Kurt was having a weekly meeting and dinner with many of his close friends, you could call them nobles now in Kurt's mind. All of them from non-human species.

He thought maybe he needed to bring some humans into his own meeting the reverse of what he was mad at the commander for doing. He would have to talk to Arthur about that. Talia was one thing, but only his wife?

During the meeting Hank had eventually come forward, "Lord Kurt, you and Layla have been welcomed to an emergence. Mother Carla would like to speak to you in the coming days.

"We can do that today or tomorrow I would think," said Kurt. Kurt knew Carla had some leeway when she emerged, and would send a message without knowing she could do so immediately. "Do you have an idea of what it's about?"

"Yes," said Hank.

"And?"

"It's not my place."

"Not your place?"

"Yes."

"Is it important?" asked Kurt.

"Very."

"Mysterious," Kurt said sarcastically.

Joe interrupted, "he means no disrespect there are certain things that are to be said by Mother. Out of respect to her."

"So today?"

"Yes we can arrange that," said Hank.

The emergence was a ceremony that the Mother goblin would leave the nest signifying her new brood was old enough to properly join the horde. It was literally her leaving a cave, all these big ceremonies seemed to be just short things to Kurt. Put on a hat, walk through a door, a tap-tap on your shoulders.

It was a bit different this time though. Since Carla was Paul Guardian she had made a new nest in the Arrow Mountains. Abandoning her old one.

It always seemed weird to Kurt that Hank the warrior seemed to have better knowledge about the broods. He wouldn't have thought him much of a caretaker.

Rarely did Mother Carla expect their attendance personally. And every time before it was important.

The last time it had to do with their original terms coming to an end, but that should have been completely settled by Carla's new guardianship. That should have been permanent.

Layla and Kurt and a larger number of goblins then usually for an emergence came to greet Carla.

As she exited the cave the reason for their invitation was obvious. Behind her walked another much shorter younger goblin mother.

Carla had never spawned another mother. But their extra legs and more slug-like appearance was immediately recognizable. After a brood it was more twig-like as both of them seemed.

She looked young. Carla was young when they met her. But she was obviously much younger than that.

"Queen Layla, Lord Kurt, may I introduce Mistress Lilly."

The smaller mother goblin smiled in pleasure.

"My pleasure, Mistress Lilly," said Layla and Kurt repeated soon after.

"You know our ways," said Lilly.

"Child, enough I will tell them."

Lilly pouted, and folded her arms.

"Yes," said Layla, "she would be able to invoke the right of Caravan upon her second brood."

"And she is to be treated with respect deserving of her station." Lilly gave a childish smile to this. "And you as my master are responsible for her safety until she has made a second brood and the right is satisfied."

This wasn't what Kurt was expecting. Mother Carla had always been within her birthing dens for the most part. She would raise them until they were ready. She had a few months of freedom from her responsibilities.

The goblin hordes usually only have one or two females. Most females wanted to run their own after all. If there were two, one of them was usually very old about to die from age or ailment. The younger one was essentially waiting to take over the entire horde upon her death.

Mother Carla was not very old, she was actually very young for a goblin mother.

The right of Caravan was the protection goblins gave to this process of taking the horde and splitting off some for a new mother goblin. Mother Carla had come to their kingdom during her own caravan, and Lilly would have the right as well. The mother goblin would be allowed to make two broods to protect her, and for the first one to learn the ways and spells.

Kurt wasn't sure how long it took for the first brood to birth. He looked at Lilly and thought there was no way she could make the amount of goblins he's seen Carla produce. Even accounting for how he imagined her form would swell like Carla would between broods.

Goblins did tend to develop rapidly. Kurt could tell by the way she smiled she expected to be treated especially well. And knowing the goblins she was most likely going to get it. They tended to revere Mother Carla.

"We will have to make contact with another horde."

"Another horde?" said Layla.

"Do you expect her to mate with her brothers or possibly father?" Carla smiled. "And I will need some more myself, as Mother goblins we live longer, you didn't think I was mating with my own children did you? This is a common custom for us, I understand for humans and Fae it may be strange. To exchange mates like this."

"I see," said Layla, "I was unfamiliar with this custom, but of course we can accommodate. I meant no disrespect. We have wyverns now, I would have thought you had been made aware."

