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Marigold	THE NABATA DESERT, ETRURIA      Not far from the hidden village 'Arcadia'.      Several days' travel through the desert isn't as bitter as you'd think. No-one is supposed to live in the Nabata Desert, but it kills by absences. The nights are cold but they aren't a killing frost; the days are hot but you can take turns in the wagons' shade. Feeding and watering the horses and people is a bigger concern. Sue and Shin can pitch in with their steppe-nomad experience, but it's Sophia the desert-dweller (alongside Khosa) who shows how to dig up juicy roots and collect morning dew on fabric.      The ground is mostly hard and flat, with rare scraggly shrubs enduring the sun, and only occasional dunes. Every so often, one can see the two-story-tall bones of an ancient dragon jutting up through sand. The rest of Roy's army murmurs, but Sophia, the half-dragon, finds them utterly ordinary.      For the first couple days, Sophia's tense about following the tracks of the Bernish soldiers who went searching for Arcadia. Then, the Bernish tracks veer off in the wrong direction, and she allows herself relief. "Ah... we'll get there first, after all. Thank goodness..."      Socially, even after the tension leaves her, the half-dragon has a hard time fitting in. Most of the army looks at her with at least a little distance. The desert's harsh light constricts her pupils to slits. Mage-General Cecilia adores her, but Cecilia is popular and busy; the old knight Marcus and seneschal Merlinus support her warmly, but they're too old to be her peers. Roy has a growing fondness for her, and they spend some nights talking, but she's just a bit too old for the games he plays with Lilina, Chad, and Lugh.      When Sophia tries to trade notes about magic with the young mage, she praises him, then looks a little heartbroken that he's already more advanced than her, and then he has to comfort her a bit. "I mean, dark and anima magic are really different, so you can't really compare them...!" "Ah... it's alright... I'm sure you'll be a great mage someday, like Cecilia..."      She does claim to have a gift for 'prophecy', which the locals find impressive, if hard to believe (and might be why Bern kept her alive). That seems to manifest in Sophia anxiously flitting about, averting minor disasters she's supposedly foreseen: "Drink some water, please...!" "Merlinus, um... can you give the front horse a break...?" "Make sure you check your shoes tomorrow..."      However accurate she is, her anxiety's real. And there really was a scorpion in Odette's shoe that one time.      Every so often, the group passes a man-sized hole in the ground. It takes longer to notice the holes are in a line- maintenance shafts. "That's a 'kanat'..." Sophia explains, in her usual too-soft way. "The Archsage Athos helped make them... It's like an aqueduct... um, but underground... the water level is higher by the mountains... so..."      On the fifth day the party meets a howling sandstorm that bites skin and cuts visibility to nothing. Merlinus wants to turn back, but Sophia insists on pushing through.
Madeleine Cadrasteia	Although Madeleine is using seen wearing black, white is no more likely to aggravate her curse - and is much more comfortable in this sort of heat. Since entering the desert Madeleine's changed into a loose shirt, baggy trousers that gather at the ankle, and a floppy sun hat, all in white. No form-fitting PVC or leather for her, not today.     Madeleine keeps to the front of Roy's army, eagerly scanning the horizon in the group's direction of travel for signs of Arcadia and giving Khosa and Sophia a hand with navigation. A few days ago she was bristlingly uneasy around most of the Elites, but at this point she's really gotten into the journey and worked up some real excitement to meet Arcadia's other residents. She does her best to not ask too much of Sophia that won't be answered simply on arrival, but inevitably she prods a little for hints as to the village's size or its notable landmarks.     She listens attentively to Sophia's predictions, and to her explanation of the kanat system. "He must have been great with... anima magic is the nature stuff, right? Whatever kind you'd use for moving earth. I'm impressed, he really went lengths to make sure you could support yourselves."
Alucard	Alucard has been Away for a bit. Handling some things back home. Throwing a party. Some blatant, unresolved despair. The usual. He has come back, wreathed in both stoicness and a desert cloak that covers him from head to foot, except for his eyes and the hilt of his sword that projects out in front of him. He has been keeping a kind of brotherly eye upon Sophia as they move through the desert. He doesn't know her, hasn't really spoken to her, but he's always around, doing his best to deflect the looks of most of the army, his golden eyes reminding them that he, too, is some kind of monster. Despite his pallor, the sun and heat doesn't seem to bother him a great deal, and he hasn't ridden in the wagons once. Walking in his steady, purposeful stride the whole time.
Marigold	According to Madeleine's questioning, the village has only a few hundred people, and is built around a temple-like reservoir. "Athos was really amazing..." she agrees softly. "I wish you could have met him... he'd be more help than me."      Huddled inside the wagon against the storm, Sophia gives her final instructions. "The leader of the village is Igrene... but the old man might know about Iðunn... even though he can't transform, he's the oldest dragon..."      "And, um... please be nice to Fae. I know she's a dragon, but... she's very sensitive... and, she's only nine hundred years old, so... whatever happened in the Scouring, she's innocent."      After an agonizing hour, you step over a line where the sandstorm abruptly stops, as if by magic- no, it was definitely magic. And on the horizon-      "Ah! That's it...!" "Sophia, wait up!" "I have to go tell them!!"      Tropical trees and green grass cling to life outside the sloping, magic-runed sandstone walls of an oasis village. As people stagger clear of the howling storm, Sophia rushes ahead towards the gateless entrance, and a general murmur of awe spreads.      "Arcadia..." Lucius breathes as he walks. "Did you ever think we'd see it?"      "No. I wish we hadn't," Marcus answers his old coworker alongside.      "What do you mean? Isn't it meant to be a place of peace?"      "Its days are numbered now. Even if we could keep a secret, Bern won't."      Roy, alarmed, catches up between them. "You mean, you think it'll be destroyed no matter what?"      "Ah... maybe not 'destroyed'. But he's right.      "Lord Roy. How do you imagine a 'dragon village' can reconcile with the rest of Elibe?"      "I... I don't know."      "And I don't either."      "But... if humans and dragons can live together here... does that mean the Scouring didn't need to happen?"      Lucius and Marcus look at each other silently over Roy's head.
Trudy Grimm	It is no secret by the end of the first hour in the desert that Trudy Grimm is not a creature well-adapted to hot weather. She relies heavily on the Black Knight for the traveling, riding in his arms with a white parasol. She's had to doff her jacket and leg warmers, which only really serves to make her metal shoes more obvious. At least she doesn't burden others by consuming water, having her own supply from the cool shadows she often pulls things from, but the complaining occasionally gets a bit much.     She listens to Sophia's advice on desert survival with interest. Shows curiosity in the cast off bones of ancient dragons. Even strikes up casual conversation with Marcus and Roy and Sophia at night where she is far more comfortable in the unforgiving cold.     In sharp contrast, Grimnir has had an absolute Time of it. Despite his own heavy traveler's coat, he seems perfectly fine the whole way, puffing on his pipe and admiring the apparent novelty of a landscape he apparently has never seen before. He marvels at the plants and animals that scratch out a living here. One evening, he spent the entire time puffing on his pipe and having a staring contest with a lizard on a rock that stayed warm long after sunset. He shares stories and riddles to keep spirits up in the caravan, and is quick to laugh at jokes and humorous tales in turn.     When the storm whips up and the others retreat to the wagons for the last bit of the journey, Grimnir listens intently as Sophia explains the situation. His single eye closes in thought, "Fae, you say? Of course, such a young soul deserves the utmost courtesy. You needn't worry about me, young lady."     The sandstorm was enough to get Trudy into a wagon too, shaking dust out of her hair, "Igrene, you say?" She exhales, eyes closed. When they open again, she glances somewhat sidelong at Sophia, "If I could trouble you for an introduction, Miss Sophia-- if he knows about her, I'd like to ask him."     The storm abates and the village comes into view. Of the pair, Grimnir is the first to disembark, tucking his staff under one arm while he re-lights his pipe. > "But... if humans and dragons can live together here... does that mean the Scouring didn't need to happen?"     "Ahh, my dear boy, your optimism is a breath of fresh air," He puffs out a ring of white smoke, extinguishing the match, "The truth of the matter is, not every member of a species has the same dreams, desires, or expectations. Look for instance to King Zephiel." He turns slightly, fixing Roy with a look from his single remaining eye, "Do you think every man acts as he does? Heh... So why should every dragon behave like the ones in that ancient war?"     "People should be pleased to know they share the world," Trudy says as she disembarks directly into the Black Knights' waiting arm, "But the old stories have made them fearful. They won't accept this easily."
Flamel Parsons	Flamel Parsons has his jacket off and his sleeves well rolled up, not to mention a cap to go with his sunglasses. And plenty of sunscreen at this point. "Wow! You know-- I've never actually been out in the heat this long! I gotta say, the psychological requirements for my mind to simulate the discomfort of sweat and dehydration *stink*." He wipes nothing at all from his brow and takes another big swig from his canteen. "Someone should write a letter!" He's sooooo cheery.     A little bit before they get there, he asks one quick question. "Hey, Sophia." He takes a minute to wander to her. "You've got a clairvoyant knack and you're tuned into the local wavelengths. I've been trying to put something together in my head, and I think you might be able to help. Are there 'destinies' in this world? That is -- can one person be fated to do something in particular, follow a specific path, you know. Plenty of great deeds done, but how sanctioned by super-causality were they?"     Then they've arrived -- probably at just the right time to interrupt the full response, or his final conclusions about it. More important things to deal with. He stays behind with Lucius and Marcus. "Yeah," He says, shaking his head. "Secret blacksites, even secret blacksites of peace and unity, they're pretty worrying. Thank god we turned Durandal around before we got here, but I know those Bernish jerks aren't going to hold them in check."     "But... if humans and dragons can live together here... does that mean the Scouring didn't need to happen?"     "Actually," Flamel holds a finger up. "I think Arcadia probably only exists because the Scouring *allowed* it to happen. See, history is always over until it isn't. Both things, really, are true! This can *only* A status quo of possible coexistence is only possible because history pushed itself to a state of absolute tension on the back of another, different, unbreakable status quo!" One might be able to tell that he's been reading up on some materialist history, and that he has decided it's wrong and that he has a much better idea of things.     He also heads towards the village. With Sophia given a head-start, they'll hopefully understand that he's here to help!
Echolalia	Echolalia has been following Sophia around and chatting with her frequently with various grades of inane banter, usually about her favorite kinds of cacti. She's a big fan of Opuntia but she has been babbling about all sorts of cacti throughout the trip. By the third day she has grown prickly pears across her arms and has her head poking through a golden barrel cactus around her neck. An Echinocereus flower is in her hair and she's practically growing other forms of cacti all over her upper body. "I loooove deserts!" She tells Sophia whom she has agreed to being pen pals with and now won't shut up. "They're like the breeding ground of nature's badasses. They can live for years and years by absorbing moisture from underground despite how dry everything up top looks and they're tough to eat even when they're edible because since they're sparse they had to get ''sharp'' to stop themselves from getting EATED. And they like the shade like vampires!" She glances to Alucard for a moment and then adds, "I bet vampires actually could really appreciate a desert environment, a lot of the animals there are nocturnal so it would probably be easy to find lunch--" ''Please be nice to Fae. I know she's a dragon, but...'' "Don't worry. We'll be kind to the super sweeties of your town, don't you fret!" Like she has any room to answer for anyone else. ''Arcadia... Did you ever think we'd see it?'' ''Its days are numbered now. Even if we could keep a secret, Bern won't.'' "...Yeah... I getcha." She asides to Marcus. "...But Bern would find it eventually anyway, right? It becomes harder and harder to hide anything with time. But change doesn't die in the desert. Maybe they have to change for the future, but we can do our best to make sure it's the kindest possible one." She is, as ever, an optimist. "Besides, if we act all doom and gloom, they'll really worry." ''Does that mean the Scouring didn't need to happen?'' "I dunno if anything like The Scouring ever ''needs'' to happen. But if a bunch of dragons tried to hurt a bunch of people just to consolidate their own power by harming others--then they did need to be fought. Not because they were dragons, but because they were bullies with the power of dragons. That's what I think!" Nobody asked! but Echolalia doesn't seem to be very good at containing herself.
