[Faroah]

Faroah's nest was a small pocket dimension only accessible by teleportation, so usually the only people who ever entered were he and Xanth - and the latter only to bring him more treasure. He couldn't remember ever bringing a mortal here, not that that really meant anything (and could vampires really be called mortal anyway?).

It was huge. Even the walls were gold, if they could be seen beyond the rolling mounds of glittering treasure. Piles of gold, littered with sparkling gems and scraps of tin foil. Soft cushions, luxuriant pillows, and heaps of silken fabrics. Crowns, swords, goblets, a plush doll or two... everywhere Faroah looked, pretties and shinies gleamed back at him, and it was heaven.

And he plopped Remy right smack in the middle of it all, jumping out of her hair to glide to the top of the nearest glittering pile so that he was eye level with her - even though his gaze was fully fixed on his shiny. “Oo,” he told her. “Pick one, pick one. Give meeeee.”

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

[Remy]

Before she could argue, protest, or even make a squeak, the dragon poofed onto her hair and Remy heard something pop. Maybe the popping thing was her because suddenly, the world went dark and she had the nauseating feeling of her body being stretched, flipped, and reassembled in the span of a sneeze. “censored!” she wheezed when she finally felt her lungs again. “What the censored!” White spots danced in her vision as she stumbled backward and landed in a pile of something hard and lumpy.

“Pick one, pick one. Give meeeee.”

Rubbing her eyes, she scrambled to get on her feet again, but her feet still felt wobbly, and she landed back in the clutter. Her vision cleared, but even then, she still could not be sure of that. Piles and piles of shiny trinkets sat within the brightly-lit room of gold. But it was not possible for an imp dragon to be this rich! Or even if it was, it had to have had help! Dragons couldn't magic golden walls out of thin air---if the walls were really gold! By the madness of Isolde---she was dreaming! Eyes almost as wide as her gaping mouth, Remy tried to say something, but the words caught in her throat. After various tries, she finally rasped: “Where the Hel am I?”

Wits soon caught up, and she sat up indignantly. “Scourge take you--you can't just poof people around!” Holy Xanth! The dragon had teleported her! Like a portal! But smaller! She flopped an arm in the air--the room was still spinning for her--“Gytrash dung and taroch crap! Where the Hel am I?” Her breath hitched, and she glanced around for a door. Remy was so not panicking...

[Faroah]

Why wasn't the little girl shrieking with glee and fidgeting her way through his shinies in search of one she'd trade for the necklace? He'd brought her here for that sole purpose, why wasn't she doing it?

“Ura ura!” he told her impatiently. Hurry! Hurry! And to make it obvious, he scampered towards her foot and started tugging on her shoe ineffectually. But then, since she seemed a little shell-shocked -- and really, who wouldn't be at the sight of his sublime, pretty, shiny, lovely, wonderful gigantic nest? -- he scurried away and rummaged through a nearby pile. Tossing aside anything he didn't think she'd like (rubies, emeralds, a dead firefly he'd forgotten to eat), he stumbled back to her under the weight of a golden goblet (that was larger than he was!) adorned with oval onyx stones around its rim.

“Give meeeeeee,” he cried, pointing at the necklace, and pushed the goblet towards her so it rolled a little ways down the pile he was standing on.

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

[Remy]

As the imp dragon chattered and skittered among its belongings, Remy whipped her face toward all corners of the small room, and even toward the ceiling. There wasn't a door and she was trapped! As her initial anger faded, Remy became increasingly concerned of her situation. Being in a room full of treasure may have been stuff from her dreams, but her excitement was dimmed by doubt. What use would treasure be if she couldn't leave with it? Remy scrambled down her pile to get a better look at the floor. Surely there'd be a trapdoor under all this treasure, maybe? Even so, the ground was barely visible with all of that treasure piled on top of it. By Xanth---she'd be damned if the only way out of here was that tiny dragon! It had better bring her back to Espur.

