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To fulfill her bargain to win Heather’s heart, Vivienne was willing to give Heather anything she wanted; Heather requested a double date with Jude and Cardan. It was going well – they were on their collective second bottle of wine, and they were trading childhood stories, laughing.
In a lull, Heather tentatively asked, “When Folk make promises and vows it’s incredibly literal, right?” She sipped her wine as if to cover that she had asked a question at all.
“You know you don't have to be shy about asking about Faerie stuff,” said Vivi, a half smile on her lips. Vivi was proud of how well Heather was adapting, but she felt she couldn’t fully smile until Heather had fallen in love again.
“I know,” said Heather, shrugging her shoulders to hide her slight embarrassment. “I was just thinking about something.”
“We are bound by the letter of our word” said Cardan, kindly.
Jude gave him a half smile of her own – for he seemed to be a softer version of himself around her sisters, wanting to impress them, wanting to be loved by them too. “What’s on your mind?” asked Jude, turning back to Heather.
“I know a Fae,” said Heather, and Vivienne held very still, because Heather only knew her family as yet.
“Go on,” encouraged Cardan, though he caught Jude’s eye as he did so. Vivienne swore mentally, knowing that Cardan and Jude would know the pool of potential fae was small.
“He keeps dropping things,” said Heather. “To the point where he just walks around as if he has no hands at all.”
“Can I talk to you in your kitchen?” asked Vivienne, suddenly, standing up. She put her hand on Heather’s shoulder, making it clear it was urgent. The minute they were reasonably away, Vivi hissed, “You know they’re not on good terms with Dad, right?”
“I mean, yeah,” said Heather, actually managing to keep her voice low. “The High King and Queen of Faery can’t help but be on bad terms with their would-be usurper, but I think that Jude at least would care about your dad suffering on some level.” Heather held her hand out in front of her as if it was self evident that this would be the case.
“It’s complicated,” said Vivienne, desperately.
“You always say that,” said Heather, losing control of her volume.
“Faery is complicated,” Vivi said, raising her voice.
They suddenly realized that they were fighting while their guests were in hearing range. They paused to look around the corner of the kitchen, out to where the table was.
Their guests were gone.
–
Madoc was sitting in a rocking chair on the front porch of his home in Unit A1 when Jude stomped up the sidewalk to stand on the lawn, Cardan following only a few steps behind. He noted that Cardan had not tried to stop her approach, and had not said anything in Madoc’s hearing. Jude had trained Cardan well, then.
He was no longer part of the High Court of Faerie, so he did not stand on the ceremony of waiting for the High King and Queen to speak first. “My queen,” Madoc says, bowing his head, but not moving to stand.
Jude, who usually was ready with a quick word, ready with a tactic when her strategy had fallen apart, still doesn’t speak. She’s holding her hands in fists at her sides, and Cardan comes beside her, touching her shoulder. She looks at Cardan and then back at Madoc.
“I did not think I would speak to you ever again,” said Jude, “let alone speak to you to explain my mercy.”
“It was something like mercy, if I recall,” said Madoc, cool and casual, as if Jude was not his main concern.
Vivienne and Heather arrived, running from Heather’s apartment. Madoc’s predation turned to Vivienne, pointing to a large sign post that had been driven just off the patio. “Vivienne,” said Madoc, “What is this ‘For Sale’ sign that has been posted here?”
“I do not like it,” said Oriana, stepping out of screened front door, joining the discussion. “It does not say what is for sale, and I do not want strangers knocking and inquiring what wares I have for trade. How can someone post such a sign?”
“It’s a real estate sign, the unit is for sale,” said Vivienne, concerned. “I’ll have to get in contact with Martha, she’s the one who leased it to me. She, uh, promised” a pause that held things unsaid, an indication of side stepping for someone who must tell the truth, “that she wouldn’t sell the unit.”
“What do you mean, real estate?” asked Oriana.
Heather had been supporting Vivi's family's transition by explaining the mortal world, so she stepped in, “Buying and selling land and property on land,” said Heather.
Cardan and Jude looked at each other. Jude was concerned by Vivi saying she got a mortal woman to promise, but together they were bemused that they had been forgotten – something that would never happen in Elfhame.
“We do not own this ‘real estate’?” demanded Madoc. “We live as peasants on another man’s land?”
“Heather’s parents own the unit I’m in, and Martha owns the one you live in. How could we own it?” exclaimed Vivienne. “When you kidnapped us, my fake birth certificate went up in flames with Jude and Taryn’s real ones. That means we have no social security cards, no credit, we don’t exist! I take under the table cash jobs to pay our rents.”
"We'll buy it,” said Carden, suddenly.
"We can't grant a boon to Madoc,” said Jude, appraising Cardan.
