#anywhere

Vali's patrol along the streets and neighborhoods of the fief. Unaware that dire news and teenagers alike are a foot

*ping* *ping* *ping* *ping* *ping* The sound of a ball on pavement.

The troll walks by the newly bought home. Mmm there's something about this adress he was told.

As Vali approaches, Adam might see a troll he hasn't seen before. One with a purple star on a black Tabard

The drill slows.... stops.... stares.....

He glances over, notices the stare. Vali checks to make sure his fly is zipped. Yep. He rubs at his nose. Nothing unseemly falls off. Then he checks his hair.. no puffyiness.

Then "oh...Adam, right?"

"Uh." Gets out before he goes back to bouncing... and missing... and stuttering the ball and trying to shoot and putting it on the roof and trying to catch it as it rolls and missing and he chases it down the driveway......

He watches the ball roll "Have you considered bowling?"

The boy makes NO eye contact. He lunges after his ball.... it gets away..... he watches it roll into the street......


..... and he turns to go inside.

Vali picks it up "Hey it's okay. I got it." He says

Then a thought "And I'm on the list"

The kid stops in place.

A slow take behind him, to where the guy stands with his ball.

Vali looks at the house and looks quite sad for a moment, as if he were looking at the sight of a fire or tornado... then when he notices Adam has turned, he says "Think fast" And shoots the ball his way

The kid catches it! Reflex, all the way.

He blinks, his lips hemmed together.

"Nice. " Then "You make talk to me. I'm Mr. Gardener... I teach french"

"Ohhhhhhh......."

"Y... yeah. You're on the list." He nods, and slowly approaches.

He offers a hand "Nice to meet you"

He puts his little hand in Vali's big one. "You too. Sir."

"How's life treating you?" This troll is older than the girls, yet younger than Frank or the Chief

"Uh. Good. Thanks."

The shake is firm, engulfing "Met the 'devil on your shoulder who cares' yet?"

BIG EYES. "Nab?"

"So that's her name. I wondered." He does release the hand

"She's... she's cool, though."

"Glad to hear it. I imagine it can be frustrating not sure who you can talk to"

He nods. A lot.

"That's kind of what it's like for us every day" He says "Oh sure, we can talk to each other... but there's a whole world of people we can't really be ourselves with."

The kid blinks. "Oh."

"You sound surprised. "

His eyes sparkle with a bit of humor

"Everywhere is.... trolls."

"Is that how you see it? I look around and I see a world too small for me in almost anywhere I go but two buildings." He gestures, "I look about and I see a world where if I use the words honor, duty, or chivalry, folks will snicker or mock. For every troll you see... I see dozens and dozens of people who can never know the real me. Who would think me a monster if they knew me by my true appearance alone. And so many of them are cold, chilled... they are walking freezer units in a world that's already edging into a winter my kind is not expected to survive. A few, a very few, if I coax and work hard, can help bring a little warmth back... but it's not easy. And a lot are just... there, like great swarming creatures that pay me no more mind than a buffalo would pay a cloud. Trolls are outnumbered, and dying... in a world that, if they knew about us, might urge our extinction on."

The kid (Adam, surely) is .... overwhelmed.

"Chivalry.... should mean something." He manages weakly.

Vali glances over, "I was going to make a joke about 'and that's why I need to breed with any single adult relations you have', but I suspect it would fall flat , besides, my girlfriend is a crack shot." The big man smiles, "Yes. It should.... and does..and despite my rather glum take on troll chances of beating the odds, sometimes the fight is worth despite or even because it's hard. Does Chivalry mean anything to you, Pilgrim to the Imagined World?"

A long pause. "Huh?"

"Pilgrim, one who travels to foreign lands, particularly to places that are sacred...miraculous. Does Chivalry mean anything to you?"

"Uh. Yes?"

Dubious.

"Great. What's it mean?"

"Uh?"

"What does Chivalry mean to you?"

"Might for Right. The Strong protect the Weak. Justice."

"Hard to go wrong with the classic summary" A nod . "So... you got any questions for me?"

A long pause. "How hard is French?"

"Easier than a lot of languages. I mean, English had a lot of French influence for part of it's history... so some words are very much in common though the pronunciation is different, of course. It's certainly easier than Russian, or at least is for me."