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Date: 11.28.05
Location: Arae's room in the Silva Regia tower
Synopsis: Arae and Averno recover from the cupcakes o' doom. Arae gets a message from an anonymous suitor.
Participants: Averno and Arae
The Scene:



Arae stared out the windows, watching the pale winter sunlight stream through and across the linen handkerchief which served as her sheets. Her doll house bed in the greenhouse of the tower had a nigh-permanent imprint of her slight form where she'd lain for so long recovering from the aftermath of the cupcake she ate in the Feien HQ.

Sajhiri had been shocked and horrified to find her and Averno near death, and rushed them to the old shop where they spent some time in the care of fleet surgeons, repairing the damage done. News that one of their own, a juvenile much less, had purposely tried to kill them all had shaken the gentle ancient to her core. She was relieved when she awoke back home and was told there was only one casualty, that of the poisoner himself.

She was pulled from her reverie when Averno stalked in. They'd not spoken much during their recovery, both horrendously embarassed at their fight. They had figured out that each one thought the other was referring to someone else during the scuffle. She offered her bond sibling a small smile.

Averno returned it, though it warped into a bit of a mischevious grin. "Look what I found on the doorstep" she mused, handing over the small letter. "Purple ink too, you'd think if he wanted it to be a secret, he'd be more subtle."

Arae blinked in confusion as she accepted the note, and her vibrant eyes scanned over the words intently.Her pale cheeks flushed at the message and her smile broaded with each line. She clittched it to her chest with girlish glee. "Do you really think it's from him? What should I do? Should I write back? What if it isn't him afterall?"

Averno snickered quietly. "Well if it isn't him it's the sentiments you want to pass on to him anyway, right? Just be like him and don't sign it." She looked out the glass ponderously, wondering how bad she could maybe freak Silva out with a message like that. Just to see him squirm.

Arae skittered out of bed and gathered up her writing materials, including green ink. "A great idea!" She began to scribe dilligently.

"Beloved Aleric,
Each tick in time I think of you,
Each moment dwells in memory,
But mem'ry pales and does not sate,
The need to have you here with me."

She addressed the note to him and blushed. "Do you think he'll know it's me?" she asked softly.

Averno snorted and took the message to deliver. "If he doesn't he's too stupid to have you." With an eyeroll she stalked off to deliver the message.

12.01.05 - He loves me! Sweet merciful winds he LOVES me! I thought I would be so alone in this place, having so little in common with the newly bloomed children, but Aleric, an ancient like I, has let me into his heart! His poems to me were so touching and heartfelt, that I can barely sleep or eat for daydreaming of him! His most recent poem reads:

Aleric

My lovely Arae,
My love cries out, but still I cannot speak,
Give voice to all these longings which I feel.
The common words like love, they seem so weak,
and can't describe this feeling that's so real.

Is that not the most romantic thing you've ever heard? I hope he comes to me soon. I wish to be near him, to breath in his scent and nestle in his arms. I have been alone for so long, I'd feared my heart would have turned hard as the earth in which I laid for so long.

Averno delivered my most recent reply to him. She came home looking somewhere between shaken and stirred. Not sure what that is all about. I'll ask her later, maybe. I don't want this feeling ruined by her typical negativity.

Date: 12.09.05
Location: A well outside of Hadrian's mother's town.
Synopsis: Arae meets Hadrian and they talk about holidays.
Participants: Arae and Hadrian
The Scene:

In spite of his plan to "come home for the holidays", Hadrian had so far failed to actually return to the place he considered 'home'. Coming home wasn't as simply and carefree as he had always imagined it would be. Things had changed in his absence. People he knew seemed to no longer be around, and he was honestly a little bit concerned about returning to his mothers house and finding more changes. He was usually quite good at excepting the flow of things, and going with it, but somehow so far he had felt slightly awkward and things weren't coming as naturally as usual.
So he was settled on the lip of an abandoned well, outside the town where his mother lived, putting off his return to work on his idea of a rain shield out of magic.

She'd been flying for hours, gathering holly berries and mistletoe to craft a bouquet for Aleric. Arae was beginning to tire, the cold of winter seeping into her wings and making them stiff and difficult to keep flapping. Her gaze swept the landscape below her for a place to rest, and the vibrant orange flash of feienly color drew her attention. She descended in a slow and graceful spiral on the frigid currents of air.

