulder that paused the commotion.
It was amazing to witness.
It was subtle, but it made a huge impact. The birds had stopped singing, and it felt like the trees and plants began to speak to each other. Muttering, whispering, gossiping. They shook and trembled, growing in size as if to intimidate. It was power in a way that he hadn’t seen, and Cass felt his blood pump in his veins. It was so fucking cool.
The others were also shocked, and maybe not as impressed as Cass was from the looks on their faces.
"Sorry." Ser Hune apologised immediately. "I meant no harm, just got worked up." She told the group and Cass easily forgave her. It was pretty similar to something that Lucian would pull, and it wasn’t like it had been intentional. Fiona also forgave her as well.
"No harm, as long as the garden is okay?" She confirmed and Ser Hune let out a laugh.
"More than okay. They love when we give them a boost with magic, so it’ll be healthier now." She told Fiona and Fiona nodded.
"Then no harm was done, Ser Hune. But I am curious. Who is Cass’ great grandmother for you to be working for her while also working for Cass? And for you to be okay revealing this to not just Cass, but to us as well?" She asked and Cass met Ser Hune’s gaze. He had a feeling he wasn’t going to like the answer from the way that she was looking at him.