Callie's Heroes

PART I - FOLK TALES, TRADITIONS AND SECRETS REVEALED

“Oh, this one is so good!” Pixyl squealed as she bit on the corner of the cookie. “How can you m-m-make something this good from only five ingredients!”

“Secret Culinar magic,” Pama said with a grin, as she walked from her tiny prep area to the table with a fresh batch of something else that would surely be just as delicious. Then she added in a loud whisper for everyone, “The actual trick is to heat it up a second time before you add the sugar.”

Callie leaned over the table and drew in a deep breath of the new food Pama had just set down. It looked like some kind of a firm fruit pastry with a flaky crust that was cut into bite-sized squares. “Wow, this smells so much better than the stables did all week,” Callie moaned.

Pixyl leaned in next to Callie and wafted the new scents in, before rolling her eyes back and moaning in foodgasmic bliss. She quickly snatched a morsel, falling back against the couch she was sharing with Callie and simply whimpering.

“I heard you had gotten in trouble,” Pama said, adding a ‘tsk, tsk’ chiding for effect. “Something to do with the Army’s decision to give Rowani and Maugra the unicorn blood? Fizzle won’t give me any details, but apparently you mixed him up in it briefly? I have a feeling I know what happened, even without him saying anything, though.”

“I’m not supposed to really talk about it,” Callie moped, “but yeah, I got him in trouble. I didn’t mean to do it, though. The Commandant didn’t believe me, at first, when I told them he wasn’t involved. Sorry.”

“He was a little cross for a couple days,” Pama said. “He eventually talked to Xera, though, and I believe that has largely passed, but you did disappoint him.”

Callie looked out the window into a small area behind the cabin where Fizzlebek seemed to be tinkering with something, and frowned. “I’ll go talk to him in a little while, then. I don’t want him to be mad at me.”

Most of the last week had proved incredibly uncomfortable for Callie. Everyone knew she was in trouble and got demoted, and most everyone suspected it had something to do with Rowani and Maugra, really not buying the story that the Army made the decision to extend their lives. For the first two or three days, she’d hear muffled whispers everywhere she went, although they eventually died off as people moved on to new gossip.

Rowani and Maugra had it worse, though. It was obvious, immediately, they were on the outs with their fellow trainers and the officers and staff. Most of the recruits were also quite suspicious of the now young trainers. As a result, they had kept to themselves for the most part, going everywhere together and really only separating to teach their classes, each other likely being the only friends they had at the moment. Callie did make an attempt to talk to them, mostly just to say hello and give them some support, but it felt like an uncomfortable intrusion for some reason, and the conversation didn’t last long and didn’t say much.

On a different front, fighting against the Iron Tier Demons proved to be an intense challenge. For the Rangers, their new bows were absolutely devastating against the Nether-based enemies, with the Nature-blessing on even the most basic arrows immediately dissolving huge chunks out of the creatures, and any empowered shots being even more destructive. Vonn had indeed taken over for Reynard, although the Foxkin came by a few times just to check in, and both decided to switch the Rangers from using bows to fighting hand-to-hand. That was a lot more scary, and more than a couple times they had each found themselves overwhelmed, requiring the Warlocks to either pull back or Banish the Demon enemies, in part the result of Rangers not getting any melee skills, like the other sword classes. Thankfully, the injuries were largely mild, although Thucax took a huge slash to his leg that would have been quite serious had Healers not been immediately standing by. They had been ready, though, and not even a scar remained once the healing was completed.

“What is this?” Ambria asked, looking at the remains of a long, crunchy treat she was eating, her eyes wide at the delicious taste. It was about twice the length of her hand, and about the diameter of a fat finger, incredibly light and flaky, covered in a sugary sweetness and dusting of something unique.

“I call it a Honey Stick,” Pama smiled. “It’s baked, brushed lightly with honey-sweetened butter, and then rolled in a mixture of ground nuts and a few special things. It’s one of Fizzle’s favorites. Very easy to make, even without Culinar magic.” She reached forward, waving her hand at the three remaining Honey Sticks, and the plate they were on suddenly held over a dozen. “But magic is faster,” she added with a wink.

“You have got to teach me how to do that,” Callie said, gasping, as she reached for one of the freshly-summoned crunchy pastries. They were still warm, and somehow tasted almost exactly like churros, with a slightly subtle nutty flavor in addition to something really close to cinnamon.

