The three of them went into the woods, taking their staffs with them. As they walked, Jaheira had spent some time outlining what, exactly, the danger in disturbing the forest spirits might be. "Dryads, especially, have been known to seduce mortals to join their dances for a few centuries. Usually men, but not always."

"Oh, that doesn't sound so bad," Aerie said. "It'd be wonderful, in fact."

"I'm sure it is, but I don't have that kind of time," Lidia said. She hoped these dryads would be generously inclined. The last thing she wanted was to make Iltha and Imoen wait that long.

They found the clearing, a small, level, carefully hewn ring deep within the woods near Garren's house. As the sun finally rose over the trees, its golden light began to fill the clearing, spilling through the treetops, diffused by those trees already flowering into a fine yellow-green lace.

"This...this light makes your hair look really pretty, Jaheira," Aerie said nervously.

"Don't be a fool, it does nothing of the sort," Jaheira said.

"But-"

"Put your silly romantic notions aside, Aerie. The fey do no harm to those who do not harm them, but it is best to enter their home with open eyes. I will ask Silvanus to send for them."

Aerie seemed to swallow her words once before speaking up. "My god Baervan loves the dryads, too."

"Go ahead," Lidia said. "Invoke him if you think it'll help."

Aerie and Jaheira both started chanting, raising their holy symbols to the rising sun, sometimes discordant and sometimes falling into a strange kind of spoken harmony. As they continued, Lidia had the distinct feeling that something was watching them.

Suddenly, the forest fell eerily silent, the whispers in the woods and the birdcalls of dawn pausing.

Aerie saw something first, and raised a hand in greeting towards one of the dark spaces at the edge of the clearing. She called to it in Elvish: "Aillesel Seldarie, srendaen laranlas!"

A light voice floated into the clearing, musical and ethereal all at once. It seemed to be filled with gentle laughter as it replied: "Etriel, ai onal tath Vandor'sum'quess?"

The three of them could now hear voices calling back and forth in a language that none of them knew, but the voices were merry and light, like leaves dancing in the wind.

From between the trees the shape of a woman emerged, with fine, soft features that seemed to be made from wood. The white flowers and moths spread over and from behind her like a dress and a train, but otherwise she walked fearless and shameless in her own realm, the new leaves of springtime flowing over her body like long hair. Several globes of warm golden light flitted to her and hung in the air.

The woman called out to them again, this time in Common: "Pretty ones? Have you come to join the merriment for all eternity?"

Lidia stepped forward and bowed. "No indeed. Are you Vaelasa, the Queen of this wood?"

The woman gave the three of them a sharp, bright glance. "Yes, that is what I am called. If not to join us, why are you here?"

Lidia uncurled her hand and revealed three small acorns. "I bring these, along with a plea from your dryad sisters."

Vaelasa started to see them, then gave a cry of joy. "Oh, my dears, I've been waiting for you. Ulene, Cania and Elyme must have their trees replanted so that they might be free. Give them to me."

Lidia carefully placed the acorns into Vaelasa's wooden hand. With a word of command from the queen's lips, the acorns rose into the air. Motes of silvery dust formed a cloud of shimmering mist, then disappeared.

When the cloud was gone, three dryads stood in its place. They were long-limbed and graceful, three of a kind with shimmering silver-green leaves for hair and willowy, softly curving bodies seemingly carved from wood. They turned their heads every which way in momentary confusion. It was difficult to tell who was who in the half-light, but Lidia thought that Ulene was the tallest of them, remembering when the Company had last encountered the dryads in Irenicus's lair.

Vaelasa said, "Sisters! We've longed to see you again, loves!"

The three dryads gave cries of joy and their arms curled around each other like branches. Ulene said, her voice high and soft: "My Queen! We have escaped the wizard's clutches. Can our trees be saved? Has Irenicus doomed us?"

Vaelasa smiled. "Nay, little sister. You are not doomed. Come, Llyna!"

A small fairy, whose dragonfly-like wings were barely visible within a globe of light, flitted out from underneath the leaves and hung in the air in front of the Queen.

"Plant our sisters' seeds that they may again taste the wind," Vaelasa said to the fairy. She turned to the dryads. "Follow her, and she shall bring you back to the safety of the forest. Go well, and know that I shall protect you forevermore."

Ulene bowed, her arms spreading towards the ground in supplication. "Thank you, my Queen."

She rose and took her sisters' hands, and the three dryads ran after the fairy, bursting into a song that carried on the air long after they had faded into the forest.

Vaelasa watched them leave, then turned to the three members of Gorion's Company. "Thank you, mortals. The forest welcomes you. There has been an evil near here, and I pray for your safety as you travel."

