Chapter 42

No one forced Hayden to dress a certain way for her meeting with Gail. Given the dangers involved and the stakes to those she loved, she did all of that herself, digging through her wardrobe of fancy outfits until she found a dress at the perfect intersection of formal and casual—something made from a similar fabric to the ancient kimono, but shorter and easier to move in.

Ilene didn't force her into the tight mew braid—Hayden asked for it herself, and spent an hour holding almost still in her seat while the stylists worked. Hayden probably wouldn't have the patience to last through the grueling process, but thankfully Liz was there, able to float around and explore her new bedroom while she was trapped.

Whoever designed the space clearly understood how to make a welcoming home for a young mew. There were dozens of hidden compartments and little tunnels to explore, concealed in the rock or under the water or even behind false sections of ceiling. Many were too large for a human to ever fit through, but perfect for her daemon.

Or someone with a magic drink. That stuff should not taste so good, or she might have to find more of it. Having weird ears was bad enough, what would it take from her next?

"That's close enough," Eleanor pronounced, waving away the servants. She'd changed too, far faster and more skillfully than Hayden could match. Despite what Lady Gracidea thought of her daughter, the ditto understood the whole “noble” thing leagues better than Hayden. Even if she wasn't currently dressing like a noble at all.

Someone had already made alterations to Eleanor's gown, replacing the shaymin flower pins with little moon pins—emblems of Mew House. Her undershirt was different too, soft pink emerging from the open-breasted cloak instead of green. Hayden would never say so, but she liked the pink better.

"She's not performing anymore. This is a casual dinner with her new family. She's a mew, she'll look just as pretty without ten more layers of makeup."

They scattered, bowing politely before vanishing through a concealed servants' door. That left only two of them—or three. Ilene lingered by the doorway, though Hayden wasn't sure if she had been there during most of her own preparation. “She has to teach us to teleport like that one day.” 

“Maybe we could figure it out if we copy Rael,” Liz thought back, emerging from an opening behind the mirror to settle on Hayden's shoulder. She pawed at the braid hanging from her head, before quickly getting bored and floating back up again. “Maybe it's a jirachi thing.”

“Their thing is granting wishes, not teleporting. But they can only do it every thousand years.” Hayden wasn't exactly sure where she'd heard it, or how a power that only worked once every thousand years could be good for anything. But it stuck, so she said it.

"Nervous?" Eleanor prompted, tugging her by her wrists. Instead of needing much force, Hayden floated weightless, and the resulting shock sent them both towards the edge. Eleanor stumbled backward, so far she almost reached the ledge. 

Hayden caught them both, then settled her legs under her like she was going to walk. Her toes didn't quite touch the ground, though they might fool someone who wasn't paying much attention. "Yeah. Not for me as much… Gail won't hurt me. I'm not sure about the Eldest, but…" She caught her sister's arm, steadying herself in the air. 

The Eldest's new way of flying made it much easier than before, but it also took away some of the precise control she used to have. "I dunno why everybody is so afraid of mew house. They're nice."

Eleanor turned Hayden by her shoulder, until they faced back the way they'd come. "See that mirror? Turns out the people scared of Johto's Mews don't look like them."

Ilene stepped inside, loudly enough that Eleanor looked back. She didn't bow to the steward, though Loch's slime-body twitched.

Eleanor shifted along with her daemon, losing her height, and stretching into the gown. Her eyes got bigger, her hair grayer, and she was back to an espurr. "Steward. My mistress is ready."

"That is good." Ilene offered her hand—to Hayden, not Eleanor. "I'll take us directly there. You and I will be together while the noble Mew House dine."

"I can't eat with my sister?" Eleanor asked, nervous. She took one step towards Hayden, brushing up against her arm. "I've never eaten away from the high table before."

Ilene's hand remained outstretched for Hayden. "Not with the young master. I am not certain when you will be permitted to meet him. Perhaps if you practice becoming a nobler feline, that will speed your progress? But in my experience, most ditto find that exceptionally difficult to maintain. Granted, I've never encountered one with Unity before."

She gestured again, and this time Hayden took the offered hand. Her world blurred, and a fierce cold bit against her skin. Then it faded, and she was somewhere else. 

Not unfamiliar—this was Julian's private mansion, surrounded by dense jungle. Only this time a table floated in the air near the skylights, with only a single chair at one side. Two people already hovered up there—one in the chair, and another floating at the head of the table. 

"That will do, Ilene. Thank you for your help."

The steward bowed, then met Hayden's eyes one last time. “Some secrets are better left out of the young master's mind. I trust you to be wise.” She vanished, without so much as a breeze of passing air.

