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Anne Welborn

@wildagreenbough.bsky.social

#WIPSnips Missed some of these had eye problems. The word for November 29th is 'dedicate', I've got 'committed'. 'The Book of Ashes', Chapter 9, 'A letter from a different country'. Paul Brotherwell has made contact with Michelle De La Croix by magical means that he can't even begin to understand.

'Can anyone help you?' This was a complete nightmare and he was so far beyond any understanding of what had happened that he was completely lost.
'The Order of Rowan are giving such help as they can, Sir Gregory will explain. Now listen Paul as this is why I was attempting to travel to Harpham House.' He felt Michelle draw closer to him like she was a creature made of Winter frost. ' Andre Hebras has told me that he will sell the book at auction and it is likely that this will be soon. For safety this was not committed to the letter so you must inform Sir Gregory of this without delay.' After telling him this Michelle drifted past him lightly brushing his cheek with her chill fingers before slowly fading away.

November 29, 2025 at 6:59 PM

Anne Welborn

@wildagreenbough.bsky.social

#WIPSnips The word for November 25th is 'system', - I can do 'network' instead. 'The Book of Ashes', Chapter 9, 'A letter from a different country'.
Paul Brotherwell gave Jenny Birdfoot a fright and now she is hiding in Mrs Erin's cardigan.

'Paul's not angry with you Jenny, but you can stay there if you want,' said Mrs Erin to reassure her before she turned her attention to Paul. 'Bear this in mind. This letter and the lock of hair was sent specifically to you across eight decades via a network of patient and willing hands and it was also guarded well by complex enchantments that would have taken much skill to craft. Do you think that Michelle would have asked for that to be done if she had no faith in you?'
'No,' sighed Paul.
'Good,' said Mrs Erin, 'Now you have an urgent message to deliver Paul, - so let's get that done before the day is any older.

November 26, 2025 at 11:31 AM

Anne Welborn

@wildagreenbough.bsky.social

#WIPSnips The word for November 24th is 'debut'. After shaking out a bag of synonyms I've got 'beginning' instead. 'The Book of Ashes', Chapter 2, 'Pilgrims'. Paul Brotherwell and Michelle De La Croix are making an attempt at learning how to work together.

Paul sipped at his morning cup of coffee and sighed. After almost breaking his wrist for him Michelle had made an attempt at explaining some things which he had to count as a beginning at least. He now knew the sullen man's name was Amand Delafose and that Michelle thought he might be a gatekeeper, but she wasn't certain. She had taken him outside into the damp night air to tell him that and touched her lips with a finger afterwards to warn him to keep it to himself. What that might mean and how it might affect what they intended to do today he really didn't have any idea.

November 26, 2025 at 12:50 AM

Anne Welborn

@wildagreenbough.bsky.social

#WIPSnips The word for November 22nd is 'crystal'. No crystals, but I can do 'rubies'. 'The Book of Ashes', Prologue (1st draft), 'Witch Queen'.

Lord Gravard told me that it was not until the tomb doors were bolted and barred that he allowed himself to relax his guard. Mannock was no better, ever since the day he waved his treasured relic the ‘Tears of Alain’ under her nose and the witch queen barely flinched his priests have been sorely afraid least she cast aside her promise. The witch queen’s magick craft frightens him as it does myself. Having experienced the delight of crossing words with the witch queen’s devoted thin and pale faced priestess Lissel and endured the blank stare of the blood red rubies set into her eye sockets I confess nothing but joy in knowing that they are all now entombed forever.

November 22, 2025 at 10:13 PM

Anne Welborn

@wildagreenbough.bsky.social

#WIPSnips The word for November 21st is 'direction'. I had ten examples of this word in 'The Book of Ashes' so I was spoilt for choice. Chapter Six, 'Lessons'.
We meet up with Jenny Birdfoot again.

Then in a sudden mercurial shift Jenny Birdfoot seized one of this trouser legs in a small hand and tugged while pointing in the direction of the doorway on the other side of the garden. 'Bree,' she said, 'Go bree.'
For a moment he couldn't fathom what she wanted, then the penny dropped, 'The library, - does Sir Geoffrey want me?'
'Yis bree,' and then she was off at a surprising pace.
Clutching the Latin textbook Paul gave chase, 'Slow down Jenny, slow down!'
Somehow he managed to catch up with Jenny Birdfoot just before she disappeared into the depths of Harpham House. Kneeling down so as to be closer to her level he said, 'Look Jenny you're just too quick on your feet for me. Why don't I carry you and you tell me which way to go.'
At that Jenny Birdfoot's mouth described a perfect 'O' and her eyes almost became as round to match as she rocked back on her strange little feet, and then with a squeal of joy she was up on his left shoulder in a single bound and holding onto the collar of his jacket with both of her small hands.

