Ame and Jaekob Go for a Walk, Smeagol Spies

Amethyst McMahon tugs at the Druid's hand until he stops, as she hears the nearby neighing of horses.

Amethyst McMahon turns and looks towards the Gypsy camp near the river, "Any news from Kathena, Jaek?"

Ame and Jaek Near the Gypsy Camp

Jaekob Faolan moves along the path with his mate, stopping when she stops, a smile curled onto his lips. He shakes his head, "Nothing. And I must confess I am beginning to worry a bit."

Amethyst McMahon nods, "Aye, she is not gone this long on her wanderings usually."

Amethyst McMahon narrows her eyes, "But there is a fire at the camp. Is someone else there now too?"

Jaekob Faolan: "Well, now that the Demon is gone, things should be quietened and all back to normal routines. I did hear from one of the gypsies, Kitty, that there had been so mischief in the gypsy camp. And, yes, there are several Gypsies camped there."

Amethyst McMahon looks at him quizzically, "Mischief?"

Amethyst McMahon: "The Fae?"

Amethyst McMahon grins, "Pixies perhaps?"

Jaekob Faolan nods, chewing on his lip, "Things were pillaged a bit, nothing seems to have been taken," he says looking toward the Gypsy camp. "Possibly, sounds like something a Fae might do. Or someone down on his luck."

Smeagol Shade cringes from where he is hidden behind a large clump of bushes. He snuggles Fish closer as he listens, "Us heard that?" and then he holds Fish out to take a look at the pair, his spindly arms reaching from the behind the tree, Fish focused in their direction. "They will think Us did it. Us has been good and Us only tasted the food in the pot and Us got burned from it."

Smeagol Hides and Listens

Jaekob Faolan: "We really need to fill the High Sheriff's position so we will have someone to investigate these things hmm?"

Amethyst McMahon laughs and pulls on his hand again as she moves towards the river, "Oh yes.. and then you will also have a little more time for me, Druid."

Smeagol Shade perks a bit at the mention of Druid, "That is not Usses Druid. That must be an imposter. Us must tell our Druid about this," he nods to Fish. "Us gots to protect our new friend."

Jaekob Faolan shakes his head laughing and follows her. Jaekob Faolan pauses at the bridge toward the Shadow Lands, "The Demon may be gone, my love, but we could encounter Drow if we pass to their lands."

Amethyst McMahon smiles as her gaze wanders across the river towards the waterfall and she breathes in deeply the scents of the forest. Her eyebrow arches and she looks at the Druid, "THEIR Lands? I did think YOU were caretaker of all of the River Lands!"

Amethyst McMahon shrugs casually, "I've been across this bridge on a number of occasions, Druid. I saved Piglet just across the other side of the river."

 Jaekob Faolan laughs softly, "I am that, I suppose. Still do we not regard their space respectfully? Though I heal them often enough, I doubt they would mind."

Amethyst McMahon: "I have never encountered a soul past the bridge. If I did meet anyone, I would be respectful as ever. But come, I want to make sure that the area that was burnt when I found piglet is green again."

Amethyst McMahon marches ahead and crosses the bridge to the Shadow Lands. Jaekob Faolan nods and smiles and clasps her hand tighter, following.

Amethyst McMahon: "Ooh, Druid... the grass where I found piglet was always green, but there was some dark, cold fog or mist covering it. But look over here at this enormous fungus... I've never seen such a growth!"

Ame and Jaekob in the Shadow Lands

Amethyst McMahon: "And there is still a darkness settled here... the Shadow Lands is true to its name, it seems. The Drow like it here?"

Jaekob Faolan nods cutting his gaze in the direction of the web covered mushrooms, "Perhaps, is the mountain hmmm?" he asks shaking his head. "It has always been dark here. And, yes, my dear, the Drow find this environment to their liking. It is darker and move foreboding once you enter the mountain passes or the UnderDark as they call it."

Amethyst McMahon opens her eyes wide and gazes upwards as far as she can see through the bleakness, "Hmm, the mountain may throw such a shadow, but it is otherwise damp and unwelcoming here, I must admit."

Amethyst McMahon: "Where does the darkness end. Come just a little further, Druid," she grasps his hand tight and ventures on.

