Welcome to Gaia! ::

Meiser/Maeve/Elayeth

"I'm certain we can find it. It always seems to be right where we need it to be, after all." She huffed softly, bringing her hand up to run fingers through her hair as she glanced around, trying to get her bearings straight. "Remind me to get you a compass for the next holiday... Maybe a map. Assuming I'm still talking to you by then."

She had no doubt that she would be. There was just something about Elayeth that she had a feeling, deep down, that there wouldn't be any escape from... Almost like he'd stalk her to the ends of the earth.

Elayeth laughed again. "And have a beautiful peice of men's haberdashary lying in several inches of water at the bottom of a stolen car that just happens to be parked in a fountain? You're funny Maeve. Crazy." He shook his head " but funny!"

"Not that a map would last any better." Mesier added.

"A MAP!" He slapped a palm to his forehead. "A map in several inches of water, yaddah yaddah, would just be map jelly by now. And we'd still be here." He turned his attention to Maeve. "So, do Sargtlin's have any kind of special tracking ability? Like a homing pidgeon almost? Cause Opylyns got nothing. I got nothing."

"Not like I was expecting you to have any sort of special talents beyond your attitude and maybe a little of your spontaneity ." She snorted softly as she shook her head, shifting just a little bit closer to Elayeth. "Contrary to popular belief, we have no homing devices or tracking abilities of any sort... Although any of us should be able to sniff something out. Don't tell me you've never followed something's trail before. I mean, you can't possibly say that all of the times you've found me were just dumb luck." A smirk curved the corners of her mouth as she eyed him.

Elayeth's eyebrows lifted as he held her in his regard... "I'm a stalker." He broke out in a comic grin. "What can I say? I stalk a lot of people." He shrugged. "Though... tonight? Tonight was just pure luck on my part... and yours."

"But not mine." Meiser was irritated that these two were so touchy feely and he was stuck walking alone behind them like a dog.

"No no." Elayeth shook his head dramatically. "You didn't have any luck tonight. You're just a wet dog and wet dogs are the unluckiest." Then he abruptly turned his attention back to Maeve. "Speaking of stalking, about what time do you normally shower... mornings? Evenings? Just... you know... for information sake."

"Generally the smelliest too." Her nose wrinkled at the thought before she shook her head to dismiss it, reaching up to tug lightly at one of Elayeth's ears. "Not that our fur's dried all that well either... Last time I suggest driving into a fountain to a bonehead." Again her taunts weren't as bitter as they had been, if anything the term was almost... Endearing.

"I'm not entirely sure that makes you all that luck either, Elayeth. Certainly not lucky enough to be told when I tend to bathe. Wouldn't want to chance you showing up in a window... Spooking Beryl, angering the dragon. She's miserable first thing in the morning, you know. Before she's had her coffee?" Her tail swished idly behind her as she guided them down one of the paths leading into the woods, almost certain that this was the right direction. "Do you like coffee in the morning?"

Elayeth chuckled mostly to himself. "Hehe. You said bone." He had the impulse to make a comment about having seen Beryl already, something along the lines of 'got the T shirt' but he sensed himself too close to this woman to make bad statements about her sister... maybe Maeve was having a good effect on him after all.

"Oh please." Meiser couldn't have been living up to his name any better. "Like he needs caffiene. The man steals a car, joy rides through several mailboxes, leaving postcard imprints on the foreheads of his passengers, howling all the way, kidnaps the first girl he comes across and then crashes the car and all it's postmarked contents into the fountain right where the cops can watch and chase us." He shook himself suddenly as if someone had just 'walked across his grave' ... "I think his heart would explode if you added anything else."

"Hey!" Her eyes narrowed as she cast a glare in Meiser's direction, ears drawing back, even going as far as to pull away from Elayeth for a moment. "I'd like to think that I was kidnapped by this delinquent because it seemed like a good idea at the time, not merely because I was the first girl he came across." Knowing Elayeth there were, no doubt, dozens of other girls that had crossed his mind. He was that kind of guy; the rogue that broke hearts and left swooning ladies in his path. The guy...

The guy she was letting walk her home while wearing nothing more than his tunic. "God, I'm an idiot." She shook her head as she stalked ahead of the other two, muttering to herself along the way. "I'm a bigger idiot than he is."

Elayeth just watched her walk ahead, almost stunned by the sudden change in temperment. He and Meiser exchanged glances and then Elayeth called out to her, "Wait! Who's the idiot? Him or me?"

"It's you, stupid." Meiser rolled his eyes and started to walk along behind her, but kept his distance.

Elayeth ran a hand through his short hair in confusion, and couldn't really think of all that much he'd said to anger her... okay that was a lie... there was the shower crack and the fact that he'd laughed when she said bone... and there was the thing he said about her sister in his head... Maybe she could read minds.... Your sister is hot... he said it quietly in his head, and when she didn't turn around he assumed she couldn't read his mind.

His brain stopped letting him think just then, because he was watching her walk away in front of him in nothing more than his tunic shirt... and it covered... but only just.

He grinned to himself, and savoured every moment of her sway and her walk, the way the shirt clung to the top of her long wet tail... the way her...

"MAEVE!" Meiser called out. "You're fine to keep walking ahead of us like that, but I just thought that you should know that you've got a bit of a wet tshirt theme going here and Elayeth is drooling over you."