Aidan Proudpick	Aidan is near Sophia. "Look," he whispers low, "I bet all your prophecies are important for the whole army and everything."R The heat and cold are rough on Aidan, but not as rough as they might be on someone without fur. The thing working in his favor is that he doesn't sunburn. Oh, he has a little tube of lip balm to keep his lips and a little bit of his nose from getting sunburned. This leads to a lot of Aidan walking in the procession wearing only his turquoise tank top. Two barrels of water float along side him, bouyed up by constant little puffs of magic, white wisps floating underneath them. And there's the shoes. He NEVER has to wear shoes. And furry shoes are expensive. And make it look like he's walking around in high heels all the time. So foot wraps it is. "Do you have any relationship prophecies?" he whispers, trying not to get overheard by anyone else. "It doesn't have to be the whole future, just, maybe a little hint?" IN THE VILLAGE Aidan's tail drapes over his head as a shade as he glances up at the village. "Igrene." "Fae." Blink blink. "Wait, how many dragons are here?" There is a certain concern in Aidan's voice. And the word 'Fae'. Both things that Lilian warned everyone on broadband about. But, at the same time, he is eager to see a giant dragon, something he hasn't gotten to see yet except in stories and the internet, which provide a very contrasting view of dragons and their amount of serving. "Both things, really, are true!" "Mr. Parsons, does that just mean anything can happen? Or things will always change no matter what?" That's... well, depressing AND uplifting in equal amounts. Aidan notices Alucard looking away from the army most of the time and settles into a stride next to him as they near the village and he's finished grilling Sophia about dragons and dating futures. He notices the pale half vampire still white as a sheet, almost glittering in the sunlight like some sort of baseball player. "Sir Alucard. You know I bet you have a lot of great stories you could talk to the other soldiers about."
Madeleine Cadrasteia	As Madeleine emerges from the sandstorm her eyes go from slitted to wide as a doe's. She briefly removes her hat and shakes the sand from her hair. A village from out of time, that by (nearly) all accounts shouldn't and *doesn't* exist - although this one is new to her eyes, there's something familiar about the energy. Emerging from the storm into an impossible place, like falling into a dream. Pausing to take in the view, the huntress overhears Marcus's and Lucius's remarks.     "How do you imagine a 'dragon village' can reconcile with the rest of Elibe?"     Something falls into place in Madeleine's head, and her jaw sets. "If these people have to change to fit with the rest of the world, by an inch or a mile," she says, "We'll make sure the rest of the world meets them half-way."     She doesn't spend much longer marveling at the sight of the village and its rune-scribed walls before she's hustling along after Sophia, eager to make a first impression.
Desire Stars	During the night, Ace and Neon are grateful for their DGP windbreakers. During the day, they both wear them around their waists or at times, use them as crude shades from the heat. Ah... we'll get there first, after all. Thank goodness...     "You don't know the half of it," says Neon with soggy, exhausted relief.     Ace smiles to himself.     In those moments where travel or foraging give way to rest and thus spare energy exists for socializing, Neon is all but glued to Shanna, though she does spare curious looks Sophia's way. She's brought some gifts from Earth, namely souvenirs that strike a middle point between sentimental and practical value; a mug displaying the Tokyo tower and a stationery set with a print of a rocky beach faintly visible on the paper.     Ace alternates between hitting on Dieck and drifting through the camp, wherever it may end up on any given moment. On one such drifting occasion, following her conversation with the other mage, he ends up chatting with Sophia about the history of magic as she knows it, prompting her to take the lead for the majority of the conversation and occasionally providing her with stories of some of Earth's occult traditions.     Upon reaching the sandstorm, both Riders opt to transform; not because they expect to fight, but because having lenses and armor plates between your body and hot, stinging sand really beats the alternative, and they can free up space in the wagons for people who don't have any alternative.     "I think we should keep going, too," Kamen Rider Na-Go opines, regarding Merlinus' decision to turn back. "We're in the lead right now, and we don't get to say that a lot." And, um... please be nice to Fae. I know she's a dragon, but... she's very sensitive... and, she's only nine hundred years old, so... whatever happened in the Scouring, she's innocent.     "Nine hundred? Practically a kid," says Kamen Rider Geats, who looks firmly late-twenties at the absolute least generous one could possibly be. He only sounds half-sarcastic, thus--     "What's that supposed to mean?"     Geats' answer is his little amused 'hm.'     One agonizing hour later...     But... if humans and dragons can live together here... does that mean the Scouring didn't need to happen?     "Nothing like the Scouring ever needs to happen," says Kamen Rider Geats on the other side of the storm. His armor fades, and Ace Ukiyo is in his place, frowning. "It's not an immutable part of the world. Or even an immutable part of people. There were probably those who tried to stop it even in its day," he says. "Whether there weren't enough, or whether the other voices were louder and better armed is something only someone who lived back then can say. But no Scourings ever 'need' to happen. They happen because of the movements of people, things and ideas."      "If that bothers you, then hope that when those forces arrange themselves in a way someone with an axe to grind can start sharpening it, you'll be in a position to smash the grindstone with people you can trust to help you do it. Personally," he says, with a slight, soft upturn in his otherwise gently haunted expression, "I'm happy my employment led me to you."      Na-Go's armor fades, revealing a thoughtful frown on Neon's face. As Sophia rushes past, she turns and follows, though not nearly so hurried.
Odette Raskins	Odette is not built for the desert heat. The cold? Sure, she's been in space before. Moderate weather? That's the stations all year round. The heat, though? Even the little neck fan she's brought with her isn't doing anything to stave it off, and that gets shoved right into the bottom of the duffel bag she's also regretting carrying today. Still, she has to keep a strong appearance, and the shrubs are a welcome distraction as something to grab and test for medical uses later. She doesn't stray too far from the group, though, because those tracks give her plenty of reason to keep her eyes open. The EMT isn't much of a fighter like everyone else here, after all, so getting caught or wandering into a Bernish trap would be the worst situation possible for her. Sophia's relief at seeing them go the wrong way is quickly mimicked, and it's only then that Odette finally allows herself to make noises that aren't just affirming grunts or inadvertent squeaks at seeing something startling. As the travel through the desert continues, Odette's still not getting any more comfortable with the hot days, but she gets more accustomed to alternating with those that need the break from the sun and fending it off with strategic application of sticks holding up her white medical cloak like a big flat parasol for extra shade on the go. The dragon bones are also kind of scary to see, but Odette holds it together once she sees that Sophia isn't freaking out about them. She needs to at least pretend to have a brave face once in a while! That brave face, naturally, disappears the moment there's a scorpion in her shoe, and she spends the next few days being a little obsessive about checking all of her stuff before and after bed. Rest times, predictably, are spent checking on Cecilia to make sure she's fit to travel, and then the group to make sure nobody's suffering from heatstroke or showing symptoms of being poisoned. The latter certainly isn't helped by the scorpion incident, but there's still plenty of time to meditate and even practice with Lucius' training staff to try and get more than just a spark to come out. She'll check on Sophia, too, partially to make sure she's holding up alright, and also- "H-hello, Miss Sophia! Do you mind if I watch you.. Er. How you use magic next time? Just to learn the... How different people do it, you know?" The sandstorm is the first time Odette actually has to put her helmet on. She certainly wasn't expecting to bust that out for a sandstorm of all things, but she's feeling a lot better about bringing it with her once she realizes it's a lot better than walking around in the sandstorm with just her glasses and a cap on. She still can't see all that far, but it does make it easier to shuffle along while she's outside the wagon. "Being nice to a nine hundred...? O-oh, that's not a problem at all. She must be like mom or grandma, then. And Igrene..." Odette already sounds like she's got a soft for the two from that alone. The concerns about Arcadia's safety, meanwhile, has Odette fretting a little over Roy's questions and Marcus' predictions. Taking off her helmet, Odette shakes some sand out of her hair before approaching Roy with a surprisingly renewed vigor in her step as she comes up with what to say. She lets out a startled yelp as she trips over a pebble and stomps down on it, lifting her foot carefully and breathing out a relieved sigh when it isn't a scorpion, then shuffles right back over to Roy and claps her hand on his shoulder like nothing happened. "Th... That'll be part of our job here, then, right? To make sure it doesn't happen again, and... And to show the rest of Elibe it doesn't need to happen again! Mister Ace is right, we'll... We're here to help you show everyone the example to follow." Odette stumbles over her words a few times as she tries to sound encouraging to the young lord, smiling almost confidently while still glancing at the ground to make sure nothing's crawling right at her.
Alucard	"I have...merely been reminding the army by my presence that Miss Sophia is not something they need be afraid of. Other monsters lurk in their company," the half-vampire replies to Aidan. "And stories? No. My adventures are few and I do not relish speaking of them. They are, after all, a source of pain." He's really only been on one adventure! It's called patricide. He glances at Echolalia, golden eyes glittering. "Most vampires," he says drily, "Would burst into flames under this brutal sunlight. My ... hybrid nature is all that prevents me from doing so. Though it is quite harsh and bright." As they pass into the magical barrier, Alucard tilts his head slightly. "Interesting." He watches Sophia gleefully run off, the simple joy of returning home, or at least to a place of safety and fondness. He follows, his steps measured and graceful, but not hurried.
Dysnomia	Dysnomia is determined to make herself friendly to Sophia, though she's not very good at 'friendly.' In this, at least, Echolalia is a better help than she is. More than once, she finds herself shooting the other wyrm a grateful look...     ...When Echo isn't watching, at least. She walks along on the other side. And when Sophia reveals her talents, she grows concerned... "...Try not to spend all of yourself looking after everyone else's futures." She warns, "Don't overtax yourself."     "What do you mean? Isn't it meant to be a place of peace?"     "Its days are numbered now. Even if we could keep a secret, Bern won't."     "You might be right." Dysnomia, for her part, wanted to be realistic. And yet... "But. Worst case scenario, they will have to find another place. And I'll make sure they can."     "But... if humans and dragons can live together here... does that mean the Scouring didn't need to happen?"     "This can *only* A status quo of possible coexistence is only possible because history pushed itself to a state of absolute tension on the back of another, different, unbreakable status quo!"     She gives Roy a smile, and Parsons a stare. "And yet." Dysnomia speaks up. "Can you really call this 'coexistance?' If they had to hide from the world, in a desert, terrified of being discovered. If just being seen threatens to destroy them."     "Whatever the Scouring did, it didn't leave any room for them anywhere else but here." She turned a heavy frown ahead of them, something eating away at her. "I suppose it's good Athos left his weapon in their care. That way, no one can use it against them. If it can only be used with their permission, it must be on a common threat..."     "...Like Bern. Perhaps."
