#rivervale_lodge

"...Yeah."

"Cuz why? Matti... he was, um, my Jaymes, kinda... Matti said that it's not wrong to hate a thing, but you should understand it and know why first. Otherwise it's not fair to yourself or to it." He pauses, and mutters. "Still don't unnderstand broossels though."

"Well... Sam..." She frowns. "Sam's weak. And she's bad, and broken. Dirty. Nobody likes broken things."

"What's bad and broken? What part?" He pulls one of the bits from the snow, giving it a sniff. Not directing too much attention straight to Dagmar, as he asks.

"All of her? She has to be bad, that's why nobody ever wanted her. Only good for... stuff. Bad girls don't get to say no to anything."

"They said I was bad, too. Because I'm cursed, and dangerous. And good for nothing, just a waste of good glamour, and they should just cold-collar me and leave me in the pound to fizzle, except they got paid to keep me, so they did." He puts the bit back in the snow and picks up another, turning it this way and that to examine the shape that the syrup made as it cools. "So that's probably right... right?"

She scowls. "Is not! You aren't bad. You're great. I mean... I wish you'd be a boy more... I sort of.. I worry when you're Buddy too long."

"Like, what if you forget you're a boy? Can pooka forget?"

His head tilts to the other said, and he asks, "So why are they wrong about me, but not about you?"

He scratches at his nose, and attempts an answer. "Buddy is... kinda... as close as I can get to Sam. He can go into town and visit outside the fires, and no one will stare or think he's wrong."

"Because.... because... " She frowns. "You don't understand. You wouldn't like Sam either, if you saw how bad she was. But I'm Dagmar now."

"Because of your ears? Can't you, like, wear a hat?"

His tail gives a swish. "A hat, and a cloak, and close my eyes..." He gives a blink of the brilliant blue and brown mis-matched gaze. "And then if anyone looks close, then it's doom, and doom, and doom. I went to town once and wanted to play, and they had to fuddle up the whole playground.." His ears and tail droop, looking guilty. "I bet Sam never 'dangered the entire hold. They'd put her in a box, they would." Then suddenly he scowls, and announces, "But they wouldn't because I would BITE them. I would, too! Just see if I wouldn't! If they tried!"

"But..."

She frowns, and pokes at the candy. "Is it safe?"

"It's not fair, you being stuck in hiding. It ain't. I wish I could make it better."

He leans in and sniffs at the candy, and announces, "Might be poison. We should eat some to check, and make sure it's safe." He shrugs a bit. "It's okay. It's probably Connor's fault. Because bad things happened. And that means he's bad. And then I just was Buddy, and everyone LIKES Buddy. Buddy is a -good boy- and people like him around." He holds out the first piece of candy to Dagmar to try. "So it's better to be Buddy."

"I like Connor better. I can talk to him." She takes the candy and gives it a try. "Oh! This is good!"

He beams. "Not poison! Oh, do you want to take some to Tove? You could sing her the song. I can teach you the words on the way over."

"Sounds like a plan, sure. We should leave some for Siv...."

"Oh, yeah. Ummm... these ones." He picks out a few big chunks and sets them aside on a plate slide into the freezer. "But they will not melt, but they get sticky when the snow goes." He is also getting sticky, as he licks a treat. "Or maybe you can show her later for fresh ones, and we could eat these ones now..." a mischeivous grin.

"She gets those three. She helped. The rest for us. And Tove. C'mon, let's go..."

The kitchen is a mess of melting snow and candy-covered teacups, pots, and ladles... but off they go!

He fills his cheeks with candy and scoops a tupperware of fresh snow to maintain Tove's pieces, and off they go. And the lyrics to the song are... well, they might be correct, but it's hard to tell when sang happily out from a mouthful of maple taffy.

(Scene?)

(fin)