~1.10~

Nick stared, confused.

“That’s a joke, right?” he finally asked. “‘A house fell on my sister.’… I mean, because you’re supposed to be a witch?”

“I didn’t think it was very funny, at the time,” the girl called Woe said, somewhat absently. “Though, sometimes, in retrospect…”

She trailed off, leaving the thought hanging unfinished.

“I don’t know that I’m ‘supposed to be’ anything,” Wow said. “And no, it isn’t a joke… but I’d rather not get into it. You said you’re looking for your daughter.”

“Yes,” Nick said. “She ran away… or… or was taken. I’m not sure.”

“When we’re young, those aren’t always separate things,” Wow said. “I can help you find her. What do you do if she doesn’t want to come back?”

Nick seemed taken aback by this. He wasn’t sure why the question offended him… but when he realized the reason, it was also his answer.

“I’m her father,” he said, a little stiffly. “She’ll come back if I tell her to come back.”

“Well, of course… I wouldn’t be so unkind as to point out that if that held true, she wouldn’t have run away in the first place…” Wow said.

“Too late,” Woe interjected in a sing-song.

“…but, I will remind you that you can generally catch more flies with honey than with vinegar,” Wow finished, ignoring the interruption.

“Technically, if she’s his young, wouldn’t she be a maggot?” Woe said placidly.

“Look, could we possibly do this in private?” Nick asked. “Without your sister?” He stopped, startled by a sudden thought. ”Your sister…”

“What about my sister?” Wow asked, her eyes narrowing suspiciously.

“Mama said there were two sisters, and the better one wouldn’t want to be found so she sent me to you,” Nick said. “She’s the better witch.”

“She showed up here today saying that a man was coming to see her, to kill her,” Wow said, apparently unconcerned by Mama’s estimation of their comparative prowess.

“Is that what I said?” Woe said. “Huh.”