"Hellooooo!" she called out, so as not to startle the male with a sudden landing. "Is there room for another there?"

Hadrian, who had only so far managed to set a leaf on fire - nothing even remotely umbrella like, found himself glad for the distraction. He waved energetically at the slowly descending feien, "Sure! Plenty of room."
He had a warm, friendly smile on his face by the time she landed, little gusts of wind from her decent tugging at his long hair, pulling wisps of it across his face.

The ancient alighted on the edge of the well and folded her wings around her for warmth. Her smile was equally toasty with a gentle edge to it as she dipped her head in greeting.

"A new face I've yet to put a name to. So many of those these days. I am Arae, bonded of Sajhiri Jihaar. Whom do I have the pleasure of addressing this fine, if chilly, day?"

"I'm Hadrian, nice t'meet you." He offered a hand, which felt particularly warm to the touch when compared to the cool winter air.
He wasn't exactly new...really...but he was honestly starting to FEEL like he was. He'd have to make his peace with that, and warmed by Arae's welcoming smile it seemed like that might be a little more possible then he had anticipated.
"Are you alright? I can get something made up to warm you up a bit, if you like."
He grinned just a little wider...like a kid who can't quite help showing off something he's proud of.

" A pleasure to meet you, Hadrian. It's been so long since I mingled with other feien, that I've a whole world of new names and faces to learn. I'll do my best to remember yours." She settled on the edge of the well, keeping her wings tight about her.

"Some warmth would be most welcome, thank you." she murmured. "Tis a lovely season, don't you think? There seems to be a great deal of joy in the air, and smiles on faces, despite recent difficulties for our kind."

"I'm pretty well in the same boat as you then." The fire feien said, peering around for a loose pebble in the wall they were perched on. "But...faces and names are really the only thing I DO have a good memory for."
He chuckled quietly at the comment, making it clear this didn't bother him much. After a moment he plucked a good sized pebble from a crack in the wall and held it up triumphantly.
"It is a nice holiday. But," he said as the pebble began to glow with an internal sort of warmth, "I enjoy it more in the middle of the summer."
He set the make shift heater between them.

Arae poked her hands out of her closed wings to hold them over the heated stone, relief spreading across her features. "Thank you, Hadrian, this helps a great deal." She rubbed her hands together, grateful to feel them unstiffen a bit.

She pondered his words for a time before offering, "I think I prefer spring the most. It's a time of life and rebirth, and it feels so lovely after the cold of winter. And the smells the air carries are so delicate and soothing."

The fire Feien tilted his head slightly to the side, and although it was subtle, his expression made it clear that he was pleased to be complimented.

"I really don't mind any season...so much. Its just that I'm not fond of the cold." He shrugged slightly, "And I like the heavy warm feeling of summer. There really ought to be a good large celebration in the middle of the season."

Arae sat thoughtfully. "I still remember the old rituals. Perhaps they could be adapted for our kind. Lughnasadh would take place around midsummer, a feast and games in honor of the Sun God's passing and the first reapings of the harvest." She rubbed a fingertip across her chin as she thought about it.

"Personally I still prefer Beltane, which is much closer than midsummer."

He was looking at her with an expression of child-like interest on his face. He'd heard some of the names of rituals like that, but nothing that made them at all familiar.
"What happens on Beltane?" Hadrian asked, leaning forward and watching Arae with wide golden eyes.

Arae grinned in good humor and she chuckled softly. "Well, for feien it would have a touch less impact, but it is the day that humans can set aside their vows to their mates, and may lie with whomever they choose til the dawn. Tis also a time when temporary mates are taken for a year and a day. Mostly it's a celebration of life and passion."

She spent a moment picturing the look on Aleric's face should she ever mention it to him. The rather noble and somewhat staid ancient would likely die of shock at such wild and flagrant physicalities.

Hadrian blinked, and looked to be considering that description. Apparently he was considering it pretty closely, because he looked after a moment almost as if he were blushing.
"Do they...I mean...Humans must not celebrate it anymore? And...feien could take vows couldn't they? I mean I never thought about it before..."