Flamel Parsons	"Mr. Parsons, does that just mean anything can happen?"     "Oh, definitely not, Aidan." Flamel shakes his head. "It means that things lead towards functionally-permanent status quos that will always build tension outside of our lifetimes, and only collapse a long time after anyone really understands them to be a historical development at all!" One might notice that this sort of... structures things in ways that are impossible to really pin down into tangible predictions about history, but that's sort of how it goes when one has decided to take an almost purely contrarian approach to material history.     "Can you really call this 'coexistance?' If they had to hide from the world, in a desert, terrified of being discovered. If just being seen threatens to destroy them."     "Oh, absolutely. Blacksites, conspiracies, shadow-governments, lots of things can exist in pure solitary secrecy pretty much perpetually, without any negative effects. The lost city of Atlantis, for example! Any of the Hollow Earth city-states! Or the Real Moon."
Lilian Rook	Uncomfortably ruminating on what it might mean that her field survival training keeps coming in handy at shorter and shorter intervals, attempting to dismiss it as having no pattern, then impulsively making up gloomy portents for the general arc of her life, Lilian has less energy than she might otherwise want for being a freak about Sophia. Much of it is taken by digging condensation traps, testing desert plants, selectively sharing sunscreen, and sparing some natural magic for the people she wants to spoil.     The woman she had taken for a sad little wallflower who tried her very best in a moment of crisis has been eating up a little spot in the back of her mind ever since 'I only have this shape'. The balance she strikes is a kind of wary-needing middle distance orbiting; the subtle indicators of both misgiving and wanting to know. Quiet spells that drag too long without her leaving, topics that meander too much with too little excuse, watching probingly then defensively deflecting. The most successful talk she has sparks up from "It's not easy, is it." at Sophia fussing about shoes.     Despite Lilian being able to handle climates like these, that's far from being tolerant to them. She spends more time than would be respectable in the shade, moodily hovering above the wagon floor when reminded that the horses have limited endurance. She drinks twice as much water as most, spending magic on herself when she wants it, then insists on wasting much of the rest on rinsing the sweat off later. Since Sophia is being so kind as to instruct everyone in how to provide for themselves, Lilian feels perfectly happy to be conditional about who else can be a little spoiled too.     The sandstorm is the sole point at which she diverges on this. She looks to Merlinus as if she has every intention of agreeing, and summons the strength to say "I'm sorry. I don't want to arrive to another smoking fortress and another bleeding prisoner." instead.     It's coincidental fortunate for her that it's a magical barrier and not a natural storm.     'I wish you could have met him... he'd be more help than me.'     "You've been more of a help than most already. Even if we had him, you wouldn't be at the top of my list to replace, you know." says Lilian, awkwardly looking somewhere else.     'I know she's a dragon, but... she's very sensitive... and, she's only nine hundred years old'     Then she tries not to choke.     'But... if humans and dragons can live together here... does that mean the Scouring didn't need to happen?'     Mastering the urge to look over Roy's head as well takes some effort. Said by someone Lilian dislikes, the question would eleicit eye-rolling contempt. Said by a boy she wants to trust, whom she knows is only seventeen, the arithmetic is more complicated. She wants him to understand something; she just isn't sure what.     "I doubt it did. But it wasn't up to humans. Even when coexistence is possible, only the more powerful side can decide whether or not it happens; the weak can only beg for it, while the strong ultimately permit it or deny it. Hartmut understood that."
Dysnomia	"Oh, absolutely. Blacksites, conspiracies, shadow-governments, lots of things can exist in pure solitary secrecy pretty much perpetually, without any negative effects."     Dysnomia gaze to Flamel becomes sharp, cold. "If you don't think living in fear of being found is 'negative,' you and I have very different ideas of 'harm.'"     "Hartmut understood that."     "...And if that little vision of the past was true, then he understood that whatever dragons were, at the end, humans took that place of strength." She's reluctant to give the heroes any benefit of the doubt, but Athos has forced her to reconsider. "And whatever he said, what humans did with that place of strength forced these dragons to live in hiding to survive, for a thousand years and counting."
Aidan Proudpick	"Oh, definitely not, Aidan." "The universe keeps going, then. Things keep shifting back and forth." A pause, "I like that. It just keeps going." Back to Alucard, Aidan nods along. "Sorry, I thought you might have... well, you seem like a smart guy, someone who reads. Maybe you were a scholar, right?" But this is what Aidan gets to bite on. "Have you been?" He looks Alucard over, frowning. "Is there some kinda mark on you that shows you are a monster? Is it the coat? The... hair. No it's not the hair. Rutger has very good hair, it can't be that. I'm taller than you, so it can't be that." Tail flip back and forth. "Lucius is a little bit more striking in the face than you, so it's not that. And I've seen Dieck get hit with a wagon in the middle of his chest and not flinch. Do vampires have a secret tail?" The last one is genuine curiosity. Trudy and the BLACK KNIGHT pass. Aidan looks pointedly over at Trudy, then back at Alucard.
Echolalia	"That... Yeah. That's why they'd go out in the ''night'' not during the day." Echolalia points otu to Alucard. ''The Real Moon'' "I mean we have nine real moons." Echolalia is openly bragging. She is gratful for Dysnomia's presence. She always finds ways of looking at things that don't really occur to her. She's surprised that LIlian's take is similar to her own and she winces at what seems to be a brewing argument. "I mean on the other hand, they probably dodged a lot of trouble by being hidden away." Ecolalia says uneasily. "We don't really know how they as a community feel about it yet. and And how fair it ''was'' is probably gonna matter less than how fair it will be soon enough."Is that the kind of world you think is most reliable? One where the strong permit coexistence with the weak?" She asks.
Flamel Parsons	"The universe keeps going, then."     "Right!" Flamel says, wide-smiled. "But not *history*. It ends and starts."     "I mean we have nine real moons."     "No, no." Flamel shakes his head seriously. "The *real* Real Moon."
Marigold	Then:      Sophia's started writing her first Echolalia letter! Even though Echo's right there. "They're big, and quiet... and gentler than people think..." she agrees, about deserts. "I've only lived here... but I like it lots..."      'It's not easy', from Lilian, makes her startle up from warning Odette. Her eyes search Lilian's face for... something? Then she smiles achingly. "No... you do know..." And that makes the later awkward reassurance warm her all the more.      Asked while resting in the wagon about destinies, Sophia took a longer-than-usual moment to think. "I'm... not sure," she finally says, picking at her ragged-edged cloak.      "A lot of the time, it feels like... certain things are 'meant' to happen... but they don't always turn out right. Um, like... if there was a Scouring, there was always going to be an Eight Generals... but they weren't always going to win...?"      Wait. 'Eight Generals', and not 'Eight Heroes'?      Asked about 'relationship prophecies', she blink-blinks and smiles apologetically. "Sorry... I don't control what comes to me... um, but I did see something...!"      "I think Clarine and Rutger are going to get married!" Innocent smile.      Now:      Marcus nods along to Echolalia's measured optimism, then laughs while running a gauntleted hand through his silver hair. "No, you're right. We're a strange armed force coming to their village. We can't be looking grim like this."      Roy looks anxiously between him, Echolalia, Geats, and Grimnir. He'd been the first to be optimistic; now he's swinging the other way. "That's true, but... Dysnomia's right. If they have to hide, it's barely 'coexisting'. Even if they're people, just like us... if Lycia can't even get along with Bern, when Zephiel's human, how are we going to get along with dragons?" But he isn't really doubting. Just asking reassurance.      Odette and Maddie steady him a little, and he takes a deep settling breath. "No, you're right. There's no use asking 'if'. It's our job to make sure it'll be okay." He gives Geats a brave little smile.      Crushing responsibility! He's used to that one! So much better than uncertainty.      "That's true," he says soberly just outside the walls, after chewing on Lilian's words. "Or, it must have been true back then. Like how we're not in any place to demand peace from Bern. But it's our job to offer peace this time, since humanity is stronger than dragons now. ... Aren't we?"      The idea of meeting an actual-for-real, nine-hundred-year-old dragon weighs on him like it would on anybody. He's fidgety.
Marigold	Arcadia is, like Marcus said, a place of peace. It has walls to keep out the sand, but no gate. The tropical trees and patchy grass outside turn into solid beautiful green within. Flat-roofed, clay-walled desert houses are hugged by vines and shaded by trees.      The underground aqueducts breach the surface, forming irrigating rivers between square plots of farmland that the houses and streets have grown around. Vegetables, tree-cotton, figs and apples grow in lovingly-tended rows, care making the most of every drop of water.      The residents who start to nervously line the street and peep out their windows wear bright-dyed flowing desert clothes, but they look human, and apart from their tans just the same as other Elibeans. (Come to think, isn't it odd that Sophia's still pale?)      The attitude towards an armed group might be warier, except-- "Sophia!" "She's back!" "Sophia?! She's-" "Alive! Call Igrene!" "Oh, Sophia!" She looks deeply embarrassed to be welcomed back like this- "Everyone! It's... it's okay! I'm sorry, um, for bringing outsiders here... but... I need to talk to Igrene! It's an emergency!"      But the 'emergency' of Bern will have to wait.      There's a noise like light, trilling, dreamy whalesong. Softly booming footsteps accelerate, bringing it closer. From a side-street, a huge shape lurches into view of the gate. The buildings could only barely hide it.      Bern's creations were horrible, but they can't compare. This is something greater, something else. This is--      Adorable. Oh my god.      The huge beast teeters on its two legs after stopping from the hard corner, balances with a flap of its wings, squirms out of some kind of light work-harness, and then giddily rushes over to Sophia as quickly as the crowd can make way, bending down and hugging her to its soft downy chest with its heartbreakingly stubby little forelegs.      "Fae...!!" "--aaa--oou--?" "Haha, I'm okay, I missed you too...!" "uu--..." "Oh, they're good people... don't be scared..." "--auu--!"      'Fae' leans down her head for Sophia to stroke her fluffy little cheeks, and then with Sophia's encouragement extends her head towards the rest of the army too, watching with her big shiny blue eyes.      Roy looks approximately like he's going to choke. 230, Clarine), from somewhere in the back, can't save herself from a mouth-clasped "Awwww...!" Even Marcus looks halfway to laughing shock, and Lucius puts a hand to his chest to stop his heart from escaping.      "It's... it's good to meet you?" the poor lordling finally manages, and reaches up a hand like he's going to pet her face too, but can't quite get the courage. "--uu--!", the little dragon croons, at the edge of hearing.
