Anna Koskinen's arrow pierced the deer's heart, gliding under a shoulder blade and between its ribs. It fell without a sound, quite possibly without even knowing it had died. The witch let out a whoop of triumph, thrilling in the precision of the hunt, then brought her bough to the ground so she could collect her prize.
It was larger than her usual prey; quite aside from the difficulty in using the entirety of it (though there are ways to preserve the flesh, witch ways and human ways), it was quite a challenge for someone of such a dainty build to haul the carcass to wherever she wanted it. She was stronger than she looked, but muscles alone cannot make an awkwardly large and heavy bundle less difficult to handle.
She considered this as she landed, judging its weight with her eyes and how well her cloud-pine branch would bear its weight. It could do it for a short while flying low, she supposed, though she would look rather silly with a deer hanging below her. Still, that could not be helped; it was too far to drag it all the way.
She did not apologize to the deer for killing it. Witches never apologize for a kill, whether a sacrifice, for food, for mercy, or for vengeance. A witch apologizing for a death she caused would be a remarkable circumstance and one Anna Koskinen had yet to experience. Death was natural, and in any case, there was no one left to hear the apology; bodies do not listen.
The reason for this death (and the reason she chose such large prey) was a gift for new friends, or rather, something akin to a reciprocation. English did not have a proper word for such gifts, though boon came closest. It was the give and take that existed between witches, favors for favors, without tally or expectation or promise, but understood all the same.
The little family in the forest fascinated her, and if there was one thing she pursued above all others, it was a new experience.
"Perhaps I will stay," she had said to her queen when Serafina Pekkala thought perhaps the time had come for them to leave. The fire was truly extinguished. Some had already left.
Serafina Pekkala gave Anna Koskinen a puzzled look at that statement, then narrowed her eyes and said, "You will be careful, Anna Koskinen. If you harm those I named friends, I cannot promise I will not harm you in turn."
Anna Koskinen accepted the warning with a deep fascination. She had watched Serafina Pekkala watch over the injured man and wondered. She knew the queen had taken to men in the past, had born a child to one. All witches were sensual beings, but how that manifested itself differed from witch to witch. Anna Koskinen could not imagine herself tethering herself to a single man, to make herself lesser and deny her witch-hood just to play happy family. But Serafina Pekkala loved deeply and gave of herself to each and every lover. It was what made her a good queen. That she loved Lee Scoresby was unquestionable and understood by all the clan, but how she loved him was unknown.
"Was he your lover?" Anna Koskinen asked, overcome by curiosity, and then, because it was only polite, "Are you adverse to sharing?"
For a long moment, Serafina Pekkala did not answer, just looked at her sister witch with an inscrutable stare. Her answer, when it came, was so unexpected that it delighted Anna Koskinen even as it disappointed her.
"Lee Scoresby is uninterested in passion with women." Which was not exactly a yes or a no to either question, but distracting enough for Anna Koskinen to not notice at the time.
"Really?" she purred, turning the idea around in her mind. She had heard of men who shied away from a woman's touch, but had yet to meet one. Then, "Him and the bear?" because that was the natural conclusion. Serafina Pekkala laughed out loud, and Anna Koskinen joined her though she did not understand the joke, simply enjoying the revelry of the laughter.
"I think neither is interested in an inter-species relationship," Serafina Pekkala said, when she was finished laughing. To that, Anna Koskinen shrugged, and then got a considering expression and said, "I suppose the bear then, would not…"
"I very much doubt it," answered her queen, still smiling gently. Certainly, the idea of an inter-species relationship was not the slightest bit shocking to a witch. Most of their relationships were inter-species anyway, particularly if they cared to have children. A witch might look like a human woman, but they were not, anymore than Hester was really a hare or Pan was really whatever animal he changed into. Anna Koskinen had never considered lying with a bear before, but once the idea was happened upon, it seemed quite intriguing.
Where Serafina Pekkala gave of herself to those she loved, and so guarded her heart accordingly, Anna Koskinen loved and accepted love freely and without reserve or regret. She loved each and every one of her lovers, and could still recall the details of their names, the stories they told her, the times they shared, but always fondly and with a smile, and she felt no pain at partings. If Lee Scoresby or Iorek were amenable, she would have gladly spent a night or two between them. That Serafina Pekkala thought neither would be amenable…
"They interest me," Anna Koskinen said next.