A voice in her head indicated that the creature was still here (to her relief), and Remy crouched toward the goblet that rolled to the floor. She raised an eyebrow at the sight of that gaudy black and gold cup, and her nose wrinkled when she realized that the dragon was bartering with that. She stood and looked at the dragon. Remy had no interest in fancy goblets and dark gemstones, so she was a tad greedy when she asked: “Do you have something less tacky?” If she was going to trade, she might as well make it worthwhile. Belatedly, she corrected herself, “Less shiny?” The dragon would probably appreciate that.

Then, anxiety clashed with greed as Remy crossed her arms and asked warily, “If I trade, will you let me out of here?” As she said this, Remy tightened her fingers around the amulet. Look at you, Remy, offering the amulet as if it were yours! The noble thought was quickly quashed by multiple thoughts of self-interest. Given the circumstances, she would not hesitate to use it as part of the bargain now.

[Faroah]

Faroah had been confused and tilted his head to say as much when the little girl asked for something "less tacky". What was tacky? Was it yummy? If it was yummy, why did she want less of it? Did she not like the goblet? Why didn't say "I don't like it" and pick something else, then, instead of asking for something less/more yummy?

“Less shiny?” Oh! Why didn't she say that right from the start? he wondered, and babbled to himself in an attempt to imitate the word "tacky". “Ag, ag!” he crowed, satisfied with his rendition enough to chant it as he released the goblet and let it roll down a pile of gold. It glinted with every turn, enough to almost hypnotise him into watching it intently until it came to rest with a chink against the butt of a silver-plated crossbow that was sticking out at the bottom of the pile.

“Eeh,” he finally told her, dragging his gaze away and up to meet the little girl's. And “Eeh!” again when she asked him to let her go. He didn't collect little girls, so she was safe, although if he were bigger maybe it would be a different answer. “Eeh, eeh. Ooh, ooh!”

“Choooooooooooose.”

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

[Remy]

It still insisted that she choose something, so Remy shrugged and crouched beside the pile where the goblet had fallen. The imp still hadn't promised to send her home, but she took its actions as a sign that it would. Wrapping her arms around her knees, she peered at the pile and pushed the goblet aside. It had rolled beside a silver crossbow, but Remy wasn't interested in weapons, so she barely gave it a glance. Piled above the crossbow were some silks, pendants, a small wooden chest, and an ornamental dagger. Who knew how the imp came across these things? And how long had it lived, to have accumulated so much? Then her eyes fell upon something that was blue and glowing underneath a heavy chain of gold. Brushing the necklace aside, she realized that the blue thing was a tiny statuette of a semi-coiled angel snake. Its wings were spread flat, and it was barely the size of her hand.

It wasn't the best quality since it didn't glow that brightly, but it was enough for Remy. Something warned that it wasn't right for her to complete this trade--but scourge take it--nobody would know. All the good teaching of her Ma protested emphatically as Remy reached out for the shevrock. “This one.”

[Faroah]

As the little girl rummaged around in search of something (finally! What was wrong with these two-legs that they couldn't understand a simple arrangement?) to trade, Faroah niggled a bit. Burrowing a little into the gold pile so his body was half-submerged, he ruffled his wings and chirruped. He would have spent the time finding a good place for his new necklace, but the girl had hung onto it. Smarter than she looked, that one.

But an agreement was an agreement, so even if she had handed it over he would have honoured the trade. It made him nervous that she hadn't.

“This one.”

“Ooooooh, itty itty.” He'd never noticed the shape of the shevrock before, only that it glowed prettily. But he'd buried it because the glowing disturbed his sleep, and he wasn't fond of snakes - angel ones in particular, since one had tried to eat him once. Bad snake, bad ssss!

“Eeh, eeh!” he told her reluctantly, teleporting to dangle from the necklace and tug at it with his wings flapping. If she'd chosen the glowy thing, he wanted his necklace, yes, yes! And as soon as she let go of that, he'd scurry with it to the highest point in his nest where he normally slept on a pile of cushions, and then take her home.

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

[Remy]

Even though it had been chattering to her the whole time, Remy still couldn't understand a word it was saying. However, she recognized its intent as it latched onto the amulet within Remy's left hand. Apparently, it approved of Remy's choice, and that was fine by her. “Here.” She opened her hand palms up, and the red critter immediately snatched and flew away with the (twice) stolen object. The amethyst glittered and swung in the air in the claws of its new owner.

