The Raven and the Reindeer

by T. Kingfisher

“Are you a he-raven or a she-raven?” “I am a raven,” said Mousebones, “and the rest is none of your business, as we’ll not be having eggs together.”

“No one wants true stories. They want stories with truth dusted over them, like sugar on a bun.”

“Many things are real,” said Janna. “It does not mean that all the tales told about them are.”

“Words are like fish and you catch them and you get to keep them forever.”

“This is why you don’t mate with your nestmates,” said Mousebones pragmatically. “It’s always ‘Oh, yes, and remember the time you ate that cricket that I was supposed to get?’ for the rest of your life.” He paused, and then added, “Well, that and the inbreeding.”