The Spare's Empire

[lum]

The confirmed guest list was longer than either of them expected.

Names filled several pages. Older noble families. Younger noble families. Military officers, guild representatives, foreign ambassadors, merchants…

“This is much more work than I expected,” Rupert said, slightly discouraged about his earlier idea.

“I suppose, but how are we going to handle this?”

Rupert sighed. “I suppose I can read them out loud, one at a time.”

“Aren’t there names we can skip?”

“You already wish to reject certain people from your list? Even before we got started?”

“To narrow down the search…”

Rupert seemed thoughtful, meanwhile squinting at the pages.

“You know what? Lets start with scratching the people you remembered seeing. So we can shorten the list with those you already know.”

Scott nodded. “I’ll do my best.”


Two hours later the list had been reduced, slightly. Rupert looked at his friend.

“So, you are certain she isn’t among any of these people?”

“Absolutely certain.”

Rupert stared at the list, wishing it would have reduced much more significantly.

“Alright then. Lets start with the first name, and as we go through the list we’ll figure out which might be the most plausible candidates for your quest.”

“My… quest?”

Rupert grinned.

Scott rolled his eyes. “Alright, let me fetch my books to identify these. So we can narrow down the list of plausible candidates… for my quest.”


Three hours and five pages later. And still about ten pages to go.

“How many names we already got to look into?”

Scott looked at the filtered list and nearly threw it into the fire.

“Too many?”

Scott nodded as he waved with the list. “That’s a whole bunch of people I don’t know. And if I have to pay each a visit to see if one of them is the young lady…” he groaned, “... I’ll be out for months. This isn’t working.”

Rupert quickly took the list from his friend before he could actually throw it into the fire.

“Don’t. This is actually already a first good filter.”

“... I wasn’t going to.”

“You sure?” Rupert asked while glancing at the fireplace.

“I was considering my options. But there simply is too many.”

“Yes…” Rupert looked down at the remaining pages, “... although…”

Scott looked at him.

“Although what?”

“Maybe we don’t actually need to visit them all.”

Scott stared at him.

Rupert tapped the papers.

“We need to find someone who knows these people.”

Scott frowned. “Someone? Someone who knows all of nobility?”

“Yeah, preferably someone who knows the daughters of nobility.”

Scott leaned back.

“That… feels even more difficult. And it’s not just nobility. What if she was the daughter of a diplomat?”

“You have any idea on her native tongue?”

Scott shook his head. “She sounded rather local. But she also mentioned speaking more languages.”

Rupert scratched his neck. “Not much to go with there. I suppose we’ll just have to find the right person.”

Scott saw how his friend began thinking.

“Who would know which families have daughters around your age? Someone who attends to many parties, who knows who is courting whom, who knows whose daughter is studying abroad and whose daughter has returned to Waterdeep.”

Scott watched how his friend’s expression slowly changed.

“You know someone.”

Rupert smiled.

“I know many people.”

“It sounds like you also know dangerous people.”

“Perhaps I do.”

But then Rupert shook his head.

“Just start with the people who organized this last party. Ask the Hawkwinters.”

“... I don’t want to look stupid…”

Rupert leaned forward. “Then, not necessarily the family themselves. We can look at the household staff, or perhaps their steward, or secretary. Anyone who goes over these invitations.”

“And you think they’ll cooperate?”

“No… unless we come up with a good reason. A reason that is serious enough for them to cast a light on this list for us.”

Rupert tapped the edge of the papers against the desk.

“So,” he said, “what do you know about her that could give us a reason to ask?”

Scott thought for a moment.

“Perhaps something with the globe she was interested in.”

Rupert frowned. “That doesn’t sound like a reason to me.”

“She noticed it was inaccurate.”

“That is even less of a reason.”

“She knew something about the world, and about ships and goods.”

Rupert paused.

“That actually may help.”

Scott looked over.

“How exactly?”

“Well, the Hawkwinters have ships, military connections, merchants and foreign guests they work with…” Rupert said as he gestured vaguely at the enormous stack of names. “Perhaps she was there because of a business connection.”

Scott considered it for a moment, then shook his head.

“I think this is a stretch too far. She didn’t seem particularly interested in business.”

