28 The sleek shall inherit the mirth
The wind chimes were tuned to make different melodies in the realm of the Fae. The music fed through the seasons changing with the weather's canvas. The rain made more of an echo, the bright sun more of a vibrato, spring had more energy to the tempo while autumn was more relaxed with more flats in the scales. When it snowed there was the calm, muffled sound as the chimes would collect frost and powder. The muffled chimes had a certain inviting warmth to them like the winter could sometimes be warm and cozy. In the way that good mittens are soft and keep out the cold, the chimes were quite special during this season. Oberon wasn't particularly drawn to the frosty months, but he did seek them out for a reason, and that reason was half fire, half elf.
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When you are offered something of great value it's usually wise to consider the motive lest you be caught in its momentum.
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Tricksters, because of their gift, are very misunderstood. A trickster always offers only wisdom, but unless you are willing to learn, you will never receive that gift. They are often misjudged as troublemakers, instigators, and general disturbers of the peace, but that's only by those that don't understand them. The hardest lessons to learn are always the most personal and often most painful because they strike at the individual sense of pride we associate with the concept of the ego. Where you are weak a trickster will teach you to be strong, but that can only be achieved by exposing your weaknesses. This can make them the most powerful teachers or devastating foes. A trickster will give you the rope to hang yourself with that you could have used to get out of the grave you keep digging.
When a magic user goes through the process of being initiated they typically pick a divine sponsor. What character divinity presents will usually be the reason the deity was chosen by the magical though some prefer to summon first and choose from who shows up. Zion, then Medora, opted for the latter.
Because Medora had great ability with magic several deities presented, each offering something unique. Listening to each and looking at what they had to offer, Medora carefully considered the benefits and drawbacks of each.
The ritual for choosing is a unique one that requires a conduit to open up a portal between the realm of divinity and the physical realm. Different ways have been utilized, but Medora didn't do any of them. Impatient, the divine summoned the princess through the mirror gate.
The portal that opened was beautiful. Light gleamed from every direction and beautiful creatures lined up each holding their gifts. Medora found them all tempting, but struggled to choose until the eye of the princess saw some indistinguishable form of a shadow shrouded in a glittering darkness. Immediately drawn to the uniqueness, Medora began to approach. The other divine called out to the princess words of caution "The darkness will cause your eyes to play tricks on you, stay in the light." But Medora didn't listen.
Approaching the swirling dark a voice came out of the void "What interests you?"
"I am unsure because I do not know all things so I can't know all that interests me." Medora answered back.
"I can give you an understanding of all things." A shadowlike coyote said as it emerged from the darkness, its eyes twinkling like stars.
"What do you ask for in return?" Medora questioned the curious being.
"Your pride." It said with a toothy grin, it's sharp teeth gleaming like mercury.
"Then we have a deal." Medora extended her hand to shake as a gesture of the good faith agreement being sealed.
The coyote bit the princess's hand and shadow and light pooled into the wound as the coyote lapped up the blood. Darkness and light seeped into Medora's veins and travelled throughout Medora's being. Pain followed by fatigue traveled through every space within that being until both light and darkness flowed forth from the princess's eyes and mouth as Medora crumpled to the ground wretching. Then, as quickly as the princess was summoned, Medora was spit out of the mirror as if nothing had ever happened.
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Lucky, finally able to stabilize in her chipmunk form, was the first thing Cerberus saw when he woke up. He felt both relieved and anxious. Relieved to see Lucky, but anxious about the situation they were currently in. Lucky, despite the many things that made her nervous about her situation, felt the pressing need to reassure him. She chirped and then crawled under his hand and wiggled rolling over on her back so he could scratch her tummy while she kicked at his fingers playfully with her paws. Cerberus couldn't help but laugh, and that was the reaction Lucky wanted. If Cerberus was calm he could think, and if he could think he could accomplish what he set out to do. Lucky then handed him a small, round, black piece.
"Lucky, how did you get this?" Cerberus asked as he ran his thumb along the piece's smooth surface and thought about Zion.
