An abandoned boy, a grieving prince, and a reclusive sorcerer find themselves caught in a web of peril and mystery...
Domi, a young thief abandoned on the street at birth, just wants to save his dying foster mother. But first, he must survive the m...
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When Domi returned home from his lessons, he found his suite teeming with young Pullati.
"A reunion!" he said, throwing his hands up in the air and grinning. "But what... Why...?"
He glanced around in astonishment. Eternal Radiance bless them all, twenty street kids lounged about on the peach chaises, sat on the orchard-themed rug, and loitered on the dark-teal marble floor.
He peeked into his room, and sure enough, five littles lay piled in his bed, tangled with one another like puppies and fast asleep. Radix's cattus—Furacitas—lay curled between them, trilling her contentment. She lifted her head as Domi entered, her mismatched eyes fixing him with a stern glare as she hissed, ruff flaring. He took the hint and retreated.
"Look at you, you Lightbearer dunce!" Auca said, whistling as she stepped out of the kitchen. The waifish girl plucked at the edge of his paenula. "You got more color in your ugly face than I have ever seen. Is it the promenia healing or that awful paenula?"
"Both, I'm sure," he said with a grin, hugging the snatcher.
Radix sauntered out of their room, their sister Vis on their heels. Vis smirked. "Nice building you're living in here. Hope you don't mind us robbing your neighbors blind."
"Rob away." He grew serious, fear wending through him as he imagined one of the littles running into someone like Edera. "Just take care not to get caught. Really. These people are deadly. Even the kids."
She nodded, sobering. "Radix told me," she said, reaching out to ruffle their wild auburn curls. "Some little pixie made a mess of you, I hear."
"And then a man-shaped icicle struck me with lightning," he added cheerfully. That part was easier to think about than what Edera had done to him. He didn't remember much from when Valens killed him. "So yeah, be careful. These people don't mess around."
"We will." She glanced at Radix, arching a brow and flicking her gaze toward Domi.
"Oh!" They quirked a sly grin. "So, I had an idea."
"You always have ideas," Domi said with a teasing smile. "Half the time they're good ones. What is it?"
Radix shifted from foot to foot, glancing at all the Pullati around them. "So, you remember that Germinating starts tonight?"
"Yeah," he said, swallowing hard. The yearly three-month period of cold weather led to the season of Sowing. The chill temperatures helped seeds prepare to sprout but also threatened the lives of all Pullati without places to live.
Domi's ma tried hard each year to secure housing, even temporary shelter, for people experiencing homelessness. Despite her efforts, the great need still left hundreds of Pullati drifting all Germinating from insula to insula, or worse, from corner to corner out on the frozen streets. No matter how hard they tried, every year the Pullati lost a few children and old people to the cold.
Radix tipped their chin toward Domi's room, where the five littles snored. "Well, we have this lovely, warm dormitory where people can sleep at night. And worthwhile work for them to do for the community as they come at Dimming and leave at Brightening. A win-win."
"You want them to help with the lift?" He frowned at the gathered kids. "You know I don't mind having people stay here. And it's your home, too. You have every right to decide who comes and goes and how the space is used. But how are we going to feed them? I don't understand yet how Promethidae make coin. We can sell some of the stuff Valens gave me—Eternal Radiance knows I don't need it—but I'm not sure how far that will stretch to feed this many mouths."
"We'll feed them the same as always," Vis answered for her sibling. She waved a hand toward the kitchen. "You two own a stove and oven. We can bring whatever we snatch and scavenge here at Dimming and Brightening for them to eat."
Domi scratched his chin in thought. "That gives me an idea." The siblings tilted their heads in near-perfect sync, and he grinned. "Valens makes me cook breakfast for us. I'll ask him if I may prepare the food here and bring it with me each day. I'm sure we can stretch the ingredients, at least to add flavor to bread and such." He glanced around. "And the lift?"
Radix nodded. "I need two more days to finish up schedules for all your neighbors. I would like to make some for a few domuses up the hill, too. A bunch stand empty most months for circuit workers to use between assignments. They'll be good choices for less experienced breakers. Folks can snatch after the conservatory students head to class each morn and their servants leave for errands. We can take whatever we find to the slums and return at night. That way, if our dormitory gets searched, they'll never find anything."
It might work. Far more important, the plan would help keep twenty street kids, including Vis and Auca, from freezing to death in the chilly Germinating eves. He only saw one snag. "But how are we supposed to hide twenty Pullati here with no one the wiser?"
Radix smirked. "Did anyone tell you how many servants you could employ, or how many friends could visit you?" They glanced toward the door. "I've seen the other kids here come and go with all kinds of people. The servants, too. Some threw a party the other night with a bunch of rich Pyrrhaei dunces. If anyone asks us, we'll tell them we're all your servants. And if they ask you..."
Domi grinned and adopted Valens's expressionless disdain. "I'm a Trueborn Lightbearer. I of course need a full staff of attendants, cooks, servers, maids, messengers, errand runners, entertainers, and someone to wave palm fronds for me." In the kitchen, pans clattered, and someone cursed. Domi grimaced. "But if they're going to cook here, I'd better teach them how before someone burns the whole building down."
Vis nodded, her eyes sparkling. "Of course. If it burns down, there won't be much for us to snatch." She elbowed Radix and then pulled them close for a one-armed hug. "Then where would we be?"
