Waking before the sun had done more than lightly tint the sky, I disentangled myself from the embrace of my lover of the night before. She made no protest and settled back into whatever dream she was having, and I slowly dressed, examining her in the pale morning light. She looked like carved ivory under the dark furs on the bed, and the pink light of the dawn made her hair look like spun gold.Lindar wrote:Ok, well, here's what I've got so far, and I hope that someone will give some advice as to what needs to be fixed, or elaborated or changed.*points at the word CHANGED and nods* Anything that needs changed, Please, please, please, please let me know.
She’d proved to be good company, but I couldn’t remember her name. Perhaps that was something that I would need to work on when I arrived at the next castle or manor. Knowing better than to leave her with nothing in return for the pleasure I had received, I pulled a ring from one of my pouches and placed it in her hand carefully. The stone in it, which was nothing more than glass, though I doubted she would care or note the difference unless someone told her, glowed like bottled dragons blood in the silver setting. She shifted a bit, blinking up at me in slight confusion.
“Shhhhh, Lady it’s alright. I just have to be on my way.” I leaned over and kissed her lightly, which caused her to turn a vibrant crimson. Oh how I loved that after giving me so much, they could show such emotion. “Thank you for everything.”
“Are you ever going to come back?” She asked with a hint of hope in her voice. A sound that, I heard often enough to know it well. They thought that after one night, they might keep me. They always thought that. So I decided to give her the same answer I always gave them.
“If fate allows it my Lady. Now go back to sleep and dream well. Please remember me with kindness.”
She smiled and said nothing else, closed her eyes and drifted back to sleep. I like to think, egotistically of course, that the smiles that they wear when they go back to sleep are because of thoughts of me. Of course, in truth, I realized that this couldn’t be true. But as I picked up my lute, and strapped it to my back. I couldn’t help but think that way.
I crept through the manor house as silently as a ghost. I didn’t want to risk waking anyone, and have to prolong my stay. I crept into the kitchen where the stable boy and one of the cooks’ apprentices shot up from where they had been, and scrambled to look like they’d been doing anything but what they had been.
“Ah, it’s only me. Go back as you were I ‘ll not scold you.” I said laughing as I went to the cupboard and helped myself to some bread and some apples. “But be wary of your masters. I’m certain the two of you would get a sound beating.”
They laughed as well, appreciating the fact that I wasn’t going to tattle on them. So I knew that there would be nothing said about me taking the bread and apples. I slipped out the back door of the kitchen and wandered to the stable where Aerien waited, puffing and stamping his feet. This was another reason I couldn’t stay any longer. Two nights was as long as my horse could actually handle being stabled.
As I saddled and bridled him, he turned around and bit me. Not hard, but hard enough, Showing me his displeasure in one of the few ways that he could. I hadn’t come to see him, and it seemed that they’d brushed him down and washed him. I swatted him laughing, and pulled out one of the apples which he took. It’s easy enough to appease him. And Aerien didn’t give me any trouble as I tied my bindle onto the saddle, and hung my lute from it as well.
“Now Aerien, We must go quietly so don’t stamp and do anything stupid. If you know what’s good for you, you’ll listen to me this time.”
Aerien stamped his hoof on the ground three times showing that, yes, he understood me. Satisfied, I sprung upon him grabbed the reins and rode him out of the stable. Looking back over my shoulder, I could see movement in some of the windows. High, in the top left hand window I could see my lady watching. I blew her a kiss, and then Aerien and I disappeared into the morning mists.
We rode for a few hours, or more I’m not really sure since I fell asleep, before we came to a forest. Aerien knows better than to enter a forest if I’m not awake, and he threw me off. Wakened in this way I evaluated the day, and it wasn’t all that long gone. Aerien had proceeded to munch on some of the soft green grass that was at the edge of the path, and this made me realize that I was hungry too. I took an apple out of the saddle bag, and let him eat as he wished for the time being. We were in no hurry after all.