“Well, I’m not the one who talked for an hour with her.”

“Nearly an hour…”

Rupert smiled. “Alright then, just let us add she is a young lady who likes maps.”

Scott offered his friend a flat look.

“That will sound ridiculous when we ask someone.”

“Yeah, I suppose you are right.”

Scott leaned backwards. “I might as well ask whether anyone of their staff remembers her.”

Rupert blinked.

“That… would be the obvious thing.”

“Meaning?”

Rupert shrugged. “Obvious things tend to be suspicious when you don't have a good reason for asking them.”

Scott looked down at the feather resting beside the paperwork.

He picked it up carefully.

“I’ll just go ask whether anyone remembers a young woman wearing a dark-blue hat with a silver ribbon and a feather like this.”

Rupert hesitated.

“It… sounds less strange.”

Scott lifted a shoulder and motioned at the papers. “What are we going to do with these?”

Rupert gathered them in a pile.

“You should hold on to them.”

“For… my quest, I assume?”

Rupert grinned.

“Aye. To become -Sir- Scott,... Sincere Seeker of the Blue Feather.”

Scott reached for the nearest book.

Rupert laughed and ducked out of reach.

[lum]

Winter had settled properly over Waterdeep. The mornings were getting considerably colder, the window glass took longer to clear, and the streets had begun to carry the scent of wood smoke on a daily basis. Doors of the homes around her own were mostly shut against the cold, and thus there was less opportunity for spontaneous conversation.

But inside her home, things had been a little better.

Her mother had begun spending more time downstairs again. Not every day, but at least half the time. There had been mornings when Lilium entered the kitchen, only to find her mother already dressed and complaining about the amount of salt Cook had been applying to the soup.

There were afternoons where Lilium watched her seated by the fire, going over some correspondence, occasionally pointing out mistakes in the handwriting. Only then to drag her daughter’s butt over and help them rectify those.

It were small things, but to Lilium it was enough. Gradually these small things became the new normal whilst they remained important at the same time.

She didn’t tell anyone about her hope, anxious to ruin it due a certain superstition. She simply allowed it to exist in just her own mind.


And on one particular morning, there was nothing in the world that could make her think otherwise.

The sky was bright blue and perfectly clear. Not a single cloud all morning. Sure, any sunlight came down cold, but at the same time bright from between the rooftops. Any frost along the window ledges turned silver before it melted.

She stood near the kitchen window with a piece of bread in her hand, looking outside.

“Beautiful day?” her mother asked, seated at the table.

Lilium nodded but shivered slightly. “Maybe a little too cold to go outside.”

Her mother smiled. “You’re too used to this kitchen. Remember how it rained the other day?”

“Yeah, I didn’t like it.”

Her mother coughed slightly. “You were indeed complaining then as well.”

“I’m not complaining. Not really.”

“But you don’t like wet and you don’t like cold. Correct?”

Lilium turned and stared at her mother.

Her mother laughed soft until a mild cough interrupted that.

“Eh, everything alright?”

Her mother waved it off dismissively. “This is just a minor cold.”

“A cold? You’ve had that cough yesterday as well. And I’m not sure about the day before it.”

“It’s just a cold.”

Lilium wasn't entirely convinced. But then somehow she nodded. Her mother didn’t look pale, wasn’t in bed, she has eaten and was working a bit in the kitchen.

Those were all good things.

“Do you need anything for it?” she asked her mother.

“For what?”

“For that cough, something to relieve you.”

“I think a little bit time will be all I need.”

Lilium crossed her arms. “Now you sound like Cook.”

“Then perhaps Cook is finally learning something useful.”

From the other side of the kitchen came an offended voice.

“I heard that.”

Lilium giggled.

“Anyways, I’ll go and get you something.”

“You don’t need to, sweety.”

“Well, I want to. I was heading to the market anyways.”

“Oh? You are?”

Lilium nodded. “There’s also an order I have to pickup.”

Her mother shook her head. “You don’t need to stay out longer in the cold than required.”

Lilium picked up her coat. “It isn’t an extra errant to me, and it won take much extra time.”

Her mother gave her a look. “Now you sound exactly like your father.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment. So, anything you may think of that can help you?”

Her mother thought for a moment.