November 22, 2025 at 5:34 AM

Anne Welborn

@wildagreenbough.bsky.social

#WIPSnips The word for November 20th is 'special'. I'm going to have to go with 'especially'. 'The Book of Ashes', Chapter 6, 'Lessons'. Paul Brotherwell continues to learn more about the Kingdom of Fontennal.

'Michelle stole them from the Inquisition moments before they would have been tossed on a bonfire,' said Sir Geoffrey. 'A neat piece of time spanning thievery I thought.' He frowned over the map and tapped a finger on it, 'A religious house here in what was the Kingdom of Fontennal. Thought to have been originally a sacred site from the pre-Christian era. Devotion to the local pagan deity Alain was a holdout against Christianity for a long while until the church dealt with it in the usual bloody manner. Any rumour of writing or books from that time would have immediately caught the attention of the Inquisition especially since they were written in a simplified variation of Elven script which they would have seen as being the language of devils; - so we were very lucky that Michelle was able to save what she did.'

November 20, 2025 at 8:20 PM

Anne Welborn

@wildagreenbough.bsky.social

#WIPSnips The word for November 19th is 'third'.
From 'The Book of Ashes', Chapter 7, 'Heroine'.
Eiolynn, once of Qual'fain, reviews her recent history while drinking several bottles of wine.

After this those who had cast their lot upon the wrong side of history paid the price of it, but she had played no part in the beatings and summary executions nor had she wished to. From time to time she had been sought out to guard some Vichy official who need to be kept alive to face judgement before the Courts of Justice, but the eyes of those around her began to betray their unease. With the war in France now done and at an end rumours of her part in La Résistance had begun to circulate so it was time to depart. When she had told her commander this, for the first time she had been asked her name and then not long after this there had been a small ceremony in a side office where she had been given a medal, the Médaille de la Resistance and the offer of a ride beyond the city to wherever she might wish to go.

Draining the third bottle of the night she threw it across the room and reached into the pocket of her coat to close her fingers around her medal. Drawing out her hand she turned it over wiping it clean of grime and dirt. Rubbing a finger over the engraved letters to reveal her deception, Madeleine Vasseur.

November 19, 2025 at 10:05 PM

Anne Welborn

@wildagreenbough.bsky.social

#WIPSnips The word for November 18 is 'retrograde'. I'm going with 'decline'. 'The Book of Ashes', Chapter six, 'Lessons'. Sir Geoffrey is giving Paul Brotherwell a brief lecture on the history of the Book of Ashes.

Sir Geoffrey paused, taking off his spectacles and polishing the lenses with a large while handkerchief. 'After King Harrad accepted the Book of Ashes from Queen Eiolynn Fontennal went into a long decline. Their desire to expand and conquer faded away and little by little they ceased to be any kind of military power in the region. Subsequent Kings after King Harrad were insular and grasping, clinging on to their diminishing prosperity, but seemingly unable to do anything to improve things or reverse the trend. So the people put their hope in their god and clung to him long after Fontennal as a kingdom had collapsed and to all intents and purposes had ceased to exist.'

November 19, 2025 at 4:59 AM

Anne Welborn

@wildagreenbough.bsky.social

#WIPSnips The word for November 17th is 'spend'. I'm going with 'paying'. 'The Book of Ashes', Chapter 5, 'Guardians'. Michelle De La Croix the veil-walker is almost completely burned out from having spent too many days in Gonne.

Weary down to her bones Michelle walked slowly up the road towards the bus station cafe that really was no such thing at all. Exhausted she might be, but she was very aware that Gonne was behind her, its collective eyes upon her back as the day began its fall towards dusk. Watching her, waiting for her to let down her guard.
She should not have sent Paul away, she should have asked him to wait, because now she was going to have to find a way to contact Harpham House and this was not a task she could pass onto any courier. However Paul would not have been in any state for such as this so it was pointless to nurse regrets.
Slowly she blinked her eyes and took a deep breath. Too many hours spent in forced wakefulness in Gonne and now she was close to paying the cost of it. Perhaps she would have time for one more coffee and a cigarette before the way was open again to the human realm.

