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  1. - Top - End - #91
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    [The Dreamlands]

    Bats catches the bolt out of the corner of her eye and-!

    Twists herself so the bolt strikes her full on the back instead of having any chance of hitting the little girl.

    And then she shrinks!

    Thankfully not so swiftly that she isn't able to put the little girl down before the kid is too large to hold up.

    "You... you ggrrr! I won't swear in front of the children because of you!" Bats fumes in a tiny, helium-squeaky voice. "But you'll be sorry! And you'll be sorry quick!"

    Well.

    It would appear all three fae are incapacitated. Except for Otis, who still hasn't gotten back yet.
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  2. - Top - End - #92
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    Default Re: Silly Plots 2: Electric Boogaloo

    The Dreamlands

    Isaac flows out of his hiding space.
    "Probably, but we don't have to make these kids suffer for it. Walk away, and let me take this round." he says, tilting his head to see if he could use the cart to carry the kids back home.
    Spako Highclaws by Ceika.

    [Sorry Boss, but as always, I get the last word.]

  3. - Top - End - #93
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    [The Dreamlands]

    The cart is pretty big. More or less typical size for a carriage to be drawn by two horses. But the hitch looks like it is only designed for one very large horse. Isaac might be able to pull it, though his legs are pretty short. He can certainly give it a try. There are four children plainly within sight, all gagged, bound, and unconscious. There's no telling what's in that fancy cart, though. From the looks of it, it's one of those things that's designed to fold out into a full-on shop of sorts.

    Wonder which of these stooges does all the selling?

    Probably the clam.

    Y'know.

    When she isn't a clam.

    "A knucker?" the tiny Bats says, sounding shocked. "Knuckers can't use hexes like these. You're one of those cheaters from the Nexus, aren't you? Filthy cheating false fairies."

    What a sore loser. Stubborn, too. She hasn't budged an inch.
    Last edited by Rebonack; 2016-07-08 at 12:34 AM.
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  4. - Top - End - #94
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    Default Re: Silly Plots 2: Electric Boogaloo

    The Dreamlands

    Isaac slowly expands in size, peeking over into the cart while his tail plucks the children up and lays them on his back.
    "And you're a filthy child-napper, so nyeh." he says to the bugbear. So there.
    Spako Highclaws by Ceika.

    [Sorry Boss, but as always, I get the last word.]

  5. - Top - End - #95
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    [The Dreamlands]

    Three things happen in short succession when Isaac sticks his head into cart.

    First, he may find himself getting a nasty shock from an ward placed on the cart's door to dissuade thieves from breaking in. Not only does it hurt, but it's also designed to cause a fae's magic to go haywire for a short amount of time. Of course, that's meant to be used to incapacitate the use of dreaming. There's no telling how Isaac's fairy magic might react to it.

    Second, the tiny Bats dissolves into tendrils of oily black smoke.

    Third, full-sized, totally unharmed Bats suddenly sheds a glamour of invisibility as she aims to leap onto Isaac, claws outstretched!

    "Boo!"

    Should she manage to get a hold on him, she won't crush his spine (thankfully) instead she'll just try to bite him! Ouch! Should she sink her teeth into knucker flesh, Isaac will be hit with the full-force of her horror glamor, his mind subjected to such deep, primal fear that he may simply faint there on the spot. Or at the very least, he may he horribly shaken by the experience.
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  6. - Top - End - #96
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    Default Re: Silly Plots 2: Electric Boogaloo

    The Dreamlands

    "Ow!" exclaims Isaac, a statement which is quickly echoed as he is tackled AND bitten! Yowch!
    Isaac's jaw hangs open in horror, but he still manages to try to snake his tail around the bugbear. Being stunned from glamour does not prevent him from trying to squeeze a goblin, even if he's less focused and not particularly good at aiming.
    Spako Highclaws by Ceika.

    [Sorry Boss, but as always, I get the last word.]

  7. - Top - End - #97
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    [The Dreamlands]

    Bats flexes her claws, pressing her preternaturally keen diggers against Isaac's neck as his tail lashes around her. If he yanks too hard, he might lose something. She pulls her jaws free and growls at him, "Look, 'wizard', I can tell you're just here to save the children and that's admirable. I can respect someone who wants to protect kids. And you might call me a liar, but this is for their own good. Something big is coming to the Waking World and all the Sleepers out there will get the bad end of it. The Dreamlands will be the safest place for them whether they're turned into faeries or not. I'm a bugbear. I might terrify children, but I protect them, too. And this is the best way to protect them right now."

