The Chicken Feathers Inn (Neo and company)

[Tinh Song]

“Chah!” The cheerful voice ranged out from the slender man as he made his way down the familiar street, which leaded from the local market to his humble abode slash business: The Chicken Feathers Inn. Athamus was always a quiet city, with beautiful days and rather friendly people thought at time seem hostile towards outsiders. Fortunatly for the young man he was not an outsider. Born and raid in Eron, he carried the Eron accent: combined with his light voice could easily pass if off as a girl if one did not look at him. That might explain why his father always confused him with his sister Lissa when he was just a boy… that and the fact that even he lost count of how many siblings he had. His parents breed like rabbits and their kids were like rabbits too, always hoping about trying to fend for just themselves. Oh I forgot to mention, the young man of this story is 25 year old Tinh Song. Oh dear, I got side tracked again. Where was I… oh yes! Back to our story…

Song held in his arm a rather overstuffed bag of groceries and supplies need for the Inn he ran. No one has a clue why he named it the Chicken Feathers Inn, but I am beginning to suspect our hero isn’t as bright as a hero should be. There is nothing wrong with being simple, though today was going to be anything, but simple for him. He ran into a large crowd while trying to lean his lips forward enough to reach the piece of fishcake sticking out of the bag. With both hands full and his hungry rising he was drawing a bit attention before managing to nab the tasty treat between his lips. He just began to masticate it when the crowd came upon him. No that incorrect, he came upon the crowd: bumping into them actually. The leaning forward caused his glasses to slip forward, making his vision a blur for a few moments before a simple tilt of his head back brought the glasses into their correction position. Why was a crowd gathered here in the city? And what were they gathered around? These were questions Song was asking himself while standing at the edge of the crowd. Being only 5 feet some had its disadvantages.

[Daliah]

Sitting upon the roof of a random building, Daliah watched the gathering crowd in mild fasination. She'd already informed her new advisors that she didn't like the idea of traveling in a large parade, or in that massly bejeweled thing they liked to call a litter. For years the demi-goddess had traveled on her own, avoiding masses with the skill that only came from having a tiny nymph for a mother. The former Queen had often ran around their kingdom, avoiding her guards alongside her daughter. It was from her that Daliah learned to duck through large groups, blending in like a native.

Now, however, she was a little too high to blend in. Still, none of the guards were watching the roof, instead trying to guard the persession where one of her large dollies was playing the role of demi-goddess. Slipping away from the parade when they stopped for water had been much too easy. Perhaps she would have to speak with her advisors later. After they learned about her disappearance to be sure.

Of course, judging from the screams that were coming from below, Daliah ventured a guess that they already knew she was missing. 'Oh, goodie, time to play.' She thought with a childish grin, flipping off the roof. Her long black cloak hid her fae like form, allowing her to blend in upon hitting the ground just behind the crowd. "Tag!" She called out, already assuming she wouldn't be heard over the growing fuss behind her, "You're it!" And with that the demi-goddess fled into the city, away from the guards and her royal duty.

[Tinh Song]

Our low attention spanned and gluttonous hero devoured the fish cake and had already made several attempts to lean forward into his grocery bag to get at another one. His attention was so much so focused upon getting the treat that he didn’t notice the -what could only be assumed as our heroine- jump down behind him, taunted the guards, and ran off down the street. In fact he didn’t notice the guards as they were pushing through the crowd, pushed him aside, and ran after her. Oblivious? Perhaps. Many oblivious heroes usually are the muscle head kind who could take on a army by themselves. Our hero? He’ll be lucky if this story doesn’t end with him breaking his back trying to lift something. Well after being shoved aside, he did managed to get a another fishcake from the bag and began to devour it. The cake however was larger then his mouth so he had to hold it with his lips and eat it slowly: working his way inch by inch.

Well fish cakes are normally a tasty treat, kind of like a chewy cookie made with melted marshmallows. There is a little story of how fish cakes were made which I believe shouldn’t draw too much attention from our main character. There was q man living on the river of flames, day and night he dreamt of fame: searching the water deep or shallow for a giant fish, larger then the gallows. Seeing none to be found, he returned home to his faithful wife and hound. And… and… oh I forgot the last part of this rhythm. I should probably go out and ask the kids to sing for me, paying them with some fishcakes for their trouble of course. It is such a famous rhythm, but my memory has slipped me. It is very popular with the lads and lasses, as popular as the chewy treats themselves.

Oh no I sidetracked again. Back to our story no? Well Song was making his way home, using the narrow and winding alleys of the city for shortcuts. He knew the maze of cuts and turns like the back of his hand, which he knew very well seeing as how it was his very own hand. Taking two right turns and going straight down a diagonal street and a left around into alley before turning right again lead to his Inn. These instructions were also carved into his wooden sandals along with a map. Don’t ask me why, but the fellow had maps of every city he’s been to carved into different pairs of sandals. Perhaps a different pair for each city so he couldn’t get lost?

