Amorastra wove a glamour around herself. Within a second her tiara, long black hair, and horns were replaced by simple brown hair and a long braid that hung over her shoulder. Her body was clad in leather boots, a tunic, and a vest. A bow was slung over her shoulder and a quiver at her hip. Her shoulders grew wider and she appeared to be a few inches shorter. She swept Nystri’s dinnerware into her hand and dumped it into the chest Nystri had slept in and closed it, then shoved the stool under the table. She stepped from her tent.
The voices were getting closer. She shouted in a local human tongue, “Oi! Who’s out there?”
The voices stopped and three elves appeared at the edges of the clearing, surrounding her. They wore heavy linen clothes with leather armor. The tallest removed his helmet and stepped into the clearing.
“My apologies if we’ve startled you, miss. I am Yu'trellum.”
She had adopted the accent and affect of one of her favorite villages, “And whatchu doing ‘round here, eh? Last I checked no elves lived in these parts.”
Yu'trellum was inspecting the camp carefully. His eyes lingered on the iron stove, the chair, and the rather large tent. And then the maple tree Nystri had spoken to earlier. “In truth,” he said as he walked to the maple, “We are looking for someone. She’s very dear to us, and we fear her lost.” He placed a hand on the maple and closed his eyes. “Have you seen anyone? She’s small. About the size of a fairy. A little larger. Blue hair with streaks of pink.”
Amorastra shrugged and shook her head, “Aye, no.”
He opened his eyes and turned to her, “Is it ‘aye’, or is it ‘no’?”
She rolled her eyes and said, “No.” in the sort of slow way you might to a drunk friend to explain that, no, it was not, in fact, a good idea to slide down that rocky cliff, no matter how fun it looked.
In the high elven tongue he said to the others, “She’s been here, though the tree denies it. I know that magic well. It was recent. Let’s be off.” Then, in the rough human tongue to Amorastra, “If you do see her, please, I ask that you use this to call for us. She’s not safe, and not in her right mind.” He took three long strides and handed her a carved flat oval piece of wood with a line down the center. “Break it upon that line and we’ll come. Your efforts will be rewarded greatly. Now, please excuse us.”
Amorastra said nothing and they left as silently as they had come into the clearing. She chewed her lip and nodded to herself. She tidied the campsite. After about ten minutes she began to break camp, keeping her glamour about her. It had been a while since she last had to do such menial labor, but she didn’t seem to mind, even with her wounded leg slowing her down.
It took her more than an hour to disassemble the tent (whereas Pebble took at most ten minutes to construct it the night before) and another thirty minutes to fold or roll all the canvas, rugs, and tapestries. She ventured out past the edge of the clearing, slowly making her way around its perimeter. There was no sign of the elves.
She went back to the stove and summoned Pebble once more. She gently took the bag from him without saying a word. Pebble was shaking and looked more scared than usual. Amorastra opened the bag and found Nystri had wrapped herself in one of Amorastra’s robes and was sleeping peacefully. She carefully pulled the robe and Nystri from the bag. She glanced at Pebble, threw him the bag, and whispered, “Pack everything up. Quickly.”
Pebble rushed around stuffing canvas, carpets, chair, stove, and everything else into the little bag as quick as he could.
Amorastra sat on the ground holding Nystri and the robe. Nystri’s short brilliant blue hair shone against the black of the robe. She caressed Nystri’s forehead, pushing aside the pink tuft of hair covering Nystri’s right eye.
Nystri’s eyes fluttered, then opened wide. “Amorastra! What happened?” She sat up.
“At least three elves came. There were another four or so hidden in the woods. One called himself ‘Yu'trellum’ and said they were looking for you. They said that you were lost and not in your right mind."
Nystri's face darkened and she looked away from Amorastra, "They said that, did they?"
"Oh, and they gave me this.” Amorastra handed Nystri the carved oval piece of wood.
