The Misadventures of Annika Brisby (12 page)

“I didn’t mean it like that!”

“It’s not you, Runa. It’s something Finn said.”

“Oh, you met Finn already? Why would he say something crude like that to you? He’s
such
a gentleman.”

Annika checked to make sure that Yuri was out of earshot before she confided in Runa. Whatever was written in that letter must have been astounding, because she was completely absorbed in its contents.

“He didn’t say it to me. He said it to Talvi. Something about whisking me away to his room before he could introduce me. Does he bring home a lot of girls?” Runa slowed down her scrubbing to a light massage, but didn’t answer her immediately.

“I think you must have misunderstood what Finn meant,” she said.

“I don’t think so. I think Finn was perfectly clear about Talvi’s character…or lack of,” Annika said firmly. Runa bit her lip as she thought of a response.

“He does have a bit of a reputation because he’s always had a lot of girls chasing after him. How could he not? Isn’t he adorable?” Annika wrinkled her nose. Something Runa was or was not saying still bothered her.

“Well, Finn is cute too, so does that mean he has the same problem?” she asked innocently.

“Oh goodness, no! Finn would never
dream
of—well, what I mean is he, well…” Runa stammered. “They’re very different when it comes to ladies. Finn tends to avoid them, and Talvi, well, I suppose he makes up for his brother. He never gets serious with them, though. Yuri sees to that,” Runa said in a very quiet voice.

“What do you mean?” Annika was becoming very interested in this bit of gossip.

“She always chases them off. She doesn’t think they’re ever good enough for him. I think because they’re twins, she expects him to be devoted to her before anyone else.” Runa was about to say more, but just then Yuri walked over to them and Annika dismissed the thought for the time being.

“So uh, weren’t you saying that there’s a lot of vampires here?” she asked Runa quickly. It seemed that Yuri had been oblivious to their private conversation.

“Not here, but about two weeks or so up north,” Runa said.

“It’s sixteen days’ ride, actually,” Yuri corrected her. Runa wrinkled her little nose at Yuri for being so nitpicky.

“Really? Do you think I’ll meet any?”

“You will sooner than you think. I hope they mind their manners,” Runa said and rinsed her hair, drying it with the towel.

“Speaking of manners, we should finish up. I think it’s time to set the table,” Yuri said.

“Don’t you have someone to set it for you?” Annika asked, under the impression that even if they weren’t royalty, anyone living in such a grand house and dressed in such luxurious clothes probably had a complete staff of maids and butlers to help run the household.

“Someone such as whom?” Yuri replied, not sure what Annika meant.

“What about those women in the kitchen?” Annika asked.

“Oh,
them
?” Yuri stifled a laugh. “They’re only working in trade. We don’t use money for every little thing like modern people do. The ladies in the kitchen help with the gardens, and for that Finn tutors their children. It’s really quite nice.”

The girls walked back towards the kitchen where the scent overpowered them, but continued on to a spacious, yet intimate dining room. There was a very large, ancient looking china cabinet nearby. They set twelve ornate china plates and twelve matching bowls on a long wooden table with eight legs. Runa lit all the candles in the chandeliers above them with a long brass candle lighter while Yuri placed the silverware carefully beside each plate. Orange light from the setting sun was coming through the windows, casting an ethereal glow throughout the room. Hilda and Sariel came in with large covered dishes in their hands and set them along the length of the table.

“Don’t just stand there, you three! There’s a lot more to bring out,” Hilda chided playfully. When they returned to the kitchen, Talvi was standing there with Finn, sampling the different dishes that had been prepared.

“I see your headache was remedied by the magical healing powers of potato soup,” Yuri remarked sarcastically to him.

“I know. It’s truly astounding how quickly it cures my ailments. Why haven’t you told me how well it works until now?” he retorted and took another generous sample. Finn walked up to Annika, peering at her though his dark curls.