It seemed fate has woven upon its quilt of life for Song to step out of the background pattern this time. He made the last turn only to see a fair dark hair female coming right at him. The next events remained unknown as now he laid sprawled upon his back. His groceries asunder and the sky smiling down at him, while sauntering about in about in a circle.

[Daliah]

Giggling happily as she ran from the guards, Daliah wondered briefly why they always put up such valiant fights. She always got away, and they knew it. If not for the fact that she was tiny and therefore could escape crowds with ease, there was always the fact that she was a demi-goddess. If they ever did manage to catch her she could quickly turn into an animal, escaping from them yet again. And if that failed? Well, that what natural disasters were for. Then again, Kri had yelled at her rather loud the last time she summoned a typhoon to shoo away her personal guards.

At least today she was a good street and a half away from her chasers, and with a small flip the demi-goddess landed upon a roof again, watching while her specially trained guards ran right by. While propped on the roof she looked around, trying to find something fun to do. It would take a good three hours or so before her advisors got over their own egos to preform a simple spell, which would allow them to speak with one of her gems that they had inisited she wear around her wrist in case of just such an event. Too bad they never used the gem.

Another bounce and flip brought Daliah to her feet and to another roof where she leap away. Summoning a strong wind to help her Daliah managed to make it half way across the town, completely ignoring the bodies below in favor for her own roof pathway. While she could blend into crowds perfectly, that didn't mean she liked being among all those people. They always made her so uncomfortable.

Landing on the ground the goddess looked around, wondering if she had possibly missed one of the guards, but the street looked clear. Thank the gods for small favors. Another small giggle and the goddess Queen turned, intent on running towards the small sweets store she'd noticed a little further off. Instead she ran head first into another person, landing squarely on his chest. The world only swam before her eyes for a minute and then she was find, her god blood aleady healing the minor head wound. Sitting up she looked around, trying to recall just what she had hit in the first place. 'A person...wasn't it?' And glancing downwards Daliah realized she was right.

"Oh...are you alright?" She asked, eyes turning a curious cornflower blue in the process. Leaning over him her long black hair, now dying itself blue from the scalp towards the tips, created a blanket over them. "Oh, I hope I didn't hurt you. That would be bad...I think..." Looking upwards Daliah wondered if it would be bad. He could always complain and then she would have to treat him to a nice dinner at her palace, or something equally nice. Perhaps that meant she had done a good thing. "Tell me, have I done a bad thing, or a good thing by running head first into you?"

[Tinh Song]

For our hero, his head was softer then that of our dear goddess, also he did not having healing blood to boot. The dazed and stunned Song merely laid on his back as the world stop sauntering for a bit. The sun was gleaming in his eyes. Upon his forehead… it felt warm. There was no soreness for the crash rendered him rather numb in that part. The wound didn’t seem too serious… just a trickle of blood running down his forehead. “It feel warm…” he commented to himself, “So… it’s all over…?” No you big dope, you’re not dead. Ok so maybe the wound was a bit more serious seeing as how he lost a good portion of brain cells in the that crash. For Song everything seemed so distant, his mind still suffering from the stunning effect of the crash. For a moment he felt something weighing down his chest and then it was gone. It was simply the goddess sitting up after crashing into him, but that combined with the dazed state he was in made it feel like his spirit had lifted up.

“I didn’t get to finish my fish cakes…” he softly muttered to himself. On the subject of the fishcakes, I was unable to procur a answer from the kids for each one told a different version. I’ll summarize it so we can get back to the story: failure as a fisherman man + trying to help wife in kitchen = fish cakes + content life. Well put that in a rhythm scheme and that’s basically the story of fish cakes. It’s been a minute, lets check up on our hero to make sure he’s still alive. After all it would be a pretty short story if he died right here. First lets sum up the events: goddess escapes, Song walking home, goddess runs into Song, goddess fine, Song bleeding from his head and thinks he’s dead.

Well the goddess came into his view, with the whole dramatic sun in the background giving her a ethereal glow right? Tch, this isn’t any fairy tale. The sun was gone now, its light was quickly being replace with looming dark clouds that threaten thunder and rain. For Song, he thought he was dead and now a very pretty girl appears in front of him. So what does his slightly damaged head process this as? “A… angel…” there you have it, he thinks she was a angel. “Please don’t eat my soul…” he said before passing out. Ok so maybe he took a harder hit to the noggin then I thought. The inn was right next door and it was starting to rain as people were hustling to get to shelter. The sounds of the guards were coming closer too.

[Daliah]

Looking down at the man Daliah felt a shiver run down her spine. He looked alright, but judging from his ramblings he may be off to visit the Tree of Life sooner or later. That wouldn't be good, though she could always ask Vesta to find his soul and apologize for her. Certainly not Dis. She was a little too harsh on the spirits she comes across. Poking at the man's forehead with little respect, simply child-like curiousity, Daliah allowed herself to stare openly. She hardly even noticed that she still sat firmly on his chest, most likely cutting off his air supply, but one doesn't become a beloved ditz of a goddess by noticing silly little things like that.

