A Cast of Corbies - Chapter Thirteen
Sep. 9th, 2025 11:19 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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i_read_whatSo last time, Magpie and Raven kind of resolved things, introduced a romantic plotline (ugh), but hey, maybe we'll get to see if Magpie has any character traits besides being generally awful.
So this chapter starts us with a contemplative Raven. The narrative confirms what we already knew: Raven does know Peregrine, who is "by far the best mage Raven knew", but also figures that if Peregrine had gotten an intimation of danger, he'd be staying away from Kingsford.
One thing I do find interesting about this book is that there definitely seems to be more of an indication of a skill hierarchy and inner circle within the Free Bards than we've seen before. Like, for example, composing music. In both prior books, each character was established to be skilled in both composing and performing. Rune's formal training was, of course, part of the plot. Taliesin and Gwyna both are credited as the composers of songs Rune played or encountered earlier in the book. Even Kestrel, whose early Guild training went by the wayside really quickly, is established to be able to compose melodies.
The Free Bards also come across as a small organization where everyone knows everyone, at least by reputation, and they all have the ability to seek out Talaysen (with Gwyna and later Rune, in theory, being an informal liaison). It's at least implied in that book that most, if not all of the Free Bard characters either know or quickly get to know Peregrine.
Except for Raven, none of the characters here seem to have the same prominence. Raven's the only one of the main cast who can compose music. He's the only one who, apparently, knew Talaysen or Peregrine. (Also, I have trouble believing that Talaysen would put up with Magpie's general demeanor, but that could be wishful thinking. I'm SURE Gwyna wouldn't have.)
It occurs to me that I may have a theory on this. In Lark and the Wren, note was made of musicians who were adequate but not really talented or skilled enough to be Free Bards. And I wonder if maybe the increase of pressure from the Guild/Church lead to the Free Bards starting to take in those musicians after all. It would explain the incongruity.
Anyway, Raven is busy being annoyed at Talaysen for dropping this situation in his lap. But he does have a secret ace to play...we're sadly cut off before we hear about it.
Jaysen and Linnet - if you recall, he's the young newbie who got them to apply for this job while she's the daughter of the boarding house owner - are having a romantic rendezvous. Raven is their unintentional witness, noting that they haven't really gotten past the quick kiss stage, though he thinks Linnet does care for him.
Jaysen wants Linnet to come with him when they leave. She doesn't think she can leave the boarding house. And we see the Mercedes Lackey touch here, in Raven's reaction:
And what ballad did you steal that from? While Raven felt a good deal of sympathy for the young lovers, he could not help but think that young Jaysen hadn’t half an idea about what they were going to do to keep body and soul together after they’d run off. He’d never been outside of Kingsford, after all. And what of Linnets other responsibilities?
Lackey's got a funny little habit, much more prominent in later books, of criticizing/deconstructing romantic fantasy for pragmatism. It's more prominent in later series like the Herald Spy books, but there are traces of it even here. Ms. Lackey doesn't put a lot of stock in stupid kids running off together, I suspect.
Anyway, Linnet is wrapped up in her responsibilities and duty to her mother and it is pretty sad.
This leads to a really clumsy transition into our sudden romantic plotline:
No, I don’t think I was ever quite that naive. But I do wish you well, the two of you, he told the couple. Now go away before I start thinking of… Magpie? Ach, ridiculous. That pretty package held a tough, sharp-tongued, domineering spirit, someone who couldn’t play second to anyone or anything. Someone who really wasn’t interested in cooperation, when it came right down to it. And yet Nightingale was so sure- Ridiculous.
...didn't you KISS last chapter?
I mean, don't get me wrong, Magpie's behavior throughout the book hasn't lent itself well to the idea of romance. So I don't really blame him for this skepticism, but it seems oddly placed.
We do find out Raven's trump card though: Talaysen's cousin, Lady Ardis.
Lady Ardis is an interesting character. And she actually does have her own book in the series, despite being a Justiciar rather than a Bard. I've never read it, but it occurs to me that we might even hear a little more about Talaysen's origin that way too. I'd enjoy that.