And Elayeth tackled him.... knocking him down and laughing. The two of them rolled until Meiser pinned the humanoid jivvin. Elayeth laughed and closed his eyes. "You're a jerk Meis. A total jerk." But then he pointed to his head, eyes still closed... "It's all up here though, and you can't take that away. PRETTIEST JIVVIN IN THE WORLD, wet tunic shirt, walking away from me." He laughed for a moment before his eyes shot open... "Meis! We got to get to the village! I bet they have wet tunic contests all the time!"

Somewhere in her frustrated rant against herself she heard her name in Mesier's voice followed by bits and pieces of what Elayeth was saying, tuning in only slightly to pause for a moment when she heard 'prettiest jivvin in the world'. She smiled slightly at that... And then it was gone almost as soon as it came as her ears picked up 'wet tunic contests'.

A sound crossed somewhere between a growl and a cry of frustration made its way past her mouth as her hands curled into fists and she picked up her pace again. He could do just that; they both could, Elayeth and Meiser... And she would forget going back to the Center, at that. The boys could get lost and wind up wherever and she would head home.

Elayeth caught her stomp out of the corner of his eye and rolled over under Meiser. "Maeve, beautiful, please... don't go away mad! Meiser get off..." He tugged at the black jivvin's feet, but meiser just wieghed too much.

"She's going." Meiser smiled. No more girl.

Elayeth rolled back over and propped his chin up on his hand, watching her like one might watch a movie. "She's so damn pretty! Specially mad, walking away like that, all stomps." He sighed. "You think she'll come back?"

"Why?"

"To tell us where we are and help us find out way home." Elayeth's eyes never left the retreating jivviness.

"I have map location. I always know where we are."

"I know that, stupid." Elayeth shook his head. "But she doesn't. She might take pity on us?"

Ten minutes later Elayeth realized, laying in the cold grass next to Meiser, that Maeve was not coming back... but he wasn't disheartened, because he'd already told her he was a stalker... of course he hadn't started stalking her yet, but there was no time like the present. Besides, if he didn't, then he'd have lied to her earlier. And that was un-gentlemanly.

He grinned.

Once she'd gotten far enough away from the two male jivvins she'd stripped out of Elayeth's tunic, leaving it lost amongst the ferns as she'd shifted forms to make travel faster, almost flying through the woods on all fours. She made quick work of climbing into one of the windows that had been left open, avoiding just about everyone until she started to nudge the door to her room open with her nose... Some things, like sisters, simply couldn't be avoided.

"Is everything all right, Maeve?" Her brow lofted slightly as she tilted her head to the side, shoulder leaning lightly against the door frame. There was honest concern in her voice along with a bit of unidentified something else. Either way, it was clear that she was used to her sister, her friend, sneaking around.

"Ask me in the morning..." She snorted softly before slipping into her room, the last of her tail disappearing into the darkness. It was there that she shifted back, taking a moment to wash her face before grabbing a button down to cover herself up once more. Slender fingers tucked a strand of hair behind her ear as she eyed herself in the mirror. "You really are an idiot, Maeve."

Calvin/Molly/Harmony/Aria

Calvin rolled her eyes at the little giraffe jivvin. "You're such a baby. All you have to do is jump." She nudged the cushions on the floor in front of her and glared up at the baby on the bookshelf. "You yell, 'GEE RAHN NEE MO!' and you jump. Then you land on the cushions, roll off and run up the back of the sofa."

"But..." Molly hesitated, not completely willing to repeat her complaint, but sensing that it was necessary to do so. "I don't want to. If I don't land on the cushions then I'll get hurt." She couldn't understand why Calvin wanted her to do all these stunts, but she really wasn't interested.

"Ugh!" She hopped up on the cushions. "I just want to see you do it! I'm too big to climb on the bookshelf now, that's how I broke the one at Lily's house." She had too. The whole thing had collapsed down on itself like a peeled banana... speaking of bananas.... "If you do this then I'll give you some food."

Molly frowned at her. "Where's Layith?"

Calvin grunted and rolled her eyes again. "He's out somewhere. Probably out drooling over some girl jivvin, just like Stupid Luke." If Calvin was feeing slighted by her brothers it only showed a lot.

"Uuugggh." She let out an exasperated sigh as she turned around quickly, trying to catch sight of the little green and yellow Jivvin that had been tailing her. She'd managed to catch her once. Heck, she'd even managed to scare her off once, but she just kept coming back. "What do you waaant?"

"Waaaant." She parroted, pouncing on the fluff of the purple jivvin's tail, nomming lightly on the tip until it was pulled away from her. Her nose wrinkled as she watched the other jivvin take off before trotting after her once more.

Harmony did the only thing she could think of, ducking into the Center and shutting the door behind her. "You... Stay out there. Leave me alone. I don't want a shadow or a parrot or a puppy or... I don't want one."

Calvin heard the door open and shut and assumed an attack mode, all crouched down, ears back. As she was creeping towards the door, she heard that it was Harmony, and she jumped into the hallway with a laugh. "HARMONY!" She grinned and barreled at her friend, intending to tackle her.

"Nooo!" She squealed as Calvin pounced her, the two rolling together towards the door from there, her own tiny body hitting it with an audible thump... That was soon followed by the sound of another thump from the other side of the door. "It's out there Calvin..." She whispered, hiding her head beneath her friend. "Whatever you do, don't let it inside."

Calvin's eyes went wide, and she raised her eyes to the door. Climbing off Harmony, she leaned against it and pretendted to listen... "What is it Moni?"

