§ I haven’t gone anywhere. I’m still here. I repeated those words within my soul, while channeling my identity as Lydia.  I didn’t know how long I could maintain this condition, functioning as one awareness containing both women, while another instance of me does the same in another body, but the reassuring knowledge that I had not swallowed Lydia whole …

§ While my nightshift chambermaids were drying me and reading a gown for me, my sisters were in the midst of helping the two fairies not using raiments get dressed. Neither of them needed help, but I had been around fairies enough to recognize another fairy excuse for skinship. I noticed belatedly while they dried me that nobody cared about …

 § In the tub after midnight, kissing an alien half-fairy in my lap, was not where I expected to end up when my older sisters first appeared. Upon reflection, maybe I should have. They’re fairies, after all. But leaving that aside, I certainly didn’t imagine this trip… what else can I call it? This sudden infusion of memories and knowledge …

§ The Tea House was just as usual, but of course, any change to it is unlikely. It has existed in this form for an incalculable length of subjective time, having served as this one’s inner world in life, this one’s mental stability while adrift in the Spirit Realm, disconnected from the land of the living, during Robert’s life, this …

§ I know my personality has gone through many changes, but I’m coming very close to seeing myself as Hiléa and thinking of Lhan as that meek mouse of a girl back then, nearly to the same extent that Tiana thinks of herself as a different person than Robert. I get why she needs to do that, but I don’t …

§  The mood remained awkward as the two ancient fairies observed me for several breaths, unknown inhuman calculations passing through their minds as they weighed my answer. These two were nothing like Dilorè and Amana, who are relatively familiar in their thought processes. Rather libertine and unbound by most human scruples, but familiar in the shape of their reasoning. Dilorè …

§  Rather than four days, more than a week would go by before Diur and Pasrue completed their preparations and Kotto and Amana continued their investigation. During that time, I again had a rare stretch of peace. Fan Li (or at least one copy of her, as she had fully perfected the multiple stream awareness trick at this point) became …

§  “You’re really not having a fight?” The discussion over dinner went on for nearly two hours, with not only Rod but also Ryuu and most of the others persuaded to their plans while I continued to object to them. The only thing I managed to gain in the end was their agreement to require the few Servants who were …

§  Back in the days when we thought Ged’s accession to the throne was far in the future, before the southern lords shattered the peace of Orestania, Rod’s role, besides being spare prince, was to train as a military man. Ged also had to train, but his trajectory was a little more straightforward, as future king. In a kingdom where …

§ “Her Grace, Tiana, Duchess of Pendor and Bride of the Southern Viceroy, is entering!” I managed not to roll my eyes at the overly formal declaration as I approached the formal dining room of the Ducal Residence. This would be the first ‘official’ time that I entered since this chamber ceased to be the temporary War Room, so the …