Ripples in a Pond- Forgotten Realms Cross over
Continuation of Once More to Faerun
Fae has many more people than just Drizzt to meet.
The Girl in the Mountains
There was another girl here. Cattie-brie could see her, peering down from a tree with brilliant blue eyes, more intense and unfathomable as the clear spring sky overhead. The tiny green buds of new growth haloed her pale green locks, falling around her face as the two youths stared at one another.
"Are ye out here by yourself?"
She blurted out the question, too surprised and pleased that there was another youngster in the area.
"I'm with my friend, but he's busy right now."
There was a rustle and the girl dropped from the tree with easy feline grace, head cocked and observing Cattie-brie with a hint of a smile. She seemed to be near her age. Mayhaps a few years her elder. And her clothes, while they looked warm and practical, were unlike anything she had ever seen. A smooth coat without it being leather in a deep blue. Clothes that were more tightly woven than what their craftsman could make or trade for, trousers and a pale, cable knit scarf wound around her neck. Gloves rather than mittens and boots instead of shoes.
"Me daddy says it isn't safe for a little girl in the mountains."
"He's right. It isn't always." She grinned like a sunbeam breaking through clouds. "But I've never heard of a safe adventure."
Cattie-brie's face pulled wide in an answering smile. She closed the distance between them, extending her hand.
"I'm Cattie-brie!"
The girl, standing eye to eye with her, shook her hand firmly. The feeling of warm flesh and blood assured her deep gut feeling: This was no threat to her. This stranger was no stranger, but in fact, a newly made friend.
"I'm Faerun, but you can call me Fae."
-vVv-
Cattie-brie had a grand time sliding through the snow with her new friend and getting to know her. Fae showed her how to slide down the hillside on the old broadbeam leaves, as long as her leg and wide enough for her to stand on. They both picked the valley where they would play and surveyed it carefully to be sure there would be no spring time avalanches. Fae said confidently that there wouldn't be. She and her friend had worked to trigger a few smaller slides before the snow became so heavy as to cause devastating damage.
When Cattie-brie eventually began to feel the chill in the air, Fae built a snow cave faster than she thought possible and bundled her inside with a candle to warm the small enclosed space.
"Did your friend teach you this?"
"One of my brothers, Gray, is practically made of ice and snow. He taught me everything I need to know about being safe in the cold."
Fae pulled out a waterskin and took a quick sip before handing it to Cattie-brie, who took it gratefully. It was a mild tasting tea, and it was miraculously warm!
"How is it not cold?"
Her cheeks were stinging with the chill, and how hard she had been grinning and laughing and the warm tea sent pleasant warmth running through her entire body. Fae's bright eyes glittered with mischief.
"A little bit of magic."
"You can do magic?"
She knew about magic of course. Everyone with some sense did. But wizards and their ilk didn't come to Icewind Dale.
"Yep! I'm a wizard, Catti-brie."
"Don't joke with me! Ye've got to study fer years to be a wizard."
"I have been. I've been studying for 6 years now."
She didn't seem like she was lying or boasting. Catti-brie folded her arms and considered her new friend...then decided.
"Can you do something to prove it?"
Fae didn't seem offended at the question. She cupped her hands in front of her and murmured a few words under her breath. Dancing blue flames filled her cupped hands, and did not burn.
"This is Bluebell Fire. It'll warm you up, but it won't burn you, your clothes or anything."
Fascinated, Catti-brie scooted forward and held her hands near the fire her friend held. And sure enough, there was warmth but no matter how close she brought her fingers, there was never any sting or burn.
"Can I hold it?"
"It'll go out if it can't use my energy to stay lit. But- Create a glass jar-." Fae's other hand whipped out as the object she had just commanded into existence dropped into her waiting palm. Catti-brie's smile faltered in awe as she watched Fae tip the warm blue flames into the jar, literally pouring the magical fire into it like water. "-this will do for now."
She then handed the jar to Cattie-brie who took it with excitement and care. The warmth of the flame spread throughout her whole body. She lifted it, glancing between the wonder she held in her palms and the girl who had gifted it to her.
"They match your eyes."
She observed, comparing the radiant blue fire to her gaze. The blend of the orange candle flames and the blue spellfire made a curious setting blended with the daylight that made it through the low tunnel Fae had constructed to trap most of the warmth inside with them. But this place was safe, and also magical.
"I guess they do."