“Replicating food is at least Bronze tier,” Pama said, “and you need at least Silver to do it with any kind of quality. But I may be able to teach you a very simple flavoring spell in the short time you are here. That’s always good for when you’re in the field.”

“Oh yes, please!” Pixyl said, almost bouncing. Next to her, Ambria rapidly nodded her head as well.

“Well, if it’s for the Marandine Queen, then I must absolutely find the time,” Pama giggled, winking at Pixyl and then extending a graceful bow. “Perhaps in the mid-evenings, after the meal has concluded and everything has been cleaned.”

“Can we bring more people?” Callie asked, “If so, how many?”

Pama made a concentrated look. “I could work with ten of you total in the kitchens behind the meal tent,” she finally concluded. “However, you must come thirty minutes before we begin to help with final cleaning, in exchange for my lessons.”

“Callie is already good at cleaning,” Ambria helpfully pointed out. “After this week she must be an expert.”

“Funny,” Callie said flatly, giving Ambria a dose of stink-eye. “On the positive side, I have learned all about how to feed and care for the Curvax and the little Korrox, though. The Herdmaster was super excited to teach me. So I’m going to call that a win, even if shoveling out the stables all week sucked. And we got one of the stalls all spruced up for Artemis and Jesca, too.”

Jesca had needed a couple days to get used to the whole Beastmaster thing, but quickly learned to understand some of her new powers. Because no one was familiar with the class, Thorn and Reynard had started to speculate, almost wildly, as to what might come at Bronze and higher tiers, with Reynard suggesting she might learn animal shapeshifting like Shamans or Druids. Thorn thought she might be able to rally armies of wildlife to serve at her command, given the name of the class. Jesca mostly groaned from the attention and concentrated on her training, seeming to be extra driven to reach Gold in Ranger, and stating she was hoping to get at least to Silver with the new class as well. Even after only a few days, she had managed to raise her Beastmaster class to IRON.281.

She and Thorn had worked closely to develop a training routine for her new Iron Tier powers, including working with the class trainers that had overlapping skills. Jesca had also received a pair of simple one-meter long whips to start learning to use. Nobody in camp knew anything about whip combat except the Herdmaster, and he enjoyed giving the Catkin some basic instruction. He admitted it was likely Jesca would soon outmatch him, since she had both a Symbiote and a class perk, and Thorn said he’d look into getting some more information for when she had reached that point if he could. As her skill improved, she was going to be provided longer whips, and Callie was eager to see what the final magical ones would be able to do once Fizzlebek completed them.

Jesca’s new Mana-Enhanced Senses perk was quite interesting. In addition to hugely amplifying her normal five senses, it also worked on other things you wouldn’t normally think about, such as minor temperature fluctuations and the ability to control her own sense of physical pain. Her Danger Sense ability seemed to broaden, providing even more of a warning and no longer being biome-restricted like the Ranger version of the perk. Even her senses of equilibrium and body position had become incredibly accurate, and she easily was able to gingerly walk tightrope-wide objects, or swing through the trees with nary a concern about falling.

What was most fascinating, though, was her sense of time. Thorn had always seemed keenly aware of the passage of time, especially as it related to things such as potion cooldowns, and now Jesca had the same ability. She could tell down to the minute, if not the second, how much time had elapsed between two events, what time of day it was without even knowing the sun position, and most anything else relating to time. Callie and the other girls had enjoyed testing the Beastmaster by marking a start time and then asking hours later how many minutes and seconds had passed, to which Jesca was able to casually rattle the answers off in return.

It took a few days, but soon all of the awe and wonder surrounding Artemis generally faded into the background as the unicorn was seen more often, and soon she became as much of a mascot for the recruits as Loki. During lunch one day, Artemis even had a fun time giving the plant-monster rides around the bleacher area, the little unicorn acting as a proud mount for the mischievous familiar. You could get a sense of what it was going to be like when Artemis was big enough for Jesca to ride, and what an imposing figure they would make together.

Like Loki, Artemis wasn’t a fan of being recalled, explaining to Jesca that she didn’t like the surprise of new surroundings when she returned. As a result, Jesca chose not to recall her at night, which proved to cause its own share of problems. The unicorn also didn’t like being alone in the stables, and ultimately, Jesca relocated her sleeping area there, rather than having Artemis break out and then kick open her cabin door again, having already done it twice during the week.