Echolalia	''No, no. The *real* Real Moon.'' Echolalia stares at Flamel for a long moment. "Uh. What's the 'Real Real' Moon like? Is it big? Is it... Is it like fake-moon sized or bigger? Smaller?" Sophia is writing a FIRST LETTER. EEK! Echolalia turns her head away so she can't read what she's writing. She wants it to be a surprise! She is already thinking of a billion things to write Sophia (and as such is having trouble deciding what to write about). Maybe she can write to her about her thoughts of the villagE? That'd be cute. "Yeah you get it...!" She says. "Everybody thinks that because I do plant stuff that I don't like deserts but that's not how it works at all...!" Clarine and Rutger are going to get maried! "Neat!" Ecolalia says, completely oblivious. NOW Echolalia is relieved when Marcus agrees with her. She's never participated in a war before and doesn't really know what to make of it. She places her thumb in her mouth and blows into it until the cacti FWOOMPH back into her body just in case she really wants to hug someone. ''Dysnomia's right. If they have to hide, it's barely 'coexisting'.'' "Well that's true." Echolalia says. "A lot of dragons back home don't coexist either. They leave and stay far away from the colonies. It's understandable but... I guess a place like this where they are existing together, even if it's a microcosm of what it could be--it's still kind of encouraging to me, you know? ... Usually it's all about dragons vs. humans, ancient grudges, yadda yadda yadda--There's so much more to life when we're working together. ... But Mia's alwas been better at the um..." She trails off. "...At navigating a path forward." She ultimately settles on. ''But it's our job to offer peace this time, since humanity is stronger than dragons now. ... Aren't we?'' "Eheh... You're pretty smart, kiddo!" And then Arcadia. And then CUTEYPATOOTIE. Echolalia is at once in awe and then squeals, placing both of her hands on her cheeks. "So cuuuute!" She says, rushing forward past Roy to pet Fae's face. "Hm hm hmm...!" She taunts the child. "Hesitation ill fits you...! Be brave or I'm gonna hog all the pets, Ba Ha Ha!" She grins widely and fangly, daringly.
Madeleine Cadrasteia	Where the dragons of Bern were built for war, all sharp edges and roaring flames, this is built for... something else. Madeleine is reminded immediately of the great Serpents of her homeworld, the gentlest of the gods and exemplars of snakey peace and love (sneace and snove?). If she squinted, this place would almost feel like a chancel, one of the palaces which those gods twisted off from the larger world to protect themselves. But she's more concerned with squishing her face in amazed adoration.     "Oh. My. Goodness! Hello! Hello hello," she exclaims as she approaches the dragon at just above a walk. "You must be Fae! It's, wow, I'm so excited to meet you! Can I- can I say hello?" She reaches out with a tentative hand, but waits for a sign of permission from Fae before gently rubbing the dragon's snout. "I didn't expect to see a real dragon so soon after getting here! Do you spend most of your time like this, or- oh but I'm getting ahead of myself. Hi! I'm Madeleine." Her demeanor is like the gentle mirror to 'swarthy Australian man poking alligators with a stick on TV'.
Dysnomia	Not even Dysnomia was ready for what was going to happen, for all her predictions, for all her insight...This is far more than she could have ever expected. Her voice came out in a breathless "Stars..." As she stared up at the fluffy little dragon.     "It's... it's good to meet you?"     While Echolalia makes her assault, Dysnomia attacks in Roy's moment of weakness on another front, grabbing his hand and pushing it down to finish patting the soft little dragon. This has the bonus effect of her actually getting to pet Fae herself, without looking as much like it.     "Pleasure to meet you, Fae." Dysnomia is grinning, now. She just can't help it. "We're nothing to be afraid of...These are..." She swallowed a handful of misgivings, trying not to let them boil to the surface. Roy was in charge, after all, and Marcus and Lucius were here. "...good people."     "You didn't mention she was so..." An awkward pause. "...Cute."
Trudy Grimm	Trudy pays no mind when Aidan glances her way in passing. However, the Black Knight's helmet turns just enough to stare at him through the slitted visor. It's a subtle motion and doesn't last long, easily mistaken as a normal glance at the idyllic surroundings of Arcadia, but making eye contact is enough to send chills. That creature is not alive and may, in fact, be filled with malice.     The witch rides on the crook of his free arm, using his forearm as a seat and balancing herself with a hand on his shoulder. Approaching noises of some colossal creature has him reaching for the greatsword across his back with his free hand until Trudy stops him with a sound not unlike what one would make at a dog trying to get at one's supper on the table. A sharp, punctuated sort of "Eht!" that gets his attention.     The great wyrm's affectionate greeting for Sophia gets that big wide smile back on Trudy's face. She tilts her parasol up to peer skywards, then down at the more solid green-covered ground. With a sigh, she slides out of the Black Knight's carry, "Go seat yourself somewhere comfortable. It's been a long couple of days."     The Knight obeys by sinking down near one of the fruit trees, leaning against it but slumped forward. One leg extended, the other tucked up to support an arm. The other arm hangs down, metal-clad fingers spread out in the grass. It looks like he just died. Only the subtle motion of his helmet following his line of sight even hints at his continued animation.     It's Grimnir who approaches Sophia and Fae, supporting his pipe with one hand while he rummages inside his coat with the other. "Well hello to you, young lady. What a fine wyrm you are, heh." His tone is that of a kindly grandfather seeing a beloved grandchild again. Eventually he produces a strip of venison jerky, checking with the half-dragon sorceress before offering it to the dragon directly, "I'm a harmless old sage from the far north. Call me Grimnir; here, my dear, I've a little treat for you if you like."     "First that wolf in the frostmarch and now this?" Trudy props a hand on the spine of her Grimoire. Despite the teasing tone in her voice, her smile hasn't left, "You seem to have an affinity for large creatures, old man."     "The trick is to carry tasty things and be unappetizing," Grimnir jokes, closing his single eye. The upward motion of his moustache and beard suggests a smile.
Alucard	Alucard only rolls his eyes a little at Echolalia's statement. She's not -wrong-, exactly. "Vampires generally prefer to consume the blood of humans and ... adjacent. There are few here and I hear that animal blood is not at all satisfying," he says gently. She's so enthusiastic. He doesn't want to hurt her feelings. He looks at Aidan again and barely doesn't sigh. "I suppose if my father did not attempt to destroy humanity in his grief, I could have been," he says flatly. "Instead, I am what you see here." Luckily, as they roll into the village, Fae shows up to brighten up almost everyone's day. He hangs back, frowning slightly under his face covering. Not exactly threatened, but that is a very large juvenile dragon. She(?) could do some terrible damage if upset.
Odette Raskins	THEN: "Isn't every moon a real...?" Odette just looks baffled as all hell by Flamel and Echolalia. "I mean, it just depends on which planet you're on, right? But if it's one that's..." She pauses, raising an eyebrow at Flamel once she starts to connect some dots in her head. "Would someone really need to hide a... The moon and put a fake one in its place?" Crushing responsibility, meanwhile, is something that Odette can certainly sympathize with in her own line of work. "Mhm! It'll take some time-" She understates, "-but we'll get there. Then we'll have time to relax later." Those certifications and licenses aren't going to pay for themselves. NOW: Upon stepping foot into Arcadia, Odette takes a moment to take off her helmet and wipe off most of the sand before carefully cramming it back into her bag and taking a slow look around at the desert town. Noticing the wary eyes of the townspeople, she fidgets a bit before holding up her hands to show that they're empty, and she definitely looks more frightened of those staring at her than they might be of her. She looks aside at Sophia as the half-dragon speaks to her people, letting out a lightly relieved sigh that they seem to be listening to her instead of coming out with all manner of... Wait. They're dragons. If they're really angry, she'd hear it, right? Odette doesn't feel the ground shaking, at least, but her blood does run cold when she hears something otherworldly coming towards them. That noise certainly isn't human, and those booming steps felt even in this desert town have her legs already tensing up, ready to start sprinting in the opposite direction at the first sign of danger. That first sign of danger, thankfully, never comes. Instead, what does come is a fluffy yellow mass that Sophia quickly identifies as Fae, and that's enough to get Odette to look on in surprise, then shock, then fawning in short order. "Oh my goodness... That's Fae? She's so...!" The EMT covers her hands with her mouth as she suppresses a quiet noise, approaching her slowly while looking up and down at the 900-year-old dragon. Swallowing lightly, Odette holds her hands out not unlike Roy does, glancing over at him and tilting her head Fae's way like she's trying to encourage him to follow her lead. She'll even wait a bit longer, to see if he'll join her in petting Fae's cheeks in unison. "Oh my gosh... You really are fluffy, just like grandma's coats... H-hi, Miss Fae!" She greets the dragon with an excited noise, catches herself, then speaks more softly afterwards, like she's trying not to be too loud around a senior or something. "My name's Odette. I'm a medic with the Compan... Um. With Lord Roy and Miss Sophia and everyone here. It's real nice to meet you...!" Despite sounding excited, Odette looks calmer than she has the entire week. "Can I get you anything? Water, or something to eat? Maybe a blanket?" She asks while flapping one end of her little cloak cape, going through a quick mental checklist normally reserved for older people.
Aidan Proudpick	"I think Clarine and Rutger are going to get married!" Innocent smile. Aidan's face falls into that loose smile he keeps when he's trying to keep a happy face on it. "Thanks anyways." "I suppose..." The Black Knight stares into Aidan's soul. He looks back at Alucard, jerking a thumb towards the Black Knight. "That thing is fucking scary. Amazing, but scary. You aren't scary. You are an Elite with teeth." Aidan reaches up and taps the outsized front teeth on the front of his own face. Aidan's own made up eyes are a bright orange. He's also a fucking six foot tall squirrel. "Yer one of the most normal people here." A beat hangs in the air, Aidan thinking about his next thought. "You know, they got these things at Everhood. Go Karts, they're called. I think Sarra uses them too. Like tiny cars? I'll ask her about bringing them out, we can have a race!" That thought brings that grin to his face and he pats Alucard's shoulder and moves in, eager to see the dragon. A question his lips about the Real Real Moon dies as he moves forward to see the dragon. Both ears flick forward. "So, is this one of those really bi-" Big fluffy chest. "Blessed." Cute little arms. "Mother's." Little tiny horns and that trilling whale noise, "Breeze." Aidan does his best regal bow. Which doesn't look great because he's in a turquoise tank top that is a little sweaty. But he makes due, barely holding back excitement. "Hello, Miss Fae. I am Aidan Proudpick. It would be my honor if I could please pet you, would that be okay?"
Desire Stars	This is something greater, something else. This is--     "Oh..." Neon falls into a stunned silence, no longer wiping stray grains of sand and halting in her tracks. "...my gosh..." The 'stunned' part fades, but the silence doesn't, and she's still in the way that one is when blessed by some skittish presence on a chance morning. ...and then with Sophia's encouragement extends her head towards the rest of the army too...     Neon resumes her stride, her pace more purposeful and lacking its former weary character utterly. She takes up a spot besides the army's lordling, then gently takes Roy's hand and guides it to Fae's cheek. She pets, too.     "Hi, I'm Neon... that's Ace, over there."     "Yo," Ace offers, with a little two-finger salute and a small smile. "You must be Fae. Nice to meet you."     Neon withdraws her hand and looks away sadly. "I wish we were coming here under better circumstances..." She steels herself. "But it's still really good to see this place and be here. Who's... Igrene?" she asks, looking between Fae and Sophia. "Is that, like... a village elder, or something? I, um..." She sighs.      "I really don't want to cut this short because it's clear this place loves you, Sophia, but... like Lilian said, we've suffered a lot for getting beaten to the mark, and so, if there's someone who needs to know about what happened to you and what Bern's planning, they need to know it as soon as we can tell them."
