[Faroah]

Who knew traffic in mid-town Espur could be brought to a complete stand-still by one tiny dragon?

Faroah sure hadn't. But that's what he was seeing right now, taroch- and horse-drawn carts backed up down most of the main street and even the little side streets that joined up with it. Was the amethyst necklace he'd claimed really that valuable?

Of course it was! And it was his, all his.

“Naga, ine! Ine, ine, ine!” Except the large lady who originally owned the necklace he'd been poofing around was still attached, and still clinging, and still shrieking at him. It scared him! She wouldn't let go of his shiny! And her mate and half the street were all trying to swat him with rolled-up newspapers and boxes and brooms and things that would make Faroah-pancakes!

So he screamed as loud as his tiny lungs would let him. “INE!” Get off, get off, getoff! And poofed around some more in a vain effort to shake her off. “INE!”

¤ Piper's Boutique ¤ Dafont ¤ Wonderland Effect ¤ Meilin Wong ¤ Anime Rain ¤

[Remy]

Given the right time of the day, traffic could be common in Espur--but a complete halt? That was absurd, and Remy voiced that aloud as she pushed through the heavy crowd that had formed partly as result of the unmoving vehicles. “This is absurd!” she yelped as the box in her arms was jostled twice by two burly workers hauling each end of heavy wooden planks. Quickly, she followed the gap that the two men had created. Grumbling obscenities, she valiantly tried to ignore the sweaty smell of people crowded together on a summer afternoon. “Xanthdamnitall! If this delivery turns sour from the smell...”

With a vicious shove (that wasn't vicious at all, given her size), she futilely attempted to reach the main street and collided into a navy-blue sphere that bustled forward without concern. “Ugh! Isolde drain you dry...” It was a round cape-wearing man, and as she sent a glare that went unnoticed, she vaguely heard shrieks of “INE!” and “Give it back you wretched bug!”. But that was unimportant, and as the round man and his mule finally got out of her way, she huffed before continuing forward. Thank goodness she was holding a cardboard box, otherwise the cream puffs would have been crushed by now!

Eventually with all that bumping and yelling, she broke out of the crowd and stumbled onto the main street, where many vehicles slowly rolled forward. There was a gap between the carriages and people, and she took advantage of it by running through it. But as she ran, she realized that she was moving into an agitated mob--one that was waving brooms and rolling pins!

“INE!” came that high-pitched squeak again, and it sounded plain weird.

[Faroah]

Faroah shrieked incessantly as his attempts to teleport away were thwarted one by one. (It didn't help that his idea of teleporting away meant poofing just a couple of feet one way or another, and on more than one occasion that way being up - Faroah just wasn't big enough to pull off a move like that, and so every time he and the annoying woman were dragged back down to the pavement by gravity.

By now, as well, the woman had managed to get a hold of him and not just the necklace she was trying to steal from him, and that just made it harder to keep his grip on his shiny. “Ine, iny! Iny iny, itty, ine!”

And then he saw a little girl in the crowd, and seized the opportunity. Children loved him, yes, yes! They gave him cookies and snugglies and pretties and kissies and let him sleep on their laps. “Aga oo!” he cried, and poofed barely a foot toward her. s

Oooh, she had a box! She was inviting him to hide inside it, yes, yes! But, first, he had to get rid of the thief trying to steal his pretty shiny, his, his!

Squirming out of the woman's grip and straining toward the little blonde girl, he snorted flame at the woman's hand and teleported the second she let go.

Remy's box rattled and was suddenly heavier.