Hayden straightened her dress, walking across the mansion towards the table. Her feet were suddenly back on the ground. At least until Julian peered out from the chair, and Aerie's little eyes appeared from the table.

"Can't eat down there, silly! This is a proper mew table."

"Hayden's blush got deeper. She took a running start along the pool, then took off, floating up. She needed enough momentum that she wouldn't be stranded halfway between the floor and the table.

Instead, she smacked into the wall, and would've flown right past the table if Liz wasn't there. The daemon caught her in her powers, arresting her momentum in the spot beside Julian.

There were only three placements here—one on either side of the table, and one at the head. She'd picked the awkward empty place with no plates or food.

"I don't believe I could entertain this at a more formal occasion," Gail said, inclining her glass towards Hayden. "But given the two of you are freshly betrothed, I will forgive it in private." 

She gestured with her other hand, and the contents of the table all lifted into the air. Dozens of little plates, bowls, forks—all of it moved at once, adjusting so Hayden's stuff was beside Julian. His chair slid down a little further, giving them more room. 

He seemed to catch Hayden's eyes on it, because he pushed off at that moment, making the chair drift down away from him.

"I don't really need it," he insisted, a little too loudly. "It's just more… convenient." As he spoke, his legs dangled straight out beneath him, kicking once or twice like he was trying to swim. His other hand gripped the table, maybe expecting to need to hold on.

Poor Aerie landed on the table, eyeing him with focus on her little face.

"I… think I would like a chair," Hayden said, bowing to the adult mew at their table. "If it pleases my… mother-in-law to be? Is that right?"

"It is not," she said, through polite giggles. "But you may have a chair. Here." Light flashed behind them, and an identical twin to Julian's appeared there. It immediately started falling, forcing Liz to catch it before it splintered to the floor. She did, before landing beside Aerie on the table and nudging up against her.

"Here's yours," Hayden said, catching the other one by the armrest, and tugging it back up. Unlike the first, Gail didn't make her hold it. Julian settled onto it, visibly relieved.

“That was kind,” thought a voice. “He does need the practice, but perhaps not on this night.” At the same time, the lady gestured to their food. "I had many favorites of our house prepared tonight. Most of these grow nowhere else. Some are forbidden to trade, the sole property of unclaimed pokémon and the great families. The Enigma Soufflé is particularly delicious to the mew palate."

"I guess if you're using one." He gripped the armrest a second, before his eyes settled on her dress. “Different outfit? I like the colors.”

“Thanks.” No matter how comfortable floating could be, she occasionally had to catch herself, holding the table so she wouldn't drift away. Then to her host, she said. "Thank you, Lady Moonstone. It smells… amazing." Her host hadn't said what a “soufflé” was, but she didn't have to. Her daemon's nose picked out one scent from all the others, and she floated that little plate over to them. 

"Did your ears look like that before?" Julian reached over to her, prodding at one with two fingers. It twitched at his touch, bending. 

"No," she admitted, and they both folded backward. Not far enough to get out of the way. "It's a Unity thing, between me and Liz. You know about Unity, right?"

Julian's mother answered before he could. "He's forbidden to explore it until the time is right. Julian will be the Eldest one day."

He nodded his agreement. "If I want to be Eldest, I have to… be patient. Power ultimately arises from… discipline. You just wait, one day Aerie and I will be the biggest and strongest mew there are! Stronger than Mom, stronger than anyone!"

They ate for a few minutes, with Julian barely picking at various bits and pieces. Hayden, by contrast, had to keep herself from devouring everything in front of her. She couldn't even name most of this stuff, arranged in plates more elaborate than anything she had ever been served in Shaymin House. Sharing with Liz helped.

"Every mew changes once," Julian went on, once they started. "Either you, or your daemon. It's gonna be Aerie for me, one day. Which was it for you, Haydie?" He asked it so matter-of-factly, without any of the embarrassment or fear that gnawed at Hayden's insides.

Her ears flattened even further, and even her chair threatened to fall out of the air. Liz landed on her shoulder, nudging her head up against Hayden's neck.

She wouldn't have the strength to do this alone—but Hayden wasn't alone. "Me," she said. "Liz was already a girl when we settled."

"Really?" Julian turned all his attention on her now. He gripped her chair by the armrest, pulling it closer to his. “That's so rare! Mom says that most mew are girls, and they'd never be able to be Eldest. That's what makes me so special." He took Hayden's hand, crawling forward onto his knees. He whispered into her ear, beaming. "I'm glad you changed. Otherwise, we would have to fight over it. I don't wanna fight you."