Calvin was talled than the od antique mail slot in the door, but that didn't stop her from hunkering down in front of it and lifting the flap with her tail.

From the other room, Molly had started her descent the second Calvin had left the room. She was about to take off down the hallway in the opposite direction from the older jivvins, when she heard the thump on the other side of the door, and saw Calvin's interest in whatever it was. She just had to see what happened next, so she hovered in the hallway under a runnertable, not more than 6 feet behind the two.

The little jivvin on the other side of the door was in the process of pouting properly when she heard the mail slot creak open. Her ears perked as her eyes were drawn up, one paw reaching out to lean against the door as she tried to see through the small opening. There was no way she was going to fit through there, but maybe if she gave her very best 'sad face' whoever was on the other side of the door would just give up and let her in.

"A horrible, terrible beast. It follows you around and mimics your every move. It's not to be trusted. Not ever. Whatever you do, don't let it inside."

Calvin jumped as the little yellow/green jivvin's face came up to the slot. She slammed down the metal with a gasp and glared at Harmony from the side of her eyes. "You led it right to us!" She was back in 'movie' mode and acting appropriately. "I don't know what we'll do, they suck out your brains and take all your time. Before you know it you're a thousand years old and you can't even cut your own bananas anymore!"

Suddenly she turned to Harmony with wide eyes. "Moni... Moni, I just remembered...." She turned slowly and looked down the hall to where Molly was sitting calmly under the table. Her voice dropped to a scared whisper and she leaned into Harmony... "There's already one in the house.... we're.... we're surrounded."

"Oh no... Wait." Her brow furrowed as she glanced over at her friend. "I don't like bananas. Do you like bananas? And what do you mean there's already one in here? HOW CAN WE BE SURROUNDED?" Now she was being the dramatic one... Maybe they'd been spending too much time together.

She whined outside the door, sitting back for a moment before lightly pawing at the crack just beneath the door. This just wasn't fair. How could they be so mean to her? How?

Molly took a step out from under the table as she heard the whine outside the door. "You should let them in. They're whining."

Calvin rolled her eyes at Molly. "Why, so there's two of you?" She took a step away from Harmony and guestured to the door with her tail. "Haven't you watched alien movies? One alien in the house or barn or car can always be dealt with, and usually no one dies, but two aliens in the house and one of the good guys is gonna die, and then anything more than two is just asking for it to be game over."

"I'm not an alien." Molly stated it simply. She knew Calvin, and she'd met Harmony before on the trip through the woods, but she wasn't aware of who the jivvin on the other side of the door might be. In any case, it was probably nicer than Calvin.

"OF COURSE YOU ARE! That just proves it. No alien ever admits to being an alien." She spun quickly and opened the mail flap again. "Oi. Are you an alien?"

Another whimpering whine came from the other side of the door followed by the sound of claws scratching. Eventually she gave up though, resting her head against her paws only to glance up as she heard the mail slot open followed by the oddest question. "... Whats an... Ale-ee-anne?"

"Ugggh. Just let her in. It's not like she'll go away if we don't. She'll just keep whining. I bet she'd tattle too. Dunno who she'd tattle too, but she'd tattle."

Molly trotted up behind the bigger jivvins as Calvin continued her interogations through the mail slot. "An Alien is a creature from another planet. Are you from another planet?"

"Let 'er in." Molly frowned up at the tan jivvin and peered through the mailslot.

Calvin grinned slightly... "Let her in through the Letter in." She hopped up and pulled the handle of the door down, letting it swing open. Grinning at Molly she took a few steps back to let the newest alien into the house. "You're pretty punny for an Alien."

"What's punny?" Molly cocked her head to one side.

"Ugh. Aliens." Calvin rolled her eyes and gave Harmony a look meant to convey the sheer absurdity of alien logic. "What's your name little alien.?"

"M'not from another planet. M'from an egg." Her nose wrinkled as she remained where she was on the porch, sulking for a moment before pushing herself up onto all fours. "Aria. That's my name."

"Sounds like a strange name to me..." She huffed as she eyed the runt that had been following her around, completely ignoring that she'd once been that small and that Maeve had often gotten frustrated with her for the very same things. "Well, maybe not that strange. Maybe just a little silly. Or something. Dunno why you'd want to follow me..."

"I think it's pretty." Molly chimed in.

"Of course you would... you're an alien too. And for your records, Aria Alien, Extraterrestrials can come from eggs as well, and as long as all you can remember is the egg, then you don't even know if you're an alien, cause you don't know where th egg came from." She nodded knowledgeably. "Aria and Amahli Alien. Works for me." Then without a word she turned and trotted down the hallway towards the kitchen. Unlike Harmony, Calvin lived off of the attentions of the smaller jivvins. She wasn't entirely fond of Molly since the little giraffe jivvin seemed to be too calm and collected. She liked the babies that would do whatever she said.... they were more fun.

Molly just smiled at the new jivvin. "Aria's a pretty name. Do you have an older jivvin that watches you? Calvin's got two, they're Pink and Green, and I've got two, Layith and Alex... but they're never around." She frowned... if they had been around she wouldn't have to put up with Calvin so much.

Calvin stopped and looked back at whoever was left in the doorway. "You aliens have got me all hungry for a banana. I'm going to the kitchen and I'll feed you if you amuse me with your alienly tricks."

"No..." At least she didn't think she did. Not one that she'd been introduced to, at least. She'd just been wandering a bit and somehow she'd managed to cross paths with Harmoniae. Arriving at the Center had just seemed natural from there. "What's a banana?"

