Swapped Fate

31: Of Truces and Understanding

My waking up at nine-thirty in the morning was an indication of a good night’s sleep, and the perky mood that followed sealed the deal. I probably would have slept some more had Lea and Rebecca not woken me up from what they regarded a drool-filled slumber.

It didn’t matter to me that I had dried up eye-boogers or dried up drool on my face in front of these two polished elegant ladies as long as I had been able to sleep without any frustration. Lea must have noticed my immensely relaxed and laid back attitude, for she suggested I have breakfast in bed. I found the idea quite welcoming.

The ladies informed me of the recent happenings as discussed over breakfast. It so happened that the Devereux family had been invited to Fairburn Manor for a luncheon on Saturday. The Fairburn family had not been present for the Deveruex party weeks ago, and wished to make up for it with a luncheon.

Rebecca and I would tag along.

“They’re Greftyrs?” I squeaked, taken aback by this piece of information.

Lea nodded. “Mm-hm. The eldest Fairburn is a retired commander, and only one of his grandsons is in the Imperial Army. He’s a Captain. The rest all took up work as defenders.”

“Wow,” I breathed.

I had come across a few Greftyrs, mostly as soldiers on patrol in the city. I had borne witness to their brute strength and impressive speed first hand when one of them chased down two escaped prisoners. He had caught them in no time, lifting them both effortlessly and banging their heads together to knock them out cold.

A chill ran down my spine at the memory.

It was hard to imagine that fearsome creatures like those were defenders, since Greftyrs were more suited for prosecution. Any soldier with a rank of Captain and above was able to prosecute in court, and the accused person was allowed a defender.

If there was only one soldier in the family and the rest were defenders, I wondered whether they had to face each other in court at one point. Wouldn’t it cost a drift in their familial relationship?

Rebecca wished to acquire a dress specifically for the occasion and I agreed to accompany them both to shop later.

Once they left my bedroom, I finally got up to wash myself. By the time I returned, I found a breakfast tray on the coffee table and smiled.

I got dressed and opened up a drawer at my dresser where I kept Tristan’s necktie, alongside the fancy hair tie gifted to me by Rebecca.

My fingers tapped on the drawer as conflict brewed within me. I liked the hair tie, I really did. And she had bought it especially for me, saying we were friends. There needn’t have been a debate about it. It was a gift given wholeheartedly, and it was pretty.

On the other hand...

I fished out the navy blue necktie, and a memory played. Tristan willingly tossing the tie to me at Dr. Ludwig’s practice, right after we’d nearly bee mauled by the Abyss’ Hound.

It wasn’t necessarily a gift, and it was not pretty. Yet somehow, I had developed an attachment to it.

There was a rap at my door.

“Come in,” I called absent-mindedly, coiling the tie around my wrist and hand. There was the sound of a door opening and closing, followed by the voice of the person I had just been thinking about.

“Awake at last.”

I turned to find Tristan standing there, holding a large wooden box.

He smirked at me. “Had I known my presence would enable you sleep so soundly, I’d have made it so you never woke up.”