    Wait, what?

    "Now I've got three options for you, kiddo," Bats continues. "One, you can keep struggling and I take your head off. That's messy and it'll traumatize the children. Not the sort of traumatization I enjoy inflicting, either. Two, you can leave. Go back to wherever you came from. Don't even try that hex on me, I'm a natural shape-shifter and I'll just change back. Or three, let me 'subdue' you. We'll take you to Magh Maell and you can see for yourself what's happening. Heck, you might even be able to get word to people in the Waking World who can stop it. Because I don't want to see a bunch of children turned into inanimate rocks and trees and stuff so the Sidhe can have a 'win' in their stupid Game. Once our business is done, I'll help you escape."

    She tightens her claws until Isaac can feel their prick.

    "So what's it going to be, kiddo?"
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  8. - Top - End - #98
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    Default Re: Silly Plots 2: Electric Boogaloo

    The Dreamlands

    "Last time I pulled a fairy from people like you she sat trembling in my locker for weeks because her Sidhe thought she'd make a good deer-bush. Like hell am I going to let you sell kids off to fae who do that. And if you expect me to believe that's a genuine proposal, I'm gonna need an oath. You know how this works." Isaac insists, after taking about half a minute to process the words and force himself out of mental shock.
    Spako Highclaws by Ceika.

    [Sorry Boss, but as always, I get the last word.]

  9. - Top - End - #99
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
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    [The Dreamlands]

    "Heh. Smart kiddo. You already know now this stuff works, a fae is practically obligated to break a non-oath promise on principle. And it sounds like you've got just as much reason to hate the Sidhe as I've got," Bats replies. Then she clears her voice and recites a very particular incantation.

    "By sun and moon
    By stars and stones
    May my words endure
    Though all else fades away."

    There's power behind them. Binding power. Bats wouldn't be able to break her oath even if she wanted to.

    "I swear everything I've told you is true, to the best of me knowledge. And I'll help you escape or let you walk away depending one which of the two deals you pick. Assuming you don't want the 'Bats takes the stupid knucker's head off' deal. But judgin' by how you aren't tugging on me anymore you must have decided you want to keep your noggin. Whatever you pick, pick it fast. I don't know what Otis is going to get back and I would rather have something simple to explain to him."
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  10. - Top - End - #100
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    Default Re: Silly Plots 2: Electric Boogaloo

    The Dreamlands

    Isaac mumbles something that sounds like a censored swear.
    "Fine, I'll go with you. But I expect a good escape before anything bad happens to me." he insists.
    Spako Highclaws by Ceika.

    [Sorry Boss, but as always, I get the last word.]

  11. - Top - End - #101
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    [The Dreamlands]

    "Good choice. Now come on, we've got to get you out of that absurd false-fairy outfit. It's too conspicuous," Bats replies, releasing Isaac's neck and shuffling over to the carriage door. She knocks on it twice. "Knock knock."

    A goofy looking face takes shape around the bronze door knob with the knob for a nose and the large keyhole for a mouth. "Who's there?" the lock asks.

    "Boo."

    "Boo who?"

    "You don't have to cry, it's only a joke," Bats replies, grinning in a deeply disturbing way that only a bugbear could manage. What an awful joke. The face on the lock fades away again and Bats opens the door. Beyond is... well... suffice to say the carriage is smaller on the outside than it is on the inside. Within is quite the little curio-shop. Bizarre statues and idols, scrolls, paintings, whimsical bronze artifacts, jars of strange powders, rare stones and even rarer fae-fruits. There are cages, too. Cages of brass. Cages of bone. Uncanny fae-beasts are kept in several, rare and unusual creatures without the spark of sapience. No human children, though. At least not yet. Bats begins to rummage around in rows of dried, hanging flowers. "I've probably got something in here that will peel the effect of that curse off. Make you human until you spy the moon again back in the Waking World. And don't mind Timothy, he's trying to scare you."

