Page 132 of Of Sockets Of Stitches
A grand haunt. We had discovered that such nudges a few times a year greatly helped humans recall their values and priorities. They tended toward fighting without such frights to stir up their gratitude.
“There is no ‘we’ about it,” I murmured, dressed in a white gown and ready for my Mistress Stitch appearance. A rather unfortunate choice of name, as it had turned out, for now my stitches were gone and white scars welded my patches together. A lack of stitches was nothing that Valetise could not rectify with black paint and a brush, though, especially when this gown covered most of my body.
My prince joined me on the edge. “No ‘we’ about what?”
I looked up into his milky gaze.Mine.“All knowledge gained on the relationship between monsters and humans has been thanks to your efforts.”
He did not deny this. He was not needlessly humble. “There is much to explore.”
And so there may be. But my prince consort was using his time most wisely to support his queen, the world, and monsters.
As Earl Bring threw curses down upon the gathering mass of humans, See said, “They have started to say ‘no’ more often than not, did you hear? A human often saying ‘no.’ That is progress. Their numbers swell, and they display anger freely and without lasting shame. There is an upward trend of vice, and admitting to their vice, and that appears to have a positive effect of their acceptance of one another in a community.”
The changes were vast. To think that such joy and happiness in humans had awaited our victory against ruin and evil.
The victory of fifty mothers. That was what I had termed our triumph over ruin. As the queen of monsters, no one dared to call it otherwise.
See lifted my hand to his lips. “All thanks to their belief in Mistress Stitch.”
Yes, that had proven to be very integral. Our first haunt together had been important, and these days,allmonsters joined in on the haunt.
“These moments that we can all gather warm my heart,” I confessed. Such gatherings were not regular occurrences, and they could not be until we learned the exact monstrous effort required to counterbalance the natural tendencies of humans.
See retreated as the humans’ horrified, frozen focus was swept to me. I lifted my arms and whispered on the air, “I am Mistress Stitch. Know me.”
I slammed my power back into place to protect their minds. Not as much as I used to—for See had found that humans were happiest when they were a little insane.
With some blurring and blinking and blobbing, monsters soon reconvened in my queendom. Picket shut the wall of bars, laughing with Valetise.
Candor’s teeth bones were spread wide as shefloated in her armchair beside the padding Huckery, who had only awoken six nights prior.
Duchess Raise bowed, stroking the rim of her fedora. I looked for a crease on her suit and found none.
“My queen,” she said. “I am due for midnight slumber, but I wished to report that I forged another fifty contracts last night.”
“Magnificent, Duchess. Thank you, and happy slumber.” Countering humans’ tendencies was not all fun and haunt. Their positivity and willpower and morals must always beraisedagainst their minds’ natural sway to everything negative. Some humans had mastered this, of course, but they were in the vast minority, according to the Raises.
Duke Raise bowed to me, then trailed after his duchess. He liked to watch her slumber unless I required him. Which I made sure to, often.
Marquis Take swept toward me, such a noble figure in his heavy cape fixed with silver brooches at each shoulder. The Takes had lasted their year in physical abstinence, and had maintained a diversity of emotion and feeling since.
“My queen,” he declared. “I depart for taking.”
“Go with my thanks, sir. Will you take your marchioness?”
He bowed low. “If you might spare her?”
Take had irritated me with his whims before, and these nights, his noble demeanor and dramatic flair achieved the same. There should always be a monster to improve my tolerance, and he was that monster. “I might, sir.”
The Takes worked in tandem with the Raises. While the Raisesraisedhopes and dreams, the Takes were in the business oftakinghurts and worries and pains. Taking did not need to be such an all-or-nothing thing in a saved world, and the morals of the marquis need never suffer agony again.
The Brings slimed forward together, and they were already shivering with anticipation of the night ahead. Indeed, Toil,Hex, and Sigil were already out exfoliating in the sand. The combined efforts of blobs, not just of the earl, were needed yet to cleanse all the grains of sand of the remaining grime and lifelessness.
Countess Bring was breathless, damply so. “My queen, do you require anything of us tonight?”
“The haunt is done. You are free to cleanse the sands.”
They tended toward addiction in their purpose, but I had long pondered the natural ways of monsters. If kings had not existed before me,howwould monsters have behaved and worked? Far differently was the answer.
