#rescuemiriam

"If by okay you mean bad ass, yeah" He says "I once cut the head off a golem with this. Not easy. I take pride in what I do. Most here have honor in a more chivalrous bent. Me? I got pride. Pride gets me by fine. "He whirls it about easily even in a sitting postiion,, then lets it land with a THUD to show it's weight.

"Can I?" She jerks her chin at the axe.

"Sure" he tosses it to her, not head first, of course

She snags it, giving it a heft, seeing how it feels in her hands.

"nice" He says watching her work with it, "You're strong, even for one of our kind. See, trolls are the strongest kith there is, as a rule."

"Yeah? Are they in charge? I saw another. Goat kid."

"ha ha," A grin, "Are they in charge" Jagged wolf teeth, "Well, Chieftain Brekke is in charge of this lodge, but she's also technically a baroness. You met a Satyr. Probably Zane if he was at the school. But most of the ones in charge are the Sidhe... not spelled how it sounds... they're essentially Elves. Delicate little buttercups one moment, then nigh unto demi gods the next. And all Sidhe are beautiful...annoying that way. But they don't have as much presence in Rivervale as some."

A snort. "Course they are. That doesn't seem right. Why not just do what you want if you're the strongest? I know I'm stronger. I can feel it. Like... like I was sick, and now I'm not."

"Lots of reasons. One, strong doesn't win always. that's why wolves can take down an elk. Smarts matter too, and you're smart enough to know it I guess. Then, well, there's the code."

"Strong helps." A shrug. Head tilt. "What code?"

"Well, there's more than one... the Seelie Code, the Unseelie Code, those are spiritual belief systems most of us tilt towards one way or another to one degree or the the other, but trolls are big. We don't fit so easy in just that. We follow a third Code along with it. One other kith don't understand."

"Don't fit anywhere..." A sullen undertone, maybe not meant for him to hear.

"Don't be so sure your old rules apply. Anyway. I better tell you of the Code of Dagda. You got your ears on? I don't want to spit in the wind for my own amusement"

She drops to a crouch, setting the grump's axe down beside him before settling in on her haunches. "I'm listening."

"Okay, this was handed down to the trolls from the Goddess Danu, you don't have to believe that, but you should know the history. Now I'm unseelie, and my spin on it would be different from a Seelie troll's. You don't have to see it all the same either. We're not brain dead goons and shield walls. " He clears his throat and spits to the side then goes on...

"okay...."

"Protect the Dreaming: Sounds simple, but we debate this one a lot. Sure, Freeholds need protection- Flaming sources of glamour in a cold world trying to snuff us out? No brainer. Other kithain? Blends in with the right of rescue. But what about Chimera? Dreamers? Everyone draws lines."

"Sylvi said that, too. Rescue. I ain't apologizing for killing those chimera things, earlier."

"Sounds like you shouldn't. And now you know where your lines are there." He continues.

"Respect those of Higher Station : Now some of the sidhe assume this means we automatically kiss boot on some guy because of his or her title. But you can respect someone, and disagree or even deny. And higher station must not just be EARNED, it must be continually earned. A leader earns thier station by action. IF they get lazy, then a people have a right to ask "What have you done for me lately?" and they can keep the title, they might even be able to order around, but they're not entitled to respect anymore. That's not just sidhe though. I don't care if it's a Troll Chief, a Redcap Corby Leader, or a sluagh spinster who leads a tea circle. If they've worked and earned that spot, you should give them their due. This is a hard one fo me, L ike to test folks. But... respect? Yeah, always a work in progress. Obeidience is easy, respect is hard."

"Yeah. Well." A soft huff. Still - hackles are down, and while she might not be relaxed, her guard seems lowered.

"So, like - baroness, and elves... knights, you said. There kings and shit, too?"

"OH yeah, theree's even a High King. Actually, the noble system rewards trolls better than some Kiths. We're good warriors ,and even the sidhe can respect that. Squire, Knight, Baron, Count, Duke, King... High King- to use the male half of the titles. Me? I'm a Rover, we're called 'knights of the way' but it's not a title like in the 'officialsidhe sense'. Frankly I don't give a damn, but some of the finest trolls I know are in the system so... whatever they want"

"Yeah - you said that before. The silver?"

"Yeah, I'll tell you more about those later, but you're so new I don't think you should go deeper into the Dreaming yet. If you do? First rule, stay on the silver Trod, anything else isn't safe, and sometimes even then."

