The woman reached down and gently plucked Hania from the web, cradling her in her arms carefully, her clawed fingers positioned so the sharp points didn't touch Hania's skin. "There we go," she cooed. "Safe and sound. You gave me quite a fright, little one."
I gave you a fright?! You're the one who appeared in my room in the middle of the night with knife hands!
But the woman was rocking her gently now, humming a lullaby.
Suddenly the nursery door burst open.
Kofery stood in the doorway, breathing hard, his hair disheveled. His eyes were wide with panic, and his hands were glowing with bright blue light, crackling with energy. His usually gentle expression was gone.
Wait. Is that— Is Kofery about to fight?!
"Step away from the child," Kofery said, his voice completely different from the soft, worried tone he usually used.
Kofery?! You?! The man who panics about conjured milk?!
The woman turned to face him, still holding Hania. She didn't look alarmed. If anything, she looked... amused. "Oh my," she purred. "The Archmage keeps a guard dog. How unexpected."
"I said step away." The blue light in Kofery's hands intensified. Hania could feel the mana radiating from him now.
The woman smiled wider. "Make me."
Kofery's hands moved in a blur, drawing symbols in the air. The blue light shot forward in concentrated beams.
The woman moved faster. She spun, one hand still cradling Hania, the other shooting out webbing that intercepted the beams and redirected them into the wall. The beams hit the stone with explosive force, leaving scorch marks.
Kofery didn't stop. He was already moving, his feet carrying him in a combat stance Hania had never seen from him before. More symbols and light. A barrage of magical attacks that came so fast they blurred together.
The woman dodged and weaved, laughing, still holding Hania securely. Every movement was graceful, dance-like. Her dress flowed around her like water. "Is this the best the Archmage's dog can do?" she teased, shooting webbing from her free hand that Kofery barely avoided.
"I'm just getting started," Kofery growled.
He slammed both hands against the floor. Blue light spread out in a circle from the point of impact, racing across the stone, forming a magical array that Hania recognized from Dravin's books.
A binding spell.
The woman's eyes widened slightly. "Oh. You do have some skill." She jumped high, landing on the ceiling. Her feet stuck there like gravity had reversed for her alone. "But you're holding back," the woman said, looking down at them from above. "Because you're afraid of hurting the baby. How noble. How... exploitable."
She dropped from the ceiling, spinning in mid-air. Webbing shot out in every direction, creating a three-dimensional net that filled the room.
Kofery had to stop his casting to dodge, rolling to the side as strands of web tried to bind his arms.
The woman landed gracefully, holding Hania in one arm while her free hand gestured lazily, sending more webbing toward Kofery. "You know," she said conversationally as Kofery struggled to avoid the sticky strands, "you're quite attractive when you're serious. That anxious puppy act you put on usually is cute, but this..." She made an appreciative sound. "This is much better."
Kofery's face went red. "I am not..."
"Oh, don't be shy." The woman sent another web strand, this one wrapping around Kofery's ankle. She yanked, and he stumbled. "I'm simply appreciating the view."
Is she... is she flirting with him?! In the middle of a fight?!
"Stop talking and fight properly!" Kofery managed to cut the web with a blade of compressed air magic.
"But where's the fun in that?" The woman moved closer, her movements predatory and playful at once. "Besides, you're the one who's distracted. I'm perfectly focused."
She was right. Kofery was flustered now, his attacks less precise, his movements more defensive. The woman circled him like a cat playing with prey. Every time he tried to create distance, she closed it. Every time he tried to launch an attack, she was already moving, her body swaying in ways that made him hesitate for just a fraction of a second.
"Your shoulders are very nice," she commented, dodging a blade of wind magic. "Do you exercise? Or is it all the running around after the Archmage?"
"Stop It!" Kofery's entire face was crimson now.
"Stop what? I'm merely making observations." She reached out with her free hand, her clawed fingers brushing against his collar as he tried to dodge. Trailing down the front of his robe slowly. Kofery jerked back like he'd been burned.
Oh my God. She's not trying to kill him. She's trying to make him die of embarrassment.
The woman laughed, delighted. "So fun! No wonder the Archmage keeps you around. You're adorable when you're flustered."