    "Baaaaaaats, you jerk! I was gunna to get him good!" complains a human child as he slinks out from behind some incomprehensible brass contraption. Or... at least he was a human child at one point. His black hair is a little too bristly and mane-like. His eyes have the faintest tint of fire dancing in them. His nails are slightly too claw-like. And behind him twitches a bull's tail. It's quite apparent that he's in the process of turning into a bugbear himself. The boy looks to be eight years old at most. And he's blowing a raspberry at Bats. He turns to Isaac and grins a much too wide grin. "Hi! I'm Tim! Are you a real dragon?"
    Last edited by Rebonack; 2016-07-08 at 08:52 PM.
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  12. - Top - End - #102
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    Default Re: Silly Plots 2: Electric Boogaloo

    The Dreamlands

    "That wasn't part of the deal. Why do I have to go around as a human and be vulnerable? And I don't suppose you've got a cure for the stuff in there while you're at it. Being forced to change is a pain regardless of the form. Hello, Tim. I'm a dragon. I'm fairly sure I'm real." Isaac tells the bugbear, not happy at all with this whole scenario. This is to save more people in the long run, he tells himself.
    Last edited by Deathkeeper; 2016-07-08 at 11:09 PM.
    Spako Highclaws by Ceika.

    [Sorry Boss, but as always, I get the last word.]

  13. - Top - End - #103
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    [The Dreamlands]

    "He's a knucker, they're faerie dragons," Bats elaborates as she continues to rummage about for what she's looking for.

    "Oh! That sounds keen! Can knuckers breath fire?"

    "No."

    "Oh... well... can they fly?"

    "No."

    Tim pulls a rather sour face. "What kind of rubbish dragon can't breath fire or fly? What CAN they do then?"

    "They can grow to fill up the holes they live in. And eat lots of sheep."

    "That's dumb," Tim concludes, most of his enthusiasm lost. "You got turned into a really dumb dragon," he informs Isaac matter-of-factly.

    "Stop bothering the dumb dragon and go gather up the children outside," Bats commands. "Shoo! Before some wandering beast eats them all. Eaten children don't fetch any coin."

    The fledgling bugbear finally departs as Bats pulls a small bundle of spicy smelling dry herbs down. She breaks off a small sprig with dexterity that seems impossible for her massive claws and offers it to Isaac. "Can't break your hex. That isn't Dreamlands magic, whatever the bloody hell it is. But I can trick it into thinking it's morning. Chew on this."

    Assuming Isaac chews it, it should taste strongly of honey and lemon at first, though it has a rather bitter after-taste. It should also cause him to suddenly revert back to human form.

    "And you need to be human because most Dreamlanders will kill interloper fairies on sight," Bats explains as patiently as she can manage. "I won't be able to protect you from everyone. But if you're just a human slave, then messing with you is messing with my property, which is messing with me." Bats grins a rather spooky grin. "And by Dreamland custom, your life was in my hands and I spared you. That means I own your life. Now, chew the sunlemon leaf."

    That last command carries the weight of a potent compulsion.
    Last edited by Rebonack; 2016-07-08 at 11:34 PM.
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  14. - Top - End - #104
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    Default Re: Silly Plots 2: Electric Boogaloo

    Dreamlands

    Isaac ignores Tim completely. Though he glares at Bats and snags the leaf.
    "Wrong. If you'd taken my head off I'd have only gotten your neck in a death-grip, and you'd have suffocated in minutes after killing me. Thus, sparing me was simply part of our deal, and nothing more." he says, chewing down on it.
    "I'm going to need clothes." he says weakly, adjusting his glasses.
    Spako Highclaws by Ceika.

    [Sorry Boss, but as always, I get the last word.]

  15. - Top - End - #105
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    [The Dreamlands]

    The bugbear grins. She grins as she reaches up and tightly grabs her head by both sides. She grins as she wrenches it violently to one side and pulls her head clean off. She keeps on grinning as she tosses her own severed head from one paw to the other. "Take it you never tangled with a bugbear before, eh kiddo? Or maybe you just got matched up with one of those flimsy yellow cream-puffs that call themselves bugbears?" She slaps her head back on her shoulders with a wet thump, her neck regenerating back together before Isaac's eyes. "You weren't a threat to meself. Never were. You probably got lucky with Owlteeth and his two lackies. That staff I gave him is the real deal. Didn't leave that back in the Waking World, did you? That'd be a pretty hit to the bottom line of this misadventure."