"Some humans still celebrate it, but a fraction of the numbers that used to. Religions have changed, modesty has been enforced, and spirits are not so free as they once were. It was a festival designed to replenish the species so that there would be a renewal of the population after the common deaths of the winter months. But as feien do not create new feien in the same manner, it would have a bit of a different meaning. Though it would be interesting to have a festival of creating blooms." Arae seemed to find the blushing endearing and she smiled softly.

"But with our current situation as it is, breeding is not open to such, but is controlled by those that took over the shop and in effect, our very existences."

There was a flickering change in Hadrian's expression, more then just his smile fading. It was something deep down and hidden under flippant cheer and childish wonder, and it was difficult to define.
"That." He said softly, "Seems like it could be called slavery."
His tone sounded as if he were idly pondering that, but he was looking out across the meadow with a little sort of frown.
He had heard the basic story of the shops reorganisation, from a letter from his mother. But it was all rumor and here-say so far. The more he heard about it, the more disconcerting it became, and not only because he had gained a certain distaste for 'government' herarchy from his mother.
"I would be a nice thing to celebrate, Arae." He said finally, looking back and her, smiling again, "You should figure out how to set it up."

"Perhaps...perhaps," she murmured, staring down into the darkness of the well, stretching her wings to let them warm over the stone. "I must confess to being concerned with this Fleet which has taken control of our species, but at the same time they take from us some freedoms, they are creating many more blooms than before. So our numbers are increasing. Which is a good thing." She sighs softly.

"I just wish we had the freedom to make a bloom and raise it ourselves. I miss having children to tend to."

Having never been denied the freedom to go and do what he wanted (or at least, not since childhood when he of course had to obey his mothers rules, which were admittedly mostly so he didn't set the house on fire), the idea of being denied any freedom at all was somewhat disconcerting.
Something else occured to him, however, and he looked at Arae curiously, "You...have had children before?"

A sad smile lilted on Arae's lips, and her gaze became unfocused as it turned inward to memory. "Oh yes, several, but they are all long since gemstones to time. I am what is referred to as an ancient. I have lived a long, long time, far beyond the normal lifespan of a feien, and until recently did so without any need for a bond. But after a long sleep, and the fading of magics on this world, I awoke with the need for a bond and to the knowledge that my many children are long gone from Gaia."

"Oh..." Hadrian said, faultering a bit. He'd sort of expected something like that...but now he felt very young and foolish.
"I'm sorry." he traced the top of the hot pebble with his fingertips, feeling a little awkward.

Arae reached over to pat his hand. "Do not fear, for they lived well and died well in the normal course of the cycle of birth and death. I do not mourn their passing." She gazed up at the sky. "I should return to the tower. Sajhiri will fret if I'm out after dark. It was a pleasure to meet you Hadrian. I can sometimes be found in the Fleet HQ if you care to seek me out another time." She rose and launched herself into the air with a parting wave.

Date: 12.30.05
Location: The Silva Regia Tower's garden.
Synopsis: Aleric says farewell to Arae before leaving on his quest.
Participants: Arae and Aleric
The Scene:

Arae sat under the chill December moon in the garden of the tower and basked in the starlight. Her pond had remained unfrozen this week, after Sajhiri installed a heating element beneath it so the fish wouldn't be cold.

She gazed at her reflection in the still water, occasionally broken by a koi rippling through the image. She missed Aleric and hoped he was all right. Christmas had been a pleasant quiet affair, and was time well spent with her bond, but she ached to see her love again.



"This won't take long." Aleric said over his shoulder. He squared his shoulders and reminded himself once again that he wasn't a young boy. He was an ancient and should act like an adult.

But then why did he feel so damn guilty for this? He sighed and dropped down on Sajhiri's front porch, thinking he should knock. Then he felt a hint of magic from the gardens. He took to the air, flying around the back and stopping at the sight of her there. Just to commit the image to his mind before he left.



Arae felt a glimmering of power nearing and she looked up from her reverie. Her smile lit up the night as she spotted the hints of purple and gold in the darkness. "Aleric?" she queried softly, feeling her heart skip a beat in excitement.



"Each time I see you, you grow more beautiful." He said with a little smile and a shake of his head. "I'm not sure how, but millions would kill for that skill if the televisions are to be believed." He landed beside her, reaching for her hands with his smile firmly in place. "How are you, my love?"

His snowboard and staff were strapped together over his back, and a pouch of food hung from his waist. He was ready to leave as soon as this chat was over, but to mention that this soon would be rude.