Fae's head tilted suddenly as though she were listening to something very intently. Cattie-brie strained her ears, but couldn't detect anything unusual.
"My friend is going to be looking for me soon. Your dad probably will be too."
He would be incensed that she had left the safety of the tunnels for a quick taste of freedom. But Cattie-brie was certain she could persuade him that no harm was done.
"Will ye be here again tomorrow?"
She didn't have much company near her age in the tunnels. The dwarf children were friendly, but didn't understand her love of the outside, or her being bored with stone and steel day in and day out. Her conspirator's face cracked with a mischievous smile.
"Planning on sneaking out again?"
"M' jus' taking a walk with a friend.".
"Without telling anyone."
"They'd just say no and keep me inside."
"And it does tend to work better to ask forgiveness instead of permission."
The young wizard girl nodded sagely with a very serene, serious look on her face. Their eyes met for a moment before both burst into giggles, Catti-brie still holding the jar of blue fire close to her chest.
"I don't think I'll be here tomorrow. But I will be again in about...three days."
Well that resolved Cattie-brie to just make her way outside yet again. A few days would be long enough to settle her minders' concerns and then slip out again.
"Then let's play again then!"
-vVv-
Catti-brie learned several more things about Fae.
She was currently about 13 years old, making her 3 years Cattie-brie's senior. Her friend was often viewed as frightening to others, so she came out and kept him company because others did not have good reactions to him.
She had spent several hours trying to guess what it was about him that made the friend Fae spoke of so highly so mistrusted by others. This devolved into the girls making faces, and eventually slinging melting snow at each other. Fae would dry her off with some simple magic and send her home with a jar of blue spellfire to keep her warm in the spring chill. The glass and the fire would melt away once she reached the entrance to her home.
It was on the third visit to see Fae that Catti-brie caught sight of someone carefully following her at a distance. They hung back, difficult to see. And she sensed no danger still.
She asked Fae about the presence.
"My friend makes sure you get home safely. He's still working up to letting you see him."
Well that was unacceptable.
"If he can babysit me to my own door, then he can tell me face to face he thinks I'm a baby."
It was meant to be a bold, firm declaration. Fae's didn't show amusement but a bit of confusion.
"Catty-bird, you're ten."
Face flushing at the nickname, Cattie-brie demonstrated her maturity by throwing a handful of snow at her friend. This escalated into an impromptu snow ball fight that left both children breathless with laughter and any bad tempers or disagreements forgotten.
-vVv-
The wizard had senses that were sharp and alert. Ready for trouble. In the weeks that they had been friends, Catti-brie had seen Fae expertly choose a path down a trail with sure footing. Detect wild animals, or loose stones on a path. Or when what seemed to be a small snowbank was actually a massive drift that Fae needed to dig her out of.
So when she told her that her friend was nearby and would be amiable to introduce himself, she believed her though she saw or heard nothing. And she was confident that it was safe. Fae would have had plenty of opportunity to do her harm before now.
She was not sure what she had been expecting.
But an elf with skin black as ebony, and shaggy long white hair and eyes as striking a purple as Fae's were blue, was nowhere on the list. But his surprising appearance aside, Catti-brie noticed...he seemed ready to disappear. To vanish right into the snow and never be seen again.
Because of her. Because if she showed discomfort or fear, he would leave. Right away and without question.
"Drizzt, this is Cattie-brie. Daughter of Berunor Battlehammer. Cattie-brie, this is my friend, Drizzt Do'Urden."
Fae sidled closer to her friend, nudging his side with her elbow and smiling at him warmly. Lavender eyes left her to regard the young wizard and then-
He looks different when he smiles.
The strangeness faded to nothing. He was no longer a dark elf, but just someone happy to be with a friend. She might have been frightened initially. But now?
"Pleased to meet ya, Drizzt Do'Urden." She shot Fae a grin. "I've heard so much about ya."
"Only the best parts." She rejoined, beaming in answer. The ruggedly clad dark elf gave the young wizard a sidelong stare.
"You give me too much credit."
Her retort was swift and merciless.
"Take it and smile, you brooding McBroodface."
And he did. And Cattie-brie couldn't help but laugh. Delighted at this other new friend that the spring that had brought her.
-vVv-
The man was big and his entire presence was...ugly. And even his name was off-putting. Roddy McGristle, the toughest, gamiest and most unpleasant part of any meat. She had felt her stomach turn when he had come to the mines and spoken to her father, seeking information and allies in hunting down a dark elf he had tracked into Icewind Dale.
