{Juliet}
I went over to the Torninc more now that most of the boys were moved out. Mikaela seemed a bit morose even though Dinadan and Galahad were still home. At the same time, both of them were strange company. Dinadan wanted to be in Martel, but had to contend with the humans he knew there being grown and married, neither of which he could do in Otherworld. Galahad was odd to speak to in general. A bit too polite, and a lover of chess, though no one wanted to play him.
I would play occasionally, and had even won once, thought I was sure that he gave me the win. Even without planning my moves, he still could predict my movements. It was annoying.
But I had heard that Arthur had moved into Donlin, after crashing Mikaela's birthday party. I had no idea how Mikaela felt about these sudden occurrences, but I couldn't help but think it wasn't a good thing. Without Arthur, Lancelot had been an entirely new person. I liked him; he was calm and quizzical and loved to prank his older brothers, even the ones who lived outside of Donlin. His youngest son had turned out to be a creation mage; one time the two of them had snuck into my castle office and gave my desk a face that was smiling at me all day. Frankly terrifying.
He lived just outside of Donlin, contently doing odd jobs within the city and for me. Quinn and Mikaela were planning on leaving the Torninc to him when they retired, but the way Mikaela had been acting; I doubted that was ever going to happen.
She asked me every now and then why I hadn't found a boyfriend or any other type of significant other. But I didn't need to. The Guerres generated more gossip than the rest of the upper class combined and I was almost as much a part of the family as Galahad or Hazel. I had been training Parsifal since he was little, and if any of the boys had questions they couldn't ask their mother, they always came to me, as if my advice was sounder.
Not to mention I would lose my right to mock Mikaela for the scrapes her sons gone into.
"You could at least be excited that Arthur's back," I told her. "You look like he's inviting you to your own damn funeral."
Mikaela didn't seem amused. "Seven years is a long time, especially in this family. He married a succubus. He has a ton of children and..." she sighed. "It's going to take some getting used to. That's all. I'm not unexcited; I'm just surprised." She fiddled with her cup and drank the dregs of her coffee. "Quinn wants to retire."
"And you don't?" I inquired.
"Of course I do. But Galahad is still here and none of our sons are quite ready for our roles in government. I don't want to overextend Adele's goodwill with our family."
"That is probably fair of you," I admitted. "Though she's been much calmer since Dagonet and Nimue officially married."
"You know, forty years ago, when we moved here, I couldn't have imagined all the things that have happened. I'm married, I have grown children." She wrinkled her nose. "I have grandchildren. I don't feel old enough to have grandchildren."
"You did get pregnant at nineteen," I pointed out. "If it's any consolation, your boys turned out fine, in spite of their upbringing."
"That's not very nice," she sniffed. "Are you staying for dinner?"
"I thought that was the only reason I came over," I grinned. "I mean, it would be a shame not to stay for Ryon's cooking."
I could hear banging outside the sitting room as if someone was looking for us.
"Mom?"
"That sounds like Dagonet," Mikaela mused. "Are Nimue and he broken up again? She usually takes the house."
"They just got back together," I groaned.
We stood up and walked to the door just as Dagonet burst in.
"Mom!" he shouted, waving a ring in the air. "I did it! Well, it was Corryn and I, but we did it!"
"Did what?" I inquired. "Can it wait for dinner?"
The question took him back and he paused for a moment. "I...I guess so," he stammered. "Is Galahad here?"
"He usually is," Mikaela told him. "Quinn and the boys should be already down there."
Dagonet looked terrible, with dark bruises under his eyes and greasy hair. He hadn't eaten in days and hadn't slept in a week. I put my hand on his bony shoulder to heal him, but he pulled away from me.
"Don't," he warned. "I'm coated in change magic, it'll react to me."
"Then Dagonet, go take a shower," Mikaela ordered, looking her son up and down. "You look like a vagrant living on the street, not a nobleman. I'm sure you can find some clean clothes."