November 17, 2025 at 9:23 PM

Anne Welborn

@wildagreenbough.bsky.social

#NZWriter #writing #narcolepsy I woke up this morning all set to write like I usually do, only a REM dropout hit me. Barely shook that one off and then another got me. After that Friend Narcolepsy grabbed me hard and had their way with me for the next 5 hours.

An ink and watercolour image of a grey haired middle aged woman lying on her side sound asleep in her bed.

November 17, 2025 at 4:16 AM

Anne Welborn

@wildagreenbough.bsky.social

#WIPSnips The word for November 16th is 'run'. From 'The Book of Ashes', Chapter One, 'Brave Men or Fools'. I've taken snips from chapter one before this, only I'm fairly I haven't snipped these paragraphs before. Tomb robbers (sigh). Alkebulan => old name for Egypt.

The jet of hot piss suddenly running down his leg woke him up and more than likely saved his life. A puppet to the raw animal instinct busting lose in this brain Zakk cut and run for it with no thought in his head for his companions or for the way the walls of the narrow rough cut robber tunnel were knocking chunks of skin off his hide. The sudden heat at his back made him scrabble up the tunnel all the faster and labour over every breath until at last he burst out into the cool night air and flopped like a dead thing on the rocky ground.
'Come join us Zakk.'
Sitting bolt upright Zakk looked around himself. Nuffing. Only down in the depths of the robber tunnel yellow flame softly flickered and caught his eye.
'Come join us Zakk.' Dozens of voices were rising up out of the robber tunnel blending together like they were some unholy choir. Horribly seductive despite their discordance. Scrambling to his feet Zakk ran for it and kept on running until he reached the coast and he would have kept on running right across the sea to Alkebulan if he'd been able to do it. Only he didn't and collapsed upon the beach instead where he lay until some fishermen found him not long after dawn.

November 17, 2025 at 3:42 AM

Anne Welborn

@wildagreenbough.bsky.social

#WIPSnips The word for November 15th is 'progress'. From 'The Book of Ashes', Chapter 8, 'Pathways'. Michelle the veil-walker is being guided along the Folks' secret pathways. They don't seem to be very good at it.

After a short distance the path divided into five separate ways and there was some debate about whether she should be blindfolded or not, so to forestall further argument she told her guides she did not mind being blindfolded. There was more argument when it was discovered that no-one had brought a blindfold with them so Michelle untied the bandana she was wearing around her neck and gave it the elder before kneeling down on the path so they could blindfold her to their satisfaction. That done she stood up and was turned around this way and that by several hands before being led along one of the five paths. Her progress was not without incident as the path was uneven with tree roots crossing over it and her guides were not very good at leading her so she almost fell headlong more than once.
“Careful now lads,” she heard the elder say after one particularly bad stumble. “The Veil-walker won't thank you if she arrives in Albion with a broken leg.”

November 16, 2025 at 8:43 AM

Anne Welborn

@wildagreenbough.bsky.social

#WIPSnips The word for November 14th is 'week'. From 'The Book of Ashes', Chapter 2, 'Pilgrims'. Michelle De La Croix is struggling not to lose her temper with Paul Brotherwell.

'Almost from the day the book was given into King Harrad's hands a curse settled upon the house of Hennequin, - gifting long life and misery to all who are the legal keepers of the book.' Michelle told him her anger rising. 'Do you bother to read anything that I send to you Paul.'
'I did attempt to read the research material and documents you sent me this past week, - and I did pass it on to Sir Geoffrey.' said Paul in an weak attempt to head off further argument. Half of it had been written in Latin and Old French so how the hell was he supposed to read that. 'However I am concerned as to where you came by some of it.'
'It wasn't so difficult for me to find Paul.' She was tired after the day's events and all she wanted to do was sleep, but not here in Gonne. By the Goddess not here. Arguing with Paul was not a willing choice, but whenever they met it was like throwing a match into dry tinder.

November 14, 2025 at 5:54 PM

Anne Welborn

@wildagreenbough.bsky.social

#WIPSnips The word for November 13th is 'build'. I've got 'built' instead of 'build'. 'The Book of Ashes', Chapter 7, 'Heroine'. From a room in an abandoned house Madeleine Vasseur (Eiolynn of Qual,fain) has been watching a thunderstorm sweeping in and swiftly claiming night's country.

