"You know, I asked that same thing, and I was told it also wasn't recommended to learn in too much detail why you shouldn't talk to Machine Elves.  - And I'm not sure what you mean by 'literally'?  You growing up hearing legends and tales, you know, you don't even think to ask which ones are true until you're... 8, or 11, I'm not sure when I really woke up in that way.  If you're 7, and your blood-father is a mystery and some unknown evil killed your mother, you're expecting your father to turn up in the next verse and for the unknown evil to kill him off two verses later.  It took me a while to realize that single mothers are pretty common, and so are random burglars who kill your relatives while you're still too young to remember them."  Haroun's voice is only faintly bitter.

"You know, I asked that same thing, and I was told it also wasn't recommended to learn in too much detail why you shouldn't talk to Machine Elves.  - And I'm not sure what you mean by 'literally'?  You grow up hearing legends and tales, you know, you don't even think to ask which ones are true until you're... 8, or 11, I'm not sure when I really woke up in that way.  If you're 7, and your blood-father is a mystery and some unknown evil killed your mother, you're expecting your father to turn up in the next verse and for the unknown evil to kill him off two verses later.  It took me a while to realize that single mothers are pretty common, and so are random burglars who kill your relatives while you're still too young to remember them."  Haroun's voice is only faintly bitter.