Nora Epperstien sat at the small table Maximus Wind-cleaver moving stuff around in the stuffy oak kitchen. there was a mug full of Maximus' nut ale he's painstakingly made for their visit. Lois the Tulip smiled at Nora from the window and Maximus glared at her rudely.
Maximus had told Nora to dress nicely because he wanted to have a tea party, Maximus was spontaneous like that. so that meant Nora dressed in her favorite clothing items, much to Maximus' dismay. she was wearing black leggings, knee high black leather boots, and a white tunic with Gold embroidery. Leonard her lucky stone tied with an old string found in an old cupboard around her neck. she stretched out her legs and arms cracking all of them, gaining shudder from Maximus. she smiled gleefully at his disdain,
"thank you for the invitation, i felt the ties of our friendship start to grow cold. i guess you felt it too?" she nodded at herself "i knew we couldn't have that, so i sent a message to you through the wind reminding you to remember me" Maximus nodded and came to sit down. his large fluffy tail high above his head proudly.
"i missed you. Lois was wilting as she does when you're gone too long." he gestured to their friendship blossom and Nora nodded, she tilted her head listening.
"Lady tiger just had her cubs. three of them, it sounds as if the second is the weakling," she said listening to the sounds the wind carried to her.
"what does Daniel say?" Maximus asked about the cubs father,
"he's crying. you'd think tigers wouldn't cry, not like humans."
"well, none of us are humans in the valley," Maximus countered. Nora nodded, there weren't many humans or even half humans in the valley, Nora being one of the exceptions.
"this is good," Nora said raising her glass to her lips, Maximus shook his head at the unwanted attention.
"where are you staying these days?" he asked her folding his hands, and she shrugged.
"here or there, you know more then anyone how i can't stay in the same place for too long." she said "but i'm staying in he forest right now. usually most of the trees accept me, unless they're a frankly old oak." she grimaced. Lois made a small noise and Maximus got up to open the window. he came over and sat down, asking about her many adventures she's been having these past couple of days. she'd told him a couple leaving out too many parts because she'd known he'd worry about her.
"that sounds like a lot of fun, have you broken into many humans houses lately? i heard a rumor about a thief over the hills." Nora smiled wickedly, and Maximus stopped. "please tell me you didnt do anything too dangerous." Maximus begged her in vain.
"i didn't." she assured him, "i never steal from the poor. and i never take anything too valuable." she smiled, and Maximus shook his head. they sat there in comfortable silence for a moment. he got up and went to the cupboard by the stove and took a deck of cards out.
"wanna play a couple rounds?" he asked and Nora nodded so he took a jar of pennies as well. he came back to the table and shuffled the cards absentmindedly. there was a sudden chattering from a couple birds from the open window, and Maximus muttered a curse in his language, which made Nora choke on the drink she'd just taken.
"i'll never understand your hatred for the things of the skies, but yet you accept me as your family." Nora said cocking her head to the side thoughtfully.
"you don't leave your feces on the roof of my house, so that i have to clean it up." he said grumpily, standing and closing the window. Nora laughed at that, he sat down again taking his cards he'd laid facedown on the table. they played that game for sometime, Nora won as she usually did.
"oh, i almost forgot." Nora got up laying her cards on the table and moving over to her leather pack most of her belongings was in, she opened up the buckled top flap and took out a small package wrapped in a leaf. "it was you name day," she put i finger on her lip thoughtfully, "5 days ago. and this is for you." she laid the gift on the table and stood back crossing her arms. Maximus lifted the small parcel and weighed it in his small hand,
"what is it?" he asks looking up at her curiously.
"well, you'll have to open it to find out," he unties the simple twine that held the leaf over it and removes it. lifting the leaf he looks at the small smooth stone with confusion, and then he looks up his eyes landing on Leonard, and smiles brightly.
"its a luck stone!" he says in awe rolling it over in his hands. "where do you find it?! these items are practically extinct." his brighten as he takes in the smoothness of it, and as he feels the power that flows from with-in.
"i have my ways," Nora shrugs and says "and i found it where i found Leonard" she lifts her own and looks at it.
"i still don't understand why you named a creature of beauty Leonard , it makes no sense to me." he shakes his head in glee and inspects his gift again. Nora looks out the small window in Maximus' small abode and saw that the sun was lowering.
"well, i guess this is my cue to leave." she shoulders her bag and Maximus sets his stone down with surprising gentleness. "how old are you again?" Nora asks him petting Lois in farewell, who sighs in content.
"20 now, i know." he shakes his head again, "I'm so very old," she smiles.
"then I'm on a road to death that comes very soon." Maximus shakes his head,
"being 20 in squirrel years adds too much." Nora laughs, and pats his head which is high above her own,
"i think you're all right for a couple more years now." she stood in-front of a small mirror by the door making quick work of braiding her hair. she takes her tight fitting jacket and zips it, "it was nice to see you." she smiles at him "that you for the ale, it was one of your best batches." he nods as if he already knew this.
"you need to be going now, or the wind will be going too fast and thats not very safe for you." he pets her head in return, "may i tell you something you might not like to hear?" he asks her steeping back, she shrugs. "your father would be extremely proud of you." he says and she stops in shock,
"what?"
"he would be proud of who you've become," he says again more clearly as if speaking to a small child, Nora shakes her head.
"you knew him?" she asks, and he nods slowly.
"i was very young when i did, my father knew him more well, and told me about his adventures he'd had with him. would you like me to tell you about him?" he asks tentatively and Nora shakes her head,
"i don't want to know anything about him, he left me to fend for myself. i can't forgive that ever, and i wish to know nothing about my parents, now i need to leave. goodbye Maximus." she waves and opens the door closing it behind her she throws herself of the small porch of Maximus' home. she caught a wind current that rose her to the sky, she waved her hands through the clouds twirling dangerously. she never wanted to know anything about her family. she did know, that her mother was a human, her father was not. she suspected he was a lowly tree dweller like herself. one who bedded a human unknowingly, and she knew her mother left her on her fathers for step. which wanted nothing to do with a small half-human daughter, so sent her through the wind to care for her. now Nora was 17. 17 years of traveling and thieving while her mother lived a life unknowing, her father knowing, and not caring. Nora reached her small pine tree bedroom which she had made for herself on a limb of Glyser the sapling. Nora took her few belongings she had and looked at the sky. she hummed in thought with a finger on her lips and threw herself off of Glyser.
A/N
My sister gave me the characters to this story and i thought they were sort of interesting. i hope you guys enjoy this :)
Elli~