Lilian Rook	'No... you do know...'     "Not what it's like to be you." Lilian says, stiffly. "All I ever think about is how to get my way. I can't imagine how much more stressul it must be to worry for everyone else."     'I think Clarine and Rutger are going to get married!'     Lilian quietly squeezes her hand into a fist, and resolutely murmurs to no one in particular, "I challenge my fate."     'Is that the kind of world you think is most reliable? One where the strong permit coexistence with the weak?'     Lilian continues on without acknowledging that she's been spoken to, then dazedly looks at Echolalia with an expression like she's second-guessing her own senses. "You're asking me?" she says, non-rhetorically, taking a few seconds to load everything she'd just said to her.     ". . . Why? How should I have an opinion on something like that? It's just the way the world is. Whoever can be the most violent has the power of veto over everything. It's inconceivable that it would be any other way."     'if Lycia can't even get along with Bern, when Zephiel's human, how are we going to get along with dragons?'     "By hoping there are dragons better than Zephiel."     The way Lilian said it just a minute ago was so soul-suckingly barren that even an idiot could tell what she's really thinking: 'It's already too much to ask to find humans better than him, much less better dragons'. That pitch black sense of futility lingers on her for the entire time that Sophia vanishes, deepening to a feeling like a sucking void somewhere in her chest when she bears witness to the tearily relieved greetings of the villagers, and becoming no lighter when she averts her eyes to the preciously tended greenery of communal care.     Lilian doesn't know what to do about a metaphorical mob character raising their hand and yelling on-cue 'Found one!'     Clutching the brooc of her cloak like she isn't sure whether to strangle herself or squeeze her heart into cardiac arrest, Lilian beholds the majestic beast with a kind of leg-swept stumbling disorientation that couldn't come from a script. The scars along the road to Ostia, the giant bones in the desert, the coal and charnel fields in Pharae and Etruria, and the shadow of dragon, dragon, DRAGON in the psychic torrent of chaos and fear that was the city; none of it has anything to do with this, and Lilian, for once, has no idea why.     She recoils from the big fluffy perfectly Shaped creature as if retreating from a priceless painting she was just about to accidentally touch. Her bad habit of scanning around for alternative explanations furnishes her with nothing. The sound of dice clattering against a tabletop is practically audible from the exact location of her brain, where a barrage of skill rolls have her locked in psychic combat between the desire to be normal for a change and the urge to start preemptively killing everyone who could possibly ruin this.     She staggers. -1 MORALE. She remembers to breathe. A short coughing fit follows. Lilian shuffles her cloak back into place and nervously smooths out her hair as if whatever thought-crime just happened were embarrassingly visible, then realizes she has no idea what her role here is at all.     "A-ah . . . Well met, ah, Miss Fae." Lilian says, trudging on conversationally. "Sophia? I neglected to ask, but are you perhaps her caretaker?"
Flamel Parsons	"By hoping there are dragons better than Zephiel."     "Should be easy to find! I mean, after all, *he* thinks dragons are better than him, you know."     "Uh. What's the 'Real Real' Moon like?"     "Well, you know. The second half of the lunar phases, the--" Flamel starts, before the noises begin, before the encounter truly kicks into its most important moment.     Flamel regards the big fluffy creature with some awe. And, having full access to all kinds of natural human responses, also some compulsion to approach and admire. Mostly awe! "Wow! I gotta admit, the little I've seen adjusted me to something less... vibrant! They're so sweet! And beyond my range of hearing too, *wow* what a size." But he should focus on being responsible, not running straight to coo over a funny creature.     A friendly wave to the residents lining the street! "Hi there! Flamel Parsons, acolyte of a mysterious yet ominous order! Sophia's been working with me -- I'm just looking to help out Arcadia with some upcoming stress, and manage all the opsec." A beaming smile! Soooo friendly! "She's probably gonna want to put us in contact with a major decisionmaker! Who should I talk to, you all think?" He's soooooooo excited to be working with a psychosocial blacksite again. You can tell because of knowing anything about him, or because of his posture and movements and expression, or even because he says exactly that out loud: "I'm soooooooo excited to be working with a psychosocial blacksite again!"
Marigold	Fae soaks up affection like a greedy sponge, wiggling her chubby little tail and fluttering her wings while childishly smiling her eyes shut. She feels just about like a baby-chubby duckling, and when she 'sings' like that, her body vibrates a little like purring...      "yrraAa--? au--uu!"      Sophia slips around to Fae's side, stroking the little dragon's neck while Fae slouches down. If there's any doubt at how well she understands people, it vanishes when she snaps up Grimnir's treats (it's like having a very gentle horse eat an apple from your hand) and then nods to answer Aidan's question. "--au--!"      Echolalia implicitly calling him cowardly deals morale damage to Roy. He almost-pouts for a moment: "It's not that! I just... I don't know how to-- ah!!" Mia and Neon force his hand literally, and after just a second of resistance, his eyes go wide at the texture. Fae beams at him reassuringly, and then he self-consciously tiny-laughs back. "Wow..."      "... Lilian? Are you alright...?" Sophia says tenderly to her assumed fellow seer, while resting her cheek against Fae's long neck. "Was it a vision?" "--auu?" Fae's eyes open a second later, and she carefully waddles forward a couple of steps through the people petting her- despite her babylike demeanor, she's very conscious of her size-      to lean out and gently bomk Lilian's breastplate with her snout. Shimmery-blue eyes peek up and then shut, and ear-pinions flick, in the same way cats offer comfort: 'pet me! you'll feel better!'      "--uyyi----hAae!" she adds, turning her head a little towards Neon and Ace while still giving Lilian ample chances to pet. That last part sounded like 'Fae'.      Only when she's had enough of being doted on does she concentrate for a moment, glow and 'pwip' into a smaller shape, and then flutter down to the ground from her former center of mass, between her first admirers and Lilian. Her new form, barely less adorable, flutters to the ground on downy-yellow wings before those 'pwip' away too.      A shiny magic crystal is in her hand, just like the one the un-human Ain had held, but aside from the strange trident-symbol on her forehead she looks just like an ordinary human child.      "Fae's not a 'worm'! Fae's Fae!!" she insists to Grimnir, which she must have been holding in the whole time. To emphasize, she holds onto Lilian's arm, who did get it right, and mm-hmm mm-hmm nods to the others. To Odette's mistaken grandma-doting: "Give Fae water! And food! And a blanket!" Come on it's the desert afternoon. She does not need a blanket.      For Maddie: "Hi, Ma-de-leine! Fae turns big to help with work! And sometimes to play! It's fun." And when Mia reassures her: "Good people... good people are going to stay with Fae! You'll stay forever, right? People stay with us forever when they see the village! It's important!"      After a moment of soft confusion, she points emphatically at Echo and Mia in turn, in that bold way that kids are slow to learn is rude. "You don't have your stones! Did you lose them...? Fae's sorry."
Marigold	Sophia smiles apologetically to Neon and Lilian. "Um, I'm not her caretaker... Igrene is most like her guardian... Igrene handles lots of things." With a nod to Flamel: "If Fae's here, she should be..."      "What's all this, now?" comes a warm but well-projected woman's voice, from the same street Fae raced down. She sounds very used to saying things like 'what's all this now', which means even before the middle-aged blonde woman comes into view, you can be pretty sure who she is. "Oh...! Igrene!! "Sophia... oh, goodness. You had me worried sick. What happened? And I hope you know what you've done, bringing so many people here." "Ah... well..." Sophia shrinks into herself, hesitating.      "And Fae. I know you were very excited to see Sophia again, but running in the town is dangerous. Be more careful, okay?" "Fae's s-sowwy..." "Fae," Igrene gently reproaches. "Okayyy. I'm sorry!" Oh, so she can talk normally. She's just being cutesy to get spoiled.      Lucius pets Fae's head. She beams, and Igrene sighs. It's working.      Behind Igrene on the side-street, by virtue of moving at a trembly-slow pace, is a truly ancient-looking man. He's a hundred years if he were a day, totally bald with a straight silver beard and eyebrows that threaten to blind him if he isn't blind already. His skin is almost translucent, and he leans against a nearby wall to softly catch his breath, but doesn't speak.      ... Actually, he might be well over a hundred, considering what Sophia had said about the 'old man'.
Trudy Grimm	> "Fae's not a 'worm'! Fae's Fae!!"     "Heh heh, you most certainly are Fae. No one can argue otherwise," Grimnir caves immediately to this charming child who moments ago was a great fluffy beast. His single eye closes, "Please forgive this old man for getting it wrong." He's just as good at taking teasing as he is giving it, at least. > "You don't have your stones!"     "Oh!" Shifting, Grimnir sinks down into a seated position that puts his face at Fae's eye level. Leaning his staff against his shoulder, he puffs on his pipe a little, "Would you like to tell me about your stone? It's what you use to change form, yes?"     Trudy, meanwhile, gets pulled out of laughing at her traveling companion getting scolded by a(n apparent) nine year old by the new voice approaching. She glances up with a nonverbal, curious noise, "Ah, Lady Igrene, I presume?" Sophia's surprise more or less confirmed that before she even asked.     She pauses, leaning aside slightly to glance behind the woman to the ancient man behind her, "Ahh..? Would that be..?" She recovers herself and instead shifts back to Igrene, "Trudy Grimm, at your service. A humble witch and one of the group who drove off Bern's general while Sophia's rescue was underway. Pleased to meet you."
Echolalia	''You're asking me? ... Why? How should I have an opinion on something like that? It's just the way the world is.'' Echolalia says, "Well it just seems...like it ccame to you easily? I'm not saying it's wrong, just--I suppose it felt like something on your mind a lot, so I was curious. Most people get caught up by what they want to be true before they can say how it is, it always felt like." But then she just goes ahead and grins joyously as Fae puts forth the extra effort to extort goodfeel and care from Lilian. And of course Roy's own reaction to getting to pet a Fae is just wonderful. Echolalia's a little jealous, honestly, she's not nearly as poofycute as this one-- --but she supposes she's a lot older too, she realizes a moment later. It wasn't exactly something that was clear to her until she took human form. "Heh heh...! Now you've got it...!" She beams at Roy. It just feels so very sweet. "Sorry for teasing a bit, eheh..." But then she pays her attention back to Fae while she extorts Odette too, nodding approvingly. "Hm hm hm..." She crosses her arms proudly. That's right. Use your true draconic scheming power for food and water and blanket and play! None can stop a dragon's cunning...! But then she's jarred out of her fangirling over the question. ''You don't have your stones! Did you lose them...? Fae's sorry.'' Echolalia pats Fae, this time on her head. She notices the crystal but doesn't comment directly on it. "I'm Echolalia. You can just call me Echo if you want. It's very wonderful to meet you. Sophia was sooooooo~ excited for us to meet you. Don't worry, I'm okay... but my dear friend Mia over there could probably use some cheering up." She winks at her. "I think she'd really appreciate your company." She knows, of course, that Dysnomia no doubt misses the company of other etherwyrms. This is her opportunity to experience a little more of what she lost, after all. She glances over to Lucius and beams at him too before looking back to Igrene. "Sorry for causing a commotion. Um--I dunno if I'm the best to explain but it's nice to meet you." She looks back to Fae. "Hey do you wanna show us around later?"
