Getting the Band Back Together

Abagail and Kari ran out of the castle, trying to figure out a plan as they went. Each were clutching what they could of their belongings, stuffing them into bags.

“Horse. We need a horse,” said Abagail. “Where does this moron keep the horses?! There!” The two ran to a nearby stable, rapidly putting a saddle on the best horse they could find. “How much time do we have before he kills Kyle?”

“The Prince said he’d be dead by the time we were to be married,” explained Kari. “That’s two days to the wedding and however long it would take for us to arrive.”

Abagail pulled herself onto the horse and helped Kari get on. “Any idea how we’re supposed to get there in time?” She wasn’t bothering to wait for an answer, sending the horse into a full sprint down the street and past the magical armors telling them to slow down.

Kari hefted her staff, its jewel glowing bright and caressing the horse’s sides. “Hold on tight!” She grabbed Abagail to steady herself.

As the horse crossed the threshold into the wilderness beyond town, two angelic wings erupted from the horse and began to flap. The horse left the ground, bucking around as they ascended higher and higher into the sky until it seemed to get the hang of flying about in the air.

Abagail looked down at the ground far below, whistling. “How did you do that?”

“This transfiguration is one our family passed down from generation to generation.” The horse gently flew forth in the air, letting the women enjoy the feeling of the wind blowing through their hair.

“…Wait a minute.” Abagail turned around. “You could have done this the whole time?!” She began violently shaking Kari. “We wasted so much freaking time!”

“I – was – having – too – much – fun!” Kari gasped. “I did not want the experience to end! And how dare you try to shame me for wasting time! You are a witch, you have a thousand ways to earn the money to restore your home, all of which are more productive than harassing Sir Kyle!”

Abagail held up her hands. “Alright, chill! We called truce for a reason.” She pulled out her mother’s spellbook and showed it to Kari. “When I first met Kyle, I accidentally cast this ritual on him instead of the usual one people cast to bless customers. If my mother’s notes are right, then whatever this ‘Isekai Ritual’ is, she cast it on the Prince years and years ago.”

“How will that information help us?” asked Kari.

“I don’t know, but there’s only one person alive who’ll know for sure.” Abagail commanded the horse to fly forth. “I was hoping I wouldn't have to pay her a visit…”

------

The earth beneath Abagail and Kari began to darken as grasslands gave way to wetlands and swamps.

“We’re close,” said Abagail. “Let’s start finding a way to get down safely.”

The horse, seeming to hear that, gently started to glide on its wings. The stench of the swamp grew stronger with each second, the air growing warm and humid. They landed on one of the rare parts above water, an island surrounded by waist-deep water that no one wanted to set foot in.

“Did you grow up in this?” Kari tapped her foot on the water’s surface, recoiling from the noises she was hearing.

“Nah,” said Abagail. “My mother moved out here once I started living on my own. Apparently when you’re three hundred years old, you tend to want a decade or two to yourself.”

Kari heard the number and wasn’t sure she heard that right. “Is your mother an elf?”

“Nope. Pure human.”

“...Then how is she three hundred years old?”

“I asked her that once.” Abagail pulled out her wand and pointed it at the water. The ice gradually began to freeze and thicken until a makeshift ice raft was floating in the middle of the swamp. She tentatively stepped onto the raft and helped Kari get on with her.

“And?”

Abagail pointed her wand behind her, generating a small gust of wind that pushed them around on the raft. “She smiled and told me not to ask questions I didn’t want the answer to.”

-----

The ice raft continued to float through the swamp, gently moving whichever way Abagail commanded the wind. The magic seemed to keep the ice from melting, which was the only solace the women had. Because the mugginess was miserable.

Kira had shorn off most of her robes, revealing what Kyle would have called a ‘tank top’ as the base layer of her outfit. “Are you certain you know where your mother lives?”

“Certain-ish,” admitted Abagail admitted. “I’ve never visited.”

“Never?”

“Nah.”

“So how will we know when we find her?”

The raft passed a wall of reeds, bumping into a mound of moss. The moss slowly turned and two glowing yellow eyes opened, staring at the women.

Kari nearly screamed but Abagail remained calm. “Call it a hunch.”

A small figure hopped down from the moss beast’s top. She was about half of Kari and Abagail’s height; a stout woman with hair every color of the rainbow that seemed to change when the light hit it differently. She was wearing a wide-rimmed black hat with a long black coat stretched by a healthy chest, a beaked mask hanging around her neck. “Abby! Sweetie, it’s been too long!” Her voice was sweet and sugary and Abagail was already regretting this. Abagail was regretting it even more when the small figure jumped impossibly high and latched onto her in a rib-crushing hug.

Kari was rolling around on the ice raft, unable to help herself from laughing.

“Stooooooooooop!” Abagail pried the woman loose, plopping her down on the raft with them. “Can you please at least be a bit more… you know!”

“Oh, but sweetie, it’s been too long! I can always make time for my youngest!”

“…The one you grew out of other people and in a tube,” Abagail sniped.

“And I still love you anyway~” Her attention came to Kari. “And who’s this? Hello, I’m Meredith. I’m so glad to finally meet my daughter’s girlfriend.”

Kari’s laughter immediately stopped, and she scrambled back onto her feet. Impressive, given the ice. “WHAT?!”

“PLEASE.” Abagail tried to compose herself. “We need your help.”

“You’ll have to wait, dear. I’ve got someone dealing with a nasty swamp ogre problem and I can't be bothered until the job’s done.”

Abagail and Kari looked around. “It doesn’t look like you’re doing much.”

“Oh no,” Meredith smiled. “I hired someone to handle it for me.”

A green humanoid with two tube-like ears and wearing a plain tunic was sent tumbling through the swamp, coming to a stop in front of everyone. He got up, looking heavily bloodied. “I told you,” he grunted, “I don’t like sharing my swamp!”

A red hand yanked him back and punched him in the face, sending him flying again through the swamp. That hand was Fiona’s, who had eschewed her usual armor thanks to the heat for something closer to swimwear.

“I hate dealing with my cousins… Oh. Hi. Abagail! Kari! What brings you two here?”