She flinched at his brutal mangling of a name she knew. 'Drizzit'. Cattie-brie, lingered in the tunnel entryway as her father marched out to deal with the unsavory man. A killer of children and an innocent farming family. The elf had scarred his face, and killed one of his hounds. She couldn't help but notice that he took more offense at his pride being wounded than the deaths he laid at his feet. He darkened the very air around him with his vitriol and anger.
The same person she had seen firmly assist Fae and herself in clambering up tricky slopes with infinite care. Who would always walk on the outer side of the trail to let her and Fae have the more secure footing. He never hurt anybody who didn't deserve it. She was a smart child and she knew her adoptive father well. Even if she told him now that she knew the person the hunter was here looking for, and believed him to have no ill intentions...
What about Fae?
They were clearly very close. Friends certainly, but perhaps as near as family. Her father acted gruff, but she knew he was a soft touch for children. Maybe Fae being left alone would soften Berunor towards Drizzt?
No, more likely, Berunor would try to mistakenly rescue Fae from her companion. Cattie-brie would have no objections to gaining a sister like her, but not at Drizzt's expense. Not when she knew his smile was only there and alive because Fae had dedicated herself to its preservation.
She had to warn them.
-vVv-
Her friends had taught her a lot about moving through the forest and the snow without leaving a trail. And Cattie-brie took all the pains that she could to ensure she arrived at their usual meeting spot without leaving anything that could be followed.
"Cattie-brie, you're several days early. Are you alright?"
The handsome dark elf shifted his hood back to examine her with a curious and worried frown. She wanted to give a sigh of relief. She'd found him before the hunter had.
"There's a man who came to the mines, he's out fer yer blood, Drizzt. Me daddy sent him on his way, but he's made a lot of the other clansmen nervous. If he comes back again, he could rile them into trying to hurt you."
She didn't go into any of the other accusations that had spilled from the man. Lavender eyes narrowed slightly as the ranger cocked his head in thought.
"A human hunter. By any chance, does he go by Roddy McGristle?"
A pang of fear whipped through Cattie-brie but she steeled her spine and looked the drow dead in the eye. She owed him honesty and the chance to explain what he had done. Or even to deny that he had done so.
"Why's he hate ye so much?"
"Shortly after I came to the surface, the first people I saw were some human children. My face frightened them, and I didn't know how to speak Common to convey that I meant no harm, so it was not a good first impression on either side. They told their parents, and their parents told their community that a drow had been sighted. Shortly thereafter, a barghest killed everyone in their household. Their village assumed it was my doing, and placed a bounty on me. Roddy came to collect on the bounty and failed to kill or capture me."
That fit much more closely with what Cattie-brie knew of the situation. And of the dark elf's character. And Fae's for that matter, she would not have so readily given her companionship to the pitiless murderer that McGristle described. She relaxed with a sigh.
"That makes sense. But ye still gotta be careful. You an' Fae."
The ranger's smile curved one side of his mouth as he chuckled.
"Oh I'm inclined to pity anyone who crossed that child. Meddle not in the affairs of wizards, after all."
The rest of the brief visit was spent speaking of happier things. Drizzt detected what was wrong before Cattie-brie did, his posture shifting and his hands going to his weapons.
"Cattie-brie, get behind me."
She knew that tone from her daddy. When he used that voice, it meant she moved quickly and didn't ask questions. The growl that came from a large, scarred hunting hound only made her move more quickly to safety, Drizzt placing himself between Roddy McGristle and her. Though she had taken good precautions, Roddy was an experienced hunter, as was his dog. Tracking Drizzt was nigh impossible, but a 10 year old girl was much more possible.
-vVv-
She had known Drizzt would come away the winner. Cattie-brie had never doubted that. Witnessing him fight, twin swords dancing in harmony around McGristle's heavy axe, was a sight she found more lovely than anything else. Dwarves fought with directness and discipline. She saw Drizzt use his two blades to parry and strike, all while he moved lightly over the snow covered ground. The melt was coming to the valley's first, the mountains were still well and truly frozen. Her poor hands were testament to that.
Her friend beat the man in his duel and sent him on his way. And she had apologized many times for leading trouble directly to Drizzt's camp. He would have to move to another location now. He waved off her apologies and told her that he didn't hold it against her. He took up his usual watchful position as he escorted her back home. Close enough to intervene shortly, but not so close that he would be seen by the hall's patrols.