"But I hate water," he complained. "It's horrible."
"Your muscles are so tense I'm surprised you haven't snapped something," I added. "Hate it all you like, but it will help. Please, Dagonet."
He grumbled a little and then stomped off down the hall. Mikaela shook her head and we headed for the dining room. A familiar ghost floated up the stairs just as we were coming down. Corryn paused on the stairs and then began to follow us.
"Where is Dagonet?" he asked. "He was very set on finding you, Mikaela."
"He found us, all right," Mikaela said. "And then I sent him for a shower."
"Damn, even Nimue couldn't do that," Corryn remarked. "He wouldn't eat, he wouldn't sleep, I refused to help him, but that backfired because then he would work with or without my help. Even I'm tired."
"You're dead, you can't be tired," I told him.
Corryn sighed. "Hate me all you want, but I'm still dead, Juliet," he said. "Can't you live and let go?"
"How can I when you are a constant reminder?" I countered. "Anyway, why did you come along?"
"Firstly, I didn't know you were here," he remarked. "Dagonet wanted me to, but also because I'm hoping that I can convince Nick to let me spend the night in my own room. It's always nice not to worry about Gawain or Dagonet or anyone else for a day or two."
"You lead a rather cushy existence," Mikaela commented.
"Hey, you'll only end up dead if you want to," he said. "That's hardly fair."
"I don't die nearly as much as I used to." She sniffed and held her nose in the air. "I'm maturing."
"Emphasis on the continuation," I laughed. "Hello Quinn."
Mikaela's husband looked dubiously at our little procession. He had no way of knowing both Corryn and I were here.
"Mikaela, why is it that Corryn ends up here all the time?" he inquired. "I mean, it's hard to be offended when he is dead and all, but he was a murdering psychopath. We seem to have forgotten that."
"I haven't forgotten," I said.
"Neither have I," Corryn muttered.
We all whirled to stare at him. He startled.
"I mean that I haven't forgotten my crimes, not that I was planning on continuing them," he growled. "I'm dead. I can't touch a toothpick, let alone use magic."
"And you wish you could," Mikaela observed. "We're not idiots."
"Apparently you are, because I thought you could see the door through me," Corryn said. "I'm dead. I thought we were past this mistrust anti-Corryn talk."
"Brother, I have known you much longer and even I don't trust you dead," Ryon added, setting down a platter of chicken breasts. "You're very hard to trust."
"It's probably his red hair," Mikaela giggled. "And the freckles."
Corryn scowled. "You can't see the freckles on my ghost," he grumbled.
Dagonet appeared, looking a bit damp and cross. Apparently, he was loath to use even his own magic to dry himself off. He sat in his usual spot, but when he opened his mouth, Mikaela held up one finger.
"We're waiting on Galahad and Dinadan, and then you can tell us what is so exciting," she said. "But breathe in, and then out. Good. Don't you feel better?"
"Not particularly," he sighed, but at least he looked better. His clothes weren't threadbare in patches and his hair appeared healthier. He still needed to eat and sleep, but it was a start.
His brothers came in together, Galahad looking cheerful as always and Dinadan looking a bit sulky as always.
"No one told me that Galahad was going to beat me eight times in chess," he said, sliding into his seat the end of the table.
"Dinadan, I believe that I may have warned you," Galahad told him with a smile. "You do remember I am a seer. Even if I cannot predict your movements I can see the future of the board."
"Well, it's discouraging, man," Dinadan grumbled. "Chicken and rice? Delicious."
Ryon smiled at the boy. "It's not lemon chicken orzo, but I couldn't find any thyme."
"I suppose," Dinadan allowed with a sigh.
Ryon laughed and then sat down next to me, beginning to serve the dishes.
"You eat with us now?" Corryn asked.
"There is no us," Ryon told him, while giving me my full steaming plate. "You can't eat, Corryn. But now the table is smaller, I don't mind eating with the Guerres, beforehand, I didn't want to know how many different ways they were dismantling my cooking."