"They will none of them want what you are looking for," Serafina Pekkala warned again. "And if you push and they deny you would you…" She looked closely at her friend, wrinkled her nose, and finished with, "But you would not push, of course, or rend your heart over what is denied. They cannot harm your heart. Stay if you like…if they do not mind. But I think you will be bored."
"Did they break your heart, sister?" Anna Koskinen asked, studying her queen just as deeply as she had been studied. Serafina Pekkala considered that.
"They will," she decided. "But not yet." Then Anna Koskinen hugged her for the heartache to come, and kissed her on the lips, which Serafina Pekkala allowed and smiled into but did not return. And Serafina flew and Anna Koskinen watched her go.
Kaisa stayed. Anna Koskinen stared at Serafina's daemon, wondering, but unsure what to ask. She could sense her own daemon some distance away. Aake was enjoying the freedom of the air and the feel of wind over his feathers.
"You mean to approach the man," Kaisa said, giving her a knowing look as only a bird can. "And if not him, then the bear."
"I suppose," answered Anna Koskinen. "Serafina Pekkala could be mistaken." If nothing else, Serafina and Anna loved in different ways; a man might be interested in Anna's momentary passion where Serafina's more complete, more long-term love could make a man run.
She wondered if the bird would chide her, if he had stayed on Serafina Pekkala's behalf to guard the little family from her dangerous wiles. But the bird did not chide. Instead, he said, "This will be amusing, then." And he settled in a tree.
"Yes, it will," Anna Koskinen agreed, enjoying the impending pleasure of the unknown. And if all else failed, they were taking the girl to Lord Asriel, and perhaps he would be interested where the man and bear were not. She had certainly had interesting times with him before, until he became boring.
She decided to go hunting because gifts are the best way to incite favors, and she was not completely unaware that her staying could be an intrusion. She did not think they would outright tell her to go, not when her queen had saved the man's life, not when her clan had declared them friends, but a gift would certainly help. Besides, she would leave them at some point or other, and preferred not to have the thought of them being owed her favor hanging over her. Better to start with the gift, then take whatever she could get from them.
The deer hanging from her bough looked just as silly as she feared if her daemon's laughter was anything to go by. He, enjoying the absurd and the new just as much as she did, had joined her again just to watch. She flew low, only just keeping the deer from touching the ground, in part because it was easier and in part to avoid the chance of being seen by her sisters. They had left, but there was no guarantee they had gone far.
She landed just short of the camp. She thought she had managed it quite silently, gently laying the deer on the bed of pine needles next to the river, her feet alighting as delicately as a feather, but perhaps she had not been quiet enough.
She looked towards the hidden place where the bear had arranged things and found she was looking down the barrel of a gun. Had she not known the people were there, she might not even have noticed, but she was looking for them and saw at once.
"Oh, it's you," said the man's voice, and the gun pulled away. She pouted and dropped the bolt she had begun to draw back into its quiver.
"Is that how you greet your guests?" she asked, "And I brought you a gift."
"Who is it?" she heard the child's voice. "Are you going to shoot them?"
"Just keep hold of that gun and…try not to shoot me," said the man's voice, and then he emerged to greet her properly, ignoring the child's indignant cry behind him.
Anna Koskinen looked the man up and down as he walked slowly towards her. He walked stiffly still, a slight limp and his face tense from his aches and pains, but this was still a huge improvement on before, when he could not rise unaided from his bed. He did not look altogether happy to see her, which was disappointing, but not entirely unexpected. He looked pained but curious, which she could work with, but his hare was outright glaring.
"Miss Koskinen," he said, "I apologize about the gun; we were not expecting…visitors. And Iorek has finally agreed to a good long nap so I promised to keep my guard up."
"It is no matter, Mr. Scoresby," she answered. Then, "I have brought you this deer."
"Iorek en't going to be pleased about that," said the child, coming out to join them.
"Lyra," said the man with a sigh, "I thought I left you to guard." Anna Koskinen took that as a promising sign; he wanted to be alone with her. Perhaps Serafina Pekkala was mistaken. She was not sure whether she was pleased or disappointed; a man uninterested in her would be something utterly new, but a man interested would be a thousand times more fun.