“Perhaps something warm, and some pure honey. There are also a couple of plants or herbs, like sand ginger. Or maybe lemon. Those may be things hard to find now.”

“I assume we don’t have any in our own warehouse?”

“Not that I’m aware of.”

“I’ll figure it out,” Lilium said as she reached for her scarf.

She wrapped it around herself and headed for the door.

“Lilium.”

She turned.

Mother was watching her.

“Be careful.”

Lilium smiled. This was something her mother had always said to her when she was younger. Not so much as of lately, but secretly she liked it whenever her mother nowadays told her to be careful.

“I will. And I love you too.”

“And don’t come back with half the market.”

“I make no promises!”

Her mother laughed softly, suppressing a cough that nearly got in between.


The cold outside caught her immediately.

Quickly she pulled the scarf higher around her face and started down the street. Yes, it was cold, but today the city seemed ununsually bright. The clear sky overhead made everything sharp. Smoke rose up straight upward from chimneys, and the sound of someone chopping wood in a backyard echoed in the street canyon.

Lilium walked with her hands tucked into her sleeves.

The list of things to do was in her head. The pickup first, then checking the smith to see if he was able to do anything with her mother’s birthday present, then the market before heading back home.

Oh, and if she was fast enough, she might stop by the baker’s!

She smiled at the thought. Now it was her turn to surprise her mother next month. For a full tenday now she had been thinking about it. Nothing really enormous since her mother never cared for expensive personal belongings. To her the thought behind it mattered more.

A new shawl had been at the top of Lilium’s list. But then she decided against it since her mother’s closet was already stacked with those. Next idea was a book, only it she wasn’t sure on which. Always a difficult one. There also had been a silver hairpin her mother had seen at the market one day.

Hmm.

She also thought of things from overseas.

That was an idea she found way more interesting.

She’d have to ask Porter or Father though. Which might ruin the surprise a little when she involved them. She really wanted to handle this on her own.

Her thoughts stopped for a moment as she turned into a busier part of the city and smiled.

Waterdeep was already awake. Especially at the market.

Merchants called out prices from their stalls loudly as nearby carts rattled over the stone. A fishmonger was arguing with someone about the quality of his catch and-

Lilium slowed for a moment.

A stall at her left had an assortment of small brass objects laid out on a cloth. Tiny gears, buckles, clasps, some unfinished mechanisms and a bunch of strange-looking pieces whose purpose she couldn’t determine were at a display.

She stopped.

No! That’s a mistake!

The old man behind the stall had already spotted her, assuming she was interested in his wares.

“Eyo missy.”

She sighed to herself and turned to the stall. There goes a part of her negotiation space.

She nodded a friendly hello, and as casual as possible she picked up an object. “What is this?”

“A regulator.”

“A regulator? For what?”

The man shrugged. “It depends.”

Lilium turned it over in her fingers. “That’s not very helpful.”

“It’s for something that doesn’t work properly without it.”

“At least you make it sound like it’s something important.”

The man grinned.

“How much?”

The man rubbed his beard. “Fifty.”

“That’s too much for something you don’t know what it exactly does.”

“You asked.”

“I didn’t say I wanted it.”

“Then, why asking?”

“Because I was thinking of it.”

“Dangerous habit.”

She laughed and waved as she continued.

When she turned to the rest of the market, the morning had already become even brighter. The sun had climbed but gave only little warmth in winter.

Feelings of hope and the promise of even better days to come filled her heart all the way to her very fingertips.

She pulled that scarf tighter around her neck though.

[lum]

Honey! No! The pickup first, Lilium!

Ugh…

Luckily the thing she had to collect wasn’t far behind the marketplace. Unfortunately she had to cross it with all the distractions pulling at her attention.

It was almost unfair.

The moment she entered the center of the market, her eyes started wandering again.

Over there a spice merchant had opened a fresh crate from the south. Bright red peppers sat beside little sacks of exotic herbs, and something that smelled strongly of citrus was being measured and slid into small packets.

She slowed.

No! Later!

Lilium forced herself to walk again.

She tried not to look. She really did.

But then she spotted something hanging from a stall, like a carrot to a donkey.

A small brass compass.

She slowed again as she appraised the object quietly.