She rolled her eyes, glancing at the smaller jivvin. "It's yellow, kind of like you... And it can be green at the ends sometimes too. You peel it open and eat the weird, squishy fruit that's inside." She grinned, delighted that she was able to impart some sort of knowledge on the next generation.

The next generation didn't seem all that impressed by the knowledge though. Instead she let out a squeak, scampering quickly down the hall. "No! You can't eat me! I'm not a banana! I'm an Ariaaa..." She whined.

Calvin pushed out a foot and tripped the small jivvin. "No one's going to eat you. You're just being a paranoid alien."

Molly rushed over and stood over Aria. "it's okay. They're not going to eat you. You can't be eatted cause you're a jivvin."

"Alien." Calvin insisted.

"Alien." Molly obliged. It was easier that way. "You can't eat jivvins or aliens. Bananas are just the same colour... yellow." She smiled. "If you come in the kitchen then Calvin will give us one and you can try it. It's good. It's tasty."

"I most certianly will not give you one." Calvin grumped.

"Then maybe Har-money will." She turned quizitive eyes on the other jivviness.

"... Maybe." She snorted softly, eying the smaller jivvin for a moment before turning to head to the kitchen, muttering to herself. In the back of her head she could hear a voice of reason reminding her that, not too long ago, she'd been the annoying one and someone had given her a chance. 'Fine. Just... No more copying or following or pouncing my tail."

"Okay!" She seemed to brighten up at that, her own tail swishing behind her as she got up so that she could trot after the other jivvins, glancing at the one that was more her size. "You're not an alien, are you?"

Molly appeared to think about it for a second. "I don't know. I don't think so. Nobody's ever said o before... I think Calvin's just being mean." She scowled at the back of the older tan jivvin as Calvin climbed a counter.

As if to demonstrate her excellent child watching skills, Calvin grabbed up three bananas off the top of the fridge, and turned to Molly and Aria. "Enff you dansh foreme I'll Giff yoush a banana."

Molly frowned at her again.

"... I don't like you." Aria said flatly as she stared at the other jivvin. Or, rather, that's what she would have said if she wasn't so distracted with trying figure out exactly what the one named Calvin was staying. Instead of actually talking she simply tilted her head, watching the elder jivvin as if she'd sprouted a second head.

"I still think bananas are gross. They're all... Goey." Her nose wrinkled as she made her way over to one of the cupboards so that she could begin the search for animal crackers instead. They were wonderfully crunchy and delicious.

Molly stood on four legs and danced her back ones back and forth from side to side. She tripped a little, but never took her eyes off Calvin. When she stopped she raised her eyebrows at the older jivvin. "That's all you're getting."

Calvin grinned and spat the bananas down onto the floor. "That's fine. It was amusing enough for a banana." Then he turned and walked across the counter, balancing precariously on the sink edge until she was across it. "I know, Moni. That's why I didn't get one for you." She opened thedry food's cabinet... "What did you want though?"

Meiser/Elayeth/Silthran

"I think this is supid. " Meiser plodded along through the woods near the village, right behind Elayth. "Why am I helping you find this girl? Aren't two at a time enough? Why do you need another girl?" He was tired and to the point of constant complaint.

Elayeth turned on Meiser, rolling his eyes. "She's not for me, stupid, she's for you. And for the record, I'm not dating Maeve OR Stazja because neither of them really likes me."

"Well I don't want a girl, so can we just turn around and go home please?" Meiser grumped and turned on his heels heading back the way they had just come from.

"Meis, you grumpy jerk!" Elayeth leaned over and grabbed Meiser's long black tail with a grin... "You REALLY want to meet this girl, trust me. She's your dream come true..." He let go as Meiser turned back around to glare at him. "Besides, I can't find her without your help, and you're not leaving til I find her for you, so quit being an a** and just help me already."

Meiser sighed and turned his head looking this way and that... In his head her got a maplike image of the forest, and several 'markers' appeared. The largest were a black dot that he knew was himself and a white red dot that he had come to know as Elayeth. Disregarding them, he turned to his left... 'squirrel, pair of rabbits, several other small animals... to his right there was a large snake creature about a mile away sleeping underground... he marked that in his head for later consideration and then looked ahead. There was a large empty space on his 'map' that changed possitions whenever he had tried to go into it... he had always assumed that it was the village, which he really had no desire to see... Around the village several were several names... Hasper, Gus, Kamin, Dedona, Roeh ... most of them were just entering the black emptyness.... gone to his senses once they'd passed the edge of it.... "Who am I lookin for?"

"Silthran." He nodded at his four legged friend. "She's completely pretty, in a pale kind of way."

"That doesn't help me." Meiser closed his eyes and began to scan the names of the jivvins on his map... "Sil...Silthran..." He smiled. "She's near the village, but not in it.... we could probably get there from here..."

"Onward!" Elayeth struck a dramatic marching pose and stomped off into the forest.

Silthran was reading. She was -reading-. Admittedly, the going was slow, but she couldn't have been more proud of herself. The Uuthli was nestled in a clearing that was unusually close to the Village for her; it was the easiest place for Gus to find her, while still being mostly clear of the patrols. Sil wasn't consciously trying to avoid the patrols, mind...but the large Sargtlins, loud and confident this near to the Village, could be intimidating to one so used to quiet.

