Teal looked at the three women, puzzled by their surprise.
“Yes. My sister.”
Sera remained seated, one hand resting over the wrist the wolf had gripped earlier. Beside her, Tina’s white skirt spilled over the edge of the chair. Revy leaned forward, the red wool gathered at the back of her head shifting with the movement.
“You didn’t mention a sister,” Tina said.
“You didn’t ask about one.” Teal shook her head. “Since you and everyone else came here and gained access to Petal Fields, Hydra has had her eyes on all of you. Watching from a distance. Sizing everyone up.”
Sera glanced toward the doorway. She had spent the walk noticing the wolves who looked directly at her. Apparently there had been someone else to notice as well.
“She saw that my mother had taken a liking to my relative, Derpy,” Teal continued. “One night, she asked Mother and Father to let her meet him. When they asked why, she said, ‘Partner. Mate.’”
Tina stood so quickly that the skirt caught against her knees.
Her weight shifted onto the heels before she had found her balance. There was a sharp crack beneath one foot, then another as she caught herself. Sera reached toward her elbow, but Tina was already steady, looking past the broken heels at Teal.
“Why didn’t you tell us this sooner?”
Teal’s gaze dropped to the damaged footwear. Her mouth tightened briefly before she looked up again.
“Because she hasn't hurt you,” Teal said.
“That isn't what I asked.”
Teal looked toward the doorway. “She wants to be included. I thought this would help.”
Revy did not relax. Tina stayed on her feet, her tail moving behind the white dress in a slow, restless sweep.
Sera tried to remember whether Derpy had mentioned meeting a hyena. So much had happened since they reached Petal Fields that she could not decide what she might have missed. A sister who wanted him as a mate seemed like something somebody ought to have explained clearly.
Teal turned toward her before she could ask.
The inspection began at Sera’s hair, followed the worn neckline of her red shirt, and ended at the loose gray sweatpants gathered above her paws. Sera became conscious of a tangle resting against her shoulder and pushed it behind her. It caught on another knot halfway down.
“Seamstress,” Teal said. “She’s next.”
Sera looked toward Revy.
A silk thread caught her sleeve.
Sera pulled her arm back. “Don't drag me.”
The thread loosened immediately. Sapphire looked from her sleeve to the wrist she was protecting.
“I'm sorry. I use it to guide people through the fitting.”
“You can tell me where to go.”
The spider woman stepped aside. “Through here, if you're ready.”
Sera looked at the clean towels beyond the curtain, then got up. Going because she wanted them felt different from being drawn across the floor.
“Don’t worry,” Teal called to the others. “Sapphire is good. She wouldn’t hurt a fly. She’s from the Insect Kingdom. We have a relationship with the gods who rule there.”
Sera looked at the silk still attached to her sleeve.
After the conversation about Hydra, Sera preferred to judge the seamstress for herself.
Sapphire released the thread and began looking through the supplies. A comb lay beside folded towels. Clean fabric waited farther along the work surface, ivory beside deep red, with little gold ornaments arranged where they would not become tangled.
Sera glanced down at her shirt. It had been comfortable precisely because she had not needed to think about it. Now every stretched fold and faded patch seemed to have acquired an audience.
“We need to begin with your hair and fur,” Sapphire said.
“I can brush my own hair.”
The seamstress looked at the knot Sera had failed to move. Sera let her hand fall.
From the other side of the curtain, Revy spoke again.
“Tell us more about Hydra. Is she dangerous? Harmless? What’s her motive?”
Sera listened while Sapphire prepared the water. She could no longer see Teal, but she could picture the expression that had accompanied her earlier answer.
“She can be dangerous when she feels threatened,” Teal said.
“Then why call this a good idea?” Tina asked.
“Nobody interacts with her much. You'll understand when you see her. Most males won't go near her.” Teal tried a smile. “They prefer women their own size.”
“Is that what they tell her?” Tina asked.
The smile disappeared.
“It is easier than explaining that they're afraid of what happens when she doesn't get her way,” Teal said.
Sera heard the difference. Hydra's loneliness could be real, and the people around her could still be withholding something important.
Sera heard the shift of a chair, followed by a quiet rustle that she could not place. Then Revy asked something about how long Hydra had been watching. Teal’s reply was lost beneath the sound of water.
Sapphire asked before each new part of the work. Sera found the questions awkward at first, then began answering without bracing herself. The red shirt and sweatpants were set aside. Sera folded her arms across herself until a towel was within reach, then clutched it while the seamstress began washing away the dust caught in her fur.
Nobody was angry with her. Nobody was discussing what she had done to David. Sapphire was simply concentrating on getting her clean, and Sera found herself unsure where to look under that kind of attention.
“You can tell me if the water is uncomfortable,” Sapphire said.
“It’s fine.”
The comb came later. That required more patience.
Sera felt the first snag and braced for the pull. Sapphire held the hair above the knot, working through it a little at a time. When the next pass moved smoothly, Sera lifted her eyes.
“There,” the seamstress said. “That’s better.”
Beyond the curtain, Tina’s voice carried clearly.
“What do you think will happen if she comes into contact with Derpy?”
Teal took long enough answering that Sera looked toward the sound.
“Hmm.”
The front room had become considerably less quiet than when Tina first went in for her dress. A foot shifted. Fabric moved. Revy said nothing, which made the pause more noticeable.
Sapphire crossed to the work surface, briefly parting the curtain as she collected something. Through the opening, Sera saw Teal uncross her legs and stand. Her maid’s cap sat slightly askew. Black bat wings had opened behind her, and her violet eyes moved between Revy and Tina as though their concern remained a little excessive.