"That was mainly Lancelot and Arthur," Quinn pointed out. "They'd just shape everything you made into chocolate cake. Until that day you made a chocolate cake out of, what zucchini and carrots?"
"I had to get them to eat their vegetables sometime," Ryon smiled. "It worked, didn't it?"
"I worked out how to stop Galahad at full moon," Dagonet interrupted, too impatient to wait any longer. With such news as that, it was little wonder.
Ryon quickly finished serving dinner but we didn't eat, giving our full attention to Dagonet for the first time this night. He cleared his throat and held up a ring.
"This ring reacts to change magic," he said. "But unlike Dad's ring, it doesn't store it. It causes the wearer to lose consciousness when they are in contact with the ring. Watch." He pushed back his plate and then put the ring on his finger.
I knew the point of the demonstration was to show that it did work, but I was more worried because it did. He slumped in his seat, his head hitting the table. Dagonet had too much change magic on him.
"I suppose we'll have to remove the ring to wake him," Mikaela mused.
"I am almost tempted not to, for as much as the man sleeps," I replied. "He needs more sleep than he's getting."
"You mean that staying up for a week isn't a good thing?" Corryn gasped.
I was about to retort, but realized that Corryn wasn't talking about himself. He was talking about Dagonet.
"But he also needs to eat," I sighed, lifting Dagonet's hand and pulling the ring off his finger.
He yawned and then sat up.
"See?" he said. "Also, Juliet, put it on."
Reluctantly, I did what he requested but I didn't fall asleep or feel anything different. I took it off quickly though, not wishing to test my luck.
"She doesn't have any change magic so it didn't affect her," Corryn explained. "So Galahad can wear it all the time. It's very good work, Dagonet."
Dagonet gave him a crooked smile, almost like his old, pre-change self.
Then Corryn added: "For a fire mage."
"He has no one to compare himself to; you're dead," Ryon countered before Dagonet launched at the ghost. "Wizard or not, you're useless."
"Regardless, I suppose it would be best to give this ring to Galahad," I suggested before all the boys started to fight. We hadn't even eaten yet.
Quinn lifted the ring from me and passed it to Galahad with a small wind. It was a rare occurrence to see Quinn actually use his magic. Galahad put the ring on and we all stared at him for a long moment. Nothing happened.
"The chicken will get cold," Ryon reminded us, and he turned to his meal.
"I don't suppose you could find a cure for neutrality, brother," Dinadan laughed. "No, don't worry; I'm joking. I don't want you to kill yourself. You look damn tired already."
"I am," Dagonet admitted. "But satisfied. Fifteen years of work equals one small ring."
"And how many break ups and fights with Nimue?" Mikaela inquired. "And how many trips to the healers? And how many times Gawain or Guinevere locked you out of your work?"
"It would have gone faster if that hadn't happened, true," he admitted.
Mikaela and Quinn glanced at each other and sighed.
"You have missed the point entirely, Dagonet," I told him.
Despite that, dinner was relatively normal, and we made Dagonet promise he was going to go straight home and sleep. Corryn was almost recruited to baby sit him, but both Dagonet and he adamantly refused. Just as well, I doubted that Nimue would be particularly pleased for Corryn to be lurking over their bed, watching her husband sleep.
"Could someone tell Gwen and Eldreial that I'm done?" Dagonet requested, before we sent him on his way with a transport spell. "Eldreial said he refused to speak with me until I had put away change magic. The ring is done. My work is over."
"We will," Mikaela promised.
Dagonet disappeared from the hall, but not before I glanced at all our worried faces.
"Do you believe him?" I asked.
"Not at all," Mikaela replied.
"He's already talking about other experiments he wants to try," Corryn agreed. "Change magic is has more potential than fire. We all knew that he will only be satisfied until he's mastered everything."
"Can we stop him?" Quinn asked.