Madeleine Cadrasteia	Excrucians in general - and Madeleine in particular - have a curious soft spot for children. Their enemies would accuse them of trying to corrupt the youth to their dark schemes, but even when that *is* the case there's more to it. Perhaps it's the chance to share in seeing the world through fresh eyes, untouched by the Glitch or the wars of creation and uncreation. Perhaps some Excrucians really don't want to be menaces, and children are the only beings who they don't feel obligated to threaten. Maybe, just maybe, there is something of the divine in every child, a divinity that the enemies of the gods envy as much as fear.     And maybe it's because they're just so darn CUTE, even at 900 years old.     Whatever it is, Madeleine finds herself no less charmed by Fae now that she's changed shape. "Oh, hold on, I've still got some..." The huntress rummages around in her bag until she finds it: a three-quarters-empty package of Red Vines. She pulls one red, tacky, artificial-raspberry-flavored strand from the remaining clump and gently dangles it where Fae can reach. "I've not got any blankets, but I'm sure Odette here can take care of that part," she says with a wink.     "Fae turns big to help with work! And sometimes to play! It's fun."     "I bet! I've had friends who could turn big like that. It's pretty cool." She elects not to explain that those friends were a multiverse away now.     "You'll stay forever, right? People stay with us forever when they see the village! It's important!"     A hesitation. Perhaps a little more caution on Madeleine's expression than she'd like to show around a child. "That's... up to Igrene," she finally offers.     "Would you like to tell me about your stone? It's what you use to change form, yes?"     "Ooh, yeah, tell us all about it! I'd love to hear how it works." She's barely restraining the urge to start taking notes.
Dysnomia	Dysnomia shares a conspiratorial smirk with Neon as they pull Roy to Fae together. She didn't even understand all of why it was important, but Dysnomia was glad to have the help. It's best if he's not scared of them. It would make it easier, later.     A sharp tear rips at in Dysnomia's chest. Another irritating feeling she hadn't the slightest idea what to do with. She busied herself shaking dust clear of her cloak. But, a smile can't help but fight itself to the surface, as she watches Fae slide into her human form. "It's a better introduction than I dared hope for..."     "You don't have your stones! Did you lose them...? Fae's sorry."     Dysnomia squats down, briefly, too charmed to worry about being pointed out. "You don't need to worry about us; we're from far away, where things work a little different." She gives Echo the stink eye, when the other etherwyrm works out her scheme. But still, she says, "That's right, I'm Mia."     "And I hope you know what you've done, bringing so many people here."     Dysnomia stood up, coming to Sophia's defense. "She does. And she has good reason. We've dire news to bring..." She looked around, eyes touching the watcing crowd. Considering. "...Would you rather discuss this somewhere more discrete?"
Echolalia	Echolalia sticks her tongue out at Dysnomia immediately, twigs and berries growing off it, but the sight gag backfires when she tries to stick her tongue back, forcing her to brush away the bramble with her hand as she exclaims, "Ack! Pffhbt!"
Alucard	Alucard's eyes only widen slightly as the floofy dragon turns into a sassy (not lost) child. "Fascinating." He reaches up and unwraps his head, giving it a shake to loosen his long, pale hair. It's somehow less awful in here than outside. Igrene arrives, and the half-vampire assesses her. A dangerous woman. He nods to himself once, but stands off to the side, giving some distance. It's clear he's not comfortable, but then again, is he ever?
Odette Raskins	The normally high-strung Odette looks like a shadow of her usual self while she's petting and just sort of existing around Fae, not quite sure if she's breaching any kinds of etiquette while simultaneously not being too worried about that. Fae seems comfortable enough with it, anyway, and she's not going to deny the adorable creature that affection while she's there. Roy looks like he's catching on and settling in, too, and seeing Mia and Neon do their part in making sure he gets to experience that spiritual healing gets an approving giggle from Odette as well. What actually catches her off guard, however, is Fae's transformation into a newer, more person-shaped form. Instead of seeing an adorable old person, Odette is instead face to face with an adorable young child that nevertheless demands all three of the things she offered. "You're...? Ah, okay! Let's see, then." Peering into her bag of mostly medical supplies, Odette sifts around in there a bit while wondering what would even be safe to feed a dragon child in the middle of a desert. Water? Safe, sure, after she twists the cap to crack the little plastic bits off so Fae can see how it works. Energy drink? Most certainly not. That might make her haret explode or... However that affects dragon children. Green onion crackers? Honey butter potato chips? Peanut butter MRE bar? Sure, why not. She'll just have to watch Fae while she eats those, to make sure she doesn't eat the packaging. "Adorable... Guh, I don't know how much my heart can take...!" The white mini-cape with the medical symbol, meanwhile, is handed over as well, and it certainly seems like she would've done that even without prompting from Echolalia and Madeleine. She's definitely not going to deny Fae that request, since she did ask/demand it specifically. Besides, the mental image of seeing her running around with that on... Just thinking about it has Odette clutching her chest again, taking a moment to just settle down while Fae asks some questions of her own. "N... No stones, nope. Don't be sorry. We're..." How does she even begin to explain that whole situation to Fae? She can't just blurt out that there's a race war that might be coming to everyone's doorstep here! No, that's going to need to be explained with proper care, probably by Sophia or this Igrene person that's been mentioned plenty of times. Hearing that Igrene's supposed to be the oldest person sets some expectations in Odette's mind that, once the actual Igrene appears... "... M-Ma'am?" Odette coughs into her hand after blurting that out, inhaling briefly before smacking herself on the cheeks to snap herself back to reality. "Sorry! I-it's not Miss Sophia's fault. There's... Uh." Crap. She's still in the same predicament of trying not to overload poor Fae's brain with the situation. How can-wait. Fae's talking normally, too? Odette stares at her for several moments like she's trying to look sterner than before, but can't keep it up for long before grinning slightly. "Good job.. Hehe." It really is working. It almost has her forgetting to try and explain anything to Igrene, but only until Dysnomia reminds her that discretion exists. "Oh. R-right, that might be... Good, yes. There's a lot to explain, and..." She trails off purposefully for once, pointing at her own ears and then at the nearest building. She's trying to pantomime a figure of speech out without really wondering if it makes any sense in this context.
Aidan Proudpick	Aidan lets out a sound of basic joy as he spreads out his arms and hugs the dragon, leaning into the fluff, arms spread out wide. Tail twitch. Twitch twitch. At some point, Aidan has lost track of time and falls to the ground with a gentle 'paft' as the dragon suddenly changes. After rolling onto his back, he looks upward at Fae. "People stay with us forever when they see the village!" A sidelong glance at Sophia. Well, up a little, since he's on the ground. "People stay here forever?" He looks back at Fae, seemingly fine with being on the ground. "We'll talk to Sophia about that!" "What's all this, now?" Whoop, new people. Aidan lifts his legs over his head, then kicks out, flipping himself up to his feet. "Oh! Hi. I'm Aidan Proudpick, we are here for..." He looks around at the open crowd around them, then back at Sophia and Roy, "Probably something we should go inside for." The camera zooms in on one of Aidan's ears. Twitch. Twitch. He looks up with a frown, pulling his shoulder bag up. He pushes past the others towards the side street, holding out the canteen. "Sir? Sir, are you okay?" He presses closer, smiling, "Hey, having a jog out in the desert sun? You should take some water."
Lilian Rook	'... Lilian? Are you alright...? Was it a vision?'     This is the single best excuse Lilian has ever had for anything and she might be just a tiny bit furious at herself for having never come up with it before. "Y-you could say that." comes out unsteadily, at first, then Lilian decides to lean into the half-truth she's been offered, seeing no reason to snobbishly insist on her own stock. "Don't worry. I won't let it be a problem." she says, shaking her head. "Your--"     'Um, I'm not her caretaker...'     "--little friend, is safe. And everything else will work out." The save is smooth. Lilian looks a tiny bit sad that she missed the darts on trying to spot the mythical 'loving parental figure', elusive as sasquatch and half as documented. She'll guess right one day.     bomk     "Oh my goddddd . . ."     Lilian has never had a cat. She has also never particularly held back the trivia that she's always wanted one, and simply never been allowed. Whether it's Curupira or petting zoo rabbits or a villainous aquarium, Lilian is soft to a fault when i comes to Innocent Critters, and dragon or not, the creature nosing into her chest is the most Critter it has ever been! Plus, someone is just giving her the thing she secretly wanted, without her even asking! Literally what is there to complain about?!     "Hello there Miss Fae~ I was wondering what Sophia meant, but now I see that everyone should be nice to you because you're just perfect~!" Lilian fusses and coos, squishing the dragon's fluffy cheeks and running her fingers through her down, pressing gently around her ears and jaw to try and find the right spot to ruffle while nuzzling the top of her head with her cheek. "Goodness, you're so brave, too! And were you helping everyone with their chores? What a wonderful girl! Everyone here must be so so happy to have you~"     'Most people get caught up by what they want to be true before they can say how it is, it always felt like.'     Lilian looks up with half her face squished into dragon fluff and her arms practically hugging her around the neck. It takes her three entire seconds to even remember anything else was going on. She gives Fae a little parting squish-pat, the claps down the front of her armour, dusts her shoulders with her fingers, and flicks back her hair over her shoulders, clearing her throat officiously. "I have a lot of different things on my mind all the time. It's merely part and parcel of being an intellectual. So naturally it would be easy for me to recall a self-evident fact about reality like that."     Fae's transformation breaks her roll with a little startled noise and both hands jumping up to loose-curled nothing postures at shoulder level. Lilian blinks against the light as she tries to take in the new visual information, attempts to override the previous association in her head, fails, and sighs at realizing she is exactly as cute like this, too. She files away the question of how the two forms might resemble one another for later.
Odette Raskins	That's when she sees the old man further back on the side street. Calming herself down a bit, Odette raises a hand in greeting while approaching him at a relaxed pace, trying to untangle some of the things she's heard. Wasn't Igrene supposed to be...? Wait, no, that was.. Fae? No, old man. Right, the one that might know about Iounn. "Oh! H-hello there, mister. Would you like any.. Um. Water or food or blankets, too?" She asks, once again using that gentler tone of voice like she's trying not to scare him with volume or anything.
Lilian Rook	'Fae's not a 'worm'! Fae's Fae!!'     "That's right." Lilian adds on blind reflex, putting her hands on her waist. "You could at least remember to use people's names."     'You don't have your stones! Did you lose them...? Fae's sorry.'     Lilian sharply turns to the side and shields her mouth with her hand, partially muffling the 'pffu--!' sound that escapes her.     'Okayyy. I'm sorry!'     Lilian's status effect increases to level 2. She doubles halfway over, splaying her fingers against her collarbone, coughing her breath back in after swallowing wrong.     'And I hope you know what you've done, bringing so many people here.'     "Please allow me to assure you that there wasn't any better option." Lilian says, regathering herself. "Sophia was fortunate to still be alive when we found her. It's worthy of praise that she came back here, rather than escaping on her own." Not terribly clear, but Lilian's assessment of the situation is that persuasively emphasizing the gravity of the situation as soon as possible is the most important factor in the villagers listening right now; at least more so than explaining the details.
