The Sojourning Six

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"I can keep you safe from your sister. We'll go to a place far away from her and you'll be safe." Avril crossed her fingers as she spoke. This little person was going to be more difficult that Keimal. "Would you like to go on a trip and see new places?"

 

"Why? I mean what's in it for me, is there any treasure? I won't have to do anything dangerous will I... " whined Zed still unsure whether he should run or not.

 

"There will be treasure, of course, and you won't have to do anything dangerous." Avril knelt down and turned on the charm. "Please say you'll come with me?"

 

"Well I don't suppose a little way would hurt, as long as nothing frightens me. You're quite nice by the way what did you say your name was?"

 

Burkey tootles a little tune of welcome. "Welcome to you. Don't worry you'll be quite safe with us." He snuggles a little closer to Avril (the other side from the giant).

 

Avril smiles, happy that near disaster was averted for now. Sometimes this vision questing is for the birds. "I need to find a pixie. Keimal, these are your woods, do you know of any pixies living close by?"

 

"A pixie. You need a pixie. OF WHAT POSSIBLE USE COULD -" Keimal stormed before catching himself. Then he mumbled quietly, "Sometimes, your only rational choice is to bow to the absurd." Aloud, he said, "I'm sorry. I'm just beginning to wonder if I shirked my duties on the word of a madwoman. But it doesn't matter; if I go back now it'd be worse than if I went with you, and I still can't help but wonder what this whole damn thing is about. The nearest pixie community is 5 miles to the north. We needn't travel fast, though, as they won't be awake until nightfall and I guarantee you we don't want to get there before then. Not that it'll be all that pleasant anyway..."

 

"Wouldn't a nice nymph be better company? A centaur might come in handy and can be a lot of fun. Pixie's are a bit flighty don't you think?"

Burkey rumages around in his pouches hoping to find a forgotten bottle of wine, not finding one he eyes Avril lecherously.

"Gorgeous one, if we must take our time getting to this pixie prehaps you and I could take a little detour into those lovely bushes?"

 

"We really should be going!" she said in a flustered tone. "To the north, you say? Well, let's shake a leg."

 

Zed meanwhile had found a really cozy spot of grass under the tree with some nice sunlight, he was warm and thus drowsy; he was falling nicely asleep he could catch up with the big people later. If it was still important when he woke up.

 

Avril noticed the little guy was napping in a patch of sunshine. She motioned to the others to wait and be quiet. When Zed fell asleep, she picked him up and carried him like a baby.

 

After waiting for Zed to fall asleep and Avril to pick him up, Keimal motioned to Burkey and Avril to follow him. They walked for a couple hours, with Burkey nimbly dancing through the forest but never straying too far from Avril. The sun set, with the full moon rising behind it, and finally Keimal motioned for them to halt, scanning the trees. "They're hrrmph."

The second word that Keimal had intended to say was "here", but it didn't come out too well through the bag that was draped over his head. He stumbled a step, tripping over Burkey, and chittering laughter could be heard coming from the high branches as he fell on his behind. With a growl that woke the sleeping Zed, Keimal tore the bag off of his head and stared balefully up into the canopy. A sidelong glance at Avril and the cowering Zed were all he spared as he grumbled, "They must have just awoken; that was mean-spirited and not very original."

Looking again up into the leaves above, Keimal called, "We wish only to travel peacefully to your community and join you in your celebration of the full moon. The satyr may even have a bottle of wine to share." After a moment, Keimal took the silence as assent and began walking again. Soon, they entered a moonlit glade where a dozen pixies danced about in the air, joined soon by the three who had played the trick on Keimal. But out of the fifteen, one broke away from the group and cautiously approached the four strangers.

 

Zed had his face pressed into the lady, he was thinking of crying but then realised that the bits of the lady he was pressing into were quite soft. Soon he was asleep again.

 

Avril, discombobulated, met the approacher with caution. "Greetings. I am Avril, a druid, and seek one of your brethren to join me on a holy quest."

 

"HAHAHA..." A tiny voice could be heard on the middle of the group, but you could not see anything, then a few seconds later you see a small pixie laughing,

"I'm sorry, but I have never seen such an awkward group before, a Wood Giant, a Satyr, and whatever that gremlin looking thing is...*chuckle*, the only normal thing is you, my dear druid"

The pixie went invisible again and fly towards Avril and re-appear over her shoulder, "Joke aside, a Holy quest you said, and you are looking for a pixie to help you with it. OK? question then, why in the world would you find/want a pixie like me or any of my other sister n' brothers here to help you?"

He then flew to the other shoulder and waited for a answer

 

Burkey eyes Zed curled up in those nice cushions on Avril's chest. He then warily eyes the pixie., "Good question that. Why do you want a pixie to help with this quest especially a holy one?"

"Doesn't matter to me." and he returns to playing merry little tunes and eyeing Avril's cusions.

[ April 10, 2006, 01:41: Message edited by: Nakia ]

 

Maintaining a coolness with a pixie on her shoulder, a fremlin against her chest and a satyr staring at her chest, Avril replied, "Why not?"

 

?Why not you ask?? The pixie once again goes invisible just to reappear in front of the druid. ?Well let me see, first to able *giggle* you seem to have your hands full *giggle*; outside from that, you already have a big wood and should I add very serious giant, then the Satyr which for the looks of it has great admiration for you, then we have you, a must beautiful and I bet powerful druid!. You even seem to have a pet or something?

The pixie flies over the fremlin, then faces the druid

?Anyway, what?s in it for me, after all I?m just a scavenger!?

[ April 13, 2006, 01:13: Message edited by: Maurolava ]

 

Avril was frustrated and her anger came through in her voice. "What's in it for you? I have no bloody idea! I've been asked to gather people I don't know to join me on a quest I know nothing about by gods who refuse to give me informative visions!" She glared. "I asked and explained to the best of my ability. If that is not good enough, then I will leave you with your people. I tire of arguing about this."

She set Zed down in the grass and set her direction towards that of her home lake. She listened for noise of someone following and heard nothing. With a sigh, she touched her necklace and willed the change. Her armor and pack fell to the ground as her body compacted itself to that of her swan form. Shaking her new feathers, Avril launched in the air and beat her wings to gain height.

 

Keimal was startled at first by Avril's response, but it faded quickly and he smiled at her fire. No doubt she took it the wrong way, though, as she stormed off. Looking around, he issued curt orders.

"You," he said, pointing at Burkey and then indicating Zed, "take care of him until I get back." Keimal stopped and listened for a split-second, until he heard the faint flutter of tiny wings. Unerringly grabbing the pixie by the neck, he muttered, "And you're coming with me. We're both going to apologize, and if you don't, I will be very unhappy."

Moving silently through the forest in the direction Avril had taken, Keimal quickly found her trail and caught up with his long strides. But before he could emerge from the trees, Avril stopped and sighed, and Keimal stopped too, though he knew not why. Even the pixie seemed to respect the stillness of the moment, and both watched as Avril raised her hand to her chest. The transformation was startling, and it was a moment before Keimal regained his senses and reacted.

But by that time the swan had already launched herself into the air. Remembering the pixie held in one fist, Keimal whispered, "Follow her, but keep out of sight. There is more to this than we know, and I want to find out what secrets she keeps." Remembering the pixies' fickle nature, he added, "Don't you want to find out, too?" before releasing his grip. With nothing else to do, Keimal sat down to wait as the sound of beating wings faded into the night sky.