16. Conrad
CONRAD
Conrad found himself smiling at the question. “What is it you would like to know?”
Sage shrugged, but Conrad didn’t miss the way the other man’s gaze stole over his body. “Whatever you’d like to tell. I barely know anything about you.”
“I was born and raised in Bristol. I’m in the middle of a lot of siblings.”
“How many?”
“Nine.”
Sage made a face. “Stars above. I thought I had a large family.”
“Now you can see why there was so much sharing of space.”
“It’s no wonder. What else?”
“My parents were quite adamant about us learning to read and write, and master basic spells. Schooling was…informal. But efficient. And a worthwhile endeavor. Having the little education I did provided me with better job opportunities.”
“And how did you end up…at the shipyards?”
Conrad leaned back on his elbows. “My older brother worked there already and helped me get started. At first, it was just to help with some of the spell casting. But then they learned that I was nimble and could help with the heavy lifting by climbing and passing things down. And I took on additional tasks from there. The work in the shipyards is dependent on the merchant who owns the ship, how much material they have to load or unload, and how much they’re willing to pay.
But people are a little more inclined to hire you if you’re willing and able to do more, and if you’re punctual. ”
Sage was quiet for a moment, a small frown creasing his forehead. “Did you like it?”
“Well enough. The other people I worked with were quite friendly and nice, hard-working folks. We tended to help each other. I liked that. The sailors respected us if we were respectful of the boats and didn’t make their jobs more difficult.
The merchants…there were fewer of them that I liked, I’ll admit. ”
“Hard to imagine you disliking anyone.”
Conrad chuckled. “That’s because you’ve only seen me interacting with kind people.”
Sage’s lips pinched together slightly. “Even when some of them tease you about your private affairs?”
“Even then. I’m no stranger to teasing. And I think I have a…gentler history of such things than you do.”
“Yes, you’re probably right,” Sage said quietly. A breeze ruffled past them, toying at the strands of Sage’s hair.
Conrad sat up and tucked Sage’s hair behind his ears. His fingers lingered a little on the pointed ends of them. Sage searched his face guardedly. Conrad stroked the back of his fingers along the other man’s jaw. “What else would you like to know?”
“How long did you do that work? And what caused you to leave it?”
Conrad moved one hand to the other side of Sage’s legs and leaned against his palm. “It all rather blurs together, to be honest. But I think I started when I was fifteen or so. About twenty years, then?”
Sage’s eyes widened. “Twenty years?”
Conrad laughed and used his free hand to trace a fingertip over the mother-of-pearl buttons on Sage’s waistcoat.
“As to what caused me to leave, that’s a bit of a longer explanation.
I liked my work well enough, but I didn’t want to do it forever.
As you can probably imagine, it’s hard on the body.
And there’s only so long a person can do it.
Not to mention, there’s some amount of danger involved, so it’s always a risk that you’ll hurt yourself and be unable to work.
I knew I liked helping people, I knew I liked making plans and lists.
I knew I liked magic, for all that I was hardly the best at it.
But it’s…challenging finding work that suits such things when your education is informal and your means are small. ”
“How did you decide on the Council position?”
“I started following the news a little more closely when Roger and Wyndham were assigned their project last autumn. No one in my family had a particularly high Hastings score. So when we heard that the Hastings Exam might be replaced with something more nuanced, we subscribed to the only source that was discussing it.”
“ Torquil’s Tribune .”
“Yes.”
Sage turned his face away. “So you have read the gossip then?”
“Not really. I wasn’t subscribing to the paper for the gossip, only for news about the Council. Besides, what did I care about the goings on of strangers in another city?”
Sage stared at him for a long moment. “Go on.”
Conrad let his free hand drop down to Sage’s thigh.
“It wasn’t until I read that a number of the councilmembers were stepping down that I formed any plans at all.
And then when the Council invited fae-humans to come and work on the newest rubric, my plans began to take shape a little more.
It seemed to me that the Council was changing.
They were getting to know the people more, getting to understand everyday magic a little better.
“With such changes as the Barnes-Wrenwhistle rubric, and the research on fae-human magic, it felt like…I don’t know…
a new age, in a way. One that I could be a part of building.
I thought about my family, full of informally educated people with moderate magical abilities, barely managing to scrape together enough to live.
And I thought of how many other people were like us, all over the country.
Whatever the new rubric was going to be, I wanted to make sure it was something that would help people like me.
The surest way to ensure that was to be a part of the group making those decisions.
So I sold off whatever I could, bought myself enough to travel post, and…
” He shrugged. “I imagine you know the rest.”
Sage was quiet in response. Conrad didn’t mind. He didn’t require any sort of commentary on his story. He rubbed his palm over Sage’s thigh.
“Thank you for telling me,” Sage said at last.
Conrad smiled. “I’ll tell you anything you like.”
Sage huffed a laugh and looked away again. “I wish I was so trusting.”
Conrad cupped his cheek and leaned closer.
“I don’t blame you for being slow to trust, nor do I take whatever trust you give me lightly.
” He rubbed his thumb over Sage’s cheekbone.
“There are some things that are rare, but all the more precious because of it. Trust and friendship being amongst them.”
Sage swallowed and met his gaze. “You seem to make friends wherever you go.”
“I am friendly with most everyone I meet, because I happen to like most of the people I meet.”
“Such a strange creature,” Sage murmured.
Conrad grinned. “But I would be a fool indeed to handle a friendship such as yours as carelessly as others have.”