Down in the village they would have seen the candle light at the windows and they would be crossing themselves and fingering their rosaries. No châteaux this, it was merely a large house built well long ago to satisfy the pride of a rich and land wealthy man. And it was haunted, - or so it was said. Enough murder and death had happened here over the past two centuries to earn that name, but as a house it was almost done. To the west the outer walls had collapsed, the brickwork fallen and broken. The roof slumped and hanging over empty space slowly bleeding away its tiles, with its black timbers reaching out towards the rotten and mould slimed floorboards below it that creaked and waved in the wind bereft of any support. And with the rising wind the house was like a ship restless on an uneasy sea and perhaps it would not last the night.

November 13, 2025 at 11:53 PM

Anne Welborn

@wildagreenbough.bsky.social

#WIPSnips The word for November 12th is 'shirt'. That I can do. 'The Book of Ashes', Chapter 2, 'Pilgrims'. At this stage of things Michelle De La Croix has a poor opinion of Paul Brotherwell.

Michelle drew in a steadying breath rapping her fingers sharply on the tabletop before closing her hands into fists. What did she do to deserve being gifted an untalented and ungifted English supervisor who spoke no French and had more the look and skills of an accountant than a paranormal researcher. If she must be generous he had the look of being a handsome and perhaps somewhat dashing accountant, - but what use was he when he was nervous at being within three metres of her. This night he'd given her no greeting, but had he ever done that with any warmth in his voice. A year and he had not changed. It was frustration without end.
Dressed as Paul was now in a rain damp donkey jacket, work shirt and jeans instead of being a 'John-coat-and-tie' and with his hair a little tousled and the shadow of a beard upon his face he had the appearance to her eyes of an actor in a movie who could not quite remember his lines nor the part he was about to play; - but that would not stop him from making a fool of himself in the attempt.

November 12, 2025 at 4:25 PM

Anne Welborn

@wildagreenbough.bsky.social

#WIPSnips The word for November 11th is 'burger'. No 'burgers', but I have lots of bread and 'cheese'. From 'The Book of Ashes', Chapter 8, 'Pathways'. Michelle has suffered what's known as a veil-walker's injury and it's serious. Apart from that she doesn't know where she is now and when.

'Ah you're looking a little brighter on it now Michelle,' Mrs Whatley told her as she entered the room carrying a thick slice of home baked bread and a piece of cheese on a china plate. 'You were lucky that Terry and I took it into our heads to take a late evening walk with the moon being so nice or you might have been laid there all night.' Her empty mug was swiftly swapped for the bread and cheese and Mrs Whatley departed back to the kitchen leaving her on her own again. A quick inspection of the underside of the plate without losing her bread and cheese told her it was Staffordshire china of a plain and serviceable kind, but little else. The bread and cheese were good though and reminded her younger life on her parents' farm.
When Mrs Whatley bustled back in with more tea she decided to trust her voice enough to offer her thanks. 'We couldn't leave you lying in the road,' Mrs Whatley told her before adding, 'You speak English well for someone from foreign parts.'

November 11, 2025 at 10:30 PM

Anne Welborn

@wildagreenbough.bsky.social

#WIPSnips The word for November 10th is 'local', but I'm going with 'village'. 'The Book of Ashes', Chapter 9 (again) and carrying on a couple of paragraphs from yesterday's WIPSnip. A 'Hercules' is a brand of bicycle. Jenny Birdfoot is supposed to be hiding in Paul's shoulder bag and keeping quiet.

Pulling the Hercules up on to its stand outside the village post office. He drew in a deep breath. Now all he had to do was drop off the day's mail, collect a certain mysterious letter and head back to Harpham House without anybody seeing Jenny Birdfoot. Walking in the door he was immediately enfolded in the subtle mixed scents of ink and office gum with delicate overtones of worn linoleum, dust, blotting paper and old varnish. The post office's public interior space was not much larger than the kitchen of some of the flats he'd rented in London and the décor in yellowing flyspotted cream paintwork, worn maroon matchboarding and rubbed thin varnished woodwork would be dubbed 'shabby chic' by some of his former city friends, but here it was just age and quiet neglect.

