Me and My Best Friend Put On A Show That Would Make Freya Totally Jealous [closed post]

[summerdude]

Magnus wakes up, normal again except for how he's in an unfamiliar room. Not Galahad's old room, either. A nondescript one that, as far as he can tell, just has a bunch of clothes and stuff. Also he's wearing silky pajamas he'd never pick out automatically on his own?

It doesn't take long for him to feel like the walls are closing in on him. It's out of respect for Aornis that he stumbles out of her room through the door (barefoot and in the silky pajamas) and goes outside the normal way. Once outside, he flops into the snow, calling summer and feeling the way the snow steams against his skin as it melts.

He's not feeling totally regular again when he sits bolt upright, remembering that Drosera is probably in Galahad's old room with two people that aren't Magnus or Galahad. Existential crisis over, there's a child to retrieve! And hopefully, he'll run into Galahad in the halls.

Comments

[onthewillowsthere]

"You're very brave," quietly.

[summerdude]

Magnus does remember this part of the story now. "Such a badass," he agrees, even as he goes to retrieve his backpack from where he left it last night so he can pull out one of Dro's toys, which he tosses to her. As she leaps at it, he asks Tress, "How are you doing? After yesterday, I mean."

[sporesprouter]

"Thank you both. And I'm fine. It was... odd, but I knew it wasn't going to last long." She shrugs. "Not the worst thing that's happened here, anyway." Something occurs to her. "Oh! Galahad?" She reaches a hand up and lightly touches the back of her head. "My hair. How? I could never even imagine doing something this pretty with it."

[onthewillowsthere]

"Tally did it. She asked," not that Tress has the context for why that's so important.

[summerdude]

Galahad's mention of Tally reminds Magnus of something he's been turning over in his mind, off and on, since the day she mentioned wanting to cut off his hand. He tucks it away for now -- he knows what he's considering is monumentally stupid, so he's a little shy about mentioning it in front of Tress. "It looks great," he says instead.

[sporesprouter]

"It does. I normally just brush it and put it in a braid that half of it escapes from anyway. I couldn't even imagine anything like this."

[onthewillowsthere]

"I think," he says cautiously, because interpreting what other people feel is always a chancy thing, "it would make her happy if you asked her to do it again. Not-- not all the time. But sometimes. I think she was happy when I asked."

[summerdude]

"She might find it 'bubbly,' even."

[sporesprouter]

She smiles at that. "Oh, yes. Absolutely bubbly."

[onthewillowsthere]

Oh, right. He turns to Magnus. "She thinks you don't like her."

[summerdude]

"Why?" Magnus asks, mystified -- sure, his first impression wasn't great, but that was, like, a whole month ago! She's fine now! "Because I said she shouldn't cut off her hand?"

[sporesprouter]

Tress blinks in surprise. "Wait. She wanted to cut off her hand?"

[onthewillowsthere]

This is news to Galahad too, and he tilts his head at Magnus.

[summerdude]

"Yeah, to get rid of her, like, evil tracker bracelet," Magnus says, and only just manages to swallow the main point of his argument ("even though we're all going to be here forever") because he doesn't want to make Tress sad. He amends, "So if she ever ends up back home, she won't, like, get in trouble for being here."

[sporesprouter]

"There are people who can do magic here. There has to be a better way to get a bracelet off than cutting off a hand."

[onthewillowsthere]

"Does she think you could grow it back afterwards?"

[summerdude]

"She asked me if I could, I said I didn't know for sure so she shouldn't risk it."

[sporesprouter]

"That definitely seems like it should be a last resort thing at best."

[onthewillowsthere]

"What else has she tried?"

[summerdude]

"Nina said they talked to Luo Binghe," Magnus says. "I... don't know what they did after they left my camp."

[sporesprouter]

"But she definitely still had her hand yesterday, at least, so that's a good sign."

[onthewillowsthere]

His mouth thins out reflexively at the mention of Luo Binghe. "Did they ask Queen Janet? She has magic."

[summerdude]

Magnus clocks the expression, and stretches so he can knock his foot against Galahad's. "Nina mentioned Nightingale and Lan Wangji," he says. He doesn't really know Nightingale, but Lan Wangji at least would be reasonable about things. "And they said they'd talk to you, too, Tress. Janet is a good idea, too."

[sporesprouter]

Tress nods. "I think any of them are good choices. And if they can't do it, they'd probably at least know who could. I'm not sure I'd be much help, though."

[onthewillowsthere]

He flexes his foot back against Magnus'; he appreciates it. "I wouldn't either. Mothwing hasn't taught me the herb for treating cut off hands."