    She waves a paw as she walks over to a rather large wardrobe and throws it open. Inside is a rather impressive array of clothing, from practical to whimsical. From modest to flagrantly absurd. There should be something in there that would fit Isaac. There might even be something in there that he finds tasteful!

    "Now, next question," Bats asks. "Does that hex of yours have a time limit? Or am I going to have to work at getting my dunter and elf back, too? Because as disagreeable as they both are, their services are still worth the coin."

    Huh.

    It really does sound like Bats is in charge of this outfit, doesn't it?
    Last edited by Rebonack; 2016-07-08 at 11:59 PM.
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  16. - Top - End - #106
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    Default Re: Silly Plots 2: Electric Boogaloo

    The Dreamlands

    Isaac looks at Bats with a shake of his head. "Maybe, but at least I don't have a cow's butt. And you're giving that poor kid a cow's butt, too. You're a real monster."
    Isaac grins as he pulls on his pants.
    "Yep, I left it at the bottom of my hole, after I turned all your lackeys into crayfish and mollusks. They're not coming back on their own. Tough luck for them."
    Spako Highclaws by Ceika.

    [Sorry Boss, but as always, I get the last word.]

  17. - Top - End - #107
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    [The Dreamlands]

    Without saying a word, Bats responds to Isaac's wise-assery with a rough back-hand. The swat also carries with it a healthy dose of gnawing horror. "First rule of being a slave. No sassing your owner."

    That one wasn't a command. Just a rather painful request. That swat wasn't anywhere near Bats' full strength. Just enough to smart. Full strength would probably take a human's head off.

    "Especially when she has already promised you freedom. I'm going to keep me word, but I can make the trip nice or really unpleasant. Which one is up to you," Bats replies. There's no real malice in her voice, but her tone is pretty darn firm.

    While this is going on, Tim is busy hauling the children into the cart, untying them, and shoveling them into the fancy cages. All the kids are still passed out in a dead faint. No telling how long that will last.

    "Hey mum?" Tim pipes up. "Otis is back, he smells gross and he wants to know when we're leaving. Also wants to know why there's a scallop zooming around. I kinda want to know, too."

    "The knucker here hexed him."

    "Haha! Serves him right! He broke my favorite porridge bowl."

    Bats turns around, kneeling to put herself at the boy's eye level. She reaches out and gently places a paw on his shoulder. Depending on how observant Isaac is after he (probably) go clobbered, he might notice a slight flinch from Tim when Bats raises her arm. "Listen up, Tim. I need you to scoot out through the Threshold we made quick-like and take a look around. If you see mum's staff, grab it for me. But not if you see any mortals out there, okay? If you see any humans you come right back whether the staff is there or not."

    "Okay, mum! I'll be back in a jiff!" Tim replies brightly before turning tail and hopping out of the cart.

    Isaac will likely hear Tim yelling rather loudly outside, "Bats says a wizard turned Kneecapper into a scallop! I'm gunna go grab her staff so she can change him back!"
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  18. - Top - End - #108
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    Default Re: Silly Plots 2: Electric Boogaloo

    The Dreamlands

    Isaac is knocked senseless to the floor. He's a reedy teenager, not a fighter. It's a bit before he composes himself, getting up from sprawling on the floor to give Tim a quick hint.
    "It should be twenty feet on your left when you go through the threshold, next to an Ash tree." he spits, then watches the changeling grow.
    "Cute kid. I hope you didn't kidnap him, too." he says, not sassing her, but the look in his eyes should tell her all she needs to know about how Isaac feels about her profession.
    Spako Highclaws by Ceika.

    [Sorry Boss, but as always, I get the last word.]

  19. - Top - End - #109
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    [The Dreamlands]

    Hints are helpful!

    It'll be a little while before Tim returns. The Threshold really isn't very far away, though. Practically right around the corner.

    As for Bats... "He is. Cutest kid there is. Love him like me own flesh and blood. And I didn't kidnap him. Not strictly speaking. Asked him if he wanted to come live with me in my magical merchant cart 'n travel with me through the magical faerie world and he said yes, so here he is," she replies wistfully. "There's more to the story than that, but that's his story to tell, not mine."