While I ate I examined our surroundings. The forest seemed to be full of plants in various vibrant shades of green, and some of the flowers that bloomed at the edges, and as far as I could see, were of sorts I had never seen before. The path seemed to disappear in the darkness that the canopy of trees created, and I wondered if the path even went to another village or manor. It didn’t really seem all that well traveled. But the ruts made by wagons were deep, and clear of obstructions, suggesting that it was traveled more than it appeared to have been. It was Aerien who decided that it was time to move on though.
I climbed back up into the saddle, and we headed into the forest. It was rather quiet, and that was somewhat disturbing but we continued anyway. Eventually though the hairs on the back of my neck started to rise, and I knew that someone or something was watching us. Aerien started at the crack of a twig, but I reined him in raising my voice as I peered anxiously into the forest.
“Whoever you are, come out.” I used a commanding tone, but put my hand on the hilt of a dagger that was hidden by the ornamentation on the saddle. Just in case what came out wasn’t all that friendly.
It seemed like ages, and nothing came out of the forest around us so we continued on. It wasn’t long though before we heard laughter coming from somewhere to the right of us, and moments later to the left. Aerien halted, and before I could shout again, a whirlwind like being fell out of the treetop above us, knocking me from the saddle and pulling at my clothing. As it examined me, I struggled, which caused bells on it’s clothing to start ringing. Eventually it was satisfied with what it saw, and released me, backing away a bit so I could get a look at my attacker.
She sat cross-legged on the ground with her hands on her knees laughing as I sat up and dusted myself off. Her clothes were shades of green with vibrant red and blue mixed in making her appearance comical. I had no idea how she had kept the bells that were all over her outfit silent, but as she had I knew that she had some sort of talents. Her copper hair was long and loose, and some of it hung over one of her eyes. Her eyes were probably the one thing that startled me. They were as green as a cats, and seemed to reflect what little light that was around in such a manner that they seemed to glow.
“Welcome to the forest Stranger.” She finally said in a voice that seemed to say a thousand things to once. In that instant I knew exactly what she was. This one was a jester, and if I intended to keep my head, I had to play along. That or convince her that I wasn’t worth the times spent toying.
“Well you certainly welcome folk in a strange manner.” I growled standing and straightening my cloak, and taking a pose that I practice often. “How dare you simply touch someone of the nobility without talking to them first.” I ventured to make her feel guilty.
“You don’t appear to be of nobility, Bard.” She laughed back, springing to her feet in a fluid movement. “Your attire might convince some of that, but you don’t fool me.” She went over to Aerien, and ran her hand along his neck playfully.
Then much to my displeasure she turned him against me. As I watched in disbelief, she pulled some sugar cubes from one of her many pouches and fed them to him. He glanced at me having eaten these sorts of treats rarely, and whinnied as he nuzzled her and clamped his teeth onto the collar of her top. He flipped her over his head and onto his back and started back off down the path.
“Hey! Where do you think you’re going!?!”
“I’m going back to my camp, and it looks like your horse is coming with me. You’re welcome to come as well if you’d like. If not, I suppose I could whistle up some company for you.”
I didn’t doubt her in that. “Aerien!” I shouted. “Get back here now you ungrateful beast!”
He turned his head and blew air at me, then followed the jesters directions. I crossed my arms and watched them walk off, thinking that Aerien would realize his error and come back. But he didn’t, so as it was getting even darker and the facts were that fairly soon I wouldn’t be able to see. Not only that, they’d taken my supplies! Eventually I had to relent and follow after them.
It wasn’t long until I came to her camp. It was set up in a small clearing next to a stream. Above, in the canopy of trees there was an opening large enough that the stars in the night sky were visible. Smoke floated up from the crackling fire almost hypnotically, and I could smell and hear the sizzling that comes with the cooking of meat. I spotted Aerien a small ways from the fire clearly flirting with the Jesters horse, and that made me even angrier. And just a little further off in the darkness, I could see that a small tent had been set up.
This sort of thing wasn’t supposed to happen to me! Other bards and heroes in stories, but not me! Jesters are supposed to be in a great hall, what was this one doing out? This in mind I crept into the camp, and made a beeline towards Aerien. But before I even reached him, both horses started to snort and stamp, alerting the camps mistress to my presence.
