The Master meets the Apprentice

Unbeknownst to either party, three drakiri arrived in the same town at a most auspicious time. They travelled separately and in fact had never so much as laid eyes on one another, but they shared such similar passions that their meeting was practically determined by fate.

Two young sprites, one with short turquoise fur and an adventurous sparkle in her eye, and her tropical-colored cousin who prepared for everything yet seemed consistently blindsided, had arrived at a tavern that seemed more well-suited for two legged patrons not long after midday. They were dusty and tired from their travels, eager to rest with a roof over their heads, but the tavern owner seemed to have other plans for them.

“No vacancy means no vacancy,” the human said gruffly. Her accent was rough and difficult to understand, so it was clear to the drakiri that the human had learned their language out of necessity rather than fondness.

“We know what it means, I just don’t believe you have no vacancies,” Peregrin Took said. He lashed his tail in annoyance and a wooden chair skittered wildly on two legs before crashing to the floor with a loud clatter.

The woman’s face turned red and she pointed angrily at the door snapping, “Get out! Your kind destroy my inn and expect me to wipe your asses while singing you praises. Get out and don’t come back!”

“Pippin, let’s go,” Meriadoc said, keeping her voice low as she lowered her head to nudge her cousin’s shoulder. “A room isn’t worth starting a fight and being run out of town.”

“A bath is,” Pippin muttered, shooting a mutinous glare at the tavern owner. He turned to walk beside Meri to the door and had to resist the childish urge to knock over another chair as he walked outside. “Where does she get off saying stuff like that anyway? She’s never even met us, how does she know we’d break stuff?”

“Maybe she had a bad customer and she expects all drakiri to be like that one,” Mari suggested.

“That’s not fair,” Pippin growled. He turned back to the tavern as if to march inside again but froze when he spotted a human walk out of the building. The human had olive toned skin and black hair that fell in gentle waves around its face to just touch the tops of its shoulders. It had delicate features, but most striking were its eyes—golden and gleaming like pools of molten metal. Was that a normal color for human eyes? Was this a human at all?

The human wore a white tunic and loose white pants that rippled in the breeze as he walked toward them.

“I see you’ve met Grimelda,” the stranger said with an understanding smile. “She’s a bit grumpy, but once you get to know her…well she’s still grumpy but easier to manage.”

“Who’re you?” Pippin demanded. “Is she your friend? She turned us away just because we’re drakiri.”

“Oh heavens no,” the stranger chuckled. “You wouldn’t catch me dead with a friend like that. But she has the only tavern that offers hot baths that I don’t have to share with toads and leeches within a dozen miles. It also helps that she doesn’t know what drakiri marks are worth.”

“You’re scamming her?” Meri asked at the same time Pippin snorted disbelievingly, “You’re drakiri?”

“Call it a procrastination tax,” the stranger said with a wry grin, spreading his hands in a helpless gesture. “She’s had her whole life to get with the times. The world is an incredibly diverse place now, and she’s stuck in the past. I pay a little less, she learns a lesson. Everyone wins.”

“She doesn’t know she’s learning a lesson,” Meri said dubiously, shaking her head in disbelief. “I don’t think that’s very effective.”

“Maybe she’s a slow learner,” the stranger agreed. “But to answer your colorful friend’s question, yes I am drakiri. I certainly don’t look it right now though!”

Pippin’s dark eyes narrowed in suspicion and he stepped forward, leaning his head out to sniff at the stranger without getting too close. “Where are your horns, then? Or your tail? I thought you couldn’t hide those in that form.”

The stranger took a few steps off the road and looked back over his shoulder, gesturing for the two to follow.

“I’ll show you if you like,” he said, a welcoming and bright smile spreading over his lips. “Come along!”

Pippin glanced over his shoulder to see what Meri made of the stranger and his offer, but she had already taken off into the brush, tail streaming out behind her.

“Wait!” Pippin called, trotting to catch up to his cousin. He grabbed one of the bags she carried on her travel pack to slow her down but she shook him off.

“We don’t even know who this guy is! He could be weird,” Pippin hissed.

“You’re pretty weird and I’ve been travelling with you for the better part of a year,” Meri said pointedly. “Come on, if it does get weird we can outrun him, no doubt about that.”

Pippin still wasn’t sure about that, but he didn’t have time to protest. They came to a clearing and found the man draping his white clothes over a tree branch. His olive skin was unmarred by scars, his shoulders not too thin and not too broad. He was well-muscled enough to suggest that he was in good health, but didn’t lead a physically demanding life.

“Great, now he’s naked,” Pippin muttered, rolling his eyes.

“Most drakiri don’t wear any clothes at all,” the stranger pointed out, winking at Pippin. “I understand your apprehension though. Stand back and don’t move too close, I’ll show you how I’ve hidden my true self.”  

Even more wary now, Pippin moved to stand right beside Meri in case he needed to push her out of harm’s way. He couldn’t have prepared for the fire that engulfed the stranger seemingly out of nowhere. It climbed high in the air, blindingly bright and caused the sprites to shy away, blinking rapidly. When they looked back to the stranger, a kainu stood there with fire still flickering around him.

His fur was shades of rusty red, orange and golden yellow, his scales a gorgeous ambre of red to gold, and tall feathered wings stretched from his back, beating the air twice before folding neatly against his sides. Antlers sprouted from the crown of his head, impressive and tall, and his mane grew with golden streaks that shimmered in the light of the fire.

“My name is Icarus Sinbad,” the kainu said with a smile and a slight bow of his head. “It’s a pleasure to meet you both.”

The sprites remained silent, awestruck, until Meri broke into a grin and danced in place, exclaiming, “Wow! That was so cool! You have to teach me how to do that!”

“I can teach you that and more if you’d like,” Icarus chuckled. “It will take time, though, if you’re going to be in town for a while.”

“We will now!” Meri said excitedly, eliciting a groan from Pippin. “Don’t listen to Pippin, he’s a worry wart. My name’s Meri!”

“The pleasure is mine,” Icarus repeated, his golden eyes bright. “I look forward to learning more about the both of you."