November 10, 2025 at 5:17 PM

Anne Welborn

@wildagreenbough.bsky.social

#WIPSnips The word of the day for Nov 9th is 'picture'. From 'The Book of Ashes', Chapter 9, 'A Letter From a Different Country'. Paul Brotherwell helps a small tearful friend who has had a nasty fright. A 'Hercules' is a brand of bicycle in case you were wondering. Possibly too many words.

'Jenny, Jenny,' he called out, 'Come here it's alright.' To his great relief Jenny's rapidly fleeing small green shape did slow down and stop, flopping down to sit on the path. As he drew nearer Paul could see that she was crying with great big tears spilling from her eyelids, running down her face and leaving large damp spots on her green tunic. 'Oh Jenny,' he sighed as he pulled the Hercules up on to its stand and then went over to kneel beside his small friend. Taking out his handkerchief he did his best to mop up Jenny's tears her small face a picture of misery.
'Iron man,' Jenny told him in a tiny voice still very much on the brink of tears pointing back towards the stables. Ah now Paul understood. Most Fae could be sickened or even killed by contact with iron, but while he knew that Jenny's people weren't especially sensitive to it they still had a fear of those who could work iron in ancient and traditional ways. Sir Gregory had recently told him that it was very old magic and nothing at all to do with modern steel working.
'Did you forget Jenny?' Paul asked. In her excitement to be running about and delivering a message from Sir Gregory his small friend must've completely forgotten about Vulcan's Grandson.
A little nod of her head, 'Yis.' The tears had stopped flowing, but Jenny was still looking upset. Suddenly she went, 'Ooo,' and held out the slip of paper she was still holding towards him. It was now a slightly damp piece of paper, but hopefully it would still be readable.

November 9, 2025 at 10:14 PM

Anne Welborn

@wildagreenbough.bsky.social

#WIPSnips The word for November 8th is 'little'. Not a word that I use that often.
From the 'Book of Ashes', 1st draft prologue, - 'Witch Queen'.
King Harrad of Fontennal as been given the Book of Ashes by Queen Eiolynn and he's starting to have some doubts about it.

The Elders of Magalyn could tell me little concerning the book except that every page of it was written by the witch queen’s hand and that she bound the pages and made every part of the Book of Ashes herself. Mannock has it that our possessing the Book of Ashes diminishes her power and its complete destruction would end her un-natural span of life and all her evil works. However I have my doubts because the witch queen herself demonstrated no reluctance over the surrender of the book when she placed it into my hands.

November 8, 2025 at 5:11 PM

Anne Welborn

@wildagreenbough.bsky.social

#WIPSnips The word for November 7th is 'movement'. And it's back for the 7th time to 'The Book of Ashes', Chapter 5, 'Guardians'. Michelle needed to be somewhere in a hurry and it seems that somehow against all the odds transport has been provided.

Naturally when Peter offered her a lift she accepted and thanked him. Once seated in the rattly old Peugeot and moving briskly away from the site of the hidden gateway into Gonne she was finally able to relax after too many days on the edge of danger. As she sat watching the night's country pass by Michelle found herself reflecting on the unknown movement of events that had brought Peter to her at a time when she had a rare, but urgent need for a motorcar. As to why Peter was in France she did not ask and it seemed that Peter was not one to chat while driving.
Sometimes it was best not to enquire too deeply into fortuitous events.

November 7, 2025 at 7:31 AM

Anne Welborn

@wildagreenbough.bsky.social

#WIPSnips The word for November 6th is 'penultimate'. "I'm going with 'most powerful'. 'The Book of Ashes', Chapter 5, 'Guardians' (yet again). Michelle the veil-walker has barely survived doing something decidedly unwise.

'I had to be certain Mother. There have been grimoires before this that were claimed to be the Book of Ashes. I thought that one small quick touch with a finger and then taking care not to touch the book again would be safe enough.'
'What part of Queen Eiolynn being the most powerful necromancer that has ever lived did you not understand Sister. If you had not found your way here and had been taken by sleep in the fields instead you would now be lost to us and beyond all reach of help.' The Reverend Mother sighed shaking her head, 'You are a formidable warrior Michelle, but you are not one of the archangels; - even they realise that they have limits.'
Michelle knew there wasn't any defence that she could make, she had taken a foolish risk. The Book of Ashes had been found, but almost at the cost of her own soul.