Unfortunately, that meant that Cattie-brie was more or less alone when Roddy McGristle opted to snatch her and haul her along as a hostage, determined to get his revenge on Drizzt. The band of wizarding script that lined the cuff of her coat glowed and puffed, a small warning that Fae had placed as a failsafe. 'For protection' she had said. She squirmed and fought his grip, only quieting after he struck her across the face. A soft voice in the back of her mind that sounded a lot like Fae cautioned her to be more careful. To watch and wait for her chance.
McGristle hauled her to a precipice, gripping the back of her coat and forcing her to stand on the very edge with his hunting knife.
"Dark elf! 'Less you want another little girl's blood on your hands, come out and face me you coward!"
"He's not the one with a knife to me back, ye orc-faced bully!"
She snapped back at him, trying to gauge the distance of the fall. She knew how to take a tumble, but there were some rocks down below that made her landing zone look mighty uncomfortable.
"Quiet, girl. This is between men."
"It's between an elf and a dim-witted pig who can't admit he made a mistake and was wrong."
Her daddy always said her mouth would get her trouble and McGristle's jaw clenched, the knife pressed more firmly into her back.
"Get out here, elf, before this brat kills herself."
Come on Drizzt, use yer bow. Use yer cat, just don't come out-
"Step away from the girl, McGristle."
His tone sent chills down Cattie-brie's spine. Drizzt had always spoken quietly, soft spoken and gentle even in his teasing. Like he could fold down into the shadows and simply disappear. Now his voice sounded like the menacing rasp of his swords being drawn from the sheath. It sounded as cold and deadly as one of the massive icicles that hung from the pine trees, glittering sharp and deadly. She had seen them knocking the frozen spears down so they wouldn't fall and make a bloody mess of anything unfortunate enough to be caught below it.
For once, Cattie-brie heard Drizzt and believed that he could be a killer. This realization distracted her from any more of their talk, the tension growing. She could see a scraggly bush not too far from where McGristle had her perched on the edge of a long fall. She could grab that and haul herself out of the way. He would expect her to try and twist this way or that, not move towards the ledge. But before she could formulate that kind of plan, there was a hard shove at her back.
-vVv-
Even before her red hair vanished below the edge of the cliff, Drizzt's hand moved under his shirt and something gold glinted in his hand. The item slashed out and the command phrase spilled from his lips in a hurry.
"Open Gate of the Storyteller!"
-vVv-
Her body hadn't fully realized it was falling before a pair of warm arms caught her around the middle.
"I gotcha, Catty-bird. Don't you worry."
"Fae!"
Her voice felt weak with relief, those rocks looked a lot closer to her from here. Craning her head, Cattie-brie could see magnificent wings extending from her friends back and a glitter of familiar power in her eyes.
"You're alright now." She said, eyes fixed on Roddy with a steely, smoldering anger. "But he won't be."
The promise made an unseasonable chill run down her arms. Cattie-brie felt that the old hunter had made a grievous error. He had angered a wizard. Fae floated up back to the ledge and set Cattie-brie down. She saw her father had arrived at the scene, axe upraised. He took in the sight of her being alive and well and turned the blade of his axe to crack against the human hunter's leg. It cracked and bent in a way no human leg was supposed to. Mcgristle bit his tongue to keep from shouting, but the stream of vile curses that slipped out as he brought up his own axe.
"Ye come into my mountains, barge into my halls spilling all manner of filth about things ye know nothing about. Ye raise a hand to my daughter-!"
Berunor Battlehammer lunged forward with an abrupt headbutt, his helm cracking against the taller figure's nose and making him buckle all over again with a cry of pain. His voice was a rumble of warning.
"Cattie-brie, get yerself back home. Elf, take her- take them away."
He amended his instructions, eyeing Fae sidelong but otherwise not remarking on her sudden appearance or the fact that she was still carrying his daughter as though she were nothing more than a large doll.
"Eyes away, Catty-bird." Fae murmured in her ear, turning in the air to place her body between the ongoing violence and her passenger. But her own gaze remained cool and calculating. "Lets let your daddy take care of this and assure our friend that you did not in fact die by associating with him."
The dwarf's daughter knew that look. That was the look of someone who was plotting revenge.
"What will ye do to him?"