"I can guard out here just fine," the child answered stubbornly before turning a glare on her to rival the hare's, the gun in her hand aimed towards the ground but more in her direction than not. "And bears don't like being hunted for. It implies you think they can't hunt for themselves. Iorek told me. He said he'd be ashamed to let another kill for him."
The man looked up at the sky, as if contemplating the very heavens, and Anna Koskinen found herself looking up as well, enjoying the sun dancing over her bare skin.
"Lyra, darling," said the man, turning from the sky to the child, "I have seen Iorek on many occasions accept food from communal plates that he had no part in killing. Now, why don't we set about preparing this fine gift, and give our thanks for it, and when Iorek wakes up he will have a lovely surprise waiting for him."
"He won't like it," said Lyra, but in a whisper this time. Then, towards Anna Koskinen, still mostly in a whisper, "I thought you all left."
"I decided to stay," answered the witch, glancing towards the child but keeping most of her attention on the man. "You are taking the girl to her father, are you not? I have known him and would not be opposed to accompanying you on your way. I know the way quite well; we could be there in a week of light travel, particularly if your airship were mended."
The man's face did something complicated then, emotions she could not understand flickering across his features, masked by the overall pain that still held his expression tense.
"A week?" the child shrieked, sounding utterly appalled, and her daemon, who had turned into some kind of fanged rodent when they came to greet her, hissed, "Hush," and then, apropos of nothing, "Iorek". The child put a hand over her mouth, then glanced guiltily behind her.
"I'd like a few more days before we move on," the man answered calmly. "I don't doubt Iorek will insist on it, even if I am up and walking."
"There are ways to ease your suffering…warm your muscles…" Anna Koskinen purred. The man blinked, staring at her as though hypnotized and she stepped closer to him until they were almost touching and she could feel the heat of his body and he could feel hers.
"Er," he said, drawing his head back and practically crossing his eyes as he tried to keep them trained on her face. "I mean…Serafina Pekkala left some herbs that have helped quite a lot…"
"Oh, not again," muttered his daemon at his feet, then, "Lee, she en't talking about herbs."
"We are taking care of Mr. Lee just fine," the girl muttered, but softly. Lee Scoresby took half a step back, looking confused, and his hare sighed.
"Listen, lady…" The hare trailed off, perhaps trying to find a way to politely inform her that Lee Scoresby was not interested in what she had to offer. The hare did not need to say anything, though. Anna Koskinen was very close to the man's face, close enough to note the lines around his eyes, the way he looked tired, and pained, and slightly curious, slightly confused. She could smell him, the wonderful scent of man mixed with woodsmoke over the faint unpleasant scent of illness mixed with blood and bloodmoss. What Anna Koskinen did not see, and she was very good at seeing this no matter how men tried to hide it from her, (no matter how they protested that she was seeing things), what she did not smell, was an answering interest.
"Fascinating," she said next, looking more closely still, trying to decide if his injuries were affecting him too greatly for such primal urges to overtake him or if there were simply no primal urges hiding within him.
"Can I…help you?" asked Lee Scoresby, looking less curious and more confused now while she went up on her toes to better sense him.
He took another stiff step backwards, the heel of his foot ran into a branch, and he started to fall. Both Anna Koskinen and the girl grabbed for him, the girl's daemon instantly something large and furry to brace the man, and between the three of them they kept the man upright.
"Sit down, Lee," the hare said then, and the girl positioned herself like a crutch beneath his arm, saying, "Here, I'll walk you over to the log."
"I can walk myself," the man grumbled, but Anna Koskinen recognized male pride when it was at work, and she noticed he made no move to pull away from the child. She wished she had been fast enough that it was her he leaned on but did not try to push herself between them.
"Listen to the girl, Lee," his hare ordered, cuddled against the girl's daemon. It was a bear, Anna Koskinen realized, a small one, to be sure, and brown rather than white, but a bear nonetheless. She wondered if that was down to the influence of their companion or if it was simply one of the largest forms the daemon knew. The bear was nuzzled against the man too. Of course, there was a layer of clothes between them, but the man would be able to feel the warmth and solid support of the daemon.
The bear made her think on the small group's missing companion.
"Your bear friend is napping, you said?" she asked, while the man allowed himself to be drawn over to the log.
"He better be," answered the man, as he sat. The girl's daemon settled at his feet, and his hare settled on top of the bear. The man stared down at them, his expression a mixture of crankiness, pain and fondness, and the girl settled on the log at his side.
