The afternoon shadows grow long as the day slips into evening, the sun getting lower on the horizon by the minute. Nearly a week has passed since the odd events up at the singing stones, and the new visitor seems to have healed up well. One person continues to have major reservations about having a griffin around the house.
Picasso is enjoying her first extended flight since arriving here. She always was better at getting an idea of the lay of the land from the air.
A few birds get a good look at the several hundred pound griffin and decide that now is a good time to find a place to roost for the night, even if it is hours away.
Picasso starts to head in for a landing, spiraling slowly down and setting up for as soft a landing as possible. She doesn't want to jar her leg.
She comes in at a long shallow glide and flairs her wings just as she nears the ground. It's a pretty good landing given she has to keep one hind foot tucked up.
Picasso seems a bit winded from the flight and also somewhat distracted as she stares off toward the horizon for a few moments.
Nalae sits in one of the upper, slender branches of the treehouse, quietly watching the new 'guest'. She remains still as she keeps watch, gently swaying with the branch as the wind ruffles the foliage.
A few quiet clanks come from inside the treehouse as Samantha continues washing dishes.
And one small crash as Acera tries to help, followed by a "Sorry ma."
Picasso chuckles quietly as she hears the clatter. At least she's been able to help feed everyone.
Samantha seems remarkably calm about this. "That's all right, dear."
Picasso decides to get at least one thing off her mind immediately. She hasn't really tried casting any magic since she arrived but after the successful flight she's feeling more like her old self again.....
She moves away from the tree just in case something goes wrong. A simple creation spell should be safe enough.....
Acera is trying not to hurry with the dishes too much, but it's clear she wants to run outside and find Nalae as soon as she can.
Samantha continues working with the dishes, keeping the pace up anyway. She can tell Acera is otherwise occupied.
Picasso settles her mind and begins the process of gathering the elemental energy she'll need. Her focus seems just a little fuzzy around the edges but everything seems to be going well enough.
Picasso concentrates and mutters a few power words under her breath while focusing on what she wants created.
Nalae blinks slowly, peering down and watching the griffon. What's she doing?
Acera grins as she starts drying the last dish. Freedom is near!
Samantha lifts her head suddenly from the dishes, looking outside. "What is going on out there...?"
Acera puts the last dish away and prepares to zip out the door like a greased mustelid.
A sphere of blue light flashes into existence for a moment above the gryphon's head and a fair number of purple flowers rain down. This is obviously not exactly where she wanted them to appear but they are at least the right kind of flower.
Nalae yeeps at the sudden light, and almost falls off of her branch in surprise!
Picasso blinks and lets the energy dissipate. It wasn't the quietest casting in the world...in fact she hopes nothing too dangerous was 'listening'. She gathers up the flowers though a few are mingled with her head feathers and heads back toward the tree.
Samantha finishes drying quickly, and steps outside to see what just happened out there.
Acera launches herself out of the cabin door like a missile. Maybe someday she'll calm down if she matures a bit, but Samantha isn't holding her breath. Unfortunately, Picasso is in the direct line of fire of the ballistic mustelid.
Nalae yelps! "Acera!" She calls down to the little mink from up in the tree..
Acera looks up at just the wrong moment at Nalae and collides with the griffin's head.
Picasso startles a bit as Acera runs right into her chest. She wraps her wings around Acera to steady him.
Samantha steps outside right behind her daughter, then looks up at Picasso.
Nalae eeeps as the griffon grabs Acera! Leaping from her branch, she extends her arms and legs, stretching her gliding membranes taut. She rapidly descends towards Picasso, gaining velocity as she drops and yells at the bird-thing that's got her adopted sister!
Samantha looks up. "Nalae, calm down!"
Picasso ducks as best she can while trying to shoo Acera out from around her so Nalae will see she's ok.
Acera chitters apologetically, unable to see what Nalae's doing as she gets to her feet next to Picasso.
Nalae plummets towards the ground and Picasso, but pulls up as Picasso releases Acera. Now lower than most nearby branches, she swoops around to attempt to land on the ground, near Acera.
Samantha relaxes some.
Picasso looks up to make sure she isn't still being swooped on and then sets the flowers she was holding in her beak down in front of Samantha. They are a type that normally only bloom at night in the first few weeks of Spring.
