Histories

Willow was standing silently watching a small nest lodged precariously on a thin protrusion of rock when Shiro caught up with her.

The normally confident but wild elf Champion was subdued to an extent that Shiro did not need her ability to read emotions to see that. It made sense after all, to Shiro at least, the crystals the Holy Kingdom had used to seal the Champions away had placed them in the state that was most abhorrent to their very being.

For Willow that had been a looping nightmare where everyone and thing she loved died over and over again, while knowing that it was somehow her fault.

For Hassium it had been not just them being locked into one mode of existence, but that their proximity would lock others into the most uncomfortable forms.

While it might not seem like much when described, Shiro was coming to realize how much of her life had been lived in a similar manner, but being forced to live as your worst self left marks.

Shiro put her hand on Willow's shoulder, no words would be right. As one of the parents returned to feed the chicks in the nest Willow spoke, "These are dancing rainbow birds,' the sound of barely contained tears echoing in her voice 'when they reach mating age for the first time their plumage will begin to glow and ripple through all the colors, then they will all congregate around the nearest waterfall to mate. Once they mate the color leaves their feathers a dull brown to blend in while nest sitting and they become infertile."

Shiro looks at the birds "Does not seem like a great way to keep a species alive."

Willow nods "Yet some how they have, one of the oldest poems we have in elvish references these birds so we know they have managed to survive longer than the Champions. The tragedy is that we don't how they did it and we never will, because poachers will snag the young and sell them before they can mate. Thus the plumage stays forever magically colorful, even in death."

Shiro does not know what to say about that, or even why she brought it up.

More silence passes "I was a poacher once,' Willow offers into the silence 'the best one ever, whenever I was seeking I could almost become whatever beast I was looking for and thus would always lead my group to a capture. We were so notorious and successful that the Champion of the time took it upon himself to track us for capture. Never had I seen the wildlife behave like it did for him, one moment I would be in a trance leading my group on like normal, all the tracks and smells and behaviors normal and correct. Then suddenly the flock of birds we were seeking or might stag we had in our sights, would ambush us with cunning and ferocity that bordered on the possessed. By the time we realized we had become the prey and were trying to shake them off half the group was dead or incapacitated, and the whole forest was after us. By night fall I was the only one left and I lay bleeding from where I had been gored in the leg."

She shifts and rubs the old wound through her trousers.

"Taken before the courts I full expected death, for that is the penalty for poaching to the degree which I had done it. Instead I was remanded to Yewhawk the Champion who ended our little band. Eventually penance turned to learning and now we are here and I am responsible for every living thing in the Deepwoods. I-"

She is interrupted as Hassium calls their names and waves them over "They got the goat arrangements made and Rory the guide is anxious to try making up time." The Slime says, sporting in this moment their manly beefcake form.

With the moment broken Shiro gives Willow a quick hug, and whispers "I am here if you want to talk."

Willow laughs as they approach the rest of the group and says "You sound like Hassium. They have been helping me work through this since the second year I knew them. I appreciate it though and just needed to say things out loud, that little talk should hold me another hundred years or so." She ends with a wink before going over and laying her head on Aspen's shoulder.

The sky is once again clear with the sun not being to warm, Ezma singing trail songs that raise the spirits to meet the soaring birds as the party heads down the road. Laughing, joking and taking their turns to request songs from Ezma.

Shiro was finally glad that she had been summoned to this world.

***

Charlie had been lucky, her family estate was on the northwestern end of the Kingdom so after stumbling upon a village with a healer kind enough to mend her without to many questions or payment, it had been an easy march to old stomping grounds where Charlie had long since stashed many caches of clothes and weapons around her family's domain.

She wondered as she dressed in one moth eaten set of cloths, binder and mask, if her family even remembered they had a daughter at this point. Likely not as back then when her brother Charles had died in a hunting accident and she Charlotte had taken his place with ease and no questions.

How long had it been since she had been home? The last option to had been when she was asked if she wanted the party celebrating the promotion to Knight Commander at the capital or the family estate.

As much as she wanted to tax her ungrateful parent's resources, all the people that she needed to hobnob with in preparation for the next promotion would never have come all the way to the edge of no where.

A matter of hours later Charlotte Eclair Wildingmonte watched as the door to her childhood home opened before her and light washed out over her.