So anyway, as we know from Lark, Lady Ardis is a Church Mage, but also a friend to the Free Bards (and Roma, per this book). Though Raven, understandably, isn't sure she'll be willing to contradict current Church policy, despite Talaysen's reassurances.
So Raven gets to the door, and things go...awkwardly:
Such a warm welcome. Raven gave one of his more melodramatic bows and said, “I am here to request an appointment with the Lady Ardis.”
A dry cough, half a laugh, half an expression of derision. “Are you.”
Raven sighed in impatience. “I was told by her cousin that Lady Ardis would see me if I needed to ask for an appointment. Look, we’re not going to stand here playing games, are we?”
“No,” the voice replied flatly, and the door started to creak closed.
“Wait!” Raven snapped, shooting out his hand and preventing the door from closing entirely. “Tell the Lady Ardis that Raven needs to speak with her. Got that? Raven. Tell her I’m a friend of Talaysen.”
Lady Ardis has dickish servants. It's interesting though that Talaysen's name seems to have an effect when that's not the man's original name at all. It does maybe imply Ardis has left instructions.
Raven is annoyed by the servant's brisk instructions to "touch nothing", wondering if they expect him to steal the wall or something.
Finally, he gets to come and meet Ardis:
He followed the figure-which was so totally hidden in its robes he still had no idea of its gender- through a maze of potted greenery. A scarlet-clad woman sat beneath a rose arbor, her blonde hair cut as short as every priests, her narrow face and sharp gray eyes reminding Raven strongly of Talaysen. He swept quickly down in his most theatrical bow. “Lady Ardis. Kind of you to see me.”
“Raven.” The Lady surveyed him measuringly. “You must be the Raven. No one else could be quite so-full of panache.”
Raven blinked, not certain whether he’d been complimented or insulted. “At your service, my lady.”
...this kind of seems like a microaggression honestly, because Raven hasn't actually done anything besides kvetch a bit. But he's Roma, and Roma must have panache.
That said, she does seem genuinely interested in whatever's so terrible that it brings a "[Rom] within these holy walls." So Raven explains in a summary paragraph.
Raven's a bit uneasy about bringing up the potential church connection, even though he remembers Talaysen telling him that Ardis is not a fanatic. And I really do like that touch. Talaysen means well, and knows his cousin, but he's an influential, formerly rich and high status white dude. And the thing about privilege is that it can make it very easy for even a well-meaning person to overlook the darker sides of their friends and families.
But happily, Ardis is above board. She's had her own suspicions, She even suggests that there are enough mages in the Church that believe in "following the words of the Primus rather than the Word of the One." One could be helping to undermine Duke Arden.
Raven asks if Ardis can do anything. The answer is: not directly. (There's a cute moment where she leaves him to fetch something, he gets caught picking a mint leaf, which she admits to doing herself. Honestly, even these two have more chemistry than Raven and Magpie, in my opinion.)
Anyway, Ardis comes back with a holy medal and a charm. The medal is for Regina, and the charm is for the main door of the theater. She recommends they display them openly, if they want, since they're holy symbols and all it will do is make them look pious.
Anyway, the trinkets are there to prevent people from using magic against Regina or the theatre. She figures that if there is a Church Mage involved, he's probably using very simple curses, which are easy to deflect.
She wonders if there's more, and Raven has apparently decided that Talaysen's cousin is cool after all, because he confesses his suspicion of Regina's unconscious magic use.
Ardis isn't offended, though she is definitely surprised and alarmed - not for Regina's soul or anything. She just thinks that this could complicate the issue and provide a way to discredit Regina and Arden. Which, fair enough. She asks what Raven intends to do about it.
I mean, what can he do about it? He can tell her what she's doing, but he can't exactly stop her. Actually, that seems to be what she means. Raven knows the people involved and when she prompts him, he starts with realizing he should probably tell Regina what's happening, on account of Regina being an adult who can and should make her own decisions.
Very true.
So Raven leaves, and we get to enjoy our blossoming romance:
“And where,” a sharp voice asked, “were you?”
He came alert with a shock, staring at her. “Magpie!”
