May I Enjoy My Life: Entry 30

Entry 34, Day 76

Not being special anymore felt…well, nice actually? We all want to be special until we are. Not that anything had really changed: So far, Lisa had been the only one to demonstrate even the tiniest affinity for the same sort of arts that I use, and it had made her comatose after only healing a small cut. I was also abso-fucking-lutely not teaching her how to cure Oripathy. That was not what Our Light needed.

Huh. Our Light. It was a joke and a meme from what I remembered, but now Lisa really is Our Light. It’s one thing for me, an alien, to know all these wacky Isekai Cheat Powers. It’s another for a native to be able to learn it, and a little girl at that. So, Miss Suzuran really is Our Light, who will show the way into beating Oripathy once and for all. 

The day after all the wackiness happened, all the various doctors were huddled in an observation room. You could have heard a pin drop, because I think we were all holding our breath. Lisa was in the OR with Kal’tsit and Sussurro, and they had a patient who had minor lacerations on her exterior patella.

Or in other words, Warmy had a skinned knee, and Lisa was trying to fix it. It was the sort of thing that, under normal circumstances, no one would have bothered using healing arts on, because kids get skinned knees. Alanna was in the waiting room with us, looking mildly baffled that her adopted daughter was getting this much attention. 

“Hey, you’re Bones, right? What the fuck is going on?” Alanna hissed at me, her snake tail swishing back and forth in annoyance. 

“Shh. Lisa’s practicing her healing arts,” I told her. 

Alanna raised an eyebrow at me, but didn’t say anything further as Lisa cutely bit at her tongue, then touched Warmy’s skinned knee. The other girl peered curiously at the white light that came from Lisa’s fingertips, and her knee was miraculously mended. Well, I say miraculously, but honestly, regular healing arts could have done the same thing. 

Only, afterwards, Lisa had to be caught by Kal’tsit and Sussurro, which prompted a concerned Warmy to hop off the table. “Lisa? Are you OK? Really, I was fine! You don’t need to heal me!”

“Gomen nasai, Potlid-chan, I just…I needed practice. You are OK now?” Lisa said somewhat sleepily. 

Warmy flexed her knee, then nodded. “Yeah! I just skinned it because I was running down in the engineering section and tripped, I’m fine, really!”

“That will be all, Warmy,” Kal’tsit said, then turned to the two-way mirror. “Alanna, collect your daughter. Make sure she gets fluids and rest. She may be feeling drained from the healing.”

Alanna bolted and gathered up Warmy, who protested that she was fine, couldn’t she help Gummy with cooking lunch? Before being hauled off for the bed rest she probably didn’t need.

Lisa, on the other hand, was administered a very careful series of tests. Her blood crystal count had been taken with exactness before she’d used those arts, and was measured again immediately after while she lay patiently on the bed prepared for her. 

“.1743 u/L,” Sussurro reported to the observing doctors. There was a collective gasp and sigh. Silence pumped her fist and let out a “fuck yeah!” before turning to high five me, which I returned with enthusiasm. Then I winced, because there are still crystals in my palm that hurt. 

“Zis, it changes everything,” Doctor Whilhelm said, taking off his glasses and rubbing the condensation from his watering eyes before replacing them. “Ve have the breakthrough ve vere looking for, ja?” 

“It’s limited to fucking Elders, though,” Warfarin growled. “I don’t like it. And there’s going to be a lot of unhappy people.”

All eyes turned to Doctor Zivahar, who had his hands clasped behind his back, expression utterly neutral. He hadn’t commented on this breakthrough, and I don’t blame him. Warfarin was a bit more vocal, though her usual attitude was “Sarkaz are fucking stupid” as far as I could tell. Well, OK, her usual attitude was “everyone but me is fucking stupid,” so that didn’t mean much.

“It does limit the application, unfortunately,” Silence agreed. “None of us here are Elders. We have a list of all the Elders on Rhodes Island?”

“We do,” Warfarin said, making a face. “Kal already had a Pegasus try. She was uninfected, and proved incapable of using the Arts, since apparently they burn oripathy, or more specifically, originium. We’ve got two more, but neither of them have much faculty with healing arts, and only one is Infected.”