Because there was no way Fae wouldn't take her own vengeance. The young wizard hummed, tapping her cheek with a finger.
"I've got a word that will make doubly sure that whatever else your dad does to him, he will never willingly set foot in the mountains again."
"Jus' one?"
"Mmhm, the word is 'acrophobia.'"
She seemed incredibly pleased, though Cattie-brie had to make note of the word so she could search for it later in some books. Or ask her what it meant later. And she did. After a few days had passed and she heard her father grumbling about foolish elves in the mountains and that girls needed proper clothing to stay warm. He purchased more clothes for the spring chill, of a size that would probably not fit any dwarf, packed them and gave them to Cattie-brie.
"Give 'em to the elf. They're here to stay and no little girl's or elves are freezing in the mountains on my watch."
She was beaming all the way as she raced to meet and play with Fae and roam the slush covered trails with her and Drizzt. Bruenor had absolutely accepted them and she could now go and play with her friends as often as she liked.
A/N Fae laid down one of her only curses on Mcgristle to give him a crippling fear of heights, complete with vertigo so he can never hase a bounty higher than 2 stories again.
A Heart of Stone Still Feels
"If you're gonna be following the elf around, you'll do it when I'm satisfied that you can protect yerself."
Bruenor Battlehammer eyed the strange girl. She was a tiny thing, with bright blue eyes and unnaturally colored blue-green hair. But her young eyes betrayed neither fear nor bravado masking fear. She just smiled and nodded her understanding.
"I wouldn't expect anything else."
His Cattie-brie was also in the training hall, watching with sharp eyes and a big smile. He nodded firmly, taking up his axe.
"Ye know how to fight?"
"My sister had a sword in my hand as soon as she found one small enough for me."
She affirmed with a merry smile, bouncing lightly on her feet. She had a pair of tiny dagger-like shapes hanging from her earlobes. Well loved pieces of jewelry to his eye, they were polished and painstakingly maintained
"Did she teach ye how to spar?"
"My brother did that more. But for weapons, it was all Erza's doing."
She gestured and her always present book floated before her, she laid a hand on the page open to her. The sword that she drew from the pages as if she were pulling it from a sheath made Cattie-brie gasp in awe. Bruenor was more noting the way the hilt settled readily into Fae's hand. A secure grip, a comfortable weight. She was used to handling it, so her claim hadn't been bravado.
"Just a sword? No shield?"
"I sometimes add a second sword, but it's usually more helpful for me to have a hand free for spellcasting."
The blade rested in her left hand and her right made a small gesture, generating a circular shield of amber light which shifted into a supple cord with little more than a gesture, or three bolts of energy hovering over her palm.
"Show me what ye can do, girl."
-vVv-
She fought light and fast. He spotted some gestures that were the elf's in there, Drizzt himself was observing from a comfortably shadowy corner. The winds had been especially bitter this winter and Bruenor hadn't wanted to see his daughter risking herself traipsing through the mountains to visit the pair. So he extended the invitation to wait out the worst of the weather in their halls. They had settled in easily, caused no trouble and his daughter had never been happier than she was now with her strange playmate and stranger guardian. His people had been mistrustful at first, but Cattie-brie and Fae working together? Dwarves were plenty stubborn but they had never stood a chance against them.
The dark elf's eyes were on his charge, sitting forward, alert and watchful but unconcerned.
She wasn't using an exact copy of his fighting style though. She'd trained with him before, most certainly. But he was in no way her only teacher.
Fae seemed more inclined to retreating and choosing her position. She dodged as many attacks as she deflected. And her counters were swift and precise. She matched his pace easily. He took a steady, methodical advance, gradually upping the strength of his blows. Forcing her to get more creative about evading him. She bounced off of walls, benches, tables and tumbled easily around the floor, only advancing within reach of his axe when she was confident in her opening. She even managed to vault over his head, in such a way that he knew she could have taken a sizable piece of his head even with his helmet.
Bruenor was pleased. But he needed a better estimate on how she worked against a quick adversary.
"Take a breather." He ordered, slotting his axe back into his belt. "Want to see how you defend. Elf! Get your skinny backside over here."
-vVv-
Drizzt and Fae's movements were cut from the same stone. Swift, precise and practiced. Drizzt obviously had the greater strength and experience, but Fae had a way of positioning herself so her evasions flowed into a smooth dance as easily as the elf used his blades.
"You're cheating again, Fae."
