The Heartstone Saga by Archibald Bradford (short novels in english .TXT) 📕

already said the important stuff! Now let’s go and get her!”

Christine threw in her two bits, feeling a little left out of the conversation.

“If it helps, she’s been thinking about you a lot since you left.” She volunteered.

Jez abruptly hopped in place, spinning halfway around in the air and facing her when she landed, her face excited.

“Really?! What’s she been saying about me?!”

It was obvious to everyone except the Gripau that she had been talking about Miranda, and now Christine was a bit trapped; the frog’s strange slanted pupils threw her off, especially given how wide her eyes were with excitement.

“Oh... um. She’s, wow, I mean. I can’t remember specifically.” She finished with a lame shrug at being put on the spot so unexpectedly.

Jez bobbed her head, flinging bits of water from her hair, still damp from a creek she’d found on their way out of the mountains south of the city.

“That’s okay! I accept general praise as well! Whatever you’ve got!”

The others hid smirks while Christine floundered, her face reddening as she looked around for someone to save her.

No one did.

“She... she said she liked your bathing suit?” She finally tossed out, more of a question than anything.

Question or not, it worked for Jez, who hopped in place again with excitement.

“Cool! But wait, this one is new.” Her hopping stopped as she found the logical flaw in Christine’s white-lie; “How can she like it if she hasn’t seen it yet?”

There was a rising distrust in her tone that told the poor mechanist that she was running out of wiggle room.

“She must have been talking about your old one.” Miranda finally stepped in; “I’m sure that she’ll want to see the new one. So why don’t we stop yammering here and go show her?”

Jez faced her mistress and the elder Loskins sister looked at her with grateful relief, mouthing a ‘thanks’ when the Gripau wasn’t looking.

The Hornets, having watched the whole thing for the entertainment of their queen, buzzed their wings and hovered off of the street.

“Come along then, we will escort you to our hive.”

__________

“Here try this and tell me what you think.”

The wingless Hornet took a nibble of the tiny pastry that Cordelia Loskins was holding out to her, then smiled wide.

“It is delicious, my Queen.”

They were in the kitchen of the Hornet hive in Algrade, the young baker practicing her craft.

“It’s not too sweet?”

“Not at all, but we do have a sweet tooth.”

Cordelia’s brow furrowed at the royal ‘we’.

“Wait who am I speaking to right now, you or Oldeera?”

“Both, my love, always both.”

“Man that is such a trip.” She muttered; “I’m sorry Muffin, I love you to bits but I might never understand how your mind works.”

“Most humans don’t. But I could say the same to you: it wasn’t until I lost my wings that I understood what it was like to have to walk everywhere, like you do.”

“I’m sorry.” Cordelia repeated, this time for the Hornet’s loss.

“Don’t be. I feel the wind still through my sisters and my Queen.”

“Okay, that is definitely not Oldeera talking!” The brunette accused with a slight whine.

Muffin winked very deliberately.

“I’ll never tell.”

Sadly Cordelia’s boss Renaldo had relatives in Lipton Falls, and he had closed down his bakery a few weeks prior while he went to be with his surviving family.

Which meant that the young baker was out of work for the first time in her life, something she was not accustomed to.

She’d offered to keep the place running, but the nervous man had insisted on closing up shop, not knowing for sure how long he would be gone.

So she kept busy by baking up goodies for her sister to give away at the university, as well as good wholesome bread to donate to one of the dispensaries in the slums.

Her generosity hadn’t gone unnoticed either; whenever she went out with her Hornets she was greeted warmly as ‘Queen Loskins’ or ‘Your Highness’ by random locals.

And certainly no one tried to steal her crown again!

After what happened to Renaldo’s kin though, she couldn’t shake the heavy dark pall on her heart that the massacre in Lipton Falls had engendered in everyone’s.

“Cordelia!” Christine suddenly called; “We have some guests so you better be wearing pants this time!”

Safe to say the elder Loskins sister had walked in on some things since living in the hive.

Immediately Cordelia turned to Muffin, surprised that she hadn’t warned her.

“We do?”

The Hornet did her best to look innocent, but it was clear she knew something that she wasn’t telling.

The answer came moments later though when they stepped out into the main room of the hive to find a familiar bunch of monsters and humans inside.

“Nameless!”

“Hello Cordeli-aah!”

She surprised him, and herself, by rushing forwards and wrapping him in a firm hug, though she did her best to keep her sticky hands away from his uniform.

It was just that good to see someone from home.

After the massacre she and Christine both had sent letters to their father begging him and their other sister Helen to come and stay with them and the Hornets until Evadne was stopped, but they had yet to hear back.

With her arms wrapped around him his face was smooshed against her collarbone, his chin pressing down into the top swell of one of her breasts.

Somehow she’d forgotten how short he was.

“What are you doing here?” She demanded when she finally broke away, a bit flustered now as she’d never hugged him before.

But he wasn’t the one to answer.

“Aegis business. Butt out.” Jez said in a weirdly gruff voice.

“Jezebel!” Ophelia exclaimed in shock; “There’s no call to be rude!”

“What? I was just trying to sound cool!” The frog