Lucky Rabbit

No one mentioned the ten-ish minute break in their evening, not even the boy with raspberry stains on his shirt, who kept glancing down at his front with a very confused expression on his face. Matilda shot Pandy and her mother worried glances several times, but didn’t ask any questions. Lady Mossley just went on with her cheerful storytelling, focusing on tales that highlighted Grace’s intelligence and humor.

An hour passed with no further incidents, and the adults went off to another room while the children set up one of the elemental games Pandy had so often watched her young friends play. Miller Oakden went off with the grownups, but Matilda’s mother remained with the children, joining in the games, though she seemed to be playing with her own rules, which she didn’t bother explaining to anyone else. She lost as often as she won, however, so none of the children seemed to mind overmuch.

As time passed, Pandy began watching the time remaining on Shifting Faces with rising concern. It had been agreed that if enough time passed, August would ‘find out’ about the dinner and come after her. That would be simple enough to explain, since multiple people had seen Matilda invite Thaniel to dinner, but it would involve the chancellor more directly than they’d hoped. It was best for him to seem either clueless or disinterested for as long as possible.

When Pandy had just over an hour remaining, however, Lady Mossley pushed her chair back from the table where she’d been sitting. She was looking a bit paler than before, and dark circles had formed beneath her eyes. The hand she extended to her daughter shook slightly as she said, “Tilly, my darling, would you help me to my room?” Glancing toward Pandy, she added, “And perhaps Thaniel would escort me as well? I believe I have over-extended myself, but I’m reluctant to bid my young ghost farewell just yet.”

Instantly, Matilda was at her mother’s side, slipping her arm around the woman’s waist with the ease of long practice. Pandy stood and did the same, once again feeling that strange shifting beneath the other woman’s skirt. Thaniel wasn’t as tall as Matilda, and he looked far less sturdy than the girl, so Lady Mossley leaned more heavily on her daughter, briefly resting her cheek on the golden curls before straightening.

Together, they moved toward the door, and now Alvena Mossley’s legs did seem to be moving. She no longer glided, instead all but dragging her right leg with every other step. The movement beneath the fabric of her dress became more pronounced, and Matilda shifted so her own body blocked everyone except Pandy’s view of her mother’s lower half. 

All of the children were clearly sad to see their adult playmate leave, but after polite curtseys from the girls and bows from the boys, she was forgotten as they focused once again on their own cards or tiles. Matilda opened the door to the room and let them out into the hall, startling a male servant who opened his mouth, saw who was with them, and closed it again, giving a small bow.

Alvena gave him a tired smile and continued on, heading down the hall, past a room with a closed door. The sound of her husband’s laugh boomed out as they went by, and both Matilda and her mother flinched noticeably, darting anxious glances at the door. It remained firmly closed, however, and they hurried on as best they could with Lady Mossley’s limping progress.

As they approached the stairs, Alvena smiled down at Pandy. “My rooms are on the ground floor,” she said, as if imparting a great secret. “Sometimes I can make it up the stairs, but there’s no reason to waste the energy.” She and Matilda passed the steps and then turned left down the next hallway. The floors here weren’t as glossy, shining instead with the soft, natural gleam of aged but well-maintained wood. There were fewer gewgaws and doodads as well, and the cornices were a soft ecru, rather than gold.

At the second door, they paused so Matilda could turn the glass or crystal doorknob. Pandy thought the clear material lit up briefly when the girl touched it, but if so, it happened so quickly that the flash of light was gone by the time Matilda removed her hand. The room inside was surprisingly dim, especially given how brightly lit the rest of the house was, and no magic increased the illumination when the door opened.

Reaching inside, Matilda grabbed a cane that rested just inside the door, handing it to her mother, who accepted it with a sigh of relief. Shifting her weight to the cane, Lady Mossley released Matilda and Pandy, hobbling into the room and sitting down in a chair upholstered in rich purple satin. The pure white of her skirt nearly glowed against the dark material. Pandy blinked and realized that the fabric was actually glowing, because she could still see the shape of it behind her eyelids.

Small shapes came pouring out from under the skirt, flowing into the shadows all around the room. Shaded areas lurking beneath furniture and within the folds of curtains suddenly came alive, and Lady Mossley’s full skirts fell limp, revealing the shape of one completely normal leg, while the other was vaguely leg-shaped but so wasted and bent that it couldn’t possibly have held her weight.

“Duskins,” Alvena said with a small laugh. “They’re incredibly common if you know where to look, or have the patience to abandon a place for several years. Most Dark mages have one, and it’s often their only elemental. They rarely bother with more, because of course you have to care for them, and individually, Duskins are quite weak. In large numbers, however…”

She gestured meaningfully down at her deflated skirt. “They allow me to move about normally for brief periods, though it will take a few days before I can pay them back.” One hand dropped down beside her chair, and something that looked like a pitch-black dustbunny floated to the edge of the shadows to press against her palm. She stroked it gently, and it spun in place before retreating back into the moving darkness with its brethren.

