013. Classic Concentration

The motley unlocks some more of Braum's memories, and learns more about Kay.

***"I've done some pretty horrible things to people while playing games."***

Once more, Braum hasn't slept, and his 60 hours of wakefulness are starting to take their toll. Sophia demands that they do something for him so that he can be rested for their trip to the Duchess Eloyse's court. They decide to Dream Walk into his mind again to discover the source of his insomnia, and, in that moment, the sound of running water starts to put Braum to sleep. Sophia and Patches get ready to confront Rick, and decide to bring along Incisor for good measure.

Inside Braum's dreams, the rising waters surround the tower where Rick, petulantly, awaits them. After Incisor intimidates the dream-troll, Sophia and Patches ask why Rick isn't letting Braum sleep. The childling tells them that he wants to protect Braum from the bad dreams, and will allow them one night with those nightmares, just to see what he is protecting Braum from. "I want you to be afraid, Braum."

Rick disappears, and in his place is a door which, when opened, leads to a large, isolated waterfall surrounded by rocks and forest. With Patches, Incisor, and Sophia watching, Braum is standing in front of a woman, curvy & muscular, with long violet hair and slightly webbed fingers & toes. At the woman's urging ("Stop thinking about what's right, and start thinking about what's just!"), they swear the Oath of Clasped Hands, binding them together in friendship and he promises to see her again soon. Moving into a different memory, Kay is resting in Braum's bathtub, recovering after a hard mission in which they were both injured. Commiserating over the tightrope they walk in being partly in the mortal and partly Fae, Braum is very clear with Kay about his loyalty towards both her and his wife when she asks him to leave her. Kay gently tells Braum that she knows his wife is an "oathbreaker". Braum is quietly furious, smashing a mirror and telling Kay that "I have been doing my duty, and in that, neglected another." Again moving forward several years, Braum meets Kay outside Montreal City Hall, at the large fountain; he's just finished a scavenger hunt she set out for him, which led him to her. She asks him how he feels about certain "secrets that are being kept" by members of the Red Branch, and how she would rather things were just "out in the open". The two, deciding it should no longer be a secret, swear an Oath of True Hearts to one another as chimerical songbirds fly up over their heads, entwined.

Shifting out of that memory, Braum, Patches, Sophia, and Incisor find themselves on the bank of the St. Lawrence River at Pine Beach Park, where Kay sits at the edge of the water. As the others watch Rick, newly appeared but waiting on the periphery, Braum takes the opportunity to apologize to Kay for what he "had to do". She understands, and tells him that "at least you saved me". When he asks desperately where she's gone so that he can get her back, she tells him that the rocket is the most important thing, and that getting her back depends on "where it went" (possibly meaning her selkie coat rather than the rocket). At that moment, Rick begins to mumble about the "darkness coming" as ghostly hands emerge from the water and start to drag Kay away into the icy depths. As Braum vows to find her, she again thanks him for saving her before cryptically remarking that "the Red Branch could even save you from yourself". As she is dragged away, Braum awakes from his dream.

Incisor immediately leaves the Exhaust and sits out by the pond on the balcony; when Sophia joins her, the redcap is adamant that Braum will have to find Kay again, as "love conquers all". Sophia is shocked to realize only then that Incisor must belong to the Seelie Court. In the Exhaust, Patches apologizes to Braum for intruding on his private matters and memories, and that the events had made her reconsider parts of her own life. Just as Braum is about to ask her more about, the elevator doors open to reveal a dark-skinned, grinning eshu with solid-black eyes. Introducing himself as Alnek, he claims to be the "transportation" arranged by the Duchess for their trip to Quebec City. Having a stranger show up in the freehold at 4:00 am makes the motley understandably suspicious, and Patches mooches Alnek's phone right out of his hand as he calls the Duchess to confirm. Patches then speaks to Chucky, the Duchess' secretary, who confirms his legitimacy. They decide to rest before heading out in the morning.

Before doing so, Patches has a smoke out on the balcony, and is joined by a very frail and curmudgeonly Zistor Flexx. He tells her that he's the best craftsman at The Spark, and that The Spark is the greatest workshop anywhere in the Duchy, but that she's the next best available (at least until he regains his strength). He warns her that the most important task they have is to make sure the rocket is not destroyed, at least until the Glamour contained within can be returned to its owners and it can be deactivated.

Back in the Exhaust, Braum is off to try to rest some more when Kyoko comes in. He excitedly tells her of all of his memories of Kay, including the oaths he swore to her. This saddens Kyoko deeply until Braum tells her that Kay mentioned the possibility of her coat not necessarily having been destroyed… he fervently asks her to help him find it by any means necessary when she says that the Red Branch had been looking for it. Kyoko tells Braum that, if asked about who he used to be, "people would tell you of your deeds." When he asks Kyoko bluntly what *she* would have said of his past, she pauses, and then wishes him a good night.

The next morning, the motley steps into a ring of maple branches created by Alnek and are transported to Quebec City, and the domain of the Duchess Eloyse….