The Cottages were carved into the rocks of the canyons. They were old, built when the islands still floated. The particular island they were built into was mountainously large and had fallen upside down, so that the Cottages were also upside down. It had a dizzying effect on Maple to see the inside was properly oriented.
Still, all of the books she had read didn't do justice to being here in real life. Even if she couldn't imagine a more bizarre set of circumstances it took to arrive at the Fallen Isles. Traveling with a disguised dragon was strange enough, but adding a famous bard and his mystery body guard to the mix was almost laughable.
By the time she got Spice Rack City back to normal no one was going to believe her story of heroism.
The current owners and operators of the Cottages were the satyr tour guide operator, Thisleby Brindle, and his minotaur wife, Heartha Brindle. She learned from Thisleby that the couple had run the inn for decades. She also learned a lot about the Brindle family, like how they had five children and nineteen grandchildren, and all of their names. Many of the family members popped in and out, working various jobs around the Cottages.
Heartha worked in the kitchens. Thisleby spoke highly of her cooking prowess. She greeted her husband in a flour covered, floral apron when they arrived at the Cottages' gondola station. She towered over her husband, but he looked up at her with such a tender, loving expression that it made Maple's heart ache.
No one had ever looked at her like that.
It hadn't bothered her much in the past, not really. She was used to being lonely, having spent most of her life tucked away into the archives of the museum. Most of the time she even liked being alone and getting the break from her family, but there were only so many books to read and fill the silence.
She had read a lot of adventure books, and while it wasn't true of every quest, most of the best ones required a good romance. LOVELOCK was dedicated to the study and research of magic, but the love story was interwoven. Her adventure didn't need a romance to be a true adventure, one worthy of its own book, but it certainly wouldn't hurt.
Her feelings on the matter of a romantic relationship had been shifting recently. Though, she wasn't exactly sure why. Watching Heartha bend down to lovingly press a kiss to her husband's cheek only made Maple feel even more inclined toward the idea.
Still, she had only just barely managed to get herself and him out of his last minute magical skiing contest, the last thing she needed was another distraction or delay. They were beyond lucky to be back on schedule to get to the Lapidary Kingdom in time. There wasn't time to waste, especially on relationships.
The traveling party got two rooms, one for Maple and Ivy, and an adjoining one that housed Lettuce and Grel; they shared a bathroom. They were taken to their rooms by one of the Brindle boys; they needed the help navigating the awkward floor that was once a ceiling. The rooms were huge, thanks to Lettuce.
Maple was finding that Lettuce's persona off stage was very different from his on stage self. After dinner, which was hyped up by each Brindle she met, she was excited to read through LOVELOCK together with him. Ivy was more difficult to get a read on, but Maple imagined she would be there as well.
Grel, however, seemed to be having his own problems.
The blue-haired human woman and her young, be-goggled companion had been practically following him since they left the gondola. Maple had instantly disliked her, with how overly touchy she was with Grel. She tried, and failed, to not feel jealous about how pretty she was. Tall, striking, bold and basically the polar opposite of Maple. More than once she caught herself admiring her long, blue hair while self-consciously twisting her own wild, frizzy, fly away pink curls.
She also tried not to let his comment on the gondolas, about hating all humans, bother her. Grel was clearly annoyed with the other woman when he said it, but Maple was hurt that he didn't consider her at least somewhat different, especially after all she had done to help him. Equally, she was frustrated with herself for caring what he thought about her to begin with. After all, he was hot-headed, egocentric, rude and had a fiery temper.
However, she was able to see that he was more than his worst traits. He was also funny, quick witted, and quietly protective. She liked him more than she disliked him. He'd helped her out of more than one jam already too. Besides, she didn't begrudge him being a dragon. She had been spending more time with him in that form. She actually preferred him that way. He felt more real and more expressive when he was his natural, dragon self.
So, it hurt that he hadn't seen more to her than just her species. To Grel, she could be any other human. Even an annoying one, like his new, pretty stalker.
Maple had only just barely managed to get herself and him out of his last minute skiing snow monster debacle, the last thing she needed was another distraction or delay. They were beyond lucky to be back on schedule to get to the Lapidary Kingdom in time. There wasn't time to waste or mess around, especially on relationships with strangers.
