Morning light fell upon the trees in a gentle hush. It trickled between the leaves, and dripped—golden—downward to illuminate the brown and yellow fabric, and the rise and fall of sleeping breaths. Light swelled, and grew, and the sky grew blue in contrast to it. Beneath, the young man stirred, and yawned, and stretched.

"Good morning," he laughed. The sky was azure. He smiled up into it, and then leaned back and crossed his arms behind his head. Mushi slowly surfaced beside him, blinking sleepily and heaving a much smaller little yawn. He grinned at her dishevelment. She gave him a stink-eye. He winked. She stuck her tongue out. He grinned more and reached out to give her his hand, that she might wrap her tail about the fingers. "I told you it was crazy, but what did you say? 'Do it!' 'Do it!'"

She made faces and did little air quotes in the air with her fins in mockery of him, and he laughed and gathered her close to cuddle and to pet her. "You are a terrible influence on me, Miss Mushi. It's my favorite part of you." She tried to do her best maniacally evil impression; but it failed horribly, and instead she just ended up rolling about in his arms blowing bubbles and giggling.

He checked on his shoulder wound and found nothing amiss. Content, he leaned back into the tree. Perhaps a few more hours of nap were in order. Mushi gave another yawn of agreement.

"HOMEN NADEZDHA ODESSEIRON!" A voice roared through Orchards. "When I find thee-!"

Homen leaped to his feet so quickly he almost fell clear out of the tree. Mushi eeped. He staggered to grab hold of a branch, and quickly climbed and swung and strategically dropped his way down from the canopy. Sheilaktar's oaths and threats grew louder and louder as he passed briefly through fey-wild vines spread across gigantic blue logs, and then arrived several miles to the east and just above ground-level.

"-I am going to tear thee a new-!"

"I'm right here, Senneta!" Homen announced from behind, and Sheilaktar spun about to find him sitting down on a branch at head-level. He waved and grinned. Grinned! Twenty-two years old now, and not so young; Homen yet grinned like the very definition of a boyish knave. He'd truly come into his own through the forest, and the changes it had worked on him were manifold. She narrowed her eyes.

"Where have you been?" she demanded in a low growl. "My birds spoke of an injury! We have an appointment this very evening, an appointment thou hast known about for weeks in advance, and thou have been running amok in the trees with no vocal alteration, no transmutation, no makeup; no defense of thy true nature whatsoever other than a flimsy dress-!"

"And a corset and petticoats," he reminded her, and did not point out at all that she'd been using his full name in calling for him.

"And a corset and petticoats!" she roared, stomping forward. "Thou will show me that shoulder at once!"

"It's fine, I'm fine," he told her, but dutifully slipped down from the branch and presented himself for inspection. She pulled aside the bandages and sniffed at the injury, as he again tried to assure her that he was fine. His corset had done the work of a hauberk, protecting him from what otherwise might have turned out to be quite the life-threatening stab-wound.

"A sword! Where and in what manner were thou confronted by iron in this forest!?"

"Oh I can't say that," he protested. "Mushi and I were engaged in the sacred and noble art of ironic pranking and it would be breaking a sacred pixie covenant to 'tell!'"

"Sacred pixie-!" She grabbed him fiercely by the arms and shook him. "This is no time, and I am violently cross with thee." She hugged him. "Just as I was violently worried for thee, fool boy. But again, this is no time." She released and glared at him again. "You must be readied immediately!"

"What? What is the rush?" Mushi mimicked his confusion.

"Yhelbruna is coming. Here. And she has moved the appointment up to a 'luncheon with tea!'"

Homen's and Mushi's eyes went round, and the latter froze in horror. "I need my paints! My amulet! I need to do my hair!"

"I need breakfast!" his Hathran witch snarled. "We are to get back at once and to obtain all of these things, before I kill someone, and if that old bitch imposes on me ever again-!"

"You need breakfast!" Homen agreed, and then grabbed her by the arm and towed her briskly off back towards the cottage.