"Dont worry, we have our ways they will happily send some. We will be sending some of our own, which they should also welcome. It's a great honor."

"And they won't follow back here," said Kurt.

"No, that would be disrespectful. We will travel under the appropriate flag. But that doesn't mean they will be changing direction if they are heading here."

"It shouldn't be hard," said Lilly. "With the wyverns. And two worlds to choose from, how lucky am I?"

That was problematic. According to goblin customs they must allow her to leave unimpeded, obligated to help even.

If Lilly chooses to caravan on Earth she would technically have every right too. She was born there. It would be hard to argue this with the goblins.

Kurt hadn't thought of this eventuality.

"We did have a discussion about this once," said Layla. "That I would welcome her in Wellspring."

"She will be allowed and be able to request to come here to Earth at her pleasure."

"Mistress Lilly, you are welcome in all parts of my domain, but I can't guarantee your safety outside of it. You must listen to your guards."

"I understand," said Lilly smiling. "I hear you have another Fae in this world."

"Yes, and we have one on Terra that could use a guardian."

"My right of Caravan can't happen until I have mates."

"The Fae in question would have to approve as well, but I would like to introduce you as an option to consider."

"And to do so would put me in your domain."

"It would, and we would welcome you. You have seen how Carla's needs are taken care of."

"But Glory?"

"Thst is something you need to find yourself child," interrupted Carla. "You need not decide today, you should welcome our Queen's offers."

"Yes Mother," said Lilly. "I would enjoy an introduction."

"Anyway…" said Susan. The Mom's Club seemed to always attend these things. "Mistress Lilly join us, we usually have a good talk and some sweets. Moms Club!"

"This is acceptable," said Lilly. "Mother Carla has told me about how she has enjoyed this."

Lilly and Carla left with the Mom's Club. It was Susan, and Laura. There were one or two refugees that had joined them as well. Susan had a more personal relationship with Carla; she probably always attended the emergence.

"I wasn't expecting her to have another girl for a while," said Layla.

"Is it a problem?"

"Kurt, that little girl can just take a portion of our army. And there isn't much I can do about it."

The reality was a goblin horde was defined by their mother. A mother goblin stood at the top of the hierarchy in their culture. As their society can't exist without more goblins being produced and so few mothers being born. Protecting the mother goblin was seen as one of the highest duties a goblin has.

"What?"

"The right of caravan she's allowed to take older goblins, she's expected to, wise ones, strong ones. This is how the goblins perpetuate their species. I can't just over rule it"

"So what do we do?"

"Convince her to stay."

"Where?"

"Anywhere she wants, it's best if it's on Earth, or she takes Jessica's guardianship."

"Why?"

"Bevause it ties her to us, she won't have unlimited mates on earth," said Layla, "if they trade them like that."

"Yeah that's weird."

"I wouldn't know," said Layla. Technically genderless. Their species didn't mate, they manifested, Layla had taken a more feminine form out of habit. "Or by the obligation of guarding Jessica's well. She would be forced into my domain."

"She doesn't look like the type to me," said Kurt.

"She's still a child, she has never seen the outside worlds but she knows her station, and probably is going to get out of her own mother thumb now a bit. They grow up quick as you've seen."

"So what do we do?"

"You have to remember that to a Mother Goblin her glory is carried out through her brood. It's her horde, and what they accomplish is her glory. We wouldn't be obligated to provide female wyvern, or rams. If you noticed when Carla came they had a few animals but they still needed to find mounts."

"So we can empower her broods."

"And unlike most places if we have two mothers, one can be for one world and the other for this one, their territories wouldn't necessarily ever conflict. I don't know how predatory they are about that. And the next time it happens it will be easier to handle, as they could take from both broods I think."

"So we make sure she knows there's much more to do here, and so there's that much more glory in staying. So basically give her whatever she wants."

A child with that type of power and influence was dangerous.

"Unless you have a better idea."

"Are you even sure Jessica would be okay with it?"

"No," said Layla. "I would have to speak with her, but she knows she should have a guardian. It will not be a human one and Lilly is definitely not human. They will be introduced I can force that at least"

"At least we have time," said Kurt. "She can't even make her first brood until they make an exchange."

"That's true."

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