The Moonlark's Song

Chapter Two

"Sophie? Biana and Fitz are downstairs, but we can send them home if you need more time."

"So's That Boy, and we should send him home anyway."

"Keefe is Sophie's friend, Grady."

"Still."

Sophie woke to Grady and Edaline attempting to wake her, but getting distracted by whether or not Keefe should retain access to their daughter. She smiled before the events of the previous day came rushing back. Groaning, she burrowed under her pillow and squeezed her eyes shut.

"So you are awake," Edaline said, smoothing what she could see of Sophie's hair. "If you need more time, just let me know, and they'll be gone before you come downstairs."

"Thanks, but they might not even bring it up. I can't avoid them forever, so I'd rather just get it over with now." Sophie sat up and Edaline and Grady stood up.

"We'll leave you to get dressed." Grady brushed off his tunic and went downstairs, pausing only to exchange a few words with Sandor and Bo. Edaline shortly followed, promising that she wouldn't let Grady try to scare Keefe away.

"I doubt he could, but thanks." Sophie stood in front of Vertina after donning a red tunic and grey leggings.

"You should really try to do more with your hair," Vertina said shortly. "Since I know you won't let me do anything fancy, at least put a few braids in or something?" Sophie complied with a laugh. "You look good in red," Vertina said when Sophie had finished twisting small sections of hair into braids not unlike Marella's. "Wear it more often."

Sophie nodded and stepped away so that Vertina faded. How was she supposed to tell her friends that she was Unmatchable? Tam wouldn't care, she knew, since he'd voluntarily left the Lost Cities for Exilium when Linh was banished, but for the others, Matchmaking was part of their lives. Anyone she was interested in would be a guaranteed bad match...but she couldn't let her mind go there. And anyway, Tam had also voluntarily left the Lost Cities again to join the Neverseen. He wasn't exactly a model of fabulous choices, even if he had good reasons. She smoothed her tunic again and headed downstairs, closely trailed by her bodyguards.

"Sophie!" Biana rushed her and threw her arms around her as soon as Sophie had entered the room. "You woke up!"

"It's good to see all of you," Sophie said honestly, looking over Biana's shoulder to note that Biana, Fitz, and Keefe had been joined by Dex and Wylie. "I was hoping you guys would come over."

"Okay, Biana, you've hug-hogged Foster long enough." Sophie rolled her eyes as she accepted Keefe's hug.

"Anyone else? Or are we good?" She scanned her friends' faces until she caught Fitz's eye. He half-smiled, half-grimaced and nodded his hello. Sophie's smile faded. Alden wouldn't have told him about the matchmakers yet, right? Of course not. Alden was usually great about keeping Sophie's secrets from his son. Usually. Biana, on the other hand...well, if Biana had overheard anything she wasn't supposed to, she did a much better job of hiding it than Fitz did.

Dex's dimple flashed. "I think we're good. Are we going to do any more processing about the facts that we're still down a Shade, or that we have no idea what the Neverseen are planning, or that it turns out that Alvar is still evil?"

Nobody missed how Fitz's mouth tightened when Alvar was mentioned.

Sophie cleared her throat, but Wylie cut in.

"Has anyone heard from Linh? Or know whether Tam has tried to make contact?" Sophie could've kicked herself. Why hasn't anyone talked to Linh? After the round of revelations following Tam's departure, Linh had left quietly--and nobody had heard from her since. Sophie knew the pretty Hydrokinetic was doing her best to hide in order to make the Neverseen's plan to use her to make Tam cooperate as difficult as possible, but Sophie should've checked in by now.

"I haven't heard from or checked in with Linh yet, but that doesn't mean she isn't perfectly fine," Sophie said. 

"Have you reached out to Tam yet?" Biana asked with a frown. Sophie bit her lip. There was so much she'd meant to do last night.

"No, I haven't had time."

"That's ridiculous," Fitz told her. "Matchmaking appointments last two hours, tops." Sophie had avoided looking at him since his less-than-warm greeting when she came downstairs, but there was no point in trying to avoid it now. She met his eyes, wracking her brain for an excuse that didn't sound like an excuse.

"Mine took longer," Sophie said finally. She looked away.

"So are we going to discuss the emotions rolling off Foster whenever she looks at the Fitzster or...? 'Cause they are intense." Keefe made a show of wafting the invisible emotions away from him with a grin.

"There's nothing to discuss, Keefe," Biana said, shooting him a look.

"Biana's right, Keefe. Leave her alone." Sophie smiled at Dex gratefully. He nodded back, though without even a trace of a dimple. "So nobody's talked to Linh?"

"I can try to get in touch with her once we've finished discussing...whatever we're discussing," Wylie volunteered. "I have a couple of other questions I want to ask her as well."

"I bet," Biana mumbled, and Wylie looked rather pinker than normal.

"I don't know about everyone else, but I want to hear how the Matchmakers went for Foster yesterday. Has nobody else noticed that she freaks out whenever somebody mentions it? Even more than when she looks at Fitz." Sophie scowled. She was going to kill Keefe...if Biana didn't beat her to it. Biana was looking exasperated and maybe even a little sorry. That was it. Biana already knew. And Fitz probably did too. Why shouldn't everyone?

"Sophie? How did Matchmaking go? It shouldn't have been more than asking a couple of questions and getting your packet." Fitz looked at her expectantly.

"Um..." Sophie tugged on an eyelash, wishing she could be anywhere but here. "It didn't. Exactly."