"I am a combat mage!" Kofery protested, launching another attack that she avoided with minimal effort.
"Yes, yes. Very impressive. Those hand movements especially." Her eyes gleamed as she watched him draw another spell symbol. "Very... dexterous. I appreciate a man with skilled hands."
Hania watched all of this with growing realization. So this is what Kofery is really like. No wonder he follows Dravin. No wonder Dravin keeps him around. Lemons grow on lemon trees. Never on mango trees.
The fight was intensifying now. Kofery had apparently decided to ignore the harassment and focus on technique. His magic was beautiful, actually. But the woman was faster, stronger, and clearly enjoying herself far too much.
She got close too close, enough that Kofery couldn't use wide-range attacks without hitting himself. Close combat. Which apparently was her specialty and his weakness. Especially when she kept running her clawed fingers along his arms, his shoulders, down his spine, anywhere she could reach while simultaneously trying to bind him with webbing.
"You know," she said, ducking under a desperate punch and trailing her hand along his chest, "I really do appreciate the effort. It's been ages since someone gave me a proper workout."
Kofery actually squeaked.
I can't blame her, Hania thought, watching from her position. I mean, I feel you, spider lady. When he's not being flustered and he's just moving like that— No. Focus. There's a fight happening.
The woman suddenly launched herself upward, lifting Hania high into the air. Webbing shot out from her hands, creating a cushioned platform suspended from the ceiling.
She placed Hania on it gently, then wove more webbing around the platform, forming a protective dome. "There we go, little one," she said, her voice still sweet despite the combat happening below. "Safe and sound. Now you can enjoy the show."
Enjoy the—What?!
The woman dropped back down, and this time she wasn't playing anymore.
Her movements changed. Faster and more aggressive. She moved like water and lightning combined, her dress shifting and changing until Hania realized it was made of webbing, and it was moving with her, extending her reach.
Kofery had to step up his game. The blue light around his hands intensified to almost white. He was drawing symbols fast. Barriers appeared and shattered. Blades of compressed air sliced through webbing. Explosive bursts of force created shockwaves. The room was being destroyed. The woman got inside his guard again, her body pressed close to his as she spun, her hand sliding along his waist, her breath against his ear as she whispered something that made his entire face go scarlet.
"You—that's—I can't—" Kofery was barely coherent now.
The air in the room suddenly changed. The ambient mana that had been chaotic from the fight suddenly went still. Both Kofery and the woman froze.
The nursery door, which had been hanging half off its hinges, opened fully.
Dravin walked in. He looked at the destroyed room. At Kofery, breathing hard, covered in minor cuts and webbing, his face still red. At the woman, still smiling but now very still. At the dome of webbing suspended from the ceiling with Hania inside it. "Lushaberianalilithiana," he said.
The woman's smile vanished instantly. Her eye twitched. "It's Lushaberianalalilithiana," she said, "Beriana. LA. Not NA. How many times do I have to correct you?"
"That's what I... " Dravin paused. Frowned slightly. "Lushaber... iana..."
"BeRIANALAlilithiana," she emphasized.
"That's what I said."
"It's not what you said! You always do this! Every single time! It's been thirty-seven years and you still can't pronounce my name correctly!"
Dravin's frown deepened. "Your name is unnecessarily long."
"My name is traditional! It honors my lineage! My mother's mother's mother chose each syllable with—" She stopped herself, taking a breath. "You know what? Fine. You've been mispronouncing it for nearly four decades. Why would tonight be any different?"
"I'm not mispronouncing it. You're being overly sensitive about syllable stress."
"Syllable stress?! There's an entire missing 'la' sound! That's not stress, that's omission!"
Kofery was staring at both of them like he'd stepped into an alternate dimension. Hania was trying not to laugh, which was hard, since she was a baby and laughing just came out as weird gurgling sounds.
"Regardless," the woman said, clearly forcing herself to move on, "you didn't need to kill my children to inform me you wanted to talk. A simple message would have sufficed."
Wait. WHAT? He killed her children?!
"They attacked first," Dravin said flatly. "If you taught them proper behavior, I wouldn't have had to discipline them."
"Discipline." The woman's smile returned. "You fed their mother to them. That's quite the lesson."