“Ah, young Miss Nearl, I take it?” Dr. Arizona said with a thoughtful nod. “So, they need to be infected, and an Elder? That does limit the scope of the effect. Then, who could we possibly…oh.”

“Please, enlighten us, Grace,” Dr. Doykos asked curiously. 

Breeze grimaced. “Well, the obvious candidate…would be Loughshinny Dublinn. Her healing arts are famously powerful, she’s an Elder, and she’s Infected. However, given the current political situation, handing her this much power would be…problematic.”

The room fell silent as we all contemplated that. I was no political genius, or, well, all that politically astute. Shit, I had only voted twice in my life in two national elections and ignored local politics. Yeah, yeah, they’re more important, blah blah blah, I just wasn’t very civically minded. However, even my ignorant ass had figured out that Not-Ireland and Not-England were going through the Terran version of The Troubles. And, well, I’m Irish, so I at least know that bit of history. 

“Your Victorian blood is coloring your perspective,” Zivahar said, and everyone immediately listened up and turned to the Lich, who had his back to us, and was gazing at Lisa through the two way glass. “This is not a secret we can afford to keep. Contact the Queen of Tara, and the Speaker of Victoria. Inform them both. Perhaps an Aslan with royal blood could learn this art, but Victoria surely has Infected Elders of their own. Teach both. Teach all we can. This will not save my people. But it will save some. We are doctors. We do not play politics. We save lives.”

We digested that, even as Kal’tsit walked into the room. “Dr. Zivahar has the right of things. This is not a time to hide our light under a bushel. Loughshinny is affiliated with Rhodes Island, as is Vina. We must spread this art to them, and swiftly. Time runs short, and we do not have time to equivocate.”

“Time runs short? What do you know that you’re not sharing with us, Director?” Silence demanded, folding her arms over her chest and frowning. 

“You are all aware that assassins visited Rhodes Island yesterday,” Kal’tsit said, and I glanced at Sussurro, who was still tending to Lisa on the other side of the mirror. “The more well-informed are aware they were Victorians. Specifically, they were from the Duke of Caster. The situation in Victoria deteriorates by the hour. However, Victoria is merely the closest nation. There are others. And they would all be perfectly willing to send their own forces to take Dr. McCoy from us. The next time, they may be quicker.”

There was a growl from the back of the room, and several of the doctors stiffened and turned to see Red, standing by Texas. She had her fangs bared, and she did not look cute in the slightest: she looked ready to kill, her eyes glowing with reflected light. 

“Not kill Bones. Red best. Red protect,” she declared, and Texas nodded her agreement. They weren’t the only ones, either: Just outside the door, Beagle and Fang stood ready. Kroos and Lava were resting, though they were ready to go to war as well. I didn’t know where Rosmontis was, but the amnesiac murder blender was apparently assigned to me full-time now as well. 

“Yeah, but who’s protecting Lisa?” I asked the room. 

“That would be me,” a new voice said, as someone stepped into the room. Texas and Red were instantly between me and the new arrival, both of them with blades in their hands and pushing me back. That caused quite a stir with the doctors, and a wide grin from the woman who’d just joined us. 

“Ladies, there is no need to be so…startled,” Ingrid, also known as Vulpisfoglia said, spreading her arms wide. She didn’t have on her normal operator outfit, instead wearing a lavender jacket with a cream blouse and dark blue ankle length skirt. “I am merely Lisa’s mother.”

“Scarred Lady,” Red snarled. 

“Signora Ingrid,” Texas said, her tone calm, but her steel bare. “I am afraid I have not properly vetted you yet. You will need to keep away from Bones.”

“I am vouching for her, Texas, Red. Stand down: Ingrid was already en route to Rhodes Island to visit her daughter,” Kal’tsit said, stepping forward and frowning slightly at Red, who blushed and lowered her knives. “She would not be present if she did not have my utmost trust. I am well aware of her background as well.”

“I am but a simple Vulpo woman, and housewife,” Ingrid said with a laugh. “And then I arrive to see such a commotion about my daughter! Now, tell me: what, exactly, is my precious Luce needing protection from?” 