“She’ll probably try to get to know him,” Teal said. “If she doesn’t try to claim him first.”
The curtain fell closed.
Sera listened to the water. Revy had agreed to ask before pretending to be Derpy’s wife. Hydra’s family seemed to have skipped that part. She wondered what Derpy had planned for any of them, then felt the comb pass smoothly through another section of hair.
Sapphire gathered the brushed hair into two long tails. The unfamiliar weight settled on either side of Sera’s head, lifting strands away from her face that she had grown used to looking through. Red ribbons followed. Small ornaments touched together with a faint metallic sound.
“Keep your ears still for a moment.”
Sera tried. One twitched anyway, and Sapphire waited before securing the rose beside it.
The dress took longer than Sera expected. Sapphire worked around her tail, checking the fit each time she moved. Sera could see ivory, burgundy, and a glint of gold in the mirror, but she kept her eyes on the seamstress's hands until the fastenings were done.
Her brushed tail felt unusually light against her legs. She turned to make sure it was clear of the fabric, then found herself looking at her own reflection instead.
Sapphire reached for the collar last.
Sera felt the movement at her throat and lifted her chin. The seamstress tested it, paused, and tested it again. Her hands remained careful, but her concentration changed.
“I couldn’t remove this,” she said after a while. “I’m sorry. I wanted to get it off.”
Sera touched the edge of the Warden collar. “Derpy hasn’t changed it. I should have told you.”
“It's no problem. I can place a spell over it to make it invisible, if you want.”
Sera thought about that before nodding. “Yes. I'd like to see myself without it.”
Sera lowered her hand while Sapphire worked. The collar remained against her throat. That did not change. But when she looked down toward the little reflective surface the seamstress held up, the dark restraint no longer broke the line of the outfit.
Sapphire adjusted a burgundy ribbon with a rose at its center, arranging the separate accessory over the concealed collar. A small gold pendant rested beneath it.
Sera touched the ribbon, then stopped before she could disturb the placement.
“There,” Sapphire said. “Now you can go show them.”
Sera did not move immediately.
Her shirt had been loose enough to hide inside. Her hair had fallen across her face whenever she lowered it. Now she was clean, fitted, and arranged, and the thought of walking into the front room made her hands rise before she could stop them.
She covered her face as Sapphire drew the curtain aside.
“I’ve never had someone bathe me and brush me until I’m squeaky clean.”
No answer came at first.
Sera lowered her hands just enough to look.
Tina had turned in her chair. Revy stood beside her, the loose curl near her cheek forgotten. Both were staring.
The ivory bodice fitted neatly against Sera’s frame, its gold embroidery tracing the panels between crimson roses. Burgundy shaped the sides and gathered again at her hips, where fine chains and tassels moved against the longer overskirts. Pale pink and ivory ruffles layered beneath them, lifting at the front and flowing behind her.
Detached ruffled sleeves circled her upper arms. White gloves and embroidered cuffs framed the black fur of her forearms, leaving the change from fabric to fur deliberate instead of untidy. Matching ruffled ornaments rested above her bare paws, decorated with burgundy bows and roses.
Her twin tails fell in long, smooth sweeps from the roses beside her ears. Ribbon ends trailed through the black hair. Without the tangles across her face, her golden eyes were impossible to hide.
“You’re very pretty,” Tina said.
Sera’s fingers tightened against one fold of the skirt.
Revy looked from the roses in her hair to the draped fabric at her hips. A smile slowly formed.
“It makes me want to eat you up. I’m jealous.”
Sera gave a small, startled chuckle. Revy could eat her if she wanted. It was still strange to see that same wendigo become timid at the mention of one person.
Revy caught her looking and lifted her chin, though the warmth in her ears spoiled some of the effect.
Sapphire stepped around Sera to inspect the final fall of the skirt. When she was satisfied, she turned toward Revy.
“You’re the only one left.”
Revy touched the edge of her own clothes. She had watched both transformations now. Whatever answer she had failed to give Teal earlier seemed easier with Sera standing in front of her.
She moved toward the back room.
The entrance burst open.
“Teal! Teal! I have so much to tell you!”
Sera turned sharply. The woman filling the doorway was an enormous hyena, with a wild reddish-brown ponytail, tawny spotted fur, and a grin that arrived before the rest of her had cleared the entrance. Holes marked the dark fabric of her clothing. Metal flashed at her wrists as she hurried inside.
She went straight to Teal.
Before the wolf could answer, Hydra lifted her off her feet and spun her around. Teal’s skirt and tail swung with the movement. Her black wings shifted to keep clear of the furniture, and Sera took a quick step back to protect the trailing panels of her new dress.
A small hiss came from beside Tina’s chair.
Sera looked at her.
Tina’s arms had tightened. Sparks flickered along them, brief violet traces appearing against the white gloves and striped fur. Her gaze remained fixed on Hydra, following every turn as the hyena carried Teal through another delighted circle.
Sera glanced at Revy and found her watching Tina, too.
She feels threatened.
Revy’s eyes moved toward Sera. The concern in them suggested she had reached the same conclusion.
This was the sister Teal had hoped friendship would settle.
Teal finally managed to look past Hydra’s shoulder toward the back room. Revy had stopped short of the curtain, one hand still resting against its edge.
“I’m sorry, dear,” Teal said. “But my sister comes first.”
Hydra’s laughter filled the space where an objection might have gone.
“That’s why I wanted to finish with all of you,” Teal added. “She’s a handful.”