Ignoring the feeling of guilt that prickled in the corner of her mind, Remy hummed a small tune to herself as she watched the dragon land and skitter across his piles of treasure. This is so surreal... As it darted toward a high pile of pillows, Remy lifted the figurine in her hand and experimentally held it at her eye level. She forgot her guilt immediately upon that second glance, and the corner of her lips lifted in a grin. It was quite the pretty crystal, even though its glow was weak. Remy wasn't good at naming colors, but she'd guess that it was kind of river blue. The mineral was a lighter color where the wings expanded, and even though craftsmanship was simple, she still saw and felt tiny indentations of shallow snake-scales. It would serve as a better nightlight than the generic one that rested on her floor (but of course she wouldn't leave it on the floor).

Lightly, she clasped her fingers around the snake and waved her other hand toward the imp. He'd disappeared partly behind his cushions, so she spoke to get his attention. The dragon seemed like a scatterbrained creature, and she'd feel dreadful if he forgot about her and poofed after hiding his shiny. “Done yet?”

[Faroah]

Faroah had actually forgotten about the little girl trapped in his nest. Or, rather, he knew she was there, but he'd forgotten that she couldn't leave, so he was beginning to suspect her of something shady. Her "done yet?" jogged his memory and he squawked.

Teleporting to land on her head again, he took up two chunks of her hair - one in each tiny fist - and tugged on them one by one as if he could steer her like a puppet. Snickering to himself at the thought of owning such a mannequin (maybe he should ask Xanth for one, yes, yes!), he poofed them out of his nest. Since he couldn't remember exactly where they'd been before, he just guessed... and chattered with satisfaction when they found themselves facing the Shrine of Stolos.

“Eeh,” he affirmed as he left the girl's head to flutter in her face. In a single Elysian word, he conveyed all his satisfaction: Eeh, yes. Yes, yes, I'm good. I'm amazing! I'm so nice to you - for had he not returned her exactly where he'd found her?

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

[Remy]

Again, Remy barely had the chance to realize that the dragon had teleported onto her. Instantly, her body felt the wrench of nothingness as she disappeared from the golden room. Taroch crap, she thought, and her mind turned upside-down and whirled as she was pulled back home. Remembering of her new prize, Remy clutched the item toward herself and abruptly stooped down in a crouch. Even as her body became conscious of the cold breeze and soft ground of Espur, she kept her eyes shut and willed away the sensation of bile climbing up her throat. It took a moment for the chilly air cleared her mind, and with a deep breath, she tilted her head back and opened her eyes.

The breeze was ice-cold, and the soft ground was actually covered with snow. Remy honey, you are so not in Espur. She gaped, gasped, and immediately grabbed for the thing that was tangled in her hair. “This isn't home!” she spluttered. To be extra sure that the message went through, she thought-screamed, “This isn't home!” She was not dressed for the weather, since it had been summer back in Espur.

Her small face turned paler than usual as she took in her surroundings. As she glanced around, she realized that she was in a town by a lake, and that she was in front of a statue of an anyeli crouching amongst flying arrows. In the anyeli's arms was a baby. The character looked familiar, but familiarity was not enough to help Remy in this situation. “Where am I?” she voiced aloud, and then “No! Take me back to Espur!” Oh, what would she do if the dragon left her here?

[Faroah]

Faroah's self-satisfaction was starting to sound a little bit like one of Midnight's purrs. Until he realised she was not as happy as she should be, the ingrate, and he was squelched in the middle by her frantic grip. The way his eyes bugged out in response might have been comic if it wasn't so painful.

“Ehhhhhh,” he squirmed, his long tail whipping around her wrist and tugging in vain for some freedom. And air. He wasn't getting any air.

“No! Take me back to Espur!”

Espur? Oh. That was the place with all the fishies, yes, yes! So he teleported her to Despina.

