#earthrunes

Lily sticks to the ceiling of the halls, observing, as her way, events going on. As the head sluagh among the childlings.... though she did not ask for this burden it IS obvious, she must stay ahead of snooping and spying compared to the other childlings. Most alarming, Nelson is not far behind her, and he's not even a sluagh but a sidhe!

An Eiluned, but still.

Ah ha! A subject. Oh, it is Earl. Truly, Miss Zara has all spying rights on him. But she will understand that a young lady MUST hone her skills... or atrophy!

Earl, as is proper, is tailed by a spider. 9, Lily thinks.

Lily mmphs, she likes the spiders, but really they are much harder to hide from. She decides to continue after the troll and sees he is moving in the direction of the art gallery. Wait, no, a surprise, he is veering off . INTERESTING. The chase continues, and sluagh and 9 both make after Earl to see him going just outside the hold where a shifty looking clurichaun with a dark green tricorn hat awaits.

"You got the stuff?" Earl asks. Quite not like his genteel usual self.

"Depends" the Clurichaun says "You SlimBlue22?"

"Yes, and you're NotSus8all.." Earl answers, "Now do you have it?"

NotSus8all... who, Lily suspects, is not using his REAL name, offers up a bag. Earl looks in it. Sees what he likes... both 9 and Lily STRAIN to look but can't make out exactly what it is..rounded? is it pear shaped?

Earl hands over some playing cards, "Custom made, every card hand painted by yours truly. A unique Tarot set done ala DeBuke."

"Ooo, another for my collection!" NotSus8all takes them, smells the scent of the cards, and almost purrs, "Yes yes... good trade, good trade."

And the two part. It's a race to see who can look at that bag first in more detail. 9 or Lily!

Peek? Peek?

9 is having trouble getting a look, but then so is Lily. They're forced to follow Earl... but ..ARGH... treacherous troll! He's leaving the grounds and going into the sunlight! Heading towards the house at the bank of the river where his lovely lady and he reside. Lily curses the great flaming orb that ruins so many sluagh's vision with its brazen garishness! ☀️

She follows, but nwo is forced to walk on hot grass...

And in the sun's almost direct light. She shall burn to ash and none shall mourn her, she decides, but at least she'll haunt all those who use lawnchairs in the open sunlight. Yes, there are worse fates. She almost trips! But Earl, normally alert, gets distracted and misses his chance to find her!

She can't catch up, blast his long legs!

One last chance... she must leap on top of the log as Earl cross and use it to keep up in stealth surfing... surely impossible, but she will try!

She leaps on the log, splashes a bit, well that gave her away.... that's when the chimerical alligator , which only LOOKED like a log, decides to eat her. She yipes, but only in a whisper!

But Earl is there! Racing forward with quick silver to snatch the girl up and draw his blade, "Lily, what are you doing here?"

Lily holds on to his back, muttering "i rather think I'm dying of embarrassment."

Novem scuttles down to makes sure the spiderling is okay!

Well, as okay as one can be with a chimerical alligator attacking the troll your'e on the back of.

The alligator does lunge, and Earl curses, "Sorry, can't hear you! " He catches the gator. He's not the strongest troll, but he holds it for now "Lily, I need a bit of your glamour..."

Lily realizes she's scared.. she's scared! Oh my how thrilling and yet she's imobolized ... Novem can see her fear. The girl needs ressurance!

The sister lands on Lily's head, trying to be heavy. It... well. There's a spider on her head.

Lily blinks and whispers "Novem? I.. if I help the gator might get angry at ME."

FIRM TAP.

TAP.

Lily's little jaw sets, as she realizes novem is right, and she nods reminding herself of a sluagh lesson adapted from a book and used for better purposes, "I must not fear fear. Fear is the glamour shimmer. Fear is the little-death that brings total liberation. I will taste my fear. I will permit it to pass through me and I through it. And when it has gone past, I will turn the dream so it serves me even as it feeds. Where the fear has gone there will be power. By fear, a sluagh reigns." And she draws in on her fear, and the wondrous images it conjures, musing herself and ... fills Earl's next cantrip!

A much softer pat. Good spiderling.

"WOW, "Earl says as the Alligator is hop scotched away with ease!

It doesn't go as far as he hoped, but he did feel a bit rushed. He gets to shore, the shore of their home rather than the hold side. "You okay?"

Lily says "Of course, fear serves slaugh. That was exciting, might we do it again?" She says. But taps softly 'thank-you-novem'

A blush she tries to hide./ Earl sighs "No, no you cannot do it again. We are never doing it again. Now what were you doing in the river?"

Lily contemplates this "Drowning?"

Earl grunts ("I should know better than to have asked. I really should.")

Lily does not speak troll THAT well. SO annoying.

"Mr. Earl.." She grabs into the water, and pulls out the package he got , "You dropped your bag!" She offers it.

"Oh god, yeah , I just paid a... well, it's supposed to be a surprise for Zara." He opens it up to make sure the object inside is not ruined.

THIS allows both Novem and Lily to finally see the Russian nesting doll. Well, Zara has one of those, but this design IS different. It looks so wholesome at first... the outer layer. Very detailed in the painting, not Earl's work though.

Lily shoots him a look and tries something, "Mr Earl, might one ask how these are... different from other Russian nesting dolls?"

There. She's asked. Curiosity beat pride. Oh the shame.

Earl eyes them both, "If you both promise NOT to tell Zara and rather let her find this on her bed later tonight?" A hem

Zara has fallen for the same. More than once.

Yes, good company. "Yes" Lily says. It's not an oath or a pinky swear, but she'll promise, "I promise not to say anything to Miss Zara about it so she can find it on her bed later." I could however write a note

"And Novem?" Earl asks.

Novem attempts to look innocent.

All 8 eyes attempting to be "puppyish"