Husband of the Goblin Tribe

[Interludes Vol. 1.5] In which we meet Ebony, the Little Lord of Bones

~~** Interlude | Ebony **~~

“You, Ebony, little sister goblin. Me, Button, big sister goblin. Job big sister goblin teach little sister goblin how be goblin.”

“Okay! Ebony listen Button!”

Most of my sisters can remember the day they came into the world. For me, that’s not the case at all. My first real memory was when I met my big sister, Button. Unlike other goblins, both Button and I have two maker goblins—Ivory and Truffle.

Truffle is a lazy goblin who is almost never angry. Her favorite things in the world are mushrooms, Husband, and her strong-ones, in that order. As for Ivory, she is usually angry about all sort of things, and is only ever lazy when she’s done making things out of bones and starts drinking blue water.

While Ivory is busy making things out of bones almost every day, Truffle will teach me all about mushrooms as I lay down next to her and sometimes Button who stops in for milkies. While I like mushrooms well enough, I do like bones more. I can sometimes hear them say things like they want to be friends with me when I touch them. Ivory says I’m stupid since bones don’t talk, and Truffle says that sometimes when she has a good batch of color-spin-think powder, she thinks she can hear the mushrooms talk, but the only person who seems to believe me without question, is Button.

“You hear bones talk in your head? That sounds like how Glace talks to me.”

Glace is my older sister as well, and also the Shaman of the Bloodmaw Tribe. She doesn’t talk aloud at all, instead using my sister to speak for her. She’s also able to use special magic similar to Husband and Vera to do all sorts of amazing things. Button says she can’t use magic without Glace, but I can use it a little, mostly to make bones move on their own like they want to.

Ivory gets mad at me sometimes when I use magic to make the bones in her room move. So, the only thing I’m allowed to use it on is Gogok and Shumi, the bone charms which belong to me and Button. Button says she’s going to be an adult goblin soon, so she doesn’t need Shu-mi as much anymore, and wants her to have a friend who will play with her.

There is one bone I want to play with the most, but Ivory never lets me. It’s a special thin black bone with something wrapped around it. It’s on a shelf way up high that I can’t reach, and one time when I tried to, Ivory caught me and spanked my butt really hard.

I don’t like being spanked, and I don’t like Ivory anymore!

Button says she understands exactly what I’m feeling. She also told me that she was spanked by Ivory many times when she was a little goblin and didn’t like it either.

Since I’m a little goblin, I can’t leave my cave-hole by myself just yet. Truffle or Ivory will follow me to the shit-pit if I have to go, or otherwise, unless another goblin or Husband visits my cave-hole, I have to wait for Button to take me places.

One of the places I like to go is Old One’s cave-hole.

Old One is really nice to me. She says I’m a special goblin, just like Husband does. Because I have bone-magic, Old One says I’m something called a Bone Lord, a goblin who uses real Bloodmaw magic, and not wicked human magic. She then tells me stories about an old goblin called Bone-eyes, who was a really old goblin back when Old One was still only a little goblin strong-one herself!

According to Old One, Bone Lords are able to listen to and command bones. This is important, since the bones of the dead still carry the memories of the time when they were alive. She says most of what she knows about Bone Lords came from Stone-foot, her maker and the former Shaman of the tribe before the silver-skins attacked and killed everyone but us who came to Goblinhome.

After learning all about the Bloodmaw Tribe from Old One, she will bring me back to my cave-hole, but not before stopping off at my older sister Melon’s special cave-hole, called the kit-chin. Old One frowns at me sometimes when I order the tasty hamburger with plant-blood, instead of something that looks bloody, but Melon is quick to show Old One that there’s plenty of pink-colored bloody meat inside it, and so Old One doesn’t get as upset anymore.

Apparently there are goblins who are very opinionated on which is better; bloody-meat or fire-meat. I like both, but nothing beats a tasty hamburger made by Melon.

Husband also likes to visit me, sometimes bringing me to Melon’s kit-chin after taking me outside the cave and pushing me on the swings. I get to meet my other sisters a lot more when I’m outside and I have a whole bunch of them!

