"It is," she said quietly. "And if I ever become human enough to cry, then no magic in the world can change me back." It was what Schmendrick said to her when she had tears threatening in her eyes, when she was in a fit of despair and loneliness. She hadn't felt the sting of them yet in Darrow, but she feared the sadness that could swallow her whole and leave her without a memory of what she'd been.

She stroked back Greta's hair and gently tipped her chin up. "A magician told me that there can be no happy endings, because nothing ever truly ends," she murmured. "Perhaps a happy ending isn't what you need look for... but a happy middle. You could have that story here."