The young woman blocked his path, fists planted firmly on her hips. “Don’t ‘Magpie’ me! Where were you?”
Yep. I definitely ship this. No sarcasm here at all.
They continue:
Don’t tell her, a voice seemed to whisper in Raven’s mind. Lady Ardis’s warning? Or was this merely an echo of his own sudden annoyance at Magpies tone? “I hardly think that’s any of your concern,” he replied coldly.
“Isn’t it?” her eyes narrowed. “When you disappear all morning, without any of us having a clue as to where you went?”
“You aren’t my keeper, Magpie, my love,” he told her flippantly, and pushed past her, striding onward towards the boardinghouse and the theater. But beneath his cavalier exterior, he was trying to remember whether or not Talaysen had given him permission to reveal Lady Ardis’s partisanship to anyone else. He didn’t think he’d been given that freedom; at least, he didn’t remember it. So it would have to remain his own secret.
“I am not your love!” she snapped, scurrying along beside him. “But maybe you do need a keeper! Wandering off like that on some selfish, frivolous errand when there are people depending on you—”
He favored her with a glare. “What I had to do was hardly frivolous. And dammit, don’t give me that look: I was not having an affair!”
“Oh, really?” she asked skeptically. “Can you honestly tell me you weren’t with a woman?”
Seriously, WHAT THE FUCK???
What IF Raven was fucking Ardis? What business is that of Magpie's? They're not dating!!!
Magpie continues to rant about Raven being with a woman while they're rehearsing their heads off, and it's just irritating. It'd be one thing if Raven had ANY kind of romantic involvement with ANYONE in this entire book. But he hasn't! Except Magpie. He's hot and Roma, so he must be fucking everyone!
I'm supposed to cheer for this couple when it seems clear that if they do get together, Raven will never be allowed to exchange words with a woman again.
Honestly, if I were a spitefic writer, I'd have Robin and Kestrel show up here, just so Gwyna could take one look at this toxic bullshit and tear Magpie a new one, and Raven can be reminded of what a HEALTHY female-dominated romance looks like.
At least, for once, Raven actually stands up for himself:
That’s enough!” Raven stopped short, so furious he could hardly focus his thoughts. “Look you,” he spat, “I was out on business that concerns us all. I can’t tell you exactly who I went to see or why because I promised Talaysen-you do know who he is?-I promised him that I would not talk about this person. And if that isn’t good enough for you, then maybe you should just give up on us Free Bards and take to the road by yourself! That seems to be what you want!”
She stopped dead in her tracks, frozen in place by his vehemence. “No! I—”
“Look, Magpie,” he said, stiffly, “I know you had a hell of a rough childhood. But dammit, woman, the past is the past!”
It was just a good thing that there was very little traffic on this street, or they would have been terribly conspicuous. As it was, they earned no few curious glances from passersby.
Her stricken look turned to one of suspicion. “Now, what is that supposed to mean?”
“You don’t trust anyone—” he said flatly. “Fine, I can understand that; a lot of us road folk aren’t too trusting, we can’t afford to be. But you act as if you don’t think anyone can make sensible decisions but you!”
I don't give a shit about Magpie's rough childhood.
Raven continues and this is very satisfying:
He laughed, but without any humor in the sound. “Oh, no, not much you don’t! Look at the way you just attacked me.”
“With reason!” she growled. “You were off playing the tomcat—”
“Do you know that?” he demanded, and saw her flush. “Do you really? Had you any proof? No, dammit, you’ve got it in your head that just because some men acted like scum to you when you were a child, all men are bullying children, with nothing on our minds but- but food, fun, and fornication!” Nice alliteration, a comer of his brain noted. “Well, maybe it’s you who needs to grow up, Magpie. The heart of being an adult is knowing when to share a job, when to trust someone else to do his or her part-and curse it all, to know when to think with your head instead of—” a hasty bit of self-censoring “-instead of with your emotions!”
Thank you. Fucking finally.
Of course, this book being what it is, Raven seems Magpie staring at him and has to tell himself not to feel sorry for her.