Diana Artemis, who is going to be the next Guardian of the tribe. She’s really good at hunting! I heard my other older sisters, Orchid and Lilac, tell stories about how she and Husband went hunting at night to kill a bunch of Black-claws who killed one of the adult goblins called Beast-talker and tried to kill Prima, Jewel, and Doll!

There’s also Game, Fun, and Figurine (who Button says is fine to just call her Rine). Game and Fun live with Toy and make all the fun games that goblins like to play when not busy. One of the latest games was a game called bones that involved rectangles with circles on them that needed to be matched up a certain way. It’s a sort of counting-game but I like anything that involves bones, even if they aren’t made out of them.

Button saw me having lots of fun playing the game with Game and Fun, and not even a few days later she had managed to give me a set of my own to play with, and even played a few games with me. Button is the best big sister!

Husband had come to visit our cave-hole the day after that and showed me a fun way to play with them when I was alone. He stood the bones up in a line and placed them a certain distance apart before having me tip one at the end over, causing the whole line of them to fall over in a fast and exciting way!

He couldn’t stay for long, though. As it turns out, he wanted to spend some time with me today because he would be staying in Pepper’s cave-hole for a while after this. When I asked why, he said it was because I would soon have a little sister coming into the world.

Button had explained to me once that Husband has an important job he does in the Bloodmaw Tribe. He goes around to all the cave-holes and helps adult goblins make strong-ones. That’s why he’s called Husband. Button told me when I become older like she is, we’ll also be able to make strong-ones with him.

Button and Truffle both consider Husband to be a mushroom-goblin like them, since he has a mushroom growing between his legs. I asked him if I could see it once, and he showed me, but said I couldn’t touch it. From how it looked though, I think there was a big fat bone inside instead of a soft and squishy mushroom. It made me think that Husband might be a bone-goblin like Ivory and me.

Anyway, since I wasn’t going to see Husband for a while, I asked him if he would do something for me.

“What Ebony want?”

I explained to him about wanting to see the special black bone Ivory kept on the shelf I couldn’t reach that she never let me touch. Husband went to find it and began laughing as he held it.

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“Mean this?”

I nodded.

“Not bone. Dead branch. Hmm… maybe… special tree bone?”

“Tree bone?”

Husband then explained the thin black bone once belonged to him and was a gift to him from his maker for using his magic. It was called a magic wand, and was made from a long dead branch of an important magic tree. When he let me hold it, I could hear the voice coming from the tree-bone very clearly in my head.

<<Little Lord. At long last we finally meet!>>

I told Husband the magic wand was talking to me in my head, and he smiled and patted my head in response.

“Ebony lucky. Have wand long time, never hear speak head.”

“Wand, why do you not talk to Husband?” I asked it.

<<How can I? His magic is stupidly… never mind. But your magic, Little Lord, is a perfect match to me.>>

“Husband, the wand says your magic is stupid. That’s why it didn’t talk to you.”

“Make sense.”

<<You don’t need to call me wand. The one over there gave me the name Yggdrasil, though, if you have a better name, I will be happy to receive it.>>

“Hmm, I’ll think of one.”

<<Very well.>>

“Ebony talk wand?” Husband asked, pointing at my new friend, Iggy.

I nodded in reply.

<<Little Lord, you must tell that one something important right now before your maker returns.>>

“Something important?”

<<Tell him that I must belong to you.>>

“Iggy says it belongs to me.”

“Iggy?”

I held out the magic wand in front of Husband.

“It said you gave it the name Iggy… um…”

“Yggdrasil?”

I nodded again. That name was too hard to say!

<<Tell him you will show him why.>>

“Iggy says I will show you why.”

Husband looked at the wand and then back to me.

“Alright. I’m watching.”

<<Go over to the pile of bones. we will make us a new friend, together. That one will understand once it is done.>>

“Make a new friend?”

Listening to Iggy, I walked over to the wall where almost all of the bones Ivory had in the cave-hole were kept. Iggy told me to focus my magic into the wand and it would do the rest.

“Can it be a friend who can climb and hunt well? Big sister Button is a hunter goblin. Ebony is going to be a hunter goblin, too!”

<<If that is your wish, then that is what our friend shall be!>>

I focused my magic into Iggy the magic wand and it began to glow. Many bones began to shake and rattle, moving themselves out of the boxes and shelves they had been resting in and came together one by one until our new friend, made entirely of bones, had taken shape.

