[Interludes Vol. 1.5] In which we meet Ebony, the Little Lord of Bones(3/3)

Husband… was coming to my defense. Or at least trying to… I think.

"Then why did she have the black bone?"

"Ebony curious. Want see it. Say okay. Keep watch, make sure safe."

"If I wanted her to have it, I would have given it to her!"

"Ivory… Ebony special goblin. Like bones same you. Not happy bones like Ebony? Not… proud strong-one bone-goblin like Truffle proud Button mushroom-goblin?"

Ivory threw the bone wand into Truffle's side of the cave and grabbed Husband by the shoulders, digging her pointy fingers into them, and pushed him up against the wall.

"Don't tell me what to do or who to be proud of! Who do you think keeps Truffle alive? Who did most of the raising of Button!? ME! That's who!"

"Not argue that. Know Ivory do what say. But maybe way Ivory do… not best way!"

"…Fine. If Husband thinks he knows how to raise a bone-goblin better than a bone-goblin does… Then do it! Take Ebony and get out of my cave-hole!"

Ivory pushed herself away from Husband, leaving behind five lines of blood streaking down his arms from each of his shoulders.

"Ivory… not saying can do better. Only think better talk first, find better way not need spank strong-ones before have good reason…"

"GET OUT!"

Ivory pushed Husband right out of her cave-hole. Then she turned around and glared at me.

"What that?"

I followed her line of sight to my feet where Bitey was trying to… protect me.

"This is my friend, Bitey."

"Made from bones you took without asking..."

Truffle had walked over to me and squatted down, holding a small mushroom out in front of Bitey.

"Does Bitey like mushrooms?"

Bitey didn't seem all that interested in them. Ivory seemed to be mad that Truffle was being nice to Bitey.

"Truffle… what are you doing?"

"Anything that likes mushrooms can be friendly."

"Why are you such a mushroom-head?"

Truffle shook her head before putting her hands on my shoulders and looking me right in the eyes.

"What do you want to do, Ebony?"

"Huh?"

"Want to stay with Husband for a while?"

"Truffle! What are you saying to Ebony?"

Truffle stood up and turned to face Ivory.

"I'll say this clearly, so you realize what just happened here. I almost lost my tree, Bone-taker. If Husband hadn't caught that bone, where would I be right now? What would happen to me? I know I'm a lazy mushroom-head goblin. Nobody knows that better than me, not even you! You were being a rock-head when Old One said she was a Bone Lord, and you're being even more of a rock-head now! Ebony has magic. Magic that neither you, me, or Button know how to use! But Husband does. Glace does. Vera does. Let Ebony go stay in Husband's cave-hole for a while. Let her learn how to use it the right way so that she doesn't make a mistake and hurt you back for all the times you've hurt her, even if you think you were right in doing so. You and I were both spanked when we did things adult goblins didn't want us to do… but maybe Husband knows a better way? All I know is that I can't lose you, stupid meanie Bone-taker!"

"Mushroom-picker… do you think I'm that bad at teaching our strong-ones how to be goblins?"

"When did I say that? I'm the one who is no good at it! I push all the stuff I don't want to do onto you. I do think it's different with Ebony than it was with Button, and I think it might be different still when we have more strong-ones with Husband, but I don't think you're bad at it. But all of the strong-ones that Husband has made with us… are different and stronger than we were as strong-ones. Do you think you could defeat Diana Artemis even though you are many moons older? What about Orchid or Lilac? Even Shaman if she was serious?"

I watched Ivory frown at her words.

"She's still a strong-one who can't even walk Goblinhome on her own…"

"Button taught Glace how to walk Goblinhome. How to use the shit-pit. You were there to see it, weren't you? Following behind them the entire time…"

"…"

"You can blame me if you need to. I will take care of it all, Bone-taker. My one and only tree."

A few things happened quickly after that.

Ivory took one of her big pots full of blue water and went into her smaller cave-hole. Truffle had collected a few things of mine and the most important thing—Iggy, which she gave to me—and walked together with me to Husband's cave-hole.

Husband agreed to take care of me, saying for now his cave-hole would be my new cave-hole. He also agreed to doing what he could when it came to teaching me how to control my magic, since he didn't know the specifics of how my bone-magic worked. Button would continue to visit me, taking me places and teaching me all the things about being a goblin that Old One, Ivory, and Truffle didn't.

Truffle said I could come to her for anything I needed—whether it be bones, mushrooms, or even milkies. Even if things were bad between Ivory and I, both she and Ivory were my makers, and until I was old enough to not need milkies anymore and get my own cave-hole, she would be there for me if I needed her.

Glace was nice to me at first, but when I had Bitey say hello to her by climbing up onto her head, she screamed a whole bunch and ran away while slapping herself. I don't know why she doesn't like Bitey, because Bitey likes her a whole lot!

Husband brought me to meet my little sister Mint when she came into the world together with Diana Artemis, Button, and Glace.

Seeing my newest little sister goblin, I finally understood how Button felt about me once I had become a big sister at last! And I knew exactly what it was that I needed to do here as a new big sister goblin. I had to give her an important memory to have so she knew who to trust!

"Mint, you are my little sister goblin. I am Ebony, your big sister goblin. It's the job of a big sister goblin to teach her little sister goblin how be a goblin!"