Arae blushed softly at the poetic compliments from her paramour. She squeezed Aleric's hand gently. "You are too kind, but that is why I love you so, your kindness." She smiled a bit mischeviously with a twinkle in her eye "And your kissing ability of course."

It took her a moment before she noticed his accoutrements. "Are...are you going somewhere, Aleric?" She asked.



He hesitated. "Perhaps we should sit." He said, tugging at her hands as he sat down. "You see... I've been thinking very hard about some things. You know, that we're the only link the feien have left to the past as ancients..." Think, you idiot, how do you make this sound as if you're not rejecting her the moment you got her?



"I prefer to stand, I think..." Arae said softly. This didn't sound good to her, and she felt her stomach churn at Aleric's words. She forced herself not to show it on the surface though as she said quietly "yes, go on."



"And... well..." There he went again, feeling like an awkward boy. Slowly he got to his feet. "There is another link to our past, my love. One that remembers more than myself. I'm going on a quest." He took a deep breath.

"I want to bring a piece of our past back to the feien. Even if it's just a flute. Think of what will happen my love. When some young juvenile looks at such a beautiful piece of feien craft and realizes that they can do that, too." His eyes shone with the idea, his enthusiasm showing clearly. "When they realize that there's so much more to us than living as pets with human bonds. That we are a true culture! A people with a rich and deep history!"



Arae blinked and her breath escaped in a rush of relief. "Oh! Is that all? For a minute there I thought you were dumping me already." She chuckled. "We all must follow the paths we are set upon, Aleric. If this is a path you must walk, you do so with my blessing. Just be careful and take care of yourself. Come home to me when your path returns you here." She smiled gently.



He grinned as relief hit him. "I know that I might be gone for a while... Silva's already warned me of that. But I think I can figure out how to use the human's mail system to write you. And the phone, maybe. I'm not going alone, so it should be safer for me. But I felt I needed to tell you before I did anything... and..." He hesitated. "We should tell Averno, as well."



Arae looked a bit confused. "Tell Averno? I don't think she'll much care that you're going on a quest, my love. She'd likely try to convince you to take me, and the rest of the Menagerie with you to give her some peace and quiet, but that's about it."



She hadn't told her? Great... just great... "I suppose not..." He said hesitantly. "Silva and Soho are going with me. I hope it will help heal some of the wounds developed during the cupcake incident." He said, glancing over his shoulder and into the shadows where his family waited.

Maybe it was best that Averno wasn't told...



"Averno has been acting peculiar lately, and now you talk about telling her about your family heading out on a quest? What is going on here Aleric. Don't lie to me." She crossed her arms over her chest and peered at her beau.




"I was hoping she would be the one to tell you..." He said dryly. The last thing he wanted to do was tell her about Silva and Averno. "There might be... something... between your bond sister and my brother." He said with a slight shrug.



"SILVA!?" Arae laughed out loud. "Don't be ridiculous. Those two hate each other." She giggled. "Oh Aleric, you're so sweet, seeing romance everywhere." She kissed his cheek.



"I guess it does sound kind of ridiculous." He said, enjoying the kiss. He wasn't about to tell her about the scene on the porch. "But just to indulge me, love, would you tell her?" He asked, leaning his forehead against hers.

X

Arae smiled softly and stroked Aleric's cheek. "All right, I'll tell her. But you just remember to be safe, and don't take unnecessary chances, my love. I want you back in one piece, afterall. And take care of Soho." She notably left out taking care of Silva.



He smiled, kissing her briefly on the lips before pulling away. "I promise." He told her. "Nothing bad will happen to any of us."

Arae watched him depart, with a sinking feeling in her chest. She knew many a quester in her lifetime, and so very many of them died on the path. But she knew as well they could not be dissuaded, and that an ounce of encouragement and a reason to come home gave them all the more strength to survive.

