Dewdrop

Dewdrop, the well-traveled storyteller...

...meets Takari, whose journey is only beginning.

* * * * *

The sun sank low just beyond the Behemoth, at what felt like the edge of Takari’s world. Sornieth did not stretch further north than the magnificent tree, the Gladekeeper’s roost, apart from a short stretch of entangled sedgeland and scattered clusters of saltwater mangroves. The northern seas were notoriously treacherous and monsoon-ridden; so much so that the Arcane flight had deigned it easier to examine the rest of the planet from among the stars rather than devising methods of crossing. Perhaps she simply hadn’t faced enough opposition to break her optimism, she reasoned, but powering through the intensity of the winds and the waves seemed less complicated than the development of exploratory technology.

But what could she say, she figured, as she settled among the gnarled nooks of an enormous, twisted cypress. She belonged to neither of those flights. Nor had she even attempted to leave the coast—she was strong; she had her cross-continental flights to thank for her impressive flight muscles. But if the legends of the thousands of explorers sucked beneath the waves within hours of departure were true, dragons bred and built to power through currents of both air and sea…what chance did she stand, with mere years of travel and training lining her wings?

“You shouldn’t.” The voice nearly scared the Pearlcatcher into the water. Takari bolted upright, her hackles bristling in alarm and her wings immediately snapping open. Without a second thought, she bunched her muscles beneath her powerful body, her head on a swivel.

“Who said that?” It was less of a question and more of a demand. There had been no hostility in those words, but…there had been no hostility in the eyes of the beast who bit half of her ear off, either. She straightened slightly, if only to widen her line of sight.

To her surprise, the source of the voice revealed herself without a beat of hesitation. A surprisingly lean Fae emerged along the top of a wiry branch above the Pearlcatcher’s head, her tiny paws holding tight to the ragged bark and her wings neatly folded. There was something oddly feline about the way the Fae moved; less like a butterfly, more like a Mirror. Intrigued, Takari stepped back as the stranger settled, gazing down at her.

“You shouldn’t,” the Fae repeated simply, as if addressing an old friend rather than a stranger. A small smile grabbed at the corner of her mouth. “I’ve lived here long enough to see dragons attempt to fly north. And I have yet to see anyone return.”

“How did you—”

“Like I said.” The stranger was almost smug. “I’ve been here long enough to know.”

Deeming it safe to do so, Takari sat down, glancing back at the deceptively smooth ocean that stretched before the pair. The Fae’s gaze remained fixed on her, a single brow arching as she awaited a response.

Takari…didn’t necessarily have one, but it seemed rude to leave the stranger hanging. “Fair enough, I suppose. What says they were lost to the sea, though? Maybe whatever’s beyond the channel is so wonderful they simply…stayed.” Food for thought with an interesting stranger was hardly anything to scoff at.

The Fae’s eyes widened a bit, and she smiled knowingly before letting her gaze drift out over the glittering water, bathed in orange light. While her eyes were averted, Takari found herself inspecting the jagged stripes that streaked the other’s scales and lined her emerald eyes. A tiny tigress, dressed in succulents and strands.

When the Fae didn’t respond, Takari mused aloud. “The dangers of finding the answers, I guess. They’re so satisfying you forget to share.”

“Or they didn’t wish to make the trip again. Perhaps they can’t.” The Fae crossed her paws, her tail idly tapping the branch. “I’ve been there—flew all the way to the heart of the Arcanist’s lands in pursuit of answers for questions I didn’t know I had, and it took me weeks to make it home. The flight was brutal.” She seemed to shudder at the memory, and the Pearlcatcher’s ears pricked.

“You’re a traveler, then.”

“But of course. I know souls like mine when I see them—I don’t just tell any dragon admiring the ocean not to fly out.”

Something small and warm flared between the Pearlcatcher’s ribs at that, as though a small bond had been stitched between the pair at the revelation. Perhaps it was her own desire for companionship, but even the illusion of a kindred spirit was enough to temporarily quell her desire to surge out over the sea without looking back.

“I see,” Takari replied, smirking a bit. “I’m just that special?”

The Fae rolled her eyes, but her smile and flared crests betrayed her. The shine of the sunset be damned, the Pearlcatcher could not bring herself to look away from the dragon in the tree.

“Could you…” the Pearlcatcher paused a moment, looking at her paws in what she could only label as being flustered. So much for her bravado. “Ah. Tell me more, about your travels…? I just. Haven’t met anyone willing to discuss, especially not so soon after meeting, and…” Deities, she was uncharacteristically timid. Ears flattened, her eyes flickered back up to her new friend. “Perhaps…over tea? Or. Whatever you prefer, of course…?”