Chapter 31: Found
"Wake up! Wake up!" Querida was jolted awake by the sound of a strange voice and rough paws shaking her. She blearily blinked open her eyes to see a bogsneak shaking her awake, a snapper closely behind him. Her fire had gone out, and a faint trail of smoke was rising to the sky.
"Who are you?" Querida asked groggily, getting to her feet and clutching her book close.
"My name is Thorburn, and this here is Maggie, my boss." The bogsneak introduced himself before lowering his voice to a whisper. "I have a book like yours. These are rare, so you'd best keep your safe."
"Wha-" Querida started, but Thorburn hushed her.
"Not here. Not now." His hissed. It was clear he didn't want Maggie to overhear. Perhaps she didn't know.
"What brings you to these parts?" Maggie asked, stepping forward. Thorburn shot his boss an irritated look and stepped back.
"I was traveling with my family. We got separated, and I think they are in trouble. They were taken prisoner by a pair of guardians, and I got scared and flew off before I found out if they could escape or were let go..." Querida trailed off, guilt clenching her chest. She didn't know why she was telling all this to a complete stranger. Her father had always taught her to keep her emotions close and to not share anything too quickly that could be a potential weakness, but Maggie, though well seasoned and clearly sharp, seemed to have a certain kindness about her that Querida couldn't help but trust.
"You can travel with us back to our clan, if you wish." Maggie offered. "Thorburn and I were just stopping by the Sunbeam Ruins to line up some potential deals for the Brightshine Jubilee now that we've got everything for the Greenskeeper Gathering, but we are on our way home now. It's a port, so there are always many dragons coming and going. Perhaps one of them will have heard what happened to your parents, or perhaps your parents will stop by for the Gathering. Many dragons do come in and stay just for our festivals.
Maggie's description of her home clan seemed strangely familiar. "You wouldn't happen to be from Windkeep Tower, would you?" Querida asked, eyeing the clearly wind style logo on the airship docked on the side of the cliffs. It was full of green sacks and boxed emblazoned with the nature flight emblem, to Querida could only assume it was there ship. The symbol on the hull looked strangely familiar, like the bits her parents had been unable to completely scratch off their stolen vessel.
"You've heard of us? Have you visited before?" Maggie asked.
"No, I've never been myself. But my mom said that's where she hatched." Querida explained.
"Your mother wouldn't happen to be Pall- Plagueheart, would she?" Maggie asked, eyes widening.
"You know her?" Querida asked, perking up.
"Not personally, but your family back at the tower are very friendly and I always enjoy it when they pop by the shop." Maggie said, a smile filling her eyes, though only for a moment. Here gaze then began to darken. "If your parents are really Plagueheart and Pyrite, then we definitely need to bring this news back to Fenn. Not only is their safety a matter of interest, they have some things to answer to should they ever return to the clan."
"What do you mean?" Querida asked.
"We can get to all of that later." Maggie said, warmth returning to her eyes. "Thorburn, why don't you show her to the guest suite on our ship, and then we can get her initiated to help us sail back to the Windswept Plateau.
Querida exchanged a look with Thorburn. If they could have some time alone, she could ask him about the book. Clutching her only possession even closer, she followed the bogsneak onto the ship, hoping that soon everything would make sense again.
A second update for the day! This is my last update before my trip that I am leaving on tomorrow morning. I probably won't be able to update until Thursday, then I can do a proper Greenskeeper Gathering update! I'm so excited tomorrow to see what the Spirit of Nature is, and what the apparel and accents look like! :D Hope you all enjoy the Gathering!