For the time Gus was absent, and so Silthran had wrapped herself in thick, fluffy white furs against the cold--a gift from her angel--and was seated on a bed of pine needles, slowly working her way through a small book. An exceptionally large tome lay open on a fur at her side; a dictionary. Gus had taught her how to use it only recently, and she was more than willing to delve into it. Every few paragraphs, the Uuthli would pause in her reading, marking her page with a finger and turning to the dictionary for a search that would often last several minutes. But, eventually, she would succeed, speak the word a few times to drill it into her mind, and return to her reading. Books were such a marvel.

So engrossed was she in her studies that, even for Meiser and Elayeth's noisy banter, she almost missed their approach. Her head snapped up from her book, and she drew back the furry hood of her cloak to improve her line of sight, carefully searching the trees for the intruders even as she hurriedly bundled the books to her chest. She wasn't entirely certain that Gus was allowed to take the books from the Village... The last thing that she wanted to do was to get him in trouble, if this was another patrol.

Elayeth hadn't seen her, but reassured by Meiser that she was right up ahead and that her name was indeed Silthran, he called out "Sil! Sil, it's me Elayeth... remember me? You helped me get my brother Alexander Edward out of the lake that day?" He strode up to her as if he'd met her on the street and smiled from one long ear to the other.

"I hope you don't mind, I brought my best friend in he whole world with me to see you." He guestured to Meiser with a flippant hand. "He's a grump... aptly named Meiser."

Meiser came up behind Elayeth with a scowl. Why were they meeting random jivvin women in the wild? As he saw Silth, he had to doubletake. She was VERY pretty. Elayeth had called her Pale, and cute... Elayeth was wrong, though she was pale and blonde and very bright in general... Meiser put that down to Elayeth's seeming preference for 'dark' women, and padded up to Silth.

"Hello." He didn't smile at her yet... "Elayeth, we're here... now tell me why we're here."

Elayeth tut tut'd at the black jivvin and waggled a long finger in his direction. "Patience is a virtue, dummy." Then he turned to Silth again. "You're looking as lovely as the last time we met... as you can see, I've been enoying my thumbs." He waggled them in the air to emphasize that fact. "I was wondering.... well... if you had any more? For Meis. He's so damn grumpy that I just can't stand to be around him anymore. There are so many things he could do with thumbs that would relax him, if you know what I mean... or maybe you don't, that doesn't really matter." He grinned. "Nice coat, by the way."

The last thing she had expected was for someone to know her by now, and the call startled her sufficiently that she remained where she was, though she kept a death grip on the two books. The lake? Alexander Edward... Oh, she remembered him! Her lips split in a bright smile of greeting as Elayeth moved into her line of sight, and she relaxed just a tad, moving from her little nest of pine needles to greet him.

"Elayeth. I do remember you, and Alexander Edward. I am glad that you did not bring him with you this time, however." Nonetheless, her smile was quite as warm for Meiser as it was for the Olplyn, and she offered something between a nod and a curtsy in greeting before turning her attention back to the speaking Elayeth.

She seemed more amused by his compliments than taken with them, and her smile was brightest when he admitted how much he had been enjoying the fourth form. Though Sil did, admittedly, preen a bit with the compliment for her coat. "It was a gift," came her simple reply, followed by a laugh. "And here I was hoping that you had actually come to visit me. I do have more stones. One may be suitable for Meiser..." She paused, considering the Daewl, then glanced back to Elayeth and quirked a brow. "How did you find me?"

Elayeth jerked a thumb at Meiser over his shoulder. "He's got a map in his head with little people on it. I asked him to look for you, because you had helped me once... and I thought you might help him to." He grinned at her. "And for the record, I didn't know that you would WANT to see me... so I'm sorry that I've only come when I needed a favour. If you like, I'll come and visit you more often."

Meiser rolled his eyes. "You don't ever shut down do you?" He sighed and sat down in the chilly pine needles, then glanced at Silth. "He's kind of unstoppable, really." Meis appologized for the red jivvin with a shrug. "He's harmless as long as you keep just that in mind. Just repeat to yourself, Elayeth is harmless, Elayeth is harmless... Oh, and never sleep with him."

Elayeth spun on Meiser with eyes wide and slammed a hand against his own chest as if he'd been stabbed in the heart. "AcK! Meiser... you'll be the death of me you dumb thumbless brute. First you have to go and tell Maeve that we can see her backside, when YOU KNOW VERY WELL that I'm enjoying looking at her backside, now you go and tel Silth not to sleep with me and that I'm harmless!" He made a stabbing motion and committed to the action so far as to fall down 'dead' in the pine needles. ... where he remained motionless, eyes closed, tongue hanging out.

Meise just stared at him like a Cat might stare at it's human when it knew it was safe and out of reach.

The exchange made her laugh, though that was undoubtedly Elayeth's intention. While Elayeth was cavorting around and feigning his death. Silthran spared the Daewl a wink. "Never fear, Meiser. I have seen more of Elayeth than he shall ever see of me."

A moment later she seemed to come to a decision and carefully removed the fur cloak, wrapping the pair of books in it one free. Beneath it, her clothing was warm but a bit frayed, and was likely only a winter-safe modification of the very outfit Elayeth had met her in. "The cloak is not good for flying," she explained patiently, wing sprouting from her back to emphasize her words as she stepped over to Elayeth and carefully placed the fur bundle on his stomach.

"Do not damage these," she instructed, the ghost of a threat in her tone. A split second later she kicked from the ground and shot off into the sky, apparently soon to return.