Date: 01.12.05
Location: A forest in Upstate NY
Synopsis: Averno and Arae set out on a quest to rescue Silva, Soho and Aleric. They stop to rest somewhere in an Upstate NY forest.
Participants: Averno and Arae
The Scene:

The snowflakes stood out starkly against the black of the leathery wings wound into a ball under the pine tree. Averno huddled in the center of the protective shelter of skin and sinew, shivering in cold and in rage. She'd had a fight with Arae after finding out Silva had taken Aleric and Soho on some crazy quest that could get them all dead. Words were exchanged, and she ended up flying off, vowing to find him and kill him herself. She'd gone to the roof of the Headquarters for a while to cool off, watching her co-bonded trudge off herself into the deepening gloom of the winter night. She'd been harsh with Arae, who was trying hard not to panic over Aleric's long absence. She'd only told Averno to have a shoulder to cry on about him maybe being hurt or worse.

As the anger began to settle down, the darkness Feien began to worry herself. The fear that the trio had gotten in over their heads weas now outweighing her rage at Silva for not so much as saying goodbye... Or for that matter, not asking her to go with him. She dove off the roof and zipped back in through the feien-sized door to look at the bulletin board. Maybe she could find out where he went by scouring the quest notices there.

Her eyes skimmed over the notices, but she had a hard time remembering anything Arae had told her about what Aleric was questing for. After she'd mentioned Silva had gone with him all was an angry blur. All she could recall clearly was New York fit into the equation somehow. She saw one titled "Verasa's Knowledge" which indicated something of value in New York City, and she tore it off the board hastily.



That had to be it, in her mind, and she hurried off. In her haste, she never saw the quest several spots below it, in Upstate NY, for the flute Aleric had spoken of.

She had gone home to Arae and insisted that the two of them go to rescue the trio from their own folly. Arae, in her worry for her lover, had agreed, assuming Averno had identified their location. They packed quickly, scribbled a note for their bond, and took off into the deepest cold of night.

They'd flown Northeast for days, both cold and miserable, one trapped in her anger, the other her worries. Few words were exchanged, and they rested very little, only stopping to eat and catch a few short naps. The further they went from Barton, however, the colder it became, and the more difficult it was to fly against the winds. Tonight the chill had made their wings too stiff to fly further. Thus it was that they wound up in a pine tree in the middle of the woods of upstate New York.

The branches above Averno rattled, dropping clots of snow down around her and onto her makeshift tent. She let out a yelp and leap to her feet, brandishing her cocktail rapier menacingly. In the green boughs layered with white snow it took her a moment to pick Arae out. The ancient climbed down from where she'd landed and proffered a few leaves of winter cress.

"It's edible and safe, kind of mustardy in flavor. There was some growing nearby." Arae murmured, settling down to nibble on her own leaves. The green-haired woman seemed less bothered by the cold than Averno, letting her wing talons hook over her collar bones like a clasp forming a sort of cloak.

Averno bit into a leaf and chewed it morosely. They were out of their own food supplies, so foraging had been their only resort. Fortunately, Arae claimed to have lived in the wilds for decades, away from humans, and could find them food. She was right about the mustardy flavor. It was a little like spicy lettuce. Not as good as something cooked and warm would have been, but it'd suffice. "Thanks" she managed around a mouthful of leaf.

Arae peered out through the shadows of the branches and frowned. "I think it best if we sleep somewhat high in the boughs tonight, Averno. I think the wildlife around here is agitated and hungry from deep winter. We aren't safe on the ground."

Averno grunted and patted her rapier. "I think I can handle it, but if you insist, we can climb up near the top." She swallowed down the last of the edible plant and rose, stepping out from under the tree and forcing her aching, cold wings to flap and give her some lift. She grunted against the pain and drove herself up near the top of the pine, settling several feet below it on a sturdy, wide limb.

Arae joined her and drew some twine from her small, makeshift pack; nothing more than cloth knotted tied to a broken-off bamboo skewer. She wound a length of it around the branch, then wound the ends around her and Averno's waists. "Just in case something knocks us off while we're trying to rest..." she intoned.

Averno almost mouthed off about her being a bit obsessive about this, but noticed the furrow in the ancient's brow and stayed silent. She was really concerned about this. Had she sensed something out there? Or had she seen something unusual while she was foraging? She leaned back in the crux of two branches, securing herself, and laid her cocktail rapier in her lap, gripping it in both hands. The purple was a stark contrast to subdued tones of the winter around it.

Arae settled in herself, though looking far more wary, but the ancient finally drifted into an uneasy sleep, the exhaustion of the hard travel and her near constant worry for Aleric and Soho draining her energies.

Averno frowned deeply, and pushed aside the question in her head that had haunted her since she left.