¤ Piper's Boutique ¤ Dafont ¤ Wonderland Effect ¤ Meilin Wong ¤ Anime Rain ¤

[Remy]

With all her effort, Remy tried to avoid the rushing mob, more worried about the damage it would do to her delivery than the source of the sound. Xanth knows how much damage the box had already taken. Remy could only hope that the contents were still puffy and whole. Still, she was not one to avoid curiosity, and as she sidestepped a broom-waving man, she glanced between the taller people. All she saw was a blur of red before a large (and jumpy) lady barged between, followed by a downward-flying pan and many other people. Among the higher pitched shrieks, shouts, and yells, she heard the dull roar of something that she could not identify, and suddenly, people scattered into every direction possible. “'Fire!' 'Aieee!' 'What the Hel!?'” In the chaos, Remy was pushed and shoved from every which way that she herself had to yell, push, and dodge so as to not trip and get trampled upon.

“Scourge take them---what's gotten into people these days!” Remy muttered when she ducked into the nearest alley that she could find. Those people would have various cuts and bruises by the end of the day, she was sure of it. The gap between the buildings was so narrow, it was less than three feet wide. As she passed through it, Remy came to realize something that had previously avoided her. She could have sworn that the batch of cream puffs was lighter than this. The child placed the box on the closest and cleanest spot of ground she could find, and with a small frown of apprehension, untied the ribbons.

[Faroah]

Out popped Faroah. Swimming in puffs and his mouth suspiciously rimmed with cream, he blinked up at the little girl innocently, still clutching his treasure. His, his, his!

Licking his snout, Faroah's tail flicked a blob of cream at her accidentally, and he chittered at her excitedly. Good tasties, yummy tasties! Yummy, yummy. My pretty, see? It's pretty, pretty, mine, mine! And from all the apparent gibberish came one word she might understand: “Anoo.” Thank you. Because she'd not only rescued he and his pretty from the nasty thief but also fed him tasty yummies, too!

So to thank her properly, he lifted his cream-laden wings out of the box - flicking the stuff everywhere again - and teleported to be scant inches in front of her face, ready for a pretty kissy.

¤ Piper's Boutique ¤ Dafont ¤ Wonderland Effect ¤ Meilin Wong ¤ Anime Rain ¤

[Remy]

There wasn't even enough time to uncover the box--it popped up on its own. Remy's face froze in shock. “What the Hel!?” She didn't care how cute it was, it was sitting all over the cream puffs and was that chocolate filling around his snout!? The thing moved, and Remy flinched at the feel of soft chocolate hitting her cheek. Even then, she could only look in horror at the crushed cream puffs that was supposed to go to her clients. What was she supposed to tell them? And all this time, the little red bug was chattering jibberish at her. For all she knew, 'anoo' might be some imp curse word!

The box splashed in a flurry of strawberry and chocolate filling as the imp took flight, and Remy let go of it in reflex. The cream puffs were crushed for good. Forget her shock, she was angry now! The red of her cheeks contrasted sharply against her pale skin, and as the bug came at her face, she shrieked and tried to grab for it. She wanted the crush that thing--it had taken her all morning to prepare the delivery!

[Faroah]

((Wah, how could I miss this? ))

Oh, yum. Chocchocchocchoc! Slurp.

Licking his snout again, his teeny tongue flicking just as much chocolate cream away from him as it gathered up into his mouth, Faroah shrieked in shock when the little girl tried to grab him. Well, he was used to that, really. The really little children often tried to hug him and pet him and smoosh him, but this didn't look like a hug-pet-smoosh grab, it looked like a Faroah-pancakes grab!

“Naga! Naga, ee!” Flapping his wings frantically so that he was pulled backwards out of her reach, cream splattering everywhere as his pretty shiny jerked and dangled and wobbled from the chain in his grasp, Faroah shrieked and chittered at her. Why did everyone want to smoosh him today? Why couldn't they see he was pretty and give him kissies instead? “Naga, naga!”

¤ Piper's Boutique ¤ Dafont ¤ Wonderland Effect ¤ Meilin Wong ¤ Anime Rain ¤

[Remy]

None of her grabs and swats were working! It didn't help that the imp was taunting her by finishing the rest of what he'd stolen from her! By now, Remy had accepted the fact that her dress was extremely messed up, that it may never be thoroughly clean again, and that it didn't matter if it got messier. Nevertheless, she still flinched when more chocolate flew her way, and her eyes widened with fury as she screamed and grabbed for the bright red bug.