"It was effective. They were much more polite the next time I visited your territory."
Oh my God. The spider in the cave. That was one of her children. What kind of relationship is this?!
"Regardless," the woman continued, her tone shifting to more businesslike, "I received your message. Though I was surprised. You, asking me to become a nanny? Have all the humans died? Is the world ending?"
Kofery made a choking sound. "Master, you invited her?!"
"Yes."
"WHY?!"
Dravin's hand moved in a casual gesture. The webbing dome dissolved, and Hania floated gently down into his arms. He caught her without looking, his eyes still on the spider woman. "Because she's qualified," he said simply.
"She's a spider monster!"
"She's the Spider Queen," Dravin corrected. "She commands an entire network of caves beneath three mountain ranges. She's over four hundred years old and raised hundreds of children successfully." He looked at the woman. "Don't you."
The spider woman's expression softened slightly. "I do." She smiled at Hania. "And now you want me to watch over this little one?"
"Yes."
"Why her?" Kofery demanded. "Master, there are humans who could do that."
"Name one human I trust with my daughter's safety," Dravin interrupted.
"I... there's... the Mage Council has—"
"The Mage Council has spies and political ambitions. Lushaberi—" He paused. "Lushaber..."
"Uhh. Just call me Lusha!" the woman interrupted, throwing her hands up. "Everyone else does! I give up! You're never going to pronounce it correctly!"
"I was pronouncing it correctly."
"There's a missing syllable, Dravin!"
They glared at each other. Hania was definitely making laughing sounds now. Dravin looked down at her, then back at Lusha. "Lusha doesn't care about human politics," he continued. "Which makes her trustworthy in ways most humans aren't."
He looked at the spider woman, Lusha. "Room and board provided. You'll have quarters in the West Wing. Your duties include assisting with childcare, general Tower security, and whatever else Kofery needs help with."
Even though Hania was currently frustrated with her father for everything, she looked up at Lusha when the woman stepped closer. The spider queen smiled down at her.
"Hello again, little moon." Her voice was gentle now. "You can call me Lusha. Much easier than my full name, which apparently no one can pronounce correctly."
She shot Dravin a pointed look. He ignored it. Lusha reached out her hand toward Hania, offering something like a handshake. Then froze. She looked at her own clawed nails. "Oh. I'm sorry. I didn't think—these might hurt or even scare you."
Before anyone could respond, her form shimmered. The transformation was like watching water reform itself. The claws retracted smoothly, her nails becoming normal, rounded, painted a subtle silver. Her dress shifted from flowing spider silk to more normal noble lady cloth. Even her eyes changed, the gold becoming less luminous, more natural, still beautiful but less otherworldly.
"There," she said softly, extending her hand to Hania again. "Better?"
Hania stared at the transformed woman. You can just... change your appearance? Just like that? That's cool.
Lusha smiled like she'd heard the thought. Behind her, Kofery was having a complete breakdown. "Master, please," he begged, his voice cracking slightly. "We can manage! We don't need her! I can handle it! I can—I'll work harder! I'll sleep less!"
"You conjured milk fourteen times yesterday," Dravin said flatly, "because you weren't sure if the first thirteen attempts were safe enough."
Kofery's mouth snapped shut. "She stays. Hania needs supervision when I can't provide. You need assistance you won't ask for. Lusha needs" He glanced at the woman. "What do you need?"
"Entertainment," Lusha said cheerfully. "Your Tower is never boring. And I haven't had a proper challenge in decades." She looked at Kofery with appreciation. "Your d... student is delightful."
"There. Everyone benefits," Dravin concluded.
"Master, you can't..."
"I can. I did and it's done." Dravin looked at Kofery, "She won't harm you. She's just playful."
"PLAYFUL?! She was—she kept—her hands were—" Kofery couldn't seem to finish any sentence.
"Go to bed, Kofery. It's late. We'll discuss arrangements tomorrow."
Kofery looked like he wanted to argue more but then he looked at Hania and made a sound of complete defeat and fled.
Dravin watched him go, then looked at Lusha. "Harm her, and I'll turn you into silk thread."
"I would never," Lusha said, sounding genuinely offended. "I adore children. Especially magical ones." She beamed at Hania. "We're going to have so much fun together."