"Holey... " Meis watched wide eyed as the girl flew off. He found that he didn't have words suddenly and contented himself with watching her on his 'map' in his head. He didn't really watch where she had gone, but rather the difference in her 'marker' once she had gone from their plane into a higher one. He would keep that change in mind.. it would help him distinguish the actual heights of the markers on his head map.

"Yeah." Elayeth kicked one foot up onto the opposite knee and tucked his hands behind his head comfortably. Laying there in the needles like somone might lay on a picnic blanket, he watched Silth fly off over the tree tops. "That chick can fly... "

Meiser just nodded, still looking up where she had left, keeping an eye on her marker so that he'd know when she returned...

"She helped me pull Alexander Edward from the lake that one day."

"That day you tried to kill him?" Meiser's question was very quiet. It wasn't something that Elayeth had talked about, but you couldn't hang around the red jivvin as long as Meiser had and not see how much he hated his tyranical older brother. The 'Lake' incident had come up more than once and Elayeth usually dissmissed it casually...

"Naw." Elayeth shifted uncomfortably... "I wasn't trying to kill him... I just wasn't goint to pull him out once he fell in." He sighed. "Then she showed up, and she helped me pull him out, cause I couldn't let the a** drown while she was watching... and she gave me the crystal and somehow that made it better..." He laughed. "Better enough anyway... and she was wicked cute... still is." He grinned and flipped his tail up over his chest and stomach to keep himself a little warmer while they waited. The motion send the cloak bundle up closer to his face, so he picked it up and smelled it. "She smells good... " He peeked inside it. "A book and a dictionary... Damn, she'd have to be a brainiac... they're cute ones are always too damn smart for me."

"You're not stupid, you're just driven by a part of the body that doesn't allow you to think clearly all the time. " He snorted. "And for the last time, you've already got two girls, quit trying to steal this one too."

"Can't help it, Meis... I really truely adore women." Elayeth leaned back into the needles again, taking care not to rumple or hurt Sil's obviously precious bundle.

"Yeah. I've noticed."

She wasn't gone long. Silthran knew the forest better from the sky than from the ground. Even with most trees covered with snow, her hiding spot was not difficult to locate. If truth be told, there were several; she had learned long ago that if she accumulated too many crystals in one location, the Villagers would find them and take them from her. In groups of two or three, she had a better chance of the crystals avoiding detection.

Her landing was made much more carefully than her take-off. Boughs already bent with snow were brittle in the cold, and she didn't want the branch to break beneath her. She steadied herself by grabbing hold of an overhead branch as she landed, and keeping a firm hold until she was sure of her footing--and even after with one hand, when she realized just how slick the tree was. Snow was brushed from the little knothole, and she carefully drew from inside a small, crudely-made leather bag. The bag went into a pocket, and Silthran kicked from the tree, taking a moment to survey it from the air above before hurrying back towards her little clearing. The branch hadn't broken; she could reuse the hiding spot later.

She returned as suddenly as she had left, dropping suddenly to land lightly in the clearing with a few short back-wings. She took a quick moment to assure herself that the bundle was still atop Elayeth and undamaged, then approached Meiser. Plucking the bag from a pocket, she emptied the contents into her hand and presented them to the black Daewl; three crystals glittered up at him, one a bright gold, one a pale blue, and the last a deep black. "You may have one."

Elayeth leapt to his feet with an agility unusual for a person who had been laying full out only a moment before, and stood hovering over the crytals as close to Meiser as he thought the other jivvin would allow.

Meiser stared at the crystals blankly... it was just now really clicking what was being offered... thumbs... two legs, a face that needed shaving... humanity...

He stretched out his neck and looked over the three crystals present... the blue one was beautiful, much like the girl holding it, and in his mind there was no call for such a thing in his life, no matter how pretty... it just didn't fit. Looking at the gold he could see his face reflected in the shine, very distorted with a large nose and bugged out eyes.... but in the black... there was nothing.

He stared at the black crystal and realized that he couldn't see anything in it... it was like looking into a hole in Silth's hand...

"Oh for jeezumcrow... just grab a crystal already." Elayeth's impatience broke the moment and Meiser glanced up at the red jivvin, still carefully clutching Silth's bundle to his tunic'd chest. Then he grinned at looked up at Silth... "The black one... the black one please."

"So polite," she praised with a smile, and selected the black herself and tapped Meiser on the nose with it. The response was instantaneous.



Meiser transformed.

And took the crystal in his hand all for himself... then he opened his hands and looked down at his body... his... naked body.

Elayeth grinned and sat back with a wicked smile. "I'm bigger."

Meiser surveyed his body briefly before looking up at Silth without any shame at all. "I have to admit, I just got that joke you made earlier... very funny." He turned to Elayeth, his irritation with the other jivvin male warring with his inability to not smile at the moment. "You didn't tell me that I'd be naked when I got the crystal! Did you at least bring me clothing?"

Elayeth grinned again... "Didn't you hear me? I said I'm bigger... you don't have a response for that?"

Meiser just shook his head at Elayeth in disbelief. "You didn't even bring me any clothes. You knew this would happen and you wanted to see me suffer....and for the record I've seen you naked almost as much as you have and you're not bigger than me."

Elayeth shrugged. "Well then we're about the same size at the least." He stood up next to Meiser... both were tall and thin, remarkably the same height and weights... almost as if one where the negative of the other. "I could give you my tunic?" He fluttered his eyes comicaly... "I can be your Maeve..."