On the fashion front, Jesca’s new hat was an absolute hit, but only eventually. Jesca did hesitantly put it on when Callie gave it to her, grudgingly admitting that the sun-shielding brim was wonderful for her new heightened vision senses, but she was initially unsure about the fashion statement. However, that afternoon they were briefly hit with heavy rains, and while the other two Rangers and Vonn had to work with water in their eyes, the hats that both Callie and Jesca wore served to keep theirs clear. By the end of the week, fedoras had been requisitioned for both of the other Rangers, and they also ordered one for both Vonn and Reynard. The Foxkin scowled in general at the gift, but after finally putting it on, actually looked really great in it. Even Callie replaced her game warden hat with a fedora, the new attire now unofficially part of the camp’s Ranger uniform.

With it now being a Homeday without some kind of a crazy happening, Callie had finally come to visit Pama for the promised tea and cookies, getting permission to bring two others. Pixyl and Ambria won the drawing of straws to get to come along. Callie didn’t think she’d have the opportunity to talk about Gnomes much in an attempt to fill in her knowledge, but having her friends along for the delicious treats was wonderful.

“Your friend Jesca has some fun ideas about celebrating Midsummer,” Pama said, settling into a chair next to Ambria with a Honey Stick of her own. “Apparently she wants to do a party for Thorn?”

“Uh huh,” Callie nodded. “He reached Topaz this past Fourthday, and said he didn’t want a party. So, we outvoted him and he gets one anyway. Jesca absolutely loves Midsummer, so we turned all the planning over to her.”

“Well, she approached me briefly about food ideas, and we’re going to talk in the next day or two,” Pama said, smiling. “It won’t be a formal feast dinner, but something special all the same. I’m thinking I might even use all real ingredients if I can get enough of them. We’ll have several visitors, so even more mouths to feed, too.”

“So, what exactly happens for Midsummer?” Callie asked. “I know it’s a big holiday, but beyond that and what we’re doing for Thorn, I don’t really know what it’s about.”

“At least here, we have a big party on Midsummer night,” Pama said, “which this year will be the evening between the two days. For the other days, last year we had bonfires every night, lots of drinking and singing, and the Shamans had some Dreamers for those that wanted to drift into Nature. We even had music for that big party, with some professional musicians brought in from beyond Meadowglade. Of course, on Midsummer proper, the females also donned their masks and chose their mates for the evening and night. Very traditional, and always quite fun.”

“Wait! Chose their mates?”

Pama looked at Callie incredulously.

“Sorry, memory holes,” Callie said, pointing at her head, a confused look on her face.

“Of course, it’s a tradition. Although not everyone participates.”

Callie shook her head, the additional information not helping clear anything up.

“Almost always, it’s the males that court females,” Ambria started to clarify, “but for Midsummer, it’s the other way around. We pick our companion or mate for that night, but just for that night. Or in the case of this year, for two nights.”

“Really? What if the guy isn’t interested?” Callie asked.

“Then they politely decline and are expected to present a small gift in return,” Pama said.

“And if he accepts? He’s your … mate? Does that mean you are expected to … you know …?” She let the innuendo trail off.

Pama shrugged. “If they want, but not always. Whatever the people agree to, really.”

“They always agree,” Ambria added, waggling her eyebrows and chomping on the edge of a cookie.

Pixyl and Pama laughed at Ambria’s antics, but Callie was still trying to connect it all together.

“There has to be a story, then, if this is a tradition,” Callie finally said, throwing her hands up and needing some kind of context for the bizarre celebration. “Right?”

Pama gestured towards Ambria. “It’s a Fae story, so perhaps you tell it?”

“Sure. My grandmother used to tell me the tale when I was young.” She filled her cup and cleared her throat. “The story I was told begins like this. There was once a beautiful Fairy queen. She had no child, but she did not want the father to be someone that would only love her because she was beautiful or because she was a queen. So she wore a glamour to make herself ugly, and went to the village in disguise. Of course, no male would court her, because they found her hideous to look upon.”

“Well, that’s an awful way to start a story,” Callie mumbled.

“Don’t worry, it gets more fun,” Pama said.