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

[Remy]

Clenching her teeth, she sucked in a deep breath of air as the teleporting sensation pulled at her limbs again. Please be right please be right. A thin tail wrapped itself around Remy's arm as she pulled the dragon toward her shoulder. Wobbling slightly, she blinked blearily at the new location. It was by the sea, alright, and for a second, she was even fooled into thinking that this was Espur. But Espur didn't have mountains surrounding it, and it didn't have carts hauling ores all over the place.

With a squeak, she shook her head again and stomped her foot. “No no no! This isn't my home!” Clearly, this was retribution for trading that stolen amulet. The dragon was too scatter-brained to even send her home! And she hadn't a clue where she was. Espur was Espur, nobody could miss such a big city! Her throat opened and closed as she struggled for words, and she glanced worriedly at the strangers passing by. How in Hel was she supposed to describe Espur to a dragon? Trust it to teleport her away, and not know how to send her back! “Just send me back where you found me!”

[Faroah]

“I tryin', I tryin', I tryin'!” Faroah screeched, frustrated because she was being entirely unhelpful. “Essa, Essa.” He knew that's where she wanted to go; he hadn't forgotten because she kept saying it! But he couldn't remember what Espur looked like... He'd been so busy trying to get that awful woman to stop stealing his new shiny, how was he meant to look around and smell the chiolen?

“Naga naga naganaganaganaganaga.” He didn't like this little girl any more. Now she'd got a brand new shiny off him, she was being mean, yes, yes!

But, oh, wasn't Espur a shiny city? Yes, yes! So he teleported them, and nodded with great satisfaction when they landed in the middle of a bustling street lined with shops, and the smell of pancakes coming from a place with a sign on it that had the letters R O S I E S (not that Faroah could understand what that actually said since he'd never bothered learning Elysian...).

(( They're in Alexandria, but since there's a portal there Remy might prefer to ditch him by now. ))

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

[Remy]

Frown deepening as the dragon screeched back at her, Remy resisted the urge to stomp her foot again. Instead, she clenched her nails into the wings of the crystalline snake, and crossed her arms. “Try harder,” she spoke, and didn't bother to hide the frustration in her voice. But as an afterthought, she muttered a quick, “please.” No use getting on the bad side of somebody who was supposed to send you home.

“Just think of a big, big city,” Remy sighed. She wasn't well-versed in Elysian geography, but she knew that there were very few cities in these realms. Again, she felt the dizzying sensation of warping, and shen she opened her eyes again, she was greeted with the sight of many many people walking in the streets around them, and a parlour standing in front of her vision. Rosie's didn't sound familiar to her at all, but they were certainly in a big city.

Tightening her grip on the dragon, Remy caught the eye of a passerby and inquired, “Where are we?” The stranger had an odd look on his face, probably from the absurdity of the question---or the struggling dragon in Remy's hands. Nevertheless, the man mentioned New Alexandria before hurrying on his way. Crap on a stick. She had friends here, but New Alexandria still made her antsy. Still, it was the next best city to land in, since it was somewhat familiar to her. And it had a portal! Hands coming together, Remy patted the dragon's head lightly. It was a troublesome creature, but it had still been responsible enough to send her home. “Thank you,” she spoke before opening her hands to let it go.

As she followed the signs to the portal, Remy fished through her pockets for a COM. She had to call Penny!

((Remy has left the thread.
Haha, yeah I would've just let her leave Faroah in Hesia, since Hesia has a portal too, but I think Remy was too worried about unfamiliar territory to think of that. ))

[Faroah]

((Oh! Hahahaa, I forgot about the portal in Hesia. ))

“Eeh!” Faroah chirrupped as the little girl left. “And stay out!” -- because it was entirely her fault that he'd gotten lost, yes, yes!

Still, he had a new shiny out of it (shame he'd had to give one up in the process but his pet goddess always said that letting things go was a good thing. Not that Faroah could ever figure out why, but she was an odd one, his Xanth) and that was all that mattered in the end. Yes, yes! “Itty,” he drooled. “Itty iney.”

And he went back home to his nest to snuggle with the necklace.

((Thread finished. Thank you, Joyness. That was fun. ))

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