    She glances back at Isaac, scrutinizing him for a moment, before offering him one of her paws to help him up. "Pain and fear make you hard. And the Dreamlands are hard. The thorns will carve you up if you aren't harder than them. The kids I sell? I terrify them until they don't have anything they're afraid of anymore. I help 'em conquer their fear. It isn't pretty and it isn't nice, but it's necessary. So whoever or whatever they end up serving, they aren't afraid of it. And if you aren't afraid, what can the Dreamlands do to you? Whatever kind of faerie they end up as, I give them the best start they can get."

    "What I do isn't good. It isn't. If I had some way to stop then believe me, I would," Bats growls. "But a bugbear's a bugbear. And bugbears kidnap children. The naughty ones. The wandering ones. The alone ones..." she looks toward the door, gazing after Tim. "...and the ones no one else wants. C'mon. We'll introduce you to Otis."

    She gestures for Isaac to follow her as she begins trotting out of the carriage. "Most of the kids I've taken, I try to be discerning about it. Children no one will miss. But sometimes? Sometimes I'll take kids who have been pulled off into dark places by real monsters. The kind of monsters that have a choice. Rip the bastards limb from limb, spirit the child off to the Dreamlands." Bats flexes her claws. "Sometimes I can even resist. Lead 'em home instead. That always feels... good."
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  20. - Top - End - #110
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    Default Re: Silly Plots 2: Electric Boogaloo

    Dreamlands

    Isaac takes the paw and stands up, going with her. He still doesn't like her. Tim deserves better. But he also doesn't deserve worse, he can admit.
    "I can respect that a little, but that's not what your goons did today. The kids told me they were having a party." he insists.
    Spako Highclaws by Ceika.

    [Sorry Boss, but as always, I get the last word.]

  21. - Top - End - #111
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    [The Dreamlands]

    "Not my goons," Bats growls as she steps out of the cart and back onto the forest road. "Caught wind that they had found a mark and were going child-hunting. So I traded Owlteeth the staff in exchange for his haul. Told him I could save him the trouble of marching the kids all the way to Magh Meall. He would have just dumped them on the auction block. All my buyers have to go through me. But I sell good, strong, fearless children so people are willing to pay extra. And if I have a bad feeling about someone? They aren't touching my kids. Owlteeth and his flunkies had coming whatever you did to them."

    In other words, those poor children were getting grabbed one way or the other. Bats just wanted to spare them the worst possible fate.

    Still not good, but probably not horrifically evil, either.

    That's the Dreamlands for you.

    It isn't a nice place.

    At all.

    Upon stepping outside, Isaac will see an absolutely HUGE black horse. Like... seriously. The thing makes draft horses look petite by contrast. Bronze chains are lashed about his form, moving of their own accord and making a tell-tale rattling sound. The chains are, in fact, in the process of hitching him to the cart. He also stinks. Tim wasn't kidding. It's an incredibly pungent, herby sort of smell. Though it's no earthly plant that would be recognized. He glances over at Bats with one massive, golden glowing eye. "Hey Bats. That the new wizard?" he drawls.

    "Yep. Got the drop on Owlteeth and his creeps, so we got the kids for free. Tried taking us, too. I own his life now, so good deal all around," Bats replies. She glances over at Isaac and elbows him. "Well, introduce yourself."

    Otis waits, continuing to give Isaac a very horse-y look. Which is understandable, as his horse-face prevents him from giving people any other look.
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  22. - Top - End - #112
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    Default Re: Silly Plots 2: Electric Boogaloo

    The Dreamlands

    "Oh, good. I was afraid you might be upset about how incredibly dead they are." Isaac admits honestly.
    He listens to the rest of Bats' spiel in earnest, but he really isn't having it. Sure, she might talk all kindly, and she's not as bad as the Gardener or whatever Twig's master was called, but a child-napper is a child-napper. If Bats really cared about Tim she would have just found him a home, or at the very least a Seelie that wouldn't force him to end up living the same life she does, compelled by her nature to ruin people's lives. And he'd tell her that, too, if he wasn't sensible enough to shut up.
    To Otis, he manages to barely avoid gagging, and bows low enough to hide his face.
    "Hello, Otis. You can call me, Izzy." he says, with just the briefest of pauses to come up with a name. It's not the best one, but despite sounding similar to his real one it's different enough that it should be fine.
    Spako Highclaws by Ceika.