Nystri’s face was placid as Amorastra spoke, and turned grave as she took the bit of wood. She traced the emblem etched on it with one finger. She extracted herself from the robe and paced back and forth.
“I’m afraid I won’t be able to accompany you after all.” Nystri looked up into Amorastra’s eyes. “I’m sorry, but we must part ways. You're free to roam the Yggswood and catch as many drakelings as you like. In fact, the more trouble you cause all the better for me.”
“Hah! I refuse. As if I could ever do such a thing. It would be most negligent of me to abandon you now, don’t you think, my Queen?”
Nystri’s eyes shimmered. She looked away and blinked a few times before looking back. “I cannot stop you, that much is certain. If I use my magic again they’ll find me for sure. Our fight yesterday – it must have drawn them.”
“And from there they just followed the trail you left,” Amorastra said, nodding. “He went to that maple and told the others he sensed your magic. Luckily he did not know I am familiar with his tongue.”
Nystri tilted her head, “That is a magnificent glamour, by the way. They didn’t suspect you at all, did they?”
“I believe he found the camp strange, what with the chair and stove, but, no. I’ve never met anyone who could see through my disguises. Except you. You knew immediately who I was when you awoke.”
Nystri shrugged with a sheepish smile, “It’s a gift.”
She looked at the oval again and a burst of anger flared inside her. She flexed her hands against it and she could feel it bending. The flare retreated and her resolve crumbled. I don't want to face him. I cannot go back. Not yet.
Amorastra massaged the underside of her jaw with a knuckle. “What has you on the run, I wonder? Perhaps escaping the dastardly plot of some noble? Avoiding a political marriage? Or was the crown simply too heavy a burden?”
Nystri looked up at Amorastra. She felt a cacophony of emotion. Fear and regret and determination and longing and hatred and—something new. Looking into Amorastra's sea foam eyes the cacophony was quelled, now more of a low murmur.
Amorastra offered a small kind smile. "You don't have to explain yourself to me, my Queen. Just know that you have my support."
Pebble fell to his knees in front of Amorastra with a woof. He was panting hard.
“Well done, Pebble. Thank you,” Nystri said.
“Pebble, tonic box,” Amorastra said, holding out her hand. He produced it as if expecting her order. She opened the box and removed two vials. The first was filled with a red bubbling liquid. The other swirled with greens and blues. “I don’t know how much these might help your wing, but it’s worth a try, if you’d like, Majesty.”
“You had healing tonics and didn’t use them yesterday?” Nystri said incredulously.
Amorastra shrugged, her smile just a little wicked, “I did say I didn’t want to leave and that I wanted to travel with you, my Queen. If my leg were healed I'd have less excuse to not simply run from you, or to leave more quickly. In either case, parting ways much more quickly than I'd have liked. Not to mention, these tonics are not exactly pleasant. I only use them when truly in need.”
Nystri smiled despite herself. “I’ll give it a try, if you don’t mind.”
Amorastra unstoppered both vials, “You must take a draught of the red immediately after the blue green one. Do not hesitate or delay. I’ll hold them steady.” Amorastra tilted the vials so that their liquid was nearly spilling out.
These vials were much wider and taller than the one she had drank from earlier. The blue green smelled putrid. Nystri took a deep breath, then swallowed a large mouthful. It burned and she nearly retched, but Amorastra was quick to bring the other to her lips, which soothed the burning, even if it didn’t make it taste any better. Nystri coughed and pushed the feeling of nausea down. Amorastra waited a moment as she watched Nystri, then held her head straight up and poured one after the other down her throat.
Nystri recovered from her coughing fit and said, “I can see why you didn’t want to take them.”
A brief look of discomfort passed over Amorastra’s face and she took a deep breath. She stuck out her left leg and probed her calf with a knuckle, then stood. “It’s a little weak, but I can walk on it.” She closed the tonic box and threw it to Pebble, then snapped her fingers to send him away before he could even put the box in the bag.
Amorastra knelt low once more and presented her palm to Nystri, “May I carry you, my Queen?”