November 6, 2025 at 3:41 PM

Anne Welborn

@wildagreenbough.bsky.social

#WIPSnips The word for November 5th is 'trail'. I'm going to have to go with 'trailing'. 'The Book of Ashes', Chapter 8. 'Pathways'. After suffering a serious injury specific to veilwalkers and not knowing where she has ended up Michelle's situation gets worse.

Gasping aloud her voice strangely faint and quiet she burst out into light, the dream shattered and the broken silver threads of it trailing away from her down into the shadows. Finding that she was sitting upright on the bed she slowly and carefully looked around herself, the small room, the bolted door. So she was still a prisoner then. She swung her legs over the edge of the bed. Easily, - far too easily. Almost without effort. Drawing in a breath that it seemed she did not need she turned her head a little so she could look over her shoulder.

How long had she been a Veil-walker? Michelle knew very well that was a measurement of time that changed and shifted and remade itself every time she crossed between the realms, but even so she should not have been so shocked to see her physical body still sleeping soundly upon the bed. Turning herself around she looked down at herself, before bending a little closer to listen. Yes she was indeed breathing, so it was not yet her time and her present state was not permanent.

November 5, 2025 at 3:54 PM

Anne Welborn

@wildagreenbough.bsky.social

#WIPSnips The word for November 4th is 'steel' which I can do. 'The Book of Ashes', Prologue, 'The Leave-Taking From Qual'fain'. Eiolynn mocks her kinsman and proves that despite looking very dead that she's no pushover.

‘Lady Eiolynn!’ demanded Prince Ryman in disbelief as recognition dawned, ‘What have you become?’ Prince Ryman was handsome and in his prime, possessed of a striking beauty remarkable even among the high born who were well used to being blessed with such physical gifts. The horror etched on his perfect features at the sight of the changes wrought upon his kinswoman served only to make Eiolynn laugh at him.
‘Death Witch!’ accused one of the prince’s noble companions drawing his sword in a ringing flash of steel. His surprise was complete when his blade was met and held by Eiolynn’s long dagger; the dagger’s curved blade darkly stained and etched with old blood, but still razor sharp beneath the grime.

November 4, 2025 at 5:43 PM

Anne Welborn

@wildagreenbough.bsky.social

#WIPSnips The word for November 3rd is 'nice'. 'The Book of Ashes', Chapter Two, 'Pilgrims'. Paul Brotherwell has just discovered that he has crossed the Veil and he doesn't like it. Also featuring Michelle De La Croix and her umbrella.

'And if I walk back up the road to the car what then?'
'I wouldn't do that Paul,' she told him quietly, 'Because the road is no longer there. When it returns tomorrow for two hours after sunrise then you can leave.'
'It would be nice to have a little warning Michelle instead tricking me into crossing the Veil,' he told her before going back to their table and flinging himself down in his chair.
'But would you dare to cross then Paul?' she said to him, but it was plain he was in no mood to listen to her. After casting her eyes carefully over the night she tapped a finger on the handle of her umbrella and walked across the short expanse of cracked red linoleum to re-join him at the table. He did not know it but while he been following the ghost road this evening to arrive at this unlikely café and then for the hour afterwards while he had been impatiently waiting for her she had been keeping watch.

November 3, 2025 at 5:48 PM

Anne Welborn

@wildagreenbough.bsky.social

#WIPSnips The word for November 2nd is 'Cobweb'. This time I do have the word of the day so it's 'The Book of Ashes', Prologue again, 'The Leave-Taking' from Qual'fain'.
CW. A female creature who seems to be one of the undead.

‘Lis..ssel, … Lis..ssel….’ She barely could recognise this husking sound as Eiolynn’s voice and when she embraced her she was no more than a creature made of skin and bone. Her garments were tattered linen rags crusted with fragments of gold thread, gems and cobwebs. The belt hanging loose about her jutting pelvic bones was wrought of links of gold and silver. And the long finely worked curved dagger hung upon that belt was hilted in a silver sheath thick with clustered blood dark rubies.
With trembling hands she reached to lift away the mask upon Eiolynn’s face only her long thin bony fingers closed about her wrists.
‘Let me look upon your face’, Lissel gently asked. ‘I do not fear the sight of the branding’. The gilded mask watched her, its sharp angular shaping cruel in its aspect, its dark eye slits paired narrow ellipses giving no clue as to what might lie behind them.

November 2, 2025 at 3:43 PM

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