Wheeling Gull Isle i've got wide, staring eyes

Reed was showy. She had been from the moment Maegi had met her. The way she tossed her head, strutted around--she reminded her, in a way, of Yew. They both put on an act, though Reed's was for the better, and Yew. . . If Maegi believed in hell, she would hope that Yew was burning there. Nevertheless, it rubbed her the wrong way, and she was always pleased when Reed dropped the veil and was finally genuine.

Maegi snorted at her observation, waggling her paw in rueful illustration. "Physically, I'm a mess," she responded, trying to make a dark joke out of it. She sighed, closing her eyes for a long moment. Tongue pressed hard against her teeth, trying to figure out how to say what she wanted to say next--and if she wanted to say it, at all.

"Can I tell you something I haven't told anyone else here?" she asked, tilting her head. Without waiting for an answer, she forged on gingerly, as if walking on hot coals. "My parents were brother and sister. My mother didn't want me or my brothers. She wanted us dead."

There. It was out in the open. She stood stock-still, giving Reed a gimlet stare, as if challenging her to react poorly.