Drizzt said with a laugh, looking a touch more lively now. She beamed at him, sliding between his cuts to let fly with a kick to his middle that connected with a respectable impact.
"You expected otherwise?"
The dark elf laughed then, eyes burning with new energy as he advanced on the attack.
"Good girl. Now stop playing. Our host asked for you to show him what you can do and you haven't used a single active spell."
Fae flexed her hand, and a slender stick slid out of her sleeve into her waiting hand.
"Glisso!"
Instantly, the floor became slick and dangerous as a sheet of ice. His people shuffled back, alarmed and intrigued all at once. Fae hopped, clicking her heels together which somehow produced slender blades on her boots that hissed over the smooth floor with a faint, fine rasp, leaving a faint trail of frost in her wake.
Drizzt was enormously hindered by this as Fae could now circle him and evade him at considerable speed while he had to devote time to keeping his balance. And now, Fae launched bright red bolts of light at him from the wand she held that impacted the stone wall with a sharp thwack as he managed to evade them.
"Defense, girl."
Bruenor barked at her. Fae slide around the now icy floor, glancing at him with a manic twinkle in her eyes.
"Defense means stopping the other person from harming you. And stunning him so he can't move counts."
And then she jumped right back into the fight, alternating between close slashes, deflecting Drizzt's swords with a magical cast barrier and countering with a cut of her own. Or sliding out wide, even performing a few leaps and sharp turns on her ice skates that kept her out of harms way.
Oh, this girl is gonna be a mountain of trouble or I'm a bearded gnome.
But she was also the girl that made his Cattie-brie laugh and be happy. There were not many children her age in their halls, and those that were never meshed with her. A dwarf that was ten years old would be more akin to a human toddler. And those dwarves that were as mature as she was had already begun work at their trades and didn't have time for her. This wizard girl and this drow elf did though.
He had already decided that they were going to be his friends. But now he was confident that they could be comrades in battle as well. Over dinner than night, Fae dropped a map on his table. Hand drawn, but well made, detailed the routes that a crew of orcs, led by some giants, would be taking as they headed for the Ten Towns and the summer pillaging, as well as a small doodle of a pair of crossed swords and a feather stationed at one of them.
"They're gonna post up there, are they?"
Bruenor harrumphed and tucked the map into his belt,
Be a good chance to see that crazy elf in a proper battle.
He would rebel at the thought of any child in battle, but Fae was not his responsibility, she was Drizzt's. He could assess properly if he should say something once saw them fight. Not like he had known everything there was to know about caring for a human girl with high energy and a razor sharp sense of mischief. From the sound of it, Drizzt and Fae had only met and become friends this past autumn.
A/N
Bruenor is gearing up to give Drizzt dad-advice about when it is appropriate to take your daughter on family hunting trips for orcs.
The Young Elk
"What sorcery is this?!"
The tall young man bluster, recoiling from an apparently youngster's sudden appearance. There were no footprints on the ground to indicate where she had come from and he would swear the space had been empty just previously.
"Hello Wulfgar. I'm going to be teaching you how to not fold like a collapsed tent whenever something with magical presence does cross your path."
She gave a polite bow, standing with cheeks made rosy by the cold and looking up at him with guileless blue eyes not dissimilar from his own. The clear, open space of the sky of Icewind Dale. What had startled him was the errant waves of green that were plaited back away from her face, but still bright and distinctive.
"This my pupil, is one of my dearest companions, Celeste Faerun." Drizzt's voice was warm as he laid a hand on Faerun's shoulder. "She is a wizard of considerable talent. And she has agreed to assist me in mentoring you."
Wulfgar didn't need to straighten to be taller than her, but something in her gaze, alien but undeniably friendly, made him do so anyway. Drizzt had proved to be a capable warrior and excellent teacher. He had met his cat, Guenhwyvahr, a noble spirit in beast form. But this was still undeniably uncomfortable. Would this be like talking with Catti-brie? He hoped not...
But he had given his word to Berunor to heed Drizzt's teachings. And if he brought in a wizard then he would honor his agreement. He bowed respectfully, mentally assigning her a similar role to a shaman. She had eschewed any totem name, but bore the name of the land itself. Whether it was boasting, coincidence or deserved, he intended to bide his time and see.
"I will learn as best as I am able, Celeste."
