The Riddlers

Arien

[Arien hears the fae rustling through the trees of Serenwilde, singing and dancing to presumably assist in the lock which @Everiine was working on. Riddles and rhyming ensues, and we are left with a mysterious, parting thought. This is the first time that the fae have been so vocal on Prime. So this is a rather wonderful experience. Thank you @Renna and @Urdnot for contributing!]

The Moonhart Mother Tree

-

Miakoda, Maiden of the Moonhart sighs melodramatically and swats at the air.

The sun reaches the zenith of the firmament, pausing in his quest to allow the land to bask in his shining golden rays.

Your mouth turns up as your face breaks into a smile.

You look thoughtful and say, "Good noon, my darling maiden. I was just considering the same thing,
myself."

The trees sway and dance, keeping a rhythm that causes the hidden fae spirits to raise their voices in a chirruping song.

You say, "Something has caused their happiness, how I wish I could ask them to come and speak with us so that we may discover it."

Arien gazes wonderingly into the thicket, and up the trees, even turning to the Moonhart Mother in inspection.

Arien clutches at the grimoire under her arm, her eyes narrowed in thought.

You say to Miakoda, Maiden of the Moonhart, "Shall I look in the trees? Perhaps some will come out to play."

The chirruping song stops and, all around you, the trees and undergrowth begin to rustle. As one, a high-pitched voice sounds from all around you, "We wish to help the Guardians of the Shelter. We bring our sweets, we bring our song, so that in the end, we will not be wrong."

You smile softly.

A shiny new leaf unfurls on the Moonhart Mother Tree, a symbol of new growth.

A shiny new leaf unfurls on the Moonhart Mother Tree, a symbol of new growth.

The trees rustle again and the voices begin to fade. A giggling chorus erupts across the canopy, the sound like crickets calling to one another.

Raising her voice gently to the concealed fae, you say, "How helpful of you little ones, that you wish to assist. But why with so glad?"

You say to Urdnot, "The fae in the trees, they are speaking to us, to offer their help!"

Comprehension flashes across Urdnot's face.

Urdnot gives the world a smart salute.

Birds fill your ears with serenades of happiness and love.

You say, "Their song and sweets, how very kind. Though, they have yet to reveal as to why..." She pauses laughingly, shaking her head with a merry smile. "Well, we shall see, eh, Urdnot?"

A single voice, quiet but proud, squeaks from behind a nearby rock, "Nature is fierce and deadly, but it is also free and wild. We feel what the trees feel, we know what the wind knows."

Serenguard Urdnot Starleaf says, "I have been told time and time again that everything will be revealed with patience, which means stuff waits until I leave to happen."

Urdnot nods his head sagely.

"'Lo!" Urdnot quips cheerfully, waving at Renna.

Renna raises her hand in greeting to Urdnot and says "Hi!"

High Forester Renna Yfae'dren, Midnight Ritualist whispers to Urdnot, "Who's behind the rock?"

Another voice chimes in, rippling from the canopy, "We help because we wish it so, and we are free to choose which way to go. The others in the world are stuck in places that have such bad luck."

The music of fae's laughter tickles at the edges of your senses.

Renna peers about herself unscrupulously.

Another chorus of giggling erupts from within the depths of the forest, which sends cascades of leaves dancing to the ground

You give a trillingly melodic laugh.

Slowly creeping toward the rock with all the stealth she can muster, Arien says, "Shall you come out from the canopy of the trees? Will you give us more than riddles, please?"

A squirrel skitters through the treetops somewhere above.

The silhouette of a naked woman shaped by wind and flower petals walks into view, curtseys low, and then abruptly loses its shape, as if the wind that held the figure together died down suddenly.

You smile softly.

Renna beams broadly.

Miakoda, Maiden of the Moonhart swats at something lurking just out of sight then resumes her place at the tree's base, muttering something to herself.

Renna yawns suddenly and mightily.

You say, "What beauty you are, clad in flowers and in the curling wind. But, what is it that you do know, that you will not, or can-not show?"

Renna's eyes sparkle with amusement.

You whisper to Renna, "I wonder if I sing them an old song, shall they tell us?"

Your eyes twinkle enchantingly.

High Forester Renna Yfae'dren, Midnight Ritualist whispers to you, "It can't hurt to try."

You ponder the situation.

Her voice fluidly seeking through the foliage, you say, "Shall I give you a gift, O children of ethereal? A song, perhaps?"

A series of voices, interchangeable and sometimes gruff and sometimes starkly feminine, echoes from nowhere in particular, "We are here to watch and play, silly mortal whose voice we know. If you wish to learn our way, step one, step two, and away you go!"

You give a trillingly melodic laugh.

Renna grins mischievously at you.

Urdnot salutes then steps twice.

Birds fill your ears with serenades of happiness and love.

You say to Renna, "How adoringly sweet they are. Shall we all step twice?"

Renna nods her head emphatically.

As the sun passes below the horizon's edge, Mother Night unveils her terrible, shadowy beauty, spreading darkness across the land.

You make a beckoning motion to no-one in particular.

Renna begins to follow you.

A naked male figure made of vines and leaves, held together by dew and light, steps forward and spins rapidly in place, sending sprouts and seeds in every direction. It laughs with thousands of voices before collapsing into underbrush once more.

Renna gives a trillingly melodic laugh.

Your eyes twinkle enchantingly.

High Forester Renna Yfae'dren, Midnight Ritualist says, "I think they want to dance with us."

[MOVEMENT]

You say, "Well!" She half grins. "We have both stepped twice, shall we dance or will you all remain as frightened mice?"

You hum a happy tune.

The voices sing out again in marked intervals, like a choir of frogs and crocuses singing the same anthem. "You sing, we dance! We play, you prance! But our stories are our own to tell, so think twice before you seek and tell!"

Renna ponders the situation.

Across the heavens, the stars and moon challenge night's dark reign, revealing familiar constellations that tell the tales of myth and legend.


With a final gust of wind, the giggling reaches a crescendo before fading to nothingness. When the giggling fades, the leaves cease their preternatural movements, and all is still in the forest once more.

You smile softly.

You murmur to Renna, "How beautiful that was."

Everiine

I forgot to save what happened to Ev while this was going on (basically, a honeycake fell from the sky, there was giggling, a honeycake flew in from somewhere else and hit Ev in the head, more giggling, Poloma confusion)! Looks like someone was feeling playful last night .