The Cottages had a large dining area. The floor was flat here making navigating the buffet tables, piled high with copious amounts of barbecued meats, much easier than other areas of the inn. Maple couldn't get a straight answer on what the meat was from, only reassurances from the Brindle's that Heartha made the best barbecue in all of Salt. All you can eat.
She ate it, of course, because her adventure wouldn't be authentic without at least one case of gastrointestinal distress at some point. She was pleasantly surprised to find that the meat was delicious. There were also lots of side dishes to enjoy, and a huge cherry pie baked fresh by Heartha that day.
Grel wolfed down plate after plate of dinner, almost like an animal. Ivy also seemed to enjoy the dinner, albeit much more quietly than Grel, because her plate count was rivaling his. Lettuce seemed distracted, pushing chunks of uneaten barbecue around his plate.
"Mind if we join you?"
Maple tensed at the sound of the breathy, unwanted voice. The blue-haired woman pulled a chair up to their table, and poured herself into it beside Grel. The boy dragged a chair behind him before seating himself at the end of the table. He was reading a book while doing all of this, and ignoring them.
"You know," the woman continued, "I don't believe we've been properly introduced yet. I'm Paz, and this lovable scamp is Hemlock. We're not related."
The boy looked up from his book for just a moment to make a face of bored disdain at Paz. She was smiling, but it didn't answer any questions for Maple. Them not being related made less sense in her mind.
Grel swallowed a mouthful of barbecue, his hands and mouth stained with sauce. "Not interested."
"You're Agrellite, right?" Paz asked sweetly. Grel froze, then glared at the woman. His eyes narrowed behind his gem glasses.
"How do you know that?" He asked, his voice low, like a warning.
Maple was confused. She thought Grel was his name, but it could just as easily be a nickname.
She looked anxiously between Paz and Grel, waiting to see what he would do. He was angry in a way Maple had never seen before.
"Will you excuse us?" Grel said curtly, standing up from the table. He wiped his face and hands, then took hold of the woman by her arm and hauled her up to standing. "We need to talk."
"A private rendezvous?" Paz asked flirtatiously.
"Something like that," Grel muttered. He released her arm, turned and stalked out of the room.
"Hemlock, be good! Stay here," Paz said before following after Grel and out of the dining hall doors. Hemlock only raised his hand in acknowledgment.
Maple, Ivy, and Lettuce all turned to look at the boy, who was still engrossed in his book. The trio leaned across the table away from him to whisper.
"What was that?" Ivy asked, irritated. "Who does this Paz lady think she is?"
"Maple, do you know who that is?" Lettuce asked. "She seems to know Grel, and I get the feeling he might know her too."
"I've never seen her before!" Maple admitted. "You have to remember that Grel and I have only been traveling together for a couple days now. We're in a time crunch. We don't have time for clandestine meetings with exotic beauties."
She had read a number of adventure books that included such meetings. Her adventure, at least, didn't have time for this.
Hemlock closed his book with a snap, and stuffed it into his leather bag. He tugged the goggles down over his eyes, his curly dark hair sticking in new directions around them. "Alright, I'm off then. I've got a job to do."
With that, he left the table and the trio. They sat back in their seats, watching with disbelief as he left the dining room with purpose.
"Now what was that?" Ivy repeated. "We had better not get in trouble for losing him."
"There's nowhere for him to go," said Maple with a shrug. "Unless he wants to wind up in the canyons and be eaten by monsters."
"Well," said Ivy, tugging her cloak tighter, "I'm going after Grel and his new girlfriend."
"Ivy, don't-" Lettuce started, but his bodyguard interrupted.
"No, I already don't trust the guy and now he drops this in my lap? Not happening. I'm going to listen in on those two and find out what is going on."
"You're not getting a vibe, are you?" Asked Lettuce cautiously. Maple gave him a questioning look, but he didn't elaborate and she didn't pry.
"No," said Ivy, shaking her head. "But, better safe than sorry."
Lettuce looked defeated and let out a sigh. "Just don't get caught, I guess."
Ivy nodded her head once, then dipped out of the dining hall too.
"You care an awful lot about her. How long has she worked for you?" Maple asked.
"She's more than just my bodyguard. She's my sister," said Lettuce, then quickly added. "Adopted."