    [Sorry Boss, but as always, I get the last word.]

  23. - Top - End - #113
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    [Dreamlands]

    "Eh, they'll just get reprocessed into something else down in the Dreamheart. Maybe they won't be as awful in their next role," Bats replies with a sniff. She doesn't seem terribly concerned about it.

    "Well, nice to meetcha, Izzy," Otis drawls. "Welcome to the team and all that. I mostly just pull the cart 'round here. Not much else to do seein' as I'm a pretty simple pook with pretty simple skills. Could probably do a right proper job of plowin' a field if there were fields in the Dreamlands. You got fields out in the Wakin' World, dontcha, Bats?"

    "Yeah, we have fields out in the Waking World, Otis," Bats replies as she watches the nearby hedge expectantly for Tim's return. "I've told you every day the Waking World has fields, because you keep asking."

    "Maybe I ought to go see 'em myself some day," Otis muses.

    "You keep saying that, too. But you never act on it."

    What a slothful horse.

    "Muuuum!" yells Tim as he comes crashing through the brush, heedless of the nasty thorns scratching him. Each little gash carves away some more humanity. "I got your staff back! I got a good look at the Waking World while I was there! There was a spot up in the sky where I couldn't see any stars and I looked closer and there was a whole city just floating up there with flying cars and space ships and there was a castle and really tall buildings like a hundred times taller than the tallest cathedral and wow it was so brilliant mum was that the Nexus place you talked about?"

    Bats takes the staff from Tim. "Yes. You and Izzy go sit in the wagon and he'll tell you all about it since he lives there."

    Tim's eyes practically sparkle with anticipation.

    "Go on, shoo. Kneecapper is going to be cross once he's changed back."

    Tim eagerly bounces on his toes a few times before hurrying back into the cart, motioning Isaac to follow him. He has so many questions!
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    "I'd appreciate it if you didn't tell him the full story. Bivalves don't have eyes or ears, so he shouldn't know..." Isaac requests weakly. He goes back to the inside with Tim and sits down, kicking his legs rather weakly. He doesn't want the redcap to beat him senseless. He seems like the type that would beat him senseless.
    With that thought, Isaac takes off his glasses and puts them in his pocket.
    "You shouldn't let yourself be scratched that way. It eats away at you. I'm sure you want to be like Bats, but that's not the right way to lose your humanity. But you want to know stuff, don't you?" he tells the boy gently.
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    [The Dreamlands]

    Kneecapper would, given half a chance, beat Isaac senseless without question. That part of the reason why Bats sent Isaac inside, so he won't be within throttling range until the dunter has had a chance to calm down a bit. The creature is ill-tempered enough that he would probably give Isaac a sound thrashing whether he belongs to Bats or not, consequences be damned. After all, dunters aren't exactly known for being polite company.

    Tim is still bouncing on his toes, looking quite excited as his tail sways back and forth behind him. He's got no shoes to speak of, despite the fact that the rest of his clothing is well cared for. His feet are all tough and grubby, and his toes look like they're right at the edge of trying to decide whether or not they want to start being hooves instead. The more Isaac looks, the more he'll be able to find that's off about the child. Though that might have something to do with him having a weak version of a bugbears aura of horror and he isn't sure how to turn it off yet. So instead of being horrifying he's endearingly creepy like a goofy Halloween decoration.

    "Ah, I'm not worried about the thorns. Bats told me what they do, but you just have to keep a stiff upper lip! They pull at your memories, she says, but there's ways to hang onto 'em that Bats taught me and they work great! You just have to spend some time every day thinking about what your old home was like, even if your old home was rubbish like mine. And think about homey things like what you ate for breakfast instead of fanciful things like how funny hedley-kows are," the boy replies brightly. "Your real name isn't really Izzy, is it? Bats says that fae stealing your name is umm... prop... prop-pa-gan-da by the Sidhe to make people forget who they were faster. I'm Timothy Abbott, at least that's what the headmistress said me real mum named me 'fore she died. And I've told that to plenty of fae right to their face and you can see 'em flinch because they know they won't be able to turn your brains to mud 'cuz you know who you are!"

    Huh.

    That seems against conventional wisdom when it comes to dealing with fae. But maybe that's what they want people to believe?

