9 - Miss This

Joe accompanied Padu back to her ramshackle house. The more he looked the place over, the more he saw it was not actually rundown, just very, very old. He could see at least ten differently aged wall patches. The foot-formed paths around the house were deep, and weeds had claimed any spot they could root into. It reminded him of some of the old historical homes from his hometown: still cared for, but centuries old.

Joe, still feeling the aftermath of the nut battering he had taken, gave the old girl one more head scritch before he planned to drop her off and hobble back to Fort Coral. Padu, it seemed, had another idea. She gently closed her jaws around his wrist and gave his arm a tug toward the decking.

"You sure about this? I was told to have the utmost respect for Mister Loigen. Having him show up and find me hanging out on his front porch seems like a bad idea." When the large hound continued to pull, Joe let her draw him along with her to the old home. "Ok, but you had better take the full blame for this decision, sweetie."

Her snort seemed to be saying, 'Of course I will," but reading her was not an exact science.

Joe was tempted to take the old rocking chair on the porch, but that really felt like it would be pushing it with the unknown recluse. Instead, he eased himself down on the edge of the raised planks and sat with his feet in the weeds. Padu lay down with her head in his lap and promptly went to sleep.

Joe stroked her soft fur. Even though she had a lot of wolfhound-like features, her coat was not at all wiry; it was as velvety as a puppy's. Joe looked beyond her fur and flesh, assessing her health. Much like Madina Spooner, there was a good deal of inflammation he could ease for her, but there would be limits, too. Padu was very old. Joe couldn't be sure, but something was telling him that not only was she amazingly old for a dog, she was ancient even in terms of human years. Joe had the impression she was older than the towering tree shading the house.

He set a [Homefire] on the ground by his feet to soothe both of their aches.

[Homefire] - Uncommon - Spirit: Create a spectral campfire. Any living being in Short range of the manifestation regains 2 points of Health for each skill rank you have with this skill every minute. The fire lasts for one hour. Undead creatures in this area will take damage instead of gaining health. The flames radiate a gentle aura of warmth and comfort, blocking unpleasant environmental conditions, such as harsh winds or rain. They will not burn their surroundings or living creatures. Cost: Modest Mana | Range: Short. {Phoenix}

While he ran his hands down her slumbering form, he healed her joints and strengthened tissue where he could. By the time the bruises on his legs had faded away, her health aura was almost devoid of any remaining dark red. There was still more gray than the blue of true health but the removal of the redness of pain and injury should make her feel better.

A nostalgic warmth infused him as he watched the sweet lady sleep, her large head pillowed by his thigh. He had been away from his dogs for far too long. He had to have his aunt and uncle take his three pups when he went into hospice. They brought them, every chance they could, especially little Zoe, who was a certified therapy dog. Even so, he had not seen them for almost two weeks before his final days. Aunt Ann and Uncle Dave may have brought Zoe, but there had been several days at the end there where he hadn't been lucid enough to know if she was with him or not.

The thought that he would never see them again hit him hard. Joe wiped a tear from his cheek and buried his face in Padu's silky coat. [Morphic Form] even helped, allowing Joe to fold himself completely over without any stretched muscles. He knew he would have a dog again someday soon, but for now, the ancient hound was a greater balm than the [Homefire].

Joe had several traits, skills, and items that would help when that day came: [Beastmaster] and [Pack Master], for starters.

[Beastmaster]: Your animal companions will gain an attribute point each time you gain one.

[Pack Master] - Common - Spirit: You will be able to dominate lupine creatures. Your ability to command, intimidate and charm gains a 10% to overcome emotional resistance plus 2% for each skill rank you have with this skill. Canid creatures will be naturally drawn to follow you. Cost: Moderate Mana. | Range: Short. {Pack}

Joe had figured out that some combinations of affinities could have more than one name. For example, {Beast} and {Order} resulted in {Leadership} or {Pack} and sometimes {Leadership/Pack}, like it did with the three items that made up the Grimwald's Legacy set. The items from Groven seemed to Joe as though they were designed for a knight and their mount, but the way they were phrased, they would benefit any animal companion.

[Cavalier's Seal] (Finger - Uncommon - Set: Grimwald's Legacy) Your ability to resist {Knockdown} effects applies when mounted, and if you are in Immediate range of your animal companion, they receive the benefit of any helpful buff you apply to yourself. {Leadership / Pact}

[Marshal's Treads] (Shins - Uncommon - Set: Grimwald's Legacy) Median resistance to {Slow} effects and provides a modest damage enhancement to allies within Short range. {Leadership / Pact}

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[Vanguard's Diadem] (Head - Uncommon - Set: Grimwald's Legacy) Median reduction to the impact of the {Pain} condition and increase your {Leadership / Pact} affinity. {Leadership / Pact}

[Grimwald's Legacy - Full Set Bonus]

Self-buffs are shared with your animal companion within Short range Provide a median damage enhancement to your allies Elevate your {Leadership / Pact} affinity Allies within Short range of you gain a 5% bonus to Health and Stamina

In many ways, Joe was in good shape for a companion, but still, he was not about to rush that choice. He knew too many dog owners who just ran out and grabbed a pet without thinking it through. He currently had no home and no job. He was in a world with completely new rules and was potentially about to embark on new training and the hazardous new occupation of an adventurer. None of these were a good foundation to bring a new pup into his life.

