i might as well be the man on the moon

[truthwright]

Their Isabella having just gone to welcome a new Bell into the peal, Kas and Petaal snuggle up together and take a nap. They'll want to be well rested for the party.

When they wake up, she still isn't back.

[Jane?]

No response.

Kas teleports down to the Janepoint, Petaal wrapped snake-shaped around his shoulders.

The display reads: error 7788: lycanthropy

"...So that's new," he says.

"No shit," says Petaal. "Now what?"

He shrugs. She coils tighter.

"Hang around and wait, I guess."

Comments

[alicornucopia]

"I don't have a thing like that."

[carillons]

Helen shrugs.

"Well, I don't know what kind of thing it is. Maybe I'm just the only one who has it."

[alicornucopia]

"That's not fair," huffs Shura.

[carillons]

"I'd give you one too if I could!"

[alicornucopia]

"It's not your birth blessing, right?" says Shura, scrunching up her face trying to remember.

[carillons]

"No, my birth blessing's something about Kalavar," she says. Kalavar arches her spiny neck.

[alicornucopia]

Nicoa turns into a puffy rabbit. "Mine is boring, and I don't even get a shouting power," Shura says.

[carillons]

"What is yours?"

[alicornucopia]

"I don't get sick much," shrugs Shura. "I guess it's okay, it's just not interesting."

[carillons]

"What one would you pick, if you could pick one?" wonders Helen. She nudges Kalavar off her book and opens it to the goddess chart.

[alicornucopia]

"Something cool. Like - like my great grandmother only has to sleep three hours a day, I like that one."

[carillons]

"That would be cool," Helen agrees.

[truthwright]

"It sure would," says Kas.

And it's not even a hex. A pentagon will do it.

(There's tricks, and then there's tricks. He's willing to risk this one.)

[alicornucopia]

"Oh well," sighs Shura theatrically. "I'm gonna go find grandma and we are going to the lake to feed ducks." (Nicoa becomes a duckling, illustratively.) "You can come probably."

[carillons]

"Okay!" says Helen, scooping up Kalavar onto her shoulder with a last glance at the book. "Let's go feed ducks!"

[alicornucopia]

They locate Shura's grandmother, and they go to the lake, where there are ducks.

[carillons]

"It would be more fun if you got to pick your birth blessing," says Helen, apparently out of the blue during duck-feeding. "I'd want grace as mine."

[truthwright]

(Kas is writing a postcard. He crushes it in his hand and stuffs it into his pocket.)

[alicornucopia]

"That would be a good one too," agrees Shura. "It'd be good for dagger fighting!"

[carillons]

Helen giggles.

[truthwright]

It's a pentagon.

[alicornucopia]

Shura flings corn kernels to the ducks and giggles when they quarrel over them.

[truthwright]

Well, that's adorable.

[carillons]

Kalavar becomes a duckling and squeaks and flaps her wings at Helen until Helen feeds her. This is a source of great amusement to both of them.

[alicornucopia]

"You're not a real duck," Nicoa scoffs at Kalavar.