    "I'll be a great bugbear some day, just like me mum is. And I'll go collect kids like me that no one wanted and teach them how to live in the Dreamlands instead of living in a soggy shanty in an alley. It'll be brilliant!"

    Ah, youthful enthusiasm.

    "What was it like where you grew up? Did you live in that big city up in the air with all the bright lights?"

    As they speak the cart rattles a bit. Sounds like they're heading off.
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    Isaac shakes his head. He can't understand the boy's enthusiasm. But then, he didn't have an awful childhood. He had a pretty good one, to be honest.
    "Yeah, I live there. Lived there eighteen years. It's nice, but loud. Crowded, but still lonely, sometimes. I go to a school for kids who have powers of any kind. It's really crazy. And yeah, it isn't my name. But I'd like to keep mine private anyway, if you don't mind." Besides, he likes the joke he made with it. Not that it's entirely accurate. He's not as tech-savvy as Koushiro, and Jou's the one who had glasses. But he has been closely associated with bugs.
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    "Wow that sounds neat," Tim sighs. "I lived in a pretty big city, too. Big for back home, I guess. It was all dirty and there was this fog that would make you cough when it got really bad. Lots of factories making lots of smoke and... whatever the factories made. I worked in one for a bit makin' shoes in a shoe factory. I tried getting a brownie to help me with my shoe work, but they don't like factories much I think. Too much noise all the time. Oh! And I lost this finger in one of the machines there!"

    He shows his right hand to Isaac, the pointer finger of which is quite a bit more claw-like than the rest.

    "It was a little after that when Bats introduced herself and asked if I wanted to live with her in the Dreamlands. I was pretty miserable at the time, so of course I said yes. Now I've got good clothes and good food and a mum that loves me and I'm learning a real trade!"

    Slaving.

    He's learning how to be a slaver. Well, a merchant in general. But slaving in particular.

    "What kind of stuff are you learning to do?" he asks curiously. "Do they teach trades at your wizard school? Wizards still have trades, right? Or is wizard a trade all on its own?"

    That's certainly a good question.
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    "You're being trained in a trade that revolves around ruining other people's lives. Maybe you're living better than before, but most kids you'll end up taking will have been better off at home, no matter what Bats says. I won't change your decision, but you should know that." he says softly. He can't help it. The boy deserves to understand the choice he's making before he does, even if there's no chance that his decision will be altered.
    "We get trained in whatever we're good at. Once we graduate, we usually find a specific role to do. Some people make being a wizard into a job. I'm not sure what I'll be doing."
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    [The Dreamlands]

    "Nuh uh," Tim insists. "Bats helps kids who would have had bad things done to them or left out in the cold. She teaches them to be tough and then she finds fae who will be good owners for them. That's why she's the best bugbear there is, because she only takes children who will be better off with her."

    He's very resolute about this point, whether or not it's actually true. It's not particularly easy to convince a child that their parent figure is nefarious.

    "And sometimes... she just buys kids that goblins have stolen," he adds, glancing over at the still sleeping children in the cages. "Because if she didn't they would have be taken to the slave market in Magh Meall. Then they would get bought by someone awful. And they would be scared, because no one would teach them now to laugh at fear. And she can't just send them home, either! Once you've been in the Dreamlands for real you'll keep coming back. And if some mean fae finds you, that's the end of it. So she's a good bugbear. The best one there is. And I want to be just like her when I grow up."

    And that's that.

    Arguing with a child who has made up their mind is typically fruitless.

    And speaking of children, one of the kids in the cages is beginning to stir. Tim gives a little start, jumps to his feet, and runs over to a wide wooden workbench cluttered with tools grinding, herbs, strange stones, and even stranger fruits. He pours some sweet smelling powder into his hand and hurries back to the child, whereupon he blows the powder of them. As it settles, the child drifts back into a deep sleep. "Bats says they should stay asleep until we get home so she can start teaching them," Tim explains. "And they have to stay in the cages because some of the stuff in the wagon is dangerous if you play with it."
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    Isaac snorts.
    "Tim, you're a smart kid. They are in cages so they don't try to run away and back home." he tells him, but otherwise lays off the changeling. He isn't very determined to ruin his relationship with Bats, as Ill-fated as it is.
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