"Well, I wouldn't put it past her, at any rate."

More giggling. "So what's claiming at daggerpoint? Is it exactly what it sounds like? 'Cause I'm not sure if that's disturbing or hot."

"It's more or less what it sounds like, it's fallen rather out of favor now that witches can no longer expect to get away with murder if declined. I've never done it; my mother did, but not with my father, with her preceding husband. Opinions are divided on disturbing versus hot, but Isabella was firmly in the former camp and I have to say I largely agree with her."

"Huh, well. I'm glad it's not like - widely supported. But it does still sound kinda hot. Horrific, though. No means no, and all that jazz."

"The official story is 'witches just have such overhwelming emotions that we can't bear to live in the same world as someone who's spurned us, it is the only insult, any mortal should be glad to have a witch for a lover', blah blah - so much nonsense, I think. You won't run into this problem, at any rate. Witches who prefer women have their own traditions which mostly don't involve mortals and therefore mostly don't involve predicating their courtship on being able to stab the object of their affections."

"All right. It sounds like a bunch of fluff and garbage, but then again I'm not a witch. I dunno what your heads are like. Maybe some of you are wired like my mom and obsessive and crazy."

"Well, I was never tempted, so I'm not sure, but my experience with Charlie was less 'I took one look and had to have him because of his beautiful eyes' and more 'we enjoy talking to each other and get along so well'."

"Aha. Congrats to you! You sound cute together. I mean - I'm not saying violence for sexy-times is right or anything, just that insanity is a thing that happens to some magic-users for us. Could be the same for you. I'd have to poll all witches everywhere and that's really too much work."

"The fact that it's been so sharply on the decline as the odds of getting punished for it have increased suggests to me that it's nonsense." Pause. "Do you want to talk about your mother or would you sooner skip it?"

"That's not quite the witch habit... it's not uncommon for a witch to marry three or four or more mortals in her lifetime. And we don't tend to flatten cities."

"Huh. Interesting, alright. Good on you guys for not flattening cities, because that's bad. She only did it once, though. She was in the city at the time."

"I'm not even sure how a witch would flatten a city."

"That's fortunate for cities everywhere, I'm sure. Hear they don't like being flattened."

"And I doubt we'd get away with it, either."

"That, too. Though if you want to get technical and stuff - my mom didn't get away with it, either."

"Well, there's away and then there's away."

Zeviana giggles. "Well when you word it like that... It definitely made her go away."

"I take it this was a while ago?"

"Four-ish years ago! So, kinda. I mean, she was a sucky, sucky mom, I don't miss her."

"I'm not that close with mine myself."

"Yeah. Plus I'm kind of pissed with her still because she took out our practical father with her."

"Mmm?"

"He was in the city at the time. Step-father, though not like - officially or anything. Just unofficially, to us. Adarin hasn't mentioned him? I was sure he was still mourning."