“Your daughter, she has manifested a most remarkable ability,” Whilhelm said, adjusting his spectacles with his index finger and clearing his throat. “I do not know how to say zis but-”

Fury flashed over Ingrid’s face, and her scar stretched ghoulishly. She stepped forward in a moment, and though she was a full head shorter than Whilhelm, she somehow managed to loom over him. “Do not tell me she has become involved in this mad experiment to cure oripathy. If you fools are using my Lisa as a test subject, you will learn exactly why the Tancredi famiglia no longer exists.”

Well. So much for “simple housewife.” I don’t think anyone was buying that now. Not that any of us were stupid enough to before.

“Ah, no, not-” Whilhelm cleared his throat again, and looked helplessly to Warfarin, who stepped forward.

“Ingrid, honey, relax. We didn’t teach the kid how to cure oripathy. I mean, I would have-” The death glare that Ingrid turned on Warfarin would have made me wet myself, but it didn’t seem to bother the Chief “-Bones here actually categorically refused to even try. What she did learn was how to cure herself of oripathy. So, you’re welcome. We won’t even charge you extra.” 

For a moment, Ingrid just stared. Then she took a slow step back, and bowed her head. “Apologies. I have been…concerned, about my daughter. A mother’s love, yes? I have heard all these wild rumors, then I arrive and learn there was an attack, and Lisa was somehow involved? Well. I was…alarmed. Now: explain what you mean by Lisa curing herself. In small words: I am a simple woman.”

“I think perhaps it would be best if you spoke with Dr. McCoy and Dr. Sussurro directly,” Kal’tsit said. “Why don’t you join your daughter in the OR, and see what she has to say for herself. Despite her tender age, she already understands not just her circumstance, but that of the Infected. She had embraced the mission of Rhodes Island. I would urge you to respect her wishes, Ingrid. For she represents not just hope for her own cure, but that of many.”

“I am not the mother of many. I am the mother of my Lisa. Nor do I have two flicks of my tail for Rhodes Island’s mission,” Ingrid said, her tail twitching twice in what I had to assume was a deliberate gesture. “But I will listen. I am a reasonable woman.”

Then she turned her eyes on me. I swallowed, and smiled. Those eyes…well, they reminded me of how Texas looked at enemies she was about to turn into mincemeat. They were the eyes of a predator. Ingrid might be a fox in wolf’s clothing…but this was a woman who certainly was deadly. I didn’t know how she stacked up next to Texas…but boy howdy did I NOT want to find out. 

I nodded to Ingrid, then managed, “Right this way, uh, ma’am.” 

Igrid nodded, and along with Texas, I stepped down the hall and into the OR, where Lisa was still on the bed, and Sussurro was talking with her while running more tests. As soon as we entered, Lisa sat up, and her smile lit up the room. 

“Mamma! Non mi avevi detto che saresti venuto!” She looked like she would have hopped off the bed despite her earlier weariness, but she was hooked up to an IV and couldn’t. 

Ingrid hurried forward and wrapped her daughter in a warm embrace. “È stata una sorpresa, mia piccola luce. La mamma non ha potuto resistere alla tentazione di rivederti. Ora, sei stato buono con il dottor Sussurro e gli altri?”

Lisa smiled and stepped forward, and she and Ingrid exchanged pecks on both cheeks. Apparently, they were quite close. “È stata una delizia, signora. Lisa è veramente la Nostra Luce. C'è qualcosa che dobbiamo dirvi, però. Ah, scusami. This is Dr. McCoy, who has also been overseeing Lisa’s treatment.”

I was grateful for the switch back to Victorian, and gave my best smile. “I haven’t been doing much doctoring on Lisa. As a matter of fact, it was her who saved my life yesterday."

“Hmm. Then you are the one, as I thought,” Ingrid said, studying me with hooded eyes and drawing Lisa close again. 

“Mamma! This is Bones-Sensei! He is the Savior!” Lisa said excitedly.

I groaned and rubbed my forehead. “I’m not a Savior, Lisa. I’m just a doctor. Please…don’t call me that…”

“But everyone does! He healed Rope-san, and Vigna-san, and Andre-kun!” Lisa said excitedly. “And Texas-san too! And not just their injuries, he healed them of oripathy!” Lisa scrunched up her face in a look of intense concentration. “He has taught me some of his miracle arts, but only the kind that heals the body. He says he will not teach me how to cure oripathy, but he must! Then I can heal people like him, too!”

