-------------- Tales of the Silver Gryphon - Forest Depths

"Garnet."

"Yesss, missstresss."

"Stop trying to hide in the bushes. You forget, even with your invisibility, when you remember to use it, I can still see your body heat."

"I wasssn't hiding, missstresss. Thought I sssaw sssomething magic."

"Well?"

"Nothing. Whatever it wassss, isss gone. Maybe we ssshould call up the one with the devissse."

"No", Tia looked around quickly. What her diminutive pseudo-dragon couldn't sense, even with his magic sight and arcane spells, was as clear to her as dappled sunlight on hidden pools of water. They were either entering or already in a faerie vale.

"I thought you were supposed to be a fey?"

"Garnet? A fey? Hmmmmph. How long have I ssserved you, missstress? How long have I cooked and cleaned and made up bedsss in Houssse Hayessss? In all my time, have I ever given you reassson to think I wasss a ssstinking sssprite?"

Tia smiled, but kept her eye on the woods and her hand on her sword. Not all faeries were kind, gentle and good hearted. Some were downright evil. And there was a history of bad blood between faeries and elfkind, even if she, herself had overcome the old prejudices.

"My apologies, Garnet. One can easily see you are descendant of mighty Dragon Kings. Those are not lowly faerie wings on your back, and do you not breath a most horrible fire? I seek your forgiveness."

Garnet snarled and furled his brow.

"Sssarcasssm isss not nesssesssary."

Tia heard a feint snap deeper in the woods. She sniffed. Her druid spells served her well. She tensed. Traveler shook his mane behind her.

"Yes, I know Traveler. This is not good. Garnet, fly. Head back and get the Silver Gryphon. There are worse things in these woods than Spriggans. The faeries you saw were probably trying to warn us away. Find Emma. I'll tell you what to tell her."

"Yessss, missstresss."

The drake was gone in a flash, both visibly disappeared and airborne, flying back a good two hundred yards behind her as fast as his little dragon wings could carry him. She had about one minute in this terrain before the others could close. But she, herself, could disappear in these woods as good as any faerie, and turn the woods against her foes.

"Traveler. Stay here. I'm going forward to get a closer look. Trust me, old friend. I'll be careful."

-------------- Credits

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