why me?

[small_magics]

Isibel spends her last day on the island flying, and then she rejoins her expedition, and packs, and sleeps, and in the dawnlight she gets back on the boat to sail back to the Elven Lands.

She is kept quite occupied with small magics to keep the ship operating smoothly, and also with notebooking - writing quite small, as she brought more than enough notebooks for three weeks but then unexpectedly used many of them to draw and write with the demon and has only half of one left for several days at sea.

They land on the shore of the Elven Lands on schedule, and disembark.

Comments

[endragoned]

A day later, the demon wakes.

[small_magics]

Isibel notices.

She shrinks away - takes a moment of focus on her breath - emerges into equilibrium - and decides to go to where he is. Maybe she will feel more normal if they have a conversation out loud, maybe it will help.

[endragoned]

He snuggles up against the sleeping dragon.

Things are a little more muffled between them, with his dragon-self sleeping. A very little.

[small_magics]

Not enough.

She focuses on walking. She walks. She comes back into the world when she arrives.

"Liselen says you aren't Tainted," she says.

[endragoned]

"...I don't know if I believe him," he says. "I am a Demon."

[small_magics]

"He was very clear about it," Isibel says. "He said there was part of the message from the Wild Magic that he didn't understand, and -" And having a conversation out loud isn't helping very much, but she can focus on giving explanations, she's done that once before. Breathe, and - "- that it felt like dipping his horn into a clear well. He said it made sense after I told him that my co-bondmate was a demon. He asked if you were Tialle's demon, and I said you were, and he said that part of the message meant that you weren't Tainted, and he can vouch for you as Shalkan did for Vestakia, except less comfortably because you are not, for demonically unrelated reasons, fit unicorn company."

[endragoned]

"He's right about that much," the demon sighs. "Oh, my love."

[small_magics]

Isibel isn't trying to read him.

This doesn't stop her from looking at her feet and clasping her hands and tearing up when he thinks of the reason he is unfit unicorn company.

[endragoned]

He hugs her.

It's not as though he wouldn't have - if he had ever met someone he wanted to be unfit for unicorns with, who also wanted to. But there has never been such a person. There has only been his life in Shadow Mountain, and the long years alone after that. And then the visit from all those dragons, but the demon was not physically a part of that encounter.

[small_magics]

Isibel's not sure how unicorn senses reckon that kind of thing, but certainly if he was already in a condition to discomfit Tialle when they met he still is now. She sighs and hugs him tight.

[endragoned]

"I love you so much," he says softly.

[small_magics]

"I love you too," Isibel murmurs.

[endragoned]

Maybe if he just - tries not to pay attention, tries very hard, tries not to think of anything at all except how much he loves her.

[small_magics]

If this is what it's like for them when she hyperfocuses, she can't think why they'd find it disconcerting. This is - nice. The comfort without the thing she needs comforting from.

She leans on him and closes her eyes.

[endragoned]

He loves her he loves her he loves her he loves her -

He can't do it forever. He can't even do it for a full minute.

[small_magics]

Isibel flinches back when he loses his concentration. But that minute was so nice. Healing.

She couldn't hyperfocus for long when she first started either. Maybe they can practice.

Of course - she's pretty sure she won't be able to get anything done while they're doing that - but through some combination of him concentrating and her concentrating they may be able to do what they have to do.

Which is, by the way -

"And Liselen says we both need to do something about the - whoever is bringing Darkness into the world. Together."

[endragoned]

"But he did not say what?"

[small_magics]

"No. Well, I'm sure he would have. The Wild Magic didn't tell him."

[endragoned]

"A mystery," the demon sighs. "Well, let's find out, then."

[small_magics]

"I don't know a spell to find whoever it is. My teacher thinks that if I could have delayed a season or two to Bond at all I can wait the extra moonturns to become proficient at Elfmagery and that this will give me a better chance of doing what I must when I do find the enemy."

[endragoned]

"I think you need a better teacher," says the demon.

[small_magics]

"I could look for another, but this one is willing to devote her time to me, and she is good at explaining the things she chooses to explain, and she might take offense and refuse to teach me more if I failed to find a better one."

[endragoned]

"Then... I don't know," he sighs. "I'm sorry."

[small_magics]

Isibel shifts from foot to foot. It's getting dark.

"I could sleep in my guesthouse," she says, "or - here."

[endragoned]

"I would like it, if you slept here," he says.