"Call me Fae." She chirped lightly. "I think the most critical thing for you to learn is how to disbelieve false images or illusions. You're plenty stubborn enough that I'm confident that attempted mind control will not be as effective on you. Let's get started."
They were already standing on their usual sparring area, and Wulfgar barely avoided flinching when she lifted her hand. Even the smallest gestures could be deadly when magic was involved.
"This is a minor illusion."
Fae opened her hand with a small flourish and the rough facsimile of a sword appeared within it. She swung it around and Wulfgar's ears, trained by years of growing around dwarven steel, could tell that it was not quite right. She sprang forward, the narrow blade coming out towards him in a graceful lunge. He flinched, and almost lifted his hammer to parry the blow, but something told him he did not need to worry. He held his ground and felt nothing but air as her lunge continued uninterrupted, the blade of the sword blurring and falling apart where it met his shoulder.
"You could tell it wasn't real."
"It made no sound in the air. As though it had no weight."
She nodded approvingly.
"Very good. This class of illusion can make a reasonably convincing item or image, but it will not make sound. The more skilled the caster is, the more additional senses the spell will target. So this would be lowest quality. It can't fool anyone for very long, but used appropriately it can still be crucial." She stepped back and proffered the illusionary blade for his inspection, a short sword well suited to her height and reach. He lifted his hand and felt a cool puff of mist as it passed through the false image. "Now, say I dial the illusion up a level or two:"
She stepped back out of his reach and this time when she swung the sword into a few basic movements, he could hear the sound of air moving over the blade.
"I hear it now."
"This is the second tier. A bit more useful against even those with sharp senses. The third would be this."
Fae dropped the blade and it landed in the shallow snow, leaving an indent. Wulfgar was keeping his eye on the sword but then she pulled something out of her pocket that drew his gaze away. A steaming loaf of bread rested in her hand, the crust crackling under her fingers as she flexed them. He could smell the hearty goodness of the loaf and though he wasn't hungry, he wanted to sink his teeth into what she offered. He held out his hand and could feel warmth radiating from it. But laying a finger on it made it pass right through the specter to the cool interior.
"This is the third tier. Scent as well as sound and sight." She said blithely, dropping the loaf. Wulfgar watched as it vanished into nothing before it touched the ground. "Now, which was the easiest to disbelieve, and why?"
-vVv-
Once he demonstrated comprehension of the basics, Faerun increased the difficulty of the encounter by expanding the illusions from small items to the terrain around them. Wulfgar would not lie and say that he enjoyed these lessons. Her stated goal was to give him a sense or instinct when something was false around him so he could hone in the rest of his senses and look for the flaw that would let him see through it. This goal was one that was very slow to be achieved. But he could appreciate the experience that he was gaining as a result of Faerun's aid. She was a courteous, considerate and thorough teacher.
And he quite liked the stories she would tell once they were settling for rest, the great black cat's head in her lap. Drizzt would either patrol the area in the cool of the night or sit and prepare their meal and he too would listen as Fae's words painted new horizons and distant lands. Brought life into people he did not know, and light into the stillness. Both a peer by her youthful features, but an elder from the wisdom and experience she exuded.
She was not there every day, Drizzt explained simply that she could not muster the strength to constantly live on the Material plane, so she needed time to rest.
"How long have you and Fae been acquainted?"
Drizzt gave a small smile, patching a hole in his cloak.
"Not as long as she and Guenhwyvahr."
"The cat?"
It seemed an odd basis for a friendship to Wulfgar. The ranger gave a slow grin.
"Fae is older than she seems, Wulfgar. And far more experienced than you might think. Ask her to tell you of how she brought the Decimation down. It is a powerful story."
-vVv-
"Drizzt told me to ask about the Decimation."
Fae chuckled, but it was not a genuinely mirthful sound like he had heard from her previously. She was working absently with a pile of arrows and feathers for fletching. The tips were from the dwarven forges and she slotted them into the shafts with an expert touch.
"He would." The Dark elf himself was still resting in the brightest part of the day while Fae kept Wulfgar company. "It's actually one of the first stories I told him."
"He said it was how you met the great cat."
Guenhwyvhar rumbled, rubbing her head against Fae affectionately. She scratched her ears in return with a more sincere smile.
"That's also true. But for the story to make sense, I have to give a bit of context about my home."
