January 21, 2025
Despite my hesitation trusting this place, I slept like a rock last night. Thanks to the wood burning stove and the really comfy blankets, I felt truly warm for the first time in a long time. Oh, it felt like heaven.
I woke up to a bell ringing around 9am, which I later found out was the school bell. Yeah, this place is big enough to have a school. Anyway, I put on my gear and walked outside to check on the pup only to find that it wasn’t nearly as cold as I’d expected. It wasn’t even as cold as it should have been. Turns out the magic in this place helps to keep the temperature almost moderate. I guess it can’t actually keep the whole place warm, but it can keep the wind and some of the chill out of the village and keep the heat from the wood burning stoves inside.
I stripped off my coat and threw it inside the door and ran off to find my dragon friend. S/he was the reason the bell was ringing so incessantly; there were about 20 kids surrounding her/him giggling and cooing and petting. The dragon (not so much a pup anymore, about the size of a moose now) was loving the attention. S/he was practically purring with her chirps and kept lowering her head to gently rub them against some of the children. Try as she might, she still pushed a few over, but they giggled and got right back up.
The teacher had zero luck wrangling the kids; that is, until the dragon noticed me approaching. S/he let out a sort of happy screech and jumped right over the children to get to me. It was her genuine and strong joy that made me realize that this had been the first night we’d slept apart and once I did, I couldn’t believe I hadn’t realized it sooner. Damn, I was tired last night.
After a full five minutes of petting and rubbing and cooing, s/he finally calmed down and Polaris approached. He offered to take us around town and show us the life these people had here, as well as where to find the supplies I needed. Since I wanted to get a good look at just how secure this village is, I agreed. If I had a guide, no one would think twice of me checking things out.
As we began the tour, he told me that he, Névé, Crystallin and a bunch of other fae here are fauna fae. He explained that fauna fae have no greater goal but to care for and ensure the survival of any and all creatures. He also mentioned not all fauna fae include humans on that list, that some say their obligation is to animals and previously believed mythological creatures, not humanoids, and so the fauna fae are divided.
Of course, fauna fae and humans are not the only peoples here. There are also some flora fae, wood elves, dwarf elves, witches and vampires. And let me tell you, Polaris is highly observant. He noticed me tense when he said there were vampires in the village when even I didn’t realize I had. He assured me that they have volunteer bonds for feeding. Awfully subtle way of saying live-in blood bags…but whatever. Though, I do wonder how honestly volunteering they really are.
Along the way, I met a super cute flora fae named Azalea who, unsurprisingly, had an adorable little greenhouse and florist shop. She was small, wore bright colors, and had bright pink, super curly space buns. She insisted I come back for dinner and meet her daughter (one of the children I saw playing with the dragon). I also met more than a few humans, 5 elves (three wood, two dwarf), and several fae. Most of them look how one might expect, but the dwarf elves really threw me. They were small, yes, but not quite high fantasy dwarf small. Probably average around 5 foot. But that’s not the craziest part. They have green lizard-like skin. You would think they would have no hair since they seem to be more reptilian, but both had long, bushy beards and one even had dreadlocks, the other being bald with tiny horn-like bumps. I didn’t stare any longer than I’ve stared at anyone else, but man, I’ve never seen anything like it!
It is my understanding that this village started out as a fae commune, but then the Great Terran Civil War happened and…well, it grew. Polaris says that during the war, there was an attack on the commune but the fae easily overcame it. After that, the fae and some witches exaggerated the effects of the attack, made it look like the perpetrators had succeeded and destroyed the village when they put up the magical protections. Apparently, if someone were to approach the area, they would see nothing but snow-covered ruins and hear only the wind howling and the trees rustling.
Shortly after the school bell rang to signal the end of the day, a wood elf woman approached us, whispered in Polaris’ ear, he bowed, and she left. Apparently, this old hermit of a wood elf “requests the dragon’s and my company when he breaks his fast.” He wants me to join him for breakfast. Polaris is super stoic and doesn’t seem to show his reactions like, at all, but I saw a slight hint of surprise garnished with a taste of confusion. He returned to his stoicism in the blink of an eye, but it was there.
As we walked, I asked Polaris about the magickal protections. He explained that there are six elements rather than 4: earth, air, water, fire, life and death, and that each species of mythoskind has dominion over a different element. Witches-Life Vampires-Death (go figure) Elves-Earth Merfolk-Water Fae-Air Sprites-Fire (wtf are sprites?) From what I understand, it took three covens of witches to infuse the barrier with life essence for the physical defense, the entire fae commune, around 50 fae, to manipulate the air around the village to make it imperceptible and to create the illusion of ruins, and a staggering 16 continuous hours of spell-casting. In addition to the invisible barrier, he said, the village has a constant roaming patrol manned by every able-bodied resident over the age of maturity (not every species or race matures at the same numerical age) on a rotation basis. It is the one duty everyone here has. I guess it’s kind of like jury duty. This level of defense I could somewhat verify. I saw at least 10 different people keeping a vigilant eye on the border and I lost count of how many I saw roaming the village keeping an eye on the inside (people like me, I suppose, unknown and unpredictable) and none of them seemed distracted or incapable. I can’t help but to wonder, though, if they’re really trying to keep people out or if they’re trying to keep people in. No one seemed to be unhappy or in distress, but they may not even know if they’re prisoners...
After we’d done a complete tour, Polaris left me at my doorstep so I could prepare for dinner at Azalea’s, reminded me how to find his cabin should I need anything, and went on his way. Only as he turned his back and walked away did I notice the ferret face poking out of his bag. The ferret looked up at me, over to the dragon and tucked back into the bag. Odd thing is, it looked like he was smiling as he disappeared…
Dinner was roast duck with red cabbage and roast potatoes, and it was wonderful! The duck had a delicious berry glaze. I have no idea how she was able to prepare duck of all things, this far north, but I was so distracted, I forgot to ask. I haven’t had something so rich in I don’t even know how long. It wasn’t difficult to see that it wasn’t poisoned or anything. Azalea had no notions of letting (making) the guest eat first like a lot of humans did; she cut servings for both of us, plated the sides, and dug in immediately.
If I thought Azalea was super cute, then Lily, her daughter, is downright precious. Around the age of 8 and so incredibly curious, she couldn’t stop asking me questions about ev-er-y-thing. She asked me about the dragon - how I found her, what s/he’s like, what her/his name is, what s/he can do… And when I couldn’t answer more than a few questions, she went on to asking about the war and my travels since. I told her some stuff but left a lot out, partially because of her age, but also partially out of privacy. Eventually, she tired, Azalea put her to bed, then subsequently and without delay, offered me a drink. Apparently, flora fae have a way to distill rosewater and other flowers essences. It was delicious. And strong. But Azalea said it would help the heavy meal digest better. My walk home is still a bit blurry, and I’ve already taken a shower and eaten (again) some snacks that Azalea insisted I take home with me.
The dragon spent some time with Polaris and I throughout our day but spent most of her time hunting and napping in a penned area normally reserved for equines. They don’t just have horses here, but a few Pegasus and unicorn colts as well. How did we go all these centuries without finding these creatures and proving their existence for sure? How were they mythological at all? And why?
So far, it seems friendly here and from the sounds of it along with my own observations, secure as well. I don’t want to get my hopes up, but this could be a good place to be for an extended stay. For now, I suppose I will get some sleep (sleep off this nasty headache and hope I don’t wake up with a hangover) and see what the hermit elf wants with us.
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