ELRETH

Pots and pans clanged behind her as her mother worked on finding everything she'd need to make the meal, while Elreth excused herself to run down to the bedchamber to change.

But she didn't miss the patter of careful footsteps behind her when Rika followed.

She was glad she'd get the chance to speak to her new sister alone, but she also swallowed back irritation. She wanted this to be an easy, fun night. And now she was going to have to be serious and probably apologize again.

She walked to the closet as if she hadn't noticed Rika following her, waiting for the soft knock on the door before turning around.

"Oh, hey," she said, smiling over her shoulder. "Come in. I'm just going to change."

"Do you mind if we talk for a minute?" Rika asked.

"No, not at all." Elreth found a fresh shirt and leathers in the closet and kept her back to Rika as she changed, praying the woman was no more interested in nudity than she was. "But, maybe you can indulge me for a minute first? Because I think I still owe you an apology."

Rika was quiet for a minute. "I.. I mean, you already said you weren't going to pull me up in front of the elders again, I think we're good."

"Yeah, but.." Elreth sighed as she pulled the fresh shirt over her head. "I want you to know I'm sorry I didn't make things easier between us before. I mean, we don't know what's going to happen in the next few days, and I don't want to walk into that with tension between us—especially for Gar's sake. We're sisters now. For real. So.. you just tell me what I need to do so you can feel comfortable in that, okay?"

She wished she could put more warmth into her tone. She and Rika didn't know each other. She wished she was more like her mother who seemed to welcome and embrace everyone the moment she met them. But Elreth had always been more reserved. She didn't give her heart to people when they hadn't had time to learn to trust each other.

She prayed Rika would understand that didn't mean she didn't want things to be easy between them.

She'd always wanted a sister.

"I understand, it's fine," Rika said. Then stared at her.

Suddenly Elreth was confronted with the fact that when she extended an olive branch—or a kindness—towards someone else, they were usually quite.. effusive in their reception of it. Especially since she'd become Queen.

Yet it was clear, Rika wasn't someone who was going to stroke her ego. Elreth didn't like that a part of her was annoyed about that. But aware enough to know that was her own problem.

"Good!" she said a touch too brightly. "So, what did you want to talk to me about?"

"I need to.. make sure you understand something. Something that I think Gar doesn't want to think about, and that most of the others won't know."

"Okay, what's that?"

"You can't win a war against the humans," Rika said baldly.

Elreth waited until she'd done up the buttons on her leathers before she turned around. "We're a lot stronger than they are. If we can get them in small enough numbers—"

"No, El, this is what I'm saying. I get it. You've never seen the technology they have, you don't realize how it works. But that thing I showed you, that was just a single piece of an arsenal they have. Everything they lack physically they can make up for with technology. They can literally level mountains if they want to. You and your people won't stop them unless you can stop that technology. You have to try and stop them entering Anima at all."

p "That's already the plan."

"I know, but I need you to understand, there are no other options. None. Do you get that? When its used correctly, their technology can identify an Anima half a mile away, identify and kill them before they even know that it's present."

"Then why haven't Anima been dying."

historical

"Because death isn't their primary goal. It's what they'll do if they have to, but ideally they want to capture you, like I said. So just.. I need you to be realistic about this, because I don't think Gar is."

Elreth sighed. "He's just like Dad that way sometimes. He thinks he knows the best way for things to be, and just.. assumes it's going to happen that way. That's another reason I want there to be peace between you and me," Elreth admitted, looking at Rika a little sheepishly. "I don't want him distracted when the shitstorm hits."

"Me either. I also don't want him unrealistic though, and I'm worried he's ignoring stuff he knows because he doesn't want to have to face it."

"Oh god, that runs in the family too," Elreth said, dropping to sit next to Rika on the bed. "Welcome to the Hyerhyns! You're one of us now, for good or ill!"

Rika gave a small smile, but it disappeared quickly.

Elreth sighed. "Look, thank you for talking to me. I hear you. I can feel myself not wanting to hear that, but I hear it, okay?"

"Okay, thanks," Rika said, then went quiet, staring at her own hands.

"What is it?" El asked as gently as she could.

"I just.. this family is so big and open and.. I'm just not that way, you know. But I want you to know that I love it. I mean, it's scary sometimes. Really scary. But whenever you guys are around each other and just talking.. I wish I had that in my family."

Elreth smiled. "You do, now," she said. "Every day. Probably more than you'll want to, soon. I mean, talk to Aaryn. You'll find out that being a part of us can actually get really irritating. Because you might have noticed we all tend to think we're right, all the time. It's kind of obnoxious, actually."

Rika nodded seriously. "That's a good point."

Elreth's smile fell off her face and she blinked.

Then Rika spluttered and started laughing. "Oh my gosh, you should see your face right now! I was joking!"

Elreth stifled the urge to growl, and instead let herself be the butt of the joke.

It wasn't that bad.