“Those were mine!” she yelped, dodging as another splatter of cream flew her way. It splattered on her cheekbone, but at least it didn't go into her eye. A distracted hand rubbed that away, and she swat at the bug (and missed again). The dratted thing hadn't only stolen her food, it stole someone's jewelry too! No wonder there was a crowd...

Clearly, she wasn't fast enough, so it was time to play dirty. Remy extended her mind toward the it, as she often did with Zee. “Hel's fire, stop flying, you meanie!” It was just a thought, but maybe it was surprising enough to let her yank its tail!

[Faroah]

Xanth had long since taught Faroah how to shield his mind from telepathic attacks. She'd told him how special he was, because most imps didn't get a chance to learn that, and that he should always always be wary. There were people out there that wanted to smoosh him! Make Faroah-pancakes and kebabs! Kill him, the meanies!

But, she'd also told him that he shouldn't steal from people because she'd be happy to give him whatever he wanted, and look where that got him.

At the little girl's "suggestion", his wings stopped flapping. Faroah dropped, suddenly, three and a half feet to land with a squelch right back in the box full of cream puffs. “Eeh? Eeh!” He was convinced that something was wrong, because he was quite sure he hadn't meant to do that. His wings were being mean to him!

But, “Ooh, ummi ummi.” The cream, or what was left of it, had saved his fall and he was thoroughly enjoying licking it off his hide. Yum, yum.

¤ Piper's Boutique ¤ Dafont ¤ Wonderland Effect ¤ Meilin Wong ¤ Anime Rain ¤

[Remy]

To Remy's grim delight--though not surprise, for she was used to getting her way--the dratted imp dropped to the ground. Doesn't matter that it had fallen back into the box that it had popped out of, since the entire thing was ruined anyway--censored. What was she to do about the cream puffs? Even now, the imp-thing was swimming among the chocolate cream filling and shreds of bread. It was seemingly oblivious as it curled and savored the food.

Smiling grimly, Remy crouched and grabbed maliciously for its tail. Mid-grab, however, something poked at her conscience, and instead, she reached toward the shiny thing that had fallen into the box. The small dragon was too fast to dodge her, but he seemed to like the necklace very much. Well good, she'd hold it so he couldn't leave. “You like causing trouble, don't you?” Her hands clamped around the chain of the necklace. Hers now, until she found this dratted imp's owner.

[Faroah]

Faroah's shriek-scream of dismay would have been loud enough to wake the neighbours if they weren't already out working. As it was, it scared a black cat that had been rummaging around in a rubbish bin, but promptly gave a distressed miaow with its fur on end, and streaked out of the alley past the little girl. Cats really didn't get on with dragons.

Faroah decided he didn't like this little girl after all. She hadn't given him any pretty kissies at all! And she was trying to steal from him! “Naga, naga, NAGA!” No, no, NO! It was his, it was his, his his hishishis! Even if she'd only given him the cream puffs so he'd give her something in return (a natural line of thought for any to dragon to trot down), did she really think the cream puffs she'd given him were worth his shiny pretty sparkly? It sparkled and shone and was pretty. It was worth a million million cream puffs!

So he seized on it with his tiny jaw, his teeny tiny fangs gripping the chain mercilessly. Unfortunately, Faroah was far too small to yank it out of her grip, but that didn't stop him from trying. So if the mean little girl tried to lift it, she'd take a dangling Faroah with her. And the second she let go, he'd teleport it home to his nest where he could snuggle with it and tell it it was safe.

And then forget all about it, until the next time he came across it, amid the rest of his sparkling, shiny, pretty nest.

¤ Piper's Boutique ¤ Dafont ¤ Wonderland Effect ¤ Meilin Wong ¤ Anime Rain ¤

[Remy]

Wincing at the shrieks and screams of the red imp, Remy tightened her grip on the necklace and scowled at the creature. “Just who did you steal this from? You caused such a fuss, you know...” She jerked when something black and fluffy brushed past her, and the motion pulled the necklace against the wall of the box. Realizing that the thing was just a cat, Remy turned her attention back to the imp.