Desire Stars	Outwardly, Ace's smile does well to conceal the thoughts he's stewing on--not that he wouldn't utter them aloud with a smile. *Guess Sophia wasn't kidding. 900 must be really young for dragons.* On the contrary, the idea seems to fill him with an odd kind of lightness in the chest. Hope is a quietly felt thing, often overshadowed by its cousin determination. People stay with us forever when they see the village! It's important!     "I bet," he says aloud, without answering one way or the other. "Forever's a long time, isn't it? The longest that 'time' can get." Not even Ace Ukiyo can bring himself to wield his off-putting smugness against a child. "I have a lot to do, and a lot of reasons to stay moving. But if everyone stays forever, then it's no problem for me to come back some day. Right?" And I hope you know what you've done, bringing so many people here.     The aloof superstar's brow knits in thought. *I guess there'd be a good reason this place has stayed a secret for so long, huh.*     "We don't want to trample on the good thing you've built here," says Ace.     "Huh? Why would that be a problem?"     "Because this place depends on secrecy to stay safe. Doesn't it?" he glances towards Igrene to check for understanding.     "Anyway, that's part of the reason we're here. How much do you know about the outside world at the moment?"
Flamel Parsons	Flamel waves his way towards Igrene! "Hi there! Flamel Parsons -- agent of a mysterious yet ominous order. Great to meet you, and, don't worry -- we conducted a full-scale opsec sweep on all visitors! I've personally examined the minds of all involved in an elaborate partially-psychic interrogation. Except for the children, obviously." Obviously. He expects this part of things to go over well with Igrene.     "So," He brings his palms together in a "let's get down to business" sort of posture. "Mind if I share it telepathically?" That's rhetorical, he does anyway. "I'll start with the bad news. The bad news is that the nation of Bern, in collaboration with some Etrurian traitors, is going to be trying to sweep through here, take something important, kill everything they can't take, *burn* everything they can't kill, *raze* everything they can't *burn*, and then forcibly conscript anything they can't raze."     Then he beams! "The good news is, our group is primarily heroic types who want to help, or approximately equivalent like myself -- and I think we'll be able to stop them! And we should definitely start with coordinating the best way to do that with you." He moves to convene with her, already assuming she'll jump into this. "You should meet Roy! Roy's our boy, officially speaking, and definitely beter than I am when it comes to making the contact here."
Marigold	Fae's opted to latch onto Lilian's waist, little arms barely encircling it, for maybe no more complex reason than 'Lilian gave the most thorough pets'. But defending her against the If I Was A Worm allegations helps too: she smiles almost-smugly while squishing her cheek against Lilian's side.      "Fae forgives you!" she says sincerely, with no evidence at all that she meant to tease poor Grimnir in the first place. His asking about the stone confuses her a little, like it's common knowledge here, but then she decides to cherish the chance to be an expert. Swaying forward from Lilian's waist while holding out the glittering rock: "It's part of Fae! Fae's big. If Fae wants to be small, Fae has to put the bigness somewhere she can get it back later!"      That makes... a kind of sense. "But Fae has to be really careful not to lose it! Then she couldn't get her bigness back!"      Marcus, who has regained his breath after having it driven out of him by fluffy potato dragon, clarifies a little for Grimnir and Maddie: "I understand it stores her shape and excess magic. It's not natural- they invented a ritual during the Scouring to grant human form." "Mm-hmm! They taught Fae the stone trick when she was really little!"      Cecilia, who's still shaking sand out of her hair and ought to be one of the most knowledgeable ones here, side-eyes him: "How did you find this out, Sir Marcus?" He puts up his hands: "Ahah... No comment, General Cecilia." "Hmm."      "Eh-co..." Fae sounds out, nodding for Echolalia. She nods, squidging her cheek up and down Lilian's side. "Mi-ah. Are you grown-up dragons? Fae hasn't seen a dragon grown-up in a long time! Where are you from? Did you come back through the gate? Do you want to play with Fae sometime?"      Her attention slides back to Maddie, just long enough to- homph- chomp off the dangled Red Vine. Chew, chew. "Iff prebby gubd," she says, mouth still full. "Fhank yuu! Whaf- mmf- what kind of fruit is that?"      Ace's ruminations about 'forever' are the first thing to darken Fae's mood a little. She hangs off Lilian's waist limply, eyes sliding down. "People are supposed to stay forever. But they keep leaving Fae. 'I promise I'll come back' isn't good enough. You have to promise promise."
Marigold	"So you're her rescuers," Igrene sighs while leaning against the village's entryway. She's grateful, but a little despairing; Sophia smilingly shrinks. "I'm sorry..." "I'm sure you didn't mean to be captured, Sophia. It just seems I've got a lot on my plate now."      She nods to Ace: "That's right. Arcadia has to be stable for people like Fae. Unchanging, almost. People who stumble across the village- like my father- aren't allowed to leave." "Yay!" "Otherwise, the word could get out, and people would try to exploit the village for its power... which is exactly what's happening now, isn't it? The damage is done. There's no point demanding you stay." "Awww, no!"      "Fae, you just met them." "But... they'll leave Fae... this one says Fae's wonderful!" Lilian-squeeze. "Ohh, Fae... you'll make new friends. I promise."      "Ahh... thank you, strange young man." The withered old guy accepts the canteen and takes a small sip, then hands it back with a trembling hand. He shakes Trudy's with it a second later: his grip is weak, but callused from farming. "Thank you for returning Sophia to us. If she passed before I did... ahh, but I don't have a name to give you. It'd be a waste to give me one now." He smiles weakly, lopsided.      Igrene smiles, but doesn't even look back at him. "I think you just like giving people that routine, old man." "Hn!" "How many years have you been saying you'll die any day now?" "Ah... a few." "Since before I was born, I think."      The old man looks back at Odette, smiles in that feeble way again, and pats her shoulder. "She's always been so mean to me," he confides, making Igrene- who is trying to go back to geopolitics- roll her eyes. "Just your company is enough."      Flamel and Lilian succeed in alarming both Igrene and the crowd. "I know enough about the 'outside world' to know Bern should be on the other side of the continent," she says, quieting their murmuring. "Don't tell me they've started some big war? Practically speaking, the best thing's probably to set up just inside the sandstorm and stick them while they're still blinking it out of their eyes."      Roy is still staring at his dragon-down-fluffed hand in a daze when Flamel calls on him, and then steps forward to shake with Igrene, who at least deems him worthy of uncrossing her arms to shake for.      "I'm very sorry. Everyone would've liked it if Arcadia could have stayed secret forever."      "No kidding."      "But if we can at least keep it safe from Bern..."      "And keep it safe the next time, and the next?"      "Huh?"      "Do you think there'll still be an Arcadia in a thousand years? Or is Fae going to lose her home while she's still a child?"      "I... that's a lot to ask me."      "Yeah. Sorry, I'm a mess. Bern first." Igrene rubs her brow like she's got a migraine coming on. All things considered, she's taking it pretty well.
Trudy Grimm	Fae's confusion at being asked about her crystal pulls another look of grandfatherly delight from Grimnir's wrinkled old face. Patiently, he lets the dragon child take the lead on something she knows more about. > "It's part of Fae! Fae's big. If Fae wants to be small, Fae has to put the bigness somewhere she can get it back later!"     "Mmm, I see, thank you," His free hand strokes and smooths down his beard as he considers what he'd been told, "That does sound very important. You're doing a good job keeping it safe, my dear."     Trudy shakes the old man's hand politely, her grip firm in his calloused fingers. She's about to speak up when Grimnir interrupts her, leaning aside a bit to put himself more in view. > "Thank you for returning Sophia to us. If she passed before I did... ahh, but I don't have a name to give you. It'd be a waste to give me one now."     "Ahh, such a shame, my friend. How shall we remember you when you at last journey to the shining halls? A cairn carrying your story would be well-carved, indeed." He chuckles a bit, "Us old-timers, we can't let the young folk get too far past us when we've still got a world to leave them, eh?"     "Nosy old man," Trudy chides Grimnir lightly, one eye closed as she peers back at him. She returns her attention to the elderly local, clapping her hands lightly together, "I'm delighted to meet you, 'Grandfather'," she settles on a title for the kindly old man of Arcadia, "Sophia has been a delight, as well. Ahh-- I was hoping to ask you about something from long ago, while the others sort out the more pressing business..."
Madeleine Cadrasteia	"I understand it stores her shape and excess magic. It's not natural- they invented a ritual during the Scouring to grant human form."     "Oh, yeah, that uh. That makes sense, yeah." Madeleine is trying not to think about how her human (ish) body is in some ways a puppet-like protrusion of a larger self, the existential bulk of which resides in her sanctuary...     "Whaf- mmf- what kind of fruit is that?"     "It's, uh-" A glance at the packaging. "Raspberry. They're these little clusters of juicy red bubbles with little crunchy seeds in them - really good, honestly. I should bring some, you wouldn't get them out here in the desert. Want some more? Watch this." The huntress tears off a piece of red vine, tosses it straight up into the air, and repositions slightly to catch it in her mouth. Then she offers the rest of the vine to Fae: "Can you do that?"
Dysnomia	"Ahah... No comment, General Cecilia."     Dysnomia's eyes stray toward Marcus. A thought crosses the distance between them. "I once heard that Durandal hurt a woman when last it was drawn." She thought-spoke, "I think it must have been someone important to Eliwood, to make him hate the sword so much..."     Alas, her mental interrogation is interrupted by Fae being adorable.     "Mi-ah. Are you grown-up dragons? Fae hasn't seen a dragon grown-up in a long time! Where are you from? Did you come back through the gate? Do you want to play with Fae sometime?     "It must be so hard to be here without any here." Dysnomia said, gravely. Resting a hand on top of Fae's head, she rustled her hair. "You are very, very strong, aren't you? I bet everyone is so proud of you."     "Echo and I are from somewhere people in Elibe call the 'otherworld.'" She said, crisply. "A place beyond this place." Her gut reaction is to say 'no,' to deflect, but she looks into Fae's eyes, and she feels that bone-deep yearning loneliness, resonating in her like a tuning fork, and instead she says; "of course I'll play with you, Fae!" There was a helpless, nervous panic.     It's, ironically enough, the seriousness and worry eminating off the others that lets Mia peel herself away. She turns to them, bringing a fist to her chest, clearing her throat--and head. "I'm afraid it may even be worse than you fear. Bern has been somehow marshalling the same kind of..." Her brow furrowed. "...'Empty' dragons that were used in the Scouring."     "King Zephiel--the king of Bern--is working with someone called Idunn. We think she's key to how he's doing this."
