Prin flinched back from his friend. “Gullible! I thought you said this witch was real? Then how would believing in what she does make you gullible?” He looked at Aster, aghast.

“Oh bunny, I don’t believe in it myself but she obviously has a lot of power over people. People who should definitely know better. And if that isn’t a form of magic, I don’t know what is.” Aster said hurriedly. “Plus, I could always be wrong. I don’t know much about her. What makes me think I know better then all these smart people?”

Prin looked somewhat mollified, but still frowning. “Do you think she could help me anyway? She has to know other witches, with . . . other kinds of power.”

“Definitely. I would say so.” Aster said. “Of course, getting an audience with her is not exactly easy . . . or cheap.”

“I’m not sure fortune tellers are at all the same kind of witch we’re after.” Elwin said. Although, who was to say what the witch’s day job had been, when she ran out of princes to curse. That seemed more of a lucrative hobby, if anything.

“Did you meet her? You acted like you had.” Prin said.

“Yes, a few times actually!” Aster counted off on her fingers. “Two or three times she has come to see Mama Kris in her office, house calls would cost a pretty penny. I can tell you that much! And once I went with Captain Thompson to see her. I was in the outer sitting room bu-ut I couldn’t help over hearing what they talked about.” Aster winked, as though to say the word overhearing was a bit of a stretch, or nice way to put it anyway. “It was just ordinary stuff. Like about his children, and deceased sister. I believe Freya flipped over cards, or some such, to answer the questions that troubled him about his life.

That’s about it. If I had a chance to befriend her, I would certainly take it. But the opportunity hasn’t really arose. She is a busy woman.”

“We should make an appointment.” Prin said solemnly.

“No offense meant, bunny, but I don’t think we could afford her rates.” Aster said. “And she also has security, which would make it hard to spring out at her and bombard her with questions. Hmm, let me think on this. Give me some time to work it out.” Aster taped the side of her head.

The prince smiled. “I’m sure you can get us in to see her.”

Aster nodded. “In the meantime, if this is going to be your last night here, lets make it count shall we?” She got up and rummaged in the bottom of the wardrobe, coming out with a bottle and a wide grin.

“We only have so much time to sleep before we have to report to work.” Elwin said. He really disapproved of this, but knew he was about to be treated like the world’s biggest nerd.

“We’ll still see each other a lot!” the prince said.

“Sure we will.” Aster said. “You have to keep me up to date on all the gossip from the captain’s house!” She carried the bottle over, grabbing a tiny glass jar from the vanity that had previously been emptied. “Hmm, this will have to do.”

“Captain Thompson wont care if you’re late.” Aster assured. “Come on, gorgeous, have a little fun.” Aster poured something from the suspicious black bottle and held it out to Elwin.

Gorgeous? Who was she talking to? Elwin took the jar and looked at the acid-green liquid inside. He sniffed it. The smell was not quite as acrid as he thought it would be. It had a woodsy wildflower aroma.

Elwin still vividly remembered the last time he had been coerced into drinking. He held the jar back out to Aster. “No thank you.”

“But this is the special occasion stuff!” Aster’s dark eyes were wide with surprise. She took the jar back from him and handed it to Prin. “Here, bunny.”

Prin drank it down quickly. He pulled a face and had a slight coughing fit, a couple of fat tears rolling down his cheek, but he came out of it smiling.

“You okay?” Aster asked. She swiped at his tears with the edge of her robe while pouring another drink. “Poor darling.”

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“Sure, sure.” Prin said. “That is some powerful medicine!”

Aster laughed. “You’re so funny.” She drank her own draught quickly. Her pupils dilated, making her eyes look even more like pools of midnight. “You can’t hardly get this.” She motioned to the bottle. “I think it’s . . . slightly . . . illegal.”

“Really?” The dark part of Prin’s eyes too, were trying to swallow the blue.

“Just slightly, no worries.” Aster assured.

Elwin impulsively took the bottle and poured himself a drink. If this was poisonous, he might as well go where his prince was going. He drank it, feeling like fire was falling through his body. Like eating a bouquet of flowers and having it spontaneously combust inside your body. Fortunately, the feeling only lasted a moment.

“A little more.” Aster said, pouring him another one. “You’re heavier than we are.”

Elwin drank it down, it was already too late for him after all.

