but moping isn’t going to change anything.” She started resetting one of the recently used systems back to the intro screen. “Willow’s having age issues. There’s not much even we can do to prolong life. For any of us. She’s angry because she’s going to die of old age and Danya’s still going to look young and beautiful. She knows Danya’s going to keep on living, move on, and find someone else to love.”
Nadia paused and wiped a stray tear away. “I feel the same way. When I die, Mother will be there to bury me, and she won’t look a day older than she does today.”
I patted her shoulder. “Rose and I are in the same situation. I just can’t think about it. Dragonbound are programmed not to.” I started resetting another system and decided to change the subject.
“Is a Don’t Get Involved field the same thing as a Somebody Else’s Problem ?” Even as I asked it, I thought it was a silly question. I just wanted a different conversation.
“It works on the same principle,” Nadia replied. “DGI is just more powerful. Instead of just not noticing you, DGI creates an active aversion that causes people to move out of your way. Mother developed it after her first trip to Los Angeles. She tried driving around using a Somebody Else’s Problem charm and it made the traffic worse for her.”
“Is there a spell more powerful than DGI?”
“Yep. Canción de los Mariachis . People think you’re a four-piece mariachi band who won’t stop following them around and playing music until they’ve given you all their cash.”
I stopped in my tracks. “You’re kidding.”
“Nope. Mom created it as a joke, but it’s a real spell.”
“That has to be a good story…” I paused, hoping she’d take the bait.
She did. “Mom got the idea after we visited this goofy-ass Mexican restaurant in Denver during a family road trip back when I was a kid...”
A lump of suspicion grew in my chest. “Big pink building with a clocktower?”
“Oh, yes.” Nadia couldn’t suppress a quick shudder. “We were driving out to an event in Pennsylvania with a bunch of other folks. The other families had made this trip before, and liked to stop at this crazy restaurant so the kids could run and play after a full day of driving. So, we stopped for dinner. It was great! All the kids went tear-assing around the place, playing adventurers. Alissa, my foster-sister, tried to pick the lock on the door leading to the cliff-diver’s platform, but Mother caught us.”
“Oh, busted!”
She chuckled. “Yeah, and for taking too long, we all got extra practice with blindfolded lock picking.” She laughed again, shaking her head. “We only went that one time. Angus said that restaurant reminded him too much of home. Crazy places to explore, random murders in the streets, swarms of street urchins, and, of course, coin-hungry bards.”
“Aha.”
“Yeah. The band saw Angus tip the waitstaff a couple of hundreds and they were on him for almost an hour.”
I started laughing. “Rookie mistake. How did you get rid of them?”
“He found a nice dark spot and dropped his disguise.”
I waited to see if there was more to her statement. “That’s it? That was enough to scare them off? What, is he a troll or something?”
“ Dokk Alfar . Drow. Dark Elf. Obsidian skin, white hair. When they’re angry, sometimes their eyes turn red and start glowing.” She snickered. “The musicians got a good look, dropped their instruments, and ran for their lives. Angus wouldn’t have hurt them, of course; he wasn’t even armed.” She checked her watch and shook her head. “I hope Danya didn’t run into trouble. The kid she’s working with has some severe issues.”
“How do you mean?”
Nadia looked around to make sure there were no kids in earshot. “It’s her art. People overdosed in a doorway on the Strip, a hooker washing her privates with water from a pothole in the middle of a parking lot, a bunch of people standing
Nadia paused and wiped a stray tear away. “I feel the same way. When I die, Mother will be there to bury me, and she won’t look a day older than she does today.”
I patted her shoulder. “Rose and I are in the same situation. I just can’t think about it. Dragonbound are programmed not to.” I started resetting another system and decided to change the subject.
“Is a Don’t Get Involved field the same thing as a Somebody Else’s Problem ?” Even as I asked it, I thought it was a silly question. I just wanted a different conversation.
“It works on the same principle,” Nadia replied. “DGI is just more powerful. Instead of just not noticing you, DGI creates an active aversion that causes people to move out of your way. Mother developed it after her first trip to Los Angeles. She tried driving around using a Somebody Else’s Problem charm and it made the traffic worse for her.”
“Is there a spell more powerful than DGI?”
“Yep. Canción de los Mariachis . People think you’re a four-piece mariachi band who won’t stop following them around and playing music until they’ve given you all their cash.”
I stopped in my tracks. “You’re kidding.”
“Nope. Mom created it as a joke, but it’s a real spell.”
“That has to be a good story…” I paused, hoping she’d take the bait.
She did. “Mom got the idea after we visited this goofy-ass Mexican restaurant in Denver during a family road trip back when I was a kid...”
A lump of suspicion grew in my chest. “Big pink building with a clocktower?”
“Oh, yes.” Nadia couldn’t suppress a quick shudder. “We were driving out to an event in Pennsylvania with a bunch of other folks. The other families had made this trip before, and liked to stop at this crazy restaurant so the kids could run and play after a full day of driving. So, we stopped for dinner. It was great! All the kids went tear-assing around the place, playing adventurers. Alissa, my foster-sister, tried to pick the lock on the door leading to the cliff-diver’s platform, but Mother caught us.”
“Oh, busted!”
She chuckled. “Yeah, and for taking too long, we all got extra practice with blindfolded lock picking.” She laughed again, shaking her head. “We only went that one time. Angus said that restaurant reminded him too much of home. Crazy places to explore, random murders in the streets, swarms of street urchins, and, of course, coin-hungry bards.”
“Aha.”
“Yeah. The band saw Angus tip the waitstaff a couple of hundreds and they were on him for almost an hour.”
I started laughing. “Rookie mistake. How did you get rid of them?”
“He found a nice dark spot and dropped his disguise.”
I waited to see if there was more to her statement. “That’s it? That was enough to scare them off? What, is he a troll or something?”
“ Dokk Alfar . Drow. Dark Elf. Obsidian skin, white hair. When they’re angry, sometimes their eyes turn red and start glowing.” She snickered. “The musicians got a good look, dropped their instruments, and ran for their lives. Angus wouldn’t have hurt them, of course; he wasn’t even armed.” She checked her watch and shook her head. “I hope Danya didn’t run into trouble. The kid she’s working with has some severe issues.”
“How do you mean?”
Nadia looked around to make sure there were no kids in earshot. “It’s her art. People overdosed in a doorway on the Strip, a hooker washing her privates with water from a pothole in the middle of a parking lot, a bunch of people standing
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