Book 8: Chapter 37: Grandmother
Grandmother Lu’s eyes traveled over the walls, the open gates, and the people inside pretending not to be watching, all before they traveled back up to his face. She closed her eyes, shook her head a little, and sighed.
“You didn’t listen to a word I said about practicalities, did you?”
Sen took a moment to look at the walls before he said, “I know it’s a little big, but it does come with benefits.”
There was a pause where Grandmother Lu looked a little stunned before she reached up and cuffed the back of his head.
“You know that’s not what I meant,” she huffed, while Sen laughed. “Well, I suppose you better take me inside and explain this gift to me. I have a feeling that it’s going to be less of a gift than an ongoing headache.”
Sen pulled out a talisman that he’d made into a kind of necklace and gave it to her. Grandmother Lu held it in her hand for a moment as she studied the small gem.
“This is pretty,” she said with a little smile.
“And practical,” announced Sen. “It’ll let you pass through the defenses until I can modify them. After that, you’ll just be able to walk through them, and that talisman will just be, well, I guess it’ll just be a pretty necklace.”
Grandmother Lu held up the necklace, pointed at it, and said, “This is a gift.”