"Please tell me your kidding," Idony groaned.
"You know I wouldn't joke about something this important!" Puck yelled "hurry up! We've gotta hide you or... or something." With that Puck raced off into the thicket to await Idony's return. Her heart sank, why now? Ten years he hadn't bothered her and now he was coming to slay her? Perhaps not slay, a better guess would be to turn her into a goblin. Idony shuddered at the thought. Being turned into a goblin was that last thing she wanted, she preferred to be slain.
Idony quickly got out of the water and threw on her robe, she didn't even bother with drying off. Normally, in this situation Idony had always thought she'd be ready, but she defiantly wasn't. She was panicked and curious, worried and unsure all at the same time. Why did he come now? She kept asking herself that over and over, why now? She leapt into the thicket where Puck and several others had gathered. None of them said anything for a long time and Idony sat down next to Puck, giving him an encouraged smile.
"Tell us again," Trow said quietly "how you got here."
"Again?" Idony asked "I'm sure I've told you enough times so that you could tell it better than I."
"But we like it when you tell us Idony," Urisk said kindly.
"And besides," Puck added "this may be the last time we hear it." The rest of the group gave Puck a hard stair and he sunk down besides Idony. "You know," he said trying to recover himself "since she's so tired of telling us it all the time." Idony smiled, all of her good friends where there.
Urisk was an elf, though he was friendly he didn't have any friends because of his grotesque appearance. He loved the water and was fascinated by humans. Trow was a type of troll but he was very kind and shy. His dancing was amazing, which was too bad since he was too shy to dance while people watched. And Vitore was mostly in her snake form but in a few rare occasions she'd come out as her most interesting Fae form.
"Alright," Idony said "one last time." Everyone got into a comfortable position and Idony smiled to herself, if this was her last day, it was going to be one interesting one. "When I was merely six years of age," she started "my mother wished me away, for reasons still unknown to me. I was whisked away to the castle beyond the Goblin City in the center of the Labyrinth." The thicket hushed, for even the birds were listening. "His Majesty, the king was going to turn me into a goblin, like all other children wished away. But he hadn't the time, for my mother was attempting the Labyrinth."
"Were you afraid?" Trow asked, almost of cue.
"Well of course she wasn't," Puck said "Idony's never afraid. She's the protector of the Eastern Corner. She's fearless. Aren't ya Idony?" Puck looked up at her with complete faith in all of her abilities. He'd seen her fight, he knew she could beat this old Goblin King.
"Not at the age of six I wasn't," she said, amused at the thought "the king hid me away in a room, full of stairs going up and sideways and every which way. But somehow, I found my way out and ran out of the castle into the Labyrinth." Idony's voice hushed as she got to the best part. "I escaped into the Labyrinth and didn't stop for at least an hour when I ran into the most monstrous beast ever known. Nuckelavee stood before me, a small human child."
"What does it look like again?" Puck asked.
"He looks like a horse whose legs are part fin; he has a gigantic snout-like mouth, and a single eye which is a flaming red. His arms reach to the ground, his body is distorted and his huge head sways on a small neck, as if it is to weak to hold the head. The most grisly thing about his appearance is the fact that he has no skin. Black blood courses through his yellow veins and the pale ligaments and powerful muscles are clear to see." Idony paused a moment, trying not to remember the ghastly sight "And so I ran," she said not even knowing that she was still in the thicket. She could see it all so very well, the beast inclosing behind her, the Eastern Corner's river in front and her hoping to the gods that he couldn't swim. The only thing that brought her back was the birds flying away, squawking for their lives.
Idony looked up and listened to their warning. Beware, they said the King approaches.