"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't realize you were related."
"No need to apologize. She doesn't like to tell people because she doesn't want to be treated differently. She would rather skulk around in the shadows than be publicly known as my sister."
"This might be a rude question, but what is Ivy? I've never seen a race like hers."
Lettuce shook his head. "No idea. I found her when we were both little. She couldn't tell anyone anything. She was a mystery, but to me, she's just Ivy. You'd never guess, but she's actually my younger sister. Not by much, but by enough that it makes me feel protective of her." He laughed, a little ruefully. "She's so strong and fast, though, that she's the one who ends up doing all of the protecting."
Maple drummed her fingers on the table. She was worried about what was happening between Grel and Paz, but felt better now that Ivy was going to investigate. She had seen firsthand just how capable Ivy.
Maple put her fork and knife across the plate and pushed the whole thing away from her. "How about we head back to the rooms and get an early start on our magic studies? It'll give us something to do other than sit here."
"I'm down," he said. Then he gasped and frowned. "First, I still need to send a note to my manager. I wrote one as soon as we got here, but I forgot to grab it before we left for dinner. Probably better to send it while Ivy is busy anyway."
They put their dishes away and thanked the Brindle's for their hospitality. It was a good dinner, as promised. Then Maple followed behind Lettuce as they headed to his room. Then they'd find where the Cottages kept the carrier pigeons to send it.
"Can I ask a question that might be too personal?" Maple inquired as they carefully made their way down the sloped halls.
"Sure. I think it's important for all of us to be honest with each other if we're going to undertake this quest together," Lettuce responded. He looked noticeably more anxious than he did at dinner.
"If you're so close to Ivy, why didn't you tell her about your manager?"
He winced. "Man, now I wish I hadn't just said the thing about honesty. I kinda look like a hypocrite."
"I think everyone can be, sometimes. I didn't mean it to insult you. I just meant that it seems like you really trust and love your sister. I have siblings back home in Spice Rack. I know what it feels like to be willing to die for them, but also like you can't tell them all of your secrets either. Still, suddenly stopping a cross continental tour seems like an awfully big secret to keep from her or your manager."
His shoulders slumped. "I've been lying to her about it for a while. I had already told her that the tour was done when we reached Chilltopia, because I thought it would be the best place to try to escape from. My manager isn't a bad guy, we just want different things. I knew he wouldn't listen to me; he'd just try to convince me I'm wrong. So, I was thinking I'll tell him I was kidnapped and I'm being held for ransom. That should buy us enough time. Probably."
"Lettuce, that's a terrible idea!"
"I know, I know! But it's the best I've been able to come up with!"
"This was your grand plan all along? They'll absolutely send people after you if you do that."
"Nothing about my plan has gone to plan. All I wanted was to go home for a while. Our parents are getting older and they need more help around the farm. Plus, I know Ivy misses the valley."
"You must really want to know more about magic if you've decided to come with us, then. I can't even promise that you'll learn to use it. Only dragons seem to be able to do that, but Grel and I did kind of use it together in Chilltopia. So, maybe you could do something to help Grel when he casts a spell or whatever he does?"
"Like a real bard," he said wistfully. He nodded his head and smiled at her, looking more determined. "We need to write a new letter. This quest is too important to get interrupted."
"I'll help you rewrite it. I'm sure we can think of a more reasonable excuse. Maybe we could even tie it into why Spice Rack City is frozen in time. The train didn't stop running, so I'm all but certain someone has stumbled upon it by now."
When they reached his room they couldn't find the letter. Lettuce swore up and down that he had left it on the dresser. Or maybe the bed? Or somehow it got under the bed? Or-
"Man, I have got to stop smoking so much," he said, sounding defeated. He dropped down on the bed heavily. "My memory sucks lately."
Maple nodded sympathetically. "Well, it doesn't matter. We're going to write a new one anyway. I was thinking we could say-"
Before she could finish, the door busted open and Ivy and Grel came flying in. They both looked angry, and Ivy had her arm wrapped around Grel's, yanking him roughly.
"What happened?" Asked Lettuce and Maple at the same time, alarmed.
"This guy," said Ivy, shoving Grel into the room and shutting the door behind them hard. "Has some explaining to do. Don't you, your Majesty?"