Jaekob Faolan chuckles softly, his gaze turning back to meet her eyes, "And yet, you come here looking for strays," he says following her.

Amethyst McMahon stops and turns to brush a quick kiss across his lips, "Yes Druid, I am fearless as you well should know!"

Jaekob Faolan bites his lip hard to stifle a laugh, "Of that I have no doubt, my dear. Still we should not pass further into the UnderDark. The Drow would not be very welcoming am sure."

Amethyst McMahon pouts and turns back towards the path, peering across the water, "What is that ruin across the river, Jaek. Was is a home once?" 

Smeagol Shade feels a slight tremble, "Us hears that? They know about Usses home. Now where can Us live?'

Amethyst McMahon: "How does one reach it?"

 Jaekob Faolan turns to look across the river, his eyes, settling on the old ruins behind the Citadel, "Those ruins have been there for as long as i can remember. It goes unused am sure, just a relic from the past." Then he points to the stepping stones that cross over to the ruins.

Amethyst McMahon follows his gaze and begins tugging harder on his hand, "Ooh, stepping stones! Let us go explore, Jaek."

Jaekob Faolan's grasp on her hand tighten and he pulls her back toward him, "The hour grows late, my dear. We should return home perhaps?"

Amethyst McMahon stops abruptly, pulled back against the Druid. As she turns into his arms, she gasps and points towards a barely visible opening in the mountain side.

 Amethyst McMahon: "A cave?"

 Jaekob Faolan: "No," he says rather emphatically. "That is the entrance to the UnderDark and we will not be going there."

 Amethyst McMahon's eyes widen and she whispers breathlessly, "Oh! Have YOU been in there, Druid?"

 Amethyst McMahon moves closer to her Druid, the cold seeping from the mountain making her shiver

 Jaekob Faolan: "You are incorrigible," he says with a bit of a laugh. The Drow are....well....they are enemies for lack of a better word, my dear. And, yes, I have been in the UnderDark but only by invitation when a healer was desperately needed."

Jaekob Faolan: "No one is welcome there, my love. They will kill intruders without a thought."

Amethyst McMahon moves closer still, seeking warmth, watching him thoughtfully, "But, that Drow Ryn came to see you... before the Demon possessed him or maybe even while he was possessed."

Jaekob Faolan nods, "And I... we will welcome all into our lands if they come in peace, my love. Even the Drow. But, they are not so like minded and we must respect that."

Amethyst McMahon shakes her head, "Still, I don't understand it, Jaek. You once said that the Queen of the Drow is a healer. Why would they call for you then?"

Amethyst McMahon smiles softly, "Perhaps they do seek friendship?"

Jaekob Faolan chuckles and pulls her closer to him, "Unlike the elves who live above ground, they breed like rabbits. Their community is not as vast as ours and the Queen is intent on producing female children, my dear. I have been there to help her birth, only." Amethyst McMahon raises her eyebrows, "I see, Druid. You are simply a necessary tool to them at such times. But still, this Ryn did seek you out, and Xella. He did seem rather conflicted for someone who considers us his enemy."

Jaekob Faolan: "Yes, a necessary tool is a good way to put it," he says running a hand through his hair. "I am not sure who visited, the Drow or the Demon. And, yes, he seemed likable enough. But, I suspect there was an agenda to his visit. As to the Drow, no one has seen sight of him since we banished the Demon. The Drow may be gone as well or returned to the UnderDark."

Amethyst McMahon shivers as the cold seeps into her bones and she hears a rustling nearby, tugging once again at the Druid's hand, "Let us return to our warm fire at home, Druid. This is not a place I care to discover more of."

Smeagol Shade skitters back to his lair in the old ruins. He plops down holding Fish close to think on the conversation he had just heard. Surely, he needed to tell Druid Fiesty about the imposter Druid. And he needed to think on whether his lair was really in danger of being found.

Jaekob Faolan nods, tightening his grip on her hand and follows her quietly toward the bridge leading home.

Amethyst McMahon smiles lovingly up at him as their cottage comes into sight, "Time for something warm to eat and maybe even some Elven wine, Druid?"