025.2.1 Janson

[Corwin]

[21:11] <Janson> Oh, thank Jannath! Janson is greatly relieved that Wayland isn't quite that dense after all, and gives him a grateful smile. Holly will have called ahead, so he just opens the door while knocking on the frame. "I'm home!" he calls inside.
[21:13] <Kotono> At last, Janson comes home. The smell of sauteeing squash tickles his nose. As he savors that, Holly comes out from the kitchen. Following her is Janson's mother. She looks to him once, up and down and over. She clicks her tongue, "Jannath, I swear you've grown a few inches since I last saw you."
[21:15] <Janson> "I've been eating well," Janson asserts, smiling a bit as he thinks of all the candy back at Whimsical Sweets. Safe in their own home, he gives both his sister and his mother a tight hug each. "I've missed you both, Holly, mom. How's life been back in the village?"
[21:18] <Kotono> "As it always is." Holly banters back once the hugs are given out. A moment later Mom gives Janson a longer look, "Now what's this I hear about the oracles and you returning ont he heels of disaster?"
[21:21] <Janson> "It's not like I meant it," Janson wilts under that look. "See, I've got a job with this group called Whimsical Sweets Troubleshooters. We sell delicious candy and solve problems - oh, I should have brought some along, actually, you'd have loved it..." he mutters, momentarily sidetracked. "Well, next time I will! Anyway, someone in Balmuria wanted a troll so he could use its blood to make
[21:21] <Janson> healing potions and things. So I said to everyone that we could get a troll from the giants. It's not like I expected the ley lines would start exploding with elemental energy once we were in the forest!"
[21:24] <Kotono> Mom crosses her arms, "Is that all, Janson? I know what the rumors were last time!"
[21:26] <Janson> "I'll swear before Jannath, I had nothing to do with this," Janson asserts emphatically. "And you know those rumours are all bull, anyway - the source of my power's in your blood as much as mine."
[21:28] <Kotono> Mother tsk-tsks, but goes to rub Janson's cheek. "I believe you. How about dinner in an hour? It's spring squash. You can tell us about Balmuria in the meantime."
[21:31] <Janson> "Sure," Janson nods, smiling now that they're back on more comfortable ground. "I've made lots of friends there, and my job's really fun. I got to fight a werewolf, and a Sharran, and candy monsters... And you know, I live near these Selunites who have revels on a full moon that sound a lot like what the daughters of Jannath do, except men are allowed as well. I'm going to have to try that
[21:31] <Janson> out when I get a chance."
[21:33] <Kotono> "Men are allowed?" Shaking her head back and forth, "Lunatics! Absolute lunatics." The kitchen is small and homey, a hearth with pot hanging over it. Holly goes to tend to it, Mom going to sit down at the dinner table. "A werewolf...hmm. The forest has been unsettled in the last few days, and that includes the wolves."
[21:34] <Janson> "Yeah, that's what they call themselves," Janson grins. "The werewolf was actually out in the mountains and a while ago. I figure the wolves are unsettled by the ley lines - when we ran into a vortex on the way here, all the animals were laying down around it to watch. They just said they had to," Janson shrugs, not having a better explanation as he goes to sit as well.
[21:36] <Kotono> Mom purses her lips, "It's only to follow. I wonder what caused all this? The ley-lines sometimes surge, but never like this. At least that I've ever seen."
[21:38] <Janson> "The Oracle said something about a lake of gold - my friends and I have to leave tomorrow to seek it out. Maybe we'll find answers there?" Janson suggests. "I remembered what was causing the Vortex from something Elder Elena once said, but yeah, it was supposed to be rare. When we ran into signs of another one a few hours later it was a surprise, then we got here and heard there'd been even
[21:38] <Janson> more."
[21:39] <Kotono> "You'd best be careful. The forest is unsettled." Mom says, Holly turning back to call, "It really is. We had to put down a berserk boar yesterday. Not even the elders could get through to it."
[21:40] * Janson makes a face. "Yeah, that does sound strange. Was it enchanted or diseased?"
[21:41] <Kotono> "No. It's because of the ley-line surges. It's effected different animals in different ways," Mother says mournfully, "What I'm really worried about is the giants. Who know how they'll react. They're sometimes little better than barbarians."