Still poking at his forehead, but this time merely to see if his head would bounce around, Daliah thought about her options. She could run, leaving the man on the ground. Her guards were far behind, and would most likely help the poor man if they came across him. All her guards were kind and sweet people, if only because she threatened and bullied them into being that way. Still, they may pass him up in favor of hunting her down. That wouldn't be fun at all. Looking towards the sky she watched rain clouds gather with a confused look on her young face. In her own kingdom, when upset or angry, the clouds and skies directly above her kingdom would mirror such feelings. That was why her lands had some of the best weather in all the known world. She didn't think it would apply here though.

Glancing to one side Daliah noticed an inn. It was cute, and she could probably buy him a room there. Just plop him on a bed and hope he doesn't die. Then again, turning her head back to the roofs, she could always just run off with him and see if she could find the inn where she was suppose to be staying during her journey. She knew that inn had free mints. 'Oh well,' She thought dejectly, smiling down at the man, 'This is the smarter idea. I might as well listen to common sense once in my life.'

Blinking her cornflower blue eyes owlishly at him, the slowly turned bright lilac, as her hair dyed itself a dark, near black, purple. "Angel?" She asked curiously, "No, I'm a goddess. Nice to meet you." A small giggle and she was up, hoisting him onto her shoulders with ease. Though she often looked like a small child that didn't mean she didn't have the strength of a goddess in her. So, with her load picked up, and all loose posessions of his gathered as well, Daliah marched to the inn with a small grin. "Excuse me?" She asked innocently, "I need a room, please and thank you."

[Tinh Song]

Song now was totally blacked out and drifting off into the world of his mind, which is in my opinion is rather wide and spacious. I think there is enough room here for me to build a condo even.

Good bye world. Goodbye my little inn… goodbye hard headed angel who killed me…

Yea, Song was probably losing his mind now. I heard things were unusual when you’re passed out. Your life flashes before you and all that sort of stuff.

What’s that voice…?

Wait… he heard me?

Who are you? And who are you talking to…?

Umm, I am god and I was talking to no one. Also get over yourself, you’re not dead you took a hard hit on the noggin and you can’t die since you are the hero of our story. You know, the whole save the day and get the girl sort of thing.

Girl…? Day…?

Stop talking like you have a hangover. You already have a heroine in this story too. The girl who bumped into you remember? Your hard headed angel? So wake up and be a hero.

But I’m dead…

No you’re not. Well if you’re not going to wake up then be quiet so I continue on with the story before the readers get annoyed. Ahem, anyways. As the goddess order the room, she was received with a cheerful smile from the girl working at the desk. “Pardon… but your friend seems hurt…” she said, not recognizing Song since he was a mess right now from the blood and the rain. “I’ll send a maid up later with water and bandages.”

That sounds like Linda…

Be quiet you’re suppose to be dead.

But you said I wasn’t…

Well I say you’re dead for now, so be quiet and let me finish please. Ahem. The policy of the inn was no to ask too many questions. That was one of the good things about the Chicken Feather inn. It did not matter if you were king or serf, you could say here no questions asked. Linda then grabbed the key and handed it over the goddess, “The room number is 102.” She said with a smile, despite the odd scene of the smaller female carrying a unconscious man on her back.

[Daliah]

Still smiling her clueless little smile Daliah accepting the key with a small giggle. "Yeah, I think I may have killed him, but don't worry, he'll be fine by morning." While no one else may have understood the goddess, she certainly did and that was all that mattered in the long run. Her healing powers were certianly not up to par with some people's, her friend Kri for example, but that didn't mean much as far as she was concerned. She knew how to set a wound and revive a soul, and if she was really in trouble she could call up her daughters. They were the incarnations of souls of death, after all.

Running up the stairs happily, the small goddess barely noticed the man, nor if he was safe in their little trip up the stairs. Her only real concern was getting to the room and seeing if the view was nice. Perhaps it was those traumatizing years in her childhood, but for some reason Daliah could not view the larger picture of life, nor could she focus on multiple things. The few times she could focus her attention on the problem she had come to the conclusion that if she thought too hard on things, she would probably think about her father, sitting alone in his immortality against her mother's tomb.

Finding the room with little problem, the small girl dropped her patient and victim on the bed, turning to the window with a giggle. "Oooh, how pretty!" She cheered, hair turning a bright silver and skin tanning for no appearant reason. Once she had turned a dark brown, and her hair and eyes were a bright silver, the goddess turned back to her victim, raising her hands above his body. The words she spoke were low, in the forgotten language of her mother's ancestors, but they did the trick. Whatever was ailing the man would be healed, from previous backaches to current injuries. Myth had it that once a nymph had been cured of death with the ancient chant.

Happy that she had finished the chant, Daliah soon turned back to her normal pale color, hair turning an almost black purple and eyes becoming lilac and lavender with flecks of silver. "I wonder if they have food here..." The goddess mused, throwing aside her cloak to reveil her palace wares. She would also have to find some different cloth. Palace clothing was rather annoying, especially when moving.