“Ebony… what do?”

“Making a friend with Iggy!”

“Husband, do you know what this is?”

“Look like bone spider.”

<<It is done Little Lord. A replica of one of the children of Arachnida, she who weaves the Divine Web and guards the canopy of the Spirit Tree. There is no better climber and hunter in all the world.>>

“You’re kind of small for a friend… Can you climb?” I asked it.

I watched as my new friend moved about quickly and climbed up the closest thing to it—me! It climbed all the way up my body until it settled on top of my head.

“What about hunting?”

I felt it leap off of my head after I asked and jumped onto Husband’s arm, where it immediately began biting him.

“Wait! Don’t hunt Husband!!”

Husband was laughing as he held his arm out.

“Not hurt. Bitey here friend. Only show Ebony can hunt.”

It stopped biting Husband and walked to his hand before it spun around in place to face him. Then it raised one of its legs in front.

“Bitey?”

My new friend spun around in place again until it was facing me and raised one of its legs again. I could tell it was happy to see me.

“Seem like good name give. Not like?”

“No, I like it. Hello Bitey, I’m your friend, Ebony! That’s Husband, and he’s also your friend!”

Husband reached out and began to pet Bitey who flattened down onto his hand.

“Okay. See what Ebony mean wand belong. Speak Ivory when can about give wand Ebony. Not sure if listen... For now, put back, okay?”

I didn’t want to give the wand back, and Iggy didn’t want me to give it back, either. But, before I could, and I was going to, because I do listen to Husband since he doesn’t ever spank me, Ivory and Truffle had come back into the cave-hole after going out hunting for mushrooms.

“What are you holding in your hand!? You know that things on the top shelf aren’t for you to touch!”

Ivory began to yell at me as she quickly rushed over to yank Iggy out of my hand and immediately begin spanking my butt.

<<How dare you harm the Little Lord!!>>

I could still hear Iggy’s voice loud and clear. Iggy was very angry at Ivory, just like I was!

“No more spanking Ebony!!!” I yelled.

I felt the bones around me also become angry, and one of them… one that had been sharpened by Ivory earlier and was resting on the table that went into the wall where she would sit with Truffle, got mad and flew right at her face!

Husband was quick to reach out and grab hold of the bone right in the middle of the air before it poked her in the eye… if he hadn’t… Ivory would have been really hurt.

“You… tried to kill me!?”

I… I wasn’t trying to kill Ivory! I was only trying to get her to stop spanking me! I wanted to say something, to defend myself, but I was caught between my mouth hanging open mid-cry from my butt hurting and from complete surprise at what had happened.

“Ivory… no be angry. Ebony not mean what happen.” Husband said while stepping in between us.

“Stay out of this, Husband. Ebony is my strong-one!”

“Also mine. Why think this happen?” he said, waving the sharp bone he caught in front of her. “Ebony afraid Ivory. Afraid be spanked. Remember what do first find Button safe after think fall in shit-pit? First thing do is spank Button! Why need spank? Not able be calm, talk Ebony first? Button blame me long time for what Ivory do!”

Husband… was coming to my defense. Or at least trying to… I think.

“Then why did she have the black bone?”

“Ebony curious. Want see it. Say okay. Keep watch, make sure safe.”

“If I wanted her to have it, I would have given it to her!”

“Ivory… Ebony special goblin. Like bones same you. Not happy bones like Ebony? Not… proud strong-one bone-goblin like Truffle proud Button mushroom-goblin?”

Ivory threw the bone wand into Truffle’s side of the cave and grabbed Husband by the shoulders, digging her pointy fingers into them, and pushed him up against the wall.

“Don’t tell me what to do or who to be proud of! Who do you think keeps Truffle alive? Who did most of the raising of Button!? ME! That’s who!”

“Not argue that. Know Ivory do what say. But maybe way Ivory do… not best way!”

“…Fine. If Husband thinks he knows how to raise a bone-goblin better than a bone-goblin does… Then do it! Take Ebony and get out of my cave-hole!”

Ivory pushed herself away from Husband, leaving behind five lines of blood streaking down his arms from each of his shoulders.