Echolalia	Echolalia really wants to show Fae HER full bigness but Dysnomia has yet to go full big so she'd feel like she's being pushy by being the first one between them to go big. "That's really something, Marcus." Echolalia thinks. It'd be nice to be able to put something away in a rock, sure. Mostly because it'd be reall cool to draw it out like that. And to be able to kind of relax sometimes. [ansi(243,''Are you grown-up dragons?'')] Echolalia doesn't want to press the matter too much, but she does kind of wonder how they know. She doesn't feel like she's in psionic communion or anything. Perhaps they just sort of ''know''. Echolalia kind of gets a ''vibe'' herself. "We're from really really far away." Echolalia tells Fae. "I have a home I have to protect so I can't stay here forever--" She looks around a bit before setting her gaze onto a palm tree. She stares at it, memorizes the appearance and vibe of the tree. "If you take good care of that tree there, I'll be able to pop by again and again. And maybe someday you can pay a visit to my home. They'd fall for a sweet girl like you in no time." She crouches down so she can get a better look at Fae's eyes. "But I'd love to play. What kind of game would you like to play?" She flicks her wrist, a pink lily flower growing into her hand which she then tucks behind Fae's ear. " In Mia's head: 'Mia, come on, you don't have to be nervous. Aren't you kind of looking forward to it?' She leaves the work talk to others. "Do you like Tag?" She asks, raising her hands in 'claw' shapes, her expression as mischevious as ever.
Odette Raskins	"Aww... I think Fae really likes you." Odette murmurs as she looks from Fae to Lilian, biting down on the inside of her lips a bit to suppress more adoring noises at what she's seeing and hearing. She's not doing a very good job at keeping the little noises inside, but at least her face is... No, her face is still brightening up at all of this. She's not managing to hide any of it one bit. With Fae explaining the power of the stones, however, Odette can't help but inquire about something a little more specific: "Are there any stones that could make you even bigger, too? Or... M-maybe even make other people bigger?" She asks, mostly directing that question at Fae while also glancing at Marcus in case he has any other input on that query. She's not keeping her hopes up either way, but it couldn't hurt to ask an expert. Fae and Igrene reveal quite a bit about the nature of Arcadia, but it's the latter's conclusion about the new situation Arcadia's in that gets Odette to visibly tense up. That shoulder pat from the old man does help her calm down a little, at least, and she even giggles briefly at his comment about IGrene. "Aw, I'm sure she means well. Like... She's just worried about you, mister, since you're..." Older than Igrene? Right, he is still a dragon, just unable to transform. "... Like a grandfather to her? I guess?" A hand comes up to pat the old man's hand, and she recalls a few more things as she looks over to face him a little more properly. First, what Fae said about the stones' purpose: "Did you lose your stone somewhere? Or did someone take it?" Secondly, what Sophia mentioned way back in the wagon, even before arriving here: "Do you recognize the name... Uh. Iounn?"
Lilian Rook	'It's part of Fae! Fae's big. If Fae wants to be small, Fae has to put the bigness somewhere she can get it back later!'     'It's not natural- they invented a ritual during the Scouring to grant human form.'     For the first time in her whole entire life, Lilian feels achingly, bitterly envious of a literal child. Strenuously pushing it out of mind, lest it bleed into the way she holds Fae, she hopes it is the last time as well.     "That sounds tremendously convenient. I'm almost relieved we didn't know anything of it before, lest we be mistlead to some unfortunate conclusions about Bern's false 'dragons'."     'People are supposed to stay forever. But they keep leaving Fae. 'I promise I'll come back' isn't good enough. You have to promise promise.'     That helps. The process in motion of puzzling out what Fae really means is like walking into cold water up to the chest. Lilian's grip on Fae, little more than a loose touch, becomes strangely, gently possessive, as if just a little bit afraid to let her go. There's no way she can promise to stay here. Not in this little village. Not even until the end of the week, much less forever. But it's too hard to say nothing.     'Ohh, Fae... you'll make new friends. I promise.'     "I'm not going to go away forever. I don't know about everyone else, but I'd hate that."     'Do you think there'll still be an Arcadia in a thousand years? Or is Fae going to lose her home while she's still a child?'     "We all lose things when powerful men decide they're owed. Feel a little more shame asking him for a thousand years when he hasn't had five."
Desire Stars	But they keep leaving Fae. 'I promise I'll come back' isn't good enough. You have to promise promise.     "You're a real pro," Ace chuckles. "Yeah. I promise promise. You might not recognize me, when I come back," he says. "But I'll be carrying this," he says, procuring a stamped golden denarius and holding it out for her to see. "No matter how far I go, it always manages to find me. So you'll know it's me, even if I don't look familiar at first." He smiles, bumping it into the air with his thumb and catching it with the same hand. The damage is done. There's no point demanding you stay.     "Not necessarily," says Neon with faintly, ever-so-slightly desperate haste. "I'm full up on places I'm not allowed to leave as of late, but the 'damage' might not be done yet. Or if it is... maybe not beyond repair." Practically speaking, the best thing's probably to set up just inside the sandstorm and stick them while they're still blinking it out of their eyes.     Neon frowns. "They've had a lot of time to build up steam, and they've been one step ahead of almost anyone who could stop them just about the whole time they've been fighting."     "We were... honestly, really relieved to have gotten here before they did," she admits, fidgeting with both hands clasped together.     Roy's exchange with Igrene shows Neon that she doesn't really need to spell it out much more than that--they have the money and the people to keep coming and coming until they have what they want or until 'what they want' is something no one can have.     "This is probably pretty far from the biggest army you've ever heard of." Roy's army is, indeed, dwarfed by the number of villagers.     "But..." She stands up a little straighter, "We don't just abandon people who need us. And even though sometimes we're on the backfoot, we're still standing, against some pretty long odds."     "The sandstorm isn't a terrible short-term idea," Ace opines. "But like you mentioned, they won't give up if they think they can get what they want from you. 'What they want' should be pretty obvious, since they're using old tactics from the Scouring," he says, stuffing the coin into his pocket. "And it should go without saying that you can't count on secrecy anymore. So."     "Suppose we let them march into the sandstorm and beat them," he begins. "Is there any place we could take the people they're after that's defensible enough to survive a second wave and last us until we can get more distance? An overlook, a valley, an old fort, something like that?"
Flamel Parsons	"Do you think there'll still be an Arcadia in a thousand years?"     Flamel freezes in place. He sort of zones out when he hears that part, tense and... confused? He's thinking, and... "It's supposed to, though, I think." Flamel nods a few times. "It stands to reason, right? At the exact time you're dealing with this, Bern got ahold of something to do with secret dragon magic that's *perfect* at hiding geopolitical activity. I feel like there's a connection there."     His weird aside comes with a short mechanical noise, stone grinding against stone. "Almost there..." He mutters. Then he shakes his head. "Well, if you want the location wiped, I'll be happy to run the memory adjustments on everyone involved! I *love* concealing secret societies. But it's definitely not going to work out if this era overall is starting to end..."     "Speaking of which, any chance I could talk with you all about history stuff? We're trying to figure out something about a modern dark sorceress going by 'Iðunn', who we think has something to do with some artificial war-dragons we've seen around..."
Marigold	Marcus stiffens up guiltily at Mia's mental contact. He shoots her a sharp, bewildered, and finally hangdog look, but doesn't respond. That's telling by itself. Thank goodness Odette gives him a softball: "Ah... only dragons can use the stones, and I think only their own. It'd be very strange otherwise, wouldn't it?" "You're a good size!" adds possibly the only person here shorter than Odette.      Ace's golden coin enthralls Fae so much you can just tell she's never seen one before. She reaches out to try and get her warm little kid palms all over it, then slows to process what he's saying. "You promise-promise," she affirms. "You have more shapes too? Can Fae see? Or is it a surprise for later?"      When Lilian puzzles through Fae's childish language and her touch turns possessive, Fae- a little better at observing people than a nine-year-old 'should' be- lifts wondering eyes up at her.      "Fae's sorry. Did Fae say something bad...?" Then Lilian says she won't go, and her look of concern melts into a deep understanding. "Thank you. You're really serious. Fae won't make you promise."      "Can you do that?"      "Yeah!" Fae says, with fist-clenched confidence. "Fae can do anything! Watch!" Finally peeling herself away from Lilian, she tosses it upwards in a perfect arc, tilts back her head, opens her mouth, and--      Splt, shff. It thwaps off her face and lands in the sand. Fae looks down in shock and horror, then puts her hands to her face and makes an agonized "hooouuu..." noise. "No...! Fae's treat...!"      "The ancient enemy of man," Lucius murmurs (he assumes out of earshot) disbelievingly, shaking his head. "H-huh?" "Ah-! Nothing, Fae. Madeleine, could you get her another treat?"      The pink flower that Echo puts behind Fae's ear uplifts her a lot. "Huh-- thank you! You're a really nice dragon!" she beams. "From far away... well, Fae forgives you for leaving if you promise-promise to come back!"      Her beaming look turns on Dysnomia next, unbothered by her usual grumpiness. "It isn't hard, Mia! Fae has lots of good human and half-dragon friends! They love Fae very much! But playing dragon games sounds really nice. We can tag, but don't fly far! Fae isn't good at flying!"
Marigold	"'Grandfather'," the old man repeats, easing himself down to sit on a little box by the gate's corner. He smiles up at Trudy from his slouch. "You're kind to old men, aren't you? Too kind." The back of his hand waves to gently dismiss Grimnir: "No, no. I've... I've lived a shameful life. You, my friend, you might have stories to be remembered, but it's best if 'this' is my only cairn."      He makes a wide gesture. 'This' means 'Arcadia'.      "I 'lost' it," he admits to Odette, rubbing his aching knees with his hands. Then he breathes out and shakes his head, steeling himself. "When the Scouring started, I... I was so ashamed. I was an old man even then. Rashness should have been behind me. But when I saw... what power like mine was used for... I hurled it into the ocean, and walked away. As if that could make me cleaner."      Deep breath in. "But enough of that. You wanted to know about 'Iðunn'." He pronounces the name exactly as Zephiel had. "Arcadia hid during the Scouring, and Athos spoke to me rarely of it... but 'Iðunn' was the name humans gave the Demon, wasn't it?" 'The Demon Dragon', others said, but of course dragons wouldn't say that.      He shakes his head again, creasing his brow and looking down. It tastes bitter on his tongue. "I'd heard it once before, from a man who fled to Arcadia in the early days. He told me of a young dragon named Iðunn, from the divine tribe like Fae. She'd been kind to his village. What could have warped her heart, I couldn't say. People change. People change... but of course, the Demon was slain."
Marigold	Igrene soaks up Flamel and Ace's input with her eyes unpleasantly scrunched. "The reservoir underground is defensible," she says slowly, "but you can't just take 'the things they want' and leave the villagers behind. Human hostages to coerce dragons... that was always one of our greatest fears. But they can't march a whole army through the desert. Where are their supplies coming from? Rout them here, then hit there."      Lilian sours her, but can't sour her too much, what with Fae still clinging to Lilian's waist. "I know. I was being selfish. But since I'm trusting my village to Roy, is he an adult or a child?" "I'm- I'm an adult!" "He's an adult!" "... Thank you, Fae." "Welcome!"      "How old is Roy, anywa--"      "Why? What kind of person would take the Demon's na--"      "Igrene... should we retrieve--"      Sophia, Fae, and the old man all whip around to stare east past Roy's army, eyes suddenly wide. It's like they have a hivemind.      ... Or like there was a gunshot only they could hear. How could Fae tell Mia and Echo were dragons, anyway?      "Them again. In my time..."      "Igrene...! Bern's close!!"      "Fae's scared... it feels wrong..."