Sage peered over Conrad’s shoulder, to where Wyndham and Roger were sitting.
Conrad cupped his chin and redirected his face back towards him.
He leaned a little closer and heard Sage’s breath catch.
“You need never give me anything more than what you are comfortable offering,” he said, his voice soft enough to only be heard by his companion.
“And I will never demand anything that isn’t given freely.
Everyone deserves that much. You especially. ”
Sage closed the distance between them with a kiss, one hand coming to the side of Conrad’s waist. Conrad smiled against his lips, keeping his hold on his chin as he kissed Sage back lightly, allowing the other man to dictate the pace.
The kiss started out with a gasp of breath and the heated press of lips, but swiftly turned leisurely and indulgent, Conrad’s favorite kind.
After they broke apart, Sage leaned his forehead against Conrad’s. “I’m not sure how much I have to give anymore,” he whispered.
Conrad moved his hand back to Sage’s cheek. “Whatever it is, it’s enough.” Someone behind them whistled and Sage stiffened. Conrad rubbed his thumb over Sage’s cheek. “You tell me if you need us to stop.”
“No,” Sage said quietly, his breath ghosting over Conrad’s lips. “I don’t want us to stop.”
Conrad pressed a kiss to the corner of Sage’s mouth and turned to face their hecklers. Unsurprisingly, it was Emrys, gawking at them openly with a cheeky grin.
“Are we bothering you?” Conrad asked.
“Oh, not at all,” Emrys responded blithely. “I’m all for having entertainment provided for me.”
Torquil rolled their eyes. “Don’t mind him. Everyone else he knows is married now.”
Conrad chuckled. “Speaking of which, how were the strawberries?”
Torquil smiled. “Delectable, thank you. I keep telling Emrys I can feed myself, but he insists on spoiling me.”
“Can you blame me?”
Torquil placed a hand on Emrys’ chest. “I’m not really used to being looked after, you see,” they explained to Conrad. “I spent several years decidedly on my own. I worked myself into collapse, trying to run the Tribune and work on the Council.”
“Not to mention all of the social gatherings my grandmother was foisting on you,” Wyndham added, not looking away from his book.
“And that,” Torquil agreed. “Ever since, I’ve had to constantly remind myself that sometimes the best way to take care of someone you’re fond of is to let them take care of you.”
“I like that,” Roger mused.
“They’re always saying things like this. So wise,” Emrys said, his tone smug, before he pulled Torquil in for a kiss.
“It is good advice,” Conrad agreed. He glanced back at Sage and then turned around and settled his back against the other man’s chest. Sage’s arms immediately wound around his waist. “This seems like a good start.”
Torquil grinned at him. “You’re picking it up faster than I did.”
Conrad winked. “I’m a quick learner.”
“Oh, I’m sure Sage will take very good care of you,” Emrys drawled.
Sage’s arms tightened and Conrad placed a reassuring hand on his wrist. He liked Emrys, but he did not like the sneer in Emrys’ tone, and he liked even less the way Sage seemed to tense under the banter.
“Well, considering how generous he’s been in letting me share the room, helping to ensure my clothes are cleaned regularly, and giving me some much needed advice, I’m inclined to agree with you. ”
Emrys looked baffled. “Not entirely what I meant.”
“Indeed,” Conrad said, his tone more clipped than usual, “I’m sure I know what you meant . But I’ll thank you not to say such things about Sage in the future.”
Roger looked worriedly between Conrad and Emrys while Torquil raised an eyebrow at their husband.
Emrys smirked and said, “Glad to see you do have feathers to ruffle after all.”
Conrad shrugged. “Doesn’t everyone?”
Emrys laughed in response and the tension eased.
Sage kissed Conrad’s jaw. “Don’t worry about it, Conrad,” he said, his voice soft but still carrying. “It’s no worse than what everyone else says about me.”
Wyndham turned his gaze to them briefly before returning to his book.
Conrad squeezed Sage’s wrist and resumed his usual easy tone. “Well, I must say this has been a lovely afternoon.”
“Yes,” Harriet said, leaning forward. “And long overdue. I came here to visit with Roger and Wyndham and I don’t much care for being neglected.”
Roger looked chagrined. “I apologize. We really haven’t been very good hosts, have we? It’s just so nice to practice magic with someone new. And to have him in the house makes it even more convenient.”
Harriet gave an exasperated sigh and flopped against Fern. “Then have him stay with you in London, for heaven’s sake.”
Conrad felt his chest tighten a little at her words.
What would he do after he left here? He’d been so focused on the first part of the journey, he kept pushing the rest of his concerns to the back of his mind.
It occurred to him suddenly that he ought to be a little more concerned with what happened next.
“Or at least alternate days,” Cyril added.
“That might be best,” Roger agreed. “We have a nice stable full of horses. Perhaps we can go riding tomorrow or the day after if the weather continues to be fine.”
“Capital!” Cyril said. “I can wear my new hat.”
Conrad tried not to show his own disappointment. He didn’t care for the idea of sitting at home while everyone else left. But he didn’t particularly care to admit that he couldn’t ride either.
Torquil leaned their head against Emrys’ shoulder. “I’m afraid I’ll have to bow out of that one. I can’t ride.”
Conrad brightened. “Oh, good. Me neither. I’ll keep you company.”
Torquil smiled. “Excellent.”
Emrys gasped. “Nonsense. You can’t pass up the opportunity to wear that delectable riding costume. You can share my horse.”