[21:42] <Janson> "Elder Vanessa didn't seem worried about them, if that's any comfort," Janson offers. "I hope the oracle's right and we can get to the bottom of this, though. Did Holly tell you about the dryad that was with us when we got here?"
[21:47] <Kotono> "No, tell me about...wait, a dryad? There's no dryad trees that close to Aralla!" Mom's eyes go wide.
[21:49] <Janson> "We found her three days back," Janson hooks a thumb Westwards. "Her tree was consumed by an earth/fire vortex but the fire empowered her to survive without her tree. It's been a really hard adjustment for her, though - she's over with Roselia burning deadwood right now."
[21:53] <Kotono> "...." Mom makes a face, "Jannath, that's...a dryad burning wood?"
[21:55] <Janson> "She said it was akin to cannibalism for them," Janson admits, "But she *really* wants to burn things. The fire's in her heart, now. We've been trying to get her to accept it constructively, like clearing deadwood, burning out disease or blight, protecting forest-dwellers. I think if we left her alone she'd have lost it and started a wildfire within a few days."
[21:58] <Kotono> "Poor thing. What is she going ot do," Mom asks, "She sounds like she has no place in things."
[22:02] <Janson> "Well, she's travelling with us for now - the oracle mentioned her going to the lake of gold, too. After that? I guess she could go anywhere, not bound to a tree... I've been trying to talk to her about how she can use fire and still be part of nature, but I don't think it's really sinking in," Janson shrugs and furrows his brow. "I'm not that good at convincing people, y'know?"
[22:03] <Kotono> "I know." Going to pat Janson's head, "Are there any women traveling with you? They can probably talk sense into her."
[22:05] <Janson> "There's two, Aaeru and Andrea... and yeah, Simmer did seem interested in learning about their deities, so I guess there's that?" he shrugs helplessly.
[22:06] <Kotono> "Support them helping her. They can hear Jannath and feel her intuition. They'll get through to her," Mom says with a knowing smile, as Holly calls over her shoulder, "Dinner will be ready soon!"
[22:08] <Janson> "Need any help, Holly?" Janson asks, eager for a distraction from how the misfortune of being born with a penis makes him worthless. Admittedly many of Jannath's followers find some use even for that, but that certainly doesn't count with these two women.
[22:12] <Kotono> "I got it!" Holly says. Dinner is brought over and served. Over dinner Holly pauses, "So who are the rest of you traveling with you? The blue man was quite unusual looking and exotic."
[22:16] <Janson> "Well, Simmer's the dryad I mentioned. The blue man's Wayland, he's some sort of part-human part-air elemental, but he's from Pallanth and acts just like an elf. He actually got killed by the werewolf but Ilmater brought him back, just like that," Janson snaps his fingers. "Aaeru's a follower of Ilmater - she's a bit like some of the more devoted daughters who leave the village to live
[22:16] <Janson> amongst the animals, she lives in a cave and refuses to take part in any kind of barter or commerce, and you can't even give her gifts or loans since she'll refuse them. And Andrea's a warrior-bard and follower of Alicia. She's really shy, though, and refuses to ever not wear armour except when sleeping or bathing."
[22:17] <Kotono> Holly starts to smile, "How do you know when she takes off her armor, brother?"
[22:17] <Kotono> "Holly." Mom gives her daughter a stern look.
[22:20] <Janson> "Haha, no, we're not that close," Janson laughs. "Actually the owner of Whimsical Sweets wanted her to wear a dress when advertising the business and she refused, she said those are the only times she doesn't wear armour. I don't know how she can stand it, really - even this little chain shirt gets on my nerves, and she's got these massive steel plates all over herself," he taps his own
[22:20] <Janson> light armour.
[22:24] <Kotono> "She sounds devout," Mom observes, shaking her head. "So you'll be leaving in the morning?"
[22:26] <Janson> "That's the plan," Janson nods as he dines. "Enough time to do a bit of catching up with people tonight, and we'll stop by again on our way back, of course."
[22:27] <Kotono> "Cheers to that," Mom raises her glass, "Be careful out there, the forest is dangerous right now."
[22:29] * Janson takes his own glass and matches the gesture. "Even if the other three are more used to cities, between Simmer and I we should be able to get through the forest without much trouble."