Chapter Text
There once was a girl from Uminari
Who was overly fond of calamari
She found a magical fish
Which then granted her wish
Then there was much oo-la-la-lally.
My collared cutie,
It was not fair of you to send me sestinas, in English. You know I left behind that language as useless for my chosen life! Please accept my pathetic limerick and your victory laurels, for I obviously cannot match your literary might, especially in another language. I do think I at least got the rhythm right, even if it doesn’t make much sense.
Does Arisa-chan know that you are writing scurrilous sestinas about her and her new boyfriend? At least, I hope for her sake that half of those lines were scurrilous! Or, come to think, did she help you write them? I hadn’t thought your English was that good.
Anyway, I have news. We have moved! Yes, in less than two months. The house I described to you in my first letter got annoying. So narrow! I thought I would get used to it. I was wrong. A 6x6 plan would have been much better than 4x10, despite being smaller. Plus, there was only one bathtub, and it was tiny. Plus, I went exploring, and found a house and neighborhood I fell in love with. So we broke lease and moved. Some of my children grumbled a bit, but have accepted my impeccable wisdom since.
(This is part of why it took me so long to reply to you. Trying to continue our poetry fight was the other part.)
Behold, house one. Strikingly similar to a European townhouse. Lovely carved decorations, and cast iron railings, which bewitched me with their beauty. A few planters to break up the plaster facade. Shallow balconies. So annoyingly narrow.
Dearest, do you remember Fate-chan’s one photo of her mother’s Garden of Time when it was still on Midchilda? Completely covered in moss and shrubs? I remember thinking that was for camouflage. And perhaps it was, or simply the natural result of leaving your building untended in a humid climate, with the outcome of being organically overgrown by vegetation. But! There is also a strong strain in Midchildan architecture and design, a reaction to the environmental damage of the Belkan war eras, which strives to cover every external human-made surface in exuberant vegetation. Green roofs, green walls. The taller buildings here often support more plants on their surfaces than would the unaltered ground they occupy.
Behold, house two. An emerald emerging from its suburban surroundings. Let me draw your attention to the full wrap-around porches on all three stories. To the upper and roof deck, supporting a garden of sun-soaked plants like basil, tomatoes, and cacti, as well as two gazebos and a small fountain. To the many containers of shade-seeking plants on the three porches, with hanging spider plants and rising bamboo and others, providing a privacy screen. To the small fruit tree in the back yard. To the width! To the variantly designed yet verdant buildings next door. To the SS-rank water bill to feed all these plants in a Mediterranean climate.
(It’s not that bad. But I did learn that a large fraction of Cranagan’s energy budget goes to supplementing the long-distance aqueducts with lots of desalination plants on the coast.)
You might well be wondering what the tradeoff is for so much more room. One part is that we are two greenbelts from the central district, rather than one. The larger part is that we are now a 30 minute walk from the metro station, rather than 10. Shamal has admitted it was good that I made them all learn how to ride a bicycle, back in Uminari.
(“Wah wah wah, I’m a magical construct who doesn’t need exercise to stay fit,” she said. “Being able to use civilian wheels might be useful,” I said. Was not my wisdom impeccable?)
I will send this now. Next time I will describe the interior, starting with our magical bed.
Our friends say “hi!” and “sorry for not writing in two months” and “we are bad, bad, friends who throw ourselves at your feet in supplicant apology.” Well, maybe one of those is a lie, but if they don’t want me to put words in their mouths then they should write you themselves. ;)