“My face is not that expressive!”

“You went to all that trouble just for my body?" I said, amazed and so grateful.Reyn looked up, irritation on his face. "Yeah. We were going to have you stuffed, as an example to future students."I grinned, "You could put me on wheels, move me from room to room.”

“Yes. Reyn is our resident horse master. He has an excellent seat."I grinned. "I've noticed."Reyn's face tightened and Nell flushed, looking embarrassed. "It's an equestrian term.""Really? I thought you were talking about his ass.”

“Oh my God, can you see me? I thought I was wearing my invisibility cloak.”

“Could he actually be my muirn beatha dan?”

“Of course, when we got home, we found that Dagda had peed on my down comforter. He had also eaten part of Mom's maidenhair fern and barfed it up on the carpet. Then he had apparently worked himself into a frenzy sharpening his ting by amazingly effective claws on the armrest of my dad's favorite chair. Now he was asleep on a pillow, curled up like a fuzzy little snail. "God, he's so cute," I said, shaking my head.”

“Over my dead body, I thought. Yes, even immortals use that phrase. It has extra oomph for us.”