“We can grant a boon to your sister, who has been instrumental in protecting and educating our heir," said Cardan reasonably. "We'll buy both apartments!”
“I'm not sure you can," said Heather, uncertainly.
“Thank you,” said Vivienne, glad that Heather was agreeing with her.
“It’s not because of the paperwork you’re talking about,” said Heather, almost apologetically. “I know you can figure out a way to fake a birth certificate if you really needed to, it’s something to do with the legal framework of this condominium project. You know, how real estate works in general.”
“Besides only one of them being for sale," said Jude, “What do you mean?"
Heather looked back and forth among the assembled Fae. “My parents always make sure to leave a copy of the CC&R in their condo properties."
Heather went into apartment A2, and quickly came back with a white binder that had been in the coat closet when Vivi had moved in, but Vivi had never paid any attention to. Because he was closest, Heather handed the binder to Madoc.
“Uh, this is pretty esoteric as far as mortal things go," said Heather, “But this is a condo, not an apartment." She shrugged, feeling everyone looking at her. “They look the same sometimes, but the difference is that in an apartment, all the units and the grounds are owned by the same person and individuals live there by renting from the owner. And in a condo, everyone owns their units, and everyone owns the land in common.”
There was a pause, everyone weighing those words. “They manage that joint ownership with the rules in that binder," Heather added, in the moment of silence, trying to fix it. “I thought there might be a rule against a single entity owning more than one unit, so I wanted to check before you guys tried to buy both units."
Madoc flipped open the binder, a pen was clipped to the front pages. Madoc moved the pen, holding it in a fist. He began read, but then looked up at Vivienne, and then Jude, and then Cardan. Madoc dropped the pen. Or rather, the pen leaped out of his fist as if two of the same magnetic poles were trying to coexist.
“A pen becomes a weapon when you intend to harm one with it," said Jude, speaking with her jaw set. “I think you just imagined plunging that pen into Cardan’s jugular.”
Carden snorted. “It could have just as easily been your jugular, my queen.”
Jude glared at Cardan, but went back to business. “That’s the nature of my mercy, father,” said Jude. “That many things can be a weapon if you use them as a weapon – but many things are simply tools to be used as they are intended.”
There was a silence, and Madoc and Jude’s gaze was locked. “Don’t make your family miserable by pretending I’ve cut off your limbs when you can work towards living your life differently, thinking differently.”
“Very like mercy, daughter,” said Madoc unamused at the lecture. He looked away first, and Jude looked like she wished she had her sword. But Cardan wrapped her arms around Jude’s shoulder and whispered in her ear.
Madoc turned to Vivienne. “You, though, Vivienne, you debased your heritage by having us live as peasants, renting off of someone else’s land.”
Vivienne rolled her eyes. “You know nothing about the mortal world, Dad,” she said. “Why don’t you read that binder before we talk about living as peasants.” Vivienne looked at Heather, almost unsure what to next.
Heather looked at Vivienne and then at their guests. “We have desert at my apartment,” said Heather.
“Yes, let’s do that,” said Cardan, turning Jude around without adjusting his supportive hold.
—
Madoc watched his daughters and their mates walk away.
He didn’t understand the Mortal World? The binder in Madoc’s hands seemed a mortal folly, elevated to farce by Vivienne’s impertinence. How could land be collectively owned? The mere idea was difficult to even fathom. Land was to be taken, and held, by a victor.
But Heather had said that the rules that governed this land were contained within this bit of plastic and cardboard. Madoc’s old instincts won out – intelligence was the first step towards victory. He began to read.
The first six pages defined all sorts of terms – the persons who drafted this document would make good Fae, Madoc decided. But also foolish ones, because when a term was so clearly and concrete defined, the gray areas were sometimes even more obvious.
There were two keys, Madoc decided. The first, was gaining membership by having… how did the document put it? Record ownership of legal title to the units. Luckily that was already in process, with Cardan (still a fool to whom Madoc would never bend a knee) offering to provide this.
The second key was this provision which was obviously put into place by some very jealous mortal, who wanted to hide his desire to protect what they had with every fiber of their being: In order to maintain a community of congenial residence who are financially responsible and thus protect the value of the units, the transfer of a unit by any shall be subject to Approval of the Association so long as the Condominium exists.
It was key, because first Madoc had to be approved. But once he was approved – he would be able to influence these mortals – it was how Madoc could begin consolidating power.
Madoc smiled, realizing that the papers – neither made nor used as a way to physically injure – stayed in his hands.
–
After Carden and Jude said their goodbyes, and Vivi and Heather watched Carden conjure ragweed ponies for them to ride home, Vivi turned to Heather.
“That was a terrible date,” Vivi said, closing the door. “I’ll have to make it up to you.” After all, in her quest to win Heather’s heart, Vivienne would do nearly anything so sure that she was close to winning Heather back.