“Do you drink wine?” he asked, ignoring the now bickering twins. She chuckled to herself a little bit. He was definitely asking the right person the right question.

“Only after lunch,” she said, coaxing an easy smile out of him.

“Then why don’t you come with me,” he winked at her, taking a lamp in one hand and opening a narrow door with the other. “We’ll let Talvi finish setting the table.” Annika looked up to see Hilda thrust a huge stack of plates into Talvi’s arms. He seemed irritated that his older brother had volunteered him to set the table, but then, older brothers are good at that sort of thing.

Finn led her down into a large cellar where there were glass jars of pickles, jams, sauces, dried fruits, and other food stacked on shelves, along with bushels of apples, onions and potatoes, braided strands of garlic, sacks of brown rice and flour, but most importantly, many, many long rows of wine.

“Whoa…you could lock me in here for a month and I wouldn’t even make a dent in this collection,” she remarked, walking up and down the rows in awe.

“Pick a few that look good,” he instructed, “but nothing from the top shelf.”

“Why nothing from there?”

“Because that’s not wine,” he explained. “It’s Father’s good fairy brandy. He has a photographic memory, and he’ll know right away if we’ve been in it.”

“I don’t think I could reach it anyway,” she said as she failed an attempt to do so. She picked up a bottle and looked at the unrecognizable writing on it. She picked up another and got the same result. “I’m used to seeing French and Italian labels, but I’ve never seen ones like these.”

“That’s because these come from my cousin’s vineyard down south,” he explained, and suddenly he had Annika’s full attention. He took the nearest bottle off the rack and showed her the label, pointing to a word in a language she’d never seen before. “That says Marinossian. Why, I remember that year. He lost half his yield to botrytis but the rest turned out quite good.”

“What’s botrytis?”

“It’s a type of mold,” he said, handing her the bottle. “And I had the unpleasant task of separating all the good grapes from the bad that season.”

“I’d still pick through moldy grapes just to work at a vineyard,” she sighed wistfully. “Does he pay you in wine?”

“You’re looking at it,” he grinned, and motioned to the rows of wine surrounding them. After much deliberation they picked out a few more bottles and brought them to the table, where everyone else had gathered. A stately, dignified looking man was seated at the head of the table, and Annika could only assume he was their father. He’d clearly given his sons their looks, but he appeared more rugged than either of them. He sported a neatly trimmed graying beard and black hair that was heavily streaked with silver. It was shorter than Talvi’s, but it seemed just as unruly. He looked stern, a force to be reckoned with if necessary. And while his eyes twinkled with the same greenish blue of his youngest son’s, they held that same level of intelligence as his oldest son’s.

“Does it matter where I sit?” Annika asked.

“Sit next to me,” the brothers said simultaneously, and Talvi shot his brother a nasty look. There were a few muffled laughs coming from both sides of the table that Annika hadn’t noticed. Since she was right next to Finn anyway, she sat beside him.

“Father, I’d like you to meet Annika Brisby. Annika, this is my father, Ambrose Marinossian,” he said, taking great care with the formality of his proper introduction. This earned Finn yet another irritated scowl from Talvi.

“We haven’t dined with a human in quite some time. It’s a pleasure to meet you Annika,” their father said, nodding to her.

“It’s nice to meet you too, Mr. Marinossian.”

“Please, call me Ambrose while you’re under my roof,” he said, still looking at her. “Now, it’s my understanding that you may be here for an undetermined length of time, so please know that you’re welcome to stay while we sort out this matter of the locked gates. I’m holding a meeting about it within the next fortnight, and since you’ve been affected I expect you’d be interested in attending.”

“Then I guess I’ll be there,” she shrugged awkwardly. It wasn’t as though she had other plans. “Thanks for letting me stay here.”

“You’re quite welcome. Let’s see about opening that wine, shall we?”