Xanth, why did it have to be so cute? Its little jaws were clamped around the chain and biting at the wiring in attempt to regain the stolen jewelry. Tiny tiny claws braced themselves among the mass of crushed creampuffs as the dragon tried to pull the necklace away. Remy couldn't help it--she was still a child. The imp dragon was adorably weak, and that melted the anger away. Shame on her, if she had really squashed him.

Feeling almost like a bully, Remy tightened her hold on the amethyst stone and raised the thing toward the edge of the box. To no surprise, the dragon moved along with it, but she ignored the creature and looked at the stone. “Oh Xanth, wow. You have an eye for stealing.” The ametheyst was wrapped with a mix of mythril and gold. She hadn't noticed it before, but now that she did, she felt really sorry for the person who lost it. “You've got to give it back.”

[Faroah]

“Oh Xanth, wow. You have an eye for stealing.”

“Eeh,” Faroah confirmed with a short, sharp nod that doubled up as a yank on the necklace in yet another attempt to get it back. He hadn't really stolen it, though. He'd seen it and knew it was meant to be in his nest, so really he'd only claimed it. It was his, his, his!

So when she told him, “You've got to give it back ,” Faroah was dead set against the idea. He shook his tiny head vigorously, almost ripping out his fangs since he still had a death's grip on his shiny, and flapped his wings furiously - but wasn't getting anywhere. She was pretty strong for a youngling, but compared to Faroah even imps were strong. Especially when they ganged up on him.

Tasty when barbequed though. Ooh, barbeque imps. Yummmmmmmm.

“Naga, naga!” Distracted by the sudden growling in his belly telling him to go fry some imps, Faroah had slackened his grip on the necklace enough that the force of his yanking and bracing himself in the cream puffs made him jerk back, releasing his pretty. He immediately scrambled in the gooey box to get it back in his mouth, but his claws weren't finding much purchase any more. “Naga, naga, naga! Ine ine ineineineineineine!”

¤ Piper's Boutique ¤ Dafont ¤ Wonderland Effect ¤ Meilin Wong ¤ Anime Rain ¤

[Remy]

Even though Remy was talking to the imp dragon, she had been chatting like somebody who confided in stray dogs or stuffed animals. So when she told the imp dragon that he had to return the necklace, and saw him shake his head fervently, Remy's eyes widened and she inhaled a large breath. Tightening her grip as the red dragon pulled on it, Remy blinked away her surprise and discounted it as a trick of her vision. The thing had just happened to pull at the necklace when she said it.

When it gave a final, forceful yank on the necklace, it flew backward and into the back of the box. Remy took the opportunity to clench the item into her palm. Years ago, she might have been tempted to keep the necklace for herself, but she'd changed since then. “You've ruined my day, so let's make hers better.” It was a dirty trick, but as she stood and hurriedly backed away, she thought to the imp, “Stay.”

Whether or not the imp was affected, Remy started to run down the alley. She hadn't a clue who the necklace belonged to, but Espur's guard would know what to do with it. Remy was going to leave the imp swimming in cream puffs, and she was going to the guard. She'd have to report the bad news to her boss as well. Drat.

[Faroah]

Thankfully, being able to hypnotise someone didn't mean being able to control them, so even though Faroah was probably more susceptible than most, he could still move. It took him a few seconds to come out of his trance, by which time all he could see of the odd little girl was the hem of her skirt flipping around the corner at the end of the alley, but Faroah was smart. He was, he was! He teleported to perch on a shop sign that hung over a door at that same corner, and lashed his tail at thin air as his beady little eyes scanned the street for sign of her.

“Eeh, eeh! Naga, naga! Ine, ine!” And, with a mental scream loud enough to wake the dead, “THIEF!” To prove his point, he flung himself off the shop sign after her, his tiny little wings flapping unsteadily as he flew-poofed-flew-poofed after her.