“So the next night,” Ambria continued, “the Queen, still in her glamour, chose not to wait to be courted, instead boldly courting the males, asking them to bed her. Of course, they all rejected her, because she was hideous to look upon. That is until one person.”

“He said yes, then?” Callie asked.

“He also said no, but he was gracious about it. He thanked the ugly Queen for the invitation to her bed, explaining that he was betrothed. He then gifted her a braided string necklace, which was all he had to give her, as a thank you for the invitation. He told her the necklace would give her strength to keep seeking, for surely she was destined for another somewhere in the village.”

Ambria leaned forward, grabbing and crunching another Honey Stick.

“Finally, on the third day,” the Faun continued between bites, “which was the day of Midsummer, the Fairy Queen returned again. She was still in her glamour, and wearing the braided necklace around her neck to give her hope it would help her find the one she sought. She asked many more males to come to her bed, and they all said no, scoffing at her sight. Her heart breaking and nearly ready to return home alone, she approached one last person.”

“And he said yes,” Callie interrupted.

“That’s right,” Ambria nodded. “He did not care about her hideousness, and said he would bed her as she was, because he could see beauty in her heart, and that was what mattered. In the morning, her belly now filled with the gift of a child, she revealed her beauty to her companion and showed him that she was a queen. And depending on the story, she asked him to be her king and they lived happily ever after with their new child, or she gave him a magical sword and they went their separate ways. I like the first one.”

“So the tradition is,” Pama continued, “we make silly and hideous masks and ask a male to be our mate, or companion. If he says yes, then you reveal yourself. If he declines, he must do so graciously, and present you a gift. Of course with so few people here, everyone knows who’s asking, but it’s still a tradition.”

“The day before Midsummer, all of the females that wish get together to make our masks,” Ambria continued. “We’ll drink and sing and eat and have a fun time, with prizes for those with the most-ugly masks. The males do the same thing, gathering to make silly gifts of string and beads and cloth and such. On the day of Midsummer, we don our masks to seek our mates. If they say yes, then it's an evening and night of whatever we would agree to, or two of them this year. In the morning you part ways.” Ambria then winked, “Truthfully, most people arrange their pairing in advance, but the morning and early afternoon of gracious rejections and gifts are a big part of the tradition.”

“Midsummer is how Fizzle and I met,” Pama smirked. ”I had known him for many months, but he never would court me. Apparently he found me intimidating. I finally had to do it for him. He’s never left my bed since that night, except when it was Midsummer and he was asked by others.”

“Married couples participate, too?” Callie asked

“If they wish,” Pama shrugged. “It is often considered a way to … break the monotony of the marriage bed one might say. We stopped doing that a decade ago, though. Instead, every year, I put on a hideous mask and ask Fizzle myself. He likes to say no the first time, sometimes coming up with the most wonderful or funny rejections, so he can give me a gift he made. I usually make two masks, and will go back with the second later, to ask again. I really do love his silly little games,” Pama winked.

“My parents do something similar,” Ambria said. “Making two masks, that is.”

“I bet Ambria gets t-t-two or three people to say yes every year,” Pixyl teased. “Or more.”

Ambria choked on her tea, swinging her eyes to the Pixie. “Who told you about that!” she gasped, feigning that some secret had been given away. “Actually, I’ve only been old enough for a few years, anyway,” she then added with a smirk.

That elicited a round of laughter, while Pama refreshed the snacks and tea, Callie wondering if Ambria was actually being serious.

“All the guys participate then?” Callie asked. “How would you know who it’s okay to ask?”

“They will wear a red piece of cloth on their arm to show that they are not participating,” Pama said. “If they have already said yes to someone, or arranged in advance, they would wear a blue cloth, so people can still collect rejection gifts from them and not feel sad for being rejected.”

“Ambria would end up with the most gifts,” Pixyl snickered, continuing to give the Faun grief.

“I … will not comment,” Ambria replied coyly, blushing furiously.

“Has anyone caught your eye?” Pama asked the Faun curiously.

Ambria hid behind her tea. “There are a couple people I’m thinking about asking.”

“Oooo! Who?” Callie asked, fishing for the details. “I mean, Kaisess isn’t here to sleep with again, so who’s next?”

“The injured Tigerkin?” Pama laughed.