“So I see you do not hesitate to join me. How pleasant. I figured that you’d show up eventually, I’ll have a meal finished shortly if you care to join me. Not that it matters. If you try to leave, I can follow you. But I doubt Aerien, I think that’s what you said his name was, will want to leave at the moment.”
She was mocking me! I felt anger flood through me, and I tried to keep it covered as I approached her. What was with this demon that she acted this way towards me? Most women would fall into my arms, like they were supposed to, and say nothing of it. Not that I would want this one to. But the situation was making me very angry. I’d reached my breaking point though, and as she stood there, waiting for a response, I slapped her. Not hard enough to satisfy myself, but hard enough that her eyes opened wide in surprise.
“That’s only a taste of what you’re dealing with fool.” I said as I walked over and sat by the fire. “You should be more careful choosing those you’ll trust. Not only that you should show respect towards your betters. Now, what was that you said about a meal?”
Her eyes hadn’t followed me so her back was to me now, and I could see that she trembled slightly. Ah, so she could feel something besides mirth then. Finally she dashed back towards the fire and yelped something about the food burning. I laughed quietly, and listened as she talked to the food as it was cooking. She glanced over at me eventually though, and in the fire light I noted something different in her eyes that sent a shiver down my spine. Would I regret my previous action?
She started whistling after that, in patterns that seemed unnatural coming from a person. She still worked with the food at the fire, and I wasn’t going to let her get to me. The air seemed to chill slightly though as she continued. Eventually I heard what sounded like the rustling of leaves all around the camp. The forest around seemed to get an almost eerie glow, and then a flock of orbs started circling me where I sat. The jester stopped whistling, and crossed her arms to watch. I laughed at first, since I know this trick myself, dancing lights are harmless on the most part really.
Then the orbs started to pinch me, laughing as they did so. It was as they did this that I realized they weren’t dancing lights or orbs at all. Nor were they will-o-wisps. These were pixies and faeries. How or why they came I didn’t quite understand but as they pinched at me, and I swatted at them, one landed on my shoulder and started to whisper things in a merry little voice that would have disturbed even an undertaker. I refused to yield to them, but they were faster than I was, and we fought for what seemed ages, until I had to yield.
“Fine…”I hissed standing in a motion that caused my cloak to fall around me, hiding me a bit from a good number of the small creatures’ attacks. I walked over to where the Jester was taking the food off the fire, and bowed. “Lady I’m sorry if I have offended you and I realize the error in my ways.” My voice on the other hand told the truth, and the pixies that had followed me rather than watch started pinching me again. I swatted at them, and continued. “Thank you for asking me to eat with you…” I grabbed one pixie and shook it. “Would you stop pinching me already?!? It’s rather hard to try and be charming when you’re being pinched and threatened!” I tossed the pixie back towards where a lot of them were sitting, standing and floating and continued, now unhindered by the pixie plague.
“I asked you to eat simply to be polite.” She said finally a bit stiffly, eyes on the pixies and faeries that, as I glanced over seemed to be rallying for a secondary attack.
“I thank you again lady.” I bowed again, starting to feel flustered. What sort of person was she that pixies and faeries would come to her rescue? If these were what came when I was only rude, what else might she be able to summon? I pushed the thought to the back of my mind. “I know you know Aerien already, he’s my horse, and has traveled with me for a few years now. My name is Damen June. But generally I generally just go by Day.” The fairies and pixies settled, so I relaxed a little. I’d at lest satisfied their request.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you Day. Aerien certainly has better manners on the most part compared to you I’m forced to admit. He and Lindera seem to be getting along wonderfully.” I think she noticed my raised eyebrow. “Yes my horse is Lindera. My name is Lady Pelinor Uriel Haloria Dawn Lissuin Alasse Rashwe, mistress of the laughing arts, and keeper of the spirit of mirth. I forgive you for your previous rude actions, and I implore you to join me in the meal I’ve completed.” She turned away from me, taking the pans of food further from the fire, and started to help herself. She seemed to care less what I did now.