Acera wrinkles her nose and kind of points it at Nalae, "Wassa matter?"
Samantha picks up the flowers, and sniffs at one of them. She looks over at Picasso. "You did this?"
Nalae aims for an exposed root, hoping to use that as a landing point.. skimming just above the ground on her gliding flaps, she zips towards it, still with far too much speed from her prolonged dive to make a truly controlled landing. As she reaches the root, she grabs for it with both hands, with her footclaws shortly joining them. Her forward velocity knocks her rather firmly against the ground, but she ought to be all right.
Picasso watches the hard landing and winces, remembering her own.
Acera squeaks and dashes over to help Nalae, "You're not supposed to land like that, are ya?"
Samantha hands the flowers to Acera. "Here." She then hikes up her skirts and starts running towards Nalae.
Acera blinks as she gets a handful of flowers from her mother?
Picasso isn't very good with healing but she prepares to do what she can if necessary.
Samantha crouches down to take a closer look at Nalae.
Acera pads over to Nalae with the flowers in hand and chitters, "She ok ma?"
Nalae carefully turns herself over, and looks up at Samantha and Acera as they come running over. Her fur is rather dirt-stained, and a few joints have been scraped up. "I think I'm okay.." She winces a bit and squeezes her eyes shut for a moment as she adjusts her position slightly.
Samantha frowns. "You're not 'okay', but hopefully there's no permanent damage done."
Picasso stays back, knowing that Nalae still is pretty nervous of her. She watches Samantha carefully to see if she might be needed.
Nalae shivers softly, peering up at Samantha and Acera. "My hands hurt," she murmurs.
Acera frowns a little, "She musta scuffed em on the ground ma." She still seems confused as to what happened while she was under their guest's wings.
Samantha reaches out to take one of Nalae's hands, taking a closer look at it.
Nalae yelps as Samantha takes her hand!
Samantha is somewhat more careful after this, leaning closer.
Picasso walks slowly up to see how Nalae is doing.
Nalae shivers, her eyes going to the bird-thing. "Ma," she whispers..
Picasso would normally ask permission before doing what she's about to do but as that's currently impossible.....
Samantha says, "Yes?"
Picasso once again gathers her energies for a spell that she's had to use so often she could likely do so asleep.
Nalae's hand looks intact.. but Samantha's liable to find some minor damage to her wrist, and almost certainly to notice the slight tearing of one of her gliding membranes, where it connects to her wrist.
Samantha frowns, looking down at the membrane's edge. "We'd better get that sealed up fast before it can 'heal' broken and damage your ability to fly for good."
Nalae begins to look more worried, and motions towards Picasso with her muzzle, "The.. the bird-thing.. behind you.."
Picasso moves just close enough for her magic to work and taking far more time to focus than she normally would (she needs this to go where it's intended) and releases the spell. The injured areas glow and Nalae feels a warm tingle as the spell works.
Samantha turns to look at the gryphon, feeling the spell powering up behind her... then turns to look back at Nalae's wrist. "Well, I'll be..."
Picasso keeps up the tight control until she's done as much good as she can. She damps the spell to see if it was enough.
Samantha runs her finger along the edge of the gliding surface. "Does that feel better?"
Acera hmmfs as she realizes what happened, "I can't fly, and now I'm the only one who can't do magic either."
While a few areas are still bare of fur, the injuries appear almost totally healed with no scarring.
Nalae swallows a bit and nods. "Y-yeah.. it doesn't hurt so much.."
Samantha chuckles. "Well, we'll work on that part, Acera. You do have some talent, as was shown with the stones the other night."
Acera frowns, "I thought that was Nalae doin that?"
Samantha nods to Nalae. "Good. Now I'd like you to thank our guest for healing you like that."
Samantha stands up. "Nalae provided the original power... but I didn't know that they could be used to view the past as well as the present."
Nalae looks confused..
Acera shakes her head, unable to follow the two or three different conversations going on, so she just nods at her mother.
Samantha pauses as well, to straighten herself out.
Picasso makes sure the energy she uses has dissipated and then moves back a bit so she doesn't frighten Nalae any further.
Acera looks at the griffin and hmms, "How could she heal Nalae without touchin her?"
Samantha says, "With magic. It's easier if you touch the person, but you don't really need to."