"Lady Vaelasa, that evil has touched us as well." Lidia asked. "Do you know where it lies?"

"Disturb it not!" The queen seemed to grow tall and dark, her wildness overshadowing the clearing. As her voice roared beyond the ring of trees, it turned into indistinguishable rumbles, like that of thunder. "Fail to heed this word, and the great red dragon descends, frightens all good creatures, burns our trees with breath like death. Disturb it not!"

Aerie nervously muttered something, and Jaheira's knuckles whitened on her staff, but Lidia stood her ground.

"Lord Jierdan has taken the girl who lives in the cabin," she said. "I will rescue her, with or without your help."

In a twinkling, the queen seemed to shrink, until she was nothing more than a woman made of wood. "Little Iltha, bound where she can no longer dance," she said, her voice sad and soft. "You will not wake the dragon, then? Your blow will not rouse him from his sleep?"

"I swear to you, we will save her and nothing more. Any word or sign of your help will not reach Lord Jierdan from us," Lidia said. "Only show us the way."

"Very well, mortals," Vaelasa said, with a note of resignation. "Your hearts love this forest and you judge aright: our eyes are unseen, and they watch all. If you are determined to do this, then we will show you a way, a secret way to Lord Jierdan's stronghold. He has taken Iltha there. Go now to the northeast. Llyna will seek you out."

In a moment, Vaelasa faded into the woods, leaving behind the scent of spring flowers.

Lidia and Jaheira turned to go, and Aerie followed them, her eyes wandering everywhere. She walked a little more slowly as they left the clearing.

"Stay close to us," Jaheira said to her. "Whether we have the forest's welcome or not, it would not do to get lost."

"We're dealing with a d-dragon?" Aerie asked. "I-I don't like the sound of that."

Lidia said, "So Lord Jierdan has a pet. We'll find a way around that. It doesn't change what we need to do."

"It is odd for a dragon to be serving any mortal," Jaheira said, then turned to Lidia. "You seem as though you might have an idea."

She was correct, but Lidia didn't want to alarm Aerie further. "Nothing that concerns our task," Lidia said. "Hopefully. "

They continued making their way to Garren's homestead in silence for a few minutes, until Aerie nervously spoke up. "Those dryads. Did that Irenicus…imprison them? Why?"

"How much do you know of men, Aerie?" Jaheira asked. She didn't wait for an answer. "He used them. He has no emotion himself, so he sought it in their bodies. The dryads were his prisoners and his concubines."

Aerie's eyes widened. "That's awful!" She glanced at Lidia and Jaheira. "Is that why both of you were there, too?"

As soon as the words were out, Aerie realized what she'd asked. Her pale face immediately started turning red underneath her sunburns. "I'm - I'm sorry if I'm p-prying and I shouldn't have said - "

Lidia was the first to answer. "It's all right. He spared me that, as far as I know." Pausing momentarily, she pushed back her thick, padded sleeve to reveal the long scar on her right arm. "He was only interested in carving me up."

Jaheira was stone-faced, but she said, "I was imprisoned and drugged, nothing more. Though I wonder…" She shook her head. "I tire of this conversation. Let us not speak of this again."

Aerie nodded and followed with light, quick, steps as Jaheira abruptly started walking faster.

Lidia followed close behind, her mind half-floating to what was behind. Every now and again, she thought she heard the dryads singing. A memory came to her, unbidden and bringing a fresh burst of anger.

Inside his lab, Irenicus had somehow cultivated a well-tended grove of trees. Lidia, Minsc, Imoen and Jaheira had found the place by accident, thinking for a moment that they had found the way out, that they were free. At least, until Jaheira pointed out that the dome above them held no sun.

There they had met the dryads, held to the ground with thick green roots. A much more beautiful prison than the one Lidia had endured, but a prison all the same. They explained who they were, what Irenicus was doing to them, and why there was that beautiful elvish guest room just down the way.

And then Ulene had gently asked Imoen: "He has touched you as we, hasn't he?"

Imoen's state of mind had been fragile at best, so Lidia dared not ask what Ulene meant. She suspected the worst.

In that moment and every time she recalled that exchange afterwards, Lidia wanted to end Irenicus's life or die trying. She always tried to let such thoughts flow and pass and ebb, and not indulge in them; besides, she doubted whether exacting just punishment from Irenicus would ever be possible for her.

Compared to those thoughts, freeing the dryads felt like cold consolation. Still, in the persistent brightness of dawn, her bitterness soon subsided. Nothing could undo the wrongs those creatures had suffered, but at least those wrongs could no longer be done.

And now, with their help, perhaps one more wrong could be set right.