Cube Route Part 34

"Seren." Then the demoness looked startled. Little startle lines radiated out from her, making the air wiggle. "What are you doing with that name?"

"Nothing. My name is Seren." Cube bit her tongue. "I mean Seren." She halted abruptly, causing Diamond to look askance at her. "I can't say my real name!"

"That pacifier," Metria said. "It really is magic."

"I wonder." Cube focused her mind. "Nickelpedes: come here."

Nothing happened.

"Maybe you can't summon them on the enchanted path."

Cube stopped off the path and tried again, with no better success. "What have I done?" she asked. "I was just curious about whether the mirror and the pacifier related. I didn't really mean to trade names and talents."

"You found something you weren't looking for," Metria agreed. "That's your talent, now."

"It must be," Cube agreed ruefully. "Maybe I should go back and trade back."

"You'd never find that girl if you look for her."

Cube realized that was likely to be true. "So I'd better just keep following the thread, and hope it doesn't lead me anywhere I need my nickelpedes."

"That works for me," the demoness agreed.

Then Cube had another idea. "Diamond--how would you like to have this pacifier?"

The dog looked at her and wagged her tail, not quite understanding.

"I'll take it back if it messes you up," she said. "I promise. I just need to see how this works."

She found a thread and used it to tie the pacifier to the dog's collar. Then she stepped back. "My name is--Cube," she said. Then realized the significance. "It worked!"

Seren wagged her tail agreeably.

"Now you can find the girl and trade back," Metria said.

"Now I don't need to."

"Sometimes we demons have trouble understanding mortals."

"Sometimes we have trouble understanding ourselves."

They continued along the path, following the thread. They stopped at a conveniently situated garden at noon, where Cube harvested and ate a peanut pie and Diamond discovered a biscuit tree with a.s.sorted dog biscuits. The dog was obviously surprised, but pleased, and feasted on them.

Cube pondered that as they resumed their walk. Diamond had found something nice that she wasn't looking for. Could that be coincidence?

As evening loomed, they came to another camp. It was already occupied. Cube suddenly realized that she liked traveling like this, meeting fellow travelers, then moving on. Little was required except an exchange of amenities and a bit of tolerance for individuality. She knew that here on the enchanted path there would be no dangers, and that included other travelers. She appreciated the paths much more since meeting Patxi, who had labored so long and hard to make them. She would be sorry when the Quest was done, and she would have to return home.

Of course she would be beautiful. That would make all the difference, wouldn't it?

The campers were a man and a horse. Diamond seemed surprised; she had not been looking for folk like this. That was indeed interesting, because there were few straight horses in Xanth, and not many unicorns. "h.e.l.lo!" she called as she approached. "I am Cube, and this is Seren."

"h.e.l.lo," the man said. He had a vaguely horsy face, and his voice sounded somewhat like a neigh. The horse, in contrast, had a vaguely human countenance. "I am Bert, and this is Lam. We are the two parts of a centaur."

Cube couldn't help showing her surprise. "But centaurs are--"

"Merged," Bert agreed. "We made the mistake of trotting into Mundania, where we split into these two parts. We hurried back into Xanth, but the damage was done. We remain a split personality."

"Oh." For the moment Cube couldn't think of anything appropriate to say.

"We plan to visit the Good Magician, and ask how we can be unified again."

"That seems good," Cube agreed, somewhat blankly.

The pair turned out to be fair company for the night. They remained close together, and the horse seemed to understand everything that was said. But it was plain that neither was whole alone; they needed to be restored. Cube hoped the Good Magician enabled them to do that.

In the morning Bert and Lam took the fork marked for the Good Magician's Castle, while Cube and Diamond took the one marked for Castle Roogna. Soon they hove into sight of it. Cube had never tried to hove before; it had just come naturally.

"I'd better get back into the pouch," Metria said, appearing. "The denizens here have been known to get annoyed with me."

Cube wondered what the demoness had done to deserve it, but didn't argue. Surely she would need no protection here. She held out the pouch, and Metria lifted her lovely leg in that annoyingly suggestive way she had, almost but not quite showing panty, and slid into it. Then Cube glanced at Diamond. "You too?" But the dog decided to stay outside. That was fine.

They advanced on the castle, following the thread. It took them right to the moat and drawbridge.

A huge green head rose from the water. Diamond shrank back nervously. "That's just Souffle, the moat monster," Cube said rea.s.suringly. "He doesn't bother anyone who means no harm." Evincing more certainty than she felt, she lifted one hand to the monster. "You remember me, don't you? I'm Cube. I was here a few days ago with the Princesses."

Souffle moved forward to sniff her hand. Then she patted him on the nose, exactly as the Princesses had done. He accepted this, showing that he did remember her. He surely had a good memory for visitors, or he wouldn't have this important position guarding the castle.

Rea.s.sured, Diamond stepped forward. Souffle's head went down to meet her. They sniffed noses. Diamond wagged her tail. The monster wagged his tail; it lifted from the water and swished back and forth. Then he sank back under the water.

"We're approved," Cube said. But her knees felt a bit rubbery. She could have brought the Princesses out to rea.s.sure the monster, but that would have publicized the way she was transporting her Companions, so she preferred to avoid it. Of course, if the monster had gobbled her down, the Princesses would be just as lost as they had been in the underground cave, for no one would know where the pouch was. So maybe she had been foolish. She would have to watch that; she was responsible for more than herself.

