An excerpt from and link to my new book, the Raven and His Writing Desk
“I despise the Spires, spies and spiers, the whole lot. I’d have their trunks truncated, I’d have the whole wood burnt down, and I’d have my men take axes to the ashes!” This succinctity was the extent and breadth of the Spade King’s policy regarding treants. It had been like this since anyone could remember, even the eldest within the province - though there has always been much contention as to whether the elderly could really remember things more clearly solely for being present at the time. “‘Tis best if we met with the Spade King before the Half-Wind,” Deku stated plainly. Aberdeen’s perplexed expression did nothing as he was now walking behind the treant at some distance, unable to keep pace without himself walking briskly. Because of this he was only able to let out his own brief utterance, though it was really all that was necessary: “What?” “Heavens, sap! Where are you from?” Deku’s own terseness had little to do with fatigue at all, as he was beginning to realise he had made the right choice in taking this enigmatic boy to someone who might be less perturbed by all the bother. “Half-Wind,” he went on, “Is the common nomenclature for the North-by-Northeast star, o’course! At this rate I’d not be surprised in the slightest if you said you didn’t know ‘tis the second star to come out at night, and that the courteous thing is to consider it as a curfew!” “I didn’t know any of that, Mr. Deku.” “I’m not surprised, even slightly, Aberdeen.”
edit: broken link
https://www.amazon.com/Raven-Writing-Desk-Stardeck-Book-ebook/dp/B0H2FTJ5M1