"There is one thing," (Patreon)

Rebecca said.  "Will Mother, er, I mean Child Didelphis still be allowed to get lessons from me?"

"That depends," I replied.  "How often can you visit her?"

"We visit the Baker all the time," the vixen explained.  "Her name is Oonagh, by the way."

"Una?" I repeated.

"No, Oonagh," the vixen corrected.

"She actually likes talking to all of us," Chloe grinned.  "She says our quirks are endearing."

"Didelphis forbidding us from ever visiting her made us all totally want to," the bear (mouse?) added.

I looked over at the opossum to see if these revelations would provoke another angry outburst, but she seemed to be in a daze.

"My heart," she mumbled as she nervously gnawed her lollypop and clutched her chest with her free hand.  "It's beating steadily.  Not even a single palpitation!  This is wrong, so wrong..."

"Very well," I decided.  "Rebecca will tutor Didelphis in the art of being Seelie, the art of japes, and some of the smaller magicks, but that's it.  Didelphis is to be considered on probation until further notice.  She needs to prove herself before she gains access to anything more  than the basics.  I don't want her learning magicks that she could use to lash out against her foster mother if she's feeling vindictive.  Also, teaching Wiles to a child would just be creepy.  On that note, the rest of the Coven are forbidden from learning Wiles until they are eighteen."

"Aw, LAME!" the witches grumbled in chorus.  "That's not fair!  It's also ageist!"

"Those are the rules," I stated definitively.  "This is a Seelie organization.  You will all just have to be patient.  It won't be that long of a wait."

"Come on MAAAANNNNN," the witches whined.

"All right, none of that now," I protested.  "You should be grateful to learn any magick at all!"

By Fuma, teenagers were frustrating!  Perhaps this was the real reason behind the elvish tradition of not raising our own children.

"Well, that's all I needed to ask," Rebecca announced.  "I'm pretty sure that's it."

"Very well," I said with finality.  "I will have my Ixies escort you to a safe distance and you can all head home, except for Rebecca, who will stay here and begin learning.  However, you first must take Didelphis to Oonagh's house.  It's probably best not to tell her that Didelphis is a transmogrified old crone.  I doubt she would believe it."

After their footsteps had receded into the forest, I turned toward Rebecca.  She placed her hand on my shoulder and bent down to look into my eyes.

"Is it finally time to teach me about Honoring Fuma?" she asked.

"Uh," I quipped cleverly, as all the old tales of mischance regarding lowfolk femmes ran through my mind.

"I am of age now, you know," Rebecca reminded me meaningfully.

"Whoo," Burnside sighed as she got up from where she had passed out earlier.  "That was a good'un.  What'd I miss?"

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