"Oh please." Meiser turned to Silth. "You've made my day Silthran... you really have." He reached over and punched Elayeth on the arm, quite hard... "Give me your pants... you're gonna walk home in your boxers."

"No way... just switch back and walk on all fours til we get to a place where you can get dressed before you parade that olive skinned thing around any more." Elayeth waved a hand at his friend and then turned to Silth... "It's alright... I know I'm cuter, you don't have to worry about me, I won't get jealous."

"I'm never switching back again." He stared at his hands... "Now give me your pants."

Grumbling, Elayeth stepped out of his leathers and handed them to Meiser. "It's alright, I'll be the better sport here and make the best of the situation... we'll consider it a treat for Sil here. She gets to see your olive tan chest, and my lovely darkblue boxers... " He turned around in his underwear as if he were modeling it. "It's even got a red heart on the band there, see?" He lifted his tunic and pointed. "Just for you."

Silthran was often naive, gullible, and disoriented when it came to modern society and the social exchanges that came with it. Many of the phrases Elayeth was so fond of were foreign to her, though she could deduce their meaning if she thought about it. But there were some matters that were universal, even for awkward little forest hermits. Silthran had passed out several crystals by this point. She knew all too well what came after the contact. They wanted her crystals? Sure, she would hand them out to handsome, clueless Center Jivvins. It won her a nice eye-full for her efforts.

The two bickered, and Silthran stepped back an enjoyed the show. Her hand closed around the remaining stones, and she loosely folded her arms. Her eyes, for the most part, remained politely above waist-level, radiating absolute innocence, though a secretive little smile on her lips betrayed her. Briefly she considered settling the argument by offering Meiser her cloak, and then promptly decided against it. He angel would undoubtedly fuss once these two were gone; she didn't need him scolding her over the lost cloak too.

Finally, she pulled her attention away to carefully replace the two remain crystals in their little leather bag. "You should not stay out here long, if you are going to remain dressed that way..." she offered, diverting the conversation even as she reached a hand to Elayeth to accept her cloak and books. "It grows quite cold after dusk."

Meiser donned the dark green leathers and tied them shut in the front. He noted to himself that he was almost the exact same size as Elayeth, since the pants fit him as snugly as they had his friend... He didn't really care for the green... "You won't be wanting these back now that I'm going commando in them, I Assume?"

Elayeth shrugged. "I got them from Saty's closet." which was the honest truth.

"Great." Meiser's brain was overloading. "I fit in women's pants."

"Warrior woman's pants." Elayeth struck a body builder pose with his upper body and then winked at Sith.

"C'mon." Meiser reached out an grabbed Elayeth by the ties on his tunic front and dragged him away from the blonde jivvin. "Thank you again Silth... if you like, the next time we visit you will be when we're not looking for a favor, but rather company."

"And I'll bring pants for him and me so that we don't have to share." Elayeth gave a cheesy grin for her "unless you like it when we switch back and forth? You know... I always thought that girls looked good in tunics..." He got a sudden flash of Maeve wearing his tunic and then went wide eyed with a new thought. "Silth! You're village! You would know, do they have wet tunic contests in the village?"

Meiser grabbed Elayeth by both shoulders and hauled his friend backwards, and off into the woods. "Thanks Silthran, til next time."

"Awww. C'mon! You are seriouly no fun... really." Elayeth's complaints could be heard, as the two treked off through the trees, interspersed with Meiser's short counter arguements... until the sound of two bodies hitting the pine needles could be heard, along with an 'ouch, Dammit Elayeth, that hurts when you actually have elbows...' and an 'yeah well, Ooffphh! Jeezum! Not so, Ahh! GETTOFF!" as the two physically fought over a point of interest... probably Stazja... or Maeve... or Silth. ...

They did eventually make it home...
Eventually.

"You are quite welcome," she called after him, and absently cradled the bundled cloak to herself. "You are welcome to visit any time," she added, but, as the two were off bickering again, she didn't really expect a reply. Briefly, she considered going after them, walking with them to the center perhaps explaining that she was not of the Village. Alternately, she debated calling them back, offering a cloak and a fire. But in both cases she decided against it.

Once the sounds of their departure had faded, she made her way back to the little nest of pine needles, taking just enough time to drape the furry cloak about herself before settling down to read until the light faded. Center Jivvins were a strange lot. She was quite happy here, in her little clearing in the forest.

Cael/Aara

His little brain seized on the first part of the story... "You sisters didin have FINGERS!?!" his little eyes were wide and he stared at Aara trying to imagine what life without fingers would be like...

And then he realized what the second part of Aara's answer had said.... "YOU LIVED WIT A DRAGON!?!" He leapt up onto his chubby little feet and about threw himself into Aara's lap. He leaned forward against the man's tail and grabbed at the fur in his excitement. "What kinds of dragon? Green kind? The Red kind? Does the red kind breave fires? Did you ever get fires breaved on you when you was bad?"

"It's not all that uncommon for Jivvins who come from the Center to not be blessed with fingers from the moment they're hatched. Even I didn't have fingers until just a few years ago. You're very lucky to be able to pick things up as easily as you can..." There were a dozen other things he could have said but instead he simply grinned at the boy's reaction to the rest of what he'd said.

"Mm, I believe she was the silver kind, which if you've never heard of them before means they're rather friendly and they like to spend time around humans... And Jivvins, of course. I don't believe she's ever breathed fire, and I don't think she can... But she bakes cookies. Wonderful cookies."

