Sword and Snow

Avuri

It took a little while for Avuri to really process all of her father's nonsense in the missive. Or at least, it took a while for her anger to cool down. There was something about her old family and the way they did things that apparently had a uniquely easy way to get under her skin. And as the more calm parent between herself and Emery, there was the potential for some danger there.

On the plus side, while Avuri's anger at her old family was a burning hot blaze, Emery's take seemed to be a much more cold and controlled burn. Avuri could feel the way Emery's anger was simmering, but it was like a sharp blade opposed to the conflagration of Avuri's.

Thankfully, they were both mostly calmed down by the time they coordinated everyone into the main house for a strategy meeting. All of the Elders and Vale joined them, as well as everyone that was part of the Dragon-Kin group. The group, which totaled fourteen, wouldn't have fit comfortably around their dining room table or the living room, so they remained on the bottom floor of the house, using the training space with some expensive cushions, and sat in a big circle.

"Alright, well, first things first." Eiry said, taking control as usual. Her eyes immediately moved over to Cierra, Stena, Mica, Glenn, and Cove. "You five will need to finish your Dragon-Kin training. We already have things set for you, so we'll continue on the schedule we already set."

"At least for now," Vyne picked up the explanation, "it appears like Dain, or Aysol, or whoever is the one leading their operation at this point, wants to keep some measure of appearance in making this some kind of political play. Between an official missive being sent through official channels and the appearance of no aggression of any kind so far, it seems…reasonable to trust this."

"There will be some kind of trap involved." Avuri said seriously. "If they are letting this play out officially, that means they have something to gain from doing so. For as much as I hate my father, he's not an idiot."

"We know." Eiry said. "One problem on our end with this letter is that it contains far too many avenues for an attack of some kind." She eyed the scroll, still in Ray's hands. "Even if we put aside all the demands, he calls out Leon's death, high taxes on trade, monopoly on the access to the Peaks…and that's not including all of the fake problems that are alluded to in the demands."

"Someone is going to have to explain all of this to me." Emery said, shaking her head. "How, exactly, does the simple act of sending a letter full of nonsense like this give them any sort of leverage? Especially when half of it or more is just thinly veiled threats and sarcasm?"

"On its own, it does nothing." Vale said. "The potential issue is that by making it official, it forces a response. And then he can take that response to potential allies and use that to put together an alliance against us."

"And that would work?" Emery asked, still confused.

"It could. And that's the problem." Ray said.

Avuri chuckled, the sound hollow and empty. "The issue is people." She said when eyes turned to her. "People will band together against a common enemy, even when the reasons to do so are fake. The truth of the matter here is that once they have any sort of fake reason to move against us, they can take that reason around to other cities that are just as greedy or corrupt as they are, and say, 'Look, we have justification to march on Flowing Dragon City'."

Vyne nodded gravely. "Unfortunately, that is the most likely outcome of this. They'll have a written document - lies or not - that 'justifies' them all allying against us, when in actuality they'll be making those moves for reasons that are not shown in writing anywhere."

"Make no mistake, we'll be gathering our own allies." Lyn added. "There are likely to be plenty of cities that can see this whole situation reeking of corruption, and they may be willing to lend us a hand."

Emery nodded, but Avuri could still feel her wife's head trying to wrap itself around the situation. Even Avuri, who more or less understood, couldn't exactly blame her. For better or worse, Emery generally operated on something more akin to a code of honor. All of this politicking, especially with a shady, corrupt bend to it, was far outside her area of expertise.

Vale smiled at his daughter, who still clearly didn't get it. Then his eyes tracked over Cierra, Stena, and Kord, who seemed equally as at a loss. "Ultimately, what I think you all need to understand is this - there's going to be some kind of showdown in the coming months. And Bouquet is making the first move and drawing lines in the sand to declare sides."

"Or, at least, they will start doing so once we respond." Eiry agreed.

Avuri listened as the talk continued, delving into some of the specific items discussed in the letter. Most of her immediate family remained quiet to listen, as they had little input on how the city dealt with taxation and the like, letting the Elders discuss what they needed to.

Eventually, the conversation hit a lull, and Avuri wanted to use that break to bring up a question of her own, but struggled how best to put it. While Vyne was taking a moment to jot down some more notes, she put her hand up to interject into the conversation.

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"Yes, Avuri?" Lyn asked.

Avuri opened her mouth, then shut it again while trying to figure out what to say. After a couple false starts, she finally said, "I'm sorry if this is a strange question, but…why are we involved in this conversation?"

The Elders remained quiet, without an answer, so she continued. "Don't misunderstand, I do truly appreciate being included in the knowledge of the missive coming from my father. And even being included in a discussion over how to defend the City would make sense to me, given Emery's famous alter-ego position as the elusive Dragon-Kin 'Nyr', and our decision to stay and fight as Dragon-Kin for real."

