A Strange Court

[Darastrix]

Nuo looked from Kay--Vaira to Lairen. "Will we be able to see each other even if we have different mentors?" he asked. Everything there was so new and interesting, but she was his friend now, and he didn't want to not get to spend time with her.

[Kender Bard]

"Aye, unless I manage to convince Atarai to let me head west where it's properly warm," Lairen replied.

"Winter is perfectly fine," Septi protested. Kaylin shivered but didn't argue. She didn't want her mentor to change his mind on taking her on.

"Well you would say that," Lairen answered with a roll of her eyes. "Are you tired?"

"I am," Kaylin said. Septi took her hand and tugged lightly.

"Well, I'll go show you somewhere you can curl up. There's a nice, warm den around here and I'm sure the bear inside wouldn't mind sharing."

Kaylin couldn't help but make a slightly frightened squeak, even though she'd seen first hand that the creatures of the forest didn't mind her presence.

[Darastrix]

"I'm tired, too," Nuo admitted. "I usually am this time of year, but I was asleep when Rive found us." He wasn't sure he wanted to share sleeping space with a bear, but that was partly to do with the thought that big animals that ate meat didn't always smell nice in close quarters.

[Kender Bard]

"I sympathize," Lairen sighed. "I cannot wait for spring to hurry up and arrive and begin to warm this place. Well if you're not prepared to sleep, then perhaps we can discuss a few things so I know what to do with you. Do you have any way to entertain others?"

[Darastrix]

Nuo shook his head. "I've told K--Vaira stories, while we've traveled, but they're all faerie tales that I learned growing up. I don't know whether true fey would want to hear them." Blueberry didn't ever seem to pay attention to the whole story, or when she did, she just piped up to say how this or that was silly. Who knew how some of the others would react? He didn't want to offend any of them.

[Kender Bard]

"Well that might be entertaining for a little while," Lairen mused. "It's funny to hear what the humans think of us. You know, some of those tales we have perpetuated ourselves. Nothing is quite so entertaining as pulling a human's strings." Her chuckle carried the edge of something that was almost sinister. "But we faeries tend to pick a skill or craft or something of the like to while away our time on. After all, we have forever to perfect the skills, and you'll be expected to help keep us entertained in some fashion."

[Darastrix]

"I spent most of my time in gardens and up trees," Nuo told her, "getting to know the plants. Or I was looking for new stories or pieces of lore someone could tell me. I haven't learned a real craft yet."

[Kender Bard]

"No time like the present," Lairen replied. "I'm sure you'll find something you'd like to do or learn. And many of us would not mind teaching you what we can do--it would while away the time nicely. I myself like to craft things with treated spider's silk. I made this cloak with it. Of course we also need to teach you proper etiquette and how our social standing works... And I don't suppose you're familiar with the old language, are you?"

[Darastrix]

Nuo shook his head. "What little I've heard sound pretty, like your names, but I don't understand it at all. Is it the Old Tongue that some human scholars know, or is it a different language altogether?"

[Kender Bard]

"They are similar," Lairen stated. "Probably not exactly the same. Even faeries are not proof against the changes of time completely. But we must teach you at least the rudimentary words. You see, each faerie's name is also their title. This makes it important to know what means what so you don't accidentally trod on toes you shouldn't. Ataraienshee means simply Queen of Faeries. Should something happen and a new queen arise, she would cast off her name and take that one. Your name may change someday, too, if the queen deigns to favor you. That is how the court works. Whoever holds the queen's favor is blessed. Whoever earns her scorn is cursed."

[Darastrix]

Well, Nuo certainly didn't want to earn the anyone's scorn, no matter who they were to the court. "Do you mean literal cursing?" he asked. "Or just some sort of punishment?" He hadn't seen anything to suggest that the fey had some sort of power to make up for their lack of Elemental ability (unless one could count how the pixies had bonded with them), but he hadn't really seen anything to disprove the idea, either.

[Kender Bard]

"Punishment," Lairen clarified. "But they'll wish they'd been damned by a Force. Being condemned by the queen is a harsh life." She didn't bat an eyelash as she added, "And often a very short one. So, what would you like to learn first?"

[Darastrix]

"Etiquette," Nuo decided. He figured he could get in trouble more easily not knowing it than not knowing their language. If he wasn't sure about what someone's name meant, he could always ask, right?

[Kender Bard]

"Very well then. Let's begin with introductions as you will soon be swamped in those. When another faerie approaches you, you greet them with your full title and allow them to speak theirs. Avoid speaking their name again until you have formed an opinion about them. If you like them, you may use a shortened version of their name. If you do not, proceed to continue calling them in full. If you use a shortened name and they respond by using your full title, it means they do not return the sentiment and you have made a grave error of judgment."

"If a faerie offers you a gift, refuse once. If they offer again, refuse twice. If they offer a third time, you may accept it but be wary if you do and be wary if you do not. Refusal of the gift a third time is an insult but acceptance is a contract."

[Darastrix]

Nuo's eyes widened a little as he listened. He'd known from stories that the fey could be tricky, but from the sound of things, any of the feylings could make a dangerous misstep very easily.

"I don't have a title, though," he said. "And my name can't really be shortened. How would I know if I made a mistake with someone's name? And what happens if someone accepts a gift the first or second time?" He almost wished he could write everything down.