It wasn’t particularly fine. The case displayed scratches, and the needle looked sluggish.

Still…

She leaned closer.

No… not now…

She moved on as the compass continued to exist in her mind.

The idea of that compass as a possible present remained completely unhelpful.

She tore herself away from the busier lane.

Pickup first.

Only after convincing herself she could look around again.

Mostly.

The problem was that Waterdeep’s marketplace seemed to have an almost supernatural ability to put her interest directly in front of her, especially whenever she tried to hurry.

.....

Lilium gave the warehouse clerk the collection notice, waited while he disappeared in the back, only to notice he returned merely moments later. The parcel had been waiting ready for her! And it was only a tiny wooden box, something she could easily tuck in her pocket.

And that was it. No delay, no argument, and no out of the blue paperwork!

She smiled, happy with how quick this was.

That meant she had more time left than she thought.

Of course she still had to run to the smithy first.

The only thing… she had to cross the market again. In another direction this time, but it was the shortest way.

This time, however, she wasn't quite as successful at resisting it.

When she crossed between the stalls, her eyes caught something unusual.

She slowed down and eventually stopped, just slightly beyond the specific stall.

It was sitting beneath a small wooden awning at the back of the merchant’s stall.

An… egg. A large one.

Well, larger than normal eggs.

The shape was slightly different too, and its shell was quite pale with irregular dark marks running across it.

Lilium stared at it.

The merchant however noticed her.

“Interesting, isn’t it?”

“Where did you get that?” she blurted in awe.

“Now that is the right question,” the merchant smiled.

Lilium stepped closer.

“What is that?”

“That, young lady, is an egg from the jungles of Chult.”

Her eyes widened. “Chult?”

She looked at the egg again. “What kind of egg?”

The merchant leaned closer, glancing left to right.

“From a creature that walks on two legs. And I’m talking legs.”

“So, not a bird?”

“No, not a bird.”

“Lizard?”

“Close.”

Lilium stared at him. She had read about creatures like that. Not much. Most books that mentioned those jungles were frustrating vague. Several of them were just a collection of journal fragments, travellers writing about enormous reptiles, strange beasts, and creatures that seemed to belong to another world entirely. One book had included a drawing.

That of a long-tailed creature standing upright on two powerful legs. And it hadn’t been a Lizardman. It didn’t resemble any humanoid whatsoever.

She remembered studying that drawing for a long time, wondering if it hadn’t been exaggerated.

And now, she was looking at an egg that might have come from something like it?

“It’s really from Chult?”

The merchant spread his hands. “That’s what I been told. And that is my most honest answer.”

Lilium noticed she felt drawn to the marking on the shell.

“How much?”

The price he mentioned didn’t seem unreasonable to her ears. And the egg looked so special that haggling over a few coins seemed terribly unimportant.

“I’ll take it.”

The merchant looked mildly surprised.

“For that price you get a bag for free.”

He carefully wrapped the egg in soft cloth filled with straw.

“There you go.”

Lilium accepted with both hands.

“It’s very fragile?”

“Less fragile than a chicken’s, but make sure you don’t drop it.”

Lilium gave him an offended look.

Mother is going to love this!

She waved and started walking again.

Okay. Now then that smithy visit.


She made it perhaps halfway across the marketplace before a shout suddenly cut through the noise.

“Stop!! Stop the thief!!”

Just like other people, Lilium stopped and turned around to look where it was coming from.

Another voice, closer now.

“Stop that tieffer!!”

Lilium’s head turned to look in the direction of that voice.

Several men were emerging from a narrow passage between two stalls. And they were moving quickly.

Very quickly!

One of them pointed.

“There!!”

Lilium looked behind herself.

Only to see there was nobody there.

When she looked back, those men were already running straight toward her.

She blinked.

“Ww..wha-?”

Suddenly she was grabbed before she could even move.

“Hey!”

She twisted.

“What are y-”

Another man seized her other arm.

“I’m not th-”

Nobody seemed to listen. Instead she was pushed.

She stumbled over and her foot slipped on the street.

Next, the ground slammed into her and her cheek struck cold stone. Pain shot through her shoulder and for a moment she could hear nothing but ringing in her ears.