I gulped slightly, noting that some of the pixies and faeries had finally wandered off. But there were a few that seemed to be lingering, just in case I did something else. “Well then Lady, what shall I call you? Forgive me in asking, but that is an awful lot of names for one person to have.” Which was an honest question; rarely in my travels did I meet anyone that had more than three or four names.
She seemed to think about it for a few seconds as she popped a piece of meat into her mouth. Her green eyes shone bright in the fire light, and it wasn’t long before she answered. “You can call me Alasse. Generally though, I use Rashwe when it comes to having people listening to me seriously.” She motioned that I should eat. “Now hurry up before everything is cold. It would surely be a pity if you waited that long, would it not?”
“It doesn’t really matter actually.” I mumbled. One pixie heard me and darted over; pinching my ear hard, but I bit my tongue. Alasse hadn’t heard me so that’s all that mattered. I helped myself to a hearty serving of everything she’d made, which meant basically I ate whatever she hadn’t taken.
I noted that she looked a little startled by this. But I just shrugged. She’d invited me to eat, and since it wasn’t out of my own store I might as well eat what I could. Just as I do at the manors. I watched Alasse as she ate her food, slowly. This seemed a bit strange yes, but it didn’t matter much. I decided that I might as well start up a bit of conversation.
“So are you coming or going? I mean this forest is amazing, but it’s hard to say if anyone’s come in.”
“I’m going in actually. I heard your horse, and went up into the treetops to see if you were dangerous or not. You seemed fairly harmless, and I could tell from your clothes that you’re a bard. Well, that and the lute.” She laughed and dabbed at some gravy on her plate with a piece of brown bread. “For a few moments I thought you’d figured out that I was following you in the trees, but when I realized you hadn’t I decided to have some fun. You probably understand how boring it can be traveling alone.”
I couldn’t help laughing at her. “Yeah I can understand that. But it’s not that lonely for me. I’ve had good company over time you know.”
“I’m sure you have. Your reputation precedes you, I’m sure you well know that Day.”
“Has it now? I don’t see how that can be a bad thing.” I could feel my usual smirk spreading across my face that I usually got when talking about myself. “People only seem to have good things to say about me on the most part.”
“Yes on the most part.” Alasse paused and took a spoonful of something and looked at it thoughtfully. “But I’m not the most part am I?”
“No...” I said watching her suddenly feeling uncertain. Had I met this woman before? No, I would have remembered meeting a jester like this. Then as I watched, she whipped the food from the end of her spoon over the fire, and it splattered against the side of my head. “Hey!” I couldn’t believe it, or I wasn’t all that surprised, I wasn’t sure. “What’s that about?” Then I readied a spoonful of food myself to retaliate if her answer didn’t satisfy me.
“What’s what about?” Alasse said in a tone that was anything but innocent. What did she think she was playing at?
“You know what!” I said as I flung a spoonful of food back at her. Unfortunately my marksmanship, with a spoon at least, isn’t that good. The food didn’t make it anywhere close to hitting her and it fell with a sizzle into the fire.
I jumped to my feet as another spoonful of food hit me on the forehead. I darted to her side of the fire, and stood holding my plate of food threateningly. “You’re going to regret that you did that.”
“Oh am I?” Alasse blinked at me, and I got the feeling she was right. I couldn’t just dump my plate of food on her. I was still hungry!
“Ok, maybe not right now.” I said with a growl. “But soon enough you will.”
“I’ll hold you to that.”
“I bet you will.” I said laughing as I sat down again. As much as I didn’t like Alasse, she didn’t really seem all that bad. True, I still thought she was part demon, but there’s nothing wrong in that. I finished eating without wearing anymore food. By the time I’d finished though, Alasse had already cleaned her pans and the plate and spoon she’d used.