"Why do you care?" it seemed to insist to her.

She gritted her teeth and told herself "He didn't say goodbye."

"So?" her conscience seemed to accuse.

"I might never see him again, and he didn't care enough to say goodbye." she said to herself.

"Why should you care?" the nagging voice asked.

"Because I thought he...I thought he cared about me. Even a little, under all that bravado and snark," she admitted reluctantly.

"And this matters to you, why?"

"Because I think I love him." There, she'd admitted it to herself. She wasn't certain she knew what love was, but she'd been sick with worry after Arae's news, and before that she'd been depressed and angry over his not visiting her once since their snog session. With her self admission she relaxed a bit, the tension seeping from her as her denials waned. She drifted into a light sleep.

She had no idea that less than a quarter mile away, Silva and company were fighting for their lives as they tried to retrieve the flute they'd set out to find.

Date: 01.15.05
Location: A highway near Syracuse
Synopsis: Averno and Arae stow away on a truck bound for NYC.
Participants: Averno and Arae
The Scene:

Averno and Arae spent a day healing up from their wounds. Fortunally, Arae's healing abilities hurried the process along, otherwise the bruising from their wild ride would have made flight very uncomfortable. The owl had given up after 20 minutes or so, choosing to go after less protected prey.

They left in daylight on Arae's insistence that the owl was nocturnal. Their rest breaks were becoming longer and more frequent. Neither of them was built for endurance and both were beginning to suffer from their extended journey and all its trials. They weren't even entirely sure if they were going the right way. All they had was a hand-scribbled map Averno had made from Sajhiri's keymap, and the sun to guide them.

Just when they were about to give up and turn back, they spotted a highway cutting through the area. They zipped along it looking for signs and found them at a rest stop full of semi's. There were truckers chatting with one another at picnic tables, and others sleeping. Averno peered at a small blue, white, and red sign. "I-90...ok that's good, that ought to take us to 87 which we can take down to New York City," she murmured as she poured over her map.

"Are we close yet? Is Syracuse near there?" Arae asked quietly as she perched on the large green sign heralding the upcoming city.

Averno blinked numbly for a moment or two. "No, we're nowhere near where we need to be." She sighed and gritted her teeth in frustration. This was taking too long. They were never going to find Silva in time to keep him out of trouble.

"Yeah, I'm hauling produce to Manhattan. I'm on a tight deadline though, so I can't rest too long here," muttered one of the truckers nearby. Averno's head snapped around and she peered at the speaker intently.

The man talking with him chuckled, "Yeah Jake, I know about those deadlines. I'm gonna catch a cat nap. Good luck on your run." The two men shook hands, and parted ways.

Averno grabbed Arae by the arm and dragged her in the wake of Jake. They crouched under the rear wheels of the semi as the trucker opened the back door to check on his cargo. With a grunt of approval, he lowered his eyes to jot down some information on a clipboard.

Averno and Arae zipped into the back of the truck and hid behind some crates of grapes. The smell of fresh fruit and vegetables made their stomachs rumble so loud they worried the man might hear. But he didn't, and he closed the doors, locking them in.

The pair let out a sigh of relief. There was a little bit of light coming through from the seams of the door. Averno grabbed a grape from the crate and sat in the paler bit of darkness to peel and eat it. "This ought to get us to Manhattan, which is part of New York City..." she said quietly. "And there's plenty to eat too!" The temperature controlled truck was a cool 55 degrees, but it was much better than the 15 degrees and snow outside of it.

Arae joined her sibling for their meal and wrapped her wings around herself. "We should look at sneaking on a plane or something to get home..." she murmured.

A plane, now that would have been a good idea. Averno grunted and nodded in agreement, feeling a bit sheepish that she hadn't thought of that in the first place. She was so upset and angry when they left, that planning thoughtfully went right out the window.

"Just get some rest. It'll be at least 6 hours or so to get us there." The pair curled up together for warmth and slept the sleep of the truly exhausted.

Date: 01.19.08
Location: The Bell Tower of Riverside Church, Manhattan, NY
Synopsis: Averno finally finds the object of the quest! Chaos ensues!
Participants: Averno, Arae, a legion of nasties, an old bell, a riddle, some jewelry, and a few departed feien.
The Scene:

Averno leapt off the top of the taxi cab and alighted on the street sign, shivering a bit from the cold. She doublechecked the writing on the perpendicular surfaces and seemed satisfied. "West 119th street and Riverside Drive. This is the place, Arae."

