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It turns out that there was really not much point to making a schedule. Kas and Helen visit the witch clan whenever Helen feels like it, and stay as long as she wants, and go when she wants to be somewhere else, and it all adds up to plenty more time spent with the clan than away.
After the aquarium jaunt with Ranata, it's a little more than a month before they visit the clan again.
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truthwright
"Okay," says Ranata. "I'm coming. I'll be over the national border soon."
"I'm going as fast as I can."
Ranata decides to save the question of whether she'll be able to fix Helen's spinach for when they're talking in person.
Ranata decides to save the question of whether she'll be able to fix Helen's spinach for when they're talking in person.
"The queen will find whoever did it and make sure they can't ever do it again."
"It might take her a while, but she will find them."
carillons
"Okay," says Helen.
She hugs Kalavar, and listens to Ranata, and waits.
She hugs Kalavar, and listens to Ranata, and waits.
Ranata is out of things to say, but there is still the rush of wind, and her breathing.
carillons
The time passes with an occasional 'I love you' or 'where are you now?'.
Ranata always answers her - "I love you too." With the number of miles yet to go.
carillons
Eventually the number of miles becomes small, and Helen says, "Can you see the building yet?"
She remembers the approach with Petaal; she can say what it looks like from the air.
She remembers the approach with Petaal; she can say what it looks like from the air.
"Not yet, I need to get my bearings - I'm coming up the street now."
"I'm going to go show the front desk people Castarilan and then he'll come find your window."
A minute later, there is a hummingbird at the window.
A minute later, there is a hummingbird at the window.
carillons
Helen goes to it and opens it, and Kalavar buzzes up to Castarilan as a fuzzy bumblebee.
In comes Castarilan, and presently there's a knock at the door.
carillons
She hears it with a funny echo, because it's where Ranata is and where she is.
She stops extra-listening and runs to the door and opens it and hugs Ranata the huggiest hug of all hugs that have ever hugged.
She stops extra-listening and runs to the door and opens it and hugs Ranata the huggiest hug of all hugs that have ever hugged.
Ranata hugs her back hard, and says, "Let's get Kas tied to the cloudpine, and go home."
carillons
"Okay," she says, looking dubiously at Kas and Petaal where they are snuggled up and glazed over. Petaal is coiled around Kas as a constricting snake of some kind; the species is hard to tell under the ice.
Helen cannot imagine how they are going to get Kas tied to a cloudpine branch.
Helen cannot imagine how they are going to get Kas tied to a cloudpine branch.
It's pretty difficult, and on one occasion Ranata asks Kalavar to turn into something big so they can roll him over onto the rope Ranata brought when the easiest way to do this involves touching Petaal, but eventually she has them coiled up in rope, secured to the cloudpine, and does not dislodge them in an experimental low circuit around the room.
"Okay," she says. "Do you need to pack anything?"
"Okay," she says. "Do you need to pack anything?"
carillons
She picks up Kas's backpack off the floor and puts it on, and picks up her own backpack and holds it, and looks at Petaal's cloudpine branch leaning against the wall by the door.
Ranata considers the cloudpine, then picks it up and wedges it in under one of the rope knots. "Okay, up you get, she says, helping Helen onto the cloudpine.
She flies them into the elevator, descends with it, and then goes out the lobby and into the sky, cursed spinach still hanging where he's tied.
She flies them into the elevator, descends with it, and then goes out the lobby and into the sky, cursed spinach still hanging where he's tied.
carillons
Kalavar turns into an albatross and flies along beside them.
Helen holds onto the branch and hugs her backpack and is uncharacteristically quiet.
Helen holds onto the branch and hugs her backpack and is uncharacteristically quiet.
"It'll be okay," says Ranata.