It does eventually get an apology from her:
And then, out of the silence came Magpie’s timid, “You’re right.”
Now it was his turn to stop cold. “What’s that?” She glared at him. “I’m trying to say I’m sorry.”
“Are you?” he demanded. “Are you really?”
“Raven, please,” she begged, as the glare faded. “Don’t be difficult. I… had no right attacking you like that. I know that whatever else you may do, you take your music seriously. You wouldn’t run off like that unless it was something truly important.”
I'm probably not supposed to see this as fake as fuck. It's also not what she should be apologizing for. Well, it is. Because yes, Raven isn't an irresponsible asshole. But also, she has no right to yell at him even if he WAS seeing a lover.
But close enough. Raven takes a moment to savor the triumph, and I don't fucking blame him, then accepts her apology. He hands her the medal for Regina, pointing out that he can't exactly risk being seen giving jewelry to the Duke's mistress. He passes along the instructions: Regina has to wear it at all times and not remove it for any reason.
Anyway, they get to the theater, where havoc has apparently happened. A railing had given way, causing the poor Tilsani to fall. Nightjar is healing him, and the Manager gets a rather nice moment of humanity here:
But the fear still glittered in the Tilsani’s eyes. The Manager, with a gentleness Raven would never have expected, told the little being quietly, “Don’t worry, little friend. You’ll be taken to a safe, comfortable place and cared for until you are well again.” And as the lizard-creature started with surprise, he added, “What, did you think we’d toss you out on the streets to starve because you can’t do your work?”
The little being nodded fearfully.
“Nonsense!” the Manager said, so forcefully even the lizard had to believe him.
“We do not abandon one of our own. You’re one of us, lad, one of the Duke of Kingsford’s Company! Without your help, we could not have placed those Deliambren lights! We need you!”
Regina adds that the Duke will take care of him. There's room in the palace and he can get good care there. Aw.
I wonder if Magpie feels bad for being racist last chapter?
Anyway, Raven goes up to the second tier of seats and examines the railing - it's not broken. Instead, it's smooth, like it had been melted. It's definitely a good time to place Lady Ardis's charm. He decides to hide it after all, high above the false balcony above the main doors.
The chapter ends here.
So this chapter starts us with a contemplative Raven. The narrative confirms what we already knew: Raven does know Peregrine, who is "by far the best mage Raven knew", but also figures that if Peregrine had gotten an intimation of danger, he'd be staying away from Kingsford.
One thing I do find interesting about this book is that there definitely seems to be more of an indication of a skill hierarchy and inner circle within the Free Bards than we've seen before. Like, for example, composing music. In both prior books, each character was established to be skilled in both composing and performing. Rune's formal training was, of course, part of the plot. Taliesin and Gwyna both are credited as the composers of songs Rune played or encountered earlier in the book. Even Kestrel, whose early Guild training went by the wayside really quickly, is established to be able to compose melodies.
The Free Bards also come across as a small organization where everyone knows everyone, at least by reputation, and they all have the ability to seek out Talaysen (with Gwyna and later Rune, in theory, being an informal liaison). It's at least implied in that book that most, if not all of the Free Bard characters either know or quickly get to know Peregrine.
Except for Raven, none of the characters here seem to have the same prominence. Raven's the only one of the main cast who can compose music. He's the only one who, apparently, knew Talaysen or Peregrine. (Also, I have trouble believing that Talaysen would put up with Magpie's general demeanor, but that could be wishful thinking. I'm SURE Gwyna wouldn't have.)
It occurs to me that I may have a theory on this. In Lark and the Wren, note was made of musicians who were adequate but not really talented or skilled enough to be Free Bards. And I wonder if maybe the increase of pressure from the Guild/Church lead to the Free Bards starting to take in those musicians after all. It would explain the incongruity.
Anyway, Raven is busy being annoyed at Talaysen for dropping this situation in his lap. But he does have a secret ace to play...we're sadly cut off before we hear about it.
Jaysen and Linnet - if you recall, he's the young newbie who got them to apply for this job while she's the daughter of the boarding house owner - are having a romantic rendezvous. Raven is their unintentional witness, noting that they haven't really gotten past the quick kiss stage, though he thinks Linnet does care for him.
