Amane cast Nissa an innocent smile, but the goddess knew better. The sweet sprite was not going straight home. Not after the sharp change of the weather. Perhaps she knew the pink pixie too well. Watching her leave, “Granny Gladys” couldn’t help but frown at the booming overhead.
Cyric was a sprite that ailed Amane’s conscience something fierce. He had been in the first batch of sprites she’d created, and his betrayal had struck hard. Especially in Nissa. Even though Nissa probably knew the attempt was probably futile, the white-headed goddess still worried about her first helper doing something brash: trying to appeal to Cyric’s better nature. If that part of Cyric still existed. It was hard for Amane to get a good read of the naughty little nymph since Ignus had poisoned his heart. And considering the genocide he’d committed against many of his fellow sprites and some of the humans? Amane wouldn’t be surprised if he tried something on Nissa.
Shutting her eyes tightly as the rain began to soak her elderly form, Amane gave a deep sigh. Nissa was old enough to take of herself [self centuries old enough], and the goddess would have to give the sprite the benefit of the doubt. Just go home, Nissa, the “old woman” hoped as she began to trot quickly down the road. However, she would keep her senses clear should there be a foul change in the air. Amane would not be losing anymore sprites. Once on the outskirts of the town and out of sight of any villagers, the goddess allowed her form to shift. It stretched and shrunk in a red glow before an ethereal white wolf with blazoned, crimson markings stood where Ms. Gladys had been. Tail twitching, the wolf stood somewhat larger than a normal wolf, more like an alpha than another pack member. Stretching her long limbs and shifting her ears as her hearing suddenly became as keen as a canine’s, the goddess turned and began trotting for farmland.
As Harvest Goddess, she did have specific duties over the crops and other plants that the villagers attempted to cultivate. And, being the second of Spring, Amane had yet to pay her yearly visit to Miss Everson’s farm. Oh, Leah… A well-meant girl, daughter of the island’s previous farmer, was a bit of a headache when it came to her occupation. It was true that Leah was more serious about farming than anything else, but even at that, it had been a wonder she’d been so successful. Although it was quite comical to see her running to the farm like a madwoman when she awoke late in the morning, it had left her struggling to get all of her chores done. In fact, Leah’s inexperience had forced her to sell much of the livestock to the ranch down the way. Such a shame! There in the first year or so, the success of Leah’s ranch had been much in part to the goddess’s quiet contributions. Thankfully, Amane didn’t have to help Leah keep the crops from dying anymore… well, at least not nearly as much. All plants still needed the deity's gentle touch to help coddle them.
She is still young. Of course, she has much to learn. But in time, she’ll get a better handle of things… I hope… Bah, she’s at least shown improvement! Done better on her own than most would've..., the goddess contemplated as the white wolf sprinted off through the open lands, fur rustling in the wind. The rain began to fall hard, lightening in brief intervals, soaking Amane through to the skin as she rain. However, all she felt was exhilaration. This form, so natural and close to the earth, had always been one of her favorites. As she neared the farmland, the rain seemed to let up as the final drop pattered on her head. This year, the goddess planned to pay her visit to Leah differently.
Deciding not to do so in secret at night, after Leah had gone home for the day, Amane wanted to get to know this farmer a bit better, person to person. Stopping out of sight by the road, once more her form shifted. Where the wolf had once stood, in a glow of red, the young maiden Jacq now stood. Dressed in faded jeans, muddied work boots, and a navy rain slicker, she stepped onward and began to look around through the fields for the farmer’s outline, making her way for the barn where seeds and other things were kept. Surely Leah wouldn’t let a little rain get in her way of working...
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