I got up and was actually going to wash my own, when she swooped in and disappeared back to the stream. I wondered mildly how she could move around in what seemed like pure darkness. What’s more, how was she managing to make sure that the dishes were clean? Curiosity eventually got the better of me and I slowly headed towards the stream, where I could hear her splashing at the waters edge. In what little bit of light the stars overhead provided I saw something I wouldn’t have believed if I hadn’t seen it. She wasn’t washing the dishes. She stood there chattering amiably with a banshee, who was washing the dishes!
Ok, maybe I’m seeing things, I thought to myself. But if she’s talking to banshees, and calling pixies and faeries, what is she? I don’t think if she has these kind of talents she’s just a plan jester. That would just be ridiculous.
I hurried back to the fire side though when I saw the banshee start looking in the direction where I stood. I called Aerien over, and he came reluctantly abandoning his new companion. I took my lute off the saddle and started to play it lightly. More to calm myself and sooth my racing mind. After all this might be nothing more than a dream, and I might wake up in the morning and find that I’d simply drank some bad ale.
Thinking like that though wouldn’t help things. So I sat my lute down, and went over to unsaddle Aerien. He seemed startles by the change, but I figured he would be more comfortable for the night. Plus it might help prevent chaffing.
“I think it’s almost time to set in for the night.” Alasse said coming back with the clean dishes. But then she noted my lute and sat down. “But I think that bed can wait a short while. Are you going to play something?”
I blinked and shifted, looking from her to the fire then to my lute, and pondered what I could sing or what story I could tell After all there was no harm in being nice. “What sort of song or story would you like to hear?” I finally said heading back towards the fire to pick up my instrument.
“Well, I like stories about dragons, or faeries…just about anything would do actually.”
“Fair enough.” I thought for a few moments, playing a few warm up chords, and singing a few random sequences, nothing that really made much sense. But she seemed to like it. In the end I decided on something that was a work in progress.
“For every tale that is told
There is some truth that is told
And some lie that is sold
There are things that are forgotten
And things that are added
This is to remember
What some do try to forget
The memories of yesterday
The failures of the past
When warriors stand fearful
On the brink of victory
When dragons soar into the sky
With a sound that scares humanity
That’s when it needs to be remembered
When things were so much better
When creatures lived in peace
A fact that’s faded fast”
I glanced up from my lute and saw that Alasse had fallen asleep. I stopped playing and stood, stretching, tired myself. At least I’d gotten to practice what I could remember of the piece. Half of me, the half that had been angrier earlier wanted to leave Alasse where she was. But looking at her, as she was curled up into a ball near the fire, I felt a spark of curiosity enter me. Looking over I saw that Aerien and Lindera were both asleep. I couldn’t help laughing quietly at the fact that they seemed to be so close so quickly. Maybe I should have been letting him meet other horses more often.
“Alasse?” I said quietly shaking her gently. “You need to get up long enough to go to your tent.”
“Hmmm…?” She blinked up looking confused for a moment.
“Your tent girl. You need to go sleep in your tent.”
“I do?” She asked the question like it was something she’d never done before.
I nodded. “Yeah, you do. Tell you what though, I’ll carry you over there, but you’ll have to go in on your own.”
“mhm.” Alasse said curling back as she’d been. Does she ever sleep in her tent, I wondered as I scooped her up. The bells on her clothes rang out, and lindera shot up to attention looking over as I walked past the horses.
“Shhh, Lindera it’s fine. I’m just delivering her to her tent.” I said feeling a little silly. Honestly now! The only thing this jester made me was angry, so why should the horse worry. Ok, so maybe I was a little curious too, but still. I set Alasse on her feet, and she leaned on me, clearly still asleep, but it seemed nice. Wait what was I thinking? “Alasse, here’s your tent, you ought go in and sleep there now.”
“thank you.” She said quietly, and then it looked like she fell into the tent. Those two words startled me. Enough in fact that, I half wanted to peer into the tent and see if I’d been dreaming.
I went over to where I’d left the saddle, and took my own blankets off and set to laying out my own bed for the night. I checked around the camp once before going to sleep. Then lay down with a sigh to look at the stars that showed through the canopy gap.
“What have I run into this time?”