Nalae swallows a little, carefully sitting up.
Samantha hmmms. "That's a thought... if she can cast magic now, then maybe..."
Picasso seems relieved that that worked exactly as planned. The fuzziness she felt earlier with the flower creation was almost totally gone.
Samantha starts focusing on a spell of her own.
Samantha casts the translation spell she had tried before, hoping it will work this time.
Picasso blinks as she feels magic being cast at her and looks to see who's doing it. She should have put up her shields as soon as she could cast again. When she sees Samantha is the source she relaxes a bit
Samantha drops her arms back down. "All right. Can you understand me now?"
Nalae looks up at Acera. "Acera..."
Acera chitters at Nalae, "Huh? You ok Nalae? Heck, the one time I tried to fly I landed better than that. ;)" and offers to help her friend up as she teases.
Nalae wrinkles her nosepad at Acera, and accepts the help to stand up. And once up, she holds on to Acera's arm, to retain her balance.
Picasso looks startled and then answers back "Understand most order wrong words some"
Picasso looks over at Nalae "Ok hands your now?"
Nalae blinks at Picasso slowly, then nods a little bit, swallowing.
Samantha smiles. "Good! We can work on details later."
Picasso chtorrs, "Harm no meant."
Acera chuckles, "She sounds kinda funny ma, but I think I understand her. Hiya! I'm Acera! I'm a mink!" And the young lady says that with great pride.
Acera says, "We're called Frenats though."
Picasso doesn't understand all of that but replies "Greetings give I. Picasso name my is."
Picasso chtorrs, "Thank you help for giving.""
Samantha bows. "Greetings. And thank you for your help."
Picasso chtorrs, "How here get did I? Where here is?""
Samantha says, "This could take a while. What say we all go get some tea first..."
Acera motions for Nalae to introduce herself and chitters, "She did heal ya. Ma says it's polite to thank folks for stuff like that."
Picasso nods.
Nalae fidgets a bit. "Thank you," she murmurs.
Acera rolls her eyes and chitters loudly, "This is my sister, Nalae. She's a...what do you call it again?"
Nalae ponders that for a moment, and discovers that she no longer knows the word for what she is... oh, the pitfalls of being transplanted into another vocabulary. ;) After several moments, she murmurs, "I.. guess I'm sorta a mink, too.." She looks a lot like Acera, after all. Except for the gliding wings.. and Acera's better at swimming. "A flying mink, I guess.."
Acera scritches her short ears and giggles, "A flyin mink? Neat!"
Samantha nods as the introductions are over. "Now, let's go and get some tea. I think we've got a few things to talk about."
Acera hmms, "Can I have some chicken broth instead ma?"
Samantha says, "All right."
Nalae fidgets a little, still eyeing the griffon rather distrustfully.
Acera starts leading Nalae towards the low benches in front of the house. The firepit is cold as Samantha did a bunch of cooking two days ago. There's plenty of room for a griffin to sprawl out next to the benches.
Samantha heads up quickly to the house to put on the kettle.
Picasso settles there and waits, so many things going through her mind that she can hardly concentrate on any one of them.
Samantha comes back out a few minutes later with a cup of tea for her, a bowl for Picasso, a small bowl of broth for Acera, and a cup of an herbal tea for Nalae.
Picasso chtorrs, "Thankyou"
Acera chitters reassuringly to Nalae, knowing she's still got to be a little sore from her landing.
Picasso laps at her tea, trying to calm her thoughts a bit.
Samantha says, "You're welcome."
Nalae carefully settles next to Acera and nurses her cup of tea.
Samantha sips at her tea. "Now, let's see, where to start..."
Picasso chtorrs, "Many so things about to talk...."
Samantha nods. She turns to Acera and Nalae. "Feel free to chip in with details; I know you've both been feeling a little left out of late with everything that's been happening, and I'm sorry about that."
Acera gulps down her broth and hops down and starts to arrange some kindling and twigs in the firepit, noting it's been getting cool in the evenings now. That, and she likes fires. She nods, "Thanks ma. We will."
Samantha nods. "All right. Things started back when we discovered Nalae could use the singing stones as a window to view other places. We all went up there one night to see how well she could control them."
Acera chitters to Nalae, "Wanna help me with the fire while ma gabs?"
