The Nominal Hero, chapter 13: After
Everything had gone quiet. An expectant hush lay over the crowd of Nouns, and over the human audience as well. A few flakes of snow drifted down. And out of the woods came the witches. They should have looked silly, Caden thought: twelve identical people with heads like cartoon toadstools, gazing out from behind square glasses like the ones Caden--(he touched his face)--like the ones Caden used to have. But instead the witches only looked otherworldly, their strangeness adding to their dignity somehow. It was Mushroom who broke the stillness. They jumped down from the stage and strode to the border of the trees, and spoke rapidly and urgently to the witches, in a low voice that Caden couldn’t hear. The witches swayed in unison, listening, and then a few of the closest inclined their heads in what might have been agreement. Mushroom bowed, and came back. “What was that about?” Caden asked quietly. Mushroom shook their head. “Later.” “Okay, but what--” Masami began, but then sto