"And it will again the longer we're in here," the bard agreed, oddly cheerful despite the warning. The Labyrinth was always a place of challenge and danger, but it was honest about it. True, the squirrels tried to mislead you and the hedges moved to hide the exit, but nowadays he knew that's what they were doing. He had no false expectations or notions of trust here. It was clean, clear, and simple: him against anything and everything within the thorny hedge walls. No politics, no bargains, no secrets, no lies. Every once in a while that sort of simplicity was worth its weight in gold.
Er, potatoes. Gold wasn't worth much here, after all.
The shift from badger to goose was unexpected enough to catch the bard off guard, and he blinked in astonishment before bursting out laughing at the clever twist Loren had pulled on him. "Exactly like that!" he agreed with a chuckle. "When and how did you manage this?" It was no longer quite so shocking when a person he knew was Attuned gained a new form, but it was always fascinating to see what shape that form would take!
He nodded as Loren changed back and accepted his company, grinning at the question as they began to walk. Heading in was always so much easier than getting out again after... though for once, he wasn't planning to take anything with him when he went. "There's an herb that grows near the center of the maze," he explained as they went along. A soft susurrus around them warned of the squirrels that continued to follow, but the hedge rats had grown mostly silent after the mangling of their kin. "Called 'Efas herb.' It has some mild magical properties, near as I can tell, that helps it work as a cure-all for most minor ailments. It's particularly good for arthritis and swelling and fevers, but also scrapes and bruises, stomachaches, headaches... you name it. I've collected it a number of times, but now that my magic is strong enough I'd like to see if I can help encourage the patches of it that I can find to grow back, bigger and healthier, to help make up for what I've taken before."
Er, potatoes. Gold wasn't worth much here, after all.
The shift from badger to goose was unexpected enough to catch the bard off guard, and he blinked in astonishment before bursting out laughing at the clever twist Loren had pulled on him. "Exactly like that!" he agreed with a chuckle. "When and how did you manage this?" It was no longer quite so shocking when a person he knew was Attuned gained a new form, but it was always fascinating to see what shape that form would take!
He nodded as Loren changed back and accepted his company, grinning at the question as they began to walk. Heading in was always so much easier than getting out again after... though for once, he wasn't planning to take anything with him when he went. "There's an herb that grows near the center of the maze," he explained as they went along. A soft susurrus around them warned of the squirrels that continued to follow, but the hedge rats had grown mostly silent after the mangling of their kin. "Called 'Efas herb.' It has some mild magical properties, near as I can tell, that helps it work as a cure-all for most minor ailments. It's particularly good for arthritis and swelling and fevers, but also scrapes and bruises, stomachaches, headaches... you name it. I've collected it a number of times, but now that my magic is strong enough I'd like to see if I can help encourage the patches of it that I can find to grow back, bigger and healthier, to help make up for what I've taken before."