Then the voices came. Angry voices.

“... got her, the filthy thief… call the guard…”

“But I didn’t steal anything!”

Her wrists were tied.

“Shut up, that’s what you all say!”

[lum]

Nobody had stopped to ask whether they had the right girl. The guardhouse was inside smaller than she had expected. She knew exactly where she was, but she had never seen the place on the inside before. It was also considerably less interesting than she thought.

She sat on a wooden bench with her hands free now. The door in front of her was still closed and locked. Nobody had come through it to tell her what she had supposedly stolen. Nobody had told her who had accused her.

And nobody seemed particularly interested in what she had to say.

She had been told to wait.

So she waited… for what felt like hours now.

At first she had been shocked. Then angry. Then embarrassed. And then horrified again.

Eventually, she began thinking of her home. Of how her mother was wondering where she was. What was taking her so long.

Lilium looked at the tiny window.

At least there was still light. The sun was still up.

It couldn’t have been that long, could it?

Now she was worried because her mother might be worried about her.

She shifted on the bench, restless.

There were still several things she had to do, and the egg…

Her hand instinctively moved toward a bag that was no longer with her.

Where was the egg?

Had they taken it from her?

The parcel in her pocket was also missing.

What if they stole it? Or broke her stuff?

That thought irritated her more than she expected.

She looked at the door again.

I need to find my things and go home.


Time dragged.

Eventually, the person that had been robbed arrived. She heard voices talking about her. Then, the door was unlocked and someone she didn’t know stepped in. A man, likely the victim, standing next to a guard.

The man looked at her. Then at the guard and at Lilium again.

“Who is this? Are we in the wrong cell?” the man asked.

The guard frowned. “That’s the girl they captured.”

“Well, this isn’t her. She is another tiefling.”

“Are you sure?” the guard asked.

The man pointed at Lilium. “That isn’t her. And where is the stuff that’s been stolen?”

“Eh. It’s on the table right behind the corner.”

For a moment no one said anything. But then the man stepped outside and Lilium heard how he got angry at the guard.

“Is this some joke?! That is not my stuff! Did you make me come all the way down here for this?? Do you have any idea how many customers I’m missing right now!?”

She heard the guard sigh, and when he stepped back into her cell he motioned to her.

“Alright, miss, it seems you are free.”

She blinked. “That’s it?”

The guard shrugged. “Not my fault. The ones who captured you saw you for someone else.”

Lilium waited a moment.

Then she shook her head, picked up her coat and stepped out of the cell. She stopped to collect what appeared the small parcel. No bag, and thus no egg.

She didn’t wait after that. No one was going to say sorry to her.


When she got outside she saw the sun was still shining, the sky still clear as before.

She hurried back to the market which was luckily not too far and still ongoing. It didn’t take her long to find the spot where it happened, and the bag should be around here.

Her heart dropped.

The bag was gone.

Quickly she searched the nearby stalls, checking in between.

And there it was! Quickly she crouched and fetched it from under a table and-

Her fingers trembled as she lifted the bag.

A substance trickled slowly through the cloth.

Nooo… no no noooo!

Her eyes burned.

It had been the perfect present. Something exclusive, from abroad. Something strange and wonderful at the same time.

In her mind she had pictured her mother’s face when she would have opened her present. She had imagined the conversation.

And now… and now, it was…

“Stupid…” she mumbled as a pair of tears dropped on her cheeks.

Slowly she stood up, quickly wiping her face with her forearm.

She couldn’t go home empty-handed. And besides, there were still those other things she needed to gather.

She also needed to get back home quickly, before her mother got worried.

But not yet.

The rest of her tears she quickly wiped with her scarf, before adjusting the piece of garment around her neck again.


By the time she had finished everything else, the afternoon had already begun to slip away. The smithy had finished the small piece she had brought them, though not without the smith complaining at least twice on the amount of fiddling required for something so small.

The pure honey was easy, but for the sand ginger she had to see at least three merchants before one even understood what she meant. And, after considerably more searching, she had found two lemons that looked slightly wrinkled but which were apparently still perfectly good to use.

She had checked all those things at least twice before paying for any of them.

She had everything now. Well, everything… except…

No present yet.

