The Moonbough Court

The Moonbough Court gathers grove lords, river speakers, ward singers, elder archers, guest-keepers, and witnesses whose families have guarded hidden paths for generations. It governs by permission: a path opened, an exile admitted, an enemy spared, a truth withheld. From outside it seems graceful, all moonlight, low voices, and leaves trembling over water. Inside, it is razor-edged. A single courteous refusal can condemn a village beyond the trees or save every child within them. Its beauty is restraint; its dread is restraint when mercy begs to be reckless.