Arae perched on a mailbox and looked up at the towering structure of the gothically ornate Riverside Church, a New York City landmark."Indeed, and that is one very, very large church, Averno," she noted.

The darkness feien looked up from her piece of parchment where she'd scribbled the addresses of every ornate looking church with a bell tower from a visitors guide. She'd managed to wriggle inside of a closed newstand late on their first night in the city and copied down the addresses as best she could. The last few days had been a blur of harried moments grabbing onto passing vehicles to get to the streets and avenues they had to reach. Being so small in such a big place was exhausting.

All of the addresses on the parchment were crossed off now except one, and they had just arrived there. "If they're not here, I don't know what more we can do, Arae." She shoved a curl of sodden hair behind one pointed ear. It didn't really snow in the city, instead it was kind of a sludgy weather, leaving her hair and spirits sodden. They'd not found any sign of Silva or his little family at any of the prior stops.

Arae smiled grimly. "They have to be here, they have to. Come on, the bell tower is terribly far up. And it's huge, if they're somewhere inside it we have a lot of work to do."

The sun was beginning to set as the pair began flying in small spurts up the side of the enormous church tower. They rested from time to time on the ledges jutting out from the sides of the majesticly designed edifice.

Averno at last landed on the open nave of the belltower, over 300 feet above the ground below. She grabbed a wobbling Arae by the wrist as she landed beside her and almost toppled back off, hauling her to safety. "Careful there, lady," she grunted out.

"Thank you..." Arae panted. She blinked into the gloom of the nave and brushed herself off, wrinkling her nose. "It..kind of stinks up here, doesn't it?"

Averno sniffed and grimaced. She nodded her head. "Sulfur or something. Gross. But it wouldn't surprise me to find Silva in a place like...hey...I sense something!" She narrowed her eyes and hopped down onto the floor of the tower. Her magical detection was going wild, and she began moving in a pattern to try and discern the direction of the sensation. "It's this way, come on!"

The pair of fairies crept along the maze of gears, wires, chains, pullies, and weights that controlled the 74 bells in the church's carillion. The light continued to dim as the sun sunk below the horizon making it tough for them to see.

Averno approached one of the many bells and stood beneath it. It was smaller than the rest, the kind that would produce a high, musical note. It strangely looked much older than the rest, in fact, older than the church it hung in. "Silva?..." she called upwards, towards the sense of magic power and the slight shuffling sounds. "Is that you? Are you all right?"

Arae joined her. "Aleric? Soho? Is that you up there? It's Arae and Averno, do you need help?"

The two paused and listened to the sounds of movement above them in the darkness. The hair on the back of their necks stood up as their queries were replied to with an unearthly shriek. From the blackness above countless dark figures descended upon them, mistaking the winged beings for the insects normally preyed on...

... Bats by the hundreds, who called the tower home by day, and who had left the foul smelling guano which was even now stinging their eyes and noses. Averno dove behind a gearbox, propelled forward by a furry, leathery body slamming into her. She rolled over, kicking and screaming as the bat landed on top of her, little fangs looking like daggers to the feien. It thrashed, tangled in some cables, and the fairy blasted it with a bolt of dark energy. She scrambled out from under the stunned creature and drew her rapier. "ARAE!" she shouted. "WHERE ARE YOU!?"

"H-here!" the ancient's voice cried out. She was standing atop a pulley, ducking as a half dozen bats divebombed her in turn. With a growl she raised a hand and sent a gale force wind in their direction, making them spiral out of control. They slammed bodily into some of the bells, setting off some dim chiming from their lack of mass.

Averno scrambled over the floor, not liking her chances in the air. "We need to direct them out of the tower with your wind! Do what you can, I'll keep them off you!" She jabbed the plastic weapon into the furred belly of an approaching bat. The creature shrieked and wheeled away, scattering several of it's bretheren in its flight.

Arae swallowed hard and nodded, trusting in her sibling to protect her. She summoned up every ounce of her magic and began shoving the bats away with her winds, corralling them towards the open sides of the nave and out of the tower. Once outside, they seemed to lose interest in the strange insects, in favor of the others in abundance in the nighttime skies.