"Are Dreamers people who live in the Dreaming?" She hazards a guess.

"Nope, but some say they make the dreaming possible. " A deepbreath "Martin Luther King Jr? was a Dreamer. Gene Roddenberry, the guy who made Star Trek? was a Dreamer. Some girl who makes art on the side of a wall that others are too stupid to recognize way beyond graffitti? She might be a dreamer too. they make glamour when mused, and you have to treat them like the golden geese they are. You don't KILL the golden goose , it's stupid. You want to hear the rest of the Code of Dagda or not?"

"Yeah, yeah... Protect, respect..."

"Never abuse your Strength: Sounds like a killjoy, but mostly what it means for some of us is we seek out foes who can take it. Other trolls first and foremost... some because it's chivalrous, but others? Hell, I want a damn challenge, and I'm not going to get that beating up some boggan, those are round short little guys and gals whose gifts do not often lay in battle. If I take a troll my size on? Folks are like 'whhoo bad ass' and screw im, I know I'm one. If I slay a dragon that's asking for it ? Stuff of legends, and even if folks don't know, it I DO. And will always treasure that fight. If I slap around someone 1 third my mass with a rolling pin? Then I'm acting like someone angry at the world for having less than three inches in my crotch" A snort

Her shoulders tense up. "Yeah. Dick move, beating up somebody smaller than you. Okay."

"Accept an Honorable Surrender: this one isn't about Seelie or Unseelie- it's about capability. We're the best damn warriors of the Changelings, and if we kill them, they don't learn nothing, to quote a western. Now, some yahoos try to use this to 'oh so cleverly trick us', but the next time we get them, we make sure they damn well realize their error of their attempt. Word gets around. Most don't try this stunt often. But we keep an eye out for it."

"How do you know it's honorable?"

"Now THAT is the very thing we debate about. Seelie, Unseelie, and everything between. " A chuckle.

"Like, what if they're talkin' shit and just go 'I surrender' when it looks like there's gonna be consequences?"

"My view? they can't surrender before a fight has even started. Now they can apologize fast, but that's another matter."

She looks down at her hands, frowning. "You say don't abuse... but is it abusing to get even? Or make sure nobody messes with you?"

"Huh, Sometimes Revenge is a sucker's game... but een the Seelie have a 'repay all debts'. Look. If you want to lawyer it up, getting revenge with your brains rather than your muscle doesn't break the code of Dagda does it? Also, you're allowed to defend yourself. We seek out foes of equal might, but if someone comes up and popsUS in the jaw, nothing saying we have to take it. That last bit, someone messing with you how?"

"I mean, if somebody were to."

He listens

"People leave me alone. I like it that way." She rips up some grass, making a little pile of it. "Except today, I guess."

Pauses, looking up. "What happens now? With me?"

"Huh, " He noticed a gear shift there of sorts but doesn't press, "now? You're one of us. That is, the changeling community, and the troll kith. You're part of one of the biggest secret societies there is. We teach you the rules, but we also teach you your power. You learn magic as well as fighting. You learn stuff from us even as you continue to go to school. You don't let your folks know unless they're fae too. Or at least kinian, that's fae blooded. Tell me abit more about your homelife, not becaue it's my biz, but if we need to kidnap you and take you hundreds of miles away now would be a good time to know."

"I dunno. I don't think Julie's a changeling thing. Or Matt. They're, like, super boring. Just like to show off how good they are by taking on charity cases. I think they're pissed they got me, Tanya's more what they want."

"Oh, you're a foster kid? " He nods "Shit... well, sounds like you've had a diet of suck for awhile now."

A curt shrug. "Whatever. Is what it is. They're fine. Leave me alone."

"Some, you know, want a prop to show off. But I'm not cute enough anymore for that. And it's not a group home."

"Beats wwhat you had before then?"

She nods, looking away.

A nod, "you tell me when you're ready. Who knows maybe we'll explore that vengeance okay or not okay thing. " a smirk. Then ,"Okay, right now, we need to give you more basics, introduce you to the others, and probably find an excuse for the fosters fam on why you left early. Unless one of them is particularly banal, it should be safe to stay with them. I can tell you one thing, 'it is what it is' just got a lot wider and more interesting for you."

"Do we have to tell them I left school?"