I groaned, then got down in front of Lisa, smiling at her and mostly ignoring the look of wrath on Ingrid’s face. Though it did make my knees tremble. Well, more than usual.

“Lisa…I can’t do that.” I slowly rolled up my sleeve, showing the scars on my arm, and the lesions that were still visible. “Every time I cure someone…my oripathy gets worse.”

“Yes, but then it gets better! Like mine!” Lisa said eagerly, trying to wiggle out of her mother’s grasp to touch my arm, but Ingrid had a vice grip on her. 

“Yeah, but…look. I’m not going to do to you what’s been done to me. Not until…well. Come back in a decade when you’re an adult, and we’ll talk about it” I told her. I did not add ‘if I’m still alive.’ “Besides, we don’t even know if I could teach you. The process is painful enough that I won’t be doing another healing for a little while yet. Too often, and it will definitely kill me.”

“Lisa, you need to rest. Let’s get you back to a private room, and you can sleep,” Sussurro said. “We’ll talk more about how to use your new abilities later. Right now, please, do not use them unless myself or another doctor is there with you. The strain on your body is too great.”

“Is it, now,” Ingrid said quietly, and her tail began to twitch back and forth.

“Hai, Sussuro-sensai,” Lisa said. Then she pinched her mother, which surprised me. “Mamma! Do not be angry! I am a big girl now! I’m 14! That’s grown up!”

“Not for you, my Luce,” Ingrid said, chuckling and stroking Lisa’s ears. “You will not be grown up until you are at least 30, perhaps older. And that is many years off yet.”

Lisa looked like she wanted to argue, but just then, she yawned hugely, and Sussurro told her, “Time to rest. You can stay with her, Ingrid, but-”

“No. I will talk with you and this Doctor Bones,” Ingrid said, eyeing me. She kissed Lisa on the forehead. “Dormi bene, cuore mio. La mamma sarà ancora qui quando ti sveglierai.”

Lisa nodded and closed her eyes, and she was asleep even before the orderly came to wheel her to a private room. 

“We must talk,” Ingrid declared the moment Lisa was gone, her tone now as cold as ice. “Not here. Somewhere more…intimate. The Texas can be there as well, if she must. She, at least, I trust to have honor.”

We went to one of the interview rooms, where Ingrid sat, lounging in her chair in a manner that spoke of a predator ready to leap on its prey at a moment’s notice as Sussurro and I sat across the desk from her and Texas took a post by the door. “Alright. Lucia, I will give you the benefit of the doubt. You, at least, very nearly killed That Old Witch when she approved my Lisa for a combat operation. So I know you have some sense. This…man, however. I don’t care if you’re sleeping with him-”

Sussurro stiffened and went red, and I blushed myself

“-do not be ashamed, I am glad you found a man at last. Hopefully, he is worthy of you. But zanne e artigli, you will explain exactly why my Lisa was fighting the Bitch of Caster’s assassins, and why she is suddenly learning mysterious new arts!” 

“Honestly, it was an accident,” I admitted. Ingrid’s eyes laser focused on me, and Sussurro rapped the table with her knuckles.

“Ingrid! Calm down. James is correct: Lisa was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Or, well, more accurately, she was in the right place at the right time to save both Jame’s life and my own.”

“Explain,” Ingrid prompted, and Sussurro switched back to Siracusian and gave a rapid fire explanation that involved a lot of waving of hands. Ingrid asked what sounded like some very pointed questions that came with their own jabbing series of hand gestures, then drew in Texas, who responded laconically and without the hand gestures. Guess she really was Columbian at heart. 

“So,” Ingrid said at the end, flicking her fingers and looking at me. “You were all merely having a picnic on the roof, then you were attacked. My Lisa used her arts to save you, because she is a sweetheart and very powerful. Then, she wished to come with you to help treat the wounded. Also something she would do-”

“-and I wanted to keep an eye on her,” Sussurro hastily added. 