Averno spun and parried the fangs of a bat with her blade, swinging around one of the pulley ropes to avoid another. She kicked one away from Arae before skewering it with the sharpened plastic. "Keep going!" she shouted encouragingly.

Arae continued, focusing her efforts on the larger masses first, then the stragglers as the crowd thinned. Finally, the rest of the creatures lost interest and departed, leaving two breathless feien, and a score of dead or dying bats on the floor below them.

Averno wiped the ichor off her blade on the furred body of a dead flying rodent. "That's a damn fine spell you have there, lady.." She noted. How many times had it saved her on this trip already?

Arae smiled in exhaustion. "Go see if you can find them, I'm going to rest down here for a little bit, and keep lookout in case the bats come back."

Averno nodded, not bringing up the fact she could tell Arae was too tapped out to climb into the bells. She left her sister there and paced back over to where the magic had been sensed. The presence was still there. She flapped her wings and floated up inside the bell it was radiating from. The clapper seemed to be the source. It was oddly shaped for a bell clapper, the end was long and thin, rather than round like most she'd seen. And...there was a latch...and hinges.

She frowned. This was a box! A lockbox! She frowned at the strange keyhole. It was tiny for anyone but a feien, round in shape but seemed to curve a little ways inside. She looked up to see if anything might fit it, and spied an inscription inside the bell. "Only those who best the denizens of the bellfry may find the key to applause."

She grimaced and pondered the words. Bellfry... another way to say bell tower, but why not just say tower unless bellfry had more meaning. Like bats in the bellfry. Bats! The key to applause...applause meant clapping, and the lockbox was the bell's clapper!

She streaked back downwards to the floor and one of the bodies. She examined it closely. The fangs...a fang was the right size and shape for the miniscule keyhole! She pushed the maw of the bat open and used her rapier to pry out one of the fangs. With her bloody trophy in hand she flew back up to the lockbox and carefully inserted it.

A clicking noise sounded, and the latch released. Hinges creaked as their springs slowly pushed the clapper open. A soft ticking sound reverberated through the box as Averno leaned over to look inside. Within the container were three items, most notably a torque, silver with gold accents, the ends carved in the likeness of bird heads.



Beside it were a pair of gemstones, one pyramid-shaped with a heart of fiery colors, not unlike the sunset had been. The other was a rich royal purple stone, shaped like a heart.



Averno reached in and grabbed all three items, pulling back just in time. The lid snapped down with a resounding CLANG! and the lock reset, pushing the fang out and to the floor.

Averno swallowed hard. "That explains how a pair of feien got trapped and died in there..." she murmured, looking at the pair of gems mournfully. If she'd not brought Arae with her...if she had climbed in instead of reaching over. If Arae had climbed in with her...the trap would have had more victims to make gemstones out of. She felt her heart lurch, a reddish stone and a purple one...could they be Silva and Aleric?!?!? She fought back tears and the sensation of panic.

She flew back to where Arae was resting, and handed her the purple gem. "i...there was a box, it was trapped...I think maybe..." She held up the other gem as well. "They might be..." She choked up and couldn't speak further.

Arae's face went ghostly pale at the sight of the stones. "Oh sweet merciful air please don't let it be them. All for a stupid flute!? Oh Aleric, I'm so sorry I didn't stop you." Tears slid down the ancient's face as she sobbed.

Averno clutched the pyramid stone to her chest and shook uncontrollably. "Silva, I didn't get to tell you...wait a minute...did you say flute?" She looked to Arae questioningly.

Arae wiped at her eyes and nodded. "He was questing for an ancient flute"

Averno let out a relieved laugh. "Son of a b***h! We took the wrong quest from the board, Arae! Verasa's Knowledge is a necklace, look!" She proffered the item to her co-bonded.

Arae blinked as she looked at the torque, then she laughed. "You mean, all this time, we've been in the wrong place entirely? Oh thank the breeze for that!" She laughed musically and hugged Averno. "I thought we'd lost them!"

Averno returned the hug and sighed. "Still doesn't explain who these poor things were, but you can keep that one, for helping me do this." She fingered the torque then slid it around her neck. She felt magic tingling around her.

"Here's an idea...why don't we take a plane home? I'm pretty sure the boys must be back by now." Verasa's mighty wisdom was already making improvements in her life.