"Me neither," she agreed. 

The kid released her a second later. Her cheeks still burned, yet somehow the embarrassment didn't cut as deep anymore. Her change wasn't some secret plot or scandal from the mew—they expected this! Far from disgusted or afraid, Lady Moonstone's expression only seemed sympathetic. "Let the girl eat now, sweetheart. I know from experience her last night exhausted her tremendously. One day you'll understand why."

Then the lady's eyes met Hayden's, and her voice returned to Hayden's mind. “Ilene tells me you've come with concerns. Share them now because Julian expects to spend the night with you. I doubt you'll have much time to talk with him dominating your attention.”

Okay, so maybe Hayden wasn't completely over her embarrassment. She said nothing at first, focusing her attention on the familiar, mechanical motions of her meal. While she ate, Liz split her attention a third direction, joining Aerie underneath the table. There was a little hole big enough for a kitten to squeeze into, one that demanded investigation.

Good thing she was a legendary, or she might not be able to keep her thoughts together. Finally, she told her.

“I don't know if there's anything we can do,” Hayden finished, a few seconds later. “But Ilene said I should mention it, just in case.”

Lady Moonstone folded her fingers together in front of her, occasionally glancing at her food, or taking a small bite. She showed no hesitation at keeping their two conversations going at once. Two, because her daemon joined the other two under the table, whispering something that Liz had to tuck out of her mind, or else lose track of the humans at the table with her.

“A delicate problem. Your family is inside Shaymin territory. To bring them directly would make it appear as though Mew House intended to take you without full repayment of what we owe to Shaymin. But if we do nothing, we leave a door open to needless heartache. No one would expect you to go without your family. Other than Dialga, perhaps.”

Hayden nodded gratefully, then picked a few new and interesting things for her plate. Nothing rivaled the delicious, flaky, fruit-taste of an Enigma Soufflé. Even so, all these other flavors were wonderful in their own way. She would have to bring some of them back with her to Shaymin house when spring came.

“I'm glad you think so. Is there anything we can do?”

“I believe so. It will take time to arrange, and a careful ballet of interlocking factors. When we move, Shaymin will realize what I've done—but if their pockets are heavy, I believe they won't care. This is what you will do: commission a new wardrobe from your family. When the order is complete, you will visit in person to inspect it. There you can communicate the danger, and decide how many to bring back with you on your first trip. You are fortunate that they have a useful skill to perform—it would not be strange to employ them in my household. Bring them all back at once, or over time, that choice is yours. My steward will have a place for them when the time comes.”

Hayden sniffed, suppressing her tears. She might've started crying right then, if Julian wasn't asking about what it was like to swim in the ocean. Tears wouldn't exactly fit with her simple description of jumping in the waves.

She could keep them from her voice, but not her mind. Her thoughts overflowed with guilt, gratitude, and amazement. “I don't know how I could ever repay you, Lady Moonstone. I've never… never imagined such kindness.”

The lady reached across the table, catching Hayden's arm in an affectionate squeeze. Genuine, protective affection radiated from her touch, along with something else. She held tight, tighter than Hayden could escape from if she wanted to.

“With surprising ease, sweetheart. Loyalty to my son. Bear his kittens cheerfully, be his strength when the odds against him seem impossible. And most importantly—don't let the other Great Ones kill you, or give you kittens before my son does. Do this, and the Mew House will love you and your children forever.”

Everyone had to bring it back to that. She fought to hide her annoyance, but a mental connection made that impossible. “I'm not ready for that yet. But I guess he's not either.”

“Not for years to come,” she agreed. “But fewer than you think. Once you produce an heir, the incentive to eliminate or displace you will vanish. The sooner your first kitten, the sooner you and your family will be secure. Try not to keep Julian waiting.”

As she said it, the little mew tugged on her sleeve, insistent. "Are you done yet? You said you would give me pokémon lessons. I am going to master transforming tonight, and you are gonna teach me."

"Oh." Hayden bowed to the older mew, then floated up and out of her seat. "That sounds fun! What pokémon do you want to be first?"

"I…" He hesitated. Aerie returned to his lap, and the two joined her in the air. "What's the easiest thing to be?"

"Eevee," she answered, without a second's hesitation. "And they have lots of related pokémon to switch between too. So, there's probably another form for any situation."

"Try Espeon first," Gail called after them. If the older pokémon had a problem with their departure, she didn't say so. "It's the first pokémon many of us learn to imitate. It should be well within Julian's power to copy."