“And Lucia wanted to keep an eye on her, I suppose! A convenient excuse,” Ingrid huffed and waved one hand. 

More angry Not-Italian and a lot of gestures, then Ingrid went back to Not-English. “Fine! I will accept this, for now. So, she watched you, James, heal with these incredible new arts. Then, you showed her how, and she learned how to do this!?”

“Well, she did also drop her BOCD when she did it,” I pointed out. “So, really, I accidentally taught her to cure her oripathy.”

“That is not the point!  You teach her a dangerous, untested art!? She has overdosed! Twice now! She could permanently harm herself! She is a child! Five, at most!” Ingrid snarled, pointing an accusatory finger at me while shaking a fist at me. “And do not protest she is 14! If she were vulpo, she would be no more than five!” 

“Honestly, I still have trouble with all these different aging rates. I’d say you’re in your 40s, but I assume you’re like 30 something? Terrans ages weird,” I sighed. 

Then got kicked under the table as Sussurro glared furiously at me. 

“Ah.” Ingrid hooded her eyes and leaned back, a smile on her lips. “So. It is true. You are an alien.”

“I…am from Columbia?” I said hopefully. 

“Mmm. Name three Columbian television series,” Ingrid snorted.

I opened my mouth, more fool I. “Gun…smoke? Wait, shit.”

“James,” Sussurro groaned as Ingrid smirked, and I winced as she kicked me again, though it was half-hearted. Then she rounded on Ingrid. “Do not attack him! He is doing his best for Lisa! He has found a way to cure her! Yes, it is dangerous now, but in a controlled setting, she could be free of oripathy in a year! That is something you never could have dreamed of before!” 

“I will accept this,” Ingrid said with a nod. “You are fortunate this turned out so well for you. I was ready to tear apart Rhodes Island with my bare hands and whisk Lisa back to Higashi instead of continuing on to Siracusa.”

“Ohhhh,” I said, then, because I do learn, I didn’t say more. 

Ingrid frowned at me. “What. Do you have something to say, Signore Alieno?”

“He most certainly does not,” Sussurro said firmly, and I nodded.

“Uh, nope. Anyway, we’re doing the best we can for Lisa’s treatment. We honestly didn’t expect her to pick up on my arts. No one else had to that point, and it sort of came out of nowhere.”

“Oh?” Ingrid frowned, looking at Sussurro. “You cannot use these arts? But you are an excellent doctor, and I have seen your healing arts: They are very good. Then what about Lisa…” Ingrid trailed off, brow furrow. “Ah. She is an Elder. Daughter of my body she may be, but she is her father’s race, thank il Signori. So. That is what has you all hot and bothered. Well. I do not care. She is my daughter. She will not be the subject of any mad experiments. We have paid, and paid well for her care, but if you are going to treat her as a test musbeast, I will take her back to Higashi.”

“That is no longer an option.”

We all turned to Texas, who for the first time, stepped forward, coming to stand beside the desk and regard Ingrid. “Suzuran is now a part of this. Word will spread. Though she cannot cure oripathy, rumors will claim she can. If Bones is targeted, then so is your daughter. I am sorry. She must be kept secure. I have a team on round-the-clock security for her. The very best.”

“That Wolf’s Fang?” Ignrid asked, and Texas nodded. Ingrid snorted, then nodded. “Well, I can accept that pup is competent. Il Signori do not choose weaklings as their servants. I could smell the blood on her the second I entered that room. She is safe?”

“Kal’tsit has her loyalty, even above that of Il Signori. The Director is capable of challenging them,” Texas stated. 

“She would be,” Ingrid muttered, making a face. She shook her head. “Fine. But that doesn’t mean I can’t take her back to Higashi and keep her safe myself. The Kitsune look after their own, and the temple is quite secure. She would be safe there.”

“But is that what Lisa wants?” Sussurro said, reaching across the table and taking Ingrid’s hands in hers. 

Ingrid glared, but didn’t pull away. “She is a child. What she wants is less important than keeping her safe.”

“You can’t protect her forever, Ingrid. You know that,” Sussurro said, and a tear trickled down her cheek. “We both know that you will be fortunate to see her fully mature.”

