Crow bit his lip when Penelope didn’t respond to his announcement right away. He could tell she was worried about the new information he’d just given her, and he felt a little guilty for not bringing it up sooner. Before, he hadn’t known if his father had been serious about his idea to enlist their neighbor’s help in the war, and he’d kept the knowledge to himself to keep from stressing the knight out unnecessarily. After all, if she had been able to rally enough support before Albin had gone through with preparing his own plan, telling her about it would have been pointless. But now, with firm plans and schedules being laid down, time was dwindling.

When Penelope finally spoke again, Crow nodded in halfhearted agreement. He didn’t know much about what it would take to persuade the king to seek peaceful negotiations with Younis, but from the few conversations he’d had with him on the subject, he could tell his father was going to be resolute. If the knight was going to change his mind, she was probably going to need quite a few powerful voices on her side. He just hoped she could still get enough within the month she had left.

As Naida voiced her opinion about the turn of events, the viceroy shuffled his feet sheepishly beneath the table. At a glance, he thought his father’s plan was wise too. If Gorm was willing to side with them, they would have the power and numbers to finally overcome Younis in battle, and the war would end in Brerra’s victory. It sounded like the perfect solution, but he knew it wasn’t enough. For whatever reason he couldn’t yet see, the gods were apparently convinced that if the war didn’t end on peaceful terms, both Brerra and Younis were somehow going to be destroyed. How that would happen, he couldn’t say, but he knew better than to think he was smarter than an immortal being. They had to keep trying.

Crow glanced at the servants that appeared with more food—a plate for Penelope and a second helping for him, since he was still hungry—and then turned back to Penelope curiously as she explained that she had a new plan.

“A party?” Naida echoed with a grin, already excited by the idea.

“How would that work?” Crow wondered out loud, glancing between the noblewomen with a frown. He couldn’t see how dinner and drinking would lead to any sort of important resolution.

“It’s perfect,” his sister insisted. “Gather all the most influential people together in one place and get them in a good mood. They’ll agree to whatever you want!” She casted him a wink. “And a little wine doesn’t hurt your chances either.”

“It’s that easy?” Crow gawked at her. “Why didn’t we just do this in the first place?”

“Well, parties are [i]really[/i] expensive,” Naida admitted, swirling her drink in her hand. “And if Penelope wants to get all the support she needs in one go, it’s going to need to be the party of all parties.” She turned to her friend with a grin. “But if the Lenz’s are going to pay for this, then I’m sure we can pull it off.”

Crow nodded, suddenly more eager to try the idea if his sister thought it would work. At the rate Albin was moving with his own plans, they needed to do whatever they could to garner support for peace anyway. He turned back to Penelope with a determined smile, “Alright, I’m in. Just tell me what I need to do”