Matilda had crouched down beside her mother, and she, too, extended a hand toward the shadows. It took longer, but finally one of the little things came forward to greet her before quickly fleeing again. The girl looked up with a bright smile. “They’re getting used to me!”

Alvena smiled at her daughter, her tired eyes warm with affection. “I told you they would.” Then, looking back up at Pandy, she asked, “Would you like to try?”

There was no way the answer to that question was no, so Pandy crouched down next to Matilda and reached out her own hand. Almost before her fingertips touched the shadows, half a dozen of the dusky fluffballs had attached themselves to her, and when they did, she felt a sudden flood of feelings that definitely weren’t her own: happiness, curiosity, and something like awe were primary among them, though there was a bit of fear mingled in as well.

+1 Corruption Points from an Offering

+1 Corruption Points from an Offering

+1 Corruption Points from an Offering

+1 Corruption Points from an Offering

The words flickered by so quickly Pandy could only read them because they were the same ones, over and over. The cool mass of darkness now surrounding her hand swirled, and Duskin reversed their earlier actions, returning to the chair, then flowing away, like the waves of an ocean, surging forward to meet the shore. How many were there?

When it finally stopped, Pandy had almost a hundred more Corruption Points than she’d had when she started the evening, bringing her total to just over eight hundred points. She was always happy to get more Corruption Points, but she was a little nervous about what Matilda and Lady Mossley were going to think. Only when the last little Duskin swirled away from her fingers did she dare look up at the two humans in the room.

Matilda’s mouth hung open, and even Alvena looked bemused. “Well,” the woman said mildly, kicking her one good foot out from under her skirts so a few Duskin could flow back into the darkness beneath the fabric. “That was certainly unexpected. I suppose it makes sense however, if you truly are a descendant of the Dark God.”

It was Pandy’s turn to stare, an expression which was matched by Matilda. The girl was definitely lost, and not very happy about it. She and Pandy both straightened, and Matilda placed her hands on her hips. “Mother, what are you talking about? What Dark God? Do I need to send for Healer Hildred?”

Lady Mossley chuckled, but reached out and caught her daughter’s hand. “No, my love, you’ve done enough. Trust me to finish what you began.” Turning to Pandy, Alvena gave her a measuring look before nodding and reaching into a pocket hidden within the folds of her skirts.

Removing a folded piece of paper sealed with a dried violet pressed into green sealing wax, she handed it to Pandy as she said, “This is for your chancellor. Matilda has told me how he believed in her, and trusted her when few others would. I hoped he would be willing to help her – and me – again, but now I think you may be able to aid us as well, in spite of your youth. Will you listen to my story and hear my request?”

Pandy nodded. “Of course!” That, too, was completely true to Thaniel. If he were here in her place, he would be absolutely thrilled at this turn of events, which only made it all the more important that he not discover what was going on until it was all over.

Matilda’s mother smiled, but glanced at the door behind Pandy and Matilda. “I’ll keep it short, both in recognition of your age and because I doubt we have much longer before someone comes looking for us.”

The smile changed, taking on a tinge of sadness. “It began some twelve years ago, when I was nearly thirty-five and had long since given up hope of matrimony, much less love. Honestly, I was content enough, and confident that the estate and title would remain in good hands when I passed on. Then, as if through a miracle from Ismara herself, I met a smart, handsome, charming man. He worked for his father, who was one of the few merchants I believed I could trust. He was a bit younger than I, but that seemed to mean nothing to him. I fell madly in love, and we married. Within the year, my beautiful Matilda was born.”

Here she gave her daughter a smile filled with so much maternal love that Pandy’s chest tightened. That expression was one that would never be turned on Pandy herself, and while she wasn’t jealous of Matilda, she did feel more than a hint of envy. The girl’s father might not be what Lady Mossley had believed, but the woman obviously adored the child produced from their relationship.

“The birth was hard on me,” Alvena went on, pressing a hand to her abdomen, “and in spite of everything they could do, the healers said that bearing another child at my age was reckless at best. I was quite satisfied with my Tilly, but Wulfric wasn’t. Things… went downhill.” She grimaced, and Pandy had no doubt she was leaving many things out as much to spare her daughter as ‘Thaniel’s’ youthful ears.

“I became ill when Matilda was three, and though I survived, I began to grow weak, and my mind wandered. Wulfric sent for healers, but they all said there was nothing they could do. Light magic doesn’t work on Dark mages, as I’m sure you know, and the Nature healers had no potions or poultices that worked.”

Lady Mossley closed her eyes, her voice tight. “Five years passed. Five years I barely remember.” She reached out and took Matilda’s hand, gripping it tightly as she smiled at her daughter again. “Then Matilda learned about Water healers in school. They mostly work on disorders of the blood, or remove poison and venom, but Matilda asked her father to have one attend me nonetheless.