There was no other egg. So she had looked at some pottery, a couple of scarfs, a small box of sweets.

Nothing felt right.

Eventually, Lilium turned into the familiar street leading toward home.

She was walking faster now as she remembered how long she had been away already.

Then she smelled something.

Ah, the bakery.

But when she looked at it she stopped immediately.

“Oh!”

Behind the window she noticed a cake. And not just any cake. This one had a dark, glossy layer across the top, with delicate curls of chocolate around the edges, and a little bit of dusting that caught light in a separate way.

When she stepped closer towards the window, she noticed there was only one.

Yes!

Her feet were already moving before she had properly decided to go inside. The moment she opened that door, a welcoming warmth wrapped around her. Familiar scents and smells greeted her.

Her eyes immediately found the counter again. Only one cake left. A big beautiful chocolate cake.

The baker’s wife smirked when she found Lilium staring at it.

“Well, look who finally remembered we are here.”

Lilium grinned. “I come here often.”

“I haven’t seen you in at least two days now.”

Lilium blushed. “I… been a bit busy.”

“So, you are here for something?”

Lilium motioned. “How much is that one?”

“That one?”

“I’m not seeing another cake.”

“Planning to eat it yourself?”

Lilium looked almost offended.

“No, it’s a present. For Mother.”

“Well, in that case I suppose I can cut you a deal.”

“Excellent,” Lilium said as she patted her pockets.

Ashamed she pulled a single tiny coin from her pants.

“Uh…”

This couldn’t be right. The universe had put that cake on her path as a replacement for the egg, and now she was out of coin when she wanted to buy the last cake??

“When was her birthday again?” the baker’s wife kindly asked.

“Next month, which is actually in a few days…”

The woman reached behind the counter.

“Don’t worry about it. We’ll figure it out later. You can have it for now.”

“Really?!?” Lilium nearly burst into tears of joy. “Oh! Thank you thank you thank you! You have no idea what kind of day I have had, and… and… I really can’t believe you had this one cake left!”

The woman smiled. “It must have been a sign. But to make sure I’ll wrap it up so it’s not half eaten by the time you get home.”

“Hey!”

They both laughed. But when Lilium looked outside she noticed how the sunlight had shifted, both in angle as well as color.

“I really need to hurry home now.”

“Oh, I thought you’d hang around for some talk.”

“I know I know, but I really need to go,” she beamed. “Mother is waiting.”

The little brass bell chimed as she stepped back into the street.


The dark wooden doors were closed, the little iron lanterns hanging on each side, unlit. Well, she was home and felt tension leaving her shoulders.

She had to find mother first and nearly rushed through the door, a bit careful with that cake though.

“I’m home! Mother?!” Her voice carried through an empty hallway.

By evening the house can be quiet. But this quiet?

“Mother?”

Movement came from the kitchen door. It was Cook. He looked at her and they both stopped.

When she saw his face, her smile faded slightly.

“What’s up?” she asked, knowing she was really late.

His face looked strange. Not angry though.

“Cook…?”

The man swallowed and nodded finally.

“You’re home.”

“Yeah, as you can see. Where is Mother?”

Cook closed his eyes for just a moment.

Lilium saw it and her stomach tightened.

“Where… is she?”

Something in his look made the hallway suddenly feel much colder than the street outside.

“Lilium… she… she passed away this afternoon.”

She dropped all her things, staring at the man.

“No…? No… No, when I left she was fine. She was… better… she.. she was…” her voice became quicker, agitated. “I… I got a present for her…”

Cook moved toward her.

“What? No.. no! Get away! Get away from me!”

She shook her head violently when she saw how Cook’s eyes filled with tears. She kicked at a lemon on the floor and ran off. Into the empty living room.

No one followed her right away, but after a few her father knocked at the door before opening it.

“Lilium…?”

His daughter was nowhere to be seen.


After he left and closed the door behind him, Lilium -who had pressed herself further into the narrow space behind the seat, pulling her knees to her chest- started crying again.

(( I dedicate this story to everyone who has unexpectedly lost someone to a disease, and to those still fighting as such affects more than one life. Being a watcher myself now time and time again, I hope these chapters -balancing both joy and loss- help navigate me and others through the storm such can cause. ))