Ingrid squeezed her own eyes shut, and tears began to flood down her own cheeks. I was a bit shocked by that: I had seen her switch between tender mother and deadly assassin, but I hadn’t expected to see what most would call weakness from her. 

“I will keep her safe as long as I can. I am only 37. My hand is still strong, and my blade still sure.”

“And we both know you don’t have much longer where that will be true. Your courses stopped two years ago. You’re post-menopausal, and we both know that means your strength is on the decline now,” Sussurro said. “How are your check-ups?”

Ingrid flinched. “I am…taking supplements. I have not lost too much muscle mass or bone density. I am still a match for anyone. Even this Texas.”

Texas looked like she wanted to challenge that, but she kept her mouth shut, shifting from foot to foot. 

“I am sure you are,” Sussurro said, giving a small smile. “You’re a match for me, certainly. But Ingrid…do you really want to take Lisa all the thousands of miles back to Higashi, alone? You would have to go through Yan, and you know what they would do for such power. The Lungs can, in all likelihood, learn this ability. And they would have no quibbles with working a kitsune to death to do it.”

“Then I will hire mercenaries!” Ingrid snapped, then deflated again. “No, that is foolish. Yan can offer more coin than even the Kitsune can. Lucia, my daughter…please. She is not in so much danger, is she?” 

“The good news is, if she uses her ability enough, she will cure her oripathy, and signs indicate that will end the danger to her,” Sussurro said quietly. “And, I can personally vouch that every single member of Rhodes Island will put themselves between Lisa and danger. We’ve got a Cerberus watching her now.”

“A guardian of the Underworld? That Fang was not- no. You mean that sciocca child? You would trust Kay with this task?” Ingrid demanded skeptically. 

“Believe it or not, she ripped apart a couple of Trilby Ashers yesterday,” I pointed out. “She might seem like an airhead, but Ceobe’s deadly. Especially if there are snackies on the line.”

“Ha!” Ingrid pulled away from Sussurro and dabbed at her eyes with a tissue from the table, then blew her nose. “There, you have me weeping like an old nonna. Would that I could live long enough to become one…” A wistful look entered Ingrid’s eyes, and she sighed. “Alright. I will trust you. You still have the fire in your veins, Lucia. Though I am not so sure about this man of yours. An alien? Where are you from, Bones?”

“Honestly, Columbia is probably the best answer. Just not so fuzzy,” I quipped. Sussurro groaned, but she didn’t kick me. 

“Well, you have the arrogance, at least,” Ingrid chuckled. “And the optimism. Lisa seems to like you. But…Savior? Do not get such a swelled head.”

“Seriously, I’m a R1. I’m barely even a real doctor,” I protested with a heavy sigh. I looked down at my palms, wincing at the lesions that always hurt. “Honestly…I didn’t think I would ever be in this position. I figured, I’d go into neuroscience, fix some brains, make a lot of money, and find a beautiful woman to settle down with.” I lowered them and smiled at Sussurro, who wagged her tail and blushed. “Well, I managed one. At least I get to help kids like Lisa. We’ll do what we can for her. Even if that means me teaching two queens.”

“Oh? Tell me more of this,” Ingrid demanded, frowning at me.

I glanced at Sussurro, who had her lips pursed. “Uh, should I? I probably said too much already…”

“No, tell her,” Sussurro said with a shake of her head. “If Warfarin or Kal’tsit protest…well. I trust my countrywoman more than most. Ingrid might bluster and yell, but she’s more invested in the mission of Rhodes Island that she has indicated.”

“Only because it was the best hope for Lisa. I gave not a fig for the infected before,” Ingrid huffed, but then she smiled. “If I raise my blade for anyone now, it would be for my Lisa. If that means I must fight for the Infected as well…so be it. Now, what do you mean by two queens?”

I briefly explained our conundrum and how our best bet for an Elder who could learn my arts was none other than the Queen of Tara, and potentially, the Queen of Victoria. I didn’t think an Aslan was an Elder? But, then again, if anyone could, it was genderbent lion Jesus.

Hey, my family wasn’t super religious, but I was into that furry shit even as a kid, I guess. I read all the Chronicles of Narina. Hey, I liked Animorphs better! But, yeah, I can read. At least if there’s a personal pan pizza on the line. 