Kaisa flew over to Anna Koskinen, settling on the same branch that her own Aake had chosen, close enough that their feathers brushed against each other.
"You won't be pushing yourself into that family," Kaisa remarked to the witch. "Their bond is of sky-iron."
"I could have told you that," Aake commented, sounding amused, and Anna Koskinen pouted. She never pouted for long, however, and already she was admiring the very bond tying the little family together.
"No," she said, sounding pleased rather than disappointed, "Well, I never intended to. Daughter is not exactly the role I was looking for." Then, thoughtfully, "There is still the bear…"
"Iorek?!" the hare asked, with a surprised laugh, then, "Good luck."
"Thank you!" Anna Koskinen answered.
"Good luck for what?" the girl whispered towards the man, and then, "What does she want from Iorek?"
"Er…" said the man, and Anna Koskinen was fascinated by the fact that it was not embarrassment that stilled his tongue, but genuine confusion. His hare sighed again.
"She's interested in a relationship," the hare explained.
"Oh," said the man, the word long and drawn out, then he glanced in her direction and said, "Things make so much more sense now."
"No, they don't," the girl said. "She wants a relationship with Iorek? How would that even work?"
And now the man's face started to turn red, and this time his 'er' was most definitely related to embarrassment.
The hare laughed, then her ear twitched and she said, "Oh…you are going to be so annoyed."
The man did not seem to hear her, still staring at the child and fumbling for a reply. "I guess…well…what do you think a relationship means?"
"En't that when a man and a woman make eyes at each other, and want to kiss all the time, and then they get married. Only my parents didn't because Mr. Coulter was already married to Mr. Coulter…and they…" she trailed off, either not knowing or not feeling comfortable talking about how she was conceived.
"Well," said, the man, "Sort of. Relationship just means a…a connection between two people. Sometimes two people enjoy each other's company just…being together. They don't all end in marriage."
"And she wants that with Iorek?" the girl repeated, as if that were the most ridiculous idea she had ever heard.
"Who wants what with Iorek?" asked an unexpected voice, deep and sleepy. The bear had joined them after all.
"Oh, now look what we did, with all our talking and shouting," the man grumbled.
"Iorek!" the girl exclaimed, and then, chiding, "You are meant to be sleeping."
"I heard a stranger's voice," the bear said, and looked in Anna Koskinen's direction. "I see now it is not a stranger."
"I came with a gift," Anna Koskinen answered, gesturing towards the deer, and then waiting to see if the girl was correct and the bear would be annoyed. That would not be a perfect start to their relationship, but surely even a bear understood the concept of different cultures having differing value systems and could appreciate the gesture.
"I see," said the bear. He did not say thank you, but nor did he reject the gift, and Anna Koskinen accepted that as a win.
"Told you," said the girl, clearly taking it as a win too, and Anna Koskinen magnanimously allowed her to feel her victory. The man sighed. The bear lumbered towards him.
"You have been up too long," said the bear, bringing his face close to the man's.
"No, I haven't," the man answered, twice as snappish as the tones he took with the girl when she tried to get him to sit. "I am fine. I have been sleeping and sitting for days and days and being up and walking a bit will do me good. And you only got about seven hours, and you could do with another seven."
"There was an unknown voice," the bear repeated, and the man sighed, then leaned forward, putting his hand on the bear's head.
"What did I tell you," asked Kaisa. "Sky-iron." And then, quite smugly to Anna's eyes, the bird flew down and settled his body next to the bear daemon and the hare. Anna Koskinen glanced at her Aake to see if he felt inclined towards daemon snuggling, but he stayed on his branch.
"You will have a time getting airborne from there," he called to Kaisa.
"No, I won't," Kaisa answered, and he definitely sounded smug. "The bear will give me a boost."
Anna Koskinen looked at the little family, huddled around the man, their daemons intertwined, and decided she was absolutely right. This was going to be interesting. She was so glad she decided to come. And she could help them, too. She had brought a deer, and she knew the way to where Lord Asriel awaited his daughter (would Lord Asriel and Lee Scoresby…now that would be truly interesting…and they did have the girl in common between them).
And maybe the bear would be interested once he was more awake.
Smiling, humming to herself, she let the little family bully the man into returning to rest while she busied herself in preparing the deer.
This was a wonderful idea.