“He seems nice,” I said neutrally. “He’s a good alchemist. I don’t think I’ve ever known someone who could accomplish what he’s been able to do already.”
“You mean despite things not working exactly as you want them to.”
I glanced at the kitchen Hobs. They were still hard at work, but I knew they were listening. That was one thing Marianne had worked hard to drum into my skull, reinforced by years of working retail in the mortal world: the staff was always listening. Especially if it looked like they weren’t. I would forget that at my own peril.
“Yes,” I said, keeping my tone forcibly light as I turned back to Cassandra. “Even despite that, he’s done amazing things. A cure for elf-shot is just . . . I never thought I’d see it in my lifetime. And him living in the Mists means it reflects well on me that he accomplished it, even if he was in Silences at the time.”
“Are we, like, friends with Silences now?”
“I probably shouldn’t send October to visit any time soon, but I think we are.” I took another bite of sandwich, and swallowed before saying, “We put the rightful ruling family back on the throne. We corrected a profound wrong. The whole coast is healthier now, and Queen Siwan is grateful for our help, even as she hopes that we don’t need to do any more diplomacy in her presence for a long, long time.”
Cassandra leaned closer, lowering her voice conspiratorially as she asked, “Did you do that on purpose? Send Aunt Birdie because you knew she’d mess things up in the best way possible, I mean?”
“Honestly, I was just mad that she’d touched me without permission.” I smiled wryly. “I guess I’m getting used to this queen thing after all.”
“What?” Cassandra blinked. “What do you mean?”
“Oh, I know this is all ‘poor little rich girl’ of me, but . . . I gave up expecting to be Queen in the Mists a long time ago. I’d adjusted to the idea that I wasn’t going to have the opportunity, and then I’d adjusted to the idea that I wasn’t going to have the responsibility. I figured I’d spend the next few centuries selling books, or whatever comes after books, and not worrying about anything outside my immediate sphere. When October showed up at the bookstore where I was working, I hated her a little. She forced me to take a job I’d given up on wanting.”
“That must have been hard,” said Cassandra.
“You know what’s funny? The hardest thing is remembering not to thank people.”
She cocked her head to the side. “Come again?”
“I worked in retail. ‘Thank you, have a nice day’ is such an automatic thing for me that I might as well have a pull-string in my back. I thanked the staff something like a dozen times my first week here. They were all volunteers, half of them were from the old Queen’s Court, none of them had any idea what kind of ruler I was going to be, and I was thanking them. Some left as soon as I said the words. I don’t think they’re ever coming back.”
“I . . . wow.” Cassandra began to laugh helplessly. “Please don’t take this the wrong way, but holy shit, Toby actually did it. She went and got us a changeling queen.”
I blinked. “Come again?”
“You don’t sound totally pissed. That’s a good sign. Look.” She took a deep breath, getting her laughter under control. “You’re a pureblood, absolutely. I mean, if you weren’t, there’s no way you’d be Queen now. It’s a pretty simple logic problem. But you have the same problems interacting with fae society that I do. It’s not natural to you. You’re not really a changeling. That doesn’t mean you’re one of them.”
This time, my blink was slower, and accompanied by another bite of my sandwich. Chewing gave me time to think. “Huh,” I said finally. “I . . . that makes a lot of sense. Maybe if I think about it that way, I won’t feel so damn out of place all the time.”
“I live to serve.”
“Good, because I want you to come work here.”
Cassandra’s eyes went wide. “I didn’t mean it literally.”
“You need to learn to watch your mouth around royalty, then.”
“I can’t imagine why I wouldn’t have picked that lesson up in elementary school.” She shook her head. “I can’t come work for you. I have college, I have a job—”
“What do you do?”
“I’m a clerk at Rasputin Records on Telegraph.”
“So that’s what, slightly better than minimum wage?” I waited for her to nod before I said, “I can pay you thirty dollars an hour, and if you don’t have a car, I can pick you up wherever you want.”
“What, you mean the,” she made a circling motion with her hand, “thing? And how are you going to pay me? My bank doesn’t take fairy gold.”
“Funny thing: neither did the BART system. I’ve been working mortal jobs for a hundred years, and I’ve been socking it all away against a time when I might actually want to buy something. If the imposter who stole my family’s throne had ever thought to check with Wells Fargo, she would have found me a long time ago.”
Cassandra raised her eyebrows. “So, what, you’re loaded?”
“Let’s just say that I never need to worry about money.” I shrugged. “I can pay you. I can work around your school schedule. And I can give you a room here, if you were thinking it might be nice to get out of your parents’ house. That maybe you’re ready to start dating without worrying about them waiting up for you.”
Her cheeks flared red. “Am I that obvious?”
“No, but I’m that observant, and he’s cute. A little nerdy for my tastes, I’ll admit. Still cute.” I took one more bite of my sandwich before putting it down. “I’m not asking you to swear fealty on the spot. Just give me a try.”
“What would I be doing? I’m twenty-two, studying for my physics degree, and have basically no skills applicable to a noble household. Unless you wanted me to peel potatoes, and you already have someone for that.”
“I want you to translate for me.” Her shocked expression made smiling easier. “You know how purebloods are. Honestly, right now, you probably know better than I do. And you can explain to people that sometimes the Queen says the wrong thing out of habit without it coming off as condescending. I’ll need you less as I learn more, and who knows? You might find that you like working for me. Having a scientist on the staff wouldn’t be a bad thing.”
“What happens when I get my degree and want to go off and, you know, do physics? I’m going to figure out what magic is. That means I’m going to need resources.”
“First, again, rich. You get your degree and convince me this is a question worth answering—and I think it is—I can set you up with your own lab. A legit one, even. There’s a computer company in the South Bay, Tamed Lightning, that’s a part of my demesne. I can get them to help us make you look totally normal, and you can do your work on my dime. If we become the kingdom where all the big breakthroughs are made, I won’t complain. Second, even if you don’t want to feel beholden, do you really expect me to believe that a tenure-track position won’t mysteriously open up the second you want it? Changeling or not, you’re fae. Someone will make it happen for you. Don’t try to convince me you’d refuse it because you want to earn it. You’re a changeling, you’re a woman, and you eat like someone who knows what it is to be hungry. You’ve already earned it by living this long.”
“Huh,” said Cassandra, after a long pause. “I’d ask whether you’d practiced that, but I just met you, so I’m assuming the answer is ‘no.’”