“Now, lets relax and you can tell me all about your day.” Aster climbed onto the bed and reached up to the mantle to fill and light the burner, releasing the smoke into the air.

Her words were doing funny things, that seemed to make logical sense, but at the same time swirl in and out and through each other. Like the decorative flourishes in an illuminated manuscript.

Aster flopped down in the middle of the bed and motioned them closer. “One on each side.” She suggested.

“There were two black cats.” Prin said, out of the blue. “And at least one of them could talk.” He took Aster’s hand and pulled her back up. “Maybe it was ne-ever the boy at all. Can a bleeh blah blah bee bee witch?” Prin seemed to recognize that he couldn’t talk, his mouth making a little o of surprise.

“Certainly.” Aster agreed. “Did you want to dance?”

“I do.” Elwin said. “There’s no music so we have to sing it ourselves.”

“Mermaids!” Prin declared, dissolving into a fit of giggles.

“You’re thinking of sirens.” Aster said. She got off the bed, and holding one hand from each of them, started to hum. “Do a circle.” She suggested. “Since there are three of us. Hey, pretty boy, can you sing? How is it?”

Prin did not answer this, so Elwin looked around. She couldn’t be referring to him? Must be the impairment talking. “I can.” He said solemnly. “But I generally don’t like to. My dad sings all the time in the kitchen.” He didn’t know why he said he could sing, when in truth, he had so little practice at it he wasn’t actually sure if he could sing or not.

Prin took Elwin’s hand with his free one. “Thank ooo for playing ‘long.” He said. His eyes were puddles of black with rings of light around them. Like an eclipse. You weren’t supposed to look directly at an eclipse.

Elwin kissed Prin’s hand. “I don’t know the words.” He told Aster.

“We went to the forest, my bonnie babe and I.” Aster’s singing was not the greatest, but had a soothing quality about it that was not unpleasant. “Join in when you remember the words.” She said.

They danced slowly in a circle, rumpling the rugs with their shuffling feet. Prin seemed to be enjoying himself, even if he did look like he was about to fall down. This is why they had to dance slow.

“We went to the forest, my bonnie babe and I.” Aster sang. “Upon the mossy river bank, the two of us did lie.”

Elwin pictured himself and Prin as the couple in the song, although he wondered if the song was about to go in a certain direction, like a lot of the songs he had heard young boys sing. It would be just like Aster to sing them a limerick.

“Into the river, he did fly. And we went for a swim, my bonnie babe and I. To the cool water, and to the blue sky, we spoke of our love that would never die. And to each other, my bonnie babe and I.

The river sent a little fish, and the sky a little bird. And the little birdie told me, and it was no lie, that my babe was untrue, and to me unkind. So I dashed his head against the smooth stones, the river bed did line. And we washed down the river, my bonnie babe and I.” Aster continued.

“I’m not sure I liked that.” Elwin pushed the images from his head. He was getting dizzy.

“No? I left out the gory parts.” Aster looked at Prin and started uncontrollably giggling. “Did you like my singing, bunny?”

“S’very nice.” Prin said. His head was bobbing on his neck like a wilted flower. “Tired.”

“Oh dear.” Aster let go of Elwin’s hand and took hold of Prin, guiding him over to the bed.

Elwin looked down at his hand, still feeling the phantom touch of Aster’s small one in his. “It was dark.”

Aster came for him next, and guided him over to the bed. “Maybe you two aren’t ready for the good stuff.” She said gently. “Let’s just sleep it off.”

“Witches!” Prin exclaimed, eyes shooting open where they had fallen closed. “Cap’ns house full of ‘em. All with their soft fur, and . . . cute . . . little noses.”

Aster tucked them in side by side, laying down beside them. “Witches are very cute and furry.” She said agreeably.

Somehow Elwin had found himself in the middle, but he didn’t think he minded it much.

Elwin thought he heard them chatting at some point, later in the night, but was too tired to pull himself fully out of sleep and investigate. Then, he heard Prin’s voice distinctive in his ear and opened his eye a crack to see, only the glow of blue eyes in the dark, as the candle must have burned out at some point, leaving them in darkness.

“I would never eat Aster. Too small. I would be hungry again five minutes later.” Prin said.

Elwin’s eyes shot open, shocked by the joke, if it even was a joke, in startlingly bad taste. Gradually his lids fell heavy again and he went back to sleep, later wondering if that had all been part of a dream after all.