"Esther M. Friesner - Chicks 05 - Turn The Other Chick" - читать интересную книгу автора (Friesner Esther M)

all for the best. They weren't suited for each other in the slightest: Robin was an incurable playboy with an
infantile sense of humor, however much fun he was in the flowerbeds. Mustardseed's heart had mostly
healed, but didn't take kindly to public references to "Oberon's fellas." She decided to put a brave face
on it, and resorted to teasing back.

"You'd know best, Peaseblossom," she said. "People say you're responsible for half the fairy rings in the
forest, you and your ever-changing partners."

Peaseblossom stepped into the clearing, her every move revealing why she was one of Titania's favorite
dancers. And, Mustardseed reflected bitterly, one of the queen's best fighters as well. Peaseblossom
proudly wore the black and yellow ribbon signifying she'd successfully dueled a humblebee.
Mustardseed, while stronger by far, had no hopes of attaining such an honor.

"I can't help it. A cute guy, an empty patch of grass, and I just have to dance. And my latest beau is
positively scrumptious." She twirled gracefully to Mustardseed's side, brushed some dust off a toadstool,
and, after arranging her skirts just so, sat down.

"You could say hello to your cousin," Mustardseed said.

Peaseblossom blinked. "Sorry, Moth. Didn't notice you."

"Of course not. She's not a cute guy or a bare patch of grass. Never mind, Moth, some of us appreciate
you."

Peaseblossom shook her curly pink locks. "I love Moth, and she knows it. Not that any of us have seen
her lately. How, by the Queen's grace, did you manage to get away from the little monster, coz?"

"Ghosh is not a monster," Moth said. Her nearly-invisible antennae extended for a brief moment, then
drooped again out of sight.

Mushrooms for all!Mustardseed thought.Little Flutter showing signs of temper?

"He's just active. Really, Peaseblossom, he's the sweetest baby and he'll make a wonderful page
someday. No wonder their Majesties were ready to go to war over him." Moth covered a yawn. "But I
admit he's wearing. His latest trick is digging holes. I've had to put up signs warning people, or they'll fall
in his excavations. The filthy places I've found that imp!"

"I saw him the other day," Mustardseed laughed. "I know he's naturally dark-skinned, being a little
Indian changeling, but I couldn't tell where the mud left off and where he began."

"So where is the tiny, but grubby, paragon?" Peaseblossom asked.

"He's napping, so Philomel agreed to watch over him," said Moth. "I've been using the spare time to
catch up on my leather-working. I fixed Mustardseed's armor straps, made a belt for dear Throstle, and
started some pants for Ghosh. Of course, given what he does to clothes I'd be better off making them out
of granite slabs, not reremice's wings."

Mustardseed and Peaseblossom both grimaced. Reremice were some of the nastiest creatures on earth:
utterly vicious, completely destructive, and lacking in any intelligence beyond what was needed to attack
their enemies. Both fairies had fought in the last great conflict with the winged devils; Mustardseed's left