summoned

[mute_pen]

Etty is awoken not by her transformation, but by her summons, a few minutes after dark. In her sleep, she drifted to shore; she's lying in human form - arm intact - half in and half out of the water when she feels it.

It's very insistent.

She cannot bring herself to move. She tries - she does; intellectually she knows it's the smart thing to do - but - she can't. Cannot get up and go to him.

Comments

[mute_pen]

"If he dies do you suppose the curse on the library will go away? There must be - better things to do with sorcery than curse girls to turn into swans."

[growcrooked]

"Maybe. I don't know."

[mute_pen]

Snuggle. "And I suppose at that point it would not be in any sense safe to try."

[growcrooked]

She laughs. "I'll try it," she offers carelessly.

[mute_pen]

Etty clutches at her.

"But I don't want you to die."

[growcrooked]

"I might not," she shrugs. "And all alone out here without magic to feed us and keep us alive, we might starve anyway."

[mute_pen]

"It was a long way from the nearest civilization to here, but not so long that we couldn't walk it, even me as bad at walking as I am - I think. Of course, that assumes they'd feed us."

[growcrooked]

"I don't know if they would. And I might not die even if the door is still trapped when I try it. So I think it's worth it."

[mute_pen]

"If you didn't heal clean then even if it didn't kill you outright you could die of it after."

[growcrooked]

"Sure," she says. "But maybe one of us could learn how to fix it in between."

[mute_pen]

"Are healing spells the sort of thing that - well, I suppose they must be, my curse has one built in, so do you."

[growcrooked]

"Yeah," says Nona. "But I don't know how they work."

[mute_pen]

"Maybe they only come with unwelcome side effects."

[growcrooked]

"Maybe," shrugs Nona.

[mute_pen]

Etty snuggles closer.

"Does it get cold here?" she asks.

[growcrooked]

"Not that cold, I guess. The swans never seem to complain."

[mute_pen]

"Feathers are insulating. And I don't think they have a way to complain. I'm more worried about nighttime. I - would sooner not be chased indoors by the weather."

[growcrooked]

Nona shrugs.

"I don't know. I don't think - nobody's ever come into the castle without him before, not that I noticed, anyway. And I don't think he takes them in a lot more in winter."

[mute_pen]

"That's good, then."

[growcrooked]

"Yeah."

[mute_pen]

"I hate him. I hate the castle," murmurs Etty.

[growcrooked]

"I know," she says. "Me too."

[mute_pen]

"You live there. I suppose he obliges you to."

[growcrooked]

"I could sleep in the orchard, but it wouldn't be far enough away to make a difference, and my bed's more comfortable."

[mute_pen]

Etty nods, shifts position, snuggles closer.