VII

Elanor tried not to think of how Talvi could definitely see her blushing and curtsied swiftly, as supple as her winter jacket and heavy backpack allowed.

"You are a merchant, then?"

"I have here lots of goods to offer the local folk, and I travel..." began answering the young man, gesturing to his stall, when both of them turned their heads to witness Lumi consuming something out of one of the bags with supplies. 

"Oh no! Leave, leave that, Lumi!" yelled Elanor, grabbing the dog under his ribs and plucking his head out. Unphazed, the Samoyed was licking his face and looking content. "I'm so embarrassed! Did he do a lot of damage? Can I compensate you somehow? Bad, bad dog..." she kept babbling nervously.

"Ah, poor thing must be just hungry. What he ate was simply some trollish chestnuts. Those are delicious, until you get some sunlight on them and they turn hard as rocks," smiled Talvi and lowered to his knees to scratch Samoyed's neck. The affectionate troublemaker took the opportunity to lick the merchant's face.

Elanor fought the urge to thank him and returned the smile with relief. Just when her new acquaintance added:

"I shall take a small price as settlement for this incident. You will learn an important lesson needed in the lands of fae. You should not be offering favours or payment left and right, and to ward you off from being so generous and so open-hearted, I shall accept your offer," he announced with a grin. 

Elanor was scared to argue and could not think of any way out fast enough to not show her hesitation.

"Very well. I am only hoping that it shall not take too long, for my supplies are scarce," replied Elanor, trying to bluff hard and keep her voice calm, while anxious and alert on the inside. 

"You would accompany me to a business meeting, for I require your talent."

"What talent do you think I possess that a fae does not have?"

"Right on the mark! This lark is a perceptive one. You humans have the talent of lies, and it shall assist me greatly. Say, for example, you're not gonna dream of me holding you in my arms, whispering sweet nothings into those soft, clumsy ears of yours. To think, looking at them in person, human ears look like they aspired to be elegant and stopped midway..."

"Of course I'm not gonna dream of that!" protested Elanor awkwardly.

"See! Fantastic, just what I need!" beamed Talvi. Elanor looked away, flustered about how easy it was for the elf to tease her.

"Will you help me get back home after we settle your business in order?"

"My intention from the beginning was to see you return back home happy and safe," said faery, suddenly very seriously, switching from his usual effortless banter.

This was very reassuring to hear, despite knowing how foolish it could be to trust that a random stranger, let alone one of a fae kind, would be concerned with her well-being. 

Especially someone so striking... Focus! What a shameless flirt. On the other hand, if he cannot lie...

Worried that she wished to believe him more than anything, and not because it is actually rational, Elanor nodded and politely held out her hand. The young man looked at it curiously.

"What are you expecting to be given?..." he asked, smiling.

"A handshake. To establish that we have a deal," replied Elanor, unsure if it was a good idea to push her luck further.

"I see. Since I cannot speak lies, the deal is had once I say it is. But human customs are interesting, and I wish to learn more from you if you wish to share," said Talvi, and they shook hands.

"I wish to learn anything you could teach me about this land in return. To begin with, have we shrunken under some enchantment here, or is it a land of humongous plants?"

"The former. Those born here would keep their size if they travel to other courts. If I get, say, a companion mouse here, I can ride it here and then keep it in my pocket when I leave."

"So I will grow back to my original size once we're out?"

"Most surely. Not all the courts have unique magicks, but here, in the Summer one, they do. "

Summer Court. Then the mad dance party must have been in the Spring one. 

"May I ask what court you have come from?" tried Elanor.

"My introduction could have given it away, it's Winter," smiled Talvi playfully.

"Are there only season courts? Only four?"

"No, there is also Seelie and Unseelie. My business meeting is in Seelie Court. I was on my way there, doing some trading as I went."

"Will you tell me more of my task before we arrive?"

"Certainly. Let me just-" and the faery snapped his fingers, setting off his stall to assemble itself with some kind of enchantment into what looked like a vintage human briefcase. It was made of wood and reminded Elanor of those beautiful old plein air paint sets. Overall, the trick was indeed impressive and Talvi looked very pleased with himself. "-pack up and we can head to the local inn for the night. What do you think?"

A proper bed was tempting, and Elanor let the merchant lead them through flowery woods further, observing with wonder how tall buttercups towered over them and dropped long shadows on the rocky path. Bluebells and daisies slowly changed into mossy terrain with all sorts of mushrooms and ferns. Eventually, the odd party reached the inn: a massive tree stump was somehow made to fit multiple rooms with carved windows and a large tavern hall. 

The group followed the sounds of music and cheer and entered the hall. All around, merry folk were dancing; their smiling, flushing faces looking nothing like the dreadful grimaces of those fae scaring Elanor on the first night. Talvi approached the host to make arrangements for the rooms, and she took the opportunity to look around. 

The inn was greatly bigger on the inside than it looked on the outside. The tavern was carved in the heart of the trunk, and the rooms trailed up and around it in a spiral, forming twisting corridors with columns and atrium space for the dining and dancing area. Beer casks stood in abundance along the back wall, where a fire was built in a stone hearth, roasting vegetables of impressive size on the skewers. The smell was making Elanor's stomach rumble; she was so tempted to take a risk and treat herself with a hot, hearty meal; after all, she was not certain how true the myth was about not eating faery food.

"Lara! Here is your room key," called her chance companion, and she approached him with Lumi trailing close. The Samoyed acted very protective of her around other fae, although, as Elanor was guessing happened often, Talvi seemed to charm the dog very quickly. 

"It is nice to stay here and enjoy a good bed," said Elanor, trying to express gratitude without triggering a faery bargain by accident. "Does this inn have a name?"

"Close translation would be 'Inn The Oakenheart', if I may add a little pun on the human name," offered faery playfully, extending his arm with a tiny colibri-like bird sitting on his index finger. Puzzled, Elanor opened her palm, and the bird swiftly jumped onto it. The little creature had a beautiful, shiny coat of pure cobalt, tiny legs, and when it flapped its wings, they worked with such speed that was making them invisible, like those of a bee or a dragonfly. 

"They don't offer, say, human food here at the Oak?" asked the newly proclaimed Lark her temporary guide. She was distracted, petting the little, cute bird.

"I'm afraid that cannot be arranged tonight. But fret not, for I have in my wares some human tea. My treat, of course!" and Talvi elegantly invited her to sit at a table near the hearth. 

He opened the lock on his briefcase and fished inside for a bit, his arm diving in there up to his shoulder, and then his head disappeared inside as well, which made no physical sense in relation to the size of the case, of course. When he triumphantly emerged holding a teabag, Elanor let out a cry of excitement:

"Yorkshire! You are a man of fine taste, I see. This is very kind of you, good sir," she teased, feeling her spirits go up instantly. She poured some of her water into a copper camping mug that Talvi produced before closing the magic stall-briefcase and set it on the fireplace stone border to warm up. She was even able to find a couple of bags of sugar left from some cafe in her parka pocket.