Not to mention, was a dog actually the right choice here? Outside Crowfield, he had not seen many dogs. Granted, he had not spent much time in Heron's Reef or the outskirts of Peregrine Harbor, so that could just be a coincidence. It also could be a sign that this world was too dangerous for your average dog. Joe knew he needed answers before he even considered a pet.

Yet he could not see himself not having a dog. Some of Joe's earliest memories were climbing out of bed and curling up on the floor every night with the family's first boxer, Europa. When Ropie passed, his parents gave up on the no-dog-in-beds rule, and every generation since, until he headed off to college, had curled up around Joe at night.

Joe happily sat on the front porch with Padu until he finally spotted a rangy figure striding down the road toward the house. Across the man's back was a longbow, and over his shoulders was a brace of birds, rabbits, and some other beasts Joe didn't recognize. He guessed the hunter was about as tall as most elves, which meant he was about four to six inches shorter than Joe's 5'10" height. He had long, tapered ears, but his were more bat-like than elven. His limbs were long and wiry. Oversized hands and an inhumanly large nose confused his proportions. As did the hump on his back. Over everything was long pale hair, tufting on his head, hanging off cheeks and chin, fringing his arms and legs.

"What did ye bring home this time, Paddy?" the hunter asked the hound, completely ignoring Joe. "Another stray?"

Padu lifted her head and faced the archer, conveying some message to the man. Meanwhile, Joe assessed him.

Corran Loigen: Boggart (Fey): Heliwr / Marchog / Calondderwen 31

"An arallfydol? Really?" As Corran spoke that last word, he turned to regard Joe.

"What's an arafa-doll," Joe asked, doing his best with the strange name.

"Well, ye be not mortal, and ye be not fey. Croesryw or brithgi is what we call the halflings born on this side of the Veil. They would be other changelings, as well as bucca, grugauch, korrigan, and their ilk. But Paddy here says you be of neither here, nor of Annwn. So that make ye arallfydol. Ye be a true outlander."

"That's true enough. Is Annwn the feylands?" Joe asked, getting to his feet.

"That it is. That it is. Well, since me lady here invite ye to dinner, why don't we step inside and get these into a pot," the hunter remarked, indicating his catch on his shoulder. "I'm sure ye have questions."

Joe wasn't sure what he expected to find inside the house, but the sight of it halted his steps on the threshold. Outside, the farmhouse was weathered gray clapboards and a yard more weeds than grass. Inside, Joe found rich lacquered wooden beams and paneling, elegant furniture and polished silver. The room was an open design and multileveled. The architecture featured bends over straight lines: the joist braces were bowed, the stairs curved, arches and winding railing separated the sections of the room. The design was completely different from any of the old-world style homes and shops he had been in so far.

"Heh heh," the hunter chuckled, noting Joe's faltering steps. "No one expects a bugbear to have a noble home. Just the way we are, artless on the face, genteel within."

"Bugbear?" Joe uttered as he inspected the beautiful room.

"A type of boggart. We are the feared ones, which, surprisingly, you seem completely unaffected by," Corran prompted, but Joe decided to let it pass without clarification. The hunter seemed willing to explain things, so Joe wanted him to keep talking and not shift the focus onto himself. After a momentary pause, Mister Loigen did just that, kept expounding.

"Boggarts' primary gifts are fear-based. Those of the Black Court of Winter can be deadly with fear alone. We of the Brown Autumn Court use our fear for a reason, usually to warn away the unwary."

"Are there more than two courts? Where I came from, the lore spoke of just two, the Seelie and Unseelie courts."

"Funny thing that, we are basically down to those two now, but once there were four, one for each season and reason."

The hunter walked to his fireplace, which had a bright and strangely colorful blaze going. He swept his hand through the air, and the flames changed. They lost their twinkling, merry highlights. Joe felt heat flow from the hearth. The fey man tapped a large hanging pot, which was silvery in color instead of the typical black iron Joe had seen everywhere else. A gurgle of water sounded through the room, and the next thing Joe saw was the small cauldron beginning to steam.

"Reasons?" Joe nudged the old hunter. He hoped his short questions would not annoy the man, but he was unsure of the etiquette here. Here was a full-fledged fey, the thing he had been very nearly incarcerated or executed for his trace connection to. He had been warned these were tricky creatures and that they could bind you by your words, so Joe wanted to use as few as possible.

The hunter drew a long, elegant knife from a block in the kitchen area and began skinning a hare. "Beauty, Bounty, Purpose, and Pain are the reasons for each court. Those who belonged to the Erlking's Spring court dedicated themselves to artistry. Queen Gloriania's golden court of Summer are the lifebringers. Oakbaron, he who was my liege, gave us duties to uphold. Dark Morrígu's wintery clans teach all that there is no growth without pain. The terms you use are scholarly ones. Seelie for Summer. Unseelie for Winter. Yet you neglect the two fallen courts, Aseelie for Autumn and Ilseelie for Spring."

"So there is one Seelie and three not Seelie courts?"

"Ye are not the first to note that, Joe, yet the reasoning behind that takes much longer to tell. Cut the vegetables while I prepare the catch. We can have that tale with our meal."

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