With a Little Bit of Death by Cate Lawley

Author:Cate Lawley
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Cate Lawley

10

The cloth sack that had contained Belle’s gifts was still at the base of the tree where Clarence and I had left it.

I could only assume its presence didn’t bode well for a possible meeting with Belle.

“Do you think she’s not into mead or honey?” Clarence asked as he slunk low to the ground and sniffed the ground near the tree.

“Aw, you guys brought gifts for Belle? That’s so sweet.” Lilac didn’t look worried about the fact that the wood nymph hadn’t actually accepted them, but when I knelt to look inside the bag, she made a disapproving sound. “You can’t take back gifts given to fairies. That’s, like, magical woodland creature 101.”

“I’m not taking it back. I’m checking the bag. Ah.” I retied the sack and picked it up, at which point the contents inside clattered with the high-pitched sounds of empty glassware. “I believe we’re meant to take the empties home with us.”

“I guess that answers your question about whether Belle needed a bottle opener for the mead.” Clarence lifted his nose from the ground and addressed the woods at large. “I’d just like to say that I had complete faith in your ability to manage a bottle that didn’t have a twist-off top.”

The air rippled with something other than the wind. Magic, perhaps? And between one moment and the next, Belle appeared as if from thin air.

She looked nothing like the sickly, ragged creature I remembered.

To start with, her clothing was in good repair. She’d been in rags before. But it wasn’t just that. Everything about her physical self was improved.

Her wings no longer looked frail. They’d been like crumpled tissue paper before, and now they were beautiful. Delicate but strong, and smoothly glossy.

Her skin had previously been mottled with gray patches. Now it was pink and healthy.

Her eyes were still yellow, but even they looked different. They were darker, tawnier than before.

Uncertain as to the etiquette involved when dealing with wood nymphs, I started with a general sort of greeting and hoped for the best. “Hi, Belle. You’re looking very well.”

“Bad Bones is gone. I sleep well.” She smiled, revealing pearly-white teeth. They weren’t overly sharp or threatening, but it was somewhat unsettling nonetheless.

“We weren’t sure about the gifts,” Clarence said, “But we didn’t want to come empty-handed.” His whiskers twitched as he scented the air, a sign that he, too, was unnerved by her.

“I like mead and food and shiny beads.” The smile was gone, but she also didn’t look upset.

I was taking that as an implicit thank-you.

Probably best to get my request in while she was thinking about her full stomach and pretty baubles, so I replied, “I was hoping you could help us. If you have time.”

I knew she had time. What was time to an ancient being whose only physical self was the one she manifested with her magic? But I was trying to be polite and hoping not to accidentally anger her.

“You want a favor.”

Lilac nudged me in the ribs. Hard.

I took that to mean, no, we did not want a favor.

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