As everyone began passing their plates to be filled, Finn poured her a glass of wine and Hilda took her plate and bowl and returned them full of food. There was creamy potato soup, fresh corn and beans, a salad of chopped tomatoes and cucumber dressed with oil and vinegar, and warm pitas with hummus and olives. Annika didn’t realize how hungry she had been until the soup touched her lips. It was so delicious after having bland vegetable stew for the past few days at every meal. She took a few bites of everything, then swallowed a mouthful of wine, then repeated, enjoying the chatter among the Marinossians and the samodivi. It was clear that they’d been friends for years and years, but exactly how many remained a mystery to her.

“Would you like a refill?” Finn asked as he reached for another bottle.

“Sure,” she said enthusiastically. “This stuff is great!” She was slightly inebriated, but only enough that it made the candles overhead shine just a little brighter and dissolve the nervousness she had felt earlier.

All throughout the dinner conversation, she caught Talvi’s glance every now and then from across the table. He seemed like he had a lot on his mind, although his eyes clearly let on that he wasn’t particularly pleased with his brother. As the meal was winding to an end, Anthea gathered her children for bedtime while Althea and Yuri began to clear some of the dishes. Ambrose took out his pipe and leaned back in his chair, giving his wife’s hand an affectionate squeeze when she reached for his plate.

“Would you like me to help you?” Annika offered.

“No, but that is very kind of you to offer,” Althea said with a grateful smile. “You should relax with Sariel and the girls. I know you’ve had a long day and you’re probably very tired. Besides, there will be plenty for you to help with tomorrow. It takes a bit of effort to feed twelve mouths.”

Annika watched her walk away and then turned to Finn.

“I heard you have some books about unicorns and their powers,” she quietly mentioned.

“Yes, I do. I’d be delighted to share them with you,” he said, turning in his chair to face her. “Some of them have the most exquisite illustrations, but if you wish to learn anything factual I’ll have to translate, as they’re all in different languages…none of which are English, I’m afraid.”

“What languages are they in? I speak a few.”

“Do you, now?” he asked. His brown eyes sparkled with intrigue. “Which ones?”

“Besides English, I know French, some Macedonian, and a little Spanish. What about you?”

“I won’t bore you with naming them all, but it’s somewhere around one hundred and fifty, including the ones you speak. And then there’s all the dialects to consider.” Annika’s mouth fell open in amazement.

“You’re not even sure how many you speak? Well, I have to test you.
Parlez-vous courrament le français? J’ai remarqué qu’une partie de votre vin était étiqueté en français. Avez-vous l'acheté en France?
”

“
Je parle assez à l’aise pour acheter le vin sans identification
,” Finn replied with a grin.

“Your accent is
trés bon,
” she remarked. “I’m impressed.
¿Es usted bueno en el español? Aprendí tanto el funcionamiento justo en restaurantes de la cocina
.”

“
Estudié en España por un año y una mitad
,” he said flawlessly. “
Si usted mira en la parte posterior del sótano, usted encontrará algunos vinos de España. Asumo que mi acento era absolutamente bueno allí también.
”

“So which language is your favorite?” She took another drink of wine, astounded by his intelligence.

“Eu acredito que Português é a minha lingua favorita para falar em voz alta. É tão poético, para não falar útil. Estive com Talvi no Carnaval três vezes, e estou ansioso para ir novamente. Desta vez com menos tomates
.” Finn winked at her and raised his glass to his lips.

“Quit being such a show off, Finn! She doesn’t know Portuguese!” Talvi blurted out, trying with all his might not to let the scowl on his face seem so obvious. Ambrose bit down hard on his pipe, his eyes twinkling merrily at his sons, but he remained silent.

“I think it’s awesome that you guys went to carnival three times,” Annika said confidently, proving him wrong. Talvi seemed surprised that she knew what Finn had told her, but she actually had no clue what Finn had said other than deciphering this one fact due to the similarities with Spanish. “Do they really have giant food fights there, or did you behave yourselves?” she asked.