The Faun rolled her eyes. “It was therapy!”

“Therapy. Uh huh,” Callie said, deadpan, absolutely not buying the defense. “So who’s next on your list? Moka?”

Ambria shrugged, then looked at the Gnome teasingly, “Mayyybeee,” she said, dragging the word out. “But what about you, Callie? Who have you noticed?”

“Well until now I didn’t know about this tradition. Honestly, I haven’t been worried about dating, or even hooking up, so I haven't been checking anyone out. But a girls’ afternoon of drinking and doing arts-and-crafts sounds like a blast! I’ll definitely do that!”

“What about you, Pixyl,” Pama asked.

Pixyl blushed, glancing at Callie as she pushed her hair back behind her ear. She deflated, seeming defeated, unable to say anything. “N-N-Nobody,” she eventually managed to whisper.

Callie grabbed her friend around the shoulder with one arm, pulling her close in a rough hug. “Don’t worry, Pixyl. We’ll find someone for you.” With a look of someone on a mission, she looked at Ambria. “Hear that? Let’s focus on finding the right guy for Pixyl.”

Pixyl blushed, glancing at Callie again. “N-N-No, don’t worry about it. I don’t think I’ll p-p-participate.”

“Aww,” Callie said disappointed. “Well, if you change your mind, let us know. We’ll get you hooked up.”

The conversation continued for a while, changing topics to the state of each recruit’s current training and how it was going for each of them. Pixyl was obviously relieved at the new discussion, and talked about how she was working with Olin to further refine her sword skills and break old habits that had resurfaced during the Firstday Demon demonstration. She was also working with some of the other Bladeweavers directly, as essentially an assistant trainer, given her expertise with the low-level Demons. Callie only kept half an ear on the talking, though, occasionally looking out the window and seeing Fizzlebek still puttering away with whatever he was working on.

“Hey,” Callie said, seeming a little down. “I’m going to go talk to Fizzlebek for a little while. You two stay here and enjoy the treats. I’ll be back in a bit.”

“Here,” Pama said, moving some of the desserts around to clear a plate and then setting a trio of Honey Sticks on it. She waggled her fingers, turning the three into twelve. “Take these with you. The way to his heart is through his stomach.”

“Thanks,” Callie said, picking up the plate. “I’ll be back in a little while.”

Pixyl watched Callie walk through the door and close it gently behind her. Her friend had mentioned earlier in the week that she had a feeling Fizzlebek was mad at her, and once she confided what she had actually done for Rowani and Maugra, Pixyl understood why the Enchanter might be angry. But still, he was one of the only Gnomes she knew, and Pixyl hated to see that bond being stressed.

Callie’s pink hair appeared through the window, approaching the blue-green of Fizzlebek’s. To Pixyl’s relief, the older Gnome eventually took the treats and then gave Callie a hug, but at the same time it didn’t seem as enthusiastic as it had been in the past. If anyone could repair the relationship, though, it was Callie. She was so wonderful with people.

“Hey, Pixyl, wake up!” Ambria said, snapping her fingers. “I asked if you wanted more tea. What were you staring at?”

“Huh? What?” The Pixie said, refocusing her attention back to where she was, before embarrassingly looking at the floor. “No, I’m f-f-fine.”

Ambria glanced out the window, seeing Callie, and then back to Pixyl. She frowned for a moment, and then her face suddenly seemed to have a revelation, as if putting several final pieces of a puzzle together. She privately made a heart shape with her hands towards Pama, and then subtly wagged a finger several times, pointing between Pixyl and Callie outside, raising her eyebrows in a questioning expression.

Pama seemed to consider for a brief moment, and then smirked, nodding her head.

“May I ask you a question, Pixyl?” Ambria asked.

“Hmmm?” Pixyl said, barely hearing the Faun, her eyes drawn out the window where Callie was chatting with Fizzlebek. She hoped things were going well. The conversation looked tense, but at least cordial. Still, she was worried.

Ambria smirked, clearing her throat slightly before slowly asking, “Tell me, Pixyl. How long have you been in love with Callie?”

Pixyl shrugged absently, still focused on Callie and Fizzlebek’s body language. “Three w-w-weeks. Since that first night here.”

It took a long heartbeat, but then the Pixie gasped, eyes suddenly shooting wide as she suddenly realized what she’d just said.