Princess Ivy met them at the front gate. "Your Quest is done?"

"Not yet. I'm--I'm following a thread the Princesses made. It shows me my route. It led me here."

"That's a new kind of magic," Ivy said, petting Diamond. Everybody liked the dog. "They keep discovering new things."

"I need to tell you that I put the Princesses in danger. It was a stupid mistake, and maybe you won't want them to continue with me. I--"

"You lost the pouch."

"You know!"

Ivy smiled. "Chlorine told me. She's a mother herself now, and has become sensitive to mothers' concerns. She also said that you tried very hard to recover it, doing what you needed to."

"Of course I did! But I shouldn't have lost it."

"Chlorine said you didn't have a choice. But now Nimby knows about Fornax's interference, and will make sure there is no more. You should be all right."

"You're very understanding."

"It comes with the territory."

"Of Princesshood?"

"Of motherhood. One day you will discover it for yourself."

"Oh, I don't think so. I'm not beautiful."

Princess Ivy paused for half a moment before speaking. "Not yet, perhaps."

Cube glanced at the thread, which led on down the hall. That surprised her, because she had thought it would depart the castle after she had cleared things with the Princesses' mother. Where was it going? "I suppose I should go where I'm going, though I have no idea where that is."

"None of us really know where we are going," Ivy said. "But I'm sure my daughters' thread will not lead you astray."

"But it's not leaving the castle."

"Then let's discover what it is up to. I can't see it, but of course I don't have the need-to-know."

"It's going that way," Cube said, pointing. "To--to the stairs."

"This is interesting," Ivy said. "The only person upstairs at the moment is my sister Ida."

They walked down the hall, then up the stairs. "I didn't know you had a sister."

"That may be just as well."

"There--there's something wrong with her?"

"By no means! She has an extraordinary talent. But we prefer not to advertise it."

Cube took the hint and did not ask what that talent was, though she was quite curious. Why should the thread take her to the Princesses' aunt?

The thread took them to a door and pa.s.sed through it. The plaque on the door said PRINCESS IDA. "This is where," Cube said.

Ivy knocked. "A visitor for you, Ida," she called.

"Come in." The voice sounded just like Ivy's.

Ivy opened the door, and ushered Cube in ahead of her. It was amazing how unpretentious she was. Inside stood--another Ivy. No, not quite the same; the features differed subtly. But the height, form, aspect, and crown were so similar that it was obvious they were sisters. Yet there was one strikingly different thing: Ida had a moon. It was a small ball that orbited her head. Cube had never imagined such a thing.

"This is Cube," Ivy said. "She knows nothing of you, Ida, but is led to you by a thread my daughters crafted to guide her on her mission."

"h.e.l.lo, Cube," Ida said politely.

Cube recovered some of her composure. "Uh, thank you," she said. "I mean--"

"You are taken aback by my moon," Ida said. "Many folk are. It is called Ptero, and is a world in itself where all folk exist, past, future, and possible."

"Uh, yes." Now Cube saw that the thread went to the moon. There was no doubt about it; the thread moved to track the moon as it orbited.

"I will leave you two to talk," Ivy said, and was gone.

"I see you have a companion," Ida said.

"Oh. Yes. This is Seren. I mean Seren. I--oh, the pacifier."

"I am not certain I understand."

"She--I think she's lost, but we have been keeping company. Then we got a magic pacifier, that causes folk to find what they aren't looking for, and I--I gave it to her. Now I can't call her by her real name."

"What did you call her before?"

"Diamond." Cube paused half an instant. She had said it! "And will again, I think, once I take back the pacifier. But right now it's too awkward for me to carry it, because when I do, I am Seren and my talent is serendipity. I--does this make any sense to you?"

"Yes. Did the thread lead you to the pacifier?"

"I'm not sure. I met the girl who had it, and we traded things. The thread put us together, I suppose--yes, I guess it did. Because when I learned of it, I wanted it."

"Then I'm sure it was destined for your use."

"Maybe so. Actually the thread has been leading me all over Xanth, and even into Mundania. I think it is taking me places I need to be, to learn what I need to learn, so I can complete my Quest."

"I'm sure it is," Ida agreed.

"But it's such a convoluted route! I thought I'd just go directly to--" She paused. "Is it all right to tell you of my Quest? It's supposed to be private, but if I need your help--"

"What do you think?"

Cube pondered. "I think it must be all right, because the thread leads right to your moon, and I have no idea how to go there. So I must need your help, and that means you should know what I'm trying to do."

"I'm sure that's the case," Ida agreed. She seemed very agreeable.

So Cube told her about the Quest, and the Companions, and how she might have fouled it up by choosing too many of them, so that the thread was stretched all out of shape. So maybe she could have had a simple, direct route, instead of this devious one, but actually she was coming to like this one, because of all the places she was seeing and the interesting people she was meeting. So maybe she was as well off this way, because she had always wanted to have a life of adventure instead of being a dull stay-at-home girl.

"I'm sure that's true," Ida agreed.

"And the Good Magician said I would be beautiful, when I finish," Cube concluded.

"I'm sure you will be."

This was weird: things that had seemed speculative now seemed certain. Princess Ida was a very rea.s.suring person. "I long for it."

"Has it occurred to you that your Route might be one of personal discovery, rather than mere geography?"

Cube was surprised. "No, I never thought of that. I thought I was just paying for a stupid mistake, and messing this up for the others."

"Would the others be needed, if it were not for the deviousness of the Route?"