Cael got so excited that he suddenly buried his face in fistfulls of Aara's tail and screeched into it. The sound was muffled mostly, but high pitched enough that some of the screech came through. When he picked his head up again he was grinning ear to ear, and he climbed up onto the tail and into the older jivvin's lap. "I bet dragon cookies are best! They probably make you big and tall like you are." Then he grabbed up one of Aara's hands and examined the man's fingers closely. "These is new?" he asked without even looking up. "And not burned all the way off..." He looked at the other side of the fingers "and not burned off at all. Your dragon must be nice. You still has all your new fingers." He held out his little hand next to Aara's and compared them. "Yes." He nodded to himself. "You must be eating Sil fer dragon cookies."

"She is a very nice dragon... She took me in and gave me a home and then she brought Maeve and Beryl home as well." He brought his other hand up as he sat up, shifting so that he could steady the youngster as he held his hand out, flexing his fingers.

"It's not new now, but it was some time ago back when I was younger and not nearly as wise as I am now." He couldn't help but grin. "Maybe the next time I visit her I can ask her for cookies to bring to Satou for you?"

Cael thought about that while he continued to compare his fingers to Aara's long slender ones. "That would be nice." Uncle Gus was nice like that. "Now I knows you're a Afshya, cause you're nice like Uncl Gus. How comes I never seen you before? Do you not lives ina village?" He'd never heard of anyone not living in the village other than whoever that girl was that Gus was always talking about.

He leaned back and looked over Aara's shirt. "You look like a village. Not like Uncl Gus. He wears shoes like grass colour, and thas strange."

He held his hand up straight so that the younger Jivvin could press their palms together if he wanted to, quietly watching him for a moment. He'd almost forgotten just what childlike wonder could be like, which was a bad thing... It was never good to forget things like curiosity and innocence.

"You've never seen me before because I don't tend to wander too close to the Village; not because I don't want to or because I'm not curious, but because it's not my home. I live in a cabin that the forest was kind enough to let me build not far from here, between the Village and the Center. Kuro, the Daewl I live with, wears clothes closer to what Gus does... But I think things like what you and I are wearing are much more comfortable." He nodded soundly.

"Yeah." Cael did indeed press his hand to Aara's palm to palm. "I didin know you could live out here." He looked around as if surveying the area and then shook his head at the older jivvin. "I doan think I could live out here. Not even if Daddy told me to. There's no goats and no Daddy, and no Mommy, and no Leewee... and no candy." He looked up at Aara suddenly shocked. "You don't have candy do you? How can you lives wiffout candy?" Then he leaned forward and gave Aara a big hug... "Poor Afshya. I'll gives you candy if you bring for me dragon cookies."

"No, there aren't any of those things out where I live... Although I had thought about getting a cat once." He chuckled softly and then paused, glancing down at the youngster's shocked look only for it to be mirrored on his own face at the hug. He tensed slightly from surprise before relaxing, his shocked expression easily melting into a smile as he gave the little Sargtlin a light pat on the head. "Candy for cookies sounds like a fair trade to me... As long as your mother agrees, of course. I've heard that angry mothers can be ten times as bad as angry dragons." His voice got lower at the last part, almost conspiratorial.

"as long as his mother agrees to what?" Satou asked with a smile as she and Gus came back into hearing range. She tilted her head and suppressed an 'aww' as she saw Cael hugging Aara around the middle. It suddenly occured to her that she hadn't even really asked the blonde Afya if he would mind watching the little sargtlin, but it seemed to have worked out alright.

Gus shook his head at his nephew. "That kid could talk his way into anything. Not that getting hugs from people is hard when you've dressed like a tame pirate and you've got a blonde bowl cut." He laughed. Aara, I'll have to catch up with you sometime! I really should get back to Silthran though, if you two don't mind?"

"That I'm allowed to bring him cookies the next time I visit home and the Dragon decides to bake... Which, coincidentally, she tends to do when I visit." He grinned as he shifted so that he could lightly nudge Cael out of his lap so that he could stand and dust himself off, casting a glance over to Gus. "I don't mind at all as long as you pass my regards on to Silthran as well... I should probably start making my way back to my cabin as well."

Satou smiled and grabbed her son by the arm, dragging him up onto his feet. "You're more than welcome at our house at any time Aara, with or without dragon cookies.

"Wiff cookies." Cael pointed a small finger up into the air as he spun in his mother's grip. "Wiff cookies for sure!" Then he jerked his hand from his mother's "I'm gonna walk. You gonna walk wiff me Uncl Gus."

"Yes. yes." Gus shoved his hands into his pockets and cocked his head slightly... he hadn't realized that Aara would know of Silthran... but it did make sense with both of them living in the woodlands. He'd have to ask Silth about Aara and maybe even visaversa. "Of course I'll pass on your greetings." He jerked his head at he nephew. "C'mon kid. Let's get hoofin'!"

Satou waved slightly back at Aara. "Say hi to Kuro for me... not that he'll remember me. And enjoy the rest of your walk."

"I will, Satou... Do enjoy the rest of your day as well, and thank you... For helping me remember a few of the little things that I've forgotten."

Smiling he turned, humming softly the tune he'd joined them in singing earlier only for the sound to fade off eventually as he shifted back to all fours to make his trek through the woods just a little bit faster. At least tonight he'd have new stories to tell around the dinner table.