Jaysen wants Linnet to come with him when they leave. She doesn't think she can leave the boarding house. And we see the Mercedes Lackey touch here, in Raven's reaction:
And what ballad did you steal that from? While Raven felt a good deal of sympathy for the young lovers, he could not help but think that young Jaysen hadn’t half an idea about what they were going to do to keep body and soul together after they’d run off. He’d never been outside of Kingsford, after all. And what of Linnets other responsibilities?
Lackey's got a funny little habit, much more prominent in later books, of criticizing/deconstructing romantic fantasy for pragmatism. It's more prominent in later series like the Herald Spy books, but there are traces of it even here. Ms. Lackey doesn't put a lot of stock in stupid kids running off together, I suspect.
Anyway, Linnet is wrapped up in her responsibilities and duty to her mother and it is pretty sad.
This leads to a really clumsy transition into our sudden romantic plotline:
No, I don’t think I was ever quite that naive. But I do wish you well, the two of you, he told the couple. Now go away before I start thinking of… Magpie? Ach, ridiculous. That pretty package held a tough, sharp-tongued, domineering spirit, someone who couldn’t play second to anyone or anything. Someone who really wasn’t interested in cooperation, when it came right down to it. And yet Nightingale was so sure- Ridiculous.
...didn't you KISS last chapter?
I mean, don't get me wrong, Magpie's behavior throughout the book hasn't lent itself well to the idea of romance. So I don't really blame him for this skepticism, but it seems oddly placed.
We do find out Raven's trump card though: Talaysen's cousin, Lady Ardis.
Lady Ardis is an interesting character. And she actually does have her own book in the series, despite being a Justiciar rather than a Bard. I've never read it, but it occurs to me that we might even hear a little more about Talaysen's origin that way too. I'd enjoy that.
So anyway, as we know from Lark, Lady Ardis is a Church Mage, but also a friend to the Free Bards (and Roma, per this book). Though Raven, understandably, isn't sure she'll be willing to contradict current Church policy, despite Talaysen's reassurances.
So Raven gets to the door, and things go...awkwardly:
Such a warm welcome. Raven gave one of his more melodramatic bows and said, “I am here to request an appointment with the Lady Ardis.”
A dry cough, half a laugh, half an expression of derision. “Are you.”
Raven sighed in impatience. “I was told by her cousin that Lady Ardis would see me if I needed to ask for an appointment. Look, we’re not going to stand here playing games, are we?”
“No,” the voice replied flatly, and the door started to creak closed.
“Wait!” Raven snapped, shooting out his hand and preventing the door from closing entirely. “Tell the Lady Ardis that Raven needs to speak with her. Got that? Raven. Tell her I’m a friend of Talaysen.”
Lady Ardis has dickish servants. It's interesting though that Talaysen's name seems to have an effect when that's not the man's original name at all. It does maybe imply Ardis has left instructions.
Raven is annoyed by the servant's brisk instructions to "touch nothing", wondering if they expect him to steal the wall or something.
Finally, he gets to come and meet Ardis:
He followed the figure-which was so totally hidden in its robes he still had no idea of its gender- through a maze of potted greenery. A scarlet-clad woman sat beneath a rose arbor, her blonde hair cut as short as every priests, her narrow face and sharp gray eyes reminding Raven strongly of Talaysen. He swept quickly down in his most theatrical bow. “Lady Ardis. Kind of you to see me.”
“Raven.” The Lady surveyed him measuringly. “You must be the Raven. No one else could be quite so-full of panache.”
Raven blinked, not certain whether he’d been complimented or insulted. “At your service, my lady.”
...this kind of seems like a microaggression honestly, because Raven hasn't actually done anything besides kvetch a bit. But he's Roma, and Roma must have panache.
That said, she does seem genuinely interested in whatever's so terrible that it brings a "[Rom] within these holy walls." So Raven explains in a summary paragraph.