See, that’s what Hypergryph needed. To give out Pizza Hut if you bothered to read the sixty billion words of lore. Because Aslan Christ, that is too much reading. Did you see how long Near Light was!? Pretty sure it was longer than Narnia. 

“I see. So, this could mean war.” Ingrid considered, then shrugged. “Very well. Fuck the Victorians, and fuck the Tarans. Teach them this art and let them draw heat from my Lisa. I will protect you, if you will keep my daughter safe.”

“You’re volunteering to be my bodyguard?” I asked, a bit flummoxed. 

“Are there tryouts? I will duel The Texas for the honor,” Ingrid said, her eyes sparkling with amusement.

“That won’t be necessary. I’m familiar with your qualifications. However…I would very much like to spar later,” Texas said, her tail swishing back and forth. 

“Ah, little wolf,” Ingrid purred in a sultry voice. Though I’m pretty sure she’s shorter than Texas, unless you count those big ass ears. “Do not underestimate this fox simply because she is getting long in the tooth.”

“I do not. You are very experienced, and your reputation is well earned,” Texas deadpanned. “I enjoy fighting competent opponents. I would not wish to spar if I did not think you were a threat.”

Ingrid shrugged. “Well, I could use the exercise. Very well, I have no head for politics. You tell me who you need killed, and they will die.”

“Hey, no assassinations! There has to be a peaceful solution to this!” I protested. 

Ingrid snorted. “You really are an alien. Even a Colombian would know the only way you have peace between a Taran and a Victorian is to kill them, and their children. Brothers and sisters too, just to be sure.”

I made strangled sounds, but Sussurro stamped her foot. “No, Ingrid! We will find peace! This is Rhodes Island! That attitude has no place here! Perhaps we will have to fight, but we fight for peace, not more bloodshed.”

“Suit yourself. Today, I fight only for Lisa. But I used to do it simply because I was good at it. Some are simply like that. And they didn’t get laid as well as I did to calm me down,” Ingrid laughed. 

That made me cough, but Texas nodded. “I also felt much less inclined to eliminate all my problems after I met my girlfriend.”

“Don’t tell me you're with that deranged Saluzzo,” Ingrid sneered.

Texas flattened her ears. “No. Not anymore. I am with…another.”

“Good. I like you, Celinia, but Lappland Saluzzo is trouble, you mark my words,” Ingrid warned. 

“I am aware,” Texas said with a nod. 

“Fine. The Lady of Scars is at your service, Lucia Sussurro,” Ingrid said with a bow. When she straightened, she had on a slasher smile that stretched her scar again. “Just make sure my Lisa is well cared for, and we won’t have any…disagreements.”

“I can promise you, both myself and James fight for nothing more than a world where she can grow up safe and free,” Sussurro said, taking my hand in hers and squeezing. 

“All little girls deserve a world they can grow up in without fear of war,” I said. Then, something made me say, “Especially the Sarkaz ones.”

Ingrid jerked back at that, and even Texas started, while Sussurro nodded grimly. “Absolutely. A world free of oripathy, where kitsune, vulpo, lupo, and sarkaz all join hands and live in peace.”

“That is…well. That is either the noblest thing I have ever heard, or the maddest,” Ingrid said with a slow shake of her head. “So that is what kind of man you are. I see. Well. Lisa has picked a teacher just like her father. Will wonders never cease? I thought I’d never meet another fool as idealistic as my husband. Well. I will go see to my daughter now. Call if you need me.”

Ingrid left, and I breathed out a sigh of relief. “Am I the only one she scares the piss out of?”

“That’s just good sense, but she’s never frightened me. She’s a mother, first and always,” Sussurro said with a smile.

“It is wise to treat her with caution. But no, I do not fear her. She overestimates her abilities,” Texas said.

“Or you underestimate her. She’s taken down plenty of big strong lupo,” Sussurro huffed.

Shrugging, Texas went back to her post by the door. “She has. She is good. I am better.”

God bless you, Texas. I do hope you’re not overestimating yourself. 

And that there’s a peaceful way out of this. Please, let there be a peaceful way out of this…