¤ Piper's Boutique ¤ Dafont ¤ Wonderland Effect ¤ Meilin Wong ¤ Anime Rain ¤

[Remy]

She hadn't expected the trick to work at all, so when she rounded the corner, she was not at all surprised to see the red blur again. “Go away,” she tried to sound irritable, but it was a half-hearted attempt. She felt enough like a bully, but wait, it was bullying her. It was a bad critter, and Remy was going to be a hero and set things right. As it shouted in its foreign language, the girl ran toward the nearest signpost for clues to the Guardhouse. “Um.”

The horrid bug screeched.

“Gah!” Remy clutched her ears at the sound. It was loud and horrible and the force of it made Remy cringe and stoop toward the ground, but she kept running after a moment's of hesitation. The amethyst slipped out of her palm and dangled against her wrist. Did she hear wrong, or did it know Elysian too? Risking a glance, she saw it disappear and reappear after her. “Go away, or gimme back my cream puffs!” She flapped an arm toward the creature and turned right at the intersection. The road was emptier, and she knew that the Guard was just a few more blocks away. Xanth, she'd never lose the imp!

[Faroah]

Why was the little girl so obsessed with her cream puffs? Faroah hadn't meant to land in there! Was that why she was stealing his pretty shiny, as payment for the cream puffs he'd accidentally eaten? Hmm, well, dragons were very formal about their trades, so he should give her something for the food, but that didn't mean she could steal his shiny!

“Naga, naga! Ine, iny ine!” And he continued to chase her along the street, tail whipping left and right haphazardly to the chorus of horrified and surprised gasps. “I give something else, I give something else! My shiny, my shiny!” He'd even take her to his nest so she could pick if she liked!

¤ Piper's Boutique ¤ Dafont ¤ Wonderland Effect ¤ Meilin Wong ¤ Anime Rain ¤

[Remy]

To Remy's disappointment, she could not see any guards even as she ran toward a more crowded area. The tiny red thing was flew, poofed, and chattered behind her, and the commotion was enough to make Remy turn red from the attention. Or maybe that was her trying to run faster than the dragon could fly. Don't mind me, people, it's just another crazy dragon. Actually, didnt a bigger one go rogue in Corantha a while ago?

Remy was trying to remember and think about where she'd heard that rumor when a high-pitched voice sounded in her head. She didn't hear just a sound, but a coherent string of words. Eyes wide open, Remy whirled around. “Y-you!” She thought the voice had spoken at first, but she had experienced enough telepathy in her lifetime to catch her error. Raising a suspicious eyebrow, she slowed to a halt and clutched the necklace between both her hands. She couldn't help it, but she was curious. “What would that 'something else' be?” Shut up, Remy! You're supposed to be a good citizen and go to the guard!

Suddenly, Remy realized that the imp had been chattering in Elysian, but horribly. Who under Hel had taught it Elysian? Granted, this was her first time seeing an imp dragon, but she was truly surprised. She'd read that imp dragons were too bird-brained to learn anything.

[Faroah]

Ooooooh, he had her attention, yes, yes! That meant she could be bribed, yes, yes! So what could he give her? What could he spare to buy back his pretty shiny? His his!

“I give, I give!” But his Elysian, even telepathically, was limited, and most items filed under "pretty", "shiny", "yummy" or "ooh ooh!" His memory span was incredibly short as well, so it wasn't like he could list the items in his nest even if he could remember any of them. Except for the most recent one, and since that was the shiny he was trying to get back it was a moot point anyway.

So with a poof, he landed on the girl's head, dug his claws in accidentally in an effort to stop himself from sliding off, and then teleported them both to his nest.

((Continued in That Odd Little Girl.))

¤ Piper's Boutique ¤ Dafont ¤ Wonderland Effect ¤ Meilin Wong ¤ Anime Rain ¤