“He agreed easily enough, but my brilliant girl recognized the person who came as one of Wulfric’s friends, someone who rarely came by the house, and she knew that person was a merchant, not a healer. She saved up her allowance – the money Wulfric gave her for using her magic on the students at school or the people he invited to our home.”

“He said everyone did it,” Matilda burst out. “We all want people to like us, and do things for us. It was no different from acting nice all the time, or saying we forgive someone when we really don’t. But that wasn’t true!”

“No, it isn’t,” Lady Mossley agreed, giving her daughter’s hand a squeeze. “But that’s his fault, not yours.” Focusing on Pandy again, she said, “Matilda used her own money to hire a healer, and snuck the woman in while her father was away. Healer Hildred was immediately able to tell that I was suffering from the effects of a medication used to keep people with certain illnesses from hurting themselves or others. She cleared the medicine from my system, but when I confronted Wulfric about it-”

She placed her hand on her shrunken leg. “I don’t remember precisely, but I believe he pushed me down the stairs. I landed badly. He brought in Earth healers, but they were ‘unable’ to repair all of the damage, and again, no Light healers could help me. He also took the opportunity to drug me again, and Matilda had to bring Healer Hildred back. Fortunately, I was in these rooms by then, and they were able to enter through the doors.”

She glanced at the high, wide curtains that undoubtedly covered a door or set of doors leading outside. “I recovered after that, but I’m forced to maintain the illusion that my faculties have slipped as a result of my injuries or the medicine Wulfric believes I still take. I’m not allowed to go anywhere, and if anyone comes to the house to see me, they’re turned away. Add to that the fact that Wulfric and his father have been hosting these parties for years, slowly building a network of people who will support him without thought, and we’ve been helpless. Until Matilda told me about your chancellor and you.”

Releasing her daughter, she instead reached out to take Pandy’s hands, gripping them tightly, which crushed the letter Pandy still held. “You must stay safe, dear child. I would never ask for the aid of someone so young, especially not the child of my first and truest friend, but I’m desperate, and,” she looked around at the shadows, which still shifted and ebbed with their delightfully disturbing denizens, “I believe you may be the key to solving far more than my own personal difficulties.”

Difficulties. What an understated way to speak of being tricked, trapped, and possibly tossed down the stairs in her own home. Pandy nodded, gently removing her hands from Lady Mossley’s before pretending to tuck the envelope into her jacket while in fact sending it into her Inventory. She’d brought a few items she and Augustus had decided she might need in case of an emergency, but she’d also left a few slots open, just in case.

A gentle rap came at the door behind them, and the shadows seemed to shrink as Matilda hurried over and opened the door to reveal a servant, with Wulfric Winfielde standing behind her. His eyes swept right over his own daughter, landing on Pandy before he offered what he probably thought was a charming smile. “There you are, my boy! Imagine my surprise when I went to tell you the party is ending, and you were already gone! I hope my lady wife didn’t demand too much of you. She can be… a bit peculiar at times.”

Pandy was about to respond when Lady Mossley laughed and said, “Oh, no, husband. I simply asked Grace’s son to give me grace in my gracelessness. My feet failed me, so I begged aid, and here we are. We barely danced at all, he and I, and only when the music played.”

Wulfric’s smile stiffened, but he said, “Well, good then.” He held out a hand, indicating that Pandy should come with him. “I’ll take you to your carriage, lad. I hope you had a good time, and I’m certain Matilda is already planning to invite you again. It’s rare for her to find playmates of her own station, you know.”

Pandy would have liked to say No, do tell, but instead she gave the largest smile she could find in Thaniel’s arsenal, actually feeling the dimples deepen in her cheeks. “It was great! I haven’t had so much fun in ages.” She scowled. “It’s awfully boring at school, and Mr. Blackwood won’t even let me go away for the weekend. He didn’t even want me to come tonight!”

She clapped her hand over her mouth as if she’d just realized she said too much, but Wulfric just chuckled and tapped a finger to the side of his nose. “Oh, I heard. I have many friends, as you saw tonight. Don’t worry. Once we get to know each other a little better, maybe I’ll be able to help you out. Friends do that, you know; help each other.”

And what did this man think an eight-year-old was going to do for him? Well, probably not much. An eight-year-old with an ancient magical stone that probably summoned Demons, however? Eight seemed like the perfect age to cultivate a ‘friend’ like that; young enough to be flattered that an adult was taking an interest in him, but too young to understand the possible consequences of whatever Wulfric planned to ask him to do.

Matilda reached over and grabbed Pandy’s hand, tugging her toward the large man who still loomed in the doorway. With a quick wave to her mother, who was drooping in her chair as if half-asleep already, she said, “Come on, Thaniel, I’ll show you a few of my favorite paintings on the way.” Head down and greatly daring, she slid past her father, drawing Pandy away to freedom.