"But, why include us in the political maneuvering conversations? We shouldn't be privy to the way the city's taxes work, should we?"

The Elders looked between one another, either trying to discuss with expressions alone, or deciding who should speak. In the end, all eyes ended up on Eiry, their de facto leader.

She took a deep breath and let it out in a long suffering sigh. "There's no grand reason for it, Avuri. Or, I suppose, I should address all of you. The long and short of it is that you're all essentially part of our inner circle now. Like it or not, the Dragon-Kin bond is a deep connection, and those you're linked to will be your companion for the rest of your life. Any problem this large that concerns any of us, concerns you just as much. And vice-versa."

"That about sums it up." Lyn nodded. "I know we said as much when you all agreed to the Bond months ago, but you're intrinsically tying your lives to ours, and that link goes both ways. We may be older and more experienced than you all, but our lives are all linked." She glanced at Eiry, then each other Elder in turn. "We want to honor the inherent strength of that link in any way we can. And that means involving you all in any matters of true importance."

"Which includes a potentially existential threat to the city we all consider home." Ray stated plainly.

"We already have your collective promise that you'll be fighting to defend your lives here. It's just happened to take a more politicized form than any of us originally envisioned." Cyril said.

"Just to be clear," Cierra said, her voice a little on the timid side, having spoken up for the first time in this meeting of titans, "you're not going to make us City Elders or anything?"

Vyne smiled at the question. "Honestly, if any of you wanted the position, we'd consider it. But otherwise, no. We don't plan to force any of you into positions of power you don't want."

"For all your talk of the Bond working both ways," Avuri said, "this all feels very one-sided." And she immediately regretted the statement, even if it was how she felt. When she saw the stunned expressions on the Elders, she felt compelled to explain.

"To be clear, I mean that this whole situation feels entirely lopsided in our side's favor." Avuri motioned to her wife and kids. "We're set to grow immensely in strength, you're giving us training on a level we wouldn't otherwise have access to, you're letting us live in such a Qi-rich environment, and now you're talking about just giving us access to city-ruling power if we want it. And in return, we're giving you…?" She turned her hands palm up and motioned to the room at large, leaving the question silent - 'We're giving you nothing?'

Lyn was the one to field her unspoken question, apparently, as the woman stepped forward with a soft expression on her face. "You may not be granting us power in exchange, but you're not giving us nothing, Avuri." She glanced around at the other Elders before her eyes settled back on the Cultivators in the room. "It may sound cliché or a little sad, but you're giving us companionship. Friends."

Avuri had to fight the urge to roll her eyes, but the urge was there as Lyn continued.

"We're all similar to you all in some ways. We live apart from the larger community of dragons, for a variety of reasons. We've banded together here so we aren't alone, and we have some friends and family scattered around the continent that are wanderers like Vale had been…"

As Lyn once again looked around at the other Elders, Ray stepped up with an eye roll and a sigh. "Look. The five of us - not including Vale, obviously - have been in this city for a long time. We can make friends with the cityfolk all we want, but none of them know who or what we are. First, it's tiring. Second, it's lonely."

Avuri couldn't help but smile when she noticed every single other Elder shifting uncomfortably at the admission.

"By extending the Bonds as an option to you, we've literally doubled the number of people in our little circle. And make no mistake; while we're taking things slowly so far, our intention is to integrate the lot of you with us more fully. Maybe not as equals all at once, but eventually."

Then Ray looked around at his fellow Elders, his eyes eventually landing on Eiry, and shook his head in exasperation. "Being standoffish and exuding the aura of an all-knowing, wise Elder is great and all, but you're all taking it too far. If we want everyone in this room to end up trusted companions, we have to trust them."

Eiry sighed. "Fine. Forget about doing this slowly and in half measures, then? Is that the plan, Ray?"

"Listen to what you just said, Eiry. None of it sounds positive." Ray countered.

Eiry took a moment to look at the ceiling above her and gather herself. When she lowered her head again, her eyes were clear. "Very well then. Avuri. Ray is right. What we ultimately wanted from all of you in return was lasting friendship. We had planned," she said as she shot a glare at Ray again, "to take things slowly and bring you all into the fold over time. Even with Aysol making moves against us, there was no reason why we'd need to rush this."

"But for all his lack of decorum, Ray is right." Vyne said. "We had always planned on giving you all a choice in this anyway, so we may as well be up front about it."

Eiry looked back at Vyne, mild annoyance on her face at being interrupted. But Vyne just returned her look with a look that Avuri had never seen on the man's face before - a shit-eating grin.

"Fine. Fine!" Eiry said, throwing her hands up. "You want to do it this way, we'll do it this way!" With a final exasperated sigh, Eiry turned back to the Cultivators. "How do you feel about extending your family just a bit more?"