"Orange Euler arcs interfacing green slow-flows... Wait, that's my notation, not yours." She waves a hand at the dirt. "Well, they're empty now."

Steel gives a short bark of a laugh. "Yeah, we established that yesterday. I can get almost the same results in anything except dense tangles or fog, though. Is it just because of that extra unknown factor to account for, you think?"

"I don't think it's just that. I know my tree really, really well, and that just now was still markedly better results than coaxing my tree into growing faster."

"Candied dewdrops are unusually safe - the dew is unowned to begin with and sorcerous adjustment doesn't guarantee a claim - but from a mortal to a fairy, yeah, safer not to. I can make my own. Do you like them?"

"They're a convenient way to carry water. I've been purifying them first - do they taste like something if you use real dew?"

"I like them best if I get the dew off my tree, because then it tastes a little like the haws, but it's not a strong flavor."

Nod, nod. "Does the gate need to be anywhere in particular? And where will it lead? I might want to visit this place again, carefully of course. If you can put it wherever on this end I want to make an underground house-ish thing deep enough that it doesn't disturb any plants."

"I don't know where I'll put it yet, I haven't finished the gate book. But I should be able to aim it wherever you want."

"If it needs a certain kind of harmonics, well, I can do harmonics. I need to go back to my suneater circle now, though, I'm getting tired. See you later?"

"Later."

Steel goes back to her suneater circle, simultaneously sleeping and eating sunlight. When she wakes up, she tries to find River, hoping to apologize for threatening her with fire.

River is not in her house, but she's close by, picking flowers.

Steel makes herself obvious a fair bit off. It's rude to sneak up. "Hello, River! I want to apologize for the other day. I was upset and scared, but you didn't deserve to be shoved around and threatened."

River looks up from her flower picking. "Oh - uh, no harm done," she blinks. "Are you going to tell me what's going on with you today?"

"I appeared here through, apparently, a temporary gate. Promise warned me about food and names, she's kind. And it turns out I can see harmonics, it's part of the bluestream magic, so she taught me sorcery and she's going to make a gate to send me back home in exchange for some harmonic maps. That's really it."

"You can see harmonics?" says River, eyes wide.

"Yeah. I can change 'em, too. I'll make a map of a smallish area as apology for hitting you the other day, if you like. Just remember that I don't intend to belong to anybody. Try to catch me and I might get mean again."

"Oh, I'm not a sorcerer. I'm just surprised Promise didn't catch you to keep or sell."

"It's called 'not wanting other people to suffer.' Back home, keeping a vassal would be one of the worst crimes you could do, because it stops a person's body and mind from being their own. Or maybe she thinks if she doesn't do anything attention-getting nobody will come and bother her."

"You'd be really useful to a sorcerer, though. And she wouldn't have to worry about you trying to feed her."

"Why wouldn't she need to worry? Mortal food is especially vassal-y compared to fairies feeding fairies, or so she said. You can call me Steel, by the way, I don't think I told you my nickname yet."

"Food from vassals is safe," says River, waving a hand. "If she had your name or fed you she could eat straight out of your hand and be fine."

"That is... Good to know. Hmm. I can't think of some way withholding that from me benefits her, so maybe she just forgot to mention it."