“Ivory… not saying can do better. Only think better talk first, find better way not need spank strong-ones before have good reason…”

“GET OUT!”

Ivory pushed Husband right out of her cave-hole. Then she turned around and glared at me.

“What that?”

I followed her line of sight to my feet where Bitey was trying to… protect me.

“This is my friend, Bitey.”

“Made from bones you took without asking...”

Truffle had walked over to me and squatted down, holding a small mushroom out in front of Bitey.

“Does Bitey like mushrooms?”

Bitey didn’t seem all that interested in them. Ivory seemed to be mad that Truffle was being nice to Bitey.

“Truffle… what are you doing?”

“Anything that likes mushrooms can be friendly.”

“Why are you such a mushroom-head?”

Truffle shook her head before putting her hands on my shoulders and looking me right in the eyes.

“What do you want to do, Ebony?”

“Huh?”

“Want to stay with Husband for a while?”

“Truffle! What are you saying to Ebony?”

Truffle stood up and turned to face Ivory.

“I’ll say this clearly, so you realize what just happened here. I almost lost my tree, Bone-taker. If Husband hadn’t caught that bone, where would I be right now? What would happen to me? I know I’m a lazy mushroom-head goblin. Nobody knows that better than me, not even you! You were being a rock-head when Old One said she was a Bone Lord, and you’re being even more of a rock-head now! Ebony has magic. Magic that neither you, me, or Button know how to use! But Husband does. Glace does. Vera does. Let Ebony go stay in Husband’s cave-hole for a while. Let her learn how to use it the right way so that she doesn’t make a mistake and hurt you back for all the times you’ve hurt her, even if you think you were right in doing so. You and I were both spanked when we did things adult goblins didn’t want us to do… but maybe Husband knows a better way? All I know is that I can’t lose you, stupid meanie Bone-taker!”

“Mushroom-picker… do you think I’m that bad at teaching our strong-ones how to be goblins?”

“When did I say that? I’m the one who is no good at it! I push all the stuff I don’t want to do onto you. I do think it’s different with Ebony than it was with Button, and I think it might be different still when we have more strong-ones with Husband, but I don’t think you’re bad at it. But all of the strong-ones that Husband has made with us… are different and stronger than we were as strong-ones. Do you think you could defeat Diana Artemis even though you are many moons older? What about Orchid or Lilac? Even Shaman if she was serious?”

I watched Ivory frown at her words.

“She’s still a strong-one who can’t even walk Goblinhome on her own…”

“Button taught Glace how to walk Goblinhome. How to use the shit-pit. You were there to see it, weren’t you? Following behind them the entire time…”

“…”

“You can blame me if you need to. I will take care of it all, Bone-taker. My one and only tree.”

A few things happened quickly after that.

Ivory took one of her big pots full of blue water and went into her smaller cave-hole. Truffle had collected a few things of mine and the most important thing—Iggy, which she gave to me—and walked together with me to Husband’s cave-hole.

Husband agreed to take care of me, saying for now his cave-hole would be my new cave-hole. He also agreed to doing what he could when it came to teaching me how to control my magic, since he didn’t know the specifics of how my bone-magic worked. Button would continue to visit me, taking me places and teaching me all the things about being a goblin that Old One, Ivory, and Truffle didn’t.

Truffle said I could come to her for anything I needed—whether it be bones, mushrooms, or even milkies. Even if things were bad between Ivory and I, both she and Ivory were my makers, and until I was old enough to not need milkies anymore and get my own cave-hole, she would be there for me if I needed her.

Glace was nice to me at first, but when I had Bitey say hello to her by climbing up onto her head, she screamed a whole bunch and ran away while slapping herself. I don’t know why she doesn’t like Bitey, because Bitey likes her a whole lot!

Husband brought me to meet my little sister Mint when she came into the world together with Diana Artemis, Button, and Glace.

Seeing my newest little sister goblin, I finally understood how Button felt about me once I had become a big sister at last! And I knew exactly what it was that I needed to do here as a new big sister goblin. I had to give her an important memory to have so she knew who to trust!

“Mint, you are my little sister goblin. I am Ebony, your big sister goblin. It’s the job of a big sister goblin to teach her little sister goblin how be a goblin!”