Wulfgar knew that storytellers were to be honored. In his tribe, they were the ones who best remembered their histories. And this was no tale long past but a recent accomplishment of a person he had come to respect. She pondered for a moment longer, then set aside her busywork and looked him in the eye. The young barbarian sat up in response to her attention, feeling the gravity of the situation.
"Your people have a certain view towards those like me, correct? Those who use magic?"
"Yes, we- they do."
He surprised himself with the realization that it was a view he no longer shared with his tribe.
"There was a time when it was the same in my homeland and the surrounding regions. We are rather like the sorcerers of this land. They come into their power gradually, and not always of their own volition. Unlike here, where most beginner abilities are small and grow over time, the first time we use our power can be a veritable explosion. A lot of people have gotten hurt because a new magic user got scared of themselves and didn't know how to shut their own power off."
Wulfgar nodded seriously, noting that Fae's usually lively and happy expression was growing grim and sad. He wondered briefly if he should have heeded Drizzt's advice and asked her, or if it had been some sort of test he had failed.
"That means that for a long time, in my world, magic users were... feared is putting it mildly. Killed on sight, certainly. It's an ugly portion of our history. But it improved with time. Except for one country in particular. During the time when all the nations on the continent accepted the change of seeing magic users as citizens with the same rights as others, the nation of Iceberg remained very closed off and hostile to any kind of magic."
Wulfgar settled down, leaning the axe he had been using to cut firewood against a stone, to listen raptly as his younger teacher unfolded the tale for him.
A tale of risk and daring. Of nerve and unwavering dedication to help and do what was right.
A tale of facing the restless dead with limited weapons and no reinforcements.
All from a child of 13 years who opened previously closed doors for her people into a formerly hostile nation.
Wulfgar realized he was indeed learning from experts. And he had a long way to go to stand up to the standards they were showing him that they held. He could not have concealed this new understanding if he had tried.
"Don't look so impressed, Wulf. I nearly died doing that, it was incredibly reckless of me."
"Your deed saved the lives of the king and all his family, his people from being leaderless and your own people from ever being at risk just by being born within that nation. These are all deeds I must respect." Wulfgar inclined his head to the small figure seated with the Astral panther by her side. "Even one of these acts would be sung by the Tribe of the Elk for generations to come."
His respect was genuine. And his awe for his young mentor had only increased further. To do all of this at 13. He had scarcely been allowed to be a standard bearer at that age, and she had faced down such things as this? He would need to do something equally great to measure up to his teachers. Drizzt's past was still a mystery to him, but if this was the kind of person he deemed a friend, and the skills he had developed had come from his former life, the Rangers history was surely as vivid.
How would he ever measure up?
To Drizzt, with his patient tutelage. To Fae, her wisdom and bravery. To Cattie-brie's wit and fire.
To Berunor's kind eyes and acceptance.
A small hand laid on his shoulder and Wulfgar looked to see Fae's blue eyes right up close to him. And there was a sheen of tears in them. She was looking at him and through him, discerning the emotions that often got tangled around his tongue before he could voice them.
"Wulfgar, your day will come. Your life will be of both joys, sorrows, triumphs and griefs. Challenges will come, some will be victories and some will be painful learning experiences. Some, in spite of all efforts, you will need to face entirely alone."
There was anguish on her face as she admitted this. Her hand lifted to his face and Wulfgar was startled at how warm the touch was. In the coil air it seared like an open flame. Or maybe that was from his face turning red under her intense gaze.
"Don't be in such a hurry for your childhood to end. Because once it is over, it's gone for good. So treasure it. Treasure the time when the world made sense and you could learn from kinder teachers than life will give you."
Her other hand clasped his other cheek and Wulfgar knew that he should be uncomfortable at the proximity and intimacy of their position, but he was spellbound by the roaring flame in the eyes of the young wizard as she looked up at him. Her eyes may have been the color of a cold sky, but he felt nothing but warmth under their gaze.
"And if you learn nothing else from me, or Drizzt or Berunor and the dwarves...know that nothing can change the fact that you are loved. You could put the horns of a dragon that you slew single handedly before us and we would step over them to see to it that you were well. That you were alright. Your feat would be celebrated. But our triumph would be that you returned to us alive."
Wulfgar lay awake that night for several hours before sleep claimed him. Thinking of eyes that had seen greater wonders than he could imagine...and that they had focused entirely on him. And proclaimed him a treasure. An unmatched honor. Untried, untested, the historical enemy.
When he did close his eyes, it was to the whisper of a memory.
You are loved.