Raven's a bit uneasy about bringing up the potential church connection, even though he remembers Talaysen telling him that Ardis is not a fanatic. And I really do like that touch. Talaysen means well, and knows his cousin, but he's an influential, formerly rich and high status white dude. And the thing about privilege is that it can make it very easy for even a well-meaning person to overlook the darker sides of their friends and families.
But happily, Ardis is above board. She's had her own suspicions, She even suggests that there are enough mages in the Church that believe in "following the words of the Primus rather than the Word of the One." One could be helping to undermine Duke Arden.
Raven asks if Ardis can do anything. The answer is: not directly. (There's a cute moment where she leaves him to fetch something, he gets caught picking a mint leaf, which she admits to doing herself. Honestly, even these two have more chemistry than Raven and Magpie, in my opinion.)
Anyway, Ardis comes back with a holy medal and a charm. The medal is for Regina, and the charm is for the main door of the theater. She recommends they display them openly, if they want, since they're holy symbols and all it will do is make them look pious.
Anyway, the trinkets are there to prevent people from using magic against Regina or the theatre. She figures that if there is a Church Mage involved, he's probably using very simple curses, which are easy to deflect.
She wonders if there's more, and Raven has apparently decided that Talaysen's cousin is cool after all, because he confesses his suspicion of Regina's unconscious magic use.
Ardis isn't offended, though she is definitely surprised and alarmed - not for Regina's soul or anything. She just thinks that this could complicate the issue and provide a way to discredit Regina and Arden. Which, fair enough. She asks what Raven intends to do about it.
I mean, what can he do about it? He can tell her what she's doing, but he can't exactly stop her. Actually, that seems to be what she means. Raven knows the people involved and when she prompts him, he starts with realizing he should probably tell Regina what's happening, on account of Regina being an adult who can and should make her own decisions.
Very true.
So Raven leaves, and we get to enjoy our blossoming romance:
“And where,” a sharp voice asked, “were you?”
He came alert with a shock, staring at her. “Magpie!”
The young woman blocked his path, fists planted firmly on her hips. “Don’t ‘Magpie’ me! Where were you?”
Yep. I definitely ship this. No sarcasm here at all.
They continue:
Don’t tell her, a voice seemed to whisper in Raven’s mind. Lady Ardis’s warning? Or was this merely an echo of his own sudden annoyance at Magpies tone? “I hardly think that’s any of your concern,” he replied coldly.
“Isn’t it?” her eyes narrowed. “When you disappear all morning, without any of us having a clue as to where you went?”
“You aren’t my keeper, Magpie, my love,” he told her flippantly, and pushed past her, striding onward towards the boardinghouse and the theater. But beneath his cavalier exterior, he was trying to remember whether or not Talaysen had given him permission to reveal Lady Ardis’s partisanship to anyone else. He didn’t think he’d been given that freedom; at least, he didn’t remember it. So it would have to remain his own secret.
“I am not your love!” she snapped, scurrying along beside him. “But maybe you do need a keeper! Wandering off like that on some selfish, frivolous errand when there are people depending on you—”
He favored her with a glare. “What I had to do was hardly frivolous. And dammit, don’t give me that look: I was not having an affair!”
“Oh, really?” she asked skeptically. “Can you honestly tell me you weren’t with a woman?”
Seriously, WHAT THE FUCK???
What IF Raven was fucking Ardis? What business is that of Magpie's? They're not dating!!!
Magpie continues to rant about Raven being with a woman while they're rehearsing their heads off, and it's just irritating. It'd be one thing if Raven had ANY kind of romantic involvement with ANYONE in this entire book. But he hasn't! Except Magpie. He's hot and Roma, so he must be fucking everyone!
I'm supposed to cheer for this couple when it seems clear that if they do get together, Raven will never be allowed to exchange words with a woman again.
Honestly, if I were a spitefic writer, I'd have Robin and Kestrel show up here, just so Gwyna could take one look at this toxic bullshit and tear Magpie a new one, and Raven can be reminded of what a HEALTHY female-dominated romance looks like.
