❝ well that's because the tales are only told from the mouths of an adult. all imagination gets lost when that happens, especially if you're a parent. you're not going to encourage your child to wander around at midnight because the midnight master will protect them, especially if you have no proof. so they create failsafes, turn well meaning creatures, into monsters. ❞ it's clear by the way they speak with such enthusiasm that the things that go bump in the night don't scare them. the monsters, myths, and creatures found in her books and peer review journals, were like a second family to them. she found pieces of herself in every story and wanted to protect them the way that she and kids like them, should have been protected growing up. ❝ yeah, yeah, i'm nuts, baby i'm mad, the craziest friend that you've ever had. ❞ they recited their own lyrics. ❝ been there wrote a song about it, not my best work personally. i don't even like alice in wonderland that much, but... ❞ they dropped off the point with a shrug, figuring they'd made their point.
it didn't take long for their eyes to narrow. as someone who dealt with not one but two scheming relatives growing up, they're immediately suspicious of nicolaus' withholding of information. ❝ which bird. sounds like a bird who doesn't like having feathers if they're going around spreading my business. do you like your feathers, nicolaus ? ❞ there's a certain drawl on his name as they set their phone down and lean forward. the art of vague threats being something they'd perfected by the time she was eleven. ❝ of course he's seen the spider room, he loves the spider room. i'm gonna make him a venom ring to match one of mine. he's not the outlier here by the way, you're all just cowards. the spiders are literally in enclosed spaces. they can't harm you. relax...━━━ so far, i invited you. rory. rafa, by default because i know he'll wanna come. and then i'm going to invite izzy. maybe his friend nora, but they still have a hard time being around me and not screaming at top volume because she's excited so. we'll see. ❞