It had been a summer of doing. Of losing and finding, laughing and making, snarling and singing, baking and hunting. There was a whole new world to explore, but that world wasn't very hospitable to outsiders, as it turned out. Nevertheless, there were no books with any details on the Fae in the Atheneum, and any information on the Wildwood was centuries out of date. Much of the Provost's time had been spent out among the trees and fields, glades and groves, rivers and lakes of both the Hollowed Grounds and the Greatwood as he pursued his calling and sought answers to questions they had only begun to ask.
There were dangers there, and not all came with the obvious trappings of teeth and claws.
Longheat was aptly named, however, the sun pounding down upon the parched, weary earth of the Hollowed Grounds and pummeling poor northerners like Jigano with merciless rays that left him a sweating, limp bundle of fur, feathers, or skin - no matter which form he wore. Today, at least, he had chosen to hide in the soothing shadows of the Guildhall, the underground chamber deliciously cool compared to the air above. His pen scratched quietly over a page in his journal as he recorded his latest endeavors, while small Isuma, still barely larger than a small cat, stretched full length upon the flagtones and dozed fitfully.
She perked up at the sound of the door opening, however, a quiet peep of warning enough to get her companion's attention, and Jigano blinked owlishly up from his work, shaking a cramp from his hand as he peered at the bottom of the stairs, wondering if Amalia was perhaps bringing snacks, or Killian had found a new treasure to share--
He hadn't expected the dark-haired young man who appeared, and it took him a moment to realize that his eyes weren't playing tricks on him. "Seiji?" he called, pushing his chair back and slowly rising, surprise and pleasure coloring his voice and smile both. "Seiji, I'm glad to see you! Please, come in. Would you like tea?" He was already bustling towards the hearth and the cooling teapot to heat the water again, eager to provide hospitality to a friend he hadn't seen in far too long. "Do you have time to sit and talk awhile? I'd like to catch up if..." he hesitated, glancing back to the other man with a wry, lopsided smile as he realized he was being selfish in his curiosity, and far too overbearing for the quiet Outlander. "Ah, forgive me. You probably came here with a purpose, didn't you? How can the Loreseekers be of service to you today?"
There were dangers there, and not all came with the obvious trappings of teeth and claws.
Longheat was aptly named, however, the sun pounding down upon the parched, weary earth of the Hollowed Grounds and pummeling poor northerners like Jigano with merciless rays that left him a sweating, limp bundle of fur, feathers, or skin - no matter which form he wore. Today, at least, he had chosen to hide in the soothing shadows of the Guildhall, the underground chamber deliciously cool compared to the air above. His pen scratched quietly over a page in his journal as he recorded his latest endeavors, while small Isuma, still barely larger than a small cat, stretched full length upon the flagtones and dozed fitfully.
She perked up at the sound of the door opening, however, a quiet peep of warning enough to get her companion's attention, and Jigano blinked owlishly up from his work, shaking a cramp from his hand as he peered at the bottom of the stairs, wondering if Amalia was perhaps bringing snacks, or Killian had found a new treasure to share--
He hadn't expected the dark-haired young man who appeared, and it took him a moment to realize that his eyes weren't playing tricks on him. "Seiji?" he called, pushing his chair back and slowly rising, surprise and pleasure coloring his voice and smile both. "Seiji, I'm glad to see you! Please, come in. Would you like tea?" He was already bustling towards the hearth and the cooling teapot to heat the water again, eager to provide hospitality to a friend he hadn't seen in far too long. "Do you have time to sit and talk awhile? I'd like to catch up if..." he hesitated, glancing back to the other man with a wry, lopsided smile as he realized he was being selfish in his curiosity, and far too overbearing for the quiet Outlander. "Ah, forgive me. You probably came here with a purpose, didn't you? How can the Loreseekers be of service to you today?"