At least, for once, Raven actually stands up for himself:
That’s enough!” Raven stopped short, so furious he could hardly focus his thoughts. “Look you,” he spat, “I was out on business that concerns us all. I can’t tell you exactly who I went to see or why because I promised Talaysen-you do know who he is?-I promised him that I would not talk about this person. And if that isn’t good enough for you, then maybe you should just give up on us Free Bards and take to the road by yourself! That seems to be what you want!”
She stopped dead in her tracks, frozen in place by his vehemence. “No! I—”
“Look, Magpie,” he said, stiffly, “I know you had a hell of a rough childhood. But dammit, woman, the past is the past!”
It was just a good thing that there was very little traffic on this street, or they would have been terribly conspicuous. As it was, they earned no few curious glances from passersby.
Her stricken look turned to one of suspicion. “Now, what is that supposed to mean?”
“You don’t trust anyone—” he said flatly. “Fine, I can understand that; a lot of us road folk aren’t too trusting, we can’t afford to be. But you act as if you don’t think anyone can make sensible decisions but you!”
I don't give a shit about Magpie's rough childhood.
Raven continues and this is very satisfying:
He laughed, but without any humor in the sound. “Oh, no, not much you don’t! Look at the way you just attacked me.”
“With reason!” she growled. “You were off playing the tomcat—”
“Do you know that?” he demanded, and saw her flush. “Do you really? Had you any proof? No, dammit, you’ve got it in your head that just because some men acted like scum to you when you were a child, all men are bullying children, with nothing on our minds but- but food, fun, and fornication!” Nice alliteration, a comer of his brain noted. “Well, maybe it’s you who needs to grow up, Magpie. The heart of being an adult is knowing when to share a job, when to trust someone else to do his or her part-and curse it all, to know when to think with your head instead of—” a hasty bit of self-censoring “-instead of with your emotions!”
Thank you. Fucking finally.
Of course, this book being what it is, Raven seems Magpie staring at him and has to tell himself not to feel sorry for her.
It does eventually get an apology from her:
And then, out of the silence came Magpie’s timid, “You’re right.”
Now it was his turn to stop cold. “What’s that?” She glared at him. “I’m trying to say I’m sorry.”
“Are you?” he demanded. “Are you really?”
“Raven, please,” she begged, as the glare faded. “Don’t be difficult. I… had no right attacking you like that. I know that whatever else you may do, you take your music seriously. You wouldn’t run off like that unless it was something truly important.”
I'm probably not supposed to see this as fake as fuck. It's also not what she should be apologizing for. Well, it is. Because yes, Raven isn't an irresponsible asshole. But also, she has no right to yell at him even if he WAS seeing a lover.
But close enough. Raven takes a moment to savor the triumph, and I don't fucking blame him, then accepts her apology. He hands her the medal for Regina, pointing out that he can't exactly risk being seen giving jewelry to the Duke's mistress. He passes along the instructions: Regina has to wear it at all times and not remove it for any reason.
Anyway, they get to the theater, where havoc has apparently happened. A railing had given way, causing the poor Tilsani to fall. Nightjar is healing him, and the Manager gets a rather nice moment of humanity here:
But the fear still glittered in the Tilsani’s eyes. The Manager, with a gentleness Raven would never have expected, told the little being quietly, “Don’t worry, little friend. You’ll be taken to a safe, comfortable place and cared for until you are well again.” And as the lizard-creature started with surprise, he added, “What, did you think we’d toss you out on the streets to starve because you can’t do your work?”
The little being nodded fearfully.
“Nonsense!” the Manager said, so forcefully even the lizard had to believe him.
“We do not abandon one of our own. You’re one of us, lad, one of the Duke of Kingsford’s Company! Without your help, we could not have placed those Deliambren lights! We need you!”
Regina adds that the Duke will take care of him. There's room in the palace and he can get good care there. Aw.
I wonder if Magpie feels bad for being racist last chapter?
Anyway, Raven goes up to the second tier of seats and examines the railing - it's not broken. Instead, it's smooth, like it had been melted. It's definitely a good time to place Lady Ardis's charm. He decides to hide it after all, high above the false balcony above the main doors.
The chapter ends here.