Picasso chtorrs, "Stones power much hold. Feel could it."
Nalae nods a little at Acera, though she doesn't like fires quite so much as her adopted sister does.. Better than paying attention to that big thing...
Samantha nods. "They've been known to have power for many generations, just nobody's been able to tap it for generations either. In any case, we were looking in various places with the stones. Back here, Nalae's homeworld, the place where Acera grew up... nowhere for very long, as the magic only lasts while the stones are singing. Somehow, I'm not sure how, we ended up briefly viewing what I believe to be your homeworld."
Acera watching the flames start to eat the larger twigs chirps up, "Yeah, what were you fightin about anyhow?"
Samantha says, "We saw part of an argument before you took off and flew away. You started what I assume was a transport spell, but it failed; probably you were too tired at the time. Possibly your spell cross-linked with the power from the stones. I don't know exactly what happened, but your transport spell brought you here instead of where you wanted to go."
Picasso chtorrs, "Saw you that? Magic casting was it about.....I doing."
Samantha says, "We saw parts of it."
Picasso takes a deep breath and sighs "Different is world here??
Acera gets the fire well built then snugs with Nalae back on the bench, "Ya gonna be ok? You still look like ya got the breath knocked outta ya."
Nalae nods a bit at Acera. "Yeah, I'll be okay, I think.."
The sun has finally set, and on the far horizon a fairly large moon starts to ascend the night sky.
Picasso looks at the large moon rising and closes her eyes tight. She's obviously pretty upset.
Samantha shrugs. "I don't know exactly what happened. And whatever did left some sort of residue on you that made it difficult to cast any spells. Now that has worn off, perhaps we can work on getting you back home."
Acera notices the look on the griffin's face and chitters, "You've lost your folks too, haven't ya?"
Picasso chtorrs, "Home have no. World have did. Return can't no direction with."
Picasso chtorrs, "Power not enough for travel worlds between....universes between...dimensions between."
Samantha nods. "That's what I was afraid of. If we had something from your homeworld, we could use its connection to the world to find a direction."
Picasso takes a deep shuddery breath and tries to keep from crying.
Picasso chtorrs, "Nothing I have except me."
Acera tugs at Nalae and whispers, "She's like you and me. She's lost her folks. C'mon."
Acera pads over to Picasso and chitters, "Ya got us. Ma took me and Nalae in, she hasn't tossed Ankhl out yet, so I don't think she'd toss you out."
Samantha says, "Having you might be enough, but it's a lot more difficult to act as both the reference and the traveler..."
Nalae fidgets quietly..
Picasso leans out and rubs cheeks with Acera trying not to frighten Nalae.
Picasso chtorrs, "Here good there as. Food, water, air, and.......friends maybe."
Acera carefully returns the rub, figuring it's how they say hello, then chitters softly to Nalae, "C'mon. She hasn' hurt us. She healed you. So what if she's different? Ma's kind don't like meat eaters, but she adopted us!"
Picasso hoping to dwell on something else for a while looks at Nalae.
Picasso chtorrs, "Why are afraid you me of?"
Picasso chtorrs, "Bigger am I but hurt never you I."
Acera's attention is wavering. She wants Nalae to calm down, but she's already trying to figure out how to get Picasso to take her flying.
Picasso isn't sure she should mention this as it is mainly what got her into trouble before..."and smaller can be I"
Acera wriggles her whiskers and hmms, "I didn't understand that?"
Samantha looks intrigued. "You can be smaller?"
Picasso chtorrs, "Show you will I after rest get I."
Samantha nods. "All right."
Acera sighs as she notes Nalae isn't going to change her mind tonight. She snugs Picasso and chitters, "She'll change her mind. Maybe if you take us flyin some time? ;)" then turns and pads over to Nalae, "C'mon, lets head up to our room. Ya need some rest after that fall."
Picasso chtorrs, "Flying you I will take gladly if lets me she will."
Acera grins widely, "Thanks. I wonder if you fly as well as the Chirpy'taur do?" and then pads off to help take her sister to bed.
The young marenati, who now thinks she's a mink, willingly goes with Acera up in the tree to their room. She still doesn't trust the 'bird thing' yet. Samantha